The 10 Minute Tidy

I'm a firm believer in the power of thought. A sort of "ask and you will receive". My current mission is bargaining. I put it out there and it is amazing what has come my way! Since last Friday, I have traded services for a cooking class, Tupperware, babysitting and even a gift certificate for Spa Utopia! I am stoked. It may be a go for the plumbing to be roughed in for my ensuite as well! Hmmm... maybe I could get someone to clean my house on a regular basis. Any takers?

This morning was day two for my 10 minute tidy before bed. The past two nights I have unloaded and reloaded the dishwasher, put away kids toys, set up for my appointment for the morning and made lunches. What a difference ten minutes makes!!! The mornings now involve making toast for myself and the kids and relaxing with my cup of tea. A client lent me a great book a few weeks ago about eco-friendly recipes/lifestyle and I've hardly had time to flip through. I had twenty minutes to read today and learned some amazing things I had always wondered about. The book is called Earth-Bound Cook (250 recipes for Delicious Food and a healthy Planet) by Myra Goodman. Not only does the book have some incredible recipes, it talks about making some simple choices to lessen our carbon footprint. So... I will admit, I'm not always the best when it come to this stuff. I have styro-foam cups for the kids at my children's birthday parties (Gasp!) and I don't insist on buying organic meats and veggies (although we try to buy most of our produce in the organic section). My husband has an amazing garden in the summer, but it doesn't help us much through the winter months. I don't want to bore you with all the details if this isn't your thing, but there is one thing I have to share. Protecting yourself from unhealthy pesticide residues. It's a list (Surprise, surprise! I love lists!), so here goes:

15 Highest in Pesticide Residues

1. Celery
2. Peaches
3. Strawberries
4. Apples
5. Blueberries (domestic)
6. Nectarines
7. Bell Peppers
8. Spinach
9. Kale
10. Cherries
11. Potatoes
12. Grapes (imported)
13. Lettuce
14. Blueberries (imported)
15. Carrots

You can cut your pesticide exposure from fresh produce by up to 90% by choosing to buy these in the organic section. I had always wondered about which ones I should insist on buying organic and which ones maybe don't make that much of a difference. I was surprised about the potatoes... for some reason I just thought about pesticides being sprayed on produce above the soil. Blonde moment, lol! And I might not have discovered this tidbit of information if I hadn't done my ten minute tidy the night before. It's still awhile until my month to focus on mindfulness (December), but it's never too early to make better choices involving your health and being mindful of what you put into your mouth! The book is pretty great, I may just have to go out and get a copy for myself!