4 Products I Have Replaced with Coconut Oil and More

So I posted here about what kind of coconut oil I use.  That post was a direct result of being asked the question several times, which was a result of me talking about how awesome it is, a LOT.  That being said, this blog is meant to be a ministry.  I do not intend to make it one big advertisement.  I DO love to tell people when I find great products, especially when I think they make us better wives and mothers by helping us stay healthy, making our families healthier, or saving us money. 

That is why I love coconut oil so much.  In the past 5 years, with the addition of 2 children with a chronic illness (learn more about that here, here,  here, and here), I have learned to listen to God more closely when it comes to our lifestyles and our health.  I truly believe He gives us all we need.  I believe that there are often remedies in nature that can help us even better than man made remedies.  I also know that He made doctors and allows them the knowledge to do what they do, so I do not discredit them nor do I try to heal all illness with natural medicine.  I just have grown to be more open to trying certain things, and I will blog about that often.

For now however, I want to let you in on some ways I use coconut oil personally and KNOW that it works.  I do not know anything about some of the many claims about illnesses it can cure, and I know nothing works for everyone all of the time, but I DO know that it works for these things for me. 

4 Products I Have Replaced With Coconut Oil

·         Shaving Cream- Seriously, and I have not noticed a negative effect on my razors.

·         Facial Wash- Apply, leave a few minutes (while you brush your teeth or if in the shower while you wash your hair or shave), then wipe clean with a warm, wet wash cloth.

·         Moisturizer- I use it all over my body.  It is awesome, and yes, I do use it on my face after I wash with it.  I have oily skin but this stuff is so light I still need a thin layer after rinsing it off, and it soaks in very quickly…just trust me and don’t knock it till you try it.  This past week I have even been using a drop of lavender and a drop of frankincense essential oil to it and the results have been amazing.  I will post more about how our family uses essential oils later.

·         Baby Lotion- I have a 9 month old in addition to my two older children (5 and 9) and she is the first I have done this with.  Instead of commercial baby lotion, I rub her down with coconut oil, and at night I often add a drop of lavender to help her relax and sleep.

Other Ways I Use Coconut Oil

·         Cooking- It is great for frying eggs and sautéing.  I have not tried baking with it but I hear it is good for that also, and I would believe it.

·         Eating- If you have a good quality oil like the one I posted about here, it really tastes great.  It is sort of toasty and sweet, but very subtle.  I mostly love to put it in my coffee (be prepared for greasy lips), but I have spread it on toast and it was yummy.

·         Oil pulling- So weird I know, but swishing it around in your mouth for 20 minutes really does whiten your teeth.  I cannot attest to all of the claims of what oil pulling can do for you, but I know dental professionals agree it can be good for dental health, and I really and truly feel more energetic on days that I do it.  It is just finding the time to go 20 minutes without talking that is hard for me! 

I do not claim or even know if I believe it can cure all of the things it says it can.  There is really no way for me or most regular people to test many of those claims.  I have personally seen it works great in the ways that I use it, and I know it increases my energy when I add it to my coffee.  I know this because I often only get one cup of coffee these days and it is okay!  They say this is the medium chain fatty acids at work.  I also know my skin is healthier and better than it ever was with expensive skin products, it tastes good, and my teeth are whiter when I use it for oil pulling.  So, there you go.  Give it a try.  No harm no foul right?

If you use coconut oil, how do you use it?  If you don’t, are you planning to give it a try?  What are you going to try first?

To Answer a Question: Coconut Oil

This is just going to be a quick post about a topic I get asked about a LOT!  I get this question several times a week usually, so I thought this might help.  The question?  "What coconut oil do you use?"  Well, here it is.  I use this! 



Click that pic and you will go straight to Amazon and you can order it from there.  You may find it other places also.  Just for disclosure, this IS my Amazon associate link so I do get a few cents if you happen to buy it after you click here...but I could get that with any brand I send you to.  This is the one I use and I LOVE it!  It is the best value for the price in my opinion and I use a LOT! 

Why do I use this one?  It is unrefined...to the point that I sometimes even find little bits of shell left in it.  What does that mean?  It means a LOT of stuff, but the most important in my opinion is that it has the best smell and taste out there.  There are other unrefined brands that are probably great too, but the question is what do I use...so here it is! 

Feel free to ask questions, and I will post more later about HOW I use it.

Why Would Anyone Want to Hear from Me?

Why would anyone want to hear from me?  That is what I kept asking myself years ago when God put the desire for this blog in my heart.  If you know me at all you know I am very, very shy and I hate to talk (If you believe that you really don't know me at all.)  Those of you that DO know me personally are picking yourself off the floor and wiping tears of laughter from your eyes.  I talk.  I talk a lot.  So much so in fact that it almost lost me a second date with my husband, and my foot has bad to be dislodged from my throat way too many times.  I had no problems wanting to write about all kinds of things, but I did have problems believing anyone would want to hear what I had to say badly enough to actually read it.

 

I discussed this with God, and here was His answer.

 

God: Use my words, not yours.  This isn't going to be about you.  It is going to be about me.

Me: Okay, I can work on that, but how do I get people to read it.

God:  You don't.  I will.  It may not seem like it, and you may not ever know it.  You write what I tell you, and I will make certain that the words get to where they need to go.

Me: Okay, but what makes me anyone that anyone would even consider listening to.  I mean, I get it, you are God and you can make miracles, but can you help me out here, just a little?

God: What have I done in your life?

Me: Amazing things!

God: Tell them that.  Show them.  I have put you in many vastly different seasons in a short amount of time so you could share what I have done for my glory.  Do it. Share your weakness and my strength.

Me:  Okay then.

 

I then began to think.  I can relate to so much.  I have been a working wife that worked crazy hours. I have been a mom working crazy hours. I have been a mom working outside of the home while taking care of a preschooler and a chronically ill baby. I have been a mom that received the news that her baby had a chronic illness. I have been the mom that had to move and find new childcare and a new job. I have been the mom that sent her first to school. I have been the mom that found out another baby had a chronic illness. I have been the mom that works from home. I have been the mom that works from home and tries to figure out how to take care of two chronically ill children and not ignore the other one. I have been the mom that homeschools. I have been the mom that works from home and homeschools.

 

I have been the wife that deals with financial success and the wife that wonders how we are going to pay the bills.  I have been the wife that wondered why her husband ever loved her and the wife that knows, beyond a shadow of a doubt that her husband and marriage are nothing short of a miraculous gift from an amazing God.  I have been the wife that wondered, at the same time, how I could live with this man one more day. 

 

I have been the woman that lived an entire 18 years in one small town and spent the next 16 moving to 7 different towns.  I have been the woman that had a corporate career making great money and the woman wishing she could just stay home and raise babies and not have to have this job anymore.  I have been the woman with tons of friends and the woman who had start all over in a new town making friends.  I have been the woman active in Church and the woman seeking a new Church home. 

 

There are billions of women in this world more qualified to talk about anything and everything more than me, but I am not the one from whom these words come.  I am making it my goal and I promise to do my best to only write as God leads, and I trust He will do with it what He intends.  My only intentions are to use this platform to tell what He has done in my life and bring glory to God through it.  You can join, you cannot, you can believe I can't relate to you because my life is so different, and that may be, but it may not have always been. 

 

Either way, I know He will get the words where they need to go, and if nothing else, He has already changed me through it. To that I say, keep it coming Lord.

Breaking the Rules and What's to Come

I am breaking a multitude of "rules" with this post.  I am not planning it.  There is no outline, and I am not even typing it in word first and then copying it over.  I am sure I will regret it later.  Not only that, I have a long list of "paying" writing assignments, but I am choosing to write this first.  Why?  I don't know.  I think I just feel this is a ministry that the Lord really wants me to work on in this season.  I am going to try my best to work on making certain this blog is updated at least 2 times per week, starting here and now.

What do I want to do with it.  Well, I want to use it as I have always intended to do.  I want this to be a place of encouragement and practical help in living like the Proverbs 31 Woman.  It is what I have always endeavored to do.  I have prayed since I was very young to be a Godly wife and mother.  I am hoping that by being honest about my failures I will let other women know they are not alone.  Not every mom reads to each of their children individually every day though most of them I would say probably want to.  Not every mom always has all of the laundry folded and put away.  Not everyone mom gets a full hot meal on the table 3 times per day.  Not every mom even gets a shower everyday.  Not every mom has it ALL together.  In fact, I think if we are all honest we will see that NO mom has it all together.  However, with God's help we can strive to do better, glorify Him in it all, and help each other.

I want to share goals, successes, failures, tips that have worked in different seasons of our lives, and I want to hear from you!  I want to know what you want to hear, what has helped you, what you struggle with, and I want us all to share in this ministry of helping each other together. Are you with me?