Please let me know what you think in the comments.
Be well!
-Kayla

Whenever I think of fall, my mind goes straight to family, friends, and food. There are so many holidays packed with spending time with loved ones and gathering around the table to enjoy delicious meals together. 

Friends... I have been on the ketogenic diet for 18 months now. In those months I have struggled, I have cheated on my diet, I have almost given up but here's the thing... when I stick to the ketogenic diet my body feels better. Yes loosing one hundred and twenty five pounds has made me feel better but the symptoms of a health condition I have are dramatically reduced when I am starving my body of glucose.

This week on Recipes with Rob we are making lemon cream cheese cookies. We have two kiddo's joining us to give us their honest opinion. Our little brother does not like the flavor of lemon nor does he like cream cheese... but he didn't seem to mind either ingredient as over the course of the weekend he ate them all! Watch the video below to see how its made and what the kids thought!

Lemon was one of the first essential oils I purchased from doTERRA. For all the properties this oil boasts it is a steal at $13.00. Read our top three uses below.

So many people have told me that they want to do what we do. Learn about the oils and share them to earn income. The problem comes when they think about holding a class. I totally get it. My first class was one of the most nerve-wracking experiences... or at least the moments leading up to it were. On today's Ask ApotheKayla post I want to address a question that several people have asked me over the years... How do I hold a doTERRA essential oil class?

You are entitled to a drama free life, a toxin free life, a good-stable-financially healthy life... but do you have that? If your answer is anything less than yes... you have work to do. I can't do it for you or I would. I'm far from perfect and I still have work to do... but that my friends is the entire point of this post. We can all improve our lives and should.

Our dear friend Eriona came over to be our guest chef. She prepared this dish for us one evening at her place and it was SO good we had to have her teach us how to recreate it! This dish is a favorite in Eriona's home country of Albania. She said it has a Greek influence but is prepared all through Albania when the peppers are fresh in the summer.

Meagan asks:

Hey Kayla!

I have been really interested in maybe buying a bottle of Lemon oil to flavor my tea and water. You have said before that each drop of lemon oil costs $0.04 cents. Can you tell me more about how far one bottle of lemon oil will stretch? Are there any other ways I could use Lemon. I know it only costs $10 but I want to make sure I am getting my moneys worth. Can you show me the savings?

<3,
Meagan

Kayla answers:

Thanks for writing Meagan.. great question!

Yes, lemon is a super affordable oil. If you are only planning to use the lemon to flavor water or tea it could last for up to 500 cups of water or tea. When you add essential oils to water the best way to do it is add one drop to the bottom of a glass or cup. When you add the water or tea to the glass the oil will coat the inside of the cup. In my experience I can still taste the essential oil when I refill my glass the second time.

There are 250 drops in each 15 ml bottle of doTERRA Essential oil. If you are using the lemon as described above the cost is actually $0.02 cents per cup and you can use it 500 times.

There are so many amazing ways to use lemon essential oil. If you are a part of my ApotheKayla Insider's group on Facebook you can watch this live video (click for video) on 30+ ways to use lemon.

Some of my favorite are:
-Adding two drops to the diffuser for an uplifting scent
-Adding 10 drops to a large spray bottle with a mixture of 50/50 water/vinegar for a purifying surface cleaner
-Adding 2-3 drops to a soft cloth and using to polish silver
-Adding to any lemon flavored desert (although I can't have sugary deserts right now lemon bars and cakes were my favorite before).

There are so many ways to use lemon oil and if you replace fresh lemons with lemon oil the savings is immense. Typically one lemon costs between $0.40 - $0.60 and can be replaced with one drop of lemon oil at $0.04 cents. doTERRA's essential oils will not go bad either which is a savings in itself.

I hope this answered your question. If you need assistance placing your order i'm here for you. Because you are all about the savings like I am, if you want to know about earning free oils let me know!

Thanks,
Kayla

Do you have a question for ApotheKayla? 

Ask here:

On this episode of Recipes with Rob we serve up a ginger chicken salad with a homemade ranch and a vinaigrette dressing. The chicken and the two dressings are flavored with essential oils! Everyone loved it and it made for an amazing healthy dinner.

I get questions about essential oils and usage guidelines all the time. I felt like it would be awesome to share some of those with you and answer any questions you may have.

Ashleigh asks:

Kayla,

I love using doTERRA essential oils and recently had a baby. He seems to be an anxious baby and has a hard time falling asleep if I am not holding him. I have lavender oil and wondered if it would be safe to use on him. If so how much and how often.

-Ashleigh

Kayla answers:

Hey Ashleigh!

My first thought was as long as you are using doTERRA, which I know is a safe brand of essential oils. I wanted to offer a few tips on how to move forward with using essential oils for babies.

If you are going to apply them to the bottom of his feet, for example, I would follow the doTERRA dilution guidelines if you do not already have the doTERRA Touch Lavender roll on. Fill a 10 ml roller jar to the bend of the neck with fractionated coconut oil. Add 4 drops of lavender essential oil. Shake and roll on the bottom of his feet.

I would use the touch blends:

doTERRA Touch®. These products are awesome because they come pre-diluted. Young skin is different from adult skin—it’s thinner, more delicate, and generally more sensitive. It’s a great idea to dilute any essential oils before applying them to children, and this kit takes the mess out of dilution. 

My other recommendation would be to diffuse lavender in his room or in the room he sleeps in. Diffuse 2-3 drops of lavender per 1/2 cup of water.

Also, use some of that lavender on yourself my friend! Babies pick up on the emotions of those around them and if you are more calm he will be more calm.

Let me know how it works for you! Here's to sweet dreams.

Kayla

Do you have a question for ApotheKayla? 

Ask here:

Frankincense is an oil that should need no introduction. Even if one is not familiar with all of the medical benefits the oil has to offer we can all think of a use for Frankincense. This precious sap is harvested from the hardy but endangered Boswellia tree.  We slash the tree to allow the resin to bleed out and harden creating tears. The oil is steam distilled from those tears.

Hello friends! Today I am sharing a podcast I recorded with my friend Amy. I met Amy at the non-profit organization I work for. We met on break one day and have been friends ever since. I found out that Amy grew up across the world in Montenegro. I have asked her about this romantic country a few times but when I decided to start this podcast series I knew Amy had to be a part of it. When I asked her to join me on the show she was super excited and wanted to share about the beautiful country she grew up in with all of you!

Hello friends! We hope you are having an amazing Friday! Last night Robert and I had our friend Kim over who has never tried food flavored with essential oils. Robert and I are both really picky about the flavors and types of veggies in our beef stir fry so he makes them in separate pots! Kim was able to try both. Check out the video:

Good morning friends!

This was a really busy week. It was packed full of friends, fun, good food, and new projects on the blog!

Welcome back to another episode of Recipes with Rob. This week Robert makes one of my all time favorite dishes using essential oils instead of spices. We had our dear friends Fernando and Jess over to taste test; the recipe was enjoyed by all!

Sandalwoods are medium-sized hemiparasitic trees, and part of the same botanical family as European mistletoe. We steam distil the oil from the wood of the tree. Sandalwoods are found all over the world and have various spiritual and medicinal uses. The wood is valued for its ability to hold its scent for a long time, this same property is found in the oil making for a potent and long-lasting and potent perfume.

Hello wellness friends!

This week was full of abundant moments. I wanted to take a moment a share a few of those with you.

Cassia is one of my favorite essential oil scents. I love adding Cassia to my perfume blends. Check out our top three uses of this oil below:

This week on Recipes with Rob, Robert makes his famous chocolate chip cookies with peppermint essential oil! Even those who don't really like mint chocolate loved the cookies!!

Thyme is an amazingly versatile oil. Read about our top 3 uses below!

Hello friends! So this video is posting after Mother's Day but we wanted to share anyways! Robert used to make cookies all the time in NC. Now that I'm on the Keto diet he doesn't make them as much because it is SO hard for me to resist them! On this Recipes with Rob video he shows you how he makes his famous oatmeal raisin (or craisin) cookies using essential oils!

Happy Wednesday. We are halfway through the work week and I am excited to bring you a wellness Wednesday topic of cooking with essential oils.