Eating local: What to ask your farmer?

I was surprised to find out how many local food options there are here. I live in a small city 86,000 people and there are 3 local farmers markets starting up in May. A farm that does organic beef and chicken (and treat their animals kindly). Right beside the beef farm is a produce farm and I must add its HUGE! There is a Cheeseworks farm close too!

The point of me telling you how many local foods/farms are around my little city is if you google 'local produce' 'farms' or a synonomous term, you too might be just as surprised as I was! 

That is just what I found doing a quick search. 

So of course now that our home is almost 100% organic foods we headed out on a search for farms that we could purchase from almost year round. Our family spent 2 days going to farms and learning how the farmers care for their animals, produce and workers. We also pet and met a whole lot of animals! All the farmers seemed so open and proud of what they were doing: Building a community of healthy natural living!

We are changing to local foods because of...

Safety: I wonder how safe or natural it is to use pesticides on foods. They spray produce during each stage of growth and in turn absorbing a toxic chemical that kills every other thing on that farm except the one growing produce. Pesticides are chemically engineered to kill everything but that one plant. There is no way that could be good for me or my family's health so we have gone organic and are purchasing many foods locally.

Environmental Impact: Buying local increases local farming which has decreased significantly within the last 20 years thanks to the large corporations and manipulation. Large companies that are Genetically Modifying foods seed spread (like normal plants do) and contaminates other natural farmers crops. Once they are found with these crops that now have the genes from the GM crops they are sewed and put out of business. The next part of environmental impact is that these foods are being picked before they are actually ripe (about 1-2 weeks) and chemicals are put on them to help them travel great distances. Pollution is also another thing to consider as many foods are put through a large corporation then travel by plane from one truck to another truck to your grocery store.

We spent about an hour talking to each farmer. We wanted to know at the very least if they were:

• local
• organic
• humanely raised
• sustainably raised
• grassfed
• pastured and/or free range
• “free” of X
• sprayed
• fertilized

Here are some questions my future hubby and I came up with to ask them.

• What do the animals eat?

Organic food, grass, including hay and alfalfa in winter (for cows), bugs, grass, outside things, as well as either local or organic grain (for chickens). Does the feed include corn and soy? If yes, are they genetically modified?

• Where do the animals live?

Regularly outside or on pasture

• Do you use any medication, antibiotics or hormones?

You do not want any of these in your foods

• How do you fertilize?

Organically, composted cow manure, sustainably, fish oil, anything that sounds like it started with the earth or an animal. It's ok if a farmer says they are not certified organic if they have full organic practices as the product will be significantly cheaper.

• How do you manage pests and disease?

“Grown inside” or chemical free” “crop rotation” or “we don’t spray” are probably some of the best answers, but “integrated pest management,” “we spray as seldomly as possible,” “zero day to harvest rated sprays,” are also on the right track.

If you want to get to know your farmer then ask these questions:

How was the growing season last year/this year?
How did you get into farming?
What crops are coming up next, seasonally? Are they growing on schedule? Any complications?
How do I store X unfamiliar food that I’m purchasing from you?
What’s your favorite way to prepare X?

Now go and Google farms in your area. You might be surprised how close some are to you! 

Happy natural healthy living! 

To buy or to not buy Organic

Are you considering going organic?? Our family has made the switch!

Price: So far we have learned that organic lemons, kale, and spinach is almost always cheaper then non-organic. Red, green and yellow peppers are almost double the price as non-organic and everything else is negotiable.

Routine: Some people say its a lot of work to find all organic foods as you need to go to one place for meat and another for fruits and veggies and another for the extras. We have also changed our routine from buying all groceries at the store to going to our local farmers market for meats, fruits and veggies and an egg lady that comes every 2 weeks to our home. We have also started the process to have a hopefully luscious garden in our backyard.

Not-So-Secret List of fruits and veggies you should buy Organic:

Apples

Celery

Peppers

Peaches

Strawberries

Nectarines

Grapes

Spinach

Lettuce

Cucumbers

Blueberries

Potatoes

Green beans

Safety: I wonder how safe or natural it is to use pesticides on foods. They spray produce during each stage of growth and in turn absorbing a toxic chemical that kills every other thing on that farm except the one growing produce. Pesticides are chemically engineered to kill everything but that one plant. There is no way that could be good for me or my family's health so we have gone organic and are purchasing many foods locally.

Environmental Impact: Buying local increases local farming which has decreased significantly within the last 20 years thanks to the large corporations and manipulation. Large companies that are Genetically Modifying foods seed spread (like normal plants do) and contaminates other natural farmers crops. Once they are found with these crops that now have the genes from the GM crops they are sewed and put out of business. The next part of environmental impact is that these foods are being picked before they are actually ripe (about 1-2 weeks) and chemicals are put on them to help them travel great distances. Pollution is also another thing to consider as many foods are put through a large corporation then travel by plane from one truck to another truck to your grocery store.

Happy natural pesticide-free eating!

Vitamix intro into our Whole Foods life

We have just discovered the Vitamix. Well not just. We picked it up the end of December... If you haven't heard of it before you can go checkout there site. It is everything they promise and MORE!

Whats in here? Banana, Kale, strawberries, blueberries, apples, coconut oil, an orange and pineapple!

We purchased this about a month ago with healthy living in mind. Hoping it would help increase our green food intake and promote our whole food beliefs. We were right!

I use it every day! Most days twice! I make a smoothy in the morning before work and after work if I work into the evenings instead of eating a big meal before bed. Or if I feel like a snack in the middle of the day I will make one then too!

Before the Vitamix it was impossible to get my future hubby to eat the full amount of servings of fruit and veggies every day. Now, a piece of cake! Well... not cake, veggies! HA-HA-HA

Don't get me wrong, I love eating fruits and veggies not blended. Its very important for your teeth and gums to eat crunchy foods to strengthen the ligament around the teeth and also to help self cleanse your teeth. (Wow, just my little burst of dental info for you) But if you aren't getting enough just eating veggies and fruit that way then this is a great boost up! I also personally believe we should be eating more then what is recommended based on Canada's food guide or the US food guide. Go check out what the healthiest people are based on diet!

This one has banana, orange, strawberries, apples, carrots, kale, blueberries, pineapple and coconut oil.

This thing (Vitamix) is unbelievable! I put in apples cut in half (seeds and stem), grapes (including the vine), entire oranges and it blends it up so fine you cannot feel a single seed, texture or anything! I make my own homemade almond flour, coconut flour, peanut butter, and ice cream now!

The other morning our little cookie asked for orange juice with breakfast so I put in a whole orange, blended it for no longer then 1 min, added water, blended again for another min and voila homemade orange juice! It does not get fresher then that! Our little girl loves strawberry banana smoothies (with kale and coconut oil). Best way to sneak in known 'super foods'.

Now we have upgrated to 'green smoothies'!! Even little one likes the green smoothies now. Don't start with green smoothies right away, start your tastebuds out with fruit and a few veggies  :)

This is not only keeping more chemicals out of our foods (by not buying things in containers or pre-made) it is also much cheaper and fun/good to know for children understanding what they are eating!

Happy healthy Vitamixing!

How to Naturally Unclog Drains

On a bottle of Draino: Only use in a well ventilated area. Meaning do not breath this stuff in as its toxic to your health. Hmm... This is not something I want to subject me or my family to. Nope, no way!

I've been growing my hair for the last 2 years and have noticed that our bathtub drains are clogging up.

It must be a mixture of shampoo, bodywash and hair. (Can't wait to start no-poo shampoo... for a later post). I used to only have to do this once a year and now its every 4 months... Two bathroom sinks and a bathtub... I used to buy Draino in the past but I couldn't bring myself to buy it until I tried a natural alternative.

And would you believe it? It's our very favourite two products in our home here! Baking soda and Vinegar! Cheap, but extremely effective, natural and non-toxic to the environment. 

How to Unclog Drains:

1. First grab a funnel or if you don't have one make one out of paper. Pour 1/4 cup baking soda down the drain. Make sure it is pushed down as far as it can go.

2. Pour 1/4 cup white vinegar down the drain and cover quickly with a plug. It fuzzes up pretty fast. 

I left it for an hour came back to it and all the hair was lifted up so I could easily grab it out. I repeated the steps and have a perfectly draining bathtub and sinks! You can use this for your kitchen sink too! I only had to do it once for my kitchen sink and do not do it as regularly.

Happy Natural, Thrifty, Healthy living friends!

Cloth Napkins vs Paper Towels

Cloth napkins vs paper towel... That is the real question.

Do you know how many paper towels are used in your house every month? Me neither... Until I counted... I buy my paper towel at Costco I think packages of 12. We used that package in 8 months... 

Whats all the hullaballoo?

Consider this, you'll probably use thousands and thousands of rolls, which is equivalent to an entire forest. Imagine a local forest that you've walked through being completely cut down just for paper towels! It isn't just trees that are being consumed, its the entire process of making them including chemicals that go into it. To increase absorbency, they've been subjected to dioxins and other ingredients (the process isn't disclosed on the roll of paper towels). They are also bleached to give them their white colour. The dangers of chlorine bleach have been well documented. Infants and toddlers are especially vulnerable to the effects of chlorine bleach. Finally, they can take up to a year to decompose but then again remember the chemicals that go into the process of making them? It is leaking into the water system and causing harmful effects.

For me and my family this was a no brainer and a simple fix! 

I went out and purchased some organic terry cloth and flannel for reusable cloth napkins. I purchased it with my Fabricland membership on the back isle that only cost $3 per meter and matching thread of course! 

I cut out 10" x 12" rectangles. I probably cut 30 of each. Then sewed right sides together close to the edges.

Make sure you leave a 2 inch opening to flip the fabric. 

 After flipping the fabric, tuck the opening in and iron flat.

Then top stitch along the edge. This makes a BIG difference! (I made 2 different colours so don't be confused...)

I wrapped them around a paper towel holder for the meantime but I think I would like to add snaps so they can be laid more evenly.

The man only started using them once I tucked the paper towel away. We have had them for 2 months now and we all love them! They feel so soft on our faces and are very durable. We use them for simple kitchen wipe ups and meal times. We have a whole other section of rags for cleaning the home instead of using paper towels. Our waste has gone down substantially just from not using paper towels and I must say I haven't noticed an increase in the laundry as they are quite thin.

Overall a great investment! Its Thrifty, natural, homemade, and a great present wrapped in a cloth bow!

Happy sewing and living a more environmentally conscious life!

DIY Natural Pet Stain Remover

We have a little pup. When we leave him for too long at home or if he is just extra anxious he goes to the bathroom on our carpet. First of all I cannot wait to have hardwood instead of carpet. This will solve most of our home pet problems when this gets changed over... Until then, we have carpet and a pet to clean up after!

This last one was a poop. It wasn't hard either. TMI? Sorry...

I got most of it off with a cloth... but the brown smelly colour was still there.

I know baking soda rids pups smells. I use it weekly before I vacuum the carpet. So I figured I would sprinkle some of that on. Then I remembered a grass stain that our little cookie had on her shirt. I took it off with baking soda and vinegar... just let it sit there for an hour.

I tried this on the carpet. Let it sit for 2 hours (for extra mess removal hoping with my fingers crossed) and wiped the area up. Don't let the mixture sit for longer then that as it will bleach the carpet. The smell and brown stain was gone! Phew! I can officially stop buying pet stain removers that are so costly and cannot be good to breath in due to the extra smells they add.

Pet Stain and Smell Remover:
Baking soda
Vinegar

Happy natural thrifty living!

Oil Cleansing Method

I should probably start off with I get breakouts... ALL THE TIME! I also have rosacea... My T-zone gets the worst of it... but really it happens all over my face... I used to buy any cleanser that promised to rid my face of blemishes or rosacea. Really, I tried them all. 

Have you seen the strange chemicals that are in facial cleansers? I don't even know where to begin with how many of them are toxic to your body and to the environment. Pick up your bottle and just do  a simple google search. That should be enough... 

Second thing about facial cleansers is that they can increase in price just because its for your face... Why? To make more money... 

So off I went on a search for a cheaper alternative that contains more natural properties.

Halfway through my last year of university I ran out of my facewash and decided it was time to go natural and cheap (student living and all). 

To my surprise I found Oil Cleansing Method.

Pardon, you say? Doesn't Oil + Face = Breakout!!!! Wrong!

No, this isn't true. Your face produces more oil then what is required due to drying effects. Your hair pores get clogged via dust/debris and other junk you get from daily living (or products your using in your hair/face cream) and this is what causes blemishes. (There are many other reasons for clogged pores, we are just talking about oil.)

I used the oil cleansing method for 6 months, wrote down what it was like week after week. I found out everyones skin is very different and you have to test out different ratios of the 2 oils you use that best suits your skin. 

Oil Cleansing Method:

This is a basic guide for your skin:

• Oily Skin: Try a blend of 30% Castor Oil to 70% Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
• Balanced Skin: Try a blend of 20% Castor Oil to 80% Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
• Dry Skin: Try a blend of 10% Castor Oil to 90% Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

I suggest using a glass bottle with a lid. You can find them at Walmart/Dollar stores. Make sure you clean your bottle before re-filling it for the next batch.

Pour a small amount on your fingers and rub gently in a circular motion all over your face for a minute or so. Ensure the oil is completely rubbed in. Next take a facecloth and put it under a tap of running hot water (not too hot it scalds you, just enough that you can stand it). Place the facecloth on your face for a few minutes until it cools. It is suggested that you do this a few times. Gently rub the excess oil off your face. Ta da! Done. Do this every night before bed.

Here are my results:

Week 1: Awful! Incredibly greasy face. Pimples and rosacea present.

Week 3: Face is feeling refreshed and grease level has decreased significantly

Week 4: Blemishes are clearing up and staying away

Week 6: Rosacea is gone! Still blemish free and my blackheads on my nose even look like they have decreased!

Week7-6 Month: Face feels great! Only get blemishes the odd time. Rosacea is completely gone. I stopped using coverup on my face after week 7!

Now I have stopped using these 2 oils combined on my face. Not because it stopped working but because I am that lazy to go buy Castor oil and it takes some time to sit with a facecloth on your face... Did I mention I am slightly impatient? I only go when I am out... Its always sold out at the Walmart close to me and a little more expensive at the grocery stores that I shop at... So I stopped using it.

I have since switched to Coconut oil as mentioned in a previous post. I find I can rub it in every morning and rub a little in just before I hop out of the shower (after rinsing my face with water). Only once a week I find I need to use a hot facecloth to open my pores. This seems to be good for me during our cold winter.

Happy Natural Living!

Homemade Laundry Detergent

We go through laundry detergent like its going out of style.
We are out again, today, and I couldn't bring myself to buy a bottle of overly smelly detergent that costs $12 every time...
We have tried quite a few different types. At first it was the ones on sale. Then I learnt about all the toxic crap that is in the regular brands. So we tried a couple more natural ones. But they are even more expensive and some are not telling the complete truth about the bad chemicals. Just because it says natural does not mean it is!

Sooo off to Google I searched and searched. I remember bookmarking natural DIY laundry detergents a couple months ago waiting for the day that ours ran out. Hmm... Most of the detergents have Borax in them... That doesn't sound very healthy does it?? Natural of less evils? Maybe...

Grist Explains it here.

Anywhoooo I decided to go Borax free! Here is the recipe.

DIY HOMEMADE LAUNDRY DETERGENT
3 cups Baking Soda        $3.25 (for a GIANT container!)
3 cups Washing Soda     $6.59 (I used 1/8 of it)
1.5 bars Dr. Bonner's Castile Soap (peppermint scent) $2.67 each

Off to the store I went for my real natural products.

I walked down the laundry detergent isle today looking for washing soda and Castile soap and had to breath shallowly... There are sooo many smells that are supposed to be "fresh" in the laundry detergent section. There are soo many harmful chemicals in the fabric softeners that get used every day not to mention its toxic to our environment. Don't use them!

I found both of them at London Drugs and always have a giant container of baking soda at home for all my cleaning and baking needs :-)

After mixing up a batch I gotta say I was dieing to try it out! Its in a sealable container that has a 1/8 cup scoop sitting in it just waiting to be used. I put smelly cloths that I cleaned up my pups pee with... I know... Gross! Grass stained and mudded up jeans and some other randoms. I washed on cold as normal (energy saving of course), put in 1/8 cup vinegar into the fabric softener section (as normal) and let my HE machine do its thing! I opened the door to clean smelling clothes. No abnormal smell of perfume, just clean smelling clothing! Oooohhhhh Happy Days!

Plus with this amount of detergent it should last our family of three 10 months!

Did you read these things?!?!
Its Cheap!
Its Healthy!
Its Natural!
Its Environmentally friendly!
It's MUCH Easier then you think to make!


Happy Natural DIY Living!

How to get rid of Dog Smell!

Yes! I have kicked the pup smell in the butt! Its Thrifty, Natural, and DIY!

We have a fully carpeted home... (I cannot wait until its all hardwood or at least snap together laminate!) Our pup started shedding and my sister has a pup too that comes over and tends to shed too... That is a whole lot of dog hair that gets vacuumed every couple days. With dog hair comes a certain smell... I love my little pup with my everything but that blasted smell I could absolutely live without!

Money does not allow me to rip out the carpet just yet so I had to think of another alternative, a natural alternative, of course!

So I went into my cupboards and used some information that I have learned over the last couple months. Baking soda is the best invention ever! Oooo and lemon! Both great things!!!!

This is all you need! Baking Soda, Shaker container, and Lemon! (you can use any scent I just prefer real lemon)

I filled the container with baking soda squeezed about half a lemon into it. Shook the heck out of the container to ensure it was completely mixed. Sprinkle the mixture all over the carpet. Let it sit for about 15 min (don't worry your little pup can sniff and lick as much as he wants... it wont hurt him) Then vacuum it up! I do this once a week while the pups are in shedding season. Sometimes more often depending if there are little ones crawling on the carpet.

SMELL BE GONE! Huzzah!