On the Sixth (& Fifth) Day of Christmas- Source Naturals Vitamin D3; Pet Pal

 

I knew when I started this series about My Favorite Things that I most likely couldn't keep up a post a day pace throughout the 12 Days of Christmas. Alas, yesterday I missed completing Day 5...so here it is along with the highly anticipated (I'm certain!) Day 6.

 

Day 5: Source Naturals Vitamin D-3 Liquid, 4 Fluid Ounce

Thanks to Rawganic Vegan, I stumbled across this treasure and purchased it on Amazon. From my limited research, apparently, if you live north of Atlanta, Georgia, it is impossible to get enough Vitamin D from natural sunlight for the months of September through March. I can readily believe this. I also know that most of us aren't outside enough even during the warm months to get adequate supplies.

 

This liquid supplement can easily be used in a cup of water, juice or a smoothie. I've done all three and only noticed a minimal taste in water. It's not unpleasant or bitter, just different. I don't even know how to describe it.

 

For information about Vitamin D deficiency, I found this informative article at Natural News. I hope you read the article because odds are you, or one of the people you know, suffer from one of the Top 10 maladies from a Vitamin D deficiency. It's also almost impossible to get this much-needed vitamin from food alone. It is synthetically added to milk and other products, but that form is not well metabolized by your body. You would have to eat two portions of fatty fish (salmon or mackerel) per day to get enough. Thus, my option became purchasing this supplement instead.

 

 

Day 6: This cute little elephant Pet Pal that my husband gave me for Christmas. He purchased it at It's Only Fair in Newport. I love that he knows me so well. He could have bought just about anything he wanted...and he chose to get me a meaningful gift that has a huge impact on the life of the lady who made it.

 

*I hope you'll indulge me for a moment longer as I became a bit overwhelmed at something God just did in the moment as I type this. This was not how I was expecting my simple blog post to end.*

 

Christmas morning when I opened this animal I was delighted and blessed to be joined to a man that cares about the things that matter to me. I immediately treasured this gift.

 

There were also three cards attached and a brochure that explained more about the purchase. (Yet another reason why I will continue to shop at It's Only Fair.) But that morning I didn't have my reading glasses on and told myself I'd read them later when I could give the information my full attention.

 

Life has been hectic since then with three days of travelling to see families and then catching up here at home. As I sat down to write this post, I grabbed the cards with the intention of reading them before writing about the gift. Here's what the first card says: "Anyango Anjella- Anjella is 36 years old with 4 children and 1 child that she takes care of for a total of 5. She was abandoned by her husband over 5 years ago and has been struggling to feed her children. Since being in the BU (Beyond Uganda) program, she has been able to send her children to school and her dream is to move out of the one room they live in and purchase a home. Your purchase today has helped Anjella get closer to that goal."

 

The second card says this: "Meet Awori Abigail. She is 13 years old & in Grade 4. Your animal is Handmade by Women in Uganda And This Beautiful Stuffed Animal will Provide A Brand New School Uniform for Awori Abigail At Mt.Zion Orphanage in Bugiri, Uganda."

 

Do you see it? Do you know me and know that my name is also Anjella (Angela)? Do you see that this orphan who will now have a new school uniform because of this little animal is named Abigail? ...the same name as my oldest daughter?

 

So while my husband bought me a cute little animal to give his Angela and also bought Haitian hand painted magnets for his Abigail and other three children...he was in turn providing food, clothing and shelter for another Anjella and Abigail half a world away that he may never meet this side of the fulfilled Kingdom.

 

Have I mentioned to you how much I absolutely LOVE Fair Trade?!!!

 

On the First Day of Christmas- Ancient Minerals Magnesium Spray

I explained in this post why I am sharing my favorite things. But these are also just really great products that I know you will enjoy. The product featured prominently in the photo above is where I'll start.

Ancient Minerals Ultra Pure Magnesium Oil 8 oz. is a great natural resource I first learned about from the Rawganic Vegan lady. She had mentioned that a magnesium deficit can affect sleep and, my life-long issue, restless leg syndrome. I have since done a little more research and discovered that a magnesium deficiency affects most of us because of soil depletion. And a lack of magnesium can disrupt blood pressure, insulin production, cause muscle twitches, and on and on and on. Many consider magnesium to be the most necessary mineral for the body.

I only know my own experience...and here's what I have learned: within two nights of spraying it on the bottom of my feet, I began to sleep better. Magnesium stimulates natural melatonin production. So if you're concerned about giving your child a synthetic supplement of melatonin, this spray is a natural alternative.

My restless leg has also improved. I didn't recognize just how much until I forgot to use this spray two days this week. The first night I had trouble getting to sleep because of the restlessness. Not putting two and two together, the second night, my thigh muscle was twitching so badly that I could not get to sleep. My legs continued to be restless and I estimate it took an hour longer to get to sleep than usual.

Do your own research, but this article is a great place to start.

Next up...Urban Farm Magazine

My Favorite Things

For some strange reason, every Christmas, The Sound of Music's song, "My Favorite Things" seems to get a lot of play. I guess it has something to do with the one line about "brown paper packages tied up with string." Regardless of why, it set me to thinking about a few of my own favorite things. I also thought maybe I could do a bit of a "Twelve Days of Christmas" series with it. Although I'm uncertain as to whether I can keep a blog a day pace for twelve straight...I do have at least a few items I've been wanting to share with you. 

Pictured above are the five that I didn't even have to think twice about. So...we'll see if I can do this. First post will follow shortly.

Just Downright Silly!

I am always attempting to be open to God's refining and inch my way closer to the balanced life He calls all of us to live. During this season of life though, I have been experiencing what must be, for lack of a better explanation, hormonal changes that manifest in a feeling of high-anxiety stress.

Eating better is one of my efforts to combat this...but I've also learned that weight loss is greatly hindered by stress. Essentially, too much stress means you are fighting a losing battle. Among the measures I am taking to combat stress, I have researched meditation. Don't worry that I am going all "eastern religion" or anything. But there is substantial, significant research into the benefits of meditating. Richard Foster even writes about the Christian discipline of meditation as practiced by our ancient church ancestors in his book, Celebration of Discipline. 

I am now, on most days, taking at least a little time out for myself...aside from my prayer and Bible reading time...just to sit and relax. I even found a free app for my Kindle Fire that has multiple sounds that range from nature to Gregorian chant that I can listen to while I unwind. 

While the baby we're caring for is napping, I thought I'd come hang out on our patio and listen to something on my app and take in the cool, 60°F morning and soak up some Vitamin D too. But as I put on the headphones and searched for the perfect water sound to relax by, Holy Spirit whispered: "Now that's just downright silly. Listening to recorded birds and water, when there's a fountain on the pond and the red-winged blackbirds, robins and others are singing to Me. The trees are blowing and the sun is coming around to shine on you too." While I've typed this, the bullfrogs have even joined in the chorus.

All of this made me stop and ask myself a question though: How often am I settling for the "canned", manufactured copy of pleasure, joy and fun...when the real thing is just outside my back door?

An Easy Way to Start

I knew going public about my juice fast could generate some questions, but I've actually been a little surprised at the response. I've been asked about how it's affecting/changing me, how long I plan to juice and even to share some recipes. I have been sharing articles and other information about health that I come across through Twitter which also pastes onto Facebook. Follow me on Twitter if you'd like to read those. I may begin to post them through here if I have the time.

As I've pondered some of these questions, I keep coming back to this thought: "How do people who've never juiced for health get started?" The photo above represents my best effort at an easy answer...citrus juicing.

Just go to Amazon.com and you'll find more options for juicers than you could ever possibly want. There are those that use centrifugal force or shred into pulp and then juice the pulp or even those specifically for juicing wheat, alfalfa and barley grasses. I, personally, have a GE juicer that uses centrifugal force and it has done well for over two years now. Admittedly, the blades are getting dull and I'd like to have less pulp in my juice, but I've yet to find a replacement blade basket for it. But varieties of juicers abound, and so do the prices. You can spend from $40 to $2400 depending on the maker, model and what you would like to accomplish. My GE juicer is around the $40-50 option. But if I were knowingly fighting cancer with my juices, you better believe I would invest in the top of the line Norwalk Juicers as recommended by the Gerson Institute. It is at the very top of the price range too.

But for the casual juicer or for the one that doesn't know where to start or even the person that wants to juice but has a very limited budget, there is good news. A standard citrus juicer, like the one in my photo, can be found for as little as $12-$24. I purchased mine at Ollies, but they are widely available. Actually, for citrus, they are the recommended juicer. Centrifugal force juicers will tell you they can juice citrus, but you have to peel them and damaging the flesh of the citrus while juicing is not recommended. According to the Gerson Therapy, any juice press in which an orange is inserted with its skin, when it is pressed, will emit harmful fatty acids and aromatic substances contained on the surface.

The great news though is that not only is this a cheaper juicer to own...citrus, pound for pound, will give you more juice than apples, carrots, beets, greens and many other fruits and vegetables. True, you need more than just citrus juice...but again, this is a post to encourage you to simply get started somewhere. And honestly, once you've had fresh squeezed orange juice, you will never want to go back to juice from concentrate and you may not even be able to bring yourself to purchase it in the carton either. When my kids have about 4 ounces of fresh-squeezed juice in the morning, they are often not hungry until lunchtime. No matter what western nutritionists try to tell you, waiting until later in the day to eat is healthy for your digestive system. That's why we call it break-fast.

I haven't even gotten to the health benefits yet. For one thing, you don't have to buy organic. Some seasons, the organic is the same price as conventional, so I do purchase it. But when organic costs more, and I'm not using the peel, I feel okay with buying conventional citrus.

Make your own lemonade or limeade with fresh squeezed juice, raw honey to taste and water and you have a great summer drink that's healthy for you too. Juiced grapefruit is far and away better tasting than anything that comes in a glass containter or metal can. Plus, when your juice hasn't been processed in a factory, that means it hasn't been heated and all of the micronutrients that you're body needs are still in the juice. When my kids have colds, the first plan of attack is fresh-squeezed orange juice, then supplement Vitamin C, zinc and echinacea as needed. 

Some benefits of citrus juicing:

• Rich in Vitamin C, most B vitamins, folic acid, beta carotene, potassium, calcium and even iron and zinc...and more! (depending upon the fruit)
• About two oranges can yield a full serving of 2-4 ounces of juice
• No peeling required, just slice in half and juice
• Citrus juicer clean up is much easier than a standard juicer.
• Many citrus juicers allow you to select and set the amount of pulp you would like in your juice.

For more information, check out All About Juicing

***One note of caution, if you are juice fasting, do not overdo your amount of citrus. Too much, without solid foods in your stomach, can irritate it. Listen to your body. There are juicing recipes for citrus mixed with greens available too.

Indian Healing Clay

I don't often promote products with this blog, but I feel remiss not sharing this one. Now, I'm not a connoisseur of clay products so I can't do a comparative analysis, but what this product advertises it will do...it does...and more. I purchased it on Amazon.com with just a little skepticism, but from the first usage have been greatly impressed with how well it works.

Just one tablespoon of this Aztec Secret Indian Healing Clay Deep Pore Cleansing, 16 Ounce combined with one tablespoon of Bragg - Apple Cider Vinegar, 32 oz liquid (which is a raw product that I need to review in a separate post), slop it on your face for 15 minutes and you not only have a clay that draws impurities from deep within your pores...you also get a mini-chemical peel that over consecutive usage (only once a week) reduces the size of pores. Honest...it works!

Be forewarned though, if you have a lot of impurities below the surface of the skin, you will experience some blemishes a day or so after using. The cider does make the mask tingle and you may experience some redness after washing off the mask. But you can begin with only five minutes and gradually increase the length of time each week it should become tolerable. The only complaint I have is not mine...it's from my kids...the vinegar smells.

The package says you'll only get 10-15 facials with the one pound jar, which is the one I purchased. I've been using this weekly since April and still have about half a jar left. Additional uses are listed such as applying to bug bites and that's finally why I decided to write this post and promote the product. I'd tried it on the occasional mosquito bites I've had this summer, but about two weeks ago I stood outside for almost three hours chatting with friends one night and came home with 52 bug bites. You read that right...52. Sometimes, I don't react well to bites. Apparently,  it sets off an allergic reaction. Then, I have more than your normal amount of swelling at the site of the bite and they can almost appear to be infected. This was one of those times.

24 hours after I received the bites, I was miserable and constantly itching and scratching with no relief. I decided to give the clay a try and pretty much coated my legs, using only water to mix it instead of the vinegar. I slept with it on (which I learned the next day I really didn't need to do) and had relief to get through the night. I washed it off the next morning and  I experienced no itching until late afternoon. I applied the clay to my legs again and had instant relief. This time I washed it off after about an hour.

Now here's the interesting thing and I apologize if this is too much information...but the clay literally pulled the venom to the surface of the bites, which hardened (yes, it was crusty and clear) and as it dried I was able to wipe, scratch or rub it off. I was fine for the next almost 24 hours and that night did decide to try Benedryl, but that was more because I didn't want to clean clay out my sheets. The next day, after just a little over 72 hours, I had absolutely no more itching.

I'm certain the Benedryl assisted, but I still attribute most of my relief to the Aztec Indian Healing Clay. Why? Because my daughter and friends with whom I had been chatting for so long were still itching four days later and they had a significantly fewer number of bites than I did.

The link I've provided above is for the one pound jar which I purchased. The one below is for the two pound which is a much better bargain. If you're in the market for a product like this, check it out. At about $8.00 for up to 20 or so facial mask, plus an itch relief product, I think you'd be hard-pressed to find a better deal!

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