Archive for the ‘Going Green’ Category

Really Pleased With Our Water Usage

Jun 29, 2009 Going Green

Let’s face it. I’m normally not that excited to get my water bill… any bill really. Where’s the fun in that?

But with all our efforts to conserve water around here, I was really excited to get our bill over the weekend.

We used just 16 units of water for this two month period. That’s down from 19 units for the same time frame last year. Pretty good, especially considering that average residential usage in our area I’ve seen quoted as 30 units per month.

I won’t say our lawn is thanking us for our efforts, but that’s been done in as much by gophers as by lack of water, I think. We have one really pretty weed with purple flowers that I hope continues to spread.

The garden, which I will truly miss when we move, has been one of our big outdoor water changes. The ugly watering solution really seems to be helping us cut down on how much water that needs.

Overall, I hope we can do so well wherever we end up living when we move. I just had to share my delight at seeing how well we’re doing, though.

Tags: , , ,

Clearing Out the Freezer Before the Move

Jun 26, 2009 Going Green

Getting ready for a move takes so much effort. It’s not just cleaning out the garage, excess toys and so forth. Some ways using up as much as I can from the freezer is just as much trouble.

It’s not so hard using the things I froze because they were on a good sale. It’s using up the chicken bones and such that I saved for soup that is a bit challenging. Not exactly the right weather for that to be a popular meal.

I could move it, I suppose, but I’d rather use it up and have to restock than deal with trying to keep things cold during the drive up.

Nice thing is, it means I will know what’s in there and not be wondering later on what that mystery package in the back of the freezer is. It’s good to clean things out sometimes anyhow.

Tags:

Minimizing the Moving Clutter

Jun 16, 2009 Going Green

One thing about moving - it encourages getting rid of the junk. Salvation Army is getting a lot of stuff from us!

We’ve been working slowly on cleaning out the garage before, but now it’s urgent. Why move anything we don’t have to?

We’re also wanting to get rid of about half the kids’ toys. They have so many that never, ever get played with. That’s how it is with the usual excess resulting from birthday presents and holidays.

I’m looking forward to having all this stuff gone, even if by some chance we get to stay here.

Tags:

Looks Like We’re Moving

Jun 15, 2009 Going Green

My husband has been job hunting for a while. He’s had a job, but just an adequate one.

Now he’s landed a better one, but we have to move for it, just a couple hours north of where we are now.

I’m happy and sad about it. Happy that he got a better job with room for advancement. Sad that we have to move, which means leaving friends, family and even my garden.

We’re hoping to hand the garden down to someone who will care for it. We have a few friends who have admired it, and the containers could possibly be moved. We’re also letting a few friends know in case they want to change where they’re renting. We’re also going to try potting some of the tomatoes to take along with us.

As I told my husband, we can keep in touch with friends and family, but losing the garden we’ve put so much work into really stings. Especially since we can’t start another one for the summer, although we may be able to do something for fall.

These next several weeks will be really busy for me. They want my husband to start on June 22, so he’ll be spending weeknights at my sister’s house, who lives about an hour from the new job. Better than driving 2 or more hours to get home, sleep and leave again, hardly seeing anyone.

I’ll be packing and researching places to rent while he’s gone, so that we can minimize this whole mess.

I’ll post when I can, and hope that we can get internet service quickly in the new place!

There’s still a slim chance we won’t move. If the local job he applied for wants him and calls this week, all these plans will change. Best of all, the local job might be at a location with an express bus stop practically at its front door. But for now we have to assume that we’re going.

Tags:

Why Do Kids Love Play Silks?

Jun 4, 2009 Environmentally Friendly, Going Green

My favorite toys for my kids are always the ones that encourage active play or creativity. I’d rather avoid the ones that are supposed to be used in one particular way… even if that rarely stops my kids from coming up with other uses.

But I think one of the best gifts my daughter ever got for her birthday from a friend was some play silks. 2 years later and she still keeps pulling them out. They’re holding up well.

Play silks are such simple toys really, just a beautiful piece of silk. But the simplicity is the real delight. They get used to create costumes, mostly. It’s amazing how many costumes can come from a single piece of fabric, and yes, a bride can wear a green veil and look wonderful.

Play silks can be found at sites such as Magic Cabin or Amazon, as well as many others.

At the ages my kids are at, I really think they’re happiest when they’re being creative, and that’s why I think they love the silks so much. They may beg to watch television or play on the computer, but once they’re involved in creative play, they’ll go on for hours. Watch TV or play on the computer, and I can count on multiple requests for snacks and other signs of boredom.

Tags: , , , , , ,

15 queries. 0.705 seconds