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!

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!

Coconut lotion

I was looking through the GIANT stash of lotions that I have underneath my bathroom sink and I realized most of these lotions are not something I would want to put on my little cookie so why the heck am I putting these on my body? Hmm... Why did I have so many? Why did I decide to stop using one and switch to the next? Initially the reasons varied. At first it was the smell was too strong or too weak, it was too greasy or felt like it was not doing anything. Then later one of my friends M told me to look on the back of the bottle and pick one ingredient that I was insure of and look it up both good and bad sides and do real research not just googling it online... If you do not like the outcome of that ingredient throw it out or find a better use for it somewhere else.

So what is my solution? Really I had no idea what my solution would be at the time. I pulled out 13 bottles of lotion that at one time or another I have used. I walked out of my bedroom, downstairs and out the door with them all. I tossed them all right into my garbage can! Apparently the ingredients didn't  sit well with me. Great. Now I don't have a lotion that I feel comfortable putting on my body and most importantly on my little cookie's body.

Blast. I should have taken a picture of all my lotions before throwing them away!

So I started scouring the web. Surely there must be something out there that I can use on me that smells great, isn't too greasy, and does not have 100 chemicals that I cannot pronounce.

Then I came across Coconut Oil. Hmm... I have heard of a few benefits of coconut oil but did not think about lathering oil all over me...

So lets check it out.

Coconut Oil Use:
Hair care
Skin care
Stress relief
Maintaining cholesterol levels
Weight loss
Increased immunity
Proper digestion and metabolism
Relief from kidney problems
Heart diseases
High blood pressure
Diabetes
Dental care
Bone strength
These benefits can be attributed to the presence of lauric acid, capric acid and caprylic acid, and its properties such as antimicrobial, antioxidant, antifungal, antibacterial, and soothing properties.

Why not try it right? 

Off to the store I went. Coombs Country Market. After searching for about 15 min I found it hiding away on a bottom shelf with no other oils in sight... Strange place to put it... It was hard... Soooo this is why we are mixing it! And its in a glass mason jar. Not oil like at all. I read the ingredients: Organic Coconut Oil. Thats it? Perfect! 

I'll let you know in a couple weeks how I like it. I'm using it as a moisturizer on my face too. Yikes. I know, oil on the face? Apparently it is supposed to be a great moisturizer. Only 1 way to tell!

How to make Coconut Oil Lotion by The Nourished Life
Only 2 things I did differently is use an electric hand mixer for 7 min and I did not use Vitamin E oil.  Make sure all the oil is being mixed (might need a spatula)
I just spooned it into a mason jar I had lying around.

Day 1: Love it. Don't use too much though as it will feel like it does not rub in properly.


Enjoy!