What I'm Eating, Reading, and Thinking About

Today is a simple post - mostly about what I have been eating, reading, and thinking about.
Starting off with what I have been eating!  Simple - really...juices, smoothies, salads, raw fruit and veggies - mostly.

Yesterday was my Monday to travel to an area with a Wegmans.  I have been treating myself to a lunch there the last few weeks at their buffet.  This week I did another thrown together salad.  I had a mix of romaine and iceberg with leafy greens mixed in.  There was also a great deal of kale in there!  I added some roasted root veggies - such as onions, carrots, sweet potatoes, etc.  I threw on some peas, carrots, blueberries, etc.  What really made this was the Lemon Vinaigrette Dressing!

I started my day with water and lemon.  I then had some tea.  I then had a glass of Pineapple Juice which was pretty awesome.  For lunch I will have a Vanilla Pineapple Smoothie which I will most likely blog about tomorrow.  I also have Snap Peas to snack on this morning and later today a few Mac Nuts.  For Dinner I will have a LARGE Salad.  I'm REALLY loving different fruit vinegar salad dressing and hope to be making my own and posting them here so be on the look out!

As for some of the things I have been reading - I forgot to post about the Carrot Seed Oil Research I have been doing!  Check out this handy chart!  Of course once I start researching something and reading about it then I am thinking about it and how I can learn more!

Piping Rock keeps having more and more sales and I am so tempted to buy more oils but trying to save money!  I might have to budge on this tho!  The ones I currently look to buy are: Eucalyptus $1.49, 4 Thesis $1.79, Basil $289, Spearmint $3.29, Rosehip $4.19, Mandarin $1.99.  Time will tell if I will actually order all of these while this specific sale is going on.  If not I will just wait until the next one, I guess!  I've been into the site Mindy Body Green lately and here are the articles I have bee interested in lately:

* A Globe-Trotting Yogi Shares Her Travel Must-Haves + The Stretches You Need For Pain-Free Trips

* Why Quitting My Job To Build A Tiny Home Was The Best Decision I've Ever Made

* What Food Photographer & Blogger Marie Reginato Eats In A Day

Life Updates, Vegan Snacks, Outdoorsy Weekend Recap

Over the past couple of months I have been attending various meetings and events involving my local branch of The League of Women Voters.  I have decided to become a member.  There are many topics that I am interested in learning more about.  Since I have decided to keep this blog mostly political-free and believe me when I tell you that is a REAL challenge - I will continue to NOT preach my politics here on this blog - but I do have other places to vent - thankfully.  I just wanted to update you on a few things I have been involved in over the past couple of months.

I have also been very involved with a newly formed group called Impacting Poverty.  We have a few things in the works including a poverty simulation in the fall which I will be participating in.

2016 marks DH's 7th year on the county fair board.  One of his major committees is the Entertainment Committee and I have helped out as much as I have been able since he started.  We are working on many things for this years fair which is in August.  This year the entertainment acts include: Colin Raye, Home Free, and Little Texas.  I will be posting more about Home Free VERY soon because the more I watch and listen to them the more I REALLY love them!

My parents recently attended a CANDY SHOW in Chicago and brought back some VEGAN TREATS for me!  I will say so far one of my FAVORITE new-to-me companies is Bobo's Oat Bars!  Here is the first one I tried and I really liked it!

I also nibbled on this flavor a day or two afterwards!  What I liked about this flavor is that the chocolate wasn't overpowering yet still part of the overall flavor!  I have a few more flavors I will be sharing with you down the road so be on the lookout!  I appreciate the fact that the company is active on Instagram and have liked and commented on my posts!

I thought this was certainly worth a mention, too!  A White Cheddar Flavor Skinny Pop Popcorn that is VEGAN!  I enjoyed it very much!  It was gently flavored and memorable!

This past weekend my parents and I attended a Women In The Outdoors Event at Chapman State Park and it was a wonderful day!  This is the 3rd year we have attended as a vendor with our Wildtree Products!  This is one of the MANY pics I took from one of the classes that took place!  Faerie Houses!

They had Essential Oil classes, too!  There were some classes that I had no interest in whatsoever that were not veg-friendly, per say, but in the area I live in I am used to it and skip over them.

They had outdoor Yoga, too!

And right next to us was a guy who was doing classes on Recycling For The Birds.  He would take plastic coffee tubs or other plastic bottles and make bird feeders out of them!  VERY COOL!  I think he did at least 4 classes and all of them were well attended!

IT'S MIDWEEK MUNCHIES TIME!!!
But I don't have an official linky this week so if you participate just let me know in comments!
To see an example of a past MWM (Midweek Munchies) take a look at my top sidebar!

Carrot Seed Oil (And Other New Additions)

Here are 4 New-To-Me Essential Oils that I was lucky enough to add to my Essential Oil Collection.  I ordered from Piping Rock again and found some lovely blends - as you can see above - but also the Carrot Seed Oil that I have been wanting.

Come to find out Carrot Seed Oil tends to be overlooked or comes in as an underdog of sorts.  Below is some info I found about it...

Carrot seed oil is perhaps one of the most under-appreciated essential oils. But it is known to have antiseptic, carminative, cytophylactic, depurative, diuretic, emmenagogue, and vermifuge properties

Here are just some of the other well-known health benefits of carrot seed oil:

Heals abscesses, boils, and other skin disorders

Nourishes , tightens, and rejuvenates skin

Alleviates pain due to menstruation

Helps stimulate appetite

Treats ulcers

Improves liver and gall bladder disorder, particularly hepatitis, colitis, and enteritis

Stimulates the lymph system

Helps women in breast milk production after childbirth

Eases hiccups, colic, and flatulence

Treats kidney stones and jaundice

Personally - I decided to grab this because of the mentions of healing abscesses and boils, Colitis, Lymph System Benefits, and I also read it can be good for Arthritis!

Some recipes and ideas I found to be interesting include:
Carrot Seed Oil Skin Cleanser
Carrot Seed Oil Make-Up Remover
Carrot Seed Oil Scar Treatment
All available at THIS LINK.

Playing Catch Up!

I found this cute meme on Instagram the other day and reposted and commented...This is my Monday Face...and Tuesday Face...and Wednesday Face...lol...YEAH...it's been a rough few weeks or months but I am trying to kick the attitude and start a NEW!

Eventho it's been a very mild winter here in the snowbelt I'm looking forward to spring regardless!  So far today we had between a foot or two of snow fall.  I was shoveling my sidewalk and driveway and the city plow came thru and plowed me back in.  Nice!  I'm typing that with much sarcastically - I don't know if you picked up on that!

The furkids are doing well!  Cricket is a 'crazy lady' that is what we call her sometimes but she's also a sweet pea and darling girl!  She puts so much life into our home.  She has a devilish side, too!  She likes to torment her brothers.  Riley has a soft side for her most times whereas Paco is too polite to do anything to snap back and I usually have to stop Cricket from picking on Paco.  Paco is so funny - he actually waits in line to drink from the water bowl in the living room at night.  He lets Cricket and Riley go first and he waits until last to lap up the water!

Paco is doing really well considering all of his medical issues.  He's been on his same meds for over a year now and his blood work is consistently where it should be.  He pees a lot but I would rather him do that than not be with us.  He's still sweet as ever!  And he's so strong to deal with everything, too!  He's plumped up from the meds but just adds to his character.  

I took this photo on a sunnier day than today and just had not posted it yet.  I'm still wearing my glasses and most likely will just continue to.  I think it makes me look older but I don't really care.  I know in the past no one could believe I was 36 but maybe now I will start looking my age anyways.  It is what it is, right!?

Work has been rough but I'm still plugging along.  I've been fairly uninspired in the kitchen as of late and going back to some comfort foods, cheap foods, fast foods, and good old stand by's!

I've been throwing a lot of dishes together much like this veggie curry here.

I've been re-organizing my tea collection and re-visiting some old favorites.

I have been able to spend a good amount of time with my parents the last several months.  They went to Aruba last month.  They LOVED it.  My sister had a rough weekend because she lost one of her furkids to cancer.

I'm still VERY MUCH into the Essential Oils.  My parents have gotten into them, too!  My sister has been buying some stuff online at PipingRock.com so I thought we would try it at as well.  So my parents and I went in on it together and they bought an Essential Oil Starter Kit with about 14 different oils.  I had at least half of them so I didn't get one of the kits I opted for 4 individual oils instead.

I decided to try 2 of their blends.  The Mental Clarity and the Stress Relief blends and I have them at work.  I have tried and like both of them.

Then I grabbed some Grapefruit Oil and Pine Needle Oil.  Those were two of the ones on my results sheet I received before Christmas.  I really like both of these, too!  I will say that the Pine Needle surprised me.  I thought it was going to be way too 'manly' and pungent but it's 'just right'.

I really like Piping Rock so far!  Their prices are quite a bit lower than many other sites I have seen.  I've only gotten their oils but I intend to make a purchase down the road that contains some of their nuts, seeds, snacks, etc.

Gingerlily Essential Oil & Depression

I truly believe certain things happen for certain reasons.  Perhaps there is a clear reason or maybe just a coincidence that really makes you think and half chuckle.  Either way I had something happen to me just now that fits in that category!  I was going thu some of my old earrings and mementos that dated back to my college years and came across 2 items I didn't even know I had...Gingerlily Essential Oil and a spray that was the essential oil equivalent to a cologne.  It was called a Positivity Spray!  I sprayed one small squirt on each wrist.  It smelled lovely.  More importantly I found the following info on Gingerlily Essential Oil and wondered if I located it out of the blue for a reason...I've been 'down' and 'down on myself' lately and could really use this in more ways than one...

"In this fast moving world, people are packed with their busy work schedules and suffering from mental exhaustion and depression problems. This oil is very effective in providing the relief from your mental stress by calming & revitalizing your mind as well as body. It is used broadly in aroma therapy treatment to get relief from the nervous related problems such as stress, mental exhaustion, anxiety, depression etc." ~ Website Source/Quote

Patchouli Perks!

Yesterday I FINALLY purchased Patchouli Essential Oil at my local herb store.  I decided to go with the Nature's Sunshine Brand for this specific Patchouli!  I hope to post about my journey with Patchouli in the coming weeks!

I found this chart of things that Patchouli is known for.  I'm starting to think that my Essential Oil Reading that I wrote about last week is making more and more sense now!  Patchouli helps soothe inflammation, boosts energy and immune system, and more.  Those two are things I have been fighting as of late!

Question of the day - if you are into Essential Oils - what is your favorite carrier oil to use?

I have been using Coconut Oil and/or Grapeseed Oil, mostly.

Biomarkers & Essential Oils

The other day I went to visit my local herb lady and we were talking about Essential Oils.  She told me that she has this system that can focus just on which Essential Oils would be right for me if I wanted to try it.  Usually she uses this tool to see if a customer is lacking a specific vitamin or nutrient.  But she's also able to set it up to focus on specific things like Essential Oils, for example.  I figured WHY NOT...she rain the test which was basically me standing there for 5 minutes with my hand on this device you see here.

She then provided me 2 print outs.  One was the Product Assessment Results and the other was the description of the Essential Oils based on my Assessment.  My results showed that I had 34 Biomarkers out of range.  Of those 34...16 of them could be brought back into range by using Patchouli, 7 of them brought back with Pink Grapefruit, 6 with Pine Needle, 2 with a Massage Oil, 1 with Core Balancing Blend, and 1 with Lemon grass.

She explained to me that these Biomarkers were just areas in which I could focus on improving for my overall wellness.  I took into account that it's 'that time of the month' and that I have been dealing with pain issues as of late.  She told me that these ranges could change daily and they are just based on my current energy.

I've read online that a lot of people think ZYTO devices are "who-E" but I've also heard some positives, too!  I figure because I was just focusing on which Essential Oils could benefit me it couldn't hurt.  After I found out that 16 of the 34 could be brought back by the use of Patchouli I was thrilled.  I will be focusing on that for a while.  She said that she wouldn't even worry about the others.  Patchouli is the big one and Pink Grapefruit and Pine Needle are ones to assist.  Patchouli isn't the cheapest essential oil that is for sure.  My herb lady has 3 different brands to choose from that vary in price from about 22 to 28 bucks.  I have found a few online for around 14 bucks but I want to make sure it's of good quality if it's the most important one for me.  One of the 3 she offers is organic and put thru over 200 quality assurance tests.  If I don't go with that one I might do the one other brand because I have used some of their stuff before, too!

I'm thinking PAIN is my "BIG THING" at the moment and it doesn't help that it is really getting cold where I live, too!  OYE.

Focusing On Pain

Make it stop!

I really did a number on myself!

So if you have followed my blog for more than a year you may remember that I have struggled with Sciatica.  I'm thankful that I have never needed surgery or even taken medication for it.  But it's back.  I'm not sure if it was something that I did or if it's just the time of the year and it getting colder, etc.  But I have been really feeling it again since Thanksgiving Day.  I'm hoping I can do things myself and at home so I don't have to visit the Chiropractor.

2nd issue I have been having the last few months is a sore thumb.  I know that sounds petty.  The last week or so it has looked crooked by the knuckle by the nail.  I don't know if I broke it or if it's arthritis but either way I'm not happy.  I've always been double jointed and very much so in that thumb.  My mom and her mom have and had horrible arthritis so I'm nervous about this.  

And the third strike came today while at work when I whacked my knee on my desk.  This isn't unusual.  I tend to do this every other week it seems BUT this was hardcore.  So much so that it brought me to my knees and tears to my eyes.

I need to do something about this so here is my plan...

YOGA.

I know that I am back and forth on YOGA but I have to be more consistent with it.  Even if I have to bring my mat to work and do it in the bathroom I am going to do it more.

Green Smoothies.

Again something I struggle with being consistent at.  I mean, REALLY, how hard is it?  It's NOT...it's just me making excuses for NOT waking up earlier enough and not having enough fresh produce...which is similar to my 'thing' with Juicing.  I seriously NEED to focus on this.

Herbs & Essential Oils

These are something I have been digging deeper and deeper into as of late and I need to step it up a notch NOW!  When it comes to pain the following are things I am going to do to combat it whether it's herbs and/or essential oils...Aloe Vera, Boswellia, Cat's Claw, Eucalyptus, Ginger, Green Tea, Thunder God Vine, Turmeric, and Willow Bark.  Of those I have already done a few of them often.  I will be bumping that up more tho.  One of those that I am not familiar with is the Thunder God Vine and will be doing more research on it very soon.

Speaking of my own personal research and development...I have been looking into many other things that I will be sharing with you very soon!

What do you do for pain management at home?

Erie Veg Society, Raw Vegan Sour Cream, Apple Blossoms, & Chihuahuas

I've been in contact with the Erie Vegan and Vegetarian Society and I really wish it didn't take me over an hour to get to Erie so that I could participate more in their upcoming events.  It's going to be especially difficult in the winter months because we live in the snow belt.  But I am super excited they are so active and have so many things going on in the next year!  One of which is their first ever VegFest!  I will let you know more about the event when I am able to!

Last week I made a tisane (herbal tea) with Apple Blossoms.  I think this is the first time I have ever had Apple Blossoms.  I will be writing more about Apple Blossoms and their potential benefits for The Raw Food World NEWS Site very soon!

I'm getting into herbs again more.  I tend to go in spurts.  Same with my love for learning about Essential Oils.  My newest point of interest is Crystals.  More on that soon, too!

This past weekend I made a Raw Vegan Sour Cream made out of Macadamia Nuts.  It was pretty good!  I took the last little bit of what I had yesterday and added it to some guacamole!

My hubby told me about a 2 year old Chihuahua that needs a home in a near by city and it breaks my heart but I don't think we can take her in at this time.  I know this will be eating at me for quite some time.  At least I know her name and can be praying for her in the meantime.

CONGRATS to Jacky!  She was the WINNER of the Garden of Life Marley Fit!  I emailed you - let me know your info and I will let GoL know!

My Blissful Journey ~ Into Essential Oils ~ Intro

I've been reading up on Essential Oils for quite some time.  And the last few months I've actually been ACTING upon my interest.  Before Vegan MoFo started I had a few people ask me to post my findings and my journey with Essential Oils.  I figured now is the best time as any to start posting a few things.  It just seemed like a nice way to start the weekend, too!

As many of you know I contribute to The Raw Food World NEWS Site.  You can find most of my posts within the RECIPE Section of the site or you can click on my PROFILE, too!

This post really won't be a 101 type crash course but some of the things I have done with them and I will start building Essential Oil posts here on my blog as well as over at The Raw Food World NEWS Site.  

First up...one of the Essential Oil combos that I think is great to have on hand and on stand by near your kitchen and/or bathroom.  The Burn Blend.  This blend is made up of a carrier oil, Tea Tree, and Lavender.  By clicking on the link you can see the full recipe and benefits profile of this blend.  As a default I usually use Grapeseed Oil or Coconut Oil as my carrier oil of choice.

Lemon Body Wash is another thing you can do with Essential Oils.  All you do is add Orange, Lemon, and Ginger Essential Oils to an UNscented Body Wash of your choice.

Tomorrow I will be posting a few ideas using Lemon Balm LEAF.  Stay Tuned.

Latest Shipment From The Raw Food World

I received my latest shipment a few weeks ago but have been so busy that I had not had time to blog about it yet!  So today is the day...here's the latest haul from The Raw Food World!

I've been tinkering with more and more essential oils the last few months.  I have been researching and learning a lot and SOON I will be sharing some of the things I have been doing and using.

Here are the latest 3 oils I have added to my stash...Ginger, Rosemary, and Orange.

I finally bit the bullet and got my hands on a copy of The Art of Fermentation.  I know a few of my blogging buddies including Opal and Christine have this book and/or other fermenting books.  I'm looking forward to jumping in this new JOURNEY as well.

Also in this photo...Hemp Seeds...I was almost out...and a new-to-me-product I am darn excited about...Sun Root Sweetener.  The main ingredient?  Jerusalem Artichoke Root.

With this last shipment I gifted a lot of the products I have already sampled myself.  I bought some vitamin patches for a co-workers husband, a few goodies for a old high school buddy, and some items for my mom, dad, and sister - as well as - her husband.

I couldn't help but grab a few flavored Kale Chips that were on sale which came in handy during Fair Week.  Then you will see that I also got some Monkfruit Sweetener, too!  And that little blue bottle with the white cap is tooth powder that I thought I would try!

Happy Mail ~ Cacao Crazy!

I got some HAPPY MAIL yesterday!  YAY!  This was a REALLY HUGE order from The Raw Food World! 

The Raw Food World now has their own line of Cacao Products!  I grabbed them all!  Raw Cacao Powder, Raw Cacao Butter, Raw Cacao Paste, Cacao Beans, and Cacao Nibs!  I'm super excited to start working with them!  I hope to submit recipes to The Raw Food World NEWS Site using these Cacao Products soon!

After taking the photo I realized that some of the Raw Noni Powder snuck in there!  I have been wanting to try their Noni Powder for a while now and FINALLY decided to get some!

I have been a bit obsessed with nut butters over the last year.  I may dunk my spoon in one from time to time for a dessert or snack on the go.  A little bit goes a long way.  I usually only do about a tablespoon at a time.  I had to reorder the Superberry Maqui Camu Sprouted Almond Butter - it's AMAZING. 

I also grabbed a few new-to-me nut butters including Almond Crunch, Silk Almond, and Pistachio Halva. 

As you can see I re-ordered the Citrus Essential Oil Spray - the girls in the office LOVE it so I got more for work!  AND...there is some NEEM OIL in there, too! 

Here we have an assortment of items including Raw Yacon Powder, Irish Moss, Lucuma Powder, Pink Himalayan Sea Salt, Kelp Noodles, 2 different Olive Pastes, and 2 different truffle 'balls' including Peppermint and the other is Goji Cherry! 

A few side notes on a few of these products...with the powders I am now in need of more mason jars.  Years ago I switched everything in my pantry into glass Mason Jars and I'm running low on them now. 


With the Irish Moss - I have never worked with it before - so it's will be a journey that is for sure.  And with the Sea Salt - since I'm not much of a salt fan - this may very well last me the rest of my life! LOL - Previously I had bought 2 ounces of it and I think it lasted me 3 years!

It's been a while since I stocked up on flax snacks so I ordered some and 2 of them were on back order but these will certainly tide me over in the meantime!

My sister asked where to get bulk quinoa from and I told her that The Raw Food World carries it so I decided to get some for her! 

I was almost out of Tahini and this brand was on sale so I couldn't resist!

They also had some of their raw breakfast crusts on sale so I added that to my cart, too!

AND...a Bamboo Lettuce Knife?  Yes, please!  PERFECT timing because I will be doing salads nightly for dinners VERY SOON!

And finally - another stash of snacks and superfood cereals!  These will last me a while but I also have a plan for them.  Not only will I snack on them but I plan on using them as toppings for smoothie bowls, too!

AND...a new mini goal and project I have up my sleeve!  Since I have been doing a lot of driving with my job now I want to set up my car to be more raw food friendly with foods, snacks, and to-go foods that I can easily access throughout the day.  I will be - at some point - putting a personal cooler in my car - and will be blogging about my efforts and attempts.  So I will start a new tag for Raw Foods While Driving, Raw Foods For Travel, if you can think of any others let me know!

Stocking Up on The Raw Food World

YAY!  Happy Mail!  Today I received my box of goodies from The Raw Food World and here's what I got in my most recent shipment from them.

I've been a little addicted to Raw Recipe and Raw Books lately so I decided to stock up on them.  I have been a fan of Ani's for a while and decided to get two more of her books including Ani's Raw Food Asia and Ani's Raw Food Kitchen.  I already have her Essentials one.  Then I noticed The World Goes Raw Cookbook and grabbed that one, too!  I think this will be my first encounter with Lisa Mann.  Looking forward to it!

Then I have had my eye on Raw Food Revolution so I finally decided to get that book, too!  Also in this last shipment I got Raw & Simple and Soak Your Nuts - Cleansing with Karyn.  I remember thumbing thru Karyn's book a while back while seeing it in a store and I regretted not getting it. 

I joined the GoodReads App a while back...I guess it was in 2012...but I have been using it an awful lot lately to take not of what books I have been reading.  Mostly Vegan, Raw, and Health related books with some journals/dairies, and books of poetry mixed in. 

And since I have been contributing to The Raw Food World's NEWS Site the last several months and chatting with Matt Monarch I wanted to make sure I added Matt and Angela's books to my collection...so...you will see I finally did that in this last order/shipment!  I can't wait to jump in - but - I have been getting behind the last several months.  So I have decided to PUSH MYSELF and join a Book Challenge on the GoodReads App.  You can see my progress on there!

Like I said - I am stocking up on some things!  I have been out of my brown rice pasta's for a while now and decided to get the Penne and the Spirals.

They had a few new products that interested me including one you see here in this photo.  Turmeric Wraps!  They are raw and paleo - not that I'm into paleo - but still - thought they sounded cool.  I can't wait to try them!  Plus - anything Turmeric is usually pretty awesome...they have a few others flavors as well so I might get those down the road!

They had great pricing on this brand of Kale Chips so I stocked up on those, too, while I was at it!  I'm gnawing on some of the spicy ones while I am writing this!

You can see that I got some Pine Nut Flakes!  Matt spoke so highly of them that I HAD to try some for myself!  I will keep you posted on my opinions on them, too!  Organic Currants was another item I have in there and can't wait to use them in Smoothie Bowls.  I splurged and bought some Raw Chocolate items, too!  Excited!!!!

And...FINALLY...last...but not least...

I thought I would start testing out Copaiba Oil on myself!  More on that down the road, too!

And I got two rings!  But not just any two rings!  These are pieces from the Andean Gypsy Jewelry Collection over at The Raw Food World!  They were hand made and one-of-a-kind from Gypsies in Matt and Angela's community in Ecuador!  The money from their jewelry sales goes to pay for the Gypsy children's schooling.

I have a lot of LEARNING to do with all of these products and books and I can't wait to jump right in!  If you have any of these items - let me know - and let me know what you think of them!

More Whole Foods, Raw Foods, Essential Oils, & Interesting Products!

I received my latest shipment from The Raw Food World a day earlier than expected!  Here are some of the goodies I grabbed!  More bean pastas!  I decided to finally get the Mung Bean Fettuccine and the Soybean Spaghetti.  Goji Berries were at a great price so I finally stocked up.  I hope to do more breakfast bowls with them and maybe more dehydrated breakfast bars!  Avocado Oil!  A Rawkin Raw Cookie - just to splurge!  A brand new product of Organic Liquid Smoke!  And Immune Boosting Colloidal Silver.

The last month or two I noticed these new olives and have been thinking about getting them since I saw them.  I haven't tried them yet but I think I might bring some with me to my parents house over Christmas to add to the veggie trays!  There is a whole line of these olives on The Raw Food World Site but I thought I would try the Sicilian Plain, The Sicilian Hot, and the Kalamata Style.

The more I think about the Kalamata Olives - the more I want to make Dreena Burton's Quinoa Hummus Casserole with roasted veggies on top and add some of the Kalamata Olives for a kick!

I also got another new product they have on their site - the Organic Olive Paste.  It sounded interesting.  AND...FINALLY...I broke down and bought 3 Essential Oils...Lavender, Eucalyptus, and Chamomile.  More about these in the near future.

Have you tried any of these products yet?  What did you think of them?  What are your fave Essential Oils and what do you do with them - share your tips, tricks, and favorites in comments!

FUN on a FRIDAY!

Well, well, well! 
It's Friday!  I'm SO over this week and ready to move on to the weekend!  I'm officially declaring today FUN on a FRIDAY - day!  To share with you a few things WHY this Friday is so FUN...here we go!  To start things off...I received another shipment from The Raw Food World today!  YAY!

As you can see I'm very excited about adding these raw food books to my growing collection!  Sometime this weekend I think I am going to have to start a new 'shelf or rack' for my Raw Food Books!  I wanted to get the 80/10/10 Book, too, but it was on back order.  I have two more on order in my next order thru them so I will let you know when I get those in!  As for other items in my last shipment you can see them on the left in this 2nd photo!  More snacks, dried foods, some Nutritional Yeast which is less expensive than I can buy it locally so I thought I would get some of that PLUS some Kale Chips - 3 different flavors...even...some freeze dried Jackfruit and Mangosteen!  YUM!  Some more nuts and such...and I got some chocolate items such as dark chocolate covered figs as well as Peppermint Mint Truffles which are AWESOME, btw!

Between this order and my next order I'm really totally restocking my pantry and shouldn't need anything for a good-long-while expect for FRESH Produce!  I am so blessed to be obtaining a lot of new-to-me foods, as well!  Down the road I might look into getting a Citrus Juicer.  I have my main juicer which is a Jack LaLanne Brand but I might upgrade or get an additional one at some point.  I want to get this Citrus Juicer as well.  My husband will start on a new diet down the road - hoping to reduce his Crohn's related issues and I know he likes orange juice but they don't want him consuming juice with a lot of pulp.

In with my shipments I have also been getting a few things to share with co-workers at work, my sister wanted some raw Cashews, and my Dad wanted some Dried Pineapple.  I thought I would try a 3 pack of these Air Therapy Sprays and keep one at work for our bathroom, too!  I love the way they all smell!  They are a convenience size, too!  In addition...I also bought some roll on pain reliever for my husband.

OH!!!!!  I'm going to a Wilson Phillips Concert tonight so I will be sure to blog more about that next week!  That's another reason today is a FUN FRIDAY!!!!!

We've also been having FUN with our Container Garden/Rooftop Garden.  The Spicy Mix and Sweet Mix Lettuces are doing awesomely!  We've had a lot of luck with both of those!  Our Sweet Basil is getting out of hand, too!  We transplanted 2 out of the 3 plants this past week. 

You can see here some of the lettuces that have flowered so I thought I would add them to the office.  They look nice, don't they!?  Even tho they are flowers from lettuce!?

But that's NOT all...I took pictures of those greens, too!  A HUGE bag full, actually!  Check this out...

It's almost a whole canvas bag full!

I have been doing a LOT of writing lately!  Even more than usual.  It's my busiest time of the year for commercial writing at work AND I've been going NUTS with the Raw Food World News Site, too!

I will do another post soon with some of my favorite posts and link to them for you!  I've done a few reviews as well!

So stay tuned for those!

What have you been up to!? 

What have you been writing about lately!? 

What new foods have you tried lately!?

Been to any concerts yet this summer?

What's the last fruit you ate!?