GIVEAWAY: Montessori Curriculum

Are you are an educator or a parent?

If you're interesting in learning more about the Montessori philosophy of teaching and parenting, be sure to enter this awesome giveaway on my other blog, Raccoon School.

It's really easy to enter. The winner will receive a FREE spot in the next training course through World Wide Montessori Online, which starts in September. Along with the training, you will receive 12 albums of curriculum materials (over 5,000 pages of materials)...a $240 value. 

It's a great opportunity to learn about how to incorporate Montessori methods into your home or your curriculum. Good luck!

Awesome Recipe for Veggie Burgers & Meatballs

I'm not a big fan of store-bought veggie burgers and meat substitutes. I've been experimenting with homemade recipes for years. I finally found one that I really, really like. So I'm going to share it with you all now.

It doesn't have anything weird in it...just beans, grains, and other yummy ingredients. I've used this recipe to make hamburger patties and meatballs. The meatballs are great with spaghetti sauce or Swedish style (shown below). My kids like them with no sauce. They call them "yummy balls".

It's my new favorite recipe. I found it on the Bob's Red Mill Facebook page (a good site to "like").

I hope you enjoy it as much as my family does!

AWESOME RECIPE FOR VEGGIE BURGERS & MEATBALLS

• 1 3/4 cups Cannellini Beans (cooked or from can)
• 1 medium Onion
• 1 clove Garlic, minced
• 2 tsp Basil
• 1/2 cup Water
• 1 1/2 cups cooked Hulled Millet
• 3/4 cup Seasoned Bread Crumbs (or gluten free Bread Crumbs)
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1/2 cup Seasoned Bread Crumbs (or gluten free Bread Crumbs)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. In blender or food processor, puree cannellini beans, onion, garlic, basil, and water. Combine with cooked millet (see note), bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and salt. Let stand 5 to 10 minutes.

Lightly spray cookie sheet. Shape mixture into 1” balls and roll in bread crumbs. Bake for approximately 40 minutes, flipping halfway through. Serve with marinara if desired. Makes approximately 30 “meat” balls.

NOTE: To cook millet, bring 2 cups water to boil. Add 1/2 cup Hulled Millet and reduce heat to simmer. Cook for 35-40 minutes, or until tender.

I Haven't Pooed in More Than a Month

Seriously.... I haven't shampooed my hair in more than a month.

You may have heard about this "no-poo" movement. I first heard about it from one of my favorite bloggers, The Thrifty Mama, about a year ago. I've been thinking about trying it ever since, and about a month ago I gave it a whirl.

I've had my ups and downs with it, but I think I'm kinda liking it now. I'm intrigued to find out where this path will lead me.

More than anything, I feel like it's helped me to become more aware of the many false requirements I  place upon myself. The "need creation" model for making money is so pervasive in modern society, we hardly question the necessity of so many products we buy on a regular basis.

Well, I'm asking the question now...do I really need shampoo? And conditioner? And gel? And an assortment of other chemical-laden, plastic-bottled stuff?

Perhaps not. Perhaps by using these products, I am perpetuating a viscous cycle of stripping away natural oils with one product only to be forced to replace them artificially with another.

The first few weeks of going "no poo", my hair was beyond oily. It was crazy oily. I've heard that this kind of "detoxing" phase is common.

Now, a month into this experiment, the oiliness has diminished significantly. I find that using a straight iron and a good hair brush helps keeps the oil from being too abundant.

However, a little extra natural oiliness has actually been nice. A youthful shine has returned to my hair, something I thought was irrevocably lost with age. My hair just feels "healthier".

Amazingly, my hair doesn't feel dirty at all. It doesn't smell bad either. My husband can vouch for that....he says my hair no longer smells like shampoo. It just smells like hair, and it's a good smell. He thinks I should continue, and so do I. Here's why....

• I love the fact that I'm not spending
  a single penny on hair products.
   
• I love the fact that I'm not creating
  any unnecessary packaging waste.
  
  
• Most of all, I love the fact that I'm allowing
  my body to do what it is designed to do naturally.

Back to the Christmas Tree Farm

We cut our own tree from the Ergle Christmas Tree Farm again this year. It was another fun family experience. That's my husband cutting down the tree and my two sons watching.

Will this become a long-standing family tradition for us? The jury is still out. The tree is not a typical Christmas tree. It is grown in Florida, after all. It's very pretty in it's own way, but the needles are really sticky and tend to fall off easily. Not to mention, they are nearly impossible to vacuum up. It also has kind of an unusual smell.

Sometimes it's difficult to know where to find the balance between tradition, frugality, and eco-friendliness.

Read my post from last year, Our $25 Christmas Tree from Ergle Farm, to find out why we chose to buy a locally-grown Christmas tree, and weigh in with your opinion.

By the way, here's a $2 Coupon for Ergle Farm.

Reuse and Get Organized (Not Cluttered)

I decided to give some attention to that poor neglected middle child of the 3 R's (reduce, reuse, recycle).

I have been saving some of my best quality jars and food containers over the past months with the intention of one day giving them a thorough cleaning and using them for storage and organizational purposes.

The day finally came, and that part of me that loves organizing things was very, very happy.

Of course, saving too much stuff isn't good. That's why the part of me that loves to be organized and clutter-free is sometimes at war with the part of me that likes to reuse things.

Here are some rules I follow to help me strike an acceptable balance:

• Be selective. I only save the best-quality containers (usually glass or number 5 plastics) with tight-fitting lids. 
• What's in this thing, anyway?  Clear containers with no labels are easy to see through and make for better organization.  If the container is not clear, be sure to have an effective way to convey what's inside, like a good label maker.
• Strive for uniformity. Choose to save containers for products you buy regularly, and build up a stockpile of containers of uniform sizes. This makes for better organization. If the containers stack when empty, all the better.
• Consider safety.  Different types of plastics are designed for different purposes.  Be sure to think about whether the previous contents are compatible with the future contents, especially in relation to food items.
• Have a good system for preventing clutter. Some might choose to clean as they go. However, I personally choose to save all my containers in a box marked "plastic containers to be reused for storage."  If my box is overflowing, that's when I know I'm saving too much and my effort to reuse is creating a cluttered mess!
• You want it clean don't you? Before anything goes in the box, it gets an initial cleaning. When the box is full and I have some time to spend on it, I give everything in the box a more thorough cleaning with hot soapy water and bleach. I use Goo Goneto get rid of the labels. 

 Sometimes I need to remind myself why it's worth the extra trouble to reuse....

• Save $. When you reuse a container, you don't have to buy new ones for organization. Duh.
• Reduce trash times two. When you reuse a container, you save it from the recycle bin or landfill (at least temporarily). Even better, you completely avoid generating the trash that would have come from any new containers you might have purchased. 

Want to know how I used my containers? Check out my post today on Raccoon School called Organizing Homeschool Supplies. 

How Sensory Issues Affect My Family

October is Sensory Processing Disorder (SPD) Awareness Month. Did you know that at least 1 in 20 people may be affected by SPD? Chances are, you probably know someone with sensory issues.

If you're wondering what I mean by "sensory issues" and why it's an important issue for me, check out this article I wrote about my family's experience with sensory processing issues called Coming to My Senses: Awakening to the Sensory Needs of My Sons.

The first part of this article is being featured today on a blog that is very special to me, Harley's Life with 3 Boys. Hartley is spotlighting a different family's story on each day of this month as part of an effort to raise funds for sensory-related research and education. The stories are really powerful, and are all worth reading! The blog is also a great primer for those who are unfamiliar with SPD.

Be sure to donate to to the SPD Foundation via Hartley's Life with 3 Boys. If you mention my name in the comments section of your donation form, you might help me win one of Hartley's awesome prizes. Even if you don't mention my name, just donate!!!

Once you read the first part of our story on Hartley's blog, come back to my other blog, Raccoon School to find out how the story ends. I discuss my concerns for our future, our decision to homeschool, my current feelings toward the developmental specialists, and why I believe more research related to sensory issues is sorely needed.

My Kids Were in the Paper this Weekend...Twice!!!

There are two major newspaper in my area - The Tampa Tribune and The St Peterburg Times - and this weekend my kids were in both! I assure you that I did not know the journalists or bribe them to take our picture. It was just one of those a strange, happy coincidences.

The first picture was taken on Friday at the Tampa Downtown Market. A photographer started snapping away as my youngest son was putting sweet potatoes into our shopping bag. That image appeared in Saturday's St Petersburg Times.

















Then on Saturday we went back downtown to go to the Veg Fest. This time, a photographer took some pictures of my boys playing in one of the awesome water play areas in Curtis Hixon Park. It was so neat to see the picture in The Tampa Tribune on Sunday - my two special boys behind a beautiful rainbow!

We all had lots of fun at both the Tampa Downtown Market and the Veg Fest. Getting our picture in the paper was just icing on the cake.

The funny thing is, when I showed the newspapers to the boys, they just reacted the same way they have to the countless other pictures we've taken of them. No big deal. Me on the other hand...well, I'm proud mother who is easily amused.

Have a great day everybody!

Vegetarian Lentil Pot Pie

This is what we had for dinner last night. It was a perfect meal for cool(er) weather.

The pie crust is from one one of my favorite cookbook's, Linda McCartney on Tour: Over 200 Meat-Free Dishes from Around the World.I used whole wheat pastry flour to make it a bit healthier.

The filling was made from a hodgepodge of what I had in the fridge.

I created a sauce by sauteing mushrooms and onions, adding a dash of wostershire, soy sauce, and flour. Once everything was brown, I added some vegetable stock.

Then I added carrots, potatoes, sweet peas, and some dry lentils. I added water and let that simmer until the lentils were soft (they only take about 20 minutes).

Then I added the filling to the pie crust and baked it in the oven until golden brown.

Want to know how I engaged my oldest son in the preparation of this dinner? Read my latest post on Raccoon School called Flour Sifter.

Cheap Dirt

Each time we plant a new vegetable garden our harvests get a little bit bigger.  I know we can do better, though. A lot better.

I thought about what we needed to change when planting our fall garden, and I realized (if you are a master gardener, this might give you a nice chuckle)......

...it's all about the soil - duh!

Here are a few ideas I picked up over the past few weeks about how to to get the quality soil I need without spending a lot of money:

• Horse Poo. I was shocked to find all the listings for FREE horse manure on craigslist. As tempted as we were (seriously), we were a little worried about having a big pile of poo in our backyard with two young boys running around.
• Soil by the Truckload. The next best thing we could find to the free horse poo was a $10 truckload of soil from Cypress Creek Landscape Supply. It actually contained some manure and appeared very rich. We borrowed a truck and put our oldest boy to work shoveling soil into the garden (of course, my husband did most of it). It took two truckloads to fill our 4' x 8' garden.
• Compost. Creating rich soil of your own for FREE is great incentive for saving all those kitchen scraps. Of course, it's also nice to reduce the amount of trash that goes to the landfill. 
• Half-Off Broken Bags. I've been told (but haven't tried it yet) that you can get bags of soil half-off at Lowes and Home Depot if the bags are broken.

By the way, a great online resource for organic gardening (and lots of other things) is Mother Earth News.

Tampa Downtown Market is Back Today

The Tampa Downtown Market has started up again. Just in time for the beautiful fall weather!

Every Friday through May from 10AM to 2PM, vendors and musicians gather in Lykes Gaslight Square in downtown Tampa.

We enjoyed the market last season. I was great to see some positive life going on in downtown Tampa! It's a nice way to get some fresh air with the family. We bought some organic produce at very reasonable prices. We even rode the downtown trolley! We felt very urban on that day.

By the way, the Seminole Heights Sunday Morning Market starts October 10. Read about My Experience Experience at the Seminole Heights Sunday Morning Market from last season.

___________________________________________

HAVING FUN WITH THE FAMILY AT 
TAMPA DOWNTOWN MARKET
OCTOBER 1, 2010


The highlights of our morning:

• Feshly-Made Plain Donuts
• Sweet Potato Knish 
• Sweet Potatoes (79 cents a pound)
• Fresh pineapple ($2.99 each, peeled and cored) 
• Free samples of hydroponic green beans & tomatoes
• Public art and lovely fall(ish) weather  

We got our picture taken by a reporter. I wonder if we'll be in the  
St Petersburg Times tomorrow?

Turns out the answer is "yes". We're on page 3 of the Tampa section! 

 

Mmm...green bean.

Chock-full of sweet potatoes!

Fresh and delicious knish.

I'm a scarecrow

Healthy, Green & Frugal is One!

A year ago I published my first blog post ever.  Thank you SO MUCH for reading Healthy, Green and Frugal this past year! If I could give you each a cupcake I would. Instead, how about my favorite recipe for chocolate cake with mocha buttercream icing?

Birthdays are a good time for reflection....check out my recent post Is Blogging Worthwhile? from my new blog, Raccoon School. The blog is about my family's homeschool experience and the ways in which we deal with our sensory processing issues. Come on over and check it out.  Subscribe via email or like Raccoon School on Facebook.

Here's the chocolate cake recipe. It's from Barefoot Contessa, so you know it's good. Very moist and easy to make. The mocha buttercream icing recipe I like to use is from Epicurious. These recipes are not vegan, but perhaps my husband (aka The Meastro) can help me figure out how to make a vegan version.

Beatty's Chocolate Cake

• Butter, for greasing the pans
• 1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for pans
• 2 cups sugar
• 3/4 cups good cocoa powder
• 2 teaspoons baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup buttermilk, shaken
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 2 extra-large eggs, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup freshly brewed hot coffee

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter 2 (8-inch) round cake pans. Line with parchment paper, then butter and flour the pans. 
2. Sift the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment and mix on low speed until combined. 
3. In another bowl, combine the buttermilk, oil, eggs, and vanilla. 
4. With the mixer on low speed, slowly add the wet ingredients to the dry. 
5. With mixer still on low, add the coffee and stir just to combine, scraping the bottom of the bowl with a rubber spatula. 
6. Pour the batter into the prepared pans and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until a cake tester comes out clean. 
7. Cool in the pans for 30 minutes, then turn them out onto a cooling rack and cool completely.
8. Place 1 layer, flat side up, on a flat plate or cake pedestal. With a knife or offset spatula, spread the top with frosting. Place the second layer on top, rounded side up, and spread the frosting evenly on the top and sides of the cake.

Mocha Buttercream Icing

• 6 cups sifted confectioners' sugar, or more as needed 
• 1/3 cup sifted unsweetened natural cocoa 
• 5 to 6 tablespoons extra-strength coffee or espresso (or 1 tablespoon instant coffee powder dissolved in 1/2 cup hot water) 
• 8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature 
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Kid-Friendly Organic Coffee Shop in Lutz

My wonderful husband took care of the children last night while I had coffee with a friend at this great new coffee shop in Lutz called A Cup of Organic. They offer loads of organic drinks, baked goods and light meals. I had the most amazing chocolate cake!

The prices are reasonable, and the decor is nice. One of the best features of this shop is the enclosed glass children's play room. There's a television and toys for the kids to play with while you enjoy your coffee. There was a mother's group meeting there and the play room seemed to be working great for them!

Coupons for Lundberg Wild Rice, Organic Valley, POM, Tazo and More

 There are lots of great printable coupons at Mambo Sprouts right now. Thanks Frugal Femina!

• Organic Valley milk and cheese products
• POM Pomegranate Juice
• Tazo Tea
• Lunderberg Rice

Lunderberg is my favorite brand of wild rice. It's a little on the expensive side, but worth it! For recipe ideas using wild rice, check out my blog post: How to Create Healthy Recipes You'll Love.

LovingHut for Extreemly Creepy Vegan Dining

I was excited to learn about a new vegan restaurant a couple weeks back from a blogger (Eat Well. Live Well. Be Well) who shares my frustration about the sad state of vegetarian-friendly dining in Tampa.  I had the chance to check it out today with my husband and kids....I think it's safe to say that it was the weirdest dining experience I've ever had.  Let me explain....

My first introduction to LovingHut came from their website. I was genuinely impressed. It's an international chain with a slick website. The food looks promising. I was expecting something on par with Evos.

Boy was I ever wrong. The first clue was the location. The restaurant is smack in the middle of "suitcase city". It's a seedy little neighborhood, to say the least, but its proximity to the university makes for an eclectic mix of businesses. So, we reluctantly gave it the benefit of the doubt as we pulled in to the nearly empty parking lot.

The atmosphere was actually quite pleasant at first glance - it was clean, bright, open - but something just seemed off. On the way to our table we passed a shelf full of pamphlets and reading material covered in pictures of an Asian woman with long blond hair - the same woman on the rather strange sign out front positioned above the more familiar, professional-looking logo I saw on the website.

Okay, that's weird, but it gets even weirder. Right above our table was one of several large television screens playing a strange news channel at an exceptionally loud volume. The screen was covered in subtitles from a dozen or so languages and the narrator was speaking in this hallow, soothing tone. It certainly wasn't CNN. After closer look, we saw that this channel was called Supreme Master TV.

As I confirmed from a quick Wikipedia search, LovingHut is affiliated with a spiritual organization headed by a lady who calls herself Supreme Master.

Now, I don't know anything about this Supreme Master. Maybe she's the next Ghandi or something. But from where we were sitting, being inundated by the telescreen, it was just plain creepy. It was more funny creepy than scary creepy, so we went ahead and ordered.

I will say the food was okay, but certainly not great. There were very few options on the menu that weren't made from processed soy meat substitutes. Frankly, I was so weirded-out, that I had a hard time being objective about it.

So, do I recommend it? Not unless your looking for some entertainment and can't afford dinner theater. The experience has left me with two lingering thoughts:

1) The best veg cuisine consists of whole-foods - not processed meat substitutes.

2) I hate those moments when trying to adhere to a vegan diet feels like being in a cult.

Scholastic DVD Collection $44 Shipped on Amazon (Today Only)

Amazon has priced the Treasury of 100 Storybook Classics at $44 (free shipping) for today only. This is 55% off the regular price. The price fluctuates a lot, but this is the lowest I've ever seen it. So, if you have any interest in getting this DVD collection for your kids, today is the day to do it!

I paid significantly more than for this same collection a year ago, and I still feel like it was well worth the money. The 16-disc set contains animated versions of 100 quality children's picture books. The titles include Where the Wild Things Are, Is Your Mama a Llama, Strega Nona, and Chrysanthemum, just to name a few.

I was skeptical about how the animated versions would measure up to the original print version. I was amazed to see that the words and pictures are pretty much identical. Not sure how they do this exactly, but it's as if the books have come to life.

Of course, watching a video is not a replacement for good, old-fashioned story time. However, I feel like this is a great option for those times when my kids do watch television. They are just nice, wholesome stories. I also think the animated versions can be a good way to enhance comprehension of a story, especially when you pair it with a reading and discussion of the printed version.

I actually enjoy watching the DVDs myself. A lot of the stories are narrated by movie stars (including Sarah Jessica Parker, Forest Whitaker, and Meryl Streep). Some are better than others, but overall it's a great collection that is well worth the money.

Are You Cloth Pad Curious?

I recently received a free sample of a cloth panty liner from Party in My Pants. Given the delicate subject matter, I'll just say that I loved it and leave it at that. ☺

If you are curious about cloth pads, click HERE to receive a free sample for the cost of shipping ($3.99). Party in My Pants has also offered a 10% discount to Healthy, Green and Frugal readers. Just use the promotional code: MYHEALTH (expires August 20, 2010).

Sometimes they have a Surprise Party option under Sales. If you're not picky about the pattern, you can get a really good price. 

I had never really thought about using cloth pads before, but now it makes perfect sense - they reduce a lot of waste, they save money over time, and they are a lot more comfortable.  By the way, Party in My Pants also offers organic varieties as well as nursing pads and pads for postpartum mothers.

Save 30% on Organic Valley Milk on Amazon

Use promotional code OVALL454 on Amazon to get a 15% discount on certain Organic Valley milk products (offer valid through September 11, 2010). Combine this with the 15% Subscribe and Save discount to get some really good deals.

For example, you can get Organic Valley White Lowfat Milk, 8-Ounce Aseptic Carton (Pack of 12)for a total of $11.19 shipped.

To learn more about how to save money using Amazon's Subscribe and Save program, read my blog post: Amazon's Subscribe & Save = Cheaper Groceries.

Sunshine Award: Pay it Forward

I was so touched to receive a second Sunshine Award today from Colleen, author of a lovely blog about homeschooling called Sunrise Learning Lab. My first Sunshine Award came several months ago from Marla at Honest Green who writes a charming account of her day-to-day efforts to become more eco-friendly. I'm so flattered that these excellent bloggers and quality women find my words worth reading. ♡

It is my pleasure to pay this award forward to a few bloggers that bring sunshine into my life for one reason or another. Some of these people I know in real life, others I know only in the blogosphere. All the blogs have one thing in common - they are platforms for discussing all those meaningful insights that don't naturally come out in daily chit-chat. The barriers that normally divide us - time constraints, physical distance, emotional distance - don't exist in the blog world, and that's why I like spending a little time there each day.

• Live Corn Free. This is my favorite of all the blogs written by uber-blogger extraordinaire, Sharon Rosen. Make note of that name, because I'm sure you will hear it again. This woman is going places. In addition to her very professional and successful blogs, Dealafina and Giveaway Gal, she has created this slightly more personal platform for creating awareness about the shocking prevalance of corn in modern daily life. I think she's a pretty neat person and I can't wait to see what kind of mark she makes in the world. By the way, be sure to sign her FDA petition while you're on her site.

• Monologue. A very personal, slice-of-life blog written by my cousin, Elaina provides a glimpse into the heart of a young mother who is working hard to be healthier and happier. Bearing witness to her struggles, setbacks, and successes drives me to my feet to cheer her on and inspires me to do better in my own life. I feel fortunate that she is willing to share her well-written musings with all of us.

• Hartley's Life with Three Boys. This blog was a source of light to me when I was in the dark about an important issue impacting my children - sensory processing. It gave me the practical information I needed along with some very helpful doses of humor and encouragement. Hartley's candid way of talking about the ups and downs of raising three boys often has me in stitches, and her sense of humor has healing power. Sometimes I see a reflection of my own life in her posts and other times I'm just plain relieved that my boys haven't tried the stunt I happen to be reading about that day (such as flooding the kitchen with the garden hose).  Maybe - just maybe - Hartley might be willing to write a guest post for my blog to explain why anyone who deals with children would benefit from learning more about sensory processing. What do you say, Hartley?

• The Thrifty Mama. It has been amazing to watch the transformation of this blog over the past year from a "great little coupon site" into a flourishing professional business. To me, Crystal is like the Oprah of the blog world (and anyone who knows me knows how much I love Oprah). This was the first blog I started following when I wanted to take my frugality to the next level, and I will always have a special place in my heart for it.  I'm so grateful for all that it's taught me, and I especially appreciate Crystal's ever-expanding emphasis on environmental and health issues, subjects which are often overlooked on frugal websites. 

• What Would Juanny Do? Juanny has the following tag phrase on his blog: "Be Optimistically Pessimistic – Something Bad Has to Happen". So, that tells you a lot right off the bat. Juanny - also known as just plain John - was a high-school classmate of mine, but I've only recently come to appreciate his special brand of cynicism that is at times thought provoking and insightful, and at others just plain funny.  Lest any of us bloggers take ourselves too seriously, I challenge Mr. Juanny Cinco to put things in perspective. Or at least help us laugh at ourselves. Plus, I think it would be oh-so-fun to see this girly, bloggy button on his modern-masculine page. Hmm - will he do it?  Will he pass the award on to others? I guess we'll soon find out!

• Animalcule. My husband John started a blog a few months back about one of his great passions - science. I know I'm a bit biased, but I really think I'm right about this one -  John is an exceptional person. He knows a lot of things about a lot of things and has a masterful way of making connections between all these things. Unfortunately, he is so busy providing for our family that he hasn't had the time he deserves to nourish his passions. It is my intention to help John carve out more time for himself so that he can explore his thoughts and ideas - by blog or otherwise - and release that visionary that lives within. Don't worry John, I definitely don't expect you to put this girly, bloggy button your website.

Creating the Life You Want: Intention. Visualization. Reflection.

How do you create the life you want? Seriously, I'm asking....

That is the big question for many of us. In particular, how do we make those big lifestyle changes that seem impossible? I've been pondering this question a lot lately. I'm no Deepak Chopra, but here are my humble thoughts on the subject.

I'm interested in knowing your thoughts.... please share.


Intention.
Set a clear and conscious intention for the things that you want in your life, then write it down and communicate it to someone else. Think about all the times we say, "I didn't mean to do that". Instead of floating through life unconsciously, we should mean what we do, and do what we mean to do. The funny thing is that setting an intention and achieving it is not really all that hard.  The hard part is figuring out what it is that will really make us happy. The expression, "be careful what you wish for" comes to mind.

Visualization.
Once you have set your intention, spend time creating a picture in your mind of what that reality would look like. Use all your senses to imagine that intention coming to fruition. Write about it, cut out pictures and stick them on your refrigerator, draw a picture.... just spend time thinking about it. It is in these moments of positive contemplation that ideas spring forth, paths emerge, plans fall in to place, and the inner strength and motivation that may have once seemed lacking suddenly comes to life.

Reflection.
As you start to achieve your goals, the visualizations will take on new shapes, become more detailed, and perhaps take unexpected detours. The process of fully realizing the intention can be stymied when you don't take the time to properly reflect on the journey. It's important to process (ideally through writing) all that you have done to achieve your goals, what has worked, what has not worked, and how you want to proceed. Acknowledge the progress that has been made. Allow yourself to appreciate it and use that gratitude to motivate yourself as you carry on.

CSN Stores.... Shop Easy? Let's Find Out.

I was recently introduced to a massive online shopping portal called CSN. Through this one site you can buy all kinds of products - anything from light fixtures, to kid's stuff, to furniture and housewares.

The folks at CSN asked me to review my shopping experience with them. In exchange they are giving me $40 to spend at their store.
Sure, I'll give it a try. 

So far, I'm impressed with CSN's huge selection and eclectic styles. At first glance, the prices look reasonable, and they claim there is FREE shipping on "just about everything". There are a number of organic and eco-friendly products. They also have a clearance section (which doesn't seem to offer many significant discounts), a rewards program, and price matching. There were a number of somewhat unusual items that caught my eye, including cool bean bags for kids, educational and developmental toys, and a compost bin for the kitchen counter.

CSN could easily be another go-to place when I'm shopping online. Their tag line is "shop easy".  I'll find out if that's really true and report back to you.