Autumn Yearning
By Kitty | September 1, 2010
Mother Nature works in wondrous ways: I was really bummed at how quickly the summer flew by, but after three consecutive sweltering hot 90+ degree days, I’m definitely looking forward to autumn weather! Woo hah! Bring it on!
(Not that the forecast calls for any cool temps any time soon!) I will fully enjoy the dripping sweaty hot humid days until then. I promise! Thank you, Mother Nature, for the reminder to enjoy each day as it comes!
Topics: Loving the Earth | No Comments »
Loving Cloth Diapering (or CDing, if you use the lingo)!
By Kitty | August 30, 2010
I started Maddie in cloth diapers for a number of reasons, about which you can read on my post Cloth Diaper Dilemma (I was trying to figure out the ropes!). I’ve since accumulated just over 20 cloth diapers of all different brands, styles, and colors. I have pre-folds and covers, pocket diapers, fitted diapers, and even a fleece soaker. I have snap close, aplix close, and pull-ups. I have one-sized and individually sized. I’m slowly learning my way with cloth diapers, but I still feel like there is so much to learn!! Not to mention the literally hundreds of cloth diaper brands out there just screaming to be tried! Don’t get me wrong–I love cloth diapering. I am so very glad that I decided to go this route; I feel like it’s perfectly in line with my parenting philosophy and lifestyle: good for the earth, good for the baby, good for the pocketbook (as long as you reign in your sampling obsession!)
Through all of my cloth diapering orientation, the people at Kelly’s Closet have been extremely helpful. As the website states,
Kissaluvs, Happy Heinys, Gro Baby, bumGenius!, Thirsties, Econobum, and Flip.Why shop at Kelly’s Closet? Kelly’s Closet is committed to providing high quality products and superior customer service that is unmatched in the cloth diaper industry.They aren’t kidding! I have sent numerous questions through their customer service page, and I always get a clear, helpful, friendly response really quickly. With their help, I finally found a solution to wet naps and night-time sleep. Maddie was even soaking through disposable diapers!!! I sent an inquiry to Kelly’s Closet and quickly got a great response suggesting a fitted diaper and cover instead of a pocket diaper for nighttime. I replied, “what’s the difference?” haha there I am, cloth diapering novice extraordinaire. Patiently, Kelly’s Closet replied with a detailed messages explaining the difference between pocket diapers and fitted diapers, and I was sold.
Wondering what the bulletproof combo is? I’ve been using a BabyKicks Organic fitted with Joey Bunz insert, plus an additional bumGenius overnight soaker pad, with a Thirsties cover. Phew! It seems like it would be massively huge, but it really isn’t! AND, since we’ve been using that combo, Maddie hasn’t woken up in a puddle since! (and that was over 2 weeks ago)
BabyKicks Organic Fitted... absolutely bulletproof!
I’m absolutely loving cloth diapering!! I’m looking forward to attempting our first hotel vacation with cloth diapers in a couple of weeks when we meet my parents in Boston for 5 days, 4 nights. My goal is to use all cloth diapers. We’ll see how it goes! Do any cloth diaperers out there have any suggestions or tips for a successful CDing vacation? I’d love to hear them!
Topics: Cloth Diapering, Loving the Earth, Mommyhood | 2 Comments »
Bar Harbor Favorite: McKays Public House Restaurant
By Kitty | August 16, 2010
I have a new hands-down favorite restaurant in Bar Harbor, Maine. McKays Public House is a winner any way you look at it! Absolutely delicious food, varied menu including vegetarian and vegan options, relaxing and friendly atmosphere, reasonable prices, gorgeous gardens and both indoor and outdoor seating, (and the best part) and they use organic and local ingredients!! PERFECT! Here’s how we stumbled upon it:
About a month ago we were on the coast on a camping trip in Acadia, and decided to go into Bar Harbor for dinner one night. Usually when we go to Bar Harbor, we go to Geddy’s for dinner, since it’s a classic fav and right in the middle of town. It even has a live webcam of Bar Harbor so that you can check out the sights year-round. It’s good pub food, and certainly has something for everyone (more or less–us anti-fried food vegans have few selections). This time, though, I thought we should try out some place new. We started walking around and looking at menus and soon discovered why we always went to Geddy’s–there really weren’t many vegetarian options anywhere. That’s when my mother-in-law Sheri mentioned that she vaguely remembered a good place up the street a bit. She couldn’t remember the name or what type of food there was, but she had gone there a few years prior and remembered it being tasty. We decided we would walk up in the direction of her memories and look at the menu. If it wasn’t any good, we would go to Geddy’s.
That’s what brought us right to the gate of McKays. One look at the menu, paired with the comparable prices and atmosphere and we were hooked. High fives all around–we had found a winner! I loved just about everything about my dinner experience at McKays. The hostess and waiter were both extremely friendly (but sincerely so, not annoyingly so), helpful, and attentive. The food was the best food I’d eaten in quite some time. The price was comparable to all of the other restaurants whose menus we had perused. AND by eating there, we were supporting local and organic farmers!! What’s not to like?
I returned to McKays two nights later when family was visiting and we spent the day in the Bar Harbor area. The food was fantastic yet again and McKays did not fail to impress. I can’t wait until my next visit to Bar Harbor… another excuse to try something new from the menu!
Going to Bar Harbor on vacation? Live in Maine and looking for a new dig to check out? I suggest McKays Public House Restaurant: 231 Main Street in Bar Harbor. Check it out… and let me know what you think!
Topics: Healthy Eating | No Comments »
Healthy Harvest
By Kitty | August 9, 2010
One of the benefits of having an awesome backyard (or door-yahd) garden is the copious amounts of veggies that just sit there waiting for you to harvest them. After visiting family and friends in New Jersey for a week, those veggies started to go a little crazy… especially the cucumbers.
Today I went out and harvested 22 – yes, count them… twenty-two! cucumbers, some of which were massive. Garrett was so excited about the bounteous harvest that he scaled a full-on photo shoot of our lovely cukes in our kitchen.
Here are some of my favorites of his glamor shots:
Green juice, cucumber salad, sliced cucumber creations, here we come!… anyone want some cucumbers?
Topics: Daily Update, Healthy Eating, Loving the Earth | 1 Comment »
California Bans Single Use Plastic Bags!
By Kitty | July 19, 2010
I just read this post on the EcoEtsy blog and just had to share it. California has banned single use plastic bags!! I certainly hope that more and more states follow suit!
Photo by BagMonster on flickr
Here’s the article as posted on the EcoEtsy blog:
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AB 1998 passed out of the Senate Environmental Quality Committee, which means beginning of January 1, 2012, stores will phase out of handing out single use plastic grocery bags in California.
Assembly member and author of the bill, Santa Monica’s Julia Brownley said, “We are taught to reduce, reuse, recycle in that order because we can’t recycle our way to a better world,” Brownley said in a statement. “This bill gets to the root of our litter problem by reducing our use of disposable bags. A statewide ban on single-use bags will persuade shoppers to switch to reusable bags and save Californians some of the $25 million a year spent on cleaning up bag litter.” Of the 19 million single-use bags discarded annually in California, only 5% of them are recycled, said Brownley. (LAist) The new proposed law will allow sales of recycled paper bags to consumers for five cents if they forget to bring their reusable grocery bags.
Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said he looked forward to signing the bill into law after hearing that AB1998 passed in the Assembly on June 2, 2010.
And the most recent city to look into banning plastic bags since CA started it’s campaign is Portland Oregon. On July 14, 2010, Portland’s mayor Sam Adams pledged to eliminate plastic bags from his city.
Do you want your city or state to start banning plastic bags?
Sign the petition today!
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I am SO excited that this has finally happened!! I almost never accept a plastic bag from any store these days. I bring my reusable bags, or just carry my items out. I am happy to note that check-out people give me weird looks less and less when I tell them I don’t want a bag, compared to the looks and incredulous glances I got a year ago when I made the decision to never use a plastic bag again. The way I see it is especially if I carry the items all around the store, why wouldn’t I be able to carry them out to my car after paying for them?
Plus, as noted on the Top Ten List website, plastic bags are #7 of the Top Ten Potential Environmental Disasters, and the Great Pacific Garbage Patch is #9. Their justification for listing plastic bags on the list is that “This all pervasive material has invaded every part of our lives. These bags are found everywhere and about 10 million of them are disposed of as waste every day. They are not biodegradable and they can take a long time to degenerate. They are clogging our drains and our rivers and our trash sites and are harming our soil and water and air.” I don’t see ANY reason why we should not ban them from our everyday use!! Whoever is still not convinced that plastic bags need to be eliminated from our everyday use should go talk to the Bag Monster (photo above).
Great Pacific Garbage Patch... ick!
For those of you who have not heard of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, it is “a huge swirling mass of plastic floating in the Pacific Ocean. Often termed as the world’s largest garbage dump, its size is increasing steadily as it collects more garbage from ships and from land-based sources.” Yuck! According to the Garbage Patch website:
If this isn’t a huge clue that we humans need to change our plastic-consuming ways STAT, then I don’t know what is. Do your piece. Refuse plastic. Use reusable bags. Sign the petition to eradicate the use of plastic bags today!
Kudos to California for taking the lead on this issue and actually getting things done! Rock on!
Here are some great reusable bag options for you in the meantime:
LoveForEarth Tropical Sunset FULL set Reusable Produce bags on Etsy
zJayne Paper or Plastic No THANK YOU Recycled t-shirt bag on Etsy
greeniebeanrecycle Coffee and Conversations UPCYCLED Farmers Market Tote
Topics: Eco Etsy, Loving the Earth | No Comments »
New Heights, New Friends
By Kitty | July 16, 2010
We’ve been living in Maine for just over a month and we are settling in nicely. The Fourth of July we went on a gorgeous hike up Bald Mountain with some new friends–Leslie and Paul. I met Leslie first at the Parent & Child yoga class at Central Street yoga in Bangor; she was one of the teachers. Then, she came to the first yoga class I taught here, and when Garrett, Maddie and I went to a Thai restaurant for dinner after class, Leslie and a friend came in to pick up take-out!! So already, I knew we both liked yoga & Thai food–Not a bad start!
As I talked to her more, I discovered a few more connections and found that Garrett & I have quite a bit in common with Leslie & Paul. It was so nice to meet such wonderful people so soon after moving up here, and I’m really looking forward to getting to know them better through adventuring, yogaing, and eating delicious and nutritious food!!
On the fourth, they suggested a short hike up Bald Mountain. It was a blazing hot sunny day, which made the breeze on top of the mountain feel gloriously refreshing! The view was spectacular, the hike was short but very steep, and overall it was a perfect day! We even did some yoga on top of the mountain (one of my favorite pasttimes-yoga in the heart of nature!) AND it was Leslie’s idea!!
We also used our new organic Ergo baby carrier for the first time, and as you can see, Maddie loved it. She was able to fall asleep and nap on the way up, and for much of our time on the top of the mountain she snoozed in the shade.
The following are some pictures from the hike. As you can see, it was a gorgeous day for an invigorating hike and breathtaking view!
After a hot and sunny ascent, we reached the top….
What a VIEW!! That one big clearing and building across the lake is the Lucerne Inn, where our friends Andy & Jenny got married. It was really fun to enjoy the view from the other side!
Here are a couple of crows chillin on the cliff’s edge. (For the non-yogis, Leslie and I are doing Bakasana, or crow pose… also called crane pose)
We did some flying, too. This was especially fun for me, since while I have seen partner yoga and acro-yoga before, I’ve never had a chance to do it. It was a ton of fun, especially with such exhiliarating views!
Sooooo much fun! I am definitely looking forward to our next hiking adventure! Here’s to new heights and new friends!
Topics: Daily Update, Yoga | 1 Comment »
The Lorax Speaks…
By Kitty | July 13, 2010
I am the Lorax. I speak for the trees. I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues. I am the Lorax, and I’ll yell and I’ll shout, for the fine things on earth that are on their way out! Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not.
– Dr. Seuss
Please, I implore you… listen to the Lorax!
Topics: Inspirations, Loving the Earth | No Comments »
Theo, my love (aka Cacao, wow!)
By Kitty | July 12, 2010
This just in (but not news to me): Chocolate, aka Theobroma cacao aka cocoa, is GOOD for you! Like, realllly good! I gladly inherited chocoholicism from my dad, particularly desiring the delicious bitter bite of really dark chocolate. Mmmmmm… Theo(broma), my love!
This morning my husband sent me an article that I just had to share. We have been using raw cacao nibs in fruit smoothies and as a yummy snack for close to a year. While some friends think it tastes like bark, I love it! Now, according to this article from Natural News, it’s not only a delicious answer to my chocolate cravings, but it’s also a “superfood”! Even the Aztecs recognized it as amazing nutritionally–they called it “heart blood”. Yum!
Here’s an excerpt from the article for those who want the specifics:
By increasing the levels of specific neurotransmitters in our brains, cacao can help promote a positive outlook, facilitate rejuvenation, and simply lift our spirits:
- Serotonin - Cacao raises the level of serotonin in the brain and therefore acts as an anti-depressant, promoting an overall sense of well-being.
-Endorphins - These are our natural pain and stress chemicals known as neurotransmitters. Cacao stimulates the secretion of endorphins, which can help to produce a pleasurable feeling.
- Phenylethylamine (PEAs) – PEAs are a natural chemical compound that are also created within the brain and released when we are in love. It acts as a mild mood elevator and an anti-depressant, and it helps increase focus and alertness.
- Anandamide - Anandamide is known as the “bliss chemical” because it is released by the brain when we are feeling happy. Cacao contains both N-acylethanolamines that are believed to temporarily increase the levels of anandamide in the brain and enzyme inhibitors that slow its breakdown. This promotes relaxation for a longer period of time.
For the whole story, visit the full article Raw Cacao: Turn Chocolate Cravings into Super Nutrition.
Chocolate – it’s not just for breakfast anymore!
Topics: Daily Update, Healthy Eating | 1 Comment »
A breath of fresh air… and some home-grown veggies!
By Kitty | July 3, 2010
My blog has certainly taken a turn from nature-outdoorsy-crafty-yoga-chick blog to a new-momma-with-a-baby blog, and I apologize to any readers (assuming there are any!) who couldn’t care less whether I dress my darling Maddie in cloth diapers or banana leaves to keep her “compost” from composting our house and yard. For you tree-hugging, natural-living, nature-loving, “give me green”ies out there, this post is for you!
I am super excited to introduce our very first (official) vegetable garden!! We’ve had container gardens in the past, and our awesome former landlord (and lady) gave us a section of their garden plot last summer, but this is our first honest-to-goodness, the real deal veggie garden! My husband’s parents generously let us dig up a 12′ x 22′ section of their lawn (or door-yard {pronounced door yaahd} according to Mainers) for our garden. It’s on a southern facing slope, too! Here’s a picture post documenting our progress.
Here I am cutting sod to get it all started.
My hardworking husband proudly standing next to our tilled garden plot after a weekend of hard work.
After we used the roto-tiller to till it, we added some loam we got from a local organic farm and then some worm castings from Garrett’s Uncle Danny’s Worm Farm. The soil looked GREAT! Then, Lori and Willis, friends of ours who are well versed at garden creation, planting, harvesting, and storing, came over and suggested that since our garden is on a slope, we could create terraces. Willis even offered to give us some extra log edges that he had gotten to build a woodshed. What great friends!
Here is our garden, all terraced and planted!! (And for extra credit, can you spy the baby gardener??)
We got organic seedlings from our local farmer’s market since we didn’t get the garden started until mid-June. We planted 12 purple kale, 6 Carmen peppers, 6 hot pepper lanterns, 6 celery, 6 red celery, 6 black cherry tomatoes, 6 slicing cucumbers, 6 sugar baby watermelons, 6 butternut squash, 6 buttercup squash, 6 basil, 2 rosemary, and 6 cilantro. While I took pictures of one of each plant, I won’t post them all here. Instead, here’s a sampling of some of the seedlings we planted.
We still have to build the trellis for the tomatoes and cucumbers, but the posts are in! Garrett used a post digger to make sure they are sunken about 2 feet.
Next we will string wire-fence wire along the tops and anchored to the ground on each end. Finally, twine will be strung from the wire above down to the ground, attached to the plants with tomato clips. I will be sure to post garden progress throughout the summer, and hopefully will have some great harvest posts, too!
Here’s to a successful growing season and a fruitful first garden! At the very least, Maddie will have lots of fun overseeing our work and sampling the grass!
Topics: Daily Update, Healthy Eating, Loving the Earth | 2 Comments »
Cloth Diaper Dilemma
By Kitty | June 28, 2010
Being a new parent is an amazing blessing. The minute you discover you are going to be a parent, your life changes. The birth of your child is a wonderful miracle and instills feelings of love and devotion deeper than any you’ve ever felt before. There are so many new things to learn and discover, and also so many new things to consider!
One of the big decisions to make when your new baby arrives is unavoidable: diapers! Boy or girl, your baby is going to go through a LOT of diapers! Since I try to be as environmentally conscious as possible, while at the same trying to minimize my child’s exposure to unnecessary chemicals and toxins, I did some research about diapering. I was amazed to discover what nasty substances we put on our darling babies’ smooth tushies! Here’s a breakdown of the problems with disposable diapers (found in an article on naturalnews.com):
After lots of research, I found the above downfalls of disposable diapers listed again and again… in magazine articles, online articles, books, and from fellow health-savvy moms. So there’s my answer, right? Cloth diapers!
Up until a few weeks ago, we did not have a washer and dryer in our house/apartment. For this reason, I’ve been using the most eco-friendly disposable diapers I could find (mostly Seventh Generation and sometimes Huggies Naturals). Seventh Generation diapers are chlorine-free (not bleached), have no dioxins, are hypo-allergenic, and are fragrance and latex-free (which eliminates SOME of the toxic impact) and Huggies Naturals are made with organic cotton. Both still have absorbant gels and will contribute to filling landfills, but I had to make a compromise with myself. As a new mommy, I had plenty to learn and figure out without hand-washing cloth diapers.
But NOW! We have a washer and dryer right here under the same roof, and we are transitioning to cloth diapers. Okay, so we’ve decided to use cloth diapers. I thought from here it would be easy!!
However, in doing a basic search for “cloth diapers” I found that there are TONS of different brands and styles of cloth diapering. There are bumGenius, Fuzzi Bunz, Bummis, gDiapers, Bumkins, Thirsties, Bottombumpers, EnviBum… and the list goes on and on!! In my initial search, I decided that I want to try the pre-fitted cloth diapers, and preferably one that is mostly one-size. So then I had to decide… do I want the pocket kind, where you put the inserts into the cloth diaper? or the built-in what-you-see-is-all-you-need diapers. At first I thought the all in one would be easier and make sense, but then I saw a comment on one of the many cloth-diapering comment boards I visited that mentioned drying time for the all-in-ones. aka, they take FOREVER to dry. Duly noted.
My next step was to ask for advice from friends who cloth diaper. I got a variety of suggestions and decided to try a couple of diapers from a couple different brands to see what I like best. So far, I’ve ordered 3 Thirsties Duo-Diapers, which arrived last week, and 2 bumGenius! one size diapers in the sample package. We’ve tried the Thirsties and I like them so far… they didn’t leak at all and were not as bulky as I thought they would be. The snap system should mean that they will fit Maddie from now until potty-training, which is awesome!
The bumGenius! diapers haven’t gotten here yet, but I’m eager to try them, too. I am still open to suggestions and thoughts, though, since I haven’t committed to any one brand or style yet. What cloth diapers do/did you use? What did you find to be the most important feature? Any advice or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! I’m excited to switch fully to cloth diapers, but want to make sure I choose the right ones for us before investing in 18-24 of them.
I am excited to know that I will soon be reaping the benefits of cloth diapers, both for Maddie and for the environment:
•Softer and more comfortable than plastic diapers.
•Fewer rashes when the baby is changed as needed.
•Earlier potty training because the child can sense when they are wet.
•Environmentally friendly even when water, power and products are factored in.
•Cost effective: Even using a laundry service can be cheaper than buying disposables.
•MORE convenient: Think about it. How many times have you had to stop what you are doing and run to the store and pick up a box of disposables?
For a good comparison of disposable vs. cloth diapers, visit the full article Lessen Your Baby’s Toxic Load (Part 1): Diapers.
Topics: Cloth Diapering, Loving the Earth, Mommyhood | 2 Comments »
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