Thank Heavens for Essential Oils!!

Not only does Aubree have multiple food allergies she also as a list of environmental allergies to go along! She is allergic to cats, dust mites, mold and pollen! They were progressively getting worse. She was a mess constantly snotting, eyes swollen with big circles, sneezing, itchy eyes and red dots on her face and overall miserable. Nothing was touching it. We were all miserable. (NOT to mention the whole issue of trying to decide if a reaction was food related or environmental!  Oh the stress it can cause) We had even spoke to her allergist about shots. Her doctor recommended moving forward with them, but I wanted to think about it a bit. I did not know what to do. I truly want to do what is best for my kids. Watching her struggle was painful. But I knew putting her through shots would also be painful!

This was a picture of Aubree in the Fall 2014. Many times she looked way worse than this! Plus pictures never do it justice!

THAT'S when I heard about essential oils. I don't even remember now where I heard they could help seasonal allergies. BUT I thought it sounds way better than the lots and lots of shots that would be in our future Natural oil that comes from plants, flowers and stems used to help SO many things. NO additives, chemicals, toxins. All natural....AND best of all painless to my baby girl! . So with some research I decided to give these little oils a try. I bought a Premium Starter Kit from Young Living in February 2015. We chose Young Living because they have a Seed to Seal guarantee! Meaning they own their own farm and are part of the process from start to finish. They are hands down the best company for oils. Not a question in my mind on purity. WOW, OH WOW. With consistent use Aubree's environmental allergies are 95% Better. WE will take it! We use the oils (Lemon, Lavender and Peppermint) topically 2-3 times a day. If for some reason she is struggling, like harvesting fields around us, we will also put those same oils in the diffuser. It was an answer to many prayers.  Cue the start of my love for Essential Oils! Boy, do I love oils! (and allergies is just ONE of the many ways we use oils!) I feel like God placed these amazing oils in our life at the perfect time!

At our yearly appointment with Aubree's allergist in May I told her what we had been doing. She didn't seem to know too much about oils. She wrote it down in her chart and said keep doing what we are doing because it was working! SCORE!

Obviously everyone is different, but it worked for us! I am happy to answer any questions about this journey. I wish essential oils were more well known because they are amazing additions to every home. So, I feel it is my mission to talk about them and share the love. So, if you notice I love to talk and post about oils a lot on FB, I can't help myself. I love them and truly want others to know about them and love them too.

Long overdue Check-in

Aubree Grace is now SEVEN years old, a 1st grader and doing excellent! Aubree is still highly allergic to Peanuts, eggs, milk, wheat and soy. She also has pretty high environmental allergies to cats, dust mites, molds and pollen. BUT we try so hard not to let that stop us!

Life happened and my blog took the backseat, for that I apologize. My cousin asked about my blog to share with a friend that was struggling. (Thank you, Brianna, for that push!) It reminded me about it and how much it could be helping someone dealing with similar situations. So I decided I would try to be better about blogging! Life with a child with food allergies is very overwhelming. I know when Aubree was first diagnosed I spent hours reading and researching online. (who am I kidding, I still do it!) Sometimes knowing you aren't alone is the best feeling. It was definitely bittersweet to go bath through and read my old blogs. Just WOW! How far we have come.

There is no way I could possibly share with you all of our ups and down in the last few years. We will just say there were LOTS!  We  have added to our family, TWO year old Paisley. Has NO allergies! So #2 of 4 is the only child in our family with allergies.

Big Sister Hallie and Aubree ready for the first day of 1st and 3rd grades!

School has been our biggest milestone since my last entry. Aubree amazes me everyday. She has adjusted to school way better than I could have dreamed. We are very fortunate to be attending a small accommodating school. I could not imagine the amount of stress I would be having if it was not for our school community! (A God send really!) Beginning Kindergarten last year, I was a mess. I had always been in control of Aubree. Where she was, what she was exposed to, what she ate, what those around her ate, how often they washed hands, ect. This was a BIG change. I honestly had to dig deep within myself to overcome this. Educate, Trust, and have Faith. Luckily she had an excellent teacher and I felt comfortable.  I just keep telling myself is to educate those around her the best I can. Trust that they understand and will do everything in their power to keep her safe.  Then very much have Faith that God would protect her through it all! Does the worry stop? Nope. Have I had moments of being so overwhelmed I just cry? Yep. I think that's part of the process. Having a child with potentially fatal food allergies is scary. Period. Anytime I see school calling me for any reason, my heart immediately hits my stomach. It is defiantly a worry I do not wish on anyone. However, I am very thankful for an otherwise healthy Aubree Grace. It could be worse and I am grateful for what I have been blessed with. It is all part of what makes us, US!

Aubree has begin to self carry her allergy meds. We got this little gem and it has worked out perfectly! :http://www.spibelt.com/products/kids-spibelt/kids-spibelt-prints. This is big. I have a sense of peace knowing that she always has her Avi-Q and anti-histamines on her at all times. In the event of an emergency every second matters. She is getting older and I feel this gives her more independence without the constant thought of remembering to send it with her everywhere. Worth checking out when the time comes to self carry!

Food Allergies have made me become a bit more creative with it comes to birthday cakes! It may not be perfect but she was very excited about it. Made from rice kirspie treats. (made with oil not butter)

This is just a small glimpse at life today. We have good days, we have bad days. But overall she is a healthy, thriving, bright little girl! I hope to be more active in my blogs in the future. You know, don't wait 3 years in between posts and have to reactive your account. ;)