Diary of a #Cleanse part 1

I am, taking a 3 week end class on Ayurveda with the lovely Kate Gilday of Woodland Essences. Our last week end is soon approaching and one of my homework assignments was to do a cleanse.  We had several to choose from.  I chose the quick four day cleanse as I wasn't sure how I would fit a 12 or 16 day cleanse into my life at the moment.  The cleanse is a modified version of Dr. John Douillard's  4 Day cleanse.  "It is designed to reset the body's ability to be a better fat burner.  Fat is the body's calm, long lasting, mood stabilizing, detoxifying, repairing, rejuvenating and endurance fuel.  The cleanse will support the body's natural ability to burn fat and detoxify itself."  Straight from my notes.
I thought it helpful to record my journey as I've never done this before.

Leading up to the cleanse.  
I read my notes.  I checked out Dr. Douillard's website www.lifespa.com and downloaded his e-book on the four day cleanse and read it. I'm kind of geeky like that. I picked the kitchari recipe I wanted to use and made sure I had all the ingredients.  I shopped for fresh organic vegetables, prune juice and dandelion tea.  I stopped drinking coffee and any other caffeine  products four days before starting. This is not really hard for me as I indulge in only one cup of coffee a day.  Warning need to go out to the family if I reach for a second cup - the energy level is more than anyone can handle.  I do miss it on the days I moonlight as an accountant - it seems to keep those synapses firing and focused. The day before the start date I ate light and simple - lots of fruit during the day and fish with steamed vegetables for dinner.  I explained to the family what I was up to and that they did not have to join me.

Compiling the ingredients for kitchari

Night Before:
I made a batch of ghee (clarified butter) as I would need this throughout the cleanse.  I made my first batch of kitchari.  I went with a kitchari that is tridoshic (good for all constitutions) though it is especially good for pitta (which I am). The red are the places I switched it up.

Mung Dal Kitchari

1 Cup yellow mung dal (split mung beans)

1 Cup basmati rice

1 1/2 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped

2 Tbsp. unsweetened, shredded coconut (4 Tbsp)

1 small handful cilantro leaves (or more)

1/2 cup water

3 Tbsp ghee

1/2 tsp turmeric

1/4 tsp salt

6 cups water (4 cups vegetable broth and 2 cups water)

Wash mung dal and rice twice.  Soak the mung dal for a few hours if you have time (1 hour), then drain.

Put the ginger, coconut, cilantro and the 1/2 cup water into a blender and blend until liquefied.

Heat the ghee on medium in a large saucepan and add the blended items, turmeric and salt.  Stir well.

Next mix in the rice, mung dal and the 6 cups water.  Bring to a boil.  Then cover, leaving lid slightly ajar, turn down the heat to simmer and cook 25 - 30 minutes, until the dal and rice are tender.  This will be a little soupy.

kitchari

Day One:
I started my day with 2 teaspoons of ghee melted in a half cup of almond milk.  Packed my kitchari up in two containers; a small one for breakfast and a larger one topped with steamed broccoli for lunch. I filled two water bottles with warm water and a travel mug with hot water.  I headed off to work.
I ate the kitchari and finished most of the water.  By then I was hitting the bathroom on a regular basis and it was coming out as clear as it was going in.  Lovely visual I know.  I was tired when I got home.  A lazy no energy kind of tired.
I grilled two beautiful grass fed steaks for my hubby and daughter and served it along side some kitchari and corn.  I had my bowl of kitchari with broccoli and lots of greens stirred in - kale, spinach and Swiss chard.  My daughter said it was awful and could she put it back in the pot.  My hubby looked at me with all the sympathy he could muster and said, "I'll eat this little bit but I can't believe this is all you are eating for the next three days."
Now, I don't find it bad tasting.  It's rather mushy so the texture gets to me after a while.  The second batch I made I doubled the coconut and was more generous with the cilantro.  Even though you don't taste the coconut this seems to help.  I also realized I should only be soaking the mung dal and not the mung and rice together.  Batch three I added a little more ginger and more cilantro.

Bud Walk #Springflowers

I love this time of year when plants pop through the earth and buds appear on the trees.  Each day I take a bud walk searching out the latest green happenings around the yard.  I shared the latest walk in pictures on When Weeds Whisper.   Go check it out - I know you want to.

A little Autumn Olive teaser

#Earthday Celebration

This Sunday, April 19, 2015

  The Connecticut Herb Association is hosting their Earth Day Celebration!  

This is an annual event and offers plant swaps, weed walks, lots of vendors including herbal goods and live plants.  I will be there with all my soaps, lotions & potions for beautiful skin.  Sample some nourishing lotion.  Smell my newest offering Spring Rain Soap.

It is part of a larger movement. Earth Day is in its 45th year!
"With over one billion actions to date, Earth Day Network's A Billion Acts of Green® – the largest environmental service campaign in the world – is steadily building commitments by individuals, organizations, businesses and governments to protect the planet.

A Billion Acts of Green® inspires and rewards both simple individual acts and larger organizational initiatives that reduce carbon emissions and support sustainability.

It’s a global referendum on the environment."  

 Celebrate Mama Earth waking to a new season & Go Green in the Process!

P.S. This does mean the studio will be closed.  I'm still working on being in two places at once.

Lemon Poppy Seed Poundcake #Recipe

     Often people tell me my soaps smell good enough to eat.  I laugh and say you will only do that once.  Some scent combinations are taken right from the kitchen like my lemon & poppy seed soap.  The poppy seeds stay whole and suspended just like in baked goods.  The texture of the poppy seeds give a gentle exfoliating element and it is great for gardeners who want to wash the dirt off after the pleasure of digging in Mama Earth.

     Traditionally a pound cake is made with a pound of flour, a pound of butter and a pound of eggs.  Today's recipes are modified a bit and can be flavored in many ways.  A double vanilla version  which involves steeping milk with vanilla beans is a family favorite.  Cocoa powder can be added for a chocolate version.  The possibilities are limited only by your imagination.
     The cold process soap is made with organic lemon essential oil and poppy seeds.  This pound cake is flavored with lemon zest and fresh squeezed lemon juice.  Sour cream keeps the cake moist.

Lemon Poppy Seed Pound Cake

1/2 cup unsalted butter (room temperature)
1 cup sugar
3 eggs (room temperature)
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp baking soda
1 tsp grated lemon zest (zest of one lemon)
2 Tbsp lemon juice
2 Tbsp poppy seeds

     Mix butter and sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs one at a time and mix until fully combined.  Add sour cream and vanilla and mix.   Sift together the flour, baking powder and baking soda hen add to the butter mixture and mix just until combined.  Add lemon zest, juice and poppy seeds and mix until batter is smooth.  Pour into a greased loaf pan or a parchment lined loaf pan and bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes or so.  A toothpick will come out clean.

Sage #Skincare Advice

     As a young girl I would sit quietly as my mom and the neighborhood ladies chatted over coffee.  I listened deeply to all the stories.  My "uncle" Charlie called me Pinocchio saying I was nosey but really I was just soaking up all the wisdom and since I was well behaved the women didn't mind.  I learned from their mistakes.  Why repeat lessons that were already learned.  Don't misunderstand, I made mistakes and poor choices at times but they were fresh mistakes - ones I hadn't learned about through stories and others life lessons.  Maybe the stories we tell around our dinner table will help our children glean some lessons not to be repeated.
     Some of the lighter lessons I learned was how to care for my skin. Gem number one was, "If you only moisturize your face and not your neck your face will look great and your neck will look like crepe paper."  Now, that made perfect sense to me and it was such a small step in my routine that I wasn't going to take any chances.  I've done both since junior high.
     The next gem took a little longer to fully get.  It was at one of those make up parties that  my girlfriends had way back in the day.  Cleanse, tone and moisturize each day for great skin.  And with this very expensive 3 step process of ours you will look fantastic.  Which when I was young and had no real bills to speak of was fine.  But, as youth departed and school, rent and car payments came in I needed to rethink where my hard earned money was going.  The light bulb went off and I realized that I could use other products in the three step process.  As I started making my own products I looked to make my own three products. My business started out really selfishly by making products for myself.  I have expanded over the years by listening to my customers to meet the needs of others as well as myself.

     My attitude changed over the years from solely wanting to look fantastic (though that is a bonus) to wanting to be as healthy as possible.  I look for products with pronounceable, organic and GMO free ingredients.  My beauty routine is simple - soap, toner and moisturizer.  Yes, I said soap.  Real soap (combination of fats & lye) - not detergent ( a cleansing agent made from chemical compounds).  All my soaps are made with clay to pull out the impurities in the skin, buttermilk for smooth skin and lush organic oils to moisturize.  My oatmeal soap is the exception containing oatmeal instead of clay for a gentle soothing effect on the skin.  I use toner made with calendula flowers which are extremely beneficial to the skin  followed by face & body lotion which has a base of organic avocado oil and aloe vera gel.  The avocado oil has so many benefits that I wrote an entire blog post about it (Snow Day)  and aloe vera tones the skin.  About once a week I use an exfoliating cleanser.  The esthetician at the spa was so impressed with the results from the cleanser on my daughter's skin that she bought some.

#ColdProcessSoap Making Class

Come join the fun.

March 29,2015

11:00 AM to  1:00 PM

At Whiting Mills Studio 418

100 Whiting Street, Winsted, CT

$25.00

We will make a batch of soap together.
Learn how to make cold process soap and walk away with the skills and confidence to make it yourself. Plus receive a basic recipe with tips on altering it to make it your own and a list of resources.

Setting up for Soap Making

Parking:  There is a parking lot behind the building on Whiting Street.  You may park here.  From this level go up one flight of stairs and look for the more studios this way sign on the wall.

OR you can park on the Holabird Avenue side of the building.  The lot is in between the fire house and the college parking lot.  Cross the street and enter through the door that says hobby shop above it.  Take the stairs all the way to the top and take a right.  Go through the door and you are looking at my studio.   It's in a beautiful old mill with many hall ways and friendly artists who will point you towards the fourth floor and studio 418 if need be.

#Menopause the Mental Journey

      I wrote a few weeks ago about menopause - my journey and the herbs I use.  But others have very different journeys.  And let's face it walking from motherhood (or the possibility of it) through the door to crone (elder, wise woman) is a big transition both physically and mentally.  For some growing older is more mentally challenging than physically challenging.  I know I have been "older" than my own mother for eight years.  She has been 39 for more than a few years now.
     There are many factors that cause women in this culture to not relish growing older.  It's heartbreaking to see.  My recommendation for this is learning to love yourself and who you are. I know this can be much easier said than done for many. My advice, for what it's worth is to start by ignoring the media, the airbrushed magazine photos and the lies.  Find things you love and do them. Find inspirational older women and learn from them. Defying Gravity: A Celebration of Late-Blooming Women by Prill Boyle is a great book to remind you that life does not end in mid-life. I had the privilege of meeting Prill and she signed my book, "May you never stop listening to your heart & flying with your dreams."  This is key for all of us I think.
     Creative endeavors - painting, writing, cooking, sculpture, gardening are great ways to get out of your head and into yourself.  You don't have to be "good" at them.  You don't have to show people or publish - you just have to create for yourself. I love to cook, counted cross-stitch, gardening and making skincare products.
     Yoga is my answer for a lot of things.  It helps with posture and flexibility.  It helps with balance so you are less likely to fall.  It calms your nerves.  And there are so many types of yoga you are bound to find one that fits your personality.  Maybe it is gentle and restorative or maybe vinyassa or hot yoga are more your style. Try a few until you find one you like.  And dance...  belly dance has been my cure for midlife angst.
     The New England Journal of Medicine published an article discussing leisure items that could reduce your risks of dementia.  These included cognitive items such as crossword puzzles as well as physical activities such as golf, walking, swimming and dancing.  Dancing was the only physical activity to reduce your risk of dementia.
     Belly dance is one of those things I've always wanted to try but never did.  I saw an advertisement for an introductory class and jumped in.  The welcome letter said to where comfortable clothes - yoga pants were great.  I tried to find a pair to wear and they were all six inches too long and gave me camel toe ( I have since found brands made for women of average height with a little junk in the trunk).  I showed up to my first class in sweats.  The kind I only wear at home.  I felt fat, defeated and ugly.  By the end of that first class I was hooked on the dance and felt more beautiful than I had in ages.
     My point is to get out of your own way and find something you enjoy that makes you feel alive and beautiful even if at first you feel clumsy, awkward and defeated.  Our motto at belly dancing is to "embrace the train wreck."  We are each learning new ways to move our bodies and it doesn't click at first try (or second or third) but we keep dancing, moving and eventually our bodies take over and the moves become more fluid. I find this a perfect metaphor for life; things may not click the first time (or second or third) but we keep trying and eventually we find what brings us joy.