My organic wish list

This is my wish list. If I get even one item on it I will feel pampered and spoiled!
 I have been dying for an organic all natural perfume with out any "fragrance" that is unidentified. 
Tsi La natural perfume "Delicate, sophisticated and 100% natural. Untouched by alcohol, preservatives, artificial fragrances or colorings, the natural parfum collection uses a moisturizing base of select coconut oil infused with botanical extracts of pink orchid flowers. The benefits of orchids are well known: They fight free radicals, increasing skin immunity and are rich in minerals, such as zinc, calcium, magnesium, iron, and copper, enhancing your skin's own natural mineral content."


Organic sheet set. I also want an organic mattress but sheets are cheaper to ask for.


A clean burning soy candle made with essential oils for scenting. This one on amazon looks good to me!


I have other wishes...but I kept it simple this year. This already adds up to more than we are spending so I will probably on get one item. But I am excited about getting even one!

Great Article on BPA in canned foods

Please check out this article on BPA in canned foods! http://planetgreen.discovery.com/food-health/bpa-canned-foods-best-and-worst-brands-out-there.html

My Thoughts on Santa Claus and Christmas

Before I had Olivia I was sure we were going to "do" Santa. I insisted on it. But now Christmas is here... I can't bring myself to do it. Funny thing is I think it is in part through my study of all things organic I have come to desire simplicity more than complexity. Santa just seems to make Christmas that much more complex.  I don't mind telling her the story of Santa as it is, a fairy tale with some basis of truth...there was a man who gave out presents at some point in European history. I don't think Santa is evil or wrong. I just don't want her to see him as the point of Christmas when there is another point to it entirely. Christmas is about giving but it is about more than that. It is about sacrifice. Jesus gave the ultimate sacrifice. I want her to know that. I desire her to know that we celebrate Christmas as a family to remember that Jesus was born to die and then raised to make intercession for us. I want her to know that Christmas isn't about family, presents and trees. It's not the warm fuzzy feeling we all get when we think of fireplaces, hot chocolate, pretty lights and stockings. Its something we can have all year long because it is about remembering, choosing not to forget who Jesus is. He is the Christ. The Messiah. The one who gave up EVERYTHING that we might live. Not live how we choose, not get what we want, but truly live. Jesus is our gift. The ultimate gift. Even if we are so poor there is nothing under our tree, even if there is no tree...we still have Christmas, because Christ is our "mas". I hope that to Olivia the miracle of Christmas is understood as the wonder of His birth, his death, his resurrection and our salvation. God may I be faithful to teach her of you!

Good deal at restaurant.com $2 for $25 dollar gift card

This is a great deal. The only catch is that at the restaurant you choose the minimum purchase is usually 35 dollars. BUT if you were planning on going to eat out anyways you might as well get $25 dollars worth of food for $2! Put in your zip code. Choose a restaurant then at check out put in the code SAVE. Happy Shopping!
Click on this link to go to the site. Offer good through 11/28.

Thanks organic deals and coupons!

Gift Ideas under 10 dollars

1. 1. Gourmet coffees (preferably organic) with a personal coffee cup (Peets and Tullys were on sale at fred meyer for under 8 dollars, nice mug can be found at Tj Maxx for 2 dollars, or if you are brave a second hand store)

2.    2. Pound of organic nuts (sold at the local co-op)

 3. Child's artwork, framed
 4. Journal with a special note from you on the inside
 5. Teacup with box of herbal tea (organic herbal teas on sale at Fred Meyer, good prices at Trader Joes. Find an antique tea cup at a second hand store)
 6. Deck of cards and book of card game rules
 7. Homemade cocoa mix in a pretty jar
 8. Collage of special photos
 9. Pens and pretty stationary
10. Bottle of sparkling cider (organic is 4 for $5 dollars at Fred Meyer until Saturday)
11. Home baked bread, include recipe
12. Basket of organic fruit

13. Basket filled with deli cheese (Cheese for under ten dollars at Trader Joe’s, I collect baskets from the good will)
14. Organic Burts Bees Lotion
15. White serving bowl or platter (Pier one)
16. Pretty basket filled with special jams or mustards (good prices at Trader Joes)
17. Decorative napkins and napkin rings
18. Fancy chocolate bars tied with a ribbon
19. Gardening gloves with a plant or flower seeds
20. Homemade soy candle (supplies from Michael’s craft store)

21. Makeup tote
22. Prepaid photo credit at snapfish.com
23. Homemade brownie mix with instructions for baking
24. Variety of bread mixes
25. Special coffee cup filled with candy
26. Fancy magazines tied together with a pretty ribbon
27. Gourmet popcorn and flavored oil
28. Locally made barbeque or steak sauce with basting brush
29. Pancake or waffle mix and a bottle of real maple syrup
30. Credit on Amazon for streaming video
31. Board games (multiple sales day after Thanksgiving)
32. Jar of sourwood creamed honey
33. Note cards and book of stamps (you can buy note cards at Tj Maxx for a good price)
34. Homemade tea
35. Specialty cookbook
36. Pretty glass jar filled with candy
37. Picture frame from the good will that you have spray painted and placed a picture in
38. Muffin mixes you have made

39. Books, from Amazon.com
40. Set of dish towels and dish cloths
41. Jars of cookie mix you have made
42. Pretty night shirt
43. Basket filled with kitchen gadgets
44. Credit at redbox (that’s ten movies!)
45. Pepper mill and fresh peppercorns and a Himalayan salt grinder (Trader Joes)
46. Handwritten copies of your favorite recipes
47. For the pets, gourmet dog biscuits or cat treats
48. Baking pans and supplies
49. Prepaid gift card
50. Small clock or radio
51. Pretty box for keepsakes (TJMaxx has great ones)
52. Colorful Post-It notepads
53. Address book
54. Christmas ornaments
55. Puzzles
56. Blank CDs for recording
57. Sewing repair kit
58. Subscription to mother earth news (get the card out of a magazine on display and it should only be ten dolllars.)
59. Favorite quote painted on a piece of wood for display on a wall
60. Eco Friendly makeup brush set, there is a set at Fred Meyers
61. Nice socks (always on sale at Fred Meyer day after Thanksgiving)
62. Nice bar soaps from Trader Joes
63. and don't forget my absolute favorite... home baked cookies!

Winter Black Bean and Beef Stew

Snow! It is a day that calls for NOT going to work for the accountant, drinking hot cocoa, playing in the snow, decorating for Christmas and then ending the day on a warm note of stew. So at 730 this morning I cut up all the ingredients and popped them in the crock pot. That way we can decorate, play and clean all day without thinking about dinner. Here is the recipe. Ingredients: 2 cups of homemade organic beef stock (preboxed on sale at Fred Meyers this week in the organic section), 2 cups of cooked organic black beans (1 cup of dried beans okay too), 1 pound of grass fed beef stew meat, 2 Tablespoons of organic chili powder, 1 organic leek, 1 yellow onion, 4 organic carrots chopped, 2 chopped organic tomatoes, 6 cloves of garlic crushed 

Directions: Place all ingredients into the slow cooker on high heat for 6 hours. Then turn to low heat for two more hours. Serve and enjoy!

As you can tell my beef stock is frozen.

Mom...why are you letting me eat a leek? I am finding it quite yummy! But then I will eat anything!

My "natural" cold and flu season medicine cabinet

So cold and flu season has begun. This past week Olivia caught her first little cold. We nipped it in the bud with some great homeopathic remedies and other "natural" concoctions. Then Jason decided to get a sore throat a few days later, probably the same virus. So out to the store I went to get some adult natural remedies. We have had such success with them I want to share with you what is in my medicine cabinet for cold and flu season.
For Olivia I have Hylands C Plus Cold Tablets and Hylands Vitamin C Tablets. We followed the directions on the package and her symptoms (a fever and runny nose) were minimal four hours later. I am also giving her my homemade elderberry syrup once in the morning and once at night. In her sippy cup I put the cooled tea "cold care" for kids, she LOVED it!
For Jason it was a little bit more complicated. He has a harder time fighting colds since he had his spleen removed in high school so I wanted to make sure I got enough immune enhancing stuff to help reinforce his own natural immunity. After consulting my favorite book " Prescription for Nutritional Healing fifth edition" by Phyllis A Balch I ended up with the following items:

• Tea- Organic Lemon Echinacea Throat Coat "supports throat health" by Traditional Medicinals
• Vitamin C- I bought mine in the form of Emergen-C Oseries on sale at Fred Meyer this week for 3.99 plus a two dollar off coupon!
• Super Lysine by Quantum Health good for " Aids in destroying viruses...do not take longer than six months".
• Oscillococcinum by Boiron homeopathic medicine for fighting cold and flu symptoms.
• Zinc Lozenges - "Boosts the immune system. Keep on hand for the first sign of a cold." For pain relief of sore throat , healing and improved immune function.
• Colloidal Silver- Antibiotic and antiviral properties. Apparently no known side effects.
• Mens One Multi Vitamin with vit B and probiotics-For healing and general good body health
• Tea Tree Oil- For cleaning and disinfecting surfaces.
• Vitamin E- promotes healing and tissue repair.