The First Battle at Chapel Hill
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| Photo credit: Sheldon |
Clouds of dust mushroom in the battle-torn field. Clashes of spears and swords strike like lightning in a heavy thunderstorm. Groans of men with sliced arms and legs and heads abound.
Prince Theo, seventeen in form but thirty in war experience, draws his sword. He launches himself to his enemy, Duke Archibald, who has stolen his crown from him.
Jenny turns the TV off.
She is so fed up. Not with Prince Theo of Soda Wars. He's pretty cute, though her hubby is much more gallant.
Jenny's 31 years old with two lovely kids, one five, the other is two, and a loving husband in the army, and it's a good life.
She works at home, which is great, but not perfect. Not that she wants it perfect. What is perfect anyway? It's too much defined by other people, and she doesn't care for it.
She's just happy she has the skills that allow her to work at home and be with her children.
She's trying hard to be a hands-on mom, but to work enough, she needs a nanny. She once had one, but her nanny already retired, and so far, she's testing if she can survive for long without one.
Still, Jenny is so fed up. At least when it comes to herself and the products she buys for her and her family.
She's got sensitive body skin, combination of oily-dry facial skin, and dandruff.
Her kids have rashes every now and then because of heat and sweat. Or perhaps also because of artificial chemicals in all these baby and kid products, as well as cleaning products.
One time, Jenny checked the ingredients of toothpaste and insect repellent lotion she uses for her kids, and she is disgusted with the chemicals she found. How ironic. What's kid-friendly is not kid-friendly at all after knowing more about these chemicals.
She's disgusted with herself the most. She should be more careful in what she uses for her family. She's got to learn more about harsh chemicals in everyday products and find natural alternatives.
Back to her kiddos' skin rashes, the Philippines is a tropical country, so it's hot most of the time, and rashes are expected. But there must be some form of damage control.
As for Mama Jenny, dandruff gets her really bad. When she's particularly stressed, she just wants to take off her scalp and beat it up like a carpet to take out the flakes. If only that's possible.
As a home-based researcher, Jenny's ready to delve into new knowledge. Being tired from writing for her research work, she sleeps.
The Call and Multiple Personalities
Jenny's talking over the phone with her husband who's in a conflict-ridden zone somewhere in the south.
"Yeah, the kids are fine- ZOE DON'T LICK THAT- okay, so when are you coming home? -ACHI THAT'S DIRTY- I see. Well, we'll pray for you my love. ZOE! YOU'LL GET YOURSELF HURT! I'll check air fares later."
The call lasts for an hour. Jenny prepares for her bath.
No 'Poo Battle: Rough on Dandruff
Jenny is ready for battle. She's going to fight the mainstream filled with commercial shampoo and soap with harsh chemicals. If Tsh can go no 'poo and reap its benefits, she needs a good reaping herself.
It's bath time.
Jenny dissolves some baking soda in warm water and pours it into her old shampoo bottle She shakes it up, and she uses that for shampoo. It doesn't lather, but she doesn't care. She just wants a simple way to clean her hair. Really clean her hair without the chemicals she researched were bad for her scalp.
She massages baking soda shampoo from her scalp down to her hair's tips. After a few minutes, she rinses everything.
Jenny follows up her shampoo with apple cider vinegar (ACV) wash. She puts one tablespoon of vinegar for every cup of water. She stores her new conditioner in her old conditioner bottle.
Her ACV wash does good for her scalp. One time, she'll try this dandruff remedy from Katie.
Apple Cider Vinegar can be very effective against dandruff. Mix with equal parts water and apply to scalp with spray bottle or cloth. Leave on for 1-2 hours with a shower cap and rinse. This can be done 1-2 times a week for best results. Katie of Wellness Mama
Jenny washes her hair well after.
Nowadays, she frequently does away with baking soda/ACV and just scrubs her itchy scalp with Dr. Wood's soap and then conditions her hair later while it's drying up with virgin coconut oil.
For facial and body soap, she uses virgin coconut oil as soap sometimes, or baking soda in water, like the baking soda wash she uses for her kids.
When she uses body scrubs, she usually uses coffee grounds scrub or sugar scrub. She uses the same for her face.
Jenny has won this battle round. No more commercial soap and shampoo for her with different harsh chemicals she is not comfortable with. She's got the fate of her skin and family's skin on her hands. She is ready for the next battle.
Battle at Face Value
Jenny's got a new facial routine. She washes her face twice a day, if she remembers or if time allows her, to avoid pimples.
When she wakes up, she washes her face with warm water that has a teaspoon of baking soda. If it's facial scrub day, she uses her sugar scrub or coffee ground scrub.
If there's some time, she mixes her facial mask day with reading.
Her facial mask is just egg white mixed with a teaspoon of honey and lime.
She'd let the mask stay for 15 to 30 minutes on her face as she reads for pleasure or work on her phone.
She washes everything with warm water afterwards.
Jenny follows the mask up with apple cider vinegar toner. That's one teaspoon of vinegar for a cup of warm water. She doesn't wash after.
She dabs virgin coconut oil on her fingers and swirls it on her face as moisturizer.
She doesn't buy soap and shampoo anymore. She stops buying lotion and moisturizer too. And she feels so free.
Practicality beats hyper-materialism.
Jenny yells FREEEEDOOOOM! the way William Wallace (Mel Gibson) does in Braveheart.
She does it in her mind though because Achilles is asleep.
Onward to natural living!
Fighting for new mindsets on natural, homemade products!
Let the slaughter of old habits begin!
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