For May’s healthy habit, I decided to continue my pursuit of making simple but delicious smoothies every morning (just about) for my breakfast! I’ve been  having fun experimenting in the kitchen using bananas, strawberries, cherries, raspberries, blueberries and different kinds of veggies. I especially love cilantro in my smoothies and I think that parsley and cilantro together is a pretty good combo too (along with some fruit of course). I notice my breath smells very refreshed after eating parsley as it is a known breath freshener (and it’s all natural)!

My favorite recipe so far for May is just a simple three ingredient concoction:

Equal parts cherries, bananas and cold water. I used frozen organic cherries in a bag that I bought from a health foods store and I froze some organic bananas also. So, one banana, a large handful or a little more of cherries and about a cup or so of cold water, blended up in a blender and you have this delicious pink mixture that is yummylicious!

I don’t remember where I got this recipe, but I think I got it online somewhere. I did try ANOTHER recipe that I didn’t particularly care for but that other people enjoyed and perhaps this sounds delicious to you: pineapple, cilantro and a bit of cold water. It sounded good at the time, but just didn’t do it for my taste buds.

I have tons of other recipes that I want to try out, and I’m hoping they turn out well so I can share them with you! My next recipe to try out is homemade Orange Julius. I remember as a kid, when going to the mall, I would get an Orange Julius as a treat and I LOVED it! It was the only place I ever got this delicious drink at that time, and now I often see it in Mexican Restaurants… Every once in a while I will buy one and it always brings back pleasant memories!

Homemade Banana and Cherry Smoothie!

For a homemade washcloth and bathtub bundle, here is a recipe that is so simple you could cry! (not literally, but you get my point).

In a muslin bag or square piece of cotton fabric, place the following in the bag:

1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

3 drops Lavender Essential Oil

Tie the bag tightly shut with a piece of string or ribbon or twine.

Add this bath bundle into the bathtub as you fill it with warm water. You can use it as a washcloth once you sit yourself into the bathtub. Oatmeal softens the skin and the lavender is very relaxing and smells heavenly! Lavender is very relaxing so if you’re having a rough or stressful day, this would be a great relief for an evening at home before bed.

I did a search online for a homemade jewelry cleaner as I wanted to see if a homemade recipe would be the same as the spray cleaner you buy. Because I’m not a big fan of spray cleaners of any type due to the propellents in the cleaner, I wanted to see if I could find a recipe that was just as good and cheaper at the same time.

I came upon this recipe from food.com, and they claimed they got the recipe from wire-sculpture.com.

My best friend actually used this recipe on some real silver items that he had in storage that belonged in his family, so he wanted to see how this recipe worked. The only thing I don’t like about this recipe is that is does STINK, so next time we are going to do it outside so we don’t puke the house up. According to my best friend this recipe smells JUST like the spray cleaner he was using.

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon salt (we used sea salt)

1 tablespoon baking soda

1 tablespoon dish detergent

1 cup water

1 piece aluminum foil

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat water in the microwave for 1 or 2 minutes (or on stove for a bit longer if you don’t have a microwave).

2. Cut a piece of aluminum foil that roughly covers the bottom of a small bowl (like a cereal bowl). I would use GLASS and not plastic.

3. Pour hot water into bowl. Place salt, baking soda, and dish washing liquid into the bowl. Place jewelry on top of foil and let it sit for 5-10 minutes (10 minutes if the jewelry is really dirty). Rinse jewelry in cool water and dry jewelry completely with soft cloth. Discard solution after use and make a new batch next time. (You actually may have to make a second batch if your silver is really dirty).

4. According to wire-sculpture.com, “this works for gold-filled, brass, German (nickel) silver, and sterling silver. I have even cleaned jewelry with freshwater pearls, shell cameos and mother of pearl with no problem.”

We only used this recipe for the sterling silver items so I can only speak for that and it DOES in fact clean the silver. Now, like I said, it STINKS so do this outside on the patio or something. If it wasn’t for the aluminum I’m sure it wouldn’t smell, but it’s important you use it to make the cleaner.

I’m sorry I do not have any pictures to share with you on this recipe but I can assure you the water was quite dirty! If you have any questions you are more than welcome to leave it in the comments section. Have an awesome day!

Light Grey Celtic Sea Salt (unrefined)

As I was reading an old article in a magazine that no longer exists, I came across a mouth wash and tooth cleaner that you can make from your own kitchen. It was written by a Dr. Thomas Stone (D.D.S.), an athlete, a Prosthodontist (a specialist in reconstructive dentistry), with specific interest in TMD (temporomandibular joint disorders).

The article was written about why we get tooth decay and gum disease and how animals and humans who lived by eating their natural diet had NO problems with their teeth at all. Of course, they never ate junk food a day in their life and they only ate what was around them on trees, vines, from the ground, etc. To narrow down what the article was saying…basically we get tooth decay and gum disease from an over acidic body and foods that we put into our bodies that cause that acid to form. Of course there are many causes that can cause an over acidic body. Stress being one of them.

In this article,  Dr. Stone gave a recipe to help alkalize the teeth using a natural approach rather than using the mouthwashes you find in the store which are full of artificial colors and chemicals  made up in a lab.

See below for a TWO ingredient recipe! It’s so easy, I could pinch myself!

SALT WATER MOUTH WASH and TOOTH CLEANER!

One pound of uncooked sea salt added to one gallon of distilled water. This is the best mouth wash and tooth cleaner (to brush your teeth with). You do not want to use IODIZED salt as it is cooked and stripped of anything beneficial and is very harmful to the body. CELTIC SEA SALT is a good one to get! Celtic Sea Salt is an unrefined sea salt and it is light grey in color. Amazon.com sells this kind of salt OR you can do a search on the internet and find another source. You can get distilled  water from the good old grocery store for really cheap if you do not  have a distiller.

Have fun making your own mouth wash and tooth cleaner!

Hi Everyone!

I was suppose to write this simple healthy habit post the first Monday of April, but I wasn’t able to. Lately my eyes have been bothering me from being on the computer too much and from reading too many books. I went to the eye doctor, waited for three weeks to get my glasses, but when my glasses came in the prescription was wrong and I am waiting once again for my new glasses to be re-done. While I’ve been waiting, I’ve  had to re-think what I could do with myself, and at the same time accomplish some projects I’ve been wanting to finish up or start. I decided to limit my time online for a bit (which reminded me of the past before computers even existed among the general population), and just work on projects at home in which didn’t require too much use of my eyes.

During this time of waiting, it has taught me to:

1. Be grateful I still had eyes to see (as I thought of what it would be like to NOT have any eyes at all, and I am very thankful I am NOT blind).

2. That good things come to those that wait. I obviously needed to work on other things that were more important (such as that project at home I’ve been wanting to accomplish for the past ten years!).

3. It allowed me to re-think what was truly important in my life.

Now that I’m in my 40′s, I realize that my eyes won’t be the same as they were in my 20′s. In learning this and in knowing that certain foods will help your eyes be stronger and work better, and in reading some articles in regards to eye health, I realized it was time to be more serious in eating more veggies in my diet (not just to help my eye health, but to keep my body overall healthier too).

Long story short, I decided to create a new habit for April. To make at least one veggie and fruit smoothie a day for breakfast, after I do my basic yoga routine for the day (another healthy habit I started doing in mid February of this year). Remember, a habit is created within 4-6 weeks of constant day to day fulfillment of that habit. After that, it’s just a habit that you naturally do, (such as taking a shower).

Here is my favorite smoothie concoction so far this month:

Ann’s Favorite April Veggie and Fruit Smoothie of the Month:

• Frozen Banana (about a cup or so)

• Frozen Strawberries (just a few, like 4 or 5)

• A handful of sweet Kale (This particular kale is purple and green. Not solid green). Not sure of what the official name is. I got it at the farmer’s market. Kale is very good for the eyes. Lots of vitamins and minerals.

• A handful of cilantro (cilantro binds with mercury and eliminates it from your body). Cilantro is also good for your lungs if you have respiratory issues. I personally love the taste and smell of cilantro so it’s something I need in my diet.

Blend the ingredients with some cold water in your blender (put a cup or so and then add more if the blender needs it). Makes a full glass of smoothie (around 16 oz). I was able to drink it all for breakfast with no leftovers. Add more ingredients for more smoothie. Some people use ice which makes it thicker. The first two times I made a smoothie I had leftovers and I took it to work but I didn’t drink it. I decided to just take a banana and apple with me if I got hungry before lunch instead of wasting the extra smoothie. If you don’t drink it within an hour it turns gross anyways. Perhaps if I had a better container that was air sealed it would last longer but I don’t like luke warm smoothie anyways, so it doesn’t work for me at my job.

Here is a picture of my favorite smoothie for April so far. As you can see, my pet parakeet, “Peepers” is in his cage playing with his mirror toy. He just got done eating his breakfast of organic pea green sprouts and seeds. He also loves crunchy romaine lettuce too. Later on, I can write a blog post on what healthy foods you can feed your birds should you like to know what to feed them. I have two birds and neither one of them has ever been sick so far. Fingers crossed. They eat better  than I do (but not for long)! LOL!

Ann's Favorite April Smoothie: Banana, Strawberry, Kale and Cilantro

I would love to know what your favorite smoothie recipe is. Write a comment below and leave me a recipe. I would love to try it. Right now I have to approve comments as some obscene websites were trying to hack into my comments section with their dirty links.  I will approve your comment ASAP. Thank you!

Yes, this was an oopsy! I could of kicked myself! I knew I shouldn’t of been taking chances on opening my back screen door to my patio so I could show my best friend my latest personal project on something I’ve been wanting to paint myself for two years! I got impatient as I wanted him to see it now instead of just waiting for him to come back inside. UGGH! My instincts told me not to go outside and I didn’t listen…my hand grabbed the lid and it slipped….

So, as I say goodbye to my “wanna be” cardbox I wanted to at least share with you what it could of been….. I had to use the power of “letting go” on this particular piece…it was heart wrenching at first because I worked on it for three days a bit here and there….but alas! To NOT BE.

Top Broken Lid of the UNO Porcelain Card Box

Side View of the UNO Porcelain Cardbox

Two Piece Porcelain UNO Cardbox (with Lid Broken)

Hi Friends and Fans!

It’s been quite a while since I’ve written. I hope you didn’t think I gave up on you! I just merely needed to recharge my creative batteries and to reflect, relax and come up with a more inspirational plan for this blog!

For now, my plan is to write on this blog once a week, and if something really exciting happens and I just can’t wait to tell you, I will definitely write more.

The last few months of 2011 I got stuck creatively. I wasn’t inspired. I felt like I needed seclusion for a bit. I wanted to let things come naturally to me and not to push myself on anything in life until it felt right.

Let me explain what happened: I was experiencing overwhelm and stress in my body mentally, emotionally and physically. I was experiencing heart palpitations, worry and other health issues. I realized something had to change. I knew I needed to give up everything and start over again. Just do the things I felt led to do and nothing else. To not force anything on myself.

Last year forced me to change everything I was starting to become, to going back to how I used to be. Just pursue what my soul wanted me to pursue and nothing else. It all started in February of 2011 when I read Eckhart Tolle’s book, A New Earth. I fell in love with the book and it changed my life completely. Then I read The Power of Now by Eckhart Tolle and then listened to his webinars (web classes) with Oprah Winfrey online. I intently listened and soaked in everything on how to live in the present moment, re-learning to listen to myself by instinct and not by other means.

About this same time, I started reading zenhabits.net and it also resonated well with me. This blog goes against the grain of the typical success, goal oriented, expertise that is often pounded into the heads of many Americans who believe that they have to constantly work work work to get anywhere in life. This blog is all about doing what you love and only doing that without the “goal” being the object of desire. Rather a journey that is moment by moment doing what you love without the need for the word “GOAL” getting in the way of living in the present moment. It is about creating healthy habits rather than always focusing on an outcome of a goal. It’s about the “journey” of your life and not a list of “TO DOs” which can cause rigidity in one’s life causing undue stress and overwhelm. I encourage you to check out Leo Baubata’s blog and even subscribe to his free newsletter! ZenHabits is rated in the top 600 websites of the world, so I think that is impressive considering there are MILLIONS of websites to choose from! Here’s an interesting post Leo wrote on HOW TO BUILD THE MUSCLE TO CHANGE! (which is what I am currently doing in my life).

Creating personal simplicity has been on my mind for the last 2 years, but for the last 2.5 months, it has been on overdrive. I’m loving every minute of it. Making healthy baby steps in my life has been a very freeing experience this year too. Getting rid of emotional baggage, material possessions, certain eating habits, and incorporating yoga into my life again is just some of the changes I have made thus far this year.

Now that I have told you what I have been doing with myself, let’s get on to what new things I will be writing about on this blog for the rest of this year:

The first week of every month I will share creating a SIMPLE HEALTHY HABIT tip. It will be based on what I am currently doing in my life. Since it is recommended that to keep one’s motivation it is good to share with the world what one is doing and that a habit is formed naturally within a month’s time of doing it every day, I will share what new habit I will be doing for each month. For now it will focus on eating habits. One small baby habit each month. Nothing major and easy to do. I promise. I hope this inspires you to create simple health steps to take in your own life.

The second week of every month I will share a natural living recipe or art tutorial of some sort (whatever I feel like sharing). It will either be a natural, non toxic beauty or household recipe, some kind of art or craft tutorial such as creating a cool greeting card or how to re-use (recycle) packaging materials (such as glass bottles, etc.), or an herb recipe to help heal an ailment. I may even review a natural product I use.

The third week of every month I will share an inspirational story, picture, poem or writing (from myself or someone else).

The fourth week of every month I will share my art. I am currently painting one piece of art work for myself (not to sell) that will be used as home decor in my apartment. My personal projects kind of started growing and I was busy painting for others and not for myself…so this year, until September 2012, I am painting all of my personal home decor projects I’ve been wanting to do. In September I will start painting ornaments again through November. We shall see what happens after that.

Thanks for stopping by and “Until next week”!

Ann

This scrub is quick and easy to make and leaves feet feeling soft, smooth, tingly, and refreshed. It comes from the book “Organic Body Care Recipes” by Stephanie Tourles.

RECOMMENDED FOR: rough, dry callused feet

USE: daily or as needed

FOLLOW WITH: moisturizer

PREP TIME: approximately 5 minutes (if oatmeal is ground ahead of time)

BLENDING TOOLS: spoon and small bowl

STORE IN: do not store; mix as needed

YIELD: 1 treatment

Ingredients:

1/4 cup cornmeal

1/4 cup ground oatmeal

1 tablespoon sea salt (or table salt if you don’t have sea salt)

Purified or tap water

A few drops lemon or peppermint essential oil

Combine dry ingredients in a small bowl with enough water to form a creamy, gritty paste. Add a few drops of the essential oil and stir again.

APPLICATION TIPS:

Sit on the edge of the bathtub or on a bench in the shower and massage your feet with this mixture–really scrub all those rough areas and between toes. I find this quite invigorating. Rinse and dry thoroughly and follow with an application of a thick moisturizing cream combined with a few drops of either essential oil. (Or you can buy lotion that has coconut oil, jojoba oils and essential oils in it already–I buy mine from here: http://www.tropicaltraditions.com.)

NOTE: Make sure to clean the bathtub right after this procedure; the cornmeal might swell and clog the drain.

This is my first home decor project of the year (for my home, that is). This wood plate was purchased at a Painting Convention in Las Vegas several years ago. For the last few years I’ve been busy painting other stuff to sell and to give away as gifts. This year I am focusing on completing the projects for my home and then from there we shall see what I do next. So for the first project of the year I’d like to present my Garfield and Odie Picture that is now hanging happily on my office wall!

This month I decided to paint this wood plate which reminds me of my younger years, as Garfield was my favorite comic growing up. I had a Garfield poster (with this comic) on my wall, and over the years it got old and I wanted to do something with the comic and put it on something that would last for many many years….so I chose to paint it on wood.

The first thing I did was install a picture hanger on the back of the plate to make sure I could hang it on my wall. I then painted the backside two coats of black paint. To cheat and make it easy, I had traced (from the poster) and colored the design onto thin tissue paper (or drawing paper–can’t remember what the name of this paper is, but it’s very thin and see through), and from there I traced it onto the plate with a pencil using carbon paper underneath so I would line up the image just right onto the plate. Carbon paper is now called “Transfer” paper, but this is real carbon paper I had in storage in my file cabinet from years ago. It’s good to be able to put it to use after all these years.

I painted the background an antique white which almost looks ivory. Then I filled in the Garfield and Odie images with their appropriate colors. After filling in the colors, I outlined the images with black paint and filled in Garfield’s strips. I have to say, it was a very fun project and cheating cut my time down in half in that I didn’t have to “draw” the design onto the plate. I am very pleased with how it all came out!

After I gave the plate time to dry, I then sprayed several coats of clear acrylic sealer on both sides so it would have that glossy look. It also seals the paint into the wood so it won’t be ruined with water, moisture or dirt.

To paint on wood, use acrylic paints. I didn’t have orange paint so I opted to mix yellow and red paint together. So, for less than $20 I have a new art piece and picture for my wall and right now it is hanging in my office/craft room.

Click pictures to enlarge so you can see the details…

Garfield and Odie Wood Plate Picture Hand Painted

Garfield and Odie Wood Plate Picture Hand Painted (UP CLOSE VIEW)

Yesterday I wrote about My Painting Plans for 2012, and at the same time leaving room for changes along the way. Basically in a nutshell, I’ll be working on personal projects and then painting ornaments for Christmas (if time permits, etc.). I am playing it by ear. Maybe in a few months I will find something completely new to get into and not do ornaments at all! We shall see!

Today I have two announcements:

First, I’ve decided to get rid of my Artwanted.com account in which had a portfolio and a shop to sell my work. Because I never put much time into hanging out on it and making the effort needed to converse with people, etc., as I ultimately chose to be on Facebook instead, nothing ever happened on that site and no sales were generated from it either. So, in order to streamline Simply the Best Creations, I decided to delete the account.

Secondly, for two years now, I’ve had a Facebook Fan Page which is now known as a Facebook Business Page. On that page I DID try to interact with my fans, etc. but the growth rate stopped within a year of having the fan page. Although some business pages on Facebook are quite popular and have gained thousands of people, I realized that the reason for this growth had to do with “motivational” and “positive quotes” and things of that nature.

From what I have seen and experienced in dealing with Facebook Business Pages, unless you are on it for long lengths of time, posting several pictures and interacting with people at different times of the day, and that is every day, you will not grow your business page very much. There is one fellow painter who I have been following and she is constantly on it for several hours a day and that is how she gained her followers. Because I work other jobs and have other things going on in my life besides painting, nursing a business page is not something I am interested in any longer. It works for some people as a good marketing tool, so I am not knocking Facebook business pages, but for Simply the Best Creations,  it doesn’t work.

So with that said, after many months of thinking this through, I have decided to DELETE Simply the Best Creations business page on Facebook. I will still be using my blog/website and my ETSY store to sell my stuff online and to share my projects online.

Please feel free to UNLIKE my business page by going to it HERE and on the left bottom pressing the  UNLIKE link. I will be posting statuses twice a day for the next week telling other fans that I will not be keeping the page any longer. If you don’t want to see the same status posted twice a day, you can UNLIKE the page to avoid seeing it in your news feed. I will pull the plug on the Facebook Business Page on January 23rd!

Have a blessed day Everyone!

Devil's Bay Ocean OREGON