Lotion

DIY lotion I made!

Ingredients:

– 1 cup shea butter

– 1/2 cup beeswax

– 1/2 cup jojoba oil

--1/2 drops vitamin e oil

– frankensense and Joy blend by Young Living essential oil (20-25 drops)

Tools:

– electric mixer or whisk

– glass bowl

– mixing bowl

– pot

– storage jar with lid

Instructions:

1.  I  measured out the shea butte and beeswax, placed them in bowl and set them outside.   Phoenix in June quckly melted butter and wax..

2. Stirred in the jojoba oil and 20-25 drops of essential oil and distilled water.

3. I then whipped it with my KitcheAid with the whisk attachment until you have soft peaks and a creamy texture.

5.To store, place in an airtight container and set in a cool place—it should keep for about 4-6 months.

Pre-Dawn Friday

 Why am I am I up at this unholy hour?  Yes, I went to bed relatively early but not to merit this.  Seems silly albeit beautiful with the splinters of sunlight and the birds chirping away.

I had been to yoga in the morning for an hour then came home and puttered around until I had to go teach Silent Yoga at 5.  That class we do the hour long sequence with them.  I worked them hard - we did 25 of the 26 Bikram asanas at least once. I had the lights dimmed and the Hindu Raga musice streaming.  It was a lovely class if I do say so myself.  I got home not too late and showered, ate and went to bed right after the weather on the news.  So why am I up?

Thought it would be OK, I can always take a nap but then I see the "no parking" signs along the street and the notice they'll be crack sealing our street today.  That will make for some big truck action to go along with the machinery working the light rail extension at the end of the block.  There may not be a nap in my future.

Here it is - Sunrise.  Time to meditate I guess.....

Retired

Retired!

MidLife Changes

My life has been at a crossroads.  As I neared the magic number of age and years of State service to reach the desired 80 points it was obvious that staying the next 1.25 years and reaching that magic number would give me a net result of $2500/ year in pension.  Since the move of our desks to the cold computer room I realized that would barely keep me long johns and hi-test coffee.   In addition, I felt as though I was being aged in dog years.  Sunday nights brought fear and dread knowing that another week in the cold room would commence.  Constantly cold and unhappy in my job.

My yoga teacher had told us once we went through teacher training we would soon become very dissatisfied with our current jobs.  She was right.  She still is right.  I had trained hard to become a yoga teacher and enjoyed teaching so much more than being Help Desk Heather.  Hatha Heather is what my heart is directing me to be. 

 I decided there was but one solution to this dilemma.

After lengthy discussions with the hubby, crunching numbers and adding Silver Age Yoga to my current RYT200 yoga certification; it was apparent that this was extremely do-able and I could make up the income difference teaching.  However, the thought terrified me.  That whole "quitter" label and the uncertainty of health insurance had my stomach tied in knots.  Sleepless nights, nausea and lots of meditation as I was questioning my own reality.  After a lot of angst, trepidation and support from the dear husband the decision was finally made.   Thinking through all the prospects after I leave State service it finally came to me - it is time for a change in direction.

Yesterday I submitted my 2 weeks notice to my supervisor.  I requested as little hubbub as possible.  I want to make a stealthy exit.  She was - of course - shocked.  No one ever expects anyone to retire early.  I got through the day in an anxious mood. 

Today I informed the coworkers. They are sad but also encouraged to know that it can happen.

I just hope next Friday March 13th ( my last day) they don't embarrass me.

Pumpkin Spice Soda & Rum

Had a leftover Halloween pumpkin.  Decided to make some pumpkin puree for pie.  Got enough for 2 pies and had a skosh leftover.

I had read of a pumpkin spice syrup for Soda Stream™ but decided to whip up my own!

Cocktail Recipe by Heather Page-Farlow

Pour maple syrup into plate or rimmer.

Put edge of glass into syrup then into a tray of turbinado sugar.

Put in crushed ice.

Pour in Pumpkin Spice Soda

1 oz of spiced rum

Pumpkin Spice Syrup

Recipe by Heather Page-Farlow

½ cup of pumpkin purée

½ cup agave or maple syrup

1 cinnamon stick

1 Good Earth Sweet and Spicy teabag

Dash of nutmeg

Dash of allspice

Splash of organic apple juice

Let simmer over low heat until reduced down. 

Strain through sieve, squeezing all the liquid out of the paste until only a dark liquid is left.

Place cinnamon stick in storage bottle.  Strain once again into storage bottle. Refrigerate.

To use with Soda Stream, carbonate a liter of filtered water.  Pour roughly ¼ cup of syrup into liter.Mix well

Sip and enjoy the tastes of the season.  You can even garnish with an apple slice.

More adventures in Soda Stream

Another batch of home made syrup.  Boiled up fresh lime, agave nectar and fresh mint.  Turned the flame down and reduced it.  Then drained it off and mixed with some #SodaStream.  Delightful.   Will make a nice mojito.

ADVENTURES IN SODA STREAM

      ALL NATURAL SODA-STREAM SYRUPS

We decided to buy a Soda Stream.  Really not supposed to drink soda - mostly cola - but thought this would be a much healthier alternative as we could choose all natural flavors and I found some great recipes for syrups made with fruits, herbs and natural sweeteners.  We ordered the machine from Amazon and within a week we'd tried the sample pack of flavors that came with the unit along with some flavors we'd concocted on our own.  I ordered some cucumber/mint no calorie flavoring and I decided it was time to try some of the recipes that I had gleaned off the internet and put on Pinterest; not to mention a book I had purchased for my Kindle.

1st Recipe - Berry Basil Syrup

The hubby had purchased some beautiful berries at Sprouts.  Juicy strawberries, plump blueberries and some ripe raspberries.  I took about 3 cups of strawberries that I had hulled and sliced and boiled them in a saucepan with the washed berries, 1 cups of water, ½ tablespoon of lemon juice, 1 cups of raw cane sugar and some fresh basil leaves.

I brought the mixture to a boil over high heat then reduced the heat and let them mixture simmer and I stirred to make sure the sugar was dissolved.  After cooking 10 minutes making sure the berries were soft, I then muddled the fruit and herb mixture and let that simmer for another 5 minutes.

 I then had to strain the mixture through a strainer to extract all the juice.  The recipe said to thro the mashed berry mixture away but I am saving it to mix with some quinoa or other grain for a delicious breakfast.  

    Strained juice mixed with berry-basil syrup is delicious!  Not too sweet and oh so refreshing!!!  The basil is subtle and the berry syrup not too sweet.  

After bottling up the Berry Basil Syrup I started on the next recipe.

2nd Recipe - Ginger Syrup

This began by slicing up some fresh ginger root into thin slices and added that to 2 cups of water and a cup of granulated sugar.    As the mixture boiled over a high heat I whisked in ¾ tablespoon of ground ginger to give it some added ginger flavor.  The heat was then reduced so the mixture could simmer and cook down until the the syrup is reduced by ½.  After boiling it was strained and put into a bottle and labeled to mix with the soda for some dry, refreshing ginger ale.