a simple how to using essential oils

the girls and i spent the last day of winter vacation and the first day of the new year purging closets, organizing, cleaning, creating and giving our home a fresh start for twenty seventeen. i always find this time of year to be uplifting as we have a new beginning, a clean slate if you will, to purge and make changes we feel is necessary for a positive year ahead. so i guess spending time doing all these things seemed like a great way to start the year.

in the wake of purging and moving things around i came across a vase of cockscomb flowers i had dried from a bouquet i picked up at the farmer's market this past fall. for those that may not be familiar, cockscomb flowers are vibrant in color and have a fuzzy like texture to them. they keep well too. so if you're into drying flowers these are a beautiful option and they make a lovely natural diffuser or freshener for your space!

here's a simple how to + what you'll need to make a natural diffuser using cockscomb flowers:

you'll need the following: 
- dried cockscomb flowers
- essential oil - we use young living essential oil. you can find them here and order here.
- a vase to put them in - the one you see here you can find at ikea.

a simple how to: 
- take your favorite pure essential oil and add 1-3 drops on each of the dried flowers. i used young living's peace + calming blend, orange, and lemon grass. these oils combined provide a calm and clean and uplifting vibe. a must try, in my opinion!
- arrange in a vase and find a special home for it. my only suggestion is make sure you find a place that you visit often. your heart will thank you every time you walk by or enter the room.

also, i find the fragrance lasts a good 5-7 days but feel free to add more drops once the scent fades.

enjoy!

july 4 2015

i am finally getting around to sharing some of our july 4th celebration. this day was nothing short of sweet and i keep finding myself thinking about this very day quite often. it was one of those days that if it was possible to restart over and over again, i'd be more than okay with it. we started the day picking strawberries, which is was one of my favorite pastimes as a child growing up. i remember going to the strawberry field with my mother down the road from our home and picking in the late afternoon hours, just before dinner or after. i remember it being such a special time for the both of us and to relive some of those same feelings with my own children, ahhhh my heart sings just thinking about it.

what a joy it was to see our two little gals enjoying themselves. kendi probably ate about fifteen strawberries or so, freshly picked, unwashed with not a care in the world other than feeding her tummy with delicious and ever so sweet berries. kaia loved finding the really big ones and teaching little sister the ins and outs about how to pick the berries and what to look for. nothing like making a mama's heart smile when you witness moments of your children teaching their younger sibling or siblings how things are done ;)

after picking berries the day was still young and we ventured on home to our little abode in the city where we spent the rest of our day soaking up the gorgeous weather with water games in our beloved backyard, fixing up our first homemade strawberry pie (that turned out soooo good by the way!), and fireworks in our back alley. it was such a perfect day celebrating this beautiful country.

here are a few iPhone images of our day together…