We are heirs of heaven and worthy to treat ourselves like royalty
from time to time - home spa day anyone? 
I'm super excited! The barn owner where we board our horses found
these super thick rubber mats with steel bottoms and put them in
front of the barn. We can finally clean the barn! Woohoo!!! I
cleaned out the first stall yesterday. I'd love to do some more work
today, but my oldest needs my help. Almost wish it would rain so I
wouldn't care about leaving the barn during such nice weather! ?? Ah
well, family is far more important than cleaning a barn - especially
since it's waited this long! 
I just realized that most of you have no idea what my connection to these essential oils are. Most of you probably think I'm just on of those freaky, all-natural hype pushers... and, I realize that I may never change your mind and that is ok too. 
But, here's a little bit about me that you may not have known...
I married a man whose family did not believe in modern medicine (except for serious stuff like broken legs and sewing your skin back on). We didn't use the OTC pain pills. We didn't use any thing containing caffeine. I learned A LOT about herbal remedies and alternative treatments. I discovered that some worked. Others were just expensive placebos. And some... well, they worked... some times. There was very little quality control done and you never got consistent results.
When my father-in-law was introduced to Young Living Essential Oils, I rolled my eyes... I had tried essential oils as a teenager. Worthless stuff. I thought this company was another supplement that would quickly pass through our lives like sooooo many other companies. I didn't bother trying the oils or learning anything about them for a YEAR.
One day, my family was sick of my monthly emotional troubles and I put a little dab on to make them happy. I didn't expect any thing - I was already taking a crazy amount of herbs to help. In 10 minutes, I was in tears because my emotional burden was lifted and I felt so much relief!
Before I started using essential oils, I did not feel very creative and had difficulty relating to my children. After consistently using them for a month, I literally felt like I was emerging from a cocoon as a new creature - one that could think clearly, have energy, and actually enjoyed creative stuff like photography and sewing and web design and doing artsy stuff with the kids (much of which got vetoed by the family, but I wanted to do it all!, which made home schooling super easy for me ). My friends at the time that I was nuts, but later called me Super Mom. lol
These results (and so many more!) have happened consistently for 20 years. I can not say that of many other company's products. Essential oils have made a huge difference in my life. This is why I share.
I have returned home from spending a week with my grandbaby (giving
a pregnant Mama a much needed rest period)
It was fun, but I'm
glad to be home (Bob and the cats are thrilled that I'm back too
).
I was able to spend a couple of hours out at the barn today...
moving temporary fencing for extra pasture, grooming muddy horses,
and a bit of stall cleaning... it was blustry and cold and a lot of
work, but I am pleased with the progress and a happy sort of tired.
I tried a new color in my hair yesterday. The blue and purple were
very faded, but the pink pulled the color out again. The color kinda
blends into my shirt. I'll have to try a picture with a different
shirt sometime...
Rose of Sharon has a strong, medicinal smell - a wonderful symbolism
to He who heals our souls
I love how in sync Bob and I are...
The other day, I saw a commercial and mentioned that one person seemed really familiar... like an actual actor that we've seen (it was supposed to be a fast food customer). We watched the commercial again and he said, Yeah... he looks like so-and-so.
Today, he was watching a movie and I saw half a face of someone and said... hey, is that... ummmm? He responded, Yes. 
My oldest's thoughts today:
Today is not a happy day. Today I feel like crying. I look around at the USA, talk to people, listen to the news, read social media, and I feel so much sadness for those who gave their lives for the freedoms that so many of us are just giving away. And in many ways, I knew this was coming... so let me be clear, when you all are protesting not being able to go to church, you also are the ones who've told me that the "greater good" in medical options was more important than my religious beliefs. You brought this on yourselves for not standing up with the little guys for our religious freedoms. Let me give you a history lesson - the whole purpose of us fleeing to America was to get away from tyranny and live our faith freely and peaceably. The whole basis of our country is in freedom of religion - including the freedom to not believe in a higher power. By not standing up for other's freedoms to practice religion peaceably - no matter if your opinion says they are right or not - you open the doorway for your own freedoms to be stripped from you as well. As many of you celebrate the fallen soldiers who gave everything by showing up to services so that you can prove your patriotism, just remember - everyone sees who you really are the other 364 days a year. If you don't stand up for the little guy's freedoms, then you are letting all of those brave men and women die in vain because freedoms get lost a little at a time.
And to those who have always stood tall and proudly defended our freedoms, I will say thank you. To those who gave up a family member to protect those freedoms, I say thank you. To those who actually know what our freedoms are, I say thank you for educating yourself.
Whether you agree with wearing a mask or not, I question the thought processes of some regarding the use of reusable ones. Don't you?
For instance, the woman who leaves her mask in her purse and only washing it once a week (regardless of use). Ew. Do you change your socks and underwear every day? Do you think that hankies are still clean a week after use?
For the McDonald's employee complaining that the mask gets greasy and therefore should not be worn... your face gets greasy, how do you remove that? What about your shirt? Maybe you should stop wearing that too to keep it fresh and clean.
It is simple. If you use a reusable mask, WASH IT. Daily. Your
hand sanitizer does not keep your mask and the rest of your attire
clean for days on end. 
~Symptoms are not enemies to be destroyed but sacred messengers who encourage us to take better care of ourselves ~ FoodMatters