i apologize for my absence here. it hasn't been intentional. i'll admit, we've been busy around here, adjusting to some new developments, dealing with some Asher stuff, and generally enjoying ourselves.

we got ourselves memberships for the Y, and we've been taking full advantage of that. blithe and bram are enrolled in classes (creative dance and tae kwon do, respectively) and swimming lessons, i've been enjoying yoga, and we've all been going swimming a couple times a week. it's actually been really nice. we feel great, we're getting along better, we have more energy, we cope with stress better... it's fantastic!!

the kids are all back at school, which is great. they're doing fairly well, too, so that's really nice.

i've begun pursuing a dream i've had for a long time: last month, i did the make-up for a production of Tuesdays With Morrie. truly, an amazing, life-changing experience. i learned a lot, grew in some friendships, and enjoyed myself thoroughly. in fact, i have actually joined another production, doing make-up and other backstage stuff, for next May. that's going to be a lot of fun, too. SQUEEE!!!! i can't wait!!!! :D

so that's our lives around here lately... but now that you're caught up, i want to post about something else, actually...

our local hydro company has recently made the switch to time of use billing. basically, that means that certain times of the day are cheaper than other times. the idea is to lower energy consumption by making peak-times (like, the middle of the day) less attractive from a financial stand-point.

it works.

blerg.

as soon as it kicked in on October 1, i became super strict about lights. and i've picked up a few extra tidbits along the way:

• crockpots. instead of turning on the oven which sucks more energy than i care to think about, thank-you very much, i just throw the makings of stew into the slow cooker and walk away, knowing that in a few hours, i'll have yummy food and a lower hydro bill.
• vacuum less. yup. i'm blaming TOU on my lack of vacuuming. you'll buy that, right? (wink)
• wash dishes by - gulp! - hand. but you know what??? it uses way less water, plus doesn't require as much hydro to heat the water in the first place (electric water heater. ugh. but better than gas, i suppose) but it also... wait for it... gets my dishes cleaner than the dishwasher! and faster! i know! shockingly, this only occurred to me the other day. i was just running the dishwasher every night to save hydro. never occurred to me that i can wash the dishes during the day and save money. haha
• minimizing time on the computer during the day. which is an ironic statement as i'm writing this at 11:30 in the morning. but i've found that, in addition to lowering my hydro usage, i'm also getting more done around the house, and i'm spending more time connecting with people in real life, which is actually more meaningful, anyway. (again, the irony of writing this on a blog is not lost on me.) another benefit to less screen time: my memory is coming back and my attention span is getting a bit longer (insert "ooh! something shiny!" joke here)
• read more books. you know, those blocks of paper with stuff written all over them? yeah! those things! apparently they're called books!!! :P and i've actually been reading some!! HAHA!!!! ok, i read fairly often anyway. but now i have an actual reason: it's economical. (or maybe i'm just trying to justify my addiction. don't judge me!!!!!!!!!) (ahem. {composes self})

and it's funny, even by doing these small things... somehow... i lowered my hydro bill by almost $30!!! 

and in case you're wondering...

i've been doing laundry during the day.

not every day. but given how tired i am in the evenings, i just can't stay up late at night to do laundry. so i've kept doing it during the day, but cut back on hydro usage in other areas, and yes, managed to lower my hydro bill. significantly. {happy dance}

perfect imperfection

what an incredible morning!

this morning, i got up at 7:00. i only hit snooze twice (i've set it for 6:42 to allow me to do just that... yes, i know, i'm a genius). i came downstairs and made myself a small pot of coffee and got dressed. then blithe got up, then the boys got up. ok, granted, blithe woke bram up because she wanted to play with his charlie stuffie, and i suspect asher woke up from the ensuing shrieking, but they quickly decided to get along and play nicely. blithe reminded bram about the "no tv in the morning" rule, and miraculously, he didn't complain.

my coffee was ready, so i poured some into my favourite (read: biggest) mug, which i then placed on the (ahem) clear and clean kitchen counter.

and i asked the kids to bring me their lunchbags.

blithe? check. bram? check. (and quickly, which is shocking, when you consider they have the combined attention span of a doorknob. haha ah, ADHD, how you make our lives interesting!) asher?... asher??... asher, sweetie, where's your lunchbag?? ok, blithe and bram, can you please help asher find his backpack? thank-you.

they divided up the house, each kid getting a zone to search. blithe took the upstairs (i'm choosing to ignore the fact that his backpack is never upstairs... but all her justin bieber stuff is... and again, attention span? what's that???). long story short, i found asher's backpack... on the couch. in the open. right there. but, when i gave it to him, he thanked me so sweetly, and he insisted on getting out his lunchbag himself.

and i stood there, watching him, as he unzipped the bag and pulled out his lunchbag and took it to the kitchen and put it on the chair.

and i was amazed.

he's growing up so fast. he's getting to be so independent. he's more mature every day. he's so quickly becoming his own little person.

it's so beautiful.

then i made the kids' lunches as litter-less-ly as possible (they have a competition at school this week: the class that has the most litterless lunches gets a pizza party. hey, whatever works, right?), using some of the containers i picked up at the superstore for $2 a pack ($2 for a pack of 6, and i got 3 different sized sets). i gave the kids their choice of fruit; blithe and bram each wanted an apple, asher chose a banana.

but while we were discussing the fruit, they all stood together in the kitchen, in their little cluster of three... and i looked and them, and i just thought,

wow. they really are amazing people. they're so beautiful and sweet and perfectly imperfect.

and if you listen carefully, you'll hear annie weeping ;)

oh, my grandmother would be proud of me right now. i have not one but TWO loads of laundry drying outside right now (the other one isn't pictured because it's underwear, and i'm not really in the mood to publish our gitch for all the cyber-world to see LOL).

and ok, granted, i'm only drying the clothes this way because the dryer isn't working, but you know, right now, i'm not really in a hurry to figure out what's wrong. (partly because i think it's a blown fuse, and that's in the yucky basement, so it can stay blown for now.)

but still, none of this negates the fact that i currently, as i type, at this very moment, have 2 - count 'em, 2!! - loads of laundry hanging to dry outside. ah, simplicity. :)

oh, and asher gets his GJ-tube changed to a G-tube today, which is exciting. has nothing to do with my simple life, but i'm excited, so there you go! ;)

UPDATE: why must it take so long to dry clothes outside?!?! i still have at least 2 or 3 more loads to do, and i have nowhere to hang them until this stuff is dry!!!! ARRRRRGGG!!!!!!!!!!!

ah, the green life... i love it... when it's not scary. and you weren't there, so don't judge me!!!!!

ok, so, we all know my fondness for simple, cheap (read: free) green ideas for the home. for example, once i've finished this post, i'm going to go throw a load of towels in the washing machine, and then dry them outside.

but, in the last little while, i'll admit, gentle reader, i've slacked off. but it's not my fault!!! ok, it is. it's just - just - well, here's the story:

so, a few weeks ago, i had to empty out my itty bitty compostainer that i keep in the cupboard. and it had been a while. (can you see where i'm going with this yet?) so, i opened it up to put a couple things in there before going outside, and...

IT WAS FURRY!!!!!!

i can't even describe how gross it was! it was beyond furry! think cousin it. yeah. eww! i've got the heebie-jeebies just thinking about it now!!! (and laugh all you want, but you didn't see it. it was gross!!)

so i took the container outside, hoping to dump said grossness into the compostainer. well. apparently, not so much.

i turned the container over, so the compostables would tumble out. and yes, a few things fell out. a few small things. the rest of the stuff - and there was quite a bit! - STAYED IN THE CONTAINER!!! THE ENTITY (as i came to call it) WAS HOLDING IT ALL IN!!!! i banged the container on the edge of the receptacle, hoping that would free some food waste. nope. i cried a bit, hoping the compost gods would hear my plea and loosen the banana peels and such from their hairy prison. nope.

then i looked inside again.

and got grossed out again.

and tossed it across the yard.

and there it stayed.

until today, when i finally had the nerve to approach it.

you see, until now, i was afraid that the Entity would have been a tad ticked off at being launched across the backyard. so i was afraid. very afraid. but today, i figured, nothing can withstand the heat , especially inside a plastic container in the sun! certainly the solar flare that is the atmosphere today must have destroyed the Entity and all that dared to defend it. so i went to get the container.

cautiously, mind you.

and i picked it up.

cautiously, mind you.

and looked inside.

cautiously, mind you.

and it was no worse than it had been before. in fact, it seems the Entity suffers from hair loss (think Cousin It at age 75). maybe some brave (or stupid) little critter wandered in and feasted on old apple cores and such. who knows. who cares. not me. all i care is that E was not quite so scary today.

so i brought it inside (where my children are, which shows how much better things were in the little container) and was going to clean it. but no way am i sticking my hand in there just yet!!!! no way!!!!!!

so i bombed it.

that's right. dumped in some baking soda. then, because that's not enough, poured in the rest of the vinegar i had in the house. and it blew up.

and most importantly, it destroyed the Entity. well, killed it, anyway. i still had to clean the container out.

and i'll admit, i was tempted to reach for my lysol wipes (yes, i have some, and i think they're evil, but they're just so easy!!!!! bad green girl, bad BAD green girl!!!). but i thought, no, this is a compostainer. it's good for the earth. i should use something earth friendly to clean it. (and yes, you're detecting some resignation there. but lysol kills 99.9% of bacteria!!! does anyone know the stats on baking soda?? tell me if you do, because i don't!) so i dumped in more baking soda. and grabbed some paper towels.

again, you weren't there. so don't judge me. this Entity was gross. and scary. and by now, dead, granted. but, still. no way do i want the residual of that Thing on the cloths in my house, sitting with my towels until they're washed, and then who knows if it would spread and get on the other stuff i have in that load. yuck!!! i can throw out paper towels, and then they're gone. at least, that's what i did with my first couple paper towels. the last two, that weren't so gross, are now, you'll be pleased to note, sitting inside my wonderful little compostainer with a banana peel, remnants of a spinach salad, and bits of tomato, green pepper and cucumber.

and the compostainer? clean as a whistle, and gross-ness free, thanks to the wonder of baking soda!!! :)

welcome back, old friend. i've missed you. may your insides be filled with yucky veggie bits, apple cores and banana peels, and may your contents remain hairless from now on.

breathe deeply. smell that? it's simplicity.

this afternoon was beautiful. the sun was shining, the air was cool and crisp, and the snow was all gone.

ok, so the snow wasn't all gone, but the sidewalks were clear.

and really, as much as i love my tek, the day was far too perfect to drive. no, today was the perfect day for walking.

after a short nap, the boys and i put on our coats and shoes (no boots today!), and i put asher in the stroller. and then.......

we walked to pick up blithe from school.

yup, you read that right. we walked.

and it was the perfect day for it.

and we all loved it. :)

Fairmeadow Farm CSA

i joined a CSA (community supported agriculture) today. every two weeks, i go to a farm outside of Sparta, and pick up vegetables. the top picture shows you the amounts i get of each of the vegetables.

i should tell you that there is still room at the farm, so if you're interested in getting lots of good organic vegetables, grown locally, it's still possible. in fact, you would get a double share next time.

i'm so excited. i think tomorrow i'm going to make carrot soup for the first time ever! yay!!!!

what a week!

well, it's been quite a week here this past week. if you'll remember, i think i mentioned that i was going to attempt freezer jam, after the disastrous attempt at crockpot jam (the recipe's a good idea; maybe i'll try it again and actually follow the instructions! lol). anyway... mom and i made freezer jam on wednesday night. the batch we made gave 5 jars, which are now nestled in amongst the ground beef, enchiladas and buns in my freezer. mmmm.... can't wait to try it! :)
another new addition this week was the rain barrel. ed came over on wednesday and got it all set up, including re-routing the eavestroughs a bit. the 2 downspouts from the main roof now come down the roof of the kitchen and the down into the barrel. i've already been using it for laundry, and the kids are loving it for making mud with all the sand from the sand box. i'll have to pick up some more sand this week, since it's asher's happy place, but that's a whole other story.
so, there you have it. a productive week, in a lot of ways. anyway... um... i guess that's all i have to say here today. i may post to "blooming" later tonight, lots to update there, but yeah, i think that's about it here. i hope you have a simple week! :)

oh! one more thing i forgot!

perhaps you noticed the link to Orchard-Hill Farm on the sidebar. this is an organic farm outside Sparta, Ontario. and by organic, i mean, they don't even use tractors, they use draft horses! how cool is that?!

anyway, it's part of a growing trend called Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). this means that you can buy "shares" in their crop, and every week from June to October (in this case), you pick up organic produce at the farm. and it's very affordable. and to make it even more affordable (and rewarding), you can sign up for a working share, which means that you go to the farm a couple of times during the season and do some of the work yourself.

check out their website and see the list of veggies, and get inspired! and i have a link to a list of other CSAs throughout Ontario, which i will post, as well, so you can get involved in this movement near you!

i give you... the power of Baking Soda!!

this table has been outside for a few years now. that's right, years. ok, well, we put it in the shed for the winter, but i think it came outside in late april, just like every year. anyway, you can imagine, it was pretty dirty. like, i thought the tabletop was actually taupe. ok, not really, but i'd forgotten just how white it used to be.

anyway, as you may or may not have noticed (and if you haven't, have you really been paying attention to what i write here? lol), i have been trying to choose cleaning products that are healthier for the earth and my family. but in this day and age, there are so many conflicting things, and so many products that claim to be green. but what to use?

well, back in the day, and i mean way back in the day, they didn't have all these chemicals and products. not even the "green" ones. but they did have a couple things...

1. vinegar
2. baking soda

seriously, you can clean your whole house with these two products. and throw in some (regular or rain) water and some real soap, and there you have it, folks, a healthy, clean, green home. you doubt?

remember the table i mentioned? here it is now! check it out, my friends! it's white again! and there you have it. baking soda, for all your outdoor cleaning needs.

may your day be cool (if only in your mind), may your home be clean, and may you have power in the storm (again, not necessarily speaking metaphorically here, but you could read it that way, if you like. but right now we're under a severe thunderstorm warning and tornado watch. good thing hub had the forsight to charge the solar generator overnight - using hydro, but ah well, at least it's charged and ready for use, but i digress.)