May is here

It was here 8 days ago but I'm soooooo on top of things.  Yeah.  That happened.

Woof! Well here I am in AZ and finally have a day off after 13 days?  Something like that.  Days have numbers now, not names.  

"Hey, Abigail, what's today's date?"  

"4 months and 22 days until September 30th"

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Here's something I've learned and MUST share with y'all. 

If you read the last post, you know that I have had some brutal foot issues.  Since I'm sensitive to weak tummies, there will be no photos.  Not good.  I didn't know my feet could have legitimate holes in them and somehow still function though on less efficient and comfortable level.

Heck I even stood up in a wedding with hamburger feet...aaaand then promptly went back to trusty Birkenstocks. 

But enough about my misery.  How can my owie help you?  Well let me tell you.

Obviously the first thing to do is clean the abrasion so infection doesn't happen right?

I used Malelucca oil on a 100% cotton ball and dabbed, not rubbed.  Sting sting sting.  

{One of the guys on my crew said I HAD to cut all the dead white skin around off or it would get infected.  I didn't and it didn't, all I did was keep the whole dang thing clean with clean dressings regularly.  You decide what you want to do}

So malelucca dried it out like crazy even though it kept infection out.  So I tried to add some coconut oil and even regular old drugstore antibacterial cream under a band-aid.  That helped somewhat, but as I continued to use my feet it was a situation where healing and re-tearing the skin kept going and going like an energizer bunny from Hades.

As a last ditch effort to try and get past this...I tried Vitamin E oil.  Not like a lotion...the concentrated stuff from Sprouts.  {This is for topical application, not to be ingested}

The properties have all sorts of benefits, but the one that nailed my issue was it's abiltiy to speed up the skin regeneration process.  The skin growing, healing, scabbing, process get's put on high.  

Seriously though, the next morning I had a thin layer of skin {thin and shiny but there} I babied my feet that day with extra thick moleskin and re-aplied E oil that night.  

The next morning the redness was gone, and the skin didn't hurt to touch.  On the third day I was almost entirely sensetivity free on the huge spots, and the little spots already had scabs coming off. {gross I know but I was cheering at this point}

If you get blisters and things like that on your feet...I'd strongly recommend trying Vitamin E oil.  

{Let me just throw in here though that you HAVE to disinfect the injury first, by whatever means you choose.  Vitamin E oil will not stop harmful bacteria growth and infection, it only promotes skin growth as far as I know}

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Other Benefits {Heard of them, haven't tried it myself}

• Natural anti-aging
• Heals dull and dry skin
• Stretch marks
• Make-up remover
• Cuticle softener
• Sunburn
• Hair de-tangler
• Eyelash growth

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Seasonal Gardening

Spring is almost here.  Ok for those of you buried in snow...just trust me on this...it's coming.

I've had some questions about seasonal gardening which I'd like to address before the growing season.

There will be more in depth posts later, but here's a starter infographic I found through Organic Valley that has a few basic tips to get our minds going and thinking about what sorts of steps we should take now to be ready for a successful garden later.  There are also some interesting stats that you might find encouraging.  72% of US Households get out in the garden?  That's awesome! You're not alone!

Courtesy of: The Spigot, The Official XHOSE blog

Girly Bobby Pins in 2 Minutes

I say this will take two minutes because that's how long it took me.  Not even kidding.  Timed it.  The only reason it took me 10 minutes to get this post up is because I stopped to eat a cookie.  

Don't judge.

So I'm going to be straight with you here.  I'm not the girliest of the girly girls.  Shocker.  Though I do like pink, lacy things, lip gloss, and dresses...I sit here writing this in blue jeans, a black sweater, wool socks, no makeup and a Marilla Cuthbert bun.  Sigh.  

Maybe I should add "femininity" to my New Year goals...it's not too late is it?

Alright, well before Christmas I ordered a green dress on sale from ModCloth to wear for Christmas Eve dinner because I was not in a position to make one...and $15 for a brand new dress was not the hill I wanted to die on.  When the box arrived with the dress, there was a little package of these ADORABLE bobby pins with covered buttons.  So cute.  Great marketing scheme Modcloth.  

They are awesome.  A plain Jane pony becomes quite a bit cuter with a little flowered heart holding back some bangs...or a whisp that escaped.

"How hard can that be?" I asked myself during a reflective moment.

Down the stairs I dashed to the button box {yes I have a button box full of randoms...that part wasn't minimized yet...remember what I said about judging} 

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Button Bobby DIY

1} I fished out a button with a loop back...not the kind with holes in the face.

2} Grabbed a bobby pin and threaded the button on

3} Glued the little guy in place...held firm until dry {wire would work here too if it's in your craft stash}

4} Wear it out on the town...or doing dishes. It doesn't matter. 

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PS TIP

Use covered button kits and bits of fabric to make a Button Bobby that matches an outfit.  Ta-da!

Also, these would make great gifts. 

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