Thursday, June 28, 2012

100% Pure Fruit Pigmented Tinted Moisturizer

via

in recent months, i have realized the importance of using natural, chemical free products. i’m not sure why it took me so long to realize this, as i have been a pretty healthy eater for quite a few years now. finally, i realized that it’s not enough to just put healthy food in my body. i have to be mindful of what i put on my skin & the products i use in my home.

since i don’t want to go out & spend tons of money buying all new products, i have decided to make this a gradual process. when i run out of something, i look for a natural alternative & buy that. i started this a few months ago & have built up a nice little collection of natural products. before i buy anything, i research like a crazy women. this way, i’m not spending money on products i don’t love. i have been really impressed with all of the new products i have & i look forward to sharing them with you.

first on the list is my 100% pure fruit pigmented tinted moisturizer. i have used sunblock daily since i was 18 (now 30). i firmly believe that it is the best anti wrinkle/aging cream on the market (& some of the cheapest too). i started reading about the ingredients in the sunblocks i had been using & i was not too happy. there began my search for a great natural sunscreen. after about a month of research, i came across the company 100% pure. from what i’ve seen/read when they say their ingredients are natural, they are being completely truthful.

i decided on the fruit pigmented tinted moisturizer, which takes care of two things for me: spf & tinted moisturizer

some thoughts on this product:

ingredients 15% titanium dioxide and 10% zinc oxide, pigments of peach, apricot, carrot, pomegranate, cocoa bean, goji berry and tomato, white tea, cucumber juice, aloe juice, acai oil and pomegranate oil, vitamin e (a-tocopherol), vitamin c (ascorbyl palmitate), rice starch, candelilla wax, extracts of rosemary, oregano, thyme, grapefruit seed, japanese honeysuckle, goldenseal and cinnamon

color i chose crème. it’s the lightest shade & i am pretty fair. i am happy to report that it is a great color for me. i was scared that it would be too orange, but that is not the case at all.

texture
it’s very light & easy to spread. don’t expect a lot of coverage, but it evens my skin tone nicely.

as a moisturizer
again, it’s light. don’t expect heavy moisturization, but it does keep me from flaking & my skin seems well hydrated

staying power
i’m impressed with this. i’ve put it on before my workout in the morning & it has stayed put until i take it off at night.
*note* i do apply a mineral powder on top of it, so this probably helps it to set. i’ll be discussing the mineral powder soon, as i love it too!

pump i have had difficulty with the pump. the best trick i’ve found is storing it completely upside down. since i’ve started doing this, i’ve had fewer issues with the pump.

bang for you buck i
have been so delighted with this product. i think the price is fair & it continues to make me happy every morning when i put it on my face. I look forward to trying many more products from this company!

*this is a product that i use, love & buy with my own money. i was not compensated for this review & all opinions are 100% honest.

 

 

 


 

Monday, June 25, 2012

Waffles and Berries

yesterday i was craving waffles right around lunch time. i had time to whip out the waffle maker & create a carbolicious lunch for us. we enjoyed every bite!
a normal breakfast for me consists of a green monster & an egg. i learned about green monsters about three years ago from the very talented, angela. at first, i, like many others, didn’t know how one could possibly get down this green drink first thing in the morning. then, i decided to try it. not surprisingly, i’ve been hooked ever since. i’ll say it just like the rest…you don’t even taste the spinach, kale, or other green component that you put in it. my green monster recipe is rather boring. i rarely ever change it up, but every morning i get the awesome flavors of mixed berries & bananas & a nutritional boost all in one.
well, this morning, there was a waffle on the counter staring me down. i nixed my usual breakfast & decided to roll with the waffle. great decision.

on my waffle, there is:
butter
almond butter
frozen mixed berries
maple syrup

this is how i typically dress my waffles. i love the cold, frozen mixed berries on top of the warm waffle. it’s a great contrast. if i have shredded coconut in the house, i’'ll throw that on too. come to think of it, i’d like to try drizzling coconut milk over my waffle next time. i bet that’d be pretty tasty.

waffles and berries


         

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Cherries and Lemon Curd

this summer, i have posted a list of goals for myself. i tend to get lazy with sticking to a schedule during the summer months & i need to keep myself on track for when it’s time to go back to work in august. the goals are very simple and one of them is to eat at least one serving of fruit each day. i don’t naturally go for sweet foods, as i like salty snacks best. in an effort to make my goal each day, i’ve had to find fruits that I really enjoy. my mom turned me on to eating frozen cherries. they are very tasty, with both a little taste of sweet and a little taste of sour. a few days ago, i ate frozen cherries with some of mom’s homemade lemon curd. her lemon curd is silky and smooth. i not only use it with cherries, but i put it in plain greek yogurt as well. it’s fantastic, i tell ya! the recipe will be coming soon. here’s a peek of my tuesday afternoon pre-workout snack.

other fruits i’m loving right now are strawberries & apples…nothing too exotic, but it gets the job done, i suppose.

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don’t be fooled. this picture is rather deceiving. the portion that I ate was much larger than what’s in the photo!



Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Habaneros

there is a story behind these habaneros. last summer, my husband & i decided to grow habaneros. we planted them & patiently watched & waited for a very long time. our habaneros did not do so well. in the spring, i declared them dead & said i was getting rid of them. my patient husband said, “nah, let’s see how they do this year.” i was determined to produce habaneros, so i went out & bought five more plants. this made for a total of seven habanero plants. low & behold, i could not believe my eyes when the two plants i declared dead started to grow like crazy this summer. the five new plants have been doing very well too & now we have more habaneros than we know what to do with. we have offered them to family & neighbors, but everyone claims that they are too spicy to use in cooking. we find the opposite is true. if you are careful about the amount you use, they add incredible flavor to almost any dish.

here’s our first ever home grown habanero

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here are more habaneros that our healthy plants are producing

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we like to make habanero macaroni & cheese & we include them in egg, omelet, and veggie dishes.

 

Monday, June 18, 2012

Shrimp and Veggie Kabobs

last week, we celebrated our anniversary. we went out for a delicious steak dinner the weekend before, but on the actual day (thursday), i cooked shrimp & veggie kabobs. i use any excuse i can to pull out the grill at least once a week during the summer. grilled foods are just fabulous & it’s so easy once you get the hang of it.

veggie kabobs:
yellow squash
radish
zucchini
yellow, red & green bell pepper

i marinated the veggie kabobs in a store bought marinade that i use often when grilling. i bought the shrimp from wholefoods & they were already in a marinade. i put everything on skewers & grilled the veggie kabobs for about 10 minutes (turning & flipping throughout, of course). i grilled the shrimp for about 5 minutes. this was a tasty dinner!

     shrimp kabobs

 

Monday, June 11, 2012

Red Quinoa Deliciousness

red quinoa

since being on summer vacation, I’ve been in a bit of a conundrum as to what to do about lunch each day.  during the school year, i fix our lunches the night before, so we grab and go in the morning.  while i am off though, it is interesting to see what i can throw together each day from the fridge.  this lunch was a “mish mash” of different things from the refrigerator.  it was healthy, delicious (hence the title), and filling.  i definitely prefer the taste & texture of red quinoa over traditional.

in the mix:
red quinoa
tomato
avocado
greek yogurt
homemade pesto (recipe coming soon!)
paprika, cracked pepper

 

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Thursday, June 7, 2012

A Lovely Day…

so, i am a first grade teacher.  that means that i get a nice little summer vacation every year.  tomorrow is my first ‘real’ day of summer vacation, but today was a little preview.  i do like to shop…which isn’t easy on the wallet.  this morning, i took the retired parents to an outlet mall about 45 minutes from where we live.  i didn’t do much damage at all, but it.was.fun.  they have the best banana republic store there that i have really gone wild in previously! i practiced self control today & only came home with one summer skirt.  i love summer dresses, but haven’t been able to find many to fit.  however, i’m finding lots of summery skirts this year & i think they look really good with a tucked in tank top and some sassy shoes and accessories.

 

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An Avocado Treat

i absolutely love avocados & we can usually get them year round here & reasonably priced.  the avocados lately have been so delicious.  i guess it’s the right time of year!  this one was unbelievably buttery.  the basil on top is a preview of my garden fresh pesto recipe, which is coming soon.  feast your eyes!

avocado-basil

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