Resolution 2010: The Year of Money

 
I love, love, love making new year's resolutions. Every year I declare, "This year will be the Year of ___!" You can fill in that blank with many different words like Fitness! Art! Patience! Organization! I get really excited about the vast prospects that lie ahead, I make lists and plans and then the new year arrives and within days I've forgotten it all. (Sound familiar?) Well THIS year is going to be different. I have declared 2010 to be the Year of Money! Mainly saving money, because if it was about making more money, then I'd have to go out and get a real job. Boo. But I'm excited, my spouse is totally on board (this is key), and we are setting specific savings goals. MONEY!

We've already taken steps. The first thing we did was sign up with Mint.com, a free online personal finance program that tracks all of your financial transactions and categorizes them so you can see things like: hmm, we spent as much on groceries in December as we did on restaurants. THAT MUST CHANGE. So here are a few things I'm working on to get money, money, money, which also happen to be sustainable practices. Funny how those two concepts often go hand in hand.

Meal planning: Our restaurant spending is primarily due to the fact that I'm not a meal planner. Five o'clock rolls around and I realize the pantry is bare. So I'm getting myself a weekly planner and taking the stress out of dinner. It will also help me to stop wasting food: no more wilted produce and expired meat products. This meal-planning post on Unclutterer (and the comments) is fascinating.  Do you have any good tips to share?

Energy savings: Can I tell you how much I love my new Kill-a-Watt? I plugged it into our secondary freezer and learned that we spend approximately $11.25 per month on it. That means that I need to be making sure we're getting our money's worth: stocking up on bread when I can get it cheap (Nature Bake Outlet!), soaking and freezing beans, you know what I'm talking about. I also purchased two Smart Strips for our computer and television devices, and I have plans to decrease our heating bills.

Clutter clearing: I'm on a rampage right now, going through closets and boxes and hauling away stuff that never sees the light of day. I've also sold a few things on Craigslist. (Money!) I love knowing exactly what lives in any given closet or cabinet. And I'm hoping this freedom from stuff will tamper our urge to spend money on new clutter.

OK, so that's me. What about you? Any resolutions you want to share -- any support you need? Happy New Year, everyone! It's going to be a great year!

 

This post is part of the Green Moms Carnival hosted by Katy at Non-Toxic Kids. Hop on over there to learn what other green moms are resolving for 2010!

Pumpkin: she was the best chicken ever...

I can't believe I'm doing this, but indeed, I am eulogizing a chicken. We lost a beloved chicken to a coyote several days before Christmas. It happened in the late afternoon as they were free-ranging. Pumpkin, a Rhode Island Red, was always a wanderer. The others often stayed closer to home. She was like the ring-leader. Always heading into verboten yards and bringing the others along. It is not surprising that the coyote picked her. Probably because she was an easy mark on her own. Unprotected. Turns out that a neighbor who went out to her garage to get something from her car spotted the coyote at the bottom of her drive with Pumpkin in her mouth. Neck broken. Dead. Feathers everywhere. We adults are all somewhat shaken. Of course, it is the circle of life. As some neighbors had warned, by free-ranging the way we did, it was bound to happen. The shock is still great, and I have not told my kids yet. Due to the bitter, bitter cold we have been experiencing, I have not been letting the chickens out this week. Also due to some fear of it happening again. Because no question, that coyote will be back. If anyone has tips about breaking the news of a pet's death, I'd be most appreciative. RIP Pumpkin.

Paper and mylar snowflake cuttings

Sometimes the simplest things bring the most pleasure. We've been whittling away at our time off this week, enjoying the 'slow mom' speed that is so rare in our lives most of the time. But here's a shocker... I could not believe that my kids have made it to the ages of 7 11/12 (she turns 8 in January, and tends to be hyper-precise), and 5 -- and had NEVER made paper snowflakes: Scratch paper. Scissors. Imagination. And a wee bit of tape to hang them in the window. Each one prettier than the last:


We also experimented with mylar. Since we can no longer recycle mylar bags, and I just haven't been able to throw away the bags I'd collected, we found they too make lovely silver snowflakes using the same paper cutting method. It was hard to get a picture to do them justice. But fun and festive all the same. Any old mylar bag will do: old helium balloon, potato chip bag, cracker box liner, etc.


Heather and I wish you and your families the happiest of holidays. We will be taking the next few days off to spend some 'slow mom' time with our own families. We'll put our EnviroMom hats back on next Monday! Peace, everyone!

The rewards of homemade gifts

 
I had one of those magical (and rare) DIY moments yesterday. A couple of hours before meeting some favorite relations for lunch, I realized that I really wanted to bring them something. Not being a person who keeps a gift drawer of tasteful, appropriate gifts at the ready I was at a loss...until I remembered the stash of strawberry freezer jam I put up over the summer. Many jars of Oregon's sweet summer berries remained. (Take that, Martha.) So I whipped up a couple of cloth bags tied up with ribbon and the kids got to work on homemade cards, which, happily, they love to make. It felt so good to hand over those homemade gifts to people we love. It made me want to do more planning for that kind of spontaneous DIY gifting. (Hmm. Planning for spontaneity? Let's go with it.)

A reader made a comment last week that has stuck with me. In response to Renee's post about staying grounded during the holidays, Susan said:

I can relate to finding myself getting caught up in the whirl of it all despite many good intentions to stay out of it, stay calm, make decisions about gifts and celebrating that are true to the values I'm working on living (like less waste, less plastic, etc)... every time I get down about my failures this year, I try to think of it as information for how to prepare for next year.

Every time I have one of these little moments, success or failure, it does feel like I'm taking mental notes for future efforts. Living mindfully is a slow process, but a joyful one. Note to self: homemade can be a rewarding for both giver and receiver. Do more of that!

Fruit trees: the gift that gives back

Have you heard this Chinese proverb? I love it:

The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The next best time is now.

In the past year, we planted four dwarf fruit trees: a peach, a pear, a lime and a lemon. So now all we need is 20 years, right? I don't know if it was amazing beginners' luck or something, but our lime tree bore the most beautiful green lime over the summer. And we just looked at it, and let it hang there. Not quite sure what to do. The obvious thing would be to pick and eat it, but somehow we couldn't do it. This is how I get in trouble in the garden. I adore my fruits and veggies instead of eating them while they are tender and fresh, thus ending up with zucchinis that would make even Dirk Diggler feel insecure.

Back to the lime. It's in a pretty clay pot that sat on our front porch all summer, and was brought inside (along with the lemon) a few weeks ago, once it started to get really cold. We picked our sole lime over the weekend: Best. Lime. Ever. We've pretty much stopped buying tropical fruit and have been getting our fruit fix from the local bounty: fall pears and apples, and berries and melons in the summer. Maybe that was another reason why we waited to eat this lime. In the middle of summer, it might not have seemed special. During these dark short days of fall and winter, it was like a burst of sunshine. Of course, then we went and squirted the lime into some really non-local beer from Mexico. Oops.

Our lemon, which we bought and potted this fall now has blossoms. I can't wait until the flowers open and share their intoxicating scent. So this waiting thing isn't all bad.

If you're still looking for a holiday gift idea, consider a local tree farm or nursery. I read recently that many in our state are hurting terribly in this recession. Trees and especially fruit trees are gifts that keep on giving, and they bring out the treehugger in me!

Portland: recycling is up, garbage is down!

I totally geek out when I see the Portland Curbsider in my mailbox. Oooh! What's the latest news on garbage? I pour myself a cuppa tea and settle in for a good read. The latest edition: residential recycling and yard debris composting increased by 14% in the past year (thanks to the new rollcart system) while residential garbage decreased by 9% (thanks to the economy). And Portlanders are recycling and composting 67% of their waste, which is on track to meet the 75% goal by 2015. Yea for us!

Another nugget: if you like to voice your opinion about our fair city, then you should take the survey to help shape the Portland Plan, the city's roadmap for livability. I took it online and it really forces you to think about what's really important to you. It's hard though, because everything seems important! Good schools, transportation infrastructure, jobs, sustainability, 20 minute neighborhoods, etc.! It's nice to think we might get it all one day (hopefully in our lifetime).

On a personal note, my family is still easily putting out our 32 gallon garbage can only once a month, and there is always room to spare! Buying things with less packaging and recycling and composting everything we can has really served us well in this department. Do you feel you've made strides reducing your household waste this past year?

Just say 'no' to blow drying hair!

Over the summer, after I decided to grow my hair long, I came up with what I thought was a brilliant idea. I stopped blow-drying my hair. Save energy! Save time! One less non-recyclable machine to clutter up my life! I do realize I'm probably only saving a tiny dollop of energy, perhaps less than the wattage of a toaster. (Note to self: borrow Heather's Kill-a-Watt to find out for sure). In any case, I've begun to like the natural, wavy texture of my hair, instead of the blown-stick straight style I'd worn for years.

Then autumn came. Now winter is lurking around the corner. And a wet head is rather, um, chilly. Especially when waiting outside with the kids for the blasted school bus to come each morning. Like many conundrums, the trick seems to be finding the balance. Wash in the morning if you have time before going out. Or, wash later in the day (but well before bedtime). So far that seems to work. I never blow dry my kids' hair, and they don't complain. Maybe I'm just a wuss?

Do any of you eschew hair dryers and have tips for managing wet hair in the winter? What did people do in the era before blow dryers?

Canning is in my future!

I'm so stinkin' excited about this:

I found it at a thrift shop for $7 along with a slew of glass jars. There was much merriment in the store that day! Coincidentally, just the day before I was lamenting the fact that I'd been buying so much applesauce for use in baking. I'd seen a recipe for homemade applesauce with canning instructions and was wishing I had the equipment and know-how to do it. Et voila! So I ordered 25 pounds of apples through Azure Standard this last go-around, and now I need to get to it. And my mind is racing...what else?

Has anyone canned applesauce? What are you favorite foods to can? Any good online or recipe sources to share?

Ground yourself: be home for the holidays

Two naked Ken dolls walk into a bar...

Brunette: Dude, you get a spray-on tan or what?
Blonde: It's all natural, baby.

Hence, we should always be cautious around the marketing claim 'natural.' As, there's clearly nothin' natural about Ken dolls, or 'man Barbies' as my two girls call them. Now, you might be wondering why I have two naked Ken dolls hanging out in my home. Let me explain. The kids put Man Barbies on their Christmas wish list this year. So when I was at that final Catlin Gabel rummage sale in November, and I happened upon the Barbie department, I did wonder why they were all naked (except for one who, I swear, was dressed like a Chippendale dancer. It was a real conundrum: birthday-suit Kens or Chippendale Ken, and how to explain the exotic dancer concept to two impressionable girls...) So I opted for the nakey ones. I figured, how hard could it be to sew up some board shorts and t-shirts? Well, probably pretty hard. It's already been filed under the 'what in the hell what I thinking??!' category. I hope to heck these aren't fully leaded, but kinda feel good about buying them second-hand. More than anything, I want to eavesdrop when my kids play with these guys, since they've only had female dolls up until now.

I was happy to see Heather's post bah-humbugging green gifts for her kids this year. I, on the other hand, scored pretty big with second hand stuff at rummage sale and whatnot. So why in the world did I find myself out in the 'burbs looking for new PJs, socks/undies and various other things they really don't need (um, and maybe just maybe a quick run to Toys R Us to find some Ken doll clothes)? It's insidious, this holiday commercialism. Here I am: EnviroMom, dangit. And I'm out there making myself crazy with holiday shopping! The more stores I went to, the more frustrated I became. The high prices! The questionable quality! And just what is the deal with all girl clothes looking like mini-prostitute-wear once they are out of toddler-hood? I ended up with nothing purchased, less gas in my car, and a really pissed off frustrated feeling.

If there's any wisdom gained from this weird exercise I put myself through is that there's lots of pressure during the holidays. If you are new to being green, don't kill yourself trying to make all the 'right' decisions. Not everything can be local, organic, fair-trade, etc., especially when it comes to shopping for kids. I did ultimately decide that their big 'Santa' gift will be an experience (instead of a thing), which will new for us.

I managed to re-ground myself by making apple butter with my daughters. Once again, I feel at peace, and ready for the 'home for the holidays' spirit. Simple pleasures. Put on some Christmas music. Bake cookies. Let the kids wrap gifts and use as much tape as they want. Find a wee bit of alone time to sew up the Ken doll clothes for my kids.

How do you keep yourself grounded at this crazy time of year? What's your favorite part of being home for the holidays?

PS Please don't say anything about Ken One and Ken Two to my kids. These bay boys are going in their stockings.

Reuse: easy holiday craft using old socks

My second grader's class made sock snowmen with help from some fourth graders at her school. All it takes is some white tube socks, string to cinch around the middle, ribbon or fabric scraps to decorate, beads, buttons or googly eyes, and something heavy-ish to fill them with (they used rice). Aren't they adorable?

Each year, one of my traditions is to make a Christmas tree ornament that somehow symbolizes the year. Some years, it's easy to come up with ideas. Some hard. This year, I'll keep it simple on the theme, and just modify this cute sock reuse idea. Because heaven knows we have quite a few orphan white socks hanging around! I'm using baby socks, so that it'll become a tiny, ornament-size snowman, and some 20-year old wild rice that I'm never going to get anyone to eat since I haven't managed it yet. Here's what I've got so far (I'm going to let my kids finish and decorate it when they are home from school):

A few months ago, we received an email from Emily in Montreal looking for ideas on where to donate old socks:

I am writing from Montreal, Canada with a big bag of old socks that I simply can't bear to throw in the rubbish bin just yet... and I read on your website in "Old socks, old stuffies, and old board books" that you may know someone from a GreenGroup who makes rugs and be able to use them. They're clean, brightly-coloured, almost entirely mismatched, and some have holes, but they would be great for rug-making. Or perhaps there are Moms in your Green teams that would like to have the socks for arts and crafts projects for little ones? I'm happy to ship to a community centre, church, or school if needed.

We applaud Emily's efforts to not just throw them away, and can only suggest finding a local school or crafter in Montreal who might want them, which sometimes takes a bit of phone calling or creating a free listing on freecycle or craigslist. Given a little bit of creativity, there's really no limit to what a crafter can do with old socks: sock puppets, sock snowmen, beer cozy! Readers, if you have any other ideas on reusing old socks, please, your suggestions are always most welcome!