Our family has fallen in love with essential oils, and so many of you have sent me questions on how they work or how you can work them into your routine with little ones. We started using them over a year ago as a way to help support our immune systems & promote better sleep habits for our family – but in all honesty, I have been continually surprised at how much oils can do.  You’ve seen me share some things on social media and even a few posts here and there, but today I wanted to share how we use our oils every single day and why we love them!!

1. Immune Support. 
One of the first reasons we started using oils was for immune support, if you have toddlers (especially ones in daycare, preschool, etc.) you understand. It felt like week after week, we were all run down. There are even oils to use for respiratory support for more specific needs as well.  Adding oils to our daily routine has been life changing, every mom needs to try oils for this reason alone.

2. Better sleep!
There is a reason that every baby product on the planet contains lavender. There was actually a study done that stated a lavender-scented bath before bedtime can promote more restful sleep in infants. Sold.

We first started using oils for sleep for Aria when she was almost two. We started using them with Emi when she was about seven months old - I held off simply because I wasn’t sure about oils + babies, but I finally discovered the book “Gentle Babies”, and learned that I could have been using them since day one.

I add a drop of Lavender to their bath and use the KidScent's bath line (that contains sleep-inducing favorites like Cedarwood + Lavender), and oils go in the diffuser in the girl’s rooms every night. We rotate between Lavender & Cedarwood, Sleepyize or Peace & Calming. Emi averages 13 hours of sleep and Aria, 11-12 hours.

I also shared the other day that I myself usually spend several hours thinking about the day, or things to do tomorrow or crap weeks from now – right as I crawl into bed, until oils. I recently fell in love with a roller blend called “Tranquil”, but there are SO many oils that can be worked into a bedtime routine to encourage a healthy nights sleep, I don’t know where we would be without them.


3. Emotional Support & Balanced Moods. 
There is literally SO MUCH SCIENCE behind this topic. When you inhale an essential oil, receptor cells of the olfactory system receive the aroma, send signals to the brain, specifically the center of our emotions, memory and parasympathetic response. This controls our blood pressure, breathing, hormone balance, heart rate & so much more. So simply inhaling certain oils, or applying oils to your wrists or behind your ears, can be extremely calming, uplifting & grounding.

I found that after having Emi my postpartum emotions were all over the place, so I started using oils more. One of my favorite “Happy Mama” blends is Joy, Bergamot & Orange in a roller to I can have it with me at all times -  because sitting in traffic with grumpy kids or dealing with witching hour can fray nerves fast.

4. Chemical-Free Cleaning.
I have always hated traditional cleaning supplies, the smells are always overpowering and they are hazardous to store in the house or in the kitchen. Young Living offers a line of cleaning products, specifically the Thieves Cleaner, which is 100% effective, all natural, and safe around kids. I don’t have to worry about cleaning toys, wiping down highchairs or cleaning the bathtub. Emi eats all the things, so not having to worry about a toxic residue being licked off of something offers a little peace of mind.

There are hundreds of ways to use oils themselves for cleaning as well, like using Purification (a blend) to cleanse the air and deodorize or Lemon oil to remove sticky residue or Thieves oil with some baking soda to make an amazing soft scrub for your bathrooms, floors or even your coffee-stained mugs.



5. Glowing skin. 
I used to own 2 makeup removers, 11 different moisturizers, 6 eye creams and 3 serums that all promised to make my skin better. I never found anything that I really loved or that worked very well, until essential oils came along. I now use a few drops of coconut oil + witch hazel as a makeup remover, Grapefruit oil with a little grapefruit oil and jojoba oil as a delicate facial scrub then follow it up with Jojoba oil with a drop of Frankincense as my moisturizer (incredible for all those laugh lines)  I also love to roll Lavender + Copiaba around my eyes and dab a little Tea Tree to blemishes. It might seem odd to cleanse and moisturize with oil, but when your skin doesn't feel the need to constantly produce it, amazing things happen.

On top of all of this, babies have such delicate skin, and Emi’s is one of the most sensitive. I felt so bad when her skin just wasn't responding to regular lotion. It would soak in and her skin would feel dry again in less than an hour. So, I made a batch of Coconut Oil + Shea Butter and added in Gentle Baby EO and have used that as a daily moisturizer on her after bath time for the past few weeks - her skin has never looked SO good and felt so soft!



6. To make home smell AMAZING.
When we started using our diffuser, my eyes were opened to all the things I had been using previously and about all the toxic things I was putting into the air. After reading about how toxic candles are to burn, or how those plug-in air fresheners are sitting in the top 3 of the most toxic things in our home - we have turned to diffusing oils instead. The best part? They have added benefits! So while Bergamot, Orange & Lemongrass in the diffuser smells amazing (like fruity pebbles!), it is also uplifting & mood boosting!  Blends like Lime + Stress Away (vanilla-lime) smell heavenly, especially when diffused at bed time, they are also highly relaxing & calming. My new favorite blend is Eucalyptus, Blue Cypress + Lemon, makes me feel like I’m on vacation in Australia.

7. For my inner DIY. 
Grapefruit body scrub, dry shampoo, muscle cream, outdoor spray, you name it, there’s an oil for that! It never fails that on any given day, I am googling things & find an oil based solution. Dry cuticles? Done. Ants in the kitchen? Done. It is an amazing feeling to have a safe, natural (and easy!) way solve problems with things I already have at home.

8. Flavor.
Young Living essential oils are all 100% therapeutic grade, and the Vitality line of oils can be used to naturally flavor your favorite food & drinks! I love a drop of Grapefruit or Peppermint in my morning water, Lime or Orange in sparkling water and Rosemary or Basil in olive oil when cooking!

Many of you know my history with tummy troubles, I have to keep a fairly good diet. But when I want a cupcake or have that extra treat, I have started using DiGize & Peppermint. I'll add them to a capsule or to a shot of AVC and take them like a supplement to help keep things operating like they are supposed to.

And while on the topic of sweets, add 5 drops of Peppermint to your next batch of brownies, or 5 drops of Lemon to your lemon bar recipe, and 2 drops of Orange to your pancake or waffle batter -SO GOOD!



I hope this is helpful for anyone who isn’t sure how to use their oils or for those of you considering getting started! As always, you can find more information on how to get started using oils for your family here, or you can follow along at Happy Mama Essentials page for all sorts of tips & tricks!

***PS: A special promo ends this weekend, for everyone who orders their Starter Kit, I'll send you a copy of the "Gentle Babies" book plus a package of goodies, so you can hit the ground running!***

Summer bodies are made in the Winter... or Spring. Starting May 1st, we're holding another 10K Challenge - not a 10k run.. but 10,000 kettlebell swings.

We're opening it up to anyone who wants to join, it's free and the prize is a stronger, healthier, leaner body, just in time for Summer.

Each time we do this, it becomes more organized, so I'm pretty stoked for this year. We are finalizing an actually spreadsheet that you can print out. Each day will lay out a rep scheme for achieving your 500 daily swings, in addition, we will also include an optional daily conditioning or strengthening workout to be completed after your swings are finished.

Things to keep in mind:

1. This challenge is four weeks of intensive kettlebell swinging to test your grit and improve body composition.

2. The original creator of this program tested his athletes. Every lifter who completed this challenge increased lean muscle mass and conditioning.

3. After four weeks, you will have done 10,000 kettlebell swings dispersed throughout 20 workouts. You'll do 500 swings per workout.

4. Between sets of kettlebell swings, do one of the following: chin-ups, goblet squats, dips, or overhead presses. We will include additional and optional strength and conditioning workouts for this year's challenge.

5. Master your kettlebell swing form. It's not a squat. It's a hip hinge and a hip snap. The swings we will be doing are called "Russian Kettlebell Swings" meaning your arms should not travel above your shoulders.


Possible rep schemes will look like this:

25-25-25-25 x 5,
35-15-35-15 x 5
100 x 5
50-50-25-25 x 5
50-50 x 5
and the original 10, 15, 25, 50 x 5

Sample Conditioning:

4 Rounds:

30 seconds of Goblet Squats
Run 200 meters

Sample Strengthening: 

5 Rounds:

10 Deadlifts (may use kettlebells)
10 Air Squats

We'll work on keeping equipment minimal, but if you have access to a full gym setup or additional equipment, barbells may be used in place of kettlebells at any time.

The biggest obstacle many face with this challenge is accountability - sticking to the program, especially the last 10 days. You get so close, I don't want anyone to reach 7000 swings just to not finish, SO FIND A PARTNER - get your bestie, spouse, neighbor, anyone in on this with you. Lay out a schedule for days to complete the swings and stick to it.

Motivational posts include the original program creator's

And for information from previous challenges, see these: 2015 | 2016 

How to improve your kettlebell swing

Youtube some videos if you need some practice. I highly recommend videos by Crossfit Invictus. 

I have offered some personalized Facetime coaching in the past, depending on the size of this year's group, I may post a few videos to walk you through and may review video submissions to check form.

Want to join? Comment below with your email. You may also email me directly at barbellinthekitchen@gmail.com with any questions you may have or to let me know you want in.

We do have a closed Facebook group for this challenge that I will add participants to. Last year we have several members from various countries around the world, I'm excited to see it grow even more this year.

Breakfast is our most unpredictable time of the day for us. During the week, I tend to reach for cottage cheese & turkey for a high protein & low carb start to the day. Aria's requests include ice cream, goldfish, chocolate, cheese, oatmeal, popsicles... the list goes on. Lately she's been asking for Larabars, and will devour several of them. Emi could care less, as long as she gets to eat within 2 seconds of waking up. ;)

On the weekends, we must lose our minds because breakfast doesn't happen most of the time. We'll look at the clock, it's 11:30am. We haven't eaten anything but coffee.

So this recipe is the lovechild of two things. 1. I was determined to have breakfast Saturday morning. And it's been over three years since I've had eggs, it was time to try them again.

If you've followed along, you may know I developed a severe sensitivity to eggs while I was pregnant with Aria. It took a quite a few days of feeling the worst kind of sick, a debilitating kind of sick, to figure out that eggs were the cause. Eggs were my breakfast go-to for quick protein, and suddenly they were off the table.

Through an extensive amount of research, it's not uncommon to develop a food sensitivity while pregnant, and it can become a lifelong issue, but often times once mom discontinues nursing, her body "normalizes" in various ways and she may be able to reintroduce the offending food.

Emi has recently opted out of nursing, so the long awaited day came... and went wonderfully. I had NO REACTION! I was stoked. I had one serving per day for a couple days.. well, until the French Toast was gone. I've since had a little bit of hard boiled egg as well. Scrambled eggs, the original perp in this whole thing, is next.


Anyway, if you can eat eggs, and have a seat reserved on the sweet tooth train with me, this one's for you. We used store-bought gluten free bread (I'm dying to make some homemade bread to resemble the original, thick-cut French Toast slices of my childhood). We also had blueberries on hand, I'm sure blackberries, strawberries.. really any berry would be wonderful in this.

This comes together in 15 minutes, wrap it, toss it in the fridge, then throw it in the oven the next morning. Breakfast is served.

Ingredients: 

12 slices bread, (we chose gluten-free bread)
8 ounce package cream cheese, softened.
1 cup fresh blueberries
12 beaten eggs
2 cups milk
2 tbsp vanilla extract
1/3 cup raw honey (or maple syrup)

Steps:

1.  Lightly grease a 9*13 inch baking dish. Arrange half of the bread in the dish, layering and overlapping them as you please. Cube the cream cheese and dot throughout, I used a butter knife and spread them a bit like you'd spread peanut butter. Sprinkle the cup of blueberries over the top.

2. In a large bowl, mix the eggs, vanilla extract, milk, and honey. Pour over the bread. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

3. Remove the bread mixture from the refrigerator approximately 30 minutes before baking. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

4. Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Uncover and continue baking 25 to 30 minutes until center is firm and surface is lightly browned.


I whipped up a batch of homemade whip cream to dollop on top. Perfection.

Quick, go make this, then come back and let me know what you think.. as well as any personalized additions you make, I love to hear how you make these recipes better! <3


xoxo, McKenzie

 

When we lived in Bend, our favorite Mexican restaurant, El Caporal would serve a cabbage pico with their chips & salsa.. that and a couple Perfect Margaritas and we were set!

Over the years we've only seen a few other restaurants do this, but it's one of our favorite things. Seth's been on a mission to replicated the restaurant version, so here it is.  It's simple, easy to put together and bursting with flavor. You can make it mild and fruity, or make is hot & spicy.

Make a batch, it comes together quick, and put it on everything. Seriously.

Cabbage Pico

Makes 3-4 cups

I'd love to hear your feedback and variations when you put this one together. Tag me on Instagram too ;)