Invitation...

While on my journey I’ve come across lots of different ways to remove toxins. The most interesting is a practice known as oil pulling. When I first heard about it I was a little skeptical as to how it could possibly work. After doing research I am going to give it a try.

Oil Pulling: Oil pulling is the practice of taking 1 tablespoon of a cold-pressed oil (such as sesame, sunflower seed or coconut oil) and swishing it in your mouth for about 15-20 minutes. This is done soon after waking, before eating or brushing your teeth — and it has the effect of “pulling” bacteria, parasites, mucous and other toxins from your body through your saliva. Oil pulling started in Ayurveda, the Hindu art of healing, which asserts that the tongue is mapped by organ-locations. It’s said that each section of the tongue is connected to, or corresponds to, the liver, heart, kidneys, lungs, spleen, pancreas, small intestines, stomach, colon, and spine. When you swish the oil around the tongue, you effectively soothe and stimulate the key meridians of the body, and their corresponding organs.

Oil pulling also soaks up or pulls disease causing bacteria and toxins from  around the teeth. It is said to clean the mouth better than any tooth brush or mouthwash.  When removing the bacteria and toxins from our mouth and teeth our body is able to heal other areas. To help motivate you to want to oil pull for a full 20 minutes, here's some of the health problems that oil pulling can help with, along with overall detoxifying of the body, (as listed Dr. Fife's Oil Pulling Therapy book):Acne, Allergies, Arthritis, Asthma, Back and Neck Pain, Bad Breath, Bronchitis, Chronic, Fatigue, Colitis, Chron's Disease, Constipation,  Dental Cavities , Dermatitis, Diabetes, Eczema, Hemorrhoids, Hypertension, Insomnia, Migraine Headaches, Mucous, Congestion ,Peptic Ulcers, PMS, Periodontal Disease , Sinusitis and Tooth Abscess.

1) Immediately upon waking up in the morning, before brushing your teeth, eating or drinking, put 1 tablespoon of either organic cold-pressed sesame oil, organic sunflower seed oil or organic coconut oil in your mouth.

2) Tilt your chin up and slowly swish the oil around your tongue, pulling and sucking it through the teeth, making sure you don’t swallow the oil. Do this for 15 to 20 minutes until the oil in your mouth becomes thin, white foam. You can check your progress periodically — if the oil is still yellow, continue swishing. Do not gargle the oil. Just swish it in your mouth.

3) When the oil turns white, spit it out, and then rinse the remaining oil out of your mouth.

4) Drink 1 – 3 glasses of water.

If you would like to maximize the effects of oil pulling this can be done up to 3 times a day always on a empty stomach or 4 hours after a meal.

So I invite all of my followers to take a 10 day oil pulling challenge with me!Starting tomorrow! I’d love to know how it makes you feel and what your thoughts on oil pulling are! I will check in daily and update on my results! Can't wait to hear back from everyone!

To wrap or not to wrap...

After Baby number three was born (aka Munk) I knew right away it was going to be a challenge getting anything done. Before Munk was born I had purchased a Moby wrap. Why a Moby? After doing lots of research I found that your more conventional baby carriers are so horrible ergonomically for the mother and baby. The baby Bjorn and similar carriers are known as the “crotch danglers” in the baby wearing community. Let me explain why…..

                The baby Bjorn or similar carrier does not support babies hips.  The babies legs should be pulled up to hip level or higher. This happens when the fabric of the carrier extends to the back of the thigh to the back of the knee. When your baby is facing forwards with legs unsupported it isn't that his legs are simply dangling,  his spine and hips are unsupported to and there is simply nowhere for baby to sit. Here is a study done on hip dysplasia. A must read. When wearing your baby forward facing it creates a arched or hollow back position. Extending the back (like arching after waking from a nap), is not injurious or “bad” in and of itself.  The problem happens when you compress a “hollow back” under a load.  Placing an infant in a front facing carrier stretches the naturally convex rounded curve of his spine into a hollow back position.   With nothing to cling to, weak abdominal muscles, and retracted shoulders, the infant’s pelvis tilts backwards and is forced to not only carry weight of his own body but also to absorb the force of every step that the carrying individual takes- all on his little compromised spine. It may also over stimulate your baby, does not support babies head or neck, makes it difficult for your baby to thermoregulate, and also respond to your baby’s natural ques.

After reading all of this information I knew right away I had to stay away from these types of baby carriers. I am so glad I stayed away from these carriers and purchased a woven wrap. There are so many benefits to wearing your babe! Some of the benefits are, babies who are worn cry less, learn more, grow up to be more organized, humanized earlier, be more independent,  and smarter. It is also an excellent way to bond with your baby and make them more aware of their surroundings. I encourage everyone to do their own research and pick an ergonomically friendly carrier! I have linked a few websites where these woven wraps and Ergo’s can be purchased! 

98% Naturally Derived Ingredients... Through Chemical Processing

While throwing away all of my cleaners I was really on the fence about “Murphy Oil Soap”.  Since the label says “98% naturally derived ingredients”, I did some digging on the ingredients.  Well that was a little difficult seeing as how the ingredients are not on the label.  After lots and lots of searching, I came across them….

 Soap - Sodium or potassium salts of long chain fatty acids.  These detergent substances are obtained by boiling natural oils or fats with caustic alkali.  Sodium soaps are harder and are used as topical anti-infective and vehicles in pills and liniments; potassium soaps are soft, used as vehicles for ointments and also as topical antimicrobials

Tall Oil  - An oil derived from wood pulp and used in making soaps or lubricants; A by-product of the sulphate pulping of resinous woods, consisting mainly of resin acids and fatty acids, with smaller amounts of neutral substances. (ummm natural??)

Amine Oxide  - Thickener, foam booster, and a chelating agent

Potassium hydroxide - Colorless solid is a prototypical strong base. It has many industrial and niche applications. Most applications exploit its reactivity toward acids and its corrosive nature

Citrus fragrance - Supposedly a "natural oil," however it does not say what type of “natural oil”

HEDTA - A bonding agent.  (Not much info on this one.)

After reading all of this, I did not feel comfortable using this product on the surfaces my children eat off of and play on.  Not to mention getting it on my skin when I use it.  I came across a natural wood cleaner, good old white vinegar and Olive Oil!  Who would have thunk??  The recipe I used originally called for equal parts.  But after mixing and doing a test spot, I found that it needed a little extra vinegar.  I used a whisk to mix the mixture.  It will also need to be mixed again if sitting for longer than ten minutes.  Use sparingly because a little goes a long way.  I really loved this mixture!  It made my cabinets look amazing and no harsh chemicals were used!  That is what I call Winning!

Recipe-

1\4 Cup Olive Oil

1\2 Cup White Vinegar

 

 The below picture is of the first batch before extra vinegar was added.

 

The below picture is of the same batch with a 1/4 cup of vinegar added.

No More Chemicals!

My sons, Thing 1 and Thing 2 are growing so fast!  In turn they are due for new beds.  My husband, Big Papa and I began hunting for the perfect twin bedframes.  Big Papa and I decided we wanted to do a DIY project.  We decided to purchase unfinished wood bedframes and stain them ourselves.  The IKEA FJELLSE was our choice for three reasons:

Reason #1:  Low cost @ $39.99!

Reason #2:  Simple design!

Reason #3:  Did I mention it was low cost?

Since I am on a quest to rid my family of toxic chemicals, this project already had an obstacle.   I began asking myself, do I really want all of those harmful toxins in our home?  Do I want my boys sleeping in a room within inches of these toxins?  The answer was NO!

I began researching what chemicals are in wood stains and the first piece of information I came across was on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s website:  "Many of these products contain chemicals that can irritate your skin, eyes, nose and throat when they are being used because of the vapors that are given off. Before using these products, you need to be sure to always "Read the Label First" to know how to properly use these products and for safety information. If at all possible use the stain or finish outside. If that is not practical, open the windows and doors fully and put a box fan in the window directing the air and fumes out of doors. Keep the fan on while painting and for about 48 hours thereafter. Keep small children away from the room where the stain or finish is being applied and away from the open cans of stain or finish. Do not use stain or finish that is labeled for "exterior use only" indoors. If the room you are painting does not have a window, consider using a water based product. "

I continued to scour the internet to find a list of common ingredients used in wood stains with no success.  Why is this information not readily available on the manufacturer’s websites?  Why are there no federal laws requiring these ingredients be posted for consumers to see?  The U.S. National Library of Medicine website shows wood stains contain the following:  Hydrocarbons, alcohol, alkanes, cyclo-alkanes, glycol ether and corrosives, such as sodium hydroxide.

I knew I had to find an alternative to commercial wood stains.  Big Papa suggested I try coffee.  But not just any coffee, it had to be his delicious fresh ground organic coffee from High Desert Roasters.  So we went to IKEA and bought Thing 1 and Thing 2 two new unfinished beds!  We brought them home, busted them out of the box, brewed a pot of coffee and went to town!  (Halfway through staining the first bedframe, I threw half a box of Earl Grey Black Tea in the pot)  Here are the products I used and the results!

Welcome All!

Welcome to my blog!  What is "From Creamy to Crunchy" all about?   Well it's about my journey from creamy to crunchy!

You may find yourself asking what does "creamy" and "crunchy" mean?

Cream·y [kree-mee]:  A parenting style that vaccinates, cries it out, does not co-sleep, uses disposable diapers, does not baby wear, purchases commercial baby food and formula feeds.

Crunch·y [kruhn-chee]:  A parenting style that supports non-hospital births, baby wears, uses cloth diapers, co-sleeps, gently disciplines, questions established medical authority, prepares healthy homemade meals.

Subscribe to stay informed on my journey From Creamy to Crunchy!

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