Ah, stress, It's something I do my best to avoid, but let's be real, with this many kids (love y'all!), a husband (love you too!), way too many pets according to 'some people' and you just live in the world today, stress is sometimes inevitable.

Today, I wanted to share with you my favorite ways to destress. From single oils to bath remedies. Add a few of these to your weekly self care, you won't regret it. 

Single Blends

• Lavender- calms and relieves stress
• Roman chamomile- calms reduces stress
• Wild orange- energizes while reducing anxiety and depression
• Frankincense- reduces depression, trauma, and tension
• Vetiver- improves focus and sedates

Blends

• Invigorating blend- energizes while reducing anxiety and depression
• Grounding blend- balances mood while reducing stress and trauma
• Calming blend- reduces anxiety and stress
• Tension blend- relieves tension and stress
• Women's blend- balances hormones and calms anxiety

Roller Bottle Remedies

Combine oils into a roller bottle and...

"That's it! I've had enough!" You might think I'm yelling at one of my kids, separating a fight, or just yelling out of pure mom frustration. 

Nope, wrong.

It's bugs y'all. I am so over the bugs. I've already shared a DIY bug spray, but today I wanted to go a little further in my pest repellents. 

Whether they are in your garden destroying your beautiful homegrown tomatoes or they are just keeping you from spending the time outside that you've been waiting for, it's time to get serious.

Below is a list of pests and the essential oils you can use to repel those unwanted visitors. 

• Ants:  peppermint, spearmint
• Aphids: cedarwood, peppermint, spearmint
• Beetles: peppermint, thyme
• Caterpillars: spearmint, peppermint
• Chiggers: lavender, lemongrass, sage, thyme
• Fleas: peppermint, lemongrass, spearmint, lavender
• Flies: lavender, peppermint, rosemary, sage
• Gnats: patchouli, spearmint
• Lice: cedarwood, peppermint, spearmint
• Mosquitos: lavender,...

I think it's a given that we, especially as women and mothers, are always trying to do our best to take care of those we love. 

We try to make better choices on the foods we eat. We try to make sure that everyone is drinking enough water and getting enough sleep. So it can be super frustrating to find out that some of our well thought out choices are actually no better than the junk we're trying to avoid. 

So how do we even begin to make the switch to safer if we aren't even sure what safer actually is??

I totally get your frustration and I'm hoping I can help just a little! 

My number one suggestion is to ditch the "fragrance". No, I'm not just talking about the perfume and body spray, but rather anything with the word "fragrance" listed as an ingredient. 

Did you know that the word "fragrance" is considered a trade secret meaning companies don't actually have to disclose the ingredients they are using to create said fragrance. 

Cool, huh? 

So what...

I hope you guys had an amazing long Memorial Day weekend. We spent most of our holiday outside enjoying the gorgeous weather (when we could) and hanging out on the lake. 

Now that it's officially Summer, I have to share with you some of my DIY Summer Favorites. Including my personal favorite, bug repellent. 

Y'all, I love the Lord's creatures, but I cannot stand bugs or bug bites. Over my 40 years of living I have tried SO. MANY. THINGS. to get rid of bugs so I can enjoy my time outside, but if I'm being honest, and you know I am because that's just how I roll, nothing worked good enough. 

And if they did work they were full of nasty harmful toxic ingredients that I just didn't feel comfortable about putting on myself, let alone my children. 

I know I talk a lot about oils, but y'all, it has been the ONLY thing that has worked. And I feel at ease using it on those I care most about. 

DIY Bug Repellant

You'll Need: 

• 4 oz spray bottle (stainless, glass,...