Oily

So you know that here in Drosche Land we are always looking for ways to stay healthy and natural.  Eating, drinking, cooking, living, etc.  Jackson and Stella forever changed the way we live, for the better of course, with their diagnoses.  

We have seen so many positive benefits to the many changes we have made.  It's given us the motivation to continue to research, learn, and change.  We've cut out nearly all artificial colors and flavors, preservatives, chemicals, dyes, and are continuing to work on converting as much of our diet to organic and/or as possible.  It's an ongoing process and we are enjoying it and the rewards it has brought us.

For some time Amy has been intrigued by essential oils.  A friend of hers from her Handbell Choir introduced her to them via the company Young Living.  So, naturally, she began to research, read, and learn as much as she could about it.  Then she brought it to me.  I hadn't thought about it or heard to much about it so I listened and then began to look into it myself.  It was interesting, made sense, and sounded like something that was right up our alley and in line with our lifestyle.  So, last week, Amy talked to my Mom about it, who also was interested.  Amy then signed up to be a distributor for Young Living and they both placed their first orders.  

There are many reasons why we have become interested in essential oils, but I'll focus on Jackson for this post.  As you know from my past posts, his ADHD symptoms have worsened and we believe it is time for a tweak to his medication.  He also has been sleeping very poorly.  It is our hope that, through the use of essential oils, we can help Jackson manage his ADHD via a natural way.  Now, we are not taking him off of the medication, nor do we think we can "cure" him.  That's not at all what this is about.  It is just another way for us to equip him with as many tools as we can to lead a successful life and manage his ADHD.

In addition to the Young Living order, Amy also ordered some diffusing jewelry through Sacred Arrow for us all; leather necklaces for the boys and leather bracelets for Stella, Amy, and I.  As soon as we received the orders we began to use the Peace & Calming with Jackson, via a diffuser in the boys' bedroom at night and his necklace 24/7.  We began to notice results within the first day.  He has slept wonderfully, without waking, for 5 days now.  His behavior has also been a lot calmer; he has much better control over his actions and emotions.  Granted we have been on Spring Break so our schedule has been a lot more laid back and easy, but we have been quite pleased with the results thus far.  Once school resumes next week we will see how things continue to progress.  We pushed back his appointment with his doctor until April since we had enough of his medication to last until then.  This will also give us a chance to see how the inclusion of essential oils continues to impact everything.  

So, that's what is new here in Drosche Land; the next adventure we are partaking in.  So far we are excited about it and eager for what lies ahead.  Like I said earlier, this post was Jackson-centric.  I'll post more about our plans for essential oils for Stella and the rest of us in later writings.  So stay tuned.

All is well, oily and happy, here in Drosche Land.     

In A Pickle

Nope. This post isn't about any tough or awkward situation I've gotten myself into. Nope, I'm talking actual pickles here. 

I have always loved pickles. I mean, really. What's there not to love?  Tasty. Crunchy. Practically calorie-fee. And I'm not the only one here in Drosche Land with an affinity for the briney treat. Amy and Stella are both pickly addicts as well, especially Stella. It's a win-win. Until this past week that is. Until Amy read the back of a jar of pickles at the grocery store.  Turns out there's a lot of not-good-for-you ingredients on that list. A list that should really be relatively short. Cucumber and the ingredients for the brine. That's it. Well, turns out there are quite a few things, depending on brand of course, that are not exactly natural. So she turned to the all natural ones. But then the price on those is ridiculous. I mean we are just talking about pickles here. Not exactly a delicacy. 

So, in keeping with our new lifestyle of eating all natural, mostly organic, artificial and preservative ree, Amy took to Pinterest in search of a homemade pickle recipe. She found one for some made in the fridge, without having to be heated. This was right up our alley because we've tried pickles in the past and it was not a pleasant experience. Think soggy, chewy, bitter logs. Yep. That's what we got. So we decided to give this recipe a try. 

Super easy to make. Cucumbers, vinegar, garlic, sugar (but we used honey because we are trying to cut back on refined sugar), peppercorns, salt, and dill. See, not too many ingredients and, most importantly, they are all totally pronounceable. You're supposed to refigerate them overnight for best results. We were able to wait a few hours. Then we tried them. Then we finished the jar and I went back to the grocery store in search of more pickling cucumbers. They were that good. 

Stella and I ate a jar and a half. Just by ourselves. That's my girl!   So, our pickling adventure turned out to be a success. Amy even posted about it on Facebook and people went to town talking about it so Amy then posted the recipe. I did my job and posted a picture to Instagram!  #pickle 

So, one more thing to add to our list of homemade and healthy. And delicious of course. I'm very blessed to have such a wonderful wife who kills it in the kitchen and therefore helps us to eat healthy and deliciously. 

I'm starving for them now but it's late and the fridge is downstairs. Bummer. Guess I'll have to wait until tomorrow for a snack!  Maybe. 

All is well, pickling, in Drosche Land.