Protect our planet and home

There are SO many little things we can do to save on the toxins that fill our land and water. I just saw this news clip that shows a town in MO, where more than half the people have been diagnosed with brain tumors in the past few years! Erin Brokovich is on the case (thank goodness for women like her) and she is now in Midland, TX (not too far from us) where more toxicity has been measured in the ground than was in the ground in Hinckley, CA where her ground-breaking work/movie was brought to light. Great. We can all do something. I love Seventh Generation products because they help us change the world, one home at a time. They are now available at most regular grocery stores, as well as all the healthier stores. We use lots of their products and love them all :)

Trash free lunches

This past school I started using this tupperware lunch kit that I bought in NH from a tupperware-selling friend [thanks, Kristen!] back in about 2001-02. I loved putting Nick's half sandwich in the big compartment, almonds/walnuts in the other and some grapes or cut up red/yellow peppers in the last one. I was done using ziploc bags!!! Undoubtedly, Nick had the healthiest lunch and recently told me how shocked he was that "no one" in his grade likes broccoli! :) Not that Nick doesn't love candy and treats, but I do not send them in lunches. Teachers have enough to worry about without having hyperactive kids! Plus has anyone seen kids' packed lunches these days??!! Soda, cheetos, whitebread pbj, cookies. No joke. No one brain function is down as well as attention span! Man!

Here's Nick lunch carrier:

I've been researching online what else I can buy for lunches so that we can be completely DONE buying and throwing away 1000's (if not more) ziploc bags each year--for the rest of us: car trips, long driving days, Ted's lunch, Maddie's lunches, and my errands at lunch time; also, how how we might get rid of the many plastic containers we have which all contain some dangerous elements (especially when microwaved) called BPAs. If you google these or check www.healthychildhealthyworld.com you will see why these are hurting our children, especially our babies. Scientific studies are finally showing that autism, asthma, ADD/ADHD and allergies (that have risen, in autisms' case, 700% in the last few decades) can only be linked to environmental causes...the EPA and the EWG websites will give the facts. www.epa.gov and www.ewg.org

So what can we do?

Use recyclable napkins and lunch totes and lunch bags. These are the cloth napkins I hope to win from the contest being sponsored by the excellent blog: Over Coffee: The Green Addition www.overcoffee822.blogspot.com

These are the safe plastic, easily washable snack and sandwich bags I just ordered from www.reuseablebags.com

along with some cloth ones that have designs my kids will love--

These come from the same website, although I just bought a few at Sprouts, so I didn't purchase these.

I was VERY tempted to get this one, as it's metal, but the price of nearly $17 and the knowledge that my kids might leave it somewhere, didn't justify spending that much on this fabulous bottle; also available at www.reusablebags.com, though made by Klean Kanteen. Plus I got myself an stainless steel one recently, at I can't remember where...made by Subzero. It was much cheaper, but this one below is probably better quality. We'll see.

So I am excited to pack lunches, wipe out the baggies and the containers and use them the next day. It will free up a whole drawer in my kitchen! And ease the billions of pounds of plastic in the landfills, though Fort Worth offers recycling which are so happy about. No more plastic water bottles for us!

By the way, Nick announced last night that he was going sugar-free for 100 days!! Maddie didn't quite have the courage to quit all sugar, but pledged to give up candy. Good! That makes it easier for me as I'm quitting too; not cause I want to, but I have been getting lots of headaches from sweets and it ruins my day. So, farewell, to the sugar drug, which I think, in the long run will make me feel much better, lose weight and have a clearer mind. For some awesome info. on sugar addiction, the dozens of negative effects it has on our bodies and brains, see www.drstandgardenermd.com. He is fabulous and shows some great videos relating to all aspects of health.

Happy beautiful EARTH DAY!

Knowledge is Power

At the heart of Earth Day is the idea that the more people know about our national environmental policies, the more likely they will be to play a role in shaping them. Earth Day has always sought to inform and educate. Of course, knowledge isn’t worth much if it can’t be put to use, and Earth Day celebrations provide every individual an opportunity to get involved. From local beach cleanups and rallies for clean energy, to petitioning representatives to pass environmental legislation, April 22 is the focal point for environmental causes we might otherwise take for granted. In 1970, the same year of the first Earth Day celebration, President Nixon created the Environmental Protection Agency. The EPA’s work in studying and regulating pollution springs from the same spirit of stewardship as Earth Day.

In honor of this day dedicated to loving our planet, I have put in some photos of some of the most beautiful places I have been on the planet. What gorgeous creations and I am all in favor of helping to care for the planet we live on to keep the beauty pure and thriving.

Tulum, Mexico

While on the BYU Mexico Study Abroad in 1992, we swam at this beach after touring the many ruins. We saw a baptismal font that looks like those we use today in our churches; we visited an observatory for star-searching, temples, etc. There are Mormon tour guides on site and they offer unique insights into the ancient cultures which we know began with the peoples whose lives are recorded in the Book of Mormon.

Palenque, Mexico

Southern Mexico, in the state of Chiapas.

This was a stop on our week-long bus ride from Puebla to Cancún and it was soooo worth the stop-over. We went down inside one of the temples and saw Mayan carvings and artistry, perfectly preserved. The history is amazing--there are even more ancient ruins still buried in the jungle waiting for time and money to be uncovered.

Zions National Park

Zions (near St. George), UTAH

My mom and step-dad now live near this incredible park.

I have not seen as much of it as I want to see, but we will have lots of opportunities!

Arches National Park

Southern Utah

I love the earth and have been collecting so many articles about Green Living for Body and Planet, that I have decided to start a blog for myself (and anyone like-minded) about healthy living, recycling, reusing, growing your own stuff, herbs and whole foods, safe household cleansers and beauty products. I an NOT an expert, far from it, I am a novice, but I am so interested in having knowledge that will bless our family with health on the inside and the outside--and I need a place to store all the links, articles, tips that I find. I was printing up all these articles on being Green and realized how un-Green it was to use so much paper; plus the clutter and filing required can be daunting...so now you and I can find it all on:

http://www.groovygreen4peopleandplanet.blogspot.com/

I welcome anyone's tips or ideas, articles or web links that could contribute to our knowing what is really going on in the world, with river contamination (frogs born with 6 legs instead of 4, female frogs with male sex organs...our rivers are so full of contaminants that have permanently damaged the hormones and normal growth of frogs; for more details go to http://www.pbs.org/ and look around for what was on KERA last night about the Potomac, the Chesapeake Bay and Puget Sound--seriously "dead" rivers, dead whales, poisoned fish--and all that becomes our food or our drinking water!), toxic foods (chemical additives, pesticides, hormone injections), toxic beauty products (formaldehyde and 1,4 Dioxane=carcinogen which are in MOST grocery story brand shampoos, soaps, lotions, make-up -- and even in some of the expensive ones)...anyway, to read a bit more research, see the links on my blog or google your own.

I have realized that if we don't do something to care for the planet then we share in the blame of habitats disappearing, animals dying, ground contamination, water toxicity, and even the great obesity problem (foods have more additives and toxic ingredients than ever). We can do small things in our home and to teach our kids priciples of self-reliance and real health for their bodies and for the home we live on.

Today a new IMAX Disney movie comes out -- I think it's called Planet Earth and it looks fabulous! Gorgeous cinematography from all over the world, the movie follows 3 groups of animals and how the world is changing. We are going this weekend.

Recently, Ted and I went to the see the IMAX movie about the Grand Canyon and the Colorado River (Lake Powell had some appearances too, which is where Ted and I realized that we were completely interested in each other...and the dating began after that Lake Powell trip with our church congregation). Anyway, the Grand Canyon River movie was so informative and so interesting. We learned that the earth's rivers and oceans are a life-source for us and all animals and need to be treated with more respect--with less pollutants and trash and toxic waste.

I hope the world's peoples will learn about Green Living for daily life and adopt at least one or two new habits. They are easy and not expensive. We started really adding new habits to our life last year, like:

Composting the 60-70% of what we eat (fruits/veggies)

Replacing light bulbs with long-lasting low energy bulbs

Using "used" water to water plants

Using 1 compartmentalized tupperware for kids' lunches (no plastic bag waste)

Buying more local and organic foods and drinks

Using cleaning supplies that don't harm (from either Seventh Generation or Mrs. Meyers or 'homemake' vinegar/lemon solutions)

Happy, healthy, long life!

Fresh Produce ROCKS!

This is the enormous amount of produce we get every 2 weeks for a mere $20 from the Dallas Farmer's Market. I'm with a Produce Co-op of moms nearby and we take turns driving 45 minutes to Dallas to a wholesaler to pick up a bunch of boxes of goodies; we distribute them into big bins and everybody comes to pick theirs up. It is one of the great joys in life to get this much fresh food for such a great price. Our kids now eat plums, spinach, sweet potatoes, zucchini, cauliflower, mangos in addition to what we usually buy. I puree some of the foods so they last longer and we add them to sauces and mixes, breakfast and dinner. My real dream is to have a huge organic garden some day; for now we are in our 2nd season of growing our own herbs. Last year we grew rosemary and sage, this year we have added basil (my favorite!) and parsley. Our compost pile continues to grow, but I need to stir it up, water it and generally pay a bit of attention to it.

Passionate about Health

This is one thing I am passionate about: serving real food, adding veggies and fruit (purees often) to foods we eat, and making sure we all eat lots of anti-oxidants (cell healers: they keep our cells young and functioning at top ability) and vitamins and immune boosting foods/supplements.

This is whole wheat French bread (Albertson's has a few now and again) dipped in eggs, soy milk (or organic milk) and 1/2 cup of butternut squash (pureed). We add cinnamon and nutmeg and sometimes a little bit of orange juice. It is so tasty! So sweet and has a slightly pumpkin-y flavor; just slightly. I got the idea from my most favorite cookbook written by Jessica Seinfeld (Jerry's wife). She sneaks pureed veggies and fruits into breakfast, snacks, lunch, dinner, and dessert. Actually, her kids and Jerry know about it and love what she does. She uses fresh ingredients, egg whites, butter substitutes, some sugars less refined than white, etc. I love that she tells you how to prepare the purees (easy and quick both) and about labeling them in freezer bags and storing them; then you get out what you need, heat it up and mix it in.

These are our whole wheat (1/2 white flour) pancakes made with 1/2 c. of butternut squash, flax seed, chopped walnuts or pecans or almonds, frozen (thawed or fresh when in season) blueberries and a sprinkle of cinnamon and nutmeg. They are delicious! The kids eat them without syrup most of the time.

The other things I routinely put purees in are:

• pizza (spinach puree)
• banana/zucchini bread (squash puree)
• pastas (cauliflower or summer squash purees)
• cakes/cookies (squash or zucchini or carrot or pumpkin, depending on what type of cookie)
• sauces (varied purees: cauliflower, squash...)
• smoothies (full of fruit; can add pureed spinach and not taste difference)
• chocolate cake (beet puree)

Our kids love to brag about what I have put into our food when friends are over; I don't want to turn off their friends from eating, so I plead with the kids to not mention it til we are done eating. So far, I have only had compliments to the food, even to the zucchini-banana-craisin cookies and the spinach laden whole wheat bagel pizzas.

The kids feel good, are rarely sick and I hope we are establishing life long traditions of eating to live, not living to eat! Health, wellness, vitality, wisdom and freedom from addictions, skin problems, organ issues, overweight, immune disfunction and depression to name a few.

A couple of fabulous websites by others who are actually physicians who support preventative medicine (as opposed to most MDs who treat disease with drugs and don't work on preventing disease) and integrated medicine (and bioidentical hormone replacement therapy which I am following) are these:

http://www.stangardnermd.com/ MD who now looks to prevent disease and writes a lot about sugar addiction, food cravings, poisonous sugar substitutes (Splenda and Aspertame) and healthy, natural sugar substitutes. I am loving his website!

http://www.realage.com/ Dr. Oz and Dr. Rozien's website if FULL of awesome recipes, facts, ideas, etc. You can see how "old" you really are by taking a detailed health self-analysis which covers mental, social, emotional and physical health. I was thrilled to be told I am living 5 years younger than I really am, though after the quiz, it told me specifically where I could improve and knock more years off (live younger and longer) by doing a few things differently than I do now.

Excellent health of body gives me a happy mind, an upbeat disposition, ability to work, serve, and play. It keeps my spirit up and lets me do all the things I want to do. Exercise, which I didn't mention is my 'drug' of choice and without it I feel lethargic, prone to eat poorly, and a bit down. Weights, walking, yoga, pilates, kick-boxing and zumba get me fired up! What is really blessing my life now is yoga with it's emphasis on breathing, focusing on the breath, mind, thoughts, and body and getting in tune with the divinity within me and the potential within myself for good; I move so fast all the time, I breath shallowly and don't take time to nurture myself. This year, at age 40 I am determined to live fully: healthfully, mindfully, quietly, introspectively, honestly, gracefully, and to Stand Up for My Life (favorite title I'm reading now by Cheryl Richardson).

Wow, that is my most personal entry of all time. As this is a family journal, I want to record and remember this. Much, much more is in my personal notebook/journal.

Quotes from Stand Up For Your Life:

"When you make a conscious commitment to your own inner development, you take a giant step toward making a greater contribution to others."

"Think of self-discipline as an act of love. When you engage in any behavior that honors yourself, you automatically raise yourself-esteem--the ability to hold yourself in high regard."

"Your thoughts are like magnets. What you think about and focus your attention on shows up in your life."