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Sunday, July 17, 2011

Blog Summer Event July 18th~!

I am feeling a bit lousy tonight but here are the last couple posts of "Summer Events" anyways. It is the last day of the 2011 Stampede, "The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth"- actually I  don't have the pictures I needed that my friend had from Stampede to add anymore to my blog, so I guess I can post it when I get it.

D.I.Y. Beauty

Summer Detox

Since, I caught a cold, and I have been feeling pretty lazy and achy from it, I thought a summer do-it-yourself detox drink would be beneficial.  Detoxing our bodies helps to get rid of toxins and unwanted waste.  After this you may feel more healthy and it can help your skin not to look as dull.  Here it is:  Honey & Lemon Detox

I had actually done a green tea facial mask too, so it felt like a mini spa day of detox. It all helped me to feel better when sick.  Anyways, you can use a store bought green tea mask- but why- when there are a lot of "other" ingredients in those and when you probably have the ingredients on hand to make it yourself!

Michelle Phan  shows you how to make a refreshing green tea & avocado facial mask recipe!  Come back after :)




Summer Recipe of the Week 

Salad Season is packed with Protein and No Cholesterol!  I found it in Sobey's calendar cookbook:
Grilled Orange with Quinoa & Almond Salad

Grilled Oranges with Quinoa & Almond Salad

Preparation Time: 10 minutes Total Time: 25 minutes, Serves: 4 Per Serving (1/4 of the recipe): 180 calories,7 grams of protein, 4.5 grams total fat (0.4 gram saturated fat), 0 milligrams of cholesterol, 28 grams carbohydrates, 4 grams fibre, 6 grams sugars, 170 milligram sodium

Shopping List:

1 cup(250 ml) quinoa
1 cup (250 ml) of water
1 cup (250 ml) of Low Sodium Chicken Broth
1 navel oranges, preferably organic
1 tbsp. (15 ml) chopped red onion
1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) ground cumin
1/4 cup (60 ml) sliced Natural Almonds, lightly toasted
and chopped
8 finely chopped Organic Mint Leaves

Heat Barbecue to high.  Rinse 1 cup (250 ml) quinoa and cook according to package directions using 1 cup (250 ml) water and chicken broth, preferably low sodium chicken broth.

Peel 1 navel orange, then slice it crosswise into 1/2 inch (1 cm.)  rounds.  Cut another unpeeled navel orange in half crosswise.  Grill all oranges just until grill marks appear, about 2 minutes per side.  In a large bowl, combine quinoa, 1 tablespoon (15 ml) finely chopped red onion, 1/2 teaspoon (2 ml) ground cumin and 1/4 cup (60 ml) of sliced natural almonds, that you lightly toast and coarsely chop.

Squeeze juice from the orange halves over the salad and add 8 finely chopped fresh
organic mint leaves.   Mix well.  Place grilled orange rounds on top of salad.


Serve warm or at room temperature and Bon appetite!

Better Body Time

Walk Your Way There~!

A good thing to do to get better body results is go for walks.  I often start doing more of this in the spring and summer, and it helps me to maintain energy and feel better.  I can do more vigorous walks or jogs once I have went for a couple opening walks of the season.  The many benefits of walking are things like reducing cancers and all diseases.  Then the dramatic physical and health benefits in as little as 6 weeks is awesome too! Start walking boots. :)

The benefits of walking are discussed here on about.com and there is lots of information out there.  I really wanted to recommend this as part of your exercise routine, as it's enjoyable and fun too!Check it out:

Health Benefits of Walking



Fresh Summer Drinks

Neo Citron is making me feel better too but this drink might be refreshing right about now.  I hope this one hits the spot for me later this summer when I can enjoy it!

Cherry Punch

Shopping List:

1 ounce cherry vodka
1 ounce triple sec
Splash of Rose's
Grenadine
Splash of Cranberry Juice
Garnish; A fresh cherry

Shake together all the ingredients but cranberry juice with ice.  Pour into glass and top with cranberry
juice.  Garnish with cherry.
-Created by: Brooke Isaacson, Club ONE, Baltimore.




Bonus Topic: Pet Corner Talk




Does your pet have bad breath and find it's worse in the summer when it's hot.  Well here's a little summer refreshing product to help them with that!  Minty mouths for all our pets!

First, I make my cat organic pet toothpaste although it's hard to get him to like brushing teeth time.  I steep organic mint leaves with hot boiled water in a tea pot.  Then I did literally eyeball all of the amounts quite honestly, but it turns out after a couple tweaks to the mix.  Sometimes, it may be too minty but it's all natural and organic, and I feel the minty leaves can do no harm and if nothing else is providing the cat with nutrients and greens to eat.

After it's cooled down, I put the leaves and the green mint water juice in a airtight container and I put
this in the fridge to keep or even freeze in smaller individual portions.  Then you can thaw, as you require.   I use this to brush the front and back of Kiki's teeth with a sterile toothbrush, and it doesn't matter if he gets some greens in his mouth too.  I didn't ever add baking soda yet.  This might scare him with the taste but I am not sure.

Here's another version with baking soda:
Natural Homemade Cat Toothpaste

The product that helps out for my cat is the oral hygiene solution called "Slurp 'N' Fresh".  It came in a 250 ml ( 8 fl.ounce) plastic bottle at Wal-Mart for around $7 or $8 dollars, not over $10.  Anyways, it helps eliminate bad breath and reduces plaque and tartar build-up in a pets mouth.  I just follow the instructions of adding it to fresh water in my cat's bowl.  1 Capful to every 700 ml (24 fl. oz.) is recommended.  Kiki did have some bad teeth anyways due to he was old and I never let me brush his teeth well. If I did try to get in his mouth with the toothbrush he would either claw me or scramble to get away if he seen it, or his teeth bled a couple times just from starting to brush.  It had me worried and after he had a bout of diabetes which we sent into remission, he now has to eat wet food

"Slurp'N'Fresh" is formulated to also protect your pet's natural oral environment and is part of a regular oral care regime for your pets. It is prescribed by veterinarians.  Also, I use  pet teeth wipes on Kiki, which were at Wal-Mart.

Last are the "Dentabites" complete oral care treats that I feed  him.  These are made by Whiskas brand and they help remove plaque and tartar build up as well.  They also contain Chlorophyll.  He loves those but I cannot give him too many, and he always wants more of them.  A pack of the Tasty Chicken Flavour Dentabites for about $1.50 when they go on sale is a good price.

In combination, all these products improve Kiki's oral health and he always loved his catnip as well.
I suggest if you cannot manage to keep up on your cat's teeth brushing and his oral health is poor, then there are also supplements out there such as "Slurp'N'Fresh" or other supplements and gels you  can look up.  A lot can be purchased at your local pet supply stores.


Bonus Topic: Movie Review

I recently watched the movie "Unstoppable".  It starred Denzel Washington, Rosario Dawson and more great cast.  I thought it was suspenseful as Denzel and his partner have to try to stop a rogue train that got away.  It is carrying dangerous and hazardous chemical tankersIt had a lot of action and great character sketches.  I like it and thought it was very touching, I liked it a lot actually.  I give this movie a 8 or 9 out of 10! Great movie to watch on a long summer's night.

Well folks, I hate to say but there are no extra, extra bonus topics as I need some rest.  If anyone else is sick with a cold right now, get well soon! Have a great week!