This past week in America

I usually like to include some sort of pictures in my posts but i really don't find that this post needs pictures.  So I will not be including any. If you would like to see pictures please search the internet where there are plenty.

I hope that our American neighbours to the south have felt their northern neighbours' prayers and thoughts.  We have been feeling your pain and anxiety.  I truly feel sorrow for you.  Starting with the Boston Marathon bombing to the Waco, TX explosion to the crazy firefight, man hunt and capture of the second suspect last night.

Yesterday, the 19th of April was the 20th anniversary of the Waco siege and the 18th anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing.  Then to add to that today is the anniversary of the Columbine shootings.

This is one of those weeks that shows the tenacity of a country and it's people that make me proud. I cannot imagine what it was like to be in a city in lock down and seeing all the military and police with guns at ready, storming homes and searching for a man with a bomb strapped to his chest. The Boston police, FBI and ATF involved showed their worth and training in taking down the two suspects in the crazy firefight Friday early morning and all day Friday til the ending of the arrest of the second suspect. A big thank you to all of them for keeping the potential carnage to a minimum and for bringing the terror to an end so the cities of Watertown and Boston and its' surrounding suburbs are once again safe.

Prayers and thoughts with the victims. One of the dead at the marathon bombing was a student at a local university from China. This sad event has been felt all over the world and close to home. A 8 year old boy lost his life, his 6 year old sister lost her leg and his parents' lives will forever be altered. The 3rd life lost at the marathon was a young woman with a long life ahead of her as well. Along with many injured victims due to shrapnel. What a tragic event. I can't even imagine. One of those times where all the technology society has is great and the ability to upload to youtube instantly.

The Boston Marathon brings visitors from all over the world. I live in Durham Region and we had 15-20 runners in the marathon. Luckily, they are all home safe and sound with some stories that will be forever etched in their memories.

The fire at the fertilizer factory has also been devastating this week to an area of the country that is already known for sadness. Not helping that that sadness' 20^th anniversary was this week as well. The fire burned for days with missing fire fighters. I hope the victims know that us here in Canada know of this tragedy and you are in our prayers.

Easy Ways to Clean the Kitchen 101 BEFOE a Major Spring Cleaning

I am always on the lookout for easy ways to clean up the house and de-clutter.  I joined Simplify 101's mailing list months ago and they have helped me organize my home a lot since my move from the apartment.  More space means more clutter.  

I got the below info from an email I get from Aby Garvey over at Simplify 101 and thought I would share it with my readers:

Do you have the itch to do some spring cleaning, but aren’t sure where to start? The kitchen is a terrific place to begin your spring cleaning and organizing because it’s a space you use every single day. When your kitchen is organized, you’ll get your cooking and clean up done faster, and when your kitchen is clean, you’ll enjoy spending time there. 

Here are five simple ways to get started spring-cleaning your kitchen. Just carve out fifteen minutes a day to get started and make progress. Before you know it, your kitchen will be sparkling!  

• Wipe cabinet fronts with Murphy® Oil Soap.

• Deep clean an appliance such as your stovetop, the inside of your oven or microwave, or the outside of your refrigerator.

• Clear easy clutter in your kitchen cabinets and pantry. Your goal is to simply create a bit of breathing room by clearing out some of the simple things like extra coffee mugs, travel coffee cups, plastic drinking cups from restaurants, cookbooks you haven’t used in years, and dish towels that have seen better days.   

• Next, see if you can utilize some of the space you’ve just created to get a bulky item like your toaster or canisters off your kitchen counter.

• Clean out the refrigerator and freezer, and make a list of frozen foods to use up soon before they go bad.

Yves Rocher's Botanical Scrub Review

I have been using Yves Rocher's products for over 10 years.  I got a packet in the mail years ago and had to try them.  I was in search of face care products and was intrigued by their natural skin care lines and had been through the drugstore and mid lines at department stores.  At that point nothing really had worked for my oily skin that made my skin comfortable.  With Yves Rocher, I loved that you got free gifts with your purchases.  Plus you could purchase mystery bags and get a great value of products to try/give away as gifts.  When I moved back to Canada I loved the stores and their free in store skin analysis and sales girls.  I have found some great products I love.  They get new items in often and their products are definitely worth a try.  

This time, I was in the market for a new scrub while I was waiting for my mail order scrubs to come in a few months back and I was tempted by this one.  So I purchased Yves Rocher's Botanical Scrub.  It comes in a 5 oz flip top tube, not a tub so it is very hygienic, more desirable than the tub format most scrubs come in.  Now this was an impulse purchase and sometimes those impulse purchases are downers but not this one!  It has a delightful scent and works great.

The scent is what was the selling point for me.  Oh boy is it delightful.  I want this in a fragrance oil for my home.

This product is said to scrub your skin as you purify it.  YR has used ingredients in it such as naturally exfoliating apricot kernel powder, purifying saro essential oil and Mexican agave sap from organically grown ingredients for its moisturizing properties.  Some find that apricot kernel powder is too hard to use on their skin to exfoliate  especially if they have sensitive skin but the good thing with apricot kernel powder is that it does not dissolve like sugar does and sloughs off dead skin cells longer.  The agave sap moisturizes your skin.  


How I use this product:  What i end up doing is that i stand out of the spray of the shower, apply the scrub an area of the time, scrub then move on to another area.  Then once I have applied the scrub to my whole body I go back and exfoliate my body again and focus on the dry areas.  Once i feel that I have gotten all the dry areas and satisfied I rinse well.  Once I am done I have smooth skin with a nice fresh, invigorating scent on my skin that lingers til the next morning.

I use this often and find that i will need to repurchase this before the end of the month.  This is one of the two scrubs that I keep permanently in my shower.  I highly recommend that you get your hands on this scrub and give it a whirl!


ORGANIC APRICOT KERNEL

The key ingredients of Botanical Scrub are Apricot kernel powder to refine the texture of the skin, the essential oil Saro sheet from Madagascar to purify and Agave sap for its moisturizing properties.

Happy Easter and Passover to my Jewish Friends!

As the following post was saved instead of published it will come with a preference now.  I hope you all had a relaxing Easter weekend with friends and family.  Mine was quiet but really nice.  I got some writing done which was good for me.  I rearranged my bedroom again.  The following post was written on Thursday, March 28th:

This Sunday is Easter!  It is rather early this year.  Something about the first Sunday after the first full moon after the Spring Equinox.  If you know much about moon phases and when the seasons change you know how to determine when Easter will fall.  I look at a calendar and let that tell me.

Tomorrow is Good Friday and in Canada it's a Stat!  So it's a day off.  Meaning besides the day off, a good meal with family, unless your family is nuts, like mine.  =P  I hope you all have a great day and weekend and get lots done!  It is a time to spend with family and friends.  Hunting eggs and enjoying being with children.  They are the joys of life.  Being blessed by God and what he does in our lives.  Remember that if it wasn't for Jesus and what he did for us Easter would have no true meaning.