Mosquitos Everywhere

Back to the real topic of this blog: natural cleaning, remedies, and Christian Witchy living.  Enough with the failure and not being good enough because we all are.

I have a few friends who I believe may need this post.  One in particular, whom shall remain nameless, has apparently fallen in love with skyclad rituals.  As I would not recommend using many chemicals along all those sensitive areas (male or female) I figured it was a prime time to share the chemical-less mosquito repellent:

In a 16oz bottle combine:
15 drops lavender oil
4 tbsp vanilla extract
1/4 cup lemon juice

Fill the bottle with water.  Shake before applying.

A few homemade mosquito traps strategically placed may also help.  I found a good one on The Survivalist Blog.

Ingredients:
1 cup of water
1/4 cup of brown sugar
1 gram yeast
1 2-liter bottle

Directions:
1. Cut the plastic bottle in half.
2. Mix brown sugar with hot water.  Let cool.  When cold pour in the bottom half of the bottle.
3. Add the yeast to the brown sugar mixture.  There is no need to mix it. This is just used to create carbon dioxide, which attracts mosquitos.
4.  Place the funnel part upside down into the other half of the bottle, taping them together if desired.  This allows the mosquitos to fly in but not back out.
5. Wrap the bottle with something black, leaving the top uncovered, and place it outside in an area away from where you plan to be.

I hope that these few ideas help to keep the bug population around your special place down and they leave you alone.  Enjoying outdoors is what summer is about!

Is failure a failure?

I have been thinking about this question a lot the past few days.  I know it doesn't really fit in with the topic of the blog but I feel as though I am being pushed to write it by that unknown entity.  So here is hoping that someone out there may need to read this.  Plus it follows up on my last post nicely.

We have a situation in my family right now where my step son is failing at a task.  He is failing miserably.  If it were school, he would have an F-.  I tried to help but wasn't in a position to do much.  My husband tried to help but no longer can.  I am the enforcer of the fact that we no longer can; therefore, I have become a Disney character - the evil step mom.  We tried, but helping was not teaching.

Over the weekend I had a conversation with my in-laws and they tried to tell me how it would be different if it was my own child because you never want to see your child fail.  I thought about it for a minute and then had to tell them, no, I would have the same attitude, maybe worse with my own children.  Of course I don't want to see them fail.  I don't want to see anyone fail.  But, failure is a part of life.  I think we have forgotten that.  Failure will happen.  My children will stay up too late and not study and get an F.  Should I go into school and complain to the teacher?  No.  I need to use the failure to teach my children how to make better decisions.

Remember, failure will happen.  The question is what will you do when it does?  Will you blame others, cry about it in your beer, and wait for someone else to pick up the pieces?  Or will you pick yourself up, examine what you did (or didn't do), examine your priorities, and set up a plan for success?  In the small failures that I expect from my children I really hope I can teach them to do the latter.  No one is going to succeed at everything they ever try.  Failure is a tool for teaching.  It is not the end but the beginning.

What do I do about the fact that my step son will no longer speak to me or his father?  Nothing.  What can I do?  I cannot control him.  I would love to talk to him but this is a failure of his emotions.  Either he will accept the fact that we can no longer help or he won't.  As I have said to my own children many times, "My job is not to be liked.  My job is to raise responsible members of society."  They may not like my teaching method but it is what it is.  Take the failure and learn from it.  Decide what is important and do it.  But don't blame others.  Only you can do what you set out to do.

Plan, prioritize, and find how to succeed and take responsibility!

Inadequacies

I am even finding the beginning of this post inadequate.  This is my third attempt to write my first paragraph.  There, I did it!

Often as I go through my day to day life I run into many places where I think, I should be doing better. Like right now I should be on my way to work but I am here writing instead.  It is probably good I was not on my way to work because an unexpected downpour came into being and I was able to frantically close all the windows in the house before it rained in.  That, by itself, is the message.  While we may think that we should be doing one thing, there is a reason we are not.  I choose today to believe that I stayed home for a reason.  Not only is that reason to share this with whoever happens to be reading this blog but to also close the windows so it did not rain in.

I have friends who post beautiful pictures on Facebook of altars and artwork that they have done; of wonderful scenery and places they have found.  My work seems to pail in comparison.  At least most of the time.  I am working on a book for myself.  And it is turing out beautiful.  But, I won't share most of it.  I did share the cover page and got some very positive response for it.  However, I don't want to be a show off, I don't want to burden my friends with having to respond about how nice they think it is.  Instead I focus on the negative of how my altar is not as beautiful, I could never make something as artistic as them.

In this season of growing, I think it is my attitude that needs to grow.  Instead of looking at my own work as inadequate, I should look to theirs for inspiration.  Instead of trying to banish the negativity caused by others, I should focus on banishing the negativity caused by myself.  I have learned a lot in the past few years.  The purpose of this blog is to share it.  Therefore, the only piece of true knowledge I give you today is this: you can only change yourself.  Promote what you want to see and who you want to be.  Do not let another's success feel like your failure.  We are here to help and support each other along our path, whatever that path may be.

Next time I post it will be more fun.  No more feeling like I can't do this.  I can write this blog and share what is in my head and heart.  What has you feeling inadequate and what can you do to change the situation for yourself?