Homemade Laundry Detergent

Whether you are looking to get rid of the chemicals in your home, have children or members of your family who are sensitive to chemical laundry detergents, or just want to save ridiculous amounts of money; this laundry detergent will be a blessing for you.

Let me also say that there are other chemical free laundry detergents available at Whole Foods, Sprouts, Central Market, or other health food stores. If I buy those kinds, I try and support the companies that have been in the natural product business for a long time, not the HUGE name companies that are jumping on the bandwagon only to make money. That bugs me. The store bought natural detergents can run anywhere from $4-$10, so this recipe will still save you money…but it’s all a personal choice.

Homemade Liquid Laundry Detergent

(perfect for High Efficiency washers!)

Ingredients:
1 bar all natural vegetable glycerin soap (I use Clearly Natural -Unscented)
1 cup Borax
½ cup Arm & Hammer Washing Soda
Water


Tools:
5 Gallon bucket
Grater
Pot large enough to hold 5 cups of water
Long stirring stick/spoon (for 5 gallon container)


Instructions:
Grate the soap into a pot on the stove with 5 cups of water. Heat the water and stir to melt the soap. When the soap is just about melted, pour 3 gallons of hot water into the 5-gallon container and let it sit until the soap in the pot is totally melted. Once all of the soap shavings are melted, pour the mixture into the 5-gallon container and stir.

Once the soap and water are thoroughly stirred, add the ½ cup of washing soda and stir until dissolved. Once the washing soda is dissolved, pour in the cup of borax and stir again until dissolved. (Make sure the mixture is mixed well so that you don’t have a bunch of crusty clumps)

Optional: Essential Oils for fragrance. I add 20-30 drops of Lavender Oil for its disinfecting capabilities.
Now you've got a huge container of hot soapy looking water. Cover the container, place it somewhere out of the way and let it sit overnight. Once it's cooled it will gel. 


Usage: ½-1 cup per laundry load is adequate to clean your clothes. This homemade laundry detergent works well in high efficiency washing machines since it is low sudsing.
This bucket should last you for quite a while! One side note: For those of you who have high efficiency washers, make sure to break up any lumps in the cup of detergent before you put it in the front loader tray to ensure that it will all be dissolved. I of course pair it with vinegar for my fabric softener.

Happy soap making!

Chemical Free Cleaning Products

One of the first things that I was motivated to change when we started ridding our house of chemicals was swapping out my cleaning products. I absolutely dreaded cleaning the bathrooms and kitchen because I knew that all of those fumes I was inhaling were horribly toxic! Now I clean one of my bathrooms while my daughters are taking their bath in the same room. That’s how comfortable and confident I am with these cleaning products. I’ll bet if you asked your grandmother about the cleaning products that I’m going to tell you about, she’d say that she grew up with them herself or still uses them today.
There are multiple benefits to clearing out your toxic cleaning chemicals.
1. Your health of course…and the health of your family!
2. CO$T! They’ve got products for everything, toilets, showers, baths, sinks, stainless steel, windows, furniture, floors, etc. You name it…they’ve got it!
3. You can clear out that cabinet full of at least 5-15 dangerous cleaning products!
Are you ready for my secret? For my top 5 cleaning products? I’ll bet you already have at least 4 of them in your house RIGHT NOW!

1. Vinegar (white)

2. Baking Soda

3. Olive Oil

4. Lemon Juice

5. Tea Tree Oil

You don’t need anything else! I’m not kidding. I use one or a few of these 5 items to clean EVERYTHING in my house, and I’ve been using the same $3 Costco size baking soda bag for the last 3 years!
For Windows, surfaces, stainless steel appliances, or anything else you want disinfected-
Get a spray bottle and make a 1/1 mixture of White Vinegar and purified water. Add 10-12 drops of Tea Tree Oil. Use just as you would use Windex or any other surface cleaners. The Tea Tree Oil makes the mixture antibacterial, so anything you clean with be…clean!
*Rest assured…the vinegar smell will disappear when the surfaces dry.
For Sinks, toilets, baths, or showers-
Get the surface wet by splashing water with your hand inside the sink, flushing the toilet, splashing water in the bath, etc. Sprinkle a handful of baking soda around the surface to be cleaned. Take your bottled vinegar concoction and spray it all around on the baking soda. It will make that cool bubbling sound/effect like when you used to make volcanoes in science classes in school. (Don’t act like you don’t know what I’m talking about ) Then I take a toothbrush (for my sink), toilet bowl brush (self explanatory), or bigger hand brush (for the bath/shower) and scrub scrub scrub. The baking soda is a gentle abrasive so it won’t harm your coatings, but leaves everything nice and beautiful. Once you’ve scrubbed everything, use your hand to splash the surface down with water until you don’t feel the baking soda powder any longer. The Tea Tree Oil will kill the germs and the vinegar will also help deodorize and disinfect.
For Furniture polish-
Mix a few tablespoons of water with a couple tablespoons of olive oil. Add the juice of one lemon and that’s it! Make sure to mix really well obviously before use.
For Floors-
This one is easy. Fill your sink, or whatever you fill with hot water. Dump a big swig of vinegar in and…that’s it! You could add some Washing Soda if you have got a really messy floor. You would just find that in the laundry aisle. It’s Arm & Hammer brand.
Finally, for Laundry-
  Forget expensive fabric softeners. You want soft deodorized clothes? I use vinegar. Exactly how you’d add fabric softener…on it’s vinegar. Don’t worry…your clothes will not come out smelling like vinegar. Trust me, I’ve been using it for almost 4 years. Also…I haven’t used dryer sheets in…nearly 4 years either. “Oh…but they smell good.” you say? Well, just as with laundry detergents and fabric softeners…all you are smelling is…chemicals. It’s been so long since we’ve used them that when I do get a whiff nowadays whether it’s at someone’s home or at the store…it burns my throat. We just don’t realize how many chemicals are in our homes that our body doesn’t even send warning signals to us about because we’re so used to them…until you stop using them.
*Stay tuned for my homemade laundry detergent recipe. Pennies a load. Pretty sweet deal!
Hope this is helpful!

All Natural–Homemade Whipped Body Butter

Homemade Whipped Shea Body Butter

One of the greatest things in the world is healthy, moisturized skin…and this Whipped Body Butter will definitely do the trick! With just a few ingredients, you can make your own homemade body butter. Just a note…this is DENSE body butter; a little bit goes a LONG WAY.
Ingredients:
10 oz (1 1/4 cup) Unrefined, Organic Shea Butter (Mango or Cocoa Butter would work as well.)
6 oz Carrier Oil (3/4 cup) (Sweet Almond, Avocado, Grapeseed, Jojoba, etc.)
10-12 drops Essential Oil of your choice (optional) I used Lavender.
Materials:
Double Boiler
Ice water bath (prepared before hand)
Blender
Sterilized glass jars

This recipe is simple, and pretty difficult to mess up. The key to remember is that you want a 60/40 ratio between the shea butter and carrier oil. If you are going to use more than one type of carrier oil, split the 40% between those oils of choice. For example, if you were to use 3 different carrier oils, you’d put 10 oz or 1 1/4 cups of Shea butter and 2 oz (1/4 cup) of each type of carrier oil equaling 6 oz total (3/4 cup).
*Important Note – Do research when you decide which Essential Oils to add to your body butter. For example, you don’t want to use any citrus oils (although they sound yummy) in any body butter you plan to wear in the sun because they’ll hurt your skin. I chose to use Lavender because it’s safe and wonderfully healing to the skin, plus it is actually beneficial in skin that has been overexposed to the sun or sunburned.
Let me know how it goes, and have fun! I’ll be posting some other recipes soon. I’d like to make some mango and cocoa whipped body butter!
ENJOY!


P.S. Please forgive me for the weird cut-off at the end of the video. We believe that the file was corrupted during a transfer.

Essential Oils and Carrier Oils 101 Organic Glamour Day TWO

First off, I must apologize that this didn't end up getting posted yesterday. It was a very busy day! I am SO excited to talk about something that to me has become somewhat MAGIC! Anyone who knows anything about ESSENTIAL OILS knows that they can really appear to be something magical. ESSENTIAL OILS are distilled from the different parts of plants, ie: leaves, stems, roots, flowers, etc. resulting in an extremely potent oil. They have been used forever for many different purposes including medicinal and therapeutic. We use them all of the time in our house and believe me when I say that they are AMAZING! There are too many for me to list in this post, so I hope it will suffice for me to talk about my top favorite and then add a few links to where you can read the rest and about many others! This Edible Nature website that I have stumbled upon is my new favorite. They carry ALL of the products we use in our family for so much cheaper than I have found them anywhere else! SCORE! Don’t worry…I’ve added the links for you ask well, just click on the oil name!
 
                      
                                    Aura Cacia Tea Tree Oil             Aura Cacia Organic Tea Tree Oil
TEA TREE OIL -This oil is my best friend. I use it for everything possible. It's anti-bacterial, anti-microbial, and anti-fungal. I use it in my cleaning products for that very reason. I'll put it in the bath for anyone not feeling well, and rub it, mixed with carrier oils (I'll cover them in a sec) over the girls, and Scott and my chests if we are ever congested because it breaks up mucous, etc. It is one of the top ingredients in many acne medications, so I'm at the point where I'll put a dot of it directly on any zits that may be brave enough to pop up on my face. Yesterday, along with a couple of other oils; lavender & eucalyptus, I rubbed tea tree, mixed with a carrier oil all over Scott's sinus areas and the back of his neck and skull, because he was bothered with a potential sinus infection. Here's a link to the treatment I used here. You can disperse tea tree oil into your air to kill bacteria and by simple inhalation of its strong medicinal vapors, you can get rid of bacterial and viral illnesses. TEA TREE OIL is amazingly powerful stuff, and has truly been a blessing in our home. There are many more benefits that you can find here, but I'd say for now that will suffice.
 
                                                
                    Aura Cacia Lavender Oil                  Aura Cacia Organic Lavender Oil
LAVENDER OIL -This is another amazing oil! I use it in our laundry detergent, and in my soaps, lotions, and body butters due to it calming effects as well as healing effects. It is helpful with sleep, circulation, congestion, headaches, etc. You must read more about it here.
NOTE: I need to point out that due to the extreme potency, a single drop of these oils goes a long way. ALSO, there are many oils that are not safe to use during pregnancy and nursing, so please do your research before using specific oils. Essential oils should be treated as medicine and great care should be taken to keep them out of the reach of children and should be used responsibly. Also, don't be alarmed by the bottle size. When you are only using one drop at a time...a little goes a long way!
Below are some other great resources on ESSENTIAL OILS:
http://www.organicfacts.net/organic-oils/natural-essential-oils/list-of-essential-oils.html
http://www.soapmakingforum.com/essential-oil-chart.html
CARRIER OILS
Due to the extreme potency, it is recommended that you mix drops of ESSENTIAL OILS with what are called CARRIER OILS. Some you have probably heard of and others maybe not. They are oils like:
Sweet Almond Oil, Avocado Oil, Grapeseed Oil, and Jojoba Oil. We don't use lotion in our home, and these carrier oils are usually the actual "beneficial" ingredient in most nice lotions...so I say...let's skip the middle man and cut out all of the crap; the artificial colors, the chemical perfumes, parabens, etc. Just as with the essential oils, I'll add some of the benefits of these different oils, and then I'm going to use some of them in my body butter tutorial later today.
 
                                
                                        Sweet Almond Oil
Almond oil is wonderful because it's a light oil. It's what I use on my face, arms and body every day. When I get out of the shower and put in my contacts, I rub a few drops of Sweet Almond Oil all over my face and arms, giving it a few minutes to soak in before I put my make-up on. It is not pore clogging and is especially good for the thin skin around the eyes, including curing dark circles. You can read about some other great benefits here.
                                             
                                                Avocado Oil
Avocado Oil is another oil that I use frequently. It's a little heavier, so I'll use it on my face before bed or for really dry skin. I'll take it or any of the other oils for the matter and rub it on chapped lips and it's amazing! If you want anti-aging products, AVOCADO OIL works miracles with it collagen producing properties! Here's a great site with more info on Avocado oil.
 

       Eucalyptus Oil                                  Grapeseed Oil                                                   Jojoba Oil
Oils and hydration are probably one of my LARGEST secrets when it come to having healthy and smooth skin.  There is no need for lotions, chapstick, expensive creams, etc. when you have these oils. Skip the middle man and go straight to the good stuff; the stuff that actually does the healing. You don't actually have to buy the other lotions and products full of fillers, chemicals and just a small amount of these healthy healing oils. Just GOOGLE things like ESSENTIAL OILS or CARRIER OILS and you will find a great deal of amazing information. Here's to your health, and your beautiful skin!

Great SALE at Albertson's!

Today I went out to run some errands. I had to run and get copies of flyers for the elementary school that I'm reading our book to next week for Reading Across America, and while I was there...I remembered that I needed to get some wide-mouth glass jars for one of my video tutorials for this week's blog posts. So we headed over to Albertson's which was in the same complex. After grabbing the mason jars, I thought that I'd just check and see if by some slim chance they had our shampoo there, rather than having to jump across 4 busy lanes of traffic to Sprouts to get some next. Scanning...Scanning...Scanning, NOPE....BUT they had another brand of organic shampoos and conditioners that were on special BUY ONE GET ONE FREE!!! They are called Renpure Organics. They had shampoo, conditioner, deep conditioner, and even hairspray. I picked up the flavor for hair that "needs lift", one of the hairspray bottles, and headed to the check out. As soon as I scanned one of the bottles it came up $3.49. HEAVEN!! I started to think that maybe I should have grabbed a few more. At that price I couldn't go wrong, and Scott and I have been working on building up our food & supply storage...so I guess this counts...right? I asked the gal if I could run back quick and get a few more, and she said yes...so I pushed the girls as fast as I could in their favorite blue cart (you know the ones that are twice as long as normal and so ridiculously difficult to steer! Never fails...they always want the BLUE CART!) Anyway, I came back with another set of shampoo and conditioner and 2 of the deep conditioners. Can't wait to try them...I'll let you know! Oh...and isn't the bottle just adorable?

All Natural Shampoo, Conditioner and Soap! Organic Glamour Day ONE

In deciding which order to release my favorites, I thought that it made the most sense to follow the order of my routine. So, what's first? SHOWER! When we started switching out our chemical products for all natural ones, we tried a few different things. I initially attempted making my own shampoo, but since my hair was long it always ended up too greasy. The brand of shampoo and conditioner below have ended up being our favorite of those we've tried. We just share it as a family. I'll pour some of each into little plastic bottles for the girls' bathroom and Scott and I have ours in our shower. It's great! The bottles last for a couple of months each. I can find it at specialty stores like Sprouts and Central Market here in Texas or Whole Foods...BUT I also found them online for about $1.50 less, so if you want to save money or if you don't have access to some of those specialty stores...or if you're like me and sometimes it's just easier to buy online then drag the kiddos along to store after store...I've attached the link via the "product name" below to the cheapest place I've found them on the web. Apricot is my favorite flavor.

                               

Jason Natural Apricot Shampoo







Jason Natural Apricot Conditioner









I also hated rubbing overly drying chemical soaps all over my body; especially my beautiful little girls' soft, perfect skin. I did some research and learned about vegetable glycerin soaps. I liked that they were mild, used real oils, and were not drying. I use these vegetable glycerin soaps for a handful of different things which I will cover throughout this week, but one of our biggest uses is body soap. When you use overly drying chemical soaps and detergents on your body...your skin has to work overtime to produce the oils that it needs. I hadn't realized how little extra oil we were needing to produce after we switched until we ran out of glycerin soap and used some old Irish Spring or whatever that green soap is that I found lying around. Our youngest daughter within minutes of drying off from her bath was covered all over her legs, arms, chest and stomach with a red bumpy rash. Poor thing. Her skin burned so bad. I slathered oils (I'll cover them this week) all over her body to try and add some moisture back to it and then ran to the store to get some vegetable glycerin soap! Within a day or so, her rash was completely gone and we haven't run out of GOOD soap since!  There are many different brands of vegetable glycerin soap, but this is one of the cheapest I've found. Many can run upwards of $4 and $5, but these are only $1.50/each. Oh! And my favorite part is that they decrease the price when you buy multiples. (I usually stock up and buy 6-8 and they last me 3-4 months.) I've again linked the "product name" below to the cheapest place I've found them on the web! They are also needed for the laundry detergent and hand soap that I will teach you about later this week!



Clearly Natural Honeysuckle Soap

Makeup, Oils, and Products, OH MY!

I want to have some fun this week. I want to focus on us WOMEN; the things we love and crave, like looking beautiful, radiant, and healthy! I believe that there is a stigma sometimes associated with being a "natural woman". What I mean is that when I thought of organic...I always thought of "granola"...and not the kind you eat. But I've learned something amazing! Organic doesn't have to mean granola. ORGANIC CAN BE GLAMOROUS! I say that because if you saw me for the first time, I guarantee that you wouldn't guess the following:

1. I wear completely organic, all-natural makeup...and it's LESS expensive than some of the makeup at the grocery store!

2. I don't use lotion...I use the most amazing oils instead.

3. I don't wash or moisturize my face with anything other than vegetable, almond or oatmeal soap and those amazing oils I mentioned above.

4. We use all-natural and organic shampoo, conditioner, body soaps, toothpaste, etc.

5. I make my own body butter, liquid hand soap, and even laundry detergent.

6. I used a midwife to deliver both of our beautiful daughters without as much as a tylenol.

Scott and I laugh all the time saying..."we're such hippies", but we LOVE IT! We wouldn't have it any other way. This week I want to focus on some of my favorite MAKEUP, amazing OILS, product RECIPES and my reasons for using them. This week is all about being beautiful, glowing, and even glamorous. While I won't be teaching you how I walk in my 4 inch stiletto heels, I'll be spilling the beans about just about everything else I make and use every single day! We'll talk about the benefits of using REAL products on our body and the gorgeous and youthful results of them! Now that you are hydrated, we'll talk about how to take full advantage of that new radiant skin! Spring is right around the corner. Now's the perfect time. I'M SO EXCITED! Stay tuned! This week is going to be a BLAST as I release my 6 favorite ways to be Organically Glamorous!....Now go drink some water!

Berry Yummy Breakfast Smoothie

 We had some bananas that were on the brink of going bad so we decided to make a smoothie for breakfast. As always, it was delicious! Feel free to substitute and add where you see fit, depending on what fruits or veggies you need to finish off. Any time we have too much of something that we won't be able to finish, we make a smoothie.

Here's what was in ours this morning:

Berry Yummy Breakfast Smoothie
2 organic bananas (pretty sweet...but they needed to be used)
1 organic apple
1 handful blueberries
1 handful organic spinach
1 squirt organic Flax Oil
1 scoop Alive Whole Food Powder
1/2 c-1 c. milk (we usually alternate between coconut and soy *you could also use water)

Blend. If it's not blending, add a little more liquid.
ENJOY!

Drinking WATER Week 2 -The Hydration Challenge

We're into week TWO of The Hydration Challenge! Are you still with me? It's in full swing at our house and I feel GREAT! I've felt energetic, awake, and motivated. I even ran the last two days and exercised afterward. Any of you who know me will know that that is HUGE! I haven't had a consistent exercise routine since college. I know...it's bad. But this week has been GREAT! If you've been giving your hydrating great effort, CONGRATS! If you've slacked...don't worry, you've got another week to work on the habit. Don't give up! Your body will thank you!

Buying Healthy Groceries

I'll admit I did something the other day that will probably make you laugh. I have to say first of all that if there were a random, completely fulfilling job that I could do; if I weren't raising kids, taking care of a husband, writing books, taking care of everything that a house requires, and planning our future ;), I would LOVE to talk to people at the checkout stand about the non-food they were buying for their families. (You know like the british ladies on Oprah who ambush people for their fashion faux pas.) Of course I know that the food industry would have me shut down immediately, considering how the products that they make billions of dollars on are all of the ones in the center isles of the supermarket. You know, the ones in packages that I would be criticizing! ;).

I am always amazed when the cashier comments on all of the fresh produce I am buying, or even asks me what I use something like coconut milk for. (seriously happened a few months ago) 75% or more of my grocery cart contents are produce items. I just can't believe that that is out of the ordinary...until I happen to glance at the non-food that others before and after me try to pass off as life-sustaining nutrition. So...anyway, as I was finishing paying, another person was checking out, and I was in a blogging mindset, so I pulled my phone out, pulled up the "memo" tab and began jotting down the items that this person was buying for their family. Ready? Fruit Loops, Apple Jacks, Rice Krispies, Pringles, Marshmallows, WHITE bread, and...to top it all off...a very heavily frosted blue, purple and white cake! You might think I am making this up, but this was literally ALL this person had!

**Rant Alert**
What has happened in our culture that THOSE groceries are accepted as nutritious food for a family? Especially CHILDREN! And parents wonder why ADHD, childhood obesity and diabetes rates are flying off the charts! Here's an interesting little side note: not until my family moved to Texas 2 years ago did I ever see in my life a 5 gal. tub of LARD for sale at Walmart! I laughed first...and then I about fell over dead. I seriously couldn't believe it! And looking at the charts, the highest obesity rates are in the south!

You guys, we can do better. Mothers, we are the ones who primarily buy the food for our families! If we don't buy it...our family's have less probability of eating it! And, on top of that...we should be TEACHING them why we don't eat that food. Not hold it up on this pedestal to be desired. We are working in our family to show our daughters at a young age that they FEEL well when they eat good food, so that they'll recognize that bad food doesn't make them feel as well. We have tried really hard not to make "junk food treats" a reward. What kind of message is that sending if the things that aren't good for them are a reward for good behavior? Hmm...kind of the opposite message wouldn't you say? I'm not saying that treats or rewards are bad. Just pick better treats to reward them with. I'll give you some ideas for some soon.

My intended message for this post? Pay attention to what you are putting into your shopping cart. Pay attention to what you are presenting to your family as healthy eating habits, and don't adopt healthy eating habits from something you've read on a box or heard on a TV commercial. Don't make eating healthy food a punishment. I've met so many parents who themselves watch what they eat, and give all of the crap to their kids. If we give it to them...they'll eat it. And if they create habits around foods high in fat, sugar, and artificial everything...then that's what they are going to recognize as food. Talk about missing the boat! Those are the years where they learn the bad and good habits that they will either be blessed to keep or struggle to break later on in life! Set them up right from the start so that they'll make the right choices when they are alone! Here are the top things that I look for when it comes to grocery shopping.

1. What is on the ingredients list. If there are any artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives...I make a nasty face, and honestly a verbal "bleh" sound...and then I put it back on the shelf! I am not even tempted. It physically makes me cringe at this point in our family's journey to even consider feeding it to my family.

2. Are there a bazillion ingredients on the list?

3. I even check the "all-natural" branded products for the above #'s 1 & 2.

4. I have made a serious shift in the past few months to buying organic wherever possible. I know it's usually a little more expensive. I have some very good reasons...but that's another post for another day!

Be leaders my friends. Refuse to accept the junk being peddled all around us. Be examples for your family and friends. Thank you for reading. Spread the word and lets help fix the terrible habits that have been created all around us. Sometimes...big changes come just by raising awareness.

Camber

Lemon and Herb Baked Salmon with Garlic Spinach and Salad

Dinner last night was DELICIOUS! It always helps when it's healthy and simple as well!

I buy the wild caught salmon that doesn't have any added coloring and flavor at Walmart. I just pulled it out of the freezer earlier in the day and let it soak in the sink with cold water for a few hours until I was ready to bake it.

Pat dry.

Rub with cold-pressed olive oil and a variety of herbal spices. The one we have here is a mix from Costco for seafood. Make sure to read all of the ingredients and make sure that there aren't any artificial colors, flavors, MSG, etc.

I like to add fresh lemon and dried rosemary. Bake at 350-375 for maybe around 45 minutes. Mine cooked faster than I planned for, so it was cooked a little more than our liking, but it was still yummy. When it's opague, and flaky...it's more than ready!

My sister commented once on how crazy it was that I could just pull out some of the vegetables that I have "sitting around" in our fridge and make a full salad. Just add the veggies that you love. Go for a RAINBOW of colors that way you are getting a variety of different nutrients. If I use any dressing at all, I usually squeeze some lemon and sea salt on my salad.

For the garlic spinach, drizzle some cold-pressed olive oil in a pan with some chopped garlic and heat until it's slightly fragrant.

Add organic spinach.

Only cook until it begins to wilt, stirring well so that it will absorb those yummy olive oil and garlic flavors.

YUM!

All Natural Healthy Black Bean Soup

Black Bean Soup w/ Sprouted Corn Tortillas


 What's for dinner? Black bean soup! YUM! Well, it's not what's for dinner in our house tonight, because we had it last night, but of course I wanted to share it with you! Everything about this recipe is good, and rediculously healthy for you! You'll soon learn that another plus of creating healthy meals is that they don't take much time to make since you really barely cook the food you are eating as to keep it as alive and beneficial as possible. Aside from cooking the black beans, this soup takes less than 30 minutes!

Ingredients:
cold-Pressed Olive Oil
1 onion, chopped
4-6 stalks celery
1 large red bell pepper, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
2 boxes Organic vegetable stock *originally used beef...but found vegetable to be better...and healthier.
4-6 cups cooked black beans
1 can Organic crushed tomatoes
1-2 tsp salt, or to taste
1-2 tsp cumin, or to taste (I love more cumin and less salt personally)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (we keep the amount we add directly to the soup small for the sake of the little ones, and add more to our personal bowls.
1 lemon
sprouted corn tortillas (optional)

About 1.5-2 hours ahead of time, cook the black beans. I usually cook about 1 1/2 16 oz bags, so 24 oz. uncooked beans.

 When the beans are finished, chop the onion, celery, bell pepper, and garlic. (I suggest that you do them all first because if you're like me when it comes to chopping and cooking at the same time, one usually gets neglected. Since the whole purpose is to cook the vegetables as minimally as possible, you don't want to leave some cooking while you're trying to chop the others.)

Put the chopped onion and celery into a soup pot and drizzle them generously with the olive oil. Warm them until they just start to sweat.

Add the bell peppers and garlic



Continue cooking for another minute or so. Do not over cook. Your veggies should still have nearly their same original color!





Add Organic Beef Broth *I've since switched to Organic Vegetable Broth





Let simmer for a few minutes.

Add about 3 soup ladles full of black beans. Also add salt, cumin and cayenne pepper. Stir until soup and spices are nicely blended.

Using a large liquid measuring cup, or whatever else works for you, scoop as many of the beans as you can, many of the vegetables, and some of the liquid and puree them in a blender. *this is also where you can add the can of tomatoes. Make sure the blender is only 3/4 full so you don't have an explosion! If you don't have a blender that will do the trick, an immersion one should work. **Caution- SOUP WILL BE EXTREMELY HOT! Keep children out of the way, and be careful should any steam or liquid squeeze out when you initially turn on the blender.

Add blended mixture back into the soup pot.

Add the rest of the cooked black beans to the blended soup.

Squeeze 1 whole lemon into the soup and stir until the soup is mixed well and all flavor have combined.



Once we pour the soup into our bowls, we sometimes like to tear small pieces of Sprouted Corn Tortillas. The are a delicious addition!



Add any extra cumin, cayenne, or salt as you'd like. Scott likes to add Frank's Hot Sauce to his. The cayenne is enough for my little taste buds!

NOTE** You'll know you've cooked or "not cooked" the soup right if your vegetables still have some crunch to them!

ENJOY!

Just a few of the health benefits from some of the ingredients in this soup:

Black Beans -High in Fiber

Onions-lower blood pressure and blood sugar

Cold-pressed Olive Oil-excellent source of Omega-9 monounsaturated fatty acid. (Good fat), lower cholesterol

Celery-lower blood pressure, contain cancer preventing phytochemical compounds

Red Bell Peppers-High in Vitamin C

Garlic-SO MANY...but one, helps prevent heart disease

Cumin-Helpful in digestion, fights free-radicals

Cayenne-Helpful in digestion, helps with circulation, can reduce/prevent varicose veins

Lemon-High in Vitamin C, Vitamin B6, folic acid, and the phytochemical Limonene.

 

Natural Cure for Ear Infections and Earaches

I know that this subject doesn't fall in line with the topics I've been discussing this past week, but I felt that it's a great time to fit it in. It seems like there are plenty of people dealing with sick kids, earaches and ear infections. Up until this year, we hadn't ever experienced an earache or infection in our household. We were going on 5 years. Well, we took a trip up to see some family for Christmas, and on the airplane's descent, our 2 1/2 year old started screaming and crying that her ear hurt. She and her big sister had both had mild little colds the week before, the snot, coughs, etc. I figured that the elevation and pressure changes caused some issues with some remaining mucous. Anyway, long story short...she was up all night. The next day she was still out of it and had a fever by that point. I did a bunch of research...because if you haven't figured it out yet...that's just what I do, and read about some GREAT remedies and cures. After reading LOTS of materials, I created the recipe below, her ear infection was gone in less than 2 days. With ZERO complaints after the fact.

Fast forward a little over a month to last weekend. Scott and I are watching TV (our favorite Friday night activity is catching up on "our shows" from that past week) and we hear our 4 1/2 year old crying upstairs. Talk about a date night killer! Anyway, she was complaining that her ear hurt and using this newly beloved remedy, the pain was gone and she was back to sleep within 2 hours. No more complaints.

This past Sunday night, she woke up again...other ear! Now, a couple weeks before they had both caught a nasty bug that has been circulating around our parts; they got the mild end of it...which is typical for us because they eat so well, and using the remedy...she walked back upstairs and fell back to sleep within 20 minutes of waking up.

We are believers!

All Natural Earache & Ear Infection Remedy
Cold-Pressed Olive Oil
Garlic Clove
Tea Tree Oil
Rice Pack
Cotton Ball


Both raw garlic and tea tree oil are anti-bacterial on top of so many other amazing things. Click on both of those links for some great info on each of them. I'll discuss further some of their benefits later, but anyway, to the remedy we go!

*Pour some hot water into a small cereal bowl. Take a small ramekin or something similar and pour some cold-pressed olive oil into it. Take a fresh garlic clove and crush it a little bit, so that it opens up. Place the crushed clove into the oil. Set the small oil-filled bowl inside the cereal bowl with hot water in it. *Note -Make sure there is only enough hot water that it comes up the sides of the small ramekin and doesn't spill into the oil mixture. Using a fork, further mash the garlic clove so that it releases its oils into the olive oil. You can also add a drop or two of tea tree oil into that mixture as well. After the oil is just warm to the touch, make sure it is only luke warm as you do not want to scald the ear or ear drum! Have your child tip their head to the side. Using a spoon, drop a few drops into the ear, pulling the ear gently so that you see air bubbles signifying the oil is entering. It is sort of a weird feeling for them, but praise them for being brave. After the oil is in for a moment, tear a small piece of cotton ball and just barely set it in the outer ear so as not to soak up all of the oil you just put in, but just to keep it from spilling out all over the place.

Warm a rice pack, (you could just put some rice in an old sock and tie it off) Only heat it until it is warm...not hot. Have your child, or help your child, hold the warmed rice pack to their affected ear. It will soothe the pain and it will also help draw the infection out. Of course have them drink lots of water during the time that they are affected, and also cut out all sugars and immune weakening foods. Repeat as necessary. You'll know when it's time to do it again.  

I hope this helps!

The Hydration Challenge -Day THREE

Hey everyone! How did you all do yesterday? There are at least 10 of us that I personally know of who are participating in the hydration challenge! I did about the same yesterday as I did the first day; about 54oz. I definitely plan to do better today. I got a late start both days due to busy mornings. It seems like I struggle the most remembering to drink water before noon.

On the plus side, I have personally felt a great deal of energy the last 2 days. I have accomplished a lot of tasks, and with regard to my personal systems...let's just say that the "garbage crew" now seems to be operating at a healthy level. I can't think of a better way to say that so I hope that will suffice. Oh the blessings of hydrating! I hope that you are doing well, and feeling well also. Keep it up! This is a GREAT habit to create!

How was day TWO for you?

Divinely Healthy Breakfast

I was really wanting to have something healthy for breakfast, so I pulled out the usual; apple, blueberries, cinnamon,  sprouted almonds and flax oil. The blueberries were fresh and so I was worried that they wouldn't have enough juice to moisten everything as defrosting blueberries usually do, so I had an idea to add half a grapefruit because Sprouts was having a crazy good deal on them and we bought like 5 GIANT Texas grapefruit. Anyway...the result was SO GOOD! So, of course I must share!

Divinely Healthy Breakfast
1 medium organic apple (buy fruit and veggie wash if you don't have access to organic.
1 handful of blueberries (same suggestions as above)
1 handful of sprouted almonds (I'll clarify more on this later, but just soak them in water overnight, strain and dry them, and then they'll keep in the fridge for a few days. They'll be nice, plump, and huge!)
1/2 grapefruit
cinnamon to taste
1 squirt of flax oil (cold-pressed olive oil would also be fantastic!)

Warning...you will feel GREAT eating this amazing breakfast. You can be confident that it's going to be a good day! ENJOY!

The Hydration Challenge -Day TWO

Alright! How did you fare on day ONE of the Hydration Challenge? Scott and I did pretty well for the first day. It is really a habit that you have to consciously create. I was supposed to drink between 62.5-93.75 oz and I ended up last night at about 56oz of pure water, plus I had a delicious breakfast of grapefruit, apples, blueberries, almonds, and flax oil that should have added to that. *I'll post a picture of that amazing breakfast and the easy recipe in just a couple of minutes. I had great, steady energy levels throughout the day yesterday, and accomplished so much! I LOVE those days!

How was your first day? I'm am really excited about the number of you who have joined the challenge! It's nice to be not only accountable to ourselves, but others as well. Others who are working toward the same goals! Comment on your Day ONE experience and although you may not have seen big changes yet, you may have experienced something new! Can't wait to hear about it.

The Cure -Heal Your Body, Save Your Life

I had to add this book to my list of recommended reading because it is THE book that first changed the way that we eat in our family. Never had anything made more sense to me than the information in this book. I am extremely grateful for it and what it has done for our family! Dr. Brantley spent over 20 years learning, applying and succeeding with the suggestions he gives in this book. He cured cancer in his patients through implementing changes in their diet and lifestyle. It's an amazing book! I've linked the title of the book to Amazon so you can find it. I'll always provide you with the links to these things that I'm talking about in the future to save you searching time!

The Cure: Heal Your Body, Save Your Life

Our Bodies are made from Water -THE HYDRATION CHALLENGE!

   I find it fascinating that just as the earth is made up of roughly 75% water, our bodies consist of an average of 60-85% water. The obvious conclusion would be that in order to operate at a high level of health, we must have adequate water to do so. In fact, water is crucial for the health of the systems in our body as it carries oxygen to each of our cells. No oxygen in our cells = DEAD CELLS. Dead cells = ill health and even cancer. Water therefore is a necessary component of optimal health.
How much? Here is a quirky equation that I found that you can take a look at for fun. The best advice I have been given with regard to daily water intake is to drink 50-75% of your body weight in ounces per day. That is the amount that you need for all of the functions and processes that your body encounters throughout the day. Water lubricates joints and muscles, promotes healthy skin due to high levels of hydration, slows aging due to hydrated cells, and removes toxins from our organs, tissues and muscles. Because of all of the things I just mentioned, you will experience much higher levels of energy due to the high function of all of your bodily systems. An all around win win win!
   So why do we feel the need to drink other "energy stimulating" beverages? If you are hydrated...there will be no need. I haven't drank pop in over 6 years. ZERO caffeine in over 6 years, and I'm a mother of 2 active children. It's truly been a blessing. I have to give some IMPORTANT information to those of you who drink or know people who drink caffeinated sodas, especially DIET sodas. When you watch commercials on TV, or walk around the grocery stores, you'll notice a HUGE amount of products promoting their "SUGAR-FREE" nature. It's TRASH. Please do not be fooled. If you read the ingredients list of probably 95% of sugar free products, one of the ingredients is ASPARTAME. Please...even if you don't read any more of this post...at least read that article on Aspartame. It will scare you. Years back I worked for a chiropractor, and we had a wonderful patient who was suffering from Multiple Sclerosis. He admitted to drinking diet drinks. The doctor suggested that he give up the habit. As soon as he did, his symptoms of M.S. greatly decreased. It's amazing to me that 'sugar free' products are heavily promoted to those people suffering from diabetes and yet ironically...one of the side effects of aspartame is DIABETES! Anyway, whether you want to lose weight, improve the appearance of your skin, eliminate stiff joints and muscles, enjoy a higher level of energy, or ALL OF THE ABOVE...try...just try to get rid of the other drinks; all of them, even just try for two weeks and I guarantee the results will blow your mind! It's amazing that if we just take the time to study how our bodies work, the ways to health will become so much more clear!

AND NOW... THE HYDRATION CHALLENGE. Today, being Monday is the perfect day to begin. I would like to challenge all of you to participating in a Hydration Challenge with me. I'll do it...you'll do it...and then we'll talk about it. You don't have to do anything else but cut out all beverages other than water for two weeks.

  Here's the run down:
  *Drink 50-75% of your body weight in oz. each day for TWO WEEKS.
  *Divide it evenly throughout the waking hours of your day.
  *Make an effort not to drink much if any water in the 30 minutes before and after your meals. It will dilute the nutrients in your food as you digest.
  *Don't drink ice cold water. The closer to your body temperature...the less work your body needs to do to use it.

  As an example, if you weight 130lbs, you would take 130X.50=65 oz     130X.75=97.5oz  A person weighing 130lbs would drink 65-97.5 oz of water per day. Write the total on a sticky note where you'll see it all of the time. Carry a nice water bottle around with you, preferably one with the oz. printed on the side, and keep it filled and refilled each time you finish. Now, some of you may worry that you'll spend the entire day in the bathroom, but I was shocked to find out that when I distributed the water intake evenly throughout the day, rather than flooding my body with water every few hours, my body was using nearly ALL of it! TRY IT...I DARE YOU...and let me know how it goes. I'm excited to do it with you! Ready...GO! Happy HYDRATING!

Really Bad, Good & Really Good Food

   To say that figuring out what is good for you is confusing would be an understatement! Turn on the TV, the radio; open a magazine, or just take a stroll down any aisle of the supermarket and you are bombarded with packages and advertising all saying that their product is "healthy"! Let me just get something out there...and don't think that I'm some type of "conspiracy theorist", because I have plenty of better things to do, but people... IT IS A BUSINESS! Selling food is a BUSINESS! A multi-BILLION dollar industry. Of course there is going to be confusion. These businesses want you to buy their products.

   I got really tired of trying to decipher what I was watching on TV, hearing on the radio, and seeing everywhere I went, and so I looked somewhere else. I wanted to learn how the body worked, what foods were divinely created for it, and then even after all of that...see what was actually working! I always laugh when I see healthcare professionals who physically look like they wouldn't know health if it slapped them in the face: nutritionists who need to take a few lessons of their own. Why would we want to take advice from people like that? As with anything in life, if you want something for yourself; want to reach a goal..talk to people who have that for themselves and have been successful in those goals.
   So, here's what makes sense to me. And I say "makes sense" because usually if things don't make sense, they're not true. We have bodies made of living tissues; bodies made to run off of living foods; foods they don't have to work very hard to benefit from, or even benefit at all! I have come up with a system that makes it pretty easy for me to discern if something is the most beneficial for my body, and it's so simple that I taught a group of 3-12 years olds this same thing a few months ago. Ready?...

~Does it come from a plant, a vine, or a tree?...does it come from the ground, an animal...or the sea?~

   Now...don't try and tell yourself that french fries come from the ground, (the way they are presented at stores or restaurants) or that fruit loops come from a tree. They come from a very special kind of tree...a 'Fac-tree'. The other day I wrote that I felt there were 3 main categories for quality eating; Really Bad, Good, and Really Good. I told you that we generally fall between the Good and Really Good categories in our family. Let me give you a couple of examples of things that could fall into those different categories. Now that you have the rhyme from above...you'll understand more of how I determine which categories things fall into.

Let's use an easy one like peanut butter for an example:

Really Bad                        

- Peanut Butter in a jar that is made with partially hydrogenated oils, hydrogenated oils, or even sugar.

Good

- Peanut Butter in a jar that has no more than 2 or 3 ingredients. Mainly peanuts and some type of oil (not hydrogenated)

Really Good

-If you're going to buy peanut butter in a jar, get one with simply 1 ingredient on the list. Peanuts.
-Adams makes an organic brand of peanut butter.
-And the best of all? There are many delicious replacements for peanut butter that can have greater health benefits. Things like sprouted almond butter, cashew butter, etc. I'll have to do a tutorial video making one of these butters to show you.

To sum things up, look for foods, and drinks for that matter (saved for a different post) that fall under the umbrella covered by the rhyme. Look for those foods in their most natural, unaltered state...and you will be doing better than probably 95% of our country right now. More to come. Stay tuned!

Camber

A FANTASTIC BOOK ON HEALTHY FOOD

The Encyclopedia of Healing Foods





This is one of my new favorite books on healthy food! We bought a copy for my sister and brother-in-law and then one for ourselves. I LOVE books, especially big books...and this is a BIG book! Over 900 pages! Anyway, enough about my obsession with thick books. This book is one of my new favorites and is a staple now in my house. It covers every single fruit, vegetable, grain, etc. (all of the REAL FOOD) and talks about the health benefits of them individually. It's fascinating! There is an appendix in the back giving nutrient content of all of those foods as well as food remedies for all sorts of medical issues. I LOVE IT! When I was younger, there were a lot of good foods that I didn't like. I thought bell peppers were spicy, didn't taste an avocado until after I was married, and didn't experience brussel sprouts until I was almost 25 years old. Learning about the value of a variety of these different whole foods has truly caused me to love and crave these nutrient rich foods. It's a wonderful feeling when my girls who are nearly 3 and 5 ask for specific 'healing foods' when they have different ailments. They have already learned at their young age that there are foods that can help restore their healthy balance. If you're looking for a great resource, I highly recommend this one!  The cheapest place I have found it was on Amazon, of course. I saw it at our local health food store, but it was like $10 more expensive than I found it on Amazon. The title next to the picture is a link to it if you want to see any more about it.