Esse Please!

December 15, 2015Esse, Esse Organic, organic skincare, Prebiotics, probiotics, Sensitive RangeDebbie

Whenever I go for a facial I always dread that question:

“So… what product are you using on your skin currently?” … because I know I’m going to fumble over the answer.

Should I say:

a) (The truth) BUSTED. I use nothing.
b) Well… it’s been tricky because after I gave birth (blah blah) my skin did this weird thing with the… thing… and then I ran out of the whats-his-name and I just haven’t managed to get back into the groove with that other one I had… and so… (fumble, stutter, more fumbling)
c) I have a bottle of Environ at home (since 2003).
d) I swap between the free hotel travel size bottles, leftover soap goo and magazine sachets of nonsense.

Awkward.

And so the last time I went for a facial at The Little Green Box my skin was pampered with a brand I’ve had my eye on for a while, Esse (pronounced Essss). It was my 32nd birthday and I thought RIGHT. It’s time.

Starting a proper skincare routine is a bit like opening up a retirement policy. The earlier you do it the better the reward, and the less guilt you have to deal with later on. So, Happy 32nd Birthday me – Esse, welcome to my world.

Here’s why I LOVE Esse (and why you should too):

They’re local, certified organic, vegan, cruelty free and support fair trade.
They launched the worlds first LIVE probiotic serum (which is on my face this very minute).
Esse aim to create an environment on the skin that favours the growth of beneficial microbes so that they can out-compete pro-ageing species (I’ll take that – thank you).
They use prebiotics to selectively feed good microbes and have included probiotic microbes in some products to deliver specific results.
Their packaging is fully recyclable.
They have chosen the best of Africa’s plants to deliver potent new actives in their products. Their ingredients include Baobab, Kalahari Melon, Kigelia and Marula (and they smell amazing!).
PhytoTrade Africa oversees the sustainability of their wild-harvested ingredients and ensures that the rural communities that gather plants are paid fair trade rates.
They believe your skin is a complex ecosystem (and I love this way of thinking).

Long story short, I launched myself into the regular Esse range – which I loved… but my skin… well it was a tad unsure. Maybe it was the new regimented discipline of cleansing which knocked my skin off kilter (it had never been so loved on before) but something wasn’t happy. I wanted so badly to love Esse, but my skin was playing tug-of-war with me. So I chatted to Peta (Western Cape Esse trainer) at The Little Green Box and she suggested I try the newly launched Sensitive Range.

And now we’re on the money. This range is amazing. Amazing amazing. More than amazing. I’m currently using the Sensitive Cleanser (R360), Sensitive Serum (R650), Hydro Moisturiser (R480) and Nourish Moisturiser (R550) on my skin and I feel like a princess. I’m sure Kate Middleton uses this stuff.

If I’m honest – this range does come with a price tag I’m not used to paying – see point d) above (the whole thing about hotel bottles and magazine sachets). But I wholeheartedly believe that this is a range where the cliche ‘you get what you pay for’ rings very, very true. Should we not be paying a decent price when the products we’re buying and using are local, organic, of an incredibly high quality and have LIVE probiotic microbes in them? Not to mention the fact that they last a good while as you need to use so little of them with each wash. Retirement policy remember?

Here are my newest bathroom besties:

I particularly love the Sensitive Serum. This serum contains more than one billion live probiotic Lactobacillus microbes per millilitre. These microbes are activated on contact with water on the skin. Once active, they equip the skin to rectify imbalances and strengthen barrier function. I honestly don’t think it can get much better than that. This has to be the creme-de-la-creme of South African Organic Skincare products and it’s hard to imagine what can top it. Little eco, green, minimalist Debbie is well and truly overwhelmed with these goodies.

For more info on what Esse are up to on this beautiful journey. You can keep in touch with them on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

Traditional Homemade Christmas Mince Pies

December 10, 2015Christmas, Christmas mince pies, food, fruit mince, homemadeDebbie

From as early as I can remember, Christmas time tasted like homemade mince pies. Mom made the best! I struggle to buy them from the shops because it’s just not the same… I also love life-rhythms and traditions and this one is tops!

So, here’s the recipe:

Now to be fair – I do buy the fruit mince from the shops, it’s the pie pastry I make myself (see my great-grandmothers recipe for the real deal fruit mince below).

Christmas Mince Pie Pastry

Ingredients:

225g flour
150g butter
1T ground almonds
1T castor sugar
1T water
Pinch salt

Method:

Put everything in the blender, and then once it’s all mixed together and pastry-looking, divide in two, wrap the balls in cling wrap and refrigerate.

Use one ball at a time. Roll the pastry on a floury surface and cut out the shapes. We use a squiggly edged circle for the base and a 8 pointed stard for the top. Put the bases in your cupcake tin and spoon in the fruit mince. Lightly beat an egg and submerge the top star shape in the egg mixture and pop it on top.

Put these in the oven at 180 degrees for around 10-15 minutes. Once they turn a light golden brown, take them out, let them cool and sprinkle icing sugar over the top through a sieve.

Hello Christmas!

Hang on! If you want to SERIOUSLY impress your in-laws, you can make the actual fruit mince. Whaaaaaaat! I’ve never made this myself but this is my great-grandmothers recipe.

Great Granny’s Fruit Mince:

Ingredients:

250g suet
250g peeled and cored apples
500g seedless raisins
250g currents
125g mixed peel (can buy it in a box like you do cherries)

Method:

Mix together with 250g sugar and 1t mixed spice. Rinse bottles with brandy (let it coat the bottle) and when bottling leave hollow at top for brandy.

Let me know how it goes!

The Imperfect

December 10, 2015challenge, Community, family, health, struggle, thoughtsDebbie

Tuesday afternoon I found myself at our ophthalmologist chatting about how if my son’s eyes don’t respond to a change in his glasses prescription, how we might find ourselves back in hospital requiring further eye surgery.

Eye Operation – April 2015

I’m okay with this. While it’s not great news, he can see, we have medical aid (which should cover it this time!), and we have options.

I sat there thinking about the next step. I’ve realized I’m a solutions focussed person and so my mind is already calculating what needs to be done: go to optometrist to order new lenses, send other glasses back off to Vancouver, double check with our broker that all our medical aid bits and pieces are in order and book a follow up appointment for 4 months time to determine official outcome. Cool. I got it.

A year ago these appointments terrified me. When something is wrong with your little one, your heart sits FIRMLY on your sleeve and you feel EVERYTHING DEEPLY. Once we knew something was awry (I still remember clearly, the road we were walking down when I verbalizied what I had noticed with Clay to my friend Amy) we booked numerous appointments, including the BIG one with the ophthalmologist to rule out the very scary stuff. I don’t think I ate for a week before the meeting I was so anxious. But now, we’re stronger and this is what it is (which is minor in the greater scheme of things) and with chins up, we embrace the challenges with grace and love.

Recently, I’ve known of friends dealing with many, many things. Friends struggling with rejection, very real family challenges, struggles with identity, years of getting out of debt, miscarriage and even the death of a child.

I’ve also been chatting with new parents, in what seems like that gushy, mushy, amaaaazing, yet sleep deprived what-the-hell-am-I-doing stage of parenting. I chuckled to myself as I heard them talking, remembering so clearly how I tried to keep things ‘right’ with this clean slate (of a person) I had just been given. I did it too: the whole ‘wash all of the baby clothes in the natural scented, gold tinted baby laundry soap’, have way more of everything than I EVER needed, put the ‘no tears’ shampoo in my eyes before using it on the kids, and didn’t sleep much at all if my child was 0.3 degrees hotter than his regular basal body temperature (all the while the canned goods in my cupboards were lined up military style – labels facing forward).

But the reality is, in our imperfect broken world – things go wrong. Eyes weaken, bodies fail, bad decisions are made (even with the very best and most honourable intentions), families break, and hurt people hurt people.

be kind

As I sat in the ophthalmologist’s room picturing the possibility of a second eye operation, I was comforted by the fact that this is life, and we are all working through different things. We may not all wear the badges on our blazers or show the depth of the scars but to pretend this stuff is not happening and that we’re always alright is just ignorant, hurtful and even harmful. Being an idealist I might come across as one of those ignorant ones, but I’m not… I am hopeful.

brokenn crayons still colour

This quote is so great –

Vulnerable quote

I’m hopeful. I believe in a God who heals, who changes, who restores and even if not – I’m hopeful because he is God. And we’re a part of a bigger story, and what we’re struggling with now, does not define us or determine who we are.

And because he makes beautiful things, out of us (thanks Gungor).

Celebrating Soil Day with Soil for Life

December 8, 2015Agricare, composting, educating, garden, Organic, soil for life, South Africa, sustain, sustainableDebbie

Did you know that the 5th of December was World Soil Day? Well the team at Soil for Life did, and there was some serious celebrating!

If you’ve never been there – you must! Soil for Life is situated on Brounger Road, off Spaanschemaat River Road, in Constantia, Cape Town.

We recently meandered Soil for Life’s beautiful organic gardens. This working garden is an ideal environment to experience the abundance of a healthy soil. We watched a compost making demonstration, toured the gardens and bought some vegetables to plant as well as rich, living compost. Yes please. Be inspired by how this pioneering non-profit uses waste and everyday items to build a beautiful, productive garden. Really – it’s quite incredible.

I was also thrilled to see the GROWbags available for sale – (profit, but also) proceeds of which go to Soil for Life, and help educate people on how to live sustainably when it comes to growing their own food. I love GROWbags. Read my blog post about them here.

My littlie, keen on getting these green goodies…

Riding the tractor. Very cool wooden sculptures…

This is Soil for Life’s mission. To teach people how to grow nutritious food at their homes, using low-cost, earth-friendly methods. They believe that everyone has the potential to grow healthy food, whether they live in a leafy suburb or an impoverished township. They run regular courses at their training centre in Constantia as well as teaching individual home food gardeners in resource-poor communities. To date Soil for Life has helped more than 1,600 people create home food gardens at their homes in Delft, Khayelitsha, Philippi and other areas on the Cape Flats.

All the profits from Soil for Life’s Open Garden is ploughed back into their development work, to help provide the training and tools that enable families to grow their own food. Green living and sustainable food sources is how we can aleviate poverty – one small step at a time.

Soil for Life’s gardens and training center is situated just off Brounger Road, (off Spaanschemaat River Road), Constantia, Cape Town (behind the Constantia Waldorf School and Peddlars).

So, pop in, get your green-finger goodies, support a good cause and then hop over the Peddlars for a drink after. Win win.

Keep updated with their goings on, on their Website, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For further information contact 021 794 4982 or email them at info@soilforlife.co.za.

HOW IMPORTANT IS SOIL?

Six Soil Facts for World Soil Day:

• Healthy soils are the basis for healthy food production.

• Soils are the foundation for vegetation which is cultivated or managed for feed, fiber, fuel and medicinal products.

• Soils support our planet’s biodiversity and they host a quarter of the total.

• Soils help to combat and adapt to climate change by playing a key role in the carbon cycle.

• Soils store and filter water, improving our resilience to floods and droughts.

• Soil is a non-renewable resource; its preservation is essential for food security and our sustainable future.

WIN with Green Goods & Agricare:

To CELEBRATE World Soil Day and to help you get the most out of your soil, Green Goods has one of the brand new Agricare Organic Booster Boxes (worth R175) to give away to one lucky reader. To enter follow this link.

GOOD LUCK!

Gorgeous DIY Pallet Christmas Tree

December 3, 2015Christmas, DIY, homemade christmas tree, pallet, woodDebbie

So one day at work, we got a Christmassy bee in our bonnet (so to speak) and started looking for some cool Christmas decor that was eco(ish) and that wasn’t typical Christmas. After a quick Google search I found myself reading the blog Redhead Can Decorate and I fell in love with this pallet idea. (Who doesn’t love a worn, rustic pallet?)

Wooden pallets are so versatile – and so beautifully textured and rough. I’m sure I’ll be posting more DIY projects about them but for now – a Christmas Tree!

A Facebook shout out resulted in picking up a free pallet from a school friend I hadn’t seen in about 10 years – BONUS! Building community… and homemade Christmas trees.

And then I got going…

I found some old beige paint and did a rough slap-on go of it. I then got hubby to scuff it down for me – he’s good like that.

I measured it (drew the shape with pencil), grabbed some nails and pinned one about every 20cm(ish) down the sides of the tree, starting at the top.

I decided on a silver and gold theme (okay fine, I pretty much copied Redhead Can Decorate, because I loved hers – gold and silver together – who would’ve thought?). And then I threw on the decoration:

– a gold foil star garland (I found tinsel too chunky and overwhelming)
– a string (or 2) of gold/silver beads
– 60 count outdoor white Christmas lights (with a battery pack) which I found at Checkers for R120
– something to pop on top – a star/angel etc. Ours is an angel we bought in Banff, Canada. Beautiful memories
– silver, gold and black Christmas balls (and paper clips).

The decor worked really well and it was easy and quick to wrap around the nails.

I started zig-zagging the lights on from the bottom so I could hide the battery pack behind the right hand corner. Then, I strung the star foil garland from nail to nail, allowing some of it to coil or curl here and there (go with your artistic gut). I hung the Christmas balls on the garland and beads with unfolded paper clips. And ta-da!!

Check that little hand trying to grab something sparky.

I’m in love with this tree! It looks even more beautiful in real life. So simple, so rustic, but also not overloaded with Christmas Kitch. Win.

(We’ve wrapped the battery pack in a ziplock and put it outside the front of the house). I hope to look back on this as something we bring out every year and that it carries many memories for my family…

Do you do anything unconventional when it comes to Christmas decorating? Tell tell!

One year on…

December 2, 2015cape town, Community, family, friends, memories, parenting, South Africa, VancouverDebbie

And so here we are. Today, we are 1 year back in South Africa. And we’re a bit more worn, a bit more tanned, a year older (and hopefully wiser), and reflecting on what a wildly immeasurably beautiful 4.5 year stint in Vancouver did to us, and who we are today.

I’m an idealist. I grew up in one beautiful, warm, safe and happy house (which coincidentally, my husband I are about to buy from my parents and where we hope to raise our kids). Growing up, my friends, church and school were all around the corner. Life was happy, simple, neat and tidy.

And then I met my now husband and traveled with him, moved to Durban, traveled more and then took the big leap to Vancouver. Life got a bit messier.

Neat and tidy and messy were all good. But as I’ve grown, I’ve had to tone down on the idealism and accept more of the realism. I can’t commit myself to living in one house my whole life (which is only 1 of the things I naturally expected to happen).

I think that’s one of the deepest lessons I’ve learnt. Life is messy and not straight forward. It can be hard, raw, challenging, joyful, beautiful, mysterious, and unknown, and often (always?) out of our control. Admitting that is hard for me. I like control. And so, if I have learnt ONE lesson over the last year it’s this – while life is beautiful, it is not wrapped in its beautiful perfectly square box, with crisp neat corners, its Pinterest style (as much as I LOVE Pinterest) paper with its ribbons and raffia. We might move, we might stay, we might travel, we might change. We roll with the punches. And I’ve learnt that there is a very beautiful depth to the mess. And often, we NEED the mess to keep us real.

But even more pressing is my other HUGE life mantra: experience trumps stuff. EXPERIENCE TRUMPS STUFF. No question. Hands down.

So here they are… MY OBSERVATIONS… 1 year on.

In South Africa there are so many good people doing so many good things.

It is harder to stay green.

It is easy and important to be growing your own food. I can’t wait to get chickens.

Traffic is hectic.

Coffee is better than it was 5 years ago.

The mountain is extraordinary. Life here is in full colour.

There is no place like home.

Crime is real, and it makes me concerned.

People don’t change, are loving, caring and look out for each other.

Conversations with strangers are easy.

It is been hard hard hard HARD to find a church after our experience at Regent and Artisan.

I feel really, really privileged to have had my kids in Canada.

Don’t underestimate education.

I love how car guards interact with the boys and help them out of the trolley and into the car.

Runners/cyclists greet each other and encourage each other on the roads which is awesome. It’s not safe to run alone at night, which sucks. But running with old friends (my Natalie) is life giving.

People are generous.

Our government is abominable. Parliament is hard to watch at times.

My kids play in mud, feed farm animals and get messy and barely ever ever ever wear shoes.

Internet and free wifi is scarce (and slow).

HEROES are born and raised here.

EXPERIENCES trump things hands down.

I LOVED Christmas in the snow.

Time and space between true brotherly and sisterly friends really doesn’t change all that much.

Watching your children play with their cousins is a gift.

We have amazing sports teams.

I have more of a hunger to see and do more (when my allergy towards all airports calms down – travelling for 6 weeks with two small children halfway across the world is still exhausting to think about).

Seemingly small things, can make BIG change.

Despite loving news and sport, I have no real interest in having a TV.

Community (be it local or international) is invaluable.

***

And now since my husband Theran and I are so different (really, sometimes I wonder how we actually got married…), I thought I’d include his:

Education gives you new eyes and ears for the world. You cannot quantify its value.

White people in Cape Town need to catch a wake up. White privilege is not an attack on white people, its a reality needing attention.

The mountain is different every day.

You can’t over emphasize the value of friendship – whether like minded friends around the world or lifelong friends who share your story.

Don’t let 5 years of tax returns build up while you are away.

Seeing your children with their grandparents, cousins, and aunts and uncles is worth so much more than the alluring pull of the ‘first world’.

Work can take more than it’s ‘pound of flesh’ from you – you can quickly find yourself consumed by obligations to an employer, whether valid or unrealistic demands, and end up sacrificing important things you shouldn’t.

Young children grow and change every day.

Family stress and tension causes more anxiety than work tension.

A swimming pool is a waste of space and money (really Theran?).

Dentists don’t do unnecessary work on your teeth (well ours doesn’t).

***

I’m sure there are many, many more lessons we’ve learnt which we can’t articulate quite yet… but needless to say, it’s GOOD to be back. Familiarity is a GOOD and comforting thing. Moving to Vancouver for almost 5 years was by far the best thing we have ever done (besides the obvious God, kids, marriage decisions) and I hope we’re brave enough to make more big decisions when they come our way.

Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika

Easy-Peasy Homemade Chicken Stock

November 30, 2015chicken stock, DIY, family recipes, food, health, homemade, Paleo, Whole30Debbie

When we first did Paleo (Whole30) back when I was pregnant with #2, we stuck to the rules military-style, and that included no chemicals in any-thing. So we had to make our own stock. What?

Making your own stock is awesome, super rewarding and easy-peasy. And it is delicious. In fact, after we learnt about it we stopped buying boneless, skinless chicken breasts so we had extra bones to use, and by doing so, saved some money at the same time (boneless meat is often more expensive).

So here’s how you do it:

Cook a roast chicken. This is my go-to recipe and I love love love it. It’s a throw-together rustic version of a roast chicken. Invite some friends over, and enjoy your dinner with some good wine and laughter. Pick as much meat off the carcass as you can, gobble it all up or save whatever you have left over for chicken mayo toasties, salad toppings etc.

Then take the carcass and pop it in a pot and pour about 3L-4L of water over it. Now you get creative… Was there a mushy lemon in the carcass cavity? Throw that in the water. Cut up a couple carrots, an onion or two, a couple sticks of celery, salt, pepper and some herbs (bay leaves, parsley, thyme etc.) from your garden. Basically any veggies (flavours) you have lying around, chuck them in.

Bring it to the boil for around 20min. Then (my favourite bit), pop it in your Wonderbag. Overnight. At end of cooking time, open bag, check temperature immediately to be certain stock measures 60° C/140° F or higher. Strain the liquid through a sieve and throw the veggie bits in your compost. For maximum flavor use the back of large spoon to press as much liquid as possible from meat, bones and veggies. Add additional salt and pepper to taste and pop your delicious flavoursome liquid it in the freezer. Done!

(If you don’t have a Wonderbag, you can let it simmer gently for around 30min. Check on it and then turn it down and let it cook on low for another hour or so – just don’t forget about it).

Chemical, MSG, nonsense-free stock. Yum.

Picture Credit: everydaygoodthinking.com

Your Gift Guide for a Green Christmas

November 26, 2015Christmas, gifting, giving, Green Gift Guide, holidays, homemade, LocalDebbie

Ahhhhhh! PANIC. It is 4 weeks until Christmas. In a moment of spontaneous and wild personal challenge, I imagined myself making ALL of my family’s Christmas presents this year. Be it bake, DIY, grow (plants) or create. I’m still (very) hesitant to commit to that, and if I’m honest, it’s a rather ridiculous ask, so should I go the store bought route (as I’m typing this I know I’m headed down that road, let’s be honest) I thought I’d put together a gift guide for a Green Christmas.

First prize: I LOVE the idea of homemade Christmas presents. Besides following the idea of minimalism and collecting/giving away less ‘stuff’ and needless clutter, it is thoughtful, intentional, meaningful and can cost you less than rushing out in a panic and spending WAY more than what you imagined. Also, you can avoid the malls. WIN.

You can go wild making homemade edibles such as jams, biscuits, chutneys, salsa or jars of cookie dough premix. Then you could always get creative with things such as face scrubs, Christmas ornaments, a reusable heat pack, bath fizzies, homemade Christmas stockings and and and. Honestly, Pinterest has an overwhelmingly intimidating array of ideas.

But, should you not be Martha Stewart or feel your hand is happier holding that shiny credit card, here are a few green gift ideas for you to browse… from the light green to the dark green – feast your eyes on these beauties.

Hold up! I must emphasise and encourage something. Can we mix it up a little this Christmas and think about where we are shopping and where our money is going? How about this year you put more thought into buying local, be it from a market, a neighbour or even an online store.

I love this quote:

“When you buy from a small business, you’re not helping a CEO buy a third vacation home. You are helping a little girl get dance lessons, a little boy get his team jersey, a mom put food on the table, a dad pay his mortgage or a student pay for college.”

Isn’t that so true?

And now that you’ve been suitably inspired – let’s shop!

STOCKING STUFFERS!

My parents always filled my stocking with necessary things for the upcoming year, my favorite being a small pink calculator I received when I was about 8. How I loved that thing. So in keeping with that tradition, here are some of my favourite fairly innexpensive, everyday goodies. (I’ve already purchased my entire family new toothbrushes for the upcoming year).

Green Lite Eco Fire Lighters – R21
The Environmental Toothbrush (adult or child) – R39
SOiL Organic Relax/Revive/Relief Remedy Roller – R34
oh-lief Natural Lip Balm (Grapefruit)
Pure Simple Castile Soap – R29.50

WOMEN:

Africa Organics Baobab Clay Wash – R46
Africa Organics Kalahari Melon Body Wash (200ml) – R42
SOiL Organic Relax/Revive/Relief Remedy Roller – R34
oh-lief Roman Chamomile Body Lotion (200ml) – R145
oh-lief Natural Lip Balm (Grapefruit)
oh-lief Roman Chamomile Natural Hand Lotion
The Victorian Garden Watermelon & Cucumber Eye Makeup Remover (100ml) – R69.

MEN:

Pure Beginnings Shave Crème (150ml) – R74,
Beaucience Facial Wash – R60,
Green Lite Eco Fire Lighters – R21,
The Environmental Toothbrush (adult or child) – R39,
Beaucience Facial Scrub – R70,
Pure Simple Shaving Soap – R29.50.

BABIES & KIDS:

Pure Beginnings Kids Hygiene Hand Wash – R59.50
GreenKid Toddler Sippy – R149
Pure Beginnings Soothing Baby Lotion – R73
GreenKid Glass Baby Bottle – R139
oh-lief Baby Gift Set – R185
Soywax Happy Crayons – R98
The Environmental Toothbrush (child) – R39
GreenKid Silicon Sleeve (for Glass Bottle) – R59

Then, there are always other gorgeous brands I love which have a stunning range of perfect Christmas gifts. Such as SOiL Essential Oils,(R45 up) – GROWbags (R195 – R305), and the good old Wonderbag (R195 – R320).

While writing and sending cards can be a timely and tedious task, it is so thoughtfully and sincerely enjoyed by more and more people in our techno-savvy and disconnected world. Remember the good old days when your family received heaps of cards at Christmas time? Why not bring the tradition back and write to those you love? Send it snail mail with a good old stamp (remember those?)

And that’s about it. Shopping done! I aim to please…

Have a very merry Christmas friends,
xxx

Picture credit: Anyone Can Decorate Blog

A Weekend of Silence (and howling wind)

November 23, 2015Bainskloof, family, getting away, parenting, quiet, silence, thoughtfulnessDebbie

My hubby’s family have a cottage up in Bainskloof. My hub used to hitch hike up there as a teen during school holidays with his mates and stay there for weeks, braai’ing every meal. They used to sleep outside under the stars and swim in the mountain river all day. Bliss.

It’s rustic. ‘One step up from camping’ as we describe it. The kitchen is a rondavel shape and smells like gas. The rooms have well worn couches, bookshelves packed with old books (and dust), paint peeling off the walls and everything is a different shade of white. The cottage itself is like an old well-loved family member, holding many beautiful memories and a quiet space when you desperately need an escape. And it sleeps about 8 people.

So here we are. Just us 4. Catching a break from real life.

HERE’S MY DIARY

Friday: General anticipated morning chaos, and school drop off. I do my regular rush-in-and-out-of-work followed by the midday pick up routine. Then home to pack EVERY-THING. Food (3 huge bags), kids clothes, our clothes, bedding, toys, books, bikes and balls. Nappies, wipes, wine, chocolate, towels, toilet paper and black bags. After packing the car Tetris-style I threw the kids amongst it all, gave them packets of promised popcorn and off we went to pick up Daddy. Yes. So far it’s all me. SUPERMOM.

We picked dad up from work, detoured past Nandos for dinner in Bellville, and onward we drove to Bainskloof, arriving at sunset. Hubby unpacked everything (his turn to play SUPER-PARENT) while the kids ran around shouting ‘Bainskloooof, Bainskloooof’. Out came the Milo, marshmallows and Oreos. I know. Hubby was going a little sugar crazy – even for me.

8pm, and I’m ready for bed. Daddy is on story time and teeth brushing and all I can hear is the wind whistling. And the fridge humming. And crickets. I texted the family to see if anyone wanted to join us for a braai the following day. Because we love people, and things seemed awfully quiet.

Holiday had begun. And at 8:16pm with scattered wifi, no tv, series or movies, no washing to be folded, no dishes to be done, and no admin to be resolved I’m feeling a liiiitle uneasy. So I made myself useful and went inside to see how the kids were doing (not having confined bed spaces) aaaaand they were far too awake for my liking. I nursed our youngest to sleep, and convinced our toddler he didn’t need to bring his keyboard to bed. I think I’m a person who likes jobs. But then I get grumpy when I’m forced to do them.

With 4 of us in a double bed I slept TERRIBLY. Hubby slept TERRIBLY. We all woke up grumpy (I think because we had been anticipating a long, quiet, out-of-the-city sleep). That didn’t happen.

Saturday: After a silent battle of Who-Would-Get-Up-First, hubby caved. I think it was because I’d done 90% of Bainskloof holiday planning and prep thus far. Good on him. Pancakes and coffee for breakfast.

Wind still loud. Like white noise, the background theme track to our little holiday.

We took a family walk to the river. An exercise in slowing down, simply from being outside but also from allowing the kids to set the pace (and direction). My darn iPhone has such a good camera it’s hard to leave it behind so the technology came with to capture the memories (aaargggg, will I ever get to a point where the memories are captured in my mind and not on my phone?). Last time we were here our youngest was still crawling. Time flies (when you’re too busy).

Stumbling along the path and throwing rocks into the river were the highlights of the walk. Simple joys, and adventure. No plastic toys or flashing lights or carnival type music.

Braai for lunch, some bike riding, some ball kicking, and more wind.

We tag-teamed naps (as you do with two small kids). Around 5pm, both kids weirdly descended into sleep – unprompted. The wind, was now HOWLING. We had warned any family thinking of joining us that the conditions weren’t ideal and that they might be better off staying home. And here’s where it got interesting. We were bored. Partly due to the lack of game packing (not on my checklist, argh) and partly due the fact that my hubby doesn’t love games, but mainly due to the howling gale force winds surrounding us and them spoiling our fun of sunset viewing and sitting around the fire with a glass of red. We sheltered ourselves in the kitchen sort of amazed at our lack of enthusiasm for, well, anything.

It struck me. How do we find a balance between the manic hustle and bustle of life (physically, but more mentally) and then sitting still? And finding joy, fulfillment and satisfaction in the quiet open spaces?

Clearly hubby and I were at a bit of a loss to the answer. The two extremes were jarring.

So, we read books and magazines (a rarity), listened to the wind and cooked food and drank wine. It morphed into chatting, and more chatting and a competition began as to who could make the best microwaved s’more (since there was no fire). Maybe that, in and of itself was helping us find the answer.

Sunday: Hubby was over the wind so we got up, made egg, bacon & cheese quesadillas, packed up, cleaned up and hit the road.

I found the packing and cleaning quite therapeutic. Maybe because it was unpressurized and not urgent, it felt almost respectful of the space. Maybe because I didn’t resent doing it, like I do with so much ‘picking up’ that comes with having kids. Maybe it was because we’d finally kicked into holiday mode good and proper – mere minutes from departure.

As we drove down the mountain, immediately the wind calmed. Typical. It was peaceful and warm and quiet. That morning we’d felt a little anxious to get moving because of the unpleasant wind, but once it had calmed, we were almost magnetically opposed to arriving home. We love home, but home meant lunch boxes needing to be filled and washing needing to be hung up and meals needing to be cooked and kids needing to moan about something. It meant sorting and tidying and cleaning and wishing we were not doing any of the above.

So we took a slow drive home and stopped at The Hollow Tree in Durbanville for a snacky lunch (chili poppers) and for the kids to play. And then we went home.

And just like that, we clicked back into normal life. That strange pace of life we encourage and feel important in, and discourage and feel overwhelmed in, at the same time. And then I saw this: a picture I’d taken of tiny slippers for tiny feet I adore with everything in me and knew we needed this more. We needed to spend hours packing the car, we needed to embrace the chaos of the trip, the grocery shopping, the overwhelming to-do lists, and maybe even that howling wind – to slow this (speed-of-light pace of the growth of our kids) down. To slow us all down.

Because next time we get away… I bet those little slippers wont be fitting anyone’s feet anymore.

Why You Should Try A Natural Sunscreen This Summer

November 20, 2015health, Natural Lab, natural skincare, natural sunscreen, oh-lief, skin protection, suncreamDebbie

I’ve been thinking a lot recently about natural sunscreen. Even though I have found a ‘better’ sunscreen for my kids, I still cringe (a little) at what I’m smothering on their skin each morning before school. Because I don’t feel I know enough about it.

Sunscreen is a tricky one. I don’t feel comfortable making my own, and I don’t want to NOT use it, but I don’t just want to layer it onto my kids’ super awesome and absorbent skin either. Ermmm… quandary. If I’m honest with you, I don’t put it on my kids more than I do (don’t judge). We all know Vitamin D in its purest form (sun) is really good for us, BUT ALWAYS within SAFE limits.

So, I did my research – and here it is. Are you ready? Time to switch your brain on…

Wellness Mama says: “Of the 1,400+ sunscreens tested by the Environmental Working Group, only 5% met their safety standards and over 40% were listed as potentially contributing to skin cancer.

I (Wellness Mama) explain the reason that sunscreen may actually lead to skin cancer in this post, but one of the reasons is that a Vitamin A derivative, retinyl palmitate, that is often used in sunscreens was shown to speed up the growth of cancerous cells by 21%.

Many sunscreens also contain methylisothiazolinone, which the American Contact Dermatitis Society named as its “allergen of the year”.

She then goes on to say..

Most sunscreens completely block the body’s ability to manufacture Vitamin D. Statistically, 75% of us are deficient in Vitamin D and Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to higher risk of cancer and heart disease.

We might literally be cutting off our noses to spite our faces when it comes to sun exposure. We lather up with chemical sunscreens that have the potential to greatly increase skin cancer risk and reduce Vitamin D production in the name of avoiding skin cancer, and increase our risk of more widespread diseases related to Vitamin D deficiency.”

This was what I was wresting with, maybe because in Vancouver, we used to have to give our kids a drop of Vitamin D every day – which seemed crazy to me coming from sunny South Africa. They used to encourage us to get our kids naked and put them in direct sunlight for 20 min a day. Of course, this is all relative to where you live, your weather and state of the ozone layer above you.

But, DON’T PANIC. There are solutions to this (potentially terrifying) information: NATURAL SUNSCREEN.

I found interesting information on Natural Lab’s Blog and have added some thoughts from Wellness Mama’s blog post on the (controversial) topic. And they have sort of put my thoughts on paper (screen) for me… (my additions in italics).

Here are the benefits of a natural sunscreen:

1. They contain no parabens. Parabens are the most widely used preservatives in personal care products. They stop fungus, bacteria and other microbes from growing in your products. Their names are a mouthful – methylparaben, ethylparaben, propylparaben, butylparaben and isobutylparaben. Scientists have been debating for the last few years whether these chemicals are harmful to our health and are linked to cancer due to their ability to mimic estrogen. Research is not conclusive, however we would rather not take the chance.

2. They contain no artificial fragrance. It is estimated that the majority of synthetic fragrances on the market today are derived from petroleum by-products. A trademarked scent is protected by the law as a “trade secret”. These types of protected fragrances are not required to list the concoction of chemicals on the product label. They are only required to list the term “fragrance” or “parfum” with the list of allergens. The chemicals that are often used to formulate these fragrances can be toxic to the body over time as well as cause allergic reactions. Completely natural sunscreens use natural fragrances such as essential oils which do not contain these harmful chemicals. (I’ve always been wary of perfumes, scents or fragrances on my kids from a very early age; my first born had a severe reaction to them. Almost everything we use is scent free OR it only contains pure essential oils.)

3. They contain no Chemical UV blockers. This gets a bit technical. (This is copied and pasted from the blog article!) Sunscreens can protect your skin using PHYSICAL (mineral) barriers or CHEMICAL barriers. Natural sunscreens use physical barriers, these are metals out of the ground such as Zinc Oxide and Titanium Dioxide which reflect or scatter the suns’ rays. These are safer to use than chemical barriers provided they are non-nano (particle size not too small which could potentially make its way into the blood stream). Chemical barriers are ingredients such as octocrylene, octyl methoxycinnamate, benzophenone-3 (oxybenzone) and benzophenone-4. These are very useful ingredients as they have the ability to absorb UV light very well, and protect your skin from UVA rays. However they also have a potential negative effect (not founded, we are saying “potential”). When a molecule of one of the above mentioned chemical UV blockers absorbs a UV photon (a quantum of UV light), it becomes excited (energised). However the sunblock molecule does not stay excited forever. Eventually it releases the absorbed energy by emitting lower energy protons and interacting with other molecules. These secondary effects often lead to the formation of harmful chemical byproducts, particularly free radicals. If this occurs inside the skin (i.e the molecule has penetrated the skin before absorbing UV photon) the free radicals (and possibly other secondary effects) may potentially cause skin damage, irritation, skin ageing and, some believe, increase the risk of cancer. Again, this is inconclusive, however we are led to believe that there is a risk of this happening based on various studies that have been performed.

4. Chemical UV blockers may alter hormones and impair male fertility. Well that sounds awful. We’ll let you decide how grounded the research is based on the 501 couples they studied over a 4 year period. Read this article.

Wellness Mama agrees saying:

“This new research by the EWG (Environmental Working Group) reveals that the chemicals commonly used in sunscreen are endocrine disruptors, estrogenic and may interfere with thyroid and other hormone processes in the body.

The most common sunscreen chemical, Oxybenzone, was found in 96% of the population by a recent study by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. This is especially alarming since oxybenzone is considered an endocrine disruptor, can reduce sperm count in men and may contribute to endometriosis in women.”

5. Natural Sunscreens are often rich in antioxidants. Antioxidants can offer skin health benefits and are touted to reduce oxidative stress by neutralising free radicals when the skin is exposed to UV light.

Here are some natural sunscreens available in South African Health Stores which we recommend you try:

Conclusion:

It is important to be responsible with sun exposure, but many sunscreens offer a false security of sun protection and may do more harm than good.

The safest option is covering up and supporting skin health internally and externally. Mineral sunscreens (without nano particles or sunscreen chemicals) are a good option, but for the most part, spray and chemical sunscreens should be avoided (Consumer Reports warns that spray sunscreens should not be used on children and that adults should exercise caution and make sure not to use on the face or inhale them, as convenient as they are…)

More and more natural mineral sunscreens are on the market now, so please consider choosing safer sunscreens for your family!

Picture credit: www.kinooze.com, oh-lief, www.goddessgarden.com.