Our Kids' Earth

On Hiatus...

2011-08-17T14:50:00.000-07:00

For any of you still following out there, you may have noticed there haven't been many blog posts this summer. I've noticed as well - and while I haven't been blogging, I have been thinking about it a lot! And all that thinking finally led me to a decision to take a break for a while.

I love what I've learned while writing this blog and so appreciate each and every one of you that followed Our Kids Earth and shared your questions and thoughts. It's been a great discussion and has challenged me to grow in my thinking and my actions. I am trying to focus more on my freelance writing and work on finishing a young adult novel I've been writing. Maybe I'll be back here again one day, but for now, I'll just say - go out and enjoy our great planet!

Open Your Eyes. Open Your Heart. Open Your Mind.

2011-08-01T23:41:00.000-07:00

I just saw this video from TedxSF and I thought it was a great reminder for all of us to keep our heart, mind, and eyes open to the world around us. The video is 10 minutes, but has some great photography, and inspiring thoughts from both a young girl and a wise, old man. Enjoy!

If you haven't checked out TED talks or heard of the conference, you should check it out. TED originally stood for Technology, Entertainment, and Design and was about bringing these different people together. Today it has evolved into something much bigger, but with a simple mission: to spread ideas.

My Summer Leaf!

2011-06-29T20:06:00.000-07:00

Yeah! My all-electric Nissan Leaf finally arrived!Eleven months after I made my reservation, I finally have my 100% electric car! I've been driving it for 2 days and here's what I've learned so far:

The gadgets are insanely cool, according to my children. 90 day free trial of XM satellite. GPS. Bluetooth. Rear-view backup camera.

Guys love it. My sons' swim coach wanted to sit in it, the parking attendant at the Mariners game was excited to see his first one, and my dad wanted to check under the hood.

It is virtually silent. I freaked someone out when I backed out next to someone in a parking lot and she didn't know it was on.

It seriously encourages good driving habits. Driving over 60 seems to be bad for battery life. There is this little "build a tree" video game-like console that shows you how efficiently you are driving. Very motivating since you know you only have 100 miles maximum that you can drive until you have to charge.

It's very fun to drive! After driving an SUV all these years, I'm happy to be back in something closer in size to my first Volkswagen.

I'm excited to be one of the early adopters of this technology and thrilled to have avoided the gas station all week (although I'll still go occasionally since I need a bigger car for longer trips and anything that involves more than 3 children).

Everyone keeps asking about the car so here are the basics. I can drive up to 100 miles on a single charge, but so far it seems more like 80. It depends on conditions including the outside temperature, elevation, air-conditioning, speed, etc. I have a charging station in my garage which will do a full charge in 8 hours. The Leaf can also be charged in a regular 110 outlet for 16 hours, and one day soon there will be Level III chargers on the I-5 and Highway 2 corridors that will allow for 26 minute complete charges.

I was initially excited to hear that Stevens Pass had a charging station, but now that I have driven the car, I don't think the car can actually make it that far (~70 miles) with that much elevation (~4000 feet). We'll hold out for some interim charging stations before we venture over the mountains.

Packing an Earth-Friendly Summer Lunch

2011-06-08T07:45:00.000-07:00

I recently published an article in Parentmap magazine about packing an Earth-friendly lunch. Read below for the beginning and click through for the rest of the article. Happy Summer!

Summer’s coming, but packing lunches may still be part of your routine, as camps, picnics and family outings begin to fill the calendar. When the Seattle sun finally makes its appearance, the kids will be romping around the outdoors, and you can help protect that environment by packing an Earth-friendly lunchbox.

One of the biggest challenges — especially in parks, on beaches and at campsites — is feasting without leaving a trail of waste. Corporate America entices children with assortments of meat, cheese and crackers served in compartmentalized plasticware, but daily doses of these snacks will leave a pile of garbage taller than your child.

Click here to read the rest of the article.

Moving to Glass

2011-06-06T14:56:00.000-07:00

I blogged several weeks ago about the chemicals in plastic food containers and have found some replacements for my own plasticware. Here are my new favorites: Kinetic Go Green Glasslock. They are durable, stackable, washable, and microwaveable. I don't believe they are oven-safe, although there are other brands that are.

I bought mine at Sur La Table in Seattle where you can get a set of 3 for around $25 right now.

Stemming the Tide at the Gas Pump

2011-06-02T10:37:00.000-07:00

Have you started driving less yet? They say the pain point for Americans at the pump seems to be in the $3.50 - $4.00 range. I don't know about your state, but it's been a while since I've seen prices even close to $3.50. For me, this was definitely pain:
And, given that I'm only getting 18mpg (on a really good day), that $66 tab will only carry me 300 miles. You can't help but think about using less gas with prices like these. Here are some of what I am doing or contemplating to conserve gas:

Carpool (I think I've mastered this one. There was actually a point last year when I was in 3 carpools in one day - one for my kids' school, one for my kids' sports, and one for my own school. Crazy!)

Take a bus or train (For some reason, I only seem to do this in foreign cities. Definitely something to work on...)

Ride my bike or walk (another area ripe for improvement opportunities!)

Change cars! (My electric Nissan Leaf is scheduled for delivery in 2 weeks!! Here's a picture of my newly installed charging station.)

What about you? What are you doing? Do you think you'll revert back to old habits when the cost of gas goes down again? Feel free to share in the Comments section!

Trashing Our Earth's Beaches

2011-06-01T07:30:00.000-07:00

A trip to the beach is supposed to be filled with natural wonders--seashells to collect, rocks to skip, crabs to chase. But what about all the plastic that shows up on beaches? The bottlecaps, plastic bags, and bits and pieces of red, blue, and green too bright too possibly be part of nature. We tell ourselves we aren't the litterbugss, but is it possible our actions are indirectly polluting the beaches?

A friend of mine recently told me of her recent trip to Mexico and how appalled she was at the litter on the beach. She asked the locals where it came from and their response was: "cruise ships." I followed up on the issue for her because I was fairly certain it was illegal for cruise ships to dump their garbage in open water. I took an Alaskan cruise a while back and blogged about Norwegian Cruise Line's environmental policies. While I don't think these massive floating cities can claim to be green, I was surprised with how hard they worked to properly dispose of garbage.

It turns out that Caribbean dumping is illegal, but the law won't take effect until all the countries agree to report their garbage handling capacity. Unfortunately, many countries don't have sufficient ability to process the garbage created by thousands of tourists docking for a few hours each day, so to protect the tourism industry, they haven't reported. If they don't report, the law can't go into effect, and the cruise ships are free to dump away.

The plastics can strangle or choke sea creatures, work their way into our food supply, and litter the beaches. If you happen to be on a cruise in the near future, ask the tough questions. Where is the litter going? And keep asking the questions in your own neighborhood too. What about your own local beach? How clean is it? Where does that garbage come from?

Inspired...

2011-04-30T08:55:00.000-07:00

I wrote an article this week on Packing a Green Lunch for Summer (I'll post the link here when it gets published in June).

One of the topics I focused on was packing zero-waste lunches. While I think I actually do fairly well with the lunches, I have a long way to go in other areas. A friend passed on a link to The Zero Waste Home blog that truly amazed me. I think what struck me is the way this family equates zero waste with simplifying their lives. And they are definitely not your average granola family.

While I'm nowhere close to where they are, I am inspired!

Check it out.

What Are You Doing for Earth Day?

2011-04-13T09:30:00.001-07:00

Earth Day - actually the whole month of April - is great for learning more about the environmental issues in your own local region. To find a local event, check out Earth Day Network and their Billion Acts of Green campaign.

I found something close to home when I was invited to the 2011 Community Benefit for the Japanese Gulch Group. This group is working to save this urban forest in the Mukilteo/Everett area of Washington. While portions of the forest are city owned, nearly 100 acres of this space are privately owned and up for sale for industrial development. The natural space is currently home to wildlife (pileated woodpecker, great blue heron, and black-tailed deer) as well as wildlife-lovers (runners, mountain bikers, and trail walkers).

The Community Benefit is on Saturday, April 23rd. If you're local and interested in a night of jazz music, dancing, and learning more about the Gulch, tickets are only $20 - and kids are free!

There is also an Earth Day event being lead by the Japanese Gulch Youth that kicks off with a 2:00pm Nature Walk and finishes with a tree planting at 3:00pm.

Do You Hate to Iron?

2011-03-31T15:41:00.000-07:00

Well, I do and I confess it has kept me in the paper napkin habit for way too long. I have gone out (more than once) to buy napkins with the idea of never using paper again, only to discover that I now have big balls of wrinkles that can only pretend to be napkins. I know there are people who iron there napkins, but I'm not one of them! Nor am I good at pulling them out of the dryer the instant the dryer finishes.

Finally... I think I found a solution. i just bought these Evolution napkins at Bed, Bath & Beyond. They are 2 for $8.99 - less if you find one of those coupons they seem to always send in the mail. They don't wrinkle because they are made of...plastic bottles! How a plastic water bottle can be recycled into a soft, functional napkin, I have no idea, but I love them so I had to share.

Check Out the Moon Tonight!

2011-03-19T15:09:00.001-07:00

Tonight is a full moon and it's supposed to be the biggest one of our kids' lifetimes. At least it will be the largest appearing one since 1993.

It's the proximity that makes it bigger. Since the moon orbits the Earth in an elliptical shape (remember those ellipses from math class?), it varies in distance from the Earth. Tonight it is at its perigee which is the closest point. When it is at its furthest point, it's called apogee.

Should be a good night to look for the Man in the Moon!

Image by Trypode via Flickr

BpA - More Than Baby Bottles...

2011-03-03T11:05:00.000-08:00

I admit it. Sometimes I hear a news story and I'm just happy that it's about something I don't have to worry about. With all the hubbub about plastic baby bottles these past few years, I've been relieved that my kids were past that stage. Did they use plastic baby bottles? Sure, but that was in the past and worrying now won't change anything.

Image by Sameer Karmarkar via Flickr

A recent article I wrote about plastics made me stop and think though. While it may still be legal in our country to make food containers and chewable toys out of plastic, it is not in many countries and the science is starting to back that up. Check out Bad Plastics for more info on why you don't want the toxic chemicals like bisphenol A (BpA), PVC, and phthalates getting into your system. BpA is an endocrine disrupter and the health concerns are wide-ranging - including cancer, infertility, and diabetes.

While my kids might not be using plastic baby bottles, they do still drink out of plastic cups most of the time. Why? I don't know... habit, I guess. They've always been the ones stored on the low shelf that they can reach. I did stop microwaving with plastic several years ago (stop if you are!) because I knew heating plastic increased the potential for those chemicals to leach into the food, but my kids definitely used plastic cups.

Not anymore! I threw away all the plastic cups and bowls - and then moved up to the bathroom and tossed the rubber duckies sitting in the corner of the bathtub. By the way, those rubber duckies are actually all made out of plastic. No one said anything so I guess they weren't even missed.

If you're still using plastic in your home for eating (or chewing in the case of toddler toys), you may want to think again. Think about whether you really need that item to be plastic. Glass, ceramics, and tin are good alternatives, depending on the need. Toss what you don't need - some people say donate it, but I figure there's no need to foist my chemical-laden products on others. If you do need purchase plastic items, shop wisely and look for products free of BpA, PVC, and phthlates.

Are there good plastics? Well, some don't seem to be as toxic as the ones I've mentioned above, but my view is that you just shouldn't be eating or drinking out of them at all. The recycling numbers on the bottom can tell you something - #2, #4, and #5 are generally consider safer, and this is what you will typically find milk jugs, plastic bags, and yogurt tubs are made of. If there isn't a number, you can assume it probably isn't one of those.

A Better Refill

2011-02-19T14:20:00.001-08:00

I needed to buy a refill for my handsoap the other day and was surprised to see Method's refill package is now a pouch. I don't advertise for them on this blog (or anyone else for that matter), but I liked it so much I had to share.

According to Method, the pouch has an 83% smaller footprint (measured in plastic, energy, and water) than a rigid plastic bottle. They also claim it is "more fun." I don't know about that - it is just filling the soap bottle after, but maybe it will keep their hands clean, which will, in turn, keep the walls and doors clean. I can dream.

The Electric Car is on Order!

2011-02-17T11:49:00.001-08:00

Several months ago, I placed a reservation for a Nissan Leaf, an all-electric car. I wish I could say I've found a way to drive significantly less, but as the primary driver in this suburban family of four, that isn't going to happen any time soon so I'm trying to find a compromise.

The car will be able to go 100 miles before charging, so I won't be taking any long cross-country trips (until there is more of an electric-charging infrastructure in place), but since 99.9% of my days involve less than 100 miles of driving, I'm not too worried.

A full charge is estimated to cost about $2 in electricity in my location. I feel good knowing that Washington state is one of the cleaner producers of electricity, with three-fourths coming from hydro-electric sources. To find out the source of your state's electricity, click here.

With my order placed, I still have another 4+ months to wait, but I'm excited to be in the first wave (Nissan accepted 20,000 reservations in 2010, but has halted that process until they can ramp up their production). I'm #30 with my local dealer and he's expecting to see his first cars next month.

What am I most looking forward to? No more $50 fill-ups at the gas station!

Energy Vampires in Your House

2011-02-10T10:24:00.000-08:00

Have you ever wondered how your electric bill gets so high? You can reduce it by taking shorter showers, running full loads of dishes, and turning off the lights, but did you know that your house is consuming energy every minute of the day even if you have nothing turned on?

Standby power refers to the energy it takes to run electric devices even when they are turned off. Think of anything that has a display, remote control, or external power supply -- your microwave, TV, AC, alarm clock, and printer, just to name a few.

If you want to reduce your standby power usage, get your kids involved and have them count up how many devices you have plugged in. Then, think about what you could unplug. Maybe a rarely used phone? a VCR leftover from the dark ages? We actually do still have a VCR (not sure why...) but I was happy to find it already unplugged!

For more info on exactly how much each device uses, watt-meters, and suggestions for future purchases, check out Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories.

May the Farm Be With You

2011-01-24T15:09:00.001-08:00

Today's blog is brought to you by Ryan, my 10-year-old, since we're both home sick today!

Grocery Store Wars is a cute spoof that features Cuke Skywalker, Obi-Wan Canoli, Darth Tater, Yogurt, C3 Peanuts, R2-Tofu, Chewbroccoli, Ham Solo, and Princess Lettuce in a battle against the Dark Side of The Farm (organic food vs. pesticides and chemicals).

Your kids should be entertained, but be forewarned it is a "war" so there are gun-toting characters from the supermarket. If you think Star Wars is too violent, you'll probably think this is too!

Win a Greenhouse for Your School

2011-01-16T16:31:00.000-08:00

Washington State Potatoes is offering kids a chance to win a greenhouse for their school. Entries are due by 1/24/11 and it is open to kids in Puget Sound and Eastern Washington. Check out the website for all the details, but the basics are the child needs to tell them about their school, say what they would do with a greenhouse, and create a healthy potato recipe.

If you're wondering about how healthy the potato is, you should check out the recent experiment conducted by the Director of the WA StateImage via Wikipedia Potato Commission to eat only potatoes for 60 days. Apparently, the potato had been getting a bad rap in the vegetable world so he chose a dramatic way to demonstrate that potatoes can be a great source of nutrition after some federal low-income assistance programs announced that potatoes were no longer allowed to be purchased through the program. Seems some people couldn't see past the french fries to the baked potatoes.

2011: No Resolutions, Just Confessions...

2011-01-16T16:15:00.000-08:00

If any of you out there are still reading this, you may wonder why I've taken almost two months away from the blog. It started with 'life is busy,' but eventually morphed into 'why am I writing this blog anyway?'

I like blogs and I like writing mine, but sometimes the subject matter makes me question myself. Is it too judgemental? Is it really necessary? Does it help anyone? Personally, I like funny blogs and this one just doesn't seem to lend itself to humor on a regular basis.

So, I decided to give up the blog.

But then I changed my mind. I was kind of missing it. And I kept finding ideas that I wanted to blog about, but then would remind myself that I wasn't blogging anymore. So, I'm back here again.

Some people start the new year off with resolutions, but I'm starting mine with confessions instead--mostly to reiterate that the point of this blog is to share ideas, but not to judge one another. There's certainly enough of that in the world!

So... here are my confessions of all the non-green things I've done lately. I try to protect the Earth, but I'll be honest and sometimes I just don't feel like it. What about you? Want to confess anything in the Comments? Remember - no judgement, we're just here to share ideas and pick the ones that work for us!

* I threw away all my old Christmas lights and bought new ones (despite the fact I'm fairly certain I blogged once about how to recycle old lights).
* I don't use any natural hair or skin care products or cosmetics.
* I subscribe to two daily newspapers (and a healthy dose of monthly magazines)
* I don't use all CFL light bulbs because sometimes I don't want to wait for them to warm up from their semi-dark starting point.
* I drive over 15,000 miles a year (in an SUV no less!)
* I like long, hot showers.

Do I feel guilty? Nope. There's enough of that in the world these days too. Happy 2011!

Do You Have Your Turkey Yet?

2010-11-19T12:54:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving is less than a week away - are you ready? Have you ordered your turkey or are you hoping to just pick it up in a mad dash next Wednesday?

People in the Seattle area might want to plan ahead more than usual because there is a good chance that our grocers will be on strike within the next 72 hours (they're still negotiating, but 94% have voted in favor of striking).

My turkey is already on order with Silvana Meats, but another possibility is to check out your local farmer's market. I've been getting emails from Tiny's Organic recently and their turkeys will be available at five different farmer's markets this weekend. No farmer's markets for me this weekend since I'm juggling 2 swim meets, 3 soccer games, and houseguests. I'm happy to sit at home and wait for my CSA, Klesick Family Farms, to deliver my holiday box on Monday complete with celery, onions, breadcubes, yams, cranberries, and apples.

Not in the Seattle area? Find a local farmer's market here.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Getting to Know my Backyard

2010-10-11T13:18:00.001-07:00

I've lived in my house for nearly a decade, but there are still parts of my yard that I have never completely embraced. Specifically, that pear tree in the back. When we first moved in, my next-door neighbor remarked on how good our pears were. I don't eat pears so I bagged some up for him in years that I remembered to pick them and didn't give the tree much more thought.

As I've matured (aged?), I've realized that pears are probably not the worst thing in the world. When they started arriving on my doorstep in my CSA delivery box, I had to do something with them so they went into my smoothies. Turns out I'm okay with the taste, just not the texture of whole pears. (My kids take after me and won't go near the pears...)

Now, that I eat this fruit, isn't it great that I have a pear tree? NO!!! For the past two years, I've waited for them to ripen on the tree and it just doesn't happen. Instead, my dear little pug waits for them to fall off the tree and then he brings them back INSIDE through the doggie door and eats them on the CARPET. Finally, I got fed up with this and decided to do some real research on exactly what kind of pears I have and why they never ripen. I learned that I have Bosc pears and they will never ripen on the tree. Who knew? So... I picked the ones I could reach, brought them inside and ripened them (as directed by the OSU Extension Service Garden Hints) in a bag with a banana. This takes advantage of the ethylene gas released by the banana. The other option is cold-storage ripening, but that seems to take much longer.

I did have perfectly ripe pears -- for about a day. They were quickly moving into overripe, so I blended them up and froze them. At least now I know I need to pick them when they are easy to pull off the tree, not when they feel ripe. Hopefully next year, I can save my carpet (and the pug) from the agony of too many pears!

It's taken years, but I'm glad I've finally acquainted myself with my pear tree and actually know what to do with it next year. Is there anything edible lurking in your yard that you have been happily ignoring? Next on my list is that wild mint - I don't even know if it's edible...

Lessons from the Garden

2010-09-30T14:17:00.000-07:00

OK, one gardening season under my belt and I learned so much!!

Planting early really does make a difference. I think about this a lot as I look at my tiny little eggplants and just hope for a few more of these 70+ degree fall days. Next year, I'll be ready!

Some years, there just isn't enough sun. I harvested TWO red tomatoes. Too bad I'm not hosting a Fried Green Tomatoes movie as I had hundreds of them! I take heart in the fact that I'm not alone after reading a recent local newspaper article dedicated to all us sun-deprived Seattle gardeners.

When the seed package says, "Plant 3 feet apart," they really mean it. I planted 3 tomato plants and it looked like a jungle.

Good soil makes a huge difference!

not

Gardens are a natural draw for kids. There's nothing better than hearing my boys show off their garden to friends that come to the house.
Home grown really does taste better, but... it does not necessarily make picky eaters into overnight vegetable lovers. Sometimes I just have to be happy that they will help grow, harvest, and wash the vegetable!

Dozens of Dirty Dishes...

2010-09-28T12:20:00.001-07:00

Ugh... my dishwasher broke 17 days ago (not that I'm counting...) and I'm up to my neck in dirty dishes every day! Don't worry - I am not going to advocate that we all give up our dishwashers. I'm definitely willing to spend some energy on that appliance and, besides, with all the hot water and dish soap I'm using, I'm fairly certain hand-washing is not a better alternative.
What I have learned (other than the fact that it takes a very long time to get a repairman to my house and even longer to order new parts) is that my family uses a lot of dishes! We had been happily humming along at just one dishwasher load each evening, but with the kids back in school (lots of small snack containers for school) and one extra person temporarily added to our family, we were suddenly needing to run the dishwasher more than once a day. Once I started hand-washing those dishes, I really started noticing.

Even if you do have a dishwasher - and, currently, I'm very jealous - who wants all those dishes? So, here are my tips for making less dishes, which makes for less full loads, and less work!

* Consider the containers you send to school with kids. I haven't resorted to plastic baggies, but I am going to invest in some of those cool Bento boxes that let me pack multiple snacks in one dish. Anyone have a good recommendation?

* Stop the flow of glasses - make the kids (and adults!) keep track of their drinking glasses so they don't use 5 separate glasses by the end of the day.

* Use a single dish for mixing, serving, and storing. I've been guilty of making food in one dish, serving it in another, and then storing leftovers in a third dish.

* Serve from the stove, rather than transferring dinner into another dish.

* And, don't forget... kids can wash dishes too!

National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day

2010-09-23T12:32:00.000-07:00

The DEA is sponsoring a National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day this Saturday, September 25th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at thousands of sites across the United States. Why should you care?

Leftover prescription drugs in a medicine cabinet can be dangerous for young children (accidental ingestion) or older children (prescription drug abuse is America's fastest growing drug problem).

Disposing of the drugs by flushing them down the toilet or tossing them in the garbage can lead to pollution of either the water or the ground.

Image via WikipediaWhile many states have other drug take-back programs, this one is unique because it accepts narcotics. You might think you don't have any of these controlled substances in your house, but many people have half-full bottles leftover from past surgery, injuries, or dental appointments. I just checked my medicine cabinet and discovered a nearly full bottle of liquid Oxycodone (leftover from my son's elbow surgery) that I'll be dropping off on Saturday.

Keeping our Beaches Clean

2010-09-21T14:17:00.000-07:00

Saturday, September 25th is International Coastal Cleanup Day. A great day to get out and enjoy the tail end of summer with your kids and keep the beaches clean. If you want to help out in your local area, check Ocean Conservancy's map to find the closest beach in your area.

Of course, if there aren't any local events, you could always create your own or just head down to the nearest beach with a trash bag! A friend of my son's is already signed upImage via Wikipedia and we're going to see if we can head down to Edmonds Beach to help out.

Trash on the beach isn't a pretty sight, but it can be more than just ugly when it floats out to sea. All that trash can one day either ensnare or be consumed by a fish, bird, or other sea creature. And if that happens to be a fish or creature that we eat, we may be one day consuming that same trash that was once on our beach.

Saving a Local Forest

2010-09-06T18:20:00.001-07:00

The kids are back in school and I'm hoping to morph back into a semi-regular blogger!

For the past several months, I've been following a local story about the Whidbey Camano Land Trust and their efforts to save 664 acres of forest on Whidbey Island from development. The short story is that the land was sold for development and parceled into 124 plots. It subsequently went into foreclosure and the Whidbey Camano Land Trust secured the right to purchase it if they could raise $4.2 million.

That number seemed far-fetched a few months ago - after all, Whidbey Island has a population of less than 60,000 and a good portion of those people are on a naval base on the other end of the island. Who would donate that kind of money? It turns out many different people and organizations have donated and I'm joining them. They still have to raise $500,000 by Friday, but I'm hopeful that my small donation puts them one step closer to their goal.

I've never set foot on the property so why would I want to help save it? Maybe it's a romantic notion, but this is an island that I can see from son's room (how he ended up with the only view in the house, I'll never quite understand...). It's the island we look out on when we play at the beach.

I like it because it's rural and I'd like to tell my kids that we helped keep it that way. It's also the island where my husband works twice a month so we feel a connection with the community. One day, I hope we can all visit this special forest!

Bubbles in the Water

2010-08-27T10:40:00.000-07:00

Bubble baths are great, but what about when you see bubbles in lakes, rivers, and oceans? I know my kids ask questions about how the bubbles get there. I'm not talking about the bubbles that seem to be generated by waves or the wake of the boat. I mean the ones that look like they just got poured out of your dishwasher.

Here's a picture of Fish Lake - the big white spot is a wave, but those long lines are all bubbles. How did they get there?

The big thing I've learned this summer is that the biggest impact of the water quality isn't the soap, detergent, and shampoo that goes down our household drains. This is good news because I remember once talking to a group of preschoolers about what they could do to help the Earth and one of them interpreted what I said as "Don't ever use soap." That's definitely not what I said, but I see how she could have interpreted it that way!

The biggest impact to our waterways comes from things like the fertilizers and pesticides we use on our lawns, the oil that drips from our cars, and the soap bubbles from washing our cars in our driveway. Of course, we also have to think about the businesses that we're supporting that are also doing those same things - for example, the shiny red apples that get that way because of the sprays used to keep the bugs away. One day the chemicals from those sprays eventually wind up in our waterways.

There are many other reasons to think about the products we use inside our house, but don't forget to look beyond the borders of your house to see how you might be contributing to all those bubbles.

Harvest in July!

2010-07-31T21:25:00.000-07:00

Yeah!!! In addition to some herbs and lettuce, I actually picked a full-size cucumber from my garden before the end of July!

I know Caprese Salad doesn't normally have cucumbers, but with such a great looking cucumber, I couldn't resist. Fresh cucumber and basil from the garden. Fresh tomato and mozzarella from the store. Yum! Can't wait for my own tomatoes - which are currently a tad small and very green!

All the rest is coming along as well - corn, carrots, onions, potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, peas, beans, eggplant, parsnips...

What is Your Auto Weight per Person?

2010-07-30T21:17:00.000-07:00

I heard something on the radio last week that made me think about my next vehicle purchase. The person was talking about how much car it takes to haul a relatively small human being around. Specifically, they were commenting on the fact that our cars weigh thousands of pounds each, even though they are frequently used for single passenger use.

Image via Wikipedia

I wish there was some fancy name for this statistic, but I couldn't find one so I'm calling it Auto Weight per Person. If I figure my Honda Pilot weighs 4400 pounds and usually carries 3 people, that means that it's almost 1500 pounds of car to drive each of us around. When you look at it that way, it is shockingly high.

My SUV does frequently have two kids, a dog, swim gear, baseball gear, snacks, etc. but I can't escape the fact that it is BIG. Since it has now passed into six-figure mileage numbers, I know I need to start thinking about future options.

So... what to do? I really don't want to give up the 4WD capabilities of my SUV, but truthfully don't need them on 95% of my driving, so I'm looking more and more closely at the Nissan Leaf for my next (i.e. additional) car. Yes, I'm writing a green blog and contemplating a 3rd car (well, only two for me, but my husband has his own too). I guess I'm trying to convince myself that it's not a bad thing to keep the SUV for when I have either lots of kids or lots of stuff, or drive to the mountains, if I use the Leaf for all the other trips.

My new Auto Weight per Person would be closer to 1000 pounds - still very high, but apparently the Leaf has a 600+ pound battery to carry around. More details to come on the blog on why I'm looking at the Leaf vs. the Volt - the other car frequently mentioned these days.

What's your Auto Weight per Person? Feel free to put it in the comments (after using Bing or Google to look up "curb weight" for your car). Also, what are you contemplating for your next vehicle? Have the electrics or hybrids intrigued you yet?

Crabbing? Grab some Rotten Cotton

2010-07-29T13:22:00.000-07:00

I think this is the longest vacation I've ever taken from blogging! I don't even have the excuse of having been on vacation. Just a busy summer with kids...

Image via Wikipedia

A few weeks ago, we stumbled upon a Beach Expo with lots of cool info for keeping our beaches and waters clean. One of the most interesting displays had to do with crabbing.

I've actually not yet taken my own kids crabbing, but I do have great memories of doing it with my husband's brothers when they were young. If you live near water (and crabs!) it's a fun thing to do with kids. Although you can crab from a dock, it's more exciting to actually get out on the water in a little boat and drop the crabpots filled with bait.

This is where we get to the rotten cotton part... It's estimated that over 12,000 crabpots are lost every year (lines cut by boats, dropped too deep, etc.) in Puget Sound alone. These pots will continue to catch crabs for years to come. It's one thing to catch and eat a crab, but an estimated 180,000 crabs are being caught each year and then just starving to death in the pots.

Newer crab pots have an opening in the top for the crabs to climb out. The idea is that you tie cotton string around the metal opening to close it when you're crabbing. This keeps the crabs in for your expedition, but, if by chance you lose your pot, the string will deteriorate and you won't have added to the crab graveyard. Unfortunately, not all pots have these openings and the ones that do are frequently closed with plastic zipties which will last forever underwater.

Check out the Escape Cord website for more info on how to prevent lost pots in the first place and pass the word on to any crabbers you know!

A Full Freezer and A Roomy Fridge

2010-07-14T10:25:00.000-07:00

I read this tip the other day and thought it was interesting. The most energy-efficient way to

Image by kayray via Flickr

run your freezer is to keep it packed tightly with food, while a refrigerator runs more efficiently when there is space between the items.

That's good news for families that buy food in large quantities and freeze for later use. Even if your refrigerator is normally quite full, the idea is to try to leave room between items to allow for better circulation of the cooling air.

Now, if only there was someone to come take that food out of the fridge and whip it into dinner!

Check out the Seattle Times article for more energy tips and info on qualifying for a reduced-fee energy audit if you are a Seattle resident.

On a Whale Goose Chase

2010-07-13T14:37:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, my boys and I went on an adventure to find a beached grey whale. As large as those grey whales are, it turns out they can be hard to track!

Image via Wikipedia

The grey whale has been languishing in the shallows of Puget Sound around my neighborhood for the past few weeks. Both Thursday and Friday morning, it was found beached with a significant portion of it above the waterline during low tide. People were keeping it wet with buckets of water until the tide could take it back out so we thought we might try to help.

Of course, whales are unpredictable and he ended up in Tulalip Bay which was farther north than we had expected and not an area I know well. We drove around (and around), eventually found Mission Beach, but left when we couldn't find the whale. The good news is that while he was stuck in the bay, he was apparently mostly submerged, which was why we couldn't find him.

Today's update is that the whale is still in the area, but has been seen with orcas recently. Some say the orcas were attacking it, others say they were helping it stay underwater. It's hard to say, but I do know that the Southern Resident orcas that would typically be found in Puget Sound only eat fish, so I would be surprised if they were attacking it.

A whale that has beached itself repeatedly is generally not expected to live, so I don't expect a good outcome, but it's been an interesting story to follow. Several grey whales have died in Puget Sound this year, and it's believed that they generally come so far in to Puget Sound because they are starving after a poor feeding season last year. Grey whales migrate from the Arctic to the southern waters of California and Mexico each fall, but they typically do most of their feeding in the Arctic. We're on the end of their long trip and if they didn't get enough to eat before the migration, they can run into trouble in our area.

We're hoping for the best, but we'll wait and see how nature takes its course...

On My Doorstep This Morning

2010-07-06T13:52:00.000-07:00

Not only was it sunny today when I opened the front door (that rare bright spot at the top of my photo), but I also had fresh garlic on my doorstep!

At first, I was a bit puzzled, but then realized this must have been that plant we'd seen growing in our neighbor's front yard the past few months. I had originally guessed they were irises, but later realized they had to be some sort of vegetable. Thanks neighbor Dave - now I get to taste the garlic!

It is a great reminder of how gardens can enhance a community and bring neighbors closer together - whether it is a community P-patch or just sharing some of your own bounty. I can't wait until I have something to share!

What about you? Have you ever grown enough in your garden to feed the neighbors? I remember some bountiful blueberry bushes in my old yard in Oregon and we also have a pear tree that produces a ton of fruit that no one in my family will eat. I've warmed up to pears enough to put them in my smoothies, but my kids unfortunately seem to have inherited my own childhood aversion to mushy fruit. Maybe my pears will show up on your doorstep one day...

Would You Like Your Salmon in XL?

2010-07-03T18:42:00.000-07:00

Interesting news this week in the world of genetically modified food. And, if you're thinking, you don't eat genetically modified food, think again. According to the Center for Food Safety, 70-75% of all processed foods (basically anything non-organic you buy in the interior of a grocery store, from soda to soup, crackers to cereal) are genetically modified. 85% of soy is genetically modified, as is 45% of corn. As a mother of a child who was once allergic to soy and corn, I can assure you, there are very few products in a traditional grocery store that don't contain at least one of those ingredients. I once told him he could never eat anything advertised on TV because they all contained corn. At least with the kids shows he watched, that theory was never proven wrong

One day soon, we may have the option to purchase a genetically modified salmon.

Image via Wikipedia

Specifically, it would be farm-raised Atlantic salmon that has been injected with a growth hormone from a Chinook salmon. The practice is currently under consideration by the Food and Drug Administration. According to the company developing the technology, the salmon wouldn't actually be larger, but would grow faster - twice as fast - meaning that a salmon could get to market in 18 months, rather than three years. It sounds similar with what we do with cows today. I don't recall the statistics, but I know The Omnivore's Dilemma talks about the significantly shorter amount of time it takes for a cow to reach the slaughterhouse now versus twenty years ago.

Of course, whether or not you choose to buy this salmon would be your choice, right? Not necessarily, since the FDA does not require the labeling of genetically modified food. I'm not a scientist, so I'm not going to go into details on the pros and cons of genetically modified foods, but I do think, as parents, we owe it to ourselves to be aware of what we are feeding our children. Where is the food coming from? How was it grown? How was it processed? All good things to know - and certainly a good argument for buying from local farmers, frequenting farmers markets and asking questions, buying organic, or starting your own garden.

When to Donate Kids' Equipment

2010-06-29T16:18:00.000-07:00

School is out and I am once again trying to tackle the mess in my house that seems to arrive with every end of schoolyear season - the artwork and spelling tests, the emergency kits with expired food, the raincoats and sweatshirts that we hopefully won't need for the next few months (but sadly seem to still have use for).

Image via Wikipedia

Of course, one cleaning project leads to another, and now I am on to the giant pile in the garage that I have been meaning to donate one day. I am fine at moving things out of the house, but getting it from garage to the next step seems to paralyze me. For some reason, my greatest fear is that I'm not donating to the best organization. The clothes go to friends with younger kids, but what about the rest? Shouldn't that recorder go to that organization I once read about that collects musical instruments? And, what was their name? Are these toys good enough to be donated or should I toss them? Why can't I find all the pieces? And, on and on...

Needless to say, sometimes I find myself donating dusty things that don't appear to have fit my children in years. Today, I learned how my indecision may make this equipment go to waste. I took several carseats, bedrails, and other miscellaneous contraptions no longer needed for 8 and 10-year-olds to a local consignment store called Me 'n' Moms. I was surprised to learn that they apparently "expire" after five years. One of mine was four years old so it will be priced lower and another was actually already expired and couldn't be resold.

Apparently, carseat manufacturers give expiration dates because they can't guarantee the plastic after that. Of course, it depends on the conditions and whether it was exposed to a lot of heat and cold, but even I can see that letting it sit around in my garage was probably not ideal.

So, if you have any outgrown baby/kid equipment, make sure you pass it on, donate it, or sell it as soon as you're done! Your garage and basement will thank you too!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

2010-06-15T17:57:00.001-07:00

I've wanted to post this for about 2 months now, but here it is June 18th and I can officially say I have a garden - YEAH!!!

Obviously, I'm getting a late start, but the problem was I had a jungle gym in the only sunny, flat piece of my property, which added significant time to the project. Once the jungle gym was gone, then I had to deal with the fact that I had an 18" deep gravel pit. After contemplating various options for removing it, I finally just decided it was good drainage and the garden would have to go on top.

Now, I have 2 raised beds built with concrete blocks - nothing bad seeping into the soil and they should last forever. The soil is the special veggie soil from Cedar Grove - as my kids said, "It smells awful" so I figure it must have all the good nutrients. I will confess I didn't build them myself - the blocks are 60 pounds apiece and, as you can see from the picture, it took a lot of them!

I am a complete novice at this, but happy to be experimenting. I have one bed for warm season vegetables and one for cool season vegetables. Altogether, I have corn, snow peas, peas, beans, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, eggplant, potatoes, lettuce, onions, green onions, carrots, parsnips, basil, thyme, and oregano. I also have some zucchini and pumpkins, but they didn't fit into the beds. I figure they both grow well and need lots of space so I planted them where they would have more room.

It was fun planning and planting with the kids and now I'm looking forward to harvesting later this summer. All we need is SUNSHINE!

Plant a Fairy Garden

2010-06-14T08:45:00.001-07:00

I went to Sorticulture, a local garden fair, a few days ago in search of some plant starts for my vegetable garden (update coming soon!) and happened up on this cute minature garden done by Two Green Thumbs.

I'm new to miniature gardens, but it seemed like an idea that might be fun for kids. The idea is to plant slow-growing miniature plants and create your own little world. You can complete it with tiny furniture or even small dolls or animal figures. Sort of like an outdoor dollhouse!

I don't know that my boys would be into a "fairy" garden, but maybe a miniature troll garden could pique their interest! Take a look at the Two Green Thumbs website for ideas.

I Don't Get It...

2010-06-08T15:11:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'll admit there are a lot of products on the market that I don't quite get. While shopping for a new bride last weekend, I came upon an egg cracker that sold for $14.99. Even my 8-year-old agreed you don't need to pay $15 to crack an egg!

But here is the one that really has me scratching my head. The so-hot-it's-hard-to-find reusable Starbucks cold cup. Looks identical to your regular, disposable cup, but it's not. If you read their website, they pat themselves on the back for listening to customer comments and bringing this "green" cup back by popular demand - and in a new bigger size!

Maybe I'm the only crazy one, but doesn't it seem weird to make a "green" cup that seems to celebrate the millions of other plastic cups being thrown away every day? I do get that these cups will be reused, but somehow the design still just doesn't feel right to me. Feel free to disagree in the Comment section below. I'm fairly certain I'm in the minority here since the bridal shower I went to this past weekend had everyone oohing and aahhing over these when they were opened as part of a gift.

Maybe They Should Ask the Kids

2010-06-04T12:46:00.000-07:00

As the Gulf Oil spill spirals from human tragedy to catastrophe to debacle to environmental tragedy, it has become clear that no one knows how to handle the situation. They've called in everyone from James Cameron to Kevin Costner to fix the problem, but based on my conversations at home, they may do just as well by asking the children for ideas.

Image by DigitalGlobe-Imagery via Flickr

My 10-year-0ld initially just wanted to know why they couldn't "turn the oil off". Good question - perhaps that $500,000 backup valve that once seemed to expensive would have helped. Then he moved on to the robot idea. Why aren't there robots that can do these things? Another good question...

My younger son has been a big fan of the straw idea - just keep sucking the oil out until they get the next well built. He also wants to do a giant animal rescue. Specifically, he wants to round up all the fish, dolphins, whales, birds, etc. and move them to Puget Sound. Okay, maybe not doable, but at least his heart is in the right place!

For now, I'll focus on becoming less dependent on all that oil and making sure my kids do well in science so one day they'll be able to solve these problems before they become such disasters.

Green Festival Comes to Seattle

2010-06-03T08:42:00.000-07:00

The Green Festival returns to the Washington Convention Center in Seattle this weekend. A joint venture of Global Exchange and Green America, this is just one of its 2010 stops - San Francisco and DC are still to come in the fall.

It's everything green and local all under one roof with 2 days packed with over 100 speakers and over 300 exhibitors. Learn about local farming, sustainable development, bike paths, and more. There's also food, music, and presentations specifically for kids. Do it yourself workshops will teach everything from bike maintenance to how to make worm bins and rain barrels.

Children get in free and adult tickets are $15. Take a bus or ride your bike and you'll get a $5 discount. Free tickets are available at Verizon locations.

I took my kids last year and it was fun and educational for all of us! I'm hoping to go again and get a peek at the new Nissan Leaf - the electric car coming this fall.

Put a Name on It

2010-06-02T08:57:00.001-07:00

If you've ever been to an activity with gobs of children, you've probably witnessed this scene:

Children run off to play, come back thirsty, grab a juice box/plastic cup, take one sip, run off to play, come back again thirsty, take a new juice box/plastic cup, take one more sip... By the end of the day, there is a sea of mostly full juice boxes and plastic cups that no one will claim for fear of germs or whatever.

Last weekend we were at Family Camp on Whidbey Island and a simple labeling system solved the problem. Everyone who took a cup put their name on it so they could keep track of it. At the end of the day, the cups were corralled and put back on the table to be claimed and refilled later. No lost cups, no spreading germs. Yes, paper cups could have worked too, but truly this was better than when I went last year and we had enough leftover silver juice pouches to knit everyone their very own space blanket!

Sometimes simple solutions are the best!

A New School Fundraiser

2010-05-26T08:40:00.000-07:00

Tired of selling cookie dough, magazines, and wrapping paper?? Here's a new idea...

Image via Wikipedia

Kids can help clean up the neighborhood, keep metal out of landfills, and make some money with a scrap metal recycling event. Things like broken lawnmowers, barbecues, and old hot water heaters can all be scrapped. Even household items like pots and pans, bed frames, doorknobs, and waffle irons have value in the world of scrap metal. One look around your house or garage may yield more than you would expect. Imagine if everyone in the neighborhood were to contribute their scraps?

Schools that have organized these drives have raised upwards of $5000 with a single-day events. The first step is to find a scrap metal recycler in your area. While there isn't any one source to send you to, Google is always a good first step!

How Do I Recycle Medicines?

2010-05-26T08:19:00.000-07:00

With young kids in the house, we all know how important it is to keep prescription and over-the-counter drugs safely out of reach. But what do you do with the old and expired ones?

Image via Wikipedia

The FDA recommends taking the medicine (pills or liquid) out of its original container and mixing it with an undesirable substance (e.g. coffee grounds or kitty litter) and then sealing it in a container (e.g. bag, 2 liter soda bottle, coffee can). The idea is to deter anyone, including animals, who may happen upon the medication after you dispose of it.

You should not flush them down the toilet because this puts the drugs into our water system.

The National Conference of State Legislatures has a recycling program in most states for unopened, unexpired drugs. The rules are obviously stringent, but for people with unopened boxes of medicine, this can be a great way to get these into the hands of people who need them.

Now... go clean that medicine cabinet! And, while you're there, check to see if you have any of the recently recalled children's medications (Motrin, Tylenol, Zyrtec, and Bendadryl).

How Do I Recycle Styrofoam Peanuts?

2010-05-21T10:27:00.000-07:00

I get a lot of questions about styrofoam, and while I don't have any great answers about how to recycle styrofoam cups or take-out containers, I do know what to do with those little packing peanuts that sometimes arrive in boxes.

Actually, it's more re-using than recycle. Take them to your local packaging store and most will gladly take them off your hands for free. One store even offered me a few dollar coupon for my next visit in exchange for a bag of peanuts.

In regards to the rest of the styrofoam dilemma, it looks like some cities may just get rid of it altogether. Edmonds, WA is one city contemplating a ban on styrofoam takeout containers. There are nice, compostable options, but as with everything price is always a factor too.

Sometimes You Just Have to Ask...

2010-05-13T14:10:00.001-07:00

For over a year, I have been lamenting the fact that I get 365 plastic bags delivered to my house each year. One for each newspaper. I know I live in Seattle, but it truly doesn't rain here every single day and I'm always frustrated on sunny days looking at one more plastic bag. I recycle them, but still...

The other day I noticed that my local newspaper The Herald had switched to green15 bags which are made with 15% less plastic. OK, it's 15% less plastic, but still at least 50% too many bags in my opinion (surely, it rains less than half the time here). Have I thought of just reading it electronically? Well, yes, but for now I like the idea of sitting at the kitchen table and seeing my kids trade the comics and sports pages.

As much as I have grumbled about the bags, I really don't think I've ever had anyone from The Herald tell me that my newspaper must come in a bag so I picked up the phone and called. A live person answered on the first ring and within 60 seconds, she had sent a note to my delivery person requesting "plastic bags only if necessary." Wow, that was easy! I promise I won't complain if unexpected rain dampens my paper.

What is your environmental pet peeves? Have you tried to change it? Sometimes, just asking politely can yield great results!

But I Don't Want to Compost

2010-05-10T10:41:00.001-07:00

Composting seems to be a big deal these days. Gardening season is upon us and wouldn't it be great if we all had some rich compost to mix in with the soil? In my case, it would be great to just have the beginnings of a garden, but I'll save my woes of the gravel-pit-which-won't-morph-into-a-garden-without-me for another day...

I'm no composting expert, but I get so many questions on it, I decided to tackle the three biggest questions - why should I do it, how do I keep it, and what do I do with it.

Why? Composting is better than dumping the food into a landfill because it creates far less methane, which is the 3rd most common greenhouse gas. Composting is better than sending it down the garbage disposal because that requires water usage and chemical treatment at the sewage plant.

If you don't compost, are you responsible for the demise of our planet? No, definitely not. If you honestly can't see yourself in the choices below, move on. Focus your efforts in other areas that seem more natural to you.

Where do I keep the food?

* Under the sink - I keep my food scraps under the sink in a basic Rubbermaid garbage can. We use a paper grocery bag (which we still have from all those trips to the store where I forgot the bag), but truthfully the bag does usually rip because the stuff on the bottom is frequently wet. It doesn't smell, but it doesn't always leave the garbage can looking pretty either.

* In a container in the fridge - This is for the people with super-sensitive noses. The downside would be the space it takes up space in the fridge.

* On the counter - Companies like Williams-Sonoma have all kinds of fancy containers that actually look good on the counter. They also have charcoal filters for the odor issue.

What do I do with it?

* Worm bin - clearly not for the casual composter...

* Compost pile/bin - Here's an earlier blog I wrote about this.

* Curbside yard waste program - Check with your local company to see if this is an option. If not, suggest it!

* Local drop-off sites - Some urban areas have created drop-off sites. Try Googling your city name and "compost drop-off site."

Ok, enough garbage talk for a while!

What to Do with Latex Paint

2010-05-04T15:44:00.001-07:00

A blog reader recently asked about how to recycle latex paint. I assumed it fell under the normal Household Hazardous Waste Program, but apparently things have changed and, at least where I live, latex paint is no longer considered a hazardous material.

Image by House Of Sims via Flickr

Still, it is made of chemicals which would be better off not seeping into the ground or water, so what do you do? I got my answers from an informative flyer put out by Charlevoix County in Michigan.

The short story is:

If it's over 20 years old, it is lead based and should be handled through your local hazardous waste program.
If the paint can is already dry, you can simply toss it in the garbage.
If there is still a small amount of paint, take the lid off and let it dry before you throw the can in the garbage.
If you have a lot of paint, you need to find a way to dry it yourself. The recommended way is to get a box or other container that you can line with plastic (the larger the surface area, the quicker it will dry). Pour in about an inch of paint and wait for it to dry. Repeat the process until your done, making certain that it isn't somewhere that kids or pets can get into while the drying process takes place. Adding dry kitty litter to the paint can speed up the drying process.

The latter option will definitely be time-consuming, which is a good reminder to not over-buy next time you're painting.

I'll keep that in mind when we're painting my son's room this summer. He seems to have outgrown the pastel walls, but we haven't yet agreed on a new palette. His favorite colors are red, black, and metallic gold. I'm open-minded, but can't imagine any of those colors on the walls!

Footie Protection for your Fruit

2010-05-04T15:33:00.001-07:00

Do you ever get frustrated with fruit trees that only seem to bear worm-infested fruit at the end of the season?

Image by Steffe via Flickr

I heard an interesting tip on NPR today on the best way to protect your fruit. Go to your local nursery and buy a box of footies - yep, those little nylons women don on their feet before trying on shoes in a store. You just wrap one around each piece of fruit in the beginning of the season and you're done! Does it work? Here's some non-scientific analysis, as well as some advice on how to get the best results, but the verdict seems to be yes. If you want to order online, check out Home Orchard Society.

Now, I suppose if you were super environmentally friendly, you could even recycle your old nylons for this purpose, but I don't think I'm quite that green. Besides, I hardly ever wear nylons anymore!

So sad and frustrated...

2010-05-02T21:15:00.003-07:00

As I keep reading the reports about the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, my sadness and frustration are growing equally.

So sad for all the fish, dolphins, birds, and shellfish that are getting mired in the oil. So sad for the people whose livelihood depends on the health of the oceans.

So frustrated that we can allow our oil companies to pump oil out of the ocean floor with no plan for what to do in the event of a catastrophe. The oil continues to spill and we're spinning our wheels trying to figure out what to do. It's already washing ashore in the Gulf Coast, and the most recent reports say that it isn't a question of if it will hit the East Coast, but rather when.

Let's hope some smart scientists figure out how to stem the flow -- and fast! Let's also hope we learned something about cleanup from the Exxon Valdez oil spill.

So sad to see the Gulf...

2010-05-02T21:15:00.001-07:00

What Can Kids Do?

2010-04-27T15:24:00.000-07:00

One of the commenters last week for Earth Day was a teacher who asked for some tips on what her students can do to help protect the Earth. Her kids are in high school, but I think action can come from kids of all ages. Great question!

Our children are out and about in the community every day and I think it's a great opportunity for them to look around and see what they would change to make it a better place.

* Start with your own house and look at how environmentally-friendly you are there. Are you recycling everything you can? Take the initiative to go to your local waste company's website and see exactly what options are available. Do they have an easy composting option? Are there other materials that can be easily recycled somewhere other than your curbside program?

* Take a look at the local businesses that you frequent. How environmentally friendly are they? One child I know took Earth Day as an opportunity to talk to his tennis club about alternatives to the styrofoam cups they use at their latte stand. He went armed with some facts about why alternatives might be better. I haven't heard the results of the talk, but maybe that will be a future blog post.

* Think before you buy. Think about how far that product has travelled (how much oil did that use) and how it's packaged. Think about how much you need it. Think about other alternatives that might be more environmentally-friendly.

* Take action publicly. I was recently impressed with a Letter to the Editor regarding climate change and its effect on right whales. It was written by two middle schoolers and published right alongside all the other opinion pieces.

I think the easiest way for kids to get involved is to follow their passions. Whether it is something they love (animals, the ocean, etc.) that needs to be protected or something they see that just doesn't seem right (e.g. pollution generated in their own community), they can have an impact.

What do you think? What have you seen kids doing lately to make a difference?

Thanks!

2010-04-22T21:24:00.001-07:00

Wow - all those comments on yesterday's Earth Day post are a blogger's dream! Everyone wins! You've given me motivation - and a lot of ideas to go work on. Now, invite your friends to stop by too. Come back to share your thoughts and keep the conversation going.

Winners:
(Note: PSP stands for Pumpkin Seed Packet! My mom grew some great pumpkins last year so we're passing along some of the seeds)

The Lorax by Dr. Seuss - Becky, Stacey, Aija, and Sally
PSP & World Wildlife Foundation bookmark - Angela
PSP & World Wildlife Foundation bookmark - Gina
PSP & World Wildlife Foundation Bday Calendar - Debbie
PSP & Handcrafted Pewter Oak Tree Lapel Pin - Beth
Flower Bulbs - Camille
The Original Natural Wheat Bag - Cheryl

I'll be getting the prizes out to you next week so be looking in the mail (or on your doorstep!) Thanks for the comments and to Aija who also donated the bulbs!

Happy Earth Day!

2010-04-22T08:46:00.001-07:00

Happy Earth Day! In honor of the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, I thought we should celebrate here at Our Kids' Earth. It's been just over a year since I started this blog so I thought we would celebrate by giving away some presents to YOU, the readers!

I have ~ 10 gifts and I'll draw names randomly from the comments to this post. Of course, my secret motive is to get more people to comment on the blog - I've been doing a lot of the talking so far. Now I want to hear from you - and not just today! You have your choice of answering one of two questions:

Question #1: What would you like to see on this blog? Is there any question you would like answered, any issue you would like to discuss?

Question #2: What one thing would you like to change in your life to help the Earth?

Most of the prizes are small, but I am giving away 4 copies of The Lorax by Dr. Seuss - my all-time favorite Earth-related kids book! I also have seeds, bookmarks, calendars. Who knows what else I can find if I get lots of comments!

I'll post the winners tomorrow and then you can email me your snail mail address. If you are new to posting, you can post under "Anonymous" and still include your name in the text of your post. You can also get a Google account in just a few seconds and post under your name that way.

If you want to know what your community is doing to celebrate Earth Day, click here.

Happy Earth Day!

A Day of Discovery on the Water

2010-04-21T17:07:00.000-07:00

I had a chance to join my son's 4th grade class last week on a fabulous field trip. We spent the day on Puget Sound with Pacific Marine Research learning about watersheds, plankton, water sampling (below), marine mammals and the importance of keeping Puget Sound healthy. The scientists did a great job keeping the kids engaged and everyone walked away with a deeper appreciation for all that life teeming in the waters - even if it is too small to see!

This was one of those field trips that was definitely as educational for me as the kids. We learned about the two different kinds of plankton - phytoplankton and zooplankton - and had a chance to see them up close and personal after taking some water samples from the bottom of Puget Sound. Phytoplankton are plants and zooplankton are animals - once you get them under the microscope you can really tell the difference! Many of the phytoplankton (see right) looked like bracelets - no eyes, legs, or claws.

The zooplankton looked much scarier, unless you keep in mind that we were picking them up with an eyedropper. Here is an arrow worm, copepod, and jellyfish.

One of the coolest parts of the trip was when their scuba diver walked on the sea floor with a video camera and showed us his view. It was much brighter down there than I would have expected and we saw sea urchins, sea cucumbers, fish, and starfish. The biggest hit with the kids was when they tried to get some interaction between two starfish - The Death Star and the Sun Star. They cued up the Darth Vader music (this must be a regular occurrence in these waters since they had the music on hand!) and proved that even though the Death Star might eat other starfish, he's usually too slow.

Biggest lesson for the day? It's a beautiful world down there and it's our job to protect it. The kids were told the most important word for the day was "watershed." There are 4 million people living in the Puget Sound watershed, the area between the Cascades and Olympics, and all the water and snow that lands in our midst eventually runs off into Puget Sound. Our actions determine how clean that water is.

Eating Local on Vacation

2010-04-15T09:34:00.001-07:00

The past few months I've thought a lot about eating local, but this was my first chance to think about it while on a trip. Hawaii was ideal for it because everything is so expensive. We had a full kitchen in our condo so we could eat in whenever we wanted. I love to eat out, but definitely not three times a day with kids!

While I know our Honey Nut Cheerios were definitely not a local buy, we did manage to try out lots of local food - ahi, shrimp, mahi mahi, poke, pineapple, milk, Love's bread, chips. It was a great way to broaden our food horizons, learn more about the local culture, and save money!

Definitely something we'll think about on future trips! What about you - what local foods have you discovered while travelling?

Hotels Go Green = Saving Green

2010-04-13T14:48:00.000-07:00

Hotels are starting to figure out that they can use their green efforts as a marketing feature, but I think the real reasons hotels are making changes is they've learning it can save them money.

Last week we stayed at the Westin Ocean Resort Villas North in Ka'anapali Beach, Hawaii (one of those unplanned school auction purchases!). Upon check-in, we were notified that we would be receiving one "tidy" service during our week, but no daily cleaning. I've seen hotels with the signs about leaving your towels hanging if you don't want them changed or placing a card on the bed if you don't want new linens, but once-a-week "tidy" service was new for me. Basically, after three days, they'll come in to change your sheets and towels and take out your garbage. No cleaning at all while you're there (but they do provide a broom and dustpan should your bathroom start to look as sandy as the beach!)

Actually, it was fine with me because I hate having to vacate a room in the morning because the cleaning people are ready to get to work. The funny thing though is that the hotels are pitching this as this big way they're going green, and I'm thinking... yeah, it's definitely saving some green. It is a HUGE savings in labor, water, electricity, and cleaning products.

Saving money is the best motivator for a corporation to go green so I'm not surprised it's the bottom line that's starting to drive changes. Their restaurants and bars also featured new compostable cups. You can see on the cup it says "Made from Corn." Again, I applaud the hotel for their efforts, but in this case, they're only halfway there. The cups are compostable, but the hotel doesn't actually compost them. They still go off to a landfill somewhere for now. Baby steps...

We did like the fact that the hotel offered recycling centers in several locations around the hotel and we took advantage of those. We also tried to do our part to keep the beach clean by picking up the trash and recyclables we found. We found a large bag of cans which I'm guessing someone just forgot to take them home at the end of their party. We took care of the last step so all those cans didn't end up getting swept back into the ocean.

All in all, Hawaii is a beautiful place and as guests on the island, I think we owe it to them to keep it beautiful!

Another New World: Humpback Whales

2010-04-13T14:02:00.000-07:00

One of the best parts of Hawaii this time of year is that it is home to thousands of humpback whales who have come to give birth to their calves. You can see them right from the beach and even while driving along the coastal highway (it's best to be the passenger in this case!)

This picture is of a breach that I captured from the beach. I zoomed in on the picture so it's a little fuzzy, but I think it is a baby based on the size and that large dark spot just underneath the whale in the picture. I'm guessing that's the mother - they are about 45 feet long.

I was so intrigued by the whales, I wanted to get out on the water to see them so we went out on whale watching trip on our last day. The pontoon boats are roughly the same size as the adult humpbacks - a fact that was not lost on us when the whale decided to swim under the boat!

Hawaii whale protection guidelines dictate that boats can't approach within 100 yards of the whale, but when they decide to swim towards you, all bets are off. You just kill the motor and sit quietly till their done messing with you!

We didn't witness any breaches or spyhops (that's when they bob up and down in the water - essentially "spying" on their surroundings), but had a long, peaceful visit with a mother, calf, and the two Bottlenose Dolphins that seemed to be spending the afternoon with them.

The whales stay in Hawaii from roughly November to May and once their calves are strong enough they'll swim back to Alaska. Apparently, they mate in Hawaii too because when the whales are back next year there will be another round of calves.

Another New World: Underground Crab Network

2010-04-13T13:42:00.000-07:00

You know how you can walk past the same place several times and never notice something and then once you see it, you can't believe how obvious it was?

Last week in Hawaii, my eight-year-old and I went for an early morning walk on the beach. Jetlag seemed to affect each of us differently - he had the I-can't-sleep-past-4am version of it! After a long walk along the sandy beach, I spotted a crab. Just as I pointed it out to my son, the crab ran down a hole. As we waited for him to come out, another one (or him?) popped up from another hole.

Suddenly, we realized the beach was covered with these little holes and tiny little crabs popping in and out of their underground network. We never saw that many crabs or their homes after that, but that morning we must had perfect timing to see them all rising for their morning stroll on the beach. Some quick research tells me most people call them sand crabs and sunset is the best time to spot them - apparently, in our case sunrise worked fine as well.

Most of the holes were tiny (see comparison with size one foot at left), but we had to wonder what kind of crab lived in the one giant hole we found. Look at the regular sized hole at the top and then the one 20x bigger at the bottom. Thankfully, we didn't meet him at the beach!

A Whole New World

2010-04-07T15:16:00.001-07:00

Rain forests. Deserts. Mountains. Oceans. Tropics. Our planet seems to have an endless amount of variety. Even within a single country or state you can find all different kinds of landscape.

It's always fun to discover a new part of the planet you've never seen and this week has been a great time of discovery for my family. We're in Hawaii and, while the white sand beaches were my initial focus, we've also found lots of other dramatic landscapes.

Yesterday, we came about as close as you can come to a lunar landscape without leaving the Earth. We visited Haleakala National Park on Maui - at 10,023 feet it is a long way from the sandy beaches! We figured out along the way that it's actually the highest elevation my kids have ever been. After a two mile descent into the crater and the uphill return hike, we all noticed the effects of elevation on our lungs!
We also learned a little about volcanoes while we were there - the Haleakala "crater" is actually made up of many cinder cone volcanoes (which have had eruptions), but the valley is actually the result of erosion by wind, water, and landslides rather than a large eruption.

The other really fun new world we've discovered is underwater. We'll see if those underwater camera pictures develop for a future blog...

What about you? What new landscape is waiting to be discovered in your backyard - a rain forest? high plains desert? a cave? an underwater oasis?

Signs of Spring

2010-04-01T13:56:00.000-07:00

It is just the beginning of spring, but already there are signs that winter is over. In my area, we seem to be getting the April showers and May flowers altogether, but I won't complain.

Most of the Farmer's Markets are still closed, but I just learned of a special early spring market

Image by NatalieMaynor via Flickr

in my neighborhood that I'm going to check out. I know many of my readers are in Snohomish County so I'll put in a quick plug for the Everett Community College Farmers Market on Wednesdays through June 2nd. To find one in another area, check out Local Harvest.

Another tip for some of my neighbors interested in fresh, local chicken: A friend of mine is pre-selling her Cornish Cross meat birds this summer and is taking orders now (before she even orders the chicks!) Check out First Hand Food for all the details. We had her first birds last year and they were very tasty.

Oh - and another sign it's Spring... It's April Fool's Day! I sent my boys to school today with sandwiches disguised in Starburst and Skittles jellybean bags. I already got an email from one of their teachers saying my son fell for it. I can imagine the moment when I was the coolest mom in the world for sending him to school with a giant bag of candy. Hmm... I think I better be ready for payback this afternoon!

An Update on the Orcas

2010-03-29T20:48:00.000-07:00

The topics of whales in captivity has been covered extensively in the press this past month following the death of a Seaworld trainer in Florida. It raises the question all over again about whether these intelligent animals should actually be in captivity at all.

How intelligent are orcas? Take a look at this video to see how they educate their young. And, don't worry about showing it to kids, it seems gruesome as it is a hunting lesson, but I promise it has a happy outcome.

There was an interesting development in the Seaworld story this week with PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) purchasing equity in The Blackstone Group which owns Seaworld. While PETA would usually not involve themselves financially with Seaworld, according to their statement, this gives them the legal right to call for the end of the dolphin and whale shows at Seaworld. They are pushing for the animals to be released to coastal sanctuaries - the best option available to most of them who were either born in captivity or captured to young to be reintroduced to the wild. Of the 42 orcas known to be in captivity, 28 of them are spread amongst Seaworld's four parks.

Look out Seaworld. I wouldn't want PETA as my enemy.

A Show Worth Checking Out

2010-03-27T18:56:00.001-07:00

I happened to catch the last half of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution on Friday night and thought it was well worth watching. It's a new reality show on ABC and it's all about what our kids eat. Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver first set his sights on transforming school lunches in his home of Great Britain and now he's turning to America. Apparently, he is quite convincing because Great Britain has just invested over $1 billion to improve their school lunch program.

Image via Wikipedia

If your kids are in the pizza, burgers, and chicken nuggets stage (whether at home or at school), it's worth checking out. Most shocking was the scene where they show kindergartners a variety of fresh vegetables and ask them to name them. While they could all name french fries in a heartbeat, they looked as if they had never seen a potato! It's sad to see how far processed food has taking us from the raw ingredients.

The show airs Fridays at 9pm. If you want to check out the premier, click the link above.

Cloud Inspirations

2010-03-23T10:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I was driving with my 8-year-old when he yelled out, "Whoa! Look!" I looked around for an impending accident, policeman, or something similar, but found nothing amiss.

"What are you looking at?" I asked, still wondering if I was about to crash.

"A teddy bear boxing a giant elephant!" he said.

Oh, of course, how could I have missed that? While I was concentrating on the road, the cars, and how many minutes I had to get him to a doctor's appointment, he had noticed it was one of those beautiful, puffy white cloud kind of days. The sky was full of interesting images and stories.

Image via Wikipedia

By the end of the day, he and his brother had also spotted:

A whale laying down next to a grandfather turtle
A giant fish being chased by a palm tree
A Japanese dude with buck teeth and a goatee wearing a hat

Personally, I had no idea that clouds revealed age and racial characteristics, but clearly I've not been looking hard enough. Next time you see those big puffy clouds, ask your child what they see - and see if you can come up with something as creative as they do!

Want to learn more about clouds? Check out Weather Wiz Kids which will teach you all kinds of cool things about clouds including the fact that big puffy white clouds are called cumulus clouds.

Have a Glass of H20

2010-03-22T12:25:00.000-07:00

Did you know that today is World Water Day? This was news to me, but I'm guessing it's

Image via Wikipedia

probably not one of those obscure Hallmark-created holidays. It turns out World Water Day was created by the United Nations to address the crisis of the estimated 1.1 billion people without access to clean drinking water.

A fresh glass of tap water is something that many of us take for granted.

There is a new documentary, Tapped, that is trying to raise awareness on this issue and pointing out that wars are fought over scarce resources - one day in the future that resource could be water. Check it out here.

What can you do? Conserve the water you do have and become aware of water issues in your area... Where does your water come from? How is it treated? Where does your wastewater go?

The producers of Tapped have also launched a 30 day Get Off the Bottle Tour to stop the bottled water habit. They start today in San Diego and will wind up in Connecticut next month. If they come to your city, you can trade a disposable plastic bottle for a reusable canteen.

Go pour you and your kids a clean, refreshing glass of water!

It's Tax Time - Shredded Paper, Anyone?

2010-03-15T12:24:00.001-07:00

I wish I could say that I was one of those people who neatly file my paperwork in some great organizational system, but sadly, that's never been me. I'm more of a, "Oh no, it's March and my tax documents are squeezed into that giant pile along with the warranty manuals, kids report cards, medical records, and mortgage re-finance documents!" kind of person.

Image by Gavin Luhrs via Flickr

So, here it is March again and I am once again vowing to never get such a giant pile again. There's much less paper coming in these days since many of my bills and statements are online, but my renewed attempt at creating a manageable filing system (I'm going with financial guru Suze Orman's advice this year), has lead to lots of paper shredding.

Where does all that shredded paper go? In my case, I put it in with our yard waste/food scraps where it gets turned into compost at Cedar Grove. Apparently, shredded paper doesn't have enough fiber to be good for recycling, but it does help with the composting. Check with your local garbage company to see if they have the same preferences.

I hope my spring cleaning contributes to some yummy vegetables or pretty flowers this summer!

A Penguin of Another Color

2010-03-14T15:54:00.000-07:00

Sometimes it's fun to just see something unusual in nature.

Image via Wikipedia

This week, news came out about a recently photographed all-black penguin. He was spotted in Antarctica on South Georgia Island by National Geographic photographer Andrew Evans. This extremely rare mutation is called melanism, which essentially means the dark color of his fur.

The picture here shows the typical white bellies. Click here to see the all-black mutant King penguin.

While we're at it... How many different types of penguins can you name? My eight-year-old claims the penguin as his favorite animal, so I've learned a lot in the past few years - Emperor, King, Adelie, Humboldt, Rockhopper, and Macaroni all come to mind.

Click here to learn more about all penguins!

When Fictions Becomes Real

2010-03-05T13:06:00.001-08:00

Many of you know that I started this blog at the same time I was working on my middle-grade novel for kids ages 8-12. The book, titled Earth Rescue, looks at a dystopian world fifty years in our future. In the book, Planet Survival Rules, which forbid being outside or eating real food, are implemented after the melt of the Arctic ice leaves the air too toxic to breathe. The fun part of the story is when a boy named Jax makes it his personal quest to get another day outside.

Originally, I chose carbon dioxide for the threatening gas in my story, but eventually switched to methane (generally, a lesser known greenhouse gas) after learning more about the potential for harm if global warming continues. Under the Arctic ice are dead plants and if they thaw, large amounts of methane will be released into the air. The story sounded plausible enough to write, but certainly isn't something I'm predicting.

Unfortunately, today's science news is all about new studies showing this release of methane from the Arctic permafrost may already be happening. The research is still in its early stages, but it does show that methane levels are about three times higher (2 parts per million) over the Arctic Ice Shelf than in other parts of the world (0.6 or 0.7 parts per million).

It makes me debate the category for my book again... fiction? non-fiction? I'm keeping it fiction and doing my part to make sure the world keeps it that way too!

And the Pig Said Oink, Oink

2010-03-04T10:42:00.000-08:00

It's a good thing we have an extra freezer because I just added a half of a pig to my already large stash of beef. We had sausage this morning and pork chops last night - all delicious. I'm

Image via Wikipedia

convinced this is the way to go for getting reasonably priced, healthy meat for my family. Although it is a sizable purchase at the beginning, the price per pound is far less than you would pay for organic meat at a store.

If you are interested, but don't know where to start, get to know the farms in your area. Ask the meat vendors at your local farmer's markets, check out Local Harvest, or just ask around. In my case, the meat came from two different friends who are both starting their own small-scale farming businesses.

And, yes, we do still eat fish and chicken!

Where Does Litter Go?

2010-03-03T11:22:00.000-08:00

We've all taught our kids to not litter, but have you ever given much thought to where that litter on the side of the road ends up? I'm learning that much of it ends up clogging up our ponds and lakes, streams and rivers, and, eventually our oceans. Trash left on the ground can eventually blow or drift into local waterways and that's where it can really cause problems for animals who frequently mistake plastic trash (which sticks around longer than any of the biodegradable items) for food.

If you haven't seen the video of the great plastic patch in the Pacific Ocean, you have to check it out to get an idea of how big the problem is.

I recently learned about the SOAR project from Ron Hirschi who is educating people on the dangers of plastic in the ocean to albatross and other animals. He lives on Marrowstone Island, which looks like a beautiful place, but also seems to be where a lot of the trash from the Seattle area eventually gets deposited. Over a 2 week period, he collected 171 bottlecaps on his beach! He believes that getting those bottlecaps into the recycling chain would help matters, but right now many curbside recycling programs (including mine) don't allow them. I'll work on them...

I don't like the looks of trash on the side of the road, but I usually don't think of it as potentially deadly for another animal. Next time we're out for the walk, we'll take a bag along and do our share to pick it up.

42 Captive Killer Whales

2010-02-25T08:36:00.000-08:00

42.

Image via Wikipedia

That's how many killer whales are in captivity today. It would be many more if capturing was still in favor, but fortunately that is now frowned upon in most areas of the world.

Sadly, an experienced trainer was killed at Seaworld yesterday by Tillikum, a 12,000 pound killer whale. Much has been made in the news about the two previous human deaths caused by this whale - in 1991, another trainer was killed in Victoria BC after accidentally slipping into the tank and, in 1999, a man was found in the tank after breaking into the park after hours and either accidentally or intentionally swimming with the 12,000 pound whale.

To me, these reports are missing the point. The whales shouldn't be in captivity in the first place. These are intelligent, social creatures who should be left in the wild. What's the difference between these animals and those in zoos and aquariums?

Mostly, it comes down to money. Aquariums and zoos are non-profit organizations focused on conservation and education. These parks, on the other hand, have working animals who generate millions for their owners. Until just a few months ago, Seaworld was owned by Anheuser-Busch (owner of Budweiser). It was sold to The Blackstone Group (owner of Universal Orlando). Of course, to entertain the crowds, the whales need to do tricks. Splashing people gets a lot of laughs and they learn quickly that the way they earn their food is to jump, flip, and perform.

I'm hoping this tragic case generates enough attention to make some permanent changes. Remember, you get the chance to vote with your own pocketbook. Next time you're in San Diego, consider the San Diego Zoo Wild Animal Park instead. They are all about saving endangered species. I haven't taken my family to Orlando, so I don't know a good animal venue to recommend, but the point is to think about what your money is supporting.

And, what about Tillikum? Seaworld says they won't euthanize her. Sadly, releasing Tillikum isn't an option either. He was captured at a young age 26 years ago from Iceland and little is known about his family (which he would need to reintegrate into the wild). Most of the 42 whales were actually born in captivity. There are a few older whales that could be argued to be good candidates for release. Corky and Lolita are usually the top two on this list because their whale families are known, but their owners, SeaWorld California and Miami Seaquarium, are not in the market to sell.

I had a chance to visit Keiko while he was living at the Oregon Coast Aquarium which was a huge facility compared to the tiny little pools these whales live in today. What if something along those lines was available to the whales that aren't able to be released? It would be a chance to let them live out their lives in peace and put this captive whale practice to an end once and for all.

Dawn Brancheau was the trainer who died yesterday. Let's hope this tragedy brings about positive changes for the animals she loved and respected.

Olympics Day #5 - Honoring the First Nations

2010-02-20T09:38:00.001-08:00

Transportation Day #5

9 Skytrains

1 Accessible shuttle (Glad they were thinking of people like my Mom and her artificial knee!)

Today was our last day of Olympic events and we watched 3 curling "matches." Still not sure if I have the lingo down - maybe they're called games? I had played once before long ago with a friend from Manitoba and at least knew the basics of the game. The US won, as did Great Britain, but China was the true star of the show, winning 11-1 after 6 ends (the other teams played 10 ends). Apparently, they have a mercy rule in curling if you're winning by such a large margin.

One of the great things about being in Vancouver right now is all the other attractions. One we visited earlier in the week was the Aboriginal Pavilion which honored the Four Host First Nations. These nations - Lil'wat, Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh - are four of the over 600 nations who were make up one of the three groups of Aboriginal people of Canada (Inuit and Metis are the other two groups). Their gracious message (they intentionally thanked the crowds of people repeatedly) was a simple one - "We are here." In other words, they are among the Canadian people every day.

From a sustainability perspective, I think there is a lot we could learn from all of these first nations. Not only have they survived this long against great adversity, but they've also respected the Earth in the process.

Olympics Day #4: Capitalism and The Plastic Bottle

2010-02-20T09:36:00.000-08:00

Transportation Day #4
2 Skytrains
2 City Buses
2 Olympic Buses (the nice ones with bathrooms – perfect for kids!)

An awesome day at Cypress Mountain for the Ladies Halfpipe Snowboarding! There was enough snow for the event, but that was about it - they trucked in just enough snow for the halfpipe and snow/skicross area. They are starting to refer to these as the Spring Olympics - it was so warm people were actually wearing tank tops early in the day!

The amount of plastic bottles that are being consumed at these Olympics must be in the millions. The recycling bins are easy to find, but all the Dasani water bottles I’ve been purchasing this week have left me questioning the corporate influence on our choices here.

We knew in advance we wouldn’t be able to bring water bottles or food into the indoor Olympic venues, but had also read they would be allowed at the outdoor mountain venues. The rules, however, seem to be a bit more murky than that. Dasani water bottles can get by security if they are factory-sealed (meaning no refilling and no bringing your own from home).

Originally, I thought it was a concern over alcohol, but there is plenty of Canadian beer at the venues! I think it comes down to the money flow. I saw one woman finish her water bottle at the security stop, only to be told that to take the empty water bottle into the venue, she would have to remove the label! Dasani is a Coca-Cola product and her bottle was a competitor to one of the biggest Olympics sponsors.

Since snowboarding was a 6+ hour event in the mountains, we came prepared – water bottles we had filled at the hotel, Coke Zero, snacks, etc. When we went through security, we were told that we would need to empty all the liquids. We dumped the water, and my husband quickly drank the Coke Zero (all the while wondering why that can was a problem – perhaps because he didn’t pay $3 for it?). Of course, a few hours later we were back at concessions buying $3 water all over again.

I guess my objection is to buying it all in the first place when there are other alternatives. Coke is actively pitching their new bottles which are made out of 30% plant material. Good idea, but what if we just bought less bottles in the first place? I know, I know… that’s not the way of capitalism. Personally, I just wish they had refill spots where you could pay the vendor and fill your own bottle.

Recycling issues aside, the snowboarding was amazing! The grandstands were quite the athletic feat for spectators as it was 350 steps straight up to get to our seats - and that was after a healthy walk from the bus to the mountain. The best part for me was seeing the Slovenian snowboarder come sit with her family (on her mom’s lap!) right in front of us while she waited to find out if she made it into the finals. She made it and we cheered her on! We also met one of the Japanese snowboarders who posed for a picture with us.

Seeing them flip, jump, and fly makes you wonder if they weren’t born with wings.

Olympics Day #3 - "Reuse" Hockey Style

2010-02-20T08:42:00.000-08:00

I had an Internet connection while in Vancouver, but not one that supported picture uploads very well (wait, wait, wait, crash, start over, wait, wait...) so I'm home now and recapping the week. If I had to pick two words to describe my Olympic experience, I think I would go with exhausting and exhilarating. I feel like I know this city better than my own after all we’ve covered! Transportation Day #3
4 Skytrains - the best part is all transportation is free all day to anyone with an Olympic ticket.

For a city who has won the Olympics bid, the next several years involve a lot of construction. New venues must be built for the competition, and, of course, the hope is always to be bigger, better, faster, and more innovative than any previous Olympics. Vancouver did a lot of building, but as a huge hockey city, this was one area they didn't need to build something new.

Canada Hockey Place was already here, as well as the UBC Thunderbird Arena so they were simply used their existing venues for the Olympics. This means that the games are played on North American size hockey rinks (60 x 26m) instead of international size (60 x 30m). I don't play hockey, but from my perspective, that was a good compromise given they already had 2 great hockey venues in downtown Vancouver. So many of the international players are on North American teams already that it didn't seem to ruffle any feathers. In keeping with Vancouver's sustainability goals, they saved money, trees, energy - and made the hockey fans happy because there were more seats available!

We were cheering on Finland who beat Belarus 5-1. Amazingly, a Finn they interviewed before the game predicted the exact score! We also saw Teemu Selanne (from the Anaheim Ducks) get the Olympic scoring record for ice hockey - he's in his fifth Olympics! Nice to see a 39 year old in the Olympics! That's him below just after slamming the Belarus guy into the wall - hard to get the action shot in a fast moving hockey game!

Here's my shot at the end of the game - after all that aggression on the ice, everyone shakes hands and plays nice...

Olympics Day #2 - Pine Beetles and Parks

2010-02-16T21:37:00.000-08:00

Transportation - Day #2

7 Skytrains.

2 Streetcars.

Millions of miles walked (okay, maybe not, but it felt like it!)

Today was our first chance to see an event at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics and I was impressed on so many levels. We went to the women's 500m Speedskating - what amazing athletes! The medals went to Korea, Germany, and China, but there were also some super fast skaters from USA, Canada, Japan, and Holland. Their were a lot of Canadians at the Richmond Olympic Oval, but I'm quite certain the Dutch outnumbered everyone. Just in case their orange wasn't visible enough, Benetton was passing out neon orange gloves for free.

This was the one venue I was most excited to see because it plays a big part in Vancouver's sustainability message for the Olympics. The massive roof of the oval is built entirely out of pine from British Columbia's forests that were devastated by the pine beetle. Of their 47 million hectares of forest, seven million were ruined by the pine beetle. Vancouver is hoping to show people that the dead trees can be put to good use as lumber and used a million board feet in the ceiling to prove their point. It's beautiful too!

We're definitely getting to know all of Vancouver while we're here and today we were down in Richmond walking along the river. There were some great parks to play at along the riverwalk leading to the Olympic venue and that provided some nice distraction and entertainment.

Planes, Trains, and Automobiles (Minus the Plane)

2010-02-15T21:18:00.000-08:00

One Amtrak train.

Six Skytrains.

One taxi.

One citybus.

That's the total after our first day of travel to the Vancouver Winter Olympics. Definitely the greenest international vacation I've ever taken! All is well in Canada and I just thought I'd share a few observations...

* My local train station (Everett, Washington) is way more beautiful than I would have guessed. Sort of a cross of Frank Lloyd Wright and local Pacific Northwest glass.

* Vancouver, British Columbia is rocking and ready to win! I don't know if they always wear maple leaves on their hands, heads, and necks, or have flags hanging out their apartment and car windows, but I will definitely not forget what country I'm in. Great local spirit.

* Canada seems to have thought of everything to make this as green as possible. I'll mention the specifics of the venues when I get to see them, but the transportation is what has most impressed me so far. Many streets are open to pedestrians and driving single-occupant vehicles is discouraged in every way possible. All public transportation is free on any day you have a ticket and easy to navigate. Any time you look lost, a turquoise uniformed City of Vancouver person approaches and asks how they can help.

* They have garbage and recycling bins on every corner - nice way to keep the city and Earth clean at the same time.

All in all, it was a great day. We got to know the area, met a woman on the Skytrain who is in the Opening and Closing ceremonies, received some Olympic pins from some nice Americans, and took in the excitement of Canada getting their first gold medal. We're cheering for the US, of course, but being in a fun local BBQ restaurant (Dix, in case you're headed up this way) with the Canadians when Alexandre Bilodeau accepted his moguls gold medal would get anyone in the spirit.

We're ready to see the rest...

Composting Choices

2010-02-11T09:50:00.000-08:00

I have never done my own composting, but am happy that my garbage collector is now allowing me to compost all my food scraps and soiled paper along with my yard waste. I'm no expert, but a friend asked me how to get started so I did some quick research for those of you that are wanting to compost. It's a great way to get all those nutrients from our food back into the ground. Who knows, maybe I'll jump on the bandwagon eventually...

Image by hockeyshooter via Flickr

There is essentially a continuum with the low-cost, needs-a-lot-of-space version on one end and the high-cost, small-area versions on the other. A Recycling Revolution provides some straightforward pros and cons of each to help you decide which is right for you. The lowest cost method is simply a compost pile, but this requires a decent sized yard and some tolerance for "wildlife" (I translate that into rats in my area, but I imagine wildlife varies by location). On the other end of the spectrum, you can purchase all kinds of bins that spin, toss, and circulate your compost. The middle of the road options include build-your-own compost bins and cone structures that can be partially inserted into the ground.

If you're ready to start composting, here are some options:
* If you want to build your own, check out Seattle Tilth has some great online directions on everything from compost bins to worm systems.
* If you want to buy a compost container, a good first step is to check with your local utility. For example, Seattle residents can purchase a "cone" system for $25.
* Check local nurseries or hardware stores. Since I have a lot of Snohomish County readers, I checked with two local stores - Wight's Home & Garden and Emery's Garden both expect to be receiving their bins in about another month. The Home Depot also has one for $179.

The friend that asked me about this is hoping to work with her local grocery store to get their damaged or spoiled produce. She asked what they do with it and was disappointed to hear that it all goes straight to the garbage. If all goes well, they're hoping to offer the compost to neighbors - a great family project!

The World's Best Sporting Competition

2010-02-10T10:18:00.000-08:00

Image via Wikipedia

I know we're just coming off of an exciting Superbowl, but for me life wouldn't be the same without the Olympics. I have loved these events since I was a little girl watching Dorothy Hamill and Nadia Comaneci and now love to watch them with my boys. The events are in my backyard this year - Vancouver, Canada - and I am thrilled to be going! Getting tickets wasn't easy (or cheap), but this is truly a trip I've looked forward to all my life.

For families, I think the Olympics offer some truly great entertainment and life lessons. Amateur athletes from over 80 countries will be attending and chasing their Olympic dreams. I know there is a lot of carbon involved in getting all these people to Vancouver, but I think the benefits far outweigh the cost. Uniting young athletic competitors from around the world is one way of forging those bonds we need to realize we all have a responsibility for this planet.

I hope you take a chance to take in some of the Olympics with your families. Beyond the exciting competitions, it's also a great chance for fun geography and cultural lessons. The Opening and Closing Ceremonies are great because they represent all the countries (in alphabetical order, I believe) marching into a stadium parade-style. Kids will have a chance to see their flag, as well as some of their local dress and customs. One fun activity is to pull out a world map and have the kids locate the countries as the athletes stream by. They can also check out an online interactive map with details on the athletes (including a cross-country skier from Kenya!) The athletes come from five different continents - that is actually what the five Olympic rings symbolize (no Antarcticans have entered yet!)

Two days and counting! I'll be up there shortly after and hope to blog my way through my trip. Vancouver has gone to great lengths to use sustainable building practices in creating the Olympic venues and I can't wait to see them up close. We are leaving our car at home so this will be public transportation from door to door. Thanks to Vancouver for promising to make it easy! Stay tuned...

The 11,000 Mile Local Crab

2010-02-03T09:45:00.000-08:00

Living in the Pacific Northwest means I have the benefit of local seafood. But, what if something is caught locally, processed elsewhere and then returned to its home? By then it's lost all the benefits of being local - the freshness, the lack of energy spent moving it around the world...

I was thinking about all of this last week while standing at the seafood counter. My son was going to a party where there was going to be crab - a food we never eat since my husband is allergic to it. I wanted my son to try the new food with us first just to make sure he wasn't allergic. I was thinking about getting a small amount (since I wasn't sure who was actually going to be eating it), but was shocked by the price - $29/pound for crabmeat vs. $5.99/pound for a whole crab. I know that you're paying for the shell there as well, but still - the price difference was huge!

Later that night, I was leafing through my son's copy of The Omnivore's Dilemma which has all kinds of cool pictures and charts that weren't in my book, when I read that much of the Seattle crab gets sent to China for processing. China?!? That's an 11,000 mile roundtrip for a local crab. I originally thought that was the reason for the high price on the processed meat. Partially, but apparently the reason they are shipped there is to save money.

This really does happen and it isn't just crab. According to Food & Water Watch, 15% of wild-caught salmon and 12% of cod were processed in China and shipped back into the US in 2006. If it's all about the cost of labor, I would guess the outsourcing trend has only continued since then.

My initial thought was that all this meat must be getting turned into crabcakes or fishsticks or something, but actually I think it may be that wild-caught fish I'm buying at my local grocery store. According to a report from the Seattle Times, some of the work is just de-boning and cutting it into portion sizes. There is no requirement for a "Processed in China" sticker, but it sure seems like there should be.

How do you make sure your local seafood is local? Buy from the source - farmer's markets, waterfront seafood markets - and ask questions. Was this caught here? Was it processed here? Also, buy it fresh. The processed seafood is frozen when it's caught, partially thawed to allow for processing, and then frozen again. Sounds like a food safety issue just waiting to happen...

For our meal, I went with the whole crab and the kids had a great time cracking the legs and fishing for the meat. Only one of them ended up liking it, but we didn't identify any new allergies, so it was a success in my book!

Dark Days Challenge Week Twelve

2010-02-02T08:31:00.000-08:00

You have to love a group that allows you to drop out, but still invites you to their parties! The concept of cooking one entirely local meal each week went by the wayside for my family about a month ago, but I was remotivated when the host of the challenge, Laura from (not so) Urban Hennery, invited all the local Dark Days Challengers to her farm.

I ended up taking a Portabello mushroom quiche. I was excited for the chance to make an egg dish - since my son is allergic to eggs, we never have quiche for a meal. It was very yummy and provided me with a chance to make my first-ever homemade pie crust. I made it with brown rice flour, which I realize isn't the norm, but it was the only local flour I had on hand and actually it turned out quite well. Recipes are below.

I took the boys along for the Dark Days Potluck and they had fun roaming the farm and meeting the chickens, horses, and Jake the Lab. Stephen got to go in the coop to pick out the fresh eggs and I loved his comment - "They're warm!" Talk about fresh! Ryan managed not to electrocute himself while running his hand along the horse fence - thanks Laura for turning it off in advance!

The eggs were four different colors and we got an education from Laura on what determines their eggshell color. It's the color of their ears! Ok, I'll admit my first thought was...Chickens have ears? I didn't necessarily think they were deaf, but I hadn't given a lot of thought to their ears - turns out they have little ear holes and they are different colors. Who knew?!? The four eggs Stephen pulled out ranged from pink to speckled brown. There are green ones as well (from the Araucana chickens), but we didn't see one. That would have been fun - real green eggs and ham! Look closely at the one below and I think you can see his ears - tan eggs, maybe?

Thanks Laura for opening your home and farm to us!

Portabello Mushroom Quiche

The filling was adapted from a zucchini recipe on recipezarr and the crust recipe came from Chaotic Cooking

Quiche Filling Ingredients

1 portabello mushroom

1 medium onion, chopped

3 T butter

1/2 pound sharp cheddar, grated

1/4 pound swiss, grated

1/4 pound ham, chopped

5 eggs beaten

1/2 c. half-and-half

1T flour

1/4 t salt

pepper

Quiche Crust Ingredients

1 cup brown rice flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp sea salt
1 large egg, slightly beaten
1/4 cup butter, cut into small pieces
3 tsp cold water

Crust Directions: Put flour, baking powder and salt into a bowl. Add cold butter pieces and use a fork or pastry knife to mix them into the dry ingredients. Add the egg and water and stir until sticky. Use a piece of waxed paper with rice flour on it to roll the dough out on. Then, turn the piece of waxed paper upside down into the pie pan. Cover the crust with aluminum foil and bake at 425 degrees for 10 minutes.

Filling Directions: Saute onions in butter. Mix together onion, cheese, and ham. Add the remaining ingredients. Mix well. Pour into crust. Cook at 350 for 35 minutes.

A Freezerful of Beef!

2010-01-28T15:18:00.000-08:00

Yeah! I have local, organic beef to last a lifetime. Well, maybe not a lifetime, but 116 pounds should definitely last a long time in my family! My friend Susan from First Hand Foods just got through her first ever beef offering. We purchased a quarter cow and I just picked it up from Kelso's Kustom Meats in Snohomish on Tuesday. Although Susan's "farm" is not certified organic, she is a friend and I know what goes into her cows, so I count it as SOLE food - sustainable, organic, local, and ethical. It is a lot of meat, but it's also only $4/pound which is way cheaper than what you'll pay for an organic porterhouse steak!

Now, we have everything from roasts to steaks to ground beef and everything in between. We tried the ground beef out first because everything was frozen solid when I picked it up and it was the easiest to thaw. Yummy!

So, what does 116 pounds of beef look like? Well, here it is in my car...

...and here it is in my freezer.

Write for Better School Lunches

2010-01-27T14:53:00.000-08:00

I was not a big fan of school lunches as a kid. I still remember that nasty Chicken Chow Mein that they seemed to always serve. Pizza Fridays weren't bad, but I was definitely happier most days to bring my lunch and buy a milk for a dime (hard to believe it was a dime!)

School lunches may have improved on taste (don't all kids like chicken nuggets?), but from a nutrition perspective, most schools aren't doing the kids any favors. According to Slow Food USA, schools are reimbursed $2.68 for each free lunch which, after overhead, translates to $1/lunch. Cheap is good, but if it's leading to the later high health care costs associated with obesity and diabetes, the real costs are much higher.

With the Time for Lunch campaign, Slow Food USA is urging Americans to sign their petition and write Congress to call for the Child Nutrition Promotion and School Lunch Protection Act of 2009 (voting has been delayed until early 2010). The Act would provide an additional $1/day to fund the lunches. It also provides $50 million to link local farms with local schools - that money would get poured right back into the communities and would support the small, organic farmers that I am convinced are necessary for our long-term nutritional needs. I've just finished reading the section about "big organic" vs. "small organic" in The Omnivore's Dilemma (by Michael Pollan) and it was very convincing on that point. Definitely a book worth checking out if you want to know more.

If you care about what we're putting into our kids' tummies on a daily basis, I encourage you to learn more.

Family Arguments Go Green

2010-01-26T10:34:00.000-08:00

When I read "Therapists Report Increase in Green Disputes" in the New York Times, it made me smile. Anyone who has embarked on a we-should-be-a-little-greener-at-home campaign, has probably encountered some variation of this...

"Why did you get the groceries in plastic bags? I gave you several reusable bags last week. Why can't you use those?"

"Can't we just eat some normal food?"

"Why do you keep putting bottlecaps in the recycling? You know it's only the bottle that's recyclable!"

"You're not going to buy that, are you?"

"Why does everything have to be so complicated?!?"

The fact is that many of the things we did just a few years ago now seem extremely offensive to some of us. Nine years ago when I lived in Nebraska, I recycled nothing. I tried for a while to drive our recyclables to the plant, since there was no curbside recycling service, but with sub-zero temps and an infant son, it just didn't work so I through in the towel - and all those recyclables just went to a landfill. Before that, I worked at Microsoft and guzzled Talking Rain plastic bottles all day long because... I don't know why... because they were free?

Today, I recycle everything and try to find ways to bring less into the home. I'm experimenting with buying and cooking local. We're all trying to make changes, but what if your spouse isn't on board?

Just as in everything else, I think you need to pick your battles wisely. I've found that leading by example or taking responsibility for it entirely works WAY better than discussing. Examples:

* If I want to recycle the shampoo bottles or toilet paper rolls from the upstairs wastebaskets, I do it myself. My husband takes out the garbage Sunday night and usually doesn't seem to be in a "sort the bathroom garbage" kind of mood.
*If I want less mail, I take care of it. I signed up for GreenDimes to get rid of the junk mail, converted to online billpay, etc.
* I've been slowly trying to convert to more organic, more local meats, but my husband had an issue with one particular store brand because he feels they are always in the news for food safety issues. Fine, I don't buy that brand anymore, but I didn't give up. I'm picking up my fresh, local beef later today and that's something he can get excited about. It's rubbing off in other areas too and I'm noticing he's buying more organic and local foods. A few days ago, he bought a can of organic Great Northern beans for our chili and was happily surprised to see that they didn't come with the "slime" we always wash off from the ones we used to get. That convinces him way more than me badgering him about buying organic.

For larger purchases like appliances (water heater, washer/dryer), I research the options and have been able to convince him that the more energy efficient ones are the better long-term purchases.

What about you? What are the "green battles" in your house? Is it with your spouse or your children? How do you solve them?

Recycling... 7-Year-Old Style

2010-01-20T12:35:00.000-08:00

I love candles and, as a child, remember making them at home. A few years ago, I thought that would be a fun activity to try with the kids. Our first try was impromptu, so we just rounded up a bunch of candles that were burned down past the point of being lit anymore, melted them down, poured the wax into an aluminum Coke can, stuck a string in it, and... presto pillar candles. We eventually got more sophisticated and bought real wicks from a craft store, and tried out other molds, as well.

We have a bunch of wax saved up now, including some broken crayons, so I told the kids we would make some this weekend. A few nights ago, I was pouring off some hot wax from a burning candle into a small bowl when my 7-year-old decided my little bowl of drippings had the makings of a great candle. He grabbed a wick and...presto, his own little creation. He rummaged through the leftover wax pieces and found enough small ones to make a whole series.

He has now proclaimed his little plastic blue bowl the best candle mold ever and is planning a lighting ceremony for the candles this weekend. His candles definitely have their own style and I may never have to buy another candle again with his inspiration and dedication!

Six New Baby Orcas

2010-01-13T08:48:00.000-08:00

The Salish Sea (the new name for Puget Sound and the surrounding waters) is the home to the Southern Resident killer whale population. Recently listed as endangered, they finally have some good news to share - six new baby orcas born in the last year including one just spotted last week! That's not a baby above, that's one of the orcas from L pod - more about her below...

Three orcas also went missing (presumed dead) in the last year which takes their total to only 88 orcas, but it's great to see their numbers rising rather than plummeting as they have in years past. Although there are many potential causes for their decline (boat noise, toxicity, decimation through capture), the availability of salmon is considered the current leading issue for the survival of the orcas. For those of you who haven't known me a few years, these orcas are very near and dear to my heart. The Southern Resident population should technically be 89 if you include Lolita, the one surviving orca from the nearly fifty orcas captured in the 1960s and 1970s. For more info on her, take a look at my Seattle Times articles on Lolita and the history of orca captures. That's her at the top of this post.

Here's a picture from a whale watching trip a few years ago of the one baby orca I've seen in the wild - J42. Have you ever tried taking a picture of a moving animal with a time-delay on your digital camera? Much harder than it looks...

The new baby J47 belongs to J35, a very young mother at the age of 12. Orca life spans and reproductive ages track very similarly to humans so becoming a mother at age 12 is a concern. The good news for these family-centered orcas is that J47 also has a grandmother, aunties, and a few other baby cousins to guide her. Fifty percent of orca babies die before reaching the age of one so J47 will need all the help he or she can get. In addition to the main issue of food supply, baby orcas also test very high in toxicity. All orcas, since they're at the top of the food chain, have toxicity issues, but the babies bear the brunt of it. When they're mothers nurse them, the maternal fat stores pass the toxicity to the babies.

Interested in learning more about orcas? The Southern Resident orcas are the most studied whales in the world and there are some great resources: Center for Whale Research, Killer Whale Tales (this group offers programs for schools), and Orca Network.

Good luck to the six new babies!

Don't Chew On That

2010-01-11T13:39:00.000-08:00

Ever since the lead warnings have been coming out about toys, I've been thankful that my children are past the age of chewing on toys. I can't for the life of me understand why we make products for kids with harmful chemicals - oh wait, that's right, it's all about money. Cheap, appealing toys = fat profits.

If your kids are at the baby/toddler stage, it is a real concern since ingesting the lead is where the real danger lies. It isn't just swallowing small pieces - sucking or chewing on it repeatedly can lead to lead poisoning. In addition to educating yourself on the issue, I would consider buying a lead testing kit (available at most hardware stores now). I did this when I was concerned with my son's lunchbox and it did test positive for lead. I just learned that baby bibs are also on the frequent offender list. Cotton bibs may not be as convenient, but may warrant another look.

What surprised me in the news today was an article about kid's jewelry and how the lead has been replaced by another dangerous metal called cadmium. This carcinogen was found at high levels in 12% of the jewelry purchased recently for testing. These are the charm bracelets and pendants that little kids love - and love to suck on. I know I have seen my own children with pendants from their necklaces in their mouths. The one that I keep thinking of is the little paint-scratched ghost my son used to wear. It's gone now, but I'm guessing it would test positive for something bad. While cadmium is currently legal, the Consumer Product Safety Commission just announced an investigation today that could change that in the near future.

An article called Keeping Your Kids Safe from Lead in Kid's Products on the Sierra Club website had some interesting tips including avoiding vending machine toys and fake glossy pearl necklaces, and being aware of the issues of lead in toy jewelry.

I know it is one more thing to worry about, but I see this as a 3-step process. At a minimum we should be keeping the toys, necklaces, etc. out of their mouths. The next step is educating ourselves enough to keep the dangerous products out of our homes. I just added the CPSC alerts to my Google Reader account so I'll get notified of child product recalls. And, finally, the most important step is to get the companies to stop making this stuff in the first place!

Give a Day Get a Disney Day

2010-01-06T11:38:00.000-08:00

Earlier this year, my son's class had a woman from United Way speak about service. She asked if they had ever volunteered and my son told me he said "no." That seemed surprising to me, since I feel like we volunteer all the time, but that made me realize that it's really me volunteering - timing at swim meets, teaching Sunday school, scoring at baseball games, organizing the school spelling bee. They are the recipients of many of these efforts, but not the actual volunteers. Sure, they've carted food to the Food Bank or donated money/books/supplies through various community drives, but I can't name any real work they've done.

I would like to change that this year. My children know the causes that are important to me, and I want to expose them to more of this in a hands-on way, but I would like them to also develop their own interests and passions.

If you're interested in getting your kids to volunteer, there's also an added incentive this year. Give a Day Get a Disney Day is offering a free day at any Disney park for each person (minimum age 6) who gives a day of service to their community through the HandsOn Network, a group which will link you to local opportunities. There are restrictions and limits, so make sure you read all the rules.

So far, I haven't found a specific opportunity that works for us, but they do have extensive listings of organizations that can be contacted - everything from our local zoo to EarthCorps. The website allows you to sort the options by your interest - Animals & Environment, Health & Human Services, etc. Of course, if we do earn our Disney tickets, I imagine that will leave them wanting to go to Disneyworld, won't it?? Maybe my younger son would fare better on the Dumbo ride this time around.

Dark Days Challenge Week Seven

2010-01-04T08:51:00.000-08:00

Week Seven brought a Pumpkin Soup and Acorn Squash Meatballs to my table, but also led me to the realization that I'm leaving the Dark Days Challenge behind in 2009. I've learned a lot over these past seven weeks, but also figured out that the challenge wasn't completely working in my family.

In retrospect, I really needed to have my whole family on board with the idea before I committed to the challenge of one all-local meal each week. My kids are not huge veggie lovers so throwing them something like leeks and kale in the same meal was a bit much. My husband, who cooks a lot, was also starting to resent all the weird looking vegetables popping up in his fridge and on his plate. He has gotten into the spirit of eating locally, but wants it a little more on his terms and I can go along with that. For my part, cooking has never really been my thing and the added stress of trying to make every single ingredient local was definitely more work (particularly in the winter) than I had anticipated.

On the other hand, it has brought about a number of great changes that I plan to continue. I'm shopping weekly at a co-op with great local food and I've found substitutes to some of the non-local fruits that I once deemed essential. My local pears are working just fine in my smoothies instead of bananas shipped from thousands of miles away. I'm keeping my Community Supported Agrigculture (CSA) membership with Klesick Farms and looking forward to my next delivery tomorrow. To find a CSA near you, click here.

I'm still eyeing the one sunny, flat spot in my yard and trying to figure out if I can convert it to a garden next year. It currently holds the jungle gym, and we're trying, as a family, to decide if the kids are ready to give that up. I'm thinking maybe we could compromise and do a garden with a little skateboarding track around it. Hmmm...

One last note... I was very inspired to write this last Dark Days post after watching Iron Chef America last night. You know eating locally is gaining some traction when one of the hot reality shows pairs up with First Lady Michelle Obama to support the message. The show featured Iron Chef Flay/White House Super Chef Comerford vs. Iron Chef Batali/Super Chef Legasse and the secret ingredient was anything from the White House garden. The First Lady showed them around the garden where the chefs had their choice of the winter vegetables - sweet potatoes, kale, leeks - all the same things showing up in my local farm box this month. If you're interested, the 2 hour special airs again at 8pm on Thursday, January 7th.

A Winter Day at the Zoo

2009-12-29T22:57:00.000-08:00

OK, the holidays are over, the relatives have returned home, but the kids are still out of school. What to do when everyone is climbing the walls - how about a trip to the zoo?

My boys and I went to the Woodland Park Zoo in Seattle yesterday and had a great time seeing all the animals. We went in search of red pandas, armadillos, snakes, and penguins. Along the way, we also enjoyed the porcupines, flamingos, elephants, night monkeys, and the fat-tailed gecko that we got to touch! The best part is that the zoos are relatively empty this time of year so you get a front-row view of all the animals.

We learned a few interesting facts too... Fat-tailed geckos (who looked two-headed to us since their tail looks a lot like their head) can drop their tails if they are under attack and the tail will grow back. Flamingos sleep on one leg to keep the other one warm (I thought they were just showing off their amazing balance on those teeny, tiny legs). We also learned there is only one armadillo that can roll completely into a ball to defend itself. That just so happened to be the Three-Banded Armadillo that we were looking for in the Night Exhibit, but we're fairly certain that tan-colored ball on the ground was him.

Our zoo is open 364 days a year - and I would imagine most others are as well since the animals and their keepers are always there so don't miss out on a chance to miss the crowds and get up close with the animals and their keepers.

Billions and Billions...

2009-12-29T22:23:00.000-08:00

I remember as a child watching Carl Sagan on PBS as he talked about "billions and billions" of stars or miles or whatever the topic was for that show. Those big numbers were hard to grasp as a child - and even still as an adult today.

So much of what we hear about the Earth these days is in statistics - how many tons our carbon footprint is, how many plastic bags we consume in a year, how many acres of forest are lost every day... It's hard to truly understand the magnitude of it all, regardless of whether the numbers are in the thousands, millions, or billions.

A recent visit to the Chris Jordan: Running the Numbers exhibit at The Pacific Science Center in Seattle offered an amazing visual representation of all those numbers. Chris Jordan is a photographer from Seattle who depicts the vastness of our consumerism in striking images. When we walked into the exhibit, we encountered what initially looked like one of Georges Seurat's famous paintings with his signature pointillism technique. Upon closer examination, we realized it was actually a compilation of miniature pictures of 106,000 aluminum cans - equivalent to the number we use in the US every 30 minutes. The exhibit poster shows the picture below, but you need to see it in person to really grasp the magnitude.

The art of the photography really gets you to take a second look because most of the pictures look very different from afar and up close. What appears to be a beautiful image of Denali, the highest mountain in North America, morphs into 24,000 logos of the Denali SUV that were sold during a six month period.

Other interesting things represented in the photographs:

* The 426,000 cellphones we discard each day.

* The 2 million plastic beverage bottles we use every 5 minutes

* The 1.14 million brown paper supermarket bags used every hour (this was 2007, hopefully this number is going down)

* The one million plastic cups we use every six hours on flights

* The 380,000 kilowatt hours of electricity we waste every minute through inefficient energy use

The exhibit will be at The Pacific Science Center until January 3rd, 2010 and it's just upstairs from the Cartoon Network Animation exhibit, which was another big draw for my kids. The show is also currently in Boston and will travel to Haverford, PA; Austin, TX; Santa Cruz, CA; Charleston, SC; Eugene, OR; and Bellingham, WA in 2010-11.

Recycled Trees, Lights, and Packaging

2009-12-28T16:46:00.000-08:00

The holidays tend to be a time of excess. In case you suffered some of that in your own household, here are some ideas for recycling your way out of the mess!

What to do I do with...

The tree? If you had a real tree, remember that it is biodegradable and can easily be recycled back into the Earth. In my neighborhood, the Boy Scouts come around every year and for a nominal donation will recycle it. If you're not so lucky, you can either put chop it up for your own yard waste or look for a drop off location at Earth911.

Broken or old lights? Rather than storing away the lights that no longer work for another year, you can drop them off at participating Ace Hardware stores. They were originally offering 15% coupons for the new energy-efficient LED lights, but those are actually marked down 65% now, so you can even get a bargain on next year's lights.

All that packaging? It is a few days past Christmas, so hopefully those messes are already cleaned up, but just in case here are a few thoughts. Save the boxes and bows for reuse next year. I just stack the nice gift boxes inside each other and then toss them down in the crawlspace for next year. Remember that in most cases, those horrendous plastic clamshells that encase many children's toys cannot be recycled. Unfortunately, those must be tossed. Did you get any styrofoam peanuts in packages that arrived by mail. Most packaging stores will gladly accept those for their own reuse.

Holiday cards? Recycling is an option for the cards that don't have foil or glitter, but another possibility is to reuse them for next year's gift tags. You can have your children cut out the designs and then pack them away with the decorations until next year. If your kids really like cutting out the penguins, snowflakes, and Santas, they may even turn it into a craft project to keep them busy while they're out of school this week. Ask them to create a winter scene from all the cutouts or have them make up a story to go with it.

What about you? What sort of excess is your home suffering from after the holidays? Feel free to post your own tips in the Comments.

Dark Days Challenge Week Five

2009-12-21T11:19:00.000-08:00

Meat and potatoes... That's what the local meal was all about this week. My husband picked up some beefalo at the store and that was the inspiration for the meal. Local eating can be adventurous, but sometimes you just want the basics.

Of course, the first question my children asked was, what is it? Beefalo is a combination between bison (also commonly known as buffalo) and cattle. According to our source (Beefalo Meats in Ellensburg, WA), beefalo has up to 6 times less cholesterol, half the calories, and four times less fat. All I know is that it was gobbled up in moments by my children who loved the flavor!

The beefalo was grilled on the barbecue and we had potatoes (Oregon) and veggies to go with it. I had some kale and cabbage in the fridge, so I did a quick Internet search and found something to accommodate my ingredients. I have never cooked with kale before and my husband refers to it as the vegetable that decorates most salad bars, so I needed a little help. I ended up with a Kale-Cabbage Saute recipe adapted from Cooking Light. The beefalo, potatoes, and vegetables were all local. The spices and oils were not. Most importantly, both kids tried a little kale and cabbage - not their favorite vegetables, but at least they tasted them!

Kale-Cabbage Saute

Ingredients
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
2 teaspoons minced peeled fresh ginger
2 cups vertically sliced onion
1 tablespoon chopped seeded jalapeño pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
5 cups chopped kale
2 cups presliced green cabbage
2 tablespoons water

Preparation: Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add cumin seeds; cook 1 minute. Add ginger; cook 1 minute, stirring frequently. Add onion; cook 5 minutes. Stir in jalapeño and the remaining ingredients. Cover and cook 15 minutes or until kale is tender; stir occasionally.

Earth-Friendly Wrappings

2009-12-17T09:57:00.000-08:00

Today is the 7th day of Hannukah and Christmas is 7 days away, so if you have children, there's a good chance you are wrapping presents right about now. I'm trying to get mine wrapped and under the tree before the kids are out of school for 2 weeks! Here are my Good/Better/Best ideas for Earth-friendly gift wrap. Feel free to share your own ideas in the Comments below - anonymous comments are always welcome too if you don't have an account to log in.

Good: Buy wrapping paper with a high recycled paper content. I confess I succumbed to the Innisbrook gift wrap drive from my children's school so I do have a stash of brightly colored paper. It isn't perfect, but the paper is recycled and they have improved their dying process by moving to 100% water-based dyes and recycling the leftovers.

Better: Use butcher block paper and tie it with string or yarn. The plain paper is cheap, dye-free and your kids can decorate it. A friend mentioned that she always uses raffia for ribbon, which I assumed was really green since it is a natural product. It is sustainable, but, if you use raffia, you may also want to check where it comes from. My quick Internet search showed that raffia comes from palm trees in Madasgcar (which seems a little far to source ribbon), but I'm sure there are other more local sources as well.

Best: Reuse!

* Find a new use for those countless kid drawings you have! (Note: you may need to ask your children for their approval on this so you don't induce tears when you reuse that special world map drawing they did in preschool). The polka dotted package below comes from an old art project and is tied with colorful telephone wire which we picked up long ago on a trip to Creation Station.

* Wrap the gift in another usable item - a cloth dishtowel, keepsake box, reusable grocery bag, cotton napkin, or silk scarf. Make the wrapping part of the gift itself.

* Reuse part of the newspaper, magazines, or catalogs. Be creative in which section you pick - Sports, Comics, ...

Don't forget to get the kids in on the action. Ask for their creative ideas for boxes, wrapping, or adornment (pinecones, acorns, etc.) and you may be amazed at what they come up with.

When the unwrapping part comes along, see if there is anything you can salvage for the next holiday. The gift bags are my favorite because they still look good when you reuse them and can be stored flat.

Dark Days Challenge Week Four

2009-12-13T19:54:00.001-08:00

Now that I'm into week four of this eating local Dark Days Challenge, I'm finally taking some steps to having more local food on hand. If I'm going to cook one local meal a week in an effort to shorten the distance my food travels before it gets to my plate, I definitely need more advance preparation. For starters, I received my first delivery from a Community Sponsored Agriculture (CSA) local farm. On the recommendation of a friend, I chose Klesick Family Farms in Stanwood, WA. If you're interested in finding a local farmer near you, check out Local Harvest.

I purchased the all-Northwest box of food and received tuna, cabbage, leeks, potatoes, Pink Lady Apples, Concorde Pears - and a jar of enchilada sauce as a gift for my first order. The potatoes and leeks made it into a soup for my weekly meal (see below).

My next step was to spend a leisurely amount of time (i.e. no children with me!) at my local co-op browsing the aisles and seeing exactly what they have and where all the food comes from. I ended up with local chicken stock (which is good if you're not one of those cooks that has a lot on hand!), vegetable stock, tomato sauce, canned tomatoes, butter, and cream. I also scored a jar of miso that wasn't local, but does meet my kids' recent request for homemade miso soup.

For my meal this week, I actually borrowed a Potato Leek soup recipe from a fellow Dark Days participant who blogs at Married...with Dinner. Thanks for the recipe! It came out well and was perfect for a cold winter day. I'm happy to report that the soup elicited a "That's pretty good," from my 9-year old. My 7-year old is still a harder sell on new foods, but he was okay with it dipped in bread. Baby steps... The best part about it was that my husband played sous-chef and cut up all the vegetables for me. He still can't figure out how his wife ended up in a challenge that involves cooking!

Potato-Leek Soup - adapted from Emeril Lagasse
1 pound leeks
2 bay leaves
20 black peppercorns
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 T butter
2 strips bacon, chopped
1/2 cup dry white wine
5 cups chicken stock
1 pound starchy potatoes, peeled and diced
1-1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp white pepper
1/2 cup cream
2 T finely minced green garlic, chives, or tender leek greens

Tie together bay leaves, peppercorns and thyme into a cheesecloth bundle or infusing ball. Cut the white part of the leeks lengthwise and rinse well under cold water. Slice crosswise and set aside. Discard the greens, or save for making stock.

In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat; when melted, add the bacon. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the bacon is soft and has rendered most of its fat; do not brown. Add the chopped leeks and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the wine and bring to a boil. Add bouquet garni, chicken stock, potatoes, salt, and white pepper, and return to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes, or until the potatoes are falling apart.

Remove the bouquet garni and puree the soup with an immersion blender (or in batches — carefully — in a standard blender; then return to pan). Stir in the cream and adjust seasoning. Serve immediately, with minced chives or green garlic sprinkled over each bowl.

All was local, except for the bacon and a few of the spices. The potatoes and leeks came from Klesick Family Farms. The chicken stock was from Pacific Natural Foods. The butter and cream came from Organic Valley.

The 4th Grade Perspective

2009-12-11T08:39:00.001-08:00

I recently had a chance to talk to my son's 4th grade class about global warming. What a great experience! My basic talk centered on separating what we know from what we're trying to understand. I explained that global warming is real - regardless of your beliefs on the causes, 5 of the warmest years on record have occurred in the past decade. I also shared that the Earth can warm for a variety of reasons - volcano eruptions, changes in the sun, and increases in greenhouse gases.

Talking about greenhouse gases showed just how complicated it gets, though. "Are greenhouse gases bad?" I asked. "Yes, no, maybe," were their responses. True enough. I explained that these gases (everything from CO2 to methane to water vapor) are what allow Earth to soak up the warmth of the sun as it has for millions of years. Have we put the delicate system out of balance lately with all our production of these gases? Probably.

"Who is the country that produces the most CO2 each year?" I asked. "Canada? Russia?" Partly right, but we're right there too. Whether we're looking at total emissions or per capita emissions, the US is one of the top 3 producers. For total emissions it's China, US, Russia. For per capita emissions, we share that distinction with Australia and Canada.

"Should we limit our production of greenhouse gases?" I asked. "Yes! Definitely!" Ahh... the enthusiasm of children!

"Are you willing to live in smaller houses? walk to school? take less airplane rides?" I asked. "No! Never!" Ahhh.... the spoiled Americans that we are. We want everything to be better, but we also like everything just the way it is.

Of course, there aren't any immediate answers, but I'm excited that today's kids are at least studying these issues. After all, they are the leaders, consumers, and scientists of tomorrow.

The Whole Truth

2009-12-07T08:19:00.000-08:00

Today is the first day of the 2 week climate summit in Copenhagen. I have hesitated to blog about it because lately it seems more politically charged than scientifically motivated. First, there was the debate about which sessions President Obama would attend (on his way to Oslo to accept his Nobel Peace Prize - another politically charged discussion), then there was the debacle of the leaked emails from the British scientists. In case you haven't heard, the emails refer to things such as "tricks" in how the data is presented. All in all, it did not show the scientists in the best light.

The summit has only just begun, but here is the one thing I think we have already learned: we need the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth on this issue. Climate change science is muddy right now because we're trying to spot present-day trends that are best viewed from a distance (meaning hundreds, thousands, and millions of years from now).

Research studies don't always come out the way you expect. I learned this on a simple level when I was teaching Junior Achievement to a group of 2nd graders last month. We did an exercise that was supposed to show why assembly line production is much faster than individual unit production. Great concept, except it didn't work out that way. That's okay - I didn't fudge the data, I just used it as a chance to teach the importance of communication and how that may have impacted the results of our exercise. The research on climate change isn't going to be perfect and likely won't all point to the same answer - and that's okay. It's all part of the bigger picture we need to understand what's going on.

Just as we need to teach our kids the value of honesty, we also need to expect it in our leaders, scientists, journalists - everyone. Let's not lose sight of the issue just because we want to be right. Do I believe in climate change? Yes, I do, but I also know there is a lot we still don't know. Did I change my opinion after hearing about the email scandal? No, the fact that some people want to bend the data to make their case more compelling is disturbing, but it doesn't change the science behind it.

And, what do I say to those who don't think there is any scientific proof to back up climate change? To them, I say, let's look at this from a common sense perspective. Does it seem like a good idea to be releasing all these gases and chemicals into the air? Even if we don't know the cause, do you think we should be worried about the icebergs melting? From a common sense perspective, I would say we should be worried and be doing our very best to get the best scientific answers we possibly can - regardless of whether that science proves or disproves current theories.

Dark Days Challenge Week 3

2009-12-06T18:04:00.001-08:00

Ok, it's Sunday evening and I haven't made my local meal this week (the deadline for getting included in the weekly blog about the Dark Days Challenge is Sunday so this is a problem). I've learned that most of the participants in the challenge are waaaaaay more versed in the locavore world than I am. This week's email dialog has been full of debates on canning, freezing herbs, and finding local grains - all topics I know nothing about.

Ah well, I do have local cabbage in the fridge and would love a nice salad, so here goes. This recipe is adapted from the Firecracker Slaw recipe from The Fast Track One-Day Detox by Ann Louise Gittleman. It's not something I do regularly, but I did try the detox a few years ago and it introduced me to a lot of organic veggies I'd never thought of eating - daikon radish, dandelion greens and raised some interesting questions about what happens to our bodies when we fill them with chemicals.

Firecracker Slaw

1/2 small green cabbage

1/2 small purple cabbage

1 c. mixed peppers (red, green, yellow, orange)

2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

4 tsp. flaxseed oil

Cayenne Pepper - season to taste

The cabbage was fresh and local; the peppers were frozen and leftover from the summer farmer's market. I usually use them for cooking, but was unsure how they would hold up in a salad once they were defrosted. It turns out they work just fine and even maintain a little crunch. The oil, vinegar, and cayenne were my non-local ingredients. I'm sure I could find apple cider vinegar since I live in the land of apples, so I'll have to think about that for the future.

Now, if only I could convince my kids to eat cabbage!

Getting it Right the First Time

2009-12-03T10:33:00.001-08:00

Last week, a nice young man rang our doorbell and asked if we would like a free window inspection the next day. While I haven't been thinking about replacing my windows, I was intrigued when he said they would measure the efficiency of my current windows so I signed up.

Image by Vardhana via Flickr

I wouldn't recommend the experience unless you're truly in the market (sort of reminded me of used car shopping), but I did learn some interesting things:

* 70% of the heat loss in your home is through the windows.
* Double pane windows do virtually nothing to keep the heat inside in the winter or outside in the summer.
* The important thing is what is in between the panes - krypton, in this case. Wow - I thought that was just for Superman.

* The test to "measure the efficiency" of my current windows involved shining a light bulb outside my sliding glass door and feeling the heat through the other side. Hmmm... I probably could have managed that on my own.

* And, finally... replacing windows is incredibly expensive.

When we finally got to the part about how it would cost nearly $50k to replace all the windows in my house, I was left wondering, why is it that we don't build things right the first time around? While they guaranteed I would save 40% in energy costs instantly if I replace all my windows, it would take a lifetime to earn back that huge replacement cost. No, I did not sign on the dotted line.

If we have the knowledge to build more energy-efficient homes, why don't we? I know there are exceptions to this rule, but the norm still seems to be to use the cheapest parts. Is it simply because we, as consumers, always want the lowest price?

Why Shop Locally

2009-11-30T08:48:00.000-08:00

Believe it or not, I actually had a great shopping experience this weekend - even amidst the dreaded Black Friday. My plan for the long weekend was to get the house decorated for the holidays and I had a few small things I still needed to find. Wanting to avoid the malls, I visited local stores instead.

What a refreshing experience! On Sunday, in search of a tree skirt, I stopped by J. Matheson in Everett and found the owner outside hanging lights on his store. Although the sign indicated they were closed, I inquired anyway since there were a few lights on inside. Saying he never liked to turn customers away, he offered to open the store up for me and his wife met me inside. I found a beautiful and unique skirt in a few minutes, and even my boys didn't mind shopping because the store comes with a cute dog that loves to play.

I also shopped at Christmas Gifts on Broadway and was instantly transported back to another generation. Each room of the old home is filled with decorations and classic gifts for children (books, Madame Alexander Dolls, wooden blocks, tea sets). You can nibble cookies and drink hot tea while you wander through the rooms. There was no hustle or bustle and my boys were amazed to see a shop owner who actually used her math skills to total up the purchases. No calculator, no computerized register, just pen and paper!

With the economy still hurting, I love the idea of keeping the money I do spend in my community. While the items I bought weren't necessarily made in my local area (which would have been even better), research shows that local businesses reinvest in the community 3 to 5 times more than chain or "big box" stores. In the end, they were both great shopping experiences that warmed the heart, rather than leaving me tired and jaded.

What about you? What local stores do you support and why?

Dark Days Challenge Week Two

2009-11-29T09:03:00.000-08:00

On to week two of the Dark Days Challenge of eating locally... Thanksgiving offered the perfect opportunity, but I didn't quite have my act together to pull off an entirely local meal, so instead I did a leftover meal the next day.

We had Open-Face Turkey and Cheddar Sandwiches, accompanied by Potato Pancakes and Honeycrisp Apples. The turkey was our leftover Thanksgiving turkey from Shelton, WA and the cheddar cheese was Organic Valley. (Note: I bought the cheese thinking it was from Washington because it was labeled "local" at my co-op. I know Organic Valley has locations near me, but now that I look at the label it says it is certified organic by Oregon Tilth so I'm guessing it's from Oregon). The potato pancakes were leftover mashed potatoes (also from WA) making their debut the next day in a new form. The honeycrisp apples gave us something light and fresh to go with it all.

Now, it would have been ideal to have fresh home-made bread for all of this, but I am not yet a breadmaker (tune in later in the Dark Days Challenge to see if this changes...) so I bought some local organic bread - Dave's Killer Bread.

I hadn't yet fully defined "local" for the purposes of this challenge, but after discovering the bread came from Milwaukie, OR which is 200 miles away from my home, I decided I would define local as Washington and Oregon. Many places in Oregon are actually closer than Eastern Washington.

One thing is for sure, this challenge has absolutely made me more cognizant in the store about where everything is coming from. I'm hoping to get on a weekly delivery schedule for a local farmer to make my cooking life a little easier in these upcoming weeks!

Which is Better: Real vs. Fake Trees

2009-11-27T17:34:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving has passed and, if you celebrate Christmas, it is on to the decorating. Which do you favor - a real or fake tree?

I was a big believer in real trees until I finally gave up the romantic vision of our family trekking off to the woods to chop down our own. More often than not, it was me and two children standing in the rain in The Home Depot parking lot trying to figure out how to wrangle the tree home. My husband appreciates a lot about the holiday season, but buying and decorating a tree are not on that list.

Putting the tree in the stand was another issue all by itself - one that was complicated many years by a persistent pug who liked to knock the tree down. If you think getting the tree straight once a year is bad, try doing it several times! Of course, if you ask our children, they'll tell you the biggest reason we switched was because our male dog kept confusing the Christmas tree with some of his favorite outdoor trees. So, for a variety of reasons, we are now an artificial tree family.

Better for the environment? I thought so at the time, but it turns out that's not necessarily true. The book Celebrate Green covers this subject and points out that fake trees take a lot of energy, chemicals, and petroleum to make, package, and ship. The box that ours came in says Made in China, so it is definitely no exception.

A live tree supports your local farmers, and helps the Earth while it is growing (by making oxygen and absorbing carbon dioxide). While it may be better to leave it growing, keep in mind these trees were usually grown with the intention of being cut down after several years. Still feel bad? You can always buy a potted tree and then plant it in your yard when you're done with it.

Since I already have an artificial tree, I'm going to keep reusing it, but the real trees do seem to be the better choice. Celebrate Green mentions that most trees are discarded after four years, but we're planning to keep ours as long as we can.

I'm Thankful For...

2009-11-26T08:54:00.001-08:00

Happy Thanksgiving! Today, I'm reflecting on a few of the many things I have to be thankful for.

The AWESOME readers who visit this blog. Your comments, suggestions, and encouragement motivate me every week!
Rainbows in the sky that can even brighten a rainy November day.

The beauty mother nature gives us - the lakes, oceans, mountains, valleys, sunsets, waterfalls, wetlands, high plains, deserts. All so unique and beautiful.
Global leaders who are willing to talk about climate change next month in Copenhagen.
Children who always find the wonder in our Earth and help us see it through their eyes.
Thanksgiving cards with turkey handprints from my children.
The Wampanoag Indians who helped the Pilgrims when they were in need in 1621.
Abraham Lincoln who made Thanksgiving a national holiday in 1863. Setting aside a day to truly think about what you are thankful for is important.
A husband who loves to cook!

Have a great Thanksgiving!