Peppermint is my favorite healing herb

Peppermint is my favorite healing herb. I discovered it when I was 10 years old and I have used it all my life for treating all my ailments. I'm very deeply thankful for its healing medicinal benefits.  I have a very sensitive delicate stomach and this wonderful healing herb, peppermint, has helped so very much in so many ways.  What I love most about peppermint is the fact that it grows wild everywhere and there will always be a wonderful healing bounty of it.  I often drink peppermint tea when I don't feel well and I need to burp and stimulate my appetite to feel strong.  The strong pungent aroma is very healing.  I love the flavor and the aroma and I never leave home without it.  It's energizing, cooling, a natural decongestant, and it creates a sweet, beautiful, positive, healing energy in any toxic negative environment.  I carry a bottle of organic peppermint essential oil in my purse.  I have three boxes of organic peppermint tea in my cupboard.  Next to garlic and ginger, which are also wonderful, healing, medicinal herbs, peppermint is an herb that no one should be without and I can honestly say that I would encourage everyone to have it in their first aid kit and medicine cabinet.  Enjoy good health and healing wellness self-care.

(Image courtesy of Shutterstock.com)

Furry Angels need loving homes

This Holiday season, please think about all our furry friends who are in shelters and homeless who feel scared and alone and sad and desperately want to be adopted. If I could, I would adopt them all, but unfortunately, it's not feasible for me.  I am a proud, happy, thankful Mama of 2 adorable sweetheart kittycats, my fur babies and I raised them since they were kittens.  Marble and his sister Cali are such beautiful adorable precious furry angels and I love them both so very much.  You can enjoy the same beautiful sweet wonderful love and connection bond that I do.  There are many animal shelters across the USA and sadly, they are full with animals eagerly waiting for a beautiful loving kind caring Soul to rescue and adopt them into their home and their heart.  I'm writing this not to cause any pain, but with the hope and prayer that you will feel inspired and touched to help your furry friends and make them happy and feel loved and cared for.  It doesn't take much to make you and your furry friend happy.  

It's wonderful and truly amazing what rescuing a furry angel from the uncomfortable cage will do and sharing a loving sweet warm cuddle and caring for him or her with feeding and sharing a warm safe comfortable bed with him or her every night to help you both feel like a loving caring family.  I have seen many tweets on Twitter and shares on Facebook of animal lovers working hard to find loving homes for these furry babies so I feel inspired to do my part and help them in my own way.  Please, if you can, rescue and adopt 1 or 2 or even 3 furry angels and welcome them into your warm loving caring heart.  Please join me in no more homeless pets.  There are many wonderful nonprofit organizations throughout the country that can help you do this and can help you form a beautiful sweet loving family to make you both happy.  It's been said many times that the rescuer honestly didn't know who rescued who and I can honestly say that it goes both ways.   Best Friends Animal Sanctuary is the largest no-kill animal sanctuary in the country and they help many people everyday in bringing them and their furry babies close together as a happy family.  Please contact them and ask them for help and who to contact for local help with adoption.  Peace Love Hugs Whisker Kisses Purrs Meow Woof  Thank you and Bless your beautiful heart and enjoy a safe enjoyable happy furry Holiday Season.

My gratitude this Thanksgiving and a vegan recipe treat for you

For obvious reasons, Thanksgiving is not an easy holiday for me to celebrate.  I have cried thousands of tears feeling the horrifying pain of what the animals are put through and I can't even think about it because as an empath highly sensitive gentle Soul, I literally feel sick from it.  I am very deeply thankful for being a devoted healthy, organic, herbal, vegan and sticking to my passions and maintaining a small carbon footprint.  I'm very deeply thankful that I am able to save many beautiful animals' lives.   Every year, my dear husband and I enjoy a wonderful, delicious, organic, vegan Tofurky feast made by Turtle Island Foods.  We enjoy it with all the traditional Holiday extras, mashed potatoes, pumpkin pie, apple pie, stuffing, and delicious baked desserts.  The best part about our celebration is that it's entirely vegan.  No animal had to suffer for us to enjoy this meal and our carbon footprint is small, which is important and wonderful for Mother Earth.  Another reason why our feast is wonderful is because all the extra dishes that we eat with the Tofurky are homemade by me.  I've enjoyed being an organic, herbal, vegan chef for 20 years and now, I'm going share my delicious, culinary, organic, vegan art with the world.  The photo attached to this blogpost is a sample organic vegan dish I make every Thanksgiving and my family enjoys it every year.  It is delicious, creamy, vegan mashed potatoes and I'm sharing the recipe here.   It's on a plate with Tofurky slices and vegetables.   I'm working hard now everyday to finish my cookbook and I look forward to its launch and publication for the week of Christmas 2014.  I am very excited and thankful to be creating such an important wonderful cookbook that is filled with love, peace, and compassion and I am very thankful to be sharing it with you.  Enjoy a peaceful celebration and remember, peace and love begin on the dinner plate. 

Delicious Creamy Vegan Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
8 medium size organic Russet potatoes, ends and skin removed, rinsed, cut in 1/4 pieces
4 heaping tbsp. vegan Earth Balance Buttery Spread
8 tbsp. Bragg Liquid Aminos
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder

Instructions:  Bring a medium size stainless steel pot of filtered water to a rapid boil and fill it with 4 inches leeway space from the top.  When the water reaches a rapid boil, reduce the heat to medium and pour in the potatoes.  Stir gently and allow to cook for 25 minutes.  When the potatoes are soft enough to mash and eat, turn off the burner and thoroughly drain the water.  I like the pour in all the seasonings and mash it into the potatoes because it makes the potatoes creamy and softer and easier to mash, but whatever works best for you.  Mix thoroughly and evenly until all the seasonings are evenly mixed.  Serve and Enjoy!

My Gratitude to all the dedicated earth stewards

This special blogpost goes out to all the devoted hard-working activists who educate the public and raise awareness to help protect Mother Earth and all her beautiful wonderful creatures. I want to express my sincere heartfelt gratitude for everything you do to maintain a small carbon footprint and vote with your wallet to make healthy organic choices.  I'm very thankful for all the personal choices I make to keep my family healthy and well and maintain my own small carbon footprint.  It makes me feel wonderful to know that my homemade nontoxic detergent is safe and does not make my family sick and it does not cause any toxic pollution to the groundwater or air.  I'm very thankful that every healthy delicious vegan meal I make saves the lives of thousands of animals and uses very little of the earth's natural resources.  I'm very thankful that I can appreciate simple natural beauty and I am happy to know that the personal care soaps I use are gentle and healthy for my skin and keep me well and healthy and are gentle to Mother Earth.  

 (My friend shared this beautiful image on Facebook.)

I want to thank all the devoted organic earth stewards for making healthy sane choices that keep the earth healthy and green today and will continue to keep it healthy and green for future generations.    I also want to thank all the holistic herbalists and naturopath healers for helping your patients and clients empower themselves to make intelligent healthy choices and stop their dependency on toxic big pharmaceuticals.  Word of mouth is a very powerful form of education and we can all see the evidence that it works and it continues to work.  We are all human beings and we all have feelings and needs and it's often difficult to persevere when the going gets tough.  But when we see the positive results of our hard work, we can take heart in knowing that what we do does matter and we are all making a wonderful positive difference.  I have to remind myself of this everyday.  I have moments when I feel discouraged, but when I see my friends making great strides to help the world, this gives me profound hope and I feel better.  Thank you to all the beautiful sweet caring Souls who care enough to persevere.

If We Want Peace and Love We Need To Learn Kindness

Peace and Love is not just about showing compassion and kindness toward one another.  It's the 21st Century and life has become more complicated and stressful and with all the toxic petrochemicals being used everyday and all the meat consumption, tensions get more strained, which creates more conflict and division.  When people wear chemical fragrance and a chemically sensitive injured person suffers because of it and the fragrance wearer is insensitive to the sufferer, that is a lack of compassion, which creates conflict.  “Until he extends the circle of his compassion to all living things, man will not himself find peace.” quoted by Gandhi  We all have our differences, including opinions and points of view, but when we each make a choice that hurts another person, especially when it makes another person sick, this also creates conflict because we all get caught up in our "personal right to do what we want"; which in turn causes tremendous conflict.  It's true.  We have freedom of choice and we all have the right to make our own choices and decisions.  

However, if our actions extend beyond our personal space and hurt another person, be it toxic chemical fragrance, loud thumping heavy bass that is no longer heard, but felt, causing physical pain in someone's body, especially a sensitive autistic child, it is no longer acceptable to behave in such a manner.  This is a basic need to keep our personal choices and activities to ourselves.  The worst problem with all of this is that when one person makes an effort to communicate with the person doing the offensive activity, if he or she is unreasonable and allows their ego to get in the way, communication no longer works and conflict arises.  This is the number one reason why we have conflict in this world.  Politics and religion do play a part, but ultimately, regardless of the subject matter or issue, it's all about ego.  The "don't tell me what to do, I can do whatever I want" mindset is more than selfish, it's self-destructive and reflects a mindset of a person thinking he or she does not share the world with anyone else.  

If we could all just take a momentary step back and breathe and pause and be silent, we'd stop listening to our ego, realize we are all human beings who need love and gentle caring kindness and we need to show each other respect and courtesy.  No one wants to be told what to do, but there is such a thing as the Golden Rule, which says, "do unto others as you would have done unto you."  It's a basic rule of kindness, consideration, respect, and courtesy and if we all practiced this more, we might just listen to each other more, and be more loving and compassionate and less combative.  If we want our children to grow up in a more peaceful world and we want them to learn to be gentle peaceful loving beings who show kindness and love and respect for another person, then, we need to walk our walk and live by example.  Please think about it.  Thank you.

Delicious Vegan Pasta Veggies Mashed Potatoes Recipe

My dear friends, please enjoy this special gift treat recipe from my kitchen to yours, as you patiently wait for my delicious vegan cookbook to be published... ;) xoxox <3 br="">
Whole Wheat Noodles, Vegetables, and Mashed Potatoes
Ingredients
1/4 pkg. whole wheat angel hair or spaghetti
6 medium size organic russet potatoes, peeled and ends removed, rinsed, cut in 1/4 pieces
1/2 C broccoli
2 tbsp. organic zucchini, ends removed, rinsed, chopped
1 tbsp. organic carrot, ends removed, rinsed, thinly sliced
2 tbsp. sweet yellow onion, ends and peel removed, rinsed, chopped
4 large baby portabella mushrooms, rinsed, chopped
4 tbsp. sunflower oil
6 tbsp. Bragg Liquid Aminos
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. onion powder
4 tbsp. organic flax oil
4 heaping tbsp. Earth Balance Buttery Spread vegan dairy-free margarine

Instructions:  Fill a medium size stainless steel pot more than half way with filtered water and bring to a rapid boil.  When the water reaches a rapid boil, pour in the whole wheat noodles and reduce the heat to medium.  Allow to cook for 25 minutes or until soft and tender enough to eat.  When it's finished, drain thoroughly in a colander and set aside.  Fill a medium size stainless steel pot with filtered water almost half full until the water covers the steamer just above an inch.  Cover the pot and bring to a rapid boil.  When the water reaches a rapid boil, reduce the heat to medium and pour in the carrots and broccoli stalk.  Cover slightly but allow a tiny bit of steam to escape.  Stir gently so the vegetables are evenly spread around the steamer and can cook evenly.  At the same time, bring a 2nd medium size stainless steel pot half full of filtered water to a rapid boil.  When the water reaches a rapid boil, pour in the potatoes and stir gently and reduce the heat to medium.  Add the zucchini to the vegetables and spread it around the steamer gently for balanced space.  Check the broccoli and carrot to see if it is a little softer and then cover again and allow the vegetables to cook for another 5 minutes.  The vegetables should now be soft enough to eat.    When the vegetables are finished steaming and cooking, turn off the burner and drain thoroughly into a colander.  Set aside.  Allow the potatoes to cook for 20 minutes or until very soft.  The potatoes should be soft enough to mash.  Now, pour 6 tbsp. of sunflower oil into a nontoxic nonstick fry pan and cook on medium heat.  Pour in the chopped onions and stir gently and evenly.  When the oil begins to sizzle, squirt in 3 tbsp. of Bragg Liquid Aminos and continue stirring evenly and gently.  When the onions begin to soften and brown lightly, pour in the chopped mushrooms and continue stirring.  Once the onions and mushrooms are good and brown and soft, they are ready to eat and you can now turn off the burner.  Mash the potatoes good and evenly with a fork or potato masher until they are very soft.  Now, add the Earth Balance and remaining seasonings, except the flax oil.  The flax oil is the last ingredient you add.  Mix thoroughly and evenly until the seasonings are mixed well and the potatoes are wet, creamy, and delicious.  Now, pour all the ingredients into the fry pan together, including the organic flax oil, and mix thoroughly and evenly.  It's a bit thick and sticky so you may need to put in a little extra elbow grease to make it mix well.    Continue stirring and mixing until the entire dish is creamy and blended together.  Serve and Enjoy!

An Offer For My Delicious Organic Herbal Vegan Cookbook You Cannot Refuse

Hello everyone who has expressed interest in my upcoming cookbook, "Wise Mama Delicious Organic Herbal Vegan Cookbook." I'm really excited to announce that I will be finishing it very soon and it will be coming out Thanksgiving week 2014.  I know many of you are excited and just can't wait and some of you have said that you are going to tell all your friends and as much as I would love to give copies away and get my message to everyone, I can't do that.  But I have come up with a win/win idea and I've tossed it around and I'm prepared to give copies away to everyone who has expressed interest, but there is a catch.  You tell 5 or more of your friends and family and I will add them to a waiting list.  When I release the book and they have made the purchase and I have verified their purchase, I will give you a FREE copy! Fair enough? Let me know what you think and if I get enough responses, I'll do it!

My favorite healing holistic selfcare

I feel very deeply thankful for gentle, healing, holistic self-care.  When I feel distressed and need comfort, I enjoy listening to Yanni's beautiful healing soothing music and relax with deep breathing and diffuse my favorite organic essential oils into the air.  My favorite organic essential oils for self-soothing are sweet orange, earthy sandalwood, and a lovely Ayurvedic blend, called Vata aroma oil.  As a sensitive Vata dosha, I need a lot of self-soothing and comfort to help me feel better when I feel tired, stressed, and out of ease and the lovely aromatherapy blend always calms and soothes me.  It's true what is said that music soothes the savage beast and healing new age music always soothes my Soul, as does yoga, Tai Chi, and enjoying laughter with my favorite comedy.  Cuddling with my sweet, adorable, beautiful kittycats also soothes and comforts me and the lovely combination of all these wonderful healing self-care soothers does a great deal to relax me and help me feel centered, happy, and well.  Slowing down also helps and when I meditate and rest, I begin to feel more healing energy and I feel renewed.  Enjoying a lovely soothing hot bath soak and hot cleansing shower are beautiful and healing, especially with soothing, beautiful, sweet, organic essential oils in the air.  I feel very deeply thankful for gentle healing holistic self-care. 

 (Image Courtesy of istockphoto.com)

 (My adorable sweet beautiful kittycats)

A healthy inner beauty wellness tip

A healthy beauty tip to soothe and energize your cells and make them happy...

Add a cap full of organic apple cider vinegar to your drinking water and drink throughout the day and when you need an extra healing boost of energy and your immune system needs a healing boost add an envelope of your favorite Emergen-C to your drink.  Gently stir or shake if in a closed bottle and drink throughout the day to feel well and happy.  Stay hydrated and drink water as often as you need to to stay well.  Instead of reaching for your daily cup of coffee, meditate and do some refreshing energizing yoga and enjoy some crisp fresh air and connect with Mother Nature.  My favorite high is a natural high and I enjoy that the most when I'm outside connecting with nature and deeply connecting with the beautiful green trees, the beautiful insects and wildlife and cuddling with my adorable sweet kittycat furry babies.  Laughter is another favorite that helps me feel good and helps me stay well.  After a difficult stressful day, I enjoy walking away from my computer and enjoying some light wonderful comedy to help me unwind for the night.  These are my favorite self-care enjoyment moments.

(Image Courtesy of an image shared on Facebook)

 (My adorable sweet kittycat fur babies, Marble and his sisfur Cali)

Organic Essential Oils are Wonderful Holistic Healing for Children and Mamas

I love organic sandalwood essential oil.  It is my favorite for soothing comfort and grounding Ayurvedic healing.  When I feel stressed and frazzled and I'm grieving, sandalwood helps to soothe me and relax me. That combined with gentle yoga asanas and meditation are very healing self-care for this Mama.  My teething toddler likes it too and he was having a crying teething meltdown this afternoon and I gave him a whiff of the lovely sandalwood aroma and I put chamomile oil on his cheek to soothe and ease his teething pain and he calmed down and enjoyed a sweet lovely restful nap.  Pure organic essential oils are wonderful for holistic healing.  I keep a bottle of peppermint oil in my purse and one in my drawer and a bottle of sandalwood and a bottle of sweet orange oil in my drawer.  I also keep a bottle of chamomile on the shelf in my son's room.  This combined with several drops of Bach Flower Rescue Remedy under the tongue and I feel soothed and relaxed.

(Image Courtesy of istockphoto.com)

Mama's Yummy Organic Herbal Vegan Potato Stew Recipe

Mama's Yummy Potato Stew from my soon to be published organic herbal vegan cookbook
Ingredients
5 small organic russet potatoes
1 small organic zucchini, ends removed, rinsed, chopped
1 tbsp. organic carrot, ends removed, rinsed, chopped
4 tbsp. canned organic corn
2 tbsp. sweet yellow onion, peel and skin removed, rinsed, chopped
3 medium size baby portabella mushrooms, rinsed, chopped
4 tbsp. organic flax oil
6 tbsp. Bragg Liquic Aminos
2 heaping tbsp. Earth Balance
4 tbsp. organic ketchup (see recipe in "gravies, sauces, and dressings")
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
6 tbsp. extra light olive oil

Instructions:  If you are able to use 3 burners at the same time, it will help to save time and feed your hungry family sooner! :)  I do this for the very same reason.  Bring 2 medium size stainless steel pots of purified or filtered water to a rapid boil.  When the water reaches a rapid boil, reduce the heat to medium and in 1, pour in the chopped potatoes and in the other pot, pour in the carrots.  Stir evenly and allow the potatoes to cook for 20 minutes and allow the carrots to cook for 10 minutes.  On a 3rd burner, warm 6 tbsp. of extra light olive oil in a nontoxic nonstick fry pan on medium heat.  Pour in the chopped onions and stir evenly and allow to cook and sizzle for 10 minutes.  When the onions begin to soften a little, pour in the chopped mushrooms and squirt in a few drops of Bragg Liquid Aminos and stir thoroughly and evenly.  Check the potatoes and the carrots to see if they've softened more.  When the potatoes are soft and done, turn off the burner and thoroughly drain the water and when the carrots begin to soften, pour in the zucchini and stir gently.  Allow the vegetables to cook for 10 more minutes and when they are soft enough to eat, turn off the burner and thoroughly drain the water.  When the onions and mushrooms are soft and brown, turn off the burner.  When the potatoes and veggies are thoroughly drained, pour them into the fry pan and stir and mix evenly and thoroughly.  Add the remaining the remaining seasonings and stir evenly.  You might want to cool the dish a bit in the freezer, unless it's a chilly day and you will enjoy this yummy creamy warm dish.  Serve and Enjoy! :)

Delicious Grilled Vegan Daiya Cheddar Tofurky Melt Recipe

Delicious Grilled Vegan Daiya Cheddar Tofurky Melt Recipe that my family loves from my upcoming soon to be published delicious vegan cookbook.

Grilled Daiya Cheddar Cheese melt with Smoked Tofurky, Avocado, and Tomato on organic vegan whole wheat bread

Ingredients
2 slices of your favorite organic vegan bread, lightly toasted
2 tbsp Original flavor Vegenaise, spread evenly
2 slices of smoked flavor Tofurky
2 tbsp soft ripe avocado, spread evenly. 

Instructions:  If you want to melt the cheese, pour 2 tbsp Daiya Cheddar on 2 slices of bread and toast or bake in the toaster oven at 275 or 300 degrees for 5 minutes.  Remove bread and Daiya Cheddar from the oven and put the sandwich together.  An easier quicker way to do make it is to use an OrGreenic non-toxic non-stick ceramic pan and all you have to do is grill on medium or 5 or 6 on an electric burner for 5 minutes until toasted brown on each side.  This sandwich is great for busy stressed Mamas who need a quick delicious nourishing sandwich for their children.   Serve and Enjoy!

A Holistic Organic Makeover for my blog

You may notice that I've given my blog a holistic organic makeover.  I've decided to give my blog a fresh beautiful new look that will help everyone feel good who visits and I want my visitors to stay and browse and read my helpful tips and enjoy your visit.  My focus is now completely on my being an organic wise Mama in every sense.  Everything I do to care for my little 1 with natural holistic remedies, my yummy homemade meals and my healing delicious smoothies and herb teas will be shared on this blog as tips and how-to recipes.  Very soon, I will be finished compiling my delicious vegan cookbook and I will begin sharing delicious recipes to tempt your taste buds and help you enjoy making healthy simple stress-free meals.  Holistic living is a way of life for my family and will always be our healthy focus.  I will share all the wonderful important things we do to stay healthy, well, and happy to help you and your family stay well, healthy, and happy too.  I welcome comments, questions, ideas, suggestions.  So, please don't be shy.  We organic wise Mamas need to be there for each other as a supportive holistic healing community tribe.  Thank you for taking the time to visit and enjoy!  Peace Love Gratitude, Dayna

True Inner Beauty Comes From Healthy Self Love and Self Care

As a new Mother of an active teething little boy, healthy self-care is very important to me.  When I feel great inside and out, I feel alive and energized, relaxed and filled with joy.  The moments when I feel this joy the most are after a lovely, soothing, cleansing bath or shower, intimate moments with my family, playing in the great outdoors, and enjoying a delicious, healthy, homemade meal.  These special moments when I feel wonderful are priceless and poetic and I feel balanced in every way.  No amount of my favorite organic lipstick or moisturizer can give me this profound feeling of beautiful relaxation. 

Don't me wrong, I enjoy wearing organic makeup once in a while, but when I feel cool fresh breezes on my skin and blowing lightly through my freshly shampooed hair, the beautiful feeling I feel inside and out comes from the wonderful self-care I enjoy everyday.  Add restful meditation, healthy yoga stretches, and a wonderful dose of my favorite comedy every night and I feel incredibly relaxed and strong.  True beauty and the wonderful feeling I feel that helps me feel beautiful is the wonderful self-care I do to help me stay well, happy, and feeling good.  For me, this is the true essence of healthy, nontoxic, organic beauty.

Sign the petition to protect Oregon Eco Systems and Wildlife from Harmful Man Made Noise and Sonic Assault

Shhh, what do #peace and #quiet mean to you? Do you hear beautiful natural bird, wind, and cricket sounds? Are these natural beautiful sounds drowned out by overpowering toxic man made noises that are destroying the sound scape? Are you able to enjoy gentle quiet moments while relaxing and connecting with Mother Nature?  Are these horrible man made noises and ground-pounding thumping thudding interfering with your peaceful quiet enjoyment and disrupting the natural life cycles of the ecosystem and wildlife?  

                                                                   

Are you tired of savoring those moments of peace and quiet after a stressful week, only to have it painfully rudely disrupted by inconsiderate selfish individuals who have no respect for the law or other people's need for #privacy and #solitude?  Does it take hours to soothe and comfort your baby to sleep and only to have it rudely set back so that you have to repeat the exhausting process all over again?  We all have our right to our own personal private space that we need to honor and respect in each other.  Please join #citizens throughout the state of #Oregon to say "enough is enough" and take back our much deserved right to peace and quiet and traffic safety.  Please sign this #petition and tell your friends!  Thank you!  http://loud.vze.com/

My husband enjoys simple organic green beauty and selfcare

My dear husband is my equal partner and feels the same way about toxic synthetic fragrance as I do.  He wasn't always chemically sensitive.  He was one of those guys who slapped on a whole bunch of his favorite commercial cologne to smell like a masculine guy.  He even worked as a fragrance model a couple times in a shopping mall, until one day when he was assigned to a temporary job assignment and the cleanup workers there poured too much commercial cleanser on the floor and caused a toxic spill.  When he arrived there, the air was overpowering with toxic chemicals and he felt very ill.  He couldn't breathe or concentrate and quickly returned home to rest and recuperate. 

Since then, he has not been the same.  Today, my dear husband shares my strong distaste for all adulterated synthetic fragrance products.  I wrote my book  that teaches men and women how to enjoy organic nontoxic beauty.  My dear husband came up with the wonderful creative title, Keep Your Vanity Without Losing Your Sanity, and the reason he came up with it is because he is fed up with the obsession with vanity, but more important, he is fed up with the effect that these toxic fragrances have on his breathing, his lungs, and his ability to concentrate.

Today, my dear husband keeps his cleanliness and grooming very simple and basic and is happy as long as he is clean, groomed, and smells clean.  He enjoys a few drops of his favorite organic essential oils, like spearmint, sandalwood, and patchouli on his face for soothing comfort after he shaves, splashes his face with refreshing cool water, and he feels good and ready to go about his day.  My husband and I both love Gandhi's famous #quote:  "Live simply so that others may simply live."  Simplicity is beautiful and the more we humans simplify our life, the healthier and happier we are and that is the greatest gift we can give to Honor Mother Earth and our children.

Stop Flushing Your Money Down The Toilet on Commercial Cosmetics

Personal care and beauty is a very personal individual subject, and I know this because I am a busy Mother who suffers from stress and burn out.   I understand how important it is to feel good and relax and reduce stress and I also understand how important it is to feel beautiful.  But what's most important is feeling beautiful in a healthy, nontoxic, organic manner.  I started learning about organic beauty and nontoxic self-care 20 years ago and when I read the information about the profound difference between commercial cosmetics and organic green cosmetics made by companies that genuinely care about humans, the environment, and the animals, there was no turning back; I became very aware of a very important issue and I could not ignore it.  

                                                    (Image Courtesy of istockphoto.com)

I wrote about this subject at length in my organic beauty book, Keep Your Vanity Without Losing Your Sanity.  The most important thing I learned about beauty and self-care is that anything you put on your skin and in your hair, including any perfume you spray on your body, your skin is the largest organ and it absorbs everything like a sponge.  That being said, if you were to take a few minutes and really take the time to digest and comprehend the ingredients on the back of any commercial shampoo, moisturizer, makeup, body wash, and perfume, and you were to take the time to research what each ingredient was, if you are like me the day I discovered the ugly truth, your jaw would drop and you'd return the product to the store shelf.  Personal care and beauty is indeed a personal individual choice and when you discover how toxic these commercial cosmetics are, you cannot become "unaware" and ignore the facts.  

I recently made a harrowing discovery that a known #pesticide, #triclosan, is one of the key ingredients in #sanitizers, #fragrance, #cosmetics, and personal care products.  This is just one of many #toxic ingredients found in #commercial #cosmetics and it is a known #neurotoxin that causes brain damage and can make you very seriously ill.  This, plus the fact that the ingredient #fragrance, which contains 5000+ #toxic #petrochemicals, is enough of a reason to make the switch today to #organic #green #beauty.  Yes, the vibrant sexy colors in #commercial #makeup may look appealing, but the #hidden #toxic #poison is not worth it!  Please read my #FREE #Special #Beauty #Report to learn the #facts and #educate and #empower yourself! Please see the information on the top right-hand sidebar of this blog to see how you can receive my #FREE #Special #Beauty #Report.  You deserve to feel beautiful, sexy, alive, youthful, and wonderful in a safe, sane, healthy manner. Treat yourself to this beautiful Gift of Truth! Your body, mind, and Spirit are worth it!

How To Make Your Own Citrus Air Freshener

As a special tribute to #EarthDay and to celebrate #EarthDay everyday, I'd like to share some tips about how to make your own nontoxic earth friendly citrus air freshener #aromatherapy.  There are a few ways you can do this.  One simple method is to grind up pieces of lemon and orange in your garbage disposal, if you have one.  Another method is to squeeze the juice of a whole lemon when you are cleaning your home with baking soda and vinegar.  The lovely strong lemon #aroma fills the air and cleans the air and makes the entire house smell very refreshing.  Another effective method is to fill a spray bottle with 1/8 C of white distilled vinegar and 1 C of fresh squeezed lemon and orange juice, even grapefruit juice and shake and mix it thoroughly and spray anywhere in your home where it needs to be refreshed and invigorated.  Another great method is to pour 6-10 drops of your favorite citrus #essentialoils into an electric diffuser or a diffuser that utilizes #nontoxic #earthfriendly candles and allow the #citrus #aromatherapy to fill the room with lovely, fresh, clean citrus aroma.   

(Image Courtesy of istockphoto.com)

(Image Courtesy of Getty Images)

These are all lovely effective methods.  Another wonderful way to enjoy citrus and other #healing #aromatherapy is to pour 3-5 drops of your favorite pure organic essential oils into the palm of your hand and vigorously rub the palms of your hands together and the moment you smell the lovely aroma coming from your hands, wave your hands back forth through the air and continue doing this throughout your home.  I do this often when I want to quickly fill the air with lovely healing aromatherapy.  Whichever method you use to enjoy healing refreshing aromatherapy, your family will benefit from its healing therapy and your home will feel safe, clean, and comfortable.  For more information about pure #organic therapeutic-grade essential oils, please visit my Young Living Essential OIls Independent Distributor web page:  http://www.notperfume.com/essential7.html  Happy #EarthDay #Everyday!

My Love for Mother Nature and A Special Earth Day Gift for You

Mother Nature is my best friend and spending time in the great outdoors is my favorite thing in the world.  My life's work, passions, and interests reflect this love very strongly.  I wrote many poems about my passionate love for nature and I continue to do so because that love and passion is continuously inspired and renewed.  I feel the same way about my healthy delicious cooking.  I've been a happy healthy vegetarian herbivore for more than 20 years and the wonderful dishes I make everyday reflect my passion and love for Mother Earth and the animals.  When I describe my profound love for Mother Nature, I feel deeply inspired and when I write poems, they spill out me in such a way that each one turns into a short story, due to its length.  

The more I learn about Mother Nature's magical wonders and her healing powers and all the sweet love her wonderful beauty creates, the more inspired I feel to create wonderful artistic expressions.  I'm in humble awe of her beauty and I have tremendous respect for all of her healing power and creations.  I feel very thankful and honored to be an Earth Steward and Blessed to be an artist with the talented gift of natural artistic expression.  Please join my Green Living Newsletter and enjoy and treat yourself to some of my special beautiful nature poems and delicious healthy recipes that have been lovingly inspired by Mother Nature.  Everyday is Earth Day and this special newsletter is an Earth Day treat.  Please see the information on the right-hand side bar of my blog about how to subscribe to my Green Living Newsletter and thank you for allowing me to share my special gifts with you.

My Favorite Herbs for Healing and Medicinal Flavor

My four favorite #herbs for #healing and #medicinal flavor in #cooking are #garlic, #ginger, #peppermint, and #lemon.  I've used all four wonderful healing herbs for more than 20 years and I can honestly say that they have saved my life.  I love the wonderful pungent #aroma of all of them.  Garlic in foods smells so lovely and makes me hungry while I cook it into my meals.  It also aids in tremendous healing of various ear and bacterial infections and my family swears by it.  Ginger smells lovely and tastes very strong, but when my family doesn't fell well, a little ginger sprinkled in a hot tea or my magical healing soup does wonders to help us feel much better.  

Peppermint is a very pungent herb and I never leave home without it.  I swear by it.  It aids in #digestion, soothes my sore throat, cools me down on an uncomfortable hot day, and gives the indoor air of my home a lovely cooling aroma.  Lemon is one of my favorites.  I always make sure I have plenty of lemons on hand because I use them for so many healing benefits.  A little fresh squeezed lemon juice in a refreshing cool peppermint tea is lovely on an uncomfortable hot day.  I add a few squeezes of fresh lemon juice to many of my dishes and the flavor is wonderful and delicious!  You will find the #recipe for my magical healing soup and many more wonderful #recipes in my soon to be #published #plantbased #cookbook.  Mother Nature is my best friend and her herbal medicine cabinet is priceless!

Helpful Tips for Mamas to Enjoy Nontoxic Organic Beauty

As a #happy #grateful new #Mother of a #beautiful #baby, keeping my life as #simple and #healthy as possible is very important to me.  #Organic #beauty helps me feel good, but #inner #beauty helps me feel wonderful and I strive for this feeling everyday.  I'm a stay at home #attachment #Mother and I work from home as a #freelance #writer and #blogger.  While looking and feeling #beautiful is important to me as a #woman, I honestly don't put a great deal of attention on my #beauty #regimen.  I put a great deal of attention on my #self #care, which is very important to me.  #Stress and #sleep #deprivation can wear out the #body, #mind, and #Spirit and I do my best to take good care of myself so that I don't suffer from burn out.  These are my three favorite things I do to stay well and feel #rejuvenated and I highly recommend them to everyone, especially Mamas who need extra rest.

1.  I've been practicing mantra-based #Transcendental #Meditation for more than 20 years and it has helped me tremendously to stay well and centered and keep my blood pressure healthy.  Meditating helps me feel relaxed.  When I feel sleep deprived and run down, I meditate and then enjoy a nice nap to catch up on rest and feel better.

2.  I enjoy a nice soothing hot soak in a bath of Epsom salts, sea salt, and #orange and #sandalwood #aromatherapy.  This soak soothes my nerves and helps me enjoy a radiant glow.

3.  After a nice, #soothing, #rejuvenating, hot #shower, I let the hot steamy water warm and tone my skin.  I then enjoy a nice #gentle walk in the lovely, crisp, fresh air.

#Nontoxic #beauty isn't merely about wearing makeup that is #safe, #green, and #earth #friendly.  True #beauty comes from within and grows #stronger with a #healthy #balanced #lifestyle.  This is how I'm able to look 20 years younger than my actual age.  The #healthier you are, the better you feel and the better you feel, the more confident and alive and radiant you feel and that is priceless.  For more helpful #tips about how to enjoy #nontoxic #organic #beauty, please visit my website:  http://www.notperfume.com/book.html and order my #book, Keep Your Vanity Without Losing Your Sanity or if you have a Kindle, you can order here: http://alturl.com/cinpe

Commercial Detergent and Commercial Deodorizers Are A Toxic Mixture

Have you seen the recent commercial depicting gospel singers singing about the divine uplifting fragrance of a popular commercial detergent mixed with a very popular commercial deodorizer?  In the 21st Century, this is by far the most toxic mad idea thought of yet and they think that by using gospel singers to sing their praises of it, it's wonderful and divine.  The truth is to the contrary.  It's common knowledge that #commercial #detergent contains #toxic #petrochemicals, #irritants, #phthalates, and many other toxic things that can potentially cause #Cancer and other painful illnesses.  When you add a well known popular #commercial #fragrance #deodorizer to the mix, you have a #toxic witch's brew that is overwhelming and hazardous to all walks of life, especially young children and the #delicate #ecosystems and #wildlife.  Please see the following links to very informative websites that contain very important information that all families need to know and please share and spread the word.  Breathing healthy, safe, clean indoor air and outdoor air is very important!

Look What’s Lurking on Your Freshly-Washed Clothes

http://products.mercola.com/laundry-detergent/

The Dangers of Febreze
http://www.sustainablebabysteps.com/febreze.html

EWG's Guide to Healthy Cleaning - Febreze Fabric Refresher Cleaner Rating
http://www.ewg.org/guides/cleaners/1659-FebrezeFabricRefresher

Very cool creative! I Love it! Little Einsteins - Whale Tale (HD Version)

Laughter is Healing Medicine

One of my favorite #quotes is by a very wise intelligent man who found the courage to laugh and relax while he lay ill in a hospital bed.  That wonderful, sweet, wise man was Norman Cousins.  He said, "Laughter is truly the best medicine."  This is one of my favorite all-time #life #quotes, as it is so very true.  I have many days and moments when I feel discouraged and frustrated and I cry, but I breathe deeply and count to 10 and take a much needed breather break and I watch some wonderful comedy.  Lovely hearty belly laughs are truly the best medicine and a true #elixir for anything and everything that ails you.  I highly recommend it and I make it my daily and weekly commitment to my #selfcare to laugh as much as I can several times a week to stay well and feel relaxed.  You'll be amazed at how much better you will feel when you treat yourself to some much needed healing laughter.  Have fun and enjoy!

The Beauty of What Peppermint and Lavender Have in Common

What do #peppermint and #lavender have in common?  They are both pure #natural #organic #essentialoils that are derived from natural organic plants and herbs and they contain many healing properties.  #Peppermint is all my favorite herb because it's very healing for many ailments.  When I suffer from intestinal distress, a drop of peppermint oil on my tongue or in a glass of water is very cool and refreshing and soothes my upset stomach.  #Peppermint has grown wild for centuries and will continue to grow for many more centuries.   #Peppermint grows in abundance and is very easy to harvest and adds a beautiful healing touch to any home and healthy lifestyle.  #Lavender is also a wonderful healing herb. When you apply several drops to a painful sunburn or a painful kitchen burn, the lavender helps the skin heal very quickly.  #Lavender is also very soothing and calming.  #Peppermint and #lavender are each very soothing and healing for #aromatherapy and are very rejuvenating.  I have been using both herbs for healing #aromatherapy for 20 years and I'm very thankful for the profound healing they have given me and my life.  Please watch this video to learn more about pure #organic #essentialoils and how you can use them for natural healing medicine in your life.

Organic Beauty Tip

#organic #beauty #tip

Sleep is very important for good health and wellbeing.  If you need rest and you are having difficulty sleeping, meditate and take a nap, if you need to, and #justsayNO to #caffeine.  Studies show that drinking anything caffeinated gives you a quick jolt or buzz and a false feeling of energy and then within a few hours, your body feels lethargic and you may even feel jittery.  It feels like you are crashing.  Drinking a cup or two of coffee is not the solution to sleep-deprivation.  Practicing Transcendental Meditation is very easy and helpful in lowering blood pressure and helping the body, mind, and Spirit to feel more relaxed.  I have been practicing TM for more than 20 years and it's really helped me in so many ways.  I attribute my youthfulness largely to my being a regular daily meditator.  When you feel more rested, your entire wellbeing feels better and when you feel better, it's a good time to go outside and enjoy some fresh air.

(IMage Courtesy of www.123rf.com)

Healing Mother Earth

There are many disturbing, terrible, abusive atrocities being done to hurt Mother Earth and they are indeed heart breaking and sad.  I often sit and dwell on the ugliness in the world and the insanity of greedy humans who are thoughtless and continue to act without a second thought.  Thankfully, I have those moments when I meditate silently and listen to my Heart and my Soul and I'm reminded that I understand the problems in the world and the work that needs to be done.  I then breathe slow and deep  and ask myself what I can do to help heal Mother Earth.  

Mother Earth is a beautiful magical world and all her beings are precious, delicate, alive, and work in harmonious conjunction with each other.  Humankind strives to live in harmony as well, but it is the corporations that interfere with the healing peaceful love.  When I see all the beautiful natural wonders in the great outdoors, I'm in humble awe and I'm mystified with all its wondrous beauty and I feel such tremendous gratitude for being alive to feel, see, taste, smell, breathe, and experience it.  Mother Earth is my beautiful home and I feel tremendous humble gratitude for the opportunity and ability to live in harmony with her and do my best to live as healthy, gently, wise, and aware as I can, stepping as lightly as I can on her magnificent terrain.  

(Courtesy of an image shared on Facebook)

When I silently gaze up at her tallest pine trees and watch the grass gently grow and blowing in the beautiful wind and the squirrels scurrying and playing up and down the trees and playing hide and seek with each other and the amazing beautiful sweet birds that fly and grace the sky with their wonderful beauty, I close my eyes and smile silently, graciously knowing that every step I take, every action and activity I do contributes to stepping lightly upon Mother Earth and contributing to a beautiful greener cleaner world.  

When I see a humpback whale and dolphin dance and jump out of the ocean water and I see and hear their wise innocent playful dance, I smile and cry tears of joy and feel tremendous love and respect for these beautiful sentient beings.  "How high will the sycamore grow? If you cut it down, then you'll never know." Colors Of The Wind by Vanessa Williams from Pocahontas, one of my favorite movies.

(Courtesy of Artist Aaron Labow 

Twitter @xTRFNx)

My Triumph in Successfully Outgassing A Toxic Scented Chair

Recently, I made a wonderful discovery when I needed to outgas and decontaminate an office chair that stank very badly of toxic commercial detergent.  The chair was given to me and I couldn't breathe around it.  I didn't think I would be able to use it, but a wonderful miracle happened that delighted and surprised me.  I filled a spray bottle halfway with white distilled vinegar and a few drops of Young Living Essential Oils proprietary blend of Purification.  I then sprayed all over the top of the chair cushion and the seat more than six times and then I sprayed Mia Rose Orange Air Therapy all over the cushion and seat six times until I saturated the chair.  I gently sniffed the chair and I felt such a sense of relief knowing that the chair was now safe and would no longer make me feel ill from the toxic chemical exposure.  I could not believe how effective and powerful it was and I'm very thankful that I discovered it.   

Life is not easy for chemically sensitive canaries, but thankfully, there are natural, holistic, earth friendly, safe methods we can use to help make our lives easier and healthier.  To learn more about how you too can enjoy a healthy life free of toxic harmful chemical fragrance, please visit my website and read about my book I wrote, entitled, Keep Your Vanity Without Losing Your Sanity.  You can also read about it on Amazon Kindle.  Thank you for caring and thank you for your interest in enjoying a healthy, green, nontoxic life.

Just Say NO to Commercial Detergent for Earth Day and Everyday

Just say NO to commercial detergent for Earth Day and everyday!  Commercial detergent is one of the most toxic polluting products ever invented and it has no place in man's daily life.  According to Greenpeace, Natural Resources Defense Counsel, Sierra Club, and Heal The Bay, commercial detergent is very polluting and is one of man's products that is best not to be used.  In a recent article I wrote that was published in The Elephant Journal, Green Your Laundry and Reduce Your Carbon Footprint on Mother Earth, I explain and illustrate extensively why commercial detergent is toxic and polluting and can cause very serious harmful health illnesses.  Rather than emphasize the obvious toxic polluting problem, I will propose a strong solution.  Starting this Earth Day 2014, I encourage everyone in the USA and across the globe to just say NO to commercial detergent for one day.  If you are voting with your wallet and you're using only Seventh Generation, Planet, Ecover, or another safe biodegradable detergent, including vinegar and baking soda, then good for you.  I applaud your green actions and efforts and Mother Earth and I appreciate your green caring kindness very much.  

(Image: Courtesy of a friend's share on Facebook)

Just imagine what would happen if every city in every state in the USA and throughout the industrialized world were to replace all their toxic commercial detergent with nontoxic biodegradable products that are green and safe.  This includes all public laundromats, including apartment buildings.  The toxic polluting petrochemicals and irritants in commercial detergents are harmful to your health, the delicate eco-systems, and they are being dumped into lakes, rivers, streams, and oceans at an alarming rate, polluting all plant life and creatures that thrive in these bodies of water.  Let's just say NO to toxic commercial detergent and let's send a strong loud message to all the corporations that we've had enough of their insane greed and we're going to vote with our wallets to keep Mother Earth green and clean.  Are you ready to take a very important action step toward ensuring a future planet for your children and grandchildren?

Vote With Your Wallet and Just Say No To Toxic Greedy Corporate America

It's the 21st Century.  Why are you still patronizing corporations that are polluting the Earth and are putting your health at risk?  Unless the products are purchased at a natural organic health food store, every commercially manufactured product known to man that you use to clean your house, wash your clothing, help you feel more attractive, and clean the air inside your home were manufactured by faceless greedy corporations.  There is a lot to be said about enjoying a healthy, safe, nontoxic, green lifestyle and it's very important for the health of Mother Earth, including all the beings who inhabit her world, plant, animal, and humans.  

There are many important reasons to vote with your wallet and buy only nontoxic, green, healthy, safe products and one of the most important reasons is to not support toxic corporate America.  If the product is manufactured by a major conglomerate and the company is known for green-washing with no interest in the public's health or ecological health, the product is toxic and best left on the shelf and not purchased.  Going green is all-inclusive and includes everything we eat, consume, wear, use for cleaning, and everyday life.  What kind of future do you want your children and grandchildren to inherit?