A Sacred Journey, Ernesto Quintero's passion project

The bonds of family can never truly be broken. When these bonds are tested by illness, the strength and love shared amongst the family members must withstand the pressures. Ernesto Quintero's documentary, A Sacred Journey, shares the love, strength and bonds of his family as they battle his brother's illness.

A Sacred Journey chronicles Quintero's brother's fight with ALS. The film focuses on his brother's quest to complete a mural during his battle with the disease. The commissioned mural serves as a visual remembrance to focus on hope. While family and community brings strength, the determination to fulfill a goal can bring healing.

During a recent visit to Chicago, Ernesto Quintero shared some of this thoughts on his documentary, A Sacred Journey, as well as information on his partnership with Clorox CaresConcepts. During our conversation, Quintero shared his hope for his brother and his encouragement for others to take leap to care for a loved one at home.

One of the biggest lessons that Quintero shared with caregivers is the use of a "mask." This mask isn't a medical device or a toy; rather the mask is a separation of outside concerns when assisting a loved one. When walking into the room of the chronically ill, the caregiver's mask is key to shut out the outside world and focus on the person in need. In those precious moments, everyone has to be living in that single moment in time. Put aside is the laundry lists of must do items. It is the time to be strong for the person who cannot walk on their own or to be the voice for the person who cannot speak. For that period of time, you are putting one person and one person only first.

The other key lesson to his talk was that love is cure. While medical intervention and medicine can facilitate a better environment, the love from family and friends can provide more than any pill. The love from family, friends and the community can fortify a sick person's desire to live and fight against the difficulties in life. Whether the battle with disease is prolonged or quick, the love shared can help everyone heal from the pain.
For anyone who is among the millions of at home caregivers around the United States, the Clorox CareConcepts created the website www.WhenCareComesHome.com. This website offers information, support and resources for at home caregivers. The decision to care for a person at home is a sacrifice for all those involved. With the Clorox website and resources, the journey doesn't have to be a lonely one.

Drink summer goodbye with Skinnygirl cocktails

Over Labor Day weekend, everyone is trying to squeeze one more moment in the sun with friends. Whether it is a quick barbeque or appetizers on the deck, any excuse to be outside with friends can make for a fun party. With any gathering, a special cocktail can make the evening more festive.

Skinnygirl offers a line of cocktails and beverages that offer all the flavor without the guilt. From ready to serve margaritas to effervescent aperitifs, Skinnygirl can be pair with a variety of foods.
One way to make a party more memorable is to offer a special cocktail. Skinnygirl offers the following cocktails to make that end of summer party the best blast of the season.
Sunshine Sipper

• 5 parts glass of Skinnygirl® Pinot Grigio
• 2 parts frozen lemonade
• 1 part soda water
• Lemon twist for garnish

Preparation: Blend ingredients with crushed ice and pour into a flute glass. Finish with soda water and garnish with a twist of lemon.
Tropical Tea-se

• 1 ½ parts Skinnygirl® Cucumber Vodka
• 6 parts green tea OR diet green tea
• Pineapple wedge for garnish

Preparation: Pour ingredients over ice. Garnish with a pineapple wedge and enjoy!
Sea Breeze Spritzer

• 1 ½ parts Skinnygirl® Tangerine Vodka
• 2 parts lemon-lime soda
• 2 parts club soda
• Lime for garnish

Preparation: Pour ingredients over ice and stir. Garnish with lime.

Fire up the grill before summer fades

With the warm temperatures and sunny skies, grilling up a delicious meal is summer tradition. Gathering with friends or sharing a romantic dinner for two, a grilled meal can be a taste of summer. Both experienced grillers and those who fear the flame can appreciate a few pointers to make their meals even more delicious.
Here are a few tips for grilled perfection every time.

Season it
When it comes to cooking, seasoning is key to a well prepared meal. A simple dash of salt and pepper can make all the difference in a dish. Keep a salt and pepper mill at the ready. Peugeot offers a wide variety of quality salt and pepper mill. These mills offer stylish presentation on the table and quality functionality in the kitchen. The flavor difference from using a quality salt and pepper grinder can be seen in the results. When using a salt grinder remember to use dry, course salts like a rock salt.

Watch the temp
No one wants undercooked or over cooked food. When the beverages are flowing and the conversation is gregarious, hovering over the grill can be a bore. Luckily several thermometers offer connections to your smart phone. For example, iDevices offer a grill thermometer that gives alerts when the food is at a particular temperature. No more excuses for food being incorrectly cooked.

Cut to perfection
Any good grill master understands a key component to tasty meat is keeping the juices inside. Cut the meat too soon and all the flavor and goodness oozes out of the grilled meat. The Architec Housewares Concave Cutting Board is the solution to keeping meat succulent.

The Architec Housewares Concave Cutting Board has an unique design featuring a concave center which helps keeps the flavor in the meat through the design. The center reservoir holds up to 1/4 cup of liquid to keep meats juicy. The Gripper technology on the bottom keeps the cutting board still while slicing through the meat.While this cutting board can't control when the user cuts the meat, it can help keep all the juices pooled under the meat itself.

Toast the food
With any good meal, the guests need a delicious beverage. Uncork a bottle of wine to pair with the dinner. The Smart Touch Wine Opener makes for simple opening of any bottle. With just two fingers to turn, a bottle of wine is opened effortlessly. The twist and turn action means no broken cork. Plus, with a clip-in foil cutter, this wine opener gets any bottle open quickly and efficiently.

When considering a bottle of wine, fruit forward flavors are easily paired with food. Cupcake Vineyards offers several varietals that can appeal to a variety of guests. From a light, effervescent Moscato to a robust Cabernet Sauvignon, the affordable wine means that many bottles can be on hand for the evening.

Creating a love of travel at a young age

Some adults have a wonderlust for travel. From exploring national treasures to exotic lands, the desire to travel seems to be innate. But where did that desire to grab a passport and venture into the unknown develop? Can that love of travel be instilled in a child? 

Having traveled to many countries across the continents, creating the love of travel in my children is important. Without the endless funds to afford trips around the world, our family seeks creative ways to cultivate the love of travel in the kids. Here are a few ways that work in our household. 

Play a game

Kids love to play games. The family time around the coffee table can become a monthly or weekly tradition. A game like, Road Trip, by Identity Games, can get your family to travel across the USA in a board game. This fast paced game makes players think quickly about the places you've traveled or the knowledge you can recall. Think of towns that start with P or a travel itinerary with locales that start with A. Road Trip by Identity Games retails for approximately $24.95. 

Go out to eat

In many areas, restaurants hold a gastronomic journey close to home. If your kids are willing to try new foods and flavors, a dinner at a restaurant can spark a conversation about travel. A tapas restaurant can be the basis for a discussion about Spain. Maybe a Asian fusion restaurant can start a conversation about the differences between Korean BBQ and Japanese Hibachi.

Watch a television show

When a rainy day hits, relaxation on the couch with an engaging show can be a perfect way to pass the time. An hour watching the Travel Channel can create a list of must visit destinations. From a trip to a Florida theme park to an international adventure, the whole family can give their top travel destinations for the next family vacation.

Vegetables transformed into noodles with Microplane Spiral Cutter

Whether shopping at a local farmers market or the aisle of the grocery store, vegetables can be used in more dishes than salads and side dishes. While meatless Monday dinners become more popular, vegetables are transformed into hearty, more satisfying dishes. For the home cook, the Mircoplane Spiral Cutter can release the cooking creativity.

With the Microplane Spiral Cutter, chefs can create elegant spiral cuts and vegetable ribbons. Looking like an old school manual pencil sharpener, the two razor sharp slicing barrels feature surgical grade stainless blades for optimum cutting results. To use the tool, simply insert the vegetable and twist. The spiral cutter has a large and small barrel for size variety. The Spiral Cutter's small-size barrel is ideal for long and slim vegetables, such as carrots, and small root vegetables, like radishes. The larger barrel is perfectly sized to accommodate summer squash, cucumbers, and other chunkier foods.

The Spiral Cutter is perfect for vegetable pastas, salads, stir-fry and other vegetable influenced dishes. With the abundance of summer vegetables, the kitchen tool can add variety and culinary inspiration to the home chef. The easy to use device can be easily master by even the most novice chef.

The Spiral Cutter by Mircoplane is compact and durable. It is top-rack dishwasher safe. The Spiral Cutter will be featured in two colors, black and green. The suggested retail price is $14.95 and will be be available at retailers in August.