Just Boobs

Breastfeeding. Particularly public breastfeeding, has become a hot topic these days. Personally I can't understand the issue. Breasts have literally been around since the beginning of mammals. It blows my mind how many people are afraid of boobs. (Weirdos) 

I don't know who sexualized the boobs or when. Most likely some freak show with mommy issues. But now it's taboo to use them as nature intended, to feed your child. Doesn't anyone else find that kinda sickening? 

Never mind how beneficial mother's milk is, let's talk about how stupid it is to be afraid of boobs. I saw a video floating around facebook recently of an experiment put on by this couple and their newborn baby. They went around sitting next to folks at various bus stops and park benches, then the woman pulled out a boob (remaining tastefully covered by her shirt) and fed her baby. When the strangers next to her noticed what she was doing she apologized to them, saying she's a new mother, she doesn't know the rules and her baby is hungry. 

Some people just got up and walked away shaking their heads. Some argued with the woman that feeding her hungry infant should be done strictly at home where nobody has to see her exposed breasts. (Are you friggin kidding me?) And only one woman stayed right where she was, minded her business and when the new mother apologized for not knowing the rules, the woman praised her for breastfeeding. 

When did people stop minding their business? I breastfed all three of my babies and was never confronted like this. The absolute worst of my experiences was a strange glance or two. People these days are so self centered. "I don't want to see that, so you can't offer it to my eyes". 

Umm.. look away???

Too much to ask?

Kill A Cold

Winter is here and the viruses are thriving. I've got a household of sickies this week so I thought I'd share some of my favorite home remedies. These are things you can find in your kitchen. They're cheap and they're natural and they help you feel a little less gross.

1. Hot Honey & Lemon -  This was a favorite of my mother's when I was little. Now I make it for my children, but with some variations of my own.

     Mom's recipe - Boil a mug worth of water. Add 1 tsp each of honey and lemon juice and stir. (Good for a sore throat)

     My recipe - Boil a mug worth of water. Add peppermint teabag to unblock a nose or chamomile tea for bed time. Add 1 TBS honey (coats and soothes a sore throat),
                           1 TBS apple cider vinegar (antiseptic and helps clear nose), and a
                           slice of fresh ginger for the belly (maybe not with peppermint, yuck).
 Let tea steep a few minutes and remove teabag. Drink while hot/warm.
(All of these ingredients are optional and I interchange them to suit the drinker and the symptoms. If you need it sweeter, add more honey. If you can stomach more vinegar, go for it! The stuff is wonderful, the more the better)

2. Garlic Socks - My Nanna swears by rubbing garlic on the feet for sickness. 
    Chop a clove of garlic in half. Rub them on the soles of your feet and leave them in your socks while you sleep.

3. Magic Onion - Another one from my beautiful Nanna. 
     Chop the onion in half. No need to peel. Place it near your bed at night (cut side up). I'm not sure on the science behind this one. I just know better than to question Nanna ;)

4. Vinegar Vapor - If you can't stand vinegar, even when you're too sick to taste it, try this one to clear your nose. 
     First try taking the cap off a bottle of vinegar, any will do, and take a big sniff. Still blocked? Pour some in a boiling pot of water and enjoy the steam from nearby. (Close enough to smell it, not close enough to get burnt. Steam is hot, folks.)

5. Homemade Chicken Soup - There's just something about the chicken soup. But the stuff in the can just won't do.
     Roast your chicken. Left overs work great too. Chop it up and throw it in a pot with at least one box of chicken stock, 5 or 6 cups of water, some fresh chopped onion and celery and let simmer on low for an hour or throw it in a crockpot on low for 2-4 hrs. Salt to taste.


    

Your face ;)

I found this magic soap on a quest for a natural remedy for scabies (which turned out to be hives after all my trouble lol)
 Neem soap

This natural* soap is made of oil extracted from the neem tree in India, where they swear by the stuff. And for good reason. It's used to treat skin conditions like acne, psoriasis, scabies, and ringworm. It prevents infections and even repels mosquitos.

Since it turned out my diagnosis of scabies was wrong and it's winter right now, I can't vouch for most of these personally, but what I can say is that my skin is SO SOFT!!! And any pimples that pop up after a deep fried PMS binge don't last long. They're gone without so much as a "see ya!" by the next day.

As for the smell, it's different.  Kinda hard to explain it, it's a little like those old fashioned handmade soaps your grandma probably kept in a ceramic dish on her bathroom sink,only much milder. It's nice though. It makes you feel clean just to smell it, I swear!

There's a few brands out there. This is the one I ordered on Amazon Margo Neem Soap - (click me) and I'm in love with it.

If that brand doesn't work out for you, try one of the more pricey choices. I read HERE that it's made in different strengths using different extraction methods and some are better than others but you should be shooting for at least 20% neem oil. (I borrowed some other info from that page too).

I'd love some feedback on your experiences with this soap. Leave me a comment!


*Depending on the manufacturer of the soap

I Digress...

The purpose of this blog was supposed to be things I've learned or found related to my quest for a more natural way of life. So far I've been throwing opinions at you. (Expect those sometimes, I never run short of opinions) But I've just moved house and we got our wifi hooked back up so expect some hippyish posts soon. When I find time they'll find their way to the blog. =)

The shit that ain't broke

So tonight I was browsing the web for a new fry pan. Mine are those teflon coated craps and they're starting to chip. (Yeah, that was a smart move, science people.) And since I remember reading somewhere that teflon is bad for you, I decided it's time for a new pan so I can ditch these shits. I have kids, man,I can't be feeding them chunks of whatever the heck teflon is! Do they even sell that stuff anymore??

That's when it occurred to me that there was a time when people didn't try to constantly fix what wasn't broken. But in the past few decades or so the science people and the inventor types have been (money hungry) coming up with new man made shit to replace the old shit (that we knew worked already) only to find out 15-20 years later that their new shit is making people sick, making people fat, making our kids stupid, giving us cancer, and apparently making us all dumber by the minute because we just can't wait to throw our money at them for the chance to have the brandest newest shit on the market.

What happened to don't fix shit that ain't broke? They weren't making enough money off stuff that doesn't break I guess. Consumers used to look for quality when they went out to give away their hard earned money. Now we're all poor so everything comes from China and it breaks a day after the warranty runs out. And we all know this to be true! But we have no other option when we're poor so we throw our money away on crap and we're happy to do it because, well hey, it comes in purple!

And I'm as guilty of this stupidity as the next guy. Cuz I'm poor, and I like purple.

But I've noticed the recent trend is to buy more sturdy things. "Green" things. Like pans made of porcelain or stone. (I can't afford the stone, I wish, so I'm going to try the porcelain and hope it lasts at least a year). So does this mean I'm not the only poor idiot who likes purple but is sick of replacing my made in China crap every week? Maybe I'm just getting older. But maybe at least some of us are smartening up.

I hope to someday be able to afford to boycott the science idiots' China products entirely. Teach them a valuable lesson as old as the hills; Don't fix what ain't broke!!!