Unexpected Sore Throat Cure

picture courtesy of here

I am no proponent of artificial sweeteners*. Never have been.

I would never touch a "diet" or "sugar-free" anything, because I can't stand the idea of the freaky chemicals and cancer-causing agents associated with them. Plus, I just can't handle the taste. Plain and simple.

I know what you're thinking: "But they don't taste like anything." My husband and I argue about this all the time. He can't taste artificial sweeteners. But I can, and they give me the shivers and an instant headache. Every time. And that has been enough to keep me far, far away from them ever since I was a little girl.

So, when I was at my mom's house a few weeks ago, complaining of a sore throat and impending cold, I wrinkled my nose at her suggested cure:

Stevia.

I objected. She insisted. And before you know it, I was downing a shot-glass (actually just a little kid plastic cup - my mom doesn't keep shot glasses handy, c'mon!) of water with 3 drops of Stevia added.

It was disgusting. And miraculous.

My sore throat was gone instantly.

And when I say 'instantly', I mean as soon as my body stopped convulsing from the ultra-sweet nastiness, and I became once again aware of my throat.

It stayed away, too. I didn't get sick at all! It was awesome!

Maybe I just happened to catch whatever-I-was-getting at the exact right moment (I spent the rest of the next day downing Airborne like a fiend, so that may have played a role in my not getting sick. I don't know), maybe it was a complete fluke (my mom said it worked for her, too, the week before - I guess you need to take it as soon as you feel the sore throat coming on), but I am now a believer in Stevia as a sore throat cure!

Apparently, according to certain studies, Stevia can help hinder the growth of certain bacterias and prevent infection. Maybe that's why it works. There are also several believed side effects associated with its use. Which is why I would never consider using it in my food, or on a regular basis of any sort.

But I believe that plants and herbs and everything was put on this Earth for a reason, and who knows? Maybe Stevia was put here for my throat. And yours.

I'd like to know if it works for anyone else. So if you try it, let me know.



*Stevia is said to be completely natural, as it is derived from a plant. But it tastes like every other artificial sweetener to me, and so I make this comparison.

Glass Half Full and Squeaky Clean

When I was a young pup, my mom made her own window and glass cleaner, among other (almost every) things.

As soon as I was old enough to realize that the blue liquid advertised on television was the "correct" thing to use for glass, I grumbled as I washed windows. Who makes their own cleaner? That's just weird, right? It was to me and my "everyone else's lives are beautiful and perfect just like t.v., and if we only had store-bought glass cleaner (and white bread...), mine would be, too" way of thinking. I was convinced that homemade = inferior.

I swore that when I had my own house to keep, it would be nothing but the best, most expensive cleaning supplies for me! None of this two-bit, makes-your-life-boring-and-keeps-you-all-repressed homemade crap.

No, Ma'am. I had things to prove!

It took me 11 years of dissatisfied washing, and countless bottles of every brand of glass cleaner on the market to finally break down and call my mom for her recipe.

I whipped it up and washed my mirrors. Then I washed them again the next day. And the next. I was hooked. I kept directing my husband's attention to the mirrors and exclaiming things like, "Look at that!" and "Holy Moly, that's clean!"

I mean, they were cleaner than they had ever been. No streaks, no residue.

Just pure, unadulterated, boring old clean.

I felt sheepish. And thrilled. Enough more thrilled than sheepish to swear allegiance to home-concocted glass cleaner forever more.

And so, I present to you today, the glass cleaner that dreams are made of:

(and, again, I always just make enough for my bottlesworth (1 quart), so I have revised the recipe to reflect that)

In a large (at least 1 quart) measuring cup, mix the following:
1/2 C. rubbing alcohol
1 TB. ammonia
1/2 TB. liquid dish soap (Joy is supposedly the best to use)
Enough water to make 1 quart

Pour the solution into your spray bottle (again, it must be a heavy duty one, or it will stop working after a while), and clean like the cleaning lady you always aspired to be!

Also, the Friday Reader Recipes theme is SANDWICHES. Got that? SANDWICHES.


(No peanut butter and jelly or processed lunch meat allowed)


p.s. Today is pi day (3.14 - I know it's kinda nerdy, but who doesn't love an excuse to eat pie?), so if you find a healthy pie recipe to make for your family, let me know!

p.p.s. Last Saturday when Ty was cleaning his car, he noticed for the first time the corrections I had made to the Great Value Glass Cleaner bottle that I have been using for my homemade cleaner for the last 3 years. He asked (as he chuckled), "Did you do that completely for your own benefit?" And I replied, "Yep." Because I believe in doing little things for my own benefit. My own benefit is a worthy cause.

(Also, knowing me, I would otherwise forget that it was homemade and that I had ever made my own cleaning solution)

Adventures in Cleaning and A Warning

(Pretend there's a really cute picture here of me smiling, full manicure, wearing a crisp spring gingham dress and apron, cleaning. Concentrate now, I know that's a difficult image to conjure)

Last week I started a new cleaning regimen. Why? Because my cleaning ambitions have lately shrunken down to a size practically imperceptible to the naked eye. I have far too many cleaning years ahead of me to give up now. I'd like to save the giving up for a more appropriate time, like when I'm 80. Or 40.

So, I thought a little change in my strategy would do me good. You see, I rebel against schedules of any sort. Rebel, I tell ya. It's a disease or something. And it keeps me from being organized, and lately it's been cramping my get-everything(or at least anything)-done style.

After cutting (gnashing?) my teeth on a very timid attempt to follow a menu plan (with success!), I decided I would take the next step and try a cleaning schedule. So, I found a couple on Pinterest, and went with the one most unlike my current one.

(I was going to do a link here, but I can't find it. Suffice to say it is strict, it is every day, and it is a lot of work)

I fell off the wagon a few times last week, but I enjoyed putting on my pink rubber gloves and looking at the schedule magnet-stuck to my back door, and dreaming of what would happen if I adhered to it's stringent laws. It was great. Almost as great as that run-on (and on) sentence.

This week I plan to carry it out a little better. Except for Thursday and Friday, because my kids are off school, and so we must play. Also, today and tomorrow are looking to be full to the rafters with craziness. So, that leaves Wednesday. Which is a half day of school for my kids, so I guess maybe we could team-up, doubling the cleaning power. Or I could just leave them with a list of chores and get the heck out of here...hmmm.

And now, a very important public service announcement/warning:

DO NOT BELIEVE EVERY IDEA YOU SEE ON PINTEREST IS A GOOD ONE!

I'm speaking from experience. I will now, at the risk of sounding like a complete idiot, debunk the following Pinterest myth:

Recycling your citrus rinds by soaking them in a bottle of vinegar to be used for a fresh-scented cleansing agent later doesn't work. If used to mop all the tile in your house, it will produce a floor so sticky, you will have to mop it five more times with Mr. Clean. Which will cause you to not have time to go on a date with your husband. Which will cause you to be grumpy and ready to strangle Pinterest with your bare hands.

And, for my piece de resistance, I will share the recipe for my most favorite homemade all-purpose cleaning spray. Guaranteed not to make your tile/counter tops/sinks/toilets sticky. Ready? Get a pencil. Or turn on your printer and get ready to copy this sucker.

Here it goes:
(this is enough to fill a spray bottle - buy a heavy-duty one or use an old, rinsed-out 409 - or similar - bottle)
1 TB. Borax (If you don't have any, get some. What are you waiting for? Don't you know you can't make slimy sludge play stuff without it? Buy it in the laundry aisle.)
3 TB. White Vinegar
2 C. Warm Water
1 TB. Dish Soap
1 Drop Essential Oil (doesn't have to be food-grade, just any cheap ess. oil is fine. My personal favorite is peppermint, but this last time I had a bunch of old imitation lemon extract that I was going to throw out, so I dumped that in, and wow! It smells good!)

Put it in a spray bottle and shake it up (I actually put it in a big bowl and whisk it to make sure the borax dissolves - plus, I'm always needlessly afraid I won't have room for all of it in my spray bottle).

If you tune in again on Wednesday, I just might share my top-secret, 502%-better-than-Windex, homemade window and glass cleaner recipe. See you then!

Say What?

The first time I heard the term, "Oil Pulling," I was confused. It is a strange word combination that doesn't make sense. Then I read about it. A lot. Now the term 'oil pulling' still sounds dumb, but the idea is intriguing. And easy. Which is what I'm all about.

It is, quite simply, the swishing of oil (any kind you like, but sesame and sunflower are the ones found to be most effective) in one's mouth for 20 minutes/day. That's it.

And the claims of benefits are many and diverse (from the cessation of headaches to the healing of heart disease). But what most interested me was the prevention of mouth and gum disease without chemicals.
Which means to me, no more buying and using nasty, tastes-like-poison mouth wash. Yippee! Also, I have very sensitive gums and teeth, and oil pulling is supposed to help with that.

I have been doing it religiously for two weeks, and I haven't experienced any miracles (although I wouldn't know it if I had, since I am not aware of any major diseases I have - could have just cured that tumor I never knew I had for all I know), but my teeth are a little whiter, so that's always good. And I figure, if nothing else, it can't hurt. It's such a simple (and natural!) thing that could possibly benefit me in healthy ways, so why not?

Here are the basic directions:
1. Do it first thing in the morning on an empty stomach (I do it after my workouts while I'm making breakfast. It is amazing how quiet my kids are when I am unable to talk for 20 minutes - I have actually considered oil pulling - or pretending to - for an entire day).
2. Use 1 Tbsp. of oil (you can work your way up to that amount if necessary. It took me a few days to feel comfortable with the entire amount at ounce. Before that, I did 1/2 Tbsp for 10 minutes, then the other half for the remaining 10 minutes). Like I mentioned, Sunflower and Sesame Oils are the ones studied and shown to be the most beneficial, but any oil will work. I started with coconut oil - which made my mouth water like crazy - and then switched to Sunflower, which I really like. It's light and pleasant-tasting, and my mouth doesn't fill up with saliva as much as it did with the coconut).
3. Swish it very lightly through your mouth for 20 minutes. Don't swish vigorously, or your mouth will get worn out. Don't gargle it, and please do not swallow it! By the time you expectorate, it is supposedly chock-full of nasty bacteria and toxins.
4. Spit it out in the toilet, cause everyone knows you never put oil down a sink drain (this is the hardest part for me, because the act of leaning over the toilet and spitting sends a throw-up signal to my brain. I think it's normal. What did I expect after spending three 9-month segments of my life hanging over the toilet boil? Just do it as quickly as possible, and visualize a tropical island and lemonade as you do it - that seems to help).
5. Gargle and swish with warm salt water when you are done.

Of course there are varying opinions on the exact method (and benefits) of oil pulling here, here, here, and here, if you are interested.

Otherwise, come back tomorrow for some recipes!

It's Only 3 Weeks...C'mon

I have been doing the same exercise routine for two years. It is boring. I don't like it. My muscle strength, definition, and endurance has not increased at all.

So, I was thinking it's probably time to get a new one! Only took two years for that to dawn on me.

Another revelation: I don't have to hire a personal trainer to give me a new workout schedule, because I have a computer and I pay for an internet connection!

I searched and searched (for about 2 minutes, at least) until I found one that fit my criteria:

1. Must be as short as possible, but still do the job. I only have a one hour slot of time for exercise. That includes getting up and feeling my way to the bathroom (1 min.), getting dressed (2 min.), doing my hair (10 seconds), finding my keys (5 minutes), grabbing my water bottle and ipod (2 min.), forgetting my water bottle and running back in the house to get it (3 min.), driving to the gym (8 min.), and driving back (10 min. - the roads are busier by then). So, not an hour of working out. An hour ALTOGETHER.
2. Must include all the muscle groups. Cause everyone knows by now that the more muscle a gal has, the more energy (I don't believe in calories, so I say 'energy') she burns, right? Plus, I don't want to have abs of steel with arms of flab.
3. Must not be complicated. I don't do complicated.

Anyway, I think I found a winner. It's only 3 weeks long - which is a lot less of a commitment than all of these 6, 8, and 12-week programs. At least in 3 weeks, if I decide I don't like it, I won't feel like I wasted my entire year, and I can move on to something else.

Anyone want to do it with me?

It's all right here if you do.

C'mon...it'll be FUN!

(I am starting week 3 on Monday, but each week is practically identical, so you can still do it with me! Also, I like the progress I've seen so much already, that I think I'll do it over - with heavier weights - after I finish)