parenting

Well, I took the plunge.

We’re going to make some ornaments, probably something like these (via re-nest):

by raiding my button jar and ribbon stash over the Thanksgiving weekend. I’ll post some pictures where we’re done. We made handprint turkeys this week, though I didn’t have any success getting the cute triplet handprints I really wanted. Maybe we’ll try out the cereal box turkeys instead?

I haven’t been successful with much in the past week because we’ve all been sick, so I’m taking this primer on fighting off flu seriously! We’re starting simple with more hand washing, extra sleeping, and some vitamin C.

crafting

I’ve been convincing myself I need a sewing machine to make a draft catcher. Then Crafting A Green World inspired me to upcycle some long sleeved shirts instead. I’m going to tie off the ends with ribbon like a bolster pillow, so this will be a no-sew project! I bought 3 pounds of bulk beans today and will tackle this for our living room-to-sunroom french doors tomorrow. I’ll be looking for recipes using lots and lots of organic white dried lima beans in the spring

eating

I hope it won’t come to Spam for us (or whatever the equivalent is in a pork-free household), but the New York Times has an interesting story on the sign of the economic times in terms of purchases, and an infographic that clearly proves that frugal and green can go hand-in-hand. Just look at all the people buying fewer paper towels!

I think I bought eggs today just to make Alisha’s three item Peanutbutter Cookie recipe (PB, sugar, eggs). I’ve been craving them since she posted the recipe!

resources

I’m not personally familiar with Chico Bags, but they appear to have a following online. What makes me a fan and eager to try them out is that they will recycle any reusable bag, not just their own. According to Tiny Choices,

Chico Bags, you may know, take back their bags for recycling. But did you know they take back ALL reusable BAGS for recycling? This is *great* news for me because I have a habit to overload my reusable bags profoundly and have had a few freebee canvas sacks entirely give up and rip in the handle area. They say that they don’t “want ANY reusable bag to be left in a dark closet or sent to a landfill”… So, what’s really neat is what Chico Bag does with thes bags when they receive them for recycing. They either distribute them to low income families so they can start to reuse them for their own reusable bag needs, or, they’ve partnered with a group located in northeastern PA called The Grateful Thread and there they are recycled into woven rugs.