Podcast Episode #219: Healthy Holiday Gift Guide

Topics:
1. What’s new for you from Diane & Liz [2:55] 2. Something new that I’m into: [9:53] 3. Book buy promo for Kindle on Amazon [15:52] 4. Recommendations for gifts of food [21:21] 5. Kitchen gadget gift recommendations [23:38] 6. Travel gift recommendations [40:15] 7. The gift of stress relief [46:35] 8. DIY gift ideas [48:00] 9. #Treatyoself: essential oils holiday blend [53:15] [smart_track_player url=”http://traffic.libsyn.com/balancedbites/21920final.mp3″ title=”Healthy Holiday Gift Guide ” artist=”Diane Sanfilippo & Liz Wolfe ” color=”00AEEF” social=”true” social_twitter=”true” social_facebook=”true” social_gplus=”true” ]

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You’re listening to the Balanced Bites podcast episode 219.

Welcome to the Balanced Bites podcast with Diane Sanfilippo and Liz Wolfe. Diane is a certified nutrition consultant, and the New York Times bestselling author of Practical Paleo, The 21-Day Sugar Detox, and co-author of Mediterranean Paleo Cooking. Liz is a nutritional therapy practitioner, and the best-selling author of Eat the Yolks and The Purely Primal Skincare Guide. Together, Diane and Liz answer your questions, interview leading health and wellness experts, and share their take on modern paleo living with their friendly and balanced approach. Remember our disclaimer: The materials and content within this podcast are intended as general information only, and are not to be considered a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Liz Wolfe: Hey everyone! It’s me, Liz, for the Balanced Bites podcast, here with Diane. Hi friend.

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh hey friend, how are you.

Liz Wolfe: I’m good. Why do I always forget? Oh yeah, how are you?

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} Great.

Liz Wolfe: I’m so bad about that.

Diane Sanfilippo: I’m bad about offering people a drink when they come to my house, so… we’re even.

Liz Wolfe: Oh, shoot! I am too. Is that something you’re supposed to do?

Diane Sanfilippo: I have no idea, but I’m like, I don’t have anything for you to drink. I pretty much have water or Chameleon Cold Brew, and typically when people come back it’s not normal to be like, would you like some cold brew? {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: Would you like some of the weird food that I like to eat. No, you know what I always kind of assume, I don’t often ask people how they’re doing or, “how’s your mom? What’s going on with your foot fungus?”

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: Because I just assume if somebody has something to tell me, they will tell me, and I don’t want to be nosy, but I also feel so special when people ask me questions. I’m like, oh wow, you’re really listening to my life. So I really need to work on that.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: I care about your life.

Diane Sanfilippo: Well, it’s ok I’m not really worried about it. I pretty much call or text you with all the random stuff I need to tell you anyways, so it’s all good.

Liz Wolfe: Pretty much. Alright, well how about a word from one of our sponsors.

Liz Wolfe: Our podcast sponsorship today comes from Vital Choice, an online purveyor of the world’s best wild seafood delivered right to your door; because juggling a busy life shouldn’t mean you have to forgo healthy meals. At www.vitalchoice.com, you’ll find wild Alaskan salmon, halibut, tuna, sable fish, and cod, as well as prawns, crab, and scallops. You’ll also find grass-fed organic Wagyu beef, free range heritage chicken, fresh frozen organic berries, and dark organic chocolates. Make a vital choice by eating the highest quality food you can. Vital Choice; come home to real food.

1. What’s new for you from Diane & Liz [2:55]

Liz Wolfe: Ok, so tell me, Diane, what’s going on in your life?

Diane Sanfilippo: Alright, new stuff. This week; we’re doing a special holiday gift guide episode today, and I will have a blog post up over at BalancedBites.com or should I say, the new BalancedBites.com. {laughs} I’ll have a blog post up over there because people are asking. Somebody posted to my Facebook page, I think it was last week, saying the last time she saw a post like that from me was like 3 years ago {laughs}, and I was thinking, oh that was probably the last time I had to breath and think about it before the holiday season hit.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah. But I did make a list and we’re going to talk about a bunch of this today, but there will be links in the past that will probably go up shortly after this episode airs. So if people are listening when it’s first going live, you can check that out.

So, BalancedBites.com. The new website is finally launched. I’ve been talking about it for months, I think and outside of a couple really minor glitchy things with some images on the post where you’ll open a post and there’s a picture of my project manager and it’s a podcast post, it’s very weird and I don’t know how WordPress decided to just put somebody’s random face on a blog post, but you know, it is what it is. We’re figuring it out.

But other than that, we have liftoff, which means you all can grab your copy of Practical Paleo Quick and Easy, which is a free eBook. It’s like 100 pages, a whole bunch of recipes pulled together from all of my books that are ready and under in 30 minutes, or have really short ingredient lists. And so even though you may have my books, or one or two of them, this way you can access these really quick recipes in one place. Maybe it’s on your iPad, or Kindle, or your phone, and yeah. So that’s totally free. You can either grab it from BalancedBites.com, right at the top it says “send it to me” on this blue button. Or you, you can just get it if you’re on my emailing list, I’ll be sending an email soon, so if you’re already on the list just kind of hang tight and no worries, you don’t have to reenter your email address. But if you do reenter it, it will just send it to you right away. It won’t add you a second time if you add an email address that’s already on there. But yeah, whatever you guys want to do with that.

And I would love for you all to explore the website, check out what’s on there, check out the bottom of the home page with all my freebies, and the recipes page is kind of my new favorite thing. Basically it sorts like a dream. So if you go to the recipes page, and you want to just find treats, or poultry recipes, whatever, just click on the little filter button and then it’s got this cool little animation that happens where all the posts that fit that description just pop right up there. So I’m pretty pumped about it. This has been a labor of love, and I would love for you guys to check it out.

Liz Wolfe: Meanwhile, my website is like the free blog theme from WordPress 2009. {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: Well, I mean there’s something to say for having been a graphic designer your whole life. It’s like I can’t help but try and make things always crazy. But hey, there’s a really fun page on the Balanced Bites site, BalancedBites.com/podcast where you can find all the cool stuff associated with this show. So if you’re like, what have I been missing? If you haven’t tuned in to a lot of stuff lately, you want to catch transcripts or a link to the archives by topic, or by episode. We are updating the archives by topic soon, that’s another super cool page. Super cool. {laughs}

You guys can find these neat little drop downs for everything. So if you’re just looking for information on allergies or adrenal fatigue, for example, you can click on it, see which episodes we had information in, see which question or time stamp it was on, and just quickly find your information. So that should be really helpful for people, and you guys know all of our episodes have transcripts, so if you just want to read the response there, you can do that instead of going back to listen. But yeah, that’s it. What’s new with you, my friend?

Liz Wolfe: Oh my. We got a new cow.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} So I saw cow on our notes, and I was like, I don’t know if that’s an abbreviation or if she really means {laughs} that they have a cow. And then I realized, I realized, yeah it probably means a real cow.

Liz Wolfe: It’s definitely a real cow. She’s darling, and she’s a little Dexter heifer. She’s got horns, so we’ll see how that goes. Our other cows did not have horns. One of our cows just got really skittish, and we took both of them to be {laughs}, we took them to be mounted to be fertilized at another farm.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: The natural way. {laughs} and one of them just did not want to come back. We went out to get them both back, and one of them jumped a fence, so my husband went back another time, and she jumped out of the trailer. And we were like, ok, somebody is going to buy this cow that can handle her, and give her a happy home, and we’ll just bring a different one that is more inclined to get into the trailer. And so that’s what we did. We basically kind of traded out cows, and it’s going quite well thus far. She’s very sweet, very cute, little, just a little sweetie. So that’s pretty much what’s going on on the farmstead.

Other than that, I’m just working as much as I possibly can on Baby Making and Beyond. We actually have some, I think recommendations that will be pretty surprising for people that we’ll share, but we need to just be sure that they’re exactly spot on, and we’re just kind of knee-deep in the research right now as we’re closing out a lot of the recommendations that we’re making. So go to BabyMakingandBeyond.com and sign up to get updates on all of that stuff. I’m excited about it, should be pretty good.

Diane Sanfilippo: I’m excited about it.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah?

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah. I’m excited to tell people about it. {laughs} I’m not excited about, you know {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: Any baby making on this front. But it’s all good. It’s all good. We have fur kids, that’s it.

Liz Wolfe: We’re pretty sleepless over here, I know that’s not your favorite thing these days.

Diane Sanfilippo: What? Being sleepless?

Liz Wolfe: Sleeplessness.

Diane Sanfilippo: I don’t know how parents do it, nothing but crazy respect for all of you guys. Because you’re all a little bit crazy.

Liz Wolfe: Adapt or die, that’s pretty much, that’s the end of it.

Diane Sanfilippo: Mm-hmm.

Liz Wolfe: Yep.

2. Something new that I’m into: [9:53]

Liz Wolfe: Alright, so I have a new thing I’m into lately unless you have one, Diane, I’ll just do mine.

Diane Sanfilippo: No, go for it. I want to hear.

Liz Wolfe: So, this is a little bit out there, and it’s not really a thing. But lately, a think that I’m doing is acting like there’s no scientific evidence of detrimental effects from microwaving foods, and cooking all of my stuff that I need to heat up in the microwave, yet I’m refusing to warm up anything that I’m going to feed my kid in the microwave, so that’s what I’m into right now. #Ifreakoutabouteverything.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} I’m actually kind of surprised about that hashtag, because I don’t know. I feel like you’re a pretty level-headed person, but I think that’s probably pretty normal for people with a baby.

Liz Wolfe: {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: When you’re like, what you’re not level headed, am I making that up?

Liz Wolfe: Uh…

Diane Sanfilippo: You always are the voice of reason for me. Is that weird?

Liz Wolfe: You're the voice of reason for me.

Diane Sanfilippo: I guess it’s just totally yin and yang on topics. Like, I’ll text you crazy emotional things that I’m like, help me! {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: And you’re like, texting like, this email won’t send, or something weird and technical. I have no people skills. {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: That could be part of it. Just the different types of worries that each of us have, like respectively. But no, I mean, motherhood, like I said, it rocked me completely. There’s no cool hand Luke. There’s no chill bone left in my body about it. And what I’ll usually do, if something is going on, like she’s teething and she has a really bad diaper rash because of it, I will go on Amazon and order every single thing that anybody has ever said might help with diaper rash. And it’s like, hundreds of dollars, and I get all of it the next day, because I overnight it, and then I never use any of it because the next day it gets all better by itself.

Diane Sanfilippo: I don’t, I cannot say what would happen, but I’m not sure. Is that how you were with other things? And we’re totally off topic, because we have a really good show today {laughs} but I’m really curious. Like I feel like you are kind of like that anyway; like you have a way of where you’re like, I want to try all the things.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah.

Diane Sanfilippo: And I’m like, I don’t want to; don’t send me anything.

Liz Wolfe: I think that I was like that.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} Like I know I have way too many products that somebody may have sent me to try, and I’m like, I couldn’t try it. I need one thing at a time.

Liz Wolfe: And yet, I still only use one thing. Like I won’t use all of the things that I get. I think motherhood just kind of intensified a lot of my negative tendencies.

Diane Sanfilippo: Mmm. Interesting.

Liz Wolfe: To fret and freak out and worry. Like, oh my gosh, at this angle her ring finger looks longer than her middle finger, what does that mean?

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughing}

Liz Wolfe: Oh wait, never mind. That was just a weird angle. You know. But yeah, I still always only have one go to thing that I use.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah, I hear you.

Liz Wolfe: Even though I have a million things that I could use, I just use the one thing. Anyway.

Diane Sanfilippo: Alright, well I’m going to make you feel a little bit better about this, even though it has nothing to do with a kid. I have definitely been heating up some food in the microwave. I can’t even think of a reason that’s further from, because I’m a mom and I don’t have all the spare time to reheat it another way.

Liz Wolfe: {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: That’s a super noble reason {laughs} and I’m like, I’m on this meal plan and {laughs} I’m eating so many times a day that it’s just too difficult to not heat things up in the microwave sometimes. Oh gosh, I feel like… it’s so lame of me to say that. But hey, it is what it is. I’ll heat up some rice or some chicken and whatever and just get it down my pie hole and call it good. So anyway, I’m with you, I’m using it. I still have a thing where I won’t put bone broth in the microwave. I don’t know what it is, there are lines to be drawn and that’s one of them.

Liz Wolfe: {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} So there’s that.

Liz Wolfe: I could see that. It’s like, you spend all that time making it and then you’re going to put it in the microwave?

Diane Sanfilippo: And I just don’t know. I don’t know if that matters, but I’m like, I think it does, so I just don’t want to put it in there. But with other stuff I’m like, nah, heat it up.

Liz Wolfe: Man, I used to make eggs in the microwave.

Diane Sanfilippo: No. That’s like, no self respecting chef {laughs}.

Liz Wolfe: I know.

Diane Sanfilippo: I’m kidding.

Liz Wolfe: I know!

Diane Sanfilippo: I know. You’re not a chefy type.

Liz Wolfe: It’s true. I did it in the work microwave.

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh.

Liz Wolfe: In plastic! You know you can pop eggs into those little plastic things and close them and microwave them. I used to do that, man.

Diane Sanfilippo: I can honestly tell you I’ve never done that.

Liz Wolfe: I’m not surprised.

Diane Sanfilippo: But I’m the, gas stove is nonnegotiable person, so you know, we have our weird quirks that are totally different, and that’s what makes us a good partnership. {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: That’s why we’re friends. We’re friends because we both know what it’s like to have weird quirks that the other one doesn’t get.

Diane Sanfilippo: Pete’s Paleo is a friend of the Balanced Bites podcast. They’re bacon is insanely delicious, and sugar free, and their premade paleo meals make your life so much easier when everything is getting busy and getting real food on the table is still a top priority, as it should be. Pete’s Paleo is now offering a 30-day gut healing kit containing bone broth, gelatin gummies, instant organic soup packs, and an E-cookbook. It’s the perfect complement to any anti-inflammatory diet. Get yours today at www.guthealingkit.com. Use code GRABACUPPABROTH to get $25 off; that’s an amazing deal. It’s GRABACUPPABROTH, C-U-P-P-A. And you can grab that code any time at www.BalancedBites.com to just read it and make sure you’re typing it in right. You can also use code BALANCEDBITES to get $5 off any of their regular meal plans. Check out www.PetesPaleo.com today. Pete’s Paleo; bringing fine dining to your cave.

3. Book buy promo for Kindle on Amazon [15:52]

Liz Wolfe: Ok. So, should we go on to the topic of today’s podcast?

Diane Sanfilippo: I think we should.

Liz Wolfe: Alright, so we are talking about healthy gift ideas for the holidays. This actually came from a question; well, we both get questions about this all the time once the holidays roll around, like what are our favorites, the healthy real food stuff.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah.

Liz Wolfe: The crafty kind of cool type stuff that we like, and we thought we’d share some of these ideas with folks. This show is airing Thanksgiving 2015.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} Yeah, keep that in mind.

Liz Wolfe: So if you’re listening in the future. {laughs} There might be new stuff that we like, but I think this is some of our favorites right now.

Diane Sanfilippo: And I want to just throw in there that if you guys are not already following Balanced Bites podcast on Instagram, we’ve been posting, for the last month or so topics that are coming up on the show, so we’re getting calls for questions in that way. Well, comments, not really calls. But we’re putting out the call, so we did put this one out. So if you’re like, I wish that I could ask this on the show, and you don’t want to go through the hassle of kind of filling out a form and all that good stuff, you can definitely leave a comment on Instagram. And we get to as many of them as we possibly can. But make sure you check those out and follow, it’s @BalancedBitespodcast.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, that account’s been killing it lately.

Diane Sanfilippo: It’s awesome. I have a really awesome girl named Nicki here in San Francisco who is kind of a little adjunct to the BB team. She basically emailed me; like, hey, can I help you with anything? And I was like, yeah, I can definitely hire you to help me on the 40,000 things on my mind that I never get to. {laughs} So, she’s been doing a really good job over there, and Moriah, who is our graphic designer, is just crushing it every day. So yeah, I’m loving that.

So anyway, so let’s get into our recommendations. We’ve got these broken down into categories. We also have some questions from you guys, we’re going to try and get through these kind of as rapid fire as we can without a ton of, I don’t know, banter about each one, because I think we’ve got a lot to tell people about. And I think before we actually get into the full list, we should probably mention the huge promo that we’ve got that I almost forgot about.

Liz Wolfe: Uh-oh.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah, that basically starts today and goes until; shoot, I forget what the date is, did I give you the date? Let me just check. Let me just check. Ok.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, you know you said it in a text or email, so let’s go.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} Its going to be super far, back in a text thread about nothing that we text about. Ok, so starting today, which is Thanksgiving day, 2015, I believe it’s through December 6th, which is Sunday, you can get Practical Paleo, Mediterranean Paleo Cooking, and Eat the Yolks each for $2.99 on Kindle on Amazon. I know that Eat the Yolks you had, it was part of a special, but this is totally separate. This is basically just something that we’re running, we’re going to tell people about it elsewhere, but we wanted to let you guys, our podcast listeners know right away, that that’s going. It’s $2.99.

And then here’s the other super cool thing that I wanted to do, because we actually don’t get control over the pricing of this stuff most of the time, but pretty much when it comes to this time of year, our publisher lets us ask if we want to give our readers something a little special. So you can get the Kindle book for $2.99, and if you already have the print book, or you want to grab a copy of the print book for somebody else, if you already have a copy that you bought somewhere else, but if you bought a copy on Amazon at any time in the past or during this promotion, you can get the match book for 99 cents. So what that means is, if you currently purchased any of those 3 books from Amazon.com, or you buy one now during this time from Amazon.com, you can get the Kindle version additionally for 99 cents.

I’m not 100% sure the logistics of that, but I’m pretty sure Amazon, when your logged in, it knows what you’ve purchased, and I think once you add the Kindle version to your cart it does that. If anyone is unsure of how that works, I’m pretty sure Amazon has some descriptions on it. I’ve also heard of people who have done it, and like if for some reason the pricing didn’t go through, all you have to do is email Amazon customer service. They take care of it for you right away. They’re really, really cool about that stuff.

But I’m psyched about it because I love trying to give any promotion possible to people that we can on our books, because we don’t really get to do that. We don’t get control over that stuff. So this is a couple times a year we’re able to do something like this, or even once a year. So yeah, hopefully you guys can take advantage of that. If you’ve been listening a long time and you don’t have our books, this will be a perfect time to get it, because you basically get that Kindle match book for 99 cents.

Liz Wolfe: And if you’ve been listening to us for a long time and you don’t have our books yet, what are you doing? {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughing} Slap on the wrist.

Liz Wolfe: We actually give some good information in our books. It’s not just a bunch of banter and Clueless quotes.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: Ah, yes it is. Never mind. Actually, my book has a lot of that too.

4. Recommendations for gifts of food [21:21]

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} You’re awesome. Ok, so let’s talk about recommendations. Food recommendations. I’m just going to go through a couple. Date Lady chocolate sauce and/or Eating Evolved chocolate sauce. I think those would be super fun for stocking stuffers. Actually, a bunch of these food recs are stocking stuffers.

This is outside of the stuff we always recommend, like Kasandrinos olive oil, and Tin Star ghee, and Paleo Treats, which we love. Super awesome stocking stuffers, except those are supposed to stay cold, so I think Paleo Treats would make an excellent hostess gift. Like if you’re going to somebody’s house, and you want to bring them something to have for after the fact. Just shove it in their freezer, and don’t let any of the guests eat it, and then they have it when you leave. {laughs} Eating Evolved also has chocolate sauce. So I love that. You know me, I’m a chocolate crazy person. What’s on your list?

Liz Wolfe: Hepp’s salt. You and I both just got some Hepp’s salt in the mail, and it’s super cool. They have this truffle salt, and this smoked salt that tastes amazing, and lots of other good stuff. That’s really fun.

We had a question about fair-trade chocolate, and I really like Dandelion Chocolate. I think they’re based out of San Francisco. DandelionChocolate.com.

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh yeah!

Liz Wolfe: They have a tasting set. Do you know who I’m talking about?

Diane Sanfilippo: I do, because one of the women on my team, Holly, who I know you know, she just tagged me on something on Instagram because they do tastings, and they make a drinkable chocolate, too.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah!

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah, I have to check that place out.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, so they do ship, and they have some retailers that carry their stuff, but you can order I think directly from their website, too. So you don’t have to be cool and living in San Francisco like 50% of this podcast.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: So I like them, they kind of hit the 3 pillars of sustainability, which is I think environmental, social, and economic. I think I got that right.

Diane Sanfilippo: Awesome.

Liz Wolfe: But yeah, those are my favorites for now.

Diane Sanfilippo: I’m going to have a tip for people a little later on in this show on the DIY side for the salt thing, so I think grabbing some salt is a great idea. But I have a little tip for people who want to make some stuff, too.

Liz Wolfe: Fantastic.

5. Kitchen gadget gift recommendations [23:38]

Diane Sanfilippo: So what about some kitcheny stuff and gadgets. What are your recommendations there?

Liz Wolfe: Ok, the big one that I really want right now. This is actually on my wish list, and it’s a little bit more pricy, but it’s called the Ninja Coffee bar. I think it’s related to the Ninja Bullet, but I’m not sure. I’m guessing it is. But it makes every kind of snooty coffee brew that you can imagine.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: Just at the press of a button, and because I’m not very good with the flourishes of coffee-making coolness, I would really like a Ninja Coffee Bar. So that’s what I’m asking for.

Diane Sanfilippo: Is there a button that’s like, underslept mother coffee, like type of brew?

Liz Wolfe: {laughing}

Diane Sanfilippo: That you push the button, and you’re like, that’s the one for me. It shows a mom holding her belly, or something? No? {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: That would be really brilliant. Not super keen on coffee during pregnancy for everyone, but we’ll talk about that in Baby Making and Beyond. So maybe that logo needs a little tweaking. But you know, it’s funny because literally what keeps me going.

Diane Sanfilippo: Lit-rally.

Liz Wolfe: With nighttime wakeups and stuff like that, lit-rally, is the promise of coffee in the morning.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughing}

Liz Wolfe: And I used to be so low-maintenance about it, totally cool just dumping some freeze-dried coffee grounds, which I still do sometimes, into hot water, but I feel like the more tired I get, because we’re in a major sleep regression/teething nightmare right now, the more tired I get the more I want to be able to go downstairs and pour a super fancy, weird espresso, you know, I just want it to be thick and bitter man, because I’m tired.

Diane Sanfilippo: Mmm. I can appreciate that.

Liz Wolfe: I think the more tired I get, the more fancy I want my coffee to be.

Diane Sanfilippo: Alright. {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: Alright.

Diane Sanfilippo: No arguments.

Liz Wolfe: Alright man.

Diane Sanfilippo: No arguments here.

Liz Wolfe: Ok, so now you do one, and I’ll do my next one.

Diane Sanfilippo: Ok. We can rotate. Well, I’ll just go on the Ninja tip there, because I was at my parent’s house last week, as some folks may note. People who follow me on Periscope saw me Periscoping from my parent’s house. I used their Ninja Bullet thing; I don’t know if it’s Magic Bullet brand, but the Ninja, is that what it is? I think it is. It pretty much looks like a Magic Bullet on steroids {laughs}. It’s all amped up. So I really liked using that, it was pretty strong. I think if you’re going to do stuff with a protein powder in it, don’t put the powder in first. I felt like such a rookie; it was such a rookie mistake to put the powder in the top, then the whole blender cup turns upside down and then the powder just basically stays in the top. That was just terrible.

But anyway, I think that think is awesome. And if you’re going to go for a big ticket blender, I vote for the Vitamix. I’ve had a few, I don’t know, several months in there where I was wishing I had a Blendtec because I used one at Hayley and Bill’s house when we worked on Practical Paleo on the photos for the recipes, and I really liked the Blendtec at that point, but since then both Brittany Angel and Hayley have purchased and been using a Vitamix, and I’m pretty sure they both, I think Hayley and Bill have a Vitamix now, too. I think they both like it better, having both side by side.

So I have a Vitamix, and it has the stick thing that goes in there, and I do really like it. I’ve had it for many years. I got it from Amex points, but hey, if you want to go for a big ticket blender, I think that’s the one. And they pretty much last a lifetime, so totally worth it. I know people hem and haw over it, but I would get some people to all give you Amazon gift certificates or something, and put it together to get one. Or if you’re looking for a big ticket item to get for a friend or loved one, that could be a good one.

Liz Wolfe: That is a good idea. And I think they even sell refurbs, too.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah. You just can’t go wrong with something like that. It’s like the Kitchenaid mixer; you know, there are 4 or 5 appliances in the kitchen that I think are pretty safe bets. What’s next for you?

Liz Wolfe: Alright, this one I’m super excited about.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} I just want to hear you…

Liz Wolfe: Kraut Pounders.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughing} I just wanted to hear you say that!

Liz Wolfe: {laughing} I just wanted to say Kraut Pounders. {laughs} Kraut Pounders {laughing}. Ok, Kraut Pounders. {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: We’re going to have to edit this.

Liz Wolfe: I can’t. I can’t. No, no.

Diane Sanfilippo: Just don’t say it one more time.

Liz Wolfe: I think it’s kind of funny. Alright. They’re from my friend Jacquelyn from Little Owl, Crunchy Mama. They’re handmade, and they’re made from black walnut that actually fell down and was harvested after a windstorm, which I think is really cool.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} Wow.

Liz Wolfe: So each one is unique, and they’re all from one piece of wood. I know, right? They’re $30 bucks, but you actually have to really want one, because you’re going to have to go on a little happy fun quest, vision quest to find one. You have to go to the Fermentation Friends Facebook Group, and request to join, and you can get the information that way.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} Whoa.

Liz Wolfe: So you have to really want it. Yeah, there are barriers to entry because there aren’t a whole lot of them. I don’t know, but yeah those are cool.

Diane Sanfilippo: You’re now going to cause a run on those.

Liz Wolfe: A run on the Kraut Pounders! {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: Like that kraut group is going to be like, there were 500 people here and now there’s like 2000 people trying to get in to this Fermentation group.

Liz Wolfe: It is going to kick everybody out after that. Everybody’s going to be like {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: Just give me the kraut pounder!

Liz Wolfe: {laughing}

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh my gosh. We are still a PG show, we did not say anything in appropriate. I’m just saying.

Liz Wolfe: Just saying. Alright, what’s your next one.

Diane Sanfilippo: Alright, so let’s see, I’m going to go with the inspiralizer. You guys have heard me talk about the Paderno spiralizer, whatever, spiral slicer for making zoodles and all kinds of good stuff. I’ve got a good recipe for pad Thai on the Balanced Bites website that you can now find pretty easily. But I have to tell you guys that Ali Maffucci, I think is how you say her last name, Ali from Inspiralized worked on essentially what I think is an upgraded version of that.

It does not have blades that you have to remove and replace, it has just one little mechanism that you can rotate on a swivel thing. So it’s really handy, doesn’t have a bunch of parts that can fall off the whole machine, and it also has these little suction levers on the base of it. So for some people who have used the spiralizer that suctions to your countertop, like it does suction, but that not that well. It can move around, and the last thing you want happening when you’re about to spiral slice something into a blade is for that thing to move, and so this thing really sticks to your countertop nicely.

I just love it. I think it worked really well, and the core of what gets spiralized is smaller than the Paderno. So basically there’s a little bit less waste. And I really like it. I just think she did an amazing job developing that product, and I think she took everything that was great about a spiralizer and then upgraded with the stuff that kind of wasn’t great, and just made it pretty much as perfect as it can be. So I do recommend grabbing that one now if there’s something that you don’t have one yet, or you’re looking to upgrade the one that you have or maybe get one for a friend or loved one.

You can always pass yours down to a friend who is new to paleo, and needs a spiralizer, but I think you can only get it either from her website directly, Inspiralized.com, or William Sonoma. I don’t think it’s on Amazon. So definitely check that out. And it is worth the little bit extra that it costs, I think, over the other spiralizer. I think it’s $5 or $10 bucks more, but I think you’ll use it a ton. And that’s really it. That’s my pick there.

Liz Wolfe: And it doesn’t take up like 80 square feet of space on your countertop.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} No, but you don’t really keep it out. We stick it in one of our, we have a corner cabinet thing, and we just kind of leave it in there. I only use it, I use it more in the summer when zucchini is in season. I don’t spiralize a ton of things all the time, but I definitely don’t keep it out. It’s not that big it’s really easy to store away. And it’s better to store away than the other one, because you won’t lose the blades. The other one had these little blades you’d have to store with it. And I just don’t like when things have all those parts. So yeah.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, I feel that way about the salad shooter.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: Too many parts. {singsong} Salad shooter.

Diane Sanfilippo: Right. What else do you have?

Liz Wolfe: Alright, here’s another one that’s going to be fun to say.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: The flour sac towels. {laughs} What in the world.

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh Liz.

Liz Wolfe: Flour sac towels from FrenchSilverShop.com. Really, really cute. And I just got one in the mail from a cookbook author, and I’m a horrible, horrible person, because I didn’t bring the cookbook up with me, and now I feel really, really guilty.

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh, I think that was from Amy Densmore.

Liz Wolfe: Yes, yes! Oh, I’m so glad. I’m so glad that you remembered.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah, because I have one. It says whip it, whip it good and it has a whisk on it. No, it’s so cute. {laughs} At least that’s the one I got.

Liz Wolfe: Mine’s, I can’t remember what mine says. I think mine says like, let the beet drop, or something.

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh yeah, there’s one like that.

Liz Wolfe: With a little beet on it. Super cute. What’s the cookbook called? Why am I drawing a blank?

Diane Sanfilippo: I think it’s, I’m looking at it but it’s too far away. Is she the Paleo Cupboard?

Liz Wolfe: Yes, the Paleo Cupboard. I’m sorry. I’m sorry, I haven’t slept in 17 months.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: {laughs} I haven’t slept in 56 years. Yeah, I like those.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah, those are super cute.

Liz Wolfe: Those are really fun, and I guess they can print stuff on them too, and it’s like a local company, and those are really fun. So look at those now, don’t delay.

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh, they’re super cute, paleo friendly too. It’s like, either you love bacon or you’re wrong, and one that says hangry, and free range children. They’re super cute. Yeah.

Liz Wolfe: And flour sac towels are like {laughs} they’re like kitchen towels, right?

Diane Sanfilippo: Wait.

Liz Wolfe: I don’t know why they’re called flour sac towels.

Diane Sanfilippo: I think it’s the material that it’s made of. It’s kind of a thin, like a muslin material, and I only know that word because my mom sews quilts. But, there’s one that says, they see me rolling, they hating. And it’s got a rolling pin on it. {laughs} Sorry.

Liz Wolfe: Oh my god, I love that.

Diane Sanfilippo: I have to stop looking at these because they’re hilarious. That’s really cute. Cool.

Liz Wolfe: Alright next up.

Diane Sanfilippo: Alright, let’s see. What else? This is super practical, people ask me all the time about knives, and I’m pretty sure I linked to this one in one of my older holiday gift guide posts, and I’ll link to it again in my new one, but global knives are the ones that I have and the ones that I love. I think they’re really good for any home chef. They’re not super expensive. I’m pretty sure you can get them at Sur La Table, William Sonoma, probably Amazon. You can get them really anywhere, and they’re the ones with all the little black dots on the handle.

So if anybody watches Food Network like I did/do, they’re the ones that Giada de Laurentiis uses, and they just look really nice. I like them a lot. They are basically like a single piece of metal, so they don’t get gunky where sometimes the metal and the, I don’t know what, the plastic type material that generally makes up, picture a knife with the three; I don’t even know what you call it. It’s like a black or a grey handle with the metal that runs through it, like Chef Peter Servold is probably like, Diane. This is what it’s called, you’re being stupid. {laughs} But it’s all just one piece of metal, so you don’t have to worry.

I have some older knives that are kind of gunky looking, and they’re not those, they’re like the Henckels type. Maybe one I got at Target or Costco or something like that that just, you know, it’s kind of gross. But I really like the globals because it’s just one piece of steel. And they’re relatively affordable, I think, for knives. Like you should have a set of knives pretty much forever, just keep getting them sharpened. So, that’s what I like.

And I think, if you’ve got someone who is into cooking or wants to learn more about cooking, what would be awesome to give them would be a gift certificate for a knife skills class. I think that’s one of the things that kind of, I don’t know, just separates people from being a little bit more confident in the kitchen. I notice sometimes people say, oh this recipe has a lot of chopping. And I’m like, well almost every recipe is a lot of chopping, isn’t it? I mean, to some degree, I guess it depends on what you’re making, but I just never really think about it because I’m so used to chopping things.

You get used to it, but I took a knife skills class a long time ago. I think that’s just a good basic, I don’t know, a good basic class to take outside of learning any actual specific type of cooking. Just getting very, very comfortable with holding a using a knife properly, makes kitchen; kitchen. {laughs} Makes cooking so much easier and more enjoyable when you’re not fighting the onion to get it to do what you want. {laughs} Because that’s going to make you cry, no matter what. {laughs} I’m just kidding.

Liz Wolfe: She choppin’ a broccoli!

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh my god, we pretty much say that every time we ever open or touch broccoli.

Liz Wolfe: {laughs} So good.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah. Do you have more for the kitchen, or is that pretty much it?

Liz Wolfe: I have one more. It’s not really for the kitchen, but I guess it could be for the kitchen. I really like the drywell art butcher prints. You can find them on Etsy. Drywell, not dry wall. Drywell. I found, I think it’s her stuff, years ago. I think we were still living in New Jersey, and I still have all of these prints that I haven’t framed or put up yet, but we’re doing some remodels in our kitchen.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yay!

Liz Wolfe: And I’m going to do it! I’m going to do it!

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah, actually I think her name is Allison. She’s local here in San Francisco, and I think when you were still living in New Jersey and I was living here the last time, I did have her stuff up on the wall in my kitchen. I loved them. I think they’re great. A really fun gift. Really good, easy gift to give. Meat cuts and stuff like that. She’s got some other cute ones too, like the anatomy of an Americano, like the coffee drink, and other cute stuff.

Liz Wolfe: Yes. The anatomy of an American? I’m pretty sure it’s the same as an anatomy of…

Diane Sanfilippo: Everyone else.

Liz Wolfe: German, a Russian. Yeah, pretty much everyone else.

Diane Sanfilippo: Totally.

Liz Wolfe: Alright, you got more?

Diane Sanfilippo: Just the last few really quickly. I think silicone spatulas, I really love a Le Creuset, or Kitchenaid or whatever brand you want to find, Amazon or wherever else. I think those are super useful for pretty much any kind of kitchen use .they’re heat resistant so you can stir things in a pot or a pan, but they’re also good for scraping bowls and scraping your blender and all that good stuff.

And then a Lodge grill pan, cast iron grill pan. People ask us all the time how we grill in an apartment. Now, the additional side of that, of how we grill in an apartment without setting off the smoke detector, I have no idea. I don’t have the answer for you there {laughs} because it’s basically like we’re burning the house down every time we grill. But that aside, we do have a strong will to grill. So we’re always grilling stuff, and that’s what we use, a Lodge cast-iron grill pan. They make one that goes over a single burner and they make some that go over 2, whatever is to your liking, go for it. Those are great.

Liz Wolfe: We love having Paleo Treats as a podcast sponsor. Not only are the founders, Nick and Lee, some of the original pioneers of the modern paleo movement, but Paleo Treats is also one of the FedEx top 10 small businesses in the US; and, they’ve got a high bar for taste. Paleo Treats make great gifts. We love the Mustang bar, the Bandito bar, and of course, the Cacao Now, Brownie Bomb, and the Mac Attack. Right now they’ll give you free shipping with any $99 order. Check them out http://www.paleotreats.com/.

6. Travel gift recommendations [40:15]

Diane Sanfilippo: Ok. What’s next?

Liz Wolfe: I think we have a couple of travel items that we like, or stocking stuffers type things.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah, alright. So for travel, I just have a few things I want to tell people about. Kasandrinos extra virgin olive oil, they sell tiny bottles that are perfect for flying. You can put them in little Ziploc bags. They don’t leak anyway, but I do always put them in a Ziploc bag. And I’m nudging Tony to make and sell tiny bottles of his vinegar, because that balsamic is so, so, so good. They have a fig and a regular balsamic vinegar. I didn’t realize that the fig balsamic is actually made from figs the way balsamic would be made regularly from grapes. I thought it just had some fig in it, but it’s made purely from figs instead of grapes. Figs are abundant in Greece, and that vinegar is the bomb!

And then I have these tiny spray bottles that I really like for kind of dosing out the olive oil. If you’re kind of counting macros like I am, which basically means you’re really watching what’s going into what you’re eating instead of what I used to do was pour the entire bottle, basically, all over my salad. Now I’m just being a little bit more careful with it, and I do really like these tiny spray bottles. They’re pretty cool for travel. I’ll link to them in my blog post, we’ll try and link to it here in the show notes, but I used one for this recent trip and it was really helpful, I liked it a lot. So there’s that.

Also, if anyone is trying to make sure they can carry their vitamins while they travel, I know you guys have heard me talk about Nutreince, not that this some kind of great travel gift, but if you want a gift from somebody else and you want to try the vitamins, they do travel really well because they’re in those packets, so you can basically just throw a bunch of packets in a Ziploc. You don’t have to worry about tons and tons of pills. They mix into a standard size bottle of water really easily.

I just think those are a good travel item, and they could be a good gift if you’re looking to try it for yourself or; I mean, it sounds kind of corny, but people have been asking a lot about healthy gifts for family members, and I feel like our parents are super into vitamins. {laughs} I feel like people over 50 are a big population who loves vitamins, and that could be a good gift for people who are looking for something to try.

What’s next, should we talk about skin care?

Liz Wolfe: So true.

6. Healthy holiday skin care gift recommendations [42:36]

Diane Sanfilippo: Skin care.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, skin care. Ok, so this season, Diane and I are actually going to working with a manufacturer to produce a charcuterie facial kit.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: We have some whole grain mustard and {laughs} just kidding.

Diane Sanfilippo: That’s a good inside joke; blast from the past.

Liz Wolfe: People remember that too, which makes me happy that people have been with us for that long.

Diane Sanfilippo: I know. And I love it because that was an episode we recorded physically together in the same room.

Liz Wolfe: Yep.

Diane Sanfilippo: And we just couldn’t hold it together to even get through that joke. We thought we were funny.

Liz Wolfe: Ridiculous. Alright, so another thing that I like, and this would be actually really good for kids. It seems like everything lately has been sold out at Scotch Naturals, but Scotch Naturals has a satellite brand or a project that they do, it’s called Hopscotch Kids, and if you go to HopscotchKids.com they have solvent, phthalate, toxin, and cruelty free biodegradable nail polish for kids. So I know people are probably looking to give some nice, fun stuff to their kiddos that like to get dressed up and like to use stuff like that, so HopscotchKids.com is a good way to go. I just hate the idea of putting formaldehyde and all those crazy things that are in conventional nail polish on little baby, little kid nails. So, I really like that.

I also thought, just for fun, just for the holidays, that maybe I should throw some discounts out at people, just for the week starting Thursday, today, Thanksgiving 2015, until the following Thursday, which I guess would be December 3, 2015. We are going to do a huge discount on the C-ex vitamin C facial serum that I co-designed with Trina from Primal Life Organics. It is awesome. It took me a couple of weeks to see the real benefits from it, but now I’m pretty much obsessed, and a lot of folks have told me that they saw benefits from it right away. So that’s very, very exciting. And if anybody was like, gosh, I don’t want to spend the money but I’ll ask for it for Christmas, have your significant other or whoever loves you buy it this week, because we’re going to do 30% off. So the discount code at PrimalLifeOrganics.com for the C-ex vitamin C serum that I co-developed is (TUNE INTO THE SHOW TO FIND OUT). All one string. And it should be up and running right now, so check that out.

And if you are also wondering about the Purely Primal Skincare Guide that I wrote that I have up for sale, it talks all about natural skin care, my favorite products, and also how to heal your skin from the inside out and from the outside in, I’m also going to, and I never do this. I feel like I've done this maybe once, maybe twice ever. I’m going to put that up for a third off, a 33% discount. I’m not going to put this anywhere else, it’s going to only be for podcast listeners. If you go to RealFoodLiz.com/discountguide it will take you there to the very super secret 33% discount page. You don’t need a code for that, you just need to go to RealFoodLiz.com/discountguide. And don’t tell anybody unless they listen to the podcast.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: This is only for podcast people. {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: You know what I was thinking, too, if we do have some listeners who already grabbed the C-ex without that discount, good time to just grab another bottle or grab one for a friend, because 30% off is huge. It’s huge.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah. That’s a lot.

Diane Sanfilippo: Yeah. Awesome.

Liz Wolfe: That’s 30%. {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} 30% is a lot. Yeah, that’s awesome.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, that’s a lot.

Diane Sanfilippo: Awesome.

Liz Wolfe: Alright.

Diane Sanfilippo: Super, thanks for asking.

7. The gift of stress relief [46:35]

Liz Wolfe: What’s next?

Diane Sanfilippo: Alright, so under stress relief, I have not used these yet, but I see there is obviously a huge trend because you walk into Barnes and Noble, and they’re in the front of the store. Adult coloring books are all the rage. I feel like that’s a super fun thing for people to do, just kind of get back to turning the left side of their brain off and their right side of their brain on, which is I believe the creative coloring side. I say that, because as a lefty I know that generally means I’m creative and right-brained. I don’t know, I think I’m just hare-brained no matter what.

Liz Wolfe: {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: I think coloring books and pencils would be a really fun gift. I’m actually not super into receiving gifts myself, but I think I would like coloring books with pencils. So if my honey is listening to this, which I think he will be, and he wants to spend a few bucks and get me a gift, I feel like that would be fun, except I don’t know where we would put that in this tiny apartment of ours. But I think that would be super fun.

I think that would also be one of those super fun, like white elephant party gifts or something.

Liz Wolfe: Oh, yeah.

Diane Sanfilippo: Especially if you’re there mostly with women, I think women tend to be a little more into the coloring than men for whatever reason. But I think that would be a really fun one that lots of people could get into. So there’s that.

Liz Wolfe: I love that idea. Love it, love it, love it.

Diane Sanfilippo: And that’s like a good little stress relief thing.

8. DIY gift ideas [48:00]

Diane Sanfilippo: Ok, so DIY, some do it yourself ideas that I have for people. One is a sugar scrub, and I can’t remember exactly where it is on my website. Hold on. {laughs} We’re going to link to it in our show notes. I’m actually going to search it on the brand new BalancedBites.com website now and see where it comes up. But anyway, I definitely have a sugar scrub recipe on the blog from probably a few years ago. Yeah, December 2011. Homemade body scrub it’s called. I might post some new pictures of it, because I have some that I made recently. That one is really fun. You can make it with sugar or salt. That’s a really great gift to give to pretty much anyone. Any lady. It just uses a few food grade ingredients.

Also, the salt blends from Practical Paleo. I know a bunch of you guys have made these for yourself. Those make an awesome, awesome gift. We were talking earlier about salt. Those are; I mean, they wrap up really beautifully if you just use a little cute mason jar and put a bow on it, stick it in a bag, easy peasy. You can make a whole bunch of that, and then kind of bottle them up, take them to parties that you’re going to if someone is hosting a holiday party or, again, work party or something like that. Or even just close friends and family. They’re just awesome. I also have a blog post on that, so if you go under the recipes, you can find that. Or if you have Practical Paleo, you already have it, and I also have a link to the grey salt that I really like in the blog post. I like using a very, very course gray salt so that when you grind it up with the herbs, it stays like a pretty decent size, it doesn’t get super, super fine. I think the thicker salt is good for those.

My last idea for do it yourself, and this is an idea I kind of got from Vanessa of Clean Eating with a Dirty Mind. She sent us a little gifty thing with her book when Clean Eating with a Dirty Mind came out, so that’s a good tip on a book you could grab. But you could mix up a whole bunch of pumpkin bread mix, or any kind of recipe, whether it’s from Brittany Angel, Every Last Crumb, or something from Make it Paleo 2. Any kind of baked good.

You could mix up a big batch of 4, to 6, or 8 times over of some of these yummy items. Get all the dry ingredients mixed up in a jar, and then list out or print out what the wet ingredients would be and what the person needs to do to make a loaf of pumpkin bread. Give them a can of pumpkin with it or something. Or you could do a crumb topping mixture for a fruit bake, where all they need to do is basically add a couple of wet ingredients again, like some fat or some fruit, obviously. And then give one of those cute spatulas with it, like the silicon spatula I was talking about. That would be a really cute gift. I think that’s something; something that people can eat and use in the kitchen are always good gifts, because it comes into the house and then it doesn’t take up too much space thereafter. They can use it and enjoy it, and it’s gone. So I like gifts like that that don’t take up too much space.

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, those are fun.

Diane Sanfilippo: What else? Do you have a DIY?

Liz Wolfe: Yeah, I love the DIY skincare stuff. I think that’s really fun. Because I also just think it’s fun to buy a bunch of little pots and droppers and roller things and just play around with those. Those are always fun to have. NaturallyLoriel.com has a really good DIY section, and she actually also does spice blends and stuff like that, and other stocking stuffer type things. She’s got some really good DIY stuff.

And then my friend Arsy from RubiesandRadishes.com also has some good DIY with essential oils and all that good stuff. So those are some favorites that I like.

Diane Sanfilippo: Awesome.

Liz Wolfe: I think that’s all.

Diane Sanfilippo: I feel like we answered a lot of the questions that actually came in. We tried to lump a lot of our recommendations together with covering some of the questions that came in specifically on the podcast Instagram, so hopefully you guys feel like you got all these questions answered. But hey, when we put this episode up on Thanksgiving Day. If you listen to it, and you’re like; hmm, I still need some other ideas. Go ahead and drop us a comment, let us know if there’s someone super tricky to buy for.

I know some folks were talking about someone that they want to encourage to eat healthier, and of course we’re going to recommend to take advantage of that Amazon deal that we have, whether it’s getting them a Kindle version if they want that, or do the matchbook thing. You can get them a copy of the book, and then get the matchbook for yourself. {laughs} You can buy the physical copy, and I think you get to tell them the email address that you’re getting the matchbook for, or it goes for you. So that’s kind of a cool way to get somebody a gift and then a little something for you. One for you, one for me.

9. #Treatyoself: essential oils holiday blend [53:15]

Liz Wolfe: I like it. Should we do a quick #Treatyoself of the week? I’ve got something.

Diane Sanfilippo: {laughs} Ok.

Liz Wolfe: So let’s do it.

Clip: Three words for you; Treat. Yo. Self.

Liz Wolfe: Alright, so this actually is partially in answer to a question that we got about wondering your take on use of essential oils. Been wondering whether to put on my own wish list. So I actually kind of #Treatyoself, this is not food, but I do like the Christmas Spirit blend, speaking of the holidays, from Young Living. It’s an MLM, multilevel marketing company. I use their stuff, but you don’t have to buy into that to get the Christmas Spirit blend, I don’t think. But I did treat myself by buying two of those, one for me and one for my parents. And I’m excited about that, so that’s my #Treatyoself. I usually wouldn’t spend that much money on an essential oil blend, because I think there are lots of good smelly good ones you can get just at Whole Foods. But that’s my #Treatyoself.

And I also think that sometimes, when you’re trying to get your family more into healthy living, sometimes you start with something like, oh ditch your candles, and try diffusing this essential oil. It’s healthier.

Diane Sanfilippo: Mm-hmm.

Liz Wolfe: You can kind of work your way around to that with things that are more fun than just talking about vegetables and healthy fats. {laughs}

Diane Sanfilippo: That’s a really good one.

Liz Wolfe: Because a lot of folks … yeah.

Diane Sanfilippo: Oh, sorry, well I was going to, I think when you start by talking about stuff that’s in their fridge of that they’re eating, or you’re addressing the food question, people are way more personal and defensive about what they’re eating than they are about the candles they’re using, I would say. Probably 9 times out of 10. You may have somebody who is really particular about their candles {laughs}, but I do think that’s a really great door in.

We’ll probably be able to add a link if somebody wants to check out the oils, we can link to that in the podcast show notes, so if you’re curious, we’ll put all the links really quickly at the top of the post so you don’t have to flip through the whole transcript to get to them. We’ll put, I don’t know, there’s probably at least 20 or 30 tings we just talked about. So we’ll link to all of those at the top of there, maybe I’ll see if we can get that together. Maybe we’ll put it into a PDF or something, it depends on how much time my team has this week. {laughs}

Liz Wolfe: Oh my gosh.

Diane Sanfilippo: But that will be cool. Yeah, actually I love that idea. I think anything we can do to get people thinking a little differently about something they’ve always purchased is always a good door in to making healthier changes elsewhere in their lives. So yeah, come let us know if you guys have any other ideas on that or if you want more recommendations, all that good stuff.

Liz Wolfe: Love it. Alright. I’ve got to go put my kid to bed.

Diane Sanfilippo: Sounds good.

Liz Wolfe: So that’s it for this week. You can find me, Liz, at http://realfoodliz.com/ and you can find Diane at http://dianesanfilippo.com. Join our email lists for free goodies and updates that you don’t find anywhere else on our website or on the podcast. While you’re on the internet, leave us an iTunes review. See you next week.