September snaps: progress, being, art . . .

This picture shows the garden earlier in September. The morning glories are climbing up an archway we made out of sticks. We have done a lot since this photo. Now the Zen sand garden is done and there are rocks and brick around it (this would be right in the middle).

A rainbow zebra Phoenix and I drew for Jerome, to greet him when we got home.

In this picture you can see some of the progress in our entry room. The couch we got for $40 at Salvation Army. It looks great, has a pull-out bed, and is on wheels! We can roll it around the room and pull it out to sleep in front of the fire. Here Phoenix is washing my paintbrush. When demolishing the bathroom this past week we pulled down the ceiling tiles that were above the shower. I am making a painting to put up and cover the boards in that spot. It reads "All the water that will ever be is right now".

This is a picture of one of my dandelion green creations. There are (very nutritious) plantain seeds on the left side of the plate. The potatoes are from our CSA. I swiftly fell in love with foraged dandelion greens this past summer. If you let the oil get really hot they crisp up like yummy, delicate, crunchy chips. Anything this dark of a green has to be full of vitamin B right?

A picture of the garden looking away from the house. In the bottom left corner you can see a row of "red brick" lining the driveway. Someone on craigslist recently demolished a building. We have been making trips to get their remnants: antique red painted block, tin roofing, and rubble we are are breaking up and putting around for better drainage in areas. In the upper right corner you can see a compost bin I made out of a pallet and paneling that we ripped out of the house. We are going to experiment with running a hose/tubing through the compost for hot water (this has been done successfully in France, heated to tea temperature).

Our table was so beautiful this night I had to snap a picture. We got our CSA, harvested from our garden, and a neighboring farmer dropped off corn and tomatoes for us to try. Everything in the upper right on the towel was from our garden. The red basket was a gift. The rest was the CSA. Cindy (CSA) has been consistently giving us yummy blackberries and raspberries.

I am slowly working on our cycle-powered washing machine.

This shelf was a really fun find at the local Salvation Army. Someone made it out of old cabinet doors. I put it on coasters to make a "floating island". Jerome's cutting board fits perfectly on top. Salvation Army also had two of these great red tubs (center) that match the kitchen perfectly. The candle was also from a thrift store. The apples we got on our road trip. There were apple trees all along the highway in WI and MI. Apparently it's not illegal to pull over and pick some!

Okra flower in our garden. This has already turned into a yummy snot-textured vegetable and been consumed.

retrofitting ins and outs

As we move from project to project on this house and the farm I find myself going through a few different cycles. I am excited, pumped, working hard, overworked, tired, burnt out, I need a break, ok I'm ready to go again, maybe I'm kind of excited about this, yeah makin' progress, maybe I am kind of pumped . . .

Sometimes I can't help but think it might be better to just start with something new, instead of trying to improve the existing. Jaques Fresco got me thinking about that, but we have what we have, and that is where we should start. I also really enjoy being creative with "junk". This is my present philosophy. Theme of the year: Be here now.

I have been refraining from sharing progress pictures and notes lately because people have been been freaking out about some of the progress pictures if I do not immediately post something that is more acceptably refined. This is not everyone. Some friends want to visit, but will stay at a nearby hotel. No offense to those who have done this, I understand each person has their own comfort requirements, I really just appreciated your visit. Usually, once I explain that things are better than one progress picture can show (it is just a piece of what is going on around here). There is so much going on here that I do not have time to post about everything, nor do I feel this is necessary. I am one of those stubbornly independent people who feels she doesn't really have to explain herself to anyone. Although I appreciate having understanding between two people I create my own judgments of myself and what I'm working on according to my goals.

Seeing the value of chaos, mistakes, and learning from these, I am considering posting a little more about what we are doing again. Truly the purpose of this blog was to share our experiences and what we are learning here.

Ranting done I think I will start posting more . . .

We gutted the bathroom this weekend. When I hadn't found a bathtub on craigslist or the Restore after keeping an eye out for a few weeks I had almost given up. Saturday morning Jerome started the gutting when I got on the computer one last time . . .and found our bathtub for free! The bonus was that when we got there we saw two large plastic water tanks that the man is willing to sell at a great price. My plans for cisterns and gray water storage are closer to happening now.

We found some mold in the drywall in the bathroom so we are taking everything out. This includes the bathtub and cabinets. I don't want to take any chances. Mold likes the drywall and wood. It was also in some of the caulk on the tub. It has been really pretty easy to get out of the cement block, so I see this as no problem. We got it out of the kitchen completely after taking the cabinets out, washing the block and painting it with a water-sealing paint. I don't want to re-use the bathtub inside just in case. We are planning on burying the old one outside in the garden for gray water storage or a small kid's pond or, the sky's the limit . . .

I better get back to work on the bathroom now. Scraping paint, ripping out cabinets, washing walls . . .

I think I might even post some pictures later ;)

Evanston IL and Flying Thai

Last week we drove to Evanston, IL for a Therapeutic Flying/ Thai Massage class. I have taken a couple of Thai massage classes at Thai Bodywork there and enjoyed them a lot. As a massage therapist, I see that I can work deeper with Thai massage stretches without having to do Swedish deep tissue massage. Deep tissue massage can be hard on a therapist's body and is not as relaxing as Thai. What I like the most is how these techniques nicely blend into yoga so that I can have a more active recipient.

I have a fascination with acroyoga. Anything nearby acroyoga related and I want to be a part of it. Flying Thai massage is along a therapeutic branch of acroyoga. I took a Vinyasa style yoga class with David Regelan this year at Moksha in Chicago and started to talk about acroyoga with another man taking the class. He gave me a taste of the flying Thai and I have had my eye on it since then. When I heard that the teacher, Lyndsey Britt, was teaching her last class before leaving the country Jerome and I decided we could make it happen to get there.

The class was, of course, amazing. Phoenix, Jerome, and I have had fun playing around with the techniques. It also feels amazing. It is the most fun massage I have ever had. I bought the acroyoga flight manual with instructional DVD online and am now twiddling my thumbs waiting for it to arrive in the mail.

Interesting observations on the drive there: We began to count how many cars on the interstate had passengers. We only counted vehicles until we reached 100. We counted 13 vehicles with passengers. Semi-trucks and some other work trucks did not count because their purpose was different. As we got closer to the suburbs the amount of passengers increased, but we got to 42 before we saw even one passenger! No wonder cities are encouraging car pooling. Transportation is something that we have plans to address in our own lives as well.

septic fun

We've got some great news. We had a local company come check the septic system out, just to make sure everything was kosher. I believe it was Peterson's Septic Cleaning. He came to check things out and manually broke up a crust we had in the tank. When I asked how much we owed him he said, "Just make sure you call me when your tank gets full".

The good news is our septic is fine. It is unlikely that any flooding was from that. This man's father actually installed our septic system and knew the man who built our house. He said he used to play basketball up in the hayloft of the barn when he was a boy. Jerome told him that the basketball hoop is still there :)

The even better news is that if we have to get the septic pumped this company takes the contents and dumps them in the field. He then has to pour lye over it to balance the pH. It is sanitary, legal, and environmentally friendly. This makes me happy because nutrients are being put back into the soil and everything is allowed to biodegrade naturally.

We did learn something about septic systems. If you let a septic system sit a couple of months without being used it can form a hard crust on the top that needs to be broken up. This crust can block flow into the system. If you hear gurgling in your pipes after flushing or using drains it means your septic tank is getting full.

food consciousness

I am having a really fun time snapping pictures in the garden once in a while when I go out to gather. . .our garden is very photogenic :)

Thinking about food. We do that. I have been talking for a few months about starting a spreadsheet so that we can be more aware of where we are purchasing our food and what our intake is. Last month we spent a ridiculous amount of money on food. This happens easily when you try to buy organic/free range/antibiotic-free/grass fed/local/fresh/hormone-free/cruelty-free/gluten-free . . .umm, when you try to eat consciously. The real problem is if you continue eating the usual way. That is, meat at least once a day, buying processed grains (cereals, crackers, breads), and unlimited dairy.

We usually cut the price down by limiting meat.

Meat is considered a luxury

in the summer (or special occasion, or if we have physically worked extra hard and need a boost). If we are traveling and come across a natural co-op that has special local meats we will splurge . . .or for cute little girls who are picky eaters :) . . .

we splurge on meat while Ivy and Zoe are here. Ivy is a meat girl.

With non-local, non-happy

(not grass fed, pumped full of antibiotics and hormones etc.) meat it may seem cheaper, but someone somewhere is truly paying the price. It is also not that great for your body. I could go into this much deeper, but I will stop here and say, watch the movie Food Inc. Personally, most

non-happy meat makes me sick to my stomach because I am not used to it. I have realized recently that a lot of people think that bloated-after-you-eat feeling is part of being "full", normal. It is hard to change your lifestyle. It is really hard to change a family's lifestyle.

Add more beans.

Beans are so good for you! They get things moving, but if you eat them regularly your amount toxic smells from inside will decrease as your colon becomes cleaner and healthier and your enzymes level out. Hey, there's always Beano--just remember you are supposed to take it before the meal.

Dried beans are cheap. The big thing is, remember to soak them the night before. Most beans are not a complete protein, though, so remember to add a grain like rice when eating them at a meal. Make them yummy

with spices like bay, basil, thyme, hot sauce, salt (of course),Braggs amino acids can be used as a salt substitute (tastes like soy sauce). I often add onions, garlic, and tomatoes from the garden and toss them in the slow cooker on low in the morning.

Processed grains.

Boxes of cereal at o

ur house are usually a treat. Phoenix loves Envirokids Gorilla Crunch. We try to cook up rice instead or an alternate grain. We are pretty rice-happy here though. Rice is an alkaline food that helps balance the commonly over-acidic diet of Americans (acidic pH causes a lot of health problems). I do need to look into rice a little closer though, and figure out the ecological impact of getting it here. The most local I have found so far is California. Though we tend to pay a little more for organic, rice is still cheap.

We splurge on gluten-free bread. It is very expensive. I am very allergic to gluten, not fun. It is easy to get into the habit of having bread all the time though. In fall and winter we will bake more, but right now bread is also a luxury/special treat. We like to buy Just Bee Gluten Free, a local woman just started this company and has yummy bread products.

Fruits and Veggies.

Start a garden! Organic fruits and veggies are expensive. They also go bad fast if you buy them from the store because they have traveled and have no preservatives. We also joined a CSA because we got our garden in late. Cindy at Hawkeye Farms has great food and I have really enjoyed talking with her.

Dairy.

My weakness is ice-cream (or gelatto!). Jerome's weakness is ice-cream. Phoenix' weakness is ice-cream. That

puts us almost eating ice-cream almost all the time . . . in hot weather we lose willpower. Obviously, though, ice-cream is a luxury, a treat.

We have found a local farm that we can bring our own container to and get milk. We go about once a week a

nd Phoenix gets to run around with the farmers' daughter to watch ponies, cows, and chickens. We limit our milk intake to this and supplement with homemade soymilk. I use organic dried soy beans, soak them overnight, and then put them in the soymilk maker that I ordered off of ebay a few years ago when Phoenix was lactose intolerant.

Probiotics are important too. I need to get back into the habit of making my own yogurt. I got a really great culture from my Touch For Health, Applied Kinesiology, instructor.

Ok, this is getting long. I'm going to stop here for now. We are uber-focusing on food this month so I'm sure there will be more posts on this subject as I get a chance to do more research, fill in our spreadsheet (we started it this month! --nerds), and make some fun graphs.

testing materials: Earthship

We are planning to build an Earthship on the land in the next couple of years (hut/nest style). Here are some pictures of where I have started testing some of the materials for a toilet facility inspired by Earthship Haiti. The facility is on the back-burner for now, until we get the house winterized and after I've stepped further into the permit process. I had some better pictures of this after it dried, but I can't find them right now. Maybe I will post them later.

The Earthship Haiti toilet is pretty simple. It has a simple shower and a toilet. It catches its own water on the roof for the facility. Used water is then filtered through constructed wetland

Our land is close to the river, so we have some natural deposits of sand. I wanted to see how our local sand (after we sifted it) would do in the cement mix, and if the humidity here would make a difference in how it dried. It dried hard and there is no cracking.

As I was working with and researching the cement I began to wonder more about natural, local building materials. I would like to attend a workshop in the midwest with someone who has built entirely out of natural materials such as adobe. Earthships use adobe inside but not outside. How much weight can adobe support and how does it hold up to different elements? I am looking into visiting Dancing Rabbit ecovillage in Rutledge, MO, sometime soon and hope to get a chance to ask some of the builders there about their experiences with natural, local materials.

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Kids: cute baby animals and saving animal habitat. local attractions

While all three girls were here at the farm we had a girls day. On this day, we dressed up in dresses (and tiaras for the little ones) and went into town, Davenport. We left the boy at home to get a little time to himself and get some work done on the farm.

We went to see a movie at the IMAX theater. The plan was to see Born to Be Wild. This documentary is about two women who started saving baby animals. One woman cared for baby elephants when their mothers were poached. Another cared for baby orangutans when their habitat was destroyed and their families pulled apart. Both ended up with helpers and their care turned into organizations. When the animals are big enough and ready they are released back into the wild.

The girls were enthralled by the cute baby animals and had many questions about why people are destroying the habitat. It was fun watching Zoe reach out to touch the 3-D images. Ivy was like a stone. I only saw her move once during the movie, when a baby elephant charged at the screen.

We were a little early for the movie so we decided to go check out the Putnam Museum exhibits while we were there. Phoenix loved the fossils and anatomy exhibits. Ivy liked the mammals, submarine, lightning and tidal pool. Zoe kept going to back to the display where you could push a button and make your own tornado/whirlpool. All three girls loved the display where you could pretend that you were drawing blood out of someone's arm. There was a little kids wigwam and trader area where the girls dressed themselves up in "furs".

I very highly recommend Born to Be Wild! We all learned a lot and enjoyed ourselves too. Of course, everyone ooh'ed and ahh'ed over the three little princesses running around around around. I asked too, and there is no rule there to prohibit running!

Movie:

www.putnam.org/bornwild.html

Museum:

www.putnam.org/exhibits.html

Kids: conflict transformation and mediation

Ivy and Zoe are back with their mother and soon will be headed back to their other new home in Europe. We really enjoyed having the girls here. Jerome took a few weeks of vacation and we all had a lot of fun playing and exploring new areas. Having two four-year-olds and a five-year-old requires a lot of attention and energy. I think this seems like an age with a lot of transitions. The girls are all still learning where they can be independent, when they need to ask, and how to best communicate their needs and desires.

I think communication is a fascinating subject. When people are together though, misunderstandings and confrontation are unavoidable. A little over a year ago (two years ago?) I discovered Non-Violent Communication when I ran across the book in a library. It is a way of expressing your feelings and transforming conflict. Jerome and I have used this throughout our relationship when we are feeling, tense, stressed, hurt, or having a hard time understanding each other. We use it with Phoenix to help her communicate when she is upset. Phoenix really seems to enjoy it and often steps in as mediator for other kids who aren't getting along well. At our Mommas and Babes camping trip Phoenix would step in to help Shelby and Grace when they would get upset and yell at each other, helping them to communicate effectively.

When Ivy and Zoe were here it was fun watching the girls take responsibility to resolve their own conflicts.

It breaks down to:

1 Observation (objective)

2 Feelings

3 Needs

4 Request (of the other person)

For kids we often guide the process as so:

ok, wait, take a deep breath

Now (to kid #1)) tell me what you saw happen.

(To kid #2) tell me what you saw happen.

(To kid #1) Tell your sister/friend how that made you feel

(Now kid #2's turn to share feelings)

Each kid then gets asked what he/she needs and how he/she thinks that this need can be met.

Both kids are usually able to resolve things at this point.

After a few times we tell that they can work it out between themselves, because they now have a template. It is really fun when there is a third kid to act as mediator. They take charge and act so grown-up, it is like another game.

. . .not to say that there are not times that we all get tired and irritable and end up having quiet time or nap time instead of talking through a conflict . . .

I really want to do the NVC workbook and attend a conference sometime.

www.cnvc.org

Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life

Marshall B. Rosenberg

reusable items

Here are a few links to some fun reusable items.

Every time I throw something away my mind flashes to where it will end up. Obsessive about sustainability? Possibly. I think its time to step up and move past the out-of-site-out-of-mind way of thinking and deal with our shadows.

Plastic and metal razors waiting to degrade in landfills . . .

Preserve

This company makes products from recycled materials, when you are finished you mail your razors and toothbrushes (made from recycled yogurt cups!) back to be recycled again.

http://www.preserveproducts.com/products/personalcare.html

I emailed Preserve to ask if they did indeed recycle the razor cartridge as well as the handle. They said that at this point they do not recycle the cartridge. It is, however, something they are working on and hope to have that available in a year/year and a half.

Terracycle

You mail them wrappers from chips and candy bars and they make amazing products from them like purses, bags, and earrings. They will even pay you for your trash!

http://www.terracycle.net/brigades/candy-wrapper-brigade.html?locale=en-US

We learned about this at the Unitarian Universalist Society in Clinton, IA. They also have a drop-off at the Restore in Davenport.

Containers and items that can't be recycled we often add to a craft box for Phoenix. She makes some really fun things and has taken to asking teachers and other adults for their glue bottles and other empty containers to make crafts, or suggesting what they could do with it.