PeaceKeeper Cause-Metics Labor Day Sale!!

Say Goodbye To Summer In Style!

Purchase a Nail Polish Remover today and receive 15% OFF your choice of any Natural Nail Polish. Plus a FREE Eco-Sensual Lip Balm to help soothe your end of the summer sun kissed lips! That’s a $26 value for only $15!!

Sale ends September 7th, 2010.

Get the deets!!

(Note: just enter a nail polish remover and a nail polish and the discount will come up. PeaceKeeper will add the free Eco-Sensual in the shipment – so no need to add that into your cart)!!!

It’s Labor Day weekend…what will YOU be drinking?

*Disclaimer: You must be 21 years or older to read this post

Back in college I am pretty certain that *if* I were to have a beverage, it was whatever the cheapest on the shelf was. As an older and wiser adult, my taste for a nice wine has matured and my love of beer has gone to new heights. However…have you considered the “ick” factor in most common beers that are commercially sold and non-organic? Until recently, I had not given this much thought. Beer is beer right? *burp*

Not so! The same consideration should be given to our brewskies and Merlot that we give to our fruits and veggies. Now granted, the selection is still on the low side, but there are a few good ones if you scour around your local shops. By drinking organic wines and beer, you are supporting sustainable farming that is free of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers, which means a healthier planet and a healthier us!

Although organic wine may have a higher price tag, it also has a increased health benefits for us.  Organic wine is produced with organic grapes, meaning the vineyard did not use chemicals and pesticides. This is important because grapes carry the highest levels of pesticides, and are currently on the EWG’s Dirty Dozen list.

According to the EWG: “The growing consensus among scientists is that small doses of pesticides and other chemicals can cause lasting damage to human health, especially during fetal development and early childhood. Scientists now know enough about the long-term consequences of ingesting these powerful chemicals to advise that we minimize our consumption of pesticides.”

By supporting farmer’s that grow their crops organically without the use of chemicals, we are supporting a system that sustains the health of soil and all ecosystems involved, making the environment healthier for all! So this Labor Day weekend – go natural, go organic and go have some FUN! We have a local vineyard that I might just have to make a visit to

Grist: A tasting of seven organic beers

TheDailyGreen: Organic Beer – best breweries and brands – Organic Ales

TheDailyGreen: Cheap organic wine – 6 Good organic Wines for under $25

Image Credits:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://sp.life123.com/bm.pix/organic-wine-making.s600x600.jpg

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://gliving.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/anheuser-busch-green-beer.jpg

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://blog.americanfeast.com

The things we do for our children. Really! Just look at this cartwheel – edited or not. It’s a real one. And I have sore muscles to prove it. Now all I need is a good coach and I am seeing gold at the next Olympics. No?

Here we get the start of what becomes an amazing and graceful tumble. Minus the butt. The butt was cut. No choice in the matter. My butt was not going live on SGM. Not. A. Chance.

The perfect maneuver…putting my caboose away from the camera. I know, can you believe all my muscles. Really it floors me  too.

and then I decide I have to pee! No not really…getting ready for a……

JUMP!

3 Cheers for our M!

Why in the HECK am I putting my booty in the air for all of you? No it is not that I am a lunatic, or that is at least not the entire reason, but our M just made Student Council! hehehe. She was *chosen* ma friends. Chosen, as in ***hand-selected*** out of miiiiiilions of other little legislative hopefuls. I always knew her diva-ways and “do it my way or else” attitude would pay off. These are qualities that, when channeled correctly can have a profound impact even at the elementary level I assure you.

Seriously, she is so excited and so am I! She told me the other day (before this happened) how happy she was that her school was “going green” and recycling! It’s moments like these that remind me that what I am trying to do with smilinggreenmom and our family – can really make a difference somehow in our world. I am *geeked* beyond belief that my girl wants to be a part of a group that focuses on the greater good, sets goals on how to improve things and makes plans for change! How cool! I can only hope that hubs and I have somehow encouraged this vision and passion for her.

It really is all about making small changes and living by example! Our kids might be little – but they have the ability to change things and their eyes and ears are HUGE. What a great reminder to me that they are watching and learning from all of us adults everyday.

So M is destined for greatness (I can say that, I am her mom ) and now next on the list – changing the cosmetics industry.

Love this song…for my girl  ”it’s all about the climb”

Honestly, I have no idea where he gets it from……

Written By: SGM Nutrition Experts – The Nutrition Twins

http://www.nutritiontwins.com/twins/

We all love a good barbeque.  And Labor Day is no exception.  But sadly, there are many foods that can cause a lot of damage to your waistline and your healthy eating efforts.  The good news is by making the right choices you can do something good for your health and weight.  However, even when you make the good choices, you don’t want to overdo it.  Surprisingly, there are items that we carry in our pocketbooks or see every day that can help us keep portions in check.

Let’s start with the main event, the item on the grill.

Most people go with a burger, but beware; this will set you back several hundred calories.

• Be sure to stick to a small 3 ounce burger—you’ll still get 220 calories and 10 grams of fat, 4 grams of fat.

• For portion control, here’s what items The Nutrition Twins compare 3 ounces to:

-a deck of cards

- the size of two stacked Orbitz gum packs

- a makeup compact

- or 3 tubes of lipstick lined up

• Remember, some burgers are 8 ounces, and you should limit red meat to 10 ounces a week.

Better option:  Go with a chicken breast—for 3-4 ounces, it’s about 140 calories and 3 grams of fat.  It’s about the size of an iphone with its’ case.

Note:  If your BBQ has cold cuts, keep it to 3.5-4 ounces which is about the size of  a pocket-sized Kleenex and will be about 118 calories and 2 grams of fat for chicken & turkey and 185 calories and 10 grams of fat for roast beef.  Beware; the sodium is super high so don’t overdo it or you’ll leave the BBQ looking like a blowfish.

If you use fatty spreads like mayonnaise on your burgers and sandwiches:

• Limit it to 1 tablespoon which is about the size of 3 soda caps (imagine each cap filled with mayo) which for mayonnaise is 100 calories of all fat!

• Better options (Keep in mind that they’re high in sodium, so stick to the serving size of a chapstick:

-Ketchup

-Mustard

-BBQ Sauce

Load up on fresh or steamed veggies—the more the merrier.  This is the one time you can forget about portion control.

• Aim for a minimum of one portion (for steamed veggies, its what you could fit in a cupcake wrapper—about a ½ cup, for raw veggies, it’s the amount you could fit in a mug—about 1 cup).  It’s Just 25-30 calories and it fills you up so you have less room for chips and brownies.

• The exception is when the veggies are cooked in butter.  One tablespoon adds 100 calories.  So if you want the buttery flavor, but without fat and calories go for the butter spray.  We have been using I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter Spray for years on veggies, corn and popcorn, and our clients use it too.

The Sides and Extras:

• Stay away from the chips—a handful is 70 calories and just is not satisfying!

• Instead, go for nuts which are nutrient-packed.

-For a treat, bring your own almonds.  They’re delicious and ounce for ounce, almonds are the tree nut highest in protein and fiber so they keep you feeling satisfied.  They’re also highest in calcium and vitamin E.  So bring an ounce serving container.  You can use a tin or a small spice container.   This way you’ll know you’re sticking to 160 calories.

• Choose fruit for nutrients and antioxidants.  You can have an entire filled coffee mug for less than 100 calories

• Potato salad can be a real doozy so stick to ½ cup; it’s the size of 2 eggs

• For the potato salad, those scoops that are the size of 2 eggs are 180 calories, 10 grams fat

• Again, better—go for the veggies and fruit salad!

Alcohol is a double doozy because it makes us hungrier and lowers inhibitions.  Yikes!

• So stick to one drink (easier said then done!) and use diet soda or seltzer as mixers, not tonic, which is high in calories.

• For the hard alcohol, a portion is 1-1/2 ounces and 120 calories (the size in a shot glass or in a travel Advil case, not the size of the drinking glass!!).

Desserts!

Who doesn’t love dessert?  Those calories can really add up though.  So choose small brownies and cookies that are about the size of a scotch tape roll.  It can still set you back as much as 175 calories and 10 grams fat.  So if you eat it, be sure to enjoy it!

Image Credits:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.greengiantfresh.com

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://img4.realsimple.com/

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.nut-allergy.co.uk

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.thenibble.com

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.jaffa.ch/jaffa/html/grill

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://media.skinnychef.com

According to Wikpedia, “Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value.” So then wouldn’t it be awesome upcycling to never throw even one piece of food away? Or at least to greatly reduce the amount of food that might ever hit our waste? An exciting challenge would be to master the art of “upcycled meals” by either composting (which would be the equivalent of taking our “useless” materials and “creating higher environmental value” with them through the fertilization of our gardens. Right? So then how do we go about upcycling our food?

What I propose is that we use all left overs to either consume as lunches or snacks – or perhaps we can re-create the ingredients into a whole new meal (i.e. converting waste into products of higher quality). By adapting this concept into our daily lives, we would then never ever toss out one piece of food. Our gardens would flourish from natural compost and our husbands will smile at the sight of beef-pot-pie for breakfast and vegetable pasta for lunch the next day. Sure seems like a win-win to me!

So in order to not just “let” this happen (or not), but rather to make this happen we need a plan! Every action must have a good solid plan for success! Using those random leftovers that are getting lost in the inner-depths of our refrigerator (1/4 Cup of cottage cheese, a few bites of wild rice, half of a grilled chicken breast etc) can make things a little easier allowing you some extra time on a hectic evening or saving a few dollars a week at the grocery.

The first step for our plan of action is to purchase staples that are pretty basic in that they will work well with a variety of food. Don’t forget to label things, use your freezer and check expiration dates as you consider your plan of action.

Staples:

-tortilla shells

-whole wheat flour

-eggs

-tomato sauce or diced tomoato

-frozen veggies

-olive oil

-flavored vinegars and cooking wine

-whole grains (quinoa, Kamut, wild rice)

-couscous

-whole wheat pasta

-beans

-cheese

-barley

Once you have a pantry full (or cupboard full in our little bungalow – wish we had a pantry) of staples such as these items or others that you and your family love, you can throw just about anything together to make a fabulous “re-invented” meal in minutes.

Here are some ideas for you whether they are planned out or simply on-the-fly!

1. Leftover meats can be sauteed with vegetables and served over left over pasta or rice or as a tortilla

2. Leftover beans and veggies can be tossed into a stock-pot with vegetable juice and barley for a tasty soup

3. Leftover Beef Pot Roast with potatoes and carrots – upcycled into beef pot-pie

4. Grilled chicken breast can be served on top of fresh dark leafy-greens for a nutritious and delicious salad with your remaining cottage cheese

These are just a few of the ways that we can take a few remaining ingredients from one night and turn them into a new and tasty dish on another – without wasting a thing! Eliminating or reducing waste whenever possible can make a big impact in the overall scheme of the things. It just might make your crazy busy week-nights a little less hectic as well. You can always plan an “Upcycled Friday” by saving what you have made through the week (as long as it stays fresh) and enjoy the start of your weekend by clearning out the fridge, less kitchen mess to clean up and the great feeling of NOT HAVING TO COOK – as well as helping reduce waste!

So go on now – get that pantry stocked with some healthy staples so your relaxing Upcycled Fridays can begin!

Image Credits:

http://www.tigerflag.com/perfumeblog/?cat=2&paged=2

http://www.outblush.com/women/home/kitchen/glass-refrigerator-storage-sets/

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.styleathome.com/img/photos/biz/Style%2520at%2520Home/food-storage-glass-jars.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.styleathome.com/kitchen-and-bath/kitchen/11-smart-food-storage-products

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www2.westfalia.net/medien/scaled_pix/580/580/000/000/000/000/001/127/68.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www2.westfalia.net/shops/household/kitchen_aids/storage_and_tidying/freezer_storage_boxes

Enter to win this AWESOME Giveaway for YOUR CHOICE of any Earth Diva’s bag!!!!

I first have to ask you something. Have you ever been inspired by something that you just knew in your heart you wanted to *do* something. You knew you wanted to reach out somehow and make a difference? Well…I have been and continue to be inspired and encouraged by so many amazing people that I am blessed to “meet” every day who really care about the health of all human life, the protection of animals who are losing their homes by deforestation and poaching, and since learning about a special company and their initiatives to help impoverished women – I am yet again inspired, touched, amazed and encouraged.

I want you to meet my friends at Earth Divas!!! A small company that provides beautiful, low-cost, fair trade products that are are handmade by women for women from around the world. Their goal has been to help women and their families in developing countries where options are very limited as to how they can make a safe and profitable living and provide for their family.

Ed Edmundson, the owner of Earth Divas, has made it is goal and mission for this company to work directly with these artisans which means there is NO middleman. So there’s no middleman, you say? What’s this mean, you ask? This is HUGE! And I mean really HUGE! This means that they pay the people who make the items. The women who are making all of these gorgeous bags and accessories are receiving much more in the end by cutting out this common business practice.

Why EarthDivas Is Different:

At EarthDivas, fair trade is fundamental to everything we do. It’s the reason why we’re here.

• Our artisans are paid 30% more than what they would make working for a non-fair trade company. And, we work directly with the artisans- there are no middle-men involved. This means our artisans make more money.
• Here at EarthDivas, we don’t keep our profits. 100% of our profits are given to the artisans at the end of the year in the form of a cash payout.
• We work directly with artisans to help them improve the design and quality of the items they make. For you, this means quality work that won’t fall apart over time.
• We’re currently involved with several training programs in Nepal and India. These groups help train women to work on sewing machines. This not only helps our production capacity, but these skills help women earn a higher income throughout their life.
• Many of the bags, purses, and wallets our artisans make are eco-friendly. We use a great deal of hemp, which is a strong, sustainable fiber that’s easy to grow. Most of the silk used in our bags are from scraps which otherwise would be thrown away.

So now I hope you may see a bit more of why I am so impressed with them! After reading their blog and realizing just how much they are helping these women, I was reminded again of how important it is to support fair-trade products! I personally want my money to go towards the greater good and to help others because if I have to have something, I really would much rather see it given to help women and families, rather than Big Corporate.

Here’s something interesting that I thought was so cool. Our M chose an over-the-shoudler bag that she wanted to use for school. It looked great online but there was no comparison to what we saw when it arrived. Her bag is made of strong, vibrantly-colored, sustainable Hemp and it is so beautiful that I wanted just sit and caress the thing. I considered snuggling with it for the night, but since that may have seemed a little weird I just touched it. Alot. It was as if you could feel the love and sweat that the woman who made it must have put into every stitch. It’s absolutely the most breathtaking product I can honestly say that we have ever owned.

Here’s our M sporting things off on the first day of school “what-what”

Now for the good stuff! I know you  must be so super anxious to see how YOU could win ANY bag of your choice from this amazing company – and just by entering and going to visit their site, you are too making a difference in supporting women globally! I urge you to remember this company at Christmas or the next time you are planning a purchase. What a great place for your dollar to go, isn’t it?

WIN WIN WIN WIN!!!!!!

(remember: you must leave separate comments for each entry along with an email in at least one of them, K?)

1. Mandatory Entry: Visit Earth Divas and leave me a comment telling me which bag you would like to win along with your email!

2. Extra Entry: Leave me a comment and let me know which SGM post has been your favorite so far?

3. Extra Entry: Leave me a comment and let me know if you like my FB page *Please tell me who you are!!

4. Extra Entry: Subscribe to SGM by clicking some of that nice little button on the right sidebar “follow me”

5. Tweet this contest for TWO ENTRIES!!! (you can do this once a day!) and leave me the twitter i.d. to verify

@smilinggreenmom #giveaway!! Your choice of ANY fair-trade bag from the amazing @EarthDivas01 thru 9/10 #green http://tinyurl.com/35hnmkc

http://www.facebook.com/pages/edit/?id=356633619571#!/pages/EarthDivas/356633619571

www.twitter.com/earthdivas01

http://earthdivasblog.com/

*contest ends 9/10/10 and the winner will be chosen via Random.Org and announced Saturday 9/11/10

Disclosure: I did receive free product in order for me to review. The opinions expressed here are mine alone and were in no way influenced.

Sure, August 21-22 was technically the “weekend without oil” but that doesn’t mean that we can’t all try a little harder to consume less anytime. It’s important that we realize that just because there happens to be “special occasions” or green “holidays” throughout the year, that does not reduce or minimize the impact of our daily choices on every other day!

I enjoyed this video, put together by the cast of the buried life as part of the campaign to reduce oil consumption. We can still do our part and the website has a whole host of awesome suggestions that I wanted to share.

CALL TO ACTION

1. Walk or ride your bike: Avoid using cars and if you must, always try to carpool. Transportation accounts for 40 percent of our petroleum consumption and is easily one of the biggest areas we need to improve upon.
2. Enjoy the outdoors: Avoid buying new sporting equipment, since oil makes up nearly 25% of rubber. Footballs or basketballs, for example, can last for many years and used equipment is often just as good and will reduce demand for oil needed to make new rubber.
3. Use reusable bags: Avoid disposable plastic. Plastic bags are a huge waste for very little benefit. Nearly 10 percent of U.S. oil consumption, approximately 2 million barrels a day, is used to make plastic products alone.
4. Be conscious about what you eat that weekend: You can reduce oil demand by changing your diet to eat less meat, more local foods that require less transportation and organic food, which doesn’t use petro-based fertilizers.
5. Don’t buy new make-up that weekend: The majority of cosmetics are petroleum-based, including lip gloss, face powder, nail polish, and more. So avoid buying new make-up products this weekend and research the brands when you purchase in the future.
6. Drink tap water: Avoid beverages bottled in disposable plastic, they make up nearly 1.5 million tons of plastic waste per year, so get a reusable bottle and fill it up.
7. Make your electronic gadgets last: Avoid buying new electronics. Electronics take a lot of oil to produce and the gadgets you already have can last much longer than the rate at which new ones are released.
8. Go to the movies or stream them on Hulu: Avoid buying new DVDs/Blu-Rays, as oil is a key ingredient in their production, packaging and shipping.
9. Skip buying new clothes that weekend: Swap clothes with friends or check out the local vintage store. The less new clothes you buy the less oil is used in the manufacturing process and transportation.
10. Head to your local library or read online: Avoid using a printer and buying printed material including daily newspapers. Printing doesn’t just waste paper, nearly 100,000 gallons of ink each day is used on daily newspapers alone.
11. Spread the word! Get 3 friends to sign the pledge and help raise awareness on ways they can help reduce their dependence on oil-related products.

Image Credits:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/photos/uncategorized/2008/07/30/offshore_oil_platforms.jpg&imgrefurl=http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/greenspace/2010/05/gulf-oil-spill-schwarzenegger-no-longer-supports-plan-to-expand-drilling-off-the-california-coast.html&usg=__40Mm-g1Sh1-ISEIS314bzQk9PrY=&h=338&w=500&sz=71&hl=en&start=18&sig2=_-1pWVUags2eB7DqcbKO4w&zoom=1&tbnid=3LJ2H7NJw4nbbM:&tbnh=151&tbnw=225&ei=pWd2TLXcEo6pnQefypWdCw&prev=/images%3Fq%3Doil%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1199%26bih%3D621%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C506&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=144&vpy=333&dur=2188&hovh=184&hovw=273&tx=141&ty=139&oei=kWd2TO75L4GrnQeo8aSdCw&esq=2&page=2&ndsp=16&ved=1t:429,r:11,s:18&biw=1199&bih=621

http://weekendwithoutoil.org/

This was my weekend!

Now I am not typically one to shy away from a good deal, especially not the free ones! So the other day when I was leaving our local gas station and I saw a huge metal shelving unit sitting by their dumpster…my urge to save the planet kicked right in! I thought about heeving it into the back of my van as fast I could without anyone noticing, but to my dismay, I am not nearly as strong as I look.

So rather than flag down the nearest passerby in my daisy-duke shorts which by the way would have been way more exciting, I asked the store owner’s little boy and what I presume was his grandmother for help. I figured if I can not do it, surely a kid and his great grandma could heeve that sucker into van. The strength of a kid and his grandma should never be doubted.

It was a bit tricky trying to translate my message to my “crew” as this lovely older women apparently does not speak an ounce of English. So I am pretty sure that when I opened the back end of my van that happens to be full of reusable bags, piles of goodwill donations and general “kid crap” that she must have figured I was trying to convince her to either clean it or drive around town by the local retirement communities looking for some hottie grand-dad. And since I am not into the whole pimping thing, I decided to ask the kid if he knew English. He did and I was well on my way home with my new shelf before ever giving thought to the fact that I could have changed that women’s love life forever if I would not have been such a party pooper.

Now obviously this is a total score of a shelving unit, but SGD thought I was insane. I immediately grabbed my two kids to help but not without complaint I assure you. As we lugged the mammoth from the van to the front porch, I began rethinking my plan of bringing it home.

I could have taken it to recycling which was the *original* thought process. But what about all of our shelving needs at home? This too is recycling! I felt that by reusing this, I was indeed making a green choice. Hubs thought of it more like “what the h#ll were you thinking” and I believe his exact words were actually “what the h#ll were you thinking!!!” Oh and “like we need any more crap around here.” There was no shelf love. None at all. So I left it right at the front door while we contemplated.

(Fast forward one week later………)

Here is our shelf!

Notice anything in particular?

YES IT’S STILL ON MY FRONT PORCH!!!

Hubs and I have yet to agree on whether to keep it, or shove it back in the van. I want to take it back to the gas station and hubs says this is rude. We do agree on one thing however. This is becoming a Seinfeld episode.

Jerry: What are you doing with that shelf?

George: I’m taking it back.

Jerry: You’re taking it back?

Gerge: I’m taking it back.

Jerry: But you can’t do that. You can’t just take it back.

George: Why can’t I take it back. It’s there’s. I GOT it from them.

Jerry: What is that? You don’t just take and give back, take and give back. It’s confusing. It’s just weird. No one does that.

George: What? It’s their trash. It’s all about the origin of it. It came from them so it technically belongs to them. I’m just returning what’s rightfully theirs.

Jerry: Elaine, who’s trash is this?

Elaine: It’s their trash Jerry. It is. George is right, it’s about the origin.

I think it would be fun to toy with SGD and play the “George”  card on him! Don’t you? hehehe.

Probably what I really will do is pawn it off on some poor soul who can’t say no or take it to recycling. So do you know of anyone who might need a shelf?

It does have a sort of “urban charm” don’t you think. Perhaps a nice decorative piece for the front porch?

Image Credit:

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/palm/blog/jalexander_375x375.jpg&imgrefurl=http://weblogs.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/palm/blog/2008/10/_you_might_know_him.html&usg=__xQ-7AHc-IRLSgankQ5ZqCCaFnno=&h=375&w=375&sz=48&hl=en&start=20&sig2=2N9U0AevFgJx0ydNQnizIQ&zoom=1&tbnid=M50cNhRJ2X3jnM:&tbnh=148&tbnw=165&ei=S-VzTJPnJoT78AaYvaX1CA&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dseinfeld%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1199%26bih%3D621%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C587&itbs=1&iact=rc&dur=352&oei=PuVzTJ2yEcGclgfGipnKCA&esq=2&page=2&ndsp=18&ved=1t:429,r:9,s:20&tx=83&ty=95&biw=1199&bih=621