one small change II

due to computer difficulties at the beginning of the month, i have not exactly kept up with my posting about our *one small change* commitments. so, here's the update...

for january we pledged to cut out our use of plastic baggies in the kitchen, particularly in lunches. at the beginning of the month, i hid the box of baggies that we had hanging around. on a very lucky score, i found laptop lunches at a store downtown for half off! picked up one for jasper, now they both have one. lunch packing has been greatly simplified. i do not love plastic at all, but have grown to love these lunchboxes. the kids really enjoy their little compartments and they eat all sorts of things when they are presented this way that they would not be keen to otherwise. i also scored a roly poly sandwich bag at our local consignment/ awesome toy and organic children's clothing store. i am waiting for more snack bags to come in....i guess the awesome mama who makes these just had a baby and hasn't gotten any into the shop recently....imagine that! ;)

on to february (yes, i realize this is the last hour of said month!)...matt and i decided on a couple of small changes to make in our routines. first, we are working harder to be conscious of our electricity use. with two kids in the house and the flow from room to room, it is easy to leave lights on and wander away or leave the heat turned up in a room that we aren't using at the time (the playroom and the *computer room* have baseboard heat). so, we are holding one another accountable for being aware of this wastage. this is also an exercise in kindness. ;) gentle reminders are appreciated. this is one the kids have really enjoyed being in on, too.

the other effort is to reduce our trips to the grocery stores. we have an awesome discount grocery that i visit regularly and then i stagger going to the natural foods store about every other week (when the farmers market opens again that is in the flow, too). with my somewhat hectic schedule, it has been easy to fall into a place of going to the store irregularly and picking up a few things here and there. i am hopeful (but have not yet mastered) to get back into a rhythm of meal planning. making a comprehensive list of foods needed to prepare those meals for the week and sticking to that trip.

i pride myself on trying not to take my children into the consumer market more than necessary. sometimes i can't escape bringing them along to the craft store, but other than that they really only experience the grocery store with me. though they usually enjoy the venture, i am happy to schedule my trips at a time when daddy can hang with the kiddos and mom can enjoy that luxurious (enter sarcasm) alone time. reducing my children's outings to the store is not particularly related to helping the planet, but is an added plus to planning my trips!

so, tomorrow is march! wow. i am ready. my first born came to this earth in february so i do cherish this month. however, march holds such excitement and anticipation for the new life ahead! it is exhilarating to think we are so close to spring!! i will be back soon to reveal our march *one small change*. we are going a little bigger this time.

by the way, two more giveaways to point you to! first, two mamas that i adore, nicole of gardenmama is having a giveaway on her blog. she is offering up a delightful assortment of toys made by the talented hands of linda. you can find the giveaway here.

the other one is at 60piggies. she is giving away a custom made softie doll. her dolls are absolutely adorable and if you win, you get to design your own! find it here.

much love til next time!
rae

bella luna give away at wee folk art

another great giveaway over at wee folk art. sarah of bella luna toys is giving away two $25 gift certificates! head on over and check it out for yourself.....

since there are two being giving away, i want you to have one, too! myself, i am planning to order the beautiful book *the sun egg* for my kids for spring equinox and would love to use the gift certificate for that! ;)

good luck!

interview and giveaway on *the artful parent*

we are fortunate enough to live in the same little town as the talented and lovely jean of the inspiring blog *the artful parent*. jean recently visited our classroom on *painting day*, witnessing the beauty that is wet-on-wet watercolor painting. she has posted an interview with my co-teacher and i on her blog. there is also an opportunity to win a copy of *simplicity parenting*. head over and check it out here!
also, since so many of you have grown to love her, too, i thought i'd mention that the *renee* referenced in the interview is the beautiful mama over at heirloom seasons. love you, girl!

i'm still here!

hi friends! so, yes i am still here. i have been without my pc for many, many weeks now. the generosity and support of my class parents has been incredible. one mom loaned me her *netbook* (read: tiny, but functional laptop) for several weeks so that i could at least have an online presence. another mom loaned me her apprentice who is a former computer programmer. after two long days, we are back up and running. hooray! i still have to reinstall my camera software, but i thought i would go ahead and say hello.

some things that have happened in our lives (in february) during my absence:

*sienna's golden birthday: 6 on the 6th! her grandparents drove in the sleet and snow to show up in our living room completely surprising her. she is still ecstatic about it.

*her party was intimate and sweet with two other 6 year old girls. i made these chocolate ice cream bowls. honestly, how could i resist this after my recent obsession with beeswax lantern making?

*the next day, we enjoyed a nice brunch with grandma debbie and grandpa charlie before their departure. i made this pavlova (also first experienced with emily at foundation year studies, as mentioned in her post). it was a huge hit! this is certainly a new favorite festive treat in our house.

*within a week she lost her first tooth! she has another loose already. wow. i had no idea it would happen so fast!

*jasper has officially stopped nursing. i really thought this would be a struggle one day as this child was a very avid nurser. alas, before i knew it he just stopped coming to me for his *nur-nur*. i am ready for the freedom this brings to mama, but do miss the sweet bonding time with my babe. bittersweet, indeed.

*for valentine's day, sienna, jasper, and i felted rocks in festive colors. sienna handed hers out to her classmates and we enjoyed a bowl full of them on our table as a lovely centerpiece.

*for other friends of the family (and ourselves!) we made peppermint bark. as per amanda's suggestion i had tucked away a pack of organic candy canes that i purchased for 99 cents after christmas. this was our first time making this treat and it was so much fun for the kids! they were able to do almost all of it themselves.

*for matt i made this divine chai concentrate. admittedly, i wanted it for myself and am probably the one who has consumed the most of it thus far (we are on our second batch already). it is so delicious!! the second batch sienna made. she ground the cloves and cardamom seeds in the mortar and pestle and grated the nutmeg, too. mmmmmm......heather has shared several ideas for using this concentrate in other creative ways that i can't wait to try (chai scones recipe here)!

*given the swirl of activity in my personal and work life, i have been quite reserved with swaps thus far this year. i did jump in on chris' vintage marble swap which was a lot of fun! simple and sweet, no creating necessary, an excellent excuse to get myself back in the antique stores. i also signed on to swap valentine's with my sweet cyber friend kristin. sienna and i had been working on these wooden hearts, having a blast with paint, glitter, and fabric scraps. i am looking forward to seeing what comes my way from sweet kristin!

i am happy to be back in this space and look forward to sharing some pictures soon. i will say now that our camera is also suffering some technical difficulties in the form of an ominous black spot that can only viewed on the screen, but not seen on the lens. drats. i strive for strategic placement of said dot so that it doesn't affect composition as much, but alas am just working with what i've got!

much love to you all!
rae