It's Been Awhile

And so my journey continues down a road I thought laid straight ahead of me for miles, but, as it turns out, had a major detour right around the corner. Actually, scratch the part about it being a detour. It was more like the road ended and I jumped into free-fall. I'm still in free-fall. By now many of you know that I'm going through a divorce. Our house is for sale on the market and my life has once again forever changed. Many people have e-mailed asking if I'm going to continue blogging. The truth is, I'm not sure. These days, I spend more time thinking and growing than I do writing. I think I'll be back in the blogosphere once life has settled. I hope the settling part happens soon.

Ode to the Indie

Hilarious!

Happy July 1st!

I'll Have the Blueberry Cornmeal Pancakes with Orange Maple Butter, Please!

Picture via Bakerella's Flickr feed.
After reading Bakerella's post on these pancakes (orange maple butter on blueberry cornmeal pancakes), I think I'm ready to whip up some of my own. Of course, whip them up if I had a moment to spare these days. So far, Statistics is going well, but between two nights at class and other nights away studying, I can barely keep up with all the domestic chores around here, let alone the extras like baking bread and making tasty pancakes like the ones Bakerella displayed so well (aren't those pictures fabulous?). I'm not too sad that I don't have time to pick up sewing, expand the garden, or paint the kitchen, because it feels really good right now to be back in school. I didn't think I'd go back after I had Juniper; I was pretty overwhelmed that first year trying to figure out the two-kid thing. But now here I am, back in school, and it feels right. I've registered for Microbiology next term, then I'll be applying to nursing school this fall for next fall 2010-11. The fall I hope to start, Sam will be in Kindergarten, and I will look into some sort of daily preschool program for Juniper. So far, she loves the two hours twice a week she spends at a Parent's Time Off class at our local community center. She loves Teacher Katie and Teacher Candace. She works on art projects and proudly holds them up for me when I pick her up--very sweet. I can't deny that my life is busier than ever these days. Having said that, if it slows down at all, I hope to make Bakerella's pancakes--for DINNER!

Reusable Vacuum Cleaner Bags

I know Kenmore is in the money-making business, but why can't they offer a reusable vacuum cleaner bag? I don't know about you, but I'd be willing to pay a higher price for my vacuum if it came with a reusable bag. I've been able to find some reusable bags online, but I don't think they're compatible with Kenmore vacuums. The bag on our Kenmore vacuum currently needs changing, but before I head to Sears to buy another package of three, does anyone out there have any green ideas on reducing waste and saving money when it comes to replacing vacuum cleaner bags?

Childhood Memories

I've been wondering lately when the moment will occur that leaves a lasting impression on Sam. Most of us can look back and recall our earliest childhood memory. Mine was on my 4th birthday of a giant teddy bear I received. I just remember the moment it was brought out at my birthday party--nothing else--and that moment has remained in my memory my entire life. So, I wonder for Sam what his first memory will be.

Has that memory already formed? I wonder what he'll say some day when I ask him what his first memory was, and I hope it will be a good one.

Juniper is still too little to have any lasting memories. Through pictures, videos, and my own memories, I hope to share with her one day what she was like at eighteen months.

A happy, thriving, comical girl who is full of life and brings joy to everyone around her.

Installing the Clothesline

Landon's dad, Mike (also known as Grandpa), came over this morning to help install a clothesline in our backyard that he picked up at a garage sale brand new a few weeks ago.

As usual, Sam and Juni were interested in watching.

Juni was so interested she even considered pulling up a chair.

The first step in the process of installing a clothesline is to dig a hole using a post-hole digger. You want to dig the hole 8 to 12 inches in diameter and 20 inches deep. Taper the hole larger at the bottom and fill the bottom of the hole with small rocks approximately 3 inches deep.

3 inches of gravel is important for water drainage so the metal support pole for the clothesline will not rust and rot with time.

Now that the gravel is in place, it's time to mix the concrete.

Add water and stir--it's that easy.

Pour about six inches of concrete into the hole, then place the plastic ground sleeve into the concrete and push it down until it hits the gravel.

Add more concrete.

Adjust the plastic ground sleeve if necessary.

Add concrete until the concrete is nearly flush with the plastic ground sleeve.

Now it's time to get out your level. Insert pole into ground sleeve and use your level to align the pole vertically.

Once level and after the pole has been carefully removed, immediately run a small tube or stick down the center of the sleeve through the concrete until it reaches the crushed rock base. Remove tube or stick; this will allow any water to drain into the gravel.

After that, buy yourself a couple of packages of clothespins . . .

. . . take a load of laundry from the washing machine . . .

. . . and hang them out to dry! It takes about two hours on a sunny day for the laundry to dry, and you can read tutorials on how to hang laundry on a clothesline here. I'm not sure I'll have time to exclusively hang-dry laundry all our laundry this summer, since I'm in school right now and life is busier than ever, but even if I can set an initial goal of hanging three loads a week, it's a start. It's true it takes more time, but it's something I can do while the kids are playing outside, and it also feels therapeutic in the way that kneading bread does (not to mention the most important benefit of all--energy savings!).

If anyone has any helpful tips for hanging laundry, I'd like to hear them! I'm still learning, but the less I have to learn by trial and error, the smoother this transition will go for me. Having said that, let's all raise our strawberry-basil mojitos to green living!

P.S. I've learned since hanging this first load that with a staggered line such as this one, you can hang intimate apparel (briefs and bras) on the inside lines so your neighbors (and blog readers) don't have to know quite everything about you!

"Daisies" by Mary Oliver

It is possible, I suppose that sometime
we will learn everything
there is to learn: what the world is, for example,
and what it means. I think this as I am crossing
from one field to another, in summer, and the
mockingbird is mocking me, as one who either
knows enough already or knows enough to be
perfectly content not knowing. Song being born
of quest he knows this: he must turn silent
were he suddenly assaulted with answers. Instead
oh hear his wild, caustic, tender warbling ceaselessly
unanswered. At my feet the white-petalled daisies display
the small suns of their center piece, their - if you don't
mind my saying so - their hearts. Of course
I could be wrong, perhaps their hearts are pale and
narrow and hidden in the roots. What do I know?
But this: it is heaven itself to take what is given,
to see what is plain; what the sun lights up willingly;
for example - I think this
as I reach down, not to pick but merely to touch -
the suitability of the field for the daisies, and the
daisies for the field.

LG LGenius "Happy Time"

I like this idea (via Happy Mundane), which was introduced at a recent conference in Korea:

Peas

Both Juni and Sam enjoy exploring our backyard veggie garden for ripe edibles, and have lately been picking and eating peas. I've decided to stick to fruits and vegetables the kids can pick on their own--things like tomatoes, peas, beans, and berries are easy to grow and fun for them as well. Our lettuce patch was attacked by leaf miners from some sort of black fly, and since I've been short on time lately, I've decided to stick to the easier stuff for now and hit up the local farmers' markets for the rest. How is your vegetable garden faring?

Karli

Back to School

I started back to school--taking one class--Statistics 243, a required class for nursing--evenings for two and a half hours twice a week. Next term, I'll dive into Microbiology out at PCC's Rock Creek campus. Life just got a whole lot busier, but I have a good feeling about this . . .

Back from Climate Action Plan SW Meeting!

Just got back from the Climate Action Plan meeting in my neighborhood and am excited about what the city of Portland will be doing in the coming years to reduce our carbon impact by 80% by the year 2050. Many of the objectives in the Climate Action Plan aren't actions I think will be contentious--a lot of the proposed changes would bring a better quality of life to residents in Portland. For example, plans include expanding the urban forest canopy to cover 1/3 of Portland, 1300 new community garden plots, shifting residential garbage collection to every other week in lieu of weekly recycling and food waste pick-ups (my idea of a Utopian society), and more sidewalks, bike lanes, and ecoroofs! There is a lot you can do--in fact the city has a green team, which will hopefully lead to more efforts at the grassroots level and be useful in educating neighborhoods and increasing involvement from Portland residents (there are still way too many people who are not recycling the basics!). I'll keep you posted as I learn more--look for a blog post about Portland City Hall's front-lawn organic vegetable garden soon!

Climate Action Plan, Portland

There will be several town hall meetings hosted at a variety of places around Portland in the coming weeks to discuss the Climate Action Plan 2009 to reduce local carbon emissions in the city of Portland by 80% by 2050. This draft for this 40-year plan will be discussed, and I'm sure will lead to interesting discussions. You can read the Draft Climate Action Plan 2009 here, and find a list of town hall meeting locations here.

Also, if you haven't heard of 350.org (the safe upper limit for Co2 in our atmosphere), their mission is to simply raise a sense of urgency and possibility for our planet about the climate crisis. On October 24th, the hope is the planet will stand together to call for a fair climate treaty. The treaty currently up for discussion amongst world leaders in Copenhagen, Denmark this December doesn't pass the 350 test. Check out this video 350.org has put together in hopes of sparking a grassroots movement. Share with anyone you can--we have very little time to turn this thing around. It's exciting that movements like this one might actually spark the action it takes to make it happen!

Things I'm Loving from the Blogosphere

• Camp Comfort's style sense--if only I could spend $228.00 on this Antik Batik Hemet t-shirt from La Garçonne. I really love the French clothing style. If only I could afford imports!
• black eiffel's Father's Day cards
• Gap Girls
• yyellowbird by Design Crush
• Talking Heads "This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)"--I'm thinking I somehow missed out on the whole new wave era.
  
• Alicia Carrier's ten dollar drawings
• The collection of camping images in the latest post by Modish
• This post by Joanna Goddard (love her!) on whether or not to friend your exes. Lately, I've been despising Facebook. Somehow, I don't think all friends were ever meant to be cast into one big pool. And I don't have time to divide everyone up into the two groups I think are relevant: group 1) people I care about and group 2) those I don't.
  
• The 1950's Wedgewood stove in the fifth photo down in this post on Design Sponge (I wonder if it's difficult to track one of those down?)
• chakrapennywhistle's beautiful pillows
• the "Black Heels to Tractor Wheels" posts by Pioneer Woman--she's amazing!

Okay, I think that just about does it for now. Oh, one more thing. If you haven't seen this clip from Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, it's hilarious:

Julie & Julia

I'm looking forward to seeing this film sometime this summer:

Mess of Books

I remember thinking I'd never see the day when Sam would stop pulling every book off the shelf, but then that day came and went, and it was some time later that I realized that he didn't do that anymore. But now we have Juniper. She will sit upstairs for an hour by herself and pull each book off the shelf, look at a couple of pictures, then toss it aside.

You'd think since she does this daily that it would be sufficient just to throw them into the bookcase randomly into disorderly piles, but no--she only enjoys pulling them from the shelf if they are organized. See those Magic Tree House boxed sets? If I take the time to put them back into their boxes, it means minutes of entertainment for Juniper. And so I sort these books daily and put them back, only to have them all pulled from the shelves again. Our CD collection works the same way. Oh, the joys of being a toddler.

Juniper's Monster Face

Juniper's monster face is in high demand around here these days. Here she is, giving her best monster impression at 18 months (not recommended for those who frighten easily):

Cheapest Lead Testing in Portland

The Oregonian ran an article by Carrie Sturrock titled The dirt on testing soil for lead this past week that's worth checking out (thanks, Marnie, for letting me know about it!). Turns out Wyeast Laboratories is the cheapest in the area at $20.00 a zip-lock. You can take your own samples from various places in your yard, then drop them off for testing. Results showing lead levels in your soil doesn't mean you can't grow your own vegetables, but the where, what, and hows might change. Here's a segment from the Sturrock's article, which describes how one should grow fruits and vegetables depending on different lead level ranges:

Soil with lead at 50 parts per million (ppm) to 400 ppm has elevated levels from human activities, according to Dan Sullivan, an associate professor in the Department of Crop and Soil Science at Oregon State University.

At those levels, you can grow any vegetable but should limit children's exposure to the dust. Just wash fruits and vegetables thoroughly.

If the lead levels are between 400 ppm and 1,200 ppm, do not grow leafy vegetables or root crops, because they're much harder to wash. And if the levels exceed 1,200 ppm, then do your gardening in raised beds with clean soil.

Lead in garden soil doesn't have to be a showstopper, but in order to safely grow backyard edibles, it's essential to know where and how to safely do so based on the lead levels in your soil.

______________________

Up next? My father-in-law picked me up a new clothesline (still in its box!) at a garage sale last weekend, and I plan to get it up this weekend (with his help, hopefully). It'll require using a post-hole digger and mixing concrete (yikes!). I don't know how much laundry I'll get a chance to hang this summer with school starting up next week, but even if I can hang dry a few loads, it's better than none at all. Check back for a blog post on the clothesline sometime next week!

Monday Evening at Marshall Park

With the kids going to bed these days at 7PM, there isn't a lot of time in the evenings for activities after dinner. Tonight we made an attempt to take dinner to Marshall Park so the kids could play in Tryon Creek. On the way, Juniper practiced her monster face. Later this week, I'll post a video of this--really adorable!

Sam spent time stepping from stone to stone, something he is quite good at this (almost) summer.

Juni and I sat on an old stone bridge, watching Sam play in the creek below. We were only there an hour, but it was worth the effort to get out of the house and into the fresh air for a short amount of time before bed. If you don't know of Marshall Park, check it out sometime--it's a special place, and if you have time for a hike, you can hike into Tryon State Park from there, too.

Oh, and by the way--Juni picked out this outfit. She's very particular about what she wears. In fact, those new KEEN sandals in heliotrope were carefully selected (smile). If only I had the video to prove it!

Sam At Four

I don't know if I mentioned yet how much I am enjoying Sam at four. He is thoughtful, curious, and inquisitive about everything, and I find I come up short on interesting answers more times than I'd like to his many questions. Despite his recent bee sting, he's still curious about bees. Landon took this photo of him this past week inspecting a honeybee on a salvia plant, which just recently bloomed and is constantly buzzing with honeybees.

Simple Pleasures

I was reading a blog post by Ez on Creature Comforts today about simple pleasures and I got to thinking about the simple pleasures in life. First of all, the fact that they are simple means you have to slow down enough to appreciate them. Secondly, there's the part about finding pleasure and seeing beauty in the mundane. Right now, it's the fresh plums in our fruit bowl and the first sip of my morning French-pressed coffee that are my simple pleasures. What are yours?

I can't talk about those first sips of morning coffee without remembering the old Folger's Coffee commercials. We all know Folger's didn't get much right in the way of good coffee (check out how weak the coffee looks in the commercials below), but their commercials fully captured those first sips of early morning coffee. Funny, but back then, "fresh-ground" and "mountain-grown" were the standards for good coffee. Just for fun, I thought I'd post a couple of my favorite Folger's coffee commercials from the 70's and 80's:

Why can't I wake up looking and feeling like this? Gotta love the blissful morning stretch.

Here's a funny Starbucks commercial: