Looks Good in Polka Dots

Evidently, worms can eat their way through your household food waste… leaving behind fabulous fertilizer for next Springs garden. I have a feeling my munchkins will find this delightfully entertaining. Wonder Time magazine has a lovely article on worm composting in the May 2008 issue. (Probably one of the only good articles between the front and back cover.)

We just may tackle this… though where to keep the squiggly critters, I have no clue. Check out Worms Eat My Garbage by Mary Appelhof.

Today’s Green Tip- Compost your garbage… and if you have a kiddo in diapers check out gDiapers… they rock (and are flushable if dirty, wet ones go in the compost pile).

Analyzing our grocery outing today and man, gluten free foods are pricey!

K3 is getting low on staple foods, ie… cereal, bread and prepared snacks. So, a trip to the market was in order. I have two options, 1- head to Whole Foods (my first choice) which is a 45 minute drive each way or 2- head to the natural food section at the local grocery which is only 25 minutes round trip. Since I was low on time before the bus arrived with K1 and K2, I opted for choice 2.

How it all breaks down… a stop at the local coffee shop on the way out of town for 2 child size soy milk cocoas and one giant sized blended tasty for Mum. Add $8.00 with tip.

Driving the truck for our 20 mile round trip run to the grocery, using about two gallons of gas. Add $8.00.

Forgetting that my reusuable shopping bags are in the Prius which Oregon Dad drove to work today. Add $4 for more bags.

$20.00 spent before getting any groceries! Eeeeeek.

Oh, yes and just a quick rant about children’s medicine. I do not like dyes and artificial flavorings and all children’s medicine is loaded with it! Anyone care to discuss why I should give my ADHD inclined child medicine full of red dye which is shown to affect behavior? I made K3 learn to swallow pills at age 5 to avoid all that gunk! However, Little Critter is only 3 and hasn’t mastered that art just yet (plus dosing is trickier with a kid that young!) She has been running a fever and is showing signs that she too has an ear infection. I ALWAYS wait at least 3 days before heading to the Doctor… however we do rely on Ibuprofen for the pain in the meantime. The grocery didn’t carry dye free Ibuprofen suspension… in this case I would have sprung for the $2.00 price difference to get the Motrin brand suspension, but alas, there wasn’t a dye free variety available there either. I ended up with the bubblegum flavor generic for $3.59.

Back at home, I put away the groceries and prepared boxes for our craft projects. We will be making cereal box (and any other box) wallets (see www.replayground.com). The kids are excited. Stay posted.

Today’s Green Tip- Change your lightbulbs to compact fluorescents. This will shave up to 66% off your lighting related energy costs and if you catch a great deal like I did (.99 each at Lowes) It won’t cost much to get started. Just please, oh please, don’t buy them at Wal-mart.

K3 is slowly recovering (fingers crossed) from her bout with pneumonia and ear infections… however, Little Critter is getting punkier by the minute. Depending on how tonight goes we may be headed back to the Doctor. I swear we have been nearly living there since January.

This evening Little Critter woke up from her second nap… this one of her own choosing. (A sure sign she is under the weather.) In a vain attempt to avoid another dosing of Tylenol, I was snuggling her in my lap. She was a mess and spent a good hour crying… real tears and all. Finally, she stopped for a minute and said, “Oh, Mommy… The kryaing worked, my ear stopped huuuurting.” I almost laughed.

Todays Green Tip- Make your kids Eco-Conscious: education is the key to protecting our Earth and children love to share what they know. While you are at it, check out this fun Eco-Friendly kids music- Ladybug One. You’ll love it as much as they do. For some fun craft projects visit: RePlayGround. Guess I won’t have to spend so much on Summer craft projects!

This morning dawned bright, sunny and kid free. Oregon Dad and I decided we needed to find a fun adventure for the afternoon. I checked movie listings, suggested ice skating or visiting the Pioneer Mall. Nothing struck us as how we wanted to spend this rare afternoon. I typed “Things to do in Portland” into Google, and hoped for a bright idea. Nada.

Then, in a moment of whimsy, I suggested we head downtown. We created our own “walking tour”.

Our first stop was at Voodoo Donuts. Can I just say, YUM! We enjoyed our tasty donuts on the sidewalk with a myriad of other donut consumers and a couple of homeless men with their dogs and cardboard signs stating, “my dogs so lazy he can’t hold a job”. Bonus points for a new sign, I almost gave them a couple bucks… but I had no cash on me and I doubt they had a credit card machine handy.

After licking our fingers clean, we meandered a couple of blocks East to the Saturday Market. Anyone who wants to see Portland’s culture should visit the Saturday market. It is the one place where you can see more colors of hair than in any other spot. Oh, and it is my belief that many of the vendors and visitors take saving water to heart, judging by their lingering odor and unwashed dreads. The stalls contained everything from hand carved, wooden toys to tye dyed clothing, hand-made soap and candles. I spotted no less than five stands offering some sort of caricature.. Evidently, the thing to do when visiting the Saturday market is to bring your four legged friend along. Good thing then that there are several stands hawking natural doggy treats. We were particularly interested in the sweet potato doggy treats and have vowed that when our new Saint Bernard Puppy joins our family we will bring him plenty of these natural treats. During our stay, I was only tempted to purchase one item, a bubblegum scented candle from Cooper Candles. We avoided the street vendors hawking every ethnic food imaginable and continued South along the waterfront, looking at the river, bridges and boats.

After we strolled along the waterfront and enjoyed the fresh air and beautiful view, we headed toward the DUCK STORE. Have I mentioned that Oregon Dad is a Duck and I am a Beaver? Um… yeah. But that’s another story. While in the Duck Store, I was in dire need of a potty and Oregon Dad was enraptured by a new golf inspired polo shirt. We left the store unscathed as we will not pay $45 for a Nike shirt that Oregon Dad can get for half price. Nuff said.

As we walked out of the store, we debated where to go for our late lunch. Would it be Kells Irish Pub or Rock Bottom Brewery? Rock Bottom won out as I still hadn’t found a bathroom and it was across the street while the pub was several blocks North. A few minutes later found us relaxing at a high table against the window where we could watch the melting pot of personalities found in Portland. Rock Bottom holds wonderful memories for me of my carefree days, when my best girlfriend and I used to meet up with our other young friends to enjoy food and drink before heading out for a night of dancing. Today I enjoyed a burger with three kinds of mushrooms, cheddar and spicy stout ketchup while Oregon Dad had Shrimp Jambalaya with red ale rice.

Once our bellies were full and our thirst quenched, we wound our way back toward the car parked several blocks away.

Oh… and I cannot forget the real reason we love Portland. At the beginning of our downtown venture, we drove around the block a few times without finding a parking spot. We were about to give up and pull into a pay lot, when a fellow Portlander walked across the street and said to our open window, “looking for a place to park? Green Jeep…” Woohoo, there was our free parking spot! Where else in the world do you find such wonderfully friendly people?

Today’s Green Tip- Buy Local: locate a local farmers market for produce and visit the little guy coffee shop instead of the corporate giant. It’s easy to make these changes. You may pay a bit more for a donut at Voodoo Donuts but you’re supporting a local business.

On a positive note, Mommy here is feeling much better.  Not 100% but I’ll say at least 75% of norm.  This is a good thing.  And yet, we were back at the Doctors office on a Saturday morning. A big Thank you to all those who have sent me loving emails and offers to keep the children if we weren’t separated by hundreds of miles!

During Ballet class yesterday afternoon, I noticed that K3 just wasn’t with it.  She didn’t dance or do much of anything.  Normally she is at least monkeying around during class.  By the time her class was over and K2 was starting, I noticed rosy cheeks and yep… the fever was back.  I decided it was time to visit the Doctor.  Evidently, K3 has developed pneumonia and a double ear infection.  Woot!

Needless to say the sickie kidlets will not be going to church with us here in a few minutes… TeenGirl is going to have to stay behind with them.  I can’t stomach the thought of them spewing virus laden droplets all over their respective classes.  Mommy must attend since I have hospitality duties.  (Is this a reprieve or just a chance for me to feel guilty for leaving the sick kids home without me?)

Green Tip of the Day- Use less water: wash only full loads of laundry and dishes, use the cold was cycle, turn off the extra rinse cycle and heated dry cycles.  Shorten your showers (or better yet, share them!).  This is a no-brainer, but one we often fall off the bandwagon with!

Many of ya’ll have inquired as to why I didn’t post yesterday… afterall, I did promise a Green Tip each and every day. Well, Let me just tell ya…

I have been experiencing some crazy chest and arm pain since Monday morning. My very first thought when the pain started was… HEART ATTACK. So, I took a couple aspirin. The pain continued and increased with deep breaths and certain positions. Cardiac pain doesn’t usually linger like that. Tuesday I called the Doctor, things appeared to improve for a while then overnight became unbearable. Finally around 2 on Wednesday I decided to head into the urgent care at my clinic. They don’t like to deal with any kind of chest pain… I wasn’t even actually checked in… they whisked me to a large back room and hooked me up to monitors and oxygen and waited for an ambulance. The Doctor at urgent care was worried about pulmonary embolism (PE) which could be deadly. I was convinced it was just a severe case of pleurisy which is why I had put off going in. I hate having IV’s… I have had more than my fair share during my child birthing years due to severe illness while pregnant. Getting one by a trainee medic in the back of a moving ambulance, yeah… not so fun. She couldn’t get it in… but that didn’t surprise me, as I’m not easy to start. The experienced guy took over and he still couldn’t get it in that arm… so he had to switch and managed to get it in on the first try in my other arm.

It was interesting how quickly things move in the ER when you are having chest pain… I had tests and results faster than ever before. Within a couple hours they decided it wasn’t likely that I had a PE and it probably was pleurisy (duh). We didn’t do a CT scan to completely rule out a PE as the ER Doctor felt I was low risk and he did a blood test which would indicate a higher possibility. My chest x-ray only showed an elevated diaphragm… and since I can’t take deep breaths that is easily explained and my EKG was normal.

Lucky me, I am back home taking mega doses of Motrin to help with the inflammation and pain… things should start getting better within a couple of days, although I haven’t seen any improvement yet.

I felt so ridiculous going into the Doctor for what I figured was pleurisy and knowing darn good and well that they would send me to the ER. I was in pain like I have never experienced before, by the time I was ready to leave my house, I felt like I needed to lay down again. The car drive about did me in… I had to drive myself as hubby is still in China and TeenGirl doesn’t have her permit yet. There were several times I realized I was driving 20 mph in a 55 zone. By the time I reached the Doctors office, the pain was so intense I could barely talk. I am relieved that this wasn’t something serious and am irritated by the huge bills we will be receiving for this little outing. I felt foolish being transported by ambulance to the ER… but the Doctors didn’t want me to drive and I know that driving at all with the pain I was in wasn’t a good idea. Part of me kept thinking I should have just gone straight to the ER, but then my insurance might not have covered the whole ordeal.

In other news, Little Critter and K3 are both running fevers of 102F with tummy aches and more whine than I have patience for. I will be praying for patience to get us all through this. Oh… and I’ll be driving to the airport tomorrow to bring hubby home. Let’s hope the pain has significantly decreased by then.

Today’s Green Tip- Get reusuable containers for water, coffee and juice for each person in your household. This will save lots of paper cups and plastic bottles. Many coffee shops will give you credit for bringing in your own mug. Looking for the perfect reusuable cup for the kids? Check out the Klean Kanteen. It rocks!

Happy Earth Day… Here’s to many more! (So, I’m a few hours early, shoot me!)

As our society is becoming progressively greener by the day, largely due to mass media and advertising of major corporations, we are all seeking ways to become a little greener. However, we must keep a keen eye on what really is green and what may be green washed to mislead the average consumer.
What is greenwashing? It is the act of misleading consumers about the earth friendliness of a product or corporation. We are seeing this pop up everywhere, from Wal-mart adds about changing a light bulb to McD’s ads which are full of a kaleidoscope of fresh fruits and veggies to the side bar ad on the Clorox site proclaiming “Essential for a Healthier Home” and “Miracle in a Bottle”. Seriously? Anyone care to discuss Clorox’s policy on animal testing or the environmental impacts of chlorine bleach…. And what about the little fact that chlorine bleach can create chloramine gas and chlorine gas when used in everyday household applications, both of which are poison? This kind of advertising is misleading. The focus is on what the corporation is doing to appear more environmentally conscious or on a specific product that is better for our planet. It simply masks all the other happenings that are less than earth friendly.
How do you know what is really earth friendly and what has been greenwashed? Watch for wording in advertising and on labels. Simply labeling the bottle as Earth Friendly isn’t enough. Look for words like Non-Toxic, Biodegradable, No Animal Testing (Not “This Finished Product Not Tested On Animals as Bath and Body Works proclaims, what does that tell us anyway?). Remember to purchase products in packaging that can be recycled in your area. Check www.GreenSeal.org for a list of green seal certified product list and do your research.
We need to focus on less overall consumerism versus MORE earth friendly consumerism. The act of consuming is not earth-friendly. The mass marketing out there wants us to buy more, use more, and do more. In reality, more isn’t better. Yes, everyone should switch their light bulbs to compact fluorescents and save up to two thirds of their lighting related energy consumption… does that mean purchasing those light bulbs from Wal-mart is the best choice? Part of being green includes awareness and education. If I spend my money at XYZ store, what impact does that have on our society and our planet? This is when we start looking for local stores to purchase our items from. This is when we start becoming aware of Fair Trade and how everyday sugar, coffee and chocolate reach our kitchens. This is when we finally get what being green means.
Education is the only thing that will save us from greenwashing. If we do not know what to look for and how to look beyond a corporations claim of being “Environmentally Friendly”, how will we learn to really help our planet? Some people may question, why does it matter? Think about it, if you are prompted to shop at a huge supermarket because of its “Green” advertising, you will be buying a lot more than those light bulbs you went in for. Every dollar that you spend in that store will be making a few people much richer at the expense of making many others disgracefully poor. That’s not green, nor is it ethically correct.

Today’s Green Tip- Cancel your catalogs and junk mail, call 1(888)5-OptOut. Donate your already read and no longer needed magazines to Shelters, Human Service offices, Medical Clinics, etc…

Today’s Green Tip- Use the sunshine as a natural heating/cooling/lighting system in your home. That is, open your blinds to allow light in. When its hot outside, keep the shades drawn on sun-facing windows to reduce heat and on cold days keep those blinds wide open to allow the sun to heat up your house. This works great in our Super Energy Efficient home, If the sun is shining on a warm day and we don’t lower the shades… it will quickly get too warm inside! The kids are getting much better about opening their blinds in the morning and not turning the lights on. They are on the East side of the house with a hill and trees, so the suns heat isn’t too much of an issue. Look into options like tubular skylights for dark closets, halls and bathrooms if your budget allows. This will provide awesome light at all times of the day without adding heat or the risk of fading your fabrics.

Mmmm. Look at that gluten free chocolate cake. Tasty. I used Bob’s Red Mill GF Cake Mix. While I was mixing the batter up, I had some concerns. There was a bean flour odor and the batter wasn’t yummy. Yes… I’ll admit it, I love to lick the bowl.

Once the cake baked, it was fabulous! It was moist and there wasn’t even a hint of bean flour taste or smell.

The frosting was home-made and while I don’t usually measure as I am making it… I did this time so I could give a general idea of how to make it.

Frosting:
1/2 C. Vanilla Soy Milk
4 C. Powdered Sugar
1 tsp. GF Vanilla
1/3 C. Earth Balance Margarine or Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese Spread

Soften butter and beat until smooth, slowly add milk alternating with powdered sugar until its all incorporated. Add Vanilla. Continue beating. The frosting should form soft peaks on the beater, if it doesn’t add a little more powder sugar, 1/8 cup at a time. If the frosting is too thick, add milk 1 tsp at a time until desired texture is reached. We really like this made with Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese! To make it chocolate, simply add 1/4-1/2 cup cocoa powder (depending on your taste).

Here is a finished picture of the fruit juice jello jigglers I posted about previously. They were tasty!

The kids all had a blast! Mummy is glad birthday week is finally over! Happy #6 Little Princess!

Those who know me well, also know that I am a greenie at heart.  Perhaps even a borderline hippy.  That said, I have so many opinions about being earth friendly.  Recently I have met a wonderful woman online, she owns and operates an earth savvy online store, The Earth Friendly Shoppe.  Fabulous!  Well, I was asked to do a little interview and now you can find my pithy (or not so pithy depending on the viewpoint) words featured on the Earth Mama Love page.  Go. Look. Read. Now.

On that note, I have decided to offer an earth friendly tip each day on my post.  That is my goal… hopefully someone will hold me to it!

Today’s advice- Instead of focusing on buying MORE earth friendly products, focus on buying less in general.  Today’s marketing wants us to all run to their store and buy, buy, buy all these “earth friendly” products. Reducing consumerism is really a great step toward becoming a more conscious society.  That doesn’t mean you should keep buying chemical laden cleaning products and preservative filled foods, just give a good hard look at what you do buy.  Find something(s) you can give up or reduce your purchase of.  We read of families who give up buying everything except necessities… if you want to give that a go, more the power to ya.  However, it doesn’t take extreme measures to make an impact.

What is with the controversy regarding polka dots on clothing?  Hmmmm?  It is perfectly acceptable for us to plaster our child’s room with brightly colored dots or to decorate scrap book pages and birthday cakes with them and yet, we so often turn up our noses when dots grace clothing.  Granted, some people just don’t look right in dots… but think about Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman… that cute, brown summer dress with white polka dots.  I think that’s when my love affair with polka dots began.  Go on… tell me she doesn’t look great in polka dots. 

My husband, like so many people isn’t fond of polka dots. So he has scoffed when I tried on a polka dot bathing suit. However, I think even he will agree that I would look great in these:

Yes indeed… these are a must have!

(Oh… and I saw a dress very similar to the one from Pretty Woman at the mall last week… I just may have to go back for it!)