Fall Days

For the five years that my children attended Montessori school, I did the same field trip every year to The Farm - our local pumpkin patch. After five years, I thought I would be relieved to leave that trip behind, but now that it's passed, I find myself still taking the kids to the pumpkin patch. For me, it's a great trip to the more rural part of our local area and a fun way to usher in the new season.

Have you visited your local pumpkin patch this year? If you need help finding one in your area, check out Pumpkin Patches and More for state by state listings. At the patches near me, you can take a hayride, get lost in the corn mazes, witness pumpkin launching contests (last year's record in our area was over 1800 feet!) and, of course, pick a pumpkin! This year our trip was complements of a friend who was having a birthday party at the pumpkin patch. What a great place for a birthday party! It makes me wish we had some Fall birthdays in our family.

We did take a look at the Pumpkin Pricing Guide while we were there to measure up the pumpkins from my parents' garden. I think they have at least $18 pumpkins. Not bad for first time growers. Maybe next year, my kids will have to set up a Pumpkin Stand. It could be the Fall replacement for the traditional lemonade stand!

A Bountiful Summer

Summer is over and fall is here, but I'm still trying to hold on to the lingering days. I stocked up on everbearing strawberries at our last Farmer's Market of the year. I didn't even know there was a such thing as "everbearing" strawberries, but they are yummy. Most of these went into the freezer along with my raspberries and blueberries from earlier in the summer. These, plus the peaches and pears that a friend brought over from Yakima, should keep me in fruity smoothies for months. Yeah!

My parent's garden still had lots of tomatoes so they went into a tasty tomato dill soup. All these fresh foods may make me into a cook yet - of course, there was the incident with the blender, but maybe I've learned my lesson this time. I didn't know mixing hot foods in a blender was so different than cold foods. My advice to anyone else trying this is: don't overfill the blender and make sure you hold the lid tight. Just cooked pureed tomatoes can really burn the skin. I'll let your imagination fill in the rest of the details!

With the end of summer it was finally time to pick the pumpkins that my kids have been ogling in their grandparents' garden for months.. The kids decided long ago which pumpkin belonged to which child, but they do grow unpredictably, so the youngest child ended up with the biggest pumpkin. Here is Sydney in the garden back when the pumpkins were still green.

The next picture shows Stephen pointing to her pumpkin (which eventually made it to our house since Sydney wasn't close enough to claim it for herself). All in all, we had a fun time, picking and weighing the pumpkins. The biggest came in at 24 pounds! All in all it's been a great summer! Now, it's on to Fall.

Kashless Decluttering

I know Spring is supposed to be the season for spring cleaning, but for me Fall seems more appropriate. The kids are back in school and I actually have time to tackle things like mountains of magazines and piles of outgrown sports equipment. The age-old question is what to do with all of it. No, the garage in the picture isn't mine, but it is fun to post pictures of other people's garages!

Image by crumj via Flickr

One of my readers passed along some info on a new site called Kashless that could help with the whole process. I haven't tried it yet, but it seems like the new Craigslist with a Facebook/Twitter twist. Actually, since everything is free, it might be closer to Freecycle. Either way, all these sites offer a way to declutter your house and save useful items from ending up in a landfill. Recycling at its best!


I signed up on the site and their claim that it takes less than 30 seconds was true. Searching for an item is simple and the service is already available in nearly 100 cities. Personally, I like the Facebook angle to the site because it gives you a chance to easily pass on items you are no longer using to your own network of friends who may have similar needs. I'm thinking maybe I should investigate all those too-small ski boots in the garage before snow season starts.

To try out shopping on Kashless, I did a quick search for pianos since that was my recent Craigslist purchase and found lots to choose from. Of course, with pianos, the moving is the hard part. I did recently buy one for $400 on Craigslist and my kids love it! I think my husband and brother-in-law have almost recovered from the move. Note to readers: moving a piano is not recommended. That's why there are professional piano movers! Live and learn...

What do you have in your closets or garage that could find a new use in someone else's house? One more bonus to Kashless - they give tax receipts.

Yellowstone Grizzlies Endangered Again

Last month, I blogged about a the recent killings of grizzly bears in Montana. The grizzlies of Montana are back in the news this week with their return to the Endangered Species list.

Image via Wikipedia

In 2007, the approximately 500 grizzlies in Yellowstone were delisted, but the Greater Yellowstone Coalition appealed this ruling and won. The court decided to relist them as endangered because they agreed with the coalition that the Fish & Wildlife Service didn't have adequate regulatory mechanisms to protect the bears.

The court also stated that the agency didn't properly consider the effects of global warming and the decline of whitebark pine nuts, which are a major food source for grizzlies.

The coalition calls the grizzly "an iconic symbol of Greater Yellowstone’s power and beauty." My boys have friends who saw a grizzly up close and personal in Yellowstone this summer. They didn't mention the beauty, but the bear certainly had the power to make them retreat quickly to their car! They were most impressed with the giant claws.

Welcome back to the list Grizzlies...

A Look Back to 1989 Part Two

A few weeks ago, I posted the first 28 suggestions from a 1989 book titled 50 Simple Things You Can Do to Save the Earth just to see how far we've come in 20 years. Many of them were slam-dunks (e.g. don't use leaded gas), but a few made me think. Now we're on to the section of the list titled "It Takes Some Effort." Thankfully, many of them really don't take much effort in 2009. I guess that counts as progress.

29. Reuse Old News - This is much easier today than 20 years ago with 8,550 curbside recycling programs in our country and over 50% of all paper products being recycled. Next step: when you need paper goods, look for the recycled content on the label.

30. Recycle Glass - Again, curbside recycling makes this easy, but as the costs of recycling glass increases and the need decreases, this may get more challenging in the future. See my earlier blog, The Future of Glass Recycling.


31. Don't Can Your Aluminum - Same as above.

32. Precycle - I was impressed this was even a word in 1989. I know I hadn't heard of it till more recently. The key here is to reduce waste before you buy. This is a work-in-progress for me. What about you?

33. Use Cloth Diapers - Thankfully, I'm past this stage, but the great diaper debate rages on. I confess I used disposables. The last I heard, neither disposable or cloth was a good choice (because of all the chemicals required to clean the cloth diapers and fuel used to deliver them to homes). I don't have any babies to try them on, but I've heard gDiapers is a newer alternative available today that aims for an Earth-friendly and convenient diaper.

34. Put It To Work...At Work - The recommendation here is to be green not just at home, but at work as well. Since I'm blogging about it, I think I'm covered here. This one is much harder for people who work in other industries - the medical industry comes to mind. I remember the days when medical equipment was reused. Now, spend a day in the hospital and you'll be amazed at all the disposable pieces of equipment that get used once and tossed. Seems there should be a middle ground somewhere.

35. Recycle the Rest - plastic, tin, etc. Again, all this is easier now. Ever need to know how to recycle something in particular? Send me an email and I'll see if I can find some answers.

36. Build a Backyard Wildlife Refuge - Well, let's see... I have a 2-year old pug that barks at anything that flies, crawls, or creeps in our backyard so our yard is more of a terror zone than a refuge. My son's second grade class is planning to do something like this in the spring so I'll try to live vicariously through them instead. Just in case you have a backyard that isn't patrolled by a crazy pug, check out the National Wildlife Federation for tips on attracting wildlife to your yard. You can even become a Certified Wildlife Habitat.

37. Help Protect the Rainforests - I worry about this, but have never done anything to help. I just learned that next week is World Rainforest Week, so you can count on more information to come.

38. The Great Escape - The recommendation here is that you not let the heat (or air-conditioning) inside your house escape through leaks and cracks. I've never had an energy audit, but it would be interesting to see what they find.


39. Plant a Tree - I've already blogged about chopping down a bunch of trees in my yard, so I probably fail on this one in my own yard, but lately I've been thinking more about urban trees and their impact on the rates of inner-city asthma rates. Another future blog post...

40. Prevent Pests Naturally - I rarely use pesticides in my yard, but I think the bigger issue here is the products I buy that come from farmers who do use pesticides. The local farmer's markets, homegrown vegetables, and organic foods from the store all are a step in the right direction.

41. What a Waste! The recommendation here relates to Hazardous Waste. We all know we shouldn't just dump things like paint and oil, but do we go the extra step to find out how to properly dispose of them? A good first step is to check with your local garbage company or transfer station. Nationally, you can always check with the EPA. As for me? Looking at my garage, I think I have a tendency to just let the paint cans lie around in the garage. Future project...

42. Carpool to Work - Today's vanpools, transit systems, and carpool lanes definitely encourage this, but I'm afraid Americans still cling to their favorite single-occupant transport system - their car. For me, I get off easy on this one. I work from home so there is no carbon output!

What has this list left you thinking about? For me, I want to learn more about the rainforests, keep working on precycling, and contemplate getting an energy audit in my home. Up next, the last 8 recommendations from 1989.

A Look Back to 1989

I recently found a book from 1989 titled 50 Simple Things You Can Do To Save the Earth (The Earth Works Group). I thought it would be interesting to see how we're doing twenty years later. Rather than rate the world though, I'm just rating myself. Green means I'm doing it, yellow means I'm partway there, and red means I probably have never even considered it, but might now.

Today's list includes the first 28 suggestions - the ones the book calls "Simple Things." I'll save the recommendations from "It Takes an Effort" and "For the Committed" for a later post.

1. Stop Junk Mail - The good news is this is easier today. Check out my previous post on reducing junk mail.


2. Snip Six-pack Rings - Apparently, this book was one of the initial sources that pointed out the harm the beverage six-pack rings could cause to marine life. Today, it seems there are less six-pack rings (because we're buying 12-packs now...) and there is some recognition that there are far more harmful things in the ocean (that giant pile of floating garbage in the Pacific), but I still snip.
3. Use a Clean Detergent - This is easier to do today with all the choices on the market. I like Seventh Generation products.
4. Aerate Your Faucet - I think my water is fairly low-flow already so I haven't done this one.


5. New Ingredients - The pitch was to use reusable products in the kitchen - recycled paper towels, reusable containers, etc. Check.
   
6. Tanks, But No Tanks - The book recommended lowering your water tank temperature. I went one step further and purhcased a tankless heater when ours was due for a replacement.
   
7. Make a Phone Call - in other words, familiarize yourself with your local utilities and services. Hopefully, this blog helps with that!
   
8. Brush Up on Paint - Use latex instead of oil, don't dump it outside, etc. Check.
   
9. Time to Re-Tire? New laws require this and make it simple for the consumer. Want to see what we used to do with them? Here are the mistakes of the past from a few cities near me. An endless fire and a recent cleanup.
   
10. Home on the Range - Ah... the appliances. Get energy efficient appliances. Out of necessity, I've replaced virtually all my appliances in the past five years so I'm good here. The one downfall in my house is the A/C. Definitely more of a luxury than a necessity in the Pacific Northwest (although 2009 was the hottest summer on record.)
    
11. Don't Go with the Flow - Turn the water off when you brush your teeth, do dishes, etc. Check.
    
12. Gas Station Ecology - Use unleaded gas. Does leaded gas even still exist??
    
13. The Twilight Ozone - NASA has a cool video that calls ozone "sunscreen for our Earth." The production of CFCs (in thousands of tons) went from 1120 in 1989 to 70 in 2004. Despite this dramatic reduction, NASA estimates it will take until 2070 to get the ozone hole back to the size it was in 1980. It's a work in progress...
    
14. Your Gas Is as Good as Mine - Buy the most fuel-efficient car you can. I don't think my SUV makes the grade here. I vow my next car will be better.


15. Recharge Your Batteries - I have some sitting in a bag in the garage. I'll pull them out today!
    
16. Attention Shoppers! Amazingly, even 20 years ago this book recommended bringing your own bag. We're finally listening.
    
17. Find the Hidden Toxics - From the book, "There are more chemicals in the home today than there were in the average chemical laboratory 100 years ago." While I am aware of this, I don't think it everytime I buy a permanent marker or set of sheets as the book suggests.
    
18. Leave It a Lawn - I think the 2009 version of this is "get rid of the lawn." I still have one, but I don't use pesticides and the grass does get composted through my local yard waste pickup.
    
19. Stamp Out Styrofoam - I have a styrofoam phobia (the noise give me chills) so I excel at this one. My kids learned, at a very young age, that Christmas presents that come in boxes with styrofoam must be opened where I can't hear it. I would NEVER buy styrofoam peanuts! Recycled newspaper is always a good alternative.
    
20. It's a Beach - The book recommends taking a trash bag to the beach. I do live near one and could easily do this next time.
    
21. Buyer Beware - Specifically beware of buying products that come from endangered species (e.g. ivory from elephants). Earth Island Institute recommended boycotting all canned tuna because of the harm it causes to dolphins. Today, 90% of worldwide tuna companies follow their standards.
    
22. Pests and Pets - Don't let your dog wear a toxic flea collar. I don't even know if those collars still exist. Vets offer much better alternatives today.
    
23. Make It A Royal Flush - I've heard of this, but never tried it. Save 1-2 gallons of water per flush by using a displacement device in the tank. They recommend a full plastic bottle of water (label off, cap on, filled with a few small stones for weight) instead of the traditional brick. Worth a try...


24. Air-Power Your Shower - It seems like we already covered this in #4. Here the book gives shower-specific advice. Hold a bucket under your showerhead and see how long it takes to get to the 1 gallon line. If it is less than 20 seconds, you are a candidate for a low-flow showerhead. Ok, I'll try it.


25. Recycle Motor Oil - Given that I don't change my own oil, this one is easy for me.


26. Tune Up the Heat - Tune up your furnace every year (oil furnaces) or two (gas furnaces). I'm on a regular schedule for this. The added bonus is that it keeps the home more allergen-free.
    
27. Light Right - Buy CFC lightbulbs. Wow! I didn't even know they existed in 1989.
    
28. Don't Let Go - Don't release balloons into the air. This is primarily aimed at the wedding-planners of the world. The concern is that they eventually end up in the ocean and there have been cases of whales dying as a result of swallowing balloons. Other than the occasional lost balloon at the local parade and a tearful child, I'm good here.

The good news is that twenty years later that some of these recommendations really are simple. I do still have five reds and three yellows though. How did you do?

Looking for Ladybugs

My son came home from school the other day and told me that some scientists are looking for

Image by Thomas Hawk via Flickr

ladybugs. I haven't been on a ladybug expedition lately, but a brief Internet search did help me find the scientists.

The Lost Ladybug Project was started at Cornell University and seeks to understand the changes that have been taking place over the past twenty years with ladybugs. Some common ladybugs have become rare, some types have increased in numbers, and others have relocated to new habitats. Ladybugs are important because they help keep plants alive by eating the pest insects (e.g. aphids).

Image via Wikipedia

They are looking to kids to help out by having them find, collect, and photograph ladybugs. If you happen to find a ladybug, consider photographing it and uploading the image on the Lost Ladybug website to contribute to the research project. The site even shows how to use nets to find them in fields - maybe a good school science project.

A few years ago, my children's bathroom was infested with ladybugs. I have never seen other bugs in the bathroom and I have no idea how they got in the house. Well, maybe the occasional "Mom! There's a spider in the bathtub!" but this was really strange. We collected and released them and they never came back. Now, I wish I had photographed them!


Some other interesting ladybug facts:
* Over 500 species have been identified in the US; 4500 in the world
* They live up to one year after the pupal stage
* Their predators include spiders, stinkbugs, and toads
* They are part of the beetle family

Happy Ladybug Searching!

Image via Wikipedia