Five 5 star reviews

If this was a Oprah, you would all win one of everything I mention in this post. Lucky for you! But this isn't that awesome.

These are five things I'm loving these days and highly recommend with my 5 star reviews...



***** Tortillas, from Tortilla Land

I LOVE a good tortilla for everything from burritos to huevo rancheros. I discovered these at Costco this last summer after I went off everything processed due to some awful symptoms (I'll spare you the details).

The norm in store-bought (and even restaurant) tortillas is an ingredient list that makes me shutter. Preservatives out the wazzoo and sulfates. Tortilla Land has un-cooked, refrigerated tortillas that are made from 5 whole ingredients like I would make them at home, but without the fuss -- plus, my homemade ones always turn out WAY too thick and are about 4" across.

Love Tortilla Land for their beautiful, easy, and healthy tortillas!






***** Gap maternity pants

Another one of my favorites is Gap maternity pants. I couldn't live without them. Or I guess I could live without them, but my ankles would be mighty cold. Gap is one of the few retailers who has figured out that tall women have babies too and they offer long lengths in most of their styles.

Thank you GAP! Their sales and coupons make their clothes pretty affordable and I have been happy with the quality, even accidentally drying my good, long length jeans in the dryer and they didn't shrink.






***** Free building plans at Ana-white.com

Ana is a self-taught builder extraordinaire who offers building plans of beautiful furniture for free on her blog. If you haven't visited her site before, travel over there with care because she will have you quickly thinking you can build Pottery Barn style and quality furniture for pennies. But the best part is, YOU CAN!

I built the 5' bench pictured for $8, not including the top. The legs are seconds from Home Depot and the top is a Black Walnut board we had from sawing down a fallen tree at Grandma's farm.

The directions are SO easy to follow and are written for how women think, even with pictures! I needed some help from my trusty handy-man because our wood-working tools aren't always user female friendly. Jeff and I worked together on this fun project and it took less than 2 hours. He also went back and made a second bench for another Christmas gift and it took less time still.

My only regret about this bench is that I didn't get to keep one!




***** Apple Cider Vinegar

ACV and I have a love-hate relationship. I love it because of all its fabulous uses, but I hate the taste and smell of it. I am including it in my favorites list because I use it constantly for everything -- curing a stomach ache, hair conditioner, and curing a yeast infection (weird, but true). This crazy stuff aids the digestive system and many swear by it to help lose weight -- just a tablespoon a couple times a day. I drink it almost every day (gagging every time) and I swear by the benefits.

My friend Ashley told me about using ACV as hair conditioner and now I rinse my hair with it about once a week. The smell goes away after my hair is dry and leaves my tresses glossy, yet very clean feeling. If you are freaked out by chemicals in your cosmetic products or are allergic to them like me, try washing your hair with baking soda, rinsing with ACV.





***** Bioplasma Cell Salts, by homeland

This is a new product for me, but I'm already giving it 5 stars. It is a homeopathic remedy used for colds and immune deficiency.

Here is a brief description of what cell salts are:

"Cell salts are vital mineral constituents present in human cells. They were first identified by a very renowned German physiological chemist and physicist of the early nineteenth century by the name of Dr. W. H. Schuessler. He discovered twelve different ‘tissue salts’ and observed their presence in all healthy human cells. 


 He went on further to state that if an imbalance of these salts were to occur within the cells, illness could be expected to result. The type of illness would depend on which cell salt was deficient and once the balance had been restored and the cells had once more retained their correct function, the body could be expected to heal itself of any ill health." (source, organic pharmacy)

With the stuffy noses we've all had since before Christmas, I was anxious to try it (about a week ago). The pills worked almost immediately (dissolve and taste like nothing really) at clearing up a runny nose. These tiny pills are also safe for children. I am happy to report I've done less chasing down of my children because of green snot running down their faces. Less blowing our noses, more breathing easily -- I'm a believer.





Thanks for reading through my fav 5! I'm not offering anything free, except recommendations, for what their worth. :)



A few things I can offer:

• If you come over to my house, I'll let you eat one of my delicious tortillas. 

• And if you need maternity pants and are crazy tall like me, you can have mine in about 6 months. 

• You are sorry our of luck in the bench department, I'm not giving one of those away. Although Ana's free plans can help you make one of your own (as I need to do for myself!).

• Pick up some Apple Cider Vinegar for yourself for super cheap at the grocery store. Any brand will work, but the true naturalist (which I am not) will recommend raw and organic is best.

• Here's a free offer! If you want a $10 off coupon for the Bioplasma (it is $11.64 for 1,000 pills), leave your email address in a comment and I'll send it to you. Gratis, thanks to Vitacost.