Homeschooling 
When my oldest son was 8, we invited some friends over to our home to dissect a fetal pig. While there were a few "gross!" comments, by and large, the kids were very attentive and interested. Since my background's in biology, I was able to point out all the various internal parts of the pig and what each part did. It was a very fun, interactive afternoon of learning. Sadly, a lot of homeschool parents don't see the value of this this kind of hands-on learning—or at least they don't think it's worth the cost of the supplies. But the value of tactile learning—also called kinesthetic learning—cannot be ...Read More
Foods Gluten-Free for Beginners
Our oldest son used to be a gluten addict. One Christmas, the present he wanted under the tree more than anything was boxed macaroni & cheese. No joke. (And his grandpa actually wrapped some up for him.) But after a lot of research, when we finally decided to take the "gluten-free plunge" as a family, we made a lot of mistakes as beginners—gluten seems to "sneak in" to a lot of things. Store-bought chicken broth. Soy sauce. Salad dressings. And even the scrambled eggs at IHOP. For more gluten-free recipes, tips, and tricks, look no further than our Everything Gluten Free page! But we began to see health ...Read More
Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Scones (paleo & sugar-free option)
Nothing says "tea time" like a good scone—well, except for maybe tea. I typically enjoy scones, but finding a good gluten-free recipe that does justice to this traditional Scottish baked good is hard to come by. Bonus: this one has chocolate chips. Funny thing about scones... First, no one really knows where we get the word "scone" from. Some think it's derived from a Dutch word schoonbroot which means "beautiful bread" or "fine bread," or maybe the Middle Low German word schö̂ne, meaning "fine flour bread." Or it may derive from the Scots Gaelic term sgonn meaning a lump or mouthful. Others say it comes ...Read More
Homemade Lemon & Lavender Laundry Soap
I first began dabbling in making homemade laundry soap to save money. We were on a tight budget—anything I could do to save a few pennies here or there helped give us a little more wiggle room. And making my own homemade laundry soap was definitely an easy way I could save money. The lemon & lavender laundry soap also smells absolutely divine! But the more I began to learn about what was actually in most laundry soap, the more I realized we needed to make changes. Fighting Lyme disease, I knew my body didn't need to also contend with all those toxins rubbing on my body through the day. And I certainly didn't ...Read More
How to Use Copaiba Essential Oil
I could tell, even over the phone, Marie was beaming ear to ear. I'd been working with her to help her find an oil to help her ease the chronic pain she'd experienced for the last 10 years. We'd finally landed on a combo that was working wonders. And one of the game-changers was copaiba. She'd also found some other uses for copaiba and couldn't wait to tell me about the success she was having. More on that soon... If you've been wondering how to use copaiba essential oil — you've come to the right place. You'll learn why it's become one of the oils I use pretty much every day (and an oil I frequently reach for to use ...Read More
101 Healthy Gluten-Free Desserts
When my family decided to change to a gluten-free lifestyle, we knew we need to come up with gluten-free alternatives to every meal we were accustomed to eating, including gluten-free desserts. Not that we wanted to sink into the trap of boxed meals and mixes that had "gluten-free" written on the side—on the contrary, we wanted to focus on whole-food ingredients. But we also wanted to be able to have delicious sweet treats from time to time. PS: Looking for more gluten-free recipes, tips, and tricks? Look no further than our Everything Gluten Free page! So, next time you're looking for a healthy gluten-free ...Read More
5 Super Easy Things You Can Do to Transform Your Diet
Over the years, probably the one of the biggest concerns I've heard from our readers sounds something like this: "I want to make healthy changes, but there's so much information out there. How do I know where to start? Information overload often leaves me scratching my head, and then I just don't start anything." Here's the key: just do something. I've never made a massive overhaul to my diet. I've made healthy changes slowly over time—one step at a time. Below are some of the changes I made to my diet early on—again, not all at once, but bit by bit. Why these things? One of the things I always recommend to ...Read More
The Complete Gluten-Free Grains List
When our whole family started to move towards a gluten-free diet, the first few months were the hardest. I didn't know what I was doing. Didn't someone just have a gluten-free grains list? A cheat-sheet to help me get started? And more than that... some days I just wanted was a stinkin' doughnut. (And being completely honest, there are still days driving by the doughnut shop the familiar smell calls my name like some kind of wicked pied piper tune.) Today, cravings for gluten-filled foods have subsided and I've come to really enjoy my current diet. Plus, I love knowing I'm doing what is best for our health. Are ...Read More
