Dubbed nature’s super food; legumes (beans, peas and lentils) are a source of protein, flavoursome and nutrient dense. Edgell’s range of legumes offer consumers a nutrition powerhouse and include the popular Red Kidney Beans, Four Bean Mix and Chick Peas – all containing many essential nutrients required for a balanced diet.

Edgell Dietician, Shelley Dillon, said consumers seeking a nourishing diet would be well advised to increase their intake of legumes.

“The Edgell legume range is inexpensive and versatile, contains a variety of essential nutrients, is a source of protein and is a great low-fat alternative to red meat,” Shelley said.

“The Edgell bean range is also gluten-free and all products have earned the Heart Foundation Tick.”

Gone are the days of overcooked and ‘mushy’ beans or the awful memories of fatty refried beans lingering on your palette – with an increasing emphasis on the importance of legumes as part of a nutritious diet – there are now a huge variety of delicious recipes for incorporating legumes into your daily meals.

“As obesity figures in Australia continue to grow and fad diets and expensive weight reduction methods infiltrate the market – beans remain a cost friendly and effective alternative to maintain wellbeing,” Shelley said.

“Consumers who have yet to discover the benefits of legumes will find the transition easier than they may expect with a myriad of options for increasing bean intake. We have created some great recipes and substitution ideas for incorporating the Edgell range into your diet.”

Legumes can be used as the core ingredient or as a substitute in mains, entrees, snacks, salads, soups, dips and more – the possibilities are endless and the benefits many.

The Edgell legume range is available in a range of convenient sizes (125g, 300g, 420g and 750g) and also in selected no-added-salt varieties from supermarkets nationwide.

Thanks to Edgell we have a great picnic basket full of beany goodies valued at $70. For your chance to win, just let us know your favourite way to use beans in your cooking.

Entries close 12th August 2010

All dogs deserve a loving home but sadly, every year over 100,000 homeless dogs are euthanised in Australia.

To try and address this situation, Pedigree has partnered with PetRescue to champion an annual initiative known as The Pedigree Adoption Drive, which is now in it’s 3rd year.

By supporting The Pedigree Adoption Drive, you can help rescue dogs – there are many ways to help!

ADOPT a homeless dog in need of a loving home.

DONATE to help PetRescue increase awareness & find loving homes for more homeless dogs. Or donate money, food and bedding to your local rescue group

VOLUNTEER at your local rescue group.

BUY PEDIGREE When you buy specially marked Pedigree products we will make a donation to PetRescue (if you don’t have a dog, you could help even further by buying PEDIGREE® & donating it to your local rescue group).

PURCHASE Pedigree Adoption Drive merchandise with 100% of profits going to further support the cause.

SUPPORT US on Facebook. Help us spread the word! For the first 15,000 people to like the Pedigree Adoption Drive Facebook page, we will donate a bowl of dog food to feed a rescue dog on your behalf.

Here are a few beautiful furry friends adopted and found new loving homes with the members of All for Women. Read their heart warming stories and see how rewarding adoption can be. Thank you girls for sharing your stories.

Di from QLD-Maggie has given us so much love, the fist couple of days we had her she was shy & very timid & only weighed 2.5kilo, now she weighs 4kilo & is perfect for her height, she’s cheeky & bossy & takes over my bed but we love her to bits. She has personality plus! She was found wandering the street, i just can’t believe someone would let her go but it turned out to be our lucky day when we saw her at the RSPCA.

Heather from NSW-Rosie, a Kelpie X was adopted from RSPCA Yagoona after being rescued from an abusive environment. Lewis was born at the same facility, but his mother and siblings didn’t survive. They are my comfort, my sanity and my humour.

Nicole from QLD does an amazing job working for the RSPCA, these are just a few of the many dogs they have rehabilitated and helped find new homes.

Olive: Came in with massive scraps down her back (we believe she fell off the back of a ute). She was rehomed with another shelter dog last month.

Tala: Came into the shelter with no fur, had really bad mange, took over a year to get him back to a healthy coat, about 6 months into his treatment he looked great but he lost all his fur again. He got adopted to a lovely couple who previously adopted another dog from us, last we heard, he is doing wonderfully and is being very good (he was naughty, used to chew on everything and has almost knocked me out a few times being so jumpy and excited).

Snuffy: He was surrendered over because supposedly he was biting the kids, we did a number of tests on him and he never once tried to hurt anyone, he had on lead introductions with children and he was fine, I think the kids were way to rough for him. He was in adoptions for over 6 months and got adopted to a paramedic who fell in love with him and came out weekly until she was certain she wanted him.

Every year, thousands of people and dogs nationwide walk for a cause and celebrate their love for animals by taking part in the RSPCA Million Paws Walk. From babies to seniors, Chihuahuas to Great Danes – it’s an event for everyone – two and four-legged.

“The RSPCA Million Paws Walk is always a great day out and this year there are over 70 locations across the country, with 22 of them in NSW,” said RSPCA NSW CEO Steve Coleman. “We look forward to meeting all our RSPCA Supporters and extend the invite to those without pets too. We must stress though that all dogs attending should have up-to-date vaccinations and be on lead.”

Registrations are now open and there’s lots of fun ways to get involved! Walk individually with your dog, or create a social or corporate team and pound the pavement as a group. Fundraise online and watch you or your team’s name dazzle in lights on the RSPCA Million Paws Walk Top 10 Leader board. For every $100 raised online, you’ll receive an entry into the draw to win a Hyundai i30CW SX Wagon valued at $24,000. The more funds raised online for the RSPCA, the more entries you’ll get into the draw!

Register online now and receive a discount, then gear up with official RSPCA Million Paws Walk merchandise including tees, caps and pet accessories.

For tickets or information on where your nearest walk is head to www.millionpawswalk.com.au

And for all the cat people, we haven’t been forgotten. Million Purrs is on again this year, so all the cats can get involved as well.

• Frames are fashion. Think of your frames as a fashion accessory – match them with your mood and personal style. You add a burst of colour to a neutral outfit, or transform your wardrobe from day to evening with a change of frames.

• Specs 2010 to be seen. Spectacles are the must have fashion essential, worn not to blend onto your face, but more as a stand out look.

• Accessories are fashion’s best friend for 2010. Accessories, including spectacles, are fantastic for when you need to spruce up your wardrobe for autumn, but can’t afford a complete overhaul.

• Adventurous accessories. Be adventurous with your spectacle selection. Choose a classic pair for work and a more bold design for evenings and weekends.

• Autumn 2010, mix it up. Don’t be afraid to mix silver and gold jewellery/accessories – this autumn’s all about style with attitude.

• Sexy secretary is in. For girls, this autumn’s look is flirty, feminine with a touch of Euro sexy style. Pencil skirts, patterned leather belts and high pumps. Look for gold, bright pink and orange accessories, jewellery with bling and rimless spectacles with colourful arms.

• Here comes Superman! For guys, this autumn sees the return of the classic nerd – Clark Kent style. Clean crisp shirts, tailored suits, preppy jackets and lace-up shoes, teamedupwith oversizedplasticblackordarkrimmedglassesandslickedbackhair to complete the look.

• Avant-garde, fashion forward look. Opt for accessories that are bold and dramatic. For a night out, match your little black dress with bright and funky accessories like chandelier earrings, studded cuff bracelets or colourful frames.

• To balance a prominent nose. If you have a long nose, look for glasses with a low set bridge to shorten it. For shorter noses, select a style with a high set bridge in line with the top of the frames.

• To balance a square face. If you have a square face, choose oval frames as they’ll help soften your jaw line. If you have a round face, opt for angular or geometric frame styles.

These handy resealable packets are great for picnics, entertaining, lunchboxes or just a quick and easy snack – any time you’d eat cheese, Mainland Cracker Cuts can be used.

RSPCA NSW

RSPCA NSW aims to assist in empowering women and their children to escape domestic violence through their Safe Beds for Pets program by arranging secure and affordable emergency pet accommodation.

“Large numbers of family members in domestic violence situations have pets,” said the RSPCA NSW Safe Beds for Pets Coordinator. “Sadly, these pets often become directly involved in domestic violence, as abuse of a pet is a tactic commonly used to control, hurt and intimidate the victim. Fear of leaving pets in the hands of a violent partner often prevents or delays victim’s leaving a domestic violence situation.”

In fact, Australian studies have indicated that between 50-85% of women who experienced domestic violence had a family pet and that 54% of abused women indicated that their partner had hurt or killed their family pets. Many victims of domestic violence delay leaving the abusive relationship because of fear of what will happen to their pets.

The Safe Beds for Pets program was established to arrange temporary housing for pets of people who are seeking refuge from domestic violence and to address the link between animal and human abuse, and child protection.

“Since the start of this financial year, the program has arranged for the care of 98 pets of domestic violence victims. Arranging safe accommodation for these pets allowed their owners to seek safe refuge themselves without having to worry about of the fate of their pets if left behind in an abusive situation.”

“This program is not a long-term solution to the housing of the pets, but it gives domestic violence victims peace of mind and allows them to secure their own safety and make arrangements for the future.”

Who is eligible for Safe Beds for Pets?
Safe Beds for Pets is specifically designed to help victims of domestic violence. RSPCA NSW has established partnerships with Domestic Violence victim support services who act as referral agencies for women needing to access this program.
RSPCA NSW also participates in training with domestic violence agencies (for family violence, child protection and animal welfare issues).

What does it cost?
All cases will be assessed on an individual basis. The Safe Beds for Pets program is not government funded
and relies on donations and grants for support.

Did you know?
One in three Australian women experiencing domestic violence delay leaving the abusive relationship because of fear of what will happen to their pets.
Witnessing pet abuse may interrupt a child’s natural development of empathy and contribute to the cycle of violence.
Over a third of people in the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (GLBTI) community experience domestic violence or abuse.

For more information about the RSPCA NSW Safe Beds for Pets program, please email safebeds@rspcansw.org.au or call the Safe Beds for Pets Helpline on 0434 258 259. The Helpline operators are trained and experienced in dealing with domestic violence issues.

While this program is run by RSPCA NSW, most other states have a similar program. Check with your states RSPCA website for details.

The Poll also revealed 41% of women flagged domestic commitments, lack of support in the home and the resulting inability to work longer hours and promote themselves professionally as the major stumbling blocks to gender equality in Australia.

More than half of Australian women reported feeling pressure to conform to traditional female roles within the home, adding further disadvantages to the already challenging task of balancing the demand of both their personal and professional lives.
Conducted in the lead up to International Women’s Day, the Heat Group and UNIFEM Australia poll reinforces calls for the Australian Government to do more to address continuing discrimination against women in Australia.

“Programs such as the Paid Parental Leave scheme may help to move these women from the home to the workplace with greater ease, however it also highlights other issues such as access to flexible hours, the wage gap and access to affordable child care are still key issues for women,” said Gillian Franklin, Managing Director of the Heat Group.

Kate O’Reilly, Board Member of UNIFEM Australia today stated “it simply does not make economic sense not to have equality in the workplace. She went on to say that “companies who support the full participation of women at all levels demonstrate stronger performance.”

Business also received a bad wrap, with a high percentage of women – 41% – feeling they had being passed over for promotion because of their sex, a trend that is particularly evident amongst women over 40.

Of the more than 500 women polled nationally, 69% said they wanted more measures to improve the current situation of women in Australia; proving that despite progress being made gender equality in Australia still had a long way to go.

Sponsored by Nuffnang.

I have to admit, when I first saw Handy Manny, I thought looked like a cross between Bob the Builder and Dora the Explorer. Handy Manny is a Playhouse Disney animated preschooler program about the title character Manny, a bilingual handy man, and his tool box full of talking tools including the humorously named Pat the Hammer, Turner the slotted screw driver and Squeeze the Pliers. The tools have various personalities that sometimes leads to problems in the toolbox, but they are soon sorted out as the tools learn various lessons about problem solving, teamwork, friendship and community.

There are various other characters in the town who appear regularly throughout the show as well, such as Kelly who owns the Hardware Store and Mr Lopart in the Candy Store next door who always tries to fix things himself, usually with disastrous consequences.

The “Tooling Around” DVD has five episodes of approximately eleven minutes each: Squeeze’s Day Off, Amigo Grande, A Sticky Fix, Pat The Screwdriver and Supremoguy. Manny and the tools attend to tasks from fixing broken trophies and steps to putting up a new flagpole and helping to build a new house … and they even learn the value in having a rest and not working sometimes.

The show is not overloaded with singing, but has a couple of songs repeated in each episode such as “Hop Up Jump In” when the tools hop into the box on the way to a job, and “We Work Together” while they are making .

Handy Manny incorporates some basic Spanish, and sure, Spanish is not as culturally relevant here in Australia as it is in America, but like any kind of bilingual program, it’s helpful for kids to learn how language works.

The adults in our house find Handy Manny a nice little show without the annoying shouting, irritating constant repetition, and sometimes just plain old weirdness of some preschooler viewing. Manny’s gentle accent is very easy to listen to, and every time I see Mr Lopart’s cat with a comb over I giggle. If I judge preschooler television by my ability to be in the same room as the television while it is on, without actually wanting to throw something at the television, then Manny is a winner.

The kids really enjoy watching Manny (even the ‘big’ school boy), and will grab the toy tool kit to play and sing along as they watch. And I can hope that they are absorbing some of the team work and problem solving lessons as they watch.

I love the convenience of DVDs for trips, or for when there’s nothing appropriate on television at the time, and Tooling Around is already on the favourites list in our house.

This Organ Donor Awareness Week we are being asked to take up the Organ Donor Challenge and Pass on the “Message” to just one other person, ‘Make sure your family know your wishes’, make a difference – and help save lives.

Encouraged by the increase in the number of organ donors in 2009, DonateLife believes we can make a big impact on organ and tissue donation, if we all start up a conversation of making your wishes known to your family and finding and finding out their wishes as well.

DonateLife Medical Director, Dr Jonathan Gillis said: “We want people to take up the organ donor challenge: to Discover the facts, Decide whether to donate and most importantly Discuss organ donation with your family. Visit www.donatelife.gov.au. If we all pass on the message – to make sure your family know your wishes – to just one friend or colleague we can help save more lives.

“Sixty-nine very generous families in NSW made a life transforming difference to 215 lives in NSW last year and we can improve this figure – nearly double it if we discuss organ donation with our family and know each other’s wishes.

“While organ and tissue donation is a personal choice, far too many families are placed under additional stress at the time of the death of a loved one because they do not know their wishes about donation.

“Prior family discussion can make the process a little easier on donor families because donation is more likely to proceed when families confidently know each other’s wishes.

“Many families tell us that at an often traumatic time in their lives, organ donation is a very positive experience – a legacy of life.

“To take up the challenge you can choose your favourite communication: tell a friend, telephone, fax, email facebook and twitter – just pass it on and we can all save lives”, said Dr Gillis.

Organ and tissue donation can change lives:

* Corneas can restore sight
* Kidney transplants can take people off regular dialysis and back to a normal life without regular hospital visits
* Pancreas transplants can cure type II diabetes
* Liver, Heart and Lung transplants save lives immediately

Transplantation means that a very sick person can return to a normal life and be an active member of the family again and return to work.

The most important thing is family discussion – even if you are registered as a donor, your family will always be asked to consent to donation. That is why we encourage all Australians to make sure their family knows their wishes and that you know your family member’s wishes.

You can register and update your decision on the Australian Organ Donor Register (Medicare) or in NSW you can also tick the box on your driver’s licence – either way you are registered!

“Pass on the organ donor message -‘Make sure your family know your wishes’ to just one person and you can help save lives in NSW – take up the challenge today and Pass it on!”, said Dr Gillis.

Find out more at Donate life

To date an over 8800 women have signed up and pledged to save money during February, an amazing result!

I pledged to give up a few things, coffee, snacks and buying lunch and takeaway. These also seemed to be most popular with everyone else.

Lunch and takeaway in general were a big killer for us in more ways than one.  Not only have we saved over $600, we have both lost 5kgs!

We also ran a competition recent to win some Smarty Pig vouchers, to enter you had to share you best savings tips. Some fantastic tips have been shared..so check them out.

Some other great bloggers who have been sharing their journey Rainbowtatt, Liz and Jarrod, Little Lioness and Beautiful you by Julie

You can follow some of the fabulous posts by other bloggers with the #febusave hash tag on twitter.

And don’t forget, if you have registered for febusave,  at the end of February simply complete the online entry form at the Febusave site and answer “what was your secret to achieving your FebuSave goal?” in 50 words or less and you could win $5000!

So to those of you who have taken part, how did you do? How much have you saved, have you formed new long lasting habits that will see you saving for months to come?