“Laughter for Radiance” 

Laughter is healthy. I think that’s true, simply because it feels so good! When we laugh, our whole body benefits. There are numerous articles that speak of the specific health benefits of laughter.

Some things laughter is said to do:

Boost the immune system
Relax your body
Attract people to you
Relieve stress
Strengthen relationships
Decrease pain
Prevent heart disease
Improve mood
Improve health of breast milk
Increase blood flow 

We have all heard the saying, “Laughter is the best medicine”. Some doctors are now prescribing 15 minutes of laughter a day! So, laugh it up! One my favorite ways to my laughs in besides talking to a funny friend is to watch cartoons. I love them! There are plenty of great new toons to check out. Also, you can go back to your old favorites from your childhood. I still love Looney Tunes and Hanna-Barbera cartoons. I have some newer faves too, like the Power Puff Girls, Ren & Stimpy & Making Fiends. Check out the Nickelodeon and Cartoon Network channels for more animated fun! Remember there are plenty of funny movies and TV shows too! “Everybody Hates Chris”, a show about comedian Chris Rock’s life growing up has been keeping me laughing for years! Find your joy in laughter every day, & radiance will follow.

“Make Your Own Nut Milk” 

It’s pretty easy to make your own nut milk. The hardest thing might be deciding which nut or seed to choose! My favorites are pecan and almond currently. They are expensive nuts though. I also like to make milk with the more budget friendly sunflower or pumpkin seeds.  More recently, hemp seed milk has been accompanying my raw granola. I was amazed that my Vita Mix could blend something as small as hemp seeds. Well, I guess I was not too surprised. It is the goddess of blendes after all! The first thing you have to do is soak your nut or seed of choice, except if you are using hemp seeds. I hear that they don’t need soaking. My hemp seed milk comes out great without that extra step. Anyway, overnight is usually the way I do it, or from morning to night. Basically, 6 to 8 hours is usually good for most nuts and seeds. Some take less time, like cashews. Which only need about 2 – 3 hours. So, if you are using one cup of nuts, cover them in about two cups of water. After the allotted time, pour off the soak water and refill the container again with fresh water, swish and pour off that water. If you are using almonds, you will notice how plump they have gotten from absorbing the water! Ok, place your nuts in the blender and add about twice the amount of water as nuts. You can adjust this ratio as you discover the consistency you like your milk to be. Blend for a couple of minutes or so depending on the power of your blender. You will notice that the nuts and water will turn a familiar shade of white as they blend together. You can add vanilla, raw honey, and a pinch of Celtic or Himalayan salt to the mix if you like. Other nice things to put into your milk are bananas or medjool dates. They add sweetness without using an actual sweetener. If you want to have pulp free milk, strain it through a nut milk bag. This will give it a much smoother texture and you can use the pulp to make burgers or crackers in your dehydrator! You are gonna love making your own milk! It’s easy, fresh, & fun. Let me know how your favorites!

Love,Your RVG