JR Watkins Naturals

So the other week I was playing retweet contests on twitter like I do when I'm bored. (BTW you should follow me @creep4ward if you don't already.) I submitted a tip for the J.R. Watkins Naturals feed. They ask for tips from their followers about how they use their quality extracts. I added a tip about how when I am congested, I'll put some drops of their peppermint extract on a warm, wet washcloth and drape it over my face. The peppermint smell and humid air helps me breathe again! Well, they liked the tip and I won their weekly contest for extract tips!

What came in the mail was a full size bottle of the J.R. Watkins almond extract!

According to their website, http://www.jrwatkins.com/jrwatkins/index.cfm, the company started way back in 1868 (wow!) and they say on their website:

"J.R. Watkins Natural Apothecary line of personal care contains only natural, environmentally friendly ingredients from renewable resources, avoiding chemicals like parabens, sulfates, phthalates and more and, is one of very few lines to be certified by the Natural Products Association."

They also make a bunch of kinds of soaps and personal care products.

I'm still trying to figure out what to make first with my almond extract. I have some apricots in the fridge and thought maybe an apricot-almond cake would work. I'll go search the internet for a recipe this afternoon.

Sweet! (literally!)

New blog design!

I have a new blog design! Did you notice? This one seems more sophisticated somehow. Let me know what you think!

Excited about book win!

I was lucky enough to win a Sweeps4Bloggers contest for a cool book called Art Without Compromise. It's even autographed by the author, Wendy Richmond! I just got the email that I won this morning, but I have to say I'm excited to read this book. When I was younger I used to be much more artistic-- painting, drawing, writing, collage, etc., but in the past few years I have become less and less playful in that way. I was thinking lately that I wished I could get some of that back, the playfulness that you need to be creative and artistic. We just moved into a new apartment and need something to put on our walls, but can't afford "real" art so I was thinking about maybe trying to make my own. DIY is all the rage, right? But I am not tapped into that part of myself very well.

I am hoping this book will help.

The description says:

"Art Without Compromise* will inspire artists to change the way they think about their creative landscapes, from personal goals to cultural influences to technological realities. Author Wendy Richmond helps artists to look closely at what they see every day, both in their own art-making and in the world around them. Readers will learn to develop an uncompromising commitment to finding and protecting their own unique process for making their strongest art."

It looks like you can buy the book from Allworth Press but once I get it and try it out I'll let you know what I think.

Thoughts on July 4th

So today is the 5th of July and everyone was out celebrating the founding of our country yesterday by hanging out with friends, grilling lots of meat, and watching things explode into sparks in the air. While we went outside and watched the show for a while, I got a little tired of all the loud noises, and I was worried about my cat. I guess it's normal for pets to be scared by loud sounds, but our cat was huddled under the bed for hours and would not come out, not even to eat. I felt really bad. We finally closed the windows even though it was super hot and tried to muffle the sound by turning on a fan.

Plus while we were outside we saw a little dog running free by the side of the road, and my heart sank not knowing if it was lost or had escaped and worried it would be hit. We watched as she turned into a residential area and I can only hope she was heading home.

So today I took a few minutes and looked up some web sites that talk about how to deal with pets on the 4th. Here are some that I found. If you have this issue too then you might find these useful.

http://www.foundanimals.org/blog/fireworks-dog-cat-safety


http://positively.com/2011/07/01/dealing-with-fireworks-anxiety/