Crack. Kaboom. And Zap.

Sometimes, here in Arizona, we have a thing called weather. Yes, we wake up every morning and look out our bedroom windows to clear skies and sunshine.... every....day.... the same thing. It is really quite boring and you lose respect and interest in the sun pretty quickly... especially when it is greeting you at 103* at 9:00AM. 

Tonight, as many of my fellow Arizonans have noticed, we were graced with weather. Real, bona fide weather. (Did you know that "bona fide" was spelt "b-o-n-a  f-i-d-e"?? I disapprove.) 


We got the down pour, the side ways, and the drizzly type rain. We got the thunder clap, the thunder stomp, and the "run for your life, the world is ending" thunder. The clouds were dark. The clouds were light. The clouds were filled with white. (rhyme.) 

Finally... I got to enjoy some real weather. 


When the rain comes I see an opportunity to be lazy when it comes to watering my plants (what is left of them at least.) So tonight I shuffled my two pots of fern plants under the gutter drain that was over flowing in front of my neighbor's house. My plants are happy. 


When the rain comes Hubby sees an opportunity to try out his Berkey Water Filtration System. They claim it can filter food coloring out of water... they claim you can put pool water in and it will give you fresh, drinkable deliciousness. They claim that you could take swamp-esque water and quench your thirst. Hubs had to test them. And so he did:

With our roof tops still laced in Haboob dust, our gutter water was a lovely mocha brown. Mmmm.... fiber! Let's see what happens... shall we?

I'm pretty impressed. It worked... and yes, I did try the water. It tasted great - in fact, it tasted better than the tap water we usually filter through it - ahem - City of Phoenix - ahem. 

The best part of the night? Having our neighbor come play in the rain with me and then give me this:

Ghirardelli Chocolate Chip Brownies with Almond Shavings and
Chocolate Drizzle (AKA Goop). Made with Coconut Oil
instead of Vegetable Oil.

Enjoy Your Weather Whether You Got It or Not,
~Birdie

Watermelon Smoothies and Other Delicious Things

Well, for some amazingly wonderful reason, Beau's lovely sister... AKA my sister-in-law... decided to come over yesterday to make us dinner. Obviously I am not going to object. She made a yummy meal of mushroom rice with a shrimp, hummus, bell pepper, and spinach pita. It was scrumptious. She also brought a watermelon for us to munch on for dessert. We were too stuffed, however, to break into it so we saved it for later... which brings me to this post.


With an entire watermelon to eat between two people I wanted to get creative in how we would eat it and not waste it... because... honestly... sometimes we do that... 

So, tonight after our rice and steamed veggies (cauliflower, broccoli, and carrots) dinner I cut up the watermelon, threw it in the blender and made a few things to last us the week. Waste not, want not... that is becoming our motto... among other things.

I knew we wanted smoothies, so I took out the ice trays and set them on the table - then I noticed that one of the ice trays was almost empty (two cubes left)... which led me to watermelon ice cubes for our water during the week - yummy and refreshing!

Then I realized there was a lot of melon when you pureed it... so I poured some into a recycled juice jar we had on hand and put it in the fridge... watermelon juice... just add some water to cut the sweetness and you have yummy water throughout the day!

Lastly, I added the ice, blended, and made the smoothies for us to drink as dessert.

Who says eating healthy has to be gross? I'd say we spoiled ourselves!

Have a Watermelon Kind of Weekend,
~Birdie

One in Every Household

I'm an herbalist. I love tea. I drink herbal tea. I am currently drinking tea. It is a healthy addiction. And a delicious one.


To help enable my addiction I have sought out and purchased a French Press so that I can brew a nice big pot of herbal loose leaf tea. It is absolutely perfect. Every household should have one. You can use it for tea and coffee among other things, I am sure. 

My French Press is from Ikea. I chose Ikea because the French Press is not cheap. Starbucks sells them for upwards near $40. Ikea sells them for $12. That decision is simple.

My tea: Raspberry Leaf and Ginger Root tea. Freshly brewed, put in the fridge, and later consumed with ice cube companions. 

Do You Have Your's Yet?
~Birdie

Restaurant Styled Organic Salsa.... mmmm...

There is this blog that I follow pretty much religiously. I think she is the pips. This Pioneer gal is my role model. She home schools her kids, lives on a huge cattle ranch, has a hunky husband (just like me!), has two bassett hounds and is equally obsessed with them as I am with Izzie, and she cooks, writes books, gardens, and eats delicious food. She is awesome. 


While stalking... I mean.... perusing her website I stumbled across her recipe for home made restaurant styled salsa. It seems that she is just as picky and obsessive about salsa as I am. I gave the recipe a shot a few months back and it was pretty spot on. I am a spicy kind of girl, so I added some extra kick to mine to satisfy my needs. 

Flash forward to now. While at the grocery store this morning I was struck with inspiration to make it again. Few things compare to delicious home made salsa! This time, knowing now what I know, I bought organic veggies. Yum! 

I have been trying to learn how to do things from scratch when cooking so instead of using out of the can ingredients like she suggests I bought some roma tomatoes and tossed them into a pot of water and set it to boil.

I sent my cilantro, jalapenos, and onion through my food processor and waited for the tomatoes to be soft enough to turn into tomatoey mush. 

With the tomatoes ready to make said mush. I tossed them into the food processor and made mush.

Combine all the ingredients. Throw in the spices that she suggests (mmmm cumin) and give it a stir. Because I made such a large batch I had to up the ante on the spices to make sure it all came out right. I love that I have been cooking for long enough that my measuring spoons are pretty much dust collectors. A dash of this, pinch of that, glob of this... that's how it works these days. 

After mixing the ingredients together I tossed it back into the pot to simmer. Roasted salsa is so delicious... mmmmm..... 

Once it is nice and toasty, you let it cool a moment, plop some in a nifty bowl, and dig in. As for me... I canned the rest - Three 16 oz. mason jars of salsa to put up on the shelf. Yum.

Siesta Time!
~ Birdie


Neat little find: GMO Free tortilla chips! It's a good day.

Also. Izzie isn't a fan of the pressure cooker.

Sad eyes.

Ada, however, doesn't care.

Please note my little darling's tongue... which is sticking out. That is how much she cares.

This for That - Green Machine Cont.

Rather than giving out hundreds of resources regarding the "WHY" area of this blog, I am simply providing a quick overview of reasoning. If you have questions or need more information than is offered please email, comment, or FB me and I will be happy to dive deeper with you. 

This	That	Why?
Plastic Tupperware	Mason Jars/Pyrex Glass Dishes	Plastic leaches chemicals into our foods which can affect our body regardless of being used to hold food in the fridge or cook it in the microwave. Plus, you can purchase mason jars for about $10 for a dozen 16oz jars. That is a lot of food storage compared to Ziploc. AND they will last for years! Mason Jars: They ain't just for Grandma anymore!
Bottled Water	Steel or Copper Water Bottles	That's a lot of plastic waste. Also see “Why” above. Steel or Copper water bottles will also last you a long time. Chances are, you will lose it before you break it.
Microwaves	Stove or Oven	These have been known to cause infertility through radiation emissions among other health concerns. There isn't much regarding studies, but honestly, do we really think they are safe anyway? When we microwave meat, for instance, we end up altering the chemical makeup of the meat. The proteins are no longer long strands of chemical compositions and instead are crunched up, tangled globs of chemicals that cannot be properly digested by the body. Other experiments have shown that if we were to microwave a jar of water, let it cool to room temperature, and put a fish in it. The fish would die. This experience also worked on plants. Scary stuff.
Processed Foods	Fresh Veggies!	If it comes in a box, best try to avoid it. Check out the ingredients list on those suckers! Holy smokes! Rule of thumb, if you don't know what it is or can't pronounce it... don't eat it. The fewer the ingredients in the list, the better. Lay Original Potato Chips has three ingredients: Potatoes, Salt, and Safflower Oil. Yum.
Soda/Pop... Soda Pop	Iced Tea (unsweetened)	To find out how much sugar you are consuming in a single can of soda divide the amount of grams of sugar by 4... that's how many teaspoons of sugar is in that one can. Now, compare that to the amount of sugar we need on a daily basis to survive: 1 tsp. Shocking, no?
Fast Food	Home Cooked Meals!	Made easier now with those nitfy mason jars, you can take soup, spaghetti, etc to work/school with you now. No stove at work? OK ok... compromise – use the Microwave OR better yet, get a hotplate that you can plug into the wall and a small pot. It's worth it. Trust me.
Chemical Cleaners	Baking Soda and White Distilled Vinegar	See previous blog about chemical cleaners: here.
Conventionally Grown Food	Organic	It would take 10 conventionally grown apples to reach the equivalence of 1 organic apple in nutritional value. Pretty crazy, huh? Science has proven that 8 times out of 10, organics are more nutritious and healthier for us than conventional foods. Can't afford to buy all organic? I understand. Keep in mind that when you eat Organically you actually eat less food because they are higher in nutrients. When our bodies tell us it is hungry it is telling us we need more nutrients. Don't dive in head first, start integrating organics into your diet slowly. Buy organic apples or broccoli and slowly add more into your budget as you learn more about it.
Video Games/FB	Life... Adventure	<--- 'nuff said. Seriously.

This is just a start and they are easy starts! Implement them one at a time and see how much money you can save, how much better you feel, how much fun you can have! Get creative!


Knowledge is Power,
~ Birdie

Green Machine

What is this whole "Going Green" madness about, really? Is it a new found industry much like our technology booms? Or is it a new awareness amongst the human civilization (of the USA) that if we continue on the path we are on, there might not be much left for us to enjoy in this world? There are debates upon debates upon debates about terminology like carbon footprints, etc... thanks Al, whether or not we should be taxing for said carbon footprints, if hybrid cars are worth their weight in the long run versus the SUV.... on and on and on.


There is news media from both the conservative and the liberal sides spouting off extremes and end of days messages. Are our lightbulbs really that bad? I mean, really?! It is a topic that infiltrates our daily lives without fail. Slogans like "Green!" "Think Global, buy Local!" "Global Warming..." I mean "Global Cooling" "Climate Change!!!" Oh brother!


But who are we to believe? What really is the truth? And how do we sift through all the other junk that is out there when we already have full lives as it is? Who has the time to decipher it all? AND THEN, when you finally do break through the lies and get to the root of the problem, where do you start to make changes in your life? Where do you begin? There is so much to do, so much money to spend, so much to replace! 


It is downright overwhelming.


I have my own political views on this matter that I won't bog you down with, however, I overheard a conversation some months ago where a gentleman brought up a truly brilliant point that I had never heard before. He said, in regards to "going green to save the world": 


"The Earth will always be here, whether it is lush and green and full of life or covered in ice or burnt to a crisp. The Earth will always survive. It is the human race that needs to worry. We shouldn't be changing our lifestyles under the impression that we are going to Save the World. We should be doing it so that we can save ourselves and the future generations to come." 


With that said, I feel like this blog has evolved from a basic "Look at my Garden" journal to an all encompassing lifestyle awareness resource. My household, in preparation for our move to Oregon this summer, is beginning to rummage through our belongings and see what we need, what we want, and what is healthy for us. It is a long process, downsizing, but it will be worth it in the end. 


Through my education at SWIHA I have been blessed to be exposed to knowledge, philosophies, and plans of action that result in a healthier lifestyle for my family. We have changed our ideologies regarding this Green Movement from thinking that we could Save the World and, instead, have started to focus on how to better our own lives through living the healthiest way we can. This includes ridding our house of chemicals, plastics, and electronic distractions. It also includes making healthier food choices like where we eat, where we shop, and attempting to plant our own gardens. 


When we move and begin our homestead we will have water from a Well, solar power, a garden and orchard to feed our family with organic deliciousness, and herbs galore. We will have chickens and goats. This lifestyle will save us money on utilities and groceries. We will feel accomplished and proud of our ability to live off of the land and to be free of outside resources. We will be able to share our experience with others in many, many different ways. And physically, we will be stronger than ever by working our land. This is our way of "Going Green" and we are doing it for US. Respect for the Earth and all of its creatures falls under a different category and is something we will never forget. For us, it is a philosophy, a way of life, a deep rooted belief and growing practice.


In the blog post to follow I will share some easy ways to get started on helping your family become healthier on a budget. Quick and simple - no solar panels necessary.


What Does "Going Green" Mean to You?
~ Birdie