To medicate or not to medicate, that is the question.

I have a one-year old Cockapoo and for the first 6 months I feel like we were in and out of the vet every other day.  We noticed he was starting to lose patches of hair, had constant diarrhea and would throw up all the time. We felt so bad for our little man. Some vets said he had alopecia, some said allergies to a million different things and another vet wanted to put a skirt around him because they thought he was picking at his hair from anxiety. Hans would never go for wearing a skirt. He wasn’t sleeping and would lick his paws all night. 

Should we medicate our dog?

After countless vets and visits which had our pup filled with more anxiety then ever, we found a vet in our area who we loved. First he went on Apoquel (allergy medicine), which helped his hair loss but not his tummy issues. We kept him on Apoquel for about 6 months, but it is very expensive and we didn’t find it stopped his licking or digestive issues. Our vet suggested to take him off the medication and trying to change up his food. We put him on Hills science diet sensitive stomach and skin dry food and Hills prescription diet digestive care chicken and vegetable stew. Hans is only 17 pounds, so his servings are one cup dry two tablespoons wet.

Since changing his food and being strict with his diet, he has shown an incredible improvement on his allergies and digestive issues. He sleeps through the night and does not lose his hair. He finally has normal bowl movements and hasn’t thrown up in months.

This food was hard to find and I didn’t want to keep purchasing it from the vet because it was costing a lot of money. Luckily, I went on chewy.com and they carry the same food and it gets delivered right to our door.

Disclaimer: We aren’t against medication, and Apoquel helps so many dogs from all different breads. Our vet said it is one of the top brands for allergies and helps his own dogs dramatically. I am just thankful Hans doesn’t have to rely on medication his whole life.

Cost saving tip – sometimes we skip the wet food because it can get pricey depending on how fast he goes through it. I found this bone broth at petsmart for $5 and add it to his Hills dry food. He is obsessed with the broth and would eat anything thats coated in it. This allows us to save some money by giving him more dry food.

The bag of Hills dry food costs around $14 – $17 per bag at Petsmart. Keep in mind, Petsmart has the 4lb bag. If you want to buy in bulk you can order off Chewy for the 15lb bag, but it is $37.99. The cans of wet food come in a container of 16 cans and can cost around $40, which in retrospect is only $2.50 per can.

Click here for the bulk bag from chewy.

Click here for the 5lb bag from Petsmart.

Click here for the wet food from Chewy.

Click here for the bone broth from Petsmart

If your puppy is having similar problems, definitely ask your vet about changing his food to Hills. They have food for bigger breads as well as smaller breads. Also, ask your vet about Apoquel.

My Husband and I love to host parties. We are known to have he best foods and drinks. Our friends do not like to miss one of our shin-digs, especially our summer BBQ’s. But its winter now, so we host a lot of football/dinner/holiday parties.

For our wedding, my maid of honor got us the NewAir wine fridge and it was one of the best gifts. We have an entire bar set up in our home, because we host so often. I keep the liquor on a bar cart, the beer in a separate beer fridge and the wine in its own fridge. Sounds silly, but it helps keep us organized and allows our guest to know where everything is. We like our friends to be able to feel at home and help themselves. Below is the wine fridge that we have. I leave the temperature on 57 degrees. I also like some of my lighter reds chilled, which many wine connoisseurs will tell you thats a big no-no. Luckily, I am no connoisseur and I don’t judge.

Without further adieu, I am going to list the best wines with the best prices (and trust me, we have tried A LOT).

Red Wines

19 crimes – This is an all time favorite – the entire collection is under $15 per bottle. You can even find some of the bottles for as little as $8.99. I have yet to try a type of wine that I did not like. Personally, the red blend is amazing and their newest called the Uprising, which is aged in rum barrels is amazing. I have friends who love this when they like a more sweeter wine and I have friends who love a dry wine and they drink 19 crimes as well. Of course, there are bottles that are more sweet or more dry; but if you want to get one bottle that caters to both, I would recommend the red blend.

Dreaming Tree – This brand sells for about $8.99-$9.99 a bottle and has one of the best Cabernet’s I have tried. This is definitely a fan favorite and has been sold out in many stores by me in the New York Area. If you can find this – I would definitely stock up!

Francis Ford Coppola – This is always a popular Merlot to keep in the house. It runs about $12.99-$15.99 depending on where you shop. Its a smooth merlot, not too sweet not too dry. I love this when I have steak or a heavy saucy meal. Pro tip – let this aerate a little to get the best flavor. Sometimes I pour my merlot’s into a wine craft to really get the best flavor.

Rose’

I have found that a good rose tends to be a little more on the more expensive side. I have yet to find a Rose’ that was drinkable for $9.99. However, these are the affordable top 3 Rose’s that I make sure to have at every party (especially in the summer).

Whispering Angel – Everyone loves this brand from the Housewives of Beverly Hills to the average Jane’s just trying to have a good time. You can find this bottle for $19.99. It is the perfect Rose’ for everyone. Has just enough sweetness for the sweet drinkers and just enough dryness for the dry drinkers. I love this wine with a good double creme Brie, can I get an Amen?

Wollfer Summer in a Bottle – This is my all time favorite Rose, but also the most expensive. I personally love a good dry wine so if you like more on the sweeter side, I would not recommend this. It is so dry that it almost feels bubbly. This bottle goes from $28.99 – $38.99 but is worth every penny if you ask me. This pairs amazing with a cold watermelon feta salad. I miss summer already!

Gerard Bertrand Cote des Roses – This wine is for all Rose wine lovers out there. Not too dry and not too sweet. This bottle goes for about $14.99-$16.99 depending on where you purchase it. I have noticed in the winter, this brand goes on sale from time to time. This is an easy go to Rose’ for everyone and the most affordable.

White Wines

Luna Di Luna – This Pinot Grigio is my all time favorite white wine I have ever tried. This wine beats more expensive wines that I have had. It is the holy grail of all whites. This wine isn’t too dry and isn’t too sweet. It will not give you a headache and its light and crisp enough to drink all day. My entire family love this wine with all foods types and all weather conditions. You can find small bottles for $8.99 or the bigger bottles for $12.99. I constantly have multiple bottles of this in my home at a time. If you could only get one white wine I would suggest this one.

Cavit – This is the brand of whites I used to drink before I discovered Luna di Luna. Some area’s it is very hard to find Luna di Luna and Cavit is a great runners up. I drank this wine for years and years. They make a great Chardonnay and an even better Pinot Grigio. This is a light and crisp white that you can pair with any food. I love Cavit with a great cheese board. Gouda’s, goat cheese and manchego cheese taste amazing with this wine. You can get this for $9.99.

Pacific Rim Riesling – if you like a sweet wine, I would recommend Pacific Rim Riesling. This wine comes from California and has hints of peach and apple fruity flavors. You can find this in stores from about $9.99-$13.99.

The Bubbly

I love a good Prosecco or Champagne. Whats the difference? Champagne is from France and Prosecco is from Italy. Also, Prosecco is considered a sparkling wine. You can never go wrong with a great bubbly.

LaMarca – makes an awesome Prosecco. Make sure this is chilled in the fridge before serving. If you are serving dinner, this pairs great with a tofu, chicken or white fish. This makes a great summer day time drink. You can find this from $12.99-$16.99 depending on the store.

Veuve Clicquot Brut – this is my all time favorite champagne. However, it is on the expensive end and you can taste it. This bottle ranges from $47.99 – $58.99. If you have a special occasion break this bubbly out. It also makes a great gift!

Ruffino – It is honestly hard to find a good bubbly for under $20.00. This one is probably the best for about $12.99. It is very bubbly with light flavors. It is an easy drinking sparkling wine for everyone and every occasion.

Leave a comment down below if you found this helpful. I would love to see whats in your wine fridge.

Cheers!

I have been participating in yoga for about two years now, but meditation is a new practice for me. I am in the process of going through a new career path, which has caused me to have many sleepless nights and anxiety. I was in an unhealthy working environment for four years and that starts to take a toll on your mental heath and body so it was a change in the right direction, however that does not ease the anxiety of the “unknown.” 

Luckily, my husband and family are very supportive of my decision, but now it’s about taking the right steps to move forward towards my goals. One of the new journeys I am embarking on in 2020 is the practice of meditation.

I have read countless articles and books debating if I should waste my time with meditation or not. I read various celebrities such as, Beyonce, Oprah and Gwen Paltrow meditating everyday. Some celebrities even contribute their success to the art of meditation. If you read the secret, I used to associate meditation with manifesting but that’s not really the case. There are proven scientific studies that meditation improves stress, sleep, anxiety, attention spans, memory, blood pressure and other ailments. 

So, after hours of research (because I was a skeptic) I decided to give it a go. I have been meditating everyday for  about 5-10 minutes. 

Major Benefits of Meditation after 8 weeks: Based on a Harvard Study

Stress and medical issues related to stress triggers have improved– such as IBS and PTSD and Insomnia.

Anxiety – related general, social anxiety and OCD.

Better attention span

Increased memory

Lower blood pressure resulting in a decrease in heart disease

Overall better emotional health 

Need Scientific Proof?

This study took 2 FMRI’s of patients (MRI’s that show brain activity). One patient, who has been meditating for 8 weeks and the other with zero hours of  meditation. They took a brain scan and measured brain activity while performing everyday tasks. Researchers measured the amygdala of those patients.  The Amygdala is an almond-shape set of neurons located deep in the brain’s medial temporal lobe playing a key role in the processing of emotions. They noticed that the Amygdala was less activated in the patient who has been meditating. This means, the patient who was meditating showed  that this patient disengaged from negative thoughts, was less anxious and stressed.

Did I convince you yet? Now this is how I got started 

First I set up a meditation space for myself. I choose a place in my home where I felt the energy was light and calming away from clutter. I ordered yoga blocks, a blanket and yoga mat from Amazon. I have bad knees so this yoga mat was perfect. 

I also placed a blanket to sit on, so I felt fully supported.

I used a diffuser to breathe in lemon grass or lavender depending on the type of mediditation I was going for. Before bed, I will use lavender as a sleeping aid and I found this to help with my insomnia. 

I then researched Mantra’s and meditation techniques. You can also use apple music and type in meditation music while you focus on your breath. If you are a peloton member, they have amazing guided meditation videos.

My favorite mantra right now is the Peace mantra. I focus on my breath while listening to meditation music and tap each finger to my  thumb one at a time while saying peace in my mind. I do this every morning for 5 minutes.

Comment down below if you’d like me to share more beginner Mantra’s and 5 minute meditation routines. 

Disclosure – my dog likes to bring me his toys and socks while I practice lol.