Coconut, Long Hair, and Camera Stare

People talk about Superfoods all the time now but in my personal opinion Coconut SHOULD be on that list because they are so versatile and can be used in nearly everything and in almost any form...butters, oils, milks, waters, "meat", etc.  In the next few weeks I will be posting about Coconut Products quite a bit!  I'm excited!  PLUS...they are so GOOD for you!

I recently had an afternoon treat...this Classic Coconut Bar!  It was AMAZING!  After eating THIS bar - I certainly don't miss "Mounds Bars" because these are SO MUCH better!  I jotted that note down on my note pad next to my computer while eating and when I went to their site it mentioned the same thing on the product description so I really can say I found those claims to be true - at least for MY taste buds!  YUM!  It was creamy, sweet, with a wonder coconut center that gave it a unique texture all-of-it's-own!  It was very Tropical.  It was like a little escape - for me in the middle of the day - it was lovely!  There seemed to be a questionable hint of lemon - since it wasn't mentioned in the ingredients - but I absolutely LOVED it!  I would like to say that the BEST part of this is the wonderful chocolate flavored shell but everything else was JUST AS good!  What a wonderful treat this was!

Opal and I have been chatting back and forth about our hair getting so long!  Another friend of mine tells me I don't post enough pictures of myself...well...I never have anyone to take photos of me so the iPhone will be the ones you will usually see me posting...as goofy as they are at times!  Here is a photo from a few days ago.  You can see a lot of my hair but not the end of it.  I usually wear it up or back, too!

And my close friend - I call her "Yuma Jen" and I have an ongoing joke about me having "Hippie Hair" so I sent her this photo a few days ago and then came across this photo on Instagram (I altered it a bit)...it kind of cracked me up!  Here, in town I have seen "Hippies Used Side Door" signs but I really wish we had this sign LOCALLY, instead!  

I received my semi-weekly email from Infusion Tea yesterday and noticed they are involved with NO MEAT MARCH.  So I went to the website and found out you can pledge to go meat-free for the entire month of March.  They send you Vegetarian Recipes to your in-box for signing up!  Since I have been Meat-Free for about 19 years and Near-Vegan since about September I thought I would still take the pledge...to bring attention to it as well as continue to push myself to be and stay dairy-free, too!  PLUS...Free Recipes are ALWAYS fun!  I won't be participating in one of the big cities mentioned but on the personal level and on my blog!

I seriously can't wait to review this next product so I am going to do PART 1 now and update you with the results when I get more of them to show you!  I was lucky enough to get one of these Green Sprout Kits from Sustainable Santa Cruz a little over a week ago and I LOVED the presentation!  Everything all contained within the HUGE Mason Jar!  I mean...LOOK at this photo that was on their site!  You get the HUGE Mason jar, the lid, the screen lid, the shade bag, a recipe, and the seeds are in the middle of everything, too!  And you see the twine AND Green paper in this photo?  Keep THAT in mind - I used those items, too!  To REALLY "Go Green".  Here is the official product description from their website:

Grow your own superfoods right in your kitchen!   The path to happiness begins with good health, so nourish your body with wholesome ingredients, starting with sprouts!  Protein-packed sprouts will energize your body with enzymes and nutrients, while rejuvenating antioxidants will make you glow from the inside out.  Liven up salads, create fresh, healthy stir fries or invigorate your green juice,  with dozens of amazing recipes to choose from you’ll discover new favorites.  Begin with a few seeds or beans, simply add water, and a few days later you’ll find your jar filled with crunchy, delicious sprouts.
Green Sprout Kit.  Each kit contains everything you need for 2-4 uses, with lots of refill options available.

• Includes: two-quart glass sprouting jar; stainless steel screen; organic cotton produce bag; 4 oz. organic sprouting seeds; reusable seed tin; instructions and sprouting chart.
• Completely reusable, refills available.
• BPA-free.

Sprouting is easy, inexpensive and super nutritious. With dozens of seeds and legumes to choose from, we offer a selection of favorite premium, organic and versatile options to start you on your path to optimum health today.
Simple directions can be found here: How To Grow Your Own Superfood

Their website is wonderful, well done, and extremely helpful!  I'm VERY excited about this product for many reasons!  The Mason Jar is bigger than the others I have, the Screen is more user friendly than the plastic ones I have, and the Bag goes right over top of the jar to lock out the light - so far - it seems to be working MUCH better than the way I was doing it before - without a cover, that is.  I used some Radish Sprouting Seeds I had on hand as my first test.  I wanted to make sure I knew what I was doing before using the lovely seeds they sent me!  These are the Radish Sprouting Seeds Soaking 2 nights ago.

And here is a photo of the Mason Jar with the Bag over it.  I turned it up-side-down to drain in a glass bowl.  It's also leaning against a wall at an angle.  I totally LOVE this bag!  I can see myself multipurposing it this Spring/Summer at Farmers Markets to hold Produce, too!

This morning I noticed that the Sprouts are doing quite well!  And QUICKER than usual!  They even look more...PURE...if that makes sense!  It MUST be that BAG that is doing the trick!  Either that or the combo of the bag and the screen both at a specific angle...not sure...regardless I am SUPER EXCITED!

And here I got a nice shot of the Screen!!!  If you look REALLY hard you can see little sprouts coming out of it.  I took this photo right after I rinse them so you will see a little bit of water, too!  The glass bowl I choose for this seems to work really well for this large Mason Jar, too!

I'm very optimistic - it just seems like everything is falling into place with this attempt!  Of course their Kit DOES make it VERY easy...AND FUN!

Again, I will let you know the outcome but I am VERY happy with this product so far!  So much so that I even took their "Green" a little farther!  I officially got back into crafting!  You see the "Moss Green" paper I used for the 2nd layer?  It's the Paper from the Kit!  I have some more left, too, so I will be using it in other projects as well!  And right above my name you can see a "Baby Blue" Metal Flower Embellishment in the middle of that I used the twine/string from the kit as well (in the center of the flower).  This image is a Digital Stamp from Lindsay's Stamp Stuff who is a designer over at MyGrafico!   You can also read more about Digi Stamps and those companies on my Craft Blog. 

And finally...here is my morning smoothie...not the best photo but here it is!  I eye-balled everything so it's not much of a recipe...Mango, Strawberry, 1 T Maple Peanut Butter, 1/2 tea Maca Powder from Foods Alive, Coconut Milk to taste/consistency.  This was quite good and I would definitely do it again!