the stinkin' truth

For the past few months I have been on a quest. My mission: to find a deodorant that not only is aluminum free, but actually works.

I'm sure you've heard about the harmful effects of aluminum on the body, but in case this is new to you, let me explain.

The problem really lies with the "antiperspirant" part of deodorant. Aluminum is widely used in deodorants to clog pours and thus prevent sweating. Unfortunately, harm is being done in the process. With higher exposure to aluminum, you have a greater risk of developing breast cancer, Alzheimer's and other diseases. As bad as aluminum is for you, there are other harsh chemicals in most deodorants that are best to avoid such as parabens. Parabens mimic estrogen which also ups your chances of contracting cancer.

Here's the rub. It's difficult (in my experience) to find an aluminum free deodorant that I can trust to get me through the day stink free.

One of the most common brands of natural deodorant is Tom's of Maine.



There are many different scents and even a few different lines of deodorant offered by Tom's such as "24 hour coverage" and yada yada. Bottom line: doesn't work.

I also tried Kiss My Face brand.



I love this brand for their organic lotions and body washes...but not their deodorant. Strike two!

By this time I was getting a little frustrated, and let's face it, self-conscience. I don't know about you, but body odor is something I want to keep to a minimum!
But thankfully, third time's the charm. I present to you the winner of this little experiment:

Origins Organic Deodorant



It's a little spendy, but realizing how much I value not stinking, to me it's worth it. I do have a recipe to make my own deodorant and I'm sure someday I will try that (and give a full report to be sure) but for now, I'll stick with my Origins stuff.

Have you tried any aluminum free brands? Have you found any that work? Do share.

park free pantry

Do you know what I love? To see God at work in the ministries that we are involved in. He's really doing some amazing things lately.

Park Free Pantry is a new ministry that will help serve the needs of those in our church community as well as those in the St. Louis Park Community with basic supplies such as toilet paper, laundry soap, tooth paste, diapers, etc. We put the word out among our church family and already the donations are pouring in and it's so exciting!! I can't wait to see how God will use these seemingly small items to reach people. These are the "filling shelves" I was referring to.

If you are interested in donating or being involved, let me know! You can email us at thehildens(at)gmail(dot)com.

Have a great holiday weekend!

a week of gratitude

This has been a good week for me to count joy because it has been a hard week to do so. Very up and down in a lot of ways. But one of my favorite of God's attributes is that He remains the same and He remains faithful. So I am grateful.

59. homemade rosemary flat bread

60. the calm after the storm (in a good way)

61. "the whole enchilada"

62. new plans

63. breakfast date (a repeat I know, but I will always be thankful for this)

64. clean carpet

65. freshly mowed grass

66. an evening walk with four friends, two babies, a sister and a dog

67. reassurance

68. comical answers from a young Sunday School participant

69. seeing shelves filling up (more on this later)

70. filled flower boxes

71. two for one candy bars from the vending machine

72. 95 and sunny ( I have to remember that in the dead of winter I long for this weather!)

73. a quick-to-forgive husband

74. new Australian friends

75. being one of hundreds of people singing along to familiar lyrics.

76. house guests who appreciate your efforts

the graduate

My sister-in-law graduated from college last weekend. It seems ions ago when I turned in my last paper and answered the final question on my last test.
Although graduation ceremonies can be long and somewhat boring, they are also inspiring and make me long for further education. I always loved school. Fresh new classes every semester, school supplies, feeling academic. Ahh.....I remember wanting to bottle that feeling and keep it forever.
These graduates are on to bigger and better things. I'm sure someday they will look back and long for their school days.
Or maybe not. Maybe I'm the only freak who loved school.
Anyway- I took some pictures. Here are the highlights.

and for these i give thanks

43. munching on fancy cheese in the car

44. spider killing husband

45. a bit of downtime

46. pure excitement

47. making a dinner that Dave loves

48. people who are knowledgeable about computers

49. young graduates

50. husband made breakfast burritos

51. voices raised in worship

52. a walk down the parkway

53. generous donations

54. a puppy safe and sound after a backyard escape and a neighborhood adventure

55. warmth and sunshine

56. fresh fruit and real whipped cream

57. powerful prayer time with good friends

58. early morning dance party for two


"rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: rejoice!" Philippians 4:4

mother's day

jam was made





family time was spent





a farm was visited and flowers picked out







a garden was prepared







kids were adored





and fun was had

grateful

29. a working washer in the midst of a broken dryer

30. no gag relex

31. chicken bacon ranch pizza

32. beautifully written stories

33. inspiration

34. small skim latte with a half shot of vanilla

35. my moms - celebrating them

36. small, jam size mason jars

37. breakfast date

38. a twinkle in the eye and a "this is nice"

39. a harmonic playing grandpa

40. an old felt painting

41. pangs of conviction from a well preached sermon

42. a car full of friends

psycho suzie's

thankful

This exercise in counting joy has been so good for me. It's hard to have a bad attitude (at work for example) when you are trying to find things all day long to be thankful for.

16. a forgiving husband when the dog drives me to near insanity

17. answered prayer and forward motion for a new ministry

18. people willing to volunteer

19. warm weather

20. cleansing rain

21. unexpected blizzards (of the ice cream variety)

22. family time at a tiki bar

23. time to relax and finish sudoku puzzles

24. a conversation about God's mercy and grace

25. seeing siblings perform at a coffee shop. they are so talented.

26. holding Jackson

27. coffee with an old friend

28. a delicious dinner made from rummaging through the fridge

monday, monday

Last week my little sister turned 24. Sigh. That makes me feel old. To celebrate we dined at Psycho Suzie's Motor Lounge and Tiki Bar. The atmosphere was tikitastic and the food was d-lish! Pictures to come.
Our dryer is still broken and I'm wearing my last pair of clean socks today.
Cutting Olive's nails is one of my least favorite activities. Especially when I cut one too short and she bleeds all over. Zero fun sir.
Do you want to know what is one of my favorite activities? Garage saling. We went to a big neighborhood garage sale this weekend and came home with lots of fun goodies.

rocking chair (for our porch re-do that is spanning into it's second year)
cast iron muffin pan (i heart cast iron)
backgammon set
two frames for an upcoming project
4 books

My brother's band played at a coffee shop on Friday and my sister joined them for a few songs on vocals. It was amazing. I'm related to such talented individuals.
Speaking of...they are playing a fairly large show May 10th at the 400 Bar in St. Paul. Tickets are only 5 dollars!! Let me know if you are interested.