Seedlings Baby Range

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Parents make hundreds of decisions about the health and happiness of their families. When young Living formulated the Seedlings range, they wanted to take the worry out of what might be in the lotions and soaps used on their babies skin.

The soothing, plant-based formulas use infant-safe essential oils and are free from harmful ingredients to help you gently comfort and care for your little one. With essential oil-infused products made by experts and diluted to a strength safe for your baby, Seedlings leaves you with peace of mind and your baby feeling snug and secure.

Features and benefits

  • Non-Greasy
  • Dermatologist Tested
  • Formulated without harsh chemicals
  • Worry Free

 

 

Seedlings Starter Kit

$253(AUS)  Basic Starter kit + Seedlings Bundle on ER.

NZ, US, EUR pricing pricing also available.

Become a member of Young Living today!!

Wholesale pricing, free product points and products you can trust!

Order Here

 

3 Reasons not to use Bleach

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Bleach for many of us means Chlorine Bleach. It has been used to disinfect surfaces and remove stains and whiten clothes. Chlorine bleach is typically a solution of sodium hydrochloride. There are so many reasons not to use it in your home and here is my take on the top 3.

 

  1. It is bad for your health. As reported in the Sydney Morning herald Passive exposure to Chlorine bleach has been linked to an increase in cases of Flu, tonsillitis and other infections in school aged children. This Research was published in the British Medical Journal’s Occupational and Environmental Medicine and was performed across 3 countries and included over 9000 children. Another study published by the American Journal of critical care medicine, concluded that Women cleaning at home or working as occupational cleaners had accelerated decline in lung function, suggesting that exposures related to cleaning activities may constitute a risk to long-term respiratory health(source). This is such a worry for many women and men who are the responsible party for cleaning their homes in addition to the cleaning workforce. Another potential problem of using Chlorine Bleach is that it can react with other Cleaning products producing toxic gases, chloramine.
  2. It is bad for the Environment. Chlorine is released into waterways via sewage. Once it reaches the water, chlorine reacts with other minerals and elements to form a host of dangerous toxins. These toxins, including dioxins, furams and PCDDs are often referred to as “persistent organic pollutants” because they linger in the water or soil and take many years to disappear. (source)
  3. There are other, safer alternatives. How do I whiten my clothes and clean my home? the answer is Hydrogen Peroxide or Sodium Percarbonate and plant based cleaners. Hydrogen peroxide available from your local Pharmacy, or the powdered form Sodium Percarbonate ( purchase here). Hydrogen peroxide is a double Hydrogen Oxygen compound that is used as an oxidiser, bleaching agent and antiseptic. Sodium Percarbonate breaks down into hydrogen peroxide and soda ash in water and in powdered form makes it an easy addition to laundry. Thieves household cleaner is my all time favourite plant based cleaner that actually works infused with a blend of essential oils that are perfect for cleaning your home.

 

For liquid bleach try this recipe I love  sodium percarbonate as I can easily add a tsp to my washing detergent and my whites are brighter. A little bit goes a long way. You will also be avoiding synthetic fragrance as most supermarket products have synthetic fragrance included- I only use Essential oils as synthetic fragrance can have any number of chemicals and are known endocrine disruptors! (source)

Removing stains- try some bi-carb soda and half a lemon. One of the simplest low tox cleaners you can try and you probably have both ingredients in your kitchen. If you don’t have lemons try some Lemon Essential Oil. I use this frequently to clean my sink and it smells great.

Surface disinfection. I get it, you have been cooking, maybe with chicken or other meat (if you choose) and you want to make sure there are no nasties growing on your bench. For this I have a spray bottle with  Thieves Household Cleaner. Do I need a study to verify it? Well actually there are many which show anti-microbial effects of essential oils, like this one. or watch here Did I ever check about Bleach or the health effects? No I did not, but I wish I did!

What is it? Thieves Household Cleaner is a plant based essential oil infused concentrate that I use to clean my bathroom, kitchen, dishwasher, car, washing machine, floors, everything. The other thing I like about it is it is biodegradable and complies with EPA standards. It is economical and it works. You can even clean your dog with it.

thieves-household-cleaner

Check out my Thieves recipes here A versatile and affordable concentrate that you can use on all surfaces of your home. To get your hands on the Thieves household cleaner, simply purchase from Your Young Living account or open one here The Thieves healthy home starter kit will set you up!

I encourage you to re-think why you use what you use in your home.

Belinda

 

The Wholefood Collective

 

Sources

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25838260

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29451393

http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJM199909093411115

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrogen_peroxide

https://sciencing.com/oxygen-bleach-vs-chlorine-bleach-6571838.html

https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/toxic-perfumes-and-colognes/

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26802522

https://www.livestrong.com/article/217675-the-effects-of-chlorine-bleach-on-the-environment/

 

Choose Kindness

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Last week I went to the Cinema to see Wonder. A fabuous Movie based on a book by R.J Palacio. This book is all about bullying of a young Boy who was born with facial deformities. I read the book prior to the Movie and thought it was a good thing to do on a hot day in the school holidays. I also thought it would be good for my children to see the Movie and to then discuss the themes in the Movie. What I did not anticipate was how I was going to feel watching it.

My biggest fear as a parent is that one of my children would be a Bully. No parent wants that or for their own child to be on the receiving end. When I was 11 in year 6 at primary school, I was at a sleep over at what I thought were my friends house for a birthday party. I can’t write down what these grils did to me here as that is too confrontational but least to say my heart sunk that someone could be so mean and violting to someone else at such a young age. I did not tell anyone because I was scared of what they would do to me and I was embarassed to be on the receiving end. It was such a blow to my confidence. I wanted to ask the parent to call my mum and go home but I did not want to make a scene or act that it had offended me. To this day I still wonder what in the world could posess someone to be so mean to another. Why me?

As I sat in the movie theatre watching this Movie, it really highlighted for me that there needs to more more awareness of bullying. Parents need to step up, schools need to be consistent and not wash it over because it is not ok. As for workplaces, like a family behaviour is learnt from that which is modelled to them. The behaviour of those in management or seniour roles will be reflected through the whole organisation.

For many years I was fearful of these girls. I went to high school and did not continue schooling with many of these girls and for years struggled with being accepted and being good enough. But now I know that what they did was more about them than me. I hope they have found happiness.

Random Act of Kindness day was mentioned on my morning run last week. This is promoted at different times in different countries and I can’t help but notice the similarity in the letters to RUOK? What if we were all kind every day, would we even need the RUOK day? Life is hard and not everyone can be a captain of a team or win a prize and life should not be about that. Life is about meaningful relationships and connection.

Choose your words wisely. A saying I share with my children often is ‘quick to think and slow to anger’. Most arguements and disagreements I believe are often the result of poor communication and assumptions. If you have not heard the saying don’t assume- you will make as ass out of you and me, remind yourself of this one.

We are all good enough. Christmas is often a time of reflection and this year I have done a lot of reflecting before hand. Life is a journey, love your family and learn to listen because that truly is the way to better communication.

Choose Kindness and have a Merry Christmas

Belinda x

Home Made Lip Balms

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A hand bag essential, lip balms keep your lip soft. A little while ago I checked out the ingredients in a store bought version and here is what I found

  • Oxybenzone- derived from petroleum is a UV absorber, associated with endocrine disruption, produces damaging reactive oxygen species upon exposure to sunlight
  • Mentyl Anthranilate- synthetic UV absorber not assessed for safety in cosmetics. produces damaging reative oxygen species upone exposure to sunlight
  • Fragrance- synthetic scent which contains phthalates
  • parabens- synthetic preservatives- suspected endocrine disruption, contact dermatitis and skin irritation in some people

(source: Info from the Chemical maze App)

I am not happy about any of these ingredients going on my lips or my families for that matter. Here is the good news. It is really easy to make your own and the recipes are good enough to eat. Chances are you will already have some of these ingredients in your pantry. Here are a couple of recipes and places I have sourced my ingredients from. These recipes are great for nourishing your lips and are quick to make.

Choc Mint Lip Balms ( approx 18 tubes)

  • 15 g beeswax
  • 15g Shea Butter
  • 15g Cacao Butter
  • 15g Coconut Oil
  • 1 tsp cacao Powder ( or more)
  • 18 drops Peppermint Essential Oil

Melt beeswax, coconut oil and butters in a glass pyrex dish over a pot of simmering water. Once melted, remove from heat and stir through Cacao Powder and Peppermint Essential oil. Use syringe to fill lip tubes and set in the fridge.

Lavender Lip balms ( approx 18 tubes)

  • 20g Shea butter
  • 20g avocado Oil
  • 20g Beeswax
  • 15 drops lavender oil

Melt beeswax, butter and oil together in pyrex dish. Remove from heat and stir in lavender Essential oil. Syringe into tubes and set in the fridge

Tips

  • Use a ramekin to stand your lip tubes in
  • pick up a syringe from your local pharmacy
  • decorate your lip tubes with washi tape
  • work fast before the lip balm sets. You can always re-melt
  • make sure lip tubes are wound down fully before filling

Supplies

  • Lip Tubes you will find online. I purchased mine from Aussie candle supplies
  • Butters and Beeswax try Biome
  • Oils from your local supermarket
  • Essential Oils from Young Living. Get started here with a Premium Starter kit (Lavender and Peppermint are in this popular kit)
  • Cacao pwder and other great wholefoods from The wholefood collective

Supporting Restful Sleep in Kids

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Recently I was asked about essential oils to help support sleep in Children. Without restful or enough sleep we do not function at our best. With Children, lack of sleep can manifest by an increase in tantrums, reduced concentration.  I have trouble winding down and getting to sleep and I am sure that some children are the same. There are a number of things we can do to help our bodies sleep well. Here are some things I do to help get a good nights sleep for my kids and myself

  1. Reducing screen time before bed. Artificial Blue light can be damaging to our natural circadian rhythm
  2. Go to bed at a similar time each night. Children(6-13) on average need 9-11hrs. It can be different for everyone so listen to sleep ques.
  3. Relax in a Magnesium bath. I add 1-2 tablespoons af Magnesium salts with 1-2 drops Lavender Essential Oil to my kids bath. The essentail oils can be mixed with a tsp of jojoba or coconut oil which will leave skin feeling moisturised. There are numerous benefits of Magnesium and sleep is just one of them. Magnesium is also best absorbed through the skin. Lavender Essential Oil has a calming scent and is also excellent for calming nervous tension and anxiety
  4. Foot massage. My kids love a foot massage and find it extremely relaxing. While sometimes it is a love hate relationship with giving the foot massage, I have extremely fond memories of one of friends mum’s doing this for me as a teenager and remembering how relaxing it was. Have a think about how long you are on your feet for each day? Young childrenen  may find that massage helps them to relax and encourages a restful sleep. I will often massage a drop of Lavender Essential oil with a tsp of vegetable oil into their feet at bed time. Read more about and how to massage your kids feet here Applying essential oils to the feet is an excellent option as our skin on the soles is the least sensitive. Always follow instructions on the bottle and test patch first.
  5. Diffusing Essential Oils. Using a ultrasonic diffuser with a few (2-3) drops of essential oil can encourage a restful sleep. I use a small number of drops as I find that is all you need in a bedroom. Lavender is extremely relaxing. Orange Essential oil encourages feelings of happiness. Peace and Calming  encourages deep relaxation and Gentle baby promotes a calm atmosphere for Mother and baby and in my experience everyone! Gentle baby would have one fo my all time favourites to create a calm environment.

For FAQ’s about dilution and safety of essential oils read here

To down load a chart by Robert Tisserand outlinging appropiate dilutions please click here

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Topical dilution guidlines are as follows
0.5% for 2-6yrs old
1% for 6-12
2% 12 +
3% occasional use such as perfume
I don’t use concentrations higher than this as I don’t find it necessary at all.
For topical application for a 8yr old you could add 3 drops of Lavender to a 10ml roller bottle and top up with a carrier oil. All ready to roll on the feet for a night time massage!
Enjoy and have a  restful sleep
Belinda x
If you would like to purchase essential oils, please click here and read about Young Living’s premium Starter pack that I started with. Lavender is in the pack!