SO TINY and yet.......

In the last couple of days Jordan has had as many ticks on him.  This is my 1st dealings of the little critters since we have been here and although these and similar critters normally have me itching all over and convinced that I have them on me everywhere, it is amazing how you deal with them bravely and confidently without hesitation when it is connected with your child.  I am slowly learning about all the things that come with living in the country - big, long and small!!

The 1st was on Jordan's leg and was a black dot in the middle of a raised lump - I thought it could have been a tick but wasn't completely sure so decided to treat it with 1 drop of Purification Essential Oil to draw out whatever it was and I then  put some raw honey on a band aid and covered with a bandage.  The next morning it was looking a lot better but the black dot was still there and as Jordan would not let me touch it I put another drop of Purification Essential Oil, 1 drop of Thieves Essential Oil which is an antiseptic,  some more honey and covered it with a bandage again telling him that if it wasn't out by that evening we would have to try and get it out.   That evening the black dot was gone and the lump was almost gone.  After chatting to a couple of friends sounds like it was definitely a tick.

2nd tick attached itself to Jordan's arm and this time it was trying to burrow itself in - Jordan thought it was a spider because it had 8 legs.  I put a drop of Purification Essential Oil on it and then pulled it out with tweezers - how can something so small (approx 1mm) cause so much pain.  The spot was red and it was still hurting so I decided to use 1 drop of Panaway Essential Oil for the pain after his bath to which he started to have a reaction and was crying his little heart out.  Thankfully after smothering his arm in Olive Oil to dilute the Essential Oil the pain subsided along with the tears.

The 1st tick bite developed a pimple like middle to it but after some more honey is now nearly completely better and the 2nd tick bite is almost completely healed.

Jordan for his part decided he is not going to play at the bottom of the park in the trees for the moment and I  am just so glad that we have natural remedies that I can use that work to deal with these little critters!  For something so tiny, they can certainly cause a lot of hassle and pain!!

ESSENTIAL OILS

  

TIPS FOR CHOOSING QUALITY ESSENTIAL OILS

How do you know if the Essential Oil you buy is a high quality pure essential oil?  This is a good question and one that is not easily answered although I will list some tips that can help.

• Avoid oils with the words "fragrance oil" or "perfume oil".  Generally these words indicate that the they are not a pure single essential oil and can be a combination of essential oils and chemicals or just a mixture of chemicals.
  
• Although an oil may be labelled as a "pure essential oil" it can still have be distilled from a poor quality crop, distilled using chemicals or have been sitting on a shelf for years, so this label doesn't always mean you are getting a high quality essential oil.
• Questions:  Are the oils tested?     Are the oils from the 1st distillation?     Does the distillation process use chemicals to extract the oil?     What temperatures are the oils distilled at (the lower the temperature the more oil that is extracted and the higher the quality of the oil).
• Always look for essential oils in dark coloured glass bottles.  Clear glass can allow light to damage the essential oils. Some oils are sold in aluminum bottles. Aluminum is said to be acceptable if the inside of the bottle is lined although I would personally avoid these.
• Essential Oils should never be stored in plastic bottles as essential oils can dissolve the plastic and in turn contaminate the essential oil.
• The price of essential oils should vary depending on which oil you are buying. For instance Jasmine, Rose should cost a lot more than Ylang Ylang.   The basic citrus oils such as lemon, orange and grapefruit are normally some of the least expensive oils.
• Something to remember is that when buying Eucalyptus there will be different qualities depending on whether it comes from the 1st distillation process or a later one.  Generally you can get a lesser quality Eucalyptus from the Supermarket which is great for using around the house but I would not use it for Therapeutic requirements.

I generally try and research the company that I am going to buy my Essential Oils from and send them emails with any questions you have.  Their response will also give you an insight as to what their customer service is like.

These days the only Essential Oils that I will use therapeutically is "Young Living".  This is actually an American company with the founder Gary Young  living in Ecuador but they do have Australian and Canadian Offices.  Although these oils are sold under a networking system which I don't particulary like and  I do not sell the oils as a business, I use the oils because the quality is far superior to any others I have used.  When I use these oils I am confident that I am using a "pure" essential oil that has been harvested from the highest quality plants and know that it has been distilled at a lower temperature to ensure a high quality essential oil. 

The results and benefits I have personally seen from the use of  these oils speak for themselves and although they are more expensive than other Essential Oils, in my opinion they are far superior and worth every cent.

A rule I used when teaching Baby Massage was "If you won't eat it, don't use it on your baby" because they will.  I now follow that rule for everything in my life and will not put anything on my skin or that of my child's that I wouldn't personally eat.

If anyone is interested in finding out more about Young Living Essential Oils click HERE for the website or alternatively you can leave a comment with any questions and I will answer them to the best of my ability.

Melanie you can reach me here:  j9turner at gmail.com, if you ever want to contact me

I LOVE my Essential Oils

My new First Aid Kit

Last night Jordan starting coughing after he had gone to bed.  When Jordan starts coughing we have to get onto it straight away or it very quickly develops into croup or goes down into his chest - his lungs are getting stronger every year but it is just one of those things we deal with.

He was so tired and all he wanted to do was go back to sleep (but couldn't because he kept coughing continuously) and didn't want Daddy to press any meridian points.  I had given him his cough mixture but this time it didn't seem to have any long term effect so I got him to sniff some Cypress Essential Oil - a bit of an improvement but not much.  My first choice was Peppermint but how was I  going to get him to accept 1 drop in his mouth - solution - whilst making up a honey & water drink which he loves, I put in a drop of Peppermint Essential Oil and he drank it all up.

I swear, within 2 minutes the coughing had halved and within 10-15 mins he was fast asleep.

I love love love my Essential Oils, they really are the best on the market that I have found.

RAINDROP TECHNIQUE

Yesterday I spent the day learning the "Raindrop Massage" technique. I found out about this technique when I attended a Young Living Essential Oil Playshop and instantly felt this was for me. Well after attending the course yesterday I am even more passionate about it. The technique brings together all the elements of essential oils and massage I love - nurturing, healing, relaxing and allowing the space for personal & spiritual journey's. I just love it. When I got home, Jordan was really excited to see me and instantly went into hyper mode. After dinner we went for a walk/run up the street on a Treasure Hunt and although that got rid of some of his excess energy he still had plenty left. Bedtime had arrived and with still plenty of energy, I decided to practice my newly acquired skill of a "Valour Balance" on him. I could hardly believe the results - Jordan was peacefully asleep within 10 minutes of completing the balance. I am definately taking my oils to America!

LAVENDER ESSENTIAL OIL

On Sunday Jordan fell in the pool - he missed the corner and fell onto the top step. Other than some grazes and a bit of a shock he is fine and back to swimming in the pool. Anyway the reason for sharing this is I put some Lavender Essential Oil from my new stash on his grazes to promote the healing process which lavender does so well. The main graze on his elbow was starting to swell and quite sore and stingy as grazes usually are (more painful than deep cuts). While I was at it, I decided to put some on the remaining discloration of a burn I received on my stomach back in December from a cup of boiling hot peppermint tea. The burn has healed amazingly well and there is only some discoloration left but I decided the Lavender Oil couldn't do any harm. Well I am blown away, the discoloration has faded 1/2 again in 1 day. If I hadn't seen this myself I would not have believed it. The discoloration is so light you really can hardly see it. You hear all these amazing stories about the oils I have obtained and although I believe them seeing for yourself really has no substitute. I LOVE these oils and cant wait until I can add to my collection. Warning: My understanding is as a general rule you should not put Lavender oil directly onto any burn as if there are any chemicals in the Essential Oil they will only make the burn worse and you will not be able to alleviate the burn with water. The Essential Oils I have obtained are distilled without chemicals and are of the highest quality herbs. By the way, Jordan's grazes are also doing really well. All the swelling disappeared by the following morning and they have all dried up.

MY WEEKEND

My Essentials Oils arrived - I am so sooo excited

A quiet moment relaxing with a cuppa by the pool

A good candidate for the Nudist Colony
Jordan's clothes have been off more than on this summer

Supervising the lighting of the Weber for Nanny and Ba's
"Gormet" evening
followed by a Birthday Celebration on Saturday for
  Mummy




Very spoilt - thankyou Craig, Cheryl, Kristy, Kris,
 Nancy,Tim, Gabe and Anna

Being very spoilt again by Faye and Ian






A lovely evening with delicious food The clothes came off again

and it was time to play in the pool
I did get togs and hat on this time though as the sun was too hot

Pure Indulgence
enjoying leftover Mouse from Saturday night
Faye makes the BEST chocolate mouse


and finally, finishing off a very busy weekend with a birthday party on Sunday