Why, yes, the young Earthlings over here are still distance learning, and we’re glad they’re staying home and staying safe and leaving space in the schools for the kids who more strongly need to get back in-person...but some days are difficult. Today, there were three times in three hours when we checked on our first-grader … Continue reading Distance Learning Dance Party!
exercise
Get Out of the Car! Pandemic Edition
Nowhere to go these days? Take a walk for exercise and enjoy all the things you can't see from your windows! Photos from an evening stroll in Pittsburgh.
How to Build a Gym in Your Hallway
This article by Daniel gives more detail about one of the space-saving ideas listed in Becca's article at Kitchen Stewardship: I’ve enjoyed rock climbing since I was pretty young, but these days I don’t actually get out to climb on rocks very often. I do tend to climb on stuff at the playground when I take … Continue reading How to Build a Gym in Your Hallway
Go Green in 2018: Get Out of the Car!
One of the most effective things you can do to reduce your environmental impact is to drive less. Every gallon of gasoline burned puts 24 pounds of pollution into our air! Of course we should work toward powering more cars with cleanly generated electricity or other alternative fuels, but we also need to move away … Continue reading Go Green in 2018: Get Out of the Car!
How the East End Food Co-op Keeps Me Fit and Happy
I've been on this Earth-friendly journey for a long time, and some parts of it have gotten a lot easier. Twenty years ago, you couldn't buy plant-based cleaners or chlorine-free toilet paper at target.com and have them show up on your porch two days later! I saw a tiny ad for Seventh Generation brand products … Continue reading How the East End Food Co-op Keeps Me Fit and Happy
Public Transit and Convenient Commuting
It's getting harder and harder for me to believe that the majority of Americans who work outside the home commute by car. I understand that many small towns and suburban and rural areas have no public transit at all, and that many cities have inadequate public transit providing infrequent service to just a few neighborhoods. … Continue reading Public Transit and Convenient Commuting
Peek Into My Pantry!
This rare glimpse into an actual Earthling habitat shows you what foods we keep on hand and how we organize them! Get all the details in my article at Kitchen Stewardship! Exclusively in The Earthling's Handbook, play "Find the differences between these two photos!" The one on the left was taken first, but then I … Continue reading Peek Into My Pantry!
GAME SHOW!! with math practice
My third-grade son and I came up with a game that was a lot of fun and valuable math practice and physical exercise for him, while being very easy for me and using only a few basic supplies that were easy to set up and clean up. This is a perfect activity for families in … Continue reading GAME SHOW!! with math practice
Gradually Expanding Range for a Child Walking Alone
Welcome to the September 2013 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Staying Safe This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month our participants have shared stories and tips about protecting our families. Please read to the end to find a list of … Continue reading Gradually Expanding Range for a Child Walking Alone
Staying On the Ball at Work
This is an historic moment for The Earthling's Handbook. Almost 15 years after we started this Website, almost 5 years after we set up blog software so that I could write articles on my lunch break and post them easily, we have never posted any photographs. I've explained my reservations about photos but also said … Continue reading Staying On the Ball at Work
Walking to School
Happy Walk to School Day! My son and I walked to his school this morning, and his father will walk him home this afternoon. He's in first grade. Sometime during his years at this K-8 school, he'll begin walking by himself, but for now I am enjoying the walk and the time with him. We … Continue reading Walking to School
Homemade Electrolyte Replenisher (Sports Drink)
UPDATE in 2016: This trusty recipe has now carried me through seven summers, another low-blood-pressure pregnancy, another two years of breastfeeding (which increases the risk of dehydration), and several digestive illnesses! Today I've updated some references in this post and linked up with Real Food Friday, where my recent post on using up the vegetables … Continue reading Homemade Electrolyte Replenisher (Sports Drink)
7 Things You Oughta Be Able to Do at Your Age
The idea for this article came from a friend of ours who is fifty-one years old and is becoming increasingly disgusted with twentysomething guys who are in worse physical condition than he is and, when he comments on it, mumble about how they can't afford to join a gym. They seem to be totally blind … Continue reading 7 Things You Oughta Be Able to Do at Your Age
How to Do Everything!
This article is linked to the greatest tips edition of Works-for-Me Wednesday, where the hostess explains how to get a human on the phone when you call customer service, and more than 178 people have linked to their own helpful tips on how to do all sorts of things. Here are my own greatest tips: … Continue reading How to Do Everything!
Balancing on the Ball
We've had an exercise ball for a couple of years now--one of those large, inflatable balls strong enough to hold an adult's weight, which can be used for lots of exercises. Daniel and I both love it. (Our five-year-old son loves it, too, but less for exercising than for rolling recklessly around the room and … Continue reading Balancing on the Ball
How to Clean a Basement or Porch Floor AND Use Up the Last Dregs of Liquid Laundry Detergent
This technique is suitable for any floor that has either a drain or an open side where water can spill onto the ground. I learned the cleaning technique at Girl Scout camp, and years later I realized its wonderful compatibility with those "still very soapy on the inside but with not enough soap to pour" … Continue reading How to Clean a Basement or Porch Floor AND Use Up the Last Dregs of Liquid Laundry Detergent
Knee-bouncing Games
These two games have been enjoyed by little children in my family for at least three generations. They worked for me when I was little, they've been favorites of my four-year-old son since he was about nine months old, and I look forward to trying them on his younger cousins this Thanksgiving! These are the … Continue reading Knee-bouncing Games
Swinging for Fitness
How do you like to go up in a swing, Up in the air so blue? Oh, I do think it the pleasantest thing Ever a child can do! Those are the opening lines of a poem from one of the My Book House books that I loved when I was a little girl. It … Continue reading Swinging for Fitness
The Seven-Minute Stretch
It's amazing how just a few minutes of stretching can change everything. Just moving around a little bit for a little while gets the blood flowing through your muscles and brain, makes you more flexible, reminds you to breathe, lifts your mood, and makes the various motions of daily life easier and less likely to … Continue reading The Seven-Minute Stretch
Stroller Madness
Long before we became parents, Daniel and I decided we would not be transporting our child in a stroller on any regular basis. We live in Pittsburgh, a city of steep hills, stairs, and sidewalks cracked by frost heave and tree roots. Our neighborhood has heavy pedestrian traffic on sidewalks that are narrow in places. We often … Continue reading Stroller Madness
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