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How To Make Blueberry Iced Green Tea in 5 Minutes

We have all heard the benefits of drinking green tea. It’s known to be full of polyphenols and antioxidants.  It has been touted to help speed weight loss. Every time I turn around there is a new benefit. What made green tea super important to me was it’s benefits for cancer fighters/survivors.

I knew I had to find a way to get this super tea into my diet. In the winter this is easy for me, because I depend on cups of tea to stay warm! Once it became warm outside, I had to find another way to drink tea that would work for me. Well, I have done just that.  I have found a super easy way to get all those awesome benefits into may body, and in pretty large doses at that!

Lately, I have been making 2 quarts of green tea a day and drinking it ALL! I found one that I love, it is Celestial Seasonings Blueberry Green Tea Cold Brew.

Talk about easy, all I do is:

~fill 2 mason jars, quart sized, with filtered cold water
~add 4 bags to each jar
~let cold brew for 5 minutes
~add ice to one, a lid to the other
~start sipping on one, put the other in refrigerator for later

It has great flavor and no bitterness. I do sometimes add just a touch of sweetener, but it really does not need much.

My one and only complaint is that this tea is not organic. I figure the benefits outweigh that one negative, and the hot green tea I drink in the cold months is organic, so at least it is not all year!

I love that once I finish both quart jars of tea, I know that I have had 8 cups of fluid for the day. This is a great way to monitor the amount of liquids I get.  Bonus!

PS..did you see my favorite glass straw in the first photo?  I love it.  It comes with it’s own tiny little straw scrub brush.  You want one?  If you buy it from Amazon using this link, Foods Alive Glass Straw with Brush – Ecofriendly, 1-Ounce I will get a small percentage.  While you are there, you can pick up some Celestial Seasonings Cool Brew Blueberry Iced Green Tea — 40 Tea Bags!

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ANTI-PROCRASTINATION/ HOME

Anti-Procrastination Tuesday

Goals This Week:
~ Pack Great School Lunches For My Girls
~ Revamp Back To School Kids Schedule
 ~ Revamp My Fall Schedule

Goals Accomplished Last Week:
~ Swim Swim Swim!
~ Take Library Books Back
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Attention New Nostalgia Readers: 

Did you see this post about the opportunity to sponsor New Nostalgia? 
Seriously, I think this is the BEST sponsor deal you will find! $25.00 for a month exposure to over 500,000 views, 250×150 size ad. Come read why I decided to offer the best deal possible & why I felt uncomfortable charging twice that, despite success. 
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Last week’s most clicked on links: 

Creamy Coconut Bars @ Semi-Domesticated Mama

Six Natural Fragrances That Heal @ Our Homemade Happiness

Egg Carton Recycling Project @ Live Laugh Love

My Fav:

Preserving Kale @ Life’s Abundant Adventures

__________________ 
Be Inspired, Be Encouraged & Get Something Done! 
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FAMILY/ Healthy Eating/ HOME/ Meals/ Parenting/ RECIPES/ Simplifying

Need School Lunch Ideas & Inspiration? So Did I. Here Ya Go!

Best School Lunch Inspiration, healthy and eco friendly ideas | New Nostalgia

I am on a mission this year to make our school lunches something my kids look forward to.  I also want to feel good about the food I serve them.  By the end of the school year last year, if I even mentioned peanut butter and jelly all 3 of my girls would moan.

I’ve been scouring the web for inspiration and guess what?  I AM SUPER INSPIRED!

I’ve learned that half the battle is having the right equipment, so today I will be going shopping for thermoses, containers & ice packets.  I am so tired of buying little baggies, not to mention the waste, so small containers it is.  They will eventually pay for themselves with the money I save in not buying those zippy little baggies!

On to my inspiration:

This first pin share is a great way to get started.  I am going to print it off and keep it on my refrigerator for inspiration & a quick reference when I am making my grocery list.  It is a list of lunch box ideas sorted according to each type of food–fruit, vegetable, dessert, fillers, etc.

Source: flickr.com via New on Pinterest

This is an awesome site.  This mom documented every lunch she packed for her child for a year.  She said the square box she uses in each lunch is from Target.  I like how she uses a muffin liner to separate foods.  She also writes that she uses press and seal for any “spillable” foods like yogurt or dips.

Make smoothies, freeze them, then put them in lunch box.  They will freeze just enough by lunch time, and also act as a cold pak.

This is a great post by my blog friend Cassidy at Remodelaholic.   She lists 25 best school lunches, some are quite creative.  I like the simplicity of the lunch pictured above.  A silicone muffin liner is another way to separate food, and is reusable.

This is a super fun idea if your kids are banana lovers. Write on them with toothpicks and as the day goes on, the message appears.

I know I will fall back on the trusty peanut butter and jelly sandwich once in awhile, but I don’t think my girls will mind if I add some interesting & healthy sides to it.  That power bar looks awesome, huh? Click link under the photo for the recipe.

This site is in Spanish, but the picture speaks for itself.  What a simple, cute & healthy way to express love.  Kids love and notice little touches.

Source: family.go.com via New on Pinterest

This photo is from the Disney family site.  They have a TON of great ideas for school lunches, all organized and divided up according to what your child’s tastes are.  I love this one with hummus, flat bread and tabbouleh.  Again, the cupcake liners serve as dividers.

Aren’t these so cute.  Easy and sweet.  I’m gonna have my 9 year old make the clips, but I won’t tell her what I plan on doing with them!

School lunch vanilla parfait.  I plan to put my mason jars to good use with this idea!  Yum.

The rest of my shares will be from this amazing site called Easy Lunch Boxes.  There are so many ideas!  I will share my favs:

Served with a thermos of lentil soup.

Served with a thermos of tomato soup.

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Want to see more of my pins?  I’d love you to follow me on Pinterest.

Follow Me on Pinterest
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Got any more great lunch ideas for me?  Please share in the comments!

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ANTI-PROCRASTINATION/ HOME

Anti-Procrastination Tuesday

Goals This Week:
~Wipe down inside of car
~Swim, Swim, Swim–school starts soon!
~Take library books back
~Basement storage area straighten
~Organize pantry
Goals Accomplished Last Week:
~Clean out refrigerator
~Clean our freezer
~Pick up, vacuum & sweep sunroom
~Clean out car
_______________

Attention New Nostalgia Readers: 
Did you see this post about the opportunity to sponsor New Nostalgia? 
Seriously, I think this is the BEST sponsor deal you will find! $25.00 for a month exposure to over 500,000 views, 250×150 size ad. Come read why I decided to offer the best deal possible & why I felt uncomfortable charging twice that, despite success.

You can sign up now and have your ad up and running today!

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Last weeks most clicked on links:

DIY Remove Labels From Jars @ Don’t Waste The Crumbs

Nourishing Cocoa Bars @ Mom Essentials

Margarita Carrots @That Crunchy Twin Mom

Living Room Reveal @ Creatively Living
__________________

Be Inspired, Be Encouraged & Get Something Done!

_________________





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HOME/ How-Tos/ RECIPES/ Sides/ Simplifying

How To Roast/Steam Corn On The Cob In The Oven–No Shucking Mess!

how to roast corn in the oven, no shucking mess.
I am tickled about finding this super great trick to roast and steam corn at the same time.  It is now the main way I make corn on the cob.

Why?

Because I DO NOT like the mess of shucking corn.  Not at all.  Blech.

This ‘steam in the husks while in the oven’ way to make corn is by far my favorite way!  It is fool proof, fast, and mess free.  The steaming process makes the stings super limp, so once the corn cools a bit and you husk it, they come right off!  So much better than husking before cooking the corn!

The only prep you have to do is cut off the tassel part of the corn. Be careful not to cut too far down into the corn, as you want the husks to envelop the corn in order to steam it while it roasts.

Place on a cookie sheet, and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Let sit a few minutes before removing husks and be careful.  There is steam in there.  Cool enough to handle comfortably, husk and enjoy!

Oven Roasted Corn On The Cob
courtesy of Tyler Florence on Food 911

4-6 ears of corn

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cut off tassel part of the corn, making sure you do not cut too far down into the corn, as you want the husks to envelop the corn in order to steam it.  Roast for 30 minutes.  Let cool slightly.  Peel down the husks, can use as a handle to eat the corn.

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ANTI-PROCRASTINATION/ HOME

Anti-Procrastination Tuesday

I just got back from a trip to California to visit my sweet friend Karen from I Choose Hope.
I wrote a bit about how we met (this blog!) at this post.

This will be short and sweet as I am a bit jet lagged.

Can’t wait to tell you all about my trip!

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Have you seen our new sponsor options?  
You can sign up now and have your ad up and running today!

Attention New Nostalgia Readers: 
Did you see this post about the changes here at New Nostalgia? 
Seriously, I think this is the BEST sponsor deal you will find! $25.00 for a month exposure to over 500,000 views, 250×150 size ad. Come read why I decided to offer the best deal possible & why I felt uncomfortable charging twice that, despite success.


{To Sign Up RIGHT NOW & have your ad up and running in no time, CLICK HERE}

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Be Inspired, Be Encouraged & Get Something Done!
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HOME/ Homemaking/ Organizing/ Simplifying

Eat That Frog-Don’t Procrastinate!


This is a guest post by professional organizer Susan Stewart of Perfectly Placed.

Have you heard the saying that if the first thing you do when you wake up each morning is eat a live frog, nothing worse can happen for the rest of the day?

Brian Tracy, author of Eat That Frog, writes that your “frog” should be your most difficult task on your To Do list—the one you are most likely to procrastinate on. If you eat that first, it will give you energy and momentum for the rest of the day. If you don’t, and that frog stays on your list, you’ll spend all kinds of time doing unimportant tasks while you try to avoid eating it. Not only does avoiding your frog waste time, but as you you are busy distracting yourself with a more pleasurable task, thoughts of your frog keep creeping back all day long, bringing stress along with it. By the end of the day the frog is still there and you are mentally exhausted. 
I remember when I first came across these amazing thoughts by Brian Tracy. They resonated so deeply with me! You may think that a professional organizer doesn’t ever procrastinate, but of course I do! We all try to avoid things that are difficult, boring or scary. Those are the things that tend to be the frogs. Knowing this, knowing I’m not alone, and knowing I have a choice in it, has brought me freedom and that’s why I’m sharing it with you. I want YOU to experience the freedom of eating the frog too.

When I get up in the morning, I look over my to do list and pick 2 or 3 things that I know are my frogs for the day. When I admit they are frogs and confront them first thing, it is amazing how that affects my day! I have more energy, get more done and feel much more in control. I feel proud of myself when I eat those frogs!

My question to you is this- what are your frogs today and what will you do about them? The only way to get rid of them is to eat them. Will you eat them first or will you let them sit there all day, hoping they’ll hop away? The choice is up to you. I encourage you to eat them first and enjoy the freedom and success you’ll feel when they’re gone. By the way, I just finished eating mine.
P.S. Sign up here to receive 10 Time Management Secrets Every Woman Should Know
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