A T T H E P A R K ' S

Hi friends, for those of you who don't know or are new to the blog, my husband and I (and our golden retriever) live in a 39-foot 5th wheel/toy hauler on some family property just outside of Bend, Oregon. As a minimalist living in an RV, I thought you might be interested in seeing how I spend my mornings with intention, before heading off to work. For as long as I can remember, I've always been a morning person. A few years ago, I was getting up as early as 4am to go to my CrossFit class before heading off to work. While I don't rise quite that early now, I still enjoy waking up before the rest of the world. And really, I feel my very best and am the most productive between 5-10am. If you are the same way and you'd like to know what I do to have a more joyful and productive morning, just keep reading. And, here are a few tips to help you get started. Tip #1: Get up early You must allow yourself time to accomplish the things you want to accomplish. If y...

Well, today's the day. It has been four years since we lost our precious little one. If you haven't read the story, you can find it here . This is the first anniversary that I can actually say I haven't had any tears today, just joy for what's to come when we meet in heaven. Wow! I never imagined I'd be able to say that but, well, I've had some breakthrough. That's not to say that I'll forget, because I will never forget. However, I'm at peace. Let me back up. After our tragedy, I struggled. Well actually, I struggled for almost three years. My heart was fighting God and I was angry at what had happened, bitter, anxious, and depressed. On top of that, I was physically struggling with an autoimmune disease and its repercussions. My heart and body wanted to be healed and whole again but I had no idea how I could ever get there. I thought my body had betrayed me and I thought I'd have to fight this for the rest of my life. At times, my thoug...

As some of you may know, I wrote a review on The Simply Co. laundry powder detergent (you can read that here ) last year. We've been using it for a year and a half now and have loved it. It's a great natural detergent, smells amazing, and works as advertised. As much as I have loved this detergent though, we've been trying to find ways we can spend less money each month and this was one area I thought I could save. Since the ingredients of The Simply Co. detergent are labeled on the glass jar, I thought I'd just give it a try. Since I didn't know the exact amount of each ingredient, I went to Pinterest and found a recipe here . HOMEMADE LAUNDRY POWDER DETERGENT INGREDIENTS 1 Bar Castile Soap  - update, I use this kind now (recommended) 1 Cup  Baking Soda 1 Cup  Washing Soda Organic Essential oil (optional, I use Lavender) INSTRUCTIONS Finely grate your bar of castile soap. Mix in all ingredients together. Add 2-3 drops of your fa...

So this is one of those topics that I've shied away from sharing, at least here on the blog, in large detail. However, over the last few months, I've felt like I've needed to share my story. Not because I want sympathy. Not because I want pity. If anything, because I'd like to share how God is working in my life and in our lives as a couple and as a family. In case you're new to this blog, here is the quick backstory. After our first year of trying to expand our family, getting pregnant , our loss , and eight tumors later, we had to wait about five months after the second surgery  before we could start trying again. After another year of negative pregnancy tests, in January of 2016, we decided to go in for infertility testing. Here we are a year and a half later (almost five years since we first started trying) and our journey continues. Before I share what's going on currently, let's go back to January of 2016 when the infertility testing beg...

The further down the path of natural health I go in dealing with my autoimmune disease and the repercussions of it, I'm finding more and more ways to take control of my health. My goal has been to slowly eliminate chemicals as best as I can in my personal care products. So today I'm excited to share with you my zero waste, all natural, three ingredient DIY toothpaste. Not only is this toothpaste super quick to whip up, it will save you money from buying drugstore toothpaste and will be much better for your oral health. OK, let's get into it! Ready? Go! INGREDIENTS 3 TABLESPOONS OF COCONUT OIL 1.5 TABLESPOONS OF BAKING SODA (OPTIONAL) 10-15 DROPS OF PEPPERMINT ESSENTIAL OIL The original recipe I found here , though I've decreased the amount of essential oils. Measure your coconut oil and baking soda, then mix together in a glass dish. I didn't need to warm up the coconut oil because our apartment was about eighty degrees when I made the f...