Single Mom with 4 Children Builds Her Own Business

Carolyn's Shaklee Effect

"I came from nothing," Carolyn Spargur says, "and who would have thought" that she would come so far. Carolyn celebrated 50 years in Shaklee in 2015.

Carolyn started her business as a single mom raising four children. She was working two jobs till someone took the time to show her a better way. I love what she says at the end. smile emoticon

Carolyn built her business back when it wasn't so easy especially being a single mom. If she could do it then, we can definitely do it now! 

To learn more you can click the "Contact Me" button up top and request more information or visit us at www.ToBeHealthy.MyShaklee.com

Tips For Making Your Dishwasher Perform Better

We love our dishwashers, don’t we?

I love being able to throw the dishes in, slam the door, hit a couple buttons and walk away.

And happiness is when all the dirty dishes fit in the dishwasher. Yay!

After a while though, our favorite appliance can begin to let us down. Dishes aren’t getting as clean as they used to, glasses are spotted and it can begin to smell.

So what are we to do? The thought of a new dishwasher sounds delightful, but don’t throw out your old friend quite yet.

To keep your kitchen buddy working at his best, he does need some TLC. Yes, that’s right – you need to do a bit of regular maintenance.

Now before you start to say, “Ugh! I’d rather just buy a new one!” the maintenance really isn’t that hard – if you do it on a regular basis.

The first thing to do is dig out the owner’s manual. The manual will tell you what parts you can take apart to clean.

Here’s a tip. Buy a big binder and large pocket sleeve protectors, then put all your household appliance manuals in there and file it on a bookshelf. This makes the manuals easy to find and take up less space. Plus, if you ever go to sell your house, leave that book out on the counter and the new potential buyers will love you for it and may look at your house more eagerly.

All those food particles and debris gets trapped in the filters built into the dishwasher and they need to be cleaned out every so often. But don’t worry it’s not hard.

Most dishwashers are very similar in the bottom. Remove the bottom rack, and proceed to one-by-one remove the sprayer arm, strainer and filters per your manual. I have like 5 pieces that remove for cleaning in mine.

Tip: Place them in order from left to right how you took them out. This way you will remember which order they go when you go to put them back in. They only fit one way, kind of like a puzzle.

Take a toothbrush and some gentle cleaner. I like to use Basic-H² and scrub all the pieces thoroughly and rinse. Then spray with a good disinfectant all over the pieces and down in the sprayer arm holes. I like to use Basic-G as a good disinfectant. Do NOT use bleach or any other harsh cleanser.

If the sprayer arms have clogged holes, use a pipe cleaner or small straw brush to gently clean the holes. Do NOT use a toothpick because the tip could break off inside the arm, clogging the holes and later molding inside.

You will notice when you pull out the pieces at the bottom to clean there is still a puddle of water there and wonder why it doesn’t drain all the way. I wondered the same thing.

I learned it’s because you don’t want the pump or the seals to be dry. If the seals become brittle, you will end up with messy leaks and pumps are expensive to replace.

If you notice when you start your dishwasher, it will drain the water that’s in it first before filling with new water. So it doesn’t use that old water that had been sitting there in the wash cycle.

Tip: Run water at the faucet to hot before starting the dishwasher. This will shorten the time it takes for the dishwasher to heat the water, saving time and electricity.

I will clean this underwater area too, so as to prevent molding and to inspect. You can take an old towel to soak up the water and then use a rag to wipe out.

You will also want to gently clean the seal where the bottom of the door meets the bottom of the tub. No water gets here unless the seal is bad, but the moisture can make it start to mold there. Mold is something you do not want to get ahead of you, so attack it before it starts with a good disinfectant.

Clean up any stains and rust areas. Inspect your racks for breakage and tips missing so your dishes do not get damaged.

Inspect your seals for cracks and leakage. Get them fixed right away or you will be fixing your nice floor after a major water leak springs.

If you haven’t cleaned your dishwasher’s parts in a while you are in for a real treat. It can be nasty, so carve out some time. After that if you keep up with the cleaning, it will only take a few minutes and won’t be so yucky. I try and clean mine about once a month.

Like anything else, if you keep up with it it’s not so much work, but if you let the cleaning part get away from you then you will be spending more time cleaning it and doing the dishes more often since they aren’t getting as clean as they used to.

So there you go. An easy way to make your dishwasher act like new again without spending money. Think about all your dishwasher does for you and repay it with a little love and a little cleaning now and then. Just like any relationship – it needs some attention.

Dishwashing detergent can be very toxic and deadly to children and animals. Please protect the ones you love by using a safe, natural alternative.

I love Shaklee’s Automatic Dishwashing Powder. It works as well as the toxic brands, but is much safer and cheaper to use because you actually use less of it due to it being so concentrated. It is also great for cleaning other stubborn messes.

Click here to find all of Shaklee’s Healthy Home products: ToBeHealthy.MyShaklee.com/HealthyHome

When You Really Don’t Want God To Bless Your Enemies

I have always struggled with certain passages in the Bible like when Jesus instructs us that we are to love our enemies and ask God to bless them. 

When someone hurts you and then you hear that you are to ask God to bless them, you just want to scream, “What? Are you kidding me?!”

The last thing I really want God to do is bless them! It seems all the compassion I can muster is to ask God to not let them suffer too long when that bus you wished for them runs them over.

Let’s face it, forgiveness is hard, and asking for them to be blessed can seem downright cruel of Him to ask.

Then it was shown to me that I misunderstood the lesson.

When Jesus said we are to love our enemies and ask God to bless them, He wasn’t saying we should ask God to send them money, lots of stuff, or for them to achieve great financial success and have all their hearts desire.

Jesus meant we are to ask God to bless them in the way that is most beneficial to all. We are to ask God for Him to show Himself to them, to softly reach out to them, to open their eyes to the hurt they’ve caused and to seek God for their own benefit, not ours.

Ok, that I think I can do.

Now that I get it, it may be just a bit easier to ask God to bless my enemies instead of praying for that bus to come and run them over, or whatever other calamity I may be thinking. 

I also have noticed it takes less painful effort to do this than to waste my time and emotions stewing over the hurt.

It’s the same as the lesson of turning the other cheek. God doesn’t want us to be doormats for other people! Good thing, because I have a short fuse for that! 

He wants us to forgive others as He has forgiven us. How many times have you’ve been angry at God and have hurt Him and he turned the other cheek? He forgave and forgot, and He does it much quicker than we do.

I believe the turn the other cheek is to behave in a way that means we don’t exact our revenge on others for hurting us, though at the moment it really sounds good, doesn’t it?

It means we are to ask God to be our vindicator as he really knows how to get to the other person – through their heart. 

Where we just want to hurt them back, which really accomplishes nothing, God wants to reach them, turn them around and help them along the right path. Kind of like he is already doing with us.

Ouch! That stings a bit.

This method really benefits us. Think back to the times when someone really hurt you and you asked for them to be hurt just as bad. Only to watch them seemingly be blessed in ways of finances, things given to them that you wanted and success in ways you can only dream of.

Ahhhh! Why is God blessing them when you were the one that was hurt?!

It seems like you are the one who got hurt while they seem to be getting rewarded for their bad behavior. What gives?

Well, we know that it does balance out. Call it karma or call it God's way of making sure everyone is even, either way - what you reap, you eventually will sow. 

And a life that appears calm and perfect on the surface often can mean there is a fierce undercurrent of disaster that is hidden from our view just under that seemingly perfect life.

So, the next time someone really is awful to you, don’t assume God wants you to get all the junk and the enemy to prosper. Ask God what He wants you to do. 

Forgive might be a word that quickly comes to mind. It may taste bad at first, but it’s OK for you to ask God to help you do that. Then ask Him to bless your enemies now that you know what it really means.

You may just find that the blessing is yours. J

Julie

Automatic Dishwashing Powder & Babies - A Deadly Combination

Automatic Dishwashing Powder - 

Warning! Strong eye & skin irritant. Can burn throat. Contains corrosive bleach that can burn mouth and throat.

Repeated or prolonged exposure to vapors or dust can cause irritation of the lungs, central nervous system disorders and even death.

Most common poisoning among children.

Many children have died from eating the little candy looking detergent pods or consuming the powder.

Scared yet? I would be.

The powder and liquids used in dishwashers account for some of the most common poisonings of children.

Picture this: 

You’re a mom, tired from working all day. As you are cleaning up from dinner, you have one child asking you for help with homework, your husband is asking where his favorite shirt is, the dog is barking, the clothes washer sounds off balance and your toddler is tugging at your leg while you are loading the dishwasher.

Sound like a typical evening in the kitchen for you?

You have the dishwasher all loaded, have the detergent in and the rinse aid filled. Then at that moment your older child knocks over a glass of milk all over her homework. You don’t shut the dishwasher door as you rush over with a dish towel trying to clean it up and trying to keep from blowing your top – let’s face it life can be hectic!

As you settle your older child down, wipe up the milk and help her with that math problem, you hear a scream.

Your toddler is standing at the open dishwasher door, detergent powder and rinse aid all over his mouth and fingers. The chemicals are burning his lips, mouth, tongue and throat and he is wheezing for air.

You scream for your husband. By the time he gets down the stairs full panic has set in. He’s screaming, “What happened?!” You are frantically looking for your phone to call 911 with your toddler in your arms.

You are sobbing on the phone to the 911 operator and what may only take minutes seems like hours for the EMT’s to arrive. By this time your precious little one’s lips and mouth are blistering and he is barely breathing.

Then begins the long ride to the ER, the agonizing wait at the hospital to see if your baby is even going to survive. 

IF, yes I said if, he does survive you could be looking at multiple surgeries, agonizing pain for him and possible permanent damage to his mouth and esophagus.

You are racked with guilt. You only turned away for a minute. It wasn’t your fault, but those words are little comfort as you run that scene over and over in your mind.

This may not be you personally, but it has been some mother at one time and sadly, many others.

I tell you this story, not to upset you, not to make you feel bad about the brands you buy, but to make you aware of the dangers these products can do.

The dangers are very real. And we all love our children and want to keep them safe. It’s just many families are unaware of the dangers is all.

I love my dishwasher. As a busy mom, I don’t want to stand and do dishes by hand, though there are times I do. I love to be able to throw the dishes in the dishwasher, slam the door, hit a button and they disappear for a while.

We decided a while back to make sure the product we used was safe. Safe first of all for our child, safe for the nosy dog who likes to come over and “help” with cleaning the plates once loaded in the dishwasher, and we wanted to not pollute the environment.

We also didn’t want it to cost more. Is there such a brand?

Yes there is and it’s called Shaklee. I know I am risking at sounding like a commercial here. I just want to share with you why I trust them in my home.

Shaklee’s commitment to safety and the environment goes back 100 years with the first multivitamin and they had the first biodegradable cleaning product produced in 1960. 

Shaklee has a long heritage of safety first. Safety for all – people, pets & Earth.

I trust them and they work. Plus, they actually save us a ton of money compared to the store brands. I love their Automatic Dishwashing Powder as I actually use a fraction of the amount compared to “filling up” the cup with the store brands. A little goes a very long way with Shaklee. My Shaklee dishwashing powder lasts me about 4 months and that’s doing a full load every day!

They are so worth trying. Please consider trying Shaklee’sAutomatic Dishwashing Powder.

 See below for a list of features or just click the link.

So, the next time you do dishes, think about the product you are pouring into your dishwasher cup and think about the mom waiting in the ER for news of her precious little one who just accidentally ate some of that powder.

There are safer alternatives. Please consider using them.

Thank you.

Julie

For more information about the dishwashing powder we use or to purchase it:

ToBeHealthy.MyShaklee.com/HealthyHome

Features: 

• The deep, enzyme-activated cleaning power gently removes tough stains, leaving dishes and glasses sparkling clean.
• Super concentrated – cleans 48 loads – just 2 teaspoons in each dispenser cup.
• No pre-rinsing needed – Removes dried on food and tough stains, so they don’t get stuck on.
• Dissolves quickly and completely, getting to work straight away.
• Absolutely no chlorine and no fragrances, which can pollute the air that you breathe.
• Comes in a handy resealable pouch with measuring scoop

Clean Credentials

• Natural
• Concentrated
• Biodegradable Surfactants
• No phosphates
• No chlorine

Disinfecting Wipes

Here is a great tip to help ward off the cold and flu viruses this year.

Shopping cart handles can be pretty nasty and most of us like to wipe the handles down with a disinfecting wipe. 

I often notice the stores will be out of the wipes they provide and I’ve also noticed they don’t do such a good job of cleaning.

I put several of the wipes we use in a Ziploc type baggie to throw in my purse. I use these to wipe down the shopping cart handles. I just pull one out of my purse as I walk up to the carts.

I like to have disinfecting wipes in my car to clean off the steering wheel, handles, radio knobs, etc. every now and then, too, especially if we just walked out of a store and my kids have touched every toy and item in the store.

Don't you just love it when you see your kids handle all the toys in the store, then stick their fingers in their mouths?

Ugh!

We use Shaklee’s Germ Off Disinfecting Wipes and we use them on everything, phones, doorknobs, handles, you name it.

I love these and I’ll tell you why I trust these wipes over the Clorox brand!

They not only disinfect much better and the disinfecting power lasts longer than bleach wipes, they also clean better than the bleach wipes!

I noticed when I used the Clorox wipes on shopping carts the grocery stores provide, they get the handle wet, but the handle still seems dirty. Plus, I notice the wipe itself is still white after wiping the surfaces down.

Did it really clean?

When I use the Shaklee’s Germ Off Disinfecting Wipes, I notice the surface seems cleaner and the wipe is black from the dirt and grime it just cleaned off.

Wow! It really lifted the dirt off and you can almost hear the germs dying a quick death.

I also like Shaklee’s Germ Off Disinfecting Wipes because they are safer to use. 

They are less toxic so kids can use them and they don’t pollute the environment. The material is also biodegradable and can be thrown into the recycling bin.

Since it has better cleaning and disinfecting powers than the Clorox wipes do, they are great for classrooms and offices.

Before I was able to work from home I used them to clean off my desk phone at work. Not much is yuckier than coming back from lunch and seeing a co-worker who has been sneezing and hacking all day sitting at your desk using your phone and pens! Yuck! 

So I always had some in my desk and I made it a point to let them know I was getting rid of their cuties! LOL!

They make great teacher and co-worker gifts. ;) hint, hint.

To help stay healthy this year, do what our family does, carry Shaklee’s Germ Off DisinfectingWipes with you everywhere. You just never know when they will come in handy. 

Julie

You can find the wipes we use here: 

Shaklee’s Germ Off Disinfecting Wipes

Product Tip: Invisible Glove

Are you going to be doing some painting? Working on a greasy motor? Planting some fall bulbs?

We have a product that we use as an invisible glove. Just rub a small amount of it into your hands full strength till it disappears - will not be greasy or sticky. 

You will be amazed how when you wash your hands later how the dirt, paint and grease just runs off.

Forgot to put the invisible glove on before you started? 

No worries this product can be used as an awesome hand cleaner.

Find it here: Basic-H2

‪

Always Safe, Always Works, Always Green

See why we work when others don’t

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*Note: this suggested use is from our own experience and is not endorsed by the Shaklee Corporation.

Things I Never Thought I Would Say Till I Had Children

Having children makes for some interesting words that come out of your mouth that you just never dreamed you would say.

Here are some that came to mind I have said probably in just the last two days. Feel free to comment and add your own:

“Get back in the house and put some clothes on!”

Upon entering the bathroom and instantly hearing someone yell, “Mom!” I say, “I am going to the bathroom! Unless the house is on fire, no one better bother me!”

“So help me, if I find pee on the toilet seat one more time!”

“Did you poop today?”

“Stop kissing the dog.”

“Get your fingers out of your nose!”

"Whose underwear is this?”

“Hmmm, now what is this stain?”

“How on earth did you get your head stuck in there?”

“God, he’s your child. You sent him to me to raise, so now you can help me do that!”

Asking God For Help With The Little Things, Too

Life is stressful, isn’t it?

And it seems like bad things come in waves. At times it can feel like an avalanche of problems that bury our joy and our faith.

I had been experiencing one of those avalanches in my life not long ago. My husband had been hurt on the job and had not worked for almost 3 months. The company was trying to get out of paying, the bills were mounting up and to top it off our 6 year old was going through a defiant, back talking stage so we seemed to be constantly doling out discipline.

My business (Shaklee – I help others looking for ways to improve their health & save  money) was slow and it seemed like I never had the time to devote to it like I should have.

I could go on and on with a laundry list of issues, but you get the idea.

So when I saw my son sitting on a chair out back, with his head down looking totally defeated I knew he needed me for something and immediately I felt….angry. I didn’t feel like I had anything left to give. I felt like I just couldn’t handle one more thing going wrong.

But you know what touched my heart?

My six year old little boy had been witnessing all my stress and didn’t want to add to it. When I asked him what was wrong, he looked at the ground and just said, “Nothing”.

When I pressed him about it he sadly said he knew I was already stressed and he didn’t want to make me any more upset than I already was.

See, I had been hurriedly working trying to get the wood in for our wood-burning fireplace which we use to heat our home before the rain came. I had been harping on him to stop playing and do his chore which was to help pick up the little pieces that we use as kindling.

He had been doing that when he stopped to pick up a beloved toy glider plane he just received as a gift from a friend. When he threw it into the air, the wind took it and it landed in our pool. The problem was, the pool’s liner had a hole in it and the water had leaked down to only about two feet deep that now had a layer of ice on it.

I wanted to lose it, to scream at him and tell him all the reasons why it’s in there for good, but when I saw his brokenness, I just sank to my knees and felt my heart sink down with them.

I took him in my arms and held him as we both cried. I felt so depleted, but seeing my young son trying to hide his heartbreak from me made me feel ashamed for my behavior.

After gently telling him how I didn’t think I would be able to rescue his toy, he nodded and slowly went inside. I wiped my tears and finished bringing the wood in as the darkness settled in and the rain began to fall.

That’s when I finally asked God to help me get the toy out of the pool. Isn’t is it funny how we always seem to wait till we’re desperate to ask God for help?

I asked, almost hesitantly like I was embarrassed to bother God with such a trivial request, but it was more than just getting a toy, it was a way to help heal my son’s heart.

God wasted no time.

He instantly told me to get the big rake - the one I kept forgetting to put back in the shed. He told me to flip it upside down. I did as He instructed, reached down and the little toy plane obeyed and flipped easily into the hollow of the rake, where I could lift it up and out of the dark depth of the empty pool.

In my astonishment, I barely took time to whisper a prayer of thanks as I ran into the house to show my son what happened.

Seeing his little face light up and wonder how I did it lifted the avalanche of problems right off of my spirit.

It also gave me an example to show my son the love of God as I told him how I had asked God to help me help him. I told him how God gave me the instructions on just what to do to get the plane out.

Sharing your amazement of God’s love with your child is an awesome experience. Teaching your child that he can go to God with even the littlest of things is such a great privilege.

It was a lesson we both needed to learn. 

We must remember that God wants us to come to Him for all we need, even the little things. It gives Him a chance to show us how much He cares and a chance for us to show Him how much we trust Him to help us. It also gives us another way to praise God.

It was a lesson I desperately needed to learn myself. It gave me an opportunity to then go to God for everything I needed, in praise and thankfulness. 

And you know what? It all began to turn around. Funny how that works, isn’t it?

Julie

Not Waving Goodbye Hurts

It was another typical morning. Lately all my son wants to do is fight, argue, complain and whine. UGH!

I know all children go through this, but when it is you going through it, you feel like you are the only one.

This morning it was over breakfast and not doing the things he knows he has to do to get ready for school. Then there is the lying. It’s more like fibbing because it’s small things, but I fear lying over little things like, feeding the dog part of his breakfast when he thinks I’m not looking and then lying about it when I confront him, may lead to lying later about drinking, smoking and worse.

I know it’s quite a leap to think that, but I value honesty very highly and as small disobedient acts become easy, then disobeying on a larger scale doesn’t seem that hard.

Then at the bus stop his bad attitude towards another child who he just happily played with the other day caused him to have to get reprimanded by me. So when he boarded the bus, sat down and looked out the window, he didn’t wave and didn’t smile like he always does – he just stared at me like he hated me. And my heart broke…….again.

I know it’s normal. That’s what I’d be saying to another mom right now if she were telling me this, but when it’s happening to you, it’s much harder, isn’t it? It’s hard to see the normalcy, they typical of the age behavior when you are in the thick of it.

So I grab my EnergizingTea that not only lifts me, it soothes my wounded spirit a bit, open my Bible for encouragement (I wonder if Mary ever had to discipline Jesus for misbehaving as a child?) and go on to the MOBSociety. I love this group. It never fails, whatever problem I am having with my son, they seem to be going through the same thing and have such words of wisdom. If you have boys, you need to stop by their site. If you have daughters, they have a sister site called Mothers of Daughters. I think you’ll find they have an uncanny sense of knowing what you’re going through and can offer help.

So, I patch my fragile heart back together and start my long day of work. My heart is heavy, but my husband is right, chances are my son will come home like nothing ever happened as the morning will be forgotten, and I’ll be grateful for his lack of short term memory for once.

Julie

PROJECT MAHMA THURSDAY OPPORTUNITY CONFERENCE CALL

Tune in Thursday night for another inspiring Project MAHMA Opportunity Call!

Know moms and dads interested in creating a better life for themselves and their families? Invite them to tune in!


CALL INFORMATION
Thur., January 22, 2015
6:00 p.m. Pacific
7:00 p.m. Mountain
8:00 p.m. Central
9:00 p.m. Eastern
DIAL: 212-990-8000
(PIN: 6262#)


Our host is Gail, formerly from New York now residing in Northeast Pennsylvania. 

For 11 years Gail and husband Tom have been coaching and connecting families to resources and tools for better living. Gail is currently caring for her 89 year old father full-time in addition to having a successful Shaklee business and being the mom of three college students.

As a successful Shaklee Business Leaders, Gail and Tom have earned a Shaklee Dream Car bonus as well as five Shaklee Incentive Trips.

Joining Gail this week are Gretchen and AnnMarie.

Gretchen is a mom of two girls. In addition to being a Shaklee Business Leader, Gretchen is also a certified personal trainer and martial arts instructor.

AnnMarie like a lot of moms knows the art of juggling! In addition to her Shaklee business, AnnMarie is mom to three – a 9, 10 and 12 year old and also works part-time as a dental assistant.


After the call, contact us to learn more about Project MAHMA!

You can also visit our website to learn more: ToBeHealthy.Myshaklee.com - Project MAHMA