for Jarhae. - living green and not breaking your budget

This post is for my friend Jarhae. These are the books I have been using over the past couple years and the salt scrub recipe. Thought I would post it here for my future reference too! Enjoy.

Books:

Look Great Live Green: choosing beauty solutions that are planet-safe and budget-smart / Deborah Burnes

The Herbal Home Spa: naturally refreshing wraps, rubs, lotions, masks, oils, and scrubs / Greta Breedlove

Organic Body Care Recipes: 175 homemade herbal formulas for glowing skin and a vibrant self / Stephanie Tourles

Homemade: 702 ways to save money and the earth / Reader's Digest

366 Delicious Way to Cook Rice, Beans, and Grains / Andrea Chesman (cookbook)

SALT SCRUB:

1 cup Kosher salt

1 cup Sea salt

1 cup Epsom salt

1/3 cup shower gel (i use an all natural/organic scentless)

1/3 cup Grape Seed Oil

1 drop food coloring (optional)

4-8 drops fragrance oil (optional - i like to use a mix of peppermint and grapefruit or a lime)

* mix together and store for a couple weeks in a sealed container or bag, i keep mine in a glass jar at my kitchen sink to rid of garlic and onion smells and another batch in the shower for my feet!

Friday: What's Cooking In The Kitchen Today...

Friday, ah a breath of fresh air. Wishing it was warmer out, but it isn't snowing and I'll take that over anything right now.

In the kitchen today I am slicing my 8 lb watermelon that I bought at Sunflower Market for 1.29. I am making pick up and eat slices for Kevin, small cubed slices for me and then saving some to use for watermelon smoothies! YUM

I also have my crockpot going on High with chickpeas for the homemade hummus I am making this afternoon. I will try to post a picture later of the final product. For now here is the recipe I am using. GARLIC HUMMUS It calls for canned chickpeas but I chose to use dry and just throw them in the crockpot on high for 6 hours.

Hoping to get some cookies in today too. Normally I would make Choc Chip for Kevin from scratch but today I have a mix from Tastefully Simple called CHOCOLATE CHIP TOFFEE ALMOND COOKIES that other consultants are telling me I have to try. I can't wait to see how amazing they are!

Hope everyone is enjoying their Friday and has a wonderful weekend!

Moose. (tear stains, heartworm, etc)

This post is for our dog and all his friends.

We got Moose (our maltese) in October of 2008. He was four months old and became the biggest joy in our family. What a high energy, loving, and faithful puppy!

When we brought Moose into our family we had decided that we would do everything we could to make sure he was given the best love and care possible. This for us meant working with a pet store in Boulder called ONLY NATURAL PET STORE (yep really their name!) to ensure he was getting the best diet, treats, and products for his heath and still stay within a decent budget. It was important to us that our standard of living for ourselves reach our pets as well; such as not putting harmful chemicals into our bodies.

The Maltese breed is really famous for having tear stains under their eyes. We tried many things on our own and finally consulted ONPS for their opinion. They suggested we do an elimination diet with Moose and see what helped reduce and heighten those stains and tears running from his eyes. First we cut out wheat and that helped. Second we cut out grains all together. Tear Stains Gone! Success. He now eats an all natural food that pretty much only contains chicken and sweet potatoes. Loves it. His treats are also very simple; he eats dehydrated sweet potatoes, apples, and bananas. I even make them at home in our dehydrator! Awesome way to use up apples and bananas that seem to go bad too quickly in our fruit basket.

Among many discoveries we have had we want to share one more with you. Heartworm treatment.

I hate giving animals heartworm pills. Talk about huge gross pills that are way over priced! Here is what ONPS suggests:

A product called HW PROTECT , check it out! We give it to Moose two to three times a day with a little treat, usually a small amount of all natural peanut butter on a spoon. :) The cost is next to nothing for a small dog. He gets 2 drops 3 times a day during HW season. This bottle that we bought for 15.00 will last us over 3 years! Seriously, can't beat that. Check it out!

Yah for happy healthy humans and pets!

love this.

JJ Heller - "Your Hands" *#2 on our playlist to the left*

I have unanswered prayers
I have trouble I wish wasn't there
And I have asked a thousand ways
That You would take my pain away
That You would take my pain away

I am trying to understand
How to walk this weary land
Make straight the paths that crookedly lie
Oh Lord, before these feet of mine
Oh Lord, before these feet of mine

When my world is shaking
Heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave Your hands

When You walked upon the Earth
You healed the broken, lost, and hurt
I know You hate to see me cry
One day You will set all things right
Yea, one day You will set all things right

When my world is shaking
Heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave Your hands

Your hands
Your hands that shape the world
Are holding me, they hold me still
Your hands that shape the world
Are holding me, they hold me still

When my world is shaking
Heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave You when...

When my world is shaking
Heaven stands
When my heart is breaking
I never leave...
I never leave Your hands

I live for Fridays... part 3

What's Cooking in the Kitchen Today...

1. REFRIED BEANS: put 1 cup of dried beans (black or pinto) with 4 cups of water in crockpot on HIGH for 8 hours. While cooking, add onions, garlic, cilantro, cumin, chili powder, and salt. When beans are cooked and soft place them in a blender or food processor until they are smooth. YUM!

2. TORTILLA CHIPS: we had some old tortillas going bad and because I try not to waste or throw anything out I cut the into triangles and put them in the oven at 200 degrees for 30 mins. Perfect! (and they will be great with the refried beans!)

3. APPLE CHIPS: slice apples in rounds and place in food dehydrator for 15-20 hours. Kevin loves these dried apples for snack during the week. (you could do these in the oven as well on low, just would need to be home for a long period of time)

4. CROUTONS: slice up old bread, today I used a garlic pull apart loaf. drizzle with EVOO and some dried onions/salt (i use tastefully simple onion onion) spread out on a baking sheet bake at 200 degrees for 30 mins, stir halfway through. I save in my pantry for up to 4 weeks, if they last that long :)

5. LEMON KALE CHIPS: I had first heard about this from my friend Amanda. We loved them and have been making them ever since. They are a great healthy snack during our work weeks. Check out Elana's recipe - lemon kale chips * side note: go easy on the salt, they can get very salty quick!

6. MILLET MUFFINS: trying this out for breakfast on Saturday. Here is the recipe I am using - muffins

Also on the kitchen list today: since kevin comes home for lunch on fridays I am making HOMEMADE MAC AND CHEESE (click on the link to visit our cooking club blog for the recipe) and making up a quick LASAGNA to have in the fridge for a dinner sometime this week.

I promise I don't live full time in my kitchen!

If you try any of these recipes I would love to know how they turned out for you. Or please post other suggestions of what is going on in your kitchens!

I live for Fridays... part 2

I have 6 main goals on Friday.

Since it is a day that I don't have to go into school I try to use my time really wisely and often think Friday is more tiring than a normal day with my kids.

Goal 1 - to get all the laundry done (varies from week to week with sheets, dog bedding, towels, our clothes, rugs, etc)

Goal 2 - vacuum and pick up the house (doesn't have to be a deep clean but things picked up so we can relax and enjoy our weekend together)

Goal 3 - kitchen time! (this varies from making homemade snacks, baking, preparing meals for the upcoming week, trying new recipes, etc) FAVORITE PART OF DAY!

Goal 4 - moose time (he may be little but he is high maintenance and we love it, he needs one on one play time and friday is his day with mom! and if he is lucky he gets an afternoon with dad at work to play with his best friend Basquin too)

Goal 5 - deal search (seeing if there is anything free, cheap, and fun coming up and seeing if it fits in our planner. ordering free samples and reading blogs)

Goal 6 - time for myself (this usually includes kickboxing and or going on a walk, with moose of course and then reading a book, time with God, maybe a little nap, etc)

Kevin and I have learned all 6 of these goals are vital to my day off. They not only help clear my mind from my busy days at work but also are things I love and enjoy, even the cleaning, vacuuming, and laundry! I feel like I can go into the weekend with a joyful attitude. My alone time really makes me a different person.

Thank God for providing Fridays!

I live for Fridays... part 1

I love my fridays off work.

After Kevin and I got married (may 2007) and we were both working 50+ hours a week and trying to adjust to married life we spent a lot of time praying for God to open doors for both of us. (there wasn't much time other than to go to work and pray at that point) We didn't just need a solution but a new way of life that would work financially, spiritually, and emotionally for us as individuals and as a couple. We are firm believers that God knows our hearts better than we know them ourselves and that He ALWAYS provides. He did, it took time but we both did job transitions, me many more than Kevin went through. However, it taught us what I could handle in the field I work in and God graciously provided exactly that.

Since my schedule is M-TH 7/7:30 - 3:00 pm I dedicate my time off to saving money for our family. It is a good trade off for working less hours, so bringing in less income and in return saving us money with the finds I come across. Some of the girls at work call me the "queen of free" or the "queen of deals". It is a joy of mine to search for great deals and free activities and items for us. It is like a treasure hunt! We get samples of things in the mail almost daily and anything we can't use I give away to someone who can. There are several sites I use:

Freecycle

Mile High On The Cheap

Hey Its Free

*click on them to view*

Then of course I read blogs daily. Too many to list here but I have become addicted to so many wonderful sites, specially cooking ones!

My encouragement to you out there is that hopefully you can find time to do the same. Not that the way we live is better than anybody else, not trying to put us on a pedestal. But hoping that you see the value in quality time with your family and friends without breaking your bank account.

We believe God calls us to be good stewards of our money and time. We strive daily to do just that.