Lisa Zahn

Not too sunny, but a beautiful day nonetheless. We got quite a bit done in the garden. Moved the curly willow out of the new back veggie plot; started potting up some of the (former) rock garden plants; put down more compost, then peat, then newspaper and straw. Our neighbor Greg wondered if we're going to be raising some goats. He thought we could put in a petting zoo. Hmmm, maybe... The same neighbor, Greg, gave us his very large two-year-old Gooseberry bush so he could make room for more raspberries. We were glad to take it as it's something new to try. Above are photos of George putting it in the front yard. And here's some chives growing in the front herb garden square. And some Lady's Mantle on the south side of the house. Iris from the front boulevard. Also yarrow, blurry, from the boulevard. (Hey, planting in the boulevard is breaking a city ordinance and everybody's doing it, so what would a few backyard chickens matter?) A beautiful Delphinium which needs...

Hanging out laundry, that is. Project Laundry List is leading the way to bring back the old-fashioned, energy-saving method of drying your laundry...hanging it out on clotheslines! I love "laundry art" and have this print and some old aprons hanging on a line to decorate my (uglyish) basement laundry area. In my family, this tradition has never died. My grandma always hung out her laundry and my mom also hangs out much of her laundry and did so even when she was a full-time working mom. In fact, when we moved from a small town to a suburb of Minneapolis in 1978, one of the first things my mom did was have heavy-duty steel laundry poles and lines installed along the boundary of our big new backyard. I even like to collect antique laundry paraphernalia at garage sales and the like... Keeping with this tradition of my foremothers, I love love love to hang out my laundry. I find it meditative to be out there under the sun, carefully hanging out each piece of my family's newly...

Villagers in Martin, Hampshire, England with their own produce Here's an inspiring article about an entire village in Martin, Hampshire, England that is growing its own food. I thought I'd point it out since it relates to what I wrote about yesterday. It can be done, and it can be fun! The real Good Life: An entire village turns against supermarkets and grows its own food Martin Village, Hampshire, England We can all be part of this positive movement, whether growing or buying local foods. Just click on the article's title above to read it...

This entry started as a mere update on all of our lives, but by the end progresses to my thoughts on the global food/energy/economic crisis. Read on... Me--worrying about the global food crisis; reading The Automatic Earth's more than daily posts; buying food on sale and/or in bulk; sprouting potatoes and planting them in a couple of days; adding compost to garden (later today now that the snow is gone again); planning to start tomato seedlings today too; sprouting clover seeds and oat groats for indoor greens; planting outdoor lettuce, greens, etc.; also making quilt tops to use around the house as insulated window coverings, and possibly to sell at a craft show... Elijah--reading The Icebound Land , Book 3 of the Ranger's Apprentice series (and probably staying up too late); rehearsed last night with the four-school orchestra in preparation for their May school tour and concerts; playing hours of Pokemon with his sister; resisting going outside to play for any amount of tim...

I wanted to wait until after my dentist appointment last week to post my homemade toothpaste recipe. Since I get a clean bill of health there, I'm ready to tell all what I've been brushing my teeth with since about the last time I went to the dentist six months ago. Here's the recipe, inspired by posts on No Impact Man and Crunchy Chicken and other environmental bloggers trying to avoid the plastic toothpaste tubes, questionable toothpaste ingredients, etc... 3 parts Baking Soda 1 part Salt (sea salt is natural and best for health) optional: vegetable glycerine (to make a paste; sweetens and preserves) 3% hydrogen peroxide (just a little bit, to make it liquid-y but not watery; kills germs) 10-20 drops of peppermint or other essential oil I mix this in a covered honey bowl that has a notch for a little spoon. I just scoop with the spoon and "drip" a bit on my toothbrush. I really like this stuff, so much that I can hardly stand it when I forget and pull out the...

One thing I think most homeschoolers begin to notice is that learning isn't confined to "school days" or school hours. In fact, many of us give up the notion of "school" altogether and instead think in terms of life learning. Yesterday was one of those days (that I just happened to capture on camera, really all days are learning days). All kinds of things go on at our house that contribute to learning, and not just for the kids but for all four of us. My job as an unschooling/homeschooling mom is to provide lots of resources, and to be open and aware of those moments that can lead to greater lessons. The kids wanted to wash their pennies. Eli asked for lemon juice and I said, why not use vinegar? It's the same, I said. How is it the same? Eli asked. Well, both are an acid, I said. So we filled two small bowls with vinegar and stuck some pennies in. I couldn't remember if this was all we needed and we promptly learned no, obviously something else must be ...