Bacon Bargain Baby

You will really love me for this I promise. Want to know how you can save money & enjoy your favorite flavor of all???? Mmmmmm bacon. Drool........

For Portland Oregon readers you can find nitrate free bacon ends and pieces at New Seasons for only $3.29 per pound. Yes that's correct $3.29 a pound. It makes no sense to buy bacon slices for $7.99 a pound for soups or your favorite dish. I mean really. That's just crazy talk. 

These ends and pieces are the se bacon you buy sliced. It's just the ends! So go enjoy your bacon and eat it too. 

P.s. It freezes really well & does t need thawed. Simply take it out, cut it up and cook it. 

P.s.s. Don't throw that fat away!! Pour the bacon grease I to a mason jar for later. Use it to cook eggs, veggies or if you really like it skatter it on your hands. I'm no judger. really. I mean come on. It's bacon. 

Come on Baby Light my Fire

There are several frugal and free ways to have fire starters and kindling.  Any paper or cardboard with no plastic attached gets out in this pile. It's kept under our throw blankets so we don't have to see them. We don't get a paper delivered but Food Saver (a Portland paper) gets delivered once a week. We put it to good use. 

One if my neighbors let us have some of her sappy pinecones to use as firestarters. These work the best! Best part is it's non toxic and free!  Don't heaitate to ask your neighbors if you could have some. It will probably be one less hoer for them to do outside. 

About 2 years ago my neighbors Jim & Hazel replaced their fence that we share with them. Jim was gracious enough to let us have some of the wood. Perfect for kindling! Thanks Jim & Hazel! 

Lastly here we have some tree bark. Each year we get a wood permit to cut our own fire wood. When we bring it home a lot of the bark comes off & we stack it in one place. Bark is a great kindling that burns hot like a coal & it smells so wonderful when burnt. 

You could also make your own firestarters with egg crates, lint and wax but why when you have easy things like these? But I must say hose are excellent gifts for family or friends. 

Peace ✌️

Free mulch is a good thing

This is a HUGE pile of organic mulch.  A while back my neighbor asked if I would be interested in going in on some mulch. "Yeah!" Well I forgot all about it till yesterday.  I pulled into my driveway and saw this giant pile in my neighbors driveway.  As soon as I stepped outside my car I saw my neighbor giving me the thumbs up. WOOOOOOOT!!!!! 

I had one hour till I needed to cook dinner so I quickly went to work.  One of my 9 year old twins helped me which was fun.  Our mulch from years past was so thin that the weeds started to grow everywhere.  First thing I did was lay mulch by the wood pile.  My husband was so happy.  We have a french drain along our small sidewalk because it floods easily. Mulch on top just gives it a finishing touch.  Once I sweep it will look a lot better.

Next I went to work on our area by the fireplace.  We can see this area from our living room so it must be done.  I managed to get to the large tree but will need to finish the rest today.  When laying down organic mulch you have to remember not to put any around the base of any plants because it will suck away all the nutrients from the plants to the mulch. We don't need that. So I keep a clear area under all my plants.

And here is what I am doing today.  I need to rake all those leaves and put them into my compost bins or garden beds.  These leaves are tiny and will break down pretty fast.  Then I need to spread mulch along that wall and our fence.  Its going to make our yard look so much nicer!

So I bet your asking how we managed to get free mulch? Well its pretty easy actually.  My neighbor once worked for a tree maintenance service company.  When a company is done doing tree maintenance they usually give the mulch to the city which distributes it to parks around the city.  But if you call they will deliver it for free to your home.  Not all do this so I could call around to your local tree service companies.  Here in NW Portland you can call this place.  BUT remember its organic and needs to be spread within a few days.  It will break down and start to mold. Once its spread it won't mold.  You also won't be guaranteed what kind of tree mulch your getting. Sometimes it has lots of pine. If it does make sure to only put pine around areas you don't want weeds or garden veggies. Blueberry plants love it though.  Honestly this stuff is WAY prettier than any bark dust and heck its free!

                                                             Northwest Tree Specialist

2074 NW Aloclek Drive, Suite 403
Hillsboro OR 97124
Phone 503-645-2242
Fax 503-645-9399
1-877-8MY-TREE

Green review 3 Girls Holistic

Beauty products are something I don't splurge on often.  I'm a pretty simple lady so give me some tinted lip balm, mineral mascara and maybe some blush.  I'm good to go. But I have four daughters two of which are teenagers.  Ive done a good job of teaching my girls that inner beauty is what counts the most.  But sometimes they want to treat themselves to some girl time. This usually makes me cringe because 99% of beauty products are packed full of toxins, chemicals and synthetic perfumes.  To make things worst the natural food stores that do sell all natural toxic free beauty products  are so over priced and not even geared towards teenagers.  So to avoid all of these we have made our own facial products. Fun for me but not so much for them sometimes. I get it. I was a teenager once upon a time. When my friend Paige told me about 3 Girls Holistic  I was super excited to have the chance to try them out.  Lucky for me they sent me these for free to review. Woot! 

Their Philosophy 

"You look your best when you feel your best.

Our line of products is intended to not only nourish your skin, but your overall health as well. Our skin is capable of absorbing up to 60% of what we put on it; we believe that you shouldn’t put anything on your skin that you wouldn’t want to have inside your body."

Um yeah! That's what I'm talking about!

A few more amazing details-

Not only do they have tween/kids geared products but also post postpartum, aromatherapy,  first aid and women's skin care.  

They give back to the community by giving a portion of proceeds to several charities.  

Based in Nevada and all products are made in the USA. 

Recyclable packaging. They even reuse the packaging from products get get shipped to them. 

Cruelty Free

100% all natural.  So pure you could eat it. Literally.

100% toxins and synthetics free

$5 flat rate shipping

On top of all this wonderful stuff they have a blog. 

I mean come on. All this is way freaking cool!

My little package came with these products inside. Here is a brief description and our review of each item. 

1.  Purifying Toner-$6.95 After washing your face simply spritz this on your face.  Its very lightly scented and dries super fast.

Ingredients

Aloe Vera, Witch Hazel Extract*, Wine Vinegar*, Lemon Balm*, Chamomile*, Roses*, Calendula*, Comfrey*, Lemon Peel*, Rosemary*, Sage*, Essential oils of Bergamot, Grapefruit, and Lavender.

Review-A favorite of my girls. My older girls love this item because of how easy it is to use and it doesn't smell really strong. I love the glass bottle which we can reuse when done with this. $6.95 is pretty darn cheap if you ask me. Well worth the money. 

2. Nourishing Cream-$11 A lovely light moisturizer for the night.  

Ingredients

Distilled Water, Aloe Vera Gel, Apricot Kernel Oil*, Coconut Oil*, Meadowfarm Seed Oil, Wheat Germ Oil, Beeswax, Vitamin E, Essential Oils of Frankincense and Lavender

Review-I personally really enjoyed this cream. Light on my skin and didn't leave any grease on my pillow. It actually made the pillow smell lovely. I felt really comfortable letting my girls use this. Easy to wash out of their clothes! Perfect for messy little girls. Again love this glass bottle because I get to reuse it. Best part is its only $11. Way cheap compared to those other toxic name brand creams. 

3.  Cleansing Grains-$7.95 When your skin needs a little scrubbing this will do the job. It removes oxidized oil, dead skin cells and dirt without feeling like your face was hit by sand paper. 

Ingredients

Oat Tops*, White Kaoline Clay, Almonds*, Chamomile*, Comfrey*, Lavender*, Poppy Seed*, Rose*, Essential Oils of Ylang Ylang and Tea Tree

Review-I was excited to try this out but quickly realized I didn't like it. I didn't let my girls use it because of fear of chunks getting into their eyes. They are not old enough to keep the product out of their eyes. I did use it and found it to be a bit too chunky.  I think if I added it to my facial soap it would probably work better. I really did enjoy the light scent though.  Also love the glass bottle. $7.95 is a great price for this. 

4.  Day Serum-$22 Rich in essential fatty acids, it helps fight free radicals, protects against UV damage and the assault of environmental toxins, while restoring and conditioning the skin.

Ingredients

Calendula and Comfrey Infused Grapeseed Oil*, Hazelnut Oil, Macadamia Nut Oil*, Sea Buckthorn Oil*, Essential Oils of Neroli, Frankincense, Lavender and Rose Otto

Review-This might be my favorite out of all of them.  I use this after the Purifying Toner and my skin feels amazing all day long.  It also helps blend my foundation more smoothly.  A little goes a long way so one bottle will do ya! Oh and have you priced serum from major stores? My gosh they are expensive. At $22 I can even afford this. That's saying a lot. 

5.  Calming Mist-$7 Spritz to help tease tension and create a sense of calm. Enjoy a little bit of the aroma prior to slumber to help you rest more peacefully.  

Ingredients

Distilled Water, Essential Oils of Lavender, Roman Chamomile, Ylang Yland and Vanilla Absolute

Review-Every single girl in this home loved this!  They spray it on them when they feel angry. They spray it on them before bedtime. My tween sprays it on her like perfume. Can't say enough about this spray. LOVE IT. Only one issue I have with this is the plastic bottle. Wish it was glass. We don't like plastic of any kind. Would love if they switched to glass.  Otherwise its perfect! And at $7 its a steal of a deal! 

6.  Pretty Flower Perfume-$18 Bright, colorful bottles, playful labels, and scents that don’t overpower, make them a perfect introduction to the land of big girls!  Spill free and mess free roll on applicator.  100% natural, toxic and alcohol free.  Organic oil base won't irritate skin. 

Ingredients

Apricot Kernel Oil, Essential Oils of Grapefruit and Lavender. 100% Organic Ingredients.

Review-As a mommy I was so excited for my twins to have their own perfume that was safe and non toxic.  Its lightly scented so it doesn't overwhelm anyone around them.  The pretty bottle makes my little girls feel like big girls.  Even my tween loves it.  Heck even I love it.  As a bonus its only $18 so it won't break the bank.
p.s. I have my eye on a few other products for my girls too.  Including a $3 lip gloss!

I really can't say enough about this company. I feel good as a mommy knowing I can buy healthy non toxic safe products for my little girls. They finally get to use things that mommy gets to use.  My older girls loved it because they can travel with them and not be embarrassed by our DIY products in mason jars. I can't blame them. If I was a tween I wouldn't want to travel with them either.  I am just happy my girls are happy.

3 Girls Holistic are also on Facebook, YouTube and Twitter! 
For more information you can contact them online. Or go old school and call them by phone at (888) 283-5399 or email at info@3girlsholistic.com 

These products were sent to me for free with no compensation of money from the company.  I am not being paid for writing anything in this post. All reviews are my personal opinions.