Barefoot and no coats…

It’s Spring!

 

And thank you Ruth for helping me get rid of that blur!! Everyone doesn’t have to sit perfectly still anymore.

Homemade Toothpaste That Tastes Good

And it’s oh, so good! Finally, a recipe where I have all the ingredients on hand and I don’t have to spend a mint to make my first batch! Our mouths are left feeling cleaner and *sparklier* than with my store bought Nature’s Gate toothpaste.

Oh…and it doesn’t have that homemade baking soda taste that makes me gag. {gag}

Oh…and aaall my kids like it. Kid(and teen) tested and approved, who can beat that?

My midwife, Naomi, gave me this recipe and we LOVE it. Thank you Naomi!

 

Here is the recipe, go try it!

Bentonite Clay Toothpaste

1/4 C Bentonite clay

3/8 C boiling water (we had to add a little more later)

1/4 t sea/Himalayan salt (use fine only)

15-25 drops Stevia (we used the powder)

1 t coconut oil

15 drops peppermint essential oil

5 drops tea tree or eucalyptus essential oil

5 drops cayenne oil (can use powder, it increases circulation to the gums. We left it out of ours)

1. Mix clay, salt and water in a blender.

2. Add coconut oil, sweetener and oils. Blend until blended.

Wallah! Instant toothpaste, and fluoride free ev-en. Which brings me to that age old question, why is fluoride free toothpaste more expensive than fluoride toothpaste when it’s missing an ingredient? Never mind.

Ideally kept in a wide mouth 1/2 pint canning jar with lid. Honestly, the children all agreed their teeth feel smoother, cleaner than they ever have before and thanks to the peppermint EO, even an hour after brushing, you still have that *sparkly* feeling.

O.k. now the cons, as I hate to paint a flaw-free picture. You are brushing your teeth with clay. Real clay…dirt-like. Now before you start to reminisce about when you gave into the urge to taste test that mud pie in kindergarten, bear with me. The grains of clay are very, very small and where you may experience that gritty feeling while brushing, it all washes out with an extra rinse of water. Promise. Remember? I have seven children who approved this and one of them is extremely texture sensitive. Any grit left in her mouth and she woulda freaked.

The other con is the color when you put it on your brush and when you spit it in the sink. Just close your eyes and think *white*. Smell it. Breathe deeeeply, the aroma will calm your fears and pull you into trying it for the first time.

If you are not the “community toothpaste dispenser” type person, let me know how to get this in a tube.

There you have it. Seriously, try it. Let me know what you think.

Kids Cook Week

Last week was Deep Cleaning week. We pulled everything out of every room and went through it. It felt as if we were packing to move. What a blessing it is, though, to actually reach the *end* of cleaning during the day.

This week Paul implemented Kids Cook Week. Each older child cooks a meal, which they’ve done many times, but this week I have the whole week off to organize two last cabinets and start our taxes. Jess started the week with Cheeseburger Soup and Parmesan Breadsticks. Then Tuesday night it was Jacob’s turn and he chose Sushi of all things. I thought hamburgers, a casserole or bbq, but no, he goes for the gusto.

After arming himself with a YouTube video, all ingredients were prepared and after a few wrecks, he got it down. He made Americanized Sushi – two versions of the California roll.

He is in the process of lightly smoking a salmon to make authentic sushi, which I am not too sure I’ll try. ;)

 

I don’t think the feat is necessarily in making dinner, or even making sushi, but in making sushi for ten people. That is a feat. Seventy two hand-crafted pieces.

There wasn’t a person who didn’t gobble it up.

It was very filling and absolutely deLICious.

You can have a piece of cucumber IF you pick it up with your chopsticks.

Jacob read off proper chopstick edicate. Never rub them together(it’s rude), never stick them up in our food(It’s a funeral rite), never do walrus teeth, or play drums on the table. But they did.

 

And here Gracie demonstrates the proper way to hold chopsticks, or at least her way.

Elijah managed to discover catapulting all on his own!

 

Gracie is hiding after already being hit.

Success!

And success!