special request

If you don't know me then you most likely do not know that I love my Nutribullet. I usually use it for healthy meals on the go, but sometimes for sweet treats & pick me ups.

A friend of mine just got a Nutribullet and asked me to blog about my favorite recipes, so here we go!

This is the one that got me HOOKED! If you're not sure about drinking veggies then you want to start here.  This tastes good and is super healthy.
-1 part strawberry
-1 part pineapple
-1 part spinach (you can substitute kale, but it's a bit stronger)
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
-fill to liquid line with coconut water
*blend to perfection!

Citrus Goodness
-1 small clementine
-1/3 cup pineapple (with juice)
- handful of kale
- 1 tablespoon chia seeds
- fill to liquid line with coconut water
*blend it up!

Berry Boom
- 1 part broccoli
- 2 parts berries of your choice
- 1 part cucumber
- fill to liquid line with water
* blend until smooth!

Super Green & Super Good
- 1 part green apple
- 1 part kale or spinach
- 1 part cucumber
- fill to liquid line with OJ
* blend blend blend!

Need Caffeine? This is my new favorite 
- fill cup just below the liquid line with ice
- 8 oz. strongly brewed coffee
- 1/3 cup chocolate syrup
- fill rest of the way with milk of your choice (coconut, cow, almond)
- add some sugar/ sweetener
* blend to Frappuccino consistency!

A Sweet Treat
- 2 scoops vanilla ice cream
- 1/4 cup chocolate syrup
- 1 tablespoon peanutbutter
- add the desired amount of milk
* blend and you have a milkshake!

There is SO much you can do with a Nutribullet! I don't always have coconut water so sometimes I use other waters or juice (or both). I just use what I have. I don't always love the taste, but I just drink it anyways. I am getting amazing amounts of nutrients from one drink and I feel guilt free when I enjoy that donut later!

narrow it down

So since I left the bank I've been working random jobs to make money. I've also been brainstorming ideas for my own business. These are the ideas my brain tries to process on a daily basis:

1) Event Planer/Coordinator: This is something I've always done at previous jobs, but never realized it. My friend told me I should pursue event planning when I let her know I was leaving the bank. My eyes lit up like I found my calling, but my doubts always get the best of me. Will people hire me? Will I be successful? Will I be good enough?

One of the first things that my former boss asked me after I gave him my notice was if I'd coordinate his daughters wedding. Is this a sign? It was like everything was lining up for my success as an Event Planner.  The wedding was this weekend and I just felt like it was where I supposed to me. I felt like I knocked it out of the park and my "client" agreed. 

2) Young Living Distributor: I have been using Essential Oils for about three (3) months. Honestly, I am not sure if I can live without them now. They have been absolutely life changing. I am passionate about oils and I want to share them with the world! People probably hate me because I always talk about them. The funny thing is, it's not a sales tactic. It's just how I feel. When I am feeling a certain way, I get a bug bite, or I need to clean my house I reach for my oils. Yeah! That's how versatile they are. 

Here is the down side. People are afraid to take the plunge! They don't know what they are. They don't know why they would need them. I get it! Why would you "need" something you haven't needed thus far in life. That's fine, but the reason I got into the oily life was because I am all about improvement. I like to find better ways to do things.  I hate all the chemicals they put in everything. Having a baby opened my eyes to all the toxins this world sells off as something it's not.  I am done with that. Oh, and before you think I am some "granola" girl I will set the record straight. Have you ever had Herrs Cheese Curls? AMAZING!

If you'd like to start your journey as a oiler click here: Young Living Essential Oils 

3) Lactation Consultant: I am so incredibly passionate about the importance of breast feeding. I am NOT into science so that idea basically went out the window the moment I researched how to become one. Plus, I know I want my forever job, or official career, to be home based. 

4) Photographer: Basically I just have always admired Photographers. I love the flexible schedule, the home based business and the fact that photography is great for my OCD and artistic mind. It's hard to be artistic and controlling. Artists are so free spirited so I think that's where I struggle. 

I just bought a "fancy" camera and I enjoy playing around with it, but my excuse for not pursuing it as a career is that there are too many photographers in the area! So, since I really like it I volunteered to help a friend who is a photographer! I am excited to see where that takes me. 

5) Stationary Designer: I LOVE LOVE LOVE cards. Greeting cards, Christmas cards, invitations, thank you cards... I love them all. I design them for friends, family, work events and for myself. I enjoy doing this, but it's a lot of work and to be successful I wouldn't be home based. 

6) Web Designer: This is what I went to college for. I enjoyed it, but I felt like it wasn't my "calling". I was more into what the website looked like rather than how it got that way. Coding is annoying and time consuming. I will do a website here and there, but I am not going to promote my business out to the public. 

7) Small Business Marketing: I was in marketing for two years and I really enjoyed what I did. I left for a higher paying job with the option of moving up. I miss what I did a lot so it makes me think I should start doing some marketing from home. Just another one of my crazy ideas. 

8) Caterer: I like to cook, but I won't be able to take the high stress and fast pace of the food industry. I enjoy cooking for family and I think that's enough! 

Can you see how active my mind is? I am taking this opportunity to test the waters and see where it takes me! I am having fun dreaming in the mean time. 

pinching some pennies & shining them too; part 2

Up next is a home made (and all natural) Stainless Steel Cleaner! I tried two different "recipes" out. 

The first one was simple! Cooking Oil! 

1. Do they clean as well as store bought cleaning products?

I don't find store bought Stainless Steel Cleaners to be all that, so I felt that if it wasn't better it was the same. 

2. Will they actually cost less than store bought cleaning products?

Sure! Of course some oils are cheaper than others, I used Canola Oil which is inexpensive. Plus I didn't need a lot.

3. Will they kill germs?
No, but neither do the store bought ones. 

4. Will they smell good? 

It didn't smell good or bad. 

5. How long will it take to make them?

No time at all!

Bottom Line

This did shine up my SS, but there were a few issues. For one thing, my dogs kept going over to my dish washer and licking it. Secondly, if your stainless steel had any grime on it's surface it would just smear it all over. So it wasn't actually cleaning it. The plus side is that it does protect my stainless steel from rusting. 

The Second Recipe

Recipe:

1/2 c. vinegar

2 tbs. baking soda

**Put in spray bottle, and do not put lid back on until the bubbles subside**

1. Do they clean as well as store bought cleaning products?

Same as above! 

2. Will they actually cost less than store bought cleaning products?

Yes! Vinegar and baking soda are so inexpensive! 

3. Will they kill germs?
As we learned before vinegar doesn't really kill germs, but I am confident that it is a better cleaner than the store bought stainless steel cleaners. 

4. Will they smell good? 

No! I dislike the smell of vinegar very much, but I only smelled it when I actually cleaned the appliances. 

5. How long will it take to make them?

Less than a minute. 

Bottom Line

This actually cleaned my stainless steel and surprisingly made it shiny! However, if you don't wipe really good it can leave a film when it dries. So, make sure you rub it in good! 

pinching some pennies & shining them too; part 1

I am sure all of you have seen the "home made cleaning product" posts on Pinterest and how they're natural and inexpensive. I know I have! I usually just pinned them on my "clean" board and that's as far as I got to trying them out, until this past week!

I actually had a blast trying eight (8) different homemade cleaning solutions out including: glass cleaner, all purpose cleaner, fabric freshener, floor cleaner, fabric softener, stainless steel cleaner, toilet bowl cleaner and carpet cleaner (for stains).

So when I started researching homemade recipes I had these questions/concerns:

• Do they clean as well as store bought cleaning products?

• Will they actually cost less than store bought cleaning products?

• Will they kill germs?

• Will they smell good? I love the smell of cleaning products; is that weird?

• How long will it take to make them?

I will be answering all of those questions for each homemade cleaning product I made! Here is part one of this series!

The first thing I made was home made (and all natural) All Purpose Cleaning Solution! 

Recipe:

2 lemons (peels only)

1 orange (peel only)

1 lime (peel only)

3 c. vinegar

bunch of mint 

**Put ingredients in jar and wait overnight**

I used this to spot clean clean my floors, countertops, et cetera. 

1. Do they clean as well as store bought cleaning products?

I thought it did a great job! My surfaces felt and looked clean. I thought that citrus would make things sticky, but I was pleasantly surprised. 

2. Will they actually cost less than store bought cleaning products?

I used 3 cups of vinegar and a whole jug costs less than $2. Lemons and limes are cheap as well and you can still use the citrus juice for cooking. Mint is free since I grow it, but mint wasn't even necessary. So, I'd say its cheaper.

3. Will they kill germs?
Unfortunately when I researched vinegar I found this: "Vinegar can be used as a safer bleach alternative for some applications, like cleaning. It is also biodegradable. However, vinegar is not a registered disinfectant and does not kill dangerous bacteria like staphylococcus. Hydrogen peroxide has antimicrobial ingredients and can be an effective household cleaner." So, I did not use this in my bathrooms! However, I am going to look for a germ killing all purpose cleaning recipe.

4. Will they smell good?

It didn't smell horrible, but I didn't love it. I'd say it's lacking in this department. 

5. How long will it take to make them?

This one took the longest to make out of the ones I made so far, but only because I had to peel the fruits, pick the mint and wait overnight.

Bottom Line

I will not use this one again, simply because it doesn't kill germs. In my opinion, all purpose cleaners should kill germs.