Me-Time Monday: The Winner is...!

Drum roll, please...

And the winner is...

The winner of SoJoy's Cherry Vanilla Body Butter is Angie!  

Congratulations! 

Angie happens to have her own blog, http://angiesbigloveoffood.blogspot.com/
Check her out >

Thanks, y'all, for participating.  

All participants, and previous customers, will receive 15% off their next Southern Joy Jewelry or SoJoy Soa purchase for the next month until April 11, 2011.

www.southernjoyonline.com 

Farm-Time Friday: Poem and Pictures.

Pretty daffodils add a pop of yellow to all of the brown.

Springtime's Painter

by Jena Sanders

His canvas nearly bare, save stark silhouettes

of lifeless limbs in varying shades of gray.

He rests thru the season of, oh, so dreary days.

Yet the Sun doest reign triumphant--nourishing,

rejuvenating, by warmth; awakening those asleep.

The painter, once more, brushes new life that peeps.

Stark figures still remain, soon to be transformed.

With each stroke He adds a colour and then one more,

creating a beautiful masterpiece, weaving springtime's lore.

Weeping willows leaves appear first.

Watercress galore.

Me-Time Monday: For YOU! Pamper Yourself Giveaway.

Hey y'all!  For today's Me-Time Monday, we thought to make it all about YOU!  Helping provide you with the care your body deserves, healthily and naturally. 

We are offering a  Pamper Yourself Giveaway from SoJoy Spa:

 one 8 oz. tin of Cherry Vanilla Whipped Body Butter 

This limited batch has almost sold out, but we are reserving some for this special opportunity.  Indulge and nourish your skin with pure, all natural ingredients packed with antioxidants, naturally occurring vitamins and minerals. This body butter will moisturize, protect and heal; leaving your skin rejuvenated and healthy.

Our handcrafted products are petroleum free, sulfate free, paraben free.  Great for you!, AND good for the environment.

Use body butter anywhere and everywhere on your body!  Best applied after your shower or bath (when skin is still slightly damp) which helps to lock in moisture.  Your skin will stay quenched ALL day long. 

We've even noticed it works GREAT as hair pomade to "scent"ually and naturally control frizz (especially good for wavy to curly hair). 

Here's to a gift for you!

Giveaway Rules.  To enter this contest, you will receive one entry for each of the following tasks completed:

• Become a follower of this Blog.
• Share on Facebook (copy & past link back).
• "Like" Southern Joy on Facebook.
• Follow on twitter @EcoChicSojoy
• ReTweet giveaway
• Leave a comment here on this blog
• Sign the guestbook at www.southernjoyonline.com

Winner will be chosen at random.  Contest ends next Monday, March 14th, 2011 @ 5:00 pm central time.  

Thanks for your participation!  Good Luck!

Wellness Wednesday: Do You Know Cocoa?

Butter That Is.

by Jena Sanders

Recent studies have indicated cocoa butter may reduce the risk of heart disease, cancer, and arthritis while maintaining a neutral effect on cholesterol.   Known as "the ultimate emollient" cocoa butter helps keep the skin moisturized and supple as it aids the skin in fighting off free radicals which cause wrinkles.   

Who doesn't like the smell of chocolate?  Whether you are eating it (in the form of chocolate) or applying it to your skin (to prevent stretch marks) cocoa butter smells heavenly.  For ages, cocoa butter has promoted health and well-being. 

For optimal health benefits, cocoa butter should be and unrefined.

Cocoa butter is a natural fat extracted from the cocoa bean.  Cocoa butter contains the active ingredient, cocoa mass polyphenol.  CMP is a substance known to to inhibit the growth of immuno globulins that contribute to skin conditions such as dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis and other skin allergies.  As an added bonus, cocoa butter's rich chocolaty aroma is therapeutic, contributing to a sense of contentment.

Cocoa butter is considered a "healthy fat,"  almost a third of which are monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats.  Cocoa Butter also contains Omega 3 & 6 fatty acids, both necessary for human health that the body cannot make itself. 

Rich in Vitamin E, a powerful antioxidant) cocoa butter makes the perfect addition to your skin care regime.  Vitamin E is known to neutralize free radicals which helps the skin to maintain elasticity.  Repeated application also improves the quality and texture of the skin.  That's why cocoa butter is very effective in preventing and reducing stretch marks.

Cocoa butter is solid at room temperature.  Here @ SoJoy we have developed a way for your body to absorb this healing butter in a synergistic combination with other natural healing ingredients.  Our lip and body balms contain pure, organic cocoa butter.

Pamper and nourish your skin and you'll nourish whole body, mind and spirit.

www.southernjoyonline.com

Me-Time Monday: Just Breathe Vlog

Here is my first attempt at vlogging.

Please excuse my lack of makeup.  At least there are no screaming boys in the background.

How Does Your Garden Grow?

by
Janet Poston

Spring is right around the corner.  “Yes!”  It’s time to start tilling the soil for our garden.  In the past we have used our draft horse, Cash (pictured below).  He is an awesome Percheron horse who actually trained to be in an ad for Southern States before we bought him ten years ago.  However, he did not dapple out quite enough and was never included in the ad.  Who cares about a few extra spots, we don’t.  Ol’ Cash actually has lost more of his gray over the past few years.  He now is more white than gray. 

Will riding Cash; me holding Rett.

The nearby Amish still do all their tilling using draft horses.  To save on time, we no longer use Cash.  We now use two different sized gas tillers; a Troy-Bilt & a Stihl.  Up until last summer, Stan* tilled frequently to keep the soil in good shape.  *(My beloved husband of over thirty-five years, Stan, passed away last July 24.  He was, by no stretch of the imagination, a master gardener). . . So, needless to say, Stan is sorely missed (for a thousand different reasons), and our gardening skills won’t be nearly as sharp.  Tilling will have to be taken over by the rest of us.

Why till?

• Tilling breaks up the ground into fine particles, making it easier to plant seeds and pull weeds, and of course the roots of the plants can grow quickly and easily. 

• Tilling works in the added fertilizer.  We use only natural/organic fertilizers (from our chickens and cows).  We do use green-manuring, too.  This is simply tilling in leftover pea and bean vines, etc. from the summer/fall garden or tilling in cover crop such as rye grass, buckwheat, and alfalfa.  All this fertilizer is mixed up and stirred around in the dirt.  Hey, we know what’s in/on our food. -- We know our farmers!
  
• Tilling also fights those dreaded weeds. 
  
  

Wright tilling in the background.

We know Stan will be smiling down from heaven as we continue on with something that was so dear to his heart!

The ground is still damp from our most recent snow, thunderstorms, and flash flooding.  Hopefully, it will be drying out soon.  The weatherman indicates that we should be drying out next week so that we can begin to till within the next few days.  If the soil is too wet, it won’t till right and the dreaded soil lumps will hinder plant growth.  But, as soon as the soil is ready, we’ll be ready to do our part.  The gardening is just beginning!

Even if you can only put out a small garden patch, it’s better than no patch at all and just think . . . while gardening, the sun will provide you with a source of much needed Vitamin D and you will be Toning your Mind, Body, & Spirit.  Hopefully, this is an activity you can share with your family or neighbors.  You'll not only grow your veggies/herbs/fruit you'll know what they don't have--say E-coli for example.  Best of all, your produce will be Fresh, Nutritious and Delicious! 

Wishing you happy gardening days!

Oil That Squeak!

by Janet Poston
There is a reason for oiling.  Cars, doors, machines, tools, etc. function much better.  We do, too.  For us, oil is a necessity in life.  There are many essential oils, dating back to Biblical times.  As a matter of fact, there are 188 references to oils in the Bible.  Oils are the oldest form of medicine known to man and were considered more valuable than gold.  Remember frankincense and myrrh?  Frankincense oil contains very high immune stimulating properties.  Myrrh oil combats fungal and viral infections.

An assortment of Essential Oils.

Here @ SoJoy, we are launching new spa products in March taking into account the properties of many essential oils.  All oils have a very high frequency (the measurable rate of electrical energy flow that is constant between any two points).   A human body also has electrical frequencies, and much about a person’s health can be determined by its frequencies.  When the frequency drops in a person, the immune system is compromised.  Here’s where the essential oils can help fix the squeak.

According to Dr. Royal R. Rife (inventor of the Rife machine) every disease also has a frequency.  He found that certain frequencies can prevent the development of disease and that others would destroy the disease.  So, an important question is:  Can we make a difference and avoid disease by what we eat, breathe, and absorb through our skin?  Clinical research shows that essential oils have the highest frequency of any natural substance known to man, creating an environment in which disease, bacteria, viruses, and fungi cannot live. 

I have used many oils or combined them for:  relaxation & stress (citrus & lavender); stimulation (lemon, melaleuca, rosewood); anti-inflammation (basil & bergamot); infections (melaleuca & oregano); complexion (sandlewood, rose, geranium, grapefruit, lavender); digestion (peppermint);  muscle soreness & tissue repair (lemongrass), concentration (basil, black pepper & cypress), etc.  Some high-grade theraputic oils can be taken orally (please consult with your doctor first) or rubbed into the skin.  They can also be diffused into the air.  They freshen the air with natural fragrances, eliminating the need for synthetic, harmful air fresheners.  

Non-toxic cleaner that smells wonderful.

I have used oils for cleaning as well.  I simply make a spritz using spring water, distilled vinegar, steeped cloves, steeped cinnamon bark, lemon oil, rosemary oil, eucalyptus oil, and a few drops of food grade hydrogen peroxide.  I add a little to my dishwasher, laundry cycle even my mop for cleaner floors.  This combination also makes an excellent spray to repel insects on flowers and plants.  Nothing synthetic or harsh with this cleanser!

Each of the essential oils we are using in Sojoy spa products has health benefits.  We’d like to introduce Sojoy’s new body balms available in March: Balance, Flourish, Confidence, and Timber (for men); Sojoy’s new toners: Blossom and Vigor (aftershave for men); and Sojoy’s new hand sanitizer: Clean.    All new spa products are handcrafted with many essential oils and other natural-ingredients for excellent health benefits, AND the largest organ (skin) in the body will benefit by feeling cleaner and softer.  It’s time to eliminate that squeak!

Happy Wellness Wednesday!

**Medical Disclaimer:  The information contained in this article is intended to provide helpful and healthful advice from traditional, home-health & well-being practitioners (Not medical doctors) and should not be construed as medical advice.  Please consult your primary health physician if you have or may have any pre-existing medical conditions.**