BLACK FRIDAY 2014

Thrive Life (formerly Shelf Reliance) has released their Black Friday deals for 2014!!!

All THRIVE products are discounted, so you can save up to 50% on convenient, delicious THRIVE foods, as well as select Food Rotation Systems and emergency supplies! Take a look at our great Black Friday deals below; the shown sale pricing will become active for all customers at 12:01 am MST Nov. 28 and will be available until 11:59 pm MST Dec. 1. Products are available while supplies last only, so order now to stock your Home Store at the best prices all year! 

While the Black Friday flyer  below highlights some of the better deals, please note that ALL Thrive Items are on sale. Woohoo! To view all available products and their Black Friday Prices, please visit my Black Friday Picker page.  You can even place what you want in your cart before the sale begins, then simply refresh you cart after the sale begins (12:01am MST Nov 28th) and check out quickly, taking advantage of the best deals we offer all year.

If you will be unable to order on-line during the sale, you can always contact me ahead of time with your order info and I will place your order for you when pricing becomes active. And of course, you can contact me during the sale as well for any questions you have or help placing your order you might need. Just email me at ThriveWithHemsath@gmail.com and I'll take good care of you!

If the above hyperlinks do not work for you, please copy and paste the links below into your browser.

Black Friday Flyer: http://www.whitneyhemsath.thrivelife.com/files/materials/price-lists/Flyer:-Black-Friday-Weekend-Sale-(US-Contiguous).pdf

Picker Page: www.WhitneyHemsath.thrivelife.com/blackfriday

Gluten Free Update!!!

I know. I know. It's been almost 7 months since last I blogged.  I am still an active consultant placing orders for people and keeping up to date on the latest news, and I am still actively using THRIVE foods on a regular basis in our kitchen. Recently, I've made THRIVE Pear and apple oatmeal for breakfast (using up the powders and left over little bits at the bottom of the cans) that my sons absolutely devoured. I've also made Mac and Cheese quite a few times. I've even added some THRIVE Cheese blend powder to some Bisquick biscuits for a cheddary carb-lovin' side dish. I've added THRIVE Green Chili Peppers to some turkey meat loaf, and I am steadily working through my can of THRIVE Whole Powdered Eggs with various baking projects (saving my fresh eggs for when I want a good fried egg sandwich). I've used my THRIVE Spinach in my noquis and lasagna, and my THRIVE Onions and THRIVE Celery get tossed into too many dinners for me to keep track of. (I hate chopping onions!) So what has kept me from being an active blogger, sharing these recipes and experiences with you? Well, besides being the mother of two very active boys (who have both had birthday parties), I have become pregnant with boy #3 (due June 30th). Add to that a car accident, the typical hectic-ness of the holidays, a month of having someone constantly sick at the beginning of the year, and a recently completed spring break vacation, and, well, I think you get the picture. Finding time just to cook is a blessing (made possible by THRIVE!) but finding time to write about that cooking has just not been happening.

All that being said, I want to start getting back into this blog, and keeping you posted. The latest happenings with Shelf Reliance are too exciting  to not post about, so it's the jump start I need. I'll just get straight to the point: Shelf Reliance has officially released their line of certified Gluten-Free Foods!!!

For those of you who don't know, gluten is a substance found in wheat and related cereal grains. It is responsible for giving dough its elasticity, among other functions. An increasing number of people are discovering (whether through personal experimentation, or actual clinical diagnosis) that they suffer from some form of gluten sensitivity, meaning that when they eat a diet containing gluten, they have digestive and other health issues, including the body's inability to properly absorb nutrients, which in turns leads to a myriad of other health complications. The level of intolerance in individuals range from a mild sensitivity to full-blown Celiac's disease.

For some, eating foods that are naturally gluten-free (fruits, vegetables, meats, etc) is sufficient. But for many others, cross-contamination becomes an issue. For example, even if a food doesn't contain anything that has gluten in it, but was processed or packaged in a facility that also processes gluten-containing foods, small particulates and residue from the gluten-containing food can contaminate the otherwise gluten-free items, thus rendering them unsuitable for consumption by those which higher sensitivities. This makes it really hard for families who want to build up a home store of shelf-stable foods but have to ensure gluten-free processing for their foods.

Aware of this growing need in the market, Shelf Reliance has undertaken the task of creating a separate packaging area and having their products certified for true gluten free status... all at no extra cost to their gluten-intolerant customers. Below is Shelf Reliance's official FAQ info, as well as a list of all the THRIVE foods currently certified as Gluten Free (there are almost 100 of them!) I have also added a link to all this Gluten Free info to the "Links to Help You Thrive" side bar for future easy reference.

If you would like to place an order for any of your THRIVE Gluten-Free foods, just visit www.WhitneyHemsath.ShelfReliance.com and shop from the convenience of your own home, or contact me at ThriveWithHemsath@gmail.com for help in placing your order or answering any questions you might have.

Gluten-Free FAQs

1. What is the difference between naturally gluten-free and certified gluten-free?

A product that is certified gluten-free is packaged under gluten-free conditions, meaning that the room and machinery it is packaged with are exclusively used for gluten-free products and are tested regularly to ensure that they are gluten-free. The product is also tested for gluten after packaging. Some of our products are naturally gluten-free, but we will not certify them as such if we do not do the gluten-free testing ourselves or cannot verify that the supplier’s manufacturing procedures are gluten-free.

2. What does gluten-free certification entail?

We are certified gluten by the Gluten Intolerance Group. In order to be certified by them, we sign an annual contract that allows them to inspect our facilities and review our testing records and cleaning procedures.

3. Is there a price difference between certified gluten-free products and other products?

Our certified gluten-free products are no more expensive than the other products we offer. We have taken on the gluten-free certification process as one of our daily quality control processes to ensure the high standard of THRIVE foods. We are excited to provide certified gluten-free products at no additional charge.

4. Are all packaging options certified gluten-free?

Because of the considerable cost and effort involved with certification, our pouches are not certified gluten-free at this time. However, all other packaging options—#10 cans, pantry cans, and buckets—are certified gluten-free.

THRIVE foods currently certified as Gluten-Free

Fruits

Apple Sauce

Apples, Fuji (FD)

Apples, Granny Smith (FD)

Apricots (FD)

Banana Slices (FD)

Blackberries (FD)

Blueberries (FD)

Cherries, Sweet (FD)

Grapes, Red Seedless (FD)

Mangoes (FD)

Peach Slices (FD)

Pears (FD)

Pineapple Chunks (FD)

Raspberries (FD)

Raspberries, Organic (FD)

Strawberries, Sliced (FD)

Strawberries, Whole (FD)

Vegetables

Asparagus (FD)

Broccoli (FD)

Carrot Dices

Cauliflower (FD)

Celery (FD)

Corn, Sweet (FD)

Green Beans (FD)

Mushroom Pieces (FD)

Onions, Chopped

Onions, Chopped (FD)

Onions, Green (FD)

Peas, Split Green

Peas, Green (FD)

Peas, Green Organic (FD)

Peppers, Green Bell (FD)

Peppers, Green Chili (FD)

Peppers, Red Bell (FD)

Peppers, Mixed Bell

Potato Beads

Potato Chunks

Potato Dices (FD)

Spinach (FD)

Tomato Dices (FD)

Tomato Powder

Zucchini (FD)

Grains

Amaranth

Amaranth, Organic

Cornmeal

Millet

Quinoa

Quinoa, Organic

Rice Flour

Rice, Instant Brown

Rice, Instant

Rice, White

Dairy

Cheese Blend

Cheese, Cheddar (FD)

Cheese, Colby (FD)

Cheese, Monterey Jack (FD)

Cheese, Mozzarella (FD)

Milk, Instant

Milk, Powdered

Sour Cream Powder

Yogurt, Blueberry (FD)

Yogurt, Passionfruit (FD)

Yogurt, Pomegranate (FD)

Yogurt, Cherry (FD)

Yogurt, Strawberry (FD)

Yogurt, Vanilla (FD)

Meat & Beans

Beans, Black

Beans, Instant Black

Beans, Kidney

Beans, Lima

Beans, Pinto

Beans, Small Red

Beans, Small White Navy

Eggs, Scrambled Mix

Egg, Whites

Lentils

TVP, Bacon

TVP, Chicken

TVP, Taco

Basics

Baking Powder

Baking Soda

Bouillon, Beef

Bouillon, Chicken

Butter Powder

Honey Crystals

Salt, Iodized

Shortening Powder

Sugar, Brown

Sugar, Powdered

Sugar, White

Drinks

Fruit Punch Performance

Orange Bliss

Orchard Apple

Simply Peach

Melon Berry Burst

Mango Passion

Desserts

Ice Cream, Chocolate Bars (FD)

Ice Cream, Neapolitan Bits (FD)

How to never rotate your water barrels again and prevent panic during an e coli scare

As a reminder, the THRIVE Live broadcast is today with Chef Todd, teaching us how to make those great Dutch  Oven recipes using THRIVE foods on sale this August. If you can't watch it live at the warehouse in American Fork, be sure to check out the YouTube channel tomorrow to catch the footage. And it's still not too late to take advantage of those August Sale Prices. Just contact me to place your order.

With the business side of things over, let's talk scandal, shall we?  In my neighborhood, we have one option for a water provider, and that's Johnson Utilities. They released a notice today saying that they tested positive for E.Coli in our water back on August 16th. Apparently it takes 48 hours to get the results, and then they did re-test to be sure, but by the 21st, they still found one sample that tested positive, so now on the 22nd they are advising us all to boil our water or use bottled water, for everything from drinking to cooking to washing hands, making ice, brushing teeth, etc. Interestingly enough, information started leaking out some time yesterday evening before the official statement came out this morning.  By 8pm the night BEFORE the official release, here's what the water aisle at our local grocery store shelves looked like:

Emergency Fact: By the time you know there is an emergency, it is too late to prepare. 

I went to the store this morning, knowing I would find the shelves like this. Thankfully, I didn't need to buy any bottled water, because I was already prepared. This summer, it was time for me to rotate the water supply in our big storage barrels. Experts advise rotating that water every 6-12 months.  But I am lazy, and the idea of moving everything else so I could access them, then draining those massively heavy barrels without being able to move them (they weigh 450+ lbs), trying to find a way not to waste the water, cleaning them out, borrowing a potable water grade hose to refill them, etc, was a bit overwhelming for me. Especially knowing I would have to go through that process every 6-12 months. So instead, I invested in some high quality water filters from Shelf Reliance. Now whenever I need to use my emergency water, I don't have to worry about it possibly developing any bacteria or becoming contaminated while in storage. And I don't have  to worry about ever rotating my water barrels again... or about drinking E.coli infested water from my utilities company.

The filters I chose are the advanced Seychelle water filters. They use an ionic adsorption micron filter system that will rid your water supply of 95-99.99% of unwanted taste, minerals, bacteria, pesticides, viruses, cysts, and even radiation! Here's a list of some of what it cleans out: Chlorine, Aluminum, Cadmium, Copper, Lead, Mercury, Chloroform,  Radon 222, VOC, DDT, E. Coli, Salmonella, Streptococcus, Staphylococcus, Dhigella dysentariae, Poliovirus, Cryptosporidium, Giardia, and more.

To see the Seychelle advanced filter in action, check out this video on Youtube: 

The Seychelle advanced filter comes in a variety of different filtering containers. Here are a few of my favorites, along with their prices. Pick out the ones you are interested in, and then contact me to place your order and buy yourself peace of mind that your family will have clean drinking water should any sort of emergency happen, and to know that you never have to rotate your water barrels again!

Seychelle Water Filtration Pump 

Cost: $29.49  Filtering Capacity: 100 gallons   

Cost per gallon: $0.29

The Pure Water Pump is ideal for pumping filtered water from any reservoir - 2 1/2 gallon to 5 gallon bottles, 20 to 50 gallon drums, a tub, storage tank, pond, pool, river, lake or virtually any type of container!

It's great for every day use; camping, travel or emergency use. It breaks down into two separate easy-to-carry components that fit into any backpack. The pumping system is powerful - delivering 60 PSI at point of contact.

Seychelle Water Filtration Bottle - 24oz 

Cost: $29.69  Filtering Capacity: 100 gallons   

Cost per gallon: $0.30

Designed for travel, camping, and active lifestyles, this bottle comes with its own handy tote for attaching to other bags or luggage. A water filtration bottle is essential for emergencies, earthquakes, floods, fires and other catastrophes. 

Seychelle Advanced Replacement Filter 

Cost: $11.99  Filtering Capacity: 100 gallons   

Cost per gallon: $0.12

This replacement filter will work for the above water pump and the water bottle.

Seychelle Water Filtration Bag 

Cost: $29.49   Filtering Capacity: 100 gallons    

Cost per gallon: $0.29

The Seychelle Water Bag is the perfect product when you need a continuous supply of water. It holds up to 2 gallons of water and makes great-tasting drinking water. The Water Bag comes complete with a handy carrying case with a strap, which you can hang from a tree, car door or simply hold conveniently in your hand.  

Seychelle Water Filtration Straw

Cost: $14.84  Filtering Capacity: 25 gallons

   Cost per gallon: $0.59

If you are looking for something more compact and light weight, the straw will be ideal for you. It easily fits in your purse, pocket, backpack, luggage, or car for emergency preparedness. It is the perfect stocking stuffer for the campers in your life, and an ideal 72 hour kit accessory. Key Features:

• Up to 25-gallon filter life.
• Now with BIOSAFE®, removes up to 99.99% of bacteria, virus, contaminants and pollutants found in drinking water including Giardia, Cryptosporidium, and E-Coli Bacteria.
• Proven effective against bacteria and virus to six logs reduction (99.9999%).
• Waterproof carrying case.
• Ideal for everyday use and disaster preparedness.
• Ultra light and compact.
• Non-toxic BPA free materials.
• Tested by Independent laboratories using EPA /ANSI protocols and NSF Standards 42 and 53.
• Costs less than bottled water.

Contact me today to order 

all your water storage and filtration needs. 

Whitney Hemsath

ThriveWithHemsath@gmail.com

714-683-7562

Cooking Demo Videos and August Sales

Wow. It's been over a month. Sorry for the long break. Congrats to everyone who took advantage of the July Sales and hosting benefits -- a few of you got some great food storage packages for half off!  If you  missed out on those deals and promotions, don't worry. There's some great deals this August for you as well.

For those of you who have food storage, but don't know what to do with it, did you know that Shelf Reliance has a YouTube channel with monthly cooking demos? Their resident professional chef, Todd Leonard, hosts a monthly cooking demo, using the THRIVE ingredients on sale that month. If you live in the vicinity of American Fork, UT, and you want to be part of the live audience, just let me know. I'll get you all the details. Otherwise, you can watch it on-line like me. These shows are called "THRIVE LIVE" and they're pretty fun.  And you can see all the recipes for what Chef Todd makes by clicking on the link at the bottom of the video.

In July, the monthly theme was breakfast foods, and Chef Todd made egg white scrambles, smoothies, german pancakes, and spiced apple oatmeal. To see the video of July's THRIVE LIVE, click here.

This month, all the monthly specials are part of Chef Todd's "Dutch Oven" theme, though you can make them in a large sauce pan or skillet as well. The August THRIVE LIVE is happening on August 22nd and will be posted on YouTube shortly thereafter. The recipes he will be showing are:

• Skillet Potatoes
• Beef Stew
• Chicken and Rice
• Cowboy Beans
• Peach Cobbler

As always, if you want to order any of the THRIVE foods or other emergency preparedness items, just contact me. I can get you a better price than Costco, or even than the Shelf Reliance Website. And just this week I made homemade sun-dried tomato alfredo sauce using tomatoes I dehydrated myself in the sun oven, so I promise to get a post up about sun oven dehydration for those interested. Until then, keep thriving!

Host with the Most - Get an extra $500 in half off product this July!

Awesome news everyone!  Shelf Reliance is offering a special deal this July that is truly incredible. For anyone who hosts a party in July, and has at least $100 in sales, in addition to the regular host benefits, you will also get to pick out one extra product, up to $500 in retail price, and you will get that item half off. So that is an extra savings of up to $250. Here are the official rules for redeeming this incentive:

1. This incentive may only be redeemed once (per host) and is valid for one product only—hosts may not combine products to reach the $500 retail value. 
2. The party must be held in July and must record $100 sales to be eligible
3. This incentive is in addition to the usual host benefits
4. A special host benefit order form must be submitted to Shelf Reliance by August 7th. It may take up to 2-3 weeks to process your order. 

There are two ways to host a party. 

1. You can have an in-home party, where your friends come to your home. I bring food for everyone to sample and we talk about the products together. I would love to do that for your and your friends - you just need to contact me to schedule your party and we have to make it happen during July. Available dates are limited, so it this is what you want, please contact me right away. 
2. You can also host an on-line party, or catalog party.  You email links to the catalog and the price lists to all of your friends and family. You leave a catalog and order forms in the break room at work. You collect orders (or give me their contact info and I will collect the orders for you) and voila! You get the same host benefits, but without having to worry about vacation schedules or cleaning up your house. This is the perfect option for people who live too far away for me to come do a party, or for people who are just too busy to throw a party together. If you want to host an on-line party, just contact me so I can get you all the necessary links and work out the details with you. 

If you have at least $100 of things you would like to order, you already have your sales quota met to qualify. You might as well host a party and see if you can collect a few extra orders. With things like our awesome Instant Milk and our Powdered Eggs on sale for July, the products will basically sell themselves. And the regular host benefits are awesome. In addition to the July promo of $500 in half off,   every hosts already gets 10% of their sales totals in free product, and every  $400 in sales earns $50 in half off product as well.  Also, if anyone books a party from your party, you get another $100 in half off. So there is A LOT of great benefits. If you want to really invest in your family's preparedness, there has NEVER been a better time. 

So what product would you get with your benefits? Perhaps a Sun Oven? Retail price $329.99.  Your host price would be $164.99.  Or maybe a Standard 6 month supply of Freeze Dried Fruits? Retail price $486.99. Your host price: $243.49. Or perhaps you want the Power Center 200 - a portable silent generator that can be recharged in your wall outlet, via solar panel, or even by hand crank? Retail price $499.99. Your host price: $249.99

Hurry and contact me right away to book your in-home or on-line party right away. If you have hosted a party in the past, you are definitely allowed to host another one this month to take advantage of this great offer!

Instant Milk and Eggs on sale.. and so much more this July

Hello! I hope you are all enjoying your summer as much as I am. As July approaches, I wanted to let you all know of the specials for July. Beginning July 2nd, the following items will be on sale. Prices listed are the sale price for a #10 can.

10 Grain Pancake Mix: $9.79

FD Banana Slices: $23.09

FD Blueberries: #36.69

Instant Milk: $17.39

Egg Whites: $24.79

Scrambled Egg Mix: $33.59

Whole Eggs: $18.39

FD Sausage Crumbles: $35.09

THRIVE Express 5 packs on sale:

Baked Potato Cheese Soup: $27.59

Creamy Garden Vegetable Chowder: $27.59 

Southwestern style Chicken and Rice: $31.89

To see pictures of the sales items, click this link: http://www.shelfreliance.com/files/materials/price-lists/Flyer:-July-Monthly-Specials-.pdf

My very favorite THRIVE food item is our Instant Milk. I, too, used to turn my nose up at the idea of powdered milk. But when I tried the Instant milk from THRIVE, I finally put cold cereal back on our food storage menu. THRIVE's Instant Milk is fat free, made from 100% real dairy and as such, it tastes, and cooks, like real milk. I have made ice cream, buttermilk, whipped topping, soups, sauces, ricotta cheese and so much more with my Instant Milk. I have friends who make their own yogurt with it. This versatile item is something no home pantry should be without. It lasts unopened in the can for up to 25 years, and once you open it, it still lasts up to 2 years. 

Homemade vanilla ice cream made with THRIVE Instant Milk

The other item I think every pantry should have are THRIVE Whole Eggs. I use them in making cakes, cookies, quiche, ham fried rice, breakfast scrambles, meatloaf, and so much more. They work just like regular eggs, and a #10 can will reconstitute into 18 dozen eggs. No taking up space in your fridge, no missing out on that batch of brownies because you ran out of eggs and can't make it to the store. 

Mini Quiche bites made with THRIVE Whole Egg Powder

To order your Instant Milk, Whole Egg Powder, and anything else THRIVE offers, just contact me. You can reach me at 714-683-7562 or ThriveWithHemsath@gmail.com. And as always, if you have any food storage questions, please don't hesitate to ask. I am here to help!

Your Shelf Reliance Personal Consultant, 

Whitney Hemsath

Chili Lime Chicken Rice and THRIVE Express

Hey folks.  Missed me? To kick off the summer, my husband (a high school teacher) spent two weeks at various scout camps, and I struggled to play the single mom role. Now that he's finally home, we have already done some major landscaping, made curtains, and painted a few rooms. Amid the busy schedule of summer, I have taken a much slower pace with my THRIVE blogging, but that's not to say THRIVE isn't still an active part of our lifestyle. In fact, the busier I am, the more THRIVE I tend to use because it is so quick and convenient, while still being healthy.  

With the Arizona heat, I have still been using my sun oven a lot, but I'm going to take a small break from blogging about the Sun Oven to let you know about an important part of THRIVE I haven't mentioned before. And that is THRIVE Express.

THRIVE Express is a line of entrees and sides that Shelf Reliance released this spring. They come in high quality Mylar pouches, which you can buy individually, or in a 5 pack box, and there's even a variety pack with one of each of the twelve different flavors.  They are loaded with plenty of THRIVE Freeze-dried meats and veggies.  The whole meal is in there; you just need to add water. They are guaranteed to last at least 5 years, and will probably last closer to 10, but for sure, Shelf Reliance says 5 years.  My favorite part, however, is how FAST they are to make.

This week, we had been busy painting and by the time we needed to eat, I hadn't prepared anything. I thought it would be as good a time as any to try out the "Chili Lime Chicken Rice" THRIVE Express pouch I had. So I opened the pouch and here's what I saw inside.

Actual freeze dried white meat chicken, freeze dried bell peppers, green chilies, corn, spices, and two kinds of rice. I boiled 1 2/3 cups water, dumped in the pouch, let it simmer for 7 minutes, rest for 3 more minutes, and then we were eating. TEN MINUTES, and my husband and I both had a full cup of a complete meal, which doesn't sound like much, especially to someone like me who always eats more than I should, but even so, I was definitely satisfied afterwards. (Note: the Chili Lime is a express side dish, which makes four 1/2 cup servings, but we ate it like an entree between the two of us. The Express entrees made four full cup servings.)  And the taste? Excellent! Dustin was skeptical about the chili lime flavor, but he kept commenting while eating that he was actually really enjoying it. I also really enjoyed it.

The alternative would have been to run out for fast food, which would have wound up costing about the same if not more, wasting gas, and having way more fat and calories than we needed. I love knowing I have some more pouches of my chili lime chicken rice on hand for those pressed-for-time nights, and I have some of the creamy beef and noodles coming in my Q this month which I'm very excited about.

I have a great page with THRIVE Express FAQs, videos, and more that you can find at: http://whitneyhemsath.shelfreliance.com/parties/index/cms/id/thrive_express.

Along with Tomato Powder, FD Zucchini, FD Green Chilies, FD Red or Green Bell Peppers, FD Raspberries, Carrots, Onions, Pasta and Beans, also on sale for June are the following THRIVE Express flavors: Chile Lime Chicken Rice, The Creamy Beef and Noodles, and the Loaded Scalloped Potatoes.  The above website show pictures and sale prices for those THRIVE Express items. If you have any questions about THRIVE Express or any of the June specials, or to order some for your pantry, just contact me. Here's to productive summers and quick healthy dinners. Here's to THRIVE Express!