The past few weeks have been very busy. So busy, that we have had little time to spend simply enjoying the beauty in our own backyard. And I almost missed this -- And this--- But this past week, we had time to enjoy it all, and plant some more. Gianna used her birthday money to purchase some plants and seeds for her new garden, "a little piece of earth" as they call it in The Secret Garden. Her garden isn't so secret, and sadly, her flowers are already taking some abuse from … [Read more...]
We just returned from a 2 week vacation at the beach. The weather was very warm and amazing, every day was a beach day, and we all got our fill of sun, sand, and the surf. We returned on Saturday and started our school year today (I'll post about that tomorrow), and so during the trip my mind wandered and thought about education, curricula ideas, and fall planning. I think my approach to academics is a bit on the intense side, but I save the intensity for the three R's (reading, writing, … [Read more...]
Here on the Gulf Coast, people are starting to talk about hurricane season, which runs June through November. The last couple of years were fairly uneventful, a much-needed break after the devastation of Hurricane Ike in 2008! Although I saw my fair share of natural disasters as a child - Hurricane Bob in Boston and a blizzard while living in Istanbul (the city's first in 100 years!) come to mind - Ike was my first hurricane experience as an adult. The storm ripped through our part of the Gulf … [Read more...]
We learned about these handy helpers from our friend L, who orders them in bulk and sells them as a fund raiser for her LaLeche League group, and they have made picnics such a snap for me - no more baggies to buy and throw away, and the kids have a plate for their sandwich when they open the mat. You can choose from many different fabrics, so each child can have their own and you won't need to be pulling apart sandwiches to remember which one has mayo. They even help keep the counters clean … [Read more...]
The kids were playing outside today with neighborhood children here in Oxford, our most recent stop. All three of my children and a very sweet four year old neighbor boy (who, incidentally, has not yet gone off to school) began a game of making underground “houses” by digging wide holes into the ground, about 6 inches in diameter and an inch or two deep, one for each child. Their holes were in a rugged area on the edge of a large field near our apartment building where the grass is already … [Read more...]
We've been having some fun with planting this spring, thanks to Christopher's interest in gardening (they're learning about plants at school this month!). Last week, Christopher came home with a lima bean plant and wanted to plant it in the clay behind our garage, along with some apple seeds, so he built himself a makeshift garden and was very excited that he did it all by himself...Well, with a little help from his sister, who diligently brought him rocks for his border :)Christopher has been … [Read more...]
Last weekend was an intense educational experience for our family. We spent the weekend in western Pennsylvania visiting the sustainable “beyond organic” farm of an old law school friend.The paths of lawyers and farmers usually only cross at an upscale, yuppie farmers market. Fortunately for us, we were blessed to have known our farmer friend before he became a farmer’s market supplier.Farmer Dave was an old law school classmate of Mr. Red. Despite a stellar first year performance, Dave … [Read more...]
While I have some concerns with The March of Dimes (primarily their goal to have every baby be a healthy baby, a very unachievable objective in our fallen world) I do think The March for Dimes does some great work. They give women valuable information to make wise health choices prior to and during their pregnancies. Having personally suffered the loss of a baby due to a very serious birth defect, I'm all for helping to improve the health of every mom and baby. For the moment, I'll put aside … [Read more...]
Before I begin, I want to remind our new readers that I am a self-proclaimed granola, or “crunchy” mom. I realize that not everyone takes these issues as seriously as I do, and that’s ok. It is not my intent to be self-righteous in this post, but only to discuss some of my recent thoughts on organic living… I recently returned from a trip to upstate/western NY, where I visited my sister and her family in their small rural town. My sister and her husband are real granolas, and they … [Read more...]
This weekend, I noticed a friend using glass bottles to feed her baby. My brother's fiance has purchased an aluminum water bottle. It is really time to toss our sippy cups and beloved Nalgenes? If the New York Times says so, perhaps the BPA concerns have moved past crunchy extremism... … [Read more...]
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