It may sound kooky but the stuff seriously does work wonders! In the past, when I'd read or heard about certain home remedies it sounded like more of sham or just a little too crazy to try out. Maybe you've even seen the books on the many uses and applications of apple cider vinegar and passed it off with a "yeah, right, I'm sure it really works" (said or thought in a sarcastic tone). If so, hold the skepticism, pass the cider vinegar and try it one when one of the following situations presents itself. (If you do try it out, please share your experience under this post in the comments section)
Note: I use Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar - it's unfiltered and unpasteurized so has more of the effective things (that's the technical term for whatever makes it work!) in it, but there are other brands available, too. The cheaper kinds you find in most grocery stores may work to a certain extent, but I can't vouch for it since I've only used Bragg's. You may need to go to a natural foods store, organics section of a grocery store (or the Internet) to find it. As I'm not a medical doctor and have never been to medical school, please check with your doctor, pharmacist or naturopath first if you have any medical conditions which may be adversly affected by an unpasteurized product.
Sore throat: Slightly dilute the cider vinegar with some water and gargle at the first sign of a sore throat. I (and others in my family who've tried this) found it to work most effectively when you first feel like a cold or sore throat is coming on. However, even if it's full-blown, it still hels. Try gargling several times a day and it seems to help the symptoms go away faster.
Acne: I tried this on a whim. (For those of you who've seen "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" just substitue the apple cider vinegar for Windex and you get the picture). When you spot a pimple, pour some cider vinegar on a cotton ball (dilute with some water if you like) and brush over your skin. When I've done this in the evening, by the next morning, the redness is gone! A few more swabs and the pimple disappears.
1st Degree Burns: When you've touched something hot - stove, iron, etc. immediately pour some apple cider vinegar over the spot and it helps the burned area from blistering. My mom did this after she burned a large area of her hand - something that normally might leave a scar - and her hand healed completely. I've tried this on myself and my children and have found it to be effective. Plus, because the pure cider vinegar requires refridgeration after opening, it feels soothing to have the cool liquid poured on it.
Mosquito Bites/Poison Ivy: Dilute the cider vinegar by half with water and bath the affected areas with the solutions. It helps take away the itch, though you may need to do this several times for permanent relief. My husband had a good case of poison ivy and used this remedy to relieve the itching.
These are the four areas where I've personally seen the effectiveness of the cider vinegar, but given the size of the Bragg Cider Vinegar book, this is only the tip of the iceberg. At minimum, you have something that's good to use in your cooking. ;)
What are your experiences or maybe hesitations in using apple cider vinegar? Share your thoughts in the comments section under this post.
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
Garden Journal
We are at the cusp of a bountiful harvest season...
This week we got in our first cherry tomatoes. Sweet and juicy! It caught be by surprise as I was intending just to harvest some parsley, but then I caught a glimpse of red deep within the tomato plants and close to the ground. It took a moment to register that there were indeed tomatoes that were actually ready for the picking! So I went on a hunt and have continued to do so throughout the week.
Our zucchini's are crazy. I'm positive they grow from barely there to more than a foot in length overnight because I check them frequently.
We've had quite a few cucumbers as well with more on the way.
I just noticed yesterday that we have a number of borlottie beans - again a surprise because they blend in well with the foliage.
The loofah I planted is doing okay and I hope we get at least one from it before the cold hits.
The potatoes must be getting close to harvest time and the mesclun mix is ready for picking. Spinach is coming along nicely too.
Dave have yet to be successful in growing onions or peas - any tips?
The deer netting we put help has helped the pole beans to stage a comeback as well as the lamb's ear.
Praying for some rainy days to come as we've had a dry spell for a while.
Praising God for His amazing creation and His gift of 6 ft tall tomato plants!
This week we got in our first cherry tomatoes. Sweet and juicy! It caught be by surprise as I was intending just to harvest some parsley, but then I caught a glimpse of red deep within the tomato plants and close to the ground. It took a moment to register that there were indeed tomatoes that were actually ready for the picking! So I went on a hunt and have continued to do so throughout the week.
Our zucchini's are crazy. I'm positive they grow from barely there to more than a foot in length overnight because I check them frequently.
We've had quite a few cucumbers as well with more on the way.
I just noticed yesterday that we have a number of borlottie beans - again a surprise because they blend in well with the foliage.
The loofah I planted is doing okay and I hope we get at least one from it before the cold hits.
The potatoes must be getting close to harvest time and the mesclun mix is ready for picking. Spinach is coming along nicely too.
Dave have yet to be successful in growing onions or peas - any tips?
The deer netting we put help has helped the pole beans to stage a comeback as well as the lamb's ear.
Praying for some rainy days to come as we've had a dry spell for a while.
Praising God for His amazing creation and His gift of 6 ft tall tomato plants!
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Strange...but true
I've become increasingly conscientious of the ingredients not only in the food we eat, but also in the products we put on our body. After all, the skin is the body's largest organ and a lot gets absorbed into our system through the skin.
For a while, I've been using the "natural" deodorants - the ones without the aluminum, parabens and other sketchy chemicals which are found in much of the deodorants in retail stores (except for most natural food stores or sections). If any of you have tried natural deodorants, you probably found the same thing I did - they were great at not yellowing or staining the armpits of your shirts but they didn't rate so hot on the odor prevention scale. Nature's Gate was the brand I found to be best at odor fighting.
And then, in doing some research I'd encountered a tip that baking soda works well as a deodorant on the body as well as it does in the fridge. At first I was skeptical - there was no way plain old baking soda could do better job than the manufactured deodorants which were formulated after much research and testing. I hestitated to try it, not believing it would really work.
But on a day when I knew I would see anybody besides my family, I decided to try it. It was kind of scary - would I be really sweaty and smelly? Even more than when using the natural deodorant? After all we were in the heat of summer. Bravely, I put some on and would peoridocally check for any hint of odor. Anybody who is of an origin other than North American is probably shaking their head at this - yes, we are obsessed with the cleanliness and lack of stinkiness of our bodies in this part of the world.
What were the results? It worked! I am not kidding - it really worked and better than any deodorant I've ever tried in my life (and I've tried quite a few in search of freedom from odor).
If you are interested in trying this experiment, here's what you do: wet underneath your arms with water, sprinkle some baking soda on your hand, rub the baking soda under your arm and - voila! - you're done.
A couple of user tips: If you sweat a lot you may need to reapply the baking soda a couple of times throughout the day, but it is amazing how much sweat and odor the baking soda can take. Use enough to get a light dusting of the soda under your arm but not so much that if you're wearing a dark shirt, the baking soda will leak through with sweat (this happened to me once) - no worries if this does happen, as baking soda also is a natural cleaning agent and may even help get your clothes cleaner!
It seems really silly to be writing about all this, but I had to share it because 1) it's cheaper than store bought deodorants and it works better 2) it's environmentally friendly and 3) it's another example of the beauty and simplicity of God's creation - he fitted our bodies to work the best with the things He created for us.
If you do try this experiment, consider sharing your thoughts here under the comments section.
For a while, I've been using the "natural" deodorants - the ones without the aluminum, parabens and other sketchy chemicals which are found in much of the deodorants in retail stores (except for most natural food stores or sections). If any of you have tried natural deodorants, you probably found the same thing I did - they were great at not yellowing or staining the armpits of your shirts but they didn't rate so hot on the odor prevention scale. Nature's Gate was the brand I found to be best at odor fighting.
And then, in doing some research I'd encountered a tip that baking soda works well as a deodorant on the body as well as it does in the fridge. At first I was skeptical - there was no way plain old baking soda could do better job than the manufactured deodorants which were formulated after much research and testing. I hestitated to try it, not believing it would really work.
But on a day when I knew I would see anybody besides my family, I decided to try it. It was kind of scary - would I be really sweaty and smelly? Even more than when using the natural deodorant? After all we were in the heat of summer. Bravely, I put some on and would peoridocally check for any hint of odor. Anybody who is of an origin other than North American is probably shaking their head at this - yes, we are obsessed with the cleanliness and lack of stinkiness of our bodies in this part of the world.
What were the results? It worked! I am not kidding - it really worked and better than any deodorant I've ever tried in my life (and I've tried quite a few in search of freedom from odor).
If you are interested in trying this experiment, here's what you do: wet underneath your arms with water, sprinkle some baking soda on your hand, rub the baking soda under your arm and - voila! - you're done.
A couple of user tips: If you sweat a lot you may need to reapply the baking soda a couple of times throughout the day, but it is amazing how much sweat and odor the baking soda can take. Use enough to get a light dusting of the soda under your arm but not so much that if you're wearing a dark shirt, the baking soda will leak through with sweat (this happened to me once) - no worries if this does happen, as baking soda also is a natural cleaning agent and may even help get your clothes cleaner!
It seems really silly to be writing about all this, but I had to share it because 1) it's cheaper than store bought deodorants and it works better 2) it's environmentally friendly and 3) it's another example of the beauty and simplicity of God's creation - he fitted our bodies to work the best with the things He created for us.
If you do try this experiment, consider sharing your thoughts here under the comments section.
Garden Journal
We had a great stretch of weather last week - for several days it would rain around evening and be sunny during the day. The plants loved it and shot up in growth. We had to water for the first time in a while this morning, but God also gave us plenty of water tonight with some thundershowers.
The last batch of peas I planted are up, as is the spinach, mesclun mix, yellow beans and loofah. The earlier batch of peas and beans are starting to wrap themselves around the pole supports. I think we need to plant earlier next year that we did this year. The butterfly weed I planted doesn't seem to be doing anything, but maybe it will surprise me yet. We've been enjoying the blueberries as they've ripened but I think the birds got to our raspberries before we could harvest any.
There have been some "marauding varmints" as I sort of affectionately call the deer that venture up from the valley to our street. (Seriously, though, they have a whole valley to eat from. Why do they need to snack on our garden?!) They mowed down the lamb's ear, nibbled one of our pepper plants in half and taken some bites of our beans and tomatoes. Grrr!
I'm not sure about our carrot crop this year - I don't think we'll have as many as last year and it will be surprising if we get any loofah since we planted it late, but you never know. We're still in the experimental and learning stage of our gardening and I'm sure God will have much to teach us along the way.
The last batch of peas I planted are up, as is the spinach, mesclun mix, yellow beans and loofah. The earlier batch of peas and beans are starting to wrap themselves around the pole supports. I think we need to plant earlier next year that we did this year. The butterfly weed I planted doesn't seem to be doing anything, but maybe it will surprise me yet. We've been enjoying the blueberries as they've ripened but I think the birds got to our raspberries before we could harvest any.
There have been some "marauding varmints" as I sort of affectionately call the deer that venture up from the valley to our street. (Seriously, though, they have a whole valley to eat from. Why do they need to snack on our garden?!) They mowed down the lamb's ear, nibbled one of our pepper plants in half and taken some bites of our beans and tomatoes. Grrr!
I'm not sure about our carrot crop this year - I don't think we'll have as many as last year and it will be surprising if we get any loofah since we planted it late, but you never know. We're still in the experimental and learning stage of our gardening and I'm sure God will have much to teach us along the way.
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Garden Journal
We were gone for a few days and how our garden has grown!
The zucchinin is a foot taller, has more flowers and little baby fruit can be seen. The tomatoes are still happy and growing, though the ones closer to the sidewalk are much shorter - not sure what might be going on with the soil there. The potatoes really shot up and needed to have hills of soil piled around them. Only 3 or 4 of the pea plants grew - not sure what happened to the other seeds. Carrot seed are up but the ones in the front aren't doing as well. May need to reseed and add compost. The bean and onions also showed some growth. We have several ripe raspberries and the blueberries are close to ripening. The rhubarb is showing more growth, too.
We had a ton of weeding to do - I doubt I'll order from that place again. Too many weeds - including bindweed are sprouting. I think we've harvest at least 5 pounds in weeds so far.
Today I planted some mesclun mix, more peas, "gold mine" yellow beans and luffa.
With rain in the forecast every day this week, I praying it will continue to help our garden grow.
The zucchinin is a foot taller, has more flowers and little baby fruit can be seen. The tomatoes are still happy and growing, though the ones closer to the sidewalk are much shorter - not sure what might be going on with the soil there. The potatoes really shot up and needed to have hills of soil piled around them. Only 3 or 4 of the pea plants grew - not sure what happened to the other seeds. Carrot seed are up but the ones in the front aren't doing as well. May need to reseed and add compost. The bean and onions also showed some growth. We have several ripe raspberries and the blueberries are close to ripening. The rhubarb is showing more growth, too.
We had a ton of weeding to do - I doubt I'll order from that place again. Too many weeds - including bindweed are sprouting. I think we've harvest at least 5 pounds in weeds so far.
Today I planted some mesclun mix, more peas, "gold mine" yellow beans and luffa.
With rain in the forecast every day this week, I praying it will continue to help our garden grow.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Park the Car Small Step
Maybe going without a car all the time, or even most of it, is impractical or challenging for you in your current life situation. Here are a few ideas for small ways to keep the car parked:
- Choose to walk, bike, take the bus, carpool just once a week
- If you run out of something, ask a neighbor to borrow it (a great way to build good relationships with your neighbors - especially if you return their borrowed egg in the form of freshly baked cookies!)
- Offer to run an errand for a friend or neighbor while you are out and about - it saves them having to use their car and they may return the favor
- Look for ways technology can save you some trips (e.g. online banking, automatic bill pay) - this will also save some trees
What are some small ways you've discovered are helpful in keeping your car parked? Post your ideas in the comments section.
Being Green is not Easy! Part One
With gas prices on the rise and a continued awareness of the harmful effects of a car on the environment, I've made more attempts to use my bike for errands with the kids. So far, it's been a rousing failure.
Our first attempt was a couple of months ago in the early warmth of May. Anticipating a refreshing bike ride in sun and light breeze, I asked my husband to hook up the bike trailer to my bike so I could take our three children to the local library. He looked a little skeptical at my request because that would mean hauling our 4 1/2 and 3 year old in the trailer and putting our 19-month-old in the baby seat. However, he gamely complied, though not without joking that he also hitched up the wagon and lawn mower to my bike as well.
Undaunted, I got the kids into their seats and tested out "invisible footprint" minivan. It worked! Feeling pretty good about myself, I biked us all to the library. No problem at all.
The kids enjoyed their time playing in the children's section while I selected six books to take home instead of the usual eight (it was becoming difficult to keep track of all the books). Before heading home, they burned off some more energy at the playground which was just next door. We were still in good shape and right on schedule for getting home in time for lunch.
As I pulled into the driveway, I was elated with how well the bike trip had worked out - now I had a way to get all of us to local places without using the car! Then an inconvenient truthy presented itself...While getting the kids and the books out of the trailer, I counted only five of the original six books. I counted again. And then again. Yes, five books when there should have been six. So I looked in the trailer, around the trailer, in the backpack praying that sixth book would materialize.
When it stayed missing, I asked my oldest child if she knew what happened. "Oh, Reesie threw it out of the trailer," she matter-of-factly replied. In disbelief, I asked my daughter and then my son, the book tosser, the same question several times. Each time came the same answer.
What was an eco-conscious mom to do now? Desperately looking at my clock, feeling low on energy and patience, I did the only thing I could - I loaded the kids into the car and retraced our route. As I scanned the sidewalks in vain, I imagined the disapproving looks on the librarians faces when I confessed we lost a book because my son tossed it from the bike trailer. I ended up going all the way back to the library without seeing it. I began to pray some good hearted citizen had already found and returned it. Halfway back I saw it and was flooded with relief as I picked it up and dusted it off, greeting it as a long-lost friend instead of a temporarily misplaced loaner.
Of course, I can't help but see the humor in this situation...cancelling out the good of the bike ride by driving all the way to the library, getting less books to make them easier to locate only to lose one, children who live the philosphy, "easy come, easy go." God must have had a good chuckle that day - my husband certainly did. I admit I did too.
Have your attempts to become more eco-conscious fallen short of your goal? Share your stories in the comment section.
Our first attempt was a couple of months ago in the early warmth of May. Anticipating a refreshing bike ride in sun and light breeze, I asked my husband to hook up the bike trailer to my bike so I could take our three children to the local library. He looked a little skeptical at my request because that would mean hauling our 4 1/2 and 3 year old in the trailer and putting our 19-month-old in the baby seat. However, he gamely complied, though not without joking that he also hitched up the wagon and lawn mower to my bike as well.
Undaunted, I got the kids into their seats and tested out "invisible footprint" minivan. It worked! Feeling pretty good about myself, I biked us all to the library. No problem at all.
The kids enjoyed their time playing in the children's section while I selected six books to take home instead of the usual eight (it was becoming difficult to keep track of all the books). Before heading home, they burned off some more energy at the playground which was just next door. We were still in good shape and right on schedule for getting home in time for lunch.
As I pulled into the driveway, I was elated with how well the bike trip had worked out - now I had a way to get all of us to local places without using the car! Then an inconvenient truthy presented itself...While getting the kids and the books out of the trailer, I counted only five of the original six books. I counted again. And then again. Yes, five books when there should have been six. So I looked in the trailer, around the trailer, in the backpack praying that sixth book would materialize.
When it stayed missing, I asked my oldest child if she knew what happened. "Oh, Reesie threw it out of the trailer," she matter-of-factly replied. In disbelief, I asked my daughter and then my son, the book tosser, the same question several times. Each time came the same answer.
What was an eco-conscious mom to do now? Desperately looking at my clock, feeling low on energy and patience, I did the only thing I could - I loaded the kids into the car and retraced our route. As I scanned the sidewalks in vain, I imagined the disapproving looks on the librarians faces when I confessed we lost a book because my son tossed it from the bike trailer. I ended up going all the way back to the library without seeing it. I began to pray some good hearted citizen had already found and returned it. Halfway back I saw it and was flooded with relief as I picked it up and dusted it off, greeting it as a long-lost friend instead of a temporarily misplaced loaner.
Of course, I can't help but see the humor in this situation...cancelling out the good of the bike ride by driving all the way to the library, getting less books to make them easier to locate only to lose one, children who live the philosphy, "easy come, easy go." God must have had a good chuckle that day - my husband certainly did. I admit I did too.
Have your attempts to become more eco-conscious fallen short of your goal? Share your stories in the comment section.
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