Do you clean GREEN? Share some of your favorite natural cleaning tips & products by leaving a comment! There are so many chemicals within mainstream household cleansers that you would think many of us would have more asthma and bronchial issues than we do. Taking a more organic or DIY approach to cleaning your home is not only eco-friendly, but can really ease the pain that your body and lungs feel when using the harsh stuff. I personally like to use lots of lemon on my counter tops and sometimes a bit of orange. The aroma is fantastic, fresh, and healthy! Here are a few of our favorite Green cleaning companies on the market that is definitely worth a try:

When life gives you lemons heal yourself! Lemons carry some of the most potent healing properties of all fruits. They me be sour, but the effects of eating them are quite sweet when it comes to your health and wellbeing. Many naturopathinc and modern practitioners have been known to recommend drinking warm lemon water twice a day to promote healthy digestion and to help rid toxins in the liver and body, this is especially helpful when drinking first thing in the morning before eating (It is suggested that a person under 150lbs. dilute half a lemon with distilled water and for those over 150lbs to dilute one whole lemon in distilled water). While bananas are known for their high percentage of potassium, so are lemons! Outside of lemons healing properties, they are very potent when using them as an antiseptic, and for cleaning. Try rubbing down your bathroom and kitchen counters with a fresh lemon for a clean & fresh feel and to help kill those nasty germs!

The Health Benefits of Lemons:

Jasmine is one of the many fragrances that explodes with healing aromas and properties which might explain the heavy price tag that most pure jasmine oils run. However there are all sorts of ways to incorporate this beautiful aroma in your life, whether its with warm lit jasmine candles, body creams, or herbal teas, or even a jasmine plant in your backyard. Jasmine is the perfect aroma and herb to blend into your lifestyle! And don't forget that with all pure essential oils that it does not take much, so be sure to dilute and do not apply pure oils directly to your skin. Many of the inexpensive oils are pre-diluted which reflects in its cost.

Top Healing Properties of Jasmine:

Uterine Tonic

Menstrual Pain & Cramps

Even if you are not vegan, incorporating vegan recipes in your diet can cut calories and weight given the right recipe! Enjoy this recipe for vegan cheesecake, and some yummy reads from the ymib vegan bookshelf!

Shaka’s Vegan Cheezcake

20 min prep / 1 hour baking / 45 min cooking & cooling / 10” cake

Filling:

2 lbs Tofu, firm

1 C Sucanat [or any raw cane sugar]

½ C Soy milk

½ C Maple syrup

1⁄3 C Lemon juice, fresh squeezed

4 Tbl Nutritional yeast

2 ½ Tbl Arrowroot powder

2 Tbl Vanilla extract, alcohol free

½ tsp Sea salt, or to taste

There are so many companies pushing vitamins all around the world, when the only vitamins one needs are green ones that you can grow right in your back yard. Many vitamins, especially in solid form does not even have enough time to dissolve into your system. Kale and most other green leafy veggies offers an abundance of nutrients and a very mild earthy and sweet taste that will make you feel fresh just eating or drinking it! It does not take a lot, and you can easily add green veggies to your garden salads, fresh fruit juices/smoothies, and stews. As with anything, do not over consume.

Many people find Dandelions to be nothing more than a weed, but if you do your research on Dandelions, then you will find that this herb carries some amazing detoxifying and holistic benefits and is more of a wild gem than a wild weed. One of the best ways to take full advantage of the dandelion flower is to drink Dandelion or Dandelion Root tea and the leaves, which contain lots of potassium, are often used in fresh garden salads. You can find more unique recipes and blends using Dandelion by clicking here or here. This herb is commonly prescribed by holistic practitioners for digestive and liver detoxing and for pregnant and menopausal women.

This salad is super easy to make and is filled with so many wonderful flavors of the East. I usually serve this salad over tilapia and it goes great with cous-cous. I season the fish with just a little coarse salt, black pepper, garlic powder, and a sprinkle of paprika, then drizzle with a bit of olive oil and let bake. You can find seasoned cous-cous at your local grocer or you can experiment with seasoning it yourself with a little bit of turmeric, coriander, garlic, and olive oil, or any other seasoning that you like. Enjoy the goodness!

Ingredients:

5 C. Freshly Chopped Spinach

3 tbsp. Lime Juice

1 Tbsp. White Wine Vinegar

1 tsp. Ground Cumin

1 tsp. Paprika

1/2 tsp. Garlic Powder

1/2 tsp. Salt

1/4 tsp. Ground Cardamom

1/2 tsp. Ground Ginger

1/4 tsp. Cayenne pepper (optional)

1/3 C. Olive Oil

1/2 C. Diced Onion

1/2 C. Diced Yellow Pepper

”Among their rich supply of phytonutrients, blueberries include a flavonoid called kaempferol. Research calculating flavonoid intake in 66,940 women enrolled in the Nurses Health Study between 1984 and 2002 revealed that women whose diets provided the most kaempferol had a 40% reduction in risk of ovarian cancer, compared to women eating the least kaempferol-rich foods. In addition to blueberries, foods richest in kaempferol include tea (nonherbal), onions, curly kale, leeks, spinach, and broccoli.” - whfoods.com

Here is an excerpt on on how to help children relax with herbal teas and essential oils from mothernature.com, which is a great resource for natural mothering tips and recipes!

"Time Magazine heralds Deepak Chopra as one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century, and credits him as “the poet-prophet of alternative medicine.” - Time Magazine

Excerpt from Well Being: Rejuvenating Recipes for the Body and Soul: "Like everyone else, I look forward to time off and the chance o unwind. On about the fifth day into a recent vacation I noticed a subtle shift in how my body felt. I woke up and realized that not only did I feel rested, but the chronic pain and tension in my lower back had disappeared. As the day progressed I found that my anger at the small things-an interruption or a misplaced set of keys-had abated. Away from the day-to-day hassles of everyday life, my mental, emotional, and physical self was reawakened and I felt fresh to become acquainted with my more balanced self.

Loosing touch with ourselves is easy to do these days. We are conditioned to ignore the warning signs that protect us from becoming ill. Instead we push ahead to meet deadlines and live up to our responsibilities and commitments until fatigue or sickness overwhelms us and forces us to stop.

Homeopathy A - Z is great to keep on hand regarding homeopathic remedies for common ailments in the home. From A to Z, this book covers quite a bit of the most popular medicines. Not only is it a great little resource, but it is filled with charming and whimsical holistic imagery, which is what caught my eye! It covers ailments ranging from burns, depression, teething, allergies, anger, indigestion, ovarian cysts, and so much more. Definitely worth a look!

We have picked some of our favorite yoga products that are sure to make the ambiance of your yogini lifestyle exciting. From music to books, we have chosen several of the best, and the Zen by Design meditation chairs are so so lovely!

Listen: African Dream, Yoga Rhythm, Yoga One, Dakini Lounge

Meditate: Zen by Design Meditation Chairs & Cushions

For all of us who have tender herbs on the grocery list, we all know that they can become quite limp, soggy, and expires quite quickly in the fridge. Here are some tips to keeping the herbs fresh, crisp, and tasty!

Clean Them Up: Make sure you rinse your herbs under cool water to get rid of the dirt and insects. Shake off excess water and pat dry with some paper towel.

A Little TLC: Make sure that you cut of the excess stems as you would with fresh flowers. After all, herbs are plants. After trimming, place them in a glass/vase that is filled with cool water. Make sure that your leaves are above the rim of your jar and not submerged in the water, just as you would with your floral arrangements. Be sure to change your water if it starts to look a little cloudy/dirty, and clip any laves that are turning.

If you are looking for an intense workout, then you better forget about working up a sweat on the stair-master and head on over to your yoga studio for a taste of Bikram yoga or Hot Yoga. Heating it up in a room with a temperature of 105 degrees, you are sure to sweat out some toxins. Each session is led by a specific dialog from the instructors an includes 26 postures along with two breathing exercises. Check out this illustrative chart which lists the 26 poses and the benefits from doing each one. Author and instructor Bikram Parmar has an excellent book out for beginner levels of Bikram called: Bikram's Beginning Yoga Class

For all those that work 8-10 hours at a desk typing at a computer can all relate to the aching pain that one can get from such strenuous work. Here is a great little you tube find on some great yoga positions for the wrist hat you can do throughout the day while at work. These are great to do to help avoid the risk of getting carpel tunnel syndrome, arthritis, cramps, and other joint issues. Avoid doing repetitive hand motions with your wrist bent. Your wrists should be held straight and relaxed when you are writing, typing, drawing, driving, using scissors, or doing needlework.

Peppermint is one of the most multi-used herbs available. Highly flavorful and full of great aroma, this little herbal gem is definitely an herb to keep around the house. Medical Uses: upset stomach, headaches, irritable bowel, gas, itchy skin, insect bites, indigestion, intestinal cramps, gas, colic, and nausea.

So Fresh & So Clean: peppermint holds a wonderful relaxation element and is known to be a great refresher due to its cooling properties, making it great as an additive in handmade lotions, soaps, candles/diffusers, body mists/washes, and shampoo. It is also a great an natural alternative to store-bought mouthwashes that contain all sorts of toxins and harsh chemicals. So be sure to keep a pretty little bottle of fresh mint tea near the bathroom sink or always try to keep a cool bottle in the fridge for an extra cooling effect!

Why Do It: doing knee squeezes can increase the circulation in your neck, your back, and your shoulders, decreasing the amount of tension build-up in each area. If done properly, this position will also strengthen your stomach muscles, relieve gas, heartburn, and constipation.

How To Do It: Lie flat on your back and bend your right knee and wrap your your arms around your knee cap. Breathe in for a count of 3 and then gently squeeze your knees towards your chest. Hold for at least 3 seconds and exhale as you slowly release your leg back down to the floor. Repeat this on the left leg. Alternate with each leg for at least 3 repetitions.

Now breathe in for another 3 seconds and then bring both of your knees to your chest at the same time. Hold your breath for 3 seconds as you squeeze.

Once you have the breathing and squeezing patterns down, you can then repeat the last steps only this time you will lift your head up between your knees, going as far as you can go and exhale.

We love the bold and simple colors of Zafu Designs Meditation cushions. They are super comfy and come in several shapes and sizes to suit your taste. They also have a great fature where you can Mix & Match the colors right on their website. They also list the definitions behind each type of cushion design and its history. It's a great little site where you can not only find some great meditation gear, but learn a bit about meditation styles as well! Price ranges from $24 - 45

Bossa Nova is a wonderful and organic juice made from Açai berries, which grow wild, high in the palms of the Brazilian rainforest. Unlike many anti-oxidant juices, Bossa Nova actually taste quite wonderful and a bit less expensive than the Pom juices that you usually see sitting next to it. Acai Berries are packed with more disease-fighting antioxidants than any other fruit on Earth. Find this juice at the following stores: Whole Foods, Kroger, Wild Oats, Giant, and Earth Fare.