Celebrating Mom's

  Mother's Day is just a couple of weeks away and Moody Sisters wants to help make it special for your mom, a girlfriend that you think needs some special pampering or you can treat yourself! ;-)

  The Sisters have whipped up a special batch of Floral Lotion just for this special occasion, which means it is limited! There are only 9 jars available, so go snag yours today. If you have tried Moody Sister's lotion before you know how amazing it is and how long it lasts, so why not treat your mom with this special jar. Everytime she uses it she will be sure to remember what an amazing daughter she has. (Maybe I need to go buy one for my momma)  ;-)

 Do you know any new momma's? Or maybe someone who is expecting? They deserve to be treated on this special day to! I believe being a mom begins with pregnancy ( I mean you have to take care of yourself to take care of that baby, right?) so why not make her pregnancy a little more enjoyable with some of Moody Sisters Pregnancy Belly Cream or help get her stocked up with some must have baby items.



Also there are a few items left over from the Valentines Day special, just check out the sale/limited edition section on the site for some other amazing items that Mom is sure to love!! And to help make your purchase a little more enjoyable, use the code HOLIDAY25 for 25% off!! :)

Wednesday Guest Post & Linky 4/25

Wednesday is our guest post and linky day! Post your organic related, blog, giveaway or review on our linky and email us if you're interested for writing a guest post!

I have to be honest, I am not a big hot tea drinker. I think because when I was younger (and even now) when I was sick my mom would give me hot tea with honey in it....so hot tea just makes me think of being sick. So when I was asked to try some honey tea I was a little skeptical, but thought "why not!".
I was sent a jar of Pure Raw Honey Mint Medley Tea from Honey Tea Thyme to try out.

Yesterday morning I decided to give it a try. First I love how easy it is to prepare! I put my cup under my Keurig and filled my it with some hot water and then I just took a heaping teaspoon of the honey and stirred it in. After one sip I was hooked! Honestly I was shocked that I enjoyed it so much. Like I said I am not a big hot tea fan....I also am not a big mint fan, but this was so good!
Also because of the fact that this is made of honey, and since it was mint I had to take some to my mom yesterday who has feeling under the weather. She really enjoyed it as well! I will definitely be purchasing some different flavors to try out in the future!
The only thing I was not a fan of was I noticed that the ingredients said "color" so I emailed Sharon to see if this was artificial coloring, here is her response. We do use artificial coloring, (Wilton brand) in our flavors that have coloring, we also have several flavors without any color, Vanilla Spice, Organic Cinnamon, Organic Chamomile, Licorice Mint, Organic Wild Berry & Organic Ginger. We are experimenting with natural coloring and hope to produce all our flavors that have coloring with that in the near future. As a side note a gallon of honey only takes between 1 and 2 drops of coloring to color the batch. I do wish there was no artificial coloring in it, but I am glad that it is only such a small amount and am very pleased that they are looking for a way to make the coloring natural. :) In the meantime I will stick with trying the flavors that have no coloring ;-) there are a good many to choose from that I think sound wonderful!
Please take a minute to check our her etsy store. She also offers gift baskets on her site, I think these would make especially good Christmas presents! (or anytime of the year!)


Here is a little bio on the shop owner and some more info on her product (and just for our readers a special discount code)!

I'm a stay at home mom with 5 boys still at home. I am passionate about honey and its healing force. I've used it on burns to help them heal better and quicker. Whenever my children are under the weather, they get honey in one form or another. I have been enjoying the benefits of honey for over 25 years. Honey's natural ability to heal amazes me. I love what Raw Honey can do for the overall health of the body. For many years I have made this Honey Tea as a way of helping my family stay healthy. We created this product as an instant tea, to begin with to save this busy mom of 10 time, which is especially valuable when little people are not feeling well.

We sell 100% Pure Raw Honey, Organic and conventional flavors of Honey Tea Thyme. Our current flavors include: Organic Cinnamon, Organic Chamomile, Organic, Lavender, Organic Rose Petal, Organic Ginger, Apple, Autumn Spice, Clove, Fruit & Nut, Lemon Thyme, Licorice Mint, Mint Medley, Orange Spice & Vanilla Spice. All you need is a teaspoon of honey in a cup of hot water and you have a wonderful cup of tea. it is also delightful on toast. After lots of years of providing honey to family and friends and going to farmers markets, we decided that it was time to go online. You can find us at www.etsy.com/shop/honeyteathyme?ref=si_shop
We are careful to preserve the natural enzymes that the bees put in the honey in the first place. We infuse Organic Herbs or natural essential oils into our 100% Pure Raw Colorado Honey. I believe that when you taste something that is pure and natural with no added chemicals or preservatives that you body goes, Wow! I need some more of that! We are as a country I believe, starved for something wholly nutritious.

Use the coupon save20 for 20% of your purchase!

Earth Day Challenge: Less Plastic Update

Amanda recently shared a great update on her Less Chemicals challenge. I was so excited to hear her update, and have her mention that they started using a kitchen composter (something else on our "to-do" list).

Two weeks ago, I challenged you to use less plastic in your home.

Facebook Fan, Katie, said that her family was working on replacing all their plastic with glass. I was so excited to hear that someone would be joining in the Less Plastic Challenge. (Katie, if you see this, please share how this is going!)

I shared that I would be joining in the challenge by remembering to take my reusable bags to the store, and actually USE them.

How did I do? SO much better than I anticipated! Every time I went to the store, I took my reusable bags and made use of them (and heard many thanks from cashiers!) It was so nice to come home from the store and not have tons of plastic bags to "stash away." I was also very happy to think about the plastic bags that would not be used by our family (no to mention the few cents I saved at some stores just for having my own bags!)

I'm hoping that I will continue to challenge myself each shopping trip.

Please let us know how you're doing with using Less Plastic!

Earth Day Challenge Update

 How are you guys doing with your Earth Day Challenges?? Are you finding new ways to use less plastic or less chemicals in your home? Some of you have already shared with us and its been great to hear the things you all are doing! Some of you are doing the baking soda & vinegar combo for your house cleaning, others are getting rid of your plastic containers and some are even cloth diapering their babies! Awesome! We would still LOVE to hear from more of you! (we can use the tips ourselves!)

  I am excited to share with you guys that I did start using the baking soda and vinegar combo in my bathroom cleaning. I have to say I was so surprised at how well it cleaned! My sink looks great! No smears or anything! Even my toilet cleaned up great! So no more harsh chemicals for us! :)

 Another thing we have started doing is composting. My husband has actually always been really good at this, he always takes our scrap food out to the outside composter...I however just do not have the motivation to walk outside everytime I need to get rid of some scrap food so it normally just goes in the trash. However, I just found a nice counter top composter! I love it!! The bags that come with it are biodegradable and its big enough that I have been using the same bag for a week now and there is NO smell! Its wonderful!

  We also wanted to share with you guys a code for free shipping on your next order! Just use the code FREESHIP. And please keep sharing with us!

Wednesday Guest Post & Linky 4/18

Wednesday is our guest post and linky day! Post your organic related, blog, giveaway or review on our linky and email us if you're interested for writing a guest post!

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Egg confusion. By Danielle.
Eggs. I love eggs. "In a shell" (ha ha), they are a great, natural, nutritious, food. It is also a great way for folks who choose not to eat meat to get protein.

In my quest to live healthier, greener and more self-sustaining, I am lucky to have my own chickens (sans rooster - all girls here!) and to know exactly what is and what is not going into my eggs. An even better feeling is to know that the hens are kept happy and humanely. The chickens also make great, inexpensive, and highly entertaining pets!

I have learned a lot in the short time I have had birds. One of the most eye-opening things I have learned is about egg labeling and nutrition.
Egg labeling can be confusing. Free Range, Organic, Pastured ... which is best? Omega 3, Brown vs White ... which is healthiest? Large, AA ... What does it all mean?

Here is the break-down from the USDA (United Stated Department of Agriculture) and the American Egg Board and others.
http://www.fsis.usda.gov/Factsheets/Focus_On_Shell_Eggs/index.asp
http://www.incredibleegg.org/health-and-nutrition/egg-nutrients


First lets' look at the basics of size and quality

GRADES

I wish I got those grades...

source USDA

Eggs you find in the store come with one of 3 different grades:
U.S. Grade AA, A, and B.
These grades are basically given based on 2 factors:
1 - the interior quality of the egg judged by candling prior to packaging
2- the condition of the egg shell prior to packaging
Keep in mind that this may or may not be the condition in which they are in at the time you purchase or consume them.

U.S. Grade AA
Whites are thick and firm; yolks that are high, round, and practically free from defects.
Shells are clean & unbroken.

U.S. Grade A
Whites are "reasonably" firm.
This is the quality most often sold in stores.

U.S. Grade B
Whites may be thinner, yolks may be wider and flatter than eggs of higher grades.
Shells unbroken, but may have slight stains.
This quality is usually used to make liquid, frozen, and dried egg products.

SIZE

... doesn't matter.

Size is just the minimum required net weight per dozen eggs.
It does not refer to size or shape of the individual eggs.
It is the total weight of the carton that puts them in one of the following classes:

Size or Weight Class	Minimum net weight per dozen
Jumbo	30 ounces
Extra Large	27 ounces
Large	24 ounces
Medium	21 ounces
Small	18 ounces
Peewee	15 ounces

Chart from USDA

Now that the easy part is over, on to the nitty gritty.

COLOR

Eggs come in a variety of colors. Forget the USDA's explanation of this 'cause they are just plain wrong with their feather mumbo-jumbo. Here is the truth = If the hen has a white skin patch under the ears the eggs will be white. If the hen has a red or splotched skin patch under the ears, the egg will be not white. I say not white because eggs can be any shade of brown from a light tan to a rich dark mocha. Some eggs may have an auburn tint and others can even be shades of green, blue or pink! Very Cool.

FACT: There is no difference in flavor, quality, or nutrition as a result of the color of the shell. No, really, I am not kidding. It doesn't matter.

Here is what does matter...

http://www.incredibleegg.org/health-and-nutrition/egg-nutrients/nutrient-label

FERTILE

OK kiddos, that means there is a rooster involved. If you need more explanation than that, ask your parents. The egg could be fertilized.
NO, the embryo won't develop into a chick because it has been either too cold, too long since laid or both.
NO, there is no difference in nutrition in fertilized vs. unfertilized eggs.
Although, they do not keep as well as unfertilized eggs. Commercial eggs are not fertile unless so labeled.

Regular 'Ole Eggs

'Y know... the ones in the store that are the cheapest. No fancy labels. Just plain old eggs. These come from large "factory farms". The hens are called "battery hens" and are "paked" several per cage; cage on top of cage, filling large warehouse buildings. They live this way from egg-laying age till death. I could go on about the miserable conditions but won't. You can learn more from the Humane Society at the following link:http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/chickens/
Anyway... that is where the majority of commercial eggs come from. This is also why they are cheapest - "stack 'em deep -n- sell 'em cheap". Although, some argument can be made for the control aspect of this style. It is possible to maintain climate, air quality, feed, medications and water at optimal levels. Predators are not an issue.

FREE RANGE, Free Roaming and Cage-Free

Free-range. This label indicates that the flock was provided shelter in a building, room, or area with unlimited access to food, fresh water, and continuous access to the outdoors during their production cycle. The outdoor area may or may not be fenced and/or covered with netting-like material. This label is regulated by the USDA.

"The insects and other organic matter in the diet of free-range hens may result in such a very small increase in egg protein content that it’s considered insignificant. The nutrient content of eggs from the same breed of hen fed the same diet is not affected by whether hens are raised free-range or in floor or cage operations." (http://www.incredibleegg.org/egg-facts/eggcyclopedia/f/free-range-eggs).

Cage free

Eggs laid by hens at indoor floor operations, sometimes called free-roaming hens. The hens may roam in a building, room or open area, usually in a barn or poultry house, and have unlimited access to food and water.
(http://www.incredibleegg.org/egg-facts/eggcyclopedia/c/cage-free-eggs)

Hormone-Free Eggs

All eggs are hormone free. In the U.S., by federal law, neither laying hens nor any other type of poultry are fed hormones. (http://www.incredibleegg.org/egg-facts/eggcyclopedia/h/hormone-free-eggs)

Omega-3 Fatty Acids

The omega-3 fatty acids found in fish and seafood are considered essential components of the diet because your body can’t make them from the foods you eat. Regular eggs also contain omega-3s, on average about 30 mg per egg. Omega-3-enhanced eggs provide more, from 100 to over 600 mg per egg. (http://www.incredibleegg.org/egg-facts/eggcyclopedia/o/omega-3-fatty-acids)

Organic Eggs

Eggs produced according to national USDA organic standards related to methods, practices and substances used in producing and handling crops, livestock and processed agricultural products.
This is all extremely complicated and comes in varying levels.
Among other requirements, organic eggs are produced by hens fed rations having ingredients that were grown without most conventional pesticides, fungicides, herbicides or commercial fertilizers. Due to higher production costs and lower volume per farm, organic eggs are more expensive than eggs from hens fed conventional feed. The nutrient content of eggs is not affected by whether or not the ration is organic.
(http://www.incredibleegg.org/egg-facts/eggcyclopedia/o/organic-eggs)

And for those who go unconventional...

Backyard Chickens allowed to "graze"

Researchers from Pen State found that pastured birds produced eggs that contained about three times more omega-3 fat in their eggs than did birds raised on an industrial diet. They also had more vitamins A and E. (http://www.rps.psu.edu/0305/poultry.html)

My fresh eggs have a super thick shell (from the "recycled" calcium supplement), a cloudy and thick egg white, a thick and dark yolk & virtually no air sac. This means they are fresh!

So, what to I do with all these fresh, healthy eggs from my happy birdies?

Breakfast sandwiches, scrambles, fritatas and quiches; deviled eggs, egg salad breakfast pizza; sauces and dressings, baked goods and deserts, homemade pastas and noodles. You can even make hair and skin treatments - but, that is not my specialty.

You can visit my blog for some of my recipes and to learn more about my flock.

Recipes: http://mossytrees.blogspot.com/p/edibles.html

My Flock: http://mossytrees.blogspot.com/p/chickens.html

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Blog: www.mossytrees.blogspot.com
Store: www.etsy.com/shop/PoultryPlayground
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/PoultryPlayground

How to Take Action - Recycle. Reuse. Reduce.

With Earth Day falling in April, many people take this month to figure out what they can do to not make such a mess of this beautiful home we call Earth! Compiling every single idea would mean starting a new blog, so I just wanted to share a few ideas and tips for Recycling, Reusing, and Reducing.

Recycling:
If your city or town doesn't provide recycling bins, you can still recycle. Simply find a spot to set some bins of your choosing (rubbermaid tubs/trash cans/etc) and fill them up! If you are lacking for space, figure out what you are using the most of and make a point to start recycling that one item. Keep in mind that "every little bit helps", because it truly does!

Reusing:
So many items that we use every day can be reused to avoid creating more waste. Paper towel and toilet paper tubes can be reused for craft items (check with your child's teachers, our are always needing these items!) Milk jugs can be reused as watering cans. Plastic containers (think cheeses and sour cream) can be reused for storage (buttons, craft supplies, etc).

Reducing:
My biggest goal is to simply reduce the amount of specific items we use (see my "Less Plastic" post). In my Less Plastic Challenge, I mentioned that my biggest hang up was plastic grocery bags and I was going to strive to use my re-usable bags more frequently reducing the number of plastic bags being brought into our home (even though we do recycle those we use). I'll update in a few days how that is going ;-) Whatever that item is in your life and home, figure out how you can replace it with a less wasteful item.

What are some of your tips and ideas for Recycling, Reusing, and Reducing? 

And, in the spirit of Earth Day, stock up on some of your favorite Chemical Free skin care products and use the code FREESHIP at the Moody Sisters etsy shop to get free shipping!

Hydrating Sugar Scrub Winner!

We have a winner for the Hydrating Sugar Scrub Giveaway...

#41

Danielle P.
CONGRATULATIONS!!!

If you weren't the lucky winner, you can still use code 

"GIVEAWAY" 

at check out for 20% off your order!!

Thank you to all who entered!

Earth Day Challenge - Less Plastic

I've always been a bit "green". My parents stressed the importance of recycling while I was growing up, and that definitely carried over once I left home, and definitely maKe an influence on the decisions I make today. I made sure my apartment in college had a recycling bin (even though it meant my room mate and I would have to go dump it ourselves every weekend) now that I'm all grown up and married, we have a bin in our garage for easy access to throw out those glass/plastic/paper things that will be picked up every Wednesday morning.

There is an area of my green-ness that I've always struggled with though - using less. Not recycling what I buy, but just making less waste. Specifically, plastic. Off the top of my head, I can count a TON of plastic sitting in my fridge, in my pantry and on the counters. I even hate plastic!

Our family has done well in making sure we never have plastic water bottles around (we do have two jugs of water stashed for an emergency), but have switched all our water bottles to stainless steel or glass water bottles. The kids' cups are still plastic ones because I haven't found a good (ie: non-leaking) alternative.

We're slowly but surely tossing all our plastic food storage containers and replacing with glass (we're trying to do 1-2 a month).

I mentioned in a previous post that I love mason jars. I'm trying to get better at storing soups, salsa, sauces, dressings, and chili in them, in addition to making sure I have enough on hand to drink out of! ;-) However, hubby can't seem to get on board with my love for mason jars, so we do still have some old plastic cafeteria cups he "acquired" in college (really, stolen plastic?! Double whammy!) I'm tempted to just toss them one day ;-)

Let's not forget the grocery bags. Ugh. I OWN cloth/reusable bags. I keep them in the van. And then I walk into the store...without them... What good does that do??

Let's see...there's the yogurt cups, the milk cartons, the deli meat containers...the list goes on and on.

And that's just the kitchen.

There's all the toys in the boys room...containers of stuff in the bathroom...the tubs in the garage....

ugh.

Making a change in all this plastic is not easy. I've been trying, for a long time.

Baby steps are so much easier.

So, this is the Less Plastic Earth Day Challenge for you...

Pick an area.

Make a change.

Do you use a ton of plastic? Do you want to make a change? Where can you start? Please share!! Encourage each other! Offer tips and advice! Share on the Facebook page too!

Me? I'm going to start with those pesky grocery bags. I'm going to remember to take them into the store AND use them! I might still end up with 1 or 2 plastic bags, but I can use those for trash bags in the bathroom (it'll keep me from BUYING trash bags, am I right??!)

We'll be collecting your comments on the blog and on the Facebook page, and sharing them when we update in a couple weeks, so please, join us in these two Earth Day Challenges!!

*The Moody Sisters are participating in this challenge too and have recently changed all their bottles and jars to glass or steel! In addition to that they are phasing out their current plastic shipping envelopes to recycled corrugated cardboard with reused packing peanuts or bubble wrap!

Earth Day Challenge-Less Chemicals

 When my husband & I got married 7 1/2 years ago and it came time to buy my first "set" of house cleaning products I went for the "greener" products. Since then I have been faithfully using these products to clean our home, excepts in our bathrooms.  I don't know why, but I feel in the bathrooms I need to use these harsher chemical filled products. Does anyone else feel this way? I really don't know why I feel this way because if these "green" products are good enough to clean the rest of our home, along with the floors that my kids play on then they are surely good enough to clean our bathrooms....but I can't fully convince myself.

 So...my goal for this Earth Day "month" is to start using less chemicals in ALL of my household work. I found a great article on "How to Clean your bathroom without harsh chemicals". I plan to try these out this week when I clean the bathrooms in our home. From what I have read so far it seems if you have vinegar and baking soda on hand your ready to start making your homemade cleaners!

The Moody Sisters are challenging you to take a peak at the ingredients on products you use in your house and on your skin. In what ways can you use less chemicals in your day -to- day life? Share your tips & advice, or challenges for yourself with all of us , by commenting on this post or by sharing on the FB page. We will be collecting your comments and sharing them on the page when we update in a few weeks. Be looking for another challenge in just a few days :)

 Moody Sisters Organic Skincare is free of chemicals and preservatives, not only 100% organic and environmentally “green” but effective!

4/4 Wednesday ORGANIC Linky Blog Hop

There are so many amazing articles on making the switch to organic foods, cleaning products, skincare products and more and we want to see them! Share your ORGANIC related link with us so we can check it out!

Moody Sisters Organic Skincare -- 100% Organic all the time!

Just in!

  If you haven't been over to the Moody Sisters etsy shop lately, you need to go check it out! Whitney & Jess have come up with some great new items, I am itching to get my hands on many of them!

  I want to highlight just a few , the ones that I really want to try and I think many of you will be excited about! The sisters have been great about providing amazing products for us adults....and now they have some products for the younger ones in our family.

 The first thing you will find in the shop for you little one is Silky Smooth Baby Wash. If you have watched the news or done any research lately I am sure you have heard the reports about some of the big name baby products having cancer causing agents in them. Seems like everything "causes cancer" anymore, whether these claims are true I don't know....but I do know that the less chemicals that come in contact with my little one's skin the better! This product has a light lavender scent and is made with 100% organic ingredients. I can't wait to give this one a try!

  Another item that is a must for all mom's of little ones in diapers that Moody Sisters is providing for us is their new Baby Balm for Diaper Rash.  Again, this product is 100% organic and safe for your baby! Not only can this balm be used for diaper rash, but you can also use it for baby's chapped skin! Anytime a product has more than one use I am definitely more prone to buy it!

 Lastly, and maybe the most exciting product to me is the Baby Wipe Cleansing Spray. We are a cloth diapering family, so we also use cloth wipes. We have used a few different cleansing sprays and we have used just water at times...nothing that I have loved though. As much as I love all other Moody Sisters products I am betting this one will meet our needs! Also this is another product that has double uses, you can also use this as a feminine hygiene spray.

 There are several more new products on the site, so please take a minute to look! Also I just have to brag a little on Whitney and Jess today! A few weeks ago when I received my order of face wash it had leaked everywhere, since this had actually happened to me once before I thought I should email Whit to let her know. Now I didn't loose a lot of the product, but it was kind of a hassle and I thought if this was happening to others she would probably want to know. Well I am happy to say that Whit just emailed me and said that she looked into press seals and starting next week all  bottles should be leak free!! YAY!!! So if you have had this problem, worry no more! And give a big thanks to the sisters for resolving this problem, they work hard to make their customers happy!