Clothing and Fashions Inspired By the Ages

Two of my favorite things, clothes, and history, are combined when shopping at vintage places, or even inexpensive places, like Goodwill. People give up old clothes, and you never know when you'll find something worthwhile.

A while back, my sister took my mom, and me shopping for some clothes. I was inspired to try and find jeans, something between “borrowed jeans” of the 1940s, and the wide legs, that made a comeback in the 1990’s. I was going for loose, but fitting, and comfortable, retro style.

In the end, I was able to finally find some awesome options, with some help from my sister, although she does like to take charge, and I mean complete control. But I ended up with awesome stuff, including some amazing shoes, so it wasn’t terrible, although I need to be able to cut myself off more times.

Grocery Haul & Healthy Foods to Cook With

I don't usually talk about what I buy, but I wanted to share some of things I've found at the grocery, and the health food store near us here in Burlington, Iowa. My mom has a lot of allergies, so it's really important that I find, and work with ingredients that are ok with both of us, and I've been very lucky to find these ingredients, sauces and flavors, that don't have anything that can make us sick.

My mom loves her sauces, so I've been trying to come up with some of my own. One of my first, that she seemed to like a lot was coconut aminos, with sesame seed oil, especially on chicken. I also was able to find a health food store near us called Nature's Corner, and they have a vegan mayonaisse, made without eggs, or soybean oil, which is very important in our diets. They also have a ketchup made by the same brand, Primal Kitchen, as well, and later I was able to find it our local HyVee store, as well. 

Recently I also discovered another brand that is a little healthier for us, called Noble Brand (by the New Primal), and they have a good, and spice bbq sauce. Plus, at Nature's Corner, they have soup packets, that don't have anything bad, like soy, wheat, or any added perservatives.

I've always enjoyed cooking healthy, and even doing things from scratch. Sometimes, when I'm working on the basics, it's nice to have quality sauces, and it makes it easier on me. It can get pricey if your not careful, but I always say it's worth it.

A Different Perspective for This New Year

A lot of the time in January, the days can start off cold, foggy, and seem off, but give it some time and, the sun can try to make an appearance. What could seem like a complete disaster, could shape up to be not bad, even awesome.

There have been a lot of moments this month, the first of the new year, where it’s felt like a seesaw, one moment things are pretty hard, and then they are looking up, and the next day, you get some news that tries to bring you down again. I guess we all need to try and keep an open mind and maintain a balance of some kind.