Trees!

      With Arbor Day this week I thought I would highlight a couple of oils that were specifically from trees. I wanted to make sure that Arbor Day wasn't some strange holiday, so I did a little research into it. It all started with a man named Morton, who went to the Nebraska Territory in 1854. At that time there was not enough trees in the area to provide a wind block to protect the crops nor enough trees to provide fuel. Morton loved trees and nature, and he had a lot of influence in his town. He used his passion and his influence to dedicate one whole day a year to planting trees in his community, and soon there was plenty of trees to go around. Before long it became a national and international holiday. I had a hard time deciding what oils to highlight for this article, but I decided on Idaho Blue Spruce Essential Oil, Pine Essential Oil and Balsam Fir Essential Oil.

         Idaho Blue Spruce Essential Oil relieves tension headaches, migraine headaches and relieves tense and sore muscles. The Idaho Blue Spruce is a native to, well, Idaho. It is a beautiful tree, it's pictured below.

        Pine Essential Oil is great for fighting bronchitis, arthritis, asthma, throat and lung infection, urinary tract infections and is a great bug repellent. Not only that but it smells great! Pine trees are pretty common so I won't post a picture of one.

                                                   

         The last oil we will look at today is Balsam Fir Essential Oil. It is a great defense against coughs and colds, sinus infections, bronchitis, asthma, inflammation and urinary tract infections.

I was curious about what a Balsam Fir Tree looked like and as soon as I pulled up a picture of one I recognized it immediately. It's your typical Christmas tree. It looks like a giant green pom pom.

      I have been attempting to grow my own trees this year, not intentionally for Arbor Day, but so far they have done really well. They are Oak Trees. I was doing yard work for someone and I found 2 acorns that had already started growing roots, but hadn't stuck in the ground yet so I took them home and have been growing them every since. It has been lot's of fun to watch them grow.

      If you are interested in any of these oils or in any of Young Living's other products check out their  website. If you like what you see and wish to order, click on the Member Sign-up button at the top of the page and enter my member number into the enrolled and sponsor # slots. (My number is 1564241.) This Saturday, April 26th at 2:30pm I am hosting a Soap Making with Essential Oils event. If you are interested in coming or would like to come to other events check out my Facebook Page for updates. 

      What's your favorite tree?

Soli Deo Gloria! 

The Easter Season Part 2

      I had such a hard time thinking about what I wanted to write about for part 2 in my Easter Series. But as we approach  Easter Sunday, I started getting super excited. The reason is that it's a wonderful time to think about what God has done for us. It's amazing that He sent his Son to earth as a baby to die for our sins. He chose the most horrific death, and took sin upon Himself for our sake.

This was so terrifying for Him, because He had never sinned and He had never been separated from God. As part of my Easter Season Series, I am going to mention more oils that Jesus used during His ministry on earth. The oil that I will be highlighting this time is Myrrh.

          Myrrh was one of the gifts from the wise men to baby Jesus. It was also given to Him in a mixture with wine as He was dying on the cross.

"And they compelled a passerby, Simon of Cyrene, who was coming in from the country, the father of Alexander and Rufus, to carry his cross. And they brought him to the place called Golgotha (which means Place of a skull). And they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. And they crucified him."
                            ~Mark 15:21-24

Now myrrh essential oil is used to protect and heal against infection, it fights bronchitis, chapped skin, wrinkles, supports the immune system, and it's a bug repellent. Mary most likely knew this about myrrh and would have used it accordingly. In light of what it does, I don't know why the Roman Soldiers would give it to Him with wine, unless they wanted more of a show or something.  I know it doesn't work that fast, but it still seems odd to give it to someone who is about to be crucified.
         I am so grateful for what Jesus did on the cross for you and me! I am not worthy of such a gift. He died for our sins and was raised on the third day and lives today. The tomb is empty. He is risen indeed! What a great and loving God we serve! He didn't have to save us, we certainly don't deserve it.

 

           If you are interested in myrrh or in Young Living's other fabulous products go to their website. And if you decide to order click on the Member Sign up button at the top of the page and enter my member # in the enroller and sponsor # slots. (My member # is 1564241.) Also I am hosting a Soap Making event on the 26th of April and would love for you to join us. If you are interested in this event check out my Facebook Page for more information. There is a lot of fun stuff on the Facebook page like events, giveaways and much more, so check it out.

         The deadline for gathering signatures is coming up on May 11th. We still have a long ways to go on signature gathering and we are seriously running out of time. If we can get our act together we can get our goal. Go to the website and get petition sheets or if you live in the Rogue Valley go to Valley Vinyl and pick some up. We can totally do it you guys!

     

Have a Happy Easter! What are some of your favorite Easter Traditions?

Soli Deo Gloria!

            

The Easter Season Part 1

     I have 4 favorite holidays, there are more holidays then that, but I have 4 specific ones. The 4th of July, Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.The reason I love these particular holidays the best is because of the history behind them. Since Easter is in 2 weeks and as a way to get ready for the season, I am going to talk about a couple of the oils that Jesus used. The oil that is going to be highlighted today is Frankincense Essential Oil. While this is not mentioned in the Easter Story it was given to Jesus when he was a baby by the wise men. This is significant, because Frankincense was and is extremely expensive.  Joseph and Mary would never have been able to afford to buy it for Jesus. And because it was so expensive only kings and the upper classes could afford it and give it as

gifts. Mary certainly knew how to use it, both for herself and on Jesus. The fact that the wise men understood that Jesus was the King of All Creation and honored him with such a gift is really amazing. They recognized him as their king and showed him the respect and honor that they would to an earthly king.

"And behold, the star that they (the wise men) had seen when it rose went before them until it came to rest over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. And going into the house they saw the child with Mary his mother, they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh."
                 Matthew 2:9-11 ESV Translation

Isn't it amazing how God orchestrates things so that there can be no doubt that His Son, the Messiah, is Jesus!? He ordained that these most likely pagan wise men from the east would follow the star, and know what it meant from scripture. And that they would bring Jesus gifts fit for a King. Frankincense is great for several things. It suppress and heals coughs and colds, takes away skin blemishes (i.e. warts, stretch marks, etc.), asthma, anxiety, and it boosts the immune system. Mary would have known this and would have been able to use it wisely on Jesus, as well as for the rest of their family. From a young age Jesus was proven and honored as the King of Kings and as the Son of God, and it was confirmed all through out his life. It was exemplified in His death and resurrection. I pray that you know this gracious and loving God as your Lord and Saviour.
          If you would like to order some Frankincense or look into Young Living's other great products go to their website. If you like what you see and would like to order, click on the Member Sign-Up button at the top of the page, and then enter my member # into the enroller and sponsor # slots at the top of the form and you can proceed to check out. (My member # 1564241.)  Also check out my Facebook Page, at Thoughts From Oakdale. I will be posting about events and giveaways and other fun stuff there. You can also join in the conversation there and here, feel free to leave comments and questions that are  essential oil related. I'd love to hear from you! If you are interested and are able to come I am hosting an event on the 26th of April at 2:30 in the afternoon, called Soap Making With Essential Oils. Look on the Facebook Page or email me for more details if you are interested in coming.
        There are only 32 days left for us to meet our goal for signatures that we need to end taxpayer funded abortions in Oregon. We have 30% of the signatures we need statewide, and in Jackson County we have 37% of the signatures we need. We don't have that much time left you guys. I think it is very possible for us to meet the goal, but we have to get serious now. Go onto the website and print off a petition sheet and sign it  and then mail it in. But since you will have 9 other empty slots for people to sign, ask 9 of your friends and family to sign it before you mail it in. This is such an important issue, that we can't afford to miss this opportunity. We can do it! Also on the topic of the ballot I would like to bring up another measure that is important on a different level. It's Measure 15-119 that protects Family Farms in Jackson County. It wont allow GMO farms in Jackson County at all. To find out more about this measure go their website and read more about it.
        I hope you all have a great Easter Season! What are some of your Easter Traditions?

Soli Deo Gloria!

April Showers

          Spring is officially here! And with it comes flowers and rain and bugs. I know it's a little early to talk about how to keep the bugs of you and your garden, but it's always good to be prepared. A lot of the oils will overlap between keeping the bugs off you and keeping the bugs off your garden. There will also be some overlap in application.

          I know bugs are here for a purpose, but I also know that their purpose is not to attack me. However, I don't enjoy putting on bug spray. For one thing it smells terrible, and for another it is laden with chemicals. So, the oils that are great bug repellents are Lavender, Lemon, Sage, Roman Chamomile, Patrouli, Basil and Purification essential oils. You can apply these a couple of different ways to have them be effective. One way is that you can just apply any combination of these oils or just a single oil if you wish to your wrists and hands. Another is you can make a spray. Simply put some water into a spray bottle and add a few drops of the oil or oils of your choice to the water and its ready to go. These oils smell way better then any store bought bug repellent ever could. Plus these oils also relieve existing bug bites.

        Bugs are great pollinators, great at keeping out other pests and are a vital part of our ecosystem. It is extremely frustrating, however, for a person like me, who already has a hard time growing plants to be out done by a bug. I love letting my potted garden go outside, but I always worry that some obliging bug will decide to kill my plant for me. The bug repelling oils for plants are Peppermint, Oregano, Melrose, Thieves and Purification. Find your favorite spray bottle, fill it with water, add a few drops of the oil or oils of your choice and your good to go. The kids can even play outside while your spraying for bugs. And you don't have to worry if they get it in their mouth or breath it! If you are interested in more gardening with essential oil tips check out this article.

 

         Since we are talking about gardening and spring, I wanted to mention that if you love fresh blueberries, you have to check out Alta Vista Blueberries. They are a local blueberry patch in the beautiful Rogue Valley of Southern Oregon.I have been completely  spoiled by how good their blueberries are and can no longer eat store bought blueberries. To find out more about them, check out their website.

         I want to let you all know about a couple exciting events this month. The first is that I am holding an Introduction to Essential Oils class on April 10th. During this class I will talk about the oils in the Everyday Kit, what essential oils are and talk about Young Living. The second is Soap Making with Essential Oils on April 26th. We will be making soap with oils and you can take your own bar home when it's done. For more information on both of these classes, check out my Facebook page at Thoughts From Oakdale.

        We are also still collecting signatures to end taxpayer funded abortions in Oregon. Statewide we have 29% of the signatures we need and in Jackson County we have 37% of the signatures we need. We only have till May 11th, 2014. That's a little over a month away. I think it is still possible for us to get the signatures we need by then, but we need to start acting now. Thank you so much to all of you who have already been collecting.

        If you are interested in trying essential oils as bug repellents check out Young Living's website. If you decide to order, click on the member sign-up button at the top of the page, enter my member number into the enroller and sponsor # slots and proceed to check out. My member # is 1564241.

      What's your favorite part of spring? Do you like to garden? What's your favorite plant?

Soli Deo Gloria!