Saturday, July 30, 2016

Essential Oil for a Calm Doggy




As you know, I am a proud rescue pet mama.

The fact that our little girl was found running along the side of a back country road, dirty, skinny, and covered in her own poo breaks my heart.  Where did you come from little lady?  And who the F does that to an animal?

Don't you wish dogs could talk sometimes?

I know the "experts" say that a dog's brain doesn't function on the level that we think, that they can't feel like we think they feel, and that they don't remember the past enough to even have feelings about it, but I call total bull shit on that.  This poor girl who came from nothing sure seems to have a lot of baggage.

For the first 6 months that we had her we didn't even know what her bark sounded like.  She was so timid!  She found her voice when someone came to visit one day and never stopped using it.  She is VERY protective of me.  If she is with me, she's game for whatever, whenever, but if I leave, the poor thing literally shakes.  If she thinks someone is going to hurt me, she will freak the f out.  and don't even think about going near her with a newspaper or a plastic bag.

We got over a lot of the issues with a lot of love and little training (for both her, and us), but anxiety seems to be something she can't seem to shake (which I totally get).

I am not going to let her (or the loser people who had her before and dumped her like trash) take all the blame.  I am an anxious mess a lot of times, and it's crazy how she picks that up from me.  If I am upset she will go hide in a corner and shake.  If I'm having a bad gutsy girl day, she will come and literally lay right next to me and put her paw or chin on my stomach (how does she know right where it hurts?).  The more anxious I got, and the more sick I got, the worse her separation anxiety became.  It made me feel like such a bad dog mama!

The vet first suggested meds.  I don't take meds for my anxiety, I don't take meds for my colitis, I don't take meds hardly ever.  I didn't want her on them.  I asked about alternatives.  So next she suggested some pheromone diffuser thing.

Ummmm.... Diffuser!  DUH!!!

It was one of those why-the-hell-didn't-I-think-of-that-before moments!  I asked the vet if it was ok if I tried lavender oil first and she said that it was perfectly safe for pets.

Penny and I have such a connection I was sure that if lavender in my diffuser calmed me down then it would work for her too.  And sure enough.... IT DID!!

I think that she associates the smell of lavender with me because I use it all the time to help calm myself down.  She sits on my lap as I read or write with lavender diffusing next to us.  Diffusing it in her room when we are away both reminds her of me, and just is generally calming.

I left once in a hurry and I didn't have a chance to get her diffuser filled and going and I regret it...Never again!

So yes, my dog not only has her own bedroom, she also has her own diffuser in that bedroom too!  Like I always say, it's not called spoiled, it's called loved! :)

If your little, or big, four legged family members are having issues with anxiety give lavender a try!  It worked for us!






 

Friday, July 29, 2016

Gluten Containing Cosmetic Ingredients



You may be wondering exactly what ingredients I look to avoid when I am shopping, or putting these lists together for my blog. There is a lot of information out there from a lot of different sources so it can be difficult to make sure that you are being thorough when ensuring products are GF. The most comprehensive list I've found online is from Bewildered Bug. I have compared it to a lot of small lists that I have also found and added ingredients to it to make sure that its not missing anything... to the best of my knowledge anyway.



Some of these are very obvious, and others not so obvious.  My biology degree forced me to take a lot of chemistry (yipee... NOT) and although I hated it, I guess one good thing has come out of it....and that is the fact that I am luckily now familiar with big long chemical words.  Yay..Something I thought would never be useful in my own life finally has a use!  But if you are not as familiar with the awesome world of chemistry (trust me...you aren't missing much), just take it slow and break the words up into pieces and they will make more sense to you that way.  I'm warning you.... this is a LONG list.... try not to get too overwhelmed!

 - AMP-Isostearoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- AMP-Isostearoyl Wheat/Corn/Soy Amino Acids
- Amino Peptide Complex
- Aspergillus/Saccharomyces/Barley Ferment Extract Filtrate
- Aspergillus/Saccharomyces/Barley Seed Ferment Extract
- Aspergillus/Saccharomyces/Barley Seed Ferment Filtrate Extract
- Aspergillus/Saccharomyces/Wheat Lees Ferment Filtrate
- Aspergillus/Soybean/Wheat Germ/ Camellia Sinesis Leaf/Job’s Tears Seed/Rice Germ/Sesame Seed Ferment
- Avena Sativa (Oat)
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Bran
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Bran Extract
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Extract
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Flour
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Meal
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Oil
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Kernel Protein
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Leaf Extract
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Meal Extract
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Peptide
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Protein Extract
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Starch
- Avena Sativa (Oat) Straw Extract
- Bacillus/Wheat Bran/Phaseolus Angularis Seed/Prunus Armeniaca Seed/Artemisia Annua
     Extract/Xanthium Strumarium Fruit Extract/Glycine Soja Seed Ferment Extract
- Barley (Hordeum Distichim) Extract
- Barley (Hordeum Distichum) Flour
- Barley (Hordeum Vulgare) Extract
- Barley (Hordeum Vulgare) Flour
- Barley (Hordeum Vulgare) Juice
- Barley (Hordeum Vulgare) Leaf Juice
- Barley (Hordeum Vulgare) Powder
- Barley (Hordeum Vulgare) Root Extract
- Barley (Hordeum Vulgare) Seed Extract
- Barley Extract
- Barley Juice
- Barley Leaf Juice
- Barley Lipids
- Barley Seed Flour
- Beta Glucan
- Cetearyl Wheat Bran Glycosides
- Cetearyl Wheat Straw Glycosides
- Cocodimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Cocoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Corn Gluten Amono Acids
- Cyclodextrin
- Dextrin
- Dextrin Palmitate
- Disodium Wheat Germamido MEA-Sulfosuccinate
- Disodium Wheat Germamido PEG-2 Sulfosuccinate
- Disodium Wheatgermamphodiacetate
- Ethyl Wheat Germate
- Extract of Barley
- Extraxt of Barley Root
- Extract of Barley Seed
- Fermented Grain Extract
- Gliadin
- Hordeum Distichin (Barley) Extract
- Hordeum Dostichin (Barley) Seed Flour
- Hordeum Vulgare (Barley) Extract
- Hydrogenated Wheat Germ Oil
- Hydrogenated Wheat Getm Oil Unsaponifiables
- Hydrolyzed Barley Protein
- Hydrolyzed Malt Extract
- Hydrolyzed Oat Flour
- Hydrolyzed Oat Protein
- Hydrolyzed Oats
- Hydrolyzed Rye Phytoplacenta Extract
- Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Bran
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Flour
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Gluten
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Gluten Extract
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein Hydroxypropyl Plysiloxane
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein PG – Propyl Methylsilanediol
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein PG – Propyl Silanetriol
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein/Cystine Bis-PG-Propyl Silanetriol Copolymer
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein/Dimetgicone PEG-7 Acetate
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein/Dimetgicone PEG-7 Phosphate Copolymer
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein/Dimetgicone PEG-20 Acetate Copolymer
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein/PVP Crosspolymer
- Hydrolyzed Wheat Starch
- Hydroxypropyltrimonium Wheat/Soy Amino Acids
- Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein/Siloxysilicate
- Hydroxypropyltrimonium Hydrolyzed Wheat Starch
- Glyceride Ingredients
- Laurdimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Kluyveromyces/ Lactobacillus/ Lactococus/ Leuconostoc/ Saccharomyces/ Hydrolyzed Wheat       Protein Ferment Filtrate
- Lactobacillus/ Oat/ Rye/ Wheat Seed Extract Ferment
- Lactobacillus/ Rye Flour Ferment
- Lactobacillus/ Rye Flour Ferment Filtrate
- Laurdimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Laurdimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein/ Siloxysilicate
- Laurdimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Starch
- Laurdimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Amino Acids
- Malt Extract
- Maltodextrin
- Oat Amino Acids 
- Oat Beta Glucanoat Extract
- Oat Fiber
- Oat Flour
- Oat Flour Sodium Lauroyl
- Olivoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Palmitoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Pantoea Agglomerans/Wheat Flour Ferment Extract
- PG-Wheat Protein
- Phytosphingosine Extract
- Polygonum G Fagopytum (Buckwheat) Leaf Extract
- Potassium Cocoyl Hydrolyzed Oat Protein
- Potassium Lauroyl Wheat Amino Acids
- Potassium Olivoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Potassium Palmitoyl Hydrolyzed Oat Protein
- Potassium Olivoyl/Lauroyl Wheat Amino Acids
- Potassium Palmitoyl Hydrolyzed Oat Protein
- Potassium Palmitoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Potassium Undecylenoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Prolaminesaccharinyces Cerevusuak Extract
- Propyltrimonium Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Quaternium-79 Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Rye Extract
- Rye Flour
- Rye Seed Extract
- Rye Seed Flour
- Saccharomyces/ Barley Seed Ferment Extract
- Saccharomyces/ Barley Seed Ferment Filtrate
- Secale Cereale (Rye) Seed Extract
- Secale Cereale (Rye) Seed Flour
- Secale Cereale (Rye) Phytoplacenta Placenta Culture Extract Filtrate
- Sodium C8-16 Isoalkylsuccinyl Wheat Sulfonate
- Sodium Capryloyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Sodium Cocoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Sodium Capryloyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein Glutamate
- Sodium Cocoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein Glutamate
- Sodium Cocoyl Oat Amino Acid
- Sodium Lauroyl Oat Amino Acid
- Sodium Palmitoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Sodium Stearoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Sodium Stearoyl Oat Protein
- Sodium Wheat Germanphoacetate
- Sodium/ TEA-Undecylenoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Soyamidoethyldimonium/ Trimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Soydimonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Steardmnonium Hydroxypropyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Stearyldimoniumhydroxypropyl
- Streptococcus Zooepidermicus/ Wheat Peptide Ferment
- Thermus Thermophillus Ferment
- Tocopherol/ Wheat Polypeptides
- Tocopherol Acetate (sometimes derived from wheat- check the source to make sure it's GF)
- Trimethyksilyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein PG-Propyl Methylsilanediol Crosspolymer
- Triticum Aestivum (Wheat) Flour
- Triticum Aestivum (Wheat) Germ
- Triticum Aestivum (Wheat) Germ Oil
- Triticum Aestivum (Wheat) Leaf Extract
- Triticum Aestivum (Wheat) Peptide
- Triticum Aestivum (Wheat) Seed Extract
- Triticum Turgidum Durum (Wheat) Seed Extract
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Bran
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Bran Extract
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Bran Lipids
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Flour Extract
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Flour Lipids
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Extract (water)
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Oil (gluten) (starch)
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Oil Unsaponifiables
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Germ Protein
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Gluten
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Gluten Extract
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Seed Extract
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Sprout Extract
- Triticum Vulgare (Wheat) Starch
- Undecylenoyl Wheat Amino Acids
- Vitamin E- The common term for tocopheryl (acetate/linoleate)- check the source to ensure GF
- Wheat Amino Acids (Hydroxypropyl Trimonium Wheat Protein)
- Wheat Bran Extract (
- Wheat Germ Acid
- Wheat Germ Glycerides
- Wheat Germ Oil PEG-40 Butyloctanol Esters
- Wheat Germ Oil PEG-8 Esters
- Wheat Germ Oil/Palm Oil Aminopropanediol Esters
- Wheat Germamide DEA
- Wheat Germamidopropylkonium Chloride
- Wheat Germamidopropylkonium Betaine
- Wheat Germamidopropalkonium Chloride
- Wheat Germamidopropyl dime thylacine Lactate
- Wheat Germamidopropyl Epoxypropyldimonium Chloride
- Wheatgermamidopropyl Ethyldimonium Ethosulfate
- Wheat Germamidopropylamine Oxide
- Wheat Germamidopropyldimonium Hydroxypropyl (Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein)
- Wheat Germamidopropyl Dimethylamine Hydrolyzed Collagen
- Wheat Germamidopropyl Dimethylamine Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
- Wheat Germ Glycerides
- Wheat Germ Oil
- Wheat Protein (Sulfonate)
- Wheat Protein Hydrolysate
- Yeast Extract
- Zinc Undecylenoyl Hydrolyzed Wheat Protein
Wow.... that was a lot to copy/paste/edit/type.... I quickly proofread it, but I apologize if I have any spelling errors!
So there you have it...I know it is much easier for someone else to do all the work... but now at least you can compare ingredients of your favorite products to this list.  I printed my list out and carry it around in my wallet.  You can also pin this post on pinterest so you can bring it up anytime you need to reference it.  I check pinterest on my phone all the time when I am out and about shopping specifically for this reason.  Eventually I hope to have most of it memorized so I don't have to keep referring to the list.  This way I can be as confident reading cosmetic labels as I am with food labels.....I will get there eventually....hopefully!

Trying to remove the bitch filter..

In our social media obsessed society we are beginning to apply filters to every aspect of our lives.  We all know what filters make our hair look "naturally" highlighted (aka... make all that grey look blondish!) and our skin tone look glowy and flawless.  But maybe we don't really need those filters, maybe the unfiltered versions of ourselves are even more amazing, maybe we simply need to remove our own bitch filters.



Do you ever have one of those hair days where you just give up and decide it is what it is? You go through your day thinking wow this is such a terrible hair day... Yet you keep getting compliments on your naturally halfway wavy bed head do.  Or do you ever get dressed in the morning and every single thing you put on makes you feel fat and hideous? Yet your friends love your outfit and say you look amazing. Happens to me all. the. damn. time!  For real!  So maybe instead of them being wrong and me being right, just maybe I need to remove the bitch filter!

How do I do this you ask...

I haven't got a fuckin clue, I just needed to vent! LOL

If you have any suggestions, by all means, please share! :)



Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Always be a superhero...

It helps if you have your uniform ready! 😜


Music talks to me loud and clear.  Isn't it funny how you hear song lyrics exactly when they seem the most relevant to your life?

Soon after I was diagnosed with colitis I remember having one of those gutsy girl days, the ones where you don't know if you can pick yourself up off the floor because it hurts so bad kinda days.  But my kiddos needed me at school so I put enough makeup on to not look like an extra from the set of a zombie movie and got in my truck.  As soon as I turned the key, The Script was singing "Superheroes" to me.   I started crying, I mean just let it all out! Every day, every hour I really was turning the pain into power.  I wasn't going to let this end my life, I was going to learn from this, and I was going to help others learn from this.  If I can handle celiac disease what's one more autoimmune disease right?! 

The line "he's got a beast in his belly that's so hard to control" really resonated with me that day.  EVERYTHING about that statement was true.  I had just been diagnosed with colitis and was still trying to feel normal again after being in the hospital.  I was trying to get off the prescription meds because they made me feel icky and I didn't want to accept that I would have to be on them for life (I'm not... Yay!).  I changed my diet again, completely eliminating dairy.   The worst part was my beloved green smoothies that made me feel alive and well were too much for the current jalopy state of my digestive system.  I felt like everything I worked so hard for was falling apart and I was right back at the first lap and already out of fuel. But I realized that this all really was how I was learning how to fly! 



I heard that song exactly when I needed to hear it, and the lesson it taught me has stuck with me ever since...

Always be a superhero... 

I was Mrs. Incredibe for Halloween and was asked to bust the uniform out again to make an appearance at a girls summer camp today.  It was super fun!  And a good reminder to always be the girl that those kiddos think I am while wearing that uniform! Always be a superhero! 

Thursday, July 21, 2016

Little Yogis: How I get kids (as young as two!) to yoga!!


Mini Me!
I love life as a preschool teacher!  I especially LOVE incorporating yoga and nutrition into the kiddos education!
People have a hard time wrapping their minds around the fact that I teach yoga to kiddos, especially when I tell them that some of those kiddos are as young as two! 


Basically it is about getting them moving, stretching, balancing, breathing, and learning that exercise IS important!  It doesn't always go as planned, but that's the beauty of it! 

They have an attention span ranging from 15-30 minutes. I plan a themed sequence (like ocean or transportation, for example) and I adapt it as we go along.  There are usually clear favorite poses (airplane and shark!) and they want to do those over and over! Then they want to come up with their own poses too! They love to show me what they can do and what they practice at home! 

We do a lot of games where I will put pose names that I know are their faves on shapes in a bucket and let them take turns choosing out of the bucket.  It's all about making it fun!


The most fun part for them is my yogi spray! When I demo or say a pose and they try it I will come around with the yogi spray and give them a little calming squirt! It's such a fun way to encourage them to really try the poses! 

Yes it gets a little giggly and loud, but the calming lavender oil kinda balances out the crazy! And it gets them breathing in deep because they love the smell! 

Just mix all the ingredients in a pray bottle.  Add a little more lavender if you want, totally up to you!  I use a metal or plastic bottle, I know, not the greatest to use with oils, but I don't want glass around these crazy little yogis! :)

They LOVE to see me stand on my head..
I'll reward them with this if they do a great job!




Monday, July 18, 2016

We love to brunch!~Sweet Potato & Spinach Egg Casserole (GF & DF)

We love to brunch... usually with watermelon mimosas of course! :) 


There is so much healthy and deliciousness in this one pan... So many vitamins for your bellies, and so many flavors for your mouth! 

Sweet Potato & Spinach Egg Casserole

  • 2 medium sweet potatoes- diced
  • EVOO
  • 1/2 green pepper- diced
  • 1/2 red pepper- diced
  • 1/2 red onion- diced
  • 1 pound breakfast sausage- I used chicken breakfast sausage from ALDI*
  • big ol' handful of spinach- don't ever be chintzy with your greens! :)
  • 8 eggs
  • ½ cup almond milk
  • salt and pepper
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon onion powder
  • 1/4 C nutritional yeast

    Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 9 x 13 pan with coconut oil.  Cube the potatoes into bite sized pieces and cook in the EVOO in a skillet until soft, about 10 minutes.  Add the peppers, onions, and chicken sausage. Let this simmer and brown a little for another five minutes before adding the spinach.  Let the spinach wilt a bit.  Pour this mixture into your prepared pan.  In a bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, salt and pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and nutritional yeast. Pour evenly over sausage mixture. Top with a little extra nutritional yeast if you want.  Bake for 45 minutes, or until eggs are cooked.
    *Note: the chicken sausage I use is already cooked, obviously if you use a different kind you may need to cook it first :)


Find the original recipe here.

Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Oat Waffles (gluten & dairy free)

First of all check out this adorable and super useful little gadget I found...



It is RED and makes perfect little fake "Eggo" waffles.

And, by fake I mean just as delicious, WAY more nutritious, and without all the gluten! Just how I like it!





Oat Waffles

1 1/2 C oat flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t sea salt
pinch of cinnamon
3/4 C almond/cashew/coconut milk (try to use room temperature so your coconut oil doesn't solidify)
1/4 C coconut oil (you can sub 5 T of butter, but I wouldn't)
2 eggs
2 T maple syrup
1 t vanilla
Optional add-ins: Chocolate chips (duh), chai seeds, flax seeds, pecans, chopped almonds, blueberries, a little protein powder... whatever you like!

In a mixing bowl which together the flour, baking powder, salt, & cinnamon.  In another bowl combine the milk, oil, eggs, maple syrup, & vanilla.  (If your coconut oil does solidify gently microwave this mixture until its incorporated.  Pour the wet into the dry and stir just until combined.  Let the batter set up while you preheat your waffle iron (about 10 minutes).  If the batter thickens too much add a bit of water.  Pour about 1/4 cup into the waffle iron (remember, I'm using the baby one) and let cook until golden brown.  Keep repeating until you use all the batter. 

Note: don't stack them to cool, they won't stay as crispy.  I use a cooling rack for this.

We made these Sunday morning for breakfast and have just enough leftover for the week.
Just pop them in the toaster for a quick breakfast... along with your green smoothie of course! ;)
I love when I have my shit together! :)


For all my egg free friends:  I haven't tried this with a substitute.  If you do, let me know how it goes!

And I have no idea where this recipe came from, SORRY!


Letting go of little miss perfect...

I've always been a bit of a perfectionist, but being a gutsy girl has made the issue more than "just a little bit!"

The one pin on my Pinterest page that is hands down THE most popular is for an article by Pretty Little Celiac about celiac and disordered eating.  This is very true for me, and a lot of you too, most likely.  Celiac gives you the mindset that there is no room for error. Which is unfortunately and undoubtedly true, but you don't have to let that spread to all aspects of your life.  If you do, it will only make you sicker, trust me!

I have become a little ball of anxiety, and it is both exhausting and unnecessary.

I decided to let that shit go!

The first place I decided to do this: my classroom. They are three for goodness sakes! They don't know or care if I didn't quite cut that paper RIGHT on the template's line, or if the book I chose to read for circle time might not be THE most perfect choice for my theme. As long as they learn, have fun and are happy, and nobody gets hurt you are an awesome teacher! 

The second place: my yoga mat. No one is supposed to be judging you anyway, that's part of the definition of yoga! My SI joints don't like to stay where they are supposed to (damn them), this causes a lot of issues, this prevents me from holding poses sometimes. Celiac and colitis also prevent me from certain things. This used to frustrate me to no end. I CAN do that. Well, just because you can, doesn't mean you should! Besides, what do you have to prove, and to whom? Check out this post for more of my thoughts on yoga for gutsy girls!

The third place: this blog right here my pretties! I overthink my posts WAY too much. The fear of imperfection and being judged prevents me from sharing things with you. (In fact it was a huge hurdle that I had to get over before I even started this blog.)  I decided that the world is better off hearing what I have to say in a potentially imperfect version than not having heard it at all. Will this blog have grammatical errors? Probably in every post. Misspelled words and typos? Maybe. Cuss words? That's for damn sure. If you don't like that, don't read it! But you're missing out!

Next aspect of my life to apply this to? Body image. Lord, help me, that's a tough one for me...


There I go with that dirty little mouth again! ;)
Again, don't like it? Don't read it..

I struggle with giving that little miss perfect the middle finger, but I'm getting there. Try it, it's refreshing!



And there is a stone for this! If you are a little rock collector geek like me, you might be interested to know that I love carnelian for helping me not be so obsessive about being perfect.  Mistakes are ok, and beautiful actually!

pretty little carnelian...

On another note, one place I am NEVER letting this go: Shine by Kat.  Detailing cars is a very productive way to direct some perfectionist energy! :)  Hopefully I can channel all of that in the direction of celiac disease and detailing cars!