My Zumba Services Available to you through Betterfly!

I have had wonderful success with bringing in Zumba friends to expand my crew! Betterfly is an excellent place for you check out the services I offer. Check here http://betterfly.com/katiebutton for updates and feel free to pass the link on to your friends. I look forward to having you in class!

Barefoot Mama's First Marathon...Barefoot of course!

For a bit of detail regarding Barefoot Mama's first marathon, visit Caity McCardell's "Yeah for Me" post on RunBarefootGirl. I had the wonderful opportunity to chat with Caity a few weeks post race and put out her 5th podcast episode for RunBarefootGirl, a blog and podcast series aimed at empowering women barefoot runners and those curious about barefoot running.

More pictures and race info to come! Oddly enough, I've been a busy Mama since the race ;)

Whispering Windz Farms Does it Again: The BEST and SAFEST Deodorant EVER!

Pardon my over-use of caps in the title, but I am utterly speechless with this absolute wonder of a deodorant, Whispering Windz Farms: Deodorant Cream! For as along as I can remember, I've been plagued with misbehaving arm pits and have tried nearly everything to control their wrath. I've tried almost every brand of deodorant/antiperspirant both loaded with nasty chemicals and those that are "aluminum free", I've tried my own "natural" attempts at controlling my over-active armpits (including witch hazel, lemon juice, and baking soda). To no avail, nothing worked. I'd finally settled with clinical strength deodorant/antiperspirants swapping between Secret and Suave.

As a very active individual and someone who's work is in the fitness industry, I strive to maintain a level of professionalism even while sweat soaked...this includes attempts at smelling (relatively) fresh. This, in many ways, conflicts with my "keep things simple and natural" lifestyle as "Barefoot Mama" because though I knew that my chemically loaded deodorants/antiperspirants were keeping me somewhat fresh, I cringed at the idea of swipping any part of my body down with something that could ultimately do more harm than good.

I've had the absolute pleasure of doing business with Bonnie from Whispering Windz Farms on etsy.com. I originally had been pointed Bonnie's direction by the lovely ladies from NaturallyCurly.com in attempts to find a good sulfate free, paraben free, safe and delicious smelling shampoo and body wash. Over the past few years, I've ordered various scents from Bonnie's plethora of delicious mouth-watering foaming jar soaps to use for both myself and my children and for gifts...these are amazing for bridal showers, baby showers, birthdays or any other holiday, thank you gifts etc...

Bonnie and I had done some chatting about coming up with a yogurt based face wash...see this in post to come...She'd allowed me to test out her new mix and I was highly pleased with the yogurt face wash, so the asked if I'd try out her deodorant. With the lack of success I'd had with deodorants, I was skeptical though absolutely willing to give it a try being the mother of an almost 8 year old who is already needing to use deodorant. I figured I could at least get something for my babies that is more gentle than what's on the casual market. Two days ago, my goodies arrived and couldn't have come at a more opportune time---we were in the midst of a MN heat wave with heat indexes into the low 100's; Olivia and I were extremely anxious to try them out. I tried the deodorant right away, smoothing on a thin layer on my pits.

Smell...earthy and yummy with it's skin loving ingredients: clays, coconut oil, bergamont, sweet orange and peppermint to name a few. The scent of the oils fades from a more feminine scent to earthy and clean.
Smell test, I've had my husband, kiddos and friends (gawd I love them) smelling my armpits from the moment I put it on to right after teaching a 90 minute Zumba class! Yes, you heard that right, I had VERY little trace of normal strong armpit perspiration after 90 minutes of heavy duty sweating!! Success!

Texture...smoothy, a little bit gritty from the baking soda. The cream goes on very smoothly and feels great on the skin. It absorbs beautifully and leaves very little residue on the skin and clothing. I do find that I reapply 2-3 times a day in order to keep it working, though I've barely even put a dent in my sample jar, because so little is needed. Bonus...it's "little black dress" worthy with it's lack of nasty residue. Eat your heart out Degree!

Cost...while this is still being worked out, I can tell you that the 2oz sample that I have will last a good amount of time as very little is needed in order to be effective. So while the price may be a little steeper than what you'd find from Suave or Degree, it's more than well worth the price. To be using something that is natural, organic and good for your body that works much more effectively than the casual market brands gets two thumbs up from me!

Thank you Bonnie for your amazing products and impeccable customer service, you've been an absolute wonder to work with every single order I've made. AND I can't thank you enough for finding the miracle deodorant, I'm over the moon about this product!!

Fluffy Dairy Free Pancakes

Fluffy Dairy Free Pancakes

Max goes dairy free and we've been scrambling to still produce some of our favorite family food traditions (ie Pancake Friday, Pizza Tuesday--this is hard, Homemade Yogurt--still have yet to figure out a good recipe, ice cream day etc). So after a few attempts at making pancakes that please my family's palate, I whipped together something that scored a "those are some of the best pancakes you've made in a long time" from my relatively hard to please husband. If it's healthy, he's just not that into it, the more butter and grease the better so to have him rave about a healthy pancake is a good sign of success. So, here it is in all it's glory:

Fluffy Dairy Free Pancakes

Mix together dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl:

2c flour (use whatever your family eats)
1/4c wheat germ
2T baking powder
1t sea salt

Mix in a separate mixing bowl:
1c almond milk
1/4c flax milk (or more almond milk if you don't have flax)
1 beaten egg
1T canola oil
water to thin to desired consistency (after mixing wet and dry ingredients together). Thicker batter=thicker pancakes, thinner batter=thinner pancakes.

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, stir well until well mixed and slightly lumpy. Pour over heated griddle, I heated ours to about 325 degrees F. Flip when edges are slightly dry, bubbles start to pop and the bottom is golden brown (or to desired darkness).
Serve with your favorite pancake toppings!

Week Ending Jan. 22nd, 2011 Zumba Going Ons

All good things ZUMBA..

Regularly Scheduled classes:
Wednesday 10:30am Workout World South Zumba

Wednesday 4:30pm: Snap Fitness North (2571 Clare Lane Ne, Rochester -(507) 289-2124): Current promotion-FREE to the public! Come on down to try Zumba risk free!

Thursday 6pm: Rochester International Dance Studio (RIDS) Zumba. Registration open, contact RIDS to register 507-884-1375: Pre-registration prefered. Join with a friend and get 1/3 off registration!

Friday 9:30am:Workout World South Zumba (followed by 25min core strength)

Be on the lookout for Family Zumba, coming soon to Rochester International Dance Studio....details to come!

The BRS Run That Followed....

1-15-2011 was a big day. First was Vinyasa Yoga with Arah at Green Body, what a beautiful way to start the day. Wrapping up class I felt fresh, awake and aligned. Thank you Arah!
Then was the 90min Zumba Goes Green party, see previous post.
Later that afternoon, a handful of us from Barefoot Runners Society met at Minnehaha Falls Park for a ~10mi group run. Battling the cold...er, embracing the cold..we headed out of the park up and around Lake Nikomus, looping back to pick up another runner. We continued the opposite direction for an out and back.
Post run....

Zumba Went Green in a Big Way!

Zumba Goes Green class at Green Body on Jan. 15, 2011 was a great success. We had around 10 people show up to heat up the chilly MN Saturday morning. We spent the first 15 minutes getting acquainted with the various Latin rhythms and moves, Zumba and my mission statements regarding class.
For the next 60minutes, we shook are tail feathers, laughed and enjoyed fun energetic music. The energy was high and we all got a good sweat in, thank you all for coming, I look forward to upcoming classes with you at Green Body!
"Lose your inhibitions and you'll find your dancing hips!""You're the captain of your own ship, bring your desired level of energy and intensity"










"Empower yourself through dance!"

Better Late Than Never, Bringing in 2011!

The kids and I celebrated, welcoming in the new year with much delight!
Our festivities included:
Food! Of course, cheese, artisan bread, hummus, pita chips, and grapes. My friend Gerardo shared a tidbit on Spanish culture, explaining that 12 grapes are eaten on New Year's Eve to representing a prosperous 12mos ahead. We ate our 12 Grapes to represent both the 12 months past, recognizing the year's best and worst, and to bring hope and prosperity to the next coming 12 months of 2011.

Bubbly! The kids drank their "kid wine" (sparkling white grape juice) and I had my own bottle of the real stuff. Nothing fancy, but ooo I love yummy sparkling glass of champagne! And a little red wine paired with smoked gouda! Yum

Dance. What's a party without a boogie down! (Thanks to Dad who set up the speakers for us all, before heading to bed). We danced the first part of the night away, the kids must have played Gaga's Poker Face and Tao Cruz Dynamite over and over at least 50 times..reinacting some of my Zumba moves (I've incorporated both of these into my playlist for class).

Ink! We got inked (well, not really ink ink..but temporary was lots of fun! We used up all 50 of the tattoos in the package)

Games: Operation and The Lady Bug Game

Big Fish (excellent Tim Burton flick, highly recommended by everyone in our house)

and last but not least Dove Oven S'mores. We enjoyed the wrapper inspirations, using them as tools to help us with New Year's Resolutions and hope for the new year.

We partied ourselves out and made it until about 10pm before we had to drop the ball early (it was midnight somewhere in the world after all). Happy New Year my beautiful babies! May every year find you new inspiration, wonder and delight!

Week Ending Jan. 15th, 2011 Zumba Going Ons

This week brings good things Zumba
Tuesday 7pm: Rochester International Dance Studio will be putting on various demonstrations of dance fitness classes offered at the studio for local Mothers and More group. There will be Belly Dance, Latin Dance and of course my Zumba plug. Each demo will be around 15 minutes, we encourage Rochester, MN Moms to come and enjoy an evening out for some dance and good company.

Regularly Scheduled classes:
Wednesday 10:30am Workout World South Zumba
Wednesday 4:30pm: Snap Fitness North (2571 Clare Lane Ne, Rochester -(507) 289-2124): Current promotion-FREE to the public! Come on down to try Zumba risk free!

Thursday 6pm: Rochester International Dance Studio (RIDS) Zumba. Registration open, contact RIDS to register 507-884-1375: Pre-registration prefered. Join with a friend and get 1/3 off registration!

Friday 9:30am:Workout World South Zumba (followed by 25min core strength)

Saturday 10:15am: 90min Zumba Goes Green at Green Body studio in St. Paul, MN. Enjoy 15-20min warm up/intro to Latin Rhythms and coinciding dance moves and 70min Zumba party!Registration is still open, $10 in advance $15 at the door. Contact Dave at Green Body to reserve your spot! 651-225-9895

Thank you Crayola for your Trustworthy Washability!

Brush painting quickly turns to hand, and elbow painting with the kids. My kids have never been the kind to stick with a brush for too long while painting, the squishing of paint between their fingers is just a temptation too much to resist! We spent a great part of the morning painting away, sipping hot cocoa and telling stories about their artwork.

The kids waited patiently for me to get paint cups...aka old applesauce, yogurt and pudding cups ready. Olivia mans the camera..


Masterpieces

Priority Snow Removal

As promised, though not yet with pictures, I'm reporting in with a little bit about snow removal in a household with kids. December in MN 2010, brought us over 3ft of snow, blanketing heavily the earth and trees surrounding our house. We have a beautiful big white pine on the North side of our house, that collected heavy snow on it's branches..bringing the branches in contact with the 3+ feet of snow on the ground below it. Underneath these branches, remained relatively snow free of the newly fallen December snow (still a good amount of November's accumulation beneath providing well insulated flooring for a fort of forts. Adorned with icicles and a fallen icicle so large that it served as a quaint table that hosted a variety of ice/snow cakes and projects, this fort of all forts provided the kids hours worth of outside entertainment.
Now comes the subject of navigating ones way to the fort from the front of the house. The kids can venture out down the driveway, north on the sidewalk and travel through a newly shoveled path (with 2-3ft walls) through the front of the yard right up to the back door of the fort.
So it stands, the beautifully shoveled walkway cleared for kids and quests to make their way, trouble free, to the fort; and the driveway is still piled with a new layer of 6inches of heavy snow. Priorities.
Pictures to come....