Coconut Oil

I cannot remember what came first, the craving of coconut with my third pregnancy (three guesses why that baby is nick named Macaroon.) or the Pinterest education of Coconut oil. Well, not matter the truth is I LOVE COCONUT OIL!

Do you? I remember back in my tanning days slathering on Hawaiian Sun tanning lotion and LOVING the smell of coconut. Come to think of it, with each pregnancy I desired coconut smelling lotions. Hmmm interesting.... Anyway! Doesn't the smell of it transport you someplace tropical? Forget that the most tropical places I have ever been is the Disney Land area and Treasure Island Hotel in Las Vegas. No matter, when I put on that lotion I can imagine white sandy beaches, crashing waves and warm sun!

Back to coconut oil, my new body "lotion".

So here I am in the locker room post work out and shower slathering myself in coconut oil. (I keep baby food jar full of it in my gym bag.) so I am dipping into my mysterious jar of lotion and this beautiful gal, in broken English, asks me "what is that lotion, it smells so good". Do y'all know how much I wish I got commission on this stuff? I don't but I will gladly pass on my love of it to you if you let me. (Oh....but I do get cash back when I shop at Trader Joes!)

What I use coconut oil for.
Moisturizer my face and body.
Slather it on my babies post bath time, they smell extra yummy!
Treat razor burn.
Diaper cream.
My husband and son use it as hair product. My daughter tries the same, but her hair is too fine.
I use it in place of butter on pancakes, French toast and breads.
Roast carrots, sweet potatoes or other yellow roasting squash.
Baking.
In my hot cereal.
To make chocolate candy.
Oil pulling.
Sunscreen.
Massage oil
And...well, I find new uses for it every day. You can check out my Pinterest board for more ideas.

Got to buzz, family will be back soon and I need to get some stuff done while little ones are out of the house.
-K

Busy Being Still

I'm sitting at my dinning table tapping away at my iPad's onscreen keyboard with two fingers,(missing how swift my fingers really move when my desktop is working) listening to my baby Macaroon not want to take his afternoon nap while the other two are falling asleep to a mom approved show on Netflix and thinking of my list of things I need to be doing.

I have a fair amount of blogs planned for the rest of this month of fun things to share, good deals to be had and just life.  But they are going to need to wait another day. Right now I am going to go practice Being Still and go snuggle with my little Pastries.

The next Make Your Home a Haven Challenge is all about family time. Well mine are a little too little for full on "family night" but they are not too little to need some more of mommy time. So I am taking the challenge in my own special way of finding moments to just BE with them. Right now that means mommy gets a much needed quiet time break with them.

Got to buzz, my kids need ME!
-K

My Home, My Purpose: A Challenge

As y'all know I am on the search for less "busy" in my life and more living on purpose with a purpose. You know, we all have one right? And it's not just to change diapers, do the dishes, file the papers or punch the clock. But what is my purpose you might ask? I believe we have more then one. And I believe that when we live each day spending time with the Holy Spirit that He will guide us  flat out tell us what we should be doing. Now I'm not trying to be weirdo spiritual, I'm not saying I should stand in the kitchen and wait for Him to tell me to clean the kitchen so I can make dinner. Wisdom tells me that I need to clean the kitchen so I can make dinner. And I'm not saying I should not change the diaper until He tells me to. I can see smell feel the leaking diaper that tells me to change it.

But when I tune in, when I am not busy being busy I can hear Him during the day say to me "Pumpkin needs more hugs." "Your Honey needs you to  encourage him right now." "Your friend that you have not talked to in years needs you to call her." "No, your are not going to send him to that amazing school, you are going to home school."... and so much more. I think it's in those moments that I not only hear Him, but obey that I can say "this is my purpose".

I also know that my role as wife and mother and homemaker and...well some other irons I have in the fire are His purpose for me too. And because of that I am, like any great artist or craftsman, looking to hone my skills. To learn more, improve upon, or as the US Army says "Be all that you can be". (Do they still say that or is my age showing?)

Well, one of those areas I have been working on is the environment of my home. And I am so excited to find a great resource to share with you Making Your Home a Haven Week 1 a fall challenge from the gals over at Women Living Well. It just started this week and I would love y'all to take the challenge with me.

Got to buzz, I forgot to light my candle.
-K

I just got the best deal... Part 3 THE BEST DEAL!

Who has a yard sale in October? Apparently we do! And not just any sale, but a $1 sale. A what? Well, you have heard of Dollar Tree or The Dollar Store right? Well we marked everything at our yard sale $1 or less. Did we take a loss on some things? Yes, but you know what? We sold a bunch of stuff we most likely would not have otherwise....all things considered I'm pretty sure we came out on top.

But you know what deal I was most excited about? Sharing with one of the customers how they could also get free mobile service. This is how the exchange went.
Customer: (picking up a home phone) Does this work?
My husband: Yep, we just don't need it anymore. We get free mobile service.
Customer: That would be nice.
Me: You can too.
Customer: !!!!????!!!!

And now don't you want to know how to get free too?

Now before you start thinking this is some small, local coverage, no frill plan....it's not! It's over 300,000 members in a little over one year. Solavei uses T-Mobiles national network. It is UNLIMITED talk, text and 4G! It is all for only $49 a month.

Wait, what about the free? Simple, remember how you already have already been sharing deals and your special referral links with your friends? Yep, referral! When three people sign up at your special link you get $20 every month loaded onto your very own cash card...EVERY MONTH. But wait there is more (I know, sounding like an infomercial aren't I.) but there IS MORE. Every time three more people sign up at your special link you get another $20!

Now before you start thinking "this is one of those companies" or you think it sounds too good to be true, let me tell you more. Well, let our friend Jay-Jay Jagelka tell you more because he says it perfectly. 

"Just to clarify, Solavei is not a Network Marketing company or an MLM or anything like that. Solavei is an amazing savings and rewards program that saves you tons of money on products and services you are already using such as Mobile service, cable TV, Internet, gas, electricity and so on. There is no investment to become a Solavei member other than choosing to save with one of their money-saving services such as Mobil service. Most people become a Solavei member simply to save money and that's it. Others choose to share the savings program with others. The more you share the greater the Solavei rewards. You can even be rewarded with free service for the rest of your life for simply sharing Solavei savings with others. There is no selling involved at all. You can even get significant cash back each time you shop at places you already shop at daily such as Target, Subway and Starbucks just to name a few. There are way too many stores participating to even begins to tell you."

We started using this service and in less then 3 months my husband had over $1000 a month being loaded onto his card and its grown since then. AND I'm not too far behind. AND all that was before they started the cash back at retailers. And Jay-Jay was right about significant. How does 15% back at Starbucks sound? I know some of y'all could make some bank with your coffee addiction.

My husband phrases it this way. "Solavei members get as much as 10% and 20% cash back when they use their Solavei card to pay. This is on top of any other discount you might already be getting. So if you spend 300-500 a month at on stuff like Subway and Starbucks, do your shopping at stores like Old Navy and Walmart, extra. We are talking just your normal spending habits you'd get enough money back to pay for your mobile service. "

Like a said, THE BEST DEAL EVER! Check out the Solavei Marketplace video at Solavei or message me directly and I can give you more information. I would love y'all to be saving and even making as much as we are!

-Got to buzz, I have a date with cash back at Starbucks today.
-K

Reflecting on That Thyroid Thing

I love how God works things out for me. It always seems that when I'm dealing with or about to deal with a particular challenge He has already given me tools to prepare for it. Case in point, my thyroid.

In the weeks leading up to my O.B. discovering that lump, as a couple and in church we had been studying God's word about healing and had been reading a lot of Charles Capps. I had also started following one of my now favorite bloggers Naturally Knocked Up who was posting about THYROID! She has been a great resource and I strongly suggest following her for more then just thyroid or fertility health. She is a wealth of information! And to get your hands on Charles Capps teachings, it is life changing!

About a month after the complex cyst (cancer free by the way) was removed and had my final post-op with my ENT and received the official all clear but would need to follow up with an endocrinologist to keep an eye on my T Levels and all that jazz. So what did that mean? Thyroid "supplements' for the rest of my life? According to the doctor most likely. However even with the supplements I was STILL having symptoms. So what do I do about that?

I kept it in prayer, because He if my Great Physician. But I also looked into and continue to look at all ways of healing myself. In that search I have discovered a wealth of information about other who have managed to get off medications and heal their body naturally.

I choose, after much research and doing an elimination diet, that going gluten, corn and mostly grain free was the best choice for me. Cutting back on artificial sugars helps too. So much so that when I am good with my eating I have NO hypothyroid symptoms. (Remember, I was still having them even while taking medication.) Oh and my doctors even removed me from thyroid meds. Woohoo! I will still keep an eye on this are and I have more health changes to try but I am pushing them off until after I'm done breastfeeding Macaroon.

Another positive, since that cyst was removed I've pretty much gotten my old "before kids" metabolism back and the extra pounds I have been carrying around have been melting off. Yes!! Plus I will admit, this "angry red line" on my neck isn't nearly as bad as the first ENT made it sound like it would be. Or even how it looked like it would be in those first few weeks. I know, it's vain. But hey, it is what it is.

Got to buzz, time to start school.
-K

I just got the best deal...Part 2

So I am a big fan of shopping discount stores that sell NEW designer brands, so how great are these new lines of online retailers that offer me those same great deals all from the comfort of my own home. In other words no need to drag the kids along with me while I'm searching out a great deal. Add the fact that these retailers also give me "store credit" by sharing them, we'll folks its a no brainer these guys deserve my business and yours. Start shopping now and maybe you will even have all your Christmas shopping done by Thanksgiving and have savings left to buy yourself something nice.

Zulily

They have new deals just about every day and I always find the best deals on toys! Really, they just have great deals across the board! You can shop by category: Girls, Boys, Women, Baby & Maternity, Home and Toys & Playtime or you can shop by "stores". 

Here is how it works. Sign up at this link Zulily
Register for FREE so Zulily can negotiate the best deals to pass on to you.
Shop super deals.
Share your special link with friends via email, Facebook or Twitter and earn shopping credit!

Gilt

Shopping Gilt is like getting to walk into stores I wouldn't dream of taking my 5 and under crowd even on their very best behaved day.  New inventory all the time for women, men, children and home. They even have a city category that you can select local deals like food tours, spa treatments and adventures! Ah, so fun!

Here is how it works. Sign up at this link Gilt

Register for FREE.

Shop super deals.
Share your special link with friends via email, Facebook or Twitter and earn shopping credit!

Do you know of other retailers that do this? I would love to sign up at your link! Please leave your link and why they are a great place to shop in the comments below.


Got to buzz, I hear Zumba and my little girl calling my name!
-K

Why I love social media.

Wanna know what I miss about "going to work"? Getting to talk with other adults! Yep, that is pretty much it. I think that is one of the reasons I love this whole social media thing, y'all are my water cooler! The place I can go and interact with other grown ups in the middle of the day. Don't get me wrong, there is no other place I would rather be then at home with my kids. Plus I realize that this "little kid" season is so short and will be gone before I know it and I will have "more time" for grown up relationships. But grown up relationships are vital to my mommy sanity!

Mommy sanity. You have heard of it right? Alright so maybe more often we hear of Mommy Insanity, but lets try to focus on the good. Lets take a look at some of the ways I keep my mommy sanity.

I turn on Pandora and rock out to some of my favorite jams and sing like I'm with the band. (The baby things mom is very talented!)
I take part in a daily women's Bible study group online: Good Morning Girls
I turn on YouTube and Zumba with my kids.
I check out chic-lit from the library.
I DVR my favorite shows and stream them to my tablet when the tv is otherwise occupied.
I brew and drink multiple cups of caffeinated tea in the morning and herbal in the afternoon.
I Facebook.

I Pintrest.
I follow blogs.
I email.
Sometimes I even get a phone call with my BFF, but mostly we text.
We have play dates.
I day dream.
I write.
I blog.

Now the next question, when do I have time  for all these "mommy sanity moments"? All day long! It is in between morning snuggles and breakfast, getting dressed and lessons, chores and play, bedtime stories and kisses that I find my moments. Do I ever feel like I am neglecting my kids to this "social media" eh, sometimes. You know what, sometimes I get lost in my book or day dreaming. And sometimes I put marshmallows in their oatmeal and let them eat ice cream for dinner too. And you know what else? I am still a great mom with amazing kids and they are great kids with an amazing mom.

Got to buzz, watching Shark Tank with my Honey.
-K