The only time I can ever read is on the bus. It’s been taking me forever to read anything, but I’m totally loving The Omnivore’s Dilemma. I can’t wait to research some of the other author’s and writings Michael Pollen mentions in it.

I just recently found out that the Chicago Public Library has a summer reading program called “Summer Reads for Adults” that is all about the environment this summer. If you read 2 books and fill out a very simple report form you get a free tote! The deadline is August 31st. Anyway, they also have discussions and events based on this theme so you should try to find a pamphlet that has all the info. Although I love the recently updated Chicago Public Library website it seems that finding all of the info that is in the pamphlet is a lot of work on the site. It doesn’t really shout out any of the really interesting stuff that’s going on.

One of the events that is happening this Saturday is called Vermicomposting for the City Slicker. I really want to check it out. But, seriously, why wouldn’t they want to feature this sort of thing more prominently? I also saw an event where someone was teaching how to make plastic bags into yarn. That one is happening during the working week so I’m unable to attend.

I do think that the library is such a great resource that many, many people don’t think to use. I could go on and on about how great I think the website upgrade is and how much more easier it makes using the library, but perhaps you should just go and check it out yourself.

Well, kinda but not really. For the last few weeks we’ve been trying to not eat out at all. We’ve been doing that for dinners. It’s very important for us to sit down and have dinner together, we’ve made that a priority since having Stella. But, breakfast and lunch are meals we tend to buy out. As an exhausted, full time working mom I thought there was no way I could have time to make breakfast and lunch, but if you look within yourself you’d be amazed at what you can find. It’s actually been kind of fun running around in the morning trying to pull everything together. I get myself ready, get Stella ready then while Jim is getting ready I throw together whatever I can think of. I try to make a blueberry smoothie for breakfast and lunch is usually a salad (with goat cheese and cranberries!) made with lettuce from the farmers market and a sandwich of some sort. I really want to start making more salads. The other day I tried to replicate a corn and edamame succotash that I had from Whole Foods once and I have to say that it turned out amazingly well.

Well, the thing is, today I find myself wondering…is it cheaper to do this? Obviously, part of the reason for taking on this endeavor was to try and save some money but, I’m feeling as though this week we’ve spent an unprecidented amount on groceries and we still have a week plus to get through. However, I also think about the impact our eating habits have on the environment. So much plastic and paper has been saved because we are using reusable containers.
But, playing devil’s advocate with myself, I wonder how the cost in energy consumption is balancing out, if I’m cooking at home more how is that affecting our gas bill? Running the dishwasher more… I guess this is just a work in progress and we a certainly going in the right direction…

Another thing that I started doing recently is riding a bike with a baby seat. A few times a week I’ve been riding Stella to daycare then taking the bus to work and picking her up afterwards. It’s great. I think she likes it too. Next step is to ride all the way to work, which is almost (if not exactly) 10 miles. My awesome friend Laurie got the bike for me from her awesome co-worker.

Here is an interesting article for your consideration: The eco-crunch: Can Britain still afford to go green?

Just saw this article about salmon fishing on the west coast. Salmon is my favorite, I have a feeling this means that prices will be going up and I won’t be eating it as much. The last sentence of this article is also disturbing. What does it mean?

The 3 of us have been sick all week and I’m pretty sure it’s the flu. I don’t have much energy but I just had to point out this article AP probe finds drugs in drinking water. Yes, what a surprise. Well, I thought that was news awhile ago–which is why I have a water filter. Anyway, despite us all having the flu I still don’t believe in the flu shot and I think if it becomes mandatory for children I’ll just home school Stella.

Well, looks like I’ve been doing a good job at spending less time in front of my computer, huh? This week has just flown by and now it’s March! Yipee! Spring is almost here (right?) and even if the next few weeks are going to feel like an eternity (I know that’s how it’s going to go) at least the sun that’s been hanging out helps! I just can’t wait to go to the farmers market’s again and though that may be a bit away I wanted to share the link to Local Harvest with you. It’s a great resource for finding your nearest Farmer’s Market and other great organic food (restaurants, stores, farms, etc.) that’s in your area.

And speaking of links, I came across a blog called “Confessions of a Closet Environmentalist” because of this link about recycling. I’m always looking for more info about the art of recycling, so I was excited to come across this page. I really found the paragraph called “Do NOT recycle anything that is greasy or dirty” informative. I’m sure I’ve been guilty of this. And I KNOW I’m guilty of “when in doubt, recycle”, which is why I’m always trying to learn more about the subject so thank you CCE!

So, today I finally found the Nature BabyCare diapers (I also found their website–for some reason it doesn’t come up when you type in the name) at that store that has the big red bullseye as a logo. It wasn’t an easy search because they were about 4 aisles down from the diaper aisle and on the end cap. That really makes a lot of sense–no not at all! I guess they think that if it’s on an end cap it’s more visible, but I think to may people it’s less visible. When you’re looking for diapers you go to the diaper aisle–why not have them in both places or at least at the end of the diaper section? Who’s in charge of this stuff?

I’d like to give a shout out to Brian for helping me figure out how to add a list of links using php to my sidebar here. One of those things that should’ve been way easier then it actually was. Thank you Brian!

I have a love hate relationship with computers. I spend way to much time in front of them and lately I’m just wondering “why?”! They are like the person that one minute whispers sweet nothings in your ear and the next minute pretends they don’t know you. Yesterday I spent hours trying to improve my life with my computer only to find out it just isn’t going to be possible unless I spend money and upgrade or learn a new language. I mean, really the things I wanted to do should’ve only taken minutes.

Meanwhile, at work I got upgraded to a new computer and the tech guy had to “carbon copy clone” my hard drive. Which worked out really well, amazingly enough. While I was learning the tricks of my new computer I was reading this article in the New Yorker, all about carbon footprints. It’s a long and interesting article about the misconceptions/mistakes that go along with trying to reduce our effects on the planet. And then yesterday morning I came across this carbon calculator on the Chicago Tribune site.

Now I’m going outside to enjoy the sunshine while I can. You should too.

Monday’s and Tuesday’s can be pretty hectic for me and I’ve been trying to find the best way to approach these days. At first my approach was more about denial then acceptance, but after a few weeks I’ve come to realize that the best way to deal with the madness of these 2 days is to just jump in, embrace the chaos and most importantly plan ahead.

I’m still really learning about the idea of planning ahead–it’s easier said then done. I’m narrowing it down to making food that requires little to prepare and no time to get together to send off with Jim, Stella and myself as we go our separate ways on Tuesday. The less that has to be done in the evenings and mornings the better. However, it’s also important to me to have something that’s homemade and will last for a few days. This week the solution was Lentil soup. It’s pretty easy to prepare (especially if you’re good at chopping), healthy and hearty and all I have to do is ladle it into some containers and off we go!

Here’s the recipe I used:

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
1-2 chopped carrot
1 red pepper chopped2 chopped celery stalks
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 pound lentils
1 cup peeled and chopped tomatoes (or 1 can)
2 quarts chicken or vegetable broth
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground toasted cumin

Place the olive oil into a large 6-quart pot and set over medium heat. Once hot, add the onion, carrot, celery and salt and sweat until the onions are translucent. Add the lentils, tomatoes, red pepper, broth, coriander, cumin and stir to combine. Increase the heat to high and bring just to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook at a low simmer until the lentils are tender, approximately 35 to 40 minutes.

Anyway, it felt really good and relaxing on Monday to come home and spend some time in the kitchen making something for my family after an icky day at the office.

As a mom on a budget I often have to try and make choices that fit within my eco and budget needs. It can be very conflicting when I want to make an eco-conscious choice that is out of my budget range. When it comes to diapers the choices keep improving to make it easier and easier to be eco-friendly. A friend just told me about Nature Babycare diapers. Apparently they are biodegradable, chlorine free and don’t contain plastic or latex. I will be switching to these as soon as my current diapers run out. I love getting excited about something so simple! I can’t find a website for these but they are available at Target (hurray to them for carrying something so eco fabulous) and at Diapers.com.

And while I’m on the subject of big retail stores I seem to keep seeing good things about H&M on the web these days. They aree banning Australian wool because of a practice called Mulesing. It sounds pretty awful so hurray for H&M. On top of that they are also carrying a line of organic cotton clothing.
Although I’m not a fan of big retail chains or clothing labels I do think it’s important to note when these businesses are making it easier for the consumer to make a eco-friendly choice.

Now that I’ve got the thought of redecorating my apartment in mind one of the first things that I want to do is de-clutter and get organized. I’ve been lagging on canceling all of my paper statements because I’m worried that if I don’t have them floating around in front of me–and literally they are floating all around my apartment–I’ll forget to pay them. Well, I think I’m at the point where I’m tired of trying to round them up and to often I don’t even open them (I’m ashamed to admit it–but they do tend to get paid). I believe I’m ready to go paperless in the bill department! It’s not that difficult. All you have to do is go online to your various utility and credit card sites and check the paperless option. It’s such an easy and eco-friendly option. I’ll be saving trees and making more room in my apartment.

As for the other stuff that I need to get rid of I’ll be taking my clothes either to a local shelter or thrift store. I’ve got some baby stuff that’s no longer needed that I’m going to try to sell on craigslist. As for my old computer and printers I’ll have to find out what places near me will collect them for recycling (you DO NOT want to just throw these things away). According to their websites places like Staples, Dell and Applehave recycling programs for your old equipment.

Here’s a link to an amazing site called The Story of Stuff. Annie Leondard spent 10 years researching just what happens to all of the stuff we accumulate and throw away. Everyone needs to watch the flash movie that’s on the site.

I’m always obsessing over redecorating my apartment. Always. This morning I woke up early so I could flip through my collection of Domino Magazines too see if I could find anything to inspire me. I think I have it all sorted out now. Here’s some samples of what I’m thinking of:
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I love the warmth and modernism of the dining room image. All I really need to make that work is a new dining room table. There are a couple of ideas for a palette–mostly for the living room–since I have a dark brown couch I’m thinking a light gray for the living room walls. Then I’ll need to paint the fire place either a white or cream color. The image with the couch is more for inspiration for hanging art. You have to imagine my brown couch and light gray walls. Anyway, just a few things for me to think about for a while.

Stella and I made a stop at the library after dropping Jim off at work. I picked up a few cook books because I’m always looking for inspiration in the kitchen as well. After several attempts at locating “the petit appetit” with the help of the library computer I finally gave up and asked someone at the help desk. We both misspelled the title and she had to look it up online before we could get it right–that made me feel much better. Anyway, after all that trouble I got the book home and so far I’m not too sure about it. I was hoping for ideas for the whole family but most of the recipes seem geared toward babies under 1 year. Luckily, while perusing for that title I came across “The Parenting Cookbook” which looks to have quite a few recipes we can try out. And while I was in that little area of the library I also came across Jamie Oliver’s “The Naked Chef Takes Off“–he’s brilliant at having a number of recipes that get me salivating. Speaking of Jamie Oliver, I’m really annoyed at my DVR because for some unknown reason it decided not to record “Jamie At Home” this morning!