Top 5 Essential Oil Hacks for Parents

Essential oils solve many problems in life. It is one of the things I love most about them. When you commit to living an oily lifestyle, you find new and innovative ways to use your favorite essential oils for absolutely everything. Case in point: raising kids. Parents, this revelation may come as a shock to you. Kids love messes. They are cute and we love them, but they sure do come up with some of the most surprising ways to get dirt, slime, and other icky stuff all over themselves and everything else they touch throughout the day.

Never fear, my parenting friends. We have some essential oil hacks that make parenting a teensy bit easier. Even if you do not have kids, there are probably times you need some extra help adulting. These hacks work for you, too, with a little modification.

Essential Oil Hack #1: Rethink the Stink

Garbage is gross. It smells. No, I take that back. It wreaks. If you are the parent of a baby or toddler still in diapers or pull-ups, you take smells to a whole other level in your house. There is no reason to tolerate the stench. All you need is a cotton ball and one of these three essential oils to nix the odor:

• Citrus Fresh™
• Jade Lemon™
• Purification®

Put a few drops of any of these essential oils on a cotton ball and tuck it away in the bottom of your garbage can or diaper pail.

For those of you with teenagers, you may be dealing with a completely different kind of fragrance emanating from your teens’ rooms. You can stash cotton balls with these essential oils throughout their rooms to help keep the reek at bay.

Did we also mention that kids have some seriously stinky feet? All that running and sweating can leave their shoes smelling like a locker room (and I do not mean a freshly disinfected locker room, either). Combine a tablespoon of baking soda with a few drops of Thieves® essential oil, then put it in their shoes. It will help their tootsies smell amazing.

Essential Oil Hack #2: Unstick the Ick

Kids love messy foods. The cheesier, the better, for most kids. Sometimes they want to express their independence, too, which can lead to the need to unstick the ick from your cooktop and other kitchen prep areas. No worries, parental units! I have got you covered with this essential oil hack for degreasing surfaces in the kitchen or anywhere else in your home.

Soak a microfiber cloth in water with a couple of drops of Lemon essential oil. Use the cloth to gently buff away stuck-on muck. This method is especially useful for ceramic cooktops or stainless steel, which can scratch easily if you use the wrong cleansers or cloths on them.

Essential Oil Hack #3: Tame the Mane

Kids (and adults) with naturally curly or thick hair know the pain that comes with tangles. Even if you use high-end shampoos and conditioners, you can still wake up in the morning with something akin to a rat’s nest on your head. You can amplify Young Living’s Lavender Volume Conditioner to give your locks a luscious look and feel by adding 3 drops of Cedarwood essential oil, 3 drops of Frankincense essential oil, and 1-1.8 cups of warm, distilled water to a half cup of the conditioner. Then, spritz liberally on wet hair, comb through with a wide-tooth comb or pick, and let dry.  

Essential Oil Hack #4: Break the Fast

Kids are notoriously picky eaters. Teenagers sometimes rush out of the house in the morning sans breakfast. Parents worried their kids are not getting the right nutrition in the morning can help their kiddos break the fast with some enticing morning munchies. Enhanced with the power of essential oil, these recipes are sure to bring all the kids to the breakfast table.

Poppyseed muffins with Lemon Vitality™ essential oil take this classic recipe up a notch. Use your favorite recipe to make them from scratch, adding 8-10 drops of essential oil to the mix. You also can use a pre-packaged mix and add the same amount of essential oil before baking. This works great with blueberry and other berry muffins as well.

Need an on-the-go breakfast that is nutritious and delicious? Make the kids a smoothie. Here is a recipe for one of my favorites:

• 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 1 drop Orange Vitality essential oil
• 1 cup frozen fruit of your choice
• 1/3 cup of vanilla yogurt
• 1 tablespoon chia seeds
• 2-3 cups of raw spinach

Blend it all together well and – voila! – you have a tasty breakfast drink that even the teens will stop long enough to grab on their way out the door.

Parenting made easier with essential oils

Parenting is hard. I am here to help with lots of cool parenting hacks you can incorporate into your oily lifestyle. Consider becoming an On Call Essentials member to get exclusive access to tips on using essential oils and discounts on all Young Living products.