Tag Archives: winter

How to be an awesome human this winter

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One of my least favourite days of the month, is the day I (okay fine, hubby and I) get that bill from the City of Cape Town telling me how much we’ve spent on ‘living’. Oh rates and taxes, water, electricity and garbage disposal. You cost me a small fortune.

If you’re living in Cape Town (like I am), surely you’ve already whittled down your water useage. But now that we’re mid winter and it’s FREEZING, is it possible to save money on electricity as well? Well of course it is!

Obviously, it’s not all about saving money – it’s about considering our (often unknown and unintentional) abuse of our environment. Here are a couple ideas, to make your home more cost-efficient and eco-aware this winter.

Use existing insulation

As soon as the sun begins setting, close curtains and blinds to keep warmth inside your bedrooms and living spaces. It will mean your interior stays warmer for longer and you’ll only have to switch on heaters if it is essential. Or install a fireplace… (bucket list!)

Replace and switch off

Replace all light bulbs with LED. Turn off lights, plugs and especially electric blankets and heaters when not using them. Just these few things can reduce your home’s electricity consumption by 15%. Last night I woke up to my scale beeping (weird, I know) and saw hubby’s side of our electric blanket was still on. He got a scathing reprimand at midnight.

Fill it up

Run full loads in your washing machine or dishwasher. And use the eco/short cycles.

Off at the wall

What sits on standby? TV/Wifi/chargers etc. By turning off appliances or electronics which sit on standby for hours on end, you can save up to 6% of your electric bill.

Lose 1 degree

While going solar is the gold-star goal, turning your geyser down by 1 degree and switching it off during the middle of the day can really make a difference. This can provide estimated savings of around R100 a week. We recently bought a geyser blanket but are interested in installing a timer too.

Consider buying a Spindel

As a family of 5, we can’t live without our tumble dryer. I cringe every time we put it on, because I feel like it takes foreverrrrr to dry our clothes and the electricity it uses is nausea-worthy. My recommendation: only wash what is in desperate need of a wash, and investigate using a Spindel (esp if your washing machine is not a super fancy pants one – which ours is not).

If you’ve never heard of it before – a Spindel is an innovative dryer that uses spin power instead of heat to remove up to 80% of the leftover moisture from clothes. On average – one load in a spindel draws out around 1 cup of water from my washing (and it takes only 3 min to do so!). If I need to pop my clothes in the tumble drier, it takes a fraction of the time to dry completely, after being ‘spindeled’. A Spindel saves TONS of time and electricity.

Inspired? What else do you to save money, electricity and the environment? I’d love to know.

Happy end of winter all xxx

Keeping bugs away, Pure Beginnings’ way

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We were recently up in Durbs doing some work and visiting friends and our little gorgeous terrors were their usual gorgeous terror selves. One afternoon we went to see our friends’ beautiful new home and our eldest needed the bathroom. (Why is it, that they still need to tell us each time they go?) Anyways, so I pointed out the bathroom feeling quite chuffed he was old enough to go through the routine of ‘lift seat, pull down pants, aim well, flush toilet, wash hands… aaaaand you’re done’ all by himself. It’s the small things guys, the small things.

Next minute I hear some strange wailing from the bathroom. I pop my head in and my littlie is balancing his (fortunately dressed) bum on the basin edge, tears streaming down his cheeks and his facial expression matching that of a deer in the headlights. “Sohhh-ryyyy, sohhh- ryyy” coming from his mouth, I look to the floor and there lay a smashed ceramic liquid soap dispenser with liquid soap spilling all over the tiles. My poor child, so obedient on the post-pee hand washing, had struggled with the pump and it had caused the whole bottle to slide off the counter and smash on the floor. Oh man, it was a little heart-breaking. Shame, it turns out it was a tricky one to use and needed replacing – or so our wonderfully forgiving friends said.

I was quite proud though, that my almost-4-year-old had taken the hand-washing so seriously. Fighting what felt like a plague of bugs pre-Durbs, I was going overboard with juicing my fave health booster juice (orange, carrot and ginger) and dealing with snotty noses, coughs and general gross-ness, I had almost forgotten about the importance of hand washing…

I stand with the whole ‘don’t over sanitise’ tribe, and love dirt and mud and getting messy. But I absolutely believe in washing ones hands as well. Kids need to be exposed to all sorts of things, and while I don’t believe in extreme hospital hygiene measures at home, I do recommend a healthy hand washing routine, especially after the toilet, and most certainly during winter.

Kids hygiene hand wash

And that’s why I love Pure Beginnings’ Hygiene Hand Wash. It:

  • is anti-bacterial*, and protects against the spread of germs (*laboratory tested to kill over 99.9% of bacteria in accordance with SABS standard SANS 5261),
  • is free of triclosan and other harmful chemical ingredients,
  • contains Organic Rooibos Leaf Extract – rich in anti-oxidants,
  • has powerful soothing and healing properties,
  • and then it’s just super cute and looks great in any bathroom (and with the EcoCert certified plastic packaging, it won’t smash).

All round this is a win win! My kids think it is adorable, it keeps them bug free, and it has no nonsense in it. No ‘nasties‘ as they like to call it – no parabens, phalates, sulfates, petrochemicals or formaldehyde, among others.

Next time you hit up your local grocery store for your new liquid soap, have a little rethink about what is in it, what it then on your hands, and what you do and touch every day. Ermmm… safe to say, I think you’ll want to wash hands the Pure Beginnings way.

Carrot, Ginger and Orange Juice

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Both my kids are snotty. It’s that horrible fine (blurry) line between sending them to school with a bit of snot and the occasional cough (and pleading ignorance – come on parents, you all know what I’m talking about) and keeping them home (read: ex-haus-ting) and rearranging my work schedule.  Arghhhh…

I’m not a regular pill popper when it comes to my kids, but I’m also not Georg Von Trapp and do offer them meds should they need them. But my first port of call is always going natural. So yesterday we had a juice-making-marathon making carrot, ginger and orange juice. It is very cute when I add too much ginger and my 2 year old calls it ‘th-py-thy’ (spicy).

Recipe: Not a tough one guys – carrots, ginger and orange (skin peeled off!).

orange, ginger and carrot juice 2

Yesterday I also added some left over papaya and a tiny knob of pineapple (it was about to be tossed – one the best thing about a juicer is that you can use almost-off stuff and not be grossed out). If you need to sweeten it (reduce the th-py-thy-ness), apples can be added, and I had some half cut lemons that I tossed in too. I poured it in a mason jar and kept it in the fridge and the whole family had a health boost.

Take those remains and toss them in your compost or use them to make bokashi bran.

I also popped some of the juice into my Zoku-maker and made ‘ice creams’ for the kids. What a win. They are such innocent little beings, and so stoked to have ice creams as part of their dinner. Shame.

Keep warm, healthy and safe this winter.

Picture credit: www.createnourishlove.com

 

DIY Reusable Rice Heat Pack

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It’s winter and we have Eskom running the show. So, I’m loathed to spend any more money on electricity and at times my human hot water bottle (who, every night I’m thankful for) is not enough. I’ve never loved rubbery hot water bottles and (call me crazy) I’m a little nervous of electric blankets. Also, well I’m just not 100% stoked with electric current under my body (ESP since I’m sure I’ll forget to turn it off and then will worry and and and).

If you’re new to the greenish world, this is the PERFECT project for you. It’s easy, cheap, and pretty darn satisfying. Making a reusable rice heat pack is a total win.

You can use heat packs in so many ways:

They keep you warm on a cold night, they’re helpful during labour, they help relieve sore muscles and even help you sleep. You can also pop this bag in the freezer to make a cold pack.

The only downside to is that you need a microwave to heat it (which I don’t looove, and isn’t very green), but hey, 2-4min in the micro is better than boiling water on repeat or hours of pumping heat into your electric blanket.

All you need:

– Scraps of cotton fabric (we used old 1000 count percale sheets that had ripped – they feel heavenly) and cotton thread.

– Rice (I bought the biggest, cheapest bag I could find since we were not eating it).

– Essential oils (optional) if you want to add a scent to your bag. Recommended scents are mint, eucalyptus, cloves or lavender (I’d suggest lavender to help encourage relaxation and sleep).

Errrr… That’s it. Easy huh?

Sew the fabric together (in a square or rectangle) leaving a gap for you to fill it with rice. Fill it around 2/3rds full, leaving enough empty space whereby you can move the rice around within the bag to form shapes and where it can hug the body. Add a couple drops of essential oils into your bag (optional) and sew it up.

Pop it in the micro for 2-4 min and throw it in your bed as you wrap up your late night TV series binge watching. If you want to go extra fancy, you can design your own fabric, add lace or make different shapes. We made mini ones for the kids that won’t maintain too much heat so they can’t burn them.

Voila! Now, get to it.

Photo credit: Fellow Fellow Blog 

Healthy Hot Chocolate

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It’s winter. Full and proper. And winter is synonymous with rain, indoor fires, wellies by day, slippers by night, thick chunky soup with toasted ciabatta, down duvets and hot chocolate and marshmallows.

I love a spoil (such as hot choc) but can’t get over the sugar laden, fake milk powdery, chemical-and-preservative-filled-nonsense-hot-choc. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that it isn’t delicious (it certainly is) but it’s not at all healthy. And since you can’t NOT have hot choc in winter – I made it my mission to find a healthier alternative.

I’m happy to report, I found 3 very good options (ranging in simplicity and preference):

1. The Red Basket Food Company’s Warm/Cold Chocolate:

This is simple: its a pre-made hot (or cold) choc powder ready to mix with warm or cold milk/water and voia la. It’s pretty decent tasting as far as a substitute goes and my 3yr old taste tester really enjoys it.

(Ingredients are: Isomalt, Cocoa (26%), Coconut Oil, MCT Oil, Sunflower Lecithin, Stevia, Xanthin Gum)

2. Superfoods Organic Cacao Powder (Raw Chocolate): MY FAVE

Superfoods have a great range of healthy healthy healthy powders, butters, seeds, berries and smoothie mixes. You can read up on the benefits of cacao powder here. The organic raw cacao powder can be mixed raw sugar (or honey) and milk to make a delicious and rich hot choc. I love the Superfoods range. Again, a real winner. I’d encourage you to sprinkle some organic cacao nibs on top on particularly cold nights.

3. Dairy-Free Mind Body Green Healthy Hot Choc (this one is a bit more higher grade – for those who are keen to give a slightly more complicated recipe a go…)

This version of hot chocolate is the perfect dairy-free alternative to the popular beverage. The recipe is full of minerals and healthy fats, including magnesium, silica, and omega-3 fatty acids. Raw cocoa, hemp hearts, Medjool dates, raw honey, vanilla powder, and cinnamon are the ingredients necessary for this recipe. You can experiment by adding other super foods such as goji berries and pre-soaked chia seeds. It is advised to start slowly until you become accustomed to these nutrient-dense foods.

Ingredients

  • 2 ½ Tbsp. of raw cocoa (you can use a melted chocolate bar if you prefer, but choose a high quality, fair-trade one with 70 to 80% cocoa and minimal added sugar)
  • 2 Tbsp hemp hearts
  • 2 Medjool dates
  • 1 Tbsp raw honey (more if you like)
  • 1 tsp coconut oil
  • 1 tsp vanilla powder
  • 1 tsp cinnamon

Preparation

Add all ingredients to your high-speed blender.
Bring 2 ½ cups of water to boil. (You can simply warm the water to the desired temperature if you prefer keeping the cocoa raw and all the enzymes intact.)
Blend and pour into your favorite cup.
Enjoy whether you’re in the midst of snow and ice or someplace warmer.

So – the moral of the story is clear. Don’t hold back. There’s no need to deny yourself this winter essential, in fact, we encourage you to dive in and go wild.

Pssssst… while on the hunt for healthy hot choc, I found this recipe for healthy CHOCOLATE and had everything in my pantry to make them – so I thought I’d add it to this post…

Directions for real, raw healthy chocolates (from Superfoods themselves) to eat alongside your real rich healthy hot choc (I mean – why not).

Ingredients

Preparation

Melt the cacao butter and coconut oil in a double boiler.
Add the melted liquid to your blender and add honey.
Slowly add the cacao powder and vanilla and blend on low speed until mixed. All ingredients can be mixed by hand if you don’t have a blender.
Pour into ice cube trays (or cupcake wrappers) and set in the fridge. 

… and don’t forget to add your homemade marshmallows. The options really are endless.

What’s your fave warm winter bevvie?

A Natural Health Kick

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Thinking back now, it is bizarre how life has led me to this point of valuing wellness in a new, more natural light.

Back in 2008, I randomly worked for a Health and Wellness company and saw some pretty incredible things. I was (and still am) completely convinced by how important healthy food and correct supplementation (if necessary) can be, along with rethinking simply jumping into medicine and how natural approaches can absolutely change lives. Not only did I see fairly sick people become well, but I saw healthy people flourish. I have the utmost respect for medical science and am constantly amazed by the breakthroughs happening in that realm, but when it comes down to what we mere non-doctors can do, I’ll opt for the natural until intelligently instructed otherwise.

So my boss back in the day had this magic potion he used to make when he started feeling sick. Recently I shared this little gem with a colleague of mine who was starting to feel under the weather and she bounced back almost instantaneously. I had forgotten how effective it could be, and now with winter upon us and new bugs coming home from play school, I’m stocking up on these 4 very simple and easy to find ingredients:

– honey (as local and natural as you can find)
– fresh garlic (crushed)
– fresh ginger (crushed, or cut up as finely)
– brandy (preferably not for kiddies)

Garlic & Ginger (foodathonindia.blogspot.com)

All you do is mix equal portions of the above together to make a paste. Yes, its gross, and yes, you will smell of garlic, and you do need to throw this towards the back of your mouth and try swallow it without gagging, but it works. I consider it a healthy dose of a natural antibiotic. Do this as often as you need to, when feeling a bit gross.

lemon hot water www.med-health.net

As far as drinks go, there’s always the good old HOT TODDY: Honey, ginger and lemon in a cup of hot water, or you can add crushed ginger to hot water for a sore throat. No brainer.

I keep all of the above at the office and at home. While I can easily consume a roll of cheery flavoured Halls lozenges in one go, it won’t do half the work that those 4 beautiful natural gifts can provide.

Wishing you a warm, safe and bug-free winter.

xxx