Magic Hand and Foot Care

Within the past couple of months I stumbled upon products that have been downright magical for my hands and feet. Two different items providing two fantastic solutions, and this is me shouting it from the rooftops… I feel extra excited to share the moisturizing lotion because it helped me in a completely unexpected way.

Foot Mask

I don’t have a regular foot care routine, but when I feel like my feet need some exfoliation, I’ll reach for one of our DIY foot scrubs:

This spring I felt like my feet were more callused than usual, so before reaching for a scrub, I thought that I’d try one of these exfoliating foot peels. It worked like magic!

As suggested in the instructions, I soaked my feet for about an hour before putting on the booties (which contain the mask). I kept the booties on for another, and then washed off the mask. Like clockwork, about a week later, the skin on my feet started peeling!

The peeling doesn’t hurt, and it basically looks like peeling skin after a sunburn. My feet have been peeling for close to a week now, but this is the last of the dead skin, and feet are looking and feeling so soft.

I like to walk around barefoot, and I was curious if the newly uncovered skin would be more sensitive, but fortunately it’s not. It’s just baby soft and not looking so “rugged”.

Moisturizing Lotion

This magical (not-nail-or-hand-specific) lotion has nipped my nail-biting habit in the bud! How could that be? Let me explain.

Over the years I’ve come to realize that my nail-biting doesn’t have to do with fidgeting, wanting to put things in my mouth, wanting my nails to be short, etc…

It has to do with one thing: when my nails are chipped, splitting, or peeling, it drives me crazy and I want to “smooth” them out. So I do that by biting them, which makes the problem worse, then I bit them some more. And this sadly this applied to the skin around my nails too. It would be dry and peeling, I’d pick at it, the cycle would repeat itself.

Over the years I’ve tried a number of solutions. I used to paint them religiously (see photo above!) because this would make them less prone to drying out and damage, but as the polish peeled off, I would then start to bite them.

I’d use gloves when washing dishes to minimize drying, but it still didn’t solve the problem. I’d put all sorts of salves on my fingers (plenty of them were homemade!). But alas, nothing stopped the nail biting. UNTIL NOW!

Long story a little bit longer: we got this lotion because hyaluronic acid has great reviews for moisturizing skin, plumping it up, reducing wrinkles, etc. After we got the lotion, I was putting a little bit on my face each night before bed. After a few weeks I realized that my hands, specifically my nails, were looking fantastic!

It took me a day or two to realize that the only change in my routine was the lotion. It’s now been close to two months, my nails are so strong, there’s no dryness, and I’m completely hooked. I still just put the lotion on my face and rub it into my hands before bed. I can’t tell if it’s made much of a difference to my face, but given how well it’s worked on my hands, I’m not going to stop any time soon.

There are many hyaluronic acid lotions and supplements out there. I linked to the exact lotion that we’re using, and because it’s working so well, we haven’t tried anything else.

So, if your nail biting habit is anything like mine, give this lotion a try. I’d love to hear if it works for more people!

Homemade Yogurt in the Instapot

Hey there, it’s time for a very irregular installment of some of my favorite things!



I’ve been using my Instantpot to make yogurt this winter, and we are hooked, as in multiple-batches-per-week hooked.

I was pleasantly surprised to find that the results are just like using using our yogurt maker. So why switch?

Continue reading

Waste Less Wednesday: Shampoo & Soap Bars

This year we’ve been doing a series called Waste Less Wednesday focused on little and big ways that we can reduce our consumption. And if you’d like more hair-related posts, here’s our recipe for dry shampoo and here’s my DIY dandruff shampoo that worked like a charm!

This might not seem like the most technical of posts. And we’re suggesting you buy something, so even the “waste less” principle sounds questionable at first, BUT by adopting soap and shampoo bars, you’re getting the suds but skipping the plastic bottles, and that’s a win in our books!

Continue reading

Coffee Posts Round-up

live seasoned blue mountain coffee jamaica-9

With cooler nights and crisper air, I’m definitely starting to feel the change in seasons. Of course, the abrupt shift from our carefree summer adventures to the more rigid school schedule has further confirmed that we’ve turned the corner. The combination of weather + sticking to a schedule has left me feeling extra thankful for my morning and afternoon coffee breaks.

If you’re craving a bit of inspiration to caffein your days, here’s a round-up of some of our favorite recipes and products.

Continue reading

10 Spring Gifts for Kids

If you’re looking for more Easter basket inspiration, we shared a couple of themed basket ideas here and here.

With Easter just over a week away, we wanted to share a few unique outdoor gifts for kids. I think you’ll agree that these gifts focus on connecting kids of all ages to nature in one form or another. We have something for the artist, the bug-lover, the bird watcher, and the explorer.

Continue reading

Waste Less Wednesdays : The Cup

If you like this post and want to read more about our uterus-related topics? Click here for Sarah’s Mirena IUD experience and click here for her 2+ year IUD update.

Waste Less Wednesdays

With the new year we’re starting a new weekly series called “Waste Less Wednesdays”. Our passion for preserving Mather Nature is pretty strong, but we recognize that we live in a consumer-driven society. As such, we try to be honest with ourselves about our own consumption, our needs vs. wants, and the opportunities that we have to reduce waste. Sarah and I are often sharing tips and tricks to reduce our consumption, and this series was born from those conversations.

We’re starting the series by bringing back one of my most favorite waste-reduction choices: the menstrual cup. Why start with this post? Well, I’ve used my cup for every period for 2+ years. I had heavy periods requiring both pads and tampons. There was nothing fun about my period, but switching to the cup paired with period underwear (more on that below) has been a game changer and a major waste-reducer! I haven’t used a single disposable period product since making the switch.

That’s right. Not a single disposable product in over two years! I can confidently say that I’ve made the money back that I spent on the initial cup + underwear investment,  and at this point I’m saving saving money that would have gone to more pads and tampons.

saalt1

To be honest, I’m much more bashful when it comes to talking about certain topics than Sarah is. Kudos to her! But, I’m so happy + excited about my experience using a menstruation cup that it’s time for a post…. happy enough that I’ll repost this information every year with the hope that it will help others make the switch.

I’ve become the crazy lady that will talk to anyone about it if they just mention the word cup…. Oh, you were just talking about Boulder’s awesome new cup-sharing program? Well, let me tell you about my new cup anyway. You were just asking about the difference between a question mark and a period, we’ll let me answer all of your questions about my period cup.

Continue reading

Multipurpose Garment Rack

coat_rack6

I’m turning 40 this year. And nothing says 40 like hitting “publish” on a post titled “Multipurpose Garment Rack”. So boring adult is the role that I now fill here. That said, please (I’m begging you) read on to find out why your house, apartment, and tiny house needs this garment rack. It’s the best boring-adult-thing for everyone, whether you’re in your 20s or your 40s.  Continue reading

Fall Favorites

P1330088

Fall has been feeling really special this year. I think it’s due to a magical combination of beautiful weather, kids that are SO excited about Halloween, and having the time for special trips like our recent visit to the pumpkin patch.

It definitely helps that I’ve been making all soups in my favorite pumpkin cocotte (that’d be a fancy word for Dutch oven). The mushroom quinoa soup above comes from Easy Soups From Scratch with Quick Breads to Match. If you’re looking for a kitchen gift for someone, you can’t go wrong with that pot+cookbook combo.

If you don’t have the pumpkin pot or the soup book, we recommend this old fall favorite: veggie and sausage gratin in a pumpkin! You can find that tasty recipe here.

And the next time you’re making soup or gratin for dinner, pick up a beeswax candle-making kit. You’ll have just enough time to roll candles while everything is simmering. And dinner will feel extra special the moment you light those candles.

What are you enjoying this fall? Any favorite books we should know about? xo

Bento Box Eggs

Eggs are our ingredient of the season. That link will take you to our archive of egg posts.

Have you heard or seen the crazy awesome bento box lunches that Japanese mom’s make for their kids? Apparently some moms spend hours every morning crafting these works of art… we aren’t suggesting that you do that, but we do have a couple of fun tools that can make snack time more fun and funny.  Continue reading