Dandee Lion Rose

Simply Aroma time!

2014-01-05T18:57:00.001-05:00

Hello and Happy New Year!!

The time has come, my friends! I have watched Simply Aroma bloom and grow over the past nearly 2 months. I have high hopes for this company. I am so excited to share it with you!
What exactly are Essential Oils? You can read a brief history here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Essential_oil

Oils have been around a VERY long time! You know how the Wise Men brought baby Jesus Frankincense and Myrrh? Yep, both oils! Very pricey ones, too! Frankie has more uses than you can imagine! Use a compress with frankincense for sore muscles and joints, and it is amazing for skin care. Treat burns, rashes, even aging skin! My favorite is an Epsom salt foot bath with Frankie and Lavender. Sooo relaxing and calming!

What makes Simply Aroma a great oil?

These oils are 100% certified pure therapeutic grade oils, backed by the Simply Pure promise.
Simply Aroma’s “Simply Pure” quality standard is a promise to provide our customers the
very best in quality and testing of our Essential Oils. Our essential oils are certified 100%
pure therapeutic grade. Our essential oils are some of the safest and the most rigorously
tested essential oils available today. Our oils do not consist of any fillers or artificial
ingredients that could hamper their performance. All of our quality standards and testing
leads our customers to a simple promise - “Simply Pure”

http://www.simplyaroma.com/parties/174 Shop the Mystery Hostess Party and be entered to "win" the Hostess Benefits!
I would love to help you on your journey to learning more. Please contact me with further questions!
www.simplyaroma.com/aliciawinkler

Merry Christmas from Simply Aroma here at Winkler Farm!!

2013-12-24T23:09:00.001-05:00

Merry Christmas my Dears!!!!!

I hope this day fills your heart with love, merryment, and peace as only a day such as Christmas can give. <3

I got a fantastic Christmas surprise in today's mail!

Love the tape! ;)

That's me!! Handwritten on the envelope in top of the box.

The first item out of the box was a letter from co- founder, Andrew Khong. Thank you for the welcome!!

Classy sample display for parties!

The 13 first oils!!! Yay!

Everything is out. The diffuser works beautifully. The oils seem superb. Isabelle and I diffused Shield, a blend similar to Thieves Oil (On Guard for dT). Sawyer wanted to smell the oils, even. It was quite the family affair!


We loved all the fun colors!!!

So now I can announce! My website is LIVE!!! Feel free to browse the 100% pure certified therapeutic grade oils and diffuser offered on my site. Schedule a party!

If you are local, lets do a make and take party or an open house style. If you aren't local, how about a book party!

Hostesses earn credits for FREE OILS!!!

Check it out here: www.simplyaroma.com/aliciawinkler

Enjoy your family. Stay safe and warm. God bless you! Merry Christmas!!! <3 We will be diffusing Frankincense while opening gifts around the tree in the morning.

A late Thanksgiving meal

2013-12-15T16:12:00.000-05:00

Last weekend, I finally pulled my Steckler's Grassfed turkey from the freezer and began preparations for our Thanksgiving meal here at home. Often on holidays we are stretched too far with other family obligations to enjoy much of the blessings for which the holiday calls, i.e. Thanksgiving, Christmas, Independence Day, Easter... lol!

Here was my menu!
Roasted Grassfed Turkey
Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecans
Greenbean Casserole (greenbeans we harvested this summer)
Cranberry Sauce
Wheat Rolls with homemade applebutter (apples we picked)
Pumpkin Pie (pumpkins we picked) with whipped cream (homemade!)

The only CAN I opened was evaporated milk for the pumpkin pie! :D I have made several turkeys (sometimes we opt for duck for our Thanksgiving meal at home), and never dried one out or overcooked it. Well, this year was no exception! :) In fact it was THE BEST turkey I have EVER eaten!!! I promise I am not being partial or biased. My husband, who isn't much of a turkey fan (see above about duck) couldn't stop from stuffing every few bits in his mouth while carving. lol!

I made completely from scratch casseroles, cranberries, rolls, and whipped cream. I bought a frozen pie crust though. ;/ I put the spread together in about 4 hours! We ate leftovers for lunch 2 days!

Today, after simmering the carcass overnight, I made Italian Wedding Soup! Only I replaced the pasta with Cannelini Beans! SOOO Yummy and warm!

It made a HUGE pot! Enough for lunch and dinner!! Along with the soup for dinner, I am making my VERY FIRST batch of SOURDOUGH!!! We love sourdough, so I hope I did it right!!

Rise baby!!!

My starter!

We are counting our blessings! Even though we lost again this year... Did you count yours today? God bless!

Winter in the woods

2013-12-08T17:17:00.001-05:00

Something about winter, especially snow, seems to slow the world down. People stay inside, watch a movie, bake some cookies, sip some cocoa or tea. Sure, the kids get out and play a bit (sometimes too long and come in with red fingertips and nose tips), but for the most part we shut the cold out and enjoy the warmth. Preferably by a toasty fire, said tea in hand.

Am I right?

There is a bit of holiday preparations and shopping, but no weeds to pull, flowers to plant, swimming at the beach....

Ahhh, but maybe not as true as we think.

When we learn to look outside our normal realm the world opens to reveal its going ons. Even in the cold. Sometimes moreso.

Today, my family and I braved the somewhat-still-icy roads in our Excursion for the return of a family tradition we have not partaken in as much over the years. Since time is a precious and cherished commodity, we never seemed to find enough with my husband working 64 hrs a week. We have found a bit more lately. ;) So we packed some snacks and headed out. For a family drive.

A few people braved the half cleared, patchy highways and main roads. We headed for the backroads. Where farmland stretched as far as one could see sometimes, covered in a blanket of white. Roads often dead ending at the river, a levy, or fields. Though we passed a couple of trucks and the ruts in the road were tell- tale signs that humans had trafficked the slippery trails, we were mostly alone.

Except the wildlife. The world around us was awake and busy! Foraging and seeing what could be found for their survival were deer, rabbits, ducks, songbirds, coyotes, and many other creatures of God's wondrous creation.

Even the bubbling waters seemed alive in the stillness of the snow covered land. What beauty to behold. All in motion while most of us begin our season of cabin fever.

Thank you Lord, for letting me enjoy this precious time with my family today. And for coming home to warm soup and fresh baked bread!! :)

I joined my first Blog Hop!! Hope I did it right! Thanks for letting me "hop" on!

2013-12-07T07:12:00.001-05:00

"Sometimes we're simply helpless witnesses to bad. But I've learned we aren't given measures of bad without about 3-fold measure of good."- Mary Jane Butters

Words of excellence wisdom. Thank you Mary Jane. You give me hope.

Here is a shot of the roads yesterday afternoon. It's pretty nasty out there. Be safe everyone and God bless.

2013-12-06T11:25:00.001-05:00

oh the weather outside is frightful. a fire would be so delightful! but for now I'll be thankful the heat is holding in our house.

News from Winkler Home

2013-12-05T15:05:00.000-05:00

Sorry I haven't posted as much. I had considered shutting down my blog. But my husband reminded me, that with my depression, this is a therapeutic outlet for me. I need to be able to share. It helps soothe my soul.

My husband lost his job. Yes, right before Christmas. Sometimes I feel like we will never win. But God loves us. We have been through a Hell not many can imagine. And there are still more heartless people out there in our way. We must keep going, though. What choice is there?

On to happier things! Lord knows, I could go for hours on ^that^ subject.

Last week, one cool, but comfortable morning, I made from scratch Cinnamon Rolls! YUM! Afterward, Gabriel and I finished up our Thanksgiving stories and made a craft.

And for lunch today I made a Dumpling Soup. I made it with a rabbit, raised right here on Winkler Homestead! :) Lots of yummy REAL food here! I will be holding onto this one, playing with it, and adding it to my cookbook! Which reminds me. My notebook is missing. I keep praying it will show. :(

If you could say a prayer for my Daisy Mae. She has injured her leg somehow. :( I can't figure it out. She seems ok at times, and others we wonder if we will have to put her down. We will be so heartbroken. Here she is laying in the leaf pile last week. Isn't she precious?!

Have a great evening. Stay safe. We are expecting nasty weather tonight. God Bless!!

More yumminess!!

2013-11-24T18:47:00.001-05:00

So it was a stressful day.

You know the kind.

My step dad is in the hospital with a large blood clot in his leg. They are talking about inserting an umbrella (from what my mom said) in the keep it from heading for his lungs. Scary stuff. We could use prayer, please.

Some other kinda scary stuff happened, too. I can't discuss it, but I would love prayers for health for my family here at home, as well.

So what do I do when I am stressed? Besides eat? :( COOK!! Of course.... ;)

I started off with the most recent issue of MaryJane's Farm in hand while having coffee this morning. Grandma's Eggnog??? Hmmm... With a bit of tweaking...YUM! Though we let it chill all day and are just having it for dessert (with cookies!! I made Pumpkin Snickerdoodle!). It is creamy and wonderfully spiced (I had to use ground cloves, I didn't have whole)! Next time I will cut back the sugar, though. I like a sweet drink! But even with extra raw milk added it is a bit sweet.

I started on dinner early. About 3. I made anoth "moderately paleo" meal. Pork tenderlion (Matt's boar) stuffed with spinach, mushroom, onions, bacon, a sprinkle of asiago, and garlic. Served with herbed, lemon quinoa!

So I am stuffed. But still stressed. Going to do some reading. And hope the kids can be good and calm the rest of the night. Maybe diffuse some lavender... Mmm... God Bless!

Thank God for the blessing of REAL FOOD! ;)

2013-11-23T21:30:00.001-05:00

Since we treated yesterday as a weekend day, the kids and I had school work to catch up on today. For Gabriel and me, it meant some Thanksgiving fun!

Gabriel worked on some Thanksgiving printables, including some pre-writing line tracing, and I am 99% sure he is left handed. How strange to have 2!! We also read plenty of stories! One I chose was "Cranberry Thanksgiving". We played with cranberries after, doing some simple science. And we made...No, not Cranberry Bread, CRANBERRY SAUCE! The REAL stuff!! Gabriel and Isabelle both helped!

This kids LOVES do a dots!

I made the yummiest "Moderately Paleo" dinner tonight!! Veggie and venison meatballs, loaded with zucchini, carrot, and spinach shreds with a side of spaghetti squash! The "Moderate" part comes in with the sauce, a browned butter, garlic and sage sauce. It may have had dairy, but, to my credit, the sage was grown by my mom, the garlic from my CSA, the cream was raw, and the butter pastured!!! REAL FOOD!!!! :)

Sorry my pictures are a bit blurry. I just discovered the "soft" setting was somehow turned on.

Night and God bless!!

Some Fall Fun!!!

2013-11-21T22:45:00.001-05:00

We have been blessed these past few days with some very nice weather! And I do mean blessed.

The storms that ripped through our area on Sunday missed us. Thank the Lord! We have been visiting a nearby National Forest park a few times this week. Matt and Isabelle have been hunting there, and a couple of days the boys and I tagged along for exploration!

It's very pretty; hills, creeks, rocks, lakes... An old sandstone house that I adore! I look forward to spending more time there!!

From Sunday


From Sunday, right after this Gabriel took a nasty topple. :( We left quickly to get him some ice.

Storytime when we got home!

We also have spent a bit of time outside here at home. Sawyer was so happy to cuddle his Ba-Ba, Daisy Mae. <3

My kitchen and appetite has taken a turn for fall yumminess!!! I love pumpkin!! Yesterday morning I made my first ever Dutch Baby. And it was pumpkin!!! I loved buliding this recipe. Still needs a bit of tweaking. Good thing, because my recipe notebook is MIA. I am pretty worried, but at the same time I am sure it will show up! It is where I have been keeping all my recipes for my cookbook.

I also made chili. So my kids, they LOVE this stuff!!! Guess it will be making a more regular appearance than in the past!

Things are going well with Simply Aroma! I got my official welcome to the Presidential Founders Candidate program a few days ago and a welcome from one of the co- founders this morning! This company is GOING PLACES! They have so much backing, research, and I have plenty of faith! I can't wait to hold my first party!

Looking for a great opportunity? Simply Aroma is a brand new essential oil company that will launch on January 6th! We are the first party plan company devoted exclusively to essential oils. These oils are amazing and useful in so many ways! You can use them to stay well, get well, help you sleep, feel more energized, and so much more! Our product line at our initial launch will have 13 different Certified 100% Pure Therapeutic Grade essential oils-the highest quality oils that you can get. We will be adding 20-24 more throughout the first year. We currently have less than 250 consultants, nationwide. This is truly a ground floor opportunity for anyone willing to jump in, learn, and work hard! The rewards will be phenomenal! Everyone wants in on a company when they are at their peak of success, but they also wish they would have gotten started earlier! It's a leap of faith to start at the very beginning, but it's SO worth it. This is an amazing company, with fantastic leadership, and strategic business and marketing plans in place. You can join now, begin team building and learning, then pay for your kit in December or January.

***If you have previous direct sales leadership experience and you are interested, contact me ASAP. Our Founder program will close on Friday (last call is at 11am CST) and we won't accept anymore consultants into it. Email me for more details. DandeeRose@gmail.com***

Where will you be in a year???? https://www.facebook.com/AliciaWinklerEO

Have a blessed sleep and TTYS!! Good night!!

Pt. 4, the conclusion of our Fall Vacation...WARNING! PICTURE HEAVY!

2013-11-21T16:22:00.002-05:00

Something new.....

We decided over a delicious included breakfast after a cozy sleep the head to Busch Gardens! I hadn't been since I was 14 and it would be a new experience for everyone else. We purchased a ticket that would have allowed us to visit both BG and SeaWorld as often as we liked over 14 days. Too bad we only had 2. :( We missed a lot of shows. We had taken Isabelle to SW when she was 3 and found it a half day park. The problem is getting to the shows ontime.

Matt DID go on his hog hunt. For his first one, he got a nice boar!! After that we went together to SW. On the way home we followed the Atlantic coast, visiting St. Augustine Beach. Thanks for following along!!

Poor Sawyer...He still wasn't feeling real great...

Both boys fell asleep in this crappy stroller. It was funny, but dangerous, so I quickly took some pictures before taking Sawyer out. Gabriel ended up toppling out when Matt stopped (the belt latch wasn't staying locked well), but Matt caught him, luckily. We got our money back on the rental.

WIPE OUT!

My little Pocahontas

Decided to "taste" sand.

Hurricane: Level 3

Pt. 3

2013-11-19T21:55:00.001-05:00

So this will conclude the Disney leg of our trip, due to some unfortunate events. :(

I was absent most of our AK day. I stayed back at our room with sick Sawyer. But Matt and Isabelle got some pictures!

Sawyer and I headed to AK before our reservations at Tusker. I was afraid he throw up on me ALL day!! He did not on that day, but continues for a week with issues. :(

Isabelle and I went to Disney Quest for a bit. That was new for us!

Made because we wouldn't let him go overboard! ;)

My happy eyes...

Sawyer decided he didn't like flying. :(

We headed for a break to our room after this. And now our "unfortunate" happening...

This is from the email I sent Disney. I am still waiting to hear back. You will see in the photos after we tried very hard to still enjoy ourselves.

"

What the issue is is that although we have been to Disney more times than I can count we did not realize that there was a policy that restrict you from keeping a firearm in your room. Not in the park that would be completely ridiculous! But in your room.

You see, we are in Disney World at least once a year, twice this year. The reason behind that is that in 2007, only a few days after a blissful 10 day WDW trip with my husband and 2 children, we were tboned by a truck running a red light. After nearly 2 weeks in the hospital my husband and I were released to bury our son. At only 16 mo, he was taken from us by a careless driver. So we return for the wonderful memories we have of that magical time we all had together.

So when we return to our room last week (we had been at POR 4 nights already, had two more and had added on another earlier that morning) we were locked out. We had no idea why. And we have had no problems up until that day. Matt went on a picture this morning and a housekeeper (must have been a new one, I sat there the day before watching the HK as she cleaned and she didn't mind at all) recognized his guns. It was reported and we were locked out of my room. As we waited for 45 minutes and no one would tell us why. Finally we overheard a security officer telling the manager we were waiting with that Orange County has been called. At that point we kinda figured it had something to do with the guns, which were not loaded.

When OC finally got there, Franky, the officer started explaining to us what the issue was and what steps could be taken.

At first everything was pretty friendly. They told us they could lock up his firearms somewhere on animal kingdom property. We weren't incredibly comfortable with that especially since my husband has highly restricted NFA pieces that according to federal law cannot be in possession of anyone else without 10 years of prison in a quarter of a million dollars in fines. So we said no that's okay we'll go ahead and leave, based on principle, we were leaving of our own free will. We went started packing as we're packing Matt and I were discussing that we would like to see that policy because I did not know that it was a policy that you could not keep them in your private room. Especially considering we have had firearms in our room most of our trips to WDW, all staying on WDW property. So he went out and asked to see a copy of the policy while I continued packing. The manager who would not even talk to me because I was a woman (seriously, my husband even pointed it out and you could tell by the look on his face that was the issue after my husband told him that he could talk to me, since I book everything))...manager, I think Frankie (there were 2 Frankie/ys told him that he did not have to show it to him that he might drop it in the mail. Now remember we are already packing to leave anyway! But at this point they decide that they are going to tell us that we have 5 minutes to leave we are being evicted and we are trespassing.At this point I'm crying , b/c to me it seemed they were saying we were trespassing on WDW property, as in ALL of it! And now my children are crying too. My husband is getting a little agitated and the cops are baiting him calling him a little man and telling him he has issues to need to bring guns on vacation. We have remained calm all we wanted to know was what the policy was. We were already leaving and we completely agree if that is their policy, we just wanted to see it. In all of our years going to WDW and THOUSANDS (just this year alone!) spent there, it wasn't a huge request.

We finally get all of our stuff and my husband got his arms and on the way out as we're crying, the sheriff has a pistol pulled out and ready to fire me and my family! I SERIOUSLY have NEVER been so terrified in all my life! I was scared to death! I was about to throw up! I was NOT armed. I was carrying a crying and SICK 14 month old and holding the hand of my 3 year old. How was I a threat!? I was NOT right beside Matt, he was 15 ft ahead, but those pistols were on ME and my children!

Now after we left we started googling and found the policy ourself. We also we also discovered that under Florida law you can keep it in your vehicle but they would not let us do that they said they had to be locked up on animal kingdom property only!and now I have to call and try to get refunded for the night and the tickets and the stuff that we didn't get to use.which I started trying to do yesterday got transferred 3 times after being on hold over 40 minutes and then disconnected. Because they said that I had to call to get a refund. I still have NO idea who to contact about Wednesday and our added on Thursday nights refund, not the mention unused park tickets out of fear of stepping into a park and being chased down at gunpoint!
We ended up going to Downtown Disney for dinner that night. But I have to tell you I was scared to death I really was afraid that if I stepped on Disney property and they found out that they might come after us. I don't know if we were completely kickoff Disney property or just got off a resort or anything else. :(

They never physically touched anyone but they did everything they could to make us realize very clearly that if they even thought something might go wrong they would shoot. Crying babies everything they did not care. And I left my rental stroller over by our room to be returned to bell services. I don't know why I wish I would've just kept it. but I forgot I left my key and phone in it and had to go back.I was carrying the baby. And crying and had a security officer follow me the entire way. I turned around and ask him if he was following me and he said no and backed up a little bit but when I turned around he was still back there. So I said to him you're making me really nervous and the manager finally made him stop following me. The manager walked beside me. This man was a total prick. I have never met a Disney employ I didn't like until him and the one security officer.

The way this was handled was totally unacceptable. I don't care who you are, no one should be treated like a criminal being carted off to prison when they didn't warrant it. First off Disney has my number. They could have called and asked us to come back to POR to clear up the issue. The POR employees would not even tell us why we were locked out of our room. They expected OC sheriffs to explain it. They could have tried to do something differently!! They made up their minds about us before even seeing us. And I truly believe that a copy of the policy should have been brought by the manager when he first came over anyway. By the way, the reason my husband had guns in our room??? He and my 11 year old daughter were taking a pig hunt near Daytona Friday morning. My daughter ended up catching the flu we had been passing around all week (yep it had already been a rough and miserable trip that we were trying SO very hard to enjoy anyway). But my husband did get his first pig! A trophy Boar.

We still had a good time, fairly anyway, visiting Busch Gardens and SeaWorld, staying off site at a Good Neighbor hotel (we made sure our guns were ok in our room). But we spent nearly $1000 we would not have spent and that hurts now that we are home. :(

But the saddest part of all!? Wondering if we will ever return.... Ever get to go on Living with the Land boat ride that my Levi loved so much or picture his face when we see Stitch or Goofy.

My issue is not your policy. I apologize for my ignorance on the issue (though it should be more clearly stated, as I have shared this story with dozens of friends that are LONG time WDW goers and they did not know either). My issue is the way it was handled. The way we were treated, both by Disney Cast members and Orange County.

We have been referred to an area Attorney and been told we should take this to local media. My heart is broken, but I still love Disney. I really don't want to be like that. I just want this made right.

Thank you."

Science lesson with dry ice! Love being a homeschool family!

My saddened puffy eyes, trying to be happy anyway.

Part 2

2013-11-18T22:23:00.001-05:00

Disney! Days 1 & 2. At the end of Day 2 we had late dinner at Bier Garten. Sawyer threw up the first time there. I didn't sleep that night and stayed in our room with my vomitting LO half the next day. :(

Last look at those LONG tresses!

Pee Pie!

Gabriel LOVES to have mousse put in his hair. Just like Daddy!!

A Photo Journal of our Fall Vacation, pt. 1

2013-11-18T15:31:00.001-05:00

The first set of pictures are of the day before we left. Cleaning up the yard some before we left. You can REALLY see how long the boys' hair was!!! lol!!!

Next set is on the way down in the NW corner of Georgia, at Liberty Suppressors and Cloud Canyon park. It was soooo pretty!!

Last one is arriving at WDW in the rain!

I am SO excited!! :D

2013-11-17T20:56:00.001-05:00

A few days ago I joined a brand new US based Essential Oils company, Simply Aroma. It took prayer and a leap of faith, but I truly felt God was opening a door for me.

I sat in on a VoiP meeting as Kelly Love laid out the company a bit; going over the quality, the comp plan, etc... It was all quite informative! Of course, I have been following along with those few (I think 200-300 or so now??) of us who "took the leap of faith" with SA (many veteran doTERRA and Young Living users) on a facebook page. There we invite visitors to ask questions and see if they want to try that leap, too!

For more from the company about oil quality, see the end of this post! :)

Anyway, I will have the title of Presidential Founder Candidate when we launch. This is VERY exciting! And I am blessed for the opportunity!

Meanwhile, I am sharing... and planning a LAUNCH PARTY!!

Launch is January 6, 2014. That is when I plan to hold my party. If you are local, follow the event on facebook! I am planning make and take fun!! See how you can include oils in you daily life, if you don't already! And it will be a Mystery Hostess PARTY!! Learn more about Hostess Rewards!!!

FIND THE EVENT HERE!!

Simply Aroma Hostess Rewards!

And PLEASE like my new page!! I will have updates on the company and informative articles about Essential Oils and their uses. :)

https://www.facebook.com/AliciaWinklerEO

We have one diffuser at the moment. It is white and can be set to one color, rotate through colors, or the light can be turned off.

Interested in a LEAP OF FAITH? :)

Ground Floor Opportunity for brand new company launching in January. You can check out all the details here: http://www.simplyaroma.com/index.aspx

Sign up now, start working your business, pay for your kit in December.

Please contact me if you would like more information and I can add you to our group page so you can look around and ask questions. DandeeRose@gmail.com

From Simply Aroma:

Simply Aroma’s Quality Standards
Simply Aroma stands by the quality of our products. Below are a few facts about our quality standards:

Our essential oils are Certified 100% Pure Therapeutic Grade, the highest grade available for essential oils.

Simply Aroma only associates ourselves with companies that have the best development, manufacturing facilities, and track record.

Our essential oils are one of the safest and the most rigorously tested essential oils available today.

Mass spectrometry and gas chromatography are used to ensure the quality of the composition of our products.

Our essential oils do not consist of any fillers or artificial ingredients that could hamper performance.
Simply Aroma sets high standards for our therapeutic grade products with a 100% Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade label. This label tells consumers some facts about the oil:

Come from high quality plants

Grown and harvested to the highest standards

Strict guidelines used for extracting and bottling

And a guarantee that every essential oil is tested by an outside company for purity

Simply Aroma, a new Essential Oil company, US based!!

2013-11-15T20:54:00.001-05:00

Hello loved ones!! Several days ago a dear friend sent me some information about a new, based in the US essential oil company that is in prelaunch. Well, I dismissed it nearly immediately, based on my memories of bamboopink. I swore my name wouldn't go behind a product that had that quality again, sadly I did not know until I was well on my way to building a business. Not to mention, I have been a doTERRA girl for a bit now.

I sat on it after we chatted about it. I prayed about it. You see, it was pretty awesome what was being offered! 1st TIER! I still wasn't sure....

Then a few things happened in the last 36 hrs that make me believe that God has this! So I am going for it!!!!! Wanna join me???? Email me if you do! ;)
http://simplyaroma.com/index.aspx

For those of you who are YL and dT users, I have been assured that these EOs are faced with the SAME standards of certification. Also in some trade shows the past weekend, some new consultants were set up with kits by the company. YL and dT reps were SURE these were THEIR oils!!!:) And the price points are more pocket book friendly!

What REALLY sets them apart though? Simply Aroma is a party based business!! The first ever in EO.

So what are Essential Oils??? Read up here! http://www.aromaweb.com/articles/whatare.asp

And this one is GRAND! http://www.experience-essential-oils.com/essential-oil-benefits.html

I'm looking for a few people (anywhere in the country!) who would like to join an amazing, new company based in Mobile, AL, on the ground floor as a Independent Consultant.

Simply Aroma is set to launch on January 6th, 2014 with a fabulous product line of Certified 100% Pure Therapeutic Grade Essential Oils (adding 2 more per month, after we launch) and a high quality, ultrasonic diffuser to enjoy them with! Essential Oils are FABULOUS for maintaining optimal health and EVERY home should have them in their "medicine" cabinet! There are so many ways to use these oils - general health support, cleaning products, beauty products, and so much more. As an added bonus, our diffuser will fill the air with healthy, all natural fragrance!

If you are interested in signing up, you can do so through the following link. You do not have to pay for a kit when you sign up! They will work out payment of the kit after you're all signed up. In the meantime, you can be promoting your business, booking parties, and growing your team, so that you hit the ground running in January! Registration JUST opened this past week. I am happy to answer questions!!

Home from Vacation!

2013-11-11T15:58:00.000-05:00

The looongest trip to FL EVER!!!

2013-11-01T19:50:00.001-04:00

It was a beautiful morning when we woke in Chattanooga this morning. Misty, cool, not cold, blue sky, and fluffy clouds with their shadows dotting the mountains.

I woke worried about what would come of our day, though, as Matt spent half of the night sick. :( Surprisingly, he has done well all day! And me, well, I am thankful to my chiropractor! Today my shoulders and neck are nearly 100% better!

The biggest issue today has been Gabriel forever whining that he wants to "go at home". Not understanding why we cant go home tonight and still be in WDW in the morning. Grrrr!!!

We stopped at Liberty Suppressors early this morning. It was a fun stop for Matt!! And enroute to cutting back to 75 from the NW corner of GA we got to see some beautiful scenery. Cant wait to share pictures!!

Meanwhile, we are about 2 hrs from our stop for the night in Gainesville. Which will leave us less than 2 hrs from Disney in the morning!! :)

Ps LOTS of accidents on 75 today. We have been stopped in traffic many times.

Off to NEVERLAND!!

2013-10-31T12:45:00.001-04:00

And we are off!!

It has been a rough week. Sawyer and I have had the flu. I have major neck and shoulder pain. And its raining... lol.

Nothing Disney can't fix, right?! ;)

I am using the app so pictures of the past week, as well as vacation shots, will need to wait. Ttfn!!!

Exciting stuff!

2013-10-25T08:46:00.001-04:00

Exciting stuff has been happening around here!

Earlier this week I got my first doTERRA essential oil kit! I am completely brand new to the role of essential oils. And being someone without a sense of smell its going to be a very interesting learning experience.

I long to help my family in any way I can. Particularly though I would like to be able to help my son. I feel like it is so much worse than terrible 3, or whatever. He can be so sweet at times, but he is very defiant at times, and can act much like a monster . I just don't know what to do. I homeschool, so I am with him all the time. I have been putting Balance and Serenity on his soles, what else should I try? I have the physician's kit, as well as wild orange, vetiver, balance, serenity, and slim and sassy. I tried to take him to a playgroup and he was so awful, not only was it embarassing, he can't make friends. I am so sad and aching for him, and honestly, me, too. Our whole house suffers a bit from his behavior. We are going on vacation end of next week and I really want to be able to enjoy myself. so please say a little prayer for us and feel free to offer up any essential oil advice for a newbie!

So I have been messing around with oils and trying to figure out what works. The good news is I found something that works very well for me yesterday with my stress and what not from what's going on.

In other exciting news my stove is supposed to be taken in to be repaired today! Which means I should be able to have my oven back very soon!!

So Red it is!!!!

2013-10-20T21:02:00.001-04:00

Yep! We settled on the red Excursion!

Moving things around. There is the wonderful Lewis family!

Pee Pie through the new windows!

Last good byes...

We traded the jeep and now have a shiny Excursion in the driveway. :)

I cannot say enough good things about Lewis Motors! Shannon and Rachel REALLY know their stuff! I learned so much by chatting with Rachel about Diesels that I had NO clue about! And I know she loved playing with the baby! :) And their boys are so well mannered. We really felt like old friends by the time we left yesterday.

We left and headed to my mom's to pick up Gabriel and Isabelle.

How cool is it that all THREE of my children fit in one row!? In my van, poor Gabriel sat in the back row by himself.

It was a late night, we didn't get home until about 10PM.

Today, I finally got to put in the new Mickey Mouse clubhouse DVD I got for the boys last week. Sawyer is REALLY into MM right now!!! It is so cute how he points to every Mickey he sees. He especially loves dancing to the MMCH theme. Well, I just couldn't resist snapping these of Sawyer watching today! :)

Been awhile since I posted a meal picture! Tonight I made what was supposed to be a Delicata Squash Sautee, but turned out to be more of a Stew! It was DELISH! Served over a bed of lentils, full of bright colors, loaded with nutrition!! It's one for my book!!

That's all folks! Tomorrow I will have a special post about something new and exciting I am trying in my home! I have been antsy for days! Well tomorrow Fedex will deliver my new doTERRA oils! I. Can't. WAIT!

Night and God Bless!!

Can't life be uncomplicated for awhile??? Please?

2013-10-19T08:07:00.002-04:00

Since Matt usually works nights and since he hit a deer a couple of months ago and shattered a headlight, he has grown accustomed to taking my car to work. At first he would worry about leaving me home without it (it is the only vehicle EVERYONE will fit in, though we have 5, including my husbands "toys", 2 antique Kaisers), but I would reassure him all would be ok. It has worked out well. And while we have been car shopping on and off for a couple of months, he has planned to keep the van to drive to work (likely trading the Jeep that is dangerous). It's a win- win!

Right?!

Well it was, anyway.... Until yesterday morning.

While pulling out of the parking lot yesterday, with a dew covered (brand new) windshield and a glaring rising sun, refracting on the mist and windows, Matt "bumped" a Dodge pick up in the rear at about 10 MPH. While no one was hurt, and the guy had a minor bit of bumper damage, my car, which slid under the truck, had to be towed home!

Look!!!! My windshield is ok!!!!!

:(

And with us leaving for vacation in 2 weeks.

Now, we had been ~~car~~ auto shopping on and off for awhile. Even to past couple years, keeping our eyes out for a 7.3 diesel Excursion. See, after loosing Levi, we won't "DO" little vehicles. The mini van was pushing it to begin with. Even more so now, seeing how it holds up in a minor fender bender!!! Over the past month we have also tested out the 4 door F250 and recently considered the LARGE conversion van, E250. The only downside of the E250 is rear wheel drive... :( There is an Excursion near Chicago we were making plans for (if you don't already know, Matt avoids IL like a plague, so this was something to find!)

First things first! We had to clean up the jeep and get a tire aired, the battery charged, renew the registration, add it to insurance, etc.... All while being thankful that my mom took the the older kids Thursday, because we have NOTHING all 5 of us fit in.

Playing while at the carwash

Turns out we had to be a new battery.

Finally, about 2PM, Matt and I went to lunch, starved, jeep as clean as it was getting, much more comfortable to ride in! While there we looked through car ads and talked about where to go first. By chance, Matt remembered his cousin mentioning a little, tiny, lot in Daylight having an F250. I pulled up their website, Lewis Motors, and found they had 2, TWO!, Diesel 7.3 Excursions!!! They are almost impossible to find!!

By the time we FINALLY got there, the husband and wife team at Lewis Motors showed us both fantastic vehicles!! The green one, I liked better (we aren't a big red- loving family), it had about 60k less miles, seat warmers (ohhh!! that was nice on my sciatica!), and installed DVD. It also had a few blemishes, though (to be fair, the Lewis' just got it and it was in the garage still for clean up), and, frankly, didn't drive as nice. So right now we are leaning more toward the burgundy. We have plans to meet the Lewis' at the lot at 9, this morning.


Me driving the Green one!


Could this be my new car?! Do you see a trip to FL in the future??

A little note, Lewis Motors opened in 1954, started by Shannon Lewis' father. This husband and wife duo make this small lot and off-road conversion business a family affair and are wonderful to work with and pleasant to be around! We enjoyed their company for a couple of hours last night! :) And Rachel certainly seemed to enjoy the baby time!!

Meanwhile, I think Matt and my step Dad are going to fix the van so we can continue to drive it (Matt to work and keep some miles off the new vehicle).

I will let you know what happens today later on!!! God bless!

Fall has been beautiful!!

2013-10-16T20:47:00.002-04:00

So far Fall has been beautiful here in Southern Indiana. A bit of storms, but mostly sunny and cool!

Early last week marked the 6 year anniversary of loosing our son, Levi. He was not quite 17 mo (only a week after an amazingly memorable 10 day Disney World trip, which is a good reason we go back so often...To remember the magic...) when a careless driver ran a red light and smashed into our car, taking him from us. Our lives are forever changed and we miss him daily.

Mommy Loves You Little Man!!! <3 <3 <3

I have been trying very hard to add more "movement" to my days (exercise :) ). The weather has been perfect for it and I REALLY need to loose some weight! Matt and I have been doing some weight lifting, too, and I hope to start c25k again, soon! I just need to be a bit more diligent. I am adding more paleo meals to our menu plans, in effort to cut some bad carbs. Gotta a favorite recipe???

On a recent leisure stroll Gabriel picked some lovely wildflowers. He was so proud!

Over last weekend, we headed to Kentucky. It was youth season for deer, so Matt took Isabelle hunting. We weren't blessed with a harvest, though, this time, anyway. But instead of driving back and forth (1.5 hrs+ each way), Matt rented a small (very small) cabin, and we all went!! It was fun in some aspects, but the cabin was pretty small. Wish there had been outdoor space for the kids to play, but we did have a porch!

The Ohio river as viewed during a drive with the boys about 8 am Sat. They were both asleep.

Yep, Sawyer was passed out, too! That's what happens when Daddy's alarm wakes everyone up at 5:30! :P

Sawyer being adorable in our cabin!

Trying to figure out how to get down. He understood the feet first concept, but those extra inches scared him!! He "dangled" like that a good 5 min!!!

And in recent preschool activities, we have learned "F" is for FALL!!!

Which included some play time in this beautiful weather today with our PEACE friends! Sawyer was movin and groovin.His hair is getting quite shaggy. He doesn't have the natural curl Levi did. Only 17 more days until his first haircut!


Isn't this sweet!? :)

Night all and God bless!

New Windshield and Mickey Mail!

2013-10-07T13:48:00.002-04:00

Last week we lost another branch from that dead Oak tree. This time it skipped the drop line and went for my car instead. The good news here is that we hadn't replaced the windshield from Gabriel cracking it, yet. Bad news is I have some new dings. The windsheild is being replaced as I type!

The best part is that Richard, of American Dream in Jasper is replacing it in my own DRIVEWAY! That means no waiting room with the kids!!!!

Gabriel had his second storyhour at the Library today. He really seems to love it! And as cool as it was this morning, I dressed him in a sweet sweater, perfect for fall!!

Uh-Oh!! A SMOLDER! Isn't he a bit young?????

That lovely bruise on his cheek is from his baby brother biting him. :(

Last week Gabriel learned E is for Egg!


Sawyer listened in! Look at the wings growing above his ears! lol!! Only a few more weeks until haircut at Harmony!

Also last week, we got Mickey Mail! I was so excited, because I had NO idea what it could possibly be!

So I opened it and found a letter.

So my first thought was (and kinda still is), couldn't they have given us a resort upgrade instead???? Matt and I don't like the idea of being tracked while on Vacay. It isn't really Disney's concern when I go potty, stop to grab a coffee, or am in my room. So there was some discussion and apparently I guess the same chips are in the cards, so it doesn't matter. Afterall, there are agencies who look to Disney for many ideas.... Just sayin'.

Still kinda bummed, but Disney certainly has a way to keep the magic and fun in it all! I ordered our bands last Friday and UPS brought them today. They are quite neat! Matt and Isabelle aren't happy about them, still, but what can we do???

Isabelle and Gabriel picked their colors, I picked everyone elses.

So my windshield is now almost done, so I am getting ready to bury myself in car cleaning.... Anything to help distract me today.

Six years ago today.....

Apple Picking and adding a "family" member!

2013-10-01T21:01:00.000-04:00

Recently we all went to Reid Orchard in Owensboro for apple picking. It was a follow up "field trip" to Gabriel's week of A is for Apple. We hadn't been apple picking in about 7 years! So it was a fun time!

Later that day we received Mickey Mail!!!

Also recently, we added a family member! Meet Echo, our manx kitten! She is the first cat we have had inside in YEARS!

She is VERY energetic! But even tolerated being dressed up!

She likes spending time with the kids, from helping with a math question,...

To watching MMCH!

That's all for tonight folks! God bless!