We are always looking for yummy snacks that are healthy – especially around the holiday season. We all have family and friends visiting for the holidays and it’s always nice to have healthy snacks in the pantry for those last minute get togethers too. Flackers and Seedsters are the perfect snack to keep on hand!
The Doctor in the Kitchen is a company bringing what many of us are looking for to the table, a healthy alternative to snacking – which is perfect for the holidays. Their motto, “Good Food is Wise Medicine”, makes complete sense when you glance at their ingredients lists – each product includes a healthy dose of omega-3’s and omega-6’s, which are great for such health benefits as lowering inflammation, alleviating depression, protection against Alzheimer’s disease, increased brain function, better bone health, and a higher metabolism.
The Doctor in the Kitchen currently has two organic product lines that will transform how you snack. The Flackers are raw, gluten free flax seed crackers, these are perfect for serving with dips. However, with five flavor options, Cinnamon & Currants, Sun Ripened Tomato & Basil, Rosemary, Savory, and Dill, these treats are so savory, you can eat them on their own too!
The second product line is Seedsters, which is a raw, gluten free sprouted organic flax seed snack and by far my favorite. You have four flavors to choose from: Sweet Onion & Garlic, Sea Salt & Black Pepper, Cinnamon & Currants, and Sweet & Smokey Barbecue. As snacks based on the flax seed, they are a great source of soluble and insoluble fiber which supports healthy cholesterol levels, as well as plant lignans, vitamins, and minerals. I like to throw these in our packs before hitting the biking trails or the water for a paddleboarding adventure. They are filling and delicious too – a win, win!
Full Disclosure: We received samples of Flackers and Seedsters and thought you would love them too!
NOTE: This post wasn’t written by me – thank you for supporting the companies that help keep Sweet Greens in business.
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The holidays are right around the corner! In fact, Thanksgiving is over a month away. If you are taking a vacation for Thanksgiving or the upcoming winter holidays, you should consider a green retreat. Green retreats are great alternatives to the usual vacation; whether they are at exclusive hotels, glamping yurts or whole permanent communities, there are so many benefits to this new and gentler way of life.
What are green retreats?
Green retreats are hotels and communities that take moral responsibility for their immediate environments, living off the land and the resources it provides without destroying its capabilities or reducing its ability to regenerate. Green retreats are lovely places to live and stay with facilities that emphasize the well-being of those who use them. Green retreats are beautiful communities that work together to reduce waste, reduce pollution and to allow living in the most eco-friendly way possible.
As you can see, one definition probably doesn’t fit all, but even with the diversity of many types of green retreats, both temporary and permanent, you can already see what they’re aiming for.
What are the benefits?
Obviously, there’s a huge environmental benefit, and while it might seem like a pointless effort against the crazy amount of pollution still being pumped into the atmosphere across the world, every little helps.
On top of the very real, quantifiable benefits of environmental improvement, health and well-being, the community aspects of these places are really the cherry on top. There’s so much missing from life in the world, that a feeling of community is often the first thing to go. Living permanently in a green retreat when you have small children growing up is some kind of idyllic dream, because everyone is vested in ensuring that the recycling is sorted, the gardens are kept beautiful, energy and water are saved, and that the dream remains a real utopia. Think how it could change your children’s lives right into their futures.
Much of the value of green retreats lies in them being little oases of calm, with each one of them being a safe, secluded place where you can live or holiday without fear of the outside world ruining it. They’re naturally places that promote health and well-being, because looking after the earth goes hand-in-hand with looking after yourselves. And that’s where the facilities come into play.
Great facilities for everyone
Some of these places offer the finest in community health and wellness, from amazing gyms to outside yoga, and because they’re often in beautiful places, you can take advantage of the environment and keep fit by cycling and hiking through glorious countryside and rugged mountains.
Many green-stay places are geared up very well for the modern family, so often you’ll find fitness and well-being classes in yoga, Pilates, bocca, and other up-to-the-minute exercise classes.
If you’re not too fitness-orientated, but you still like to feel good about yourself, many communities have shared gardens, where they grow fresh and often organic vegetables; imagine being able to pick the veggies for dinner instead of just busting open a packet of indeterminate green leaves!
If you don’t even want to handle a gardening level of strenuous activity, why not check out the spa?
Of course, not every eco-hotel or green retreat will offer everything on this list, but there’s a strong chance they’ll offer many of them. Some places are aimed at families with young children, and they’ll have access to schools (if you’re looking at a permanent green community in which to live), toddler groups and hospitals, as well as child-oriented facilities from swimming pools to sports pitches and courts.
There’s often a strong emphasis on community as a way of life, not just as a convenience, so there are likely to be group activities to see and do, committees to join, and events to put on and to attend. The aim, of course, is to provide a fullness of life and a richness of community, of the type you just don’t see in the outside world.
Living in a green-oriented environment, you know that not even a single drop of water is wasted; where the sun’s rays provide one of several sustainable energies that can be used to heat and light your house; one where even your child’s kindergarten is run on eco-friendly diapers and solar panels; this is like some kind of special place. Even though you work hard to make everything you do as good for the earth as possible, knowing that for other people, this kind of thing is made easier, makes you feel good. The easier it is for people to be environmentally friendly, the more likely they are to do just that.
Before we left for our fall family trip to North Carolina, we made a list of all of the fun things that we wanted to do. The list encompassed all of our yearly must-do activities with a few new activities added in as well. I told the mister that the one thing I would like to do is visit a mountain apple orchard. He said to keep your eye out for one while on one of our many long drives on the Blue Ridge Parkway. Towards the end of our vacation, we still hadn’t come across an orchard, so I figured it just wasn’t going to happen. Then, one morning I thought we were headed towards another hiking adventure when the mister pulled off the main road down a very steep turn off. When I looked up I saw the Historic orchard at Altapass in front of us! Hooray! He was so excited to surprise me with this special treat and we ended up spending most of the day there. Read on to check it out.
After browsing around in the Altapass Orchard shop, and stopping to listen to a group performing mountain music we decided to venture out into the orchard. There are several different trails that you could take throughout the orchard, and of course we picked the longest one! We ended up so far into the orchard that all of the visitors (and there were a lot that day) seized to exist, we were completely alone. We were able to observe all of the beautiful butterflies floating throughout the orchard and even came upon a buck who was happily munching in the apple trees! He darted out of there too fast to catch him on camera.
There were so many different types of apples, small tart ones, and huge juicy ones that barely fit in the misters hand. It was really cool to visit an orchard that has been around for more than 100 years!
We walked so far that our trail eventually took us into a forest, it was still part of the orchard but so far removed that we didn’t even realize it was there until we were in it. We munched on apples as we walked (we paid for them later!), chatted and just had a wonderful time. By the time we made our way back to the apple-stand, almost everyone was gone except the employees. We bought a couple of root beer floats and sat on the deck relaxing after our 4 hour hike through the orchard. It was pretty amazing – I can’t wait to do it again next year!
+ The Historic Orchard at Altapass
Milepost 328.3 between Mt. Mitchell and Linville Falls.
Halloween is right around the corner, are you and the kids ready? Time to take out the spooky decor and start thinking of awesome costume ideas. Personally I love Halloween, it’s that time of year when you can be silly and let your creativity run wild. When I was a kid growing up my mom always made my Halloween costumes.  There was no costume idea that I came up with that she couldn’t do. Honestly she still helps me make awesome costumes not only for myself but for my husband and son, we always have a blast! Now let’s get into it. Here are 3 simple ways to keep your costume making eco-friendly:
1. Hit Up Your Local Thrift Shop Not only do I love to shop at thrift stores for my everyday fashion pieces but it is a Halloween costume cave of wonders! A couple of years ago I wanted to be Carmen Sandiego, so I hit up my local thrift store in search for my costume. Â Before going into the store I already had in mind what I needed to find. There were three must-have items, her famous red coat, a black hat, and a yellow band. I found an 80’s bright red oversize blazer so I used that for the coat. The final product is the photo above – what do you think?
2. Rummage Through your Closet Last year was the first Halloween my husband and I had with our son. You can only imagine how excited I was to come up with the cutest family Halloween costumes! We decided on Mario and Luigi for my husband and son (How cute right?!). Their costumes were the easiest thing to put together. For Donavon, we needed jean overalls (yes he had a pair of jean overalls, don’t ask me why) a green t-shirt, a hat, extra green t-shirt(to cover the hat) and a hat. For my son, a red tee, Â jean overalls, and a red baby hat. We used white paper we had at home and added the L and the M to the hats as well.
3. Costume Swap with a Friend or Relative Think your past costumes are going to sit in your closet forever? Think again! Instead, call up a friend or family member and ask them if they kept any of their old Halloween costumes, not just for you but for the kids as well. When I was still pregnant I bought his Halloween costume ahead of time because I couldn’t help the excitement of purchasing this tiny little baby costume. However, when Halloween rolled around it no longer fit him, needless to say it is still sitting in a drawer and has never been used. I’m sure this is the case with many of our friends and family, so save some money and the environment with a costume swap!
What other ways are you making your Halloween costume eco-friendly?
This is the perfect time of year to take note of the many different uses of pumpkins! They aren’t just used as holiday props but also for eating, decorating, and body care. You may not know this but pumpkins are actually one of the most popular crops farmed in the United States each year – no wonder there are so many uses for this orange favorite!
For radiant skin, save some left over pumpkin in a can and use it to make yourself a honey pumpkin exfoliating mask. You can also make your own scrumptious pumpkin body butter that is a treat for your skin and your sense of smell! Mix some pumpkin puree, cinnamon and coconut milk and prepare yourself for a spectacular treat!
Make an awesome center piece for your dinner table by showcasing this years pumpkins in a unique way! Make your own floating pumpkin candles with little effort. Check out your local farmers market and pick up a handful of miniature pumpkins and the same number of votive candles. Use the votive candle as a stencil to trace a circle onto the top of each pumpkin and afterwards cut the circle out with a knife until the candle fits snugly inside. Complete this step for each pumpkin until you have enough the perfect amount for your water filled container. Light each candle as the pumpkins float in the water and voila a spectacular mealtime display!
