Can a nation get motivated by another?

I know people can motivate people, but can one country motivate progress in another? I say yes, since the country is made up of thinking individuals.
The thinking evolved from my recent trip to my home country of Sweden. The kids and I went to visit for a month. I haven't been home in four years, and it was eye-opening to say the least.

Of course it was fabulous to see my family, eat all the familiar foods (and some new ones, hello black licorice/raspberry ice cream!), and expose my kids to my childhood. BUT, the greatest impression was made by the country's progress.
Sweden, and Scandinavia in general, has been progressive in environmental protection and policy for decades; something I believe shaped me and my struggles to green life here in the US.

So, as I was helping my parents clean out the summer house, we had to take a trip to the "dump".  At least that's what it used to be called. Now, it is the most amazing recycling station I've ever seen.
A neat, clean, organized drive through place to recycle almost ANYTHING. And, to top it all off, almost every Swede uses them.
On the property that used to be the "dump", there are wind turbines as well. Check out this areal photo:

 How come we can't have these kinds of places here? I understand its a big undertaking, but if we never get started, it will never be done!

Later in my trip we drove across the country to the opposite coast, and, as always, the Swedish landscape leaves me with a nostalgic, should I move home again, kind of feeling.
Intermingled with the red/white farms and fields and fields, were evenly spaced wind turbines. Again, why can't we?

As I continue my small part, I wish progress in this country could pick up pace. How do we tell all the individuals in this country about what Sweden, and other European countries, have done? If you read this, spread the word.
In the meanwhile, shop green, don't waste, reuse and recycle. And, of course, use Shaklee.

Match made in heaven...

The new Rubbermaid Reveal + Shaklee's Basic H = Floor Love

Amazing combo on all my floors; tile, laminate and hardwood! Strongly recommend.

Spring Cleaning around the Corner...

Spring cleaning is right around the corner! Isn't it time EVERYONE decided to clean green? I think so!
With Shaklee's cleaning products you know your home is safe, clean and green. If you can not find it in yourself to get Shaklee for the environment, how about for your kids? Or pets? Or to save a few dollars?
Check out our celebrity endorsements, and my site for more deets! Happy cleaning!

Oprah!

 Rachel!

The birthday party that never was..

My tots turned 3 a couple of weeks ago, and we had a rather cool ( I think!) birthday party planned for 10 am on a Sunday. It was to be at their dance studio (Integrated Rhythms), a really cool local dance studio for kids, where they go once a week for classes. We had invited about 10 kids, almost all had RSVP'd yes, and all was under control, more or less, by me and my mom-in-law.

It was a Super Why themed party- since that is/was the flavor of the week. For those not familiar- it is a PBS show, with spelling super heroes.
A fan of the show is very familiar with Super Letters. Red sparkling letters found throughout the show to complete a word or sentence at the end, to complete the story.
Anyways, to accommodate the theme, I prepared a number of fun crafts/treats. First I made large jars of home made red sparkling play doh. I also ended up making some blue, since I ran out of red food coloring *blush*.
I then tied a cookie cutter in shape of the first letter of the child's name to the jar- as a party favor to bring home.
Recipe for Play Dough:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup salt
• 2 cups water
• 1 Tablespoon oil
• 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
• food coloring (lots of it)
• glitter
  Mix food coloring and water with oil in a large pan. In a separate container mix flour, salt and cream of tartar. Add the dry mixture to the wet- and cook. Stir constantly- you will have playdough in less then 5 minutes.
  When the texture feels right to you, turn it out onto a silicone sheet or onto a counter to cool. When cool enough to handle, knead in desired amount of glitter. Store in airtight container.

Also- to accommodate the theme and said "super letters"- I made extra thick jell-o, got some pricey, but pretty edible glitter, and made edible super letters in the kids first initials. 

I also got some (too many) adorable, delectable cupcakes, ordered and picked up from our favorite local cupcake bakery, Happy Cakes. My mom-in-law made 50 mini ham biscuits, we had veggie tray, coffee, balloons, hats, fruit, snacks- you name it.

And at 5 am that morning I had to call 9-1-1 and my son and I headed to the ER. He had awful croup, and had to stay in the hospital until the following day, his birthday.
Needless to say the party was cancelled (via iPhone from the ER), and all these fixins' were, well, kind of useless. Of course the kids still had a lilttle party with the family, and enjoyed the Super Why theme alot. At least I can look back at this and think that this was all pretty irrelevant, and my little guy is healthy :)

This is why I've been absent..

This picture summarizes my life for the past few weeks. This, combined with sick kids can make any vigilant blogger loose steam on occasion.
Bear with me, I will return with lots of fun and goodies soon!!

My kids are turning 3! Trying something new!

Next Monday my twins are turning 3! (were the heck does time go)
I am going to start a tradition. I read about this idea on Pinterest.com (yes, that place again, I'm so hooked!).
The pin suggests you ask a list of questions to the birthday child on their birthday, the same list of questions ever year. Add a picture too- and make a book of it.
I am going to make this an electronic effort, rather than hard copy.  Here is a list of the suggested questions:

1. What is your favorite color?
H: Pink
N: Blue
2. What is your favorite toy?
H: Fancy Nancy Doll
N: Legos
3. What is your favorite fruit?
H: Grapes
N: Melon
4. What is your favorite tv show?
N: Caillou
H: Clifford the big red dog
5. What is your favorite thing to eat for lunch?
H: Cheese sandwiches
N: Pizza
6. What is your favorite outfit?
H: Flower Dress
N: Lightning McQueen PJ's
7. What is your favorite game?
H: the doggie game
N: fish game
8. What is your favorite snack?
H: crackers
N: pumpkin bread
9. What is your favorite animal?
H: pig
N: T-rex
10. What is your favorite song?
H: Blast off song
N: Lightning McQueen song
11. What is your favorite book?
H: Cat in the hat books
N: Cat in the hat
12. Who is your best friend?
H: Claire
N: Ben
13. What is your favorite cereal?
H: Squares
N: Squares
14. What is your favorite thing to do outside?
H: dig with a shovel of course
N: shovel
15. What is your favorite drink?
H: Milk
N: Juice
16. What is your favorite holiday?
H: Valentines day
N: Halloween
17. What do you like to take to bed with you at night?
H: Comfy, Panda, Chuck Chihuahua,  and turtle, and big puppy, and little puppy, and kitten
N: Lionel
18. What is your favorite thing to eat for breakfast?
H: Bacon
N: Plattar
19. What do you want for dinner on your birthday?
N: cupcakes
H: Calamari
20. What do you want to be when you grow up?
H:  Wanna help babies
N: Police officer

Answers to be posted after birthday :)

Childrens Vitamins Have Changed Alittle....

During the winter months more and more parents think about getting some vitamin supplement for their children. Why? If you're the parent of a toddler or more, you know the answer- they come down with something new every week!!! 

yeah, kids vitamins have come a long way

For this very reason I decided to get some multivitamins for my tots.  I hesitated for a long time, since I feed my little ones a very healthy and varied diet, but read enough data to support my decision. Before I started working with Shaklee, when I was attempting to breast feed, I learned about a nutrient called lactoferrin- one of the main immune boosters that make breast milk so valuable. So, when I was doing my vitamin research, I was pleasantly surprised to find that lactoferrin is in Shaklee's multivitamin for kids!! They are called Incredivites, and is more than a multivitamin. It is also a multimineral, and an immune booster!

They have more vitamin D than any other brand- super important for strong bones and teeth. Also really cool, no artificial flavors or sweeteners, or preservatives- and they are gluten free.
 My kids love the berry flavors, we call them our "super vitamins" and they have one every morning.

I am certainly no expert, but I must say, after a few months of taking Incredivites, the kids have not been sick! I probably jinxed myself now.. but I had to share!

Here's to a happy, sunny, and healthy winter for you and your kids!

Eat your mushrooms!

I know, you're not supposed to eat toadstools, but I simply could not resist making this for snack time the other day!
It is simply a boiled egg, I cut the bottom flat so it would stand, and put 3/4 of a tomato on top. I piped on a few white dots (mayo), and done!
I put some pretzel sticks surrounding it when I served them up- I guess they look a little like twigs :)
Happy snack time!

Let's Go Toxin Free in our Homes 2012!

A new year, new resolutions. New beginnings. One of my resolutions (yes, there's multiple!) is to eliminate toxins out of my home. I made great progress last year, but I still have some things lingering in the back of the garage and in the basement closet.

Shaklee's motto, and mine, is: We believe home should be the safest place in the world. Sounds so simple, right?!

•   More than 9 out of every 10 suspected poison exposures occur at home with household
products, including 824,000 cases per year involving children under the age of 6.
 •   An average home generates over 25 pounds of toxic, hazardous waste each year. Much of this
waste can be attributed to household cleaning products.
•   The EPA says that only a fraction of the more than 75,000 registered chemicals have gone
through testing for human health concerns.
•   A person who spends 15 minutes cleaning soap scum off a shower stall could inhale three
times the acute exposure limit of some chemicals.
•   According to a 15-year study presented at the Toronto Indoor Air Conference, women who work
at home have a 54% higher death rate from cancer than those who work away from home. The
study concluded that this was a direct result of the exposure rate to toxic chemicals in common
household products.



Yeah- I got scared too! But- this is easy to remedy. Read on.

My campaign to kick of 2012 right, eliminate all toxins out of your home, and start living cleaner, and safer.
In the garage, I have old paint cans with paint still in them, paint thinner, old containers of motor oil, etc. etc.
In the house I have gotten rid of almost all my toxic household cleaners already, but I still have a bottle of bleach. I also have an old coffee jar with used batteries.
So, I want to get rid of all these things, but how, and where?

The Awesome City of Denver has a recycling program that rocks. Not only do they come pick up our day-to-day recycling every other week, they also have a pick-up program for residents, where once per year you can call them, and they come pick up all these toxins!
If you live outside of Denver, check out Earth911 for your nearest recycling center.

I am getting this done by the end of January- will you join me? 

Lets make our homes safer for our families, and the world a better place. You will breathe easier inside and out, and it really makes a difference!
Shaklee's cleaning products are as good, or better, than that windex, tilex, or tide you have lurking in your cabinets! And it will save you lots of money through the year as well :)

Let me know if you have any questions, or need assistance! Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!

Fizz Bubble Pop! Ready to celebrate the beginning of a new, exciting, amazing year! Welcoming 2012 with tremendous optimism and grand visions of world domination ;) Love to all! See you in the new year!

Xmas break b -gone!

How odd- I am so over Christmas! Usually I like to linger in the Christmas slow-paced holiday feel for weeks after the main event. This time, I'm done. No bad feelings, nothing negative, I just want to move on with the daily rhythm. Back to birthday parties, shopping without being elbowed in the gut, visit the zoo, visit with friends and get out of the house!
I've also taken a slack break from blogging, but will ramp up again!
We've had a couple of rounds of family visits, lots of good foods and crafts to share with everyone. And, I am sure I will blog about my new discovery- Pintrest! More to come on that topic:)
New and awesome things to come on my business front as well, Shaklee will help me get my new year started right. Green and Healthy. And I will be sure to share!
Now to prepare for New Year celebrations!
Cheers!

So thankful for..

.. my Energy Chews! Just sayin' is all! If it hadn't been for these little golden gems, I would not have baked 5 different kinds of cookies, made a popcorn garland, built a two level gingerbread house, wrapped dozens of gifts, shopped, cleaned, had a dinner party, taken care of two tots and visited with friends. Just sayin'!

Lussebullar

In Sweden another unique holiday is celebrated in December. It is the celebration of the St. Lucia. It falls on December 13th every year, and is meant to celebrate the saint whom is the bringer of the light. Yes, it is curious that the secular country of Sweden celebrates a saint. It does again have to do with the love of light in the dark season. The celebration itself is curious, yet beautiful, and too involved for the to get into here, so here is a link to Wikipedia's explanation.
As with all celebration, food is an integral part. The recipe below is for the traditional Lucia roll. It is a lightly sweet, saffron spiced roll decorated with raisins.

2 cups whole milk
4 oz butter (1stick)
2 packs active dry yeast
1 tsp salt
2/3 cup sugar
5-6 cups flour
1 gram saffron

an egg for brushing and raisins for decoration

Melt butter slowly in a pan. Add the milk and stir well over slow heat while mixing in sugar and salt. Crush the saffron very well, and add to mixture. Slowly mix over low heat until mixture is yellow and fragrant.
Add yeast, and remove from heat. Empty liquid into large mixing bowl, and slowly start adding flour. You want the dough to be sticky, but forming a large ball. Let it rise in warm place for about an hour.
Turn oven on to 425 degrees.
After an hour of rising, split the dough up in three parts and knead down. Place two parts on floured surface under a towel.

The other make into 8 small balls- roll them out into long snakes, then twirl the ends in opposite directions.

Once rolled up like this, let them rest for about 5 minutes.
Then place raisins in the "eyes" , and brush with an egg whisked with 1 tablespoon of cold water.

Great toddler job- raisins in the "eyes"

Place them on cookie sheet and let them rest another 5 minutes. Then into the oven. Keep an eye on them, they will show you when they are ready. About 8 minutes.
Cool on wire rack, and enjoy!!

Gift Ideas

Wrap up some green holiday gifts this year and make sure your friend and family are cared for while caring for mother earth as well.
Check out this great list of green gift ideas!

• Organic towel set and a Get Clean Kit
• Cool glass water bottles and a Get Clean Water Kit
• Organic face towel and Enfuselle skin care
• Book: The Little Book of Stress Relief and a bottle of Stress Relief Complex
• Book: Green Goes with Everything and a Get Clean Kit
• Book: Stop Aging Now! and Vivix
• Organic baby towel and Shakleebaby Wash and Lotion

Fun Fun Fun

Today we woke up, played in the snow and came in for hot cocoa- a cozy, wintery, wonderful start to the day. Then the kids had their end-of-semester dance showcase today. So much fun! Their dance class with Integrated Rhythms and Ms. Kelly has been fantastic, and had a great end today. We, of course, signed up for another semester. We love being able to walk to such a great establishment in our neighborhood.
The dance show was held in the auditorium of a local middle school, Skinner Middle School. What a wonderful school, and the building is truly charming.
From there we ventured on to the local Starbucks for a "special treat" for our little dancers. They deserved a nice reward after their performance (cake pops.. ).

Across the street from Starbucks, we have another neighborhood gem- Ernie's Pizza. A newish, old feeling neighborhood bar and pizza restaurant with great food and ambiance. The calamari starter was yummy, as always, and our favorite food is the simple cheese pizza. Delicious. Today, since we have a visitor staying with us, we also added the Antipasto- too much to list (cheeses, roasted almonds, giant capers, olives and much more), piled high on a large plate. Yum.
What a terrific day in the neighborhood!

Pepparkakor (swedish gingerbread cookies)

Today is the first of Advent, a milestone on the Swedish calendar. Although a secular society, this tradition remains strong in Sweden. Every Sunday until Christmas we light one candle in a four candle holder. We bake and eat pepparkakor, and other yummy baked goods.

My homemade Advent candle holder

We also light an electric version of the advent candles, if you ever visit Sweden in the winter, you will find these in nearly every window, cozy and cute!
In Sweden it seems any tradition that involves light and candles have remained strong through the years- my guess is that it helps alleviate some of that darkness in the winter:) Either way, these are lovely traditions that I try to continue in my home!
Here is my recipe for pepparkakor (Swedish gingerbread)

6 oz butter
1 1/2 cup white sugar
1 tablespoon dark corn syrup
2 tablespoons molasses
1 egg
1/4 cup orange juice
3-4 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons baking soda
1 tablespoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon ground ginger
1/2 tablespoon ground cloves
2 teaspoons orange zest

Turn oven on to 400 degrees.
Cream butter and sugar, and stir in all the other moist ingredients.
In a separate bowl, sift together all the dry ingredients.
Slowly add flour mixture to wet ingredients, while mixing. Add enough flour to make a stiff and workable dough.
Flour a large surface, a rolling pin, a metal spatula, and the edges of your favorite cookie cutters.
Roll out the dough to about a 1/8" thickness, cut your cookie shapes, and transfer to cookie sheet. Put in oven, and watch carefully! Usually it takes about 5 minutes to see edges turning brown. Take them out right away, they burn easily.
Let them cool on a wire rack.
When I make the batches closer to Christmas, I usually make a simple decorator frosting of powdered sugar and water, and pipe some patterns, faces, and other fun things on the cookies!

My Chairs are Saved!

A thanks for saving Thanksgiving to my beloved Basic-H! My cream colored fabric dining chairs were not so cream colored anymore. Two toddlers eating 3 meals per day on them had, to put it mildly, stained them a tad. I took to my trusted Basic-H, about a tablespoon (I pulled out the heavy guns!) into a gallon of warm water, a scrub brush and a rag.

I really wish I had thought to take pictures, before and after, now you just have to take my word for it. The chairs turned out spotless and look like new!!! Next time I will be sure to take before and after pictures.

Happy Thanksgiving! (a little late)

Even though I love Thanksgiving, I feel that it is very important to remember what you are grateful for EVERY day. Thanksgiving is a great American holiday that I have come to love.
I had never been a fan of turkey meat, until I met my mother-in-law's Thanksgiving turkey. Juicy, delicious and with sides to make anyone surrender to gluttony.
Our new tradition, while away from extended family, is to invite others who may not have a family to share this meal with.
Although in the hustle and bustle of cooking all these dishes, I did not find time to photograph everything, I did snap a few pictures of the mayhem cooking that is so worth the effort.

Menu:
Starters (brought by guest):
Deviled eggs
Rolls
Main:
Roasted turkey (12lbs)
Stuffing- Rustic bread and herb
Gravy
Mashed potatoes
Green beans- Panchetta and sage
Sweet potatoes and apples topped with roasted marshmallows
Cranberry relish
Dessert (brought by guest):
Pumpkin pie with whipped cream

All of these dishes were really good, but my absolute favorite, that I will share below, was the stuffing.
I do not, due to health concerns, cook stuffing in the bird. Even though I buy organic, free range birds, I do not feel comfortable with poultry.

Rustic Herb Stuffing (adapted from an Epicurious recipe)

You know this will be good!

• 1 16-ounce loaf country-style French bread with crust, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 11 cups)
• 10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) butter
• 2 bunches green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 cups finely chopped celery
• 3/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
• 1 large garlic clove, minced
• 1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 large bunch Swiss chard, stems cut from leaves and discarded, leaves coarsely chopped (about 12 cups)
• 3 large eggs
• 3/4 cup (or more) low-salt chicken broth
• 3 ounces coarsely grated Parmesan cheese (optional)

Prep done!

Aroma Fabuloso!

Preheat oven to 375°F. Spread bread on large rimmed baking sheet. Bake until bread is dry, about 15 minutes. Cool.

Melt 10 tablespoons butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add green onions and next 8 ingredients; sauté until celery is tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Add Swiss chard and toss until wilted, about 3 minutes.  Generously butter 13x9x2-inch glass baking dish. Place bread cubes in very large bowl. Add warm vegetable mixture; toss to combine. Whisk eggs and 3/4 cup broth in medium bowl. Add egg mixture to stuffing and toss to coat. Mix in Parmesan, if using.

Add more broth (about 1/2 to 3/4 cup) to stuffing if dry. Transfer to dish. Cover with buttered foil. Bake 30 minutes. Remove foil; bake until golden, about 30 minutes.

Sides ready, waiting for turkey. Stuffing in middle.

Creaky Old House

As I spend my evening (after kids are in bed) replacing a door knob to our bathroom, I can not help but think of the whole family's current favorite book! If you have young kids, you should really consider getting this for them!

I am guessing this is a particularly relevant, and funny, book if you actually live in an older house (which we do).
It is called "Creaky Old House" and is written by Linda Ashman. I got it through our book club, and we all instantly fell in love! It is funny, smart, real and cute.
I'm already adding some of her other books to Santa's list!

My Favorite Tea!

I know, I'm not sounding like any kind of gourmand or anything now, but Celestial Seasonings make an awesome tea. I love several of their flavors, and drink them daily. But, my ABSOLUTE favorite is their seasonal holiday tea called Candy Cane Lane- it is incredibly flavorful and warming.
Celestial Seasonings is a Boulder company, so they are semi-local to us here in Denver!

Thank you for bringing back my favorite tea!!