Step Back in Time - A New TOS Review!!

I have been interested in making more things homemade and teaching my children from an earlier age about natural living.  We were very excited to be chosen for this product to review.  What product?  It's called Vintage Remedies.  They came into being to fill in the gaps in the natural wellness arena.  They have a great mission statement that you can feel free to read at your leisure.

The Product:
The creators of Vintage Remedies believe that prevention is the best medicine and they wanted to help bring back techniques that were readily used and available decades ago.  This is why they focus on wellness instead of medicine.

There are many ways to use the information and products of Vintage Remedies.  They have several courses that you can register for and be taught on your own pace.  There are four you can choose from; each designed to build on each other.  They also have mini lessons and mini e-books, as well as many resources and younger curriculum for your family.

I was able to choose from three products to review: Vintage Remedies for Kids (ages 2-6; $25.00), Vintage Remedies for Girls (ages 7-13l; $45.00) and Vintage Remedies for Guys (also ages 7-13;l $45.00).  Since my girls are 8 and 6 I chose the Vintage Remedies for Girls because I thought it would fit our family best.

The book we received, Vintage Remedies for Girls, is over 200 pages broken down into three sections.  It also includes three appendixes at the end of the book, as well as a how to section and a letter to parents/leaders at the beginning. The sections are:

• Food, Nutrition and Culinary Skills
• Health and Body
• Natural Living

The chapters are broken down a little further with subsections, a "tips" section, a "featured project"  as well as "other fun projects" that can be done to help teach the child/student more on that particular lesson. At the end of the chapter there is a guide for the parent/leader which gives an overview of the chapter and its purpose as well as a supply and ingredient list for the featured project.

Our Experience:

When we received our book, Arianna was VERY excited.  I had told her that we were chosen for the review and told her a little about the book we would be receiving and she wanted to start it right away!  So I let her. ;)  I told her to get comfortable and sit on the couch (the other two were resting/napping) and that she could read the first chapter.  She was enthralled.  When she completed the first chapter and since I hadn't had the chance to even look at it, I asked her to tell me about it.  This is Arianna's summary of the first chapter:

This chapter was about teaching us that we aren't eating "real food".  These fake foods can cause us to be overweight.  It looks very fun.  And the recipes seem to be very yummy.

I then asked her to skim through the rest of the book, look at the names of the title of the chapters and at all the featured and other projects and to let me know which ones she thinks she would like to do.  I did tell her she needed to pick at least one from each of the chapters.

I am very interested in working on these lessons and learning more.  I think chapter 3, 4, 8. 10. 14. and 15 are the ones I would like to do first.

After my husband and I were able to get to the health food store to pick up some of the more unusual items (like beeswax, coconut oil, etc.) we were all set to do our first project.  We choose the project from Chapter 8 (Beautiful you - Naturally), because it was making homemade lip gloss.  And with Christmas right around the corner Arianna thought that would be a nice gift to make for others.

Daddy was our main "assistant" and he helped both girls with getting out the materials, measuring, and pouring.  This project was fun for both girls (and mom and dad too.)

First we laid out the ingredients:

Here is a quick peek of the page of instructions:

The following pictures are of the girls putting in each of the ingredients:

Once the ingredients were combined and mixed they were able to measure out the liquid and pour it into containers to let them harden.

This shows a close up of one set that had partially harden and one that was still a liquid.

We made 2 batches and were able to make 12 orange lip glosses.  Now all we have to do is "decorate" them and they are instant Christmas gifts.

Arianna and Audrie were so happy and proud of all that they did. They are so excited to do each of the projects no matter what they are.  Another project we have done and will be using it as a Christmas gift is from chapter one - Fruit Bars. Yum!  Oh and we will be making cheese too!

My Thoughts:

I really love this product.  I am sure that we will be incorporating this into our daily life as we strive to become a more healthier family.  These lessons, I pray, will be long lasting and help our children remember that we can use the natural products that God created and gave to us to become more beautiful both inside and out.

Make sure you head over to the TOS Homeschool Crew and see what my crew members thought about their choice of book. Vintage Remedies is located in Franklin, Tennessee and you can find them on Facebook, Twitter, email, or you can call them at 615-807-0882 for more information.  

*** I am a member of The Old Schoolhouse 2011-2012 Crew and receive free products and services in exchange for a thorough and honest review. Though I am compensated with free products, I am not compensated in the form of money for any of my reviews. My reviews will always reflect my honest opinions, findings, beliefs and experiences with the products and services that I receive.***