Staying hydrated

    I'm terrible about staying hydrated. I don't get thirsty. And I just don't like the taste of water. It's so......watery. I find I gain weight on the days when I don't drink enough. Does that happen to anyone else. Weird, huh?

    Well, over the years I have found various ways to get myself to drink.One of the easiest is to add a drop or two of SweetLeaf lemon clear liquid stevia. It does not add calories and does not spike my blood sugar, but tastes just sweet enough to make me want to drink it. 

    We were visiting dear friends in Mexico this past March and were offered refrescos de melon. I watched as Diosselyne cut up a cantaloupe into one inch chunks and put 2 cups of these chunks into the blender. She then added sugar and filled the blender with water. She strained the resulting foamy, creamy goodness and served it with ice. Oh, heaven! I could have downed the entire pitcher by myself. 

    The next day I tried making this myself with mango. Here is the beautiful and delicious result:

    I have since been hooked on this wonderful way to hydrate. I make it a bit differently than dear Diosselyne. To 2 cups of fruit chunks I add 2 scoops of KAL powdered stevia. I then fill the blender with water and whirl til the fruit is well pureed. I do not strain this as I like having the fruit added to my day and not having to bother with all that chewing. Hydration AND fruit fiber in one swell foop. Can life get any better? I submit to you that it cannot!

    I have tried this with mango, pineapple, watermelon, cantaloupe, and strawberries. My favorite so far is the cantaloupe. It gets frothy and creamy and tastes amazing. Yum.

Speaking of Magic Eraser Sponges.....

    I found this regarding those wonderful cleaning sponges known as magic erasers: http://www.snopes.com/medical/toxins/eraser.asp

    Magic eraser sponges are nothing more than melamine foam! So you can rest assured that even if you use the cheaper store brand of these sponges, you are not only saving moohlah for the same product, you also are not harming your health. Unless you decide to use it as a bath sponge. They are abrasive. That's why they work. Don't use as a bath sponge.

Best Cleaning Solution Ever!!!!

    I can't wait to tell you what I discovered yesterday. I read somewhere on the net about using Dawn dish washing liquid and vinegar as a cleaning solution. I wish I could give credit where credit is due, but I can't find where I saw this. My apologies to the brilliant person who I am unable to name, who came up with this idea.

    This makes a fume free and safe cleaning solution. Heat 8 oz. of white vinegar in the microwave til hot, like you were reheating coffee. Pour in a spray bottle (recycled, of course!) with 8 oz. blue Dawn dish washing liquid. Gently mix together so you don't create suds - just tip back and forth til mixed. Spray on surface of sink, tub, anything you want to clean that you can also rinse. Wipe with cloth or sponge, and rinse.

    I used this with a "magic eraser" type sponge to clean my tub and surround. I sprayed this on and the dirt and soap scum wiped right off. Did you catch that?! "Soap scum wiped right off!" Do I sound happy? Yes, it does not take much to make me happy. I could not believe how well it worked! I was buying expensive, crunchy granola cleaner at Whole Foods. It was expensive and the fumes still made me choke. I don't think it was as crunchy granola as I thought. This is dirt cheap, healthier to use and does a better job than any cleaner I've ever used. You gotta try this!

    I'm off to see what other amazing things I can find to do with Dawn dish washing liquid. I mean besides washing dishes. I've heard it pre-treats wash well for stains.........

Continuing with Lotte Berk

Okay Monday I did the Hip Hugger Abs DVD again. I'm really feeling the results of completing this workout. The slightly sore muscles feel good and strong. On Tuesday, the High Round Assets DVD came in at the library so I went to pick it up. My daughter and I did both High Round Assets and Muscle Eats Fat when I got home from the library.

Oh my! Our derrieres were kicked by this DVD. As I do these each day, I find more and more that I really like this series. I'm getting results and long, lean muscles. It's funny, at first I wasn't looney about the instructor in Muscle Eats Fat, but Barbara is the best instructor in the series. Her directions and explanations are the best and she's growing on me.I am realizing that one of the reasons that DVDs work so well over books (at least for me) is that you connect more with a real person rather than a book of instructions. When I put the DVD in now, I feel like, "Hey Babs! What's happening?" Like I know Barbara. Like she's a friend.

I'm hooked and waiting for the final DVD in the set from the library, Basic Essentials. I will continue rotating these for now.