Our nine-year-old Nicholas has been interested in home decorating since he was about four years old. I often get frustrated with his desire to set up things that are merely decorative, have no useful purpose, and just get in my way! I am even more irritated when he wants to buy things just for decorating. … Continue reading Centerpiece
Why I Spent My Birthday Money on Socks
My partner's grandfather, Herschel, has a tradition of giving everyone a birthday gift of the number of dollars that matches her age, so he gave me $41 last month. I used it to order 8 pairs of socks from Maggie's Organics. What a boring gift! It brings to mind the 1980s "Saturday Night Live" skit … Continue reading Why I Spent My Birthday Money on Socks
Recycling Used-Up Pens and Markers
This is a guest post by Nicholas Efran, nine-year-old son of 'Becca and Daniel. He wrote this article for the June 2014 issue of the Colfax Communicator, his school's newsletter. (Mr. Sikorski is the principal.) We hope it inspires other kids to start recycling things that are getting thrown away in their schools! Three third-graders … Continue reading Recycling Used-Up Pens and Markers
Vegetarianism and Animal Rights: Explaining to Children
Welcome to the June 2014 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Kids and Animals This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama. This month our participants have shared stories and wisdom about kids and animals. *** When my cousin Samantha was three years old … Continue reading Vegetarianism and Animal Rights: Explaining to Children
The Best Alarm Clock-Radio to Buy Used
...is a Sony Dream Machine with EZ Alarm, made around 1988. You do not want a recent Dream Machine as it is a completely different product. This is an excellent clock: My dad gave it to me for Christmas when I was 15. Its radio reception was far superior to my previous clock-radio; no more … Continue reading The Best Alarm Clock-Radio to Buy Used
What to do if your baby spits up blood
Well, of course you should call your doctor if you see any trace of blood--either red streaks or dark brown grainy-looking stuff--in your baby's spit-up. Blood in the digestive tract can be a symptom of something terribly wrong that needs immediate treatment. But while you are waiting for that call back from the doctor, I … Continue reading What to do if your baby spits up blood
The Towel Pull: A Helpful Childbirth Technique
Our daughter Lydia is now ten days old! She had a nice natural birth at the Midwife Center. The most difficult part was getting her head out, and for that I used a technique that also was very effective at that stage in the birth of our son nine years ago. Both times, one of … Continue reading The Towel Pull: A Helpful Childbirth Technique
Bean Wraps with Smoked Gouda and Pineapple
UPDATE: Eight months later, I'm sharing this recipe at Meatless Monday. It's a great quick meal at any time of year because all the ingredients are shelf-stable except for the cheese and wrapper; it doesn't use fresh foods that are in season at a particular time of year--unless you live in pineapple country! Don't eat … Continue reading Bean Wraps with Smoked Gouda and Pineapple
Why we didn’t have a Gender Reveal Party
This post is not meant to criticize parents who make different decisions, just to explain our point of view. "Do you know what you're having?" I am in my last month of pregnancy, and oh, how tired I am of that strangely-phrased question! I just smile and say, "It's a baby!" Of course that doesn't … Continue reading Why we didn’t have a Gender Reveal Party
Asbestos Awareness Week
I've been asked to share the link to this site about asbestos and mesothelioma. Dying to Be Heard explains how asbestos causes mesothelioma, a cancer which is quickly fatal in most people, and tells one survivor's story. It also explains how to find out whether you are being exposed to asbestos and what to do … Continue reading Asbestos Awareness Week
Saving Money on Sports Fan Gear
We aren't sports fans in our family. Exercise is good, but we're not much interested in playing sports and even less interested in watching sports. But we live in Pittsburgh, a city with three professional sports teams that are a major focus of the local culture. We can't help noticing when one of the teams … Continue reading Saving Money on Sports Fan Gear
Fishgiving: A Feast from the Freezer!
Last weekend, my family enjoyed a spontaneous and somewhat silly holiday feast. A few days earlier, we had finally gotten around to baking an acorn squash and two butternut squashes we'd received in our CSA farm share back in November. Each of the three of us ate a big chunk of squash as a side … Continue reading Fishgiving: A Feast from the Freezer!
How to use long-frozen cookie dough
When my parents visited us the Christmas before last, my mother made her grandmother's traditional animal cookies: a buttery dough that you roll out and cut with cookie cutters (they don't have to be animal shapes, of course) and bake and frost. The recipe makes a huge batch, so she divided it and froze two … Continue reading How to use long-frozen cookie dough
A Real Man
A Real Man does not mind carrying the groceries in a canvas tote bag with colorful tulips printed on it. A Real Man knows how to cook a meal, wash the dishes, do the laundry, mop a floor, and sew on a button. He considers these basic survival skills that everyone should know by the … Continue reading A Real Man
Four Weeks of Mostly Meatless Dinners (February)
I'm not using the term "pesco-vegetarian" in the title like I have for many of my other multi-week meal plans because I think "meatless" is the more common word people are searching for in Lent. My family eats no meat at home except occasional fish--which does not count as "meat" in many fasting plans, for … Continue reading Four Weeks of Mostly Meatless Dinners (February)
Humidify Your Home the Cheap and Easy Way!
Our house has forced-air heat: The furnace blows warm air through the ducts and out through vents in most of the rooms. Our vents are in the baseboards, so they push out the air horizontally at floor level. This tip also would work with a wall vent that is just above a shelf or table, … Continue reading Humidify Your Home the Cheap and Easy Way!
Lemon Creamy Salmon with Tangy Greens
This is a meal my family has enjoyed repeatedly since it was inspired by a chicken recipe more than two years ago. We rarely eat chicken and never cook it at home, so we've always made this with canned wild Alaskan salmon. I've now made enough changes to the original recipe that I feel this … Continue reading Lemon Creamy Salmon with Tangy Greens
My kid doesn’t have to wear a coat.
I'm an easily chilled sort of person. I like to feel warm and cozy, and being cold upsets me. In any given weather conditions, I'm usually wearing at least as many garments as the average person, often more. My son Nicholas seems to feel warm most of the time. He's often quite calm and comfortable … Continue reading My kid doesn’t have to wear a coat.
My Favorite Love Song
I'm not very romantic. A lot of the gooey sentiments expressed around Valentine's Day send me into fits of critical thinking. I'm kind of like this. But I am in love with Daniel, and have been for almost 20 years, and sometimes get kind of sentimental about it. In particular, I can get all choked … Continue reading My Favorite Love Song
My Top 3 Kitchen Time-Saving Tips
Katie at Kitchen Stewardship is asking everyone to share our top 3 kitchen time-savers this week! I work full-time outside the home, and although my partner Daniel has been doing more than half the cooking in the past few years, I do most of the planning, shopping, and preliminary preparations. He works from home and … Continue reading My Top 3 Kitchen Time-Saving Tips
The Earthling's Handbook 