All Natural Me

Nearly two months since I started my search for all natural products, and really only a week or two since absolutely everything has become chemical free, and my skin looks all new.

Even the redness on the backs of my arms is nearly gone!!!  I've had that my entire life!  This experiment has been totally worth it. 

Oatmeal Raisin Muffins

I love oatmeal raisin cookies.  But my love for cookies doesn't come anywhere near my love for muffins.  I decided to have the best of both worlds and concoct oatmeal raisin muffins!  The results were delicious!

1 1/2 cups oat bran
1 cup buttermilk (or one cup milk + 1 TB vinegar)

1/3 cup apple sauce
1 egg
1/2 cup agave nectar OR 2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder

1/2 cup raisins

Instructions
This recipe makes 12 perfect muffins.  They don't rise much, so don't be afraid to use all of the batter in the tins.


1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Line muffin pan with paper muffin liners or grease the pan.
2.  Mix the oat bran & buttermilk.  Set aside to let stand for ten minutes.
3.  Beat together the applesauce, egg, agave nectar/sugar, & the vanilla.  Add this to the bran & buttermilk mixture.
4.  Sift together the flours, baking soda & baking powder.  Add to the bran & buttermilk mixture.  Stir in raisins.
5.  Bake muffins for ~18 minutes.

It Pays to Be a Pest!

We have had huge, major, ridiculous problems with AT&T since we moved.  The guy who installed our interwebs apparently wrote down that he installed everything.  People at AT&T couldn't read his handwriting and wouldn't believe we didn't have all of those services.  Major charges and made-up fees later, I had a cow.

I called this gal literally twice a day for two weeks, then started texting her so she could remember what I said, until the problem was (mostly) fixed.  There was still an extra $55 charge that shouldn't have been there, but compared to what the bill was originally, it was almost a win.  So I growled a grumble and decided to move on with life.

Then AT&T decided they were really, really sorry.  It has been AWESOME.  Hello, ridiculously high rebates, discounted service, more rebates, coupons in the mail, and a "Thanks for being our customer" letter from the V.P. of the company.  I know his secretary probably did a bulk mailing of those, but whatever.  They have made up for my weeks of frustration and I am still a happy customer.

Plus, we all know AT&T is way better than Verizon.

Pestering companies has become a recurring theme.  I long ago learned it paid off big time to politely bother companies when something didn't go right.  They want to know.  For example, a manager at Home Depot closed down a section of their store 30 minutes early, wouldn't unlock the gate for me to load up some trees (Seriously?  I knew exactly what I want.  Big purchase, I need five minutes of your time), and I knew from experience this was a HUGE, MAJOR retail no-no.

So I wrote a very polite letter to Home Depot about it.  You know what happened?  Half of my trees were free.  FREE TREES!

The moral of the story is to be a polite pest.  Tell people what you want!  Your companies will thank you.