Topical Steroid Withdrawal - 6 Months In

So here we are at half of a year.
Honestly, I totally thought that Noelle would be done with this by now, but sadly she is not.

Read how she was doing at month 5 here.

This month, there has not been much change, honestly.
Here is how her skin is.

 Her legs are about the same as last month.
We actually did see some significant improvement, and then she got a hold of her shins without her gloves on and went to town scratching.

That day and night her legs were wet with ooze.  It sounds so gross, but for those going through TSW, it's a common term!

The texture of her shins and calves is still extremely thick and rough.  Praying they get better soon.

Her ankles and feet continue to be red, irritated and flaky.  I've noticed the past few days that her ankles are actually swollen as well.

Noelle's thighs are still red, but not too bothersome.  Sometimes they look really dry and I think that the skin will flake off, but it hasn't yet!

Her tummy is not bad, it goes back and forth.  For Noelle, her back, stomach, and arms have been through a long cycle already.  

It seems like those parts of her body cycle much quicker now.  (When I say "cycle" I mean the skin goes from red, to bumpy, to flaky, to clear and then back again)

So while right now, she's got some bumps and redness on her stomach, I doubt it will be there long.  It comes and goes.

Her back is the same as last month as well.  It really isn't bad, however it does seem to bother her a lot.  It's dry, but only gets red when she scratches it...which is frequently :/

Noelle's neck is still pretty itchy lately, but doesn't look bad at all!  It remains dry and a little red.  Sometimes it flakes, but it hasn't actually looked clear so far this month.

Her arms are so fickle.

Right now up by her shoulders is dry and crusty....meaning there are bumps on the skin that aren't red...just...I don't know, crusty!  It's getting hard to find different words to describe her skin!!

Her elbow creases are not severe at all, they just remain dry, but not cracking.

Same with her wrists...now if she starts itching her wrists, they very quickly become inflamed and red, bumpy, and can even develop hives!  They seem to be very sensitive, but also heal back up pretty quick.  ***Case in point, I took these pictures the day after typing that.  Her arms are already red again!

TSW has just recently started to really affect her face.  Last month her mouth was all red and flaky and the creases in her mouth were cracked.
 

Happy little face :)

Just recently I noticed that the cracks had healed up!  The redness is gone, but her entire face is very very dry.  Sometimes it gets red and we'll see some little bumps.

But if she rubs her face at night with her gloves, that skin will flake off and she'll have much smoother skin in the morning!  

So overall, her upper body is doing much better than her lower body.  And it used to be the opposite!
 
We still aren't applying creams or lotions unless she asks for them.

The stress of applying something to help her skin actually does more damage as stress inevitably causes her to flare.

However, we did just get Young Living's Tender Tush and we're trying that in one spot on her leg to see if it helps it heal any quicker.  We shall see!

She's also still taking frequent baths with

• apple cider vinegar
• dead sea or epsom salts
• baking soda
• and Young Living Essential Oils - usually Lavender or Melaleuca

However, we will be experimenting this week.  I have noticed that she is super duper itchy the nights that she has a bath.  I don't know if it's one of the ingredients or what, but we'll be trying to pinpoint what it is that irritates her!

A few weeks ago, she went to her holistic pediatrician and he requested that she get an allergy test.

That was NOT pleasant.

It was a blood test, which I was much more willing to do, as I won't let anyone touch her skin with allergens.

But let me tell you.  The kid is strong.  It was so difficult for me and the two ladies helping to keep her still enough to draw the blood.

But the results were pretty interesting.

Her doctor told us that the tests are rarely 100% accurate.  But we want to remove anything that could possibly be making her condition worse than it already is.

Also, her immune system is obviously compromised.  That's pretty common after prolonged topical steroid use.

So her immune system is over compensating and responding like crazy to stuff!

For each allergen, the normal range is between 0 and .35

Here are her results:

• Wheat -      2.65
• Corn -       4.38
• Oat -        7.63
• Egg Whites - 8.27
• Soybean -    13.9 
• Cow's milk - 31.20
• Peanuts -    54.50
•  

So, she's showing some allergies to ALL of them, but she is highly allergic to peanuts and cow's milk.

Thankfully, the only foods that are currently in her diet on that list are oats, egg whites, and peanuts.

So we're obviously removing those from her diet as of NOW.

We shall see if there is any improvement with that change...I sure hope there is!!!

It's really interesting because two nights last week were a NIGHTMARE.  Literally the WORST two nights she has ever had.  We could not get her to sleep.  She was awake both nights from about 1:00a.m. - 5/6:00a.m.!

It was so bad.

And now that we have the test results, we realize that she had a couple pb&j sandwiches last week!  And she hadn't had peanut butter for a while before that!

So we're hoping that was the culprit and that things will get a little better.  Since then she's had a good night, and a difficult one...but nothing like those other two!

Here's to hoping we see some changes this next month!
 

Why not Buy American?

Buy American!

You've heard that term right??

"Let's support our local economy!"

"Why purchase from overseas when you can purchase from the "mom and pop" down the street?"

These are valid statements and questions....when you're talking about purchases.

These, however are NOT valid when talking about a child.  A person.  A human.  A soul.

When our story was aired last Thursday on Fox40 (you can see it here), we saw some feedback that was mostly negative, and mostly ignorant.

The story was also posted on Aol, Yahoo, One News Page, and a few others, as well as Fox 40's Facebook page.  (Read about the rest of our crazy week of outreach to our elected officials here)

On some of these sites, we read some very disheartening comments regarding our adoption.

Here are some that we saw:

• "Sad they had to go so far to find a child to adopt"

• "Umm ok? what about the millions of kids here that need homes??"

• "So sad. What about American babies right in your backyard without food,homes, and families?"

• "The reason adoptions have stopped in the Congo is because of the increase in baby trafficking. Babies are being stolen from mothers, and mothers are being coerced into relinquishing these "valuable" babies. These adoptions need to stop-there should not be a financial profit in adoption. No one is entitled to a baby."

• "yes it does matter where the child is from we need to take care of our own FIRST before trying to rescue the whole world"

• "Awwwww get over it adopt american children... amercia has thousands of children looking for forever homes. I wish the american govt. Would halt all all forigen adoptions until all american children have forever homes first."

• "Isn't there enough American babies who need adoption? God Bless all the children but, give me a bleeding heart break."

But my all time favorite is:

• "Buy American"

Now, we definitely saw more compassionate remarks as well, but not nearly as many.

I was not prepared for comments like this.
I wasn't prepared for the ignorance that people have when commenting on something so sensitive and so personal to us.

However, we understand that we allowed our story to be told on a public level and that it is open for anyone to have an opinion about it.


After reading their comments, I immediately felt so defensive!!!
I wanted to fully EDUCATE them as to why they are dead wrong!

But my husband reminded me that I can't respond to that stuff.

We are to be the example here.  We aren't here to argue.
What it comes down to with these people is this:

• They do not view these children as people.

• They do not see an adopted child as having the same rights a biological child has.

• They do not see Congolese children as having the same human rights as American children.

• They obviously view American children as being far superior to the Congolese.

• They clearly have NO IDEA what the conditions are like for orphans in Congo.

However, I'd like to take a moment to give some information in case there are any of you that still don't understand why we aren't adopting domestically.

I honestly understand inquiring minds.
I understand if you have questions.
I'll do my best to answer them!

Just don't attack my family!

K?  

:)

#1:  We did not set out to adopt from Congo
We see NOTHING wrong with that, however.

When we started our adoption journey (wrote a post about it here), we were overwhelmed with the options.

We knew that adoption was GOOD regardless of where the child was from.  This left us with a hard decision...if we felt every single child needed parents, then how to we choose where to adopt from?

Well, thankfully God made that decision for us.  We realized that a friend of ours co-founded Compassion for Congo and we already knew someone else who adopted from their orphanage in Congo!

It was an open door, and we walked through, never looking back.

#2: Children are desperate in Congo.
In Congo, only about half of ALL children live until the age of 5.  Those are not good odds.

It is the poorest country in the world.

Parents cannot afford to feed themselves, much less their children.

Sometimes family members will take turns skipping meals, even for days, so that others can eat.

There is literally an endless supply of abandoned children and parents that are willing to abandon their children.

You can see them on the streets every day all over the country.

And parents who love their children will many times offer them up to be adopted, knowing they will die if they stay.

#3: Witchcraft is rampant
In Congo, many children are injured (burned, cut, whipped) because their parents believe they are evil.  Many children are believed to be, even at very young ages, to be sorcerers, witches, or demon possessed. 

You can read an example here.  Please be advised, it is graphic, and disturbing...but this little girl's reality.

They use different deplorable actions to get rid of the "evil" that lives inside these poor kids. This results in children being abandoned, left for dead, or killed.

This is fairly common.  

Satan is able to live in the country without disguise.

#4: There is no "system" to help them.
Didier himself (pastor who runs the orphanage) told us when he visited last year that adoption is not common among the Congolese people.

If a child is adopted, they most likely become more of a servant than a member of the family.

When there are children walking the streets, starving and ill-stricken, they aren't generally looked upon with compassion like they would be here in the U.S.

Their general view of children and orphans is just different.

Although the government does extend a love for their people and a desire to see them thrive, it seems the resources are not present.

#5: An orphan needs parents.
An orphan=ANY child without a guardian...regardless of where they are born.

How on EARTH can we value one person's life over another based on their birthplace????

So, my sister in law was born in Mexico.  That means she is not as entitled to having loving parents like we Americans are???

How can we be so bold and arrogant as to say that?

It literally DUMBFOUNDS me.  

A child is a child, is a child, is a child.  
Period.

We are NOT talking politics!  This is not about getting a valid driver's license, or health insurance, or state funding.

I would NEVER tell someone that adopting from Congo is "better" or "more important" than adopting from ANYWHERE else!

Every single child needs saving.  

Some countries definitely have more deplorable conditions for their orphans, but we can't put more value on any one person's life than another's.

Am I making sense?

And Lastly,

#6: An orphan became our son in a split second.
The moment we saw Tobi's picture for the first time, he was our son.

There was no paperwork completed yet, nothing was official, but he was ours.

As adoptive parents, we don't view our adopted children any differently than our biological children.

So when someone says, "adopt another one", that is not even an option.

We can't replace a child, and any parent who has lost a child of their own can attest to that.

Can we have more?  Perhaps.  But there is no replacement.

Can I go out and buy another car when ours is totaled?  Yes.  

It's a purchase.

We don't purchase our children.

We labor for them, work for them, and they come at a cost just like our biological children.

They are not returnable, exchangeable, or replaceable.

Because they are people.

Not items, not statistics, not facts, not stories. 

They are our children.

Please do not view them as anything else.

******Any comments that are not genuine or seem to be from "trolls" will be immediately deleted.  I am choosing not to harbor debate and arguments here.  This is a family blog and is not intended to be controversial

 

A Week of Getting our Stories OUT!

So, I can honestly say that this past week has been one of the craziest ever.  

It has been so full, in a very very good way.

I have been pulled out of my comfort zone and taken a stand for our son in a way that I never have been able to before!  

SO SO SO SO much has gone on behind the scenes, and only my fellow Congo parents understand all that has gone on!

But for those of you who have followed our story, loved our son, and even stepped out by helping us raise awareness of the situation, I'd like to recap the happenings of the last couple weeks.


March 21st 

• A conference call wass held between the U.S. Embassy in DRC and adoptive parents (as well as adoption service providers). 
• Many parents were disappointed and angered by the lack of advocacy on the Embassy's part.  We felt that not enough was being done to encourage DRC to start issuing exit permits again.
• We (adoptive parents) realized that there was no master list of children in the adoption process, or children with visas in-hand.
• Parents believe we will have to take it upon ourselves to advocate for our children stuck in Congo!

March 27th 

• A New FB group is created to gather all parents whose Congolese children have a Visa in-hand (like Tobias).

March 31st 

• We (Congo adoptive parents) partnered with Kelly Dempsey from Both Ends Burning.  She took our case pro bono and started an action plan for us parents to take.

• All of us adoptive parents received an email from a coalition that is doing their best to get our kids home.  (separate from Both Ends Burning)  They set a plan in place for us to reach out to our elected officials and have our voices heard.  The plan:

• Send paper letters, emails, faxes, and phone calls over a 5 day period to each and every Senator (there's 100 of them!), as well as our local elected representative.
• We also reached out to friends and relatives to do the same on our behalf!

April 1st 

• Kelly created a Both Ends Burning Facebook Page for those of us Congo parents in the adoption process.
• There, we can all collaborate and be on the same page while we work together.
• Kelly Dempsey agrees that the coalition's plan of contacting the senators and representatives coincides with her initiative to make the Congolese exit letter situation very visible to the U.S. elected officials.
• We printed out and mailed 100 letters to all our senators, plus our local Congressman and the President.

 
April 2nd 

• We sent emails to the same officials we sent paper letters to. 
• We were instructed by Kelly to make our stories HEARD!  Our intent is to engage elected officials and show them that this issue is very important to their constituents.  We started contacting LOTS of media outlets asking if they were interested in hearing our story.
• A petition was written up by Kelly and we made it spread like wild fire!!  You can still sign it here. 
• Yet ANOTHER Facebook Page was made for just us Congo parents in California.  We joined forces and work together on everything!

April 3rd 

• We heard back from our local Fox40 news station and they wanted to run our story!
• Kimberly McDougall from Fox40 interviewed us and we were on the 6:00 news!
• See the article and video here.
• As soon as Kim left, I realized what a terrible tension headache I had!!!  Ah, it knocked me over!
• Adoptive parents started calling their state senators and local reps, telling them their story and asking them to get involved.

April 4th 

• Our petition had over 75,000 signatures!!  Huge!
• I continued to send our story to different officials and media outlets.
• Many other families were able to get their story on the news all over the country!
•  Huffington Post published an article!  Read here. 
• California parents printed letters to Senator Boxer and Senator Feinstein.  We tried to obtain as many physical signatures as possible.  They will be hand delivered to their DC offices!

April 5th 

• Parents started making a one page outline that will be shown to Congress.  We included pictures of our family and our adopted children waiting for us along with our adoption timeline.
• These letters will go to our elected officials in DC later this month to put a face and story to each case.
• I had another terrible tension headache!!!  Had to lay in bed for over an hour....I was SUPPOSED to be packing!

April 6th 

• We reached over 100,000 signatures on our online petition!!!!
• I collected 30 signed letters for each senator at church!  Our church family cares about our son and the hundreds of others stuck in this process!
• We left for Carmel on a mini vacation.  Time to take a break from the craziness!

April 7th 

• A Congressional letter was circulated by Senators Landrieu and Inhoffe, together with Representatives Bachmann and Bass.  The letter was set to close on April 9th and we needed 100 signatures from Senators and Congressmen/women by then!
• The letter was addressed to the DRC President and Prime Minister. (the letter is not public)
• Congo parents started calling and emailing their senators and representatives again, asking them to sign the letter! (not us...we were on vacation)
• An alert was posted by the Dept. of State regarding the DRC delegation coming to the U.S. this month (read it here). 
• Our work is paying off!!!  The State Department has taken action and made plans for the DRC delegation to meet Congolese children that are home with their American families (there was no plan prior to this, and this was something we were specifically requesting!!)

April 8th & 9th 

• Parents were very hard at work, asking friends and family to call their local representatives as well, requesting that they sign the letter before the close of business on the 9th.
• A 24 hour extension was given for the close of the letter!
• We drove home from Carmel!

April 10th (the day I'm writing this)

• I made phone calls and sent an email to Congressman McClintock asking him to sign the congressional letter TODAY and requested others do the same!
• We made it to 142 signatures before the close of the business day!!!  YES!
• The person handling constituent services in Tom McClintock's office called me!
• They are opening a case to the State Department on behalf of Tobias's adoption!
• This is basically an inquiry to the Dept and will likely come back with a generic response.  However, this will show the Department of State that Congressman McClintock cares about our situation!
• Parents also started contacting the President and Vice President asking them to intercede on our behalf.

I'm sure there will be much more to add by the end of today, but I think that's enough to share for now!

I thank all of you so much for praying for us and Tobias, and now recently showing your support by way of writing letters and emails.

We are very hopeful that this will get things moving in Congo.  

We also (as adoptive Congo parents) want to emphasize that all this work done the past 10 days has not been to bring to light another country's faults.  

Our first priority has been to get our own elected officials involved.  They are here to help with issues that are important to their constituents and this week we made it clear what is important to us!

Not enough has been done by the State Department or the Embassy, and that is what we were unhappy about.

Yes, we want our kids home.
We want them to have exit letters. 

But we also have to respect their country and their laws.

We are doing our best to go about all of this in a respectful way that shows how much we ALL care about Congolese children!!!

Unfortunately, we are also being faced with a lot of negative feedback from others in social media.  When stories are shared for all to see, some people will see it that will not agree with what we're doing...it's just going to happen.

And I'll save the rest of that for my next post...

How to Rid your Home of TOXIC Cleaning Supplies!

So my last post about getting rid of toxic toiletry items has been the most popular post on my tiny little blog.

I think it's something that is very important to many of us, and we need all the help we can get!!

So now I'll talk about getting rid of the toxins that are in our everyday cleaning supplies.

This is also pretty new to me.

I used to be a couponer...and I still LOVE the idea of it, but just haven't found the time to be as consistent as I need to be since I had my second daughter....3 years ago ;)

But while I was couponing and creating my own mini "stockpile," I stocked up on a few cleaning supplies. 

I had extra bottles of laundry detergent, air fresheners, bleach sprays, 409 sprays, sanitizing and cleaning wipes, and dish soap.

It was so reassuring to walk out to my garage and grab my extra bottle of Lysol when the one in the house ran out.

But my priorities are shifting.

I still VERY MUCH care about cost and saving money. 

But the health of my family is far more important.

Like I mentioned in my previous post, I have not done extensive research into all the individual ingredients in our cleaning products.  I DO know and understand that everything we breath in and touch can have a very real affect on our health.

And since I started using Young Living Essential Oils in October (read about how to get them here, we use Young Living exclusively), I have started to look at everything so differently.

I think more about the foods we eat.

I think more about the soaps we use (hence the previous post).

I think more about what I clean my counters and my kids' TOYS with.

I think more about what we DRINK!

I think more about almost everything really.

How does it affect us?

Is this harmful to us?

My conclusion is that much of it is.

To read more about how our everyday TOXIC products can harm our family, read these articles here and here.

So soon after we started using YL's Essential Oils, I purchased their Thieves Household Cleaner!

I love it!

It has all the cleansing power of our Thieves Essential Oil blend which is extremely effective in killing airborne bacteria.

This stuff can clean anything.

• Windows
• Floors
• Bathrooms
• Kitchens
• CLOTHES
• Sinks!

Really.  You don't need to by any other cleaner.  

Ever.

The cleaner is concentrated, so you just get an empty spray bottle and dilute it with water.

There are dilution suggestions on the bottle...I usually use one capful of Thieves  Household Cleaner and fill my large plastic spray bottle 2/3 full.

If you are needing more degreasing power, then you can use less water, or more Thieves Cleaner.


Thieves is so effective at killing bacteria, virus, infection, and boosting the immune system, that YL has an entire Thieves product line.

There is a Thieves Oral Care line as well as personal care products like hand purifier, spray, and wipes!

Now.

Just in case you're not wanting to buy this super convenient bottle of cleaner (which you can get through me),  I'll list some really simple recipes to make some DIY cleaners.

Here is what you'll need:

• Baking Soda
• Washing Soda (different than baking soda)
• Borax
• Fels Naptha Bar Soap
• Distilled Vinegar
• Castile Soap (Dr. Bronners or made from a bar like I did)
• Young Living Essential Oils 

Let's get started.

Sink/bathtub cleaner (scouring powder replacement)

• 1 Cup Baking Soda
• 5 drops Lemon Essential Oil

Shake this up in a jar.

DONE.


Disinfecting Spray

• 16oz. Water
• 30 drops Essential Oil - Lemon, Thieves, Melaleuca, or Oregano (your house will smell like a pizzeria if you use oregano...but it's a great disinfectant!)
• 2-3TBSP Castile Soap if desired

The essential oils and water will disinfect, but to add some cleaning power, you can include the castile soap.

Just combine it all in a spray bottle!

Multi-purpose Cleaner
When I say multi-pupose...I mean you can pretty much just use this for anything.

• 6oz Water
• 6oz Vinegar
• 30 drops Essential Oils - again, Lemon, Thieves, Melealuca, Oregano, or even Orange!

Mix this in a spray bottle!

DONE!

Window and Mirror Cleaner

• 6oz Water
• 6oz Vinegar
• 15 drops Essential Oils - I'd use a citrus oil for this

This is what my mom used to use on her windows (without the essential oils) and we'd wipe them with newspapers!

I keep forgetting to save my papers for that purpose because they really do work well!!!  No streaks!

Dish Soap
I will be trying this one soon, but haven't personally used it yet!

• 1/2 Cup Castile Soap
• 1/8 Cup Water
• 6 drops Essential Oils - Lemon, Orange, or Thieves would be great

Mix in an old liquid dish soap container!

DONE! 

Can't wait to try it for myself next week!

This is an alternative option that you'll have the ingredients for already if using bars of Castile Soap.


Dishwasher Detergent
I used a homemade powdered dishwasher detergent for a long time that had washing soda, baking soda, borax, and citric acid in it.  It worked temporarily and then stopped.  I tried several different variations and recipes and couldn't get my dishes clean! 

I read that it can clog some dishwashers.  That could be what was happening, I'm not sure.  But I went back to store bought detergent.

Now I have the option of just putting a capful of Thieves Household Cleaner in there!  

Simple!

But I am about to try out this recipe and see if my dishwasher can handle it!

• 1/2 Cup Castile Soap
• 1/2 Cup Water
• 1Tbsp Vinegar
• 2 drops Essential Oils - Lemon, Orange, Thieves

Rinse Aid

• Vinegar!

I keep my rinse aid compartment filled with vinegar and usually splash 1/4 Cup extra into the bottom of the dishwasher before running it!

Oven Cleaner

• Baking Soda
• Vinegar

Remove any loose food that has fallen in the oven.

Sprinkle with Baking Soda

Sprinkle vinegar on top.

Close oven and turn it on to 150 for 20 minutes, then allow to cool.

Clean it up!!

Laundry Detergent
I've been making this for years now and love it!

• 1 Bar Fels Naphtha Bar Soap-grated (You can also use Ivory or Zote but I can't stand the smell of Zote!)
• 3 Cups Borax
• 2 Cups Washing Soda
• 1/3 Cup Baking Soda (optional)

**You can also add 1 cup of OxyClean, but I am afraid that will irritate sensitive skin in our household!

Mix these together and store in airtight container.

Use 1-2Tbsp per load!

Scented Laundry Crystals

• 1 Cup Epsom Salts
• 10-20 Drops Essential Oils of your choice

Mix this together and add 3Tbsp to each load with your detergent.

OR...

Mix this entire recipe with your container of homemade laundry detergent!!

Laundry Stain Remover

• Fels Naptha Soap

I keep an extra bar of this in my laundry room for stains.  As I'm loading the laundry, if I notice a stain, I wet it down with the washer's water and rub the bar of soap into it.  Let it sit until you've loaded everything else and then toss it in as normal.

DONE!

If this is a more stubborn stain, try this technique:

Sprinkle Borax or Washing Soda onto the stain.
Then spray the stain with your window cleaner (equal parts water and vinegar).
Rub into the stain (use a toothbrush if necessary) and let it sit before washing as normal.

Fabric Softener
This one is probably the easiest.

• Vinegar.

I store a bottle of plain ol' vinegar above the washer and put 1/4 cup into the fabric softener dispenser with each load.  Fill to the line with water.

It really does soften clothes....and no, they don't smell like vinegar!!!

You can add essential oils if you want it to smell better, but I like how fresh they come out!

Carpet Deoderizer.
Check out my blog post concerning this one here.

All you need is

• Baking Soda

• Essential Oils!

Air Freshener

• 4oz Distilled Water
• 1/2Tsp Epsom Salts
• 10 Drops Essential Oils - SO many to choose from, but my favorite is Purification

Mix the essential oils with the salts.  Allow the salt to absorb the oils and then fill with water.

Store in a glass spray bottle and shake before spraying.

Carpet Stain Remover

• 1Tbsp Vinegar
• 2Tbsp Baking soda
• 2 Drops Lemon Essential Oil

Mix the ingredients to form a paste and apply to the stain.  Work it in with a toothbrush if necessary.

Allow this to dry thoroughly, then vacuum it up!

If the stain is set in, repeat the process.


Phew!  

That's alot!

I did do a little research for this one, because like I said - I only use Thieves Household Cleaner for almost every cleaning job in my home!!

So it's definitely a product I recommend.

Contact me for ordering info at livn4hersavior86@gmail.com!!

See, with very few ingredients, you can arm yourself with the ability to clean your home in a way that is safe, gentle, and NON toxic, yet effective!!!

I can't tell you how empowering it is to clean my counter tops with a cleaner that I know won't harm us if it comes in contact with our food.

And I can mop my floor with a cleaner that won't hurt my son when he crawls on it!

And I can wash my clothes in a detergent that won't irritate their sensitive skin or affect them in the many other ways that traditional detergent can!

You don't need much to start, so get on it!!

Make sure to read my post about getting rid of toxic toiletry products in your home!!



 Disclaimer: I am not a doctor or medical professional.  I simply make decisions on how to care for and improve the health of my own family.  None of the statements on my blog have been evaluated by the FDA and any products mentioned are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.