Earth Day

Every day should REALLY be Earth Day, don't you think? Still... I think it's a great day to remind ourselves of the importance of our planet, and re-evaluate how we interact with it.

Every year for Earth Day (and New Years too....) I try to add one more "green" goal to my to do list, or at the very least, re-affirm the commitments I have made in the past.  For awhile, I lost sight of my green goals, I started using "regular" cleaning products again for money savings and convenience- or so I thought. This turned out to be a huge mistake. Not only did I feel guilty, but I suffered physically as well. I'm allergic to some of the harsh chemicals in certain cleaners and boy oh boy did I start having reactions, couldn't breath while cleaning the shower, my skin started breaking out in little bumps and red spots and I've been waking up with swollen, itchy, goobery eyes! ICK! So NOT pretty... Needless to say... I'm re-affirming my commitment to all-natural cleaning products and am going to try going the extra step of making my own, including laundry soap.

Speaking of laundry... now that the weather is starting to improve, washing will be done on nice days so it can go hang on the line. This also dissolves the need for bleach (which I also want to cut out completely) as the sun is great for removing stains! (even stubborn grape jelly stains from a toddler's clothes!)

I want to make more things from scratch, including yogurt and cheese. The homemade types are so much tastier, healthier and better for the environment (no excess packaging) so it's just laziness that has been keeping me from doing it. This also brings me to "ditching the packaging" and looking for bulk items to bring my own containers. Even at the health-food store, I want to bring my little jars to fill up with tea and herbs, and switch back to more loose leaf tea. Yea, it make seem more expensive, but it really isn't when you measure properly.

I'm expanding my garden as well, I've already "installed" the pumpkin patch, and when the weather is consistently warm enough the rest will be planted. I want to add more salad greens and herbs this year as well.

These are a only a few little things but I truly believe that if everyone made little changes, big impacts would be made.

Have a wonderful Earth Day!!!

"I should have been a casserole"

A think and yummy broccoli and cheese soup...

Ingredients:
4 cups chicken broth
2 cups Milk
1 cup uncooked rice
two small onions or 1 large
several cloves of garlic
"enough" broccoli (I used two medium crowns)
2-3 cups cheddar/ Cheddar-Monterey-jack mix
salt
pepper
dash of cayenne
butter
olive oil
corn starch if needed


In a good sized stock pot, pour in enough olive oil to coat the pan, dice onions and garlic and throw them in. Add about a tablespoon of butter and saute until transparent. Add rice and swish. Add stock and milk, bring to a simmer and season. Cook rice until almost done, add broccoli and cheese, and if not thick enough, add a little corn starch in cold water. Cook the broccoli (or you can steam it ahead of time) and serve.

Thats it. taste and test as you go till it's just as you want. Easy Peasy. You could also add chicken to this to make a nice hearty meal.

Infertility awareness

I haven't written in awhile... It's been a tough month, I'm just now getting over a cold/ sinus infection that started a month ago, and what a long month it's been. I thought a long while about whether to blog about this particular subject, but the timing seems right and I think it's important to realize I'm not the only one who has gone through this.

Historically, fertility has been a vital part of a woman's worth. Her ability to bear children was one of her biggest assets. Infertility caused immense heartbreak for women then as now... While the focus of fertility has changed somewhat (my husband doesn't need me to give him sons as heirs or anything) the pain of not being able to easily conceive is still felt, and felt keenly...

We have been trying to conceive for over a year "with help." before that I hadn't been on birth control for nearly 4 years, letting nature take it's course. I've suspected for a while now that there was a problem. I mean, how can these "teen moms" on television get pregnant by accident so easily, and not me? I'm 25, not in bad shape... My husband is in excellent shape... So eventually we were referred to a reproductive specialist who ran about a million blood tests (okay- 16... but that's a lot of vials of blood!!!!)  and dear husband had his "little men" evaluated (all his stuff is perfectly fine, by the way) and I had some lovely internal ultrasound thing (eeew). As it turns out, I have Polycycstic Ovary Syndrome. I don't have a lot of symptoms, but the problem is my hormones are out of balance and I'm not ovulating properly on my own... Come three rounds of clomid (a fertility drug to stimulate ovulation) and metformin (a blood sugar medication). Didn't work... onto IUI, we went straight to "injectables" where I had to give myself an injection of medication to stimulate ovulation from day 3 of my cycle until my follicles were big enough (all this monitored through more blood tests and more ultrasounds) when they were a good size I gave myself a "trigger" shot that was supposed to literally trigger ovulation 36 hours later. 36 hours later we went back to the office for the IUI proceedure, which included hubby's sperm being "washed" and prepped, then later put in me via catheter in the you know where... Very romantic right? Through the whole process my doctor was very optimistic I was having a great cycle, everything was perfect... We left the office feeling pretty good (except for cramps for me). Hubby was certain it would work... But it didn't. Even though I was taking 200mg of progesterone supplement my period showed up.   Of course, I also got a faint positive on a pregnancy test the same day. Looks like it was "chemical" meaning the egg was fertilized but didn't implant. These are common, but that doesn't make it any easier. We went back to the doctor's office yesterday in hopes of starting another IUI cycle, but alas, there seem to be a mess of un-ruptured follicles lining my ovaries. Nice, right? So... no IUI this month. I took it as a sign... A few months ago my doctor and I spoke of the possibility that I might have endometriosis. I have a fair number of symptoms and risk factors.. and there is no reason this IUI shouldn't have worked out. The fun part is... The only way to diagnosis it is through laparoscopic surgery. The good thing is if they find anything, this is also the treatment so they get to do it all in one go.

So that's where WE are at. And I know that many others are going through the same process and have been though even more than I have. It's hard... but thankfully, technology and medicine have come a long way! I'm very hopefully, as much as I'm disappointed we haven't been blessed yet.

Have I ever told you how much I love mac and cheese?

I love, love, love comfort foods... and so does my husband. I have an obsession with different and yummy recipes for macaroni and cheese, chili and lasagna just to name a few. On tonight's menu is something I won't be eating because I didn't make it gluten free (sometimes this is a good way to keep me from eating extra calories while still making something delish for the hubs). He's having macaroni and cheese. The twist? chicken, Jarlsberg cheese, tomatoes and whole grain pasta. I thought I would share the recipe, or rather, the technique... the recipe sort of varies with your mood and how everything is looking.... It's really, really quick too, so it's great for weeknights. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
olive oil
about a cup or so Jarlsburg (or more if you like), shredded
a cup or so of a good mild cheddar, shredded
2 cups whole milk (or if you are really daring, cream)
half cup (one stick) butter
1 tablespoons-ish flour
a pound of whole grain pasta
a pinch of nutmeg,
a quarter of a red onion, finely chopped
1 tomato, diced
some garlic
salt
pepper

Start your pasta

cut the chicken into chunks, season with salt and pepper and brown, add onion and garlic and cover to smother.

In a saucepan, over medium heat melt butter, add flour and whisk for a minute or two to cook, to increase flavor wisk and cook gently till butter begins to darken, meanwhile, pop milk in the microwave for about 45 seconds to take the chill off, whisk into the butter and flour mixture until smooth and thick (warming the milk makes it mix in smoother, I swear). When the milk starts to bubble, mix in cheeses gradually and add a pinch of nutmeg. Mix, mix, mix until everything is smooth and incorporated.

Drain your pasta, and toss it with chicken and cheese sauce, add the tomato. Pop it under the broiler if hubby can wait 10 minutes and serve. Baby spinach is also a really, really yummy addition.

Happy Saint Patrick's day!

I really am Irish. My grandmother boils everything to prove it! (LOL)



For most people this is a just an excuse to get drunk on green beer (a travesty, in my humble opinion- if you are going to drink beer, drink real beer, please). For us... we stay home, eat our traditional dinner and enjoy company. Yes, we'll have a drink or two in honor of the holiday fun but I've only ever been to a bar ONCE on Saint patty's day, and it was dissapointing. It was a decent Irish pub with a random guy on a guitar and a bunch of very drunk girls. *sigh*



People always bash Irish cooking, but I LOVE it. There is something very yummy, hearty and homey about Irish food and cooking, slow cooked meats in stews, very basic wholesome ingredients... It's making my mouth water just thinking about it. Yes, there isn't much seasoning or spice, but that lets the food itself be tasted (and yes, I love cabbage....)

We will be having corned beef tonight. It's a family favorite and we stretch it (plus, it's always super cheap around St. Patrick's day- I got mine for $1.88/ pound when it's usually $3.99/ pound.) But the corned beef was not an original "Irish" (from Ireland) dish- It started when the Irish came to "America" and the brisket was a cheaper cut of meat available. As many immigrants were, suffice it to say, not wealthy, then as today cheaper wins! So into my crockpot goes a corned beef brisket, and I'll add my potatoes and cabbage later. I like it in the crock pot because it really gets amazingly tender. I'll probably break it up with a fork, and serve it as a stew with some (gluten free- not traditional but edible for me- Irish soda bread) to mop up the liquid. Did I mention my mouth is watering???

Normally, we aren't big dessert people on a regular basis (though I do love sweets) but today also happens to be a good friend's birthday... SO, I'm also baking a GREEN birthday cake... Also gluten free. :)

So everyone, enjoy the day, be responsible and eat well!

Balls, a tutorial.

Good title, right? (lol)


When I first started researching natural living, and specifically cloth diapering (for my future baby...) I came across a lot of information about laundering: what soaps work best, how to dry, how to "fluff" etc. Boy, it was much more in depth than I could have imagined at first, but now I'm sort of acclimated. Anyway, one of the things that was talked about rather often was dryer balls, wool versus those plastic nubby ones. Now... I was trying to really go more natural, plus in my "old" age, I seem to be developing allergies and sensitivities to EVERYTHING. So in taking out the fabric softener and dryer sheets, I didn't want to add other chemicals the plastic bits might be letting off, into my clothes and the air. Plus, I could MAKE wool ones with left over bits... This is how I make mine, which I'm sure is similar to someone somewhere out there, so if someone else does it the same way, I'm sorry.

Let's begin!

stash... and a cat ear....

First... Gather your stash, you will need felt-able wool yarn (not super wash) and I like to use a "core" of acrylic or cotton sometimes to save on wool, but a wool core works too, but you may want some acrylic or cotton. You'll also need a leg of pantyhose or a thigh high stocking for felting, unless you have those nifty felting balls. Oh, and a washing machine, and i like to use baby shampoo for felting. I used it once and it worked so well, I didn't go back to other detergents.

Now, make the balls! Start with whatever material you decided on for the core, and start wrapping like you would any ball of yarn! (well, maybe a little more loosely) When you get to a bit over half the size ball you want, stop and tie the yarn around a few times so it's secure.

Next, take your wool (I chose some fun colors, because I'm craving brights!) and continue to wrap the ball until it's well covered, making sure not to wrap too tightly, you want it to be able to shrink down. I like to then continue to wrap the strand randomly around the ball, unlike the normal process where you would have several passes over the same area, to create a more net like covering. Tie a few knots around this to make sure it's very secure!

Repeat this process to make as many as you like, I made six this go-around, because I like to use two or so in the dryer at once and in my house... they tend to disappear and become dog toys.

After you have all the balls wrapped, one at a time, put them into the panty hose, tying it off after each on. When you are done it will look like you have a string of beads.

Now it's time to felt!!! I toss them in the washing machine on a hot wash, cold rinse and put a dab of baby shampoo right on them (not in the detergent slot). This time around I put them in with a hat I was felting and I think they really helped! I also put mine through the dryer on "high heat" but this may or may not be necessary.  

Remove from the panty hose and viola! Dryer balls!

This one felted pretty well, I think. It should stay put.






Now... just a quick note on using them...

You just toss them in with your regular laundry in the dryer. They WILL become a bit pilly over time, but you can remove the fuzz, and/ or wrap another layer of wool over and re-felt. If you like yummy smells, you can dab them with some essential oils and that will release fragrance into the clothes, not as strong as a fabric sheet, but it does work.

Also... make sure your regular yarn balls stay far away... My hubby mistook a ball of yarn for a dryer ball one day and chucked it it... needless to say... it didn't work so well, we ended up with a tangled mess! Also... the dogs (and cats) really like these, so make sure they stay out of reach and don't roll away on you, you won't get them back!

Enjoy!

Compost by request

I love compost. I do. It's odd, I know... but seriously, it's interesting to see how organic matter decomposes and becomes soil again...

How I made mine. It's really not as scientific as it could be... It started the first fall we were living in this house. we have a TON of leaves... so hubby piled them all in a corner of the yard... In theory, you are supposed to layer a good compost heap with leaves and hay and other matter so it doesn't clump together and can allow air to move through... we just didn't have those sorts of resources, and winter was closing in. When I cook, all vegetable matter (peels, cores, etc) get put into a bowl and later dumped on the pile, along with egg shells, coffee grounds, unbleached paper towels, cardboard... pretty much anything decomposable that isn't dairy or meat. In the spring last year, I mixed up the heap (which is about 5 feet wide by about 2 feet tall) and added some hay (found on freecycle from a local farm) and when my brother came to visit and help me with the garden, we threw all the sod we lifted onto the heap. All summer we added "stuff" to it, and every so often I attacked it with a pitch fork (my neighbors thought this was a hoot: me out in a dress, boots, a big hat and a pitch folk turning up the compost...) and watered it when it was dry. Watering is very important, not only to the composting process, but it can get very hot in a compost pile, and I've been warned about spontaneous combustion- especially in dry weather and undisturbed piles. (read here for some compost fire information!) Be diligent and nurture your pile! It may help to to layer in soil, or at least some on top to quicken the degrading process.

This year, I'm sure I will work more on composting, last year was my first attempt at it and it turned out great (even with a huge amount of leaves!) I think the key is to make sure you turn it on occasion and add plenty of plant material... and keep it moist.

It doesn't smell either. When I add kitchen scraps in the summer I will often toss some of the compost over it to hasten it's decomposition and cover it to keep the smell at bay, but all in all we don't have a problem with smell... it usually just smells like dirt, which is a good, almost clean smell. Yes, I just said dirt smells clean!

So that's it really... Nothing special here, but there are lots of sites where they discuss composting in great detail. I kinda like my easy way for now, and I'll add on a bit each year, I'm sure. I know people who have bins and fancy spinners, and I might like one some day, but they can get pricey (though not so much if I could get the hubs to build something.... ;)) like I said, this works for me for now. If you have a lot of wildlife, though, you may want some sort of container, I know even the dogs sometimes try to steal "snacks" off the heap if they aren't buried!

Good luck and happy composting!!!