It's November and my wheels have started to turn when it comes to gift giving and our two boys. We are at the stage where toys aren't making the list as much and I find myself stumped every time someone asks me what my kids want for Christmas.
This brings me to the experience gift! Creating memories as a family is something that will be remembered by you and your kids in the future. The newest action figure or video game won't necessarily come to mind when they think back on family memories. Does this mean to scratch the "stuff" all together? No, not at all. However, getting creative with experience gifts will create memories and fun that will last in everyone's mind!
What are some questions that I ask myself when considering gifting an experience to my kids?
- What is one of their favorite outings?
- Is there a local spot that they have expressed interest in that we can make a weekend of?
- Who do they listen to when it comes to music these days?
- Is there a special restaurant that they like to eat at for special occasions? (My boys love a trip to a fun hibachi grill)
- Does the family have a local museum, zoo, or play place that you frequent?
- Do they have any favorite local sports teams?
- Are there any plays/musicals they would enjoy coming to town?
Here are some ideas for a gifts:
- Concert tickets - We gifted "First Concert" tickets to see the Imagine Dragons last year.
- Annual Membership to local museum or play play. This is also a great gift for grandparents to take as well.
- A special night out to their favorite special occasion restaurant! You could even add on some movie tickets.
- Season passes/tickets to local amusement park
- Tickets to see their favorite sports team play
- Look at local outdoors places. Tickets to zipline, go-kart race, or any popular activities in your area.
- Lessons! Have they been asking to start a new hobby? Gift them some introductory lessons so they can see if it is something they would like to pursue.
- Family gift- You can always do a family gift and take everyone away for a weekend of fun somewhere.
I hope this helps give you some direction if gifting an experience is new to you! Our family has definitely enjoyed incorporating this type of present into our gift-giving over the last couple of years. If you have any other suggestions, I would love to hear them in the comment section below!
This year, more than ever, our teachers deserve lots of love. According to Google, next week is Teacher Appreciation week. If you are anything like me, this week always tends to sneak up on me. Not to fret though! Nothing some oils, a run to Target, and a quick Amazon Prime order can’t help with.
Below, you will find five gifts to get through the week! They are sure to brighten a teacher’s day and provide them something to spoil themselves with daily.
Monday:
The start of the week can be slow moving. Treat your teacher to a hot beverage with a gift card to their favorite coffee/tea spot. Make a quick run to Target and grab some crinkle paper and a cute mug! Place the paper in the mug and top it with your gift card. Now, for the fun part! Grab a small jar and create a flavored sugar to pair with the mug. See the two recipes below!
Place the items in a cute gift bag and you are all set.
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Tuesday:
This is my favorite gift idea! Run to Target to grab a cute beach towel and a fun magazine. Magnolia Home…Simple…. whatever reading material that is up your teacher’s alley. Pair this with a “Take Me to the Beach” body mist. See the recipe below. I would grab a six-ounce bottle for this one.
When I think of the beach, I think of Stress Away, Lavender, Cedarwood, Lime, Grapefruit, Vanilla or even White Angelica! Look and see what oils you have on hand and get creative!
Wednesday:
With all the handwashing and sanitizing these days, the hands could use some pampering. While you are browsing the aisles of Target go ahead and pick up a small make-up pouch, a cute nail file, and a pretty shade of nail polish. Head home and reach for those oils because you are going to pair that cute bundle of goodies with an awesome cuticle roller! Not a fan of the pouch idea? How about a gift card for a manicure?
See recipe below.
10 drops Lavender
10 drops Lemon
10 drops Frankincense
Top with Vitamin E and roll along your cuticle daily!!
10 drops Lemon
10 drops Frankincense
Top with Vitamin E and roll along your cuticle daily!!
Thursday:
Wednesday we pampered the hands. Thursday we are taking care of those feet! Teachers are on their feet all day, every day. How lovely would it be to come home and reach for a refreshing, yet nourishing scrub for their tired feet?
(From the Life Steps app)
Ingredients:
2 Tablespoons of Organic Sugar
1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
2 Tablespoons of Honey
1 Teaspoon Lemon Juice
3 Drops of Peppermint Essential Oil
Directions:
In a bowl mix 2 Tablespoons of organic sugar, 1 Tablespoon of olive oil, 2 Tablespoons of honey, 1 Tablespoon of lemon juice, and 3 drops of peppermint essential oil together.
Write the instructions on a cute gift tag!
Scrub mixture onto feet
Wrap fee with warm damp towels and let sit for 5 minutes
After 5 minutes remove towel and wipe off scrub.
Friday:
The week has come to an end! Our teachers are tired. Let us give them something they can unwind with to wrap up their work week. While at Target, grab a cute throw or eye mask. Pair with an “Unwind” dropper that they can massage into their feet as they get ready for bed. Think of the oils that you enjoy while watching TV at night or reading a book. Add these to a 15 mL dropper bottle and top with fractionated coconut oil.
I would add 25-30 drops total. One of my favorite combinations is Lavender, Cedarwood, and Orange.
SHOPPING LIST!
If you are an oiler, I am sure you can get by with whatever oils you have on hand for the above recipes! Grab your Young Living citrus oils, your relaxation oils, peppermint, and Frankincense. You may also have sugar, lemon juice, and honey already on hand for the scrub. Take a look at these shopping lists below that will make putting these gifts together, so simple.
Target:
Cute gift tags and string to label
Small gift bags
Crinkle Paper
Coffee Gift Card
Coffee Mug
Nail polish, make-up pouch, file
Beach Towel
Magazine
4 ounce jar with lid ( scrub)
Blanket/throw
Amazon:
Vitamin E
Rose Water
Witch Hazel ( alcohol Free)
Aloe Vera Gel
6 ounce spray bottle
I hope sharing these ideas helps make showing some appreciation a little easier on you! These simple and thoughtful gifts are sure to make for a fun week of gift giving.
Sleep troubles are the reason why so many of us dipped our toes into the world of essential oils. Whether it be racing thoughts, anxiety, restlessness, interrupted sleep, or even hormonal issues, the struggle is real. I think it is safe to say that we all have, at some point, looked for support in regards to healthy sleep patterns.
Sleep routines and support, involve so much more than a simple bottle of Lavender for some of us. There can be various contributing factors and the versatility of essential oils allow us to create personalized routines to meet our needs.
Before we dive into routines and recipes, let's chat about the oils we tend to think of when we think of a goodnight's sleep. Tree oils always come to mind! They are warm, cozy, and grounding. Some of my favorites are Northern Lights Black Spruce, Cypress, Pine, Cedarwood, Frankincense, Grounding, and Sacred Mountain. There are also some popular floral scents that tend to calm an anxious mind! Lavender, Valerian, Roman Chamomile, Clary Sage, German Chamomile, Ylang Ylang, and Geranium. Vetiver, Valor, Stress Away, Tranquil, Peace and Calming, Gentle Baby, and Rutavala. I always recommend picking 1-2 good blends and 2 single oils to layer and create a sleep routine with!
At our house, we TRY ( it can be hard), to promote a sense of calm before it is even time for bed! I tend to grab some comforting oils to diffuse right after dinner. A grounding aroma helps to signal the mind that it is the day's end and it is time to chill. This is great if you are prepping kiddos for bed, cleaning the kitchen, or just lounging and watching some TV. I like to call these our " After Dinner" diffuser blends. Here are a few that we tend to rotate between.
3 Peace and Calming, 3 Orange 3 Cedarwood
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3 Valor, 3 Frank, 4 Bergamot
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3 Rosemary, 4 Cedarwood, 3 Lavender
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3 Thieves, 2 Northern Lights Black Spruce, 2 Roman Chamomile
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3 Grounding, 3 Orange, 3 Bergamot
Do you see how I start with a few drops of a blend and then layer my singles with it? I have found that to be key in creating so many blends!
Next up, pre-bed.
Has it has been an REALLY long day? Do you have some kids that can't seem to stop bouncing off the walls? Are you worried about something or feeling anxious? Consider pausing your usual night time routine and taking some time for an Rest Easy Soak! You will need Epsom salt for this. If you want to take it up a notch, grab some baking soda while you are at it. ( thank you Jessica Davis for this recipe!)
Gift idea alert!
This is for a larger batch! Store it in a jar and have it ready to go for those nights when you don't have the energy to do anything extra :) If you find yourself scrambling, just grab 1/4 Epsom salt, add your oils (4-5 drops total), and soak!
1C Epsom salt
1/4C sea salt
1/4C baking soda
15-25 drops Essential Oils ( cut in half for the kiddos)
Favorite oil combinations for a relaxing bath!
Stress Away, Lavender, Orange
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Valor, Frank, Copaiba
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Peace and Calming, Lavender
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Roman Chamomile, Lavender
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Clary Sage, Vetiver, Orange
In preparation to lay your head down, I recommend creating a pillow/linen Spray! Another gift alert! This allows you to use your oils aromatically x2 if you also plan to run your diffuser. Not to mention, the oils can work their magic on anything that may be lingering on your sheets. For the kiddos, we call this "No More Monster" spray or " Sweet Dreams" spray. If you have never created one, you are missing out! Here is our favorite recipe:
2 ounce spray bottle (find here)
10 drops Lavender
10 drops Cedarwood
10 drops Orange
Top with witch hazel and spritz linens before bed! Tie a bow around the top and give as a gift. Have guests coming? Create one for them and leave by their bedside!
Time to prep that diffuser in the bedroom! I recommend doing this about 30 minutes before you hit the hay. This allows the blend time to make it's way through the air. Try using the same strategy as above when creating your blend. You will also want to turn the diffuser to the intermittent setting before you fall asleep to ensure that your diffuser runs all night long. Also, do not forget to turn that light on your diffuser off.
Favorite "Shut Eye" diffuser blends:
4 Stress Away, 2 Vetiver, 4 Bergamot
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3 Peace and Calming, 4 Bergamot, 3 Cedarwood
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2 Northern Lights Black Spruce, 2 Frankincense, 4 Lavender
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2 Clary Sage, 2 Cypress, 2 Cedarwood, 1 Vetiver
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3 Gentle Baby, 4 Orange, 2 Frankincense
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3 Valor, 2 Cypress, 4 Lavender
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2 Sacred Mountain, 1 Vetiver, 2 Northern Lights Black Spruce, 2 Bergamot, 2 Orange
Right before you lay your head down, grab a roller or your favorite calming oils and use them topically. There are some wonderful roll-ons available through Young Living, if you are not interested in creating your own. There is Tranquil, Valor, Peace and Calming, and RutaVala ( this one works really well for us). I recommend massaging your bedtime blend into the bottoms of your feet and the back of your neck. If I am really loving the aroma, I will often apply to my wrists. If you would prefer to create your own roll-ons ( another great gift idea), you can find the rollers here.
Favorite Bedtime Roll-On blends: ( top with liquid carrier oil once oils are added to the bottle)
10 Vetiver, 20 Lavender, 10 Bergamot
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20 Valor, 10 Orange, 10 Northern Lights Black Spruce
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10 Grounding, 10 Roman Chamomile, 10 Cedarwood
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15 drops Cedarwood, Lavender, and Orange
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15 Stress Away, 5 Vetiver, 15 Lavender
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10 drops Clary Sage, 5 drops Cedarwood, 10 drops Bergamot, 5 Northern Lights Black Spruce
And the holy grail of all the calming blends....LIQUID CHILL ROLLER
50 Lavender, 30 Valor, 30 Stress Away, 15 Patchouli, 15 Vetiver
Dilute with 40 drops of carrier oil in a 15 mL bottle are roller fitment cap.
Have you ever stopped to think about the fact that we wash our hands to support a healthy immune system, but the majority of the hand soaps on the store shelves are riddled with toxins and unwanted chemicals?
If you think your soap is " clean" check for that "Fragrance" label. That is the term companies are able to hide the nasty ingredients under (whether it has to do with the smell or not!). They do not have to disclose that information either....it is proprietary!
Well, here is an INEXPENSIVE and TOXIN-FREE recipe to keep those hands clean and moisturized. All you need is three ingredients and your distilled water! The ability to create your own signature soap scent, is endless!
Here is the recipe:
1/3 cup Castile Soap or YL Bath & Shower Gel base
1 tsp. Carrier oil
20-25 drops EOs
8-12 ounces water
Mix in foaming soap dispenser! Great gift idea too!
What are some of your favorite combos?
1 tsp. Carrier oil
20-25 drops EOs
8-12 ounces water
Mix in foaming soap dispenser! Great gift idea too!
What are some of your favorite combos?
