The Black Dog

Thanks to my friend, Karen, for posting this video. It really summarizes life for me or anyone who suffers from depression. I think I’ve said it before but I’ve battled depression for most of my life. There have been a lot of ups and then some major downs. The past 6 years have been the hardest. So without me talking the whole time, watch this video to understand more.
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Easy Crockpot Risotto

I love cooking in my crockpot. It gives me a sense of accomplishment when I come home and know that dinner is already prepared. I thought I’d try something new the other day and it turned out spectacular. The only thing I didn’t do was cook it in the crockpot, ironically. But I believe it would have the same results either way. Here is the great recipe:

Crockpot Risotto:

3 3/4 cups chicken broth
1 1/4 cups Arborio rice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup white wine
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried onion flakes
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
2/3 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Mix chicken broth, rice, olive oil, wine, garlic, onion flakes, salt, and black pepper in a slow cooker. Cook on High for 2 to 2 1/2 hours. Stir in Parmesan cheese; cook uncovered until Parmesan cheese is melted, about 15 minutes.

It was delish! When making on the stove instead of the crockpot, start by heating the chicken broth in a stock pot then saute the garlic in the olive oil in a separate skillet. Add the Arborio rice and coat with olive oil/garlic mixture. Next, add the white wine until it’s absorbed. Finally, stir in the Arborio rice mixture into the stockpot with the heated chicken broth and simmer for 20-25 minutes. Add the parmesan cheese and you’re good to go!

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A fun trip to Bass Pro

My mom had to go to Bass Pro to look for shoes so I took the opportunity to take my 7 year old son with me. Here are some photos of his fun time. And, now we have a boat and a gun. Lol! Just kidding!

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The Paleo Approach

My husband sent me this blog article to read on stress. I’ll have to admit it stressed me out just to read someone else’s battle with stress. I believe that’s called codependency when you take on other people’s issues. Nonetheless, I read through the article and it was highly insightful on how someone else, specifically, Dr. Sarah Ballantyne – The Paleo Mom, handles stress. She is real and down to earth with her struggles. I can relate how hard it is to manage working from home, arranging the kid’s activities, my daily scheduling and so on an so on.

I’ll admit I don’t eat the paleo way but this article gave me hope and maybe I should pay more attention to the things I eat and put in my body. I don’t get sick very often thanks to my super immune system but I know diet can play a big part in your immune system. The part that hit home hard with me was her battle with depression and thyroidism. I struggle daily with those.

I just wanted to say thank you to The Paleo Mom for being so down to earth and sharing her stories and battles. It makes life a little easier knowing you’re not alone. Now – off to check out her books on Amazon!

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Severe depression linked with brain inflammation AND New oils for PTSD

I found this interesting article today about severe depression linked with inflammation of the brain. You can read it in full here. I wonder if I should start taking NSAID’s on a regular basis? But that doesn’t sound healthy either. However, if I’m not responsive to anti-depressants but still take them, it sounds a lot easier to pop an ibuprofen and ditch all the other expensive drugs. But that leads to a whole other issue of long-term effects of anti-inflammatory drugs. Seems I can’t win yet. Still waiting for a miracle.

In other news, Young Living released a new oil combo for treating PTSD. This is BIG news. There is an article how it has helped a man who has been a Vietnam veteran for the past 45 years. Read the full article here. The Young Living combination of Freedom, AromaSleep, Inner Harmony, Valor, Divine Release, Joy, Transformation and T.R. Care. There are full instructions here. If this speaks to you, let me know. You can sign up under me for only $150 to get started. My website is http://www.youngliving.org/ins0mnia and my member ID is 2270261.

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My passion for Hip Hop

Most of you know that I love dancing. I don’t really think I’m good at it and I don’t have any experience in my younger years… but I enjoy it with all my being. It helps natural endorphins and it helps me just let loose and let my mind stay active by learning and memorizing routines. And not to mention that it’s a BLAST! I always feel self-conscience in videos but here is the latest one I was in. #clubfitz

 

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Don’t tell me I’m hormonal! Acne, Oleic and Lanoleic oils

I’ve been having a crazy terrible time with my face breaking out lately. Usually I can blame the normal hormonal acne, but this time I think I have an idea why I’ve had an unusually harder time. A few weeks back, I was reading rave reviews on Dr. Bronner’s Magic soap. I was interested in making my own face wash. So I talked to a lady at the local Sprouts and she loved the stuff too so I was sold. I bought the lavender scent because well, I like lavender. The ingredients (if you can find them on the bottle – poor graphic designer who had to do this label) listed are: Water, Organic Coconut Oil*, Potassium Hydroxide**, Lavandin Extract, Organic Olive Oil*, Organic Hemp Oil, Organic Jojoba Oil, Lavender Extract, Citric Acid, Tocopherol * CERTIFIED FAIR TRADE INGREDIENT ** None remains after saponifying oils into soap and glycerin.

I began washing my face with straight-up Dr. Bronners soap, no dilution, no nothing. Full force oil-cleansing method – let’s do this. It smelled great and felt great. Then about a week later I started getting terrible acne so I made a “Blemish Buster” oil blend from my Young Living oils and started using that (recipe below). It did start helping but I was still breaking out. I didn’t know what the deal was. I was furious. (Which if you’re interested in Young Living Oils, I highly recommend you become a wholesale member and start using the heck out of them – they are SO AWESOME! Here’s my link to sign up and my member number is 2270261 – end of quick marketing plug!)

So this was my exact Google search: “What kind of carrier oils are better for acne?”

And this is what I found out: If you have acne-prone skin, you need to use an oil that is naturally higher in lanoleic acid and lower in oleic acid. Say WHAT? Great, thanks but what the heck does that mean? Well this nice lady, Dawn Michelle, from her blog called Minimalist Beauty broke it down by oil. So if you have oily skin like me, you would want to use a base cleansing oil from this list:
Safflower Oil (Organic)—Oleic–8-30%  Linoleic–68-85%
Black Seed Oil—Oleic–22.6%  Linoleic–55.6%
Hemp Seed Oil—Oleic–10.71%  Linoleic–56.48%
Evening Primrose Oil—Oleic–8.4%  Linoleic–72.6%
Pumpkin Seed Oil—Oleic–23.3%  Linoleic–57.2%
Rosehip Seed Oil—Oleic–13.9%  Linoleic–44.1%
Grape Seed Oil (Organic)—Oleic–16.2%  Linoleic–70.6%
Soybean Oil—Oleic–22.72%  Linoleic–52.97%
Wheat Germ Oil—Oleic–12.1%  Linoleic–58.4%
(Please note that wheat germ oil is one of the highest ranking oils on the comedogenic list so results may vary using this oil.)

While EVOO and coconut oil are great for other people with normal or dry skin, I need to change my method and QUICK! So after my next trial, I will update you (I’m sure you’ll be dying to find out). For now, Dr. Bronner will have to be a hand cleanser.

Oh, and if you’re interested in my blemish buster oils recipe, here it is:
5 drops Melaleuca Alternifolia (tea tree oil)
5 drops lavender oil
3 drops rosemary oil
2 drops lemon oil
Fill the rest of the 5ml bottle with carrier oil (I am using Jojoba oil but am about to switch to possibly grapeseed or evening primrose oil).
Dab on 3-4 drops at night.

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Fun twittersation with Advertising Weekly today

Every morning while drinking my coffee and after I’ve gotten the kids off to school, I sit down with my sun lamp and catch up on Twitter. This morning I caught the tail end of Advertising Weekly’s chat session (#AWchat). It was all about Super Bowl ads. I chimed in on my opinions about ads during the big game. Here are my thoughts summed up:

  • If I had $4.5 million to spend on getting my brand name out there, absolutely I would spend the money. Positive or negative – doesn’t matter as long as people remember your brand.
  • There are some people, including myself, who ONLY watch the Super Bowl for the ads. People throw football-watching parties so why not throw an ad-watching party? I’ve done it. It’s even more fun to watch them live than to YouTube them the next morning while you’re alone wishing you had a Super Bowl ad-watching party.
  • After watching an ad during the Super Bowl, I would be more likely (if it were food-related) to go out and buy that brand – be it Chili Bacon Jalepeno Doritos or Coconut Lime Raspberry Oreos. However, after seeing the ad (not food-related), I would more likely purchase a product after seeing the ad after I have done some  reviews on the product.
  • By 2020, while TVs are getting larger and larger, I could see Super Bowl advertising taking the form of a feed at the bottom of the screen, much like news these days. Whether you think it’s annoying or not, you know you still watch those tickers and pay attention to the news feed at the bottom of the screen – and remember what it says. Also, I can see more brand advertising on football jerseys and footballs and on field overlays. Just watch that Oreo make a touchdown during a timeout! Kids would love it! And I bet you’d be out buying Oreos during halftime (if you’re not a Katy Perry fan – which I am so no Oreos for me during halftime.)

I also found an article this morning about H&M’s savvy marketing scheme last year during the Super Bowl. It was the debut of real-time shop-able TV in their Super Bowl commercial, of course starring the hotness of David Beckham. The big-box retailer partnered with Delivery Agent to allow consumers to use their remotes to purchase items as they appeared in the ad. If that isn’t advertising-savvy, I don’t know what is. Time to up the ante, marketers! T-marketing is the new pink.

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Martin Luther King Day

“Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” -Martin Luther King, Jr.

On this day, reflect back on your life and see if there are lights and loves you have missed. Now is your day. Now is the time to start shining your beautiful light and sharing your love. Only you can do this. Nobody else can do it for you.

Now, easily said than done. I need to take my own advice. Sometimes it’s easier to tell others what they should do than to make the changes yourself.

And if we can’t do anything about the situation, as Taylor Swift says, “Haters gonna hate hate hate hate hate… shake it off, shake it off” And now I’ll end my PSA with the viral video that’s made all news sources. Enjoy!

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10 things to do everyday for depression

A big thank you to Therese Borchard, author of Beyond Blue: Surviving Depression & Anxiety and The Pocket Therapist: An Emotional Survival Guide for writing the article on things to do for depression. I am going to sum up her 10 items below but for the full article, please visit her original post here.

To help beat depression, 10 things to do everyday are:
1. Swim
2. Record your “joys”
3. List your accomplishments
4. Laugh
5. Meditate
6. Take DHA and vitamins
7. Drink a power smoothie
8. Avoid sugar and grains
9. Use a sun lamp
10. Pray

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