Green Smoothie

I have been making smoothies lately to help me in the working out and TRYING to lose a little more weight.  I make a thing of them every other day and break it up into two smoothies.  I either drink it right after I work out or right after the kids go to bed ( the two times of the day it is the hardest for me NOT to eat junk. )  Mine is a berry smoothie.  It's pretty good.  Milk, yogurt, blue berries, raspberries, blackberries, strawberries and flax seed.  Sometimes I get crazy and throw a spoonful of whip cream in there.  We had bought a little thing of it and I was trying to use it before it went bad.  Honestly, it doesn't make much taste difference so why put it in.  Sometimes I throw a banana in there.  I was reading through my blog list updates this morning and saw THIS on Elle Apparel and I am SO gonna have to try this when I get back to Cali.  At the moment we are still in Utah.  Today we are heading to Cedar City to see my in laws and hang out with them.  It works out good because my mom and dad usually work on weekends and the weekends are the only days my in laws have off.

Yesterday I took my girl to get her first hair cut.  She did AWESOME.  I don't have my pictures on my lap top yet.  HOPEFULLY sometime in the next week I will be getting my hair cut too because it is driving me insane.  After we got Kayla's hair cut when we to the park and ate pizza and then my sister and I went thrift store shopping and then to Walmart to buy stuff to make dinner.  We made chicken enchiladas.  They were super yummy.  Then I made some home made brownies.  They turned out okay but I was hoping they would be awesome.  My mom and dad's cocoa was old and you could taste that in the brownie.  I was disappointed but everyone else thought they were good.  They were nice and moist though which I LOVED!  If you want to try the recipe check it out over at HERE over at Sugar Bananas.  I went to her blpog and clicked on dessert.  BIG mistake!  haha  I wanted to make everything I saw.  My next ( If I have the time ) is here Lemon Berry cake.  It looks amazing.

OKay enough babbling for today.  I have some crafty stuff happening soon but until then have a fabulous weekend!

Coconut Oil day 13

I found a new use for Coconut oil!  After using it as a diaper rash cream the other day and not having the results I wanted I hadn't tried anything lately.  But alas, I figured one out.  Coconut oil is great for getting out sticky tape!  haha  I had that nasty sticky tape ALL around my face and in my hair line by my ears.  I rubbed coconut oil all over it and then shower and rubbed my face with a wash cloth.  I must say it did a pretty amazing job of getting it out.  Didn't get it ALL out but I am telling you my face was SO sticky.  The good thing about coconut oil is that it stays on your face for a while.  So I just kept rubbing every time I would feel it on my face and you could feel the coconut oil working it's magic still.  Today I think it is all gone.  So next time you get a sticky mess on your face from medical tape or bandaids, try some coconut oil!  Worked for me.

No projects here.  Just healing and spending time with family.  After my check up yesterday I already had 20/20 vision without my glasses!  WOO HOO  That's results baby.  Today my Sis and I are going thrift store shopping.  This is probably my favorite thing I get to do while I am in Utah.  My sister and I love the thrift store and I know I never get to go unless I am here.  I am HOPING to find a blender that I can purchase so I can make some hand made lotion when I get home.  Here' hoping.

I Can See!

Yesterday was interesting.  I got my lasik done.  After they are done with the procedure they tape plastic things over your eyes and tell you that you must leave them on until you come in for your appointment the next day.  I cap remove them to put drops in my eyes which I have to do ever 30 minutes.  I have 4 different things I am putting in my eyes.  I was worried Kayla was not going to like the stuff on my face and want to touch it constantly.  Not so.  She looked at me and said, "Momma, you hurt your eyes?"  I said, "Yeah mommy hurt her eyes but it's okay."  That was pretty much it.  She was weirded out when I tried to kiss her goodnight though.  haha

Check out how attractive they are on my face

Trust me when I say the hat HELPS! haha  YOu should see me without the hat.  My mom was at work when I got home yesterday.  Everyone else was used to it when she got home in the evening.  For the first 30 minutes or so every time she would look at me she would laugh.  Real mature Mom!  :)  ( That's where I get it from! )

It was hard to tell yesterday that my eye sight was any better.  Today I can TOTALLY tell and as soon as I get the cups off of my eyes it will be amazing.  EEEEEEEEEEEE  Can't wait.

Todays the Day

Today is the day I have been WAITING for!  At 3:30 I go in for my lassik!  WOO HOO  I am SO excited!  I did a photo shoot on Saturday before we left to come to Utah and it was so weird doing it with my glasses.  I don't think my pictures came out that great either.  BOOOOOOOOO  After this ( assuming everything goes well ) I won't have to worry about my dumb glasses!  I had an appointment yesterday where they had to dilate my eyes and it looked SO weird!  Check it out.

My sister was making fun of me for taking a picture but seriously, doesn't it look weird?!  I couldn't even open my eyes out side for a while it was SOOOOO bright.

We are having fun here in Utah.  We got here at around 3:30 on Sunday and they kids had an egg hunt and had lots of fun.  We got a new picture of the grandkids since our last one didn't come out!  haha  This one is MUCH better!  What do you guys think

OLD PICTURE

THE NEW ONE

A million times better right?  I LOVE it!  Hope you guys enjoyed your Easter.  I finished my girls skull dress and it's so adorable.  I can't wait to put it on her and take some pictures.

WINNER

I have to tell you what happened!  You know how most blogs doing giveaways use random.org to produce a number?  Well before I had all the entries for the giveaway I put in some numbers and it gave me a number.  After I went to sleep someone else entered so I had to do it again. It gave me the same number,  Hmmmmmm.  I was thinking since it was such a SMALL number I was putting in maybe it just was having a hard time.  So I tried about 5 or 6 more times and EVERY single time it gave me the SAME number.  I decided that was random then, and I threw all the names in a bowl and did it the old fashioned way.  This gave me the real winner which is

Mrs. Sassy Crafter

WOO HOO  I know she is going to be happy about that!  I would have laughed hysterically if I pulled the same number from the bowl as what the random.org kept giving but it wasn't.  So thank you to ALL 6 of you who entered!  haha  I wish I had enough for all of you.  So Mrs. Sassy Crafter email me your address and in a couple of days I will be mailing off your package!

Again thank you to those who played along.  I really appreciate it and hope we can all continue to do things to help the Earth and not just this month because we are supposed to.  :)

Coconut Oil Day 12

Today's coconut oil post is a LONG one.  I read this article yesterday and was very intrigued by it.  Because the article is long and has TONS of info on it about coconut oil, I am providing y'all with a link today.  GO READ IT!  Make the time.  I know it's annoying to have to click on a link but it's well worth the read.

CLICK HERE

I am TRYING so hard to get ready for my trip.  I am leaving on Sunday to drive to Utah with the kids.  Hubby has to stay here and work.  I am excited because I am getting my lasik on Tuesday!  I can't WAIT to have awesome vision WITHOUT glasses or contacts.  I really think it will cut down on some of my head aches.  We are going to be in Utah for 2 weeks.  I haven't packed anything yet and I have a photo shoot for a new born tomorrow.  IN stead of packing and doing something productive, I thought I'd take a break so I could write this post.  I am also not cooking dinner tonight ( my man is bringing home a pizza! ) and so I had an extra minute.  I am so proud of us because we haven't ordered pizza in 3 weeks.  WOO HOO

Hope y'all have a great weekend and remember there is still time to enter the giveaway if you haven't already.  It closes at midnight and some time tomorrow I will announce the winner.  Have a happy Friday!

Earth Day Giveaway

Today is the last day to enter the Earth day giveaway and do you know what?  I have had only one person enter!  BOOOOOO  No one wants free stuff?!   Let's see if we can get some other entries today or my one entry will win by default.  You have until midnight to enter.  Go here for the original post to see what you would win!

2 Reusable shopping bags for your purse
Home made deodorant
Kirt's Castile Soap bar
Hand made grey hair flower made from recycled satin
small container of coconut oil

Let's see who wants a chance to win.

So in other news I did some sewing yesterday!  Oh my gosh it is turning out SOOOOO cute!!  I wanted to make a dress for Kayla out of the skull and cross bone material I bought with my gift card from JoAnns.  It's not done yet but check out how cute it is turning out

It is so hard to tell from these pictures but it is turning out so cute.  The back has buttons for the straps to attach but I haven't done that yet which is why I didn't hang it up to take pictures of it.  When it is ALL done ( hopefully today! ) I will get some more pictures up.   Girls can have skull and cross bone Easter dresses right?!  heehee

Coconut Oil day 11

Coconut oil is wonderful!  I think we have established that already.  Today I am going to give you a little more info then I normally do.  This is all coming striaght from the "Gorgeously Green" by Sophie Uliano.  She has several books.  This one is a great started book.  My sister has another one that is a DIY book with all sorts of things.  It is going to be my next purchase!

Any ways.  My coconut oil use for the day is a simple one.  When your kid falls down and gets a boo-boo rub some coconut oil on it!  It has antibacterial and anti-fungal properties that are great for scraps, burns and rashes.

Why use coconut oil instead of something like A and D or Nelisporin?  Both have products you do NOT want to use on skin.  Many people do not know this but petroleum jelly is BAD.  Here is what my book says and this is a direct quote from page 24

"MIneral Oils-they coat the skin like plastic, so it cannot breathe.  They can slow down the skin's natural functions and cell development, resulting in premature aging.  Mineral oils can also be contaminated with PAH ( polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon ), which can be carcinogenic.  They come in the form of petroleum distillates, which are human carcinogens that are prohibited in European Union but are found in the United States in many products including mascara. It appears on labels as "petroleum" or "liquid paraffin"'


Um...yeah.  I went around checking all of the creams and things I have around the house for fixing things like scraps, burns, rashes and found mineral oil AND petroleum in all of them.  Not to mention several parabens, fragrance and paraffin!  And we are rubbing this crap on us to HEAL skin.  Gross.  Coconut oil is the answer my people.  So just go buy it already!

Wheat Tortillas

How many of you guys like home made tortillas?  I DO!  I LOOOOOVE them.  I LOVE when you go to a restaurant and you can just tell they make their own tortillas.  The problem with restaurant tortillas is that the white ones aren't so healthy.  I LOVE wheat ones if you get the right kind.  I love all the added flavor and fiber.  MMMMM FIBER

My dear friend Sarah sent me a cook book for my birthday a few weeks ago.  She knows every since she got me hooked on the south beach diet I have been more and more into cooking with wheat flour.  I was BUYING wheat stuff before.  Wheat pasta, wheat bread.  But I wasn't really making my own.  I would make wheat bread that was good.  When we moved here to California a few months back I was bored!  No  friends does that too you.  So I started baking.  I am both happy and mad about this. Happy because I love home baked goods and sad because my pants are getting tighter and tighter.  The book my friend bought me called Whole Grain Baking and its a King Arthur Flour recipe book.  I am going to share with you the wheat tortilla recipe.

Whole Wheat Tortillas

2 cups white whole wheat flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons vegetable oil ( I used olive oil and didn't see a difference )
2/3 cup warm water

Mix all the ingredients together and knead for 5 minutes.  Cover and let rest 20 minutes.
Break the dough into 10 to 12 little balls.  Cover and let rest another 20 minutes.
Take out one of the dough balls and roll out as thin as you can get it with a rolling pin.  Put on a skillet or frying pan on medium heat.  Heat each side for about a minute each.  Then keep flipping over until brown spots start to appear.  This is the fun process.  While the one is cooking, roll out the next one but make sure to keep the rest covered so they don't dry out.  Repeat until all of them are cooked.

uncooked

 starting to cook

the rest ready to go

MMMMMM tortilla goodness. I have made these three times now.  I made burritos with them the other night and tonight we made tacos.  Try them out.  If you have not had wheat tortillas before you might not like the difference.  For me they are WAY more filling and the health benefits out weight the flavor difference.  Melt some butter on them or make a quesadilla.  These puppies are a hit for me and I am going to keep on baking them and trying new variations.  Next I think I am going to try adding garlic salt and some cheese or something.  I was trying to think of all the different kinds they have in the store.  We'll see how that goes.

Scripture Case # 3

Tomorrow at church we are having an auction.  I wish I could say it was for a reason other then just for fun but that is just it!  We are having an auction with things the women donate and it's for the women and their daughters.  You earn "points" by doing things like "reading your scriptures."  "drinking 6 glasses of water a day."  "Sharing the gospel with a friend"  and then we can purchase things at the auction with these points.  I am afraid I won't have very many points haha  BUT I am donating two things to the auction.  The first is a 16 X 20 canvas print of the Salt lake City Utah Temple that I took back in October.

I like it for this time of the year because it is spring and has the flowers!  Then I am also donating something I just finished today.  I am really excited about it because I think it turned out really cute.  It's a scripture case I made using my own tutorial from here  

I LOVE how it turned out.  The pictures are kinda crappy and don't do it justice.  I figured the canvas print the older women would like and the young girls would like the scripture case!  We'll see how it goes.  I am sure there will be LOTS of fun stuff there.  I'll bring my camera and try and takes some pictures.

Peanut Butter Cookies

My family LOVES peanut butter.  We also love cookies so what better invention for us then the peanut butter cookies?   I don't make then tons because I would weigh 400 lbs!  But yesterday I was in the mood.  However, I wanted to make them healthier if it were possible.  Let me tell you it was possible!  I used white wheat flour instead of white flour and I put ground up flax seed in it.  Since flax seed is kinda nutty it's a perfect fit.  You can't tell one bit that it is in there.  Want to try them?

Peanut Butter Cookies

1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 cup white wheat flour ( or wheat pastry flour )
3/4 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 to 2 tablespoons ground up flax seed

First you cream together the butter, peanut butter and brown sugar.  Beat in the egg and set aside. In another bowl combine the dry ingredients.  Mix and add little by little too the wet ingredients.  If you live in my house, we also take real Reese's peanut butter cups and crush them up and put them in the dough. MMMMMMMMM

Bake at 375 for 8 to 10 minutes.  My husband loves me when I place a whole reese's in the middle too.  Since it's almost Easter and I had Reese's hard candy coated eggs, I used those instead.  These cookies turned out SUPER yummy!  I should know because I ate 4 yesterday!

This was taken before they were cooked.  Aren't they cute?

If you want to try this recipe without the "healthy" stuff use 1 1/4 cup white flour instead of the wheat flour and don't add the flax seed.  But I PROMISE you they tasted exactly the same so you may as well add the extra goodness.

Earth Day Giveaway

At the beginning of the month I talked about doing a giveaway for Earth Day.  Well, Earth day is quickly approaching and I have been busy getting ready to leave for a trip back to Utah.  I will be gone for a week and a half.  I am leaving on Easter, which happens to be the day after my mom's birthday and then I will leave around the 5th of May, which is the day after my oldest sister and my dad's birthday!  It should be fun!!  So my apologies at getting this giveaway up kinda late but it still gives you guys a good couple of days to enter.

Since this is for Earth Day I have a couple of Earth friendly things to offer you.  First, some of my home made deodorant.  Second I am offering a grey hand made flower made out of recycled fabric.  I always wondered what people meant when they said recycled fabric.  Well, this used to be a bridesmaid skirt that just hung in my closet.  Now it is being made into lovely flowers!  Here's a picture

MUCH better then just sitting in a closet right?  And the main prize is a set of two mini reusable shopping bags!  These are nice because they fold up and fit into your purse.  That way you ALWAYS know you have some.

So how are we doing on the giveaway?  I feel like it isn't enough.  How about I throw in a little container of some coconut oil too!  That way you can try some of the coconut oil suggestions we've been talking about.

Here is how to enter Y'all.  Leave a comment about something you are trying to change to make your life a little greener.  It could be trying some of the coconut oil suggestions.  It could be doing the home made deodorant.  It could be using reusable shopping bags.  It could be making your own hair care products.  Whatever it is leave me a comment telling me about it.

If you want another chance at the giveaway blog about what you are doing to make the Earth greener!  This is ALL about spreading the word so others can join in and find other ways to help out the Earth.  It is up to us to make the world a better place.  We do so by educating ourselves and then educating others.  So let's spread the word!  Leave a separate comment for each entry and good luck!

* ADDED-   This just added!  I went to shower right after writing this post and remembered one of the items I was planning on  giving away!  Kirk's Original Coca Castile soap.  This is a coconut oil soap!  Sweet!  It's all natural, hypoallergenic skin care with no animal by-products or synthetic detergents.  :)

Coconut Oil Day 10

This is a short post but I have a new coconut oil use for you!  This is a good time a year for it too because of all of the cold and flus going around.

Colds and Sore Throats- Coconut oil has antimicrobial properties that can help you recover from a cold. Mix it with warm tea and honey for a very soothing throat remedy.

ENJOY!

Coconut Oil Day 9

Do you have curly hair that is super hard to manage?  Do your kids have crazy hair that sticks up everywhere?  Try some coconut oil.  To smooth away fly aways or manage crazy curly hair, depends on how much you use.  Just use a tiny bit for fly aways and a good glob full as a gel for curly hair.  One time I was conditioning Tyler's hair before church and I didn't get it all shampooed out.  I brushed his hair and it stayed where it was supposed to and looked great!  Not to mention he smelled yummy.  So give it a try.  You won't be sorry and you won't have to put chemicals in your hair to control those crazy curls.

On a side note I have gone back to the baking soda and vinegar for my hair and it has been great all week! I found a good trick to get my hair into the baking soda again.  I washed my hair with shampoo first, then with baking soda and then rinsed with the apple cider vinegar as the conditioner.  Then the next time I washed my hair I didn't use regular shampoo.  Just the baking soda and then apple cider vinegar.  My hair was wonderful!  Not grainy, not greasy.  I even went two days without washing it and it still looked good and wasn't greasy at all.  Today is day three and I am about to go try again.  I hope today will be as successful as the last!

happy weekend everyone.

Coconut Oil Day 8

Sorry I skipped a few days of coconut oil posting.  Things have been a little crazy here at home.  Today I was looking stuff up on line and found a great post over at Passionate Homemaking.  They have a great blog with LOTS of useful information.  When researching different green products or do it your self type recipes for all natural living, their blog comes up a lot!  Check out this post about using coconut oil to make an all natural toothpaste!   Coconut oil has some antibacterial properties so toothpaste sounds like a great idea to me!  Here is the link click here 

Funny because when reading all of her different uses for coconut oil she mentions putting on her nipples for breast feeding!  I guess I am not the only one who was thinking it.  She also mentioned getting rid of cradle cap with it which I have also talked about and I am telling you it worked WONDERS for my sons cradle cap.

Have you found a use for coconut oil that I haven't mentioned yet?  Leave me a comment and I'll be sure to post it.  Thanks and have a wonderful day everyone

Preventing Cancer

I get emails from The South Beach diet web sit every day with advice, health info, recipes and much more. Today's email was all about simple ways to help prevent cancer.  I was reading the list and it is ALL things we can easily do and should be doing any ways.  One or two surprised me because I had never heard it before so I thought I'd share it with y'all.

8 Tips to Help Lower Your Cancer Risk

In addition to benefiting your heart health, the South Beach Diet may also help lower your risk of developing cancer. The American Cancer Society recommends a diet high in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein — exactly what the South Beach Diet encourages. In addition, many of their other recommendations match up with South Beach Diet guidelines. Here are small lifestyle changes you can make today that may help lower your risk of developing cancer in the future:

• Limit or avoid fried foods.
• Choose whole grains over refined-flour products.
• Cut down on sweets.
• Avoid fatty meats and poultry with the skin on.
• Eat a diet rich in omega-3 fatty acids from such foods as salmon and other-cold water fish and olive oil.
• Limit consumption of alcoholic beverages to no more than one drink a day if you’re a woman or two if you’re a man.
• Quit smoking.
• Exercise regularly to maintain a healthy weight.

Taking control of your health by following these tips will help lower your risk of developing many kinds of cancer. Some people are genetically predisposed to cancer because of family history or environmental influences. If you think you may be at high risk for cancer, consult your physician.

Birthday Card

My mother in law had a birthday a couple of weeks ago.  I wanted to make her a card for her birthday and send it to her.  I had an idea and it would have been great except for my pesky kids not wanting to cooperate.  How dare they, right?!  haha  I made three signs.  One said HAPPY, one said BIRTHDAY and one said NANA.  My IDEA was to have Tyler hold HAPPY and to take his picture.  Then I was going to have Kayla hold up HAPPY and have me take her picture.  Then I wanted the two of them to hold the sign NANA together and have me take one more pictures.  Tyler does his picture and all is well.  I give Kayla her sign and I can NOT get her to hold it up the right.  She wanted to hold it upside down so that she could read it.  Looking back on it now, I wish I would have just taken her picture with it upside down because I think that would have been cute too.  At the time I was frustrated and annoyed.  Why can't we just relax as mom's sometimes?  Sheesh.  Any ways.  I eventually got SOMETHING and made the card but it wasn't what I wanted it to be.  Here is what we ended up with

Then I used picnik.com to make the actual card.  If you have never heard of them or tried them go to their site and check them out.  I made my header through their web site too!

Overall it was cute and she liked it but I wish I had gotten better pictures.  Leave it to someone who considers themselves a "photographer" to not be able to get good pictures of my own kids!

Coconut Oil Day 7

Okay so this post is more of a theory or an idea then something I read about.  I was thinking about when I was a nursing mother and how horribly chapped  and chafed my nipples use to get.  It was awful!  I remember buying some of the stuff to rub on your nipples to help and it was safe for your sweet little babies to swallow.  Hmmmmm.   I don't have nursing babies any more, nor will I ever have one again but I am willing to bet that you could skip the store bought stuff and rub coconut oil on it.  Coconut oil is safe to swallow and great for your skin.  If you try this, let me know how it goes.  Like I said, this is just a theory but it should work pretty well.  Coconut oil has worked wonders for my cracked feet, why not sore nipples!

Just so you know I tried not to write the word nipple too many times in this post but when talking about breast feeding the word nipple is necessary!  heehee

Coconut Oil Day 6

I mentioned this before but coconut oil is really good for your health.  Kind of like olive oil, it's good for you to have a little every day.  So how can you eat it?  Well, I haven't tried eating it yet but some of the suggestions on the one I bought says to spread it on toast. That's sounds pretty yummy.  You can use it in place of butter in most things.  My friend Sarah is a wonderful cook.  She LOVES to bake wonderfully yummy things.  Check out this coconut cake she made HERE  She used coconut oil in the buttercream frosting recipe and said it turned out fantastic!  Give it a try.

I Forgot

I hate when I prematurely push the publish button!  haha  I was wondering is it just me or does anyone else's kitchen counter tops ever look like this?

I was making flowers a couple of weeks ago and then didin't finish them and left them on my counter tops for weeks.  My poor husband.  This is what happens when you don't have an extra bed room to turn into a craft room!  I finally finished a couple of them.

These two I was thinking of selling as a big sister littler sister bundle.

I LOVE how this pink one turned out! And lastly is the custom piece I worked on for someone's wedding on etsy.

I like the way it turned out and hopefully she will like it too!

Okay I really am done posting now.  :)

In The Works

My birthday was on Tuesday and my Mom and sisters pitched in and bought me a gift card for JoAnns!  I was REALLY excited to use it.  I was trying to think of what I REALLY wanted to buy.  When it came time for me to go down to the store and pick something I found myself in the fabric.  Want to see what I got?

The skull fabric is even cuter in person because the hearts are actually purple.  I just washed out the fabric color next to the other dark fabric.  I plan on making a dress for Kayla with the skulls and maybe some ties for the etsy shop with the polka dots!

This purple fabric has a specific mission.  Hopefully one of these days I can get it done.

I LOVE this fabric!  I was trying NOT to buy a bunch of fabric for etsy stuff.  Which I failed.  These two puppies are going to make a purse for my etsy and I am WAY excited about them.  I think they are super cute.  Here's a bigger view of the one

And lastly, this lovely yellow.  Not sure what I am doing with it yet but I LOVE it.  It is spring after all.

I have a BUNCH of projects in the works.  This is very dangerous for me because then I end up getting none of them done and a bunch of projects half done.  Hopefully I can work things out and have several finished projects before Easter.

Here are some pictures of some things to come

These puppies are so small and cute!  My sister Kim puts salt on EVERYTHING!  When she came to visit me in Texas I couldn't find the salt shaker one time and I asked her if she knew where it was.  Um, it was on the TV tray with her THE WHOLE TIME SHE WAS VISITING!  I have been wanting to find some cute little ones like this for her. Sorry to ruin the surprise Kim!

Shoe clips  :)  These make me SUPER HAPPY

And some misc supplies I just got in the mail.  I bought these to go with this stuff

I can't wait to use this. I have been dreaming up different things to do with it.  I haven't been brave enough to open it and actually use it yet.  Maybe today will be that day.  What about you guys?  Do you have lots of projects you have in the works?  I just hope I have time enough to do even HALF of these and some of my house work.  haha  Also since my last post I revealed the 5 pounds I gained in a week and a half I am also planning on working out every day I can this week.  Even if for just 10 or 20 minutes each day, I plan on making it a goal.

HAPPY MONDAY Y'ALL

5 Pounds

That is how much weight I gained over the last week and a half!  Booooooo  We were in Utah and ate at a bunch of places we don't have here in Cali and then it was my birthday and I made this delicious cake with some YUMMY frosting.  I ate almost all of it myself....hmmmmmm

Last week I was even disciplined enough to work out three times before we left to go to Utah.  I KNEW I had gained some weight because my pants were fitting tight.  I finally forced myself to get on the scale.  This week it's South Beach all over again and some self discipline!  I just bought some cadbury eggs too!  DOH!

And because I have been posting a lot with no pictures ( which I HATE ) here is a quick one from our trip

Enjoy

The top picture was taken inCedar City.  It snowed the day we left.  The other picture was taken in the car with the window rolled up while we were still driving.  Yeah...that's how I roll! haha  When you have kids and are in a hurry there's no point in stopping, getting out of the car or rolling the window down.  In fact, when I do roll the window down I either get yelled at, or my boy barks like a dog.  He's a weirdo  haha

All Natural

On my quest lately to find all kinds of new all natural recipes for both beauty and cleaning I have come upon TONS of stuff to share with you guys.  Whether then put everything into one HUGE post that I am sure no one would get all the way through, I am going to be spreading them out over the month.  Today I wanted to share an etsy store I found accidentally.  I was searching the internet for empty chap stick tubes.  I wanted to make some more chap stick but I wanted to put it an some chap stick tubes.  I found several places that sell them for REALLY cheap but the problem was that the CHEAPEST I  couldn't find shipping on them was 10 dollars!  Um, if the product cost ten dollars to ship then it ISN'T cheap ( even if it is only 15 cents a pop! )

This lead me to THIS shop on etsy.  It is called Owl Naturals ( you know I love the name! ) and she has all sorts of body butters, lotions, deodorant, soaps and supplies!  Her stuff is all natural and very reasonably priced.  She had some empty chap stick tubes as well.  Go check it out.  I realize that not EVERYONE is into making things that they can just as easily buy.  If you would like to go all natural but are not interested in making it your self check out her site.  Also, there are many people on etsy who sell this stuff.  Owl Naturals has ingredients you can buy to make your own too.  I will be posting some recipes tomorrow that you might have to buy some things for to make.  EEEEEE  I am excited.  I think all this home made stuff is awesome!

Until tomorrow....Enjoy your Sunday!  Today I get to teach my first lesson at church and it is about Honesty.  Here's hoping it goes over well.

Coconut oil Day 5

Sorry I am slacking on the coconut oil post!  It's only my 5th post and I find myself wondering what to post!  haha  So much for 30 different uses.  Here is one that hopefully you weren't expecting!

nfections: Coconut oil is very effective against a variety of infections due to its antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial properties. According to the Coconut Research Center, coconut oil kills viruses that cause influenza, measles, hepatitis, herpes, SARS, etc. It also kills bacteria that cause ulcers, throat infections, urinary tract infections, pneumonia, and gonorrhea, etc. Coconut oil is also effective on fungi and yeast that cause candidiasis, ringworm,athlete's foot, thrush, diaper rash, etc.


Hmmmmmmmm  


Craziness.  

Dry Shampoo

Have you ever heard of Dry Shampoo?  I had but had totally forgotten about it.  That is until recently when Lesley from Fabulously Flawed ( hilarious blog by the way, check it out for a good laugh )  reminded me of it.  I decided to look it up on line and let me tell you the store bought kind is ewxspensive!  SO since this is green month, why not make it?!  Here is a great article I found that gives you 7 different dry shampoo recipes.  DRY SHAMPOO 

So for those who have never heard of this and are wondering what I am talking about it is a "shampoo" that is dry that you apply to your hair.  It draws out all of the oils and then you just brush it out and go.  That is it.  I have tried the cornstrach in my hair before with no success but I only tried it once and didn't give it a very good go.  Today we are off to meet some friends for lunch and I didn't have time to shower.  Normally I can go every other day with washing my hair and it looks fine.  Every since I stopped doing the no poo I need to wash my hair every day or it looks greasy.  Bummer.  I REALLY need to go back to no poo already....

Any ways, I think I will try putting some corn starch in my hair before we leave and see if it helps.  Let me know if you try this and how it goes!  Remember going green is all about making improvements to your health.  Dry shampoo is natural ( if you pick the right ingredients ) and helps keep your hair natural.  Also, going green is about recycling and making your own products.  This is perfect for this!  Hope someone tries this and enjoys.

Coconut Oil Day 4

Today's use for coconut oil seems like an odd one.  Trust me, it works.  From the last couple of post I am sure by now you are figuring out it is a pretty good conditioner for your skin.  Well, it is also really good as a conditioner for your hair!  When I was doing the baking soda and vinegar to wash and condition my hair,  I was worried about my scalp drying out.  I read that you can take a little coconut oil and rub it on your hands and then run your fingers through your hair and massage your scalp.  Do this before you go to sleep and then wash your hair the next morning.  The first time I tried it I put WAY to much on my hair and I didn't wash it the next morning.  It took me until that afternoon to get to the shower (  the kids )!   Then I made the mistake of using the vinegar again!  My hair was really greasy.  The next time I tried to use it as a conditioner ( I read to use it about once a week ) I didn't put nearly as much on and I washed my hair ONLY!  It worked great,  My hair was really soft and my scalp didn't seem dry at all.  My son who is 5 years old still has REALLY bad cradle cap.  When we moved here I told him we needed to start brushing his hair EVERYDAY to try and get rid of it.  I also started trying to put something on his scalp.  Before I knew about the coconut oil I tried baby oil and that seemed to work okay but it was horrible to try and get out of his hair.  So I have been rubbing the coconut oil on his scalp once a week and then washing it out.  His cradle cap which he has had since birth is almost gone now! WOO HOO   This is wonderful for me!  So excited.

So have you looked up coconut oil yet to read ahead of what I might be saying next?  Do you have a use for it that I haven't mentioned yet?  Leave me a comment and if I haven't posted your suggestion yet, I'll be sure to use it one of the days.  THANKS!

Green Pans

I got some new pans!  I am SO excited.  We bought some GREEN PANS.  EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE

So far, so good!  Tax returns are awesome aren't they!?!

Coconut Oil day 3

Today is a very simple use for coconut oil.  Use it as an eye make up remover!  The first time I tried it it worked great on my eyes shadow, eyebrows and MOST of my mascara.  However, it didn't get it all off.  I think this is because I use water proof.  If you do not use water proof, you shouldn't have a problem.

I am HORRIBLE at washing off my make up.  This is one of the reason I hardly wear it any more.  I am just too darn lazy to take it off.  I wore make up the other day and slept in my mascara.  The next day I was still too lazy to remove it.  We weren't leaving the house so I just sported the raccoon eyes all day.  Isn't my husband a lucky guy!  haha  That night I tried the coconut oil again and it removed all of my mascara without any problems.  This is why I think if you use something other then water proof you will have no problems.  Try it out and let me know what think!

Coconut Oil

I have been slacking on my post!  I just forgot I was planning on posting a coconut oil use every day.  Yesterday I kept thinking, "I don't have anything to blog about!"  OPPS

Today's use for coconut oil is a simple one.  Use it as a moisturizer.  When I got out of the shower yesterday I put it on my face and all of my rough spots.  I rubbed it on my nasty ballet feet and on my knees.  Let it soak in.  If you still feel a little oily after ten minutes or so ( sometimes I put on too much and it doesn't all soak in )  take a warm wash cloth and pat yourself dry.

I love doing this!  When I was reading up on Coconut oil I found several people who say that once they started using it on their faces, within a week or so the lines on the face started to disappear.  Excellent.  Give it  a try.  You will also smell all nice and coconutie.  MMMMMMMMM

Just One Thing

I wrote the post about the No Poo Do while at my mom's house with tons of people talking and laughing and kids running around.  I had a few things I wanted to mention that I forgot.  If you are here for the first and have no idea what I am talking about read here

I wanted to mention that my hair grows REALLY slow!  I have always gone back and forth between long hair and short hair.  I will have hair the is long and layered for a couple of years and then I will get sick of it and cut it all off.  Then I'll have it short for a couple of years and then I decided to grow it out again.  It takes me any where between 1 and a half to 2 and a half years for me to grow my hair out.  SERIOUSLY. Slow growing hair.  I haven't cut my hair since Thanksgiving.  It was growing out SO SLOW.  The second I started doing the NO POO my hair started growing FAST!  I swear it seems like my hair has grown a good two inches or so in the last month or two.  For me, that's fast.  When I was reading up on the no poo do someone had mentioned that this will help your hair grow faster.  The reasoning behind it is because when you shampoo your hair you don't massage your scalp quite like you do when you are using the baking soda.  Your scalp is majorly stimulated while doing this which helps your hair follicles grow!

Sounds good to me and I am telling you this IS the fastest my hair has ever grown!

Coconut Oil

Coconut oil is used for SOOOOOOOOOO many things.  It is great for your skin and for your health.  It is used in many lotions, soaps, deodorants and shampoos.  It can be combined with all sorts of things for great health and skin.  Lats month I mentioned that I was going to try and post a good use for coconut oil for every day of the month of April.  We were gone this weekend and so I haven't been able to use the internet.  I guess I am a couple of days behind!  Let's get started.

This all started for me when I made me own deodorant.  The recipe calls for coconut oil and once I made what I wanted I had a HUGE thing of coconut oil with nothing else to make with it.  I started researching and was amazed at all of the possibilities.  Since the deodorant was what started this I wanted to share another recipe that calls for it.  I haven't tried it yet but it sounds promising.

Homemade Natural Deodorant

3 Tablespoons shea butter
3 Tablespoons baking soda
2 Tablespoons corn starch
2 Tablespoons cocoa butter
2 vitamin E oil gel caps (puncture and squeeze out the oil)
Essential Oil (I used ylang yang and orange)

I melted all the ingredients (except the oils) and gave it a good stir. This only took about 30 seconds in the microwave. Then added the oils, stirred again, and poured it in a jar, then placed it in the fridge to set. This recipe filled the jar in my hand, which is a 1/4 pint.

If you want to read the whole post where I got this click on the link HERE

The above link is to the Blog ANGRY CHICKEN.  If you haven't check out here blog you are missing out!  Lots of great things on there.  She also does the no poo do.  

Stayed tuned tomorrow for another coconut oil use!

If you want a more simple SUPER easy recipe for the deodorant ( my original post about this ) the recipe is as follows

1/3 cup corn starch
1/3 cup baking soda
4 to 6 tablespoons coconut oil

Mix and enjoy!

I'm adding to this post a couple of months later.  I tried this recipe from Angry chicken but modified it to what I had on hand.  It is now my favorite deodorant!

3 Tablespoons shea butter

3 Tablespoons baking soda

2 Tablespoons corn starch

2 Tablespoons coconut oil 

2 vitamin E oil gel caps (puncture and squeeze out the oil)

Essential Oil ( I used lavender and tea tree oil ) 

It's magical and has a FABULOUS scent.  Try it and you will NOT be disappointed!!!  

On a side note, I find that if your deodorant is flaking off in large chunks on you, it needs more coconut oil!  That should do the trick!!!

HAPPY GREEN MONTH

HAPPY GREEN MONTH Here at Something About Katie!!!  I would LOVE for everyone to be really excited about this, however I know and totally understand that not everyone is searching for ways to make their world a little greener.  I think if people read the facts about some of the harmful and awful things they do to the Earth and to their own bodies, I think you would think twice.  SO I am hoping after a month of me bugging you with no fuss ways and REASONS to try out new green products, at least ONE person will change SOME of their ways.  Here is the thing, it's easy and simple to change things one step at a time.  My chanllenge for y'all is simple.  I want you to read a couple of the links I am providing below.  This is a topic that most people don't know about unless you have SEARCHED for it.  You will all think I am CRAZY.  Seriously, it's okay.  I completely understand.  BUT the topic I want everyone to be aware of is what shampoo has in it and what it does to our bodies.  Are you someone who has to wash their hair once a day or even twice a day?  Did you know that your skin in the biggest organ on our bodies and all the products and things we put on our skin soak in and create havoc on our bodies?  Are you someone who uses TONS of products all the time.  Twice a day, three times a day?  Do you use organic or safe products or do you buy whatever is cheap?

It is something to think about.  Shampoo leaves all sorts of things left on your hair that change the way your hair lives.  When my sister came to visit in February,  her and I talked about trying what is called the NO POO DO.  Sounds lovely doesn't it?  The name alone is enough for most people to be put off.  I want everyone who is reading this to seriously consider this option.  NO shampoo.  Wait what?  YES I SAID NO SHAMPOO!  My sister and I decided to give it a try.

I know what you are thinking, how could you NOT be shampooing your hair?!?!?!  Well, that is kind of a lie.  We ARE shampooing our hair.  We just aren't using store bought shampoo.  We are using something that is practically free and most people already have available at their home at all times.  It is BAKING SODA.  Take some baking soda and water it down.  How you do it is up to you.  Put water with a table spoon or two of baking soda in a squirt bottle.  Some people just make a paste in their hands each time.  Whatever you want to do is fine.  Put it on your head in the shower and give you scalp a rub down.  Massage the mixture in really good.  Then let it sit for a minute.  I take this time to shave my underarms while the baking soda water mix sits.  Also, if you have long hair don't worry about getting it on ALL of your hair.  Just massage into your scalp where the oil comes from.

Links for other No Poo Do's

HERE
Here
HERE


There are many, many people who do this.  Also there are a lot of people who do this who have very popular blogs and many followers.  So what about the conditioner?  Well, this is the part that will put many people off but I am telling you it WORKS.  You take another water bottle with mostly water and a  1/2 cup or so of some apple cider vinegar.  You can add a vanilla stick and/or a cinnamon stick to try and help with the smell.  The first time I used the apple cider vinegar I felt like I was dying Easter eggs!  haha That is what it reminded me of.  But I am telling you that the second it hit my hair I could run my fingers through it already.  Let the apple cider vinegar sit for a few minutes.  This time instead of rubbing it in your scalp, try and pour it over the ends of your hair.  It's fine if it hits your scalp so don't freak out if it does but I try to avoid it if possible,  I have short hair so it's hard for me to do scalp only and then ends only.  My hair is only a couple of inches so it makes it too hard.  But if you hair is shoulder length or longer it shouldn't be to difficult to do so.

My warning for everyone is that it could take a month to 3 months for your hair to get TOTALLY use to this process.  It took mine about 3 weeks before I was totally happy with it.  Check out this picture of my son and I that I already posted on this blog a month ago.

This picture was taken after 3 weeks of doing the NO POO.  I had the best hair day this day.  I am telling you the first couple of times you try this you will have SO MUCH BODY in your hair you will not know what to do!  My hair was so full it was almost ridiculous.  The first couple of times I didn't quite know what to do with my hair.  I took pictures along the way but I am telling you none of them came out very good because I was taking them all myself.  My internet here in Utah is SUPER slow so in a day or two I will put some more pictures of my hair on here.

Here is my challenge for you.  TRY IT!  Don't give up after the first time.  It takes a while.  If your hair is too dry and/or gritty then you are using too much baking soda.  If it is really oily still then you probably used too much vinegar.  So you have a whole month to try this.  SERIOUSLY.  what do you have to lose?  If you have hair that is long enough to be put in a pony tail then I HIGHLY recommend it.    Mine isn't long enough for a pony tail so on some days my hair was too greasy to go out with.  It happens.  Don't give up.  You will find what works best for you.  PLEASE give it a try!

My sister is doing awesome.  She hasn't used shampoo since her visited to see me around Valentine's day.  I however, have gone back to shampoo.  I have my reasons.  My biggest problem was that while I was really sick and couldn't get off of the couch, I didn't shower for 4 days.  YIKES, I know. Then I decided to go to the doctor so I jumped in the shower to wash my hair and I couldn't stand for very long. So I just threw some shampoo on.  Let me tell you that my hair was really gross that day.  I even washed it twice.  So I decided to try shampoo again.  It was better but still kinda flat and gross.  I then went back to the NO POO DO but had difficulty getting my hair used to it again.  I was going to a thing at my church and REALLY didn't want greasy hair so I gave up and went back to shampoo again.  Every since my hair has not had hardly any body.  Not like when I was on the Baking soda and apple cider vinegar.

I am planning on getting a hair cut.  When I do, i am going back to the baking soda and apple cider vinegar.  I am hoping this time to keep it that way.  So many people say that once they get to three months they never go back because their hair is so healthy and wonderful.  I hope I can get to this point.

You have a month of trying new things.  It may not be this one but at least try it.  It's not gonna hurt you.   I finally tried it because my sister was going to try it too.  Find a friend who wants to go green with you and do it together.  It will be fun!  My sister and I would text message each other all of the time

"How is your hair today?"

Want to write me and ask my questions about it along the way?!  PLEASE DO!  katiesclicks at yahoo dot com.  I promise to respond as soon as possible and help you in any way I can.

Going green in about making changes.  It's hard to make a change but if you really want it, you can achieve it.

By the way this is NOT an april fools joke.  haha  Click on the other links.  Read their stories.  It's real.  I swear.  :)