The Big Deodorant Review

Okay, first of all, thank you Stacie for reminding me to review the deodorant!

I tried 6 things to replace my chemical laden deodorant and they were:

1. powdering a clean pit with baking soda
2. spritzing a clean pit with rubbing alcohol
3. Powdering a clean pit with baking soda after spritzing it with the alcohol
4. Spritzing a clean pit with a mix of 1/2 and 1/2 rubbing alcohol and body splash
5. powdering a clean pit with baby powder after spritzing with alcohol
6. the solid crystal deodorant

And the winner was:  (drumroll please)

#6 - the solid crystal deodorant

Here is why:

All 6 of the options actually did really well, to be honest.  I really didn't think they would, but they did.  All of the options took care of the stink and #4 would actually emit a bit of the perfume scent.  But during this experiment I realized that I have really sensitive pits.  I actually had discovered this a couple of years ago, but at that time I just switched to Dove deodorant because of all of the moisturizers, and that took care of it, so I had to rediscover this again.  So to give you pros:

1. easy, no odor
2. easy, no odor
3. easy, no odor
4. easy, no odor, light fragrance emitted
5. easy, no odor, light baby powder scent emitted
6. easy, no odor, easily portable, non irritating, no residue or powder to get on clothing

Now cons:

1. scouring effect on pit if you forget to rinse before you wash
2. irritating after a shave
3. combo of the two above problems
4. no real cons here, the body splash has aloe to stop irritation
5. also no real cons, the powder took care of the irritation
6. none, well maybe initial cost for the stick (about $5)

I went with the crystal stick after reading many reviews on it, and realizing that it would not cake under my pits with activity, there was no residue or powder to get onto my clothing, it kept my pits drier feeling for longer and the whole dry solid portability factor versus taking a liquid or powdered item that may spill (if you knew my kids you would get it!)

So, I forked over the $5, but it takes a lot longer to use up the solid crystal than the regualar stick Dove which was 3.60.  So, I'm happy, and I'll come back to it again one day and let you just how long it took to use it up.

I'm also still doing the shampoo, and by the way, the low sudsing thing is a non issue after the mix has time to sit and blend, because then it suds like crazy!

The Eco and Bio Friendly Waves of Change at my House

That may have been the longest title for a blog post ever on this blog!

I have been on a quest in the past couple of months, I really want to go more eco-friendly and biologically friendly in my home and with my personal care items.  Why?  Well, several reasons, but I'll only divulge a few here, otherwise this whole post with be tremendously long -

1. We have well water in my home and the well is on my property, so I want the things that go down my drain to be eco/bio friendly and nontoxic
2. I have been reading up on what many of the crazy chemical ingredients in things do in our body, most of them are carcinogens, some of them are unknown (which may be a bit more scary), so I would like to get rid of them in my older body, but also prevent them from building up in my children's young bodies
3. It can actually be cheaper to go clean and green if you homemake your formulas versus buying the conventional synthetic cheap brands over the counter
4. My youngest son has problems with asthma sometimes, so I would like to decrease the pollutants and VOC's in my indoor air.

So that's enough.

I have a couple of books, one came from the library "Easy Green Living" by Renee Loux is a great reference tool about different products to go greener in your life.  The better book is "Better Basics for the Home" by Annie Berthold-Bond.  I got that one for free from some stuff my dad had.  Another interesting one I got from him was "1001 Chemicals in Everyday Products" by Grace Lewis.  Using these 3 together has really been an eye opener for what is in different household products, plus ways to make my own natural nontoxic alternatives.

So......

My first experiment is the basic shampoo formula:

• 10oz water (I have a reverse osmosis unit, so that's where mine comes from)
• 2 oz castille soap (I keep Dr. Bronner's Baby Mild on hand)
• 1 tsp glycerin

Mix and store in a jar or bottle, whatever suits your fancy

So, I used it tonight, and I will say it doesn't give your hair that slippery feel while you wash, which is different, but not a big deal.  It also doesn't get as bubbly as shampoo, which is fine with me because it also doesn't leave a residue.  I did not use conditioner (although the book gives a recipe for one) because I wanted to test the shampoo formula first.  So, I let my hair naturally dry, and as of right now, it feels about the same as it does after a shampoo with a little bottle conditioner or one of those shampoo/conditioner combos.  I wonder if it's because the natural stuff didn't strip my hair of all of it's natural protection.

I will use it without the conditioner for a few more days and come back with the results.

If you are considering go more natural formula in your home and body care, here is a short list of the most common ingredients in most of the formulas:

• castille soap
• glycerin
• white vinegar
• baking soda
• aloe vera gel
• alcohol (she calls for a lot of vodka in the book)
• essential oils (there are listed in the book as optional, but lavender and tea tree are the most common)
• borax

I actually already had most of this stuff anyway, I just purchased the glycerin (1.49 for a 4oz bottle at Harris Teeter)

I can't wait to see how the next formula I try works out!!!!

Baking Soda Deodorant

I was recently reading up on heavy metals (that our bodies do not need) in different everyday products and what alternatives are available.  One of the biggies for me was aluminum.  I learned that aluminum is linked to alzheimer's.  This is not a big deal to some, but my grandmother had alzheimers, and it is not pleasant at all.  So what is aluminum in anyway?

• Deodorant
• Baking Powder
• Some cosmetics
• Maalox
• Rolaids
• Canned foods (it's what the can is made of)
• Many cooking utensils, pans, etc.

My, my.  Well, a girl can't tackle everything at once, so I started with the ones I have the most contact with - deodorant and baking powder.  It's easy to find aluminum-free baking powder, and it's just as cheap as the other.  Check one off my list.  Two - deodorant.  Now that one is a little more tricky.  I don't know about you, but I don't want to stink! 

So, I was doing a little research, and I thought about the homemade deodorant recipe posted here by one of my comerades, but until I have the materials, I just wanted something easy.  I came across 2 things:  isopropyl alcohol and baking soda.  For the isopropyl alcohol, just simply fill a small spray bottle with it, then spritz your pits a couple of times a day.  The alcohol kills the bacteria since that's what causes BO anyway, but allows you to sweat, which is one of the ways the body detoxifies itself.  For the baking soda, the instructions said to put some in a small tupperware style container, take a large facial powder brush and treat the baking soda just as you would facial powder - dip, tap, brush on delicately.  Done.  So, this is the one I tried today.  It was not hot, so even though I perspired, I was not drenched.  However, I did run/walk intervals for about 2 miles today.  And you know what - NO STINK!  I was impressed. 

So, I will try this for a few days and just see if it holds up, and I'll let you know.  I may still try the alchol one too, or maybe some combination like a 'spritz, dry, powder' routine.  I'll get back to you on that one.

Healthcare Tips

For those of you who don't already know this, I am a Registered Nurse, and when I do work (which not very often anymore, only about 2-3 times a month) I work in the Emergency Room.  With this healthcare bill passage looming, I think it's time to post a few tips for you because, I believe as a nurse that this bill is going to seriously hurt a lot of Americans, and most of my cohorts in the Emergency Room agree based on what we deal with on a regular basis.  So it's going to be more important than ever to stay healthy and not have to use the healthcare system except when you really need it.

• Vomiting one time is not a medical emergency.  Vomiting many times and not being able to keep any liquids down to compensate for the fluid loss, or adding in fever or diarrhea deserves a call to your doctor (who has your medical history available and can make the determination on whether or not you need immediate medical attention).  And remember vomiting has a functional purpose too, it's not all bad.
• Fever of 100.5 is not a medical emergency.  A fever of 105.0 however, is a different story - and please don't not treat the fever because you don't want to 'mask the fever', we want you to treat a fever that's high instead of letting it just get higher and higher and possibly have febrile seizures.  If the fever is 102.0, treat it and call your doc to see what they think-.  Also remember that fever too has a functional purpose and is also not all bad - it's your body's way of killing off bacteria and viruses.  Most health professionals don't even recommend treating a fever under 101.0, but if you're concerned or want to hear the opinion of someone who knows you personally, ask your faily doctor or nurse since they know your history and can give you more personalized information based on your medical history.
• Eat healthy - people who eat nothing but junk don't have the optimal physical condition to naturally fight off infections
• Exercize - people who exercize regularly are generally healthier (this doesn't mean you need a membership, this means get your butt off the couch and clean your house, cook your own meals, work in your flowerbeds, walk the dog, play with the kids, go for a walk, etc)  MOVE MORE!!!!
• Wash your hands - this can't be said enough, but wash your hands with plain old soap and water several times a day - when they are dirty, before you eat, after using the bathroom, and after play.
• Don't be a germa phobe - things like over using hand sanitizer, scrubbing every surface with bleach like a mad woman and spraying lysol on everything is not necessary.  DO take precautions, DO practice good hygiene, but DO NOT obsess to the point of craziness.  And believe it or not (and you can research this for yourself) exposure to normal germs is good for your immune system.  Now I'm NOT saying to go lick the dog or the gas station bathroom floor, but if your kid eats a God-knows-how-old Cheerio out of the corner of your living room, don't head to the ER to get his stomach pumped either.
• Call your doctor's office for questions, that's why they are there
• Invest in one of those home remedies or home medical manuals, they have lot's of great informaiton out there (and you can find them at most thrift shops)
• Get plenty of sleep - this also helps you fight off infections
• Get annual exams, once a year check ups for healthy adults is a good way to catch problems before they become BIG problems.  Regular cholesterol, glucose, triglyceride screenings are helpful in making sure you are doing your part in maintaining good health.
• Immunizations - this one is controversial, so all I'm going to say is to do your research and make your decision then take whatever precautions are necessary depending on what your decision is.  We personally did not get the H1N1 vaccine, but my kids are also not in public school or daycare, so our risk was lower than some other groups.

Anyway, more to come on this later - I'm not into writing posts that may make your eyes pop out :)

Homemade Bagels

This is one of my very favorite recipes, and if you're really crafty, you can also make your own pizza bagel bites out of these (just make them much smaller). You could also wrap the dough around a hotdog prior to boiling for bagel dogs.


Bagels: Boil:
6 ½ cups bread flour 2 tablespoons baking soda
2 cups water 1 teaspoon salt
1 ½ tablespoons yeast Topping:
2 tablespoons oil (I use olive) 1 egg
2 tablespoons sugar (I use honey) Other: poppy seed, sesame seed, salt
1 tablespoon salt (I use kosher)

*Combine bagel ingredients but only 4 cups of the flour in a bowl and stir until well combined
*Add in another cup of flour and stir (this should get pretty difficult, that’s normal)
*Turn dough out onto kneading surface (table, cutting board, etc)
*Knead dough while adding the last flour about ¼ cup at the time until the dough feels “as soft as a baby’s bottom” and is not sticky at all (it may take a little more or a little less flour, that’s okay)
*Oil a large bowl and put dough ball into it and roll it around to coat it. Cover with a warm damp towel and put in a corner to rise until doubled (about an hour). Then punch down
*Knead dough ball for just a couple of minutes to get the air bubbles out
*Cut or pull apart into 4oz sections (about the size of a small yellow onion)
*Working quickly, and doing one section to completion at a time . . . . .
*Roll under your palm on a kneading surface until the ball is smooth, then Poke a hole in the middle with your thumb and work the dough from the hole until it is the size of a small bagel with a slightly large hole then immediately place on a cookie sheet
*Boil Water in a pot with 2 tablespoons baking soda and 1 teaspoon salt
*Boil each bagel for 30 seconds on each side then remove promptly
*When all bagels are done boiling, brush them lightly (starting with the coldest first) with a raw egg that has been beaten in a bowl. (This will help the bagel get a brown chewy crust)
*If you care to add toppings such as kosher salt, poppy seed or sesame seed, do it now
*Bake at 400F until done (about 15-20 minutes)
*Allow to cool before cutting into

Olive Oil

I am always in the pursuit of personal care items that are more natural, and less, well, chemically-concocted. So, I was doing a little 'green' reading and came across an interesting idea - olive oil as a body moisturizer after bath instead of lotions (which are a myriad of chemicals anyway). So I tried it, and I love it (and no, I don't smell like and italian restaurant all day).

So, what you do is take a shower or bath, then, while your skin is wet (or in other words, before you towel off) rub a little olive oil in your wet skin. That's easy. How much? I use a dime sized amount for each arm and a quarter sized amount for each leg and my torso. Just rub it in well before you towel off and that's it.

I don't have to continuously remoisturize, there are no ashy elbows or knees, and the 'heavy' oily feeling (not really heavy, feels about the same as if I just slathered on lotion) only lasts about 5 minutes, then it's gone.

And yes, I use plain old olive oil like for cooking.

coleslaw

This is actually pretty versatile. I make mine with shredded cabbage, shredded carrot, onion powder, salt, mayo, cider vinegar, sugar, salt and celery seed. Coleslaw is based on cabbage which is cheap, but also, since it is not a cooked food, you get the health benefit of both the green leafy cabbage and the orange carrot raw which keeps it's nutrients intact.

My basic recipe, and I do modify for fun pretty much every time

2 heads cabbage (any variety you like - or are given)
1-2 carrots (depending on how much you want in there)
2 cups may0
1/4 cup cider vinegar (you can try varieties here, could be fun)
1/2 cup sugar
1 tbsp celery seed
1 tsp salt
1 tsp onion powder

Mix the mayo, vinegar, sugar, celery seed, salt and onion powder in a large bowl. taste it after you mix it to see if you need to make any changes because remember, this is the dressing and it's easire to modify before you put the slaw in it than after - trust me on this!!! After you get it right (and please writed down what you changed as you did it so you don't forget). Shred your cabbage and carrot and add it to the bowl and mix well. It's best if you refrigerate it for at least an hour so all the flavors can mix, but if you don't have the time, it will still be great.

Homemade Muffins

In the grocery store, the name brand ready to make muffin kits are about $2. Here is the homemade version that I like to make:

Homemade Muffins

Preheat oven to 400

1 3/4 cup all purpose flour (I use home milled whole wheat)
1/3 cup sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 beaten egg
3/4 cup milk
1/4 cup cooking oil

mix dry
mix wet
mix together
pour in muffin cups and bake for about 20 minutes (watch it, my oven cooks a little faster.)

Enjoy!!!

Homemade Pancakes

I love to make homemade pancakes for my kids. It's much healthier than the box stuff for a few reasons: I mill my own flour, so the pancakes are always fresh & whole grain; real eggs, real milk. The recipe is as follows

1 cup all purpose or fresh milled flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup milk
2 tbsp veggie oil (you could probably substitute melted butter)
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla (not in the standard recipe, but I like it)

Mix dry
Mix wet
Mix together
Cook

Travel Food

I don't personally care for eating in the car - it's messy, crumbly, drippy and cramped. But when you are traveling 8+ hours as we recently did - it's a necessity. The worst part about traveling that far is that the last thing you want to do is increase your travel time by stopping and eating in a restaurant, so what do you do - you get drive through. And the worst parts about drive through - it's devoid of any nutritional value and we still pay money for it. So, on the way, I planned something quick, easy, and relatively less messy. I made chicken salad and brought some crackers for hubby and I, and the kids had cheese slices, raisins and apples. They like the smaller apples because they can handle them pretty well themselved. And we drank water or had juice boxes for the kids. The cost of all of that - maybe $4 (less than the cost of 1 value meal and much healthier). If you know me well you will probably think 'juice boxes? but they're more expensive!' Yes, they are. However, having a few juice boxes handy beats trying to fill a sippy cup while riding in the seat (not that we havent' done that before - it just gets messy at times), and is worth the extra cost to save the mess and spills.

Portion Control

Okay, this is crossing into territory that makes many people (Americans especially), uncomfortable. We eat too much. Overeating costs money at the grocery store, at the clothing store and at the doctor's office. Practicing reasonable portion control will still leave you satisfied, but decrease your bottom line in all three areas. Another aspect of portion control is what you leave on your plate. Most people scrape what's left on the family's plates into the trash - basically throwing money away. Try putting less in the plate - maybe half to 2/3 the amount to start and if someone needs more - okay, then get more, if they don't, that's 1/3 to half not wasted and the money not tossed away. You may end up with more leftovers, but that's okay, you either already have a head start on dinner another night, or you can plump up your freezer's meal reserves.

Cutting food waste cuts money waste.

Slow Cooker Heaven

I am a fan of the slow cooker. I think that it is a mom's best friend - whether you are a working mom or a SAHM. I have found a new recipe site solely dedicated to the slow cooker http://www.slowandsimple.com/ This site is for ONLY slow cooker recipes, and I am adding it to my recipe links list.

The benefits of a slow cooker are many including 'hands off' cooking which is good if you work outside of the home. When I worked during the day, I loved the thought of coming home and not having to worry about my dinner - because it was waiting for me, all I had to do was a side dish, usually a salad that takes about 5 minutes to prepare, and I was done.

The library has a ton of cookbooks (especially if you search the regional system and have it shipped to your local branch), so you don't have to purchase one, you can just borrow it as often as you wish and as many different ones as you wish.

Other slow cooking benefits:
1) reduces need for take out
2) maintains nutrients even if your picky eaters 'pick out' the veggies (since they are cooked together)
3) uses much less energy than the oven and stove
4) no pre-cooking required
5) one pot to clean
6) slow cooker meals are usually less expensive
7) food stays hot for serving after you turn it off so you don't have to nuke your dinner



Today is rainy and windy (thanks Hanna), so I am cooking a slow cooker chicken creole.

Homemade Bread

If you have never tried it, please do, it is worth it!

My basic recipe:

2 cups warm water
1 1/2 tablespoons yeast
1/4 cups sugar
1 tsp salt
6 cups bread flour

combine water, yeast, sugar and salt and mix well then let sit until proofed (puffy bubbles will form). add flour 1 cup at a time and either stir by hand or in your mixer. If stirring by hand, when the dough gets too stiff to stir, turn it out onto a floured surface and knead while adding the rest of the flour a little at the time. If using a mixer, when the dough gets stiff and still sticky, switch from your flat beater to your dough hook. Knead dough until it is as smooth as a baby's behind. Place in a well-oiled bowl, turn to coat both sides with oil, cover with a damp cloth and put in a warm spot (about 90-100 degrees) and allow to rise until doubled (about and hour). Punch down. separate into 2 equal pieces and knead each piece for a couple of minutes then shape in 2 9x5 loaf pans. cover again and allow to rise about 30 minutes more. Place in a 425 degree oven for 10 minutes, then switch to 350 for 20 minutes without opening the door. Cool on racks.


Now granted, there are a million variations of bread, and I have made a ton of them, but a good old fashioned plain loaf is really tasty some days.

Bread

With the exponentially fast rise in the price of wheat, I urge people to try your hand at making your own bread at home. It tastes better, you get to control the quality of the ingredients, and it generally costs about 80% less than the store bought kind. I was at Sam's Club last week and a 25lb. bag of bread flour cost about 10.50. It only takes about 3 cups of bread flour to make one 9x5 loaf of bread. Yeast was about 4.30 for 2lbs and it only takes about a teaspoon per loaf. Most people add a little salt, usually around 1teaspoon per loaf and some add sugar, again about a teaspoon per loaf. And the water is such a small amount it won't even count. Now, I am not mathmatician, but I think that all adds up to about 0.35 per loaf, and baking doesn't take long either, and if you do not want to heat up your oven just for bread, then just make it when you're making something in the oven anyway, and make more than one loaf at the time, and just freeze the extra loaves.