Turns out going green is difficult.

The past couple of weeks have proven challenging to my Green mission. I can now see that these lifestyle changes will take much time to adapt to and that we'll all have to create new habits.

1. I failed miserably at traveling in any green way at all. I didn't plan well and we ended up buying lots of items at gas stations. My car looked like a garbage pit; plastic bottles, wrappers, etc. I was disappointed about that.
2. I did average last week during a 'test' shopping trip where I took some linen bags along with my Envirosax to use for produce. I did not have any jars with for deli meats and cheeses- but I did ask the worker to place two different kinds of meats in the same bag. The request did not go over well. I eventually convinced  her, but she quit making eye-contact after that, so I suspect she was irritated.  I stuck to the outer areas of the store and also picked up some bulk spices, oatmeal, and trail mix. All in bags, so I need to do better. 
3. I am packing actual silverware and cloth napkins for myself and Lily- She likes having her 'mat' for lunches at school.
4. I've done pretty darned good job at using up left-over foods and foods that will go to waste. I roasted some tomatoes in the oven with some olive oil and sea salt, and they were delicious! I put them in a salad and ate them strait from a bowl.
5. I'm doing well at refusing items we don't need in the house but need to be better at ridding the house of things we do not use or need. Our local thrift stores have gotten quite a bit, but will surely get more!
   
    I decided to do worm composting rather than purchasing the unit I really wanted. After researching, it seems like a better plan for our house. And Steve is working up this whole Aeroponic growing system, so perhaps some of my compost can be used in the plants we grow with soil in the tent.

Oh! I did end up making some body butter I am really excited about- I used this recipe. I added in some Eucalyptus to the mix at the very end and it's really a lovely smell. I use it on the kids and Steve and I love it. It's super great for Rowan, too, because we have to watch that he doesn't get any carbohydrates through shampoos and lotions.

 This recipe made one large LeParfait container and one small one, (the one pictured) which I've brought to work.


It is thick and creamy and is just wonderful. I would be surprised if I ever bought lotion again!

Erin Goes Green

Alright- New obsession.

And if it's my new obsession, it's about to get real for the Hammer Mayer clan.  Zero Waste Home is where this all began, and I'll keep you updated on our progress!

 THIS. This is going to be in our house soon. I've been given the ok to order it (after much discussion, several promises, and a tad bit of begging I'm not even remotely embarrassed about) from my partner.  Here's the deal, folks. I have always, and I mean always wanted to compost. I have no idea why- but I'm so stinkin' excited about trying it.
(please don't be like the juicer, please don't be like the juicer...)

These awesome jars came in the mail yesterday. Huge box and lots of packaging, but I have plans for that- Lily and I are going to build something with the box and use it for art projects.

I went shopping today with one jar and took a look around the store from a different perspective. I was checking out the bulk foods section, the bulk seasonings section, the produce, organic, olive bar and salad bar primarily.  I wanted to get a feel for the types of foods available so I can plan some meals.
I also wanted to gauge how many jars and bags I'll need to bring home different items.

Since I'm also on a mission to rid our house of BPA plastics and chemicals, I have been paying much more attention to packaging, as well.

I'm at the very beginning of this journey- but have made one switch in Lily's breakfasts I'm pretty proud of; She loves pre-packaged oatmeal- and I haven't minded giving it to her much because I think it helps keep her regular and because we've had some issues with number 2's over the past year.

Instead of her pre-packaged sweetness, I've been making her:

• Raw Oats
• Sugar in the Raw
• Cinnamon
• Hemp Seed
• A few chocolate chips (to keep her interested)
• Almond Milk

She's happy and I'm happy. I'm sure I'll find ways to make these little recipes even healthier, but for a beginner, I'm  not disappointed.

Ok- that's it for now.
Tonight I'm going to make some whipped body lotion.
Pretty excited.

a new bed for Lily

Better late than never on this one, I guess?

A couple months ago, I made this bed for sweet little Lily. This wasn't exactly prompted by the kindness of my heart and a desire to sweat in the heat of August at my favorite wood studio... rather it was an idea that popped into my head after about 6 strait months of her getting up in the middle of the night and coming to wake me up.  And even then, I was inches from buying a loft bed online.  Steve saved the day, though, and told me to simmer down, not click buy, and go to sleep. Then next day I had the idea to make her a bed.

All told, the frame of this bed cost us $80.  I worked for about 24 total hours on it. 

Lily loves it and no longer wakes us up, so I'd consider this one a success!!

 I found the plans at AnaWhite.com and Jim helped me build it for my girl.

Erin's (attempt at) Hobbies- Canning

Earlier this Summer we decided to join Bluebird Farms and have been thrilled each Tuesday when we get our fresh vegetables. The day I signed us up for Bluebird Farms, I developed a healthy obsession with canning.
Canning is great for me for a couple of reasons; 1. If you know me at all, you know I've got a thing about running out of food. I live in a constant state of fear of running low which has resulted in weekly Sam's club visits, an extra freezer in our kitchen and a closet full of overage. I did not grow up without food, so I'm not too sure where this 'thing' came from, but I've got it. My name is Erin and I'm a borderline food hoarder. 2. I love working with the ingredients and making food for my family that is healthy and that hasn't been doused in pesticides. 3. I really enjoy giving away things I've canned.

Here are a couple of things I made a few weeks back:

This is an amazing Blackberry Port Jam I've made twice now. Recipe (as my memory allows) is below.

 I began by boiling my jars to sterilize them.

Steve loves Apple Butter- so Apple Butter he got. I had to push it through a sieve. My arms were super sore.

This is a picture of the Apple Butter cooking. Has a much richer color after all of the Fall ingredients were added.

I made a Fall Blend of Apple Butter and used Maple Syrup, Cinnamon, Vanilla, Brown Sugar, Cloves, All Spice, and Maple Flavoring along with even more sugar.

I didn't need to add any pectin to this since I cooked the apples with peels and pressed everything through a sieve.

Finished Blackberry Port Jam

Finished Apple Butter.

Blackberry Port Jam:

5-6 Cups Whole Blackberries
1 Cup of a good, fruity Port
1 tsp. ground cloves
1 tsp. cinnamon
6 Cups sugar
Pectin


Cook Blackberries in pot until they turn bright red and get nice and soft. (about a half hour to 45 minutes). Mash them with a potato masher to get the juices out and to break them up a bit. Add in your sugar, port, cloves (to taste... I like a bit more than Steve does) and cinnamon and cook for about another hour to combine all of the flavors and to make sure things have reduced down nicely. Add in your pectin packet and stir until dissolved.

Pour into pint jars leaving about 1/2 inch below the top. Seal and place in a hot water bath canner for about 10 minutes. Remove and cool on a dry towel listening for the pops. All of my jars popped pretty quickly.

Steve and I have really enjoyed this jam on toast as well as with pork chops. Steve reduces some of it down with some rosemary and other things and it's just great with a pork chop and some roasted veggies.

Apple Butter:

1 5lb. Bag of green apples
1 container of sugar-free applesauce
Good quality maple syrup (I used about a cup or two)
Cinnamon
Vanilla
Sugar- about one cup for each cup of Apples
Nutmeg
Brown Sugar

I wish I had a good description of how I made this.  Really, I just used an apple butter recipe from online- then added in whatever I thought would be tasty. I pretty much just dumped in ingredients and kept tasting it until it was sweet and tasted like Fall.
It was a hit.

I hot-water-bathed the apple butter for around 10 minutes, as well.

Erin's (attempt at) Hobbies- Photography

A few months back I decided to take myself on a silent retreat to a little cabin in the woods. I ended up bailing early due to boredom and king-sized ants, but while there managed to take a few shots.

I plan to have a do-over of the silent retreat now that I know what to expect, in case you were wondering:)

I also took this shot of my cool uncle, Ivor. Enough Said.

Erin's (attempt at) Hobbies- Wall Hangings

Most of you are aware that I'm a regular attendee of DIY Wood Studio here in Fargo.

I guess I've established myself as the scavenger of the group because my all time favorite thing to do is pick up scraps of wood and try to put them to good use.

Here is a project I completed with wood that was lying around the studio. The tools I used for this project were:

• Saw-Stop Table saw
• Miter Saw
• Jointer
• Clamps
• Glue
• Tung Oil
• Keyhole Bit

First I rustled up some wood pieces I thought were varied in color and texture and gathered them together.

The next step (which I don't have pictures of, unfortunately) is to cut the different pieces of wood to the lengths and widths desired. I used the miter saw and table saw to accomplish this step.

Then I took the wood pieces over to the jointer to make sure the edges were even to ensure a good, solid seal during my clamping and gluing phase.

Next, I glued and clamped the pieces together by twos and let them dry an adequate amount of time.

 After the smaller sections were dried, I glued and clamped those together to make larger sections secure.

 I finished this project by gluing some smaller pieces of wood on top of the clamped sections to add dimension and visual interest.  Once the pieces were completely dried, I coated the whole project with Tung Oil.

I used a keyhole bit to make the hole for hanging on the back of each and centered the hole by weight.

Here's the completed project:

I'd love to hear your feedback and comments on these pieces...

Erin's (attempt at) Hobbies- Lamp Shade

I purchased this little lamp from a thrift store for around $8. It didn't come with a shade, so I went to Target and bought a plain white one for $7. These items sat around my house for months until I remembered I had a scrap of fabric from a previous clock project I could use. 

I cut four pieces of fabric- one for each side and used Liquid Stitch to attach the fabric to the shade. This whole thing took me about 15 minutes.

Cute!