Nourishing Mama Mission Three ~

How have you been? Feeling a bit more centered and relaxed? I hope so! A few weeks of claiming sacred time for myself and practicing conscious thoughts of gratitude upon waking have done so much for me.

This third pursuit of the Nourishing Mama Mission promises to be my favorite so far, the art of bathing.

I love baths. I love water and how it has the power to wash away everything, absolutely everything. Stress, dirt, illness, concerns and on and on... One of my teacher's at herb school told us that water is very accepting and healing. He said that when sitting by a stream you can ask the water to take away your worries, and it will. Having tried this, I can attest that water will do this for you, even when you are in the tub. As the water drains from the tub ask it to take away your pain, your cares and give thanks to the water.

All the Elements are present in the bath ~

Water

Surrounding, cleansing and supporting, it is truly magical and healing.

Fire

It is Fire that heats the water and the soul.

Earth

Our plant allies become part of the bath whether in the form of herbs or essential oils, they add their special properties and healing.

Air

A deep breath is instigated by the deep warmth of water and by the fragrance of the plants.

Breathing deeply centers and calms the spirit.

Spirit

This is you, this is me, bringing ourselves to the moment. To be healed and nourished.

Most of the mammas I know would agree that taking time for a bath is really taking out some time for yourself. It means a lot to close that door on the world, slip into a warm fragrant tub and rest there undisturbed. Can you find sometime to do this for yourself? At least once a week? Give it a try and see how you feel.

Here is my favorite no fuss recipe for making a healing, relaxing bath ~

Fill your tub with warm to hot water and add:

1 to 2 cups of relaxing Epsom salts, depending on the size of your tub
6 to 10 drops of beautiful cleansing lavender essential oil

Have a big glass of cool water nearby to sip and bring a good book with you to read, if you so wish. Get in and relax, let go and know the water will wash away anything you no longer need or want.

More essential oil blends for the bath ~

Awakens the brain while also providing relaxation: 4 drops each rosemary and lavender
Great for easing stress and fatigue at the start of menstruation: 5 drops of clary sage and 3 of lavender
Soothes mental fatigue and anger, plus smells divine: 4 drops cardamom and 4 drops ylang ylang
For easing stress and when you need a bit of happiness: 5 drops rose geranium, 3 drops orange & 3 drops lavender

Note: Whenever possible add a big handful of Epsom salts to your bath which help to relax muscles and draw out toxins plus so much more, they are magical!

Look for more delicious bath recipes in the coming days. I know it will be hard for me, but I will research and try every recipe to give us all more wonderful ways to enjoy the art of bathing.

Blessings and Love!

Bath Blends To Try:

Minty Mint Bath

Soothing Herbal Bath For Irritated Muscles & Nerves

Rosy Oatmeal Bath

Candy Cane Bath Salts

More Nourishing Mama Mission...

Mama On A Mission ~ Introduction

Nourishing Mama Mission One ~ Cultivating Sacred Space

Nourishing Mama Mission Two ~ Attitude of Gratitude ~ The Start of the Day

Nourishing Mama Mission Four ~ Herbal Infusions, Healthful Simplicity

Shared On: Time For A Party!, Wildcrafting Wednesday, Wednesday Wonderings

Image Credit: Morgue File (photos 1 -5)

Just Me, Myself and I

This is important. This is something many of us forget. This is something we need to remember for ourselves and the other people in our lives. Each of us has a responsibility to care for ourselves. When feeling depleted and frustrated it is hard to care for others and more over, we deserve to take care of us, to feel good and happy. As a mom I find it so easy to forget about myself and get caught up in the everydayness of life; all the things each day that come and go pulling my attention. It is easy to become overwhelmed and depleted at a very deep level.

Well, today it was time to take care of me!

Back Story

We had a fun and exciting holiday season topped off with four birthdays in our immediate family. That is right four! We are all Capricorns and have our birthdays from December 29th to January 11th. With two little girls eager to celebrate their special day and with the excitement of Christmas, the last six weeks were a whirl wind of planning and activity. I always try to make their birthdays a bit extra special because, let's face it, having a birthday close to Christmas and New Year can be a big bummer. So this year, true to form, they each made special plans and we carried them out to the best of our ability. So, for me, today really feels like the first day of the new year, like the holidays are finally over and I can get on with life. But instead of feeling ready to go and grab the bull by the horns so to speak, I found myself feeling grouchy and tired. Previous life experience gained from ignoring signals from my body told me that I must stop, truly, and take sometime for just me. Just me, myself and I. With the kids at school and nothing immediately pressing in my day I decided to seize the morning and after a bit of ponderous deliberation settled upon a good old fashion spa day. As a young woman I used to relish in a custom, homemade spa day for myself once a week. Unlike in my youth when I would do hair masks and rinses and multiple different facial masks while soaking in a herbal bath, today's spa day needed to be easy while also feeling decant. I would say that I hit upon the perfect balance because now that I am done not only does my skin feel fabulous but my soul is peaceful, my mom brain is refreshed and clear, and well, I smell really good too!

The components of a luxurious, nourishing and simple mommy spa day

For this easy and relaxing morning I chose to do a honey mask, milky salt bath, shea butter foot rub and to finish off by brushing my favorite essential oil lavender right into my hair. Each time I move my head I am still surrounded by drifts of calming lavender being liberated from my hair. Um....

This spa day was simple with hardly any preparation required and easy to execute.

Here is how I did it...

Honey Mask: I put a spoonful of honey into a bowl then added 3 drops of helichrysum (great for skin health and encouraging fresh new skin cell growth) and 2 drops of lavender essential oil to the bowl along with a sprinkle of mild soothing kaolin clay. While I am super lucky to have all of this in my bathroom, simple honey alone would be excellent because it is so very hydrating and nourishing for the skin. Before getting in the bath I applied this mixture to my whole face. It is important to put honey on dry skin as it kind of dissolves away when exposed to water. I left this mask on for my entire bath and throughly enjoyed the scent of honey and helichrysm wafting up to my nose! After rinsing the mask off at the end of my bath I followed up with a small amount of rose infused coconut oil from my favorite herbal apothecary Rebecca's. This oil was dreamed up by none other than oil making goddess Rebecca. So amazing!

Milky Salt Bath: Epsom salts always find their way into my baths nowadays but today I wanted something special. So I filled a large glass to the brim with milk, took it into the bathroom and dumped it into the tub along with about two cups of epsom salts (this amazing salt relax muscles). Milk bathes, reputedly used by none other than Cleopatra, hydrate and smooth skin. Then when I got into the tub I added 8 drops of lavender and 4 drops of cedarwood (encourages a meditative mind and releases stress) essential oils and gave the water a good whooshing to mix in the oils. Now, I admit it, I take baths pretty regularly. I consider it one of my rights as a human being. But this bath was special. I think the milk really held the essential oils in suspension so that the smell from oils permeated the water for the entire length of the bath. It was so luscious!

Shea Butter Foot Rub: After my bath I got all dry and toasty and then I gave my feet a nice rub with some rosemary lavender shea butter that I have on my nightstand but don't use often enough. My feet were thanking me as the dryness and tension melted away. Then cuddly warm socks topped my feet and kept the moisture where it needed to be.

Lavender Hair Brushing: Last but not least, a few drops of lavender on my brush and some kind strokes through my hair topped off this wonderful experience. Lavender essential oil is a great conditioner for hair and the aromatic benefits of brushing essential oils into ones hair is profound because the oil is placed so close to the nose!

So here I am. Happy and calm again. So glad to be sharing my beautiful morning. It always surprises me that with a little intent and attention things can readily change. Feelings become clearer and thoughts settle. This was a fun adventure in self care using what I had on hand so that I could really focus on me. Now, when my kids come home from school, they will find a happier mom. A mom who is ready to listen fully and play and cuddle with her whole self!