WFWM - Coconut Oil

Works for me Wednesday is a little different this week. The usual host Shannon is out of the country for a Compassion International Blog thing. (It's hard to describe, just go read about her amazing experiences). Don't Try This At Home is hosting in her place - same great ideas, different location. I don't like change, but even I can deal with this.

Okay, on to my tip. Coconut oil is great stuff. It's a little weird because it's melting point is in the 70s (76?) so in our house it is a solid in the winter and a liquid in the summer. But once you get past that quirk, you can find tons of uses for it. Here are three ways I consistently use it.

1. Moisturizer: Just rub a little of it on your dry skin. It is oil so don't use a ton or you will look like you want to be a body builder but it works well even here. And you know if the air is dry enough to make my hair look good, it's dry enough to make my skin NOT look good. (I need a climate where it is humid until about 5 feet off the ground, then it becomes dry, does that exist anywhere?) I will warn you though, you may or may not like the smell. I don't like coconut scented products but I do like the smell of the oil. Craig doesn't really like it because he thinks it makes me smell like popcorn and that makes him hungry. So use it, but make sure you have snacks on hand for your husband.

2. Pets: We feed a little bit to our cat Zeeba everyday. Her long hair is so silky smooth now and the oil helps keep things a' movin, if ya know what I mean. We have had a few problems with in the past and a little oil every day is much much better than trying to cram a bunch of laxatives down a cat and listen to her moaning for several days till they kick in. Not fun, for her or us. Plus, she really likes the taste of it. And that says something because she is the pickiest eater ever, have you ever met a cat that wouldn't eat any meat? Not chicken, not turkey, not even a piece of salmon that I had dropped on the floor! When she sees me bring out the jar so comes over and hops in my lap (even if I was only planning on cooking something with it). Which brings me to the obvious one .

3. Cooking: I used it last week to make wheat bread last week because my mom makes the best bread and I remember her using coconut oil. In the winter you might have to microwave it for a few seconds to get it to oil form but it works and it is relatively inexpensive for oils. It is also frequently used to pop popcorn (hence the smell) and I have heard that it is good for frying things too.