A Sense of Comfort

Have you ever noticed how something as simple as your favorite pair of jeans or leggings can bring you a world of comfort?

Now imagine how you’d feel if you lost all of your worldly possessions.

That’s reality for many residents of Louisiana right now.

For my husband it brought back memories of Hurricane Katrina. For me it brings back memories of my first flood experience. It was almost 5 years ago, to the day. My apartment was spared, but my car was under several feet of water.

It’s one of those things you never forget. It’s a crushing blow to your mind and spirit, but it is also a true lesson about the things that matter in life– health, strength, your family– and simply being alive.

When I received these leggings to review, I thought I would be giving them to the clothing drive at my church or maybe to one of the youth, but I’m including them in my collection of items to donate to the local relief efforts and I pray you’ll find it in your heart to support them as well.

Yes, they’re cute. Sure, they’re trendy, but now they mean something much more– they can be a small sense of comfort– a step to returning to normality for a child who just lost all of her new, back-to-school clothes. A single pair of jeans or an individual donation may not change everything, but they can be a start.

My local ministry will be coordinating relief efforts. If you are unable to give items directly, you can use this link to give a monetary donation.

Scriptures for Encouragement:

For our present troubles are small and won’t last very long. Yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever! So we don’t look at the troubles we can see now; rather, we fix our gaze on things that cannot be seen. For the things we see now will soon be gone, but the things we cannot see will last forever.” (2 Corinthians 4:17-18)

“God is our refuge and strength, always ready to help in times of trouble.” (Psalm 46:1)

“Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. I say to myself, “The Lord is my portion; therefore I will wait for him.” (Lam. 3:22-25)

“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.” (2 Cor 1:3,4)

Coming Up: International Day of Peace Action Week (September 18 – 25, 2016)

There’s been so much going on in Louisiana over the past few months, and it has been a lot to process.

I’ll be taking part in the International Day of Peace Action Week next month and speaking more about my personal experiences, my individual reflections, and some of the activities taking place across the State, Nation and World. Please check back for more updates.

Thanks for reading!

Brushing With Activated Charcoal Powder: Is it Better Than Toothpaste?

This was another interesting review. For starter’s– the Husboo is usually down to support most of my wacky reviews, but when I presented him with this one he gave a quick, “NO.”

I HOLLERED!!!!! That’s country folk’s speak for “Laughed Out Loud”– but it’s a better laugh. It’s that — “laugh so hard your belly hurts because you laughed with your soul,” kind of laugh. AKA– THE best kind of laugh!

Back to the actual point of this post. Once I realized there was no convincing him, I was on to review the brushing powder on my own. It was quite the experience. The photo’s tell their own funny story, but here are a few facts about the product from the manufacturer:

GET WHITER TEETH AND CLEANER MOUTH AFTER FIRST USE: Feel the difference in just one brush with the Sagano Activated Charcoal Teeth Whitening Powder! It’s quick and effective leaving your mouth feeling fresher all day. No more stains from coffee, tea, red wine, and other teeth-staining beverages. Gets rid of bad breath and plaque buildup too!

TASTES GOOD: Brush with a burst of spicy-sweet cinnamon flavor in your mouth for a refreshing and soothing mouth clean up. Say goodbye to nasty chemical whitening ingredients and hello to a pleasurable teeth whitening experience!

SAFE FOR SENSITIVE TEETH: This teeth whitening powder contains natural cinnamon, a herbal painkiller that helps relieve tooth and gum sensitivity. This carbon powder is also fine and not gritty for a softer, more velvety texture, preventing teeth and gum irritations. Just a perfect toothpaste alternative!

MADE FROM NATURAL INGREDIENTS: This teeth whitening powder is made from natural coconut activated charcoal and organic cinnamon – and that’s it. No artificial flavor or chemicals that can harm your enamel. Have a cleaner mouth, healthier gums, and whiter teeth with this powerful herbal combination.
The Photos (Be Prepared to Laugh :-D):

My Initial Reaction, “Oh, This is Interesting”

“Is my tongue turning black? Why yes it is!”

Charcoal powder is best used for facials. The end.

My Overall Review:

Likes

Despite my expressions, my teeth felt REALLY clean and smoother than usual. I use a Phillips Sonicare toothbrush, so I am accustomed to a very good cleaning job, but this made my teeth feel slicker than usual. I’m guessing the charcoal (although very fine) added extra grit which improved the polishing quality of my toothbrush.
I have experienced tooth sensitivity in the past (I now use Sensodyne toothpaste on the regular) so I can say that this did not cause any pain or discomfort when I used this in place of my normal toothpaste.

Dislikes:

The powder can be a bit messy. It’s very fine and it doesn’t take much to send it up in a cloud of smoke. I tried to manage this by using the lid to pour out a small amount of the powder, then dipped my toothbrush in the lid to apply the powder, and (finally) rinsing out any remaining powder from the lid to discard it. This cut down on the mess, somewhat, but not entirely. For the sake of sanitation, I wouldn’t want to use this method if I was sharing the container with my husband (or if we had children using it along with us), but it works since I’ll be using it solo.
It does NOT taste good. The description above described a natural cinnamon taste. As a person that cooks, I know that cinnamon does not taste good on its own. It needs sugar to really be palatable. Adding cinnamon to charcoal was bleh. It deserves repeating– it does NOT taste good (at least not to me) but toothpaste should not be eaten so there’s that caveat.I plan to continue to use this to give my teeth a nice deep cleaning between regular brushing, but I can’t say that I’ll be transitioning to use this full-time. I haven’t given up on the benefits of charcoal completely. I’ve been experimenting with using activated charcoal to make homemade facial masks and will be sharing my results soon!

I used this powder to create a facial mask. Look for a post of my results next week!

The Coloring Case: Markers vs. Colored Pencils– Which is Better?

I have received a few sets of pens, markers and color pencils to review, with markers and colored pencils arriving in the largest quantities.

This was really exciting for me because I do a lot of craft projects with the youth at my church, so I looked at this as one less supply that I would need to buy (and another blessing from God #WontHeDoIt)!

In addition to using these items with my youth, I also use them for one of my favorite personal pastimes– coloring.

I’ve been asked a few times which I prefer for my coloring– colored pencils or markers. I decided to do a quick run down of the pros and cons of each. Here are my thoughts:

Markers: This review will focus on the Super Markers 20 Color Marker Set I received.

Pros:

Vivid Colors
This particular set can be used on paper or fabrics
Bullet point tip can be used for fine details and thick strokes

Cons:

May bleed through pages (this will depend on the stock of the paper and is really only a major issue if the coloring book has double sided pages).
Delays due to the need to recap markers
Markers may dry out if caps aren’t properly resealed (That always makes me soooo sad 😦 ).

Colored Pencils: This review will focus on the Innovating By Design Watercolor Pencils I received.

Pros:

Ability to blend colors
Paintbrush included in kit
Firm pencil tip
No need to remove caps
More colors included (compared to the 20 in the marker set)

Cons:

Need to sharpen during longer coloring sessions
This set does not have a sharpener — if you are traveling, having a sharpener will be important and you’ll need to purchase one separately
Must have water on hand for blending colors

Ultimately, I can’t say that I have a strong preference one way or the other.

It really depends on my mood, the item that I am coloring, and the type of coloring book that I have.

If I am using a coloring book with double-sided pages, I am more likely to use colored pencils because I don’t want to risk having the ink bleed through.

Sometimes I will use pens if I feel like doodling while I color and I may choose to use color pencils if I am coloring in my flower or landscape coloring book so that I can blend and create colors similar to what one would see in the natural landscape.

I recommend trying each medium at least once and allowing yourself to have some fun!

Fran’s Fixings: Homemade Fries

I LOVE fries! I love potatoes, actually. All things potatoes…fried, boiled, baked. I’m like the Bubba Gump of Potatoes!

I remember going home from college one weekend in the summer and getting some potatoes from Nick’s Pick Quick– THE main chain of convenience/gas stations in my hometown — only to hear my grandma say, “You know those potatoes go straight to your thighs.”

LOL. Gotta love grandma’s. They hold no punches! 😀

But she was right. Despite my love for potatoes, they are not friendly to my thighs, so when I do have them, I have to try to make them in the healthiest way possible. That means minimal grease, fresh seasoning, and avoiding purchasing them from a drive through — In other words– MAKING THEM AT HOME.

We’ve been making lots of meals using Blue Apron recipes and both my husband and I are showing the results as far as weight loss is concerned (YAY #TeamBHenry). Having all of the necessary ingredients delivered to your front door gives you even more incentive to cook your own meal and it’s even better when you know that they are fresh and flavorful!

It’s pretty easy to cut up a potato, but it’s even easier when you have a tool like the French Fry Potato Cutter with Suction Base.

The manual lever takes most of the effort out of cutting the potato and the suction base keeps the device stationary.

We now make our fries almost exclusively from fresh potatoes and have no regrets. That simple swap has saved us so many unnecessary calories and we can still enjoy having a meal of a burger and fries in the comfort of our home.

For a recipe idea, check out one of our favorite Blue Apron recipes on My Fran’s Fixings Pinterest Board.

Until next time, Go Fix Something!

Quick Skin Care Tips

Ladies– Have you ever noticed how much better your legs feel after a fresh shave?

Yes, you’ve removed any hairs/stubble, but do you know what you’ve also done?

YOU EXFOLIATED!

Did you already know that? COOL! That’s why we’re friends. 😀

Did I lose you? Let me break it down a little bit more:

When you shave, you remove a layer of dead skin.

I know, I’m a nerd, so I’ll try to keep myself from getting too technical.

We shed thousands of skin cells every day; but, without some “extra scrubbing,” these dead cells may stick around until some outside force assists their removal.

Think of those times when you’ve seen your own “ashy” or dry and flaking skin and gone to grab some lotion. The reality is– you should have been doing something to remove this dead skin in advance– like scrubbing with a loofah or sponge or a sugar scrub, but not everyone does that (#shade #noshade #alittleshady #movingon).

Some dermatologists go so far as to even suggest shaving one’s face to obtain a facial glow. I’m not lying (check the link), but I’ll stick to just exfoliating. #ImGood.

Long story short, part of the reason your legs “feel so good” is because you’ve removed all of that dead skin…. It’s enough to make a girl want to shave every day…. butterah, I’m not doing that either, so the Leedgetool is one of my new skincare faves!

You’ve exfoliated, now what?

Time to moisturize!

I love my Oil of Olay in shower lotion, but I can go through it rather quickly, so I also like to have a steady line-up of after shower lotions.

This, Pardon My Pretty Lotion, combines a Super Fruit Blend of antioxidant-strong and fatty acid-rich blueberry, acai, cranberry and goji berry, creating a wholesome treat to boost hydration and improve skin texture and tone.

I love the smell of this lotion and I can be very particular when it comes to my perfumes and lotions. I don’t like any lotion that smells too fruity or that will conflict with my perfumes. Most of all, I despise any lotions that leaves me feeling sticky or that I feel the need to wipe off before getting dressed for the day.

This lotion is lightweight, but very moisturizing and is the perfect way to pamper your skin after you’ve completed a session of exfoliating.

Never shave or exfoliate your legs (or any other area) without then following that activity with the application of a high quality moisturizer. That newly exposed skin is nice and fresh, but it is also more vulnerable to the external environment and needs to be taken care of (Don’t make all of your hard work be short-lived!).

That’s for today’s Fix-It With Fran Skin Care Tips. I’ll be back tomorrow with another update! 😉