I AM A MOM

While washing dishes tonight with my favorite Caldrea dish soap, I started to think. I have a lot of roles in my life right now. Not the kind of rolls that I like to bake. I have a good recipe for that.... but I am a wife, a mom, a daughter, sister, friend. I am a happy person, a business owner, I like rooibos chai (see below) and very soft things. As my sink full of suds was sitting in front of me, I was thinking about my jewelry website and how I can utilize SEO to my benefit, my pre-schooler's sack lunch day at school tomorrow and about the homemade mushroom new potato Alfredo sauce I am about to whip up for my hubby.... at the same time, I have my little toddler helping me wash the counter. It hit me hard, that of all the roles that make me up, it's that of being mommy. Each day brings something new but one thing is for sure, I Am A Happy Mommy.

Herbal Rooibos Chai recipe:

I keep this in a jar in my cupboard and put 2 heaping spoonfuls in a cup of hot Rooibos:

1 Cup Non-fat dry milk
3/4 Cup Dry non dairy creamer
1 Cup Dry non dairy creamer french vanilla
2 Cups white sugar
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground clove
1 teaspoon ground cardamon

Mix all ingredients well and store in an ball mason jar.

*some of these spices can get spendy if you buy them at a regular grocery store. Most health food stores sell them loose for much cheaper. My favorite places to buy loose herbs is Market Spice at the Pikes Place Market (www.pikeplacemarket.org) and Sunny Farms in Sequim, WA and to buy online (www.myspicesage.com is good too.

About Rooibos:

Pronounced "roy-boss" and means "red bush" in Afrikaans. Studies have shown this tea is comparable to green tea in the amounts of polyphenols it contains. It shows anti-mutagenic, anti-carcinogenic, anti-inflammatory and anti-viral activity.

Rooibos is totally pure and natural. It contains no colorants or preservatives.

Rooibos helps delay the aging process! The aging of our bodies is caused by toxic compounds called free radicals which are produced as a by-product of normal cell function. These free radicals attack our healthy cells. Over our lifetime this damage contributes to aging and our immune system weakens. Recently, Japanese scientists have found that Rooibos tea contains a mimic of the enzyme Super Oxide Dismutase (S.O.D.), an antioxidant which attacks the free radicals and limits their damaging effects.

Rooibos is becoming more popular in Western countries particularly among health-conscious consumers, due to its high level of antioxidants such as aspalathin ^[5] and nothofagin, its lack of caffeine, and its low tannin levels compared to fully oxidized black tea or unoxidized green tea leaves.^{[citation needed]} Rooibos also contains a number of phenolic compounds, including flavanols, flavones, flavanones, and dihydrochalcones.^[6]

Rooibos is purported to assist with nervous tension, allergies and digestive problems.^[7]

Traditional medicinal uses of rooibos in South Africa include alleviating infantile colic, allergies, asthma and dermatological problems.^[8][

See more interesting health benefits of rooibos at (www.savannahimports.com and www.wikipedia.com)