Plant a Tree - It (was)Earth Day

So, a few days ago, was Earth Day.


In full spirit, I went out and bought a Peach Tree. I wanted to plant a tree (per my list o' things to do) and figured Earth Day was as good a day as any! Another stipulation was that I wanted something that would be fruitful. The last thing we needed was 'just another tree' in the front yard.

Well, that day one thing lead to another and we never planted our tree. BUT this morning, Ryan and I took advantage of the good weather and planted our peach tree. It's not much of anything yet... but I hope that it grows with us over the next however-many-years and we get tons of peaches year in and year out!

We put lotion on Jude while we were out in the yard. I'm always worried his little scalp will burn, so he got a good dose in his hair and it looked so fun:

Preparing out Garden

About a week and a half ago, my brother and Katy and I started to plant our seeds indoors.


We're all excited to transfer everything outside, so have been preparing the 'garden area'. Also, some of our seeds are sprouting!!

My Nature Baby

This past weekend, I met a few mothers at White Clay Creek's Nature Baby Program!

This was mentioned a few months back and I actually had pretty much forgotten about it - so I'm glad it was brought to my attention again!

Basically it's a program through Delaware State Parks for kids 2 and under to come out and learn about nature. It was a really relaxed program and the instructor did her thing while the babies moved around, played with things and just took it all in.

Jude was probably one of (if not the youngest) baby there, so he probably didn't get as much from it as most of the others, but either way it was fun. I'm sure we'll go back for another class and he will continue to be more capable of understanding what is going on.

Reusable Shopping Bags (or just skip the bags...)

Welcome to the beginning of my weekly posts about ways that we as a family strive to go green... or save some green. Some of these things will fit both categories... some others may only fit one. This weeks topic fits both.

REUSABLE SHOPPING BAGS! (see my amazon product list for a couple of different reusable bags!)

These come in all sorts of colors, patterns, sizes, and materials. Average cost for a reusable shopping bag: $1.00. I slowly acquired mine over the last year or so. I have roughly ten bags now, which is more than enough for even my larger grocery orders.

Some might ask: "why would I pay for bags, when I get them for free at my local grocer?"

1. You're using less plastic bags! (that's the 'duh!' answer)
2. In the long run, it will save you money! "How?" You might ask? Easy. Most grocery stores will give you a certain amount off for EACH reusable bag. This amount is something trivial like .05 a bag, but it adds up! If the standard family goes grocery shopping roughly every two weeks and uses their 10 reusable shopping bags each time, they will save $13.00 a year on their grocery bill!! So, within one year, you will have gotten back your investment in the bags, plus $3.00!
3. Extra savings! The other day, I was informed by my grocer of choice (Safeway) that if I purchase some of their "Bright Green" brand cleaning products and use my reusable shopping bags, I save something like 10-20% off of my "Bright Green" products! At that time, I was buying a $13.00 jug of laundry detergent (in addition to a couple other products). That's at least $1.30 in savings! I encourage you to check with your local grocer to see if any of these secret savings are available to you too!
4. More free hands! I rarely put Jude in a stroller, so when we're shopping at the mall and hitting a number of stores, using one convenient canvas tote for all of my purchases cuts down on the handful of bags that you can get from various store. The straps are conveniently long enough to sling over your shoulder and leaves your hands free for the more important things in life :)
5. No more spilled milk! Well, let's face it, I wouldn't put milk in a grocery bag anyway, but there are some items that those thin plastic bags just don't hold up to! Most of the reusable bags are much more durable and significantly larger than what you can get from the store. Since I've began using them regularly, it's very uncommon for me to have a few stray cans rolling around in the cargo space of my Jeep on my way home. They hold their shape, hold more items and in general just hold up better!
6. Easy Handling! I usually hit the grocery store during the day with Jude. Getting him and our groceries from the cart, to the car, to the house and put away is usually a feat. He has just behaved for roughly a 1 hour+ shopping trip and is ready to move! As I said, they are larger and hold more items, so there are less trips in and out of the house, making it as quick and painless as possible.

Of course there are hurdles with these as well:
1. Mrs. Forgetful. I'll say that forgetting to use them is my biggest hassle. I'll say that it's one of those things that you just need to get in the habit of using! I personally keep one in my diaper bag at all times for those little trips out. The rest are usually stored in my trunk for grocery trips. I've heard of some women who keep them with their coupon book. Whatever your way to remember, eventually it just becomes habit.
2. Things that Leak. Another problem is things like meat that can potentially leak into the bag. For these types of items I usually just use a plastic bag. But if it's an unexpected leak, most are also machine washable, or made of a material that can easily be wiped clean.

Other tips for reusable bags:
- Occasionally I will skip the reusable bags and use the plastic bags. We like to have a small stash in our house for things like: bathroom trash cans, dog poo, Ryan's lunch and much more. Usually one grocery order with plastic bags will last us quite some time.
- If you aren't ready to use reusable bags, try other ways to reduce the number of bags you use. For example, there are standard items that just don't need a bag: milk, detergent, boxes of canned soda, etc. Think outside of these items to things like large jarred items, 2 liters and more. When you're at retailers, question whether the item you're buying REALLY needs a bag (large boxed items from toy stores, the lipstick you're just going to throw in your purse anyway, the CD you plan to pop in your car stereo when you get out to the car, etc).
- You can also purchase reusable produce bags for your grocery trips. I personally just skip produce bags all together, but if you insist on keeping your produce bagged up, it's a great alternative (see my amazon product list for a link to reusable produce bags)


And now for a giveaway!!!!!!!!! I'm giving away a reusable shopping bag!

I an effort to boost the number of blog hits I get, I'm going to challenge you to help me! There are two ways to win this give away:

1. If you are a frequent visitor of this blog. I challenge you to have ONE (that's right, just ONE!) new reader check it out. Your reader needs to leave a comment referencing your name. You will BOTH get a bag!
2. If you are a blog lurker, I'd love to know you're there! Leave me your first comment and YOU will get the bag!

(Note: winner(s) will need to provide their mailing address)

May the fastest one win!

A blog with a porpoise

When I was younger, I used to think those Highlights magazines said "Fun with a porpoise". For the longest time, I just couldn't figure out what a dolphin had to do with the magazine.

... and then I learned to read... well.

In an effort to give this blog a bit of a purpose beyond talking about my day to day life, I'm going to post weekly one way that we strive to be "Green" or one way that we are "economical" in our home. Some of these things may have already been addressed in previous posts, some of these things might be pretty obvious, but I'm going to cover them.

If it's a specific item that we personally love in our home, I (from time to time) will have a blog giveaway for that item. I'll create a fun game or something that encourages my readers to get involved and will give away said item to the winner.

Also, I will add any of these items to my Amazon tool bar to the right for easy/convenient shopping.

I hope to put up my green/economical posts on Mondays... So, this Monday, look for my new post (and maybe a give away!).

Sprig Toys

I first came across these toys a few months back at Toys R Us. I fell in love with them!

Sprig Toys have the following features:

- battery free. The toys that have power are powered through kinetic energy. So, your child gets them going! They boast that this encourages longer play. The toy we got for him has a light, makes motor noises and has dialog all powered by you!
- earth friendly. The toys are made from recycled plastics and wood, use minimal packaging, are sold through retailers who uphold their standards and use no decorative paints.
- interchangeable. Similar to 'Little People', the characters and vehicles in the Sprig Toys collection are interchangable so you can expand your collection, or just have one.


When I first saw them, I wanted to buy one for Jude. The trucks are very 'boyish'. I'm a fan of the classic Tonka trucks, etc and these seemed to be the closest thing I could find to that. In my initial search, it appeared that most cars and trucks were either really baby, or very matchbox-like. However, at the time it didn't matter, he was too young to even be remotely interested, so I held off.

With Christmas approaching though (and since I said we would be able to buy Jude one gift), I decided to get him his Sprig truck. He still will not be able to fully comprehend what to do with it (and like his Diego jeep, he'll probably play with the people more than the truck)but I am just thrilled to open it up!

Another nifty feature about the Discovery Rig that we bought for him, is that it has an arm-type thing that attaches to it. When Jude gets to the age where he'll need to hold onto something to walk around a little (or just to hold him up), this might come in hand.

If you couldn't tell I will probably be more excited then he will be on Christmas morning...

I've added the link to the Sprig toys to the list on the right hand side of the page. Feel free to check them out.

Something I Would Consider...

I've told Ryan recently is so bad for anyone who has a million things they want to do around their house. Everyone who comes through is working on one project or another. In addition to making me want to do SOMETHING around the house, when I see their stuff I'm like "oh! I want to do that next!" or if I have a set idea for something I want to do in one area, then I see something new and I change my mind completely. It's terrible.

Then of course there are little things that I see and decide I think are so neat I want to find somewhere I can use it! For example, someone came through with that chalk board paint. You can turn any surface into a chalk board. I thought it was awesome and vowed I would have a blackboard SOMEWHERE in my house.

Then the other day someone came through with a potted Christmas tree. Now, I'm a fan of cutting down my tree and the whole experience when we actually GET a tree. I personally don't like artificial trees, I have no interest in getting one off the side of the road and it just doesn't seem like Christmas to pick it up at my local home improvement store. I'm imagining that's because when I was younger we always went to cut one down. But this tree was neat in that it a small, little stubby sized tree, so it probably came up to about my shoulders. It was in a pot and basically you decorated it this year and then planed it after you were done with it.

Intrigued, I asked the guy about it to understand it as much as possible. He said he decorates it and then he will plant it outside and then next year, he plans to cut it down. I'm not sure if that means he'sll buy a new one to plant next year for the following year, or what... but I liked the idea of it.

Again, I don't really like the idea of crushing not going to a tree farm and the whole experience, but there's something to what he's doing that I really like.

Either way, this Saturday, Ryan and I plan to make the trip down to Magnolia to get our tree. The in-laws of a guy we know have a tree farm down there and the last time we got a tree, we got it from them and we plan to again this year.

I'm sure I'll post more for you after we get it!

Ventanas

We are in the perfect neighborhood for those door-to-door men trying to sell everything from new windows and sidings to driveways and lawn care. You name it, they try to sell it to us.

A few months back we were propositioned to have a new driveway poured. A lot of our neighbors seemed to have one company laying black top for them and so they were going door to door to see how much more business they could get. They had their trucks out and materials and said they could offer us an "amazing deal!" if we did it that day. I believe it was like a $3,000 job. I was amazed that these people seriously thought we'd just go for it... but I guess some people have 3 grand (or a credit card) just laying around for those random purchases.

Either way, it never happened. So, yesterday when I was bumming around the house, there was a knock on the door. It was someone from Power Windows and Siding offering to give us a free estimate on our windows. I told them we didn't have the money for it now hoping they'd leave me a lone, but they didn't. He told me that they quote was good for X amount of time and that it was no hassle, etc.

Not having the heart to say no (he seemed like a nice enough guy) I told him he was more then welcome to come up with a quote. At that point he explains that he doesn't do the quote, he has to send someone out (ugh.). So, I agreed and told him that night was my only free time in the next week or so. He gets someone on the line and makes the arrangements. Ryan of course was "thrilled".

Now, our house is in desperate need of new windows, siding, doors, etc. It's old and inefficient. When the gentleman came out he said that the smartest place to start is windows. It wouldn't mess up any of our interior walls (one of my biggest concerns) and it's cheaper than siding (and saves more in energy bills). In addition, the windows go in from outside and so they trim, sills, etc would all stay in tact). He gave us the full scoop, discussed style options, got measurements and presented us with a number. OUCH.

It wasn't as high as we'd expected and with the payment option, it was totally reasonable. But of course, he wanted an answer that night. Seriously? Someone knocked on my door that afternoon, came to our house a matter of hours later and expected us to make a decision to buy windows in less than 24 hours. The biggest perk is that they guarantee something like a 30% saving on energy bills once they're installed... I mean when you calculate that into the monthly payments... it's even more reasonable.

We didn't give them an answer... and probably won't be doing it in January like they were pushing for, but we're happy to see that new windows (and eventually siding) are not as far off as we'd expected. Perhaps within the next year or two we'll start to transformation on the outside of our house.

Kenya feel me

At Lowes, there's a guy there who is from Kenya! To him, this isn't nearly as big a deal as it is to me, but it's fun to talk to him as some of what he's experienced/used to is so different from what's the norm around here.

For example, we had a discussion about Halloween. He had never heard of it and so seemed so confused when I tried to explain it. Think about it... how weird would it sound to hear that people put on costumes and walk around to collect candy?

Anyway, today he asked me how Jude was doing. He has a son of his own back in Kenya and so was asking what new things he was doing. Crawling? Teeth? etc. I told him about the Diaper Free thing I was trying and he totally 'got it'. He was telling (in broken english - I only understand so much of what he says) me how in Africa, there are the "north" and the "south". The people in the south are more old school and live in caves, etc. He said that they too train their children from a very young age to use the bathroom. However, in the city where he lives, the use diapers like the rest of the industrialized world.

It was very interesting!

Also, I thought I'd throw out the final stats for Jude from his first day:

3 misses
1 hit
1 miss
2 hits
a couple of misses while I was out of the house
1 hit

I'm not sure if that 100% accurate, but I know he went 5 times on the potty (there may have been more misses). As I was leaving for work, we put a diaper on him and I'm pretty sure Ryan didn't do anything.

The Diaper-free Baby

The diaper free baby, Elimination Communication and the ooddles of other titles out there all have the same idea: an infant who doesn't need diapers/uses few diapers because of an understanding between child and parent - mostly though the parent's ability to read the child.

A lot of things I read compare it to breast feeding in the sense that like breast feeding you learn your child's cues and feed on demand as opposed to bottle feeding where you feed on a schedule. With a diaper free baby, you are on their schedule and look for their cues as opposed to changing them when you have a free moment.

A description:

Elimination communication (EC) is a toilet training practice in which a caregiver uses timing, signals, cues, and intuition to address an infant's need to eliminate waste. Typically the goal is to partially or completely avoid the use of diapers. EC emphasizes communication between the caregiver and child, helping them both become more attuned to the child's innate rhythms and control of urination and defecation. The term "elimination communication" was inspired by traditional practices of diaper-less baby care in less industrialized countries and hunter-gatherer cultures.^[1] Some practitioners of EC begin soon after birth, although it can be started with babies of any age.

Babies don't have accidents, they have "misses" and they're not potty trained, you're trained as a parent to know when to take them. You will still have to transition to them being potty trained later in life and tell you "I need to go". Typically though, from what I've gathered the transition is much more smooth in that they're used to being taken to a toilet and eventually with a diaper free baby, they can begin to sign that it's time to go.

Now if you're anything like me, you're reading this and thinking "what has this world come to - people are insane! I could never imagine this ever working or wanting it to work".

When I first heard about it, I thought it was just flat out weird. The more I got to thinking about it, I could see why someone would do it, but just never imagined it being something I'd want to try. I mentioned it around that time to Ryan, and he agreed it just sounded... different.

Then one day being bored (and probably after putting yet another load of dirty diapers in the wash), I decided to look it up and do a little more research. I browsed around online and while I still wasn't 100% sold on it, it didn't sound as far off base. But knowing Ryan would never go for it, I assumed it still wasn't something we'd ever do. Until the other night.

Ryan and I were sitting on the couch and jokingly I said "I'm going to start potty training Jude". I specifically said it because I thought he'd tell me I'd fallen victim to the earthy/yuppy world and that he'd lost me forever, but that wasn't his response at all. Instead he said "go for it". I looked at him with questioning eyes and said "seriously?" and he basically said "if it gets him out of diapers, why not?".

I've been milling it over in my head for a couple of days now and thought that it won't hurt to give it a try. Either way he'll pee/poop. If I'm not into it, I can just stop. If I give up early on, it shouldn't confuse him at all. Especially since there are people who only do it part time. Also, Jude is an irregular pooper and I've read that it helps with that (I haven't quite figured out how...) so it could be beneficial??

From what I've gathered there are two key times to focus on: right when they wake up and after feedings. Other than that, you need to focus on cues and timing for the in between times. I was also told keeping him naked would help to keep a better eye on things until you became more aware of when he'd need to go.

I planned to start first thing this morning. I told myself I'd wake up with Jude and put him on the potty just to see what happens. Typically babies don't pee while in a deep sleep, but instead right after they wake. That didn't happen though. I was snuggled in bed and Ryan brought Jude into me for his morning feeding, so figured "eh, maybe tomorrow". I was slightly disappointed in myself for putting it off, but about 30 minutes later when he mysteriously peed out of his diaper, all over himself and me, I decided it was a sign.

I bathed him, put a nice warm shirt on and busted out with some of his waterproof mattress pads. I really didn't know what to look for, so figured I'd keep him naked and just pay close attention. Of course, he peed within 20 minutes and I thought I'd missed my chance. But about 25 minutes later he went again. So, I was starting to get an idea...

I layed him down to play and roughly 20 minutes later DING DING DING - another missed opportunity. He was starting to get mildly fussy and it was time for a nap. I kept him naked and held him the whole time - no accidents. Right when he started to wake up, I took him to the potty. I was thrilled when he PEED IN THE POTTY! I made my "psssss"ing sound as he was going and was so proud (of him and I).

I layed him back down to play and figured we'd see what happened in the next 20 minutes. Within 5 minutes he peed again - on the mattress pad :( So much for a routine...

I should probably keep some sort of log as I'm beginning the lose track of time, but since then he's gone one more time in the potty (after a few seconds of me sitting there waiting for it to happen) and then when he didn't go about 25 minutes later, I put a diaper on him because he felt cold and I wanted him bundled up.

Right after layering him up though, he ate and fell asleep. I'll see if I can get him stripped down quick enough when he wakes up. If not I'll say the first attempt was fairly successful and try again tomorrow.

I'm still not totally convinced it's for us... the cold weather and him being naked here in the beginning will be challenging... and every 20-25 minutes is a lot of potty time... and I'm thinking none of the pants we just bought will fit without diapers on. But I'll see how the next couple of days go.

I told Ryan I'd start on it through the day and that once I discovered a routine or cue I'd fill him in and he could begin doing it when he's alone with Jude. I think we'll first start with Ryan taking him in the morning if he wakes up before he leaves for work... but that's just getting into details that only apply if we keep going with it.

I called Ryan after he went earlier and he was surprised I actually did it. He of course made fun of it and when I told him I was only going to do it if he was on bored he said he was all for it and was only giving me a hard time... so we'll see.

If nothing else it'll save me a load or two of diapers over the next couple of days - but I'll be making up for it in soiled mattress pads..

Green Party

Today we had a birthday party to attend for one of Ryan's very old friends. His daughter was turning 1. It was of course a kids fest! One of the little munchkins there was just about Jude's age. She was born about a week and a half before Jude and is a monster of a little girl! The two of them made googley eyes at one another. Ryan socialized with his old friends and I chit chatted with the other ladies there.

At one point we went down in the basement to check out the kid zone and it was chaos! Kids and toys strewn about the living room. I swear that the second we walked down the steps one little boy began beating Ryan with a plastic golf club (and this kid had some force). When the kid realized that Ryan wasn't yelling at him for hitting him with the stick he began picking up little pieces of toys and throwing them at Ryan. Slowly the toys got larger, heavier and were thrown faster. I of course had to run and leave Ryan in the trenches.

Which brings me to my shopping experience for this birthday party...

When rooting through toys 'r us for a gift earlier in the day, I didn't know exactly what to get a 1 year old little girl so did a little browsing. I wanted to avoid the basic fisher price toys that you see in every house hold (assuming they already had most of them from their first child). I usually like to go in the direction of educational toys (always a hit - sike). I ended up coming across a little end cap of 100% recycled toys. I think I stopped initially because there was a truck I saw and wanted for Jude made from recycled wood (the closest thing to a solid tonka truck I've been able to find!).

But they also had this cute little tea party set made from 100% recycled milk jugs (all picked up from curb side recycling!). I went for it. In addition I got a little shape sorter ( you know, the box with holes in different shapes and you need to fit the correct shaped block into the correct hole) for her which was just super adorable. Surprisingly these 100% recycled, solid/sturdy looking toys were fairly cheap! Typically things that are "organic" or "100% recycled" (from what I've seen) are pricier anymore because there are so many people 'going green' but not so much in this case! (the tea set was about 20 and the shape sorter was 9.99)

To complete my left wing, liberal, hippie gift I bought two of those reusable shopping bags to wrap the gift in as opposed to the typical gift bag (1.50 for the reusable vs. 3+ dollars for the gift bags). I felt like I should put flowers in my hair and name my next child "sunshine" while making hemp bracelets on the side of the road somewhere, but all in all was proud of my eco-friendly present!

Strawberry Fields Forever

1 Month (and check up)

June 5th Jude was one month! It's crazy how quickly time is flying by and how big he's getting!

Today we went to the doctor for his one month visit. He got one shot and in general just got checked out. He was 10 lbs 3.5 ounces and 22 inches long. When he was born, he was in the 25th percential and today he was weighing in the 50th. So, he's growing well.

What was interesting to me is that the nurse prac. told me that Jude should be on vitamins. I mentioned that he's exclusively breast fed, and should be getting everything he needs. Apparently though, the one thing breast milk doesn't provide is vitamin D.

However, she said that 'when' he's on formula he won't need vitamins. She assumed when I went back to work I'd be switching to formula. I mentioned I planned to pump and she just shrugged and continued. I asked if I should then supplement with one bottle of formula a day and she said he should be fine with just the vitamins. (anyone out there giving their infant vitamins??)

He had a hard time sitting up in the middle of the chair:

So we went with the side of the chair instead:

A New Cousin

Last week - June 3rd - my brother Kevin's wife had her baby. Jude now has his first cousin: Olivia. I believe she was about 6 lbs 4 ounces. Later this month we plan to make a trip down to NC. Originally it was for Jude to visit his mom-mom and pop-pop, but it looks like we'll be letting the kiddies meet.

A Party at Uncle Bryan's

This past weekend we went to a party at Bryan and Katy's house. Party was complete with moonbounce, slip n' slide and more!

Hypospadias Update

Today was a busy doctor day. We started early this morning with a visit to A.I. for Jude's hypospadias. Just yesterday I saw the last little piece of stitches fall off so was hopeful that he'd be able to check out was going on a little better.

Once all stripped down, he checked him out and said he does NOT have a hypospadias (insert confused 'why are we here' look)! I asked why they put him through the semi-circ, stitches and two doctor's visits if he doesn't have a hypospadias and he said it's not uncommon. Apparently sometimes the foreskin is so tight that when they pull back the skin it makes the hole look slightly off center. I wasn't entirely convinced, but was relieved that he was not going to need the surgery!

Then I was advised that in order to continue with the circumcision he'd need to be put under because of his age. I told Ryan it was his decision whether we were going to leave him uncircumsized or go through with the 'surgery' (circumcision) this November. His immediate response was 'go for it', but the thought of putting Jude under is just too much for me to make it that easy of a decision.

Our Final Decision on Vaccines

As you probably determined from the section above, we went forward with part two of the Hep B vaccine today. Basically I did some research on which vaccines are required for school and we will be getting those - without a doubt. Some I may be delaying, but obviously I'll need to get them. Since the Hep B was the only one scheduled for today we went with that one on time - I figured it made sense, since he was already 1/3 of the way there.

Some of the others, I've read, it's possible to spread out over a longer period of time and so over the next month I plan to research the shots on track for next month and determine if I'll postpone any.

Pretty much, as with almost anything else, there are a list of side effects for each vaccine. According to Dr Sear's book, spreading some of these out can reduce side effects which is something we're considering. I'm really wishing I had looked into this all BEFORE I had a child instead of making it up as I go.

Strawberry Picking (another 101 down!)

Today I went Strawberry picking with Katy and Bryan. Jude of course slept through the whole event. It was on my list of things to do so I recently went online to farm that offered pick your own. We went to Filasky's Produce in Middletown. It seemed to be a little early in the season, so there weren't A LOT to chose from, but we ended up with a decent bag full.

Uncle Bryan - Getting Married??

As I may or may not have mentioned, Bryan and Katy have been tossing around the "m" word a lot lately. Ideally I think they're looking for a 2010 fall wedding with a rustic edge and just a casual laid back good time. Originally Katy said she could really see them getting married at Milburn orchard. They hold weddings and it would fit their Fall decor ideas.

While looking around online one day I found the "figure 8 barn". Katy and Bryan seemed to think it was the perfect location and so they set up an appointment to go look at it. They asked me to go and I of course said yes!

I must say it's a pretty cool property!! It's not at all your typical wedding venue, but I'm sure with the ideas that Bryan and Katy are throwing out it could be an awesome spot for sure!!

Work Around the House:

Now that Ryan is done at Lowes, we have the opportunity to do some work around the house. This past Sunday I decided to fix up our front yard a little. I didn't want to put a lot of money into it and just wanted to clean up some of the over growth.

I mentioned to my brother that I wanted to pull up the azalea bushes across the front of the house and his face light up. He asked if he could do it and I said he was more than welcome to. I found out the reason he wanted to do it is because he wasn't going to just dig it out or cut them down, he wanted to pull them out by the root. How you might ask did he want to do that?? With Ryan's jeep of course.

While we were busy out front Ryan did a little work on the bathroom - wrapping up some electricity. There are so many projects in the works right now, but I'm excited that we're getting back at 'em.

Before:

Flower bed in the front yard:

Front of the house with all 4 bushes:

After:

Slightly manicured flower bed (I didn't want to get into flowers, just make it look a little more well-kept)

One bush gone, 3 to go.

Homemade

It's been my personal observation (and I could be wrong) that more and more people seem to be regressing to some of the practices of the past. While we have so much technology, I still feel like there are some things that people seem to be going "old school" on.

I for one am catching on to this little trend (is it a trend? i don't know...). For example with our child I plan to breast feed (something that for awhile was fairly uncommon), use cloth diapers and make my own baby food. Recently Barbie mentioned that she had found a recipe to make homemade laundry detergent and I was all about trying it out!

Yesterday we met at her house and gave it a shot. For about $10.00 (well, $10.00 for the first batch - about $2.00 every time after) we will have TEN GALLONS of laundry between the two of us! It seriously only took like... 10 minutes?

After we were done, it needed to sit overnight to thicken and then we will add water to the mixture to get our ten gallons. I'm very eager to see how it turned out! I'm even more excited to actually use it to see how it works. I still have a good bit of my store bought detergent to use but I'll be sure to post on how it worked out!