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Beauty/ Frugal/ HEALTH/ HOME/ How-Tos/ RECIPES

Homemade Organic Eye Makeup Remover–Only 2 Ingredients!

I have never really been one to use eye makeup remover.  I usually would just wash my face and slap on moisturizer, then use a tissue + whatever moisturizer was on my face to swipe away the smudges.  But, as I am getting older, I really want to be more gentle with the sensitive skin around my eyes, and scrubbing off smudges just is not gentle.

I was excited to have Pot Holes & Pantyhose link up her DIY Organic Eye Makeup Remover at Anti-Procrastination Tuesday.  It is a simple, 2- ingredient, super pure and healthy recipe.  I made it myself and I am loving it!  Not only does it remove my eye make up beautifully, but it moisturizes the fragile skin around my eyes with wonderful, gentle organic ingredients.  I LOVE IT!

I found this little bottle at my local heath food store.  Same with the Almond Oil.  I have been finding all kinds of fun DIY beauty recipes that I will be trying, so in the future I am planning on using Mountain Rose Herbs as my one stop shop for organic ingredients and containers.

Mountain Rose Herbs. A herbs, health and harmony c

They carry all kinds of essential oils and butters.  They also have almond oil.  They have a wonderful reputation, so I feel very confident sharing their store with you all!
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Homemade Organic Eye Makeup Remover
{recipe makes 3.5 ounces}

4 TBLS Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3 TBLS Organic Almond Oil

Using a funnel, pour ingredients into a container of your choice.  Use a small amount on a tissue or cotton ball and wipe that makeup away!

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Potholes and Pantyhose has the breakdown of the cost of this.  Let’s just say it is super cheap, especially compared to similar products in the store.  I am excited to have Almond Oil on hand as I am stumbling upon some great recipes that use it.  More to come!

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How-Tos/ Kids/Family/ RECIPES

Fun With Food For Kids

Source: ontobaby.com via Amy on Pinterest

Toddler buffet using ice cube trays.  So cute!


{wanna follow me there? Click here.}

Fruit served in ice cream cone cups.  Would be cute for a baby shower or summer party!

Rainbow on a skewer.

Source: opiefoto.com via Amy on Pinterest

Tortellini skewers with pesto dipping sauce

Veggie cups. No more worries about double dipping!

Grilled chocolate banana melt.  Fun after school snack..at least they get some fruit with it!

Peanut butter and jelly “sushi” rolls.

Apple and grape cars.

Fun cheesy sunflower and grapes.  Another after school snack idea.

Source: google.com via Amy on Pinterest

Fun owl food.  This would take just minutes to make, but lasting smiles!

Source: thekitchn.com via Amy on Pinterest

Watermelon and Cantaloupe fruit pops!  How clever.

Source: tumblr.com via Amy on Pinterest

So tropical!
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3
HEALTH/ Healthy Eating/ How-Tos/ RECIPES

Finding Healthy Fast Food

Tis the season to be out and about, finishing up the Christmas shopping and enjoying the season. I try to eat at home as often as possible, but I find myself running around and sometimes in need of a fast meal.

 I thought I would share some of my favorite places to find fast food that is more on the healthy side.  I have been eating a plant based diet the last 6 months, which is why you will see me suggest no cheese or meat and seeking out as much plant based, simple foods, as possible.  Even if you are a meat and dairy eater, it is good to avoid them at times. It gives your digestion system a rest, and cuts calories and cholesterol.

Noodles & Company
Bangkok Curry!
Sweet coconut curry, broccoli, carrots, red pepper, onion, mushrooms, a light portion of rice noodles, served on cabbage with black sesame  I am addicted to this stuff.  I get a small bowl with no meat, and ask for extra broccoli in place of mushrooms.  I am not a mushroom fan.  Most of the Asian bowls are on the healthier side..stay away from the mac and cheese, and don’t be tempted to top your bowl with chicken that is breaded, processed and fried!

Subway
Veggie 6 inch sandwich.  Ask for the wheat bread, and use vinegar but no oil.  They now have guacamole at Subway, so I use that in place of mayonnaise.  I ask for extra spinach, and have lettuce, cucumbers, bell peppers, tomato and banana peppers. This has often saved me on road trips! Delish.


Chipotle
Wraps with no cheese, meat or sour cream. Rice, of course. Ask for their fajita vegetables, it adds so much flavor. Use guacamole for creaminess, and beans in place of meat. Salsa is a must!

Taco Bell
This is a tough one! Hmmm.. Fresco bean burrito, no cheese?  Chips and salsa for a snack until you get home?  Careful if you click on the link..the bell rings.  Loudly.  I just about jumped out of my chair.

Wendy’s
Bake potato topped with their chili.  YUM!

Pizza
Find a place that is made to order.  Try to stay away from chains and find a local pizzeria. Load it up with veggies and ask for half the cheese, or if vegan, no cheese.  Make sure to get a side salad with it, but only if it is made with dark green leafy lettuce or spinach.  Go easy on the dressing.

Grocery Store Salad Bar
Eat the rainbow.  Choose dark leafy spinach and greens, peppers, broccoli, carrots.  Top your salad with fruits or eat fruit as your dessert.  Most of these type of bars have soup–steer clear from the heavy, creamy type, go for for the bean soups and chili.

Hospital
Sounds funny, but I have been taking my girl to therapy for a knee injury at our local hospital.  It is a beautiful place, one that I am very familiar and comfortable with.  We have visited the cafeteria quite a bit. They have a wonderful salad bar, yogurt/granola bar, & veggie burgers.  There is a lot of junk food, too, so you have to be disciplined.  I find the price is really great for what you get in hospitals!

Coffee Shops
I have been drinking my coffee black.  It is so much cheaper than those pricey lattes that are full of sugar. I don’t do dairy or soy, and most coffee shops do not carry almond milk, so black it is for me.  I have slowly gotten used to it, and now prefer it!  Even better, get hot tea.  I personally can’t smell the coffee and not get any, so I save the tea sipping for home.  If you are hungry, ask for oatmeal or a whole grain bagel, skip the cream cheese.  Avoid most muffins, they are usually loaded with white flour, white sugar and oil.

Health Food Stores
I am fortunate enough to live right by a great co-op, and it even has a deli with vegetarian and vegan offerings.  I often get their wraps or veggie burgers.  They have all kinds of salads full of grains and vegetables.  If your local health food store does not have a deli, it still is a great place to stop and get a healthy snack.  Grab a banana or apple, a Larabar and a bottle of Kombucha.  It will keep you satisfied and away from the golden arches down the street!

Water
It seems like a no brainer, but skip the pop.  It is just plain nastiness.  High-fructose corn syrup in regular, and nasty aspartame in diet.  Water is cheap, and once your body gets used to it, you won’t be able to handle highly sweetened or artificially sweetened beverages anymore, and you will crave water.  I was told this and didn’t think it would happen, but it did!

Do you find yourself grabbing fast food often?
Do you have any other ideas for me?

16
Healthy Eating/ HOME/ Homemaking/ How-Tos/ RECIPES

My New Favorite Kitchen Toy

Guess how much time it took me to cut all those veggies?  Looks time consuming, huh?  Well, it wasn’t. It literally took me 3 minutes with my new, handy dandy mandolin!

I have been wanting one of these forever, and found this one for a buck at a garage sale.  It is not fancy, but it is sharp and gets the job done!  It makes eating raw fruits and vegetables fast and fun.  I find that we have greatly increased our veggie and fruit consumption in this house due to this handy gadget.
My girls beg me for apples now that we can slice them so thin.  They liked apples before, but now they eat them like they are candy!  

I like this model for basic slicing, but one of these days I am going to get a mandolin that allows you to adjust the thickness of your slices, like the fancy one below.  That would be great!

{I’m asking for these for Christmas!:)}

**Caution..do not let children use these.  It is very sharp and way too easy to slice a finger.  I’m currently growing back half my fingernail–yea, ick.
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Frugal/ HOME/ How-Tos/ RECIPES

“Eat From The Pantry” Week

Our mail man keeps delivering medical bills on a daily basis, so in order to cut some corners around here, I am challenging our family to an “Eat From The Pantry” (and freezer) week.

I am not one to stock up on food, so this is a challenge.  But I like a challenge, it forces me to get creative.  I’m going to take it day by day, and see how far in the week we get before our pantry is empty.

Here are a few things I did today to help in this week-long adventure:

~Found some dough in my freezer and made these Pizza Roll-Ups for the kids lunch.  I’m freezing any extras for snacks later in the week.

~I made a big pot of brown rice in my rice cooker.  I love to make a bunch, then put into freezer bags.  Rice reheats beautifully.  For lunch today, I ate Rajma Masala (red kidney beans curry) over the rice.  Yum!

~I boiled a bunch of eggs to make Egg Salad Sandwiches for dinner.

~I don’t want to go buy bread to serve the Egg Salad Sandwiches on, so I threw Homemade Hamburger Buns into my bread maker.  Since I am cutting back on animal products (after reading The China Study) I will enjoy a Vegetarian Nature Burger on my bun. 🙂

~I will serve the sandwiches with Sweet Potato Coins to use up the bag of sweet potatoes I have.

~My youngest and I made a double batch of Chia Oats.  She loves to eat it for breakfast and snack.  We also made a batch of Chocolate Peanut Butter Chia Oats.  We are going to blend them up and make Chocolate Chia Oat Popsicles.  If we are successful and they taste good, I will for sure post about them!

~I have a bag of pinto beans.  I am planning on making them in the crockpot using the method in the video above.  They are super filling and nutritious, great on rice or in wraps.

~I know my girls will want some sweets, so I will make a batch of homemade Strawberry Fruit Roll-Ups with our frozen berries from the Strawberry Patch.  Yum!

If I can make it through the week with only buying a few grocery items, I can save over $100.00!  
Wish me luck!:)

4
HOME/ How-Tos/ RECIPES/ Simplifying

My Favorite Way To Cut An Orange

Knife Cutting An Orange Into Slices
My kids think I am the only one on the planet that can cut an orange “properly.” I love that they think that. Their friends also tell me they love how I cut oranges. Then adults started telling me the same thing, which is when I started to believe there was something special about how I do it.

 

Hmmm…who woulda thunk it?

 

In this post I’ll show you my favorite way to cut an orange so you can see just how simple it is to get those picture perfect slices.

 
Continue Reading…

22
Books/ Healthy Eating/ How-Tos/ RECIPES

My Favorite Food Rules

Food Rules: An Eater's Manual
by Micheal Pollan
I am a big fan of Micheal Pollan.
He was the first one that I have read who was able to take the incredibly complicated question of
 “What Should I Eat?”
 and answer it in just seven words:
“Eat Food. Not too much. Mostly plants.”
 I read his first book, In Defense Of Food, a year ago and just really jived with it.   I was so happy to see that he came out with a short, easy to read, manual that expands on the answer.
Each page gives a simple tip on what to eat.  I read the book in 30 minutes and loved it.
Here are some of my most favorite tips from the book:
#2 Don’t eat anything your great-grandmother wouldn’t recognize as food.
 
(for example–neon colored tubes of flavored gel called Go-GURT!)
 
 
 
#3 Avoid food products containing ingredients that no ordinary human would keep in the pantry
 
(ethoxylated diglycerides??)
 
 
 
#4 Avoid food products that contain high-fructose corn syrup
 
(it is a reliable marker for a food product that has been highly processed)
 
 
 
#5 Avoid foods that have some form of sugar (or sweetener) listed among the top three ingredients.
 
(exception to this rule, are “special occasion” foods–see Rule 60)
 
 
#6 Avoid food products that contain more than five ingredients.
 
(another sign that it is a highly processed food)
 
 
 
#7 Avoid food products with the word “lite” or the terms “low-fat” or “non-fat” in their names.
 
( Refined carbs can make you fat.  Sugar makes you fat.  Many low-fat or no-fat products boost the sugar and salt to make up for the flavor lost when removing fat)
 
 
 
#10 Avoid foods that are pretending to be something they are not.
 
(imitation butter-aka-margarine-is the classic example.  Artificial sweeteners..)
 
 
 
#11 Eat only foods that will eventually rot.
 
(real food is alive food…therefore it should eventually die)
 
 
 
#12 Eat foods made from ingredients that you can picture in their raw state or growing in nature.
 
(read ingredients on a package of Twinkies or Pringles and imagine what those look like raw or where they grow…ya can’t!)
 
 
 
#19 If it came from a plant, eat it; if it was made in a plant, don’t.
 
 
 
#22 Eat mostly plants, especially leaves
 
(antioxidants, fiber, omega- 3 fatty acids, energy dense!)
 
 
 
#23 Treat meat as flavoring or special occasion food.
 
(become a “flexitarian”–someone who eats meat only a couple times a week)
 
 
 
#25 Eat your colors!
 
(colors from nature are full of polyphenols, flavonioids, carotenoid, which all fight disease!)
 
 
 
#34 Sweeten and salt your food yourself.
 
(you will find you are consuming a fraction as much sugar and salt as you otherwise would–example oatmeal–buy plain not flavored, sweetened or colored!)
 
 
 
#36 Don’t eat breakfast cereals that change the color of the milk.
 
(ha..like that one.  It’s kind of a “duh”)
 
 
 
#37 “The whiter the bread, the sooner you will be dead”
 
(I expand on that here)
 
 
 
#39 Eat all the junk food you want, as long as you cook it yourself.
 
(if you made all the french fries you ate, you would eat them much less often!  Too much work!)
 
 
 
#57 Don’t get your fuel from the same place your car does
 
(Gas stations have become processed corn station.  Ethanol outside and high-fructose corn syrup inside!)
 
 
 
#60 Treat treats as treats.
 
(special occasion food is great as long as every day is not a special occasion.  Save them for weekends or for true special occasions!)
 
 
 
Food Rules: An Eater's Manual
 
In Defense of Food: An Eater's Manifesto
by Micheal Pollan
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