What’s Included in the Sale?

When you purchase the Healthy Living eBook collection, you will get instant access to each of the 34 eBooks listed below. 

PLUS $49 of FREE Bonuses

Each Healthy Living eBook Bundle comes with $49 of FREE Bonuses from several of our favorite healthy living companies. Offers include a variety package from Redmond Trading ($21 Value), a FREE 3-Month subscription to Plan to Eat ($15 Value), and a FREE Sourdough Starter or Traditional Buttermilk Starter from Cultures for Health ($13 Value). Click here for more details. 

PLUS get entered to win one of 3 Great Prizes

Each person who purchases a Healthy Living eBook bundle is automatically entered to win any one of the following 1 Excalibur 9-Tray Dehydrator, 1 Omega VRT350 Masticating Juicer, or a R1 Royal Berkey Water Filtration System (Click here for more details). 

Click here to purchase your Healthy Living eBook collection (with FREE bonuses) today!

Please note: This collection is only available from 8 a.m. EST on October 29th to 8 a.m. EST on November 2nd. EXTENDED!! Last day to buy the ebook bundle is Monday, Nov 5th at 8 p.m. EST.


 

I love to hear your feedback and comments. Stop by and visit Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter for more conversation!  Or get posts delivered via Email or RSS Feed. Disclosure: links are affiliate links.

What’s Included in the Sale?

When you purchase the Healthy Living eBook collection, you will get instant access to each of the 34 eBooks listed below.

PLUS $49 of FREE Bonuses

Each Healthy Living eBook Bundle comes with $49 of FREE Bonuses from several of our favorite healthy living companies. Offers include a variety package from Redmond Trading ($21 Value), a FREE 3-Month subscription to Plan to Eat ($15 Value), and a FREE Sourdough Starter or Traditional Buttermilk Starter from Cultures for Health ($13 Value). Click here for more details.

PLUS get entered to win one of 3 Great Prizes

Each person who purchases a Healthy Living eBook bundle is automatically entered to win any one of the following 1 Excalibur 9-Tray Dehydrator, 1 Omega VRT350 Masticating Juicer, or a R1 Royal Berkey Water Filtration System (Click here for more details).

Click here to purchase your Healthy Living eBook collection (with FREE bonuses) today!

Please note: This collection is only available from 8 a.m. EST on October 29th to 8 a.m. EST on November 2nd. There will be no late sales offered.

Real Food Meals for the Whole Family

Have Your Fruits… and Veggies, Too! by Laura Coppinger @ Heavenly Homemakers ($5.95)
Real {Fast} Food by Trina Holden @ Trina Holden ($6)
20 Minute Meals by Leigh Ann Dutton @ Intentional by Grace ($4.99)
Real Food… Real Easy by various bloggers @ The Humbled Homemaker ($9.95)

Baking, Snacks and Desserts

Smart Sweets by Katie Kimball @ Kitchen Stewardship ($8.95)
Healthy Snacks To Go by Katie Kimball @ Kitchen Stewardship ($8.95)
Sourdough A to Z by Wardee Harmon @ GNOWFGLINS ($20)

Homemade “Everything” (Condiments, Pantry Basics, etc.)

Restocking the Pantry by Kresha Faber @ Nourishing Joy ($7.99)
Easy. Homemade. by Mandi Ehman @ Life Your Way ($3.99)

Grain Free and Paleo/Primal Eating

Grain Free Meal Plan Cookbook by Cara Faus @ Health, Home & Happiness ($18)
Toadally Primal Smoothies by Todd @ Primal Toad ($9.95)
Simple Food {for spring} by Shannon @ Nourishing Days ($10)
Simple Food {for winter} by Shannon @ Nourishing Days ($10)
Well Fed (Paleo Recipes) by Melissa Joulwan @ The Clothes Make The Girl ($14.95)

Saving Money on Real Food

Real Food on a Real Budget by Stephanie Langford @ Keeper of the Home ($18.99)
Plan It, Don’t Panic by Stephanie Langford @ Keeper of the Home ($4.99)
Don’t Compost It, Cook It by April Patel @ An Apple a Day Wisdom ($2.99)

Skincare and Beauty

My Buttered Life (Baby edition) by Renee Harris @ Hard Lotion ($5)
My Buttered Life (Gift edition) by Renee Harris @ Hard Lotion ($5)
My Buttered Life (Summer edition) by Renee Harris @ Hard Lotion ($5)
Simple Scrubs to Make and Give by Stacy Karen @ A Delightful Home ($3.99)
Food on Your Face for Acne and Oily Skin by Leslie @ Crunchy Betty ($7.99)
Holistic Mama’s Guide to Homemade Skincare by Roxanne King @ The Holistic Mama ($19)

Homesteading, Gardening and Preserving

Your Custom Homestead by Jill Winger @ The Prairie Homestead ($4.99)
Guide to Gardening and Preserving by Laura Coppinger @ Heavenly Homemakers ($7.95)
Apartment Gardening by Jami Leigh @ Young Wife’s Guide ($2.99)

Healthy Lifestyle

Simple Living by Lorilee Lippincott @ Loving Simple Living ($2.99)
Herbal Nurturing by Michele Augur @ Frugal Granola ($8.95)
Simple Natural Health by Nina Nelson @ Shalom Mama ($17)
Healthy Homemaking by Stephanie Langford @ Keeper of the Home ($12.95)
Music: An Essential Ingredient for Life by Resound School of Music ($6.99)

Pregnancy and Babies

Breast to Bib by Kate Tietje @ Modern Alternative Pregnancy ($8.95)
Healthy Pregnancy Super Foods by Kate Tietje @ Modern Alternative Pregnancy ($8.95)
Unbound Birth by Jenny Yarborough @ The Southern Institute ($4.99)  

Happy reading!

I love to hear your feedback and comments. Stop by and visit Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter for more conversation!  Or get posts delivered via Email or RSS Feed. 
Disclosure: this is an affiliate link. A small portion of sales helps support this site. Opinions shared are my own.

Over the past few months, I have had a number of offline friends ask me questions about how to add text to their pictures, make their Facebook cover pictures into a collage and also which photo apps I use on my iPhone. I figured a number of my online friends may have the same questions so here is a list of resources that I use regularly.

Picmonkey
This site is the brain child the designers of the now defunct Picnic photo editing site. I have come to love how easy it is to use for editing a photo and adding text or watermarks. It is a free service and you don’t need to register for anything. Upload a picture and just play around. Changing your exposure is a huge help, especially for those of us with older iPhones without a flash.  What didn’t look good originally can suddenly be an awesome shot once you tweak some settings. Picmonkey also has fun holiday embellishments as in the photo above.

This is also my go to place to make a collage online.  I made a Facebook cover collage for my blog’s Facebook page over the summer and still love how it came out.  You choose make a collage from the home page, then upload some pictures you want to play with, then choose a layout.  For the Facebook cover collage, there are a  number of choices under the Facebook cover tab.  You can use this for either a brand page, or your own personal page.

Facebook cover collage made with Picmonkey

Ribbet
The other option is Ribbet, and this looks more like what Picnik was.  I like it but have had issues with it’s speed occasionally.  It does offer some cool filters, similar to what Instagram can do for your photos.

Same process to upload a photo then start editing.  There are more editing options on this site, including more text choices.  You can still do watermarks for your pictures, or add captions if you are then adding the pictures to a scrapbook. You can also save your picture right to Facebook once you connect the two.

In terms of the iPhone, here is the list of apps I use in order of their importance to me.
-Camera + (good editing options for on the go. I now use this, then upload to Instagram.)
-Instagram
-Hipstamatic
-Turbo Collage (this is what I typically use to make a collage and then upload to Instagram.)
-PicStitch
-Pixlr-o-matic

What is your favorite editing tool or iPhone/Droid camera app?

I love to hear your feedback and comments. Stop by and visit Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter for more conversation!  Or get posts delivered via Email or RSS Feed. 

I’m sharing a guest post today from my friend Anna Hackman of Green Talk. I met Anna at Blogher this year and I’m so impressed with her answers to the many eco-friendly questions parents face today. Recently, the issue of arsenic and rice has come to light as “worrisome.” Anna started a petition last February asking the FDA and EU to institute strict guidelines when it comes to arsenic levels in rice. Today she is sharing why we need to be concerned as a consumer, and certainly as a parent offering young children infant rice cereal and baby formulas with brown rice syrup.

Arsenic and Rice. A Deadly Combination.

Arsenic in rice is back in the news again. The latest report is from Consumer Reports’ study that revealed dangerous levels in both rice and products containing rice. The Consumer Reports study joins a long list of several prior studies, which includes the recent Dartmouth study. 

Despite all the studies, the FDA and the European Union have failed to act. This inaction prompted a petition calling on the FDA and EU to regulate arsenic in rice and by-products. We are all at risk. It is  not simply a baby, gluten free or ethnic food issue, because its byproduct is in many foods. 

How did Arsenic get into rice in the first place? Arsenic is a naturally occurring element in the soil. However, inorganic arsenic is found in the soils that were contaminated by arsenic based pesticides and fertilizers, industrial districts or mining areas, municipal waste, or contaminated water.

Eighty percent of the rice is grown in the US is from the south central area on lands that were previously sprayed with arsenic pesticide to reduce cotton boll weevils. In addition, arsenic laden manure has been used as fertilizer. Arsenic remains in the soil. Due to the nature of how rice is grown in flooded waters, it sucks up the arsenic from the soil. 

What is the danger? According to the EPA, the ingestion of inorganic arsenic can lead to cancer of the skin, bladder, liver, and lung. There are no studies of low levels long term arsenic exposure in food; however studies relating to low level arsenic exposure in water have shown increased likelihood of diabetes 2 and poorer neuropsychological functioning.

According to Michael Harbut, M.D., chief of the environmental cancer program at Karmanos Institute in Detroit, he suspects “there is an awful lot of chronic, low-level arsenic poisoning going on that’s never properly diagnosed.”

Why should YOU be concerned? You might be thinking, “I don’t eat rice so I can’t be affected.” Not true, since many products contain rice and its by products. Look for rice flour, brown rice syrup, and simply rice in the crackers, cereal, cereal bars, baby food, gluten free food, energy bars, and energy drinks just for starters. Worse yet, babies eat a lot of rice products such as cereals and needless to say, they are more sensitive to chemicals like arsenic. 

Does it affect all rice? No. However, 80% of all rice grown in the US comes from areas where inorganic arsenic is an issue. However, this takes some legwork to know which rice products are safer than others. And It doesn’t matter if you only eat organic rice since arsenic is already in the soil before rice is planted.

What can you do to reduce Arsenic level? Consumer Reports recommends certain guidelines to limit your rice intake. But simply, wash your rice first and cook it in 6 parts water to 1 part rice. Read here for more tips, different grains to source, and how agricultural changes can reduce the problem. 

But we need to change regulation by urging FDA to change the standard. Sign the petition asking for regulation. We should not have to agonize over the ingredients so that we don’t exceed the daily rice limitations recommended by Consumer Reports. And please share the petition with your friends and family (ten per day) right on the petition page. You can also share on Facebook, Twitter, and email. It takes a village.

Anna Hackman is the organizer of the Change.org arsenic in rice petition and thanks everyone who signs and
gets the word out about the petition. She is also a sustainability consultant, co-founder of the Green Sisterhood, editor of Green Talk, a green living and business blog, and obsessed gardener. But her most important job is being a mom of four boys.

I love to hear your feedback and comments. Stop by and visit Facebook, Pinterest or Twitter for more conversation!  Or get posts delivered via Email or RSS Feed.