Sunday, July 5, 2009

Finding Beauty In A Broken World




"I watched prairie dogs every day, rise before the sun, stand with their
paws pressed together facing the rising sun in total stillness for up to 30 minutes," says Williams. "And then I watched them at the end of the day take that same gesture 30 minutes before the sun goes down they would press their palms together in perfect stillness. I don't mean to anthropomorphize, but when you look at a creature that has survived over the millennium begin and end each day in that kind of stance, it causes one to think about one's own
life and speed and rapidity in which we live."


Terry Tempest Williams

Saturday, May 30, 2009

Green and Loving It!

Green Drink Video

When I first started my raw foods journey, I found the easiest way to get raw foods into me was to blend them. I was making soups and lots of fruit shakes. At the time, I was craving spinach and coconuts. I tried putting them together in my blender with an orange and surprisingly it was really good! At first I thought it was a little wierd, but later learned that it was just perfect! I will be forever grateful to the research that Victoria Boutenko put into Green Drinks and her book "Green For Life" . It totally changed the way I looked at my living food diet, and now I drink a variety of green drinks everyday! I love them!

Stay Green!

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Yummy Quote




"Finish each day and be done with it. You have done what you could; some blunders and absurdities have crept in; forget them as soon as you can. Tomorrow is a new day; you shall begin it serenely and with too high a spirit to be encumbered with your old nonsense."

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Swine Flu Redux



I noticed this morning on the news that the Swine Flu was making a comeback in the media. It reminded me of how grateful I am for my essential oils! I just love them! Just this morning, I was working in my garden putting in a new flower bed by my vegetables, and I strained my hand. I mean, I REALLY pulled it bad. I thought for sure that I was done and would spend the rest of the day nursing a sprained thumb. I quickly grabbed some peppermint essential oil, rubbed it all over my thumb and wrist, and went back out to work. Its still a little tender but its okay! I got my flowers in, and am sitting here typing away.

The really exciting thing about using essential oils for health is when using a quality organic therapeutic grade oil, I can take some of them orally as well as use them by smelling them or putting them on my skin. They go hand in hand with a raw foods diet.

Essential Oils have been used for thousands of years for health. Ancient Egyptians used them, and some were even found sealed in jars when their tombs were opened.

Thanks to Rene-Maurice Gattefossé, french chemist in the 1900’s who rediscovered the power of essential oils when a severe burn, accidentally immersed in lavender oil instead of water, healed in days. Gattefossé became the father of the French model of aromatherapy, in which essential oils are used intensively in and on the body, like any medicine. Then Dr. Jean Valnet, a World War II M.D. resorted to oils when he ran out of antibiotics and found them surprisingly effective. He continued to develop aromatherapy upon the foundation laid by Gattefossé.

Today we have many sources of essential oils. Most of them are used for perfumes, and are processed in a way that would prevent us from taking them internally or putting them directly on our skin without a carrier oil. However, more and more companies are realizing the benefits and power of essential oils in their pure forms and are doing more and more scientific research on their properties for healing. However, the problem with many of these companies is their sources. How to find a source that is pure. How to find a source that is consistent in potency.

I found such a company and I love their oils. dōTERRA (meaning “gift of the earth”) is a new company, and they are backing up their research with their dōTERRA Scientific Advisory Board. They provide training on how to use the oils, and are working hard on research using essential oils to treat diseases. Even day to day questions get answered. I’m learning something new everyday. It’s so cool. I think the thing I love the most, is they advise using the oils with a clean diet and lifestyle!! I have come to be a lover of the raw foods diet, and here’s a company supporting cleaning up the diet, supplementing with essential oils, using alternate methods for household cleaners, I’m even learning how to make a safe and effective gardening spray for my garden babies! *grin*

Here is a Basic Prevention protocol from Dr. Hill given at a lecture last month. Thank you to my cousin Robert who took fantastic notes and shared this with everyone!! Here is Rob’s original post.

10 basics of prevention from Dr. Hill

1. Wash your hands often with soap and water, especially after you
cough sneeze or wipe your nose. Tissues should be discarded
immediately in a wastebasket.

2. Cover your nose and mouth with a tissue when you cough or sneeze.
Discard the tissue immediately in a waste basket.

3. Run an essential oil diffuser often in your home and use On Guard as it was developed to boost our
immune systems, and guard us against pathogens.

4. While we are talking On Guard, I would also consider rubbing your
own children’s feet with it every night before bed time and every
morning before they put there shoes on for the day. Its a great way to bond with your kids, and boost their immune systems too!

5. Mist your families bed sheets with a mist of essential
oils before bedtime. 10 drops of on guard or some other essential oil
with a ¼ cup of water in a spray bottle – shake well.

6. If there is virus in your area, obviously you want to avoid contact
with those that are sick.

7. Put about 1 drop of lemon oil for every 8oz of water you and your
family drink. Over time this will greatly strengthen the immune
system.

8. As always, as you clean regularly around your home, use essential
oils to clean. Purify, On guard or lemon in a spray bottle used for
cleaning will assure pathogen free surfaces.

9. Be aware and recognize symptoms if they strike you or a family
member. Immediately begin an essential oil protocol and see a
professional if you experience symptoms. Swine flu symptoms are
similar to regular flu: Fever, body aches, sore throat, cough, runny
nose, vomiting, diarrhea, and lethargy.

10. Make your home a happy place, free from stress. A haven with kind
words and positive thoughts. Make a place of safety and refuge. As
storms rage on, have your home be a house of prayer, gratitude and
love. These are all things we can do that will create of synergy of
protection for your home and family.

Now what do we do if we find ourselves faced with symptoms of the flu?

Protocol for Viral Flu:

Nip it in the bud…Jump on the Genesis
train…Strike early and often…no matter what the idiom, the advise is
still the same. At the first indication of a symptom, strike back
quick and hard.

1. Make 00 size capsules of 8 drops oregano, 5 drops on guard and 3
drops frankincense. Then take the capsules internally twice daily.

2. Gargle twice daily with 1 drop oregano, 2 drops on guard, and 2
drops lemon in 1 or 2 tablespoons of pure water. After gargling for 5-10
minutes, swallow the mixture.

3. Oil pull daily with 1 tablespoon Virgin Coconut Oil, 2 drops oregano, and 2 drops
meleleuca. Pull for about 10 minutes before expectorating the blend.
Then brush your teeth and rinse out your mouth. This mixture may be
hot. If it’s too hot, reduce the oregano to 1 drop and add a drop of
lemon. You can also consider cinnamon, cassia or on guard instead of
meleleuca.

4. Always put lemon and peppermint in your drinking water and drink it
often. Staying hydrated is an important part of assuring the oils
work effectively in our bodies.

5. Consider other protocols for specific symptoms. Breathe to the
chest, neck and back for respiratory issues, digest-zen (often in a
capsule with frankincense) for nausea or digestive problems. Oregano
or Cinnamon and Lemon as a gargle for sore throats.

6. Make sure the oils you have are dōTERRA essential oils. Why? They are guaranteed to be sourced from the area’s in which the are indigenous to. They are organically grown. Harvested by correct
methods and at the correct time. Distilled by professionals at the
correct temperature and pressure. Finally each batch is tested by
independent labs for correct constituents content to guarantee
efficacy. These methods are key to insuring safety and effectiveness.

7. Diffuse the air that you are working, living and sleeping in. If
you are suffering from symptoms, consider oils and blends that will
help. If you are trying to quarantine areas of healthy air, diffuse
on guard.

8. Do twice daily spinal treatments. Look up the method on
www.everythingdoterra.com and use Virgin Coconut oil as a carrier for
the recommended oils (Balance, Eucalyptus, Breathe, Oregano, Basil,
Cypress, Marjoram, Peppermint, Aroma Touch )

9. Eat healthy mostly raw foods.

10. Get exercise and fresh air where possible.

For children that can’t take internal treatments, use appropriate oils
on their feet, chest and using the spinal treatment.
Oils that are an important part of your germ fighting arsenal and that
are good to have around are; On Guard, Oregano, Cinnaman, Myrrh,
Basil, Clove, Lemon, Peppermint, and the spinal treatment oils.
These essential oils have the ability to kill bacteria, fungi and
viruses, get down into the cellular level and make things right.
Essential Oils are proven natural combatants to boost the immune
system and protect us from and combat against flu strains including
the swine flu.

Friday, May 15, 2009

I like to relax with essential oils

Hot bath, Meditation, and Essential Oils. My favorite ones for relaxing are doTerra EO's called Balance, and the other is Serenity. Serenity totally helped me with a panic attack. Awesome stuff. http://www.mydoterra.com/julia/

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Stir Fry


I made Stir Fry the other day for one of my clients, and decided to make extra to have around here for munchies. I didn't add the dressing to it, so it will keep for a few days. Mmm! I love this stuff! So do my kids! Its so pretty. I love the colors!
Stir Fry
1 head of cabbage sliced on a processor, some purple opt.
2 cups bean sprouts
1 cup sliced almonds
3 cups chopped broccoli
3/4 cup chopped green onions
2 cups sliced mushrooms
1 lg. carrot shredded
1 red bell pepper sliced into thin strips

Dressing:
3-4 cloves garlic minced
1/2 cup olive oil + 2 T. sesame oil
1/3 cup nama shoyu
1 sm. bulb of ginger chopped
Blend until creamy in blender

Toss salad part. Pour dressing over all, let set 15 minutes before serving.
Sprinkle with sesame seeds.Makes a HUGE bowl of Stir Fry. This will feed my whole family.To keep in the fridge don't add the dressing until ready to eat.

Enjoy!

Tuesday, May 5, 2009

Stop the Spread of Swine Flu...


Stay positive, love, hope and eat well! Don't buy into the media MADness... the world is still a wonderful place and miracles happen everyday! Use essential oils, herbs, and good nutrition to stay healthy! I'll be posting an essential oil protocol for the flu soon.

Love those piggies!!!

Sunday, April 26, 2009

Yummy Quote




"Just as little as seed forces teach the plant how to grow, but rather appear as living beings within it, so our ideas don't teach: they pour themselves, igniting life -giving life- into our being. Everything that makes life seem meaningful to me I owe to the thoughts that have become available to me. I owe to them not only the courage but the insight and the strength that let me hope to make my children into people who are not only industrious and fit for outward life in the usual sense but who will carry inner peace and satisfaction in their souls."

The Spiritual Tasks of the Homemaker
By Manfred Schmidt-Brabant, Carol Brousseau

Quoting Rudolf Steiner, The Portal of Initiation

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Raw Food Classes




A big hello to all the amazing raw foodies that went to Melissa's class!
Isn't she awesome?! I hope you enjoy the cookies! (I'll have that recipe in my upcoming cookbook). For those of you who missed that class, check out rawmelissa.com for some more rawsome goodness coming up! Speaking of great raw food classes... I will be teaching again soon. I'm finishing up my raw foods cookbook this spring and will have that for sale online hopefully by May/June.
My son and I were talking about raw foods and dealing with being a vegan with well meaning friends who wonder why he doesn't eat meat, and he decided that he would like to teach a kids/teens class with me this summer! I'm SO excited. And so proud of him. He's making some really amazing choices at a young age.

The next class I will be teaching is with a longtime friend, Amy Jones. http://thebirthsource.org/
on May 2. To sign up for this or any of Amy's classes, visit http://woweducation.homestead.com/testimonials.html
I'll have a few copies of my cookbook for sale there as well!

Natural Remedies for Pregnancy & Postpartum

Safe, Effective, Time Tested Strategies
Pregnancy and having a baby....what a magical time in a woman's life! But when you are plagued with discomforts or your baby isn't feeling well, 1 month can feel like 1 year.

This class will address all your questions regarding curbing everything from morning sickness and anemia to recovery strategies to colic and postpartum depression and everything in between. Come learn the tips and tricks of midwives around the world. Herbs, essential oils, homeopathy, nutrition and more will be discussed.

Taught by Julia Holt, mother of 7 and Amy Jones, mother of 5. Both are doulas, childbirth educators, apprenticing herbalists and midwives with a combined total of over 22 years of professional experience and knowledge.


Where & When
Paradigm High School
Sat., May 2
11 AM- 1 PM

Tuesday, April 14, 2009

You Are What You Love

My kids.
My music.
My bedsheets.
My food.
My oils.
My herbs.
Rainy days.
Talking with a friend.
My bird.
My daughter's crazy cat.
A good book.
A hot cup of tea.
A hot bath.
Good lovin'.
Snuggling.
A funny movie.
Crazy hair.
Chocolate.
My family.
My garden.
Spring.

What do you love?

Monday, April 6, 2009

Prepare


Organize yourselves; prepare every needful thing;
and establish a house, even a house of prayer,
a house of fasting, a house of faith, a house of learning,
a house of glory, a house of order, a house of God;
That your incoming may be in the name of the Lord;
that your outgoings may be in the name of the Lord;
that all your salutations may be in the name of the Lord,
with uplifted hands unto the Most High.




So... every New Year's I pick a word that will shape my focus for the year. It totally works.
Last year I picked "Gratitude", and had many wonderful experiences that taught me the depth of being thankful. There is something about asking for and creating focus on what I want in my life!
This year I chose "Be Prepared". Wow. I believe the minute I picked that, I have been haunted by the dusty shelves in my food storage, the state of my garden, and whether or not I have enough water saved up. Oh! And how are my 72 hour kits?? Do we have an emergency plan in case of a fire? I'm feeling a bit overwhelmed, but have taken the counsel to take it on a little at a time.

Now I have fun picking out just one or two extra items when I grocery shop. I scheme over what meals my family would like to eat in case of an emergency. I have fun dreaming of roughing it with my family... hanging out fresh laundry out in the sun to dry, fresh bread made from freshly ground wheat flour baking in my adobe wood fired oven that I lovingly crafted in my back yard... and then I snap out of my romantic day dreams and am thankful for my washer and dryer, not to mention my computer... and Google... and eMail!! *kisses keyboard*

A funny thing has happened since January 1. I find that not only am I looking at how I can tighten up the ship, I have begun preparing myself spiritually. I gave up some intense pastimes that I thought I couldn't live without, but were taking time out of my family and me time. I have begun reading books again... by the boat-loads!! I love reading and I had forgotten how much I enjoy it.
I suppose what I have learned so far, is preparing is more about a state of mind and heart than it is about how much foodstuff I have tucked under the stairs. Not that that's not important, but that mindset has helped me not freak out that I don't have two years of food storage nestled away right this second. It will happen a little at a time. I'll get there.



For a little food storage fun:
http://www.shelfreliance.com/
http://mormonmommyblogs.blogspot.com/2009/04/righteous-giveaway.html

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Minutus cantorum, minutus balorum, minutus carborata descendum pantorum (A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants)



I love words. Especially ones that are fun to say.
Sometimes words hit me strange and wonder where we got such a funny word.
I love how they are put together and sometimes even feel like music.
Ever read Jane Austin and wish you could talk like that? I do. Often.
In a brave new world of texting, IM-ing, psting, twittering, even blogging... I often wonder at the flexibility of words. The English language IS a toy.
Oh, how I love playtime!

For a lil' daily fun:
www.wordsmith.org

Language is the archives of history. -Ralph Waldo Emerson

What happens in Vegas...




I just got back from Las Vegas. It's not what you think.
There were no slot machines, strip clubs or buffets. Vegas has a different meaning to me. Its where I learned to bloom in the desert.
My beautiful friends are there. You know... those friends who make you want to be something greater than you are?
Yes. I learned a great deal about myself and who I want to be, in the desert.
My family is there. How I miss them. My brother and his family. My son.
Now when things get a bit too hot, I remember my roots that are firmly planted in hard packed soil.

What's In That?

About the time I had my 4th child, I noticed that not only was my backside not bouncing back into shape as easily as it used to, but my body was freaking out over what I ate. I craved sugar and treats like mad! I found out that I was suffering from food allergies caused by a systemic candida infection. I tried lots of different pills and powders, but nothing truly changed for me until I started looking at what I was eating.

42-16857085

Fast forward to my 7th kid, and I found raw foods. What a miracle. It seemed too simple to me after all the $$ and time spent trying to figure out how to beat my illness. The first day I made a soup of veggies in my blender and over the next 6 months proceeded to heal and loose 50 lbs on a diet of Vegetables, Fruits, Nuts and Seeds. Nice.

The hardest part of eating a diet made up of vegetables, fruit, nuts and seeds, was learning how to cook again. I mean really. The women in my family are born KNOWING how to make a nice roast and a peanut butter pie. Blindfolded. How the heck am I supposed to prepare a main dish out of JUST veggies? No pasta? No dairy? NO GODIVA CHOCOLATES?! Not that Godiva had any place in a main dish, well… at least not in front of company, but you can see where my mind is going with this.

I tackled this by getting loads of new cookbooks and dove in. I then started teaching my friends, and then the community. I love this way of life! My kids love it too. We have had to learn how to balance out and not be freaky about it. (Such as, “OH NO! I consumed a french fry! My whole diet is blown and I need to juice fast for three days!) I have learned that my body does well on a 80% 20% raw to cooked food diet, and in the summer I can hold a 95% raw food diet comfortably. I even get Godiva once in a while.

Bonus? My kids are so much more aware of what they put in their bodies than I ever was at their age. They are healthy and strong. I have loads of energy, and find that I function better on so many levels.

tomatolove

Two years ago, I met a lovely woman and we opened a raw kitchen together. She makes the most WONDERFUL deserts, and I made entrees. I have since moved on to just teaching raw food classes locally and she makes both. www.rawmelissa.com

I think the thing I love the most about making raw foods, is how I feel when I am touching the food. Its alive. It holds it’s energy as it transforms into edible art. Its pure edible love.

I’m now in the process of putting together a raw foods cookbook with my kids and am learning more about essential oils and how to use them in my cooking.

Mmmm… essential oils. Now there’s a whole nutha’ subject that I could go off on.
They are amazing. And then put them in food?? Wowzers. I even make my own chocolate with them.

Mint Chocolate Cups for example… holy smokes. Or fruit dipped in Raw Chocolate Sauce. Yummy. I love being raw. I still eat a few cooked things. I just love food too much. Just admitting that feels almost sinful! Then I laugh at myself for feeling that way, and just feel the love.

Mint Chocolate Cups

1/4 cup nut butter

1/2 cup agave (or to taste)

1/2 cup melted coconut butter

1/2 cup raw ch0colate powder

1-2 drops DoTerra Peppermint essential oil

Blend until smooth and freeze in little paper cups. Eat. Melt into a chocolate bliss goo.

Chocolate Sauce with Fresh Fruit

½ C agave
½ C cocoa powder

Whisk together until smooth and use as a dip for fresh fruits. The best fruits for this are strawberries, pineapples, grapes, kiwi and especially bananas.

raw-food

Animaniacs-Be Careful What You Eat

www.rawfoods.com for more information, support, and recipes