the juggler.....

i'm not sure when i mastered the art of juggling. i don't mean the kind where you juggle 3 balls. this kind of juggling i'm doing is alot harder. it's the kind where you toss endless responsibilities into the air and try to carefully catch each one as they descend. not letting a single item hit the ground.

this is what i believed the "art" of being a perfect working mother was all about.

i thought this september would be easier as the kids went back to school. nope. it was crazier. timely drop offs and pick ups. playdates and programs. perfect lunches and healthy dinners. homework and assignments. and then one day your son gets bit by a mink and you spend the night in ER. ahhhh.....

oh, and let's not forget i work. i am so fortunate to love being an ND. september was a super busy month. 3 natural births, patient visits, corporate work and teaching at CCNM. and then there's social media to keep up with. i know it's the busy energy of the fall and i'm grateful, but it adds to the art of juggling.

we also experienced 2 sad losses this month. an old friend (as in years known) and our old dog (as in aged). it's only been a few days without our beloved dex, but adjusting to our house without the sounds of the clickety clack nails is harder than i thought.

so, all this being said, i thought i would share 5 simple tips that deal with stress and bring forth calmess.

herbal teas: i love tea blends. i usally go to a health food store and pick up loose herbs and mix them together. my favorites are chamomile, oatstraw, lavender and nettles. these help calm the nervous system, aid in digestion and are rich in vitmains and minerals, which are in higher demands when your body is stressed.

exercise: i don't seem to have enough hours in my day, but i can't go without being active. for me, it's yoga and tennis. it can be anything you like. just find something you enjoy and move your body. it calms the mind, releases endorphins (happy hormones), and keeps your blood and energy moving at a time when things feel hectic. i prioritize these.

healthy food: a good friend teases me for all my chopping. it's true. i chop alot. i find it therapeutic and enjoy making heathy eats. it's not fancy food, at all. it's simple and fresh. cutting up fresh fruit or vegetables, making a quick stir fry, or soup. i'm mindful of sugars, processed foods and additivies. when our bodies are fueled with good nutrients it helps us power through the tasks at hand.

adrenal support: our adrenals support our bodies in times of stress. a simple b-complex taken daily can help maintain energy levels and keep us balanced in stressful time. there are endless herbs and products for the adrenals so ask an expert for what is best for you.

learning to let things fall. i try to be the perfect mom for my children. i try to be the best and most attentive ND for my patients. i'm realizing, i can still be those things without pushing myself to my limit.

i'm now practicing the art of not being the perfect juggler and realizing it's ok.

herbal infused oils

i really love these "DIY" herbal home creations. they are super simple to make and are very useful. so, i wanted to share my creations here! If you make anything let me know how it goes and feel free to share.
This week......i made some infused oil. Once you have the tools (ie. mason jars) and ingredients (herbs and oil), really quite simple, you are set to go.....

I picked up this organic olive oil at costco. I believe it was 13$ for 2 bottles. can't beat that price.
the lavender i collected from the cottage we were at in august. the 3 other herbs i picked up at Noahs at bloor and spadina (my old stomping ground)!

i decided to make 2 separate jars. 

one soothing, the other more healing

the first is calendula and lavender, both soothing. 

calendula is bright yellow/orange and is very well known for its healing properties to the skin. it is wonderful for inflammation, cuts, bruises, burns and even diaper rash. i mixed it with a bit of lavender for its aromatic and soothing properties. once the herbs are in the jar (fill them to the top), cover the herbs with olive oil until it reaches the top of the jar. done.

the next jar is 3/4 comfrey and 1/4 chickweed. comfrey brings healing to any part of the body in about half the normal time it would take. so topically, it is wonderful for minor wounds to the skin, bruises, and even to broken bones. it also has wonderful facial benefits as it is able to tighten and moisten the skin, really acting as a wonderful anti-aging agent. chickweed also reduces inflammation for minor burns, skin irritations and also speeds up the healing process. i then did the same and topped this jar with olive oil.

i am going to let the jars sit for the next month so the herbs can infuse as i'm not in a rush. if you wanted to speed the process up you could place them on the base of a heat plate for a few days or place the jar in the oven on a low heat ie. 200F for about 3-4 hours.
once the oil is infused, you can cheesecloth the oil out and use it as is. you could also combine it with some shea butter or cocoa butter to make a salve. i will get to that part when my oil is ready!

The Back to School Grind

It is hard to believe the summer is coming to an end and the back to school feeling is in the air. Here are a few tips to help get your kids and yourselves ready for the back to school hustle.

      1. A bedtime routine. The summer is great for that laissez faire attitude, but now that we need to get to school on time, those carefree summer days are going to have to come to an end. Children between the ages of 5-12, need 10-12 hours of sleep per night. Lack of sleep is connected to poor attention and memory, lower grades and mood disturbances.  Start by turning technology off at least an hour before bed.  Try to keep the lights dim and mood calm. Set a bedtime routine with bath/shower, reading, snuggles, and lights out.

2. Bring back the healthy diet and take out the summer treats. We’ve all had our fair share of summer ice creams but now that school is back we want to decrease the sugar load, which is excitable to our nervous systems. Also, being back to school means being surrounded by large populations of germs and in order to maintain healthy immune systems we need to keep the sugar out.

3. Increase fruits and vegetables.  We want our children (and ourselves) to “eat the rainbow” daily. With such bounty this summer of fresh and local produce it should come easily. Fresh produce is rich in vitamins, minerals, fiber and antioxidants. These food choices keep us energetic and healthy, which are two essential ingredients for successful learning.

4. Get kids moving and active outside everyday! The downfall of school, is the need to sit at desks for large periods of time. The recommended guideline is for our children to have 1 hour of outdoor activity daily and sadly only 7% of children are reaching this. Try to make this a priority.

5. It might be the time to bring the supplements back. If you feel your child needs an extra boost consult with someone about an appropriate multi-vitamin, fish oil or greens drink to help power your child through those first few weeks of school.

I hope everyone enjoys these last few carefree days with their children. I know firsthand how hard it is to be at home with children during the summer months.  I try to remind myself that “the days are long and the years are short”. So on that note, enjoy your sweet ones while they still want to spend all their time in the world with you. Good luck with the back to school craze!

acupuncture, moxibustion and breech babies

i've had several pregnant women connecting with me this past month to help them turn the breech presentation of their babies. i'm happy to report, success with all!  love my job.

i set them up with a few acupuncture sessions and teach them how to use moxibustion so they can do this daily at home. i use the "indirect" method where i place a moxa stick near the acupuncture point UB67 for a minimum of 20 minutes daily. The stick applies heat, and i leave it alternating sides every 5 minutes.

we also talk about positive visualization, which body positions are supportive to help baby turn, we use homeopathics and i even recommend diving in a pool (a tip from a good friend who's a midwife).

here's a study on moxibustion and breech babies. it's worth a try :)

simple simple salads.

this is a kale salad with a tahini dressing. you want to clean and pull all the kale off the stalks. the stalks are bitter. i then chopped the kale into small pieces. i added some diced cucumbers and peppers. (you can add whatever you like!)

the dressing is a about 2 heaping tbsps of tahini, 1/2 freshly squeezed lemon, few cloves of galic, and a handful of cilantro (you could omit this, but i simply love it so had to add it). i then hand blend the dressing but it's thick so i slowly add water to the consistency i like.
toss the salad in the dressing and done.
it's great for several days after it's made and almost gets better a few days later as the kale softens.

i made this quinoa salad with all the veggies i picked up at the dufferin grove farmers market.
i cooked 1 cup of quinoa
added chopped rainbow chard, dill cucumbers, and fresh basil
i was a bit lazy to make a dressing, so i used the sunflower kitchen pesto. it's delicious, dairy free and vegan.
once again, super simple and really healthy.
enjoy!

dying. need drugs. and it's ok.

people always blog about the joyous occassions in their lives. never the crap. do the "soulemamas" out there ever have a crappy day and talk about it? and somehow even when they do, it's still cute and picturesque.

well, this blog is about me being sick and needing drugs, and it sucks....
yesterday morning i woke up and was tired and achy. i rested and took it easy and began my slew of remedies. as the day progressed, i started feeling worse and worse. i kept up with my naturopathic prescriptions like a religion. i've got this.
at 10 pm, my throat felt like fire, swallowing was difficult, and those lovely white "pus" spots were all over. i still thought i could beat this and continued with my medicines.

fastforward to 1 am. i am now dying. tonsils so large, red, inflamed with white spots all over. can't swallow. taking the tinctures was like swallowing fire. so feverish with chills and sweats. i'm in tears.

i needed drugs. i (obviously) am not one to take antibiotics, but am also thankful to have them when they are needed. the problem i have is with the over-prescribing, and writing scripts without proper testing. ie. a swab in this case.

so here i am. 10 days with amoxicillin. my new best friend. i love you.

i am going to take my probiotics with them, but only a low dose. the antibiotics will kill the good bacteria along with the bad, so not much point right now.
when i'm done the 10 day course, i will do a week of HMF Replete and then a month of HMF Intensive. I will also drink the GH Greens + Whole Body Nutrition daily for the 70% fermented foods, to help re-establish a healthy flora.
so that's it. hope these bad boys kick in soon and i can enter the land of the living. my kids need me.
Rxo

Vegan Peanut Butter Cups

i love chocolate and peanut butter. together, it's like perfection. when i was younger we didn't really get reese's peanut butter cups, so i used to take the kraft PB and mix it with the nutella and make my own.
it was good.
well, the other day i made these. they were amazing and of course a much healthier option than my childhood ingredients.
i got the idea from pureella's blog.  chocolate, coconut oil and peanut butter. that's it. 3 ingredients.
I made half the batch, so used 100gm of organic dark chocolate. I melted it with the 2 tbsp of coconut oil and then layered into the little cups i had. i did not measure the PB and just put in little spoonfuls. i also didn't add more coconut oil on top of the peanut butter.
that's it. delicious and super simple.

 as you can see no complaints with this customer...