About Sienna Carlton

Sienna has a deep love for the Lord and is passionate about the ministry of homemakers. She also has a heart for creating a natural home! She has been married to her best friend, Brandon, for a 3 years and they have 2 sweet babies! She loves to share about creating a healthy and thriving home and shares encouragement, recipes, tips, and tutorials at Homemaking From Scratch.

Our winter protocol for boosting immunities and avoiding sickness with kids.

by on October 2, 2018 Leave a Comment

Last winter we were SO SICK. My toddler got cold after cold and just couldn’t seem to kick it. :( Our entire family even got an awful case of Hand Foot Mouth disease during the summer. Lets just say it wasn’t a season that was easily forgotten. This year we knew we needed to be on top of it, unless we wanted to spend another season at home feeling miserable. So, after much research, this is our new sickness protocol!

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1. PROBIOTICS. 

We are being consistent about giving our kids probiotics this year. Every morning they get probiotics mixed into their milk. We like to switch up which probiotic we use periodically so that we get different strains. It’s also important to make sure its a quality probiotic. We love Young Living’s for our toddler. We use Baby Gaia and Klaire Labs for our 9 month old. My husband and I are currently taking Garden of life’s, but we also love Young Living’s Life 9!

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2. IMMUNITY ROLL ON.

I made a roller bottle of 5 drops thieves, 5 drops lemon, and 5 drops frankincense. I filled the rest of the bottle with sweet almond oil since that’s what I had on hand, I normally use fractionated coconut oil. It’s important that the oils are diluted especially for sensitive baby skin! We also diffuse thieves all winter long! My husband and I use a stronger roll on! More thieves and Immupower (an awesome oil blend I got for FREE last month). If you are interested in making a wellness roller bottle, I recommend getting a starter kit and wholesale account – it is the most affordable way to purchase quality, 100% pure essential oils!

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3. ELDERBERRY SYRUP

Elderberries are full of antioxidants and are fantastic for boosting immunities and helping heal from colds quickly. I made my own syrup using bulk herb stores organic elderberries. The toddler gets 1 tsp and we take 1 TBSP.

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4. LIMIT SUGAR

Sugar reeks havoc on the immune system. We are using honey as a substitute for the occasional sweet treat! :)

5. WHOLE FOODS DIET

The body best fights sickness when it is being supported by a whole foods diet. We eat a bunch of healthy soups in the fall and winter! And we try and get a variety of fruits, veggies, whole grains (freshly ground), and fermented foods, etc.

6. COD LIVER OIL

Cod liver oil contains vitamin A & D which are both so important for a healthy immune system! My babies take Nordic Naturals. The baby gets the liquid and my toddler loves the chewable ones. :) My husband and I take Carlson’s.

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7. NINGXIA RED

We love having a shot of this super fruit & essential oil blend! It not only tastes great and boosts energy (a necessity when my babies keep me up at night!) but it is amazing for the immune system and overall health. It contains Gogi berries and several other super fruits! The mix provides an incredible dose of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and fiber (so it aids digestion as well). It is definitely pricey, but that’s because it is packed with powerful whole food, organic fruits and oils. The way I fit it in our budget is by saving up the reward points I earn through my monthly order and then once I have enough I’ll order a 4 pack for FREE! 😀 Essential rewards is definitely the way to go to be able to afford Young Living’s products on a budget. :)

 

How do you avoid and fight sickness!?

*this webpage contains an affiliate link at no extra charge to you.

Filed Under: Essential Oils, Healthy Living 101, Natural Living Tagged With: , , ,

Essential Oil Starter Kit Breakdown

by on May 22, 2018 Leave a Comment

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     As you well know, I use oils ALL the time! They have revolutionized my medicine cabinet, replaced toxic chemicals in my house, and are vital to the care and health of my babies and family! With that being said, I am excited to announce that Young Living is running a sale on their starter kits! If you’ve been interested in essential oils for a while now but just haven’t quite taken the plunge, now is the time to do so! Starter kits are already a super discounted way to start your oil collection, and now they are an extra 10% off! This is such a FANTASTIC DEAL!!!!

The oils in the kits are all must haves in the home! I’ll break down each oil with a little summary on some of the uses for them.

Grab your kit here!

Raven

  • Thins mucus and decreases cold and allergy symptoms
  • Boosts immunities

Panaway

  • Soothes tired and sore muscles
  • Great for massage after workout
  • Relieves growing pains on children
  • Decreases menstrual back pain

Stress Away

  • Calms anxiety
  • Relaxes
  • Uplifts
  • Lowers blood pressure

Citrus Fresh

  • Heightens focus
  • Calms anxiety
  • Breaks up clogged milk ducts
  • Smells amazing

Frankincense

  • Great for all types of skin care
  • Moisturizing
  • Healing
  • Reduces swelling
  • Heightens focus
  • Lowers blood pressure
  • Reduces appearance of scars and stretch marks
  • Considered “universal oil” because of its many uses

Lavender

  • Great for skin care
  • Calming and soothing
  • Relaxation and sleep aid
  • Relieves pain and headaches
  • Kills bacteria

Digize 

  • Aids digestion
  • Soothes abdominal distress

Thieves

  • Boosts immunities
  • Fights sickness
  • Treats infection
  • Great for housecleaning and disinfecting
  • Smells phenomenal!
  • Possibly one of my favorite oils (a must have during sickness season)

Lemon

  • Uplifting
  • Detoxifying
  • Great as a household cleaner
  • Boosts digestion
  • Adds yummy flavor to water
  • Brightens complexion
  • Fades scars

Copaiba

  • Drives oils in and ramps up the effects
  • Anti-inflammatory
  • Pain reliever
  • Great for teething babies

Peppermint

  • Reduces fever
  • Aids digestion
  • Reduces congestion
  • Relieves pain

 

As you can see these oils have SO many different uses and are so versatile! Plus, a little goes a long way so these bottles last for quite a while!

I can’t remember the last time Young Living did a sale like this!! Don’t miss your opportunity to get all of these oils PLUS a beautiful diffuser (I am in love with how these diffusers look and work! Cheap ones break down quickly so quality is important) The kit also comes with a household cleaner and Ningxia red sample. Oh. My. Gosh. Such a deal!! Right!?

Grab your kit here! And I will send you a FREE diffuser recipe card to help you get started using that gorgeous new diffuser!

I can’t emphasize enough how good this deal is!! And it ends Friday folks, so don’t wait!

 

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If you already have a stockpile of oils and a quality diffuser, check out the sale on the makeup kit!!! I have had my eye on this kit for a while and now its on SALE woohoo!!! This is a great way to replace all those toxic makeup products and feel good about what you are putting on your skin! :)

 

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Filed Under: Essential Oils, Healthy Living 101, Natural Living

Fast, Easy, and Super Healthy Breakfast!

by on May 18, 2018 Leave a Comment


Honestly, some mornings my toddler is so HANGRY he pulls on my leg whining the entire time I’m cooking breakfast and he can hardly shovel it down fast enough….I can’t blame him, he definitely got the low blood sugar and hanger from me lol! Some mornings I really don’t have any time to fix a healthy breakfast before we need to be  out the door for appointments or whatever, but I know how important it is to start the day off with something nutritious. So, when I found this Groatmeal recipe I was ecstatic!!!!!!! Cook it on low in the crock pot all night and wake up to a nutritious & delicious breakfast? YES PLEASE!!

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Oat groats are the least processed, healthiest form of oatmeal. I got some on Vitacost (one of my favorite places to shop!) but you can find them at some health food stores and amazon. :)

I found this recipe for over-night groatmeal from theyummylife.com! I made a few changes and it is now one of my favorite breakfasts! It smells like a bakery when you wake up to it in the morning!  :)

 

INGREDIENTS:

 

  • 2 cups oat groats
  • 2 tablespoons ground  flaxseed
  • 2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 apples chopped
  • 2 cups milk (dairy or non-dairy)*
  • 4 cups water
  • optional: 2 scoops protein powder (I use unflavored integral collagen)
  • optional sweetener: 1/4 cup honey, organic maple syrup, or a few drops stevia

DIRECTIONS:

Lightly grease crockpot, mix all dry ingredients well and pour into crockpot. Add apple and wet ingredients. Stir to combine, cover, and cook on low for approximately 6-7 hours. (slow cooker times and temperatures vary, so the time may need to be adjusted.)

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Filed Under: Healthy Eating 101, Homemaker, Real Food

Weekly highlight – digize essential oil

by on April 11, 2018 1 Comment

DIIIIIGIIIIZE!

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Ok – I’m just going to jump right into it this. Digize is one of my new favorite oils. Although I still love thieves with all my heart 😉 haha. Digize is an oil I use to forget to use but I have used it several times lately and am floored by the results. Oh. My. Word. Y’all…seriously…I used to live with stomach pain from food not settling well or *ahem* gas pain *ahem* from certain foods such as beans haha. But this little bottle of amazingness really eases the pain and helps aid in digestion. It’s as simple as that.

It is a mix of tarragon, ginger, peppermint, juniper, fennel, lemongrass, anise seed, and patchouli oil. In case you want to look up how each of these oils help your tummy troubles! 😉 Tummygize is the kid version of this oil and for a while I used it almost every day on my colicy baby!! It was a life saver!! SERIOUSLY, it’s a baby must-have. You can use digize on baby’s if don’t have tummygize, but it needs to be VERY diluted before being applied.

If you don’t have digize and would like to purchase it, the best way to go is getting a youngliving account and buying it wholesale! Check out some account options here!

Any other digize fans out there??? What is your favorite oil when your digestive system is in distress?

 

*this webpage contains an affiliate link at no extra charge to you.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

The danger of dryer sheets! Weekly highlight

by on April 3, 2017 1 Comment

This week’s highlight is on DRYER SHEETS. So step into the laundry room with me and lets take a peek at these little sheets and decide if this commonly used product is really worth using… 😉

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Ok, here we are in your cozy little laundry room… Now take a deep breath and smell that clean laundry drying. Mmmm.. If you are like me and hate doing laundry, clean laundry  is one of the most amazing scents ever haha it is quite an accomplishment to keep up on laundry! However, I learned in an essential oil class recently by Covenant essentials that dryer sheets and fabric softeners contain the MOST harmful toxic chemicals found in most homes. What!? Those amazing smelling little cloths really contain that many harmful chemicals? YIKES! This is because the scented film left behind on clothing absorbs into our skin and infiltrates our body. This can lead to many issues for our systems, including long term illness and cancers. WOW. This seriously was a shocker to me….I can’t believe the chemicals so commonly used on these little dryer sheets are rated as so dangerous! Ok…I may have thrown away my dryer sheets after that class haha. I knew harsh chemicals really cling to fabrics and are absorbed into our skin when we wore them and had been wanting to start using something more natural for a long time and that class gave me the incentive to make the switch…fast! But I love my laundry smelling good ad fresh. Lets step back into the laundry room and imagine breathing in the scent of…nothing *gasp* haha its totally fine not to use anything but if you are like me and like your clothes to smell fresh and clean, there are safe alternatives! I love honest company’s dryer sheets! They work great and smell amazing! Buying them can get pricey though. So my very favorite are wool dryer balls! These little babies can last for quite a long time (mine last for a year or so) and keep laundry static free. I love putting a couple drops of my favorite essential oils on the balls to give my clothes an amazing (and chemical free) scent! Thieves oil is one of my favorite to add to dryer balls! But I also like using citrus oils like orange, lemon, & grapefruit to freshen up my laundry!

Here are awesome wool dryer balls on amazon:

Thanks for listening! As always, I’d love your input :)

 

Sienna Carlton

*this webpage contains an affiliate link at no extra charge to you.

Filed Under: Uncategorized

Weekly highlight – Thieves

by on March 27, 2017 Leave a Comment

Howdy!

I am SO excited to be writing my first weekly highlight post. Choosing a subject was so difficult as there are so many things I want to share with you all! But, for my very first post, I chose to highlight the essential oil THIEVES. :)

2017-03-26 19.35.29I’d like to start by saying that I am not writing this to push you into buying essential oils. But, if you have thieves or are interested in essential oils, this post is for you! Also, make sure you use essential oils safely. To read more about how to use oils safely click here. Do not begin using oils until you know how to use them safely.

I LOVE thieves. It is one of my favorite and most used oils. Let me tell you why!

  1.  It boosts immunities. We love to keep it diffusing in our home to boost our immunities, especially during sickness season!! 
  2. It kills germs & fights sickness. When illness strikes we rub it on the bottom of our feet and chest or add it to a roller bottle. Also, it works wonders for sore throats. My husband gargled a couple drops in warm water when he had mono and it significantly reduced the pain and boosted healing. 
  3. It works as a great cleaner. I love putting thieves in my homemade household cleaners :)
  4. It smells AMAZING. We love to diffuse it in place of candles and other chemical ridden scents often used in the home. 

If you don’t have digize and would like to purchase it, the best way to go is getting a youngliving account and buying it wholesale! Check out some account options here!

Gentle Babies is a fantastic book full of recipes and information on how to use essential oils safely for pregnancy, babies, and children. I highly recommend it!

What is YOUR favorite way to use thieves?? 

I’d love to learn some new recipes and ways to use this awesome oil!

 

<3 Sienna Carlton

*this webpage contains an affiliate link at no extra charge to you.

 

Filed Under: Healthy Living 101 Tagged With: ,

Essential Oils. Why I recommend them and how to use them safely!

by on March 27, 2017 1 Comment

Ok…honestly I was a little skeptical of essential oils when I first heard about them, but I did some research (and being the health nerd that I am) decided to give them a try! Oh my goodness, I am so glad I did! They have literally changed my life. Instead of reaching for pain meds we now reach for our eo’s. We use them in SO many aspects of our life. I am so glad we made the plunge and got a kit. We have been an oil using family for 3 years now and are never looking back! 😉 

Oils have been so very helpful to me as a homemaker. I love how they help me avoid and treat sickness for my family, keep a clean home, and keep everything smelling amazing WITHOUT using harmful chemicals. They are expensive, but they last a long time. They are also so useful since they can be used for so many things! They can be used in cleaners, bug repellent, sunscreen, skin care, to help with mood, energy, sickness, pain relief and the list goes on and on! So they really end up being worth the price in the long run. I don’t claim to know all there is to know about oils but I have learned a ton from the time that I have been using them. It is extremely important that you choose an oil brand that is pure and high quality. After all, the whole reason we are using them is to avoid using harmful chemicals on our bodies and to help keep our homes and families healthy! I am confident that  Young Living has high standards and is considered pure and safe to use.

There are 3 ways to use essential oils – topical application, diffusing, and ingesting them.

Now it is important to note that not ALL oils can be taken internally! So be sure to read the oils bottle instructions before ingesting it. Also, once you know if an oil is safe to ingest always follow safety procedures when taking it. For example, mix it with a carrier oil and be sure to know how many drops are safe to take with how much carrier oil etc. Personally, I am very cautious when it comes to ingesting oils. Essential oils are very potent and you just never know what reaction your body will have. When I take some oils internally, I used a vegetable capsule and mixed the oils with fractionated coconut oil and froze them. Taking a frozen oil pill allows the oil to slowly be dispersed into your system as it melts. So, before you ingest them, I would encourage you to do a lot of research. Every person has a different idea about what is safe or not and you really need to just do some research and decide what YOU are comfortable with!
Topical use – Topical use is extremely effective! Before using an oil test out your skin and systems sensitivity to it by placing a drop on your inner forearm. And wait to see how your skin and system respond to it…I have never responded badly to an oil, but everyone is different! To dilute the potency of the oil first apply a carrier oil – some examples of carrier oils are coconut, olive, sweet almond oil, olive oil etc. I personally use coconut oil. I love using fractionated coconut oil for mixing in roller bottles or quickly applying to skin before other oil. This one would work great.

Diffuse – I love diffusing oils! There are many different types. Simply follow the directions to fill the diffuser with lukewarm water. Make sure the water isn’t hot, as heat damages the properties of the oil. Then you simply drop 4-8 drops of oil in and diffuse! The amount you put in varies based on how big of a room you are in and how strong you want it to be. I usually use about 6 drops in my kitchen and 4 drops in my bedroom. And then you turn it on and inhale these fantastic oils as you go throughout your day. I love that many of the oils kill the germs in the air and boost your immunities.

I hope this post helped you learn a little bit about how to use oils safely and why I love them so much! :)

If you want to get started using oils the best way to buy them is by making an account through Young Living so you can purchase them wholesale! You can get an awesome deal on an oil kit with some of my favorite oils!! Such a fantastic way to get started!! Visit Young Living here!

WHAT IS YOUR FAVORITE THING ABOUT ESSENTIAL OILS!? I’d love to hear from your experience.

 

~ Sienna Carlton

*this webpage contains an affiliate link at no extra charge to you.

Filed Under: Healthy Living 101 Tagged With: ,

Announcing new Weekly highlight

by on March 20, 2017 Leave a Comment

Hi!

I am extremely excited to announce that Homemaking From Scratch is going to start a weekly highlight post! We will be highlighting a natural product once a week and will cover some essential oils, cooking oils, herbs, etc. We will also be highlighting some dangerous products that are typically used every day in the average American household. It is easy to simply keep using what we are used to and often we don’t realize how harmful these commonly used products are. But we need to STOP!

I am so looking forward to discussing these natural do’s and don’ts with you all! I am so thankful when a friend makes me aware of a natural remedy or informs me that I should stop using something.. It is difficult to stay up to date on all the natural do’s and don’ts on our own. We need community! So stay tuned each week for my friendly highlights! And please leave comments. I would love to know your thoughts and opinions. There is always something to be learned an I’d love any natural knowledge you can throw my way 😉

Also, I did a course on natural living for My Homemaking Mentor an online training academy with awesome courses. This program is an excellent tool for learning more about natural living as well as growing Spiritually. AND I just found out that it is going on sale March 27 – April 3. So be sure to check that out :)

As an added bonus they are offering this free e-course! And it looks awesome.

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I will try to get each highlight up by Monday. I am eagerly looking forward to chatting with you each week!

~Sienna Carltton

Filed Under: Healthy Living 101, Homemaker

Boy oh boy BABY is here! When your birth plan goes amiss…

by on December 6, 2016 4 Comments

Here we are in the midst of the holiday season and I NEVER posted an official baby announcement.! Yikes, I’m behind. I took a 3 month maternity leave from any online work, but it is good to be back.

ZADEN PAUL CARLTON was born August 31 at 5:05pm. He was 5lb 8oz. We are so in love with our little man!


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I wrote a blog post about my gestational diabetes and how perfectly normal/healthy people can get it. Having diabetes while pregnant definitely was not in my “pregnancy plans” but it was the first step in God teaching me to become more trusting of HIS plans for me. Motherhood has already taught me so much — to let go of my perfect plans and my anxiety about the future and to place my trust in my all-knowing, sovereign God! I know I will probably be taught this lesson again and again through the years.

And Gestational Diabetes was only the first deviation from my plans…

My goal was to have my baby at a birth center as naturally as possible! I have always been interested in having a home birth, but my husband and I decided it would be better to have my first at a birth center in Sacramento in case anything went wrong *rolls eyes* I was pretty darn certain nothing would, my mom had 7 healthy pregnancies and births and her last one was in her 40’s! So, pshh I mean…come on, I’m only 24. What could go wrong? Surely I was in for a smooth natural pregnancy and delivery! I was so excited for a quiet, intimate birth with just the midwife, my husband, and mom. :)

So, first the news came that I had gestational diabetes… I was shocked! Honestly, I had never even heard of it. Thankfully, I was able to control it with dietary changes and so the midwife still felt comfortable with me having my baby there. That was util around 36 weeks when I was at a checkup and the midwife gave me a funny look after taking my blood pressure. She proceeded to take my blood pressure multiple times. She told me my blood pressure was elevated – but not to the point that I would need to be hospitalized. However, it continued to go up no matter how much I tried to “take it easy.” I was taken to the hospital and was there most of the night being tested and monitored and was finally sent home — conclusion = I didn’t have preeclampsia but I did have gestational hypertension. The next day I was sent in again (this time to a different hospital) and they concluded that the best thing for my baby and I was to get him out pf there. They also concluded that I did have preeclampsia (I was told so many different things, I’m not sure if I really did have it or not haha).

They were going to induce me.

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And that’s when I had to fully surrender my plans to the Lord. Here I was surrounded by strange doctors and med students, hooked up to a blood pressure monitor and IV, getting prepped for my induction… They laughed at the idea that I didn’t want an epidural and told me I needed magnesium or I my blood pressure would spike too high from the petocin and I could have a seizure…. after discussing (more like arguing) with all the different doctors, I was left with multiple stressful decisions that I wasn’t prepared to make. I am just so thankful I had my faithful husband by my side, supporting me and taking the lead with communicating with the doctors. I could not have gone through the birth without him, my labor delivery nurse friend, and my mom. They were an awesome team!

The labor was VERY painful, as the baby was face up, and being induced is no fun. But 13 hours later my tiny little boy was born!

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So that’s my story. Thankfully, nothing major did go wrong and I was still able to have a natural birth (besides the petocin). I was able to give birth to a beautiful, healthy son! And I know many people have scarier, more devastating birth stories than I do… Oh how my heart aches for them! And…oh my goodness did I learn why some people choose to get an epidural…OUCH 😉 there is absolutely no judgement on my part if you chose to get one haha. I felt led to share my story to encourage women to always hold their plans and desires with open hands. YES – it is still good to plan and dream. And yes, I still think natural birth is the best option. HOWEVER, things don’t always go as we plan and we have to be ok with that. We must have more trust and faith in God’s plan than our own.

What do I want you to take away from this?

  1. Hold onto your plans  and desires with open hands
  2. Trust your heavenly Father
  3. Don’t judge other. Everyone has a story and we don’t know it. So, before we proceed to inform someone that natural birth is best, listen to their story – be understanding – be loving.  

 

There is a time and place to gently encourage and help one another understand the benefits of a natural birth, but this must be done in a such a gentle way. As sister’s in Christ, our first priority should be to listen to each other and encourage one another as we all learn to trust the Lord with the future and live out our role as mothers – with all the crazy plan changes and stressful decision making that entails.

Thank you for listening. I’d love to hear your birth story!

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Sienna

Filed Under: Biblical, Biblical Womanhood, Healthy Living 101, Pregnancy

My Home Making Mentor Review. What it’s all about and why it’s a must have for every woman!

by on July 21, 2016 3 Comments

A brand new online academy was recently launched called “My Homemaking Mentor.” In a world where mentorship is so important and often hard to find, this program is much needed.

Do you often find yourself wishing you had the time & money to take cooking classes, so that you could better prepare meals for your family and guests? And while you were at it, wish someone would help you learn to better meal plan and budget? Do you want to create a healthier, natural, home but feel overwhelmed by the task of researching natural remedies, finding natural resources that are affordable (i.e. cleaning supplies, herbs, essential oils, etc.), as well as learning how to use these safely and effectively? Maybe you aren’t much of a cleaner or organizer and wish you had someone to come along side you and help refine these skills. Or maybe you simply long to have someone impart wisdom to you on how to better love your husband and improve your marriage or give you tips on how you can become more spiritually disciplined but you are too timid to ask?!

Well…all of this AND MORE is addressed in the new online academy My Home Making Mentor! SERIOUSLY! This mentorship program provides 50+ videos for you to view or listen to in the car or while you are working (I listened to a course while folding laundry. 😉 Several Godly women came together and made courses to help teach and mentor other women in areas they where they feel skilled/knowledgable. What an awesome program, right!? AND it is on SALE this week!

I had the incredible privilege of participating in this academy as one of the mentors and I did a course on “An intro to a natural healthy home.” I was able to share some of my experience with essential oils and natural remedies as well as point out where I buy many of my favorite natural products! One of my favorite courses so far was “100 ways to love your husband” by Lisa Jacobson (blogger at Club 31 Women & author of an awesome marriage book). What an encouraging, God-centered, practical course! Jami Balmet (blogger at Young Wife’s Guide) also did incredible courses on hospitality and spiritual discipline.

I CANNOT say enough good things about these courses! Instead of just taking my word for it, check it out yourself!

CLICK HERE to check out the academy!

*this webpage contains an affiliate link at no extra charge to you.
Filed Under: Homemaker Tagged With: , , , , , , ,
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