Natural Baby Biz

We just recently built a new house. I know that it’s “recycling” to buy an old house, but here in Tucson our only choices were old brick houses that use tons of heat in the winter, and tons of air conditioning in the summer. We decided to buy new so that in the future we could put a house on the market that is eco-friendly. Plus we’re selfish and didn’t want huge heating and cooling bills.  Here’s some of the things we did to make our new house more green.

1) We added thermal protection to the roof. This helps because the air conditioning tubes are between the cieling and the roof, so the protection keeps the air conditioning unit much cooler, and therefore uses much less energy to keep us cool.

2) We got another type of thermal wrapping around the house. This is like super-insulation. This way, our non-hardworking air conditioner will have to work even less.

3) We have Low-e windows which also help significantly to keep the heat and cool air in.

4) All of our water appliances are low flow, such as toilets, faucets, dishwasher, and washing machine.

5) All of our appliances are energy star compliant.

6) We landscaped our backyard with pretty rocks, no water required.

I’m going to be cheap and use someone else’s article today! Have a great day.

$1 For Gas

Right now, I know a lot of pregnant mamma’s and new mamma’s and I just want to send out a shout to them.

First, is my best friend Christina.  She’s already a mamma, and 9 years later she’s working on her second. She’s 36 weeks right now and due any day! She deserves a baby so much, because she is such a wonderful, loving, caring, soul-giving mamma.

Second is my cousin Mair.  She just had her baby boy Trent a month ago. He is the sweetest little thing! He reminded me of how small my little one used to be 9 months ago. . .

Third is my other cousin Heather, who just found out she’s only a few weeks along.  Congratulations!

Fourth is my old-time friend Velvet, who already has three girls and is finally getting a boy! Yay!

Fifth is another old friend, Melissa, who just had her baby boy too!

And I cant’ forget a friend of mine from long long ago, Jasmine.  She’s having her second baby, a boy, and is due anytime now!

I just want to wish all of you the best of luck with your new precious little ones. Much love.

I don’t know how I did at Weight Watchers this week. Last week I lost 2.5 more pounds and I did it by following my points very closely and working out 5 times that week.

This week, I don’t think I would have done so well. I ate healthy foods, but not enough of them were vegetables, and I probably ate way too many grains. I didn’t go because my baby was sick and there is no way she would have been happy about going out.  I’m going to try going on Saturday morning so I can still get my weigh in for this week.

I just want to say that I think the weekly meetings are really helpful to me. I know that I can follow the Weight watchers plan on my own, but it keeps me accountable to go to the meetings. I am inspired by people who lose weight, like my friend Berrett that reached her 50 pound mark this week.  Without the weekly meetings it’s just too easy to think “well, no one will know if I eat this. It will be my little secret.” But thats what is the killer.

Hope you like my super hot 80’s workout Chick!

Farmers Markets are a one of a kind way to be environmentally friendly, save some money, AND convince your children to eat healthy.

The number one benefit of Farmers Markets is supporting the local food supply.  More than ever, corporate farms are taking over the production of fruits, vegetables, and meats.  The United States Governmeant supports corporate farms by granting millions of dollars to them for production.  They cheat by using this money to genetically modify (GMO) foods, add hormones and antibiotics to it, and buy toxic pesticides.  All this adds up to bigger, more plentiful food, but at the expense of the consumer’s health.

Supporting local farmers have many benefits.  First, many local farmers produce non-GMO, organic foods.  Since you buy directly from them at a farmers market, you pay less for organic foods because there is no middle man.   You’ll end up paying less to preserve your health.  Also, if you shop from local farmers, you have the ability to get to know the person who is preparing your food, and how they prepare it.  If it’s important to you to know what chemicals you are or are not sticking in your mouth, this is very awesome.  Lastly, shopping from local farmers supports the concept of a self-sustainable community, which is much better for the environment.

Farmers market’s can also be turned into a fun family day out. People go to swap meets for fun, so why not farmers market’s? They are simply the swap meets of good food.  It’s a chance to get out in the sun, take a walk with your family, and teach your children about food.  The colors, shapes, and textures of everything provides a stimulating environment for children, and regularly visiting a farmers market will teach them to be active in their own community.

Here are some ways to make farmers markets fun:

1. Let your children pick out some fruits and veggies of their own. Then let them help you prepare it. They are more likely to eat vegetable dishes that they helped create.
2. For small children, teach them about the colors, shapes, names, and textures of the different foods they see. Let them feel and touch them, and teach them how to pick out a good candidate for purchase.
3. Encourage them to talk to the local farmers and ask them questions about the food. Any questions.

I haven’t been writing much in my blog lately.

My husband and I are getting the the last details of our new house ironed out (don’t worry, it’s a new build, but we made sure it will be environmentally friendly with low-e windows, Tyvek wrapping around the house and in the roof, energy star appliances, low flow toilets, faucets, and showers, and energy efficient heating and cooling).  Our closing date is coming up on the 5th of September, and getting all of the loan paperwork has been a hassle.

We’re definitely excited to be moving in. Hopefully we’ll be all settled by the middle of the month.

The first weekend after we get the keys, we plan on painting with some kid friendly paint. The paint that comes with the house is flat, and the second Sakura throws spaghetti at it, I’ll have a permanent stain on the wall.  We’re going to open the windows and let the paint and new carpets and floors air out for the week before moving in the following week.

We can’t wait to get in! Our new neighborhood will be so much more family friendly than our old one, which has cop choppers flying around on a regular basis, speed racers that use our street as a runway, and creepy people walking around.  We also have neighbors on one side that party all night, and neighbors across the way that constantly fight.  Change is definitely welcome.

You lazily get up, take a shower, and put on your work clothes.  Then you leave your house, get in the car, drive to work, and arrive tired at your desk.  Sitting down, you boot up your computer and do your daily e-mail check. Since there wasn’t anything too interesting, you decide to get up and pour yourself a warm cup of coffee.

You work in a small office, and so nothing in the office is corporate grade. The coffeepot was probably purchased at Walmart, and sits on the break-room counter. You sleepily go in, pour your coffee, and add a little sugar and creamer to make it have that dreamy good-morning taste.  Then you walk all the way back to your desk and reexamine your email as you take a sip. . . of coffee grounds!

So, spitting the coffee back in the cup, you get back up, go back to the break room, and realize that the whole pot of coffee has grounds in it.  Not only did the grounds go in the coffee, but there is a mess all over the coffee pot and the counter around it too.

Then suddenly, you begin feeling that the coffee pot betrayed your trust, that it deliberately put grounds in your coffee and made a mess on the counter, as if it knew better.  You tell it “bad coffee pot” as you begin cleaning up the mess.  While you wipe, you realize that this is the same exact way you felt when you were cleaning up the crayon that little Johnny used to draw all over your living room walls. . .

The instinct of a mom is so permanent. It goes with you everywhere, even if you’re kids don’t. You know you’re a mom when you find yourself feeling the need to discipline a coffee pot, instead of just simply buying a new one.

Most of us that are over weight know it’s because we need to either eat healthier, eat less, exercise more, or some combination of all three.  I know many women who have lost weight doing the South Beach diet, or the Adkins Diet, Nutrisystem, or diet pills.  But the problem I have with all of these programs is that none of them are promoting healthy habits.  That’s how Weight Watchers is different.

Other diets DO work, but they are just a temporary fix. You can’t cut out carbs forever, because your body needs them. You can’t eat Nutrisystem food forever because it’s not healthy for your body. Diet pills have nasty side effects and some of them can even kill you.  Weight Watchers is all about controlling your portions, eating healthy, and exercising.  It’s even friendly for carnivores or veggie heads.

Weight Watchers gives you the means to learn to prepare and eat healthy meals on your own. Weight Watchers encourages exercise too. It doesn’t matter how well those other diets work, the weight won’t stay off if you have unhealthy habits.

There are two plans on Weight Watchers, the Core Plan and the Flex Plan.  The Flex Plan, what makes WW famous, designates a point value for every food, and then allows you to eat a certain amount of points per day. This effectively helps you control your portions, fat intake, and calorie intake. The Core Plan does not involve any points or counting, however, there is a limited list of foods that you are allowed to eat from. These foods are pretty much whole grains, fruits and veggies, low fat or non fat dairy, lean meats, and other healthy odds and ends.

These two plans alone are effective, however, WW takes it a step further by suggesting that ever person eat 2 teaspoons of heart-healthy oils (safflower, olive, canola, etc.) per day, at least two servings of dairy, fruits and veggies, a certain amount of water, and a certain amount of exercise.  If you follow these rules, you will be learning to eat within a healthy lifestyle.

That’s why I like WW, because it teaches a healthy, positive, and permanent way to live.

Today is Monday, and I feel that I’ve done well this week. Last night I walked 4 miles with a buddy down a river trail and Saturday morning Sakura and I went out for a morning stroll.  I ate lots of fruits and vegetables this weekend, but I still need to drink more water.  I lost 14 pounds with Weight Watchers and then gained a couple back over my birthday, so I’m hoping that my meeting on Wednesday will reflect my hard work this week.

This recipe is super easy and tasty.

Ingredients:

Super ripe organic peach

Water

How To Prepare:

Boil a pot of water big enough to submerge the peach. Once water is fully boiling, boil peach for one minute and then place into a bowl of cold water.  The skin will come right off. Cut off the flesh and use a baby food grinder or food processor to mash the food. For older babies, you can steam the peach and then mash it with a fork to get a chunkier texture.

It’s important to use an organic peach to avoid chemicals. Peaches absorb pesticides very well, so non-organic varieties are loaded with toxins. This will make about one serving.

Last night, after my Wieght Watchers meeting, I started taking control of my weight loss again right there on the spot. I had bulger with veggies for dinner, and I danced around for 20 minutes like I promised.

I put on some workout clothes, took the cooking timer, turned on some techno, grabbed my weights, and went to town. I just have to say, that there is something about “boxing” with hand weights to techno that makes me feel like a BAMF (please consult Dane Cook if you’re confused about BAMF).  Seriously, I felt like Trinity from The Matrix. I was ready to go kick some booty!

So my goal for tonight is to go walking. I’m either going with my friend, or going by myself. Either way, I’m going to walk for at least 45 minutes. I’m aiming for an hour, but the daily temperatures reach 105-110 here, so we’ll see. I still have a 45 minute minimum no matter what.

My other goal for the day, is to drink lots and lots of water. I used to be addicted to water and I’m not exactly sure what happened. I think I just got tired of it. So I’m crawling back.

Cheers to Weight Loss!