1/2 CROW PLANK

From Downward Dog, lift your right leg into the air. Bend the knee, and sweep it forward to your outer, upper right arm. Squeeze and hold as you round your back, firing the inner thighs, hip flexors and front abdominals.

Bonus: This is an excellent arm and shoulder sculpting pose too!

Beginners: Place the ball of your right foot on the floor, and/or the back knee down, but still engage the leg in and belly up.

Hold for 5 breaths, then return to Dog Pose and switch sides.

FLYING BUTTRESS

From Downward Dog, lift your right leg up behind you. Exhale, bend the knee and bring it into your chest as you round your back sky-high. From your core, spin onto your outer left foot, and step your right foot halfway up the mat in front of you. Lift your right arm to the sky and keep the hips lifting for a super side-waist sculpting pose.

Bonus: Play with lifting the bent leg's foot off the floor, and then ground that one, and try to lift the straight leg for an extra-credit inner thigh workout!

Beginners: Keep both hands down or place your left knee down on the floor for added support, but maintain the lift of your hips and waist!

Hold for 5 breaths, then return to Downward Dog and repeat on the other side. After your last Flying Buttress, come into Dog Pose.

DIVING WARRIOR

From Downward Dog, lift your right leg while you exhale and draw the knee into the chest, rounding the back and holding the hips high. Using your core strength, step the right foot to the right thumb. Ground your back foot down, toes facing slightly forward. Exhale, and use your belly to pull yourself upright with your palms together at your chest.  Inhale, curl inside your front knee and lengthen your chest. Exhale, pull up over your legs, twisting towards your back leg as your arms straighten and reach back into your side bend.

Repeat this wavelike motion 5-10 times for a full all-abdominal workout in one move.

Bonus: This pose transforms your legs, thighs and gluts along with your abs.

Beginners: Do this move with your back heel up and knee on the floor, and/or only wave as low or high as you need to keep your back comfortable.

 After your Diving Warrior, return to Downward Dog, then repeat on your left side.

With so much hype and controversy over sunscreen I thought I'd do a breakdown of the billion and one sunscreens I've tried this summer and while on my trip to Hawaii. My fiancee is pastey white as can be so we are always packing lots of sunscreen! But there is such a fine line between dowsing yourself in sunblock so you don't get sunburned, which can lead to skin cancer and then the danger of slathering yourself in chemical-filled sunscreen, right? The problem of course is that natural sunscreens don't always work as well (they may not blend right or leave you sticky).  And the winner isssssss….

My unhealthy favorite: Coppertone Spray

My healthy favorite: Burt's Bees Chemical Free Sunscreen

My least favorite: TOCCA sunscreen wipes. Do NOT waste your money on these!

Everyday favorite (Non-beach wear): Cosmedix Serious Protection SPF 28

Burt's Bees Chemical-Free Sunscreen:
Good: It's natural and you can feel safe rubbing it all over you and knowing you're not massaging chemicals onto you or your kids. Doesn't smell bad or sun-tan-lotiony. It stays on for a long time because it's kind of sticky…

Bad: It doesn't rub in so well. It stays a little white on your skin unless you rub really hard. Stays on a while, which could be good or bad…

Lavanila Baby Block:

Good: Very healthy, no parabens, and way less of the bad chemicals we want to avoid.

Bad:It doesn't like to rub in like many healthy sunblocks.

Cosmedix: Serious Protection SPF 28:

Good: Light and non-smelly. Good, healthy ingredients. Nice packaging. Not messy.

Bad: Not really for a day at the beach, more like for your walk to the work. Little on the pricey side but Saks Spa uses it for a reason. This is good quality stuff.

CosMedix Reflect SPF 30: 

Good: Light and non-greasy.

Bad: Not for a day at the beach either like its buddy above. It says right on the package.

TOCCA SPF 30+ Sunscreen Towelettes $8.00

Good:NOTHING except that they're portable. We took these on a hike and they were a white, sticky, disgusting mess.

Bad: These were horrible. They go on uneven and smell bad even though they're supposed to smell like blood oranges or something.

Pratima Neem Rose Face Sunscreen 30 SPF

Good: Easy to apply. Safe and healthy ingredients.

Bad: I got a little in my eye, but I'm an idiot.

Lavera Naturkosmetik Sun 15

Good: Relatively inexpensive and healthy ingredients. Can get at any local Target.

Bad: It came out a little separated so just make sure to shake it up. May have just settled from being on a plane and then in my suitcase.

Coppertone Liquid:

Good: Blends well, stays on a long time. Cheap cheap cheap! Can buy this anywhere.

Bad: Not healthy ingredients. Who the hell knows what goes in here…Seriously I was kinda nervous putting it on my skin. But I'm a nut…

Coppertone Spray:

Good: Easy application, rubs in very easy.

Bad: Sticky as all hell. And who the hell knows what they're putting in here. Definitely not a health conscious company.

Aveeno:

Good: It's not greasy and it's cheap and you can get it at the drugstores.

Bad: My face broke out but I did a whole lot of sweating so who knows why, can't fully blame the suncreen, it is oil free…

Disclosure: I received some of these for free to do a review, I honestly can't even remember which ones but probably about half I bought. That should tell you I'm giving honest opinions since I dont even know which ones I purchased.

Specially designed to fight germs and eliminate odors for clean hands in the kitchen. Our trusted anti-bacterial formula kills common kitchen bacteria and germs while Fresh Source™ odor eliminators get rid of lingering cooking smells caused by onions, garlic and fish. Soft bursts of lightweight foam gently cleanses leaving hands lightly scented with the sparkling, clean scent of juicy tangerines.

I'm obsessed with the scent. It's delish and fresh and leaves the air smelling sweet even after you cook a fragrant dinner.  Plus, it's antibacterial so it'll kill germs like salmonella and just icky subway germs. Because no one wants to be sick in the summer, summer, summertime!

It's available in so many delicious flavors like:

Cucumber Melon

Ginger Pear

Get 1 for $5, 4 for $15 or 6 for $20 Anti-Bacterial

Nothing is more important than the HEALTH and SAFETY of your baby. Did you know that a baby’s skin is five times more sensitive than an adults skin? That’s why LAVANILA Laboratories is committed to creating the world’s healthiest baby care products, The Healthy Baby Collection.

LAVANILA Healthy Baby is 100% natural and not only chemical-free, but mommy and baby are going to love this collection of products–pediatrician tested and approved and clinically proven to be gentle enough for daily use by newborns, kids and sensitive adults. LAVANILA Healthy Baby launches exclusively in Sephora stores nationwide this May.

I've even been using the products on myself to test them out and I'm loving them. I haven't used the SPF yet but I can't wait. If it's anything like the body lotion I have something to really look forward to. I used the Body lotion on my face the other night because it was really dry and it's a thick buttery texture but literally left no greasiness at all.

Complete with 30 essential vitamins and minerals that support the growth and development of delicate baby skin–the products include: Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Vitamin E, Vitamin B-3 (Niacin), Vitamin B-2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin B-1 (Thiamine), Vitamin B12 (Cyanocobalamin), Folic Acid, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium and Potassium without citric acid or tea tree oils which are to harsh for infants. Purchase the entire collection with each product under $20.00. Healthy Baby Wash ($16); Healthy Baby Lotion ($15), Healthy Baby Bottom ($15), Healthy Baby Butter ($14), Healthy Baby Block, ($20)  is available exclusively at Sephora stores, Sephora.com and Lavanila.com.

To celebrate the launch of the Healthy Baby collection, LAVANILA is teaming up with Sephora on a nationwide search to find the new face of their healthy baby collection.  The Happy, Healthy Baby Search will run from May 11th to June 1st and will be open to children 6 months to 4 years old.   

To kick off the search, LAVANILA will hold an open casting call in New York City at the Sephora Fifth Avenue store.  Parents are encouraged to bring their babies to the store from 2pm to 6pm on Friday, May 14th to meet the judges, get their babies’ entry photo taken and receive samples of the new Healthy Baby Collection. The first 50 parents to attend the casting call will receive a Sephora gift card with a mystery value worth up to $100. 

Parents outside of the New York City area are invited to enter the contest at Sephora.com/win/healthybaby from May 11^th to June 1^st.  

The grand prize winner will receive:  an opportunity to be face of LAVANILA BABY, a three day/two night trip for mommy and baby to New York City, a professional photo shoot, two keepsake photos from the photo shoot, the entire Healthy Baby Collection and a $500 Sephora gift card.  Two runners-up will also receive the entire LAVANILA Healthy Baby Collection and a $300 Sephora gift card. 

 
WHO:    LAVANILA Laboratories and Sephora 

WHAT:  The LAVANILA Happy, Healthy Baby Search 

WHERE:   Sephora Fifth Avenue 

                  597 5^th Avenue (Between 48^th and 49^th Streets)

                  New York, NY 10017

**Come Early!  The first 50 parents to enter their baby will receive a Sephora gift card worth up to $100 

WHEN:     Friday, May 14^th, 2010 from 2pm to 6pm  

HOW: Visit Sephora on May 14^th or enter your baby online at Sephora.com/win/healthybaby until June 1^st.  All babies must be between six months and four years old.  No purchase necessary to enter. 

Read this article to learn about which of your favorite fruits and veggies are the most contaminated with pesticides and when it's a good idea to go orgo because washing them off is not gonna be enough!

New York's favorite new street food has become the cupcake and confection carts. Yummmmmmmm!!

Hot Dog and Pretzel vendors better watch out. There's a new obese food in town stealing girls' hearts everywhere.

Soon there will be another cart situated in front of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and in Washington Square Park and this time it's gonna be organic!

Whatta Ya think?? I dunno, I'm kinda excited. Say what you wil about her but she does have a good Figger'