Seasonal Allergies

It's that time of year in NJ.  The temperature is on the rise, the trees are budding and the pollen is getting ready to kick in! I am one of the lucky people that doesn't suffer from seasonal allergies (well a tad in the early fall but nothing too bad) but my husband gets them pretty bad in late April.  We aren't big on medication but every year he ends up on Claritin to simply enable him to get through his days.  This year we researched and we are trying something different.  After reading the testimony below, he began taking Formula 1 in the morning along with extra Vitamin C.  We have really high hopes that he can avoid the terrible side effects of the over the counter allergy medicine!  This is a healthier and less expensive approach.  Worth a shot!  I will let you know how it goes!


Read this amazing testimony:

“I grew up with severe allergies and consequent chronic sinus infections.  I stuffed every pocket full of Kleenex every day before I went to school.  Sometimes I would run out before lunch be traumatized for the rest of the day because I was too shy to raise my hand and ask the teacher for some Kleenex.

Over the years, at one time or another, I’ve used every OTC drug you buy that ended in “-aid” or “-off.”  Sine-aid, Sine-off, Alleraid, Alleroff, and the like.

When I was a sophomore in college in 1971-72, my mother took me to an ear, eye, nose, and throat specialist every single month.  He put me on tetracycline for the chronic sinus infections, which I took continuously for almost 3 years.  Today they say you shouldn’t take it for more than 3 months.  I ultimately just stopped it because I couldn’t see that it was doing anything for me.

The one thing the tetracycline DID do was permanently damage my immune system so that I developed a severe allergy to cats which I did not have before.  I can just sit down by someone in church who owns a cat and start having a severe allergic reaction.

In April 1993, during the annual explosion of dogwoods and azaleas in Athens when I would usually be suffering tremendously, I providentially discovered the secret to eliminating any allergic reaction at all during most days — which for me was an absolute miracle.  In subsequent experimentation, I discovered how to stop an allergic reaction in its tracks.

I took 3-4 Immunity Formula I all at the same time in the morning with my Shaklee protein for breakfast.  This greatly reduced my tendency to have a reaction during the day.

But when I did feel an allergic reaction coming on, I immediately took 3-4 more Immunity Formula I.  This usually knocked my allergic reaction out within 5 minutes, especially if I took it as soon as I felt the twinge of a reaction coming on.

It is that simple.  But I personally found that it was important that I took 3-4 all at once in the morning and then 3-4 more anytime I was having a reaction.  Spreading it out didn’t work for me.

Our youngest daughter is the only one of our children who inherited my tendency toward allergic reactions.  When she was just 3 years old, she’d be sitting in the high chair eating breakfast  and eat something that caused her to start having an allergic reaction (we generally eat only fruit, Shaklee protein and supplements, and whole grain toast for breakfast).  It was usually fresh pineapple that would sometimes cause her to react.  Her eyes would start itching and turning bloodshot, her nose would start running, and she’d start sneezing.

I would give her 1 Formula I, and it would knock the allergic reaction completely out in less than 5 minutes.  She couldn’t swallow supplements yet, so she’d have to chew it.  It is extremely vile tasting, but she’d chew it real fast and I’d give her something to wash it down quickly.  Even though it was extremely vile, she could see at 3 years of age what it was doing for her, and if she was having a reaction, she come say, “Dad, I need a Formula I!”

JoAnn carries a little bag of Immunity Formula I for me in her purse at all times in case I get into a situation where I start having a reaction.  I can just sit down beside someone at church who happens to own a cat and start having a severe allergic.

But the effects of taking 4 Formula I every morning for years has had a cumulative effect, and after about 3 years I hardly ever had any tendency allergic reaction anymore — except to cats.  But for 14 years now, the severe sinus allergies that traumatized my childhood, teen years, and young adulthood have been no more!

There is something unique about Formula I.  I also take lots of Vita-Lea and other supplements and get lots all the things listed on the Formula I label from other places.  But NOTHING did what Formula I did for my allergies!”

Stan and JoAnn Pullium

Protein Bars

I figured since this blog is about healthy ways to clean, it would work if I did a post about a healthy snack. Yesterday I made these protein bars for my family, and they are so yummy!  Please know that I am a huge sweet tooth and dessert is my friend.  I was a tad skeptical when I got this recipe from my friend but I decided to try them.  I even took pictures of the step by step:)
One of the best things about this recipe is that the bars are so high in protein.  I used Shaklee Instant Protein ( you can use this protein to substitute flour in any recipe) and the entire pan has over 120grams of protein.  They are really filling!!! The baby loved them, too!!!

 The ingredients (no added sugar!!!)

 Mix the dry items together

 Just wanted to include a picture of my favorite pampered chef item-the measuring cup!  All you do is slide it up and peanut butter slips right out!!!

 Heat the agave

 Find a really cute helper (who should have been napping)

 Add the almond butter and stir

 Press into a 9 x 13 pan

 Sprinkle chocolate chips (optional but I added obviously)

Yummm!!!

Here is recipe:

Preparation Time: 5-10 minutes

Yield: 1-9 x 13 inch dish cut into squares or Roll into balls

Ingredients:


1 cup Shaklee Instant Protein Soy Mix
*(Sometimes I use 1/2 cup of the Instant and 1/2 cup of the Shaklee Cinch)


1 ¼ cup oats


½ cup of flax meal

Add-Ins—Add some or all:


1 cup slivered almonds
 (I added)

3 Tbsp. cocoa powder
 (I added)

1 cup Organic Chocolate


1 cup of Coconut


1 cup Honey or Agave **


1 tsp Pure Vanilla
 (I added)

1 cup Peanut Butter or Almond Butter***

Directions:
Combine all dry ingredients in a bowl and set aside.  In sauce pan, bring Agave to a boil then immediately remove from heat and add Peanut or Almond Butter and Vanilla. Stir until combined.  Pour Almond/Peanut Butter mixture into bowl of dry ingredients and stir till combined. You may need to use your hands.  Press down into ungreased 9 x 13 in. glass dish. Cool in the refrigerator.  Cut into squares.  You also can roll the mix into balls if you prefer and then cool them.

Variations:
Add Fruit to dry mix— ½ cup chopped dates, raisins, cranberries, or cherries
Add Nuts to dry mix— ½ cup almonds, walnuts, pecans, or other nuts
Add ½ cup Chocolate Chips ON TOP of mix after it is pressed into pan. Turn oven on Broil. Place bars into oven for 1 minute. Remove and use a knife to spread melted chocolate chips around on top of bars.  Refrigerate.

Tips:

I typically use the Shaklee Instant Protein Soy Mix for my bars. You can use any of the Shaklee protein powders for this recipe and it will come out pretty close to the same. The Instant Soy Mix Protein is flavorless and is a substitute for flour in other recipes. I keep this as one of the staples in my pantry. You can throw it into muffin, pancake, cookie or cake recipes and it will cut back on the carbs and of course the flour! It’s also a great add in to oatmeal or applesauce to make sure the kids are getting heir protein!

I also have used in this recipe: Shaklee Energizing Soy Vanilla, Shaklee Energizing Soy Chocolate, and both flavors of the Shaklee Cinch for weight loss: Cinch Chocolate and Cinch Vanilla. I love using Shaklee Cinch shake mix because its powered by Leucine**** to help preserve muscle while you loose weight.

If you choose to use Shaklee Instant Protein, your entire dish or protein bars will have 120 g of Protein that offers all of the amino acids, especially the 9 essential amino acids that your body does not produce on it’s own.

** Agave is the ideal sweetener because it does not raise your Glucose level like honey does, which will help your insulin level not to rise as much.

***If you use Almond Butter(I prefer) instead of Peanut Butter, you may want to cut back on the agave or it will taste too sweet!  If you only have peanut butter, try to avoid PB with added sugar or preservatives.  Get the Natural PB or Organic.

****Leucine helps with the regulation of blood-sugar levels, the growth and repair of muscle tissue (such as bones, skin and muscles), growth hormone production, wound healing as well as energy regulation.

Please let me know if you make these!!!

Turn Key Company

So cool!! Shaklee was mentioned on CBS news! If you watch this short clip, it talks about turnkey companies, where all of the work is done and you "buy" into an established business.  Shaklee was named as a great job for women who want to work from home.

This is what they wrote:

The key thing to know about Shaklee is that it is the No. 1 natural nutrition company in the US and is focused on creating the most sustainable and effective whole health product on the planet. To get started, Shaklee offers a full kit of products for $600. They also have a less expensive kit at $300 (with slightly fewer products), but there's also the ability for new distributors to start for $40...but for that price they only receive business materials (no products). Under their compensation plan, people earn between 20-50 percent and have the ability to participate in a car payment program, trips and other cash bonuses. Their sweet spot is women aged 35-45 that have come out of the workplace or want to come out of the workplace and create their own businesses. These are people that have a passion for healthy living and understand that the things they put in, on and around their bodies make a difference in their long term health. Their key product categories include Healthy Nutrition (core and targeted health solutions), Healthy Weight (weight management), Healthy Home (natural non toxic cleaning products) and Healthy Beauty (personal care products).

I just started distributing for Shaklee and I love it!  It's a great way to make money from home and I really believe in their products.  Let me know if you are interested in becoming a distributor.  If you join before March 31, the Cinch Sampler Pack it free!! (it retails for $101)

It's The Little Things

Organizing your house can be really overwhelming.  I think that one of the biggest tips I can share is to start small.  You don't have to spend a lot of money or even a lot of time.  Pick a room or even a spot in a room and just go for it!  Last week I opened a drawer in my kitchen.  I had a spare five minutes so I reorganized it.  Simple, quick, done!

Before

Emptying and Trashing

Wiped out and ready to be filled

So much better!  No money spent, just throwing out and putting back in!

A spare bin that I use for the kids face cloths

Extra, Extra

I am looking to feature some of your organization/ cleaning before and afters.  If you would like to be featured on the blog, just leave me a comment with your email addy and I will get in touch with you.  I am looking for simple re dos- a drawer, a closet, the before and after of a refrigerator, or even the big things a room swap...so excited to share my first "featuring you" party:)

Everyday Cleaning

Maintaining a clean home with little ones can be really challenging.  I don't have a daily schedule of cleaning or even a weekly one.  As you saw here, I do make lists for big cleans and organizational projects but not for daily cleaning.  Probably because it is nonstop and automatic.  I thought I would write a post about how I clean my home on a daily basis.
I do have a couple of "rules" that I try to stick to that make cleaning easier to keep up with.
1. Clean the kitchen completely each night.  It is much easier to start your day with a clean slate!

2. Clean as you go.  I think when you have the mentality to clean up once at the end of the day, the mess can get overwhelming and it might cause you to give up and go to bed.  Then when the next day starts you are behind the ball.  So I try to clean up everything as soon as we are finished with it.
3.  Try to do at least one load of laundry per day.  Laundry tends to pile up fast over here and I find that throwing a load in before I leave in the morning and finishing it during naps helps me to stay on top of things.
So those are my pretty standard rules.  Now, I will go into specifics about what I do each day.  It's not really hard, but to be honest I am always cleaning up something.  I think that will change when my kids get a little bit older.  My oldest is able to clear the table and put his dirty laundry away but that's about it!
Whew!  Here we go....after each meal I sweep the kitchen and I use Basic H on my floors about 3 times per week.  It doesn't take me very long to do my kitchen; probably 10 minutes including the "washing."  Really, the Shaklee products have made my life so much easier.  I use one spray bottle for EVERY surface in my kitchen, floors to counters to appliances to cabinets.  I am always wiping down counters and doing dishes.  I do wipe my appliances down most nights as well as my cabinet handles because of toddler germs;)

The kitchen is the hub of our home so I spend the most time cleaning in there.  The rest of the downstairs is pretty simple.  I vacuum about three times a week, although most of my house is hardwood floors, the area rugs and corners need vacuuming often.  This takes about ten minutes, too.  I dust bi weekly, using Basic H on all of my wood surfaces.  I wipe down my powder room every other day with Basic G.  I tend to do these things when I can.  I try to have the downstairs finished before naps but like I said, I am always picking up after the kids.
As far as upstairs, I make my bed everyday and make sure that our water glasses go downstairs and that our bathroom is wiped down.  I use Germ Off wipes in our upstairs bathroom every morning.  It literally takes thirty seconds to wipe the toilet and sink down.  I wash my bathmats once a week.
The kids rooms are a different story.  I shared here about getting rid of my playroom so the kids rooms hold all of their toys.  I don't make their beds everyday because they all still nap and I feel like they are in and out of bed all day!  If we are expecting company, I do make the beds because the rooms look so much better that way but in all honesty, it doesn't happen everyday!  I do open their shades and let the sun in and they are responsible for putting their toys away before we go downstairs.

That's about it.  I think the biggest key to having a clean house is to declutter and clean as you go!  Later on in the week I am going to break down exactly how I clean each room, which products I use, what I have tried that has failed and what I do that works for me:)

The List Part 2

I attached the list that I made to keep my cleaning organized.  It's nothing fancy but I am envisioning myself crossing things off with a huge marker and that makes me happy:)  I am going to post the list on my bulletin board where I see it everyday.
Let me know if you find the list helpful!

The List

Like I mentioned earlier, I try to do one big cleaning project per week.  Sometimes that works great but other times I am able to get more than one thing done in a week.  I think it's really important to make a list to keep yourself organized when you are going to attempt a large clean.  My list is usually the same every year but there have been some additions like power washing the kids outdoor toys, reorganizing the garage and things that we didn't have to do before the kids.  My list for this year is pretty complete and I thought I would share it.  I will do a post of before and afters each time I finish something on the list.
1.  In, behind and the sides of the oven.
2.  Interior and top of the refrigerator.
3.  Screens and window sills.
4.  Deep clean my car. (probably the scariest on the list)
5. Wash all bedding, including vacuuming the mattresses.
6. Organize the garage.
7.  Power wash the screened in porch and toys that were left outside.
8.  Wipe down baseboards and walls.
9.  Vacuum couches.
10.  Wash throw rugs.

I am going to print this list out and put it on my bulletin board so I can check things off.  It feels so great to check off, actually I might even cross off!!!!
OK so this is the first step in getting ready to clean...make your list...
Am I forgetting anything???

Spring Cleaning

Ahhh let the spring cleaning begin!  Seriously, I do love to spring clean.  I like to get behind things and under things and just give the house that big overhaul.  Even though this weekend was chilly here, I was motivated to start.  I like to try and do one big project per week.  For me, this is obtainable and not overwhelming.  The first thing I did was clean behind my oven.  This is not for the faint hearted to look at. You might vomit when you see the dirt and grossness that was on the side on my oven and behind it.  I am just keeping it real!!!!

Before

Seriously....

Originally I was just going to use some Basic H but when I saw the mess I decided to pull out the big guns and go with the Scour Off.  No lie, it took about 3 minutes to clean this mess!

After

So much better!!!!

Then it was off to the floor under the oven.  I promise, this is just one years worth of ick!

Somehow even a little plastic knife got all the way under (note the blue handle in the corner)!

If you weren't grossed out enough, here is a close up:(

This was actually simple to clean up.  I was surprised that I didn't even have to really scrub.  I just sprayed some basic H and let it sit for a few second.  It wiped right up with a microfiber cloth.  

The difference is crazy!  So, what are you doing first on your spring cleaning list?  Have you attempted to clean behind your oven?  I would love to see some pictures!  Happy (almost) Spring!!!

White Dish

There is something about putting food on white plates that makes it so much more appealing.  I love this pie plate that I got from my grandparents house when they moved out.  I know that my kids will be really excited to eat their muffins when they look so good!  This isn't really a cleaning tip but white dishes make things look more streamlined and cleaner:)

Kid's Vitamins

While I am on my vitamin kick I thought I would share a little bit about children's vitamins.  Here is a great article written by a friend of mine:

Do you remember the infamous cartoon based in the town of Bedrock?  If that is not ringing a bell, maybe this will. “Wilmaaaaaaaaaaaa!”  Remember now?  Yes, it’s the Flintstones…the lovable caveman-like family who always seemed to be in a quandary.  While the cartoon was great, the bad news is, the vitamin is not.

When Flintstones Vitamins came out in 1968, parents rushed out to get these yummy chewable multivitamins that would help keep their kids healthy and strong. Vitamin A, Vitamin C…..Those aren’t so bad, right?  Wrong!  They are bad, when they are synthetically made.

Not all vitamins are made the same. Some are synthetically derived to mirror the real thing but are chemical in nature. Others start as natural, live ingredients and remain that way (for a full explanation of the difference in vitamins, click here).  The body responds to a synthetic vitamin as if it is a foreign object—in essence, it does not recognize it as the “real thing” and will reject it.

So those Flinstones multis that you may think are supplying your kids with their daily essentials are ending up in the “can.”  Furthermore, synthetic vitamins may be supplying your kids with more than you paid for.  Many cheap vitamin companies use harsh binders and fillers (i.e. tars, plastics, etc.) in the manufacturing of the vitamin to “stick” the ingredients together. A large percentage of many of these synthetic vitamins are not even vitamins, but fillers that will do more harm than good in the long run.  How do you think you would do if you ingested small amounts of tar on a daily basis for 10 years or so?  The long-term effects would probably not be the most positive.

When you look on the back of the Flintstones box to see the list of ingredients, the first thing that jumps out at me is the known carcinogenic (cancer causing) artificial sweetener,Aspartame!

The list of ingredients also includes things like Artificial Colors: FD&C Blue #2 Lake, FD&C Red #40 Lake and Calcium Carbonate. In addition, in the list of ingredients, only the name of the vitamin or mineral appears, without its chemical name. No plant sources were given.

So what’s the solution, you may be asking? For many, this is all you may have ever known and you may have believed you were doing something great for your kids! Well, you were, in the sense that you really care about their health and made a noble attempt to do something about it.  So don’t be discouraged. It is never too late.

Begin by getting rid of the synthetic store brands and adding in a whole food supplement that is actually alive.  These live nutrients will fill in the gaps where we may not be doing the best in the food category. A kids diet is a tough one for every mom, so supplementing wisely can really give good peace of mind.  Just make sure it is whole food.

Crazy, right?!  So it's actually a quick fix...swap your children't vitamins for these:

Incredivites

Or if you have children under age 4:

anyone want to make the switch??!!