Treating Exzema Naturally

Ever since my son , has been 2 years old he has suffered from eczema. It was so difficult to watch your child go throw that sort of pain and feel so powerless to stop or control. After a few misses I started to notice patterns, this helped me to develop a eczema management plans.


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Here is my list things that can help manage eczema

Wash everything in hot water
Line dry in the sun for longer then 4 hours
- This will kill any dust mites that might be living in your bedding and clothes.

Use Dove Soap or an Oatmeal Bath
- Both have a natural PH this will stop the skin drying out even more

Keep the shower at a medium heat
- Extra hot showers will dry the skin

Dry yourself extra well after a bath or shower
- Air dry for 10 minutes if you can

Reduce the amount of processed foods
- A lot of additives can cause eczema to flair up

Stop skin rubbing
-This is an important one, when skin touches the air is unable to dry the sweat and will stop the skin from healing

Stick to natural fibres
This will again help the sweat on your skin to dry and heal.

Dust regularly
- Dust is a common cause of Eczema

Test for food allergies
This is a common cause of eczema, Ask your doctor to do an allergy test.

These are just simple ways to treat eczema. Having an allergy test done at the doctors is a great place to start. Once you discover what is causing your eczema its easier to manage long term.

Gluten Free Dinners That Rock

I have recently been told that I am gluten intolerant and need to cut gluten from my diet. For those who don't know what Gluten is it's a mixture of 2 proteins that are found in cereal grains, that means not more bread, vegemite, porridge and muesli bars. Gluten products made up a large part of my diet so it was really hard to find foods that were gluten free that I really enjoyed. But after some research and trial and error I have come up with a list of things to cook for dinner that are both Gluten Free and delicious.

1. Baked potato with the trimmings
This is a great one because you can make it for the whole family and add in as much or as little that you like.

2. Pumpkin Soup

I posted earlier in my blog a gluten free pumpkin soup recipe that has no gluten it use sweet potato and coconut milk.

http://slowlivingmum.blogspot.com.au/2016/01/vegan-pumpkin-soup.html

A delicious recipe.

2. Stuffed Capsicum

This is super easy I like to fry some mince add some carrots, peas and corn as well as a can of tomatoes and place it all in a capsicum shell place cheese on top and bake at 180 degrees for 20 minutes.

3. Creamy chicken and Avo with GF Pasta
This is super easy and delicious dish that only uses a handful of ingredients. Will post the recipe shortly.

4. Steak and Veg
Country Classic/ Suburban special
Meat and 3 veg typical classic. How ever if you are planning to use a pre-packaged sauce read the ingredients because a lot of then have Gluten in them.

5. Stir fry and rice noodles.
This is again a meal that can have anything added in that you desire and suits your family.

Ways to slow down everyday

Facing the rat race everyday can be stressful it seems that everyone wants everything done yesterday. I have been working hard lately and I have discovered easy ways that you can slow down and take a break. Here is my favorite ways to slow down and just breathe.

Savour Nature:
This is a big one that I have been working on, Just to stop and look at the beauty that is around me. I have been posting a lot of the things that I have come across on my IG account.

I snapped this cheeky little guy after a rain storm.

Take off your shoes:
Every lunch time I sit on the grass and look at the beautiful trees and things around me, I also like to take off my shoes and enjoy a bit of grounding. Good for the soul.

Solo Coffee Date:
As a teenager I wouldn't be caught dead out in public without a group of friends but as I approach 30, I began to stop caring what people think and started doing what would make me happy. Its soothing to sit in a cute little café and people watch or read a book. It doesn't matter so long as you are enjoying some alone time. No one else to consider but you.

Technology Ban:
For 1 hour a day I place a technology ban on everyone in my house. Nothing with a screen it starts at the same time everyday so everyone can just organise around it.

Cook:
Take time to cook something so delicious that it has the whole house waiting with baited breath. Get out your grandmothers old cook books and bake something from scratch.

Eco Fashion: What does it all mean

Eco fashion has so many different names such as sustainable fashion, ethical fashion, Fair Trade fashion and conscious fashion. In the end what it all boils down to is its products that are designed and created with the social and environmental impacts in mind.
It seems that there is a new trend people are following every month, its easy to get caught up in trend chasing and forget about how the garment was created.

What defines something as Eco/ Sustainable fashion?
Made from organic natural fibres
Recycled/ Reused fabric
Minimal chemical treatment
Animal free
Well crafted, good quality fabric
Vintage
2nd hand
Socially/ environmentally and economic responsible

 There is a growing market of brands that are focused on fashion that isn't going to harm the earth, that's good quality.
Some of my favorite are:

Adidas - Making yarn out of plastic sea debris
Puma - Committed to reducing the amount of chemicals that they release into the environment
Stella Mc Cartney - Stopped using and fur and PVC in there garments. They also use organic cotton in there lingerie.
Burberry - Launched a fair trade cotton agreement in Peru
People Tree - Sustainable fashion that makes clothes that anyone can afford. Totally gorgeous vegan accessories.
Rant Clothing - A classic fashion brand that makes clothes that will last a life time in a classic casual style.

Micro Farminng - The basics

Micro farming is the basically the process of growing a large amount of produce or livestock on a small area. It can be any size from growing greens on your balcony to raising 50 pigs on 10 acres. The point of micro farming is the ability to be able to grow your own food.

The first thing that you need to consider before you get started on your micro farm, is planning! Planning how you plan to lay the your block out, to achieve the best results from the space you have. The next thing to plan is your planting roster and a marketing plan. This is often the first mistake people make they fail to plan and end up wasting money and time.

When considering animals please don't forget to consider time! Animals take a lot of time and work also its hard to nip off for a mini break with pigs and chickens that need feeding. However animals make an amazing addition to any micro farm by not only providing meat but also manure for the compost.

If animals aren't your thing then maybe consider cropping, before planting anything do as much research as you can this will help you to achieve the best possible results. Also you may want to consider organics with a smaller crop organic farming is much easier and organic produce can sell for as much as 20% higher then standard grown produce.

 Options for selling your produce, Its easy to sell your produce and cut out the middle man. There are a few options for selling your produce particularly in a technology driven world. A couple of options are Facebook more and more people are turning to Facebook to purchase everything. There has also been a couple of websites that have been cropping up my personal favorite is www.ripenear.me Its designed particularly for selling and buying fresh produce. A market stall is another great option for selling fresh produce and products that you have made such as jams and spreads.

 

Creative Places to give away your clothes

I have seen a lot of requests on Facebook about places to give things away that aren't op shops. I started to think about where to give things away that aren't just op shops. Although op shops are great places and do a lot of great work there are options other then op shops.

Winter Clothes
I was given a large supply of winter clothes from my mother, they no longer fit her so she passed them on to me, I had a fair bit that I was never going to wear particularly about 5 woollen coats, I went to the city one day were there are a lot of homeless, I simply left them all on a bench and walked away. I brought a coffee and walked back through where I had left them and they were all gone, the further I walked I started to see people wearing them it warmed my heart.

Corporate wear
I have given away a few items to a local battered woman's home because these women have often left with only the clothes on there backs and will need to get back into the work force and already having an interview outfit makes a world of difference to there confidence.

Kids Clothes and Toys
Like with the corporate wear you can donate kids clothes and toys to a local woman's shelter. It will help them to rebuild there lives after leaving everything behind. Many of these kids have seen things that no child should ever see. Get in touch with your local foster care organisation often there is a lot of need for books and clothes for boys and girls from new born to 16.

Soft Toys
Many places wont take soft toys because they are unable to be thoroughly cleaned. The RSPCA or other animal organisations are always looking for stuffed animals and old blankets. The animals enjoy cuddling up to them. Its very cute.

Excess food
I have a massive vegetable garden and often have left over, I often donate to feed the homeless, There is usually a few different organisations that feed the homeless. A church or a google search is usually a great way to find out home to get in touch with them.

I think before just giving something to the op shop you should consider is there someone who could use it more, and would they have the money to purchase it from the op shop?

Ways to slow down! and enjoy the moment

Slowing down and enjoying the moment has never come naturally to me, I always seemed to be on the go. When I first started living a slower life I really found it hard to stop after a while I had a list of things that were kid friendly and always helped me to slow down and enjoy the moment.

Sleep Outside - Pitch a tent, lay under the stars
Read a book outside
Cuddle your babies to sleep
Take photos
Sit under a tree
Yoga
Meditation
Listen to the radio
Write down what you are grateful for!
Walk on the grass
Cook/Bake
Garden
Build a fort with your kids
Have a tea party
Write
Cuddle your partner

Stop and take a breath

Vegan Pumpkin Soup

I love this recipe particularly at work in winter, super easy to re heat in the microwave.

You will need:

1 Butternut pumpkin
1 Sweet potato
Salt and Pepper
400 ml can of coconut milk
2 cups of Vegetable soup

Directions

Peel Pumpkin and Sweet Potato
Place in an oven tray with a little bit of oven tray
Sprinkle a little bit of salt and pepper
Bake in an oven at 180 degrees for around 45 minutes or until soft
Remove from oven place pumpkin and sweet potato in a blender add around half the stock and coconut milk
Blend together
Continue to add small amounts of the coconut milk and stock until the texture is slightly watery.
Add the mix to a large pot
Place on a medium heat and simmer until it is a smooth consistency.

Serve hot

How to Make any house a home, even if you are renting

Making your space a place where you want to be is a matter of making it comfortable. This does need to be an expensive exercise. A few simple touches can make your house feel like a home.

Art
Art makes us feel something every time we really look at it. The best part about art is it can be anything that you find beautiful. I once read a article about a woman who framed the dress she was wearing on her first date with her husband, because he remembered how beautiful she looked in it. You can make some amazing art for less then $20, grab a canvas, some tubes of paint and start splattering it around.

Upcycling Old Clothes
This might seem like a strange thing to upcycle old clothes to make your house more of a home but I have made some great projects from old clothes I was planning to throw out. Turn old woollen jumpers into comfy cushion covers. Another favourite project of mine is I turned all of our old holey farm t-shirts into a floor rug.

Paint old furniture
With Facebook and gumtree its super easy to buy second hand furniture, or you may have some ugly hand me down furniture hanging around that you could paint or distress. This can instantly give you a feel of being home.

Display your favourite things
I have a misfit collection of things displayed around my house but I love each piece and each piece has a story, I love to tell them every time some one admires it. It might be my favourite set of wine glasses from Mexico or my old travel journal sitting on top of my coffee table.

Display photos
Nothing makes it feel like your space more then photos. I love photos if I start to feel lost or tired I look at my photos on the wall and I remember why I need to keep going and working. There is some great renters hooks out there that don't damage the paint.

Smells
This is something that really makes a house a home I personally love the smell of clean linen! It smells clean and fresh to me. I keep this smell around by using clean linen scented wax melts and using a fabric smell with a clean linen scented oil in it.

Pets
Nothing makes a house more of a home then a pet. Even if its a fish, there will always be something to put a smile on your face even on the worst days.

I hope I have helped you turn your house into a home.

Organic pest control in the vegetable patch

Organic gardening can be a tricky thing to get right. If you don't you can lose all your harvest to pesky pests or end up with a crop that doesn't ripen properly. Here is some basics that every organic gardener needs to have in there arsenal.

White Oil - Is a handy pest exterminator. Its simple to use and easy to make with ingredients from home. It works by sticking to the bugs and suffocates them.
To make White Oil:
- 1 cup of vegetable or white mineral oil
- 1.5 cups of water
- 2 teaspoons of dishwashing liquid

Neem Oil - This works in much the same way as white oil does, you can however buy Neem Oil already mixed. Its great for all sorts of minor aliments including nit treatment for your kids hair.
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COMMON PESTS

Aphids - nasty little green bugs that typically are found on roses, however they can be partial to the odd vegie or 2.

Snails - Make a beer trap. Put a small amount of beer in the bottom of a container and dig into the soil. The snail will go in, get drunk, drown and die a happy death. Another option is to make a salt ring as snails can't cross salt. This is also a great way for kids to help out in the garden, get them out in the morning picking them off.

Caterpillars -  The little buggers eating the life out of all your plants. There is a couple of simple ways to get rid of them with out Caterpillars first of all is just like with snails go along and pick them off. Neem oil also works a treat to sort these buggers out. Another easy way is to get rid of them is let the chickens in!! they will get a great feed.

Goal Setting for a calmer life.

I don't buy into this new year new me crap! I am the exacts same person that I was last year, that doesn't mean I haven't learnt a few things.
I have always been a crazy mess of chaos, this has always lead me into adventures. When I stopped and took stock of my life I realised where it was leading me and wasn't where I want to be. I sat down late last night and really thought about what I wanted in life.

Setting goals is only the first part
Decide what you want!!!
Its not often that we actually stop and think about what we actually want, its usually what the kids need or what our family needs.

Work out a plan to get there.
This seems simple in theory, In reality it is actually super simple.
For example if your goal is to buy a family home, you will first need to pay down debt and save a deposit.

Break it down into manageable chunks.
Make a plan, break it down.
This will make you feel more in control and less like everything is getting on top of you.
As you complete each chunk it will give you a boost.

Make a vision board.
This will keep you motivated, its also great to look at.
Surrounding yourself with positive images will help you to slow down and relies that you can achieve your dreams.

Setting goals will help you to stop trying to complete everything all at once. It will give you some kind of guidance.

Reasons to live in the country

Here is my list of reasons to pull up stumps in the city and move to a large block in the middle of nowhere. We made the plunge around 3.5 years ago, I believe it was the best move we ever made.

1. Wide open space
2. Room for the kids to play and be kids
3. House prices
4. vegie gardens, fresh vegies.
5. Teaching kids valuable life skills
6. Community values
7. Smaller class sizes at public schools
8. Safe communities
9. Local characters
10. Views to take your breath away
11. No neighbours on your doorstep
12. Pets, Dog, Cat, Sheep and maybe a pig too
13. Freedom to live your own way
14. Building resilient kids
15. Allowing kids to have responsibilities, the locals will be quick to tell you if they get into any mischief
16. Local events - CWA markets, Rodeos and country fairs
17. Wood fires
18. Room for a shed or 2

Ways to make money from the homestead

Making money from the homestead is a great way to help pay for the upkeep or pay for those few extra things that the kids need.

1) Selling excess crops.
This year I have 40 pumpkins from this years harvest, I preserved some and sold the rest on Facebook. I got $3.50 each for them.

2) Riding lessons/ Shearing lessons.
Use the skills that you have to teach the next generation. Its a great way for kids to get a chance to learn real skills to help them get a job on the land.

3) Selling excess preserves.
CWA markets is a great place to sell some excess preserves and crafts.

4) Clean up old furniture.
I have done this a few times picked up something cheap from the tip, cleaned it up and painted in a shabby sheek fashion and sold for a profit. In the world of today when everyone has access to the internet its easy to buy and sell online.

5) Farm stay/ bed and breakfast
If you have the space this can be a way to make quick cash, particularly around tourist seasons.

6) Use the skills you have.
I worked in a IT position and have a bit of knack for fixing computers. This comes in handy in a small town. It could be anything such as cutting or colouring hair from home, or school holiday care. Any skills that you have will be valuable to someone you would be surprised.