Cleaning out the bathroom cabinets

What is lurking in your bathroom cabinets? Have you been hoarding lotion gift baskets, freebie cosmetics, half-used shampoos? I know I have. Beth is taking action, but needs some advice:

I love your site and apologize if you've already discussed this topic, but I need help! I just cleaned out all of the cabinets in our master bathroom and now have one paper grocery bag full of stuff that we will never use and I'm not sure what to do with it. I set aside the expired meds to take to the pharmacy, but what do I do with old cosmetics, skin lotions, sunscreen (very, very old), baby oil (several bottles received as gifts), self-tanners, bug spray, dandruff shampoo, diaper rash ointment, and the list goes on. A lot of this stuff is really old (got pushed to the back of the cabinet and forgotten) so I don't know if I should flush it down the drain and recycle the bottles? It's not really hazardous waste. And I hate to just throw it all in the trash. I can't imagine donating much of it (I've never understood what you're supposed to do with baby oil) and who would want it. You guys seem to come up with good solutions so can you point me in the right direction? Thank you!

Strawberry freezer jam: yummmm!

Thank you, Carol W, for inspiring me to make strawberry freezer jam. I've made cooked jams in the past. And have loved them, but have avoided it for years now since our lovely children entered our lives. Canning just seemed like way too much time and trouble.

So I was so pleased by your suggestion to make strawberry freezer jam. It was so fast and easy, and everyone in the family loves eating it (even my fruit-o-phobe 5-year old). I now plan to put up a lot of freezer fruit jams this summer, and probably would not have done so otherwise! The fruit-o-phobe even wants to picks blueberries with me when they come into season. All those readings of Blueberries for Sal seem to have had some impact. Maybe someday she'll even eat one!! Well, at least I feel we're on the right track. I've just started reading Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Miracle and am pleased to see even her kids didn't love all fruits and veggies as kids. So there's hope for us too!!

Steaming mad at dirt

As if Heather and I didn't have enough in common what with living near one another, two kids almost exactly the same ages, both of us raised in the Midwest where we studied journalism and French, and kids going to the same schools -- the thing that really cemented our friendship was our mutual hatred of the old, near-impossible to clean vinyl floors in our kitchens.

A few years back, long before I turned bright green, I bought this thing called an Enviro Steamer to clean my vinyl floor. I was hoping (irrationally) that I could get it to look white and new if I just cleaned it properly. I had found through trial and error with various mop & bucket attempts that mops only made it dirtier, and smelly from cleaning chemicals. I have one of those vinyl patterns with divots that seem to be meant only to hold onto dirt. And did I mention that it is white? Terrible color for a floor. Just terrible. Especially in a kitchen, for crying out loud.

So anyway, I got the Enviro Steamer. I won't say it makes it look like new (this is a 20-year old floor we're talking about), but I will say when I use it, you can walk on that floor in your barefeet and not be grossed out. It actually feels amazingly clean. The best part is it uses only water to clean with. Hot, steaming water, that is. Kind of like a cappucino maker. Only for cleaning. It's got washable microfiber cloths that get thrown in with the regular wash, so I've really liked this thing. It works on any hard floor, such a lovely vinyl like mine, tile or even sealed hardwood.

Does anyone else use a steam cleaner?

Get out with the kids this weekend!

Lots of kid-friendly, outdoor events this weekend -- cross your fingers for clear skies!

Guided Nature Walk @ Tryon Creek State Park, Sat. 10-11:30am and 3:15-4:30pm, FREE.

Ladybug Nature Hike @ Hoyt Arboretum, Sat. 10-11:30am, $2 per child

Good in the Neighborhood @ King School Park in NE Portland, Sat. 12-9:30pm & Sun. 12-7:30pm, Parade is Sat. 11am-1pm. FREE. Celebration of music, food, shopping, family and neighborhoods. Kidspace area features lots of activities for kids. Proceeds benefit NE Coalition of Neighborhoods that help empower low-income, at-risk residents.

House for Summer Celebration @ Hoyt Arboretum, Sat. 1:30-3pm. FREE. Meet the artist who created the house of Himalayan birch trees (cool art installation/shelter) 20 years ago, and let the kids run wild.

Grand Central Bakery Fair, Sat. 10am-3pm. Baking competition, cookie decorating for kids, baker talks, tours and live music at the new cafe, 2249 NW York. All proceeds benefit Friends of Forest Park. (Take a little hike first, then pop over for some goodies!)

Cheap-o-Dad: fun with greywater

Cheap-o-Dad has quickly gotten behind this green thing, once he realized you could be cheap and green at the same time.

One of his pet projects is greywater reuse. The first thing we did was put a big bucket outside the main exterior hose faucet. We have changed hoses, changed the gaskets, tried magic chants, and nothing will stop that hose connection from dripping when it is on. So now we make sure all the drip water is caught in a bucket, and we use it primarily to water the exterior plants.

The second one was to get a bucket for the shower. We use it to capture all the cold water that runs out (before it turns hot enough to take the shower). If we had any houseplants we'd water those, but that not being the case (I composted them when my kids hit the toddler stage -- too many were poisonous and I would flip out when they'd start playing with the dirt in the pots, making mud pies inside the house). So Cheap-o-Dad mostly uses this water for cold water torture in the bathtub. While the tub is filling, the kids usually hop in and then Cheap-o-Dad squirts cold greywater from the shower bucket on them via squirt-guns or dumps it on them from little re-used yogurt buckets. You'd think they'd hate this. But they squeal and laugh and seem to love this weird form of bathtub torture my husband has concocted for them.

Recently, Cheap-o-Dad has taken to cutting the top off a plastic milk jug to enlarge the opening, and keeps it under the tap in the kitchen sink. This captures any greywater from hand-washing of dishes. We then use this water to pre-rinse before putting dishes in the dishwasher or also for watering exterior plants.

While we haven't gotten around to disconnecting our downspouts and capturing rainwater, we seem to have really made a dent in conserving indoor water use (our water bill shows a major decrease in monthly water usage). Do you reuse your greywater, and if so, what are your favorite tricks?

Some after-the-fact thoughts on battery-operated toys

I've got toys on the brain...bear with me.

Before I had kids, I remember a friend ranting about battery-operated toys and how they do nothing to stimulate a child's imagination, and that the battery and toy industry had hopped into bed together to spawn a generation of annoying, unhealthy plastic toys. I slowly backed away. Flash forward five years. We've been the recipients of untold numbers of battery-operated toys, mostly from well-meaning relatives. And we've bought some ourselves. I just can't get over the quantity of battery-operated toys on the market. It's almost impossible to find one that doesn't require batteries at a big-box retailer. And half the time the battery doesn't really add anything to the toy. We were given a Fisher-Price Little People Playground, and if you spin the merry-go-round it plays music, and if you push a button on the slide you hear children laughing. How is this important again?

We've been getting rid of lots of outgrown toys, most given as gifts. Almost all are battery-operated because most relatives will buy the hot, new, trendy toy from Amazon or Toys R Us or Target. I think about my old childhood toys that my kids love; my old wooden mobile that hung over their crib; the vintage Fisher-Price activity set that makes little tings and rattles and beeps when you poke, spin and dial. No batteries needed to bring so much joy. I think if I could do it all over again  (have kids that is, eech) I would make my preference for non-battery-operated toys known. They're not all bad, it's just that most don't need that battery component. A baby can get just as much stimulation from colorful blocks and pictures and soft rattles. A child doesn't need a toy piano that talks. They need a piano that plays quiet, natural tones when they press the keys.

For what it's worth, I'd like to tell new parents-to-be (and their relatives!) that most battery-operated toys are overrated and unnecessary. Unless you start buying lots of rechargeable batteries, you will spend a small fortune. Find a neighborhood toy store; you can't go wrong!

Holy guacamole: We've grown a snow pea!

Do you remember that feeling when your first born said his/her first word? Or took those first steps? That feeling of pride so huge you felt like emotion was exploding out of your body? As if your child had invented language single-handedly. Or invented walking!

This is how I feel about my garden. I have truly grown a snow pea. Several as a matter of fact. My beans are now taller than I am, every plant I started has grown. I now have sunflowers started from seed, snow peas, green beans, blueberries and strawberries growing in my own yard!

I never thought it would happen. I'm astounded, but in a good way.

This is so exciting.

If you haven't started a garden, you must. Really. If I can do this, then you can too! Get thee to a nursery, quickly! Grab a trowel. Growing your own food is just too cool!!

Sounds like a berry good time

This Thursday, June 21, the Portland Farmers Market held at Ecotrust (NW 10th between Irving & Johnson) is holding a Red, White and Blueberry Festival. Buy $5 worth of items from any vendor and get a FREE scrumptious berry shortcake made from locally grown berries. Learn tips on preserving and freezing berries while you enjoy the bounty of the season. The festival will repeat next Thursday, June 28 at the Eastbank market at SE 20th & Salmon. Both markets are open 3:30pm-7:30pm.

Recycling: Precious Scrap Metals

Silver, gold and platinum? Yes they are still precious. But add aluminum, steel and copper to the list of precious metals if you are talking about the recycling market.

I've always recycled the obvious metals: the can from tomato sauce, the odd soda can (we don't drink much that comes in cans), but for some reason there's a number of scrap metals that come in and out of my house that it never occurred to me to recycle before taking the Master Recycler class:

• the metal lids from things like pickle and peanut butter jars
• the empty metal cans from things like shaving cream
• empty tins from lip balm (although these have good re-use possibilities)
• pots and pans past their prime
• old mailboxes (We replaced the old one with a security mailbox a few years ago when some big meannies stole some of our mail. So now the kids mail rock "letters" to one another in the back yard with the old one. I'll be sure to see if I can freecycle it as a mailbox once we tire of playing with it, and as a last resort, will put it out for recycling).

Just for fun, here's some fast facts about metal from Metro. Now, can you add any other scrap metal items to the list?

Great American Backyard Campout June 23

There's been a lot of press around Richard Louv's Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder. I have not read the book, but it's on my list. I worry about a world where kids are "plugged in" much of the time. So here's an easy way to unplug: The Great American Backyard Campout on June 23. The National Wildlife Federation encourages families to unhook from high tech toys and camp in their backyards for one night. Sounds like fun. Are you game?