Finally Gardening the Right Way

Gardening is always a learning process, but this year I am finally doing things right. Or at least one thing. I am finally thinning my plants.

Believe me, it was shear torture to rip out perfectly good plants, just to leave dead space in their places. I tried to transplant as many as I could, but I had to obey the space rules there too, and could only move a few.

I cringed when I first planted my broccoli plants - look at all this wasted space:

Broccoli

But just a month later - look what has happened. Yes you can see that I sneaked some Basil in the "dead space" I couldn't resist! And I'll thin it out later....

Broccoli - one month after planting

The tomatoes, corn, and beans are all filling in their "dead spaces" as well.

I thinned out the spinach and lettuce and had an amazing tuna salad with the thinnings. I thinned out my carrots and thought about eating them as well. All right, fine - I ate a few of them. But I wasn't really hungry at the time and knew that fresh greens would wilt shortly after picking, so I composted them.

Look at all those wasted carrot seedlings....

Next time, I'll come hungry and eat them. They were really good and fresh - with just a hint of carrot scent.

The Basil, Cilantro, Spinach, Swiss Chard, and Lettuce are all getting bigger since they were thinned out and are free from all of the problems I had last year when I was greedy and refused to thin the garden.

Here's a few shots: Notice the solitary plants in the photos. Nobody is hogging space.

Basil

Romaine

Spinach

Swiss Chard

We also have a new Zucchini growing and berries formed on our raspberries, strawberries, and blueberries. And amazingly, my 4 golden raspberries which had become 2, suddenly became 9 and after a running incident are now at 8. Perhaps the struggling is over and we will finally have all the raspberry colors in our garden....

Here's some eye candy:

Zucchini

Blueberries

Strawberries - off to a late start due to rain but still getting ready for  June delivery

Things should start picking up speed and our garden should be really getting big soon.

Get your Girlfriends to the Movies!

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of Monte Carlo for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

Grab your daughter, your sisters, or your best girlfriends and head out to the movies!  Monte Carlo is in Theaters Friday!

Monte Carlo is a movie starring Selena Gomez. In the movie, Grace (played by Selena) is an ordinary girl that becomes an accidental heiress on a summer trip to Paris. It's becomes a dream vacation where Grace, her best friend and her step-sister experience the adventure of a lifetime and learn important life lessons.

It's a good coming of age movie to watch with your young daughter or just to bond with friends. Every gal likes a feel good girly movie. And, personally, I think Selena Gomez is good role model for young girls. She's cute and famous, but she's also down-to-earth.

And if you haven't seen a fun romantic comedy with your girlfriends, I highly recommend it. One of my best summer memories includes sneaking off to the theater to watch a silly rom-com with a coworker. We had tons of fun and appreciated the movie the way only girls can. 

Starting June 29th - you can get tickets ahead of time on Fandango. Have you ever wanted to see a movie and then got there only to find it was sold out? It's happened to me and it's horrible. 

Want to find out more about the movie? Check out the Monte Carlo Movie Trailer

You can also Like the Monte Carlo Facebook page. Happy Viewing!

Plant Hoarding!

My name is Angela - and I'm a plant hoarder. I admit it. I love to grow thing, It's hard for me to dispose of perfectly good plants, and somehow plants find me.

But I'm on the mend, sort of. A few weeks ago, my sister called to tell me she had excess potato and strawberry plants. I told her I didn't have room for them. It's true, I don't have the room. But if she had been standing in front of me, I would have grabbed all the plants and found a place for them.

Yes, I said ALL. I was proud of my willingness to turn down plants and I told my husband about the call. Later that day I went to Lowes to pick up something in the hardware section. Since I was already there, I moseyed into the plant section.

My daughter suspiciously asked why we were heading to the gardening area, and I guiltily explained that sometimes mom just likes to look at the plants. In fact, I take a lot of trips to nurseries and farmer's markets "just to look at plants."

It's a good thing I have a hard time spending money or I'd have a full out menagerie on my hands! So as I was walking through Lowes, I overheard two employees talking about the plants they needed to throw away.

"Should I just toss them in the trash then?", one of them asked, "I threw out 40 just yesterday." When the other employee told her to dump them in the bin, it was all I needed to hear. I asked her if I could have the plants. I would gladly plant them and take care of them.

She gave me 2 tomatoes and a mint. I reasoned that I had always wanted a mint (at least since a few minutes ago) and I can always use more tomatoes. But where to put them....

I put them in the forest and tried not to call attention to the new plants. Then I was at the grocery store and all of their veggie plants were on clearance - 5 plants for 80 cents. My God - what is a person to do under these circumstances.

I walked back and forth over the display. All of the plants were in great condition. There were so many I didn't have - peppers, purple basil, squashes, you name it.

I finally walked away. My son sighed "finally," and then I was back. I couldn't resist them any longer. A 5- pack of bell peppers was in my hands and I was running to the register. There would be no going back. I couldn't just leave them there.

I wanted to buy 5 of every type of plant they had. Dang it - it's an addiction. But I settled on bell peppers and I sneaked them into the garden as soon as I could.

2 Peppers went into my forest garden

3 peppers made it into the garden

Then my son came home with plants from school - peas, corn, potato, onion, beans, radishes, violets. Into the garden you go....

Peas and corn from school

Violets

I wish I could say that was the end of it. But it wasn't. In addition to the full garden I had planted, my entire forest garden, and the extras I had just added....some gracious soul sent me a free recycled planter with basil, sunflowers, and zinnias.

Grow Basil Grow - in your recycled eco-friendly pot

I'm sorry, but I had to plant them. I love, love, love basil. Zinnias are my favorite flowers. And damn it, I'm planting every seed and plant that comes my way. It only lasts for 3 months....let me go all out!

Green Works - Green Tips to Green up Your Home

Living Green is really important to me. I like to take steps to reduce and reuse as much as possible. I also recycle. When it comes to cleaning - going green is a whole new (and sometimes scary) world. 

I recently came across the Green Works Facebook page and if you like their page you'll have access to home greening videos full of helpful greening tips. 

Guess what I learned watching the videos? You can COMPOST Green Works cleaning wipes! Yeah baby! I have always hated using cleaning wipes because they created trash - but to be able to compost them rocks! 

I'm going to give them a shot next time I'm out buying cleaning supplies. Check out the site for yourself and see what green tips you might learn.

**This post was written as part of an entry to the Clorox Green Works giveaway on Mom Bloggers Club. I'm hoping to win. :)

This is what 16% body fat looks like - on a woman!

It's now been almost 10 months since I got back into a regular exercise routine. Why did I ever get off track in the first place - seriously, it's a quandary.

First there was the whole back-to-back pregnancies, new mom thing. Then there was the laziness factor. Then......Yeah, I was really out of touch with what I needed to do.

But this year, I am back on track. Through sickness, volunteering at school, and just life in general, I have stuck to the task and I have not quit! 


I stuck it out for 10 months straight - and I am still at it!


But what about results? To be honest, it's been a little annoying. I love to watch shows like The Biggest Loser and see people drop mad gobs of fat each week.

I was already at my "goal weight" so I never saw any massive scale drops - just a few pounds. I didn't really expect to "lose weight", so I came up with other goals - be able to do a real pull up, increase my running speed and distance....and get to 16% body fat.

Hold up! Nobody ever heard about this before! That's right. I had kept the number a secret. I have been tracking my body fat percentage over the last 10 months and have seen it slowly move closer and closer to my goal. And 10 months later - I've finally hit it.

Why 16%? And why did it take so damn long!!?? Well - a female body fat % of less than 17% is considered athletic. And that's where I wanted to be - less than 17%. So naturally, my goal was 16%. Essential body fat is somewhere between 12-14%, depending on the person. I definitely wanted to stay above 12%.

In case you're wondering: 17-22% is considered fitness or lean, 22-25% is normal, 25-29% is overweight, 29-35% is obese, and 35%+ is morbidly obese. These are all female numbers.

Anyway - it took me 10 long months because I wanted to burn fat and gain muscle at the same time. A trainer would have probably told me to lose the fat first, then put on the muscle. But I didn't want to lose muscle while losing fat. And I didn't want to regain fat while gaining muscle. You see the trouble.

Plus I had really let myself go. I may have been "thin" but I was flabby. I'm shuddering just remembering it...

And beyond that, I have a horrid sweet tooth that I have still haven't tamed. I ate ice cream just yesterday (chocolate - as if any other flavor really matters) and candy today. And not one serving either. Whatever. So it took me forever.

The point is - I made it. And this, my friends, is what 16% body fat looks like:

It looks like a swimsuit shopping spree. What you are looking at is all my new swimsuits. For the first time in a really long time, I didn't dread swimsuit shopping. Every suit I tried on fit me wonderfully. They looked great and just happened to be on clearance. 

I could have bought so many more, but I restrained myself and stayed on budget ( if you wondering, I paid under $15 for all my new suits combined!!)

I'm finally able to take my kids to the pool without being self conscious about how I look. I can wear clothes that actually fit because I don't have any bulges. I don't have cellulite anymore! It's awesome!

So what's next? You know what it is - 14% baby! I'm sort of kidding. Sort of. Actually, I'd love to continue to increase my strength and endurance. Hopefully, that means I keep putting on more muscle. That may mean a little weight gain (I'm currently hovering between 105-106lbs at 5'4"). 

Gaining muscle may bring my body fat % even lower. Or I may gain a little fat with that muscle. Damn it! It's just what happens. But I'm going to try my absolute best to make sure it doesn't. 

This is almost the body I had before kids. It's almost the body I've always had. Yes, on all charts, I am underweight. But I'm finally okay with that. My whole life (minus the last 7 kid filled years) I have been underweight. I have a small bone structure. 

I'm child sized. It used to piss me off and I dreamed of being bigger, but it's not in my bones. So I'm finally over it. I may be small, but I'm fast and I am going to be as strong as I can be for my body. I'm finally comfortable in my own bones. 

**In case you were looking for a real picture of what it looks like to be 16% body fat. No worries - it's coming. It's not that I like to parade my bikini body around (yes - the shot will be full frontal abs) but I made a promise and it's coming soon....

Organic Gardening with Fish Rich Fertilizer

My parents were organic gardeners by default - it was just how they were raised. Years later, I became an organic gardener - first out of laziness (who wants to figure out all the fertilizer/pesticide rules) and then out of concern for what is going into our bodies and our world.

So over my many years, I've come to know a thing or two about organic gardening. I've learned that by NOT fertilizing your plants, you end up with a much smaller harvest.  I've learned that beyond the chemical impact, organic fertilizers provide a more complete nutrient profile - micronutrients, enzymes, trace minerals, etc. I've also learned that not all organic fertilizers are created equal.

Take compost - which I vigorously work to create every day of my life. It's not always available and honestly, it's a great "soil amendment" and only a so-so fertilizer.

Then there are bone meals, blood meals, manures. They all have a bit of ick to them and have odd ways of application. Does anyone remember my horse manure debacle?  Just imagine 80 pounds of pure stink.

Personally, I prefer the "sea" fertilizers. I love the application. Most of the sea fertilizers I have used are mix-with-water and pour on your plant types. I like this for two reasons - #1 you water your plants at the same time you're fertilizing, #2 you have almost no risk of burning/damaging/killing your plants.

And that's why sea fertilizers are my favorite. They are the lazy organic gardener's dream. They are so easy. You cannot mess them up. You can fertilize every week, every few months, whatever. I have never harmed any of my plants using them - not even my blueberries and they are super picky!

But that's not the only benefit. They make my plants do amazing things! They grow, they flower like crazy, and they produce big/healthy fruits. And fyi - more flowering means more fruiting.

You can apply it to the ground, on the plant, at the root base, whatever. The cool thing about sea fertilizers is that the plants can absorb them through their roots, leaves, flowers. It's awesome. And they are made from natural, organic, sustainable products.

And that brings me to Fish Rich fertilizer - made from scraps of the Bell Aquaculture Perch farm in Indiana. They sell perch for human consumption. The rest is ground into liquid fertilizer. I love the lack of waste!

The fish are grown without toxins or hormones. They are not exposed to mercury or PCBs. It's the kind of info you want to hear when putting something into your body (directly or through the plants you feed.)

I have an interesting history with perch and fertilizing with fish. My siblings and I used to catch perch in a creek a few miles from our home. We'd take them home and my parents would refuse to cook them.

I don't know why. According to Bell Aquaculture, perch is one of the most popular North American pan fish. I guess my parents didn't get the memo. Anyway, they would bury them in our garden, especially around our fruit trees or anything that was newly planted.

They did this with most of the fish we caught when we went fishing with our grandparents too. Maybe they just weren't big fish people. But I remember the trees and veggies that got fish grew so much faster and stronger than the ones that didn't. It was actually pretty cool. My parents normally fertilized with manure and compost, so to see such great results was really neat.

And if you think putting fish into your garden is a little weird, remember that the Native Americans were doing it for years. It's how they taught the pilgrims to farm. It works and it's natural.

Okay, but I bet you're wondering about the smell. Here's the deal. The Fish Rich fertilizer smells like a fish oil tablet - broken open of course. It's a little fishy, but not at all unbearable.

I have been using sea kelp and seaweed fertilizers for years and as much as I love them, all I can say is WHOA MAMA! when it comes to how they smell. Fish Rich was like cupcakes in comparison. It really wasn't bad at all. The only issue is the oiliness.

I like to mix up the fertilizer in multi-gallon batches and scoop it out in 8-16 oz rations. I do this because I'm lazy, clumsy, and I want to be sure of exactly how much I give each plant.

Since I scoop out individual cups, I get it on my hands. I would never do this with a chemical fertilizer. Then again, I don't use chemical fertilizers. But with the seaweed and kelp fertilizers, getting the stinky blech on your hands was horrid.

Getting the Fish Rich on my hands was a little horrid too. Mostly because it was more oily and liked to stick to my hands - like an emollient. Who knows, I may end up with really silky hands by the end of this gardening season.

It took a few good scrubbings to get the lingering scent off my hands. On the plus side, my cat loved me.

I will update this post on how the garden grows after the regular application of Fish Rich fertilizer. Today was the first feeding.  And since I haven't fertilized before today, the garden is off to a bit of a slow start. I did say I was a lazy gardener, right? Here's hoping for some Fish magic....


**I received a complimentary bottle of Fish Rich to fertilize my garden. All opinions expressed are my own and no compensation was received for my opinion.

Healthier Sports Drinks?

When you think of sports drinks, do you think of Gatorade? When I think of sports drinks, I think of sugar bombs. Artificial flavors. Corn syrup. Yuck, yuck, yuck!

Guess what, it doesn't have to be that way. Just like every area of the supermarket, the sports drink aisle is being remade. It's better and healthier. We recently had the opportunity to review the Modjo line of performance beverages.

In all honesty, I thought they were going to be horrible. But they were fantastic! They had a wonderful taste and were made with good ingredients. No artificial flavors, colors, preservatives.

They also contained a lot of really good ingredients that I'd look for in a sports drink - coconut water, sea salt, Resveratrol, B vitamins. Not only that, but I'm pretty sure they had fewer calories that the corn syrup beverages. Don't quote me on that - check it out for yourself, but I remember being all around surprised.

My favorites were the ModjoLife drinks, but I could see my husband leaning toward the Modjo Hydrade bottles. Maybe it was the taste difference - I think it was the more "manly" bottle. Just saying!

All-in-all, I'd give these drinks two thumbs up. You can look for them online or check the site to find a store near you.

*I received complimentary products for review purposes. All opinions expressed are my own. Consult the product website and packaging for actual ingredient or nutrition information.

Simple Steps Canning Guide

It should come as no surprise that I've been canning all my life. My Grandmothers canned. My mom canned. And I canned. So when I had the opportunity to review an all inclusive canning guide, I was excited.

I downloaded it on to my computer and read through it in one sitting. That, in and of itself, was a good thing. Nobody wants an exhaustive 300 page guide to canning. It was succinct, easy to follow, and well put together.

I thoroughly enjoyed it, learned a lot, and copied down notes. But guess the biggest thing I learned? I have been canning all wrong! My family has always canned in an open water bath. Always! 

A few years ago my sister-in-law told my mom that we could get botulism that way, and my mom wrote it off. But it freaked me out a little. It turns out my SIL was right! 

But how does someone pressure can? Glad you asked - because every answer, from how-to, and which foods, and how long to store it are all answered in the Simple Steps Canning Guide. 

I am hoping for a bumper crop of Tomatoes this year (cross your fingers!) and I will be whipping open this canning guide just as the tomatoes come rolling in. From here on out, I am going to can the right way. And I hope you will too. 

Check out the canning website because it is loaded with helpful information. Happy canning!

I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com created by WebBizIdeas.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.

Lichi Superfruit Detox

If you're like me, then you've probably heard a ton of buzz about "super fruits" and how they can improve your life. One of those super fruits is Lychee (also known as Rambutan).

I was offered the chance to review the Lichi Superfruit program: consisting of a detox, probiotic and superfruit supplement. Those who know me, know that I do not take supplements and I eat a wide variety of whole foods.

But I liked the ingredients in the Lichi Superfruit products.

Reading through all the information on their website, I couldn't find any ingredient I objected to. My own experience with Lychee has been favorable. We ate a bunch of it at a Hawaiian farmer's market. They are like huge tasty, skinless grapes.

But like all "superfruits" they have more than tastiness going for them. I originally thought I'd go through the detox (which is easy, by the way - it only entails drinking a detox juice before breakfast and you eat as usual throughout the day) and add the supplements for an extra antioxidant kick.

That's not how I ended up using the products. Instead, I offered them to my husband. He's looking to up his metabolism, lose a little weight, and.....I'd love for him to eat more fruits and vegetables. Not all people will eat fruits/veggies (I know, right???) but they will drink them.

And my husband was willing to drink the detox juices and take the supplements regularly. I felt really good about the nutrients he was getting from these products. He said they tasted great. He did not get any unwanted side effects.

But did they affect his metabolism or energy levels? I don't know. He started the program during an extremely stressful week at work. He was traveling nonstop, was in a lot of stressful meetings, and was extremely sleep deprived. He felt like garbage that week because of the stress, so his opinion was inconclusive.

My opinion? He was so much nicer that week, even though he was majorly stressed out. Somehow he coped and managed with almost no sleep and I don't remember him running to the pantry to eat tons of garbage to deal with the stress.

Like all supplements, my opinion is that if you eat a really good diet full of healthy - and mostly raw - fruits and veggies and not a lot of processed food, you probably don't need a supplement. How many Americans actually fit this bill? Really!

If you are looking for a supplement, you may want to look into the Lichi Superfruit. In my opinion, the ingredients were high quality and the taste (according to my husband) was great. Especially if you are a juice fan.

***Also - be sure to check out the Lichi blog. It's a great source of healthy living information. ***

*I received complimentary Lichi Superfruit products for review purposes. I was not compensated for my opinion and all opinions expressed are my own.

Kimberly Clark and Cars 2 - Get ready to stock up and earn rewards!

Cars 2 is coming out and I couldn't be more excited. We loved the first movie and are in desperate need of some new kids movies - for rainy days and long cross country driving vacations. 

Kimberly-Clark and Cars 2 are teaming up to provide you extra incentives to stock up this summer season.

Between now and July, you can find the Cars 2 promotional sticker on trusted Kimberly-Clark brands - like Kleenex, Pull-Ups, Viva, Scott, Cottonelle, and Huggies.

What's so special about the Cars 2 promotional sticker? The Kimberly-Clark integrated commercial program for Cars 2 spans all of the brands listed above and provides incentives for moms to stock up on Kimberly-Clark Essentials - to keep your family on track this summer!

You are your family's Pit Crew Chief, after all. With the rewards you earn, you can get movie tickets, coloring books, character die-cast cars and more!

The more you stock-up, the more credits you can redeem for premium Cars 2 items. Visit  www.KIMBERLY-CLARK.com/CARS2 to learn more.

Products can be purchased in multiple transactions and codes can be entered until September 30, 2011.
After you enter the code, you will receive a free gift voucher delivered by mail for die-cast Cars 2 vehicles, Visa prepaid cards, Cars 2 movie tickets and more.  The more products purchased, the higher the rewards.  

*This is a sponsored post. All opinions expressed are my own.

$300 American Express Gift Card Giveaway - Big Baby Shower Event!

Remember how generous Pampers has been in their Little Miracles Mission? Well, things are about to get even better. Pampers is going all out in the Big Mother's Day Give! What does that mean? For starters, it means they are going to give one Suburban Jungle reader a $300 American Express Gift Card to throw the most fabulous baby shower ever!




I would throw a shower for my daughter's preschool teacher. Her home flooded out days before she gave birth and she was forced to move into her in-law's basement. She worked diligently to get their home back in order before the baby arrived, but to no avail. She had to take her first baby back home to her relatives' basement and keep working on repairing their home. And it was her first baby.

You can imagine the stress and heartache. So I think she deserves a great shower. I'd include a lot of necessities (diapers, etc - I can't help it, I'm practical) but also a lot of mom pampering items. After all that she could use some pampering. Couldn't we all? Check out some fun shots of one of the Miracle Showers in progress:

But let's not forget about Fathers. Head over to Pampers' Facebook page and sign up for Mission #2 - Making dad's first Father's Day one he'll never forget! Let's be honest, Father's day gets swept under the rug. It's a tie and aftershave kind of holiday and it doesn't need to be.

The mission is to help give dads the time he and his baby deserve to bond. Run some of this errands, help him out with work and household projects, and free up some of his quality time. If Pampers gets 4,000 commitments to complete the mission, Pampers will throw a special Father's day Cook-out for dads and babies across the country.

By signing up for the mission, you are automatically entered into the Miracles Missions Sweepstake for a chance to win free diapers and wipes for a year.

Back to the contest. Want to win a $300 American Express Gift Card?

To Enter: Leave a comment on this post telling me who you think deserves an amazing baby shower and what you'd do to make it special.

Extra Entries:
- Visit Pampers on Facebook and Like their page. Come back here and leave 2 extra comments. If you sign up for Mission #2 while you're there, leave another comment (3 extra entries total.)
- Friend ME on facebook for 2 extra entries
- Share this contest with you friends on facebook, twitter, or by blogging (2 extra entries for each method)
- Follow this blog on Twitter (@suburbanjung), Facebook, or Google Friend Connect (2 Extra Entries)

*This contest will end on June 24, 2011 at 9:00 PM EST. No compensation was received for this posting. The winner will be selected by random.org and notified by email. The winner must respond within 24 hours or a new winner will be selected. All prizes are shipped directly from Pampers. This contest is open to US and Canadian residents only.

What do You do When You are Allergic to Everything?

What happens when you are allergic to everything? And I pretty much mean everything? That's the situation my sister is living with. She's allergic to dogs, cats, pollen, all fruits and veggies, horses, deer..... 

She's had trouble for some time with certain fruits but eventually got to the point that all fruits were giving her trouble. She decided to head to an allergist. Guess what he found. She's allergic to everything. 

And not just sort of allergic. Super allergic. Within a few minutes every single test site was inflamed. Here's a shot of her test after 2-3 minutes.

She didn't take another picture but said the welts were unbearable after the test was complete. The verdict - she's allergic to every animal, pollen, grass, etc. 

The allergist recommended she take allergy shots 3 times a week for the next 5 years. Really? Can't there be a better way? 

I'm not an allergist, a nurse, a doctor, a nutritionist, or a health practitioner of any kind, but I am a mom of a child that was on this same road. 

My son was born to be allergenic. He was allergic to peanuts, dogs, cats, and who knows what else. But now he lives with a cat (that sleeps on his head!), can play with any dogs, can visit homes that own animals, and can be rubbed in the face with a peanut. He can tolerate a bit of peanut as well, but doesn't allow me to feed it to him.

With that being said, here are my recommendations for her:

Clean Baby Clean!

-Dust, Vacuum, wash your dishes and clothes, Clean counters, and take out the trash often

-Learn to clean with minimal chemicals (call me and I'll tell you how)

-Keep shoes off in the house

-Keep animals out of the house (and keep animals like bugs and mice from getting in)

-Vacuum your beds and buy new pillows

-Change the filter in your a/c, furnace regularly (that's every month baby!)

-Clean the inside of your appliances (mold can hang out there, especially in dishwashers and washing machines)

-Scrub your tubs, sinks, and toilets at least every other week (or weekly if you're up for it!)

-Declutter your living spaces. Get rid of old stuff that's just taking up space, inviting bugs, and harboring dust mites.

Protect yourself

-Lay off the fragrances (in cleaners, perfumes, dyes, lotions, cosmetics)

-Get a good mattress protector for each of your beds

-Get a zip up pillow protector to encase your pillow

-Avoid furry animals for now

-Check the pollen alerts for your area and limit your time outside during those times. Slowly build up to being back outdoors

-Cook most of your fruits and veggies for now, and slowly introduce raw food back into your diet

Medicine

-In my opinion, it's important to be able to live a medicine-free life. For my son, I put him on a quick blast of antihistamines to get over the initial onslaught of his allergic reactions, then tapered him onto a smaller dose every day until he no longer needed the medicine (psychologically or physically!)

-Seek out a local source of RAW honey and see if you can slowly desensitize yourself to the pollens in your area

-Cut out all processed food from your diet. All of it! Anything that comes in a box or package (except meat, since it has to be packaged somehow) throw it out! Make most of your meals plant based (and plant heavy!) But since you are now allergic - eat most of them cooked, but eat as many plants raw as you can.

-Drink more water (not dairy, not juice, not soda, not alcohol)

-Consider the GAPS diet (well documented for healing autoimmune diseases)

Exercise

-Keep up your regular exercise routine and get regular massages (either from yourself, your kids, or your husband) to keep your blood and lymph circulating (and keeping your body functioning well)

-Make it your goal to move often. If you have to sit for an extended period of time, get up and stretch every few minutes

-Workout with your sister and let her shred you into oblivion (oops, my bad. That's just for my well being!)

General

-Find hobbies to keep your mind off of the allergies. Sometimes we perpetuate our own problems.

-Focus on living better, without dwelling on your allergy limitations. If you think it - it will come....(good or bad!)

Anyone else have any advice or suggestions. Anything you tried that worked? 

LoveMode Review & Giveaway

Sponsored by Tomoson.com

As a thirty-something mother of two, I still shop in the Junior's section. And I'm not embarrassed about it. Honestly, juniors clothes fit my body and style much better than the women's section.

I recently had the opportunity to review an online juniors clothing store. It's called Lovemode. I had the opportunity to review one of their dresses.

If you head over to lovemode.com, you'll find a big assortment of cute tops, bottoms, accessories, denim, and dresses. The tops section was my favorite, but the entire site is a good source of cheap juniors clothes.

And that's important. Styles change so quickly and it makes sense to spend as little as possible. Right now is the time to check out Lovemode because they are having a 25% off sale and Free shipping until June 14th.

The dress I reviewed was made well, fit perfectly, and looked exactly like it's picture. You always wonder when you order online. My only complaint about Lovemode was the availability of sizes. I'd find something super cute and then go to order it and *BAM* - no size small.

Maybe it's because everyone is size "small" but not having your size available is pretty devastating. Or maybe the prices are so good because they only sell a certain quantity and when sizes run out, they're gone? All the more reason to check frequently, to make sure and get the items you want when they are available.

How would you like to check out Lovemode for yourself? Lovemode is generously giving one Suburban Jungle reader a $25 gift certificate to use on an order of your choice.

To Enter: Visit Lovemode.com and leave a comment on this post telling me which item you'd most like to have.

Extra Entries:
-3 Extra Entries for sharing this contest on your blog, facebook page, or twitter (or all three for up to 9 extra entries)
-2 Extra Entries for following Lovemode on Facebook
-2 Extra Entries for following this blog (@suburbanjung, Facebook, and Google Friend Connect) (if you follow by all 3 you can get up to 6 extra entries)

This contest will end on June 21, 2011 at 9:00 PM EST and is open to all US and Canadian residents 18 and older. The winner will be selected by random.org and notified by email.I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com created by WebBizIdeas.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255 Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. Tomoson Product review & giveaway Disclosure.

Yeah Bud-dy - How the Garden Grows

Just a few days ago, I posted the completion of our 2011 garden. Well, I forgot to take pictures of a few garden plants and since that posting a few more things have grown (or died...)

Here's an update:

Valiant Grapes (red)

Part of the Black Raspberry Patch - this year we'll finally get some berries!

Black Raspberries up close (Jewel)

Latham Raspberry Patch (Red - and loaded with buds - yeah buddy)

Fallgold Raspberries (golden and super sweet - only 2 survived transplanting)

Part of the second strawberry patch (variety unknown - from one of my sister's gardens)

Strawberry Close-up

Chives

Beautiful Chive Flowers

LaCrescent Grapes (White)

The Second Heritage Raspberry Patch - one of the forest dwellers (Red)

Arugula starting to pop up!

Cilantro leaves popping out - they smell so great

Carrot leaves popping out

Carrot Close up

Berries starting to form on the Northland and Northsky Blueberries (These are Northland)

Romaine is getting read to be thinned (and eaten!)

Spinach - looking ready to be thinned and eaten

Swiss Chard leaves popping out!

My daughter's flowers are doing well -

Chicks and hens

Marigolds

Not everything has worked out so well. We've already had some trauma/drama in the garden.

Our first failed Zucchini - I think it was too wet during pollination....

One of the two Fallgold raspberries that died

One of my strawberry patches was completely mowed down  by deer - it has since bounced back but the berries that were forming died.

The tops of my black raspberries were ravaged by deer as well

This is our corn and bean bed - the corn has all come up but more than 3/4 of the beans have been destroyed by the rain. I'll be reseeding those that didn't make it next week.

The watermelon finally died. 

Then of course, there was the severe damage to my blueberries and raspberries during transplanting. The complete killing of my parsley, asparagus, and one of my daughter's chick and hens beds.

It's always live and die, grow and wither. But would it be as rewarding if it all worked out perfectly? I'm voting for yes - endless berries would be the best. Let's hope for a mostly productive season!