Wellness Mama®
Simple Answers for Healthier Families
Cleaning a house naturally is not any more difficult than cleaning it with harsh chemicals. It improves indoor air quality and is much safer, especially for children. We’ve switched entirely to natural cleaning products and our house is just as clean (or cleaner!). I don’t have to worry about the kids getting sick if they …
I am no fashionista, but I do appreciate good quality clothing. My one problem is that most women’s clothes now seem to need special care like handwash or dry clean only. The expense of dry cleaning is one drawback, but so are the chemicals used to clean the clothes. When I saw an “organic” dry cleaners …
I’ve written many times about all-natural cleaning methods without the use of chemicals. Now to check off something that’s been on my list for a while: a complete cleaning checklist for the whole house! Sometimes it’s hard to get the motivation (or time) to take on deep cleaning, but the one time of year most of …
My favorite cream blush and many of the items in my natural makeup routine apply best with a brush. Keeping clean makeup brushes is almost as important to me as choosing non-toxic makeup. Cleaning makeup brushes isn’t usually the first thing on our to-do lists… if it’s ever on there at all. But it’s undeniable that …
I sometimes am asked how I “get it all done” with kids, and the answer is that I don’t. Or at least I don’t every day, or with a patient attitude all the time, or while still managing to get a shower and brush my hair. How the Kids Help Out The other answer is …
When I first switched to more natural and green cleaning products, microfiber cloths seemed like a panacea. They cleaned almost all surfaces with little or no additional products, were reusable, and seemed really sustainable. I found myself using them more and more and many sources recommended them as a natural cleaning alternative. From a no-waste perspective, …
Cosmetics and beauty products are a major source of chemical exposure for most people. An average beauty product contains dozens of harmful chemicals, many of which have not even been tested for safety in humans! Fortunately, there are natural alternatives for every beauty product, and most work better than the chemical-laden alternatives. I have made …
I don’t often do two-part podcasts, but Marilee Nelson of Branch Basics has such an incredible story and so many tips for moms who have kids with health struggles. In the first part of the interview (check it out here if you missed it), Marilee shared her son’s struggle with chemical overexposure and all of …
With a family and a business, life can get very busy, very fast. Both take a lot of time and intentionality to nurture and I’m not one to let either of these important parts of my life suffer for the other. One thing I do so that I can have time for my family (first) …
Many of us don’t think about cleaning out the washing machine. I mean, it’s supposed to clean our clothes, so how dirty can it get? Yet, mildew, bacteria, soap scum, and other yucky things build up in a washing machine over time. In this tutorial I’m going to explain how to clean a washing machine …
I’ve recently had the opportunity to try using microfiber and now I’m kicking myself for not trying it sooner! A reader sent me some great info and a few Norwex products to try out. I certainly had my doubts that a single cloth could clean everything, especially without water, and I was pleasantly surprised. Since trying …
My guest Wardeh Harmon (also known as ‘Wardee’) is quite literally a living encyclopedia when it comes to traditional food preparation. For years she’s been sharing her hard-earned knowledge on her amazing website TraditionalCookingSchool.com. If you haven’t checked out this resource yet, you won’t believe the wealth of easy-to-follow videos, cheat sheets, and perfectly crafted recipes Wardeh has taken …
I have a confession to make… I’m lazy when it comes to cleaning. In fact, that is why I started using multipurpose homemade green cleaners in the first place… I could clean the majority of my house without the need for a bucket full of cleaning products. Green Cleaner Troubles… Unfortunately for my DIY green cleaners, vinegar stinks and …
Several years ago, I switched to using natural cleaning products. Since then, I have found a lot of great recipes, tricks and shortcuts that have not only taken the chemicals out of my daily life, but made our house cleaner, fresher, and faster to clean! One of the products I use the most when cleaning …
Of all the rooms in my house, the kitchen has to be cleaned the most often. It’s often difficult to clean because of the variety of surfaces and appliances, yet the most important to clean well because these surfaces come into contact with our food (and vice versa). It is also a place where harmful …
Laundry detergent is an easy switch from store bought to homemade. DIY alternatives are often just as effective and much less expensive. I’ve shared my Homemade Laundry Soap but this variation is formulated for high-efficiency washers. I first considered the idea of homemade laundry detergent when a friend’s mom made hers while I was visiting their house 15 …
Oven cleaning stinks! It is time-consuming and the chemicals that are used in most conventional oven cleaners are toxic. When I started switching all of my household cleaners to more natural methods, finding a way to clean the oven using a natural oven cleaner was at the top of my list. I do not have a self-cleaning oven …
Did you know there’s such a thing as a professional organizer? Someone you can just invite into your home to make all your clutter and cleaning problems go away? It’s true! My guest today is Andrea Dekker and her job is helping people simplify and organize their lives. Better yet, she does it in in a way …
Once upon a time, I made a few huge batches of my regular sea salt bath fizzies and postpartum bath fizzies as gifts for friends who were expecting babies. I kept a few of the ones that broke when I removed them from the molds and was planning to use them myself. I had them …
I warned everyone the cottage cheese recipes might be coming, and they are! Ever since I discovered a better-for-you cottage cheese brand without fillers or carrageenan (Good Culture, in some grocery stores), our menu includes cottage cheese once again. This easy one pan breakfast casserole recipe capitalizes on the creaminess of blended cottage cheese to create a …
Dr. Izabella Wentz is a pioneering expert in lifestyle interventions for treating Hashimoto’s thyroiditis, which I have. She was also diagnosed at age 27, and in search of answers, conducted an incredible amount of research to create her own autoimmune protocol. In addition to her New York Times bestseller Hashimoto’s Protocol, she just wrote a …
We first tried this “recipe” the week we finally got our first snow day that actually involved snow. For two days, my kids (and all the kids in the neighborhood) were outside 8-10 hours a day sledding, building snowmen, and making snow angels. One of the children suggested making snow cream and once the idea had …
Quick and easy recipes and tips for naturally cleaning bathrooms without harmful chemicals and in very little time.
Every year as warmer weather approaches, I make several homemade products for summer including my homemade sunscreen and these homemade bug spray recipes. I don’t use sunscreen often because it limits vitamin D production and I prefer to eat my sunscreen instead. This homemade insect repellent spray recipe, on the other hand, gets daily use where we live. (Unfortunately!) …
