Mindful Momma

This Week's Veggie Bag

We are drowning in vegetables!  But it's a good thing.  We bought a weekly share from the Youth Farm and Market Project.  Youth Farm is a non-profit organization with a summer program for 9-13 year old kids that teaches them about gardening, entrepreneurship and good nutrition.  It all happens right in the city - they have 3 plots in my neighborhood where they grow the vegetables the we get in our weekly bag and other plots throughout Minneapolis and St. Paul. 

Needless to say, we're eating a lot of salads!  Radishes anyone??!!  

DIY Kitchen Scrubbie

My friend Suzanne gave me this great reuse idea! 

You know those mesh plastic bags that onions (and plenty of other things) come in?  They make a nice kitchen scrubbie to use on pots and pans.  Here's a quickie tutorial.

1. Cut the mesh bag open and lay it flat.  Then fold it back and forth accordion-style (like what you do to make paper flowers - remember?). 
2. Bend the whole thing in half lengthwise.
3. Twist a rubber band around the fat end.  The wide bands from broccoli work well (and they're usually purple which adds some nice color!)
   
   
   So next time you're about to toss an onion bag in the trash - give it a second life as a kitchen scrubbie!
   

The Body Care Blues

It used to be fun going shopping for body care products at Whole Foods or my local co-op.  So many intriguing choices, each with their own special combo of natural ingredients and scents.  Plenty of options in the medium price range that I was looking for.  And I had the sense that they were all safe to use and certainly better than the stuff you find at the drug store.  It was like being a kid in a candy store - with enough money to indulge your sweet tooth for sure!  

Now I'm singing the body care blues.  Every purchase decision is plagued by questions:  "I wonder how this rates on Skin Deep?"  "I hope this doesn't contain any of those ingredients that turn into 1,4 Dioxane."  "Is this stuff really natural?"  "Is it safe to use?"  It's taken all the fun out of shopping.

Prime example:  I thought I had found a good low cost bubble bath for my kids in Whole Foods/365 Brand shower gel until I discovered that it contains sodium laureth sulphate which is one of the ingredients that can form cancer causing 1,4 Dioxane.  Looking a bit deeper I found that Skin Deep rates that ingredient as only a moderate hazard.  So, is it OK?  Should I keep using it???  I can't really afford California Baby every time.  I've tried Trader Joe's Peppermint Castille soap and Dr. Bronners for the bath, but they don't smell that great and don't bubble much.  Anyone have another good, affordable, safe bubble bath option?  Or a good homemade bubble bath recipe?

And then there's sun-care...I'm working on a post about finding a new moisturizer with SPF that is safe to use every day.  The products I've been using off and on for years (Alba, Avalon, Grassroots, KMF) either have terrible ratings on Skin Deep or are not rated at all.  Instead of fun, it's downright stressful.  Sometimes I wish I didn't read so much. 

I'm curious to know how other people handle all the conflicting info about natural body care.  Do you stress out when you shop or do you assume that most products are basically safe?  Do you do your research before you shop or do you just wing when you get to the store?  Any favorite product recommendations that pass muster on Skin Deep?  I'd love to hear from you!

Mindful Momma Giveaway: Emerita Face Scrub

This time of year it's all about sunscreen.  But don't forget to give the rest of your skincare routine some thought.  Even if you are a sunscreen fanatic, your skin can still suffer from those harsh rays, leaving it feeling dry and lined or looking a bit flaky.  A good after-sun moisturizer is important but you also might want to consider adding a facial scrub into your routine to keep your skin smooth and soft. 

Emerita's Microdermabrasion Face Scrub has a fine scrubbie texture that exfoliates gently without rubbing you raw.  Ingredients like borage extract, chamomile extract and horse chestnut extract help reduce redness and inflammation and Vitamins E & C give your skin a dose of antioxidants.  The product is unscented aside from a bit of pure peppermint oil and contains no parabens or artificial coloring.  I've used it and it left my skin feeling nice and smooth.

For you Skin Deep buffs, the product is not rated yet on the database, but greenlagirl looked up the ingredients and took a stab at the rating in her product review post.  She guessed it would be given a rating of 3 which is pretty good.

Emerita is a line of skin care products that was developed specifically for women over 40.  But don't let that stop you from considering it if you are younger.  I think it's a great product for any age.    If you're interested in trying Emerita's products but don't want to take the plunge for full-sized products, you can order two different skin care samplers for $2 each.  Each sampler contains 5 samples - one sampler has face creams and serums, the other focuses on scrubs, cleansers and toner.  I ordered both samplers last summer and wrote about some of the products in my post about 'Magic Potions' for your skin.

Emerita has donated a full sized face scrub and 2 packs of product samples for me to send to one lucky winner!  If you'd like a chance to win, just leave a comment on this post letting me know why you are interested in Emerita products.  The contest will run through midnight, central time, Sunday, July 20th.  I will post the winner on Prizey Fetch and send them an email.  (Only one entry per person please and you must have a U.S. shipping address.)

Congratulations to Jess who said "I have sensitive skin and so I'm always on the lookout for new products that don't have artificial fragrances."  I hope this product works well for you!

The Ultimate Bento Lunchbox

What would it take for you to give up the deli and start bringing your own lunch to work?  Perhaps this fabulous stainless steel lined lunch jar would be enough to tip the scales? 

The Ms. Bento lunch jar by Zojirushi is vacuum-insulated so it keeps food warm or cold.  It comes with 3 microwaveable bowls with lids, a 'spork' and a nice looking carrying bag.  If you throw in a cloth napkin and a reusable water bottle, you've got a completely waste-free lunch. 

At $50 bucks, this thing is not cheap - but if it really does get you to change your daily dining habits it will save you money in the long run.  You'll almost certainly be eating healthier food too. 

For the guys, there's a Mr. Bento - with 4 containers (what's up with that?) and a more manly looking bag. 

For those of you who would rather spend $50 filling up your gas tank, I've noticed some nice looking divided bento boxes that are probably less expensive - only problem is I can't figure out where to buy them in town or even online.  Possibly an Asian grocery store or a home storage store.  Here's a link to a flickr group on lunch tools that shows some great styles.  Let me know if you have any other fun Bento lunch box finds!

Another Beach Vacation

I'll be gone for a bit.  Camping in the sand dunes at the Assateague Island National Seashore.  It's a protected national park, right on the ocean - a really special place!! 

Hopefully the environmental impact of 100+ people descending on the campsites for a wild & crazy 4th of July party will be minimal. We're a group of eco-minded people and we do our best to leave no trace behind. 

You may have heard of the wild ponies on Assateague (and Chincoteague).  They may look pretty in the pictures but they're really annoying to have in your campsite.  They do leave traces behind.  But since, it is their home after all...we have to be respectful.

Hope you have a Happy 4th!!

Bubble Fun

 

I got the idea for this super fun foam-maker from Betz White's blog yesterday.  I swear within 15 minutes of reading her post, I had made these for my boys.  It was the kind of day where I really needed a distraction (for the kids that is) - so that I could pack for our vacation. 

  

Got an empty plastic bottle, an old washcloth and some bubbles?  Good, you're ready to go.  Next, check Betz's site for the quickie tutorial.  Now, go have some eco-bubble-fun!!

 

One Can A Month Challange

Who's up for a little environmental challange?  Heather and Renee, the Moms behind EnviroMom are about to kick off a One Can a Month Challange and I think I'm going to go along for the ride!  The challange is simple - to keep your garbage waste to one can a month.  Starting July 1st, EnviroMom will take us on a virtual tour through a typical house and help us understand how we can reduce our waste.  They'll go room by room, giving us helpful tips and strategies along the way.

Follow along just for kicks, or show a little commitment by registering for the challange (just make a comment on their post and you'll be good to go.)  You'll also be registered to win a prize package of green goodies worth over $250, including a SIGG water bottle and a whole bunch of eco-friendly art supplies!!

I'll post a thing or two myself as I try to lessen the load in the landfill.  I know I can do better and I'm looking forward to keeping more things out of the can! 

Switch to EcoSearch

Well that was easy.  I just switched my homepage to EcoSearch, a new nonprofit search engine dedicated to preserving the environment.  It's exactly the same as a Google search, (all the results come directly from Google) just re-routed in a sense, to Eco-Search.

EcoSearch generates the ad revenue, and then donates 100% of its profits to other nonprofits that support environmental causes.  So far they've made donations to Sierra Club, National Resource Defense Council, Rainforest Alliance and more.  They are just getting started and they need lots of new users to generate big-time donations!

You can make the switch right now if you want!  Just click on the EcoSearch homepage.  Look on the bottom for instructions on how to make EcoSearch your homepage, add it to your Internet Explorer or Firefox search bar or add it to iGoogle.  It's that easy!

Farm Stand Fakes

The pineapple was the first clue.  Sitting there on the farm stand trying to pretend it belonged.  As I perused the rest of the selection, I quickly realized that almost none of it really belonged.  After all, this was June in Minnesota, and a cool spring had made the growing season even later than usual.  Could this really be a 'farm stand' if all the produce was trucked in from afar?

Turns out the stand was truly run by a farm - and a Minnesota farm at that.  And the strawberries they sold were actually grown on that farm!  I bought some along with a melon and some sweet corn too.  It was convenient and the strawberries were absolutely delicious (although I doubt they were organic.)  As the summer progresses, more and more of their produce will come from the farm.  But I'm not sure that will stop them from continuing to put pineapples on the cart.

So what do you think?  Are fake farm stands misleading?  Do you think the general public understands that this produce is not local?  Do you think they even care?  Or do stands like this have their place as a convenient way to get more fruits & veggies into the mouths of the people?