Tag: apple cider vinegar

Essential Oils Recipes The Life I Live

Taking a Bath with Essential Oils

How do you get skin care and relaxation, all in one? Take an essential oils bath, of course!

You skin is your largest organ. Acting as a sponge, it absorbs whatever it comes in contact with. Because your skin is susceptible to all the elements, you have to make sure to consider it. Also, let this remind you to use quality products.

One of my favorite ways to care for my skin is through essential oil baths. They are easy to prepare and relaxing. Plus, your skin sits and soaks in the goodness. (Get it, bath..soak? LOL) This is how.

How to Prepare an Essential Oils Bath

1. Draw a bath of warm, and NOT hot (this detail is most important,) water.

2. Using a mason jar or glass measuring container, add two cups of Epsom salt. To the salt, add your oils. I like to use a combination of the following oils:

  • Frankincense 5 dropsIMG_20171005_080104
  • Copaiba 10 drops
  • Lavender 10 drops
  • Tea Tree 10 drops
  • Peppermint 2 drops

Figure out what you like best or what works best for your skin, and use those. You can essentially add any you want, just be careful of the citrus and photosensitive oils if you plan to be out in the sun.

3. And lastly, for love of skin, (and not the smell of it,) I add about a cup of Apple Cider Vinegar to the bath water. ACV is very acidic and helps your skins pH, among other things.

4. Soak 20-30 minutes to reap the benefits.

5. Finish with lotion

  • apply a high-quality lotion

Quality refers to the ingredients, so the more natural, the better. You want lotions to list no-parabens and no dyes.  If you can, use completely natural sources to take the guess work out of making sure you’ve got the good stuff.

Coconut oil is an amazing moisturizer. A little goes a long way, so use it sparingly, until you’re used to it. Other oils like jojoba, sweet almond, avocado oil, and others work much the same way.

Self-care using quality ingredients are vital to feel your best. Check out the links below for my everyday, wellness book and some of my favorite, natural products.

This lotion I love!

Apple Cider Vinegar is awesome for your skin and also to cook with!

For oils, I use Young Living Essential Oils. If you want to order through me, let me know in the comments.

Disclaimer: I use Young Living Essential Oils and based on my research, I believe these are the best, safest, and most pure oils on the market. PLEASE do your own research and determine which oils are best for you and your family. 

The Life I Live

My 5 Favorite Natural Ways To Get Un-Sick and Quick!

‘Tis the season and whether you live in Northern WI or Southern FL, sickness always seems to accompany the holidays. Everyone has a passed down remedy for a sore throat or a cure all food to ward off a cold. These are usually things from your childhood that lapse into adulthood until they can be given to the next generation. Along with these come your own practices to get well.

When I woke up yesterday feeling under the weather, I found myself doing what I always do and I wanted to share those things with you:

Tea

Black tea or green tea with a pinch of cinnamon, cayenne pepper, some honey and fresh lemon. Speaking of lemon..

img_20161111_101433Lemon

Lemon. And more lemon. On everything. In everything. Lemons have antibacterial and antifungal properties making fresh lemon juice the stuff of health.

Essential Oil Bath

I love a bath anyhow but there is nothing like slipping your sore and achy sick body into the warmth and stillness of a bath. There are typically three things I add to a bath:

Apple Cider Vinegar- Good for your skin health including balancing the pH and killing the fungus and bacteria on your skin

Epsom salt- Also good for your skin and helps soothe sore muscles (great for the fitness lover in me=)

Essential Oils- I love Young Living Essential oils for everything in life, especially the bath.

Tea Tree Oil contains antibacterial, antimicrobial, antiseptic and antiviral properties and is gentle on your skin. I added Lavender and Stress Away (my favorite blend!) as well.

Tip: Add the oil drops to your salt before adding to the bath water, this ensures the oils won’t bother your skin. (I’ve never had a problem adding the oils on top of the water but you can never be sure)

Water

We all know that drinking water is as important to life as breathing. 55-60% of an adults body is made up of water. When you’re sick, staying hydrated will make you feel better and keep things moving as well.

No Sick  Soup

You didn’t think you’d get through this without a recipe, did you? Haha. This is my “No Sick Soup.”  Made with fresh vegetables, fresh garlic and chicken broth, this soup is calming and filled with goodness.

No Sick Soupimg_20161110_154516

  • 1 baking potato, washed and sliced
  • 1/2 red onion, chopped
  • 1 carrot, sliced
  • 1 stalk of celery, diced
  • 5 cloves of garlic, sliced
  • 1 1/2 cups of chicken stock

Add everything in a medium sized saucepan over medium heat and simmer for about 30 minutes or until you can easily insert a fork into each type of vegetable. Scoop into bowls and add fresh pepper and a pinch of salt. Enjoy and feel better!

Feeling sick is a pain and will slow you down for sure. Make sure to rest when you need it and fuel up on nutritious and healthy foods and drinks so that you can feel better fast!

 

 

 

 

 

Recipes

Crispy Chicken Wings With Spicy Buffalo Sauce, Garlic Sauce and Orange Chicken Sauce (Paleo)

Happy National Chicken Wing Day! To celebrate, use my Crispy Chicken Wings  recipe to bake your wings to perfection and add one of my favorite sauces to finish them off!

Crispy Chicken Wings20160729_150650

  • 10 chicken wings
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp salt

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees and cover a cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Place a metal drying rack on the baking sheet.

Combine ingredients in a plastic bag or mixing bowl and make sure that all the chicken is well coated with the mixture. Cook in the oven for 30 minutes.

Take the wings out of the oven and raise the temperature to 425. Cook an additional 40-50 minutes in the oven.

Coat the wings in your favorite sauce and enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Sauce

  • 2 tablespoons cayenne pepper
  • 1 teaspoon oregano
  • 1 teaspoon cumin powder
  • 1 teaspoon chili pepper
  • 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
  • 5 tablespoons water

Make sure to thoroughly combine the ingredients (to disperse the cayenne pepper) in a large bowl. Coat your wings and serve.

Garlic Sauce

  • 20 cloves of garlic
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon pepper
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3 tablespoons butter

Completely de skin and peel the garlic, place into an oven safe container and add your olive oil, salt and pepper. Bake in the oven, covered with aluminum foil, at 325 for about an hour or until the garlic is roasted and soft in texture.

Take out of the oven and mash up the garlic mixture with a fork. Add in the butter, combine with the wings and serve.

Orange Chicken Sauce

  • 5 tablespoons orange juice
  • 1 tablespoons honey
  • ¼ teaspoon ground ginger powder
  • ¼ teaspoon cayenne
  • ½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar
  • ⅛ teaspoon sesame oil
  • ½ teaspoon ground garlic powder
  • 2-3 tablespoons sesame seeds

Mix the ingredients in a bowl until well incorporated. Toss the wings in the sauce bowl and serve.

Chicken wings are easy and so versatile. With endless flavors and even more dipping options, they can’t be beat.