So a few weeks back our church ran a VBS program and I was in charge of one of the areas. And we made play-doh. Thought hose of you with kiddos might enjoy the recipe as it's super cheap to make. And non-toxic in case you have some dough eaters!

How to do it:
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup cornmeal (you can get white cornmeal too)
1/2 cup salt
1/2 cup warm water
optional - food coloring

Mix all ingredients together and knead until pliable. Add additional flour or water if needed. Color if desired.

I made so many batches of this I could just about do it by heart now! It's super easy to make and the kids might actually enjoy making it themselves. Of course this isn't the only playdough recipe out there! Just do a google search to find many more!

Book Review: Super Natural Cooking

Heidi Swanson is a blogger (101 Cookbooks) that has put all her whole foods information and recipes into one easy to read book. Her nutritional advice seems to border between conventional and totally unconventional. Her book also includes many recipes that make whole and natural foods seem fabulous! She includes some great information on how to put together a natural foods pantry, as well as chapters on different grains, natural sweeteners and how to use them. She also includes her own photography which makes for a gorgeous book.


Well written, an easy read, I'd highly recommend it to anyone looking to start eating healthier!

Way Back Wednesday : Child of the 80's

You know you were a child of the 80's if:

You wore snap bracelets!

(and you know if you're a packrat if you still have it 17 years later!)

Boys

Wordless Wednesday

Menu Plan Monday : Eat Real Breakfast

I've recently been doing some research and experimenting with soaking whole grains and whole grain flours before baking. It seems that while it's a great step in nutrition to eat whole grains rather than refined white breads, we may not be getting all of the nutrition we need from conventionally processed whole grain products.

Soaking grains overnight in something like buttermilk, kefir, or even water w/ a bit of vinegar, breaks down the phytic acid in the grain itself. When a grain is not soaked, the phytic acid actually prevents the body from absorbing key nutrients like calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, and zinc. A diet high in unsoaked (or unfermented) whole grain products can actually lead to mineral deficiencies and bone loss. Soaking also helps to break down the complex starches and proteins (like gluten) in the grain as well, making it easier to digest.

While I would love to go completely gung-ho and soak everything I make, I know it will be a lot easier to tackle just one meal at a time, so I'm devoting this week to making only whole foods for breakfast. No prepackaged cereals or mixes. Basically no store bought items and no sugar. Well, except for the maple syrup and raw honey, but those are natural sugars so I'm making an exception.

Here's what we'll be having :

Monday : Scrambled eggs, orange, toast

Tuesday : Soaked oatmeal w/ raw honey, ground flax and raisins, banana

Wednesday : Nourishing Traditions pancakes w/ peanut butter, bananas, and real maple syrup
(freeze extra for quick breakfasts later)

Thursday : Smoothies (1/2 cup homemade plain yogurt, 1/2 cup raw milk, 2 handfuls frozen fruit)
soaked whole wheat blueberry muffins (recipe from Nourishing Traditions)

Friday : Fried eggs (in homemade cultured butter), orange, fruit and yogurt

Saturday : leftover pancakes (in the toaster for best results) served with fresh fruit and yogurt

Sunday : soaked oatmeal, orange

It may take a little more time each morning to prepare, but seeing as how breakfast is the most important meal of the day, I'd like to get the best start I can. What are you having this week?

Book Review: Nourishing Traditions

If you're looking to make that next step and eat really healthy (my hubby calls it hippie healthy!), this is the book for you! "Nourishing Traditions: The Cookbook That Challenges Politically Correct Nutrition and the Diet Dictocrats" by Sally Fallon, is not only a cookbook with easy to make recipes but a powerhouse of information. A year ago, not knowing what I know now, I may not have been ready to read this book. Now, I'm trying out the recipes! I'm even making kefir, and soaking my flour and oatmeal.

Personally I find this book a must read for anyone who is in charge of purchasing and making all the food for a household. Or for someone with a chronic health issue. Sally starts this book saying,

Although heart disease and cancer were rare at the turn of the century, today these two diseases strike with increasing frequency, in spite of billions of dollars in research to combat them, and in spite of tremendous advances in diagnostic and surgical techniques. In America, one person in three dies of cancer, one in three suffers from allergies, one in ten will have ulcers and once in five is mentally ill. Continuing this grim litany, one out of five pregnancies results in miscarriage, and one quarter of a million infants are born with a birth defect each year. Other degenerative diseases - arthritis, multiple sclerosis, digestive disorders, diabetes, osteoporosis, Alzheimer's, epilepsy, and chronic fatigue - afflict a significant majority of our citizens, sapping the life blood of our nation. Learning disabilities such as dyslexia and hyper activity afflict seven million young people. These diseases were also extremely rare only a generation or two ago.

This book has in depth information on how to properly prepare whole grains, eating Raw and cultured dairy products as well as information about fats, carbs, proteins, and vitamins and minerals.

I have this book on loan from the library right now, but will be purchasing it myself. I find it that much of a necessity to have in my kitchen.

A mama's revenge

So yesterday we're outside playing in the kiddie pool.

(How's that for a story starter? Think you know where this is going?)

It's hotter than blazes out so I fill up the kiddie pool and let the little guy go nuts. He's not to big on being in the pool, but loves to play standing on the outside all the while dumping most of the water onto the ground. And like I said, it's hot, so I head up the stairs on the deck to fetch myself a chair.

Cause it's just not right to be standing when it's so blazing hot out.

Half way up I notice a bee after me, and start sprinting up the stairs. I am definitely not quick enough and get stung on the leg. Drat! Stupid bee! On my way down I grab my handy dandy can of Raid in case I see another.

And boy did I see another. A whole nest only visible while walking down the stairs. No way am I walking past the now angry nest of bees.

I turn to walk inside so I can walk down the stairs and out the patio to move the pool to a safer location, when lo and behold, I see a toddler heading for his truck.

A truck way to close to the now angry bees.

I holler, I yell. "go to your pool!!"

Stubborn as a mule that kid is, he wanted his truck, he'll get his truck. As I'm hurriedly trying to decide whether to run down the stairs and perhaps anger the bees more, but get to him faster, or run through the house and grab him from below, a certain little bee made my decision for me.

Hearing the blood curdling scream sent this mama into protect mode and I ran back down the stairs, through the angry mob of bees, grabbed him up as fast as I could and took off across the yard to escape any that might try and give chase.

Poor kid.

Umm, Mr. Bee? Did you really think it necessary to sting a toddler in the eye? THE EYE?!

It's even still swollen this morning.and he fake cries when you ask him about the bee.

And here's an image to show you exactly where we were so as not to confuse anyone.

And I then did what any mama would do.

Sought revenge on the bees.

Early this morning, when it was still cool and the dew was still on the ground, I grabbed my trusty window washin' extension pole, calmly walked out onto the deck and smashed the livin' daylights outta that nest! And of course followed up with some deadly Raid.

Mission: Accomplished

A picture that needs no words

Confession: I don't wash my face

I cleanse my face!

Whatever, right? Well, before I get into the nitty griity, let me just say I'm totally gonna cheat this week and link this up to Shannon's Works for me Wednesday and Crystal's Frugal Friday. Why? Because I'm going to tell you about the cheapest natural face wash that totally works. And I totally have to give SortaCrunchy props for this because I heard it from her a couple months ago.

I've always had dry, blotchy skin. I've always had breakouts. Nothing major, just those little inconvenient ones, but you still feel like everyone is noticing them. I mean for goodness sakes, I'm 27 already! Puberty was supposed to be over! I also used face lotion like it was going out of style. I'd scrub my skin so very squeaky clean and then use half a bottle of moisturizer to try and replenish. Unfortunately no matter what product I bought (and I've tried some expensive ones!) I was always.....flaky. And red.

Problem is, all of these conventional face products out there strip our skin of it's natural oils causing it to produce even more oil. (ever start feeling oily mid-day?) And while your washing your poor skin, all aggravated from the drying effects of the cleansers, it's now vulnerable to the host of chemicals in the actual product. Not a good combo. So what is this natural way to cleasne your face?

The Oil Cleansing Method

Basically, you are cleansing your face with a mix of castor oil and another oil (I use sunflower). And before you stop reading, thinking I'm a total looney-toon for suggesting such a thing, let me just tell you that I have been using this method for over 6 weeks and it really works! I was even worried that going to a natural cleansing method that my skin would react and breakout until it was used to no more soap, but it did no such thing. My skin is smoother than it's ever been, with no red, blotchy skin that I had to cover up with heavy foundation. I now only use a light organic powder when I go out. Heck, most times I forget so I go out wearing nothing at all! Well, I wear clothing. I meant I go out with a naked face. I haven't even needed to apply moisturizer in all of these 6 weeks, my pores are less noticeable, and I also haven't had any crazy breakouts.

I use this cleansing method (seriously, go check out the site) every other day or so, or about 4 times a week on average. It's actually really weird to get used to not washing your face twice a day! Depending on the day though, and the fact that it's summer and hot, I'll rinse off a bit just before bed and sometimes in the mornings.

Now for the frugal part of all this. I spent $2.00 on the jar, $2.00 on the castor oil, and $6.00 on the sunflower oil. $10.00 total.

See the amount in the jar? I've only used half of it in 6 weeks. (you seriously only need a couple drops each time you cleanse) I'm thinking I can make at least 5 batches of cleanser from these two bottles of oil, meaning these supplies should last me over one full year! That's less than ten dollars a year for facial products! I used to easily spend that in one month since each month it seems I always had to buy either the wash or the lotion. Switching over to this natural cleansing method is going to save me at least $110.00 a year! How awesome is that?

Sweet cream vs. cultured

Do you know why butter in the supermarket is considered sweet cream butter? I honestly paid no attention to it, at least until I read Nourishing Traditions. You see, there is a difference in butters.

What you see in the store:
Margarine - don't touch it, don't even think about buying it! Heart disease was almost non-existent before this stuff came about. As the amount of butter we eat dramatically decreased during the 1900's and the use of margarine increased we've also seen a huge rise in heart disease. Coincidence? I think not.

Sweet Cream Butter - Made using pasteurized cream from cows raised in conventional dairys. Unfortunately the cows probably never see the outdoors which means the nutrients in the actual butter are already diminished and the pasteurization kills the good bacteria in the cream.

Organic sweet cream butter - Also uses pasteurized cream, but from cows raised organically. (this doesn't mean the cows get to roam around lushous green pastures, it just means they are fed organically and aren't hoped up on hormones and antibiotics)

Grass fed sweet cream butter - Can be found at health food stores and usually has a 'season', called summer. This butter is also pasteurized, but made by using cream from grass fed cows. This cream is higher nutrients than cream from grain fed cows.

What I have never seen in the stores:
Cultured butter - This butter is made by first letting the cream culture, or by letting it sit out for about 8 hours. Cultured butter is actually quite common throughout continental Europe and I've heard rumors you can buy 'European style butter' here in the US, but I've never seen it at any store. Maybe some health food stores carry it? Maybe I just didn't look hard enough. If you've seen it, let me know!
Anyways, store bought cultured butter is made by first pasteurizing the cream and then adding a culture to it. Or you can make it at home by using Raw cream from a farm and letting it set for the day and ferment before you begin the butter process. (homemade sweet cream butter sits out just until room temp)

Benefits of eating cultured butter from grass fed cows:

• Easier to digest because of the presence of bacterial microbial flora. (think good bacteria like yogurt) Along the same lines, the culture consumes a good portion of the lactose in the cream, making it easier to digest for those who are lactose intolerant.
• Butter made from grassfed cows contians more unsaturated fatty acids, less saturated fatty acids, and has an optimum ratio of omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids. The correct balance of omega 6 and 3 is important to the health of your body.
• Culturing intensifies the butter flavor.
• Best of all, it's actually easier to make! I normally make my butter by shaking it in a mason jar and it takes about a half hour or so for sweet cream butter. Cultured butter took me about 6 minutes. Six minutes! You just have to think ahead a bit and put it out on the counter in the morning.

How to make cultured butter:

You'll need,
any amount of Raw cream
(or four cups cream and 1/3 cup plain, whole milk yogurt)

1. Set cream out for 12-18 hours (overnight) Should be somewhat thicker.
   
2. To make right away, set in bath of ice water and chill to 60 degrees. Otherwise, transfer back to the fridge, but warm to 60 degrees before making.
3. You can really use whatever you have to mix up the butter. A mason jar (only half full) electric mixer, or hand mixer works fine too.
4. Mix until butter separates from the buttermilk. With cultured butter this should take less than 10 minutes.
5. Drain off buttermilk and rinse the butter by pouring in water in place of the buttermilk. Mix, drain, repeat until water is clear.
6. Press into bowl or form into block with waxed paper.
7. Refrigerate and use within a week. Can also be frozen.
8. Enjoy the yummy goodness!
   

Park fun

Just a mile down the road from our house is a little Headstart/preschool building that has a great little playground made especially for very young kids. (the school is for kids 3 and 4 years old) We've been biking down there after dinner every once in awhile to let our almost 2 year old burn off some steam before bed.

Our most recent outing:

My little daredevil leaning out over the one and only spot that's 'open' on the whole thing.

I love that the structure is so low to the ground I don't have to follow him up the stairs!

My daredevil of a husband on the rock wall. Hey, it may be made for toddlers, but it is a whole 3 foot high! Careful hon!

My boys.

And since I don't post a lot of pics of myself, here you go.

Yea, my camera had to long of a lens on it for this.