May means Mother's Day in many countries and here are a few ideas to help you tell your mother how much you love and appreciate her. Start the day with breakfast in bed and sometime in the afternoon or evening, prepare a warm and luxurious paraffin bath for her fingers and toes.

Mother's Day breakfast in bed Granola Goodness Parfait

TO MAKE GRANOLA:
  • 2 TB grapeseed or canola oil
  • 1/2 cup sesame seeds
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1 TB pure vanilla extract
  • 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 1/2 cup slivered almonds
  • 1 TB orange zest
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened coconut
  • 1 TB cinnamon

Preheat oven to 350°F. Put the oils, sesame seeds, honey, vanilla, oats, almonds, orange zest and coconut in a large bowl. Stir everything together until thoroughly coated. Turn onto a greased baking pan with a rim and spread out the ingredients. Sprinkle the cinnamon on top and bake for 20 minutes, moving everything around a couple of times with a spatula until all the oats are evenly browned. Let cool for 5-10 minutes. Reprinted from: The Healthy Kitchen by Dr. Andrew Weil and Rosie Daley, Granola p23.

TO BUILD GRANOLA PARFAIT:
  • 3/4 cup plain yogurt
  • 2 TB honey
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla
  • 1/2 cup granola (see above)
  • 1/2 cup strawberries, raspberries and/or bananas

In a small bowl, blend yogurt, honey and vanilla. Using a tall glass layer about 1/3 of the granola on the bottom, top with about 1/3 the yogurt mixture, then 1/3 the berries. Repeat twice more. Serve with long spoons. Reprinted from: FabulousFoods.com, Yogurt Berry Granola Parfait

We've updated our website! Visit www.homespunspa.com and check out the greeting cards available for purchase on the Photo Gallery page. And notice — all of the back issues of the Ewesletter have been added to the Request our Newsletter page, making e-mailing way easier and reference to past topics a breeze.

Spa School: Paraffin Dip Treatment

This mother's day, treat your mom to a spa-style paraffin hands and feet dip. Double dipping softens dry skin, stimulates circulation and eases muscle and joint pain. It also encourages your mom to take time for herself and relax.

Supplies
  1. A commercially made paraffin wax warmer. Or use a crock pot that holds at least 3 litres of liquid.
  2. Buy 3 pounds of low melt point paraffin from a medical supply store. Make sure the paraffin is made for therapy purposes.
  3. One candy thermometer.
  4. One plastic liner or small kitchen plastic bag for each hand and foot being treated.
  5. One bath towel or terry cloth mit per hand and foot.
Dipping instructions for home treatment
  1. Put 3 pounds of paraffin in the warmer or crock pot and melt to liquid state. This will take a couple of hours. Temperature of the wax should reach 125°F — any hotter may burn skin.
  2. Have all of your plastic liners and terry mits ready to go before dipping.
  3. Slowly immerse hand in the paraffin wax. Hold fingers slightly apart so that the paraffin surrounds each finger. Be careful not to touch the sides or bottom of the pan.
  4. Remove hand and wait about 5 seconds (until the paraffin no longer appears shiny) before redipping. Do not move your hand after the first dipping as it will crack the paraffin coat. You can stop after 2 dips or you can continue dipping 1 to 8 more times to build several layers of paraffin on your skin.
  5. Wrap your hand in a plastic liner to hold the heat. It's easier if someone else holds the plastic glove for you. Then place the hand into a terrycloth mit or bath towel.
  6. Repeat treatment on other hand and both feet.
  7. Leave the towel mits on for 20 minutes.
  8. Once completely cooled, wiggle fingers slightly to loosen the wax and peel the paraffin glove off.

UPCOMING EVENT

The Chamber Chorus from the University of California at Berkley will be performing in Victoria on Sunday June 1st, 7pm at the Emmanuel Baptist Church on 2121 Cedar Hill XRd. Admission by donation.

Thanks for reading Homespunspa's e-newsletter. If you like the content, ask your friends if they would like to subscribe. If however, you wish to unsubscribe, email homespunspa@shaw.ca with REMOVE in the subject line. Questions? Email the Publisher, Editor, Writer and Photographer Maria Koropecky of Homespunspa Enterprises 2003 © or visit www.homespunspa.com
← See last month's Ewesletter ← → See next month's Ewesletter →