Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Rev Abs Day 2

Today is day 2 of the Rev Abs 90 day journey. My body is sore from the day before so I was a bit glad that today's workout focused mostly on the abs. It was a pretty good ab workout which also incorporated weights in a few of the exercises. Overall it was a bit less hectic than the first day but still intense. Can't wait to see what awaits me tomorrow!

Monday, May 3, 2010


Please check out our store at www.cafepress.com/littlegrizzly for yoga wear for kids! We have added a few new products and soon will be branching off cafepress and going on our own! We will be providing a bigger variety of products as well. Check us out and let us know what you think!


Rev Abs!!


My husband and I recently ordered Rev Abs after stumbling upon it on YouTube. We have seen countless infomercial for various other Beachbody products but we had never seen any for this product. We watched the promo on YouTube and decided to give it a try. We got the dvd's last week and today we began our Rev Ab journey! I have to say that I was sweating up a storm this morning while making my way through the Total Strength and Abs DVDs. They were pretty intense and it was just the first DVDs of the set! Can't wait to see how tomorrow goes!

A few Updates!!!


I've been absent for a while dealing with some family issues but now I am back. I wanted to give a few updates on the deodorant and no poo experiments! First off the deodorant still works wonders and actually works much better than any commercial deodorant I have ever used. Only one slight issue.. the aluminum from the baking soda killed my skin! It completely tore it to pieces so now I am on the hunt for an aluminum free baking soda to mix up a new batch.


The No Poo experiment didn't go so well. The baking soda did not work well with my hair at all. It literally made it dry and somewhat sticky. I tried using a bit less of it but it still did not work well with my hair. I was actually doing much better with the warm water rinses. I figured I needed to find an alternative as well so I decided to use Dr. Woods natural almond scented soap as shampoo instead. It does not contain any harsh detergents and all the ingredients are natural. So far it has been working well for me and the smell is great. I have also been using organic, unrefined, virgin coconut oil for my hair as conditioner. This is again all natural so there are no harsh ingredients to strip your hair of it's natural oils. This is a wonderful alternative to conditioner and the smell is wonderful as well!


Tuesday, April 20, 2010

I am happy to say the deodorant is holding up pretty well. I had to re apply halfway during the day but it was mostly because I didn't apply it correctly the first time. The texture of the mix is very similar to the texture of actual deodorant which makes it pretty hard to spread using your fingers. I was given some great advice by a reader to pour the mix into an old deodorant bottle to make it easier to apply. I will be trying this with the next batch I make.

Thursday, April 15, 2010




I've noticed that as the day progresses my curls are getting tighter. This is a good thing!

Normally around this time of the week I would've reached for my trusty bottle of shampoo and conditioner and begin my hair care routine for the day. Wash, rinse, leave in conditioner and sometimes mousse depending on the weather. Since I am embarking on the No Poo journey this morning I rinsed out my hair with just warm water and nothing else. I rinsed it out for about 4-5 minutes and combed through it while it was wet. I was removing any excess hair product and gunk that might be stuck in my hair from the previous wash. I finished rinsing my hair and paused for a second and thought to myself.. should I dare leave the house today with absolutely no products in my hair??? Not even the leave in conditioner??? I decided to go for it. I reached for the towel, patted my hair dry and that was the end of that. It felt nice to not have to stand there and waste 10 minutes putting crap in my hair. I left for work with my hair still a bit damp and with no idea how it would look once I got to the office. On my way to the office I thought about stopping to pull out the mirror just to check what was going on but I decided against it. I figured if I wasn't getting any funny looks from the people around me then how bad could it be? Then again this is NY and people are used to strangeness.

I finally arrive at the office and decide to go see the results of the warm water rinse and no products and to my surprise it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. My curls are still there and my hair is not a complete ball of frizz!!! I was pleasantly surprised and happy. I am not quite sure how it will look tomorrow but for now I will just rejoice in the fact that at least today was a success. Now that the hair is gunk free or somewhat gunk free I will be trying the baking soda/apple cider vinegar wash on Sunday. I will post the results of that as well.. Hopefully they will be just as good!

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Let's Detox!!


In addition to the No Poo experiment we have also decided to embark on a 4 day Detox journey starting next week. I know 4 days doesn't sound like much but it is all part of a month long process of creating major changes in our bodies as a whole. We are beginning with a detox, followed by a clean diet and a detox exercise plan. On the first week we will be preparing our bodies for the 4 day detox. Three days prior to the detox we will be focusing on eating whole grains, vegetables, fruit, fish, and chicken.


We will be avoiding the following foods:

Dairy and eggs, Butter and mayonnaise, all types of grains, certian fruits and vegetables such as oranges, orange juice, corn, creamed vegetables, animal protein: pork, beef, veal, sausage, cold cuts, canned meats, frankfurters, shellfish, vegetable protein: soybean products (soy sauce, soybean oil in processed foods, tempeh, tofu, soy milk, soy yogurt, textured vegetable protein), nuts and seeds: peanuts and peanut butter, oils: shortening, processed oils, salad dressings, and spreads, drinks: alcohol, caffeinated beverages, and soft drinks, sweeteners: white and brown refined sugars, honey, maple syrup, high-fructose corn syrup, and evaporated cane juice
and condiments: chocolate, ketchup, relish, chutney, barbecue sauce, teriyaki sauce.


It seems like a lot to cut out but this is necessary in order to prepare the body for the liquid detox that will follow. I will be posting our progress with the detox as well as my progress with the No Poo!

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

No Poo???


No I am not referring to actual poo. I am talking about no shampoo! Yep that's right no shampoo!! I have decided to give up using chemically infused shampoos all together!!


So why did I decide to go shampoo free??


While shampoo "cleans" your hair it can also remove all the oils your scalp naturally produces. These oils help keep your hair soft and shiny which is why sometimes we notice that our hair looks so much better a few days after we have washed it. Most shampoos also contain harmful ingredients such as mineral oil, which is a byproduct when gasoline is distilled from crude oil, and Sodium lauryl sulfate, which is synthetic chemical regulated as a pesticide. Sodium lauryl sulfate can be drying and harsh for the hair and causes eye irritation ( that explains the burning sensation we feel when it falls in our eyes!), allergic reactions and even hair loss. The mineral oil is added to provide an artificial coating on the strands of the hair which in turn make your hair look shiny. Mineral Oil is not quickly absorbed into the scalp so it remains there and blocks the release of natural oils. This creates a greasy cap in your scalp which requires more shampoo to remove. So you see it's a vicious cycle. You make your hair dependent on something that might not necessarily make it healthier in the long run.

With this being said I am beginning my journey into the No Poo world today since it will be the last time my hair was washed with so called organic shampoos. So what will I be using instead of shampoo??? I will be following a simple recipe of Baking Soda wash with an Apple Cider Vinegar Rinse. Ok before you cringe at the thought of putting vinegar in your hair let me state that the smell of SMALL amounts of apple cider vinegar do not remain in your hair if thoroughly rinsed out. Why Baking Soda? Because baking soda gently clarifies hair from chemical buildup. Why Apple Cider Vinegar? Because Apple Cider Vinegar detangles the hair follicles, seals the cuticle, and balances the hair’s pH balance.


How exactly will I be mixing these? Here's how!


One tablespoon of baking soda to one cup of water

One tablespoon of Apple Cider Vinegar to one cup of water


Mix the baking soda and the water in a bottle (shake) and pour over your head like you would with a regular shampoo. Massage into your scalp for a few minutes and then rinse off. If you have thick or long hair you might need two tablespoons. However too much baking soda can dry your hair so test it out and see what works for you.


Once you have rinsed off the baking soda, mix the apple cider vinegar with water in a bottle ( shake) and pour over your head. Leave on for about a minute or two and rinse off. If you tend to have oily hair by nature then you might not need to use too much Apple Cider Vinegar.


There you have the simple recipe! Will this work wonders for my hair??? Who knows!! But I am willing to give it a shot and see.


I have attached a picture of my hair as it is right now after being washed today.







Our Journey


Welcome to my blog! I decided to start this blog because I realize my family and I need to make some lifestyle/health changes now that we have brought a little life into this world. We have always considered ourselves an earth conscious family who try their best to live green and purchase organic products. However I recently realized after having a baby that there is so much more we can be doing not only to help the environment but to better our health and our lifestyle. We want to make sure our little boy grows up understanding how to make the most out of the natural resources the earth provides for us and how important it is to have a growing respect for those resources as well. I realize this will not be an easy task due to the massive amount of non friendly overly commercialized products that are so readily available to us but it is something we have committed ourselves to following.

In this blog I will be documenting our experiences with organic foods, organic baby products, do it yourself concoctions and many other things. So feel free to join us as we embark on this journey to Walk With Mother Earth..

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