The BIG B.A.S.H. ~ A Scavenger Hunt & Giveway

The BIG B.A.S.H. is HERE. The Book App Alliance (BAA) wants more moms and dads, aunt and uncles, grandparents and librarians, teachers and therapists to discover our wonderful apps. These beautiful, clever, funny, entertaining and educational book apps just happen to be interactive books for kids.

Win an iPad Mini and enough book apps from our amazing Author Members to keep your kids busy all summer long!

Books that engage the reader get more attention, especially by the reluctant reader.

If you haven't discovered these gems for kids because you're attracted to the shiny appeal of the Disney and Sesame Street offerings. Look no further.

The BAA was founded by independent authors to be an organization of industry leading authors and developers/marketers who offer quality interactive books for kids.

Our mission is to create and grow a community of fans and advocates for the book apps represented here. As a community working together, we bring awareness and spread the word about the BAA book apps to the world.

I am a proud member of the BAA and serve on the Board of Directors. The Prisoner of Carrot Castle (which I wrote and produced) is one of many outstanding book apps represented and among a few that promote a healthy lifestyle for kids. Did you notice Aiden in the middle of the bottom row in the image above?

Apps that promote a healthy lifestyle for kids.

Okay everyone! Let's spread the word. Start the hunt. This will be the easiest Scavenger Hunt you've done.

The Hunt Starts Here

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Quinoa, Cherry Tomato & Olive Salad

Since I'm eating lots of plant-based food, I need to be conscious of getting enough complete protein. Quinoa is a great source of a perfect or complete protein. It contains all the amino acids you need. And it's so versatile. Even restaurants are adding quinoa to the menu in place of rice.

The part I like is how easy and fast it is to prepare quinoa.

I think you'll love this salad I came up. Lots of yummy veggies and quinoa plus a dressing with a tinge of sour flavor. I love Kalamata olives. I hope you do too. If not, you can add black olives for a milder taste. And who doesn't love avocado, which this salad also has?

I've eaten it all my itself as a meal. Yes! For dinner! Never be afraid of having it for dinner. It's light. It's healthy. It contains all the nutrition your body needs. Why wouldn't you have it for dinner?

Quinoa, Cherry Tomato & Olive Salad

from Chris Pedersen

yield 4 - 6

category Salad

cuisine Vegan, Vegetarian

ingredients

2 C low-sodium Vegetable broth

1 C rinsed quinoa

1 C quartered cherry tomatos

1 C quartered cucumber slices (persian cucumber is best)

1/2 C quartered Kalamata olives

1 C diced red and yellow pepper

1 Tbsp of minced red onion

1/4 C choppped cilantro

1 avocado, diced

Dressing:

1/3 C red wine vinegar

2 Tbsp Dijon mustard

1 Tbsp raw honey

1/4 C olive oil

1/2 tsp sea salt

directions

1. Prepare quinoa ahead so it can cool: bring vegetable broth to boil in large sauce pan. Add quinoa, stir and turn heat to Low. Place lid on pan with slight opening to vent heat. Secure lid once boiling settles down.

2. When quinoa is done (water is completely absorbed), place in a glass container, cover and refrigerate.

3. Whisk dressing ingredients together then pour into glass salad dressing bottle using a funnel.

4. Once quinoa is cool, mix remaining ingredients together. Add dressing, toss and serve.

notes: • Add more or less veggies according to your taste.

If you don't use all the quinoa for the salad, you can save some for another time or salad. Or your husband can take it for lunch the next day and not tell you—as you frantically search the fridge looking for it. "I'm sure I put it in here. Where did I put it? Oh no! Was I spacey and accidentally leave it in a cabinet." See how husband's make us crazy? Gotta love 'em!

Did you ever leave something in a strange place because you were not paying attention?

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Interview by Jill Bernard of WellBEing Resource

I was recently interviewed by Jill Bernard of the WellBEing Resource online and in print guide to health practitioners in the Sacramento region.

I hope you'll take the time to read the interview and tell me what you think. You may learn something you didn't know about me.

Interview with Chris Pedersen, Health Coach | Blogger | Cancer Conquerer, Healthy Journey Cafe

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Green Tea ~ 6 Ways It Fights Cancer

I LOVE coffee. I mean I like the taste—never ruined it with sugar (yeah, even me a former sugar addict). So when I found I needed to eliminate coffee from my diet, I was devastated—kind of describes how I felt about many things I needed to stop eating/drinking.

Reading the book Nature's Cancer-Fighting Foods by Verne Varona started me on my healing diet, which I attribute to the cure for my hereditary curse. Green tea was one of several things I added to fight cancer, which tended to grow in my colon.

Most are familiar with the addictive properties of caffeinated coffee—just try a day without it and get smacked with a whopper caffeine withdrawal headache. But did you know that coffee, regular and decaf, is very acid in the body? When the body becomes acidic due to a bad diet (consumption of processed foods with artificial ingredients and sugar), it becomes a cancer-producing, inflammatory environment.

Green Tea: A Better Beverage
Even though green tea contains some caffeine, it averages 30 to 40 mg compared to 75 to 155 mg for an equal amount of coffee. But the real issue is acid vs alkaline. Coffee is acidic in the body while green tea is overall alkaline. Acid/alkaline balance is critical to cancer prevention and achieving optimum wellness. Just remember these two things: cancer thrives in an acid environment and cannot exist in an alkaline environment.

Cancer thrives in acid environment.

Cancer cannot exist in alkaline environment.

Aside from the alkalizing benefits of green tea, here are more plusses to consider:

1. Contains EGCG one of the few substances that kill cancer stem cells, which contribute to metastatic cancer.
2. Suppresses the protein urokinase that contributes to the growth and spread of cancer.
3. Studies show it offers help against breast cancer, lung cancer, colorectal cancer and prostate cancer.
4. Contains other catechins—powerful anti-oxidants effective at inhibiting the growth of cancer cells, lowering cholesterol, improving lipid (fat) metabolism and fighting bacterial infections.
5. Inhibits the abnormal formation of blood clots.
6. Fights the cause of allergies in your body.

Seriously, if you want to be cancer-free—effectively help your immune system rid your body of cancer, you should drink green tea as part of a daily regimen.

I drink about 20 oz. of green tea each morning. We infuse the loose leaf green tea in a ceramic tea pot. With no tea bag you get the full flavor of the tea. Otherwise, I find I can taste the bag—even 100% unbleached cotton bags or silk.

Here are detailed brewing instructions for loose leaf tea. We buy our loose leaf tea in bulk quantities from Mighty Leaf. They offer a number of wonderful green tea blends and have regular sales. My favorites include Green Tea Tropical and Citron Green. Remember you can re-use high quality tea 2-3 times before the flavor and benefits are depleted.

I consider green tea an important ingredient in my cancer-fighting regimen. Maybe you should too.

What's your preferred morning beverage? Scroll down and leave a comment.

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Wisdom Wednesday

Tip:
A Canadian study found "garlic is by far the strongest inhibitor of tumor cell growth." The active ingredient in garlic is allicin, which is only available when a protein fragment and a heat-sensitive enzyme are co-mingled by slicing or pressing the clove. If you use garlic in a cooked recipe, to ensure the creation of allicin, keep the cut/pressed garlic from heat for 10 minutes. Follow this little step to reap the benefits of garlic's potent cancer-fighting properties.

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