Giveaway time!!! I try to keep giveaways to a minimum here. Perhaps it is because I am uber picky about the types of products I endorse. The beauty of this giveaway though is that the winner gets to choose what they need and want because it is a gift card. Amazon is one of my favorite places to shop because they have great prices and virtually anything under the sun I could need or want. I buy books, I buy food, I buy supplements, I buy….lots of stuff.

The prize for this giveaway is an Amazon gift card for a whopping $450!! Just think about what $450 would buy. You could opt to buy lots of little things…

A book or two… I would recommend some great gardening reads since spring is coming.

You could also buy some of the supplements you have been wanting to try. Grab some grassfed gelatin and some fermented cod liver oil and butter oil capsules.

Maybe those brand spanking new heritage Ball jars…in green. You know you want them…..er I mean NEED them.

The option is also there is get one or two BIG things.

How about a lawn mower with a rechargeable battery so you can stop spraying your lawn and garden with gasoline fumes?

Or a KitchenAid Mixer? Can’t go wrong there!

How to Enter for Your Chance to Win:

1. Subscribe to the NatureMoms weekly newsletter highlighting the latest posts and health tips from me. (Sign up below)

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2. Leave a comment letting me know what you would you would buy with this gift card…

3. Use the Rafflecopter widget at the bottom of this post to confirm these entries and unlock more chances to win.

***For more ways to win, be sure to visit all the blogs responsible for this giveaway!***

COCO’s WELL
Loula Natural
Our Small Hours
Food Savvy
Life Sanity
Oh Lardy
Weed ‘em and Reap
LA Healthy Living
The Healthy Honeys
Yogi Mami
Yuppie Farm Girl

 a Rafflecopter giveaway

 A winner will be chosen via random.org. We will announce the lucky winner on Friday, April 1st. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to an email with his/her full name, address, and phone number. There is no purchase necessary to win. This giveaway is open to everyone!

It has been said that diamonds are one of the biggest marketing scams in history and I would have to agree. It is a modern tradition that men are supposed to present a woman with a diamond when they pop the question. The bigger the diamond, the more love there must be. Personally I am not sure why women have even allowed such a thing to become tradition (in this age of feminism) as it smacks of being “purchased” or bribed.

Even worse is the fact that the practice of buying a diamond was all instigated by a clever marketing campaign in the 1930s by De Beers, a diamond jeweler. A clever campaign turned into societal expectation and yet most people seem content to keep the scam going. Why??? Why have we allowed ourselves to be psychologically conditioned by companies out to take our money. As a society we have been tricked into coveting sparkling pieces of carbon and that trickery is long running, almost a century. Perhaps it is time to put an end to all the nonsense.

It isn’t just the fact that we have been duped that should get your ire up. There is also the fact that the diamond industry is pretty terrible. Diamonds are way overpriced and they lose their value after sale. The mining process is dirty, nasty, environmentally destructive, and it infringes upon the rights and lives of others. Slave labor is often used to bring diamonds to us…many times child slave labor and they are used to fund civil wars and conflicts in which many people die. The diamond trade has also be linked to arms deals and the sex slave trade. The term blood diamond does seem to be a fitting moniker and it is the last thing that should be seen as a traditional symbol of love.

The use of a diamond in an engagement is nothing but a sign that you have been brainwashed by a corrupt corporate entity. Couple that with the atrocities that occur in order to bring diamonds to a jeweler near you, and everyone should be asking…

Why in the blue blazes are we still buying diamonds???

But it is not that cut and dry right? Well, I think it should be but awhile back I brought this topic up with some friends and some of them were not too keen on discussing why a diamond might be “wrong”. I heard comments about it being traditional (even though it’s actually not), how it is romantic, and how it may be the one and only nice jewelry piece they may own. Some also said it would be humiliating to tell others about their engagement without the rock. People would look at their hand and wonder why they were marrying a loser who couldn’t buy them a ring. It seems that many women may not be ready to let go of the diamonds.

That got me thinking what a couple might do to honor each other and the lives they want to to build together OTHER than spending money on diamonds. I like ideas that include something for both parties instead of just the woman. Guys are getting the shaft. They have to buy a shiny bauble to show their devotion for us but what do we do for them?? Show up?

I have a few ideas below…

6 months of premarital counseling – Nothing says romance like therapy right??? Okay, maybe not. It does however, make good sense. So many people today get married without any real clue who their partner is. OR they overlook things thinking “that can be changed”.  Well instead of spending money on marriage counselors after the marriage is broken, spend the money up front and really learn about your partner before you exchange vows.

A pre-scheduled vacation – Pay for a grand vacation and schedule it for your first anniversary. I think any woman with good sense would rather have the promise of two weeks at a bed and breakfast in Italy or Greece instead of a diamond ring. Plan something fantastic together and put that money to some use in creating memories.

A down payment on a home – The money that you would have spent on a diamond can be saved and set aside as a down payment on a home together or if you are ready you can use it immediately for that purpose.

A round the world airfare ticket for two – This is another spin on the vacation idea. If the two of you love to travel you can’t go wrong here.

A big ticket item – A big something that both of you would enjoy and use…a used car, a piano, a four poster bed, new furniture, etc.

A year of date nights – Either get creative and pre-plan/pre-pay or simply set the money aside for this purpose. For a year after marriage you can have a grand date night or date weekend, once a month. Check into a local B&B or hotel, get the his and hers massage package, eat at restaurant you have always wanted to try, and splurge.

An alternative ring idea – Use the money on two wedding rings that are sustainable, ethical, and affordable (skip the engagement ring). You can buy simple wedding bands that are made from recycled precious metals or you can buy used. There are also rings made of wood. I absolutely love the way they look, just take a gander at this Etsy store. Amazing!

Where do you weigh in on this? Ready to buck tradition and let love be enough or do you NEED the diamond?

Natural Health magazine is one of my favorite magazines. Unlike many more conventional health mags this one actually does seem to support natural remedies and being proactive with your health . It all about healthy foods, natural living/beauty, home remedies, DIY products, and alternative health. It’s not perfect by any means but I enjoy reading it every month. It has great seasonal reminders for wellness that I appreciate.

Anyway, today through February 16th ONLY you can get Natural Health for only $3.75 for a one year subscription. A huge savings! Enjoy!

Use code WKLYSPEC .

Woot! The Ultimate Healthy Living Bundle returns and it is better than ever. It includes 86 great ebooks and a bunch of other goodies. As a big reader and huge ebook fan I am mostly excited about the books. I have a tablet and I loooove to use it to read my vast collection of ebooks. I can literally take hundreds of books with me at any given time. I just store them in the cloud (Dropbox) and I can read them anywhere. So of course whenever I can add a large amount for an itsy bitsy price…I jump at the opportunity.

In this bundle I am excited about…

High Protein, No Powder: Protein Bars and Smoothies Made with Real Food
The Breakfast Revolution
Easy and Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes
Steeped: Simple Nourishing Teas and Treats
Baking with Quinoa
Weeding Out Wheat
Herbal Adventures: A Pocket Guide of Seasonal Natural Remedies
Energy Explosion: A 7 Day Guide to Jump Start Your Energy
From Garbage to Gourmet

If you are looking to add to your reading library and score a great deal I highly recommend this bundle. Enjoy!

I have made no secret hat I am a die hard ebook lover. I love buying books on Amazon and I love buying them from various bloggers and authors direct. I am addicted to leaning I guess. It is what makes life worth living, the fact that we can keep growing, learning, and evolving. If I could I would be back in college racking up the degrees and taking classes for fun but since that is too spendy…this will have to do. I will learn from life life and from others who are out there living and learning.

The Harvest Your Health bundle particularly appealed to me and I wanted to share it with you. You get $1000 worth of ebooks and goodies for only $37. That should keep me busy through winter at least I reckon.

Click on the banner above or visit this link to see all the books you get but I if you want to know which ones excite me…read a little further.

The Grain Free Lunchbox – I struggle with on the go lunches that are grain free and paleo. You want easy and convenient but not the traditional lunch meat or PB&J sandwiches.

Paleogasm – Ha! Love the name.

Baking With Coconut Flour – Always looking for more coconut flour recipes. I adore the stuff.

Apartment Gardening – Have it and it has some great information and ideas.

Salves Made Simple – I would really like to start making more home beauty products and remedy products such as salves.

Enjoy!!