Being hippy spawn means I grew up around people doing yoga. I didn't realize it was anything but play until my teen years. Sun salutation, surya namaskar, are one of my fallback quicky exercises. They can be done almost anywhere by almost anybody. Here is a youtube video and a link to a site that will show you how to do them.
Monday, February 27, 2012
Domesticity: Housework Schedule Aspirations
In the next few weeks I will be trying this household chore schedule. The aim is to keep a reign on things with an allocation of 60 minutes a day.
30 minutes daily :
Trash
Pet food and water
15 minute pick up and put away
5 minute problem area focus
30 minute areas of concentration:
Monday - Kitchen & dining room
Tuesday - Bills or household administrivia
Wednesday - Master bed & bath
Thursday - Kids & downstairs bath
Friday - Kids rooms
Saturday - Living room
Sunday - 2 Honey dos
Thursday, February 23, 2012
New Path
So. This blog is going to get another dimension to it. I am going to institute a few lifestyle changes for myself. If my kids and hubby choose to come along that is great but it is their decision to make.
Why the changes? When I was pregnant with Diva I had gestational diabetes (GD). I saw that as my warning shot since it increases my chances of developing type 2 by 50%. I took measures to help decrease those chances. Diva is almost 2 and I have been told by my doctor that there are no signs of the big d on my horizon. Skip to last night. I went to urgent care because I suspected I had either strep or a sinus infection. My blood pressure was high. Not slightly elevated. Enough that the doctor told me to follow up with my primary about it.
Which leads to the lifestyle changes I want for myself. Starting today I am doing the following:
-No coffee. Tea yes. By the pot.
-Increasing my water intake
-Decrease drastically the amount of purchased products with white flour in them. If I want a white flour product I should make it myself. Removing the convenience historically has helped me cut back.
-Switching from ibuprofen to acetaminophen for over the counter pain relief. Apparently ibuprofen can elevate your blood pressure. Should be fun since it is the NSAID I was relying on for arthritis pain relief.
-Tracking my food intake. I use The Daily Plate at http://www.livestrong.com
Other changes I hope to make in the next month:
- Start up my daily yoga and tai chi practice
- Play the dance games for wii with my children
-Resume my bellydance practice. I don't aim to perform. Middle eastern dance happens to be one of my top 5 favorite exercises.
- Get in a good swim work out at least 3 times a month.
- Have a 4 oz glass of wine with dinner. May have to stay with vintages from home since not only is the state of Virginia known for backward conservative politics but also having mostly swill for vintages.
- Have a small quantity of dark chocolate, 70% cocoa or more, each day.
- Cut back the amount of food I eat out. I realize this is unavoidable on trips. The aim is to eat mostly homemade when not away. Example: Bring my own snacks when out for the day with the family. When I am on trips I will aim for a more paleo diet but include dairy.
Why blog about this in public? I feel that it commits me to adhering to it if I state in a forum where anyone can read about my plans.
I'm strapping myself in. Let's see where this journey takes me.
Why the changes? When I was pregnant with Diva I had gestational diabetes (GD). I saw that as my warning shot since it increases my chances of developing type 2 by 50%. I took measures to help decrease those chances. Diva is almost 2 and I have been told by my doctor that there are no signs of the big d on my horizon. Skip to last night. I went to urgent care because I suspected I had either strep or a sinus infection. My blood pressure was high. Not slightly elevated. Enough that the doctor told me to follow up with my primary about it.
Which leads to the lifestyle changes I want for myself. Starting today I am doing the following:
-No coffee. Tea yes. By the pot.
-Increasing my water intake
-Decrease drastically the amount of purchased products with white flour in them. If I want a white flour product I should make it myself. Removing the convenience historically has helped me cut back.
-Switching from ibuprofen to acetaminophen for over the counter pain relief. Apparently ibuprofen can elevate your blood pressure. Should be fun since it is the NSAID I was relying on for arthritis pain relief.
-Tracking my food intake. I use The Daily Plate at http://www.livestrong.com
Other changes I hope to make in the next month:
- Start up my daily yoga and tai chi practice
- Play the dance games for wii with my children
-Resume my bellydance practice. I don't aim to perform. Middle eastern dance happens to be one of my top 5 favorite exercises.
- Get in a good swim work out at least 3 times a month.
- Have a 4 oz glass of wine with dinner. May have to stay with vintages from home since not only is the state of Virginia known for backward conservative politics but also having mostly swill for vintages.
- Have a small quantity of dark chocolate, 70% cocoa or more, each day.
- Cut back the amount of food I eat out. I realize this is unavoidable on trips. The aim is to eat mostly homemade when not away. Example: Bring my own snacks when out for the day with the family. When I am on trips I will aim for a more paleo diet but include dairy.
Why blog about this in public? I feel that it commits me to adhering to it if I state in a forum where anyone can read about my plans.
I'm strapping myself in. Let's see where this journey takes me.
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Recipe: Butter Free Basic Muffins
Butter Free Basic Muffins
Makes 24 plain muffins. Will make more with add ins.
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 C canola oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
5 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups milk
-Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
-Grease 24 muffin cups.
-Stir the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl; set aside.
-Beat oil, egg and sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until smooth.
-Mix the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Add milk in small amounts between additions of the flour mixture.
-Divide the dough into the prepared muffin cups.
-Bake in the preheated oven until golden and the tops spring back when lightly pressed, about 30 minutes.
Makes 24 plain muffins. Will make more with add ins.
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 C canola oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
5 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups milk
-Preheat an oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
-Grease 24 muffin cups.
-Stir the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a bowl; set aside.
-Beat oil, egg and sugar with an electric mixer in a large bowl until smooth.
-Mix the flour mixture into the wet ingredients. Add milk in small amounts between additions of the flour mixture.
-Divide the dough into the prepared muffin cups.
-Bake in the preheated oven until golden and the tops spring back when lightly pressed, about 30 minutes.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
Kombucha Project: SCOBY fail
I am giving up on growing my own SCOBY. There are a number of reasons it didn't turn out. Not the least of which was it being cold where I live. My next step is to order a SCOBY from Cultures for Health.
Saturday, February 12, 2011
Laundry Detergent
I used the information posted on Simple Dollar Blog (http://www.thesimpledollar.com/2007/03/15/how-to-make-your-own-laundry-detergent-and-save-big-money/) as a guideline. However, I don't want to make 5-10 gallons of detergent at a time. This guideline makes enough for 1 gallon of laundry solution. By my calculations the cost is roughly $0.50 per gallon. This detergent gets cloth diapers clean. It hasn't noticeably faded any of my dark clothes.
Materials:
1/8 C laundry bar soap (I used Zote)
1/8 C Borax
1/4 C washing soda
-Boil 3/4 gallon water.
-Add shaved or shredded bar soap.
-Stir until soap dissolves.
-Turn off heat. Remove from heat.
-Place borax and soda into a 1 gallon pitcher.
-Add soap soup to soda mixture.
-Stir until borax and soda are dissolved.
-Add enough ice to make 1 gallon total of solution.*
-Stir
-Place by your washing machine.
I usually use about 1/2 C of solution per load of laundry. I have a top loading washer.
*You can let the soap soup cool before adding to soda mix. If you do this add enough cold/room temperature water to make 1 gallon of solution.
Materials:
1/8 C laundry bar soap (I used Zote)
1/8 C Borax
1/4 C washing soda
-Boil 3/4 gallon water.
-Add shaved or shredded bar soap.
-Stir until soap dissolves.
-Turn off heat. Remove from heat.
-Place borax and soda into a 1 gallon pitcher.
-Add soap soup to soda mixture.
-Stir until borax and soda are dissolved.
-Add enough ice to make 1 gallon total of solution.*
-Stir
-Place by your washing machine.
I usually use about 1/2 C of solution per load of laundry. I have a top loading washer.
*You can let the soap soup cool before adding to soda mix. If you do this add enough cold/room temperature water to make 1 gallon of solution.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Recipe: Quick & EZ Pizza Crust
Be warned: After making this you may never want to buy pizza from a pizzeria again.
Quick & EZ Pizza Crust
Yields 1 twelve inch pizza
.25 oz. pkt. active dry yeast
1/4 tsp. granulated sugar
3/4 cup 110 degree water
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
-Dissolve yeast and sugar in water. Let it sit for 8 minutes.
-In a separate bowl, combine flour and salt.
-Pour yeast mixture into flour mixture and mix well with a spoon or clean dry hands.
-Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for 2 minutes.
-Roll dough into a shape that will fit your baking pan or baking stone.
-Place dough on a lightly greased pan and stretch dough to edges.
-Top with desired toppings.
-Bake in a 500 degree oven for 8-12 minutes, or until edges are golden.
Note: Using white flour produces a pizzeria style crust. Using all or partial whole wheat flour makes a more cracker like crust. I suspect it has to do with gluten content.
Suggestions:
-Use your favorite homemade or store bought spaghetti sauce.
-Try using pesto sauce in place of red sauce.
-Make a s'more pizza by using chocolate chips, mini marshmallows and crumbled graham crackers for toppings.
-Make an apple pie pizza by topping with thinly sliced apples, raisins, brown sugar and butter. If you're feeling adventurous you can top it with crumbled or shredded cheddar cheese.
Quick & EZ Pizza Crust
Yields 1 twelve inch pizza
.25 oz. pkt. active dry yeast
1/4 tsp. granulated sugar
3/4 cup 110 degree water
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
-Dissolve yeast and sugar in water. Let it sit for 8 minutes.
-In a separate bowl, combine flour and salt.
-Pour yeast mixture into flour mixture and mix well with a spoon or clean dry hands.
-Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for 2 minutes.
-Roll dough into a shape that will fit your baking pan or baking stone.
-Place dough on a lightly greased pan and stretch dough to edges.
-Top with desired toppings.
-Bake in a 500 degree oven for 8-12 minutes, or until edges are golden.
Note: Using white flour produces a pizzeria style crust. Using all or partial whole wheat flour makes a more cracker like crust. I suspect it has to do with gluten content.
Suggestions:
-Use your favorite homemade or store bought spaghetti sauce.
-Try using pesto sauce in place of red sauce.
-Make a s'more pizza by using chocolate chips, mini marshmallows and crumbled graham crackers for toppings.
-Make an apple pie pizza by topping with thinly sliced apples, raisins, brown sugar and butter. If you're feeling adventurous you can top it with crumbled or shredded cheddar cheese.
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