• My little eco-warrior. www.babblingpanda.com

    Our Earth Needs Us to Reduce Waste

    25/04/2018 - By 

    The average American person produces about 5 lbs of garbage per day, while the average Canadian throws away about 1/2 kg of packaging daily (JUST packaging). We need to reduce waste! I feel very passionate about reducing waste and, apparently, live in the worst province in Canada for garbage and waste- Alberta. When people complain about their compost bin, I want to kick them. I was visiting my mom in rural Saskatchewan and she was mentioning how the ladies at work were commenting on the inconvenience of taking things to recycling and composting in such an isolated area. I replied…

  • Strangely Good (and Healthy!) Quick Stir-Fry

    Strangely Good Stir-Fry Recipe

    24/04/2018 - By 

    It started with shrimp. I had a package of defrosted cooked shrimp to use up and was going to use it in a salad, but made a last minute decision to make a stir-fry. It was one of those nights where everything was rushed. As usual, I started supper late and Hunter had gymnastics that night, so I had to whip up something fast! (Why do we have to eat three times a day?!? So annoying, right?) Using what was on hand, plus a couple of surprising choices, I made this delicious concoction that had the kids making satisfied noises…

  • Meet Blue Moon Cottage.

    23/04/2018 - By 

    Our home has a name! Meet Blue Moon Cottage. Growing up, I was an avid reader and all of my favourite books had named houses in them: Tara of Gone With The Wind, Green Gables of Anne of Green Gables and Orchard House of Little Women, among others, which I found very romantic. I love special names for things- whether it be names for toys, nicknames, or…. named houses. Our tiny house needed that identity. I believe every house has a soul- And, in that respect, it makes sense that it would have a name to it as well as…

  • Whole Food Diary April 16-20

    21/04/2018 - By 

    How can it be mid-April already!?!?!? I can’t believe I’ve been doing this for two weeks already-And I love that this food diary is keeping me accountable. I hope it isn’t too boring to read. I’ve noticed that eating whole food means my skin is slowly clearing. I still need to do better with drinking enough water during the day to keep my skin acne-free. Also, I’m less bloated and IBS symptoms have reduced. Real food for the win! It always amazes me how much food plays a factor in how I feel – and then I’m amazed that it…

  • If You Need Me, I’ll Be Failing At Life This Morning

    19/04/2018 - By 

    Every Sunday, I tentatively plan my week. Every day, I plan the daytime hours while the kids are at school. I have to or the bathrooms would never get clean, blog photos and posts would never get done and I would just wander around lost. I’m not a morning person, but if I’m not productive in the morning, the kids are home from school before I know it and I haven’t gotten anything done! Any parents with me on that? Since I hate mornings so much,  I am always glad I have a plan written out when I wake up.…

  • Whole Food Diary: April 9-13

    14/04/2018 - By 

    It is week 2!! I am working on eating whole real food and cutting out processed food or added sugar. I’m more focused and determined this week. I am keeping this food diary to keep me accountable and let you know what I ate in those weeks. Hopefully I can give you some gluten-free and gut friendly meal ideas as well! So here we go….   Week Two Monday, April 09 Morning:  I woke up feeling terrible since my cycle had begun. Once the Tylenol kicked in, I felt that I could eat. I ate some Stoked Oats with banana…

  • One Way to Naturally Change Your Cycle

    11/04/2018 - By 

    I got a bit of exciting news last week! Next month, we are going on a long weekend trip to California through my husband’s work! I am so excited. Or I was, until I saw that my menstrual cycle would fall RIGHT on our trip. My periods are awful. Often, I have severe cramps for the first day and I’m very tired. On top of that, I always get extremely bloated and puffy, no matter what I’ve eaten in the previous month. Not a great look for a beach weekend- or a great mood to be in, either! I’m not…

  • April Eating Challenge Food Diary: Apr. 02-08

    09/04/2018 - By 

    Hello beautifuls. As I stated in this post HERE, I have decided to get my food choices back on track for April with an eating challenge. I’m being quite restrictive for this month, but there are no hard rules, more like guidelines. I promised to keep you updated on my progress, so here goes!! Monday April 02: I did NOT stick to my own “wish list” and here is what happened- change of plans! When I decided that April would be the month to get back on track, I was at my mom’s house in Saskatchewan (Hi, Mom!) but the…

  • April Eating Challenge: 10 Food Guidelines

    31/03/2018 - By 

    Food! Eating! As human animals, we can’t escape it. My mom always jokes that she wishes that we could just take a pill every day, instead of thinking of meals three times a day. I like food, especially comfort food on long days or during bad weather and there has been a lot of that lately. We are coming out of a winter funk- out of hibernation, maybe? But, I am ready to feel healthier and eat better. Longer days give me a sunnier disposition. Since I am feeling more optimistic lately, I thought it was time for an April…

  • I’m Sick of Feeling Sick!!

    28/03/2018 - By 

    You guys, I don’t know why I do this to myself. I get my health back on track and feel great, then I backslide. WHYYYYY?! I’m so sick of feeling sick. I did an 8 week stint of eating clean and slowly adding foods back into my diet.  I felt awesome. I wasn’t bloated, addicted to sugar, snacking mindlessly or lacking energy. Things were great. Things were so great, I forgot how bad they had gotten. So I added chocolate back in. And some dairy. And the occasional gluten-free snack (I’m looking at you GF crackers). And 1 cup of…