'Wine Culture' and How I Fully Bought Into It

Guys, I LOVE wine.

Like, really, REALLY love wine.

If you asked my kids what my favourite thing in life was, they would probably say wine. And I don't know if I'm ok with that anymore.

We're told that it's totally acceptable though, aren't we? There are memes all over Pinterest, Facebook, and Instagram just to name a few.

We're told that "It's Monday...you deserve a glass of wine!"

"It's Friday....celebrate with a glass of wine!"

"It's the weekend/ vacation...wine is acceptable at ALL meals."

And, goodness knows, I dive right in. Happy that my love of wine has become so completely socially acceptable. I never get hungover and wine made me feel SO good about life. But then something changed for me.

It changed recently when I began to slightly panic if I knew there wasn't wine in the house. How could I deal with five kids and a husband without my wine? But, I told myself it was the ONE thing that I got for ME. It was simply to calm me down to cope more easily with:

* Fighting kids.

* Cling-y kids.

* Sick kids.

* Not-going-to-bed-kids.

* Snow days.

* Rainy days.

* Fights with Hubby.

You get the picture...

I told myself that it made me a better Mom, a better wife. It made me more 'playful' in the bedroom, and super funny and witty and the best version of me. But of course it didn't.

Marriage is hard. Parenting is hard. And wine was my escape.

I recently heard a quote by Brene Brown,

and it hit me right in the gut.

That's exactly what I was doing. Things were tough with the hubby? Drink wine, it makes it all better. Kids were especially exhausting? Drink wine, because it makes it all better. But truly, I was wanting to be numb. Not better. 

Why did I feel sad? Why was I feeling lonely? Because I was numb. Because I was too numb to feel the good feelings while trying to silence the bad. And that was a seriously eye opening moment for me.

Do I want my kids to grow up thinking that adults need to drink EVERY day to cope? I absolutely do not, but I was showing them a different picture. I want to find joy in my children, to savour the short time that I have with them, not simply get through until tomorrow.

My oldest son will be twelve in November. I am realizing that I don't have a whole lot of years left with him at home. I want to be completely present for the years that I do have him with me. 

To be clear... I am not blaming wine. I will continue to drink it and enjoy it once in a while when we're out. But I will not be bringing it home with me. I believe life is fluid and we are always changing and this may change as well. But for now, my unhealthy crutch must stay out.

Because I'm just too strong to be numb.

Blessings.

Toxic-Free, DIY Laundry Soap

Well Happy Friday, friends!

Things, they have been a-changing over here at my household!

I am starting a home-based Aesthetic business in my home, I left a direct-selling company that I was with for over a year (and doing well with), and the kiddos are growing every day.

When I left SeneGence, for various reasons, I was given the opportunity to really reflect on what line of products I would be using in my Beauty Space. I was able to dig deep and go back to my roots. I realized that of COURSE I wanted to use a line that was Fair Trade. A line that was sustainably sourced. Canadian. I found all of that and more in the skincare line that I am using now- Skin Essence Organics.

I have been so happy with how my skin is feeling and because our skin is our largest organ in our body AND we know that what we put ON our skin, goes IN our skin, I've been thinking more about other areas of my life. I'm working on creating affordable all-natural cosmetics. And I'm looking again at my cleaners.

I used to be SO GOOD about only using All-natural cleaners, but kids came and I got busy. I know that makes no sense. I should have been MORE wary of what I was using in the home and in our air.

So, I'm going back to basics. All-natural Dry Shampoos (Post on that to come), homemade scrubs and body wash. AND homemade, Non-toxic Cleaners.

Now, I am not throwing out eveything that is not Toxin-free. I will still wear lipstick (once in a while). I will still spritz some perfume on when I want. BUT as I empty products around the home, I WILL be sourcing out a way to make it myself, Toxin-free.

And so it happened that I ran out of our SUNLIGHT Laundry powder. I had picked it up on super sale one day and it had washed a ton of our (Family of 7's) laundry. But I wanted a Non-toxic formula going forward. 

And so I came upon this recipe and I am in LOVE. Simple, cheap and Non-toxic. All wins.

Here it is:

*1 bar of Laundry Soap ( I bought Aurora's Linda Laundry Soap at No Frill's for less than $2)

 *3 cups of Borax (fyi, Borax is great for cleaning the toilets- just sprinkle in the bowl and leave it overnight)

* 3 cups Washing Soda (NOT Baking Soda)

That's it! 

I grated up the bar of Laundry Soap and mixed it all together. It uses 1/4 cup per load and I just put it in an upcycled coffee container.

It smells SOOO GOOD, like a very light citrus-y scent.

And as a pleasant surprise, it cuts down on static!

What do you think? Would you DIY your own Laundry Soap?

Thanks for reading!

Blessings.