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TGIF! Have a great weekend and Mother’s Day all! I am hoping to kickstart my weekend this morning with a viewing of Dark Shadows at the theater and then watching the Central East Regional CrossFit games on ESPN3 since some of the guys/gals from my gym are competing. Go team CFNA! It would be lovely to go in person since they are in Columbus, OH but I think my kids would be bored out of their minds. The rest of the weekend is pretty up in the air. We have been invited to a picnic and there is an herb festival the next town over. Lots of possibilities.

Stuff I am Reviewing…

Nature Box – This is another one of those monthly box deals and it is all about healthy snacks. We enjoyed our box and would have enjoyed it much more prior to going paleo since a couple of snacks were grain based. The dried cherries were phenomenal though, yum! My husband also really liked the dried veggie crisps and my kids did enjoy some non paleo snacking for a time. My kiddos never had a fig newton before trying the ones in this box, LOL. That kind of blew me away.

This concept is really awesome if you have a hard time sticking to your guns when it comes to healthy snacks. I don’t think they are organic but they are pretty natural and without artificial sweeteners, HFCS, food dyes, and other nasty stuff. The promo code HEALTHY may be used for 25% off your first month of subscription, if you care to give them a try.

Full Circle Fresh Air Kitchen Compost Collector - We got this shortly before Earth Day and I gave it a try. I didn’t realize at the time that it relies on bio plastic baggies to collect the kitchen scraps and I am not a fan of that but it it is still a good kitchen option for those who are not composting. It sits on your counter and you just drop the scraps in as you collect them. Every 3 to 4 days you are supposed to remove them but we typically went longer than that. There was no smell, which is a bonus, but it did attract fruit flies. I will be donating or freecycling mine as I just don’t like having to use plastic bags.

A Hadaki Cosmopolitan Tote bag – They consider it an eco-friendly option because their products are AZO free, contain no Phthalates / DEHP or DBP. I think we differ somewhat in our definition of eco friendly but I do not mind plastic based tote bags so much because they are durable and reusable. This particular bag is quite awesome in size and I can see myself taking it to the farmer’s market, the local pool, and to BlogHer12 in New York City (only 3 months away!) to carry all my goodies.

Astroglide Natural - Got some of this last week. I am not going to go into how I personally like it since that’s none of your business. :) I do however like that so many of the companies that make these personal lubricants are removing the toxic ingredients! Astroglide has no glycerin, fragrance, parabens, or alcohol. I also ran the ingredients list through the Skin Deep database and all scored a 1 or 2. Pretty good.

Books I am Reading…

The Other Baby Book: A Natural Approach to Baby’s First Year was one of my recent reads. I am not expecting nor will I ever be again, or that’s the plan at least, but I still enjoyed reading this book. I think it would have been much more beneficial to read a book like this when I was newly pregnant instead of the standard What to Expect books. It challenges many of the conventional ideas on birthing and baby care and it is so refreshing! It really takes a look all aspects of bringing a life into this world and caring it, and re-frames normal. I liked that it strongly advocates for attachment parenting and using your intuition as a guide, keeping birth interventions to a minimum, breastfeeding on demand, co-sleeping, and elimination communication among many other things. The tone was also very upbeat and encouraging, not scary. A+

168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think - Just finishing this book. It basically addresses the fact that we all have 168 hours a week to work with and that most of are not actually crunched for time we are just not using that 168 hours wisely and in ways that make sense for our dreams and goals. If we make sure to fill those hours only with things that deserve to be there, we build the lives we want. I really enjoyed this book.

Fifty Shades of Grey - Had to read it after all the media buzz and I was kind of surprised to find that I was not the least bit shocked by this book. I adored it actually and ordered the next two pronto. The author has been quoted as saying it is like the grown up version of Twilight (but with BDSM instead of vampires?) and I agree.

Other Link Worthy Stuff…

Love this Kickstarter Project for an iPad Sustainability story.

Hoping to make and eat soon… these Raw Lemon Pie Bars and these grain free Cake Batter Balls.

This Climate Change Carnival at Big Green Purse has many awesome links including one of my own articles. Check it out when you get the chance.

BlogHer Green also featured my stinky towels post.

Enjoy your weekend!!

Just had to share this amazing Eversave deal. You pay $20 for $40 to use at Abe’s Market. They sell lots of natural and organic foods as well as all kinds of natural green products from beauty items to toys. It is very much like a Whole Foods store and I have shopped there several times. When I saw this deal I immediately bought it up and knew exactly what I would buy. I got two bags of my fave grain free cereal Nutcase Crunch, and since they are $19 a bag (yeah pricey!) I ended up getting one free with this deal. Woot! I also had $2 extra cash to spare so I got one of their sample packages that cost exactly $2. Awesome!

Visit Eversave for the deal, while they last any way…

TGIF! I hope everyone has an awesome weekend!

I updated facebook fans recently about my progress with magnesium supplementation. This update came roughly one month after I wrote the original post about my deficiency. I woke up one morning to find that my monthly visitor had arrived with nary a symptom. No PMS at all. No backaches, minimal bloating, no fatigue whatsoever, and no chocolate cravings. My skin also gets a bit oily and I may get a tiny pimple or two this time of month. I had none of that this time. In fact last month I told the kids I was sick and spent two days in bed, dog tired. This month I could literally do cartwheels in the backyard. I am totally sold on magnesium at this point.

What did I do exactly? I started taking a 500mg pill every single day and eating more magnesium rich foods. I sprayed myself with magensium oil almost daily about 20 minutes before my shower because it is more easily absorbed via the skin. After strenuous CrossFit workouts I would soak in magnesium flakes and also drink dark chocolate coconut water or Natural Vitality energy drink products. It was pretty effortless to make these small changes but the benefit has been amazing!

Also, since I mentioned CrossFit I have to share how amazing that as been lately too. In the past few weeks I have gotten bloody knuckles flipping 200 pound tractor tires, I have done handstands like when I was a kid, and just yesterday I did my personal best for pushups… 46! Every day that I go, I learn something new about what my body can do and the experience has just been out of this world. I actually feel a little bit like and athlete and I haven’t felt that way since my school days. It reminds me of this movie quote too:

Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands. - Legally Blonde

Not that my husband has anything to be afraid of but exercise really, really, really does make you happy. It is unfortunate I spent most of my adult life not understanding that fact.

Books I am Reading: 

Small Space Gardening – We definitely have a small space to work with at our house. Really it is just one raised bed and whatever can go in pots on our deck. This book though is full of ideas on where you can plant, in what, and how you can get the most bang for your buck (or space rather). I like all the advice and tips for vertical gardening, because that is really the direction many people have to go, up rather than out.

Seed Saving & Starting – Another timely book as we are pretty much exclusively using heirloom seeds and I want to harvest from what we grow rather than keep buying seeds each year. It also has ideas on cross-breeding and making hybrids but that really doesn’t interest me as much as savings our seeds each year. The info on transplanting, thinning, and hardening off though is very helpful.

Other Links: 

I wrote an article on another blog that I barely ever write on anymore about how to make a decent living as a blogger if that is something interests you.

I like this article from The Greatist about 45 Healthy Foods to Make and Never Buy Again. Very interesting to see the price breakdowns like that.

This article on Get Rich Slowly about Budget Travel In Your Own Town is wonderful. Not only can you save money by being a tourist in your own place of residence it is also really green too!

I am not a big tea drinker and only ever drink hot tea but if you like all kinds of tea you may appreciate Anna’s article about Honest Tea and why they are an ethical choice for tea drinkers.

Also helpful is Deanna’s article about how to keep your Diva Cup looking clean and sparkly. Truthfully mine is looking pretty dang dingy so I need to try some of these tips!

Okay, it has been a couple months since I reviewed the Conscious Box. Sadly, I was not in love with their Valentines Box and it prevented me from purchasing the following month. Don’t get me wrong, the non-toxic, earth friendly romance “enhancement” products were awesome. I have been … enjoying them.

But all of the edible products in it were inedible for my family. The oats we can’t eat because we are grain free. I can forgive that because they had NutCase Crunch in one of their earlier boxes and I love that stuff. That’s cool. But two products had soy in it and I am not down with that, at all. I don’t think any food touting itself as healthy should have soy. I was disappointed.

The April “Earth Day” box has made me swoon again though. I love getting to try all the goodies!

First up is Oogie’s Original Kettle Corn – Goodness gracious this stuff is good! Yes I know I am paleo and shouldn’t have it but screw that. If you send me Kettle Corn I am going to eat it! I hail from Marion, Ohio, home of The Popcorn Festival. I simply must eat Kettle Corn on occasion. This is non GMO corn BTW that scores them some bonus points.

SeedBallz - Another product to absolutely adore. The package came with 3 seed bombs or balls with wildflower or herb seeds in them. They are hand rolled in the US by adults with developmental disabilities. You just stick them 1/3 in the ground in full sun and keep them watered until they bloom. Love! Can’t wait to try them and will do a follow up on what grows.

GLOB Berry Blue Paint – We have been using these plant based paints for years and love them. We can always use more, always.

Parsley Plus All Surface Cleaner - Oh Parsley Plus, where have you been all my life??? I love the fresh earthy smell of this cleaner and I love it’s cleaning ability too. I will definitely buy more of this.

Planet Ultra Dishwashing Liquid - So far so good. I usually use Dr. Bronner’s Peppermint but this was a nice change of pace. I am thinking I am happy with what I have though.

Juice Beauty Green Apple Peel Sensitive – I will be reviewing some Juice Beauty stuff in depth soon but I like this little product. I am not usually much for “beauty” stuff but I will hit the big 3-5 this summer so I have been thinking about aging more. Nuff said I think.

Sparklehearts Rainbow Soft Conditioner - Great ingredients plus no petroleum, parabens, or phthalates. This also worked well on my daughter’s long hair.

ColourFusion Lip Glaze from Natural Joy Beauty – This came in a teeny tiny sample box but after applying it once I immediately decided this was good stuff. First off I noticed how subdued and non clownish the color was. I have a serious lipstick aversion because I think I look ridiculous in it but I did not mind this glaze at all. Secondly I noticed that it doesn’t have that horrible lipstick taste or smell. Score! The whole store is full of natural cosmetics and I think I need to stock up before BlogHer.

Himalayan Crystal Salt – Have been a big fan of this stuff for years though we never purchased it from here.

Raw Chocolate from Cloud 9 Raw Chocolate – Good stuff, but not my fave. Any Conscious Box with chocolate gets gold stars though.

Banana Bar with Milk Chocolate – More chocolate! I was not a fan of this because of the banana. My bananas have to be green and barely sweet, unless they are disguised in a smoothie. I gave this to my 11 year son and he loved it.

Climb On Intensive Skin Repair – This is a healing salve or balm so we will definitely get to use it around here. Last week I bloodied my knuckles all up flipping tractor tires at my CrossFit box. Could have used it then for sure!

Lavender Bare Body Organic Soap – Smells divine and lathers well. I just wish the sample size were bigger. Those folks are such a tease!

GenerationMe laundry detergent – I haven’t tried this yet but I love that there are so many smaller companies representing in this box this month.

Lastly the box had a bunch of coupons and this Worry Doll from My Groovy Planet which looks to be monthly box deal where you get monthly delivery of theme-based, fun, educational surprise packages—or kits, for your child to learn and get excited about anything and everything fair trade, recycling, conservation, volunteering and the planet. We have some worry dolls already so this one will have friends. For those who do not know, they are very small and colorful dolls traditionally made in Guatemala. A person (usually a child) who cannot sleep due to worrying can express their worries to a doll and place it under their pillow before going to sleep. The dolls supposedly carry the worries for you. ;)