This time of year brings about projects to do outside of your house. This is no different for me. I enjoy gardening and have containers filled with herbs and flowers. Even when the kids were small, I would sometimes work in the yard during their naps.

Unfortunately, warm weather also brings out the bugs. A certain fact has to be stated before I tell this story: I am terribly afraid of wasps. During one of the kids’ afternoon naps, I decided to lay a few ceramic tiles down as stepping stones in part of our yard. As I was walking across the lawn, I saw something-almost certainly a wasp-flying straight toward my head. To prevent this wasp from landing on me, I reflexively swiped at the incoming insect. In the rush of adrenaline, I had momentarily forgotten a tile was in the hand that was quickly swiping at the intruder, and, with great force, I smacked myself in the head with it.

When I came to my senses, I realized three things: One, I had just hit myself in the head really hard with a floor tile; two, I was in a lot of pain; and three, I just inflicted that pain on myself over a box elder bug! (By the way, I don’t like box elder bugs, either). I was informed later that I probably gave myself a mild concussion.

I haven’t let that incident keep me from being outdoors, and I now have a way to help keep at least some of those pesky bugs at bay. I keep a small 2-ounce spray bottle filled with 1/4 cup distilled water and 10 drops each of Peppermint essential oil and Citronella essential oil handy to use as an insect repellent. This is safe to spray on yourself, and it can also have the added benefit of cooling you down when the weather is hot.

Also, applying this combination to plants can help keep unwanted bugs off them, but the key is being consistent. I also use this on my patio furniture and around the inside of our house as an alternative to insect spray, so I am not using anything harmful to us or our cat. Just a word of caution: I know spiders do not like peppermint. One day I sprayed a mixture of Peppermint and distilled water around the kitchen, and a spider was drawn out trying to get away from my homemade insect spray. In that case, I was brave and killed it, mostly because the intruder was on the smaller side!

If you do get a bite or sting, applying a couple drops of Lavender oil several times a day can be very helpful! Using Young Living’s Lavender Lotion works even better for some people!!

Has an insect or spider caused you to do something crazy? Tell me about it in the comments below!

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