Air fresheners can be expensive and many of them are too strong or have a chemical smell that’s just not pleasant. Most of them have a smell that gags me anyway but sometimes I do like to spray a little something around the house to give it a festive smell. During the holiday season I stock up on Aura Cacia Candy Cane Aromatherapy Mist (LOVE that stuff!!) and other times I make my own.

Making Gelatin Air Fresheners

Step #1  Decide what type of scent you’d like to have. Lavender is calming, eucalyptus is invigorating and deters spiders, and lemon is fresh and clean. Purchase the essential oils online at a place like Mountain Rose Herbs or at other natural grocery stores like Whole Foods. Craft stores may have some too for making scented floral arrangements but they may also infuse them with synthetic fragrance too.

Step #2  Bring one cup of water to a boil and mix in four packets of unflavored gelatin. Stir until the gelatin has dissolved and then remove from heat. Ethical vegans may not want to use gelatin so an alternative may be needed for them.

Step #3  If you want it to have texture, you can add items [...] Continue Reading…

Welcome back! Remember to subscribe to my RSS feed. You can also subscribe via RSS reader or email (right). Thanks for visiting!

Food-borne illnesses often begin in the kitchen. Bacteria that tend to live in kitchens include staphylococcus, salmonella, shigella dysenteriae, and e-coli. These germs tend to proliferate on sponges and cutting boards, but they can be on countertops and other surfaces as well. I am less of a germaphobe since my green journey began and I fear the harsh chemcial cleaners more than most germs. Since meat rarely makes an appearance in our home anymore I don’t have to worry as much either but I still like to keep things sanitized… as long as it is done safely.

You can combat most kitchen germs with natural remedies. Here are some natural substances and their role in kitchen sanitization.

1. Grapefruit seed extract, or GSE

GSE is an extremely broad-spectrum antibiotic substance. It is made from the seeds (and sometimes the peel and leaves) of grapefruits and grapefruit trees. I use it in this natural carpet cleaner recipe.

According to author and herbal scholar Stephen Harrod Buhner, “GSE has been found to be more powerful as a cleaning disinfectant than standard hospital preparations.” In other words, it works better than the disinfectant the hospitals use! GSE is active against a large number of bacteria, including the ones listed [...] Continue Reading…

Attn: Giveaway at the end of this post!!

These are some of the cookbooks I have picked up of late in order to cook up some delicious veggie meals for hubby and kids. I have lots of great cookbooks to add to my collection and we have had some really yummy meals. I am not much of an on the fly cook… I need recipes, a plan, etc. After years of meat based meals I had a nice repertoire of meaty meals but very few veggie based ones (not counting raw recipes of course). I am finally starting to feel a bit more confident that I can whip up some tasty vegetarian or vegan meals that won’t leave people scrunching their noses. Not every meal I have made of late has been a success, in fact I had one really big FAIL, but over all I am liking these books and the recipes.

Let me start from the top down (see picture above):

The Complete Mexican, South American, and Caribbean Cookbook – This is not veggie based cookbook per say but I borrowed this from my mom.. who borrowed it from my brother (who has probably lived in all those countries) after [...] Continue Reading…

A reader was recently asking me about low impact gifts and what I would recommend for kids for Christmas. Well I certainly have my list of green gifts and all that jazz but probably my favorite gift idea is to get season passes for your local zoo. We have done this for years and it is a gift that gives throughout the entire year, not just for the month or two after Christmas… until their new toys lose their luster. It is a tradition of sorts in this house.

My kids have been very fortunate to live in two major cities that are typically honored with having the best zoos in the country. In Phoenix we had The Phoenix Zoo which usually rates 3rd in the country. We also had the World Wildlife Zoo and Out of Africa. In Columbus, we have The Columbus Zoo and Aquarium which is rated #1 in the country most years.

Seeing these guys at our local zoo is always a treat for my oldest boy, who is often homesick for his beloved Arizona. These little fellas (Gila Monsters) were not hard to find near our home and Daddy used to catch and play with them… exactly what every grown [...] Continue Reading…

I have been enjoying our holiday staycation immensly. It ends when my hubby goes back to work tomorrow and I am sad to see it end.

For Thanksgiving we went to enjoy two days with family who live a short car drive away. We had our Thanksgiving meal there. I found it easy to stay vegetarian and 50% raw just with typical Thanksgiving foods. I filled my plate and the kids plates with mashed potatoes, veggie casserole, sweet potatoes, whole wheat dinner rolls, and lots of raw veggies. No need for turkey to fill you up! We ate on a scrumptious set of amber dinnerware.

I actually did go out shopping on Black Friday but only after my mom, who went shopping while I was asleep, came back to report that her favorite store at the mall had half price winter coats for kids. My two boys needed new coats badly and I bought my daughter’s last year from the same place and it still looks and fits great so off I went. I chose orange coats for both of them… love me some orange lately! I also bought snow boots and gloves for my oldest boy and a pair of [...] Continue Reading…