Dishrag Diaries

Welcome! I'm so glad you're here.

Do you know that the National Cancer Institute predicts that one out of every two Americans born today will be diagnosed with some form of cancer? Or that the CDC tells us that 5.2 million American children have ADHD, and that number is skyrocketing? Almost 10% of all kids in the U.S. have asthma, and at least 13% have one or more developmental disability. Obesity rates are through the roof (1/3 of adults and 20% of U.S. children), as are the rates of related diseases like diabetes.

It doesn't have to be this way. But modern conventional ideas about nutrition and wellness have failed us, and they are killing our children!

This site is about looking back at how healthy societies once ate, and sharing great recipes for Real Food. It's about preventing disease, instead of prescribing something to treat symptoms and make some pharmaceutical company rich. It's about removing toxins from our food and homes, and taking charge of our health and our families.

I want to live - and teach my children to live - a long healthy life, full of energy and joy.

Won't you join me? Since you're new here, you may want to subscribe via email or RSS feed.

Feel free to contact me with any questions, and thanks for visiting!

Happy Almost-Spring everyone! Let’s jump right in…

Free Webinar

Don’t you love free stuff? Me, too.

One of my very favorite mom-owned businesses, NaturoKits, is offering a FREE webinar: Introduction to Natural First Aid. Before I give you the details of that, let me tell you about the company.

The founders, Julie and Padeen, are licensed naturopathic physicians (and mothers) who have created ‘Care Packages’ of what they consider to be the most essential remedies. I love and highly recommend their Naturopathic First Aid Kit (you can also find it in Health and Wellness Section of the Recommendations page).

To explain what you’re getting for that price, I’ll use their words:

The price point for the Basic First Aid NaturoKit® may seem high compared to regular first aid kits. Let us help you understand the value and what you’re getting for the money.

First of all our Basic First Aid NaturoKit® is different from a regular first aid kit in that it contains medicines for relieving symptoms AND promoting healing. It takes first aid care to a whole new level, beyond band-aids and Tylenol.  If you were to walk into a health food store and purchase all of the remedies in our Basic First Aid NaturoKit® separately, you would pay more than the cost of our kit. Next, you must understand that many of these remedies will serve you for YEARS – the homeopathic remedies in particular.

Another important value of the kit is the product insert with detailed instructions for using the kit. We worked hard to write an insert which makes it as easy as possible for our customers to know which remedies to use in lots of common first aid situations and to quickly figure out HOW to use them. Generally a bit of education is needed to help people understand how and when to use naturopathic medicine and I hope that our product inserts reflect this. I have argued that the insert may actually be the greatest value of our kits!

Finally the convenience factor of having it all packed together in a nice compact bag cannot be underestimated. So the price point might seem high to some at first glance. But once people realize what they’re getting for their money, and how long many of the items in the kit will last, it typically becomes a non-issue.

My first experience using the kit sold me on it for life. I decided to grab the metal rack of my pizza stone – straight out of the oven – with my bare hands. I got a nice little burn, as you can imagine. I immediately pulled out the very easy to understand insert from my kit. As instructed, I took the remedy Cantharis and applied a Calendula compress. The relief was shockingly quick, but the best was yet to come. The next day, I was about halfway through my shower (which I like hot hot hot) when I remembered the burn.

Now, I don’ t know if you burn yourself a lot (like I do), but even days after a burn, you are usually in pain when it’s contacted by even warm water. And it was FINE in my hot shower. You could barely even see a mark. (The instructions also recommend to apply Wild Weed Salve as it heals; I had no need to do this.) As I said, I burn myself quite a bit (I’ve told you before: I do stupid things) and I know how my body reacts to burns. To me, this kit is nothing short of miraculous and I recommend it to everyone I know. It is also super-convenient to have everything in one little pouch, perfect to throw in your suitcase, diaper bag or pocketbook.

So, back to the webinar. I can’t wait to hear more about a naturopathic approach to first aid, and I hope you’ll join me. The webinar is free, but you do need to register to be provided with the call-in information. The time below is when it will occur live. The webinar materials will be available for a couple of weeks following so you can view it at your leisure.

Introduction to Natural First Aid – The Webinar

Saturday, April 16, 10:00am – 11:30am PST (2:30pm EST)
(This is the live version; The materials will be available for several weeks following.)

FREE

Register Here

Site Updates

I’ve made some much-needed site updates. Although some clean-up and additions are still in the works, please check out the new pages (see the tabs above). Be sure to leave your comments, especially if there is a product recommendation you are looking for and don’t see.

Please Join Me!

Do you live in or near Virginia? Can you find Virginia on a map? If so, please join me and my family in attending Acres USA’s Polyface Farm Field Day. From the Acres USA website:

Gather the family for… a day of family fun and learning that could change your life… You will see in an up-close and personal way how through respect for nature and innovation your family can make a good living on a small farm… Best of all, you’ll sit down to a Virginia-style barbeque of healthy, natural food grown to order right on Polyface Farm. Beyond the fun and learning on the farm, the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia is rich in history and family fun is everywhere. Make this the centerpiece of your vacation – you’ll be glad you did!

We’ve toured Polyface before and it is always inspiring and educational. Everyone – from farmers to gardeners to anyone who eats FOOD – will find something valuable to learn. I hope to see you there!

Polyface Farm Field Day

Saturday, July 9, 2011

Swoope, VA

Register Here

Thinking of Growing Your Own Food?

The time to start your garden is NOW! (Or last week, but now is OK, too.) I had hoped to do a series on this HUGE subject, but turns out that’s not going to happen. (Maybe next year.) Luckily, someone else has! Please visiting the Gardening 101 series at Keeper of the Home.

Don’t be afraid to mess-up. Last season was my very first shot at this (since I was a little girl helping my parents) and I did everything wrong. And despite that, we had a summer full of dreamy, juicy tomatoes and gorgeous (huge!) squash, with samplings of heavenly strawberries, spinach, salad greens, cauliflower and broccoli here and there. Oh, and some potatoes! So jump on in. You won’t regret it!

Struggle with Food Allergies?

Click here to check out Cheeseslave’s new online cooking class Reversing Food Allergies. Read her personal story and see all that you’ll receive with this class. (You’ll find a coupon code at that link, too!) Enrollment ends March 31, 2011.

Shameless Plugging

Have you voted for Dishrag Diaries as Babble.com’s ‘You Nominate’ Top Food Mom Blog yet? If not, what are you waiting for?! It’s quick and easy, and you don’t even have to register. Just click, “I like this.” (And please ask your friends to do so, too!)

Thank you so very much for your support!

While I’m Shamelessly Plugging…

Do you have kids, nieces or nephews? They will love our family’s band, Silly Norm and the Fun Bunch. The website is lots of fun: you can watch our silly videos AND order our new CD! Remember to also “like” us on Facebook to stay apprised of shows and info. Good, clean, silly fun!

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