Oil Cleansing Method (OCM)

For those of you that walk on the crunchier side, you've no doubt heard the buzz about the oil cleansing method (OCM).

I shuddered the first time I read the gory details: rubbing thick oil all over your face to COMBAT acne and overactive skin.

Insert sound of screeching record here.

But, I must say, I approve.

It takes some experimenting with that works best. Crunchy Betty has some great advice on getting started with OCM, as well as her lastest post on tweaking the formula a bit. 

What's working for me now: 2/3 castor oil to 1/3 Smude's cold-pressed sunflower oil; tamanu oil (just a few drops/shot) and a few drops of tea tree oil.

Shockingly, your face may seem a bit dry after following the hot washcloth washing instructions. I use a bit of tamanu oil (very powerful oil with healing properties) over my face as a moisturizer.

Thoughts? Successes or failures out there?

The Four Agreements

As I may have eluded to in the past, I am in yoga teacher training (RYT 220) and will graduate from this intense program in November. I'm in month 4 and each month gets deeper into the guts of what makes us...

But I digress - the first meeting brought the lesson that would set the stage for the entire practice and probably my entire life as I now know it: The Four Agreements, by Don Miguel Ruiz. Please comment in this post if you've read this book, heard of it, and any insights or ways this has changed you. Not only are these guidelines important for personal growth, they help in business/family/friends/relationships/marriage on a daily (hourly!) basis.

Briefly, the Four Agreements are as follows (summed up nicely by Ruiz on the book's jacket:

1. Be Impeccable With Your Word

Speak with integrity. Say only what you mean. Avoid using the word to speak against yourself or to gossip about others. Use the power of your word in the direction of truth and love. 

2. Don't Take Anything Personally (HUGE!)

Nothing others do is because of you. What others say and do is a projection of their own reality, their own dream. When you are immune to the opinions and actions of others, you won't be the victim of needless suffering.

3. Don't Make Assumptions

Find the courage to ask questions and to express what you really want. Communicate with others as clearly as you can to avoid misunderstandings, sadness, and drama. WITH THIS JUST ONE AGREEMENT, YOU CAN COMPLETELY TRANSFORM YOUR LIFE!

4. Always Do Your Best

Your best is going to change from moment-to-moment; it will be different when you are healthy as opposed to sick. Under any circumstances, simply do your best, and you avoid self-judgement, self-abuse, and regret.  

I feel like this book is a business model, marriage counseling course, relationship rescue, parenting handbook, and self-help book all rolled into one. The agreements are simple when read, but very hard to put into practice. Each agreement makes you more aware of yourself, your words and actions and makes you a more CONSCIOUS human.

Rich, Decadent Chocolate Pie. With Tofu.

This blog seems to be getting to be completely food-focused. Certainly, that is not my intent. However, being housebound in snow-laded Minnesota during sub-zero cold snap, followed by feet of snow...a girl tends to find solace in creating something delicious on which to focus.

I came across this original recipe for Chocolate Fudge Pie from none other than Chocolate Covered Katie - a source for all things sweet and amazingly healthy!

I made a couple tweaks, added almonds, coconut milk, extra cocoa...

Chocolate Fudge Pie

• 12.3 oz silken or firm tofu (Mori-Nu silken-firm had good results - was texture of a french silk pie. )
• 1 Tbsp cocoa powder
• 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons coconut milk (any milk works, really)
• 1/2 tsp sea salt (I like sweet n' salty)
• 8 to 10 oz chocolate chips (a little over 1 and 1/3c or more); semi-sweet is best
• 2-3 tablespoons agave or other sweetener (I used honey)
• optional: extracts, flavorings, or liqueurs

Melt the chocolate (either on the stove or in the microwave), then throw everything into a food processor (including almonds) and blend until super-smooth. Pour into a pie crust if desired. I just poured into pie plage and served it as a chocolate mousse. Fridge until chilled. This gets firmer and firmer, the longer it sits. 

The kids loved this. Moreover, my DH - meat and potatoes lovin' DH, loved this. As mentioned earlier, no one will know this has tofu. 

Really healthy, kid-approved, blueberry muffins

Waking up in Minnesota on this very snowy, Sunday morning, what could be better than warm, blueberry muffins? How about warm blueberry muffins that the kids gobbled up, AND have protein, fiber, low-sugar, low-fat? Coupled with the antioxidants in the blueberries and potassium in bananas, these are a home run. This batch made us 12 regular muffins and 10 mini muffins (in a 12-spot mini muffin tin, just put water in the spots that don't have batter to avoid burning/spotty baking). 

The base of this recipe came from Gina's SkinnyTaste.com; thank you!

• 1 1/2 cups Quaker old-fashioned rolled oats (quick oats work too, but are a bit more processed)
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk (or skim milk); I actually used coconut milk for this recipe and turned out really good.
• 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed
• 2 tbsp agave (or sugar, honey)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce; if you don't have this, use 1/2 c. banana (about 1 large)
• 2 egg whites
• 1 tbsp oil 
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 3/4 tsp seasalt
• Optional: toss in 1Tbsp of chia seeds and/or flax with the flour mixture for added benefits
• 1 cup fresh blueberries (or frozen; just don't stir much to avoid a Barney-like purple batter. 
• baking spray or muffin liners/papers (or  just drizzle a little olive oil onto a paper towel and wipe down the tins)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400°. Line a muffin tin with liners and lightly spray with oil.

Place oats in a food processor or chopper and pulse a few times. Soak oats in milk for about 30 minutes.  

In a medium bowl combine brown sugar, agave, apple sauce (or banana), vanilla, egg whites, oil and mix well.

In a third bowl combine whole wheat flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and whisk to combine.

Combine oats and milk with sugar, applesauce/banana mixture and mix well. Slowly add in the dry ingredients and mix until just incorporated. Fold in blueberries.

Spoon into the muffin tin and bake for 22-24 minutes. Enjoy!!

SuperFoods Meet SuperYum!

Oh, goodness this is...pure goodness! If you're looking for something sweet (but not too sweet) along with a little salty, Cho gonna love this!

Using non-fat Chobani yogurt, this gives you a whopping 23 grams of protein, and that's not including the protein added with the walnuts. Adding in chia seeds gives you magnesium, 150% DV of Omega-3s, and 4 grams of fiber. This is a superfood, superTREAT!

In my true, unorganized, unmeasured nature, all amounts are approximate. Obviously:)

1 cup Chobani non-fat PLAIN Greek Yogurt
Sprinkle with a tablespoon of chia seeds
Add blueberries and strawberries
Sprinkle with walnuts
Another dollop of Chobani
Drizzle with honey and Voila!
This is so good, you'll feel like you're cheating.

Add-ins:
I've used pistachios with this, almonds, etc Mix it up, nut.
Can also toss in some flax in lieu of chia or in addition to.
Drizzle with real maple syrup, agave nectar, or cane juice...
It's your treat; make it YOURS!

Let me know what you think and any additions/changes you make!

Cabin Fever? Unplug.

Ugh. Winter in Minnesota.
We warmed to balmy 10 degrees today after a knock-down drag-out bout with temperatures in the sub-zero range for a week. For those of us that live it, posting synonyms of what this kind of cold feels like is pointless, not to mention annoying.
It's cold.

Which means taking the 4- and 2-year old outside isn't an option for days on end. While tempted to watch movie after glorious kid's movie (Lorax x3; James and the Giant Peach x4), we finally just unplugged for the weekend. These are the days I am reminded of my own childhood, and forced to admit: indeed, I sound just like my parents. "Turn off the TV...Get outside...You need fresh air...You better wash the milkers and sweep up feed before breakfast..." Ok, not that last part. But my point remains.

Free, kid-created, entertainment will (hopefully) always prevail; sure, in a day and age when 5 year olds are more computer savvy than their parents and every elementary-aged has a cell phone/DS/Wii (in my generation, that would have translated to car phone/Gameboy/Nintendo, I suppose), people like to say things to the contrary.

But I'll play the nostalgia card: big cardboard box and blanket-and-chair forts will always prevail.
Unplug. Listen. And when the kids ask, "Will you play with me?" Say yes. They aren't going to ask for long.

Healthy(er) Chocolate Chip Cookie

I think I've finally done did it: a chocolate chip cookie that's not fat- and sugar-laded that actually tastes good. With good stuff like flax, brown-rice protein and olive oil, this is a guilty-pleasure with only 1/4 of the guilt. And calories:)

Oven at 375 degrees or thereabouts.

1 c. whole wheat flour
1 tsp. baking powder
2 Tbsp. brown rice protein powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. sea salt
Mix the above in separate bowl (we'll call this bowl #1)

In another bowl (yes, bowl #2):
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce
2 egg whites (Alternatively, use flax and water to replace an egg: 1 Tbsp flax with 3 Tbsp water. Mix until it gets a bit goopy and then add to this mix)
2 Tbsp EVOO (Or, if you don't like the heavy taste of EVOO, use 1 Tbsp almond oil with 1 Tbsp EVOO)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix contents of bowl #2 together. Once mixed, add to bowl #1 until it's just moist (love that word).

Then, add 1 1/3 c. oats (can be the quick oats or rolled oats)

Optional:
About a 1/2 c of chocolate chips.
And then a 1/4 c. of chopped walnuts, depending on your tastes and allergies :)

Mix it up, drop in on your cookie sheet in rounded teaspoonfuls about 2 inches apart, bake 10-12 minutes until golden brown (will be harder to determine 'golden brown' as they are pretty dark with the ww flour and all), and Voila!

Post your additions, changes; would love to hear!

Leaning in..naturally

This is often a hot topic in almost any circumstance. Online, it's a free-for-all of name-calling, bullying, opinionated, and very heated arguments filling up the blogosphere. In real life, this is as a heated conversation in-person, even when not hidden by anonymity of an online identity. Mom's will defend their seemingly religious-like stance (and yes, sometimes, it actually is religious-based) on immunizations...surgically placed tubes for ear infections vs. chiropractic care...olive oil or chemical shampoo for cradle cap...baking soda or desitin for rashes...the list is endless.

While I do like to lean toward the more natural approach to most things, I'm a only a toe-dipper. I haven't fully submersed into the all-natural, all organic, non-GMO, vegan, grass-fed, etc. approach. Sure, it's a nice thought, and we mom's may do an eye-roll or two when we hear our latest mom frenemy shaming us for not raising our own grass fed cow from which to harvest our raw milk for the kids' organic bowl of cereal (poured into a glass, not plastic bowl, of course). Part of us thinks, "I could be that mom." But the overwhelming majority of our brain says, "Back off."

With the aformentioned as my segue, let me say that I will never use an anti-biotic for a UTI again. Yes, perhaps a bit too much information, but when I find something that works this well and without the side effects and stripping of good bacteria that a drug like Bactrum or Zithromax does on the system, I must share it for the sake of my fellow suffers. Two helpers:
1. UTI Clear - Taken daily under the tongue or in a drink (it doesn't taste bad) it helps keep the good/bad bacteria in balance.
2. UT Answer - Once your UTI is coming on (the dreaded feeling!), take this regimen. It honest-to-Pete works. Three Tbsps on Day 1; Two on Day 2; One on Day 1 and done.
For these two little power houses, I could not be happier.

Which leads me to my question - what are some natural cures (purchased or created) that work for what ails you? This is a subject that I'll be exploring more, so please share!

Be careful which way you lean

A remarkable anecdote from The Lorax: A tree falls the way it leans; be careful which way you lean. This has stuck in the frontal cortex of my brain...be careful which way you lean. It's easier said than done, isn't it?

This kicks off my LeanTree blog, aimed at asking the questions, offering opinion and observations, even when opinions and advice aren't warranted. Or wanted.

We tend to Lean in the direction we were raised. We surround ourselves with those that make us comfortable - family, friends, jobs, co-workers. We (and of course by 'we', I typically mean 'me') enshroud ourselves with situations and individuals that don't mean harm, but in doing no harm, aren't challenging us either. It's good 'ol, trusty, never-hurt-anybody white bread. Scratch that. Not white bread. Because now we all know that white bread is, in fact, bad for us. I digress. You get the point.

To become a role model for my kids and truly for myself (cheesy as that may sound), my goal for not only this year, as we no 'resolutions' are usually a flash in the pan, but for life is to challenge  myself. Challenge where I live, who I surround myself with, what I do...challenge the norms of rural living (more on that in future editions), challenge my young (2 and 4 yo) children. Challenge my DH.

To that end...next up: our first tri...