What does “fit” mean to you? What does it mean to be healthy? Let’s set aside the fluff and the blah-blah-blah and get really honest about what defines true health for YOU. We’re all smart enough to realize that the images we see on magazine covers aren’t real and that runway models are prized for the fact that they DON’T represent the population-at-large. This is NOT an anti-photoshop/anti-fashion industry blog. It’s been done… to death.

I’m not interested in bashing anyone. I just want to gather up my girls and spread some love and positivity. Let’s teach the world to love us by loving ourselves first!

Tina Tassels (the name bestowed by Tina upon her super-sexy, strip-teasing ultra-ego) is taking the New York City burlesque world by storm as a sassy and hysterical blonde bombshell who is not only lighting up the stage with her amazing – ahem – tassels, but who has also taken the giant leap into producing her own shows. Some of NYC’s most sought after fashion and portrait photographers have found their muse in Miss Tassels. Tina is rocketing toward bona fide rockstar status.

photo by NYC-based photographer Doron Gild

So when I sat down to think about women who inspire me by their sheer unabashed awesomeness, Tina was one of the first ladies to pop into my head. I’ve known Tina for a really long time, but I’ll spare you the meandering stroll-down-memory-lane of how. I could have never imagined that she would grow up to become a woman who strips for a living, but I know now she was destined for it (though I do wonder if her parents want their college $$ back). Her shows are as fun as they are sexy. She is a powerhouse of self-confidence, and when she talks – take notes!

We sat down on my great-grandmother’s bed (that I actually delivered Baby Summer in – Tina was like “ewwww”) for a little pow-wow on self-esteem and getting over yourself on the not-so-confident days. How great is the lighting in my bedroom?!

Watch the full BexLifeTV playlist on YouTube

On my body: Philadelphia Eagles V-neck tee
On Tina’s body: Vamp Dress from PinupGirlClothing.com
Who’s that girl in the middle? Susie Carmichael
Read Tina’s fiercely entertaining blog at Big Hips, Big Dreams

If that wasn’t enough self-love for you, check out these body-positive posts by my fellow #FitFluential Ambassadors…

- Carla from MizFitOnline.com shares how she rediscovered her self-esteem with the help of a boudoir photo-shoot. Follow Carla @MizFitOnline
- Kara tries out nude modeling and tells us all about it in her blog at FoodBabyBlog.com. Follow Kara @KaraHadley
- “Fat and ugly” to fitness model? Read this story by twin fitness bloggers Alexandra and Kymberly at FunandFit.org. Follow Alexandra @AlexandraFunFit and Kymberly @KymberlyFunFit

And an anonymous (well, not anonymous to me) friend/fitness-blogger/beauty sent me the following message and photo of herself for this post:

Confident. Strong. Sexy. Bold. Brave.
Courageous. Fearless. Upbeat. Assured. Worth.

Inspiring words, aren’t they?
Aren’t they what we should all be feeling?
Body size shouldn’t dictate how we feel about ourselves.
Having been both-ideal weight and heavy-I loved myself for who I was and had confidence to do anything I set my mind to, but will admit I do feel more confident, more alive and radiant when I work out and stay in shape.
Confidence and knowing who you are and what you’re about is totally beautiful.

PS – Tina is a big fan of calling me “prude”. Well, Miss Tina, here’s an article on Modern Hippie Magazine featuring me talking about SEX!

Have a peek: Sexy Mamas Talk Family, Sex and Me Time

It’s funny how things work out just the way I need them to. I had a whole bunch of reasons why I couldn’t shoot a workout this week – my Anytime Fitness trainer kicked my butt on Monday morning leaving my arms sore and useless, my new kettlebell set that I was going to use for today’s workout didn’t arrive yet, Winona has a fever and needs mommy. How awesome is it that my excuses are actually legit!? (Ok, it’s not awesome that my Winona is sick.)

But best of all is that my mashup from a couple weeks ago got a pretty good response, and I got a request to do another one. Yes! I love pulling these old videos and seeing how much they’ve changed over the past few years. I went all the way back to my old fitness diary videos to grab a few of my favorite core moves for today’s WIO Wednesday.

This mashup is so perfect for throw-out-your-scale week. You’ll see my weight range from 145-175 pounds and footage from only a couple months after delivering baby Summer. And guess what – I felt great about myself at every stage. Numbers on the scale don’t feel so important when I feel strong and full of energy.

Today’s core workout is about as simple as it gets. We’re going to power through three variations on plank with some push-ups thrown in for some extra spice. The whole deal should take you about 3-4 minutes and you can repeat the entire round (or video) 2-3 times for a great core workout or once as a warmup for your regular routine (more details below the video).

Watch the full BexLifeTV playlist on YouTube

On my body: Sparkly Soul thin headband in Silver
my favorite Victoria’s Secret V-neck tee

Workout details (total round 3-4 minutes):
- Perform each exercise straight through, taking the minimum amount of break time as possible in between each.
- This routine is made up of timed intervals, not sets of reps.
- Sliding knee tucks (or mountain climbers) for 30 seconds
- Pushups for 15 seconds
- Elbow plank twists for 30 seconds
- Pushups for 15 seconds
- Rear leg lift to knee tucks, 15 seconds each side
- Jump rope for 1 minute

PS – Happy 14th Birthday to my beautiful Winona!! It’s amazing how fast she’s growing up and yet I’m managing to stay so young ;)

Some things about my relationship with the Universe that are true:

- If I never try anything new, I’m not growing.
- If I don’t accept that today is perfect and the Universe is perfect, then I’ll always be aspiring to attain a made-up idea of perfect.
- If I can’t see the beauty in the mistakes – the trials – the bumps – the wobbles, then I’m missing out on 99% of the journey.
- If I only show you my good side, I’m only showing you half the story.

Let’s continue to inspire each other through our real life stories… even the ones where we fall too hard on our heads…

Watch the full BexLifeTV playlist on YouTube

On my body: Old Navy superhero raglan tee
bootie shorts by Victoria Keen

Thank you to Lindsay for showcasing another Bex Life video on her Tuesday Trainer series. This week’s theme is animal-inspired moves, so I automatically went to yoga. Tri-pod headstand (Mukta Hasta Sirsasana A) doesn’t have an animal name, so I’m calling it “ostrich (in the sand)”. I kind of dig ostriches – they’re tall and goofy like me. Watch the Kinetic Vigilantes do it up, too!

My challenge for you this week? Try something new and SCARY!

I’m about sick and tired of the bullsh*t that surrounds the fitness industry and it’s complicated messages that are seemingly designed to keep us fat and in the dark and buying their products. Do I make money at what I do? Yes. But I’m not trying to sell you the latest incredible-gadget/miracle-pill/book-of-magic-spells. I’m *hopefully* just giving you some good tips and inspiration in an entertaining way. (However, it does make me scream with delight when you snatch up BexLife gear and support my friends that are making clean, healthy products.)

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On my body: Fila sports bra / Nike tank / Capri leggings by Adidas

So when you guys ask me what my “secret” is, I have to giggle a little on the inside (and sometimes out loud). THERE IS NO SECRET! Love yourself, eat real food and move around – a LOT! Ok, I’m making it sound too easy. The truth is, with all the mixed messages, crazy food ingredients, and mis-information from health professionals, food industry giants and our government, it’s super hard to figure out what’s good for us and what isn’t. Weight loss and staying fit isn’t easy. It’s really freaking hard. But, thank goodness, it’s not complicated.

This week I’m sharing my three favorite tricks that I use to keep my weight in check. These are real, uncomplicated, and TOTALLY FREE. Sorry, billion-dollar fitness industry peeps – true health should belong to everyone. xo

Watch the full BexLifeTV playlist on YouTube

On my body: BexLife Dirty Sweaty Sexy tank in Green
Banana Republic skinny jeans in Grey
Wanna count calories?: CalorieKing 2012 Edition
My FAVORITE divided plates: Now Designs – Crocodile Creek – Skip Hop

PS – Even if I was making a million dollars running this little community of ours (which I’m not, OBVIOUSLY – haha), I couldn’t feel richer than I do when I get feedback, love, and VIDEO RESPONSES from my peeps. Check out the videos posted in response to my latest challenge, and then go make your own! (Click here to watch the original challenge video featuring my “girl fight club” with Sarah Dussault and Jill Hanner.)

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I’ve heard about “fart eggs” before, but I never knew exactly how or why they happened. During my extensive academic research google search, I stumbled upon a blog called City Girl Farming that I’m now newly obsessed with. I need to meet this chick!

So, the big news is that we got our first fart egg! What the heck is that? Watch and see! Special thanks to Baby Summer for helping us out with this video.

Click here for more of our backyard chicken blogs & videos.

If you’re wondering why we decided to raise our own chickens for eggs, check out City Girl Farming’s explanation of different kinds of store bought eggs and why you’re not always getting what you think you’re paying for. xo

I’ve always wanted to start a real fight club. Or maybe I just want to hang out with Brad Pitt and Edward Norton. (OMG, I love them so much!)

When Sarah Dussault invited me to try out the new DVD workout system that she’s STARRING IN (woot!!) and issued a challenge to Jill Hanner and me to see who could last the longest in one of the workouts, I was AMPED!

I love girl fights!! Ok, we’re not really fighting, but I’m definitely down for some friendly competition – especially when sweat and spandex is involved.

So here’s the deal… We’re each doing the Cardio Core 4×4 DVD from the JCORE Accelerated Body Transformation DVD workout system. Sarah was the “modifier” on the DVD, so we’re all supposed to do the advanced version and see how long we can hang until we drop down to the modifier adjustments. Mr. Borucki was cool enough to try out the DVD with me. Have a looksie… it gets a little, well, raw.

I’m also issuing a special week-long challenge for my sexy peeps! Do the challenge and get a special gift from yours truly, because I LOVE YOU!!

Watch the full BexLifeTV playlist on YouTube
Click here for directions on how to post a video response

On my body: Eagles raglan tee
Kohl’s TekGear Yoga bootie shorts
Sparkly Soul thin headband in Silver
running shoes by New Balance
Workout at home: The Human Trainer and JCORE

Be sure to check out my girls!
- Sarah’s Fab Channel by Sarah Dussault
- Sarah’s NOT Lame attempt for our challenge
- Jill Hanner on YouTube
- Jill’s Workout FAIL

I had so much fun doing this video with my fellow YouTube fitness friends/smokin’ hot #FitFluential Ambassadors. You ladies rock!!

And if you want a totally effective workout that requires minimal space and NO EQUIPMENT, you have to pick up the JCORE DVDs. I’m not usually one to workout to videos (go figure), but the hubster and I will definitely be adding these workouts into our routine.

PS – Have you seen the new Bex Life boy beater limited edition tanks?? They’re available for pre-order now! Like always, the sale from every tank will benefit one of my favorite charities. Just added SlowFood.com to the list!

PPS – Sarah looks crazy amazing on the DVD. Check out the behind the scenes video she made.

If wouldn’t be LBF Friday without a shoutout to an super chill blogger pal. Charlotte from WildThingsRunFree.com is adorable and fun and training for a half marathon (which intimidates the hell out of me). What phrase motivates Charlotte? “More powerful than the will to win, is the courage to begin!” Werd.

Read her blog, be awestruck by her race schedule, and follow her on twitter @Char__Latte. xo

With four kids and a business that runs pretty much around the clock (grrrrr, social media), I never ever travel light – phones, computers, dayplanners, cameras – even to the gym.

Toni from RunningLovingLiving.com invited me to do a “What’s In My Gym Bag” post, so here it is! Summer was NO help and kept throwing my stuff everywhere… maybe I should carry less stuff. Hmmmm, not gonna happen. Anyway, watch the video and let me know what YOU CAN’T LIVE WITHOUT in your gym bag. Apparently, I can’t live without a video camera and lip gloss.

If you can tolerate my rambling for a bunch of minutes, I also show off my favorite new piece of home gym equipment by The Human Trainer and answer the 3 TOP questions my viewers ask. By the way, if you’re ever curious about my personal deets, check out my FAQ page. If you don’t see the answer to your question, post a comment or shoot me an email. I love hearing from you!

My can’t-live-without products and their where-to-buy links are posted below the video. xo

Watch the full BexLifeTV playlist on YouTube

On my body: jacket & bootie shorts by DAActive
In my oGorgeous mat bag by Cassey Ho:
Shobha rosewater wipes – Jade Yoga mat – Vega plant-based supplements – weight training gloves by Nike – pink Gymboss interval timer – C9 by Champion sports bra for Target – Bex Life I Play By My Rules tank – ZOOM video camera – larabar fruit & nut bars – Sparkly Soul headbands –
Oliepops purse organizers (CUTE and my Kangaroo isn’t online)
Workout at home: The Human Trainer ab straps

Check out Toni’s blog! RunningLovingLiving.com

If you haven’t seen this tag floating around the internet, this is a call for a blogger to post 11 random things about herself, answer 11 questions from another blogger who tagged her, and then post 11 new questions for her own “tagees”. I usually dread this sort of thing, but I happen to super love the two FitFluential ladies who tagged me, so here goes…

11 random things about yours truly:
1. I learned to juggle in the 6th grade.
2. When I left home at 16, I competed in local beauty pageants to earn money.
3. I used to have a shaved head.
4. I sleep with the lights on when I’m alone because I’m afraid of the Elephant Man (I watched it as a little kid).
5. I say “beep” instead of “fart”, because fart is a curse word.
6. For Sarah Dussault – I nursed until I was three years old and called it “nursie milk” (still do).
7. I was raised in an all-white family and didn’t know that I was half-black until I was 19 years old. I’ve never met my biological father.
8. I smoked cigarettes for two months when I was 18, but never inhaled because it made me sick every time.
9. I registered to vote when I was 17, so my voter registration card would have my 18th birthday on it. I’m fiercely political.

10. I have matching tattoos with two different people… both of whom I still dig a lot (thank god).
11. I changed my major from Fine Art to History in college because I had a crush on my core studies/history professor. His name was Mr. Sassy ;)

Bonus: Mos Def was the first person to predict that I was having a girl when I was pregnant with Summer. (my homebirth video)

My questions from Kymberly Williams-Evans – one half of a twin fitness duo at FunandFit.org (I’m secretly afraid of identical twins):
1. Favorite blog post you have written? Ugly Fitness
2. Why is it your fave? I take my responsibility of being someone who influences young women seriously. This is the most honest description of why I workout. It’s not about approval from men or society. It’s about doing something for myself.
3. On a 1-10 scale, 1 = totally a couch potato who never moves; 10 = ready for the Olympics, where do you rate your current fitness level? 7
4. What annoys you most: bad grammar, bad punctuation, bad photos/images? Bad grammar burns me up. Bad punctuation – not so much. Stock photography in blogs or shitty “art” photography makes me insane.
5. What is the wackiest or lamest excuse you have ever used to get out of a workout? I’ve never made an excuse. I just say I don’t want to.
6. What is the lamest or most outlandish excuse you have ever use to get out of a social event? Same – I’m not a big fan of lying.
7. What is your preferred workout place – home, club, outdoors, in your dreams? Other? the gym with my trainer
8. Favorite book that was turned into a movie? I don’t read novels, so my favorite books never turn into movies :(
9. Favorite (or handiest) motivational quote? I always like to say “The moments you think you can’t are the exact opportunities to prove that you can.”
10. What do you think “qi” means? I have no idea and I’m too tipsy on champagne to google it ;)
11. What question do you wish I had asked? I’m an open book, so you could have asked me anything… probably something controversial.

My questions from Sarah Dussault – SarahFit.com:
1. What High School cafeteria food do you still miss? French bread pizza on Fridays
2. What is your sign and is it a reflection of your personality? Cancer… and TOTALLY. I’m a moody, sensitive homebody.
3. Favorite cancelled TV show? You Can’t Do That On Television
4. What movie character do you most connect with or reminds you of yourself? I always wanted to be Angelina Jolie’s character in Hackers.
5. Last cheesey novel that you read? I don’t read novels… ever. The last book I read was Outliers and it was awesome!
6. If you could have one do over in life, what would it be? I had a couple relationships that I wouldn’t mind forgetting.
7. Have you even gone vegetarian or vegan? If so, how long did it or has it lasted? I’ve been vegetarian or high raw off and on for 14 years. But when I’m off, I’m OFF.
8. What was your first job? I’ve worked since I was 13… painting duck decoys, scrubbing concrete steps for my neighbors. My first real job was at the original Burlington Coat Factory in Burlington, NJ.
9. Who was your first concert? Cinderella – the band, not the Disney princess
10. Favorite holiday? Halloween
11. Most valuable lesson learned from your parents? I had a rough childhood, so my sisters and I did a lot of the parenting for each other and ourselves. That taught me that I’m stronger than any situation.

And here’s where I go rogue and do what I want! I’m not tagging my blogger friends, because it’s such a small world and they’ve all been tagged. Instead, I want you to pick as many or as few of the questions below and answer them in the comments. I love you guys and want to get to know YOU better. xo

My questions for my sexy peeps:
1. What’s the closest purple thing to you?
2. Who inspired you when you were little?
3. Who inspires you now?
4. What was the biggest fear you’ve overcome?
5. If you could change your name, what would you change it to?
6. Who is your celebrity crush?
7. Who is your same-sex celebrity crush?
8. What’s your favorite character trait?
9. What’s your favorite body part?
10. We’re going on vacation to Bali. You can take one thing. What is it?
11. Bikini, tankini, one-piece, or coverup? (extra points if you’ve been to a nude beach!)

If I was going to pick my list of the most interesting and kick-ass ladies on the web, it would definitely include:
- Sarah Dussault – super cool chick & creator of SarahFit.com
- Cassey Ho – Blogilates superstar & oGorgeous designer
- Bianca Jade – the fashionable & talented beauty behind MizzFit.com

Rules for Tagees (if you want to write your own post):
- Post these rules in your post.
- Post 11 random things about yourself.
- Answer the questions set for you in the tagger’s post.
- Create 11 new questions for the people you tag.
- Go to the blogs of the people you’ve tagged to tell them they’ve been tagged.
- You legitimately and actively have to tag 11 people. No saying “you are tagged if you are reading this.”

We’re going to get down to the business of some couples/partner yoga and how to get flexible & sex-able for Valentine’s Day, but first I want to share a little bit about how much I ADORE this week’s special video guest…

Nine reasons that my husband rocks so hard (I couldn’t list the full million, so I settled on a number I like):

1. He changes diapers.
2. He tells me I’m beautiful 117 times a day.
3. If I said “Let’s go to Jamaica RIGHT NOW!” he’d be like “ok, let’s go.”
4. He’s a brilliant artist who blows my mind with the beautiful images he makes. Yeah, I like to brag about my super talented rockstar photographer husband – so what! You should be following him on tumblr: justinborucki.tumblr.com

5. He makes my gifts. I’m not talking arts and crafts macaroni art. Like, he makes me incredible pieces of art that almost always make me hate him for at least the time it takes for every woman in my family to say how amazing he is and how lucky I am.
6. He’s the most incredible father and step-father I’ve ever seen in action. For real. He’s the father I wish I could have had.
7. And yesterday, after living in New York City for his ENTIRE life, he sold his crazy sexy bachelor pad in Brooklyn so that we can buy our dream farm in New Jersey. In fact, one of the first things Justin said to me after finding out I was pregnant was, “We have to sell Brooklyn and buy a giant house.” Hot.

8. When I told him that I wanted to quit a lucrative job in real estate to make exercise videos on the internet, he told me that I would be great at anything and he’s supported me enthusiastically ever since. (But he also said he didn’t want to be on video. See our newly popular, but very old video by clicking here.)
9. And even after telling me he didn’t want to be on video, then letting me convince him to do it anyway, then having the video get popular out of the blue and being subjected to no less than a billion “Silent Bob” comments on Youtube, he still agreed to make my couples workout video for Lindsay’s List Tuesday Trainer: Valentine’s Day Edition.

Justin Borucki f*cking rules.

Watch the full BexLifeTV playlist on YouTube

On my body: Bex Life Blissed In tee
Leopard print bootie shorts – a present from Bianca aka MizzFITnyc
DON’T FORGET to watch the couples’ workouts on LindsaysList.co

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My videos on organic health & beauty products have inspired so much feedback from you all… THANK YOU for your amazing comments, shares, tweets and emails! A viewer sent me an email last weekend about products that I would recommend (and how frustrated she is with her own search for clean products), so this LBF Friday is for Jax!

“Hey Bex,

I’m trying to make this change in my life to all the organic health and beauty products and I looked through all my products on the EWG website [...] and it feels like there aren’t any product lines that are safe. I feel so lost with this and don’t know where to start anymore. I feel like I’m gonna get cancer from just looking at my John Freida products! LoL [...] what lines of cosmetics/beauty product lines do you recommend? [...] thank you so much for everything you are doing to bring awareness, knowledge and safety to us all. Never lose your warrior spirit!

love Jax”

Watch the full BexLifeTV playlist on YouTube

On my body: Blogilates tee from oGorgeous.com by Cassey Ho
My pretty eyebrows are courtesy of Shobha
Connect with Bianca Jade: Mizzfit.com

And here are my beautiful (and fit) FitFluential ladies with their super-clean health & beauty recommendations…

Morgan (left) recommends: Caudalie Vinopure Purifying Concentrate
Read her blog – Life After Bagels Follow her – @LifeAfterBagels

Laura (middle) recommends: California Baby Wash and Jason’s Toothpaste
Read her blog – Mommy Run Fast Follow her – @MommyRunFaster

Janice (right) recommends: The Diva Cup
Read her blog – Fitness Cheerleader Follow her – @fitcheerldr

Janene (left) recommends: Beauty Without Cruelty Daily Benefits Shampoo – Rosemary Mint Tea Tree Conditioner – Hand & Body Lotion
Read her blog – One Run At A Time Follow her – @onerunatatime

Kymberly & Alexandra (middle) recommend: Kelly Tee Garden Organics line of beauty products
Read their blog – Fun and Fit Follow them – @KymberlyFunFit / @AlexandraFunFit

Danielle (right) recommends: Green Beaver Frosty Mint Toothpaste
Read her blog – Body By Nature Follow her – @body_bynature

And now for my blogger spotlight of the week… it’s Heidi from BananaBuzzBomb.com. Kaplow!! She’s a completely down-to-earth, super cool vegan chick who also happens to love bananas (a girl after my own heart). Her favorite thing to tell herself is to “Go through today as though it is the best day of your life. Tomorrow, do the same.” Yeah, I got that… today is the definitely the greatest day I’ve ever known ;)

She also wrote a BOOK (ok, not really – just a REALLY detailed email) of her favorite clean health & beauty products for this blog feature. She’s definitely gets an A+ (and an invitation to do all my research from now on). Here’s Heidi’s list that she gave me (remember to follow her on Twitter @bananabuzzbomb):

- I use the Thai Crystal Deodorant Stone. It has a rating of 1 [on EWG]. I LOVE it. And it works.

- For moisturizer for skin or lips I use coconut oil. It’s more often used for cooking, but some use it for other things too. From what I can find on the EWG site it is a 0. It’s all plant based, so no chemicals. Here’s one of the brands I’ve used: Spectrum Naturals Organic Coconut Oil. I’ve found it to be a healthy alternative and love it.

- I use Kirk’s Castile Soap only on my legs to shave. It’s a 3.

- I no longer use hairspray but this is what I used in the past: Aubrey Organics Natural Mist Herbal Hairspray. It’s a 2. Non-aerosol and a fresh scent.

- Prior to going with the Thai Crystal Deodorant Stone I used Nature’s Gate Deodorant. Love their different scents. It’s a 3.

- Prior to going soap-free in the shower I used Bronner’s Magic 18-in-1 Castile Soap. It’s a 1. [editor's note: soap-free? WHAT?! I have to talk to her about this!]

- Prior to going lip balm free I used Hugo Naturals Lip Balm. It has a 0.

Happy Shopping!! xoxo

Your requests are making me seriously giddy lately. I mean, you’ve been sending me the BEST ideas… I can’t wait to read my emails every morning to see what video I’m making next! I read ALL my comments, messages, tweets and emails, so keep ‘em comin’!

The past couple weeks have been crazy both professionally and personally – video collaborations to shoot, interviews to do, birthdays to celebrate, real estate closings to schedule… woo hoo!! A “best of” workout video was just what the doctor ordered. I had not one second of time during daylight hours to make a proper workout video happen. So I pulled out my big old hard drive, picked out some of my favorite exercises from over 300 videos, and dragged Winona away from her homework to help me put together a fun mashup of some of my best moves. Enjoy!

Watch the full BexLifeTV playlist on YouTube

Repeat the entire round of 5 exercises 3x for your complete workout.

PS – A little birdie (me) tells me that I’ll be fulfilling another awesome fan request on Friday’s blog & video. If you liked my videos on exposing organic health & beauty products, you’ll LOVE what I have prepared for you for Friday!