Fun at the Drive-In

I'm poking fun at myself and my use (and respect) for essential oils – and the fact this is my Friday night feels thanks to a wicked lunch at the drive-in.

And by "drive-in" I mean the drive-ing range!

One of my golf league partners and I decided to pop next door to SentryWorld during our lunch break. I thought a small bucket of balls would be too few so we split a big bucket. That was way too many.

For this old lady.

But we were so thrilled the forecast for cold weather and rain was wrong, we just had to get out and prep for golf league next week. We also had a putting contest and he's up by 2 right now. I don't know if I can redeem myself or I just owe him a cold one on opening night. We'll see.

I tend to putt like Happy Gilmore or his grandma. No in between. So I need to get in touch with the feel of putting again. Don't see it happening this weekend. Unless the weather dudes are wrong again.

The odds are not looking good, though. Crossing fingers for a dry baseball game and graduation party tomorrow! Hope your weekend plans work out, too!

Well it is January

We're in a Deep Freeze Sandwich this week. Super frigid temps Monday and Friday with a few inches of snow layered in on Tuesday to Thursday. It's starting to feel like, well, January. Guess we got off pretty nicely for awhile there.

The cold can be painful but the interim precipitation days are a bigger headache. This morning it was sprinkling on the way to work. But since it was only 16 degrees, the rain immediately iced up my windshield and my wipers couldn't keep up. Had to stop at the gas station and scrape. Then wisely filled up my wiper tank knowing I'd probably be cleaning my way to clear vision on the rest of the drive.

That was unexpected.

What was expected was snowfall in the afternoon, this evening, and tomorrow. The positive for us here in the exact center of the state is that the forecasters got it wrong. Wisconsin Rapids had been sitting on a line between the 2-5 inches and the 3-10 inches bands of predicted snow. By the time I got home from a "slippery but take it slow and you'll be fine" commute, the forecast for our neck of the woods changed to 1-3 inches tonight on top of the inch or so we got.

Not snow-maggedon. Just January.

So since every jumped the gun and canceled school activities, we didn't go to hoops and hubby didn't have to sub for bowling tonight either. I could have hunkered down and watched some Hallmark but I'm in my office, wearing a "warming pillow" on my neck and diffusing some doTERRA Cheer oil. Nice.

And sorting through mail, papers, piles. Uploading and organizing photos. And trying to clean.

Just like the Deep Freeze Sandwich, it's all balance.

Woeful Wednesday

Wednesday's child is full of woe... At least this furry child.

Anyone who says dogs are man's best friend does not realize this cat is definitely BFFs with the man in this house. While she has not done her usual anxiety-driven puking and random poop piles – yet – she is definitely missing her man.

I did give her a micro dose of calming essential oils last night so that helped again. Glad I discovered that last year during hubby's work trips.

This morning, as I left for work, Sylvester was making herself comfortable on the floor pillow in Jim's office. I thought, poor kitty, it's going to be a long day if you are waiting for Dad to get home. While she moved around a bit during the day, as I left for choir tonight, she was laying on his office floor again, giving me the sad, sad face pictured.

She hasn't let me approach her until now. As I am typing, she's laying across my keyboard, begging for pets and scratches. So apparently I am good for something when her human is gone.

Oh, and I feed her. Gotta love low maintenance.

Thankfully, her master will return tomorrow night. Just about the time she'll warm up to me.

Expectations :: Let's Be Real

I need to keep my productivity expectations in check. Sure there's lots I want to accomplish in the next week or so. But there also is the need for some down time. It's called balance.

And coffee is required either way.

Making coffee wasn't even my first chore today. Nope. It was cleaning up a present from Princess Pukes-A-Lot.

When you start the day stepping in cat puke, it's a good thing the first thing on my To Do list was an hour massage. Thankfully, it was Sylvester's first accident with her human out of town. Hubby is taking the red-eye flight home from Vegas at midnight tonight. Hopefully, the princess can keep it together 'til morning.

I have been treating her with some lavender essential oil because that worked last time in eliminating the plethora of poop piles around the house. I do think the only reason she up-chucked today was because she shoveled in her breakfast too fast.

No matter the reason. It's not fun to step in when you are barefoot. Say it with me, "Ewww!"

So yes, the deep-tissue massage was much deserved and much needed based on all the knots she found. She was breaking up muscle knots in places I didn't know I had muscles OR knots. I hope I drank enough water today so I feel good tomorrow versus wondering if I got hit by a truck.

And while I would have liked to nap after that, I was motivated to get some things done. I did some laundry, windows, dusted, vacuumed, etc, and managed to walk around the lake with my friend Cindy and even baked some banana bread – fresh out of the oven for Carter, who got home tonight for the wedding weekend. He is an usher in our nephew Colin's wedding.

I also managed to get into town for the volleyball playoff game. The Lady Royals were victorious in round 2 of sectionals. They travel to Wausau Saturday in hopes of more victories and a trip to state.

I also managed to escape a kidnapping today. Yup, the temps were up and Mr. Deck Chair kidnapped me out of the blue. I wrestled free after about 40 minutes. Whew. I'm safe but I'm just not sure I'll be in any condition tomorrow to do anything.

Just keeping it real.

F.A.T. (Feline Aroma Therapy) Cat

While I appreciated that Princess Poops-A-Lot banished herself to the Silo of Shame after bestowing all her "blessings" across the kingdom, I did feel bad for her and her separation anxiety last week.

When her human left last Tuesday, the peasants (my nephew Tony and me) woke up to a variety (as in both poop and puke) of messes in the house. All on carpet, of course. Like I previously mentioned, this always happens when HE is gone. It wasn't until now that I figured out I should treat her separation anxiety for what it is – anxiety.

Taking a cue from my own use of essential oils, I figured I'd delve into some Feline Aroma Therapy. Now using essential oils on small humans and on pets is tricky. They are much more sensitive. I'm guessing most folks would not recommend it at all on cats because they are really tiny animals who happen to have lots of hair. So I was careful and cautious.

Lavender is great for relaxation and soothing anxiety. I used a drop of my doTERRA Serenity blend, which includes lavender, and rubbed it along Sylvester's spine. Just one drop Friday afternoon... and no messes Saturday morning! I repeated the same ritual (about 24 hours apart) on Saturday, Sunday, Monday and Tuesday afternoons... and we did not receive another "gift" from Her Majesty.

Yes! I feel like we should have one of those big signs you see at factories: Accident-Free for 4 Days!

It was a long overdue discovery but at least we'll know for next time. Can you remind me in October when her human has another work trip? She might be recovered by then!

Great-Full

Old English Proverb: You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.

New Teen Mother Proverb: You can set a teen's alarm, but you can't drag his butt out of bed for 8 o'clock church!

When your day starts like this, it's probably a good thing the pastor was preaching about gratitude.

He shared a study conducted on a group of people who took time each day to find 3 things for which they were grateful. After the completion of the study, more than 90% of the participants were happier and/or more positive.

That's really no surprise. When I get in a funk or want to whine about some "travesty" in my life, I always climb out of it when I realize how blessed I am. Our pastor challenged each of us to replicate that study – think of 3 of those blessings per day.

Today, despite the fact I could not get Carter out of bed to join me, I am grateful for my church and my church family. While Lutherans aren't exactly boisterous and outgoing, I still have managed to build some long-time friendships thanks to that church.

Secondly, I am thankful for my introduction to doTERRA essential oils. Had a great time today with two of my neighbors talking about some great uses for these miracle oils that have relieved my pain, healed wounds, lightened my mood and aided my sleep. It's great that there are natural and healthy alternatives. And great that I can continue learning more about them and how I can share them to help others.

Third, I am grateful (sort of) for teasing. Carter and Daddy like to tag-team picking on me, but I was laughing so hard tonight I couldn't protest if I wanted to! They crack me up. And I love that we have that time together! I also love paybacks, too, so I gotta put my thinking cap on...

It's GREAT that my life is FULL of blessings. Can't wait to see what tomorrow brings...

Handling the Holidays

Yes, this is a total commercial message, but it's fitting on cyber Monday, right?

I mentioned awhile back how successful essential oils have been for me. Depending on the oil, the blend and the application, I can sleep at night, I can run without hip pain and I don't have to cough all night when the congestion season hits.

And that's a just a few "cures" for me.

I am placing my December order on Tuesday night so I thought I share with you a few examples of doTERRA essential oils that may help you handle the stress of the holidays... along with the germs and the overeating, etc. Just click on image to view it larger.

Check out the website I have listed (www.mydoterra.com/robynaustin) or email me (purplepridera@yahoo.com) if you aren't sure what might work for you.

If now is not the time for you, I do place orders every month because there's always someone new who is discovering the magic of essential oils!

Bittersweet Sunday

The downside of this Sunday was that it was our last church service led by our husband-and-wife pastoral team who are moving onto greener pastures (we can say that in Wisconsin).

It's been a good 5-year run and they will be missed.

I especially got to know Pastor Josh last summer when I was his Wing woMan on our mission trip to the Ozarks! It was a fun-filled and faith-filled week that I will never forget. Carter got to bond with both of them during camps, backpacking and mission trips, and confirmation classes. It's just not going to be the same.

The upside of this Sunday, though, was that they decided to confirm the 9th-graders while our pastors were still here, rather than waiting until late October. That was nice of them to do. The confirmands still have to go through their month-long "final project" with a mentor this fall, then they will officially, officially be done.

I feel blessed I get to be a part of that. Emily, the daughter of my "half" sister (as in half-marathon partner) Chris, asked me to serve as her mentor.

This entailed confirmation cake before church and again at their house after the Goodbye Potluck. Oh, and I also got to introduce her today in the service, share her scripture verse and stand with her parents and family to pray over her with the pastors. It's a neat privilege and I look forward to getting to know this fine young lady even better!

We got home about 4 p.m. so no sense getting motivated at that point. I did cross the street and cooked up some essential oil salves with my neighbor. If you need anything to help with eczema or need a "sleep stick," let me know.

When I got home, hubby had left to golf with his dad and sister. Carter is out for a run. I could grab the remote right now and claim it as mine. But am I cool enough to watch the VMAs?

I could work off some of that cake trying to keep up with that "young people's music"!

It's Essent-Oil

Despite some pretty bad decision-making along the line, I have tried in recent years to rectify some of the damage by focusing on my health. I could always brag that I was "on" nothing! No drugs of any kind, just your run of the mill daily vitamins, occasionally jumping on the calcium and fish oil bandwagons.

It was actually a bit devastating 2 years ago when my anxiety issues came to light and my panic disorder reared its ugly head. I tried deep breathing, praying, distraction and the "witch doctor," who helped me in numerous ways therapeutically, but did not cure the anxiety. As a last resort, I became just another one of "those people" who couldn't function without medication.

Dang, there went a good streak.

On the plus side, I have my anxiety under control and keep my panic attacks to a minimum. Of course, with all drugs (if you've seen ANY commercial), there are side effects. For me, this one causes insomnia.

Every. Single. Night.

So for 2-plus years, the only way I can get to sleep at night – no matter how tired – was to take "something" ... sleeping pill, Tylenol P.M., NyQuil, Benadryl, whatever helped. I tried to mix it up, alternating it so my body wouldn't get too used to one thing and not work for me. It was my new merry-go-round. Had to time it so I would take it early enough so that it wouldn't be so hard to wake up in the morning. And even then, I was groggy.

As a very last resort, I decided to give one more thing a try: Essential Oils.

Essential oils are natural aromatic compounds found in the seeds, bark, stems, roots, flowers, and other parts of plants. They can be both beautifully and powerfully fragrant. In addition to their intrinsic benefits to plants and being beautifully fragrant to people, essential oils have been used throughout history in many cultures for their medicinal and therapeutic benefits. Modern scientific study and trends towards more holistic approaches to wellness are driving a revival and new discovery of essential oil health applications.

As it happens, my next-door neighbor has learned about all of this over the past several months and has started using some for various needs. When she told me a few weeks ago she was "cooking up" some "Sleep Sticks," I was intrigued and stopped over.

Here she was, literally cooking up some beeswax and various essential oils, making a concoction that was poured into little Chapstick containers. It had the same consistency as lip balm but I was not to put it on my lips. Instead, my instructions were to rub it on the bottom of my big toes and the whole bottom of the foot if needed. Our largest pores in our body are on the bottom of our feet, with the largest of those on our big toes. You want your body to absorb something, that's where you go.

That very night I tried it. Still took quite awhile to fall asleep. I was hoping it was because I had too much on my mind. I just wanted so badly for this simple solution to work. The next night, I followed the same routine. Don't even recall "trying" to fall asleep. I just did.

Now we are officially two weeks free of any night-time sleeping aid – other than my magic stick! Hallelujah!

My neighbor Cindy also whipped up a special pain relief stick (I'm sure there's a more professional name than Pain Stick) that I have been using on my hips so I can run again. That is working well and I am feeling less and less pain as I use my legs and hips more and more. What a relief!! Hallelujah to that, too!

Probably obvious my next sentence is that "I drank the Kool-Aid."

Oh yes, I signed up to be an official witch doctor (I prefer Wellness Advocate) – buying, mixing and selling the multitude of magic potions that are do-TERRA Essential Oils. I am excited. It has worked well for me and I want to save the world! We know that not everyone reacts the same to each oil or oil blend. My Sleep Stick may not work for someone else but there are a multiple "recipes" to try.

Just think of something that is troubling you and there is an oil for that. I'm serious. Pain relief, digestion, energy, even a recipe to address Restless Legs Syndrome, which I plan to mix up for my mom who has been taking pills for decades. It's worth a shot. You never know.

If you are interested at all or want to learn more about it, check out my site: http://www.mydoterra.com/robynaustin/  We can talk about what's bothering you and what I (and the other witches in my coven) can do to help.

It could be essent-oil to you!

Un-Paved with Good Intentions

I surmise that if the road to hell is paved with good intentions, then the road to hell-th must be unpaved with good intentions. It is not an easy journey.

Found this cartoon today and this captures some of my daily good intentions...

It had me giggling out loud for a few reasons... Obviously, my hubby's name is Jim, but did you know his father's name is John? I don't intend to embarrass them by sharing, just pointing out how easy it would be SAY I went to the Jim, er gym, but I wouldn't get away with it for long before an observant bystander would notice I show no signs of a visible physical transformation.

Busted!

I have a few people to thank for pushing me down the correct, unpaved path... My oh-too-honest doctor... My hubby who walks around the lake every morning before I even leave the house... My dear "wellness advocate" friend who is healing my hip and my mind naturally... My inspiring BFF who has shown pure determination in sticking to her healthy eating plan and shedding pounds weekly... And my twin sister, who has now caught the running bug!

When my twin told me (and my siblings) months ago she was signing up to do a 5K on Sunday, Aug. 10, I just couldn't commit at that time. My hip was bothering me too much and I hadn't been running at all – and scarcely walking.

After that "overweight" wakeup call during my physical, thankfully accompanied by new hip stretches, I was feeling more hopeful. Embarrassed, but hopeful. When I asked my twin again a few weeks ago if anyone signed up to do the 5K with her, Raylene said no one had. I didn't want her to do it alone so I said I would join her.

That has forced me to start my running routine from square one. You other runners know what this is like. You want to just go out there and run but realize (if you're my age at least) you better ease back into it. Really ease back into it. Do some combination of walking and running. I am not going to push it and put myself back even further than square one if that is possible.

Turns out, since the twinster is a new runner, we are both prepping the same way for this weekend's event. Run... walk... run... walk... We're not out to win any races, we just want to be able to do it together and cross the finish hand in hand in triumph. No matter what our finishing time, I am grateful to her for getting me started again (that's always the hard part), because when I do the run part of my run/walk, it feels so good. I missed that!

My neighbor Cindy has been my best pain-management support. She cooked up (literally) a wonderful combination of Essential Oils that dig deep in my muscles and joints and eases that pain. Between that and stretching, I am determined to stay on that unpaved path to health. There is more to be said about what these oils have done for me but I will save that for another blog. It is amazing stuff and shouldn't be glossed over in a side note.

So even though I did not hit Jim or the gym today, I did get a 5k run/walk in. And lived without limping to tell about it.

Progress down the right path...