Feet - Our Most Neglected Body Part?

Our feet take a beating on a daily basis, and I think you'll agree that feet are probably the most neglected of our body parts ... but it feels sooo good when they are treated well!

Especially for a busy mother ... "I feel like I've been on my feet all day" applies to moms who have jobs outside the house as well as those who make home-making their primary job, and who spend the day rushing round after others. 

In line with the neglect, I found the fewest ideas around for feel-good feet through natural means. 

Now, I'm one of those who believe that a professional spa job is worth every penny ... when you have the time and the money.

And, there are dozens of wonderful feel-good massage gizmos and feel-good foot scrubs, essential oils, lotions and soaks for home use when the spa is out of the question ... and I'm going to recommend my favorites, later on.   

Take a look here and consider treating yourself to this great foot cream -L'Occitane Shea Butter Foot Cream. You'll not regret it!

But I was astonished how few natural foot-care solutions there seem to be that fit the bill for a busy Mom desperately trying to give her trotters a taste of the good life in the few minutes available between putting the kids to bed and collapsing with exhaustion.

These work!

A Marvellous Massage with Marbles

One idea I read in a few places and put to the test DOES work well, if all you have is 10 or 15 minutes. It's simple and ingenious ... put a couple of layers of kids' marbles in the bottom of a large bowl, add water just hot enough that you don't wince when you put your feet in, Epsom salts are a nice touch, a drop or two of an essential oil is a nice touch if you have them ... and forgive me being blunt but a few drops of lemon juice can help if your feet tend to pong a bit at the end of the day. Relax, revel in the hot soak, and roll your feet around slooowly on the marbles, even try picking marbles up with your toes, the stretching can feel wonderful.

If You Can Make Time For A Home Made Pedicure ...

 I found two variations of this on the 'Net, both are delicious, if you're anything like me, your choice will depend on your flexibility (you'll understand in a minute).

When the soak is over, inspect your appendages for the give-away whiteness of calloused skin ... and pumice it out of there.

The magic ingredient you need next is Shea butter soap. Now, and I'm quoting from a company that sells this stuff on-line (you should be able to find it in a local supplier of body-stuff, though), "Shea Butter is one of the most valuable gifts Mother Africa has bestowed upon her children. This ultra-moisturizing and healing vegetable butter is harvested from the Shea Karite Tree which grows exclusively in West Africa and must mature 50 years in order to yield the highest quality butter."(healthandfitness.com) At which point it seems kind of an anti-climax that it's end use becomes to be slathered all over your feet, but hey, life's not always fair.

Massage it all over your feet ... cover with plastic wrap ... cover with a sock (one on each foot usually works well for me) ... and go to bed. In the morning, strip off the foot-condoms and socks and let your feet air-dry or if you shower, don't soap your feet and don't hard-dry them afterwards ... you won't believe how soft your feet are.

The variation? I read what was almost a love letter written on the topic of using Shea Butter Soap on feet ... I mean, the author was so beautifully literate and so clearly in love with feet and their care ... and they suggested a cleansing scrub between the pumice and the butter; a paste of sea-salt and olive oil, scrubbed for no less than 3 minutes (most emphatic on this point and when someone cares like this person does, I believe them) ... as an exfoliant. Sadly, I have to admit that I'm getting to the point where I can't remain in contact with my feet for 6 minutes, without knowing I have an appointment with my chiro for the next day ...

Oh well.

Is There A Way To Elevate the Experience?

Sure. Have your man provide a foot massage while you remain in full-relax mode. Do the pumicing (gently, gently) prepare and deliver the scrub (3 minutes), massage-in the Butter Soap ...

Look, there's no question you'll have to negotiate a trade for this. What to offer him? I'll leave that to your imagination but if it's going to match the pleasure YOU get from the foot treatment, and match the 10 or 15 minutes of physical effort involved ... it's going to be something he'll like a LOT.

And Not To Forget The Nails ...                                               

But that's for another day!