HOT.
I won’t whine too much about the heat, but I feel it needs mentioning. I think it’s less the heat than it is the humidity. Hard. to. move. Although it hasn’t stopped me from doing anything. A couple of days ago, in 90 degree heat in the sun I decided I would do a little jump roping. I think I lost 5 pounds right then. Then I did an hour of yoga and lifted weights. I was proud. So many times I have things I want to do but some reason not to do it. That day, it was insanely hot and humid, and I thought “I should work out, but it’s so gross out…” and then I decided to ignore that and do it anyway. It felt great. My point system is working out well too. It really does provide a great deal of motivation. I have yet to cash them in for a prize, although I think I’ll do that soon. Maybe I deserve a new plant or something. Anyway, at the risk of sounding like a dork, I think that yoga is truly it’s own reward. I absolutely love it. LOVE IT. Toward the end of that hour I was rolling my back down to the floor and my back cracked in several places. It felt amazing. Just by doing really simple movements I think I helped to realign my spine. How cool is that? Plus it leaves you sore but not in that stiff kind of way- I’m sure because it’s stretching half the time anyway. Do some yoga.
She has a cute little sun hat.
June 4th:
My winter squash bed that Jeff and I made the other day. L to R: Butternut, nasturtium, acorn, nasturtium, delicata. Did you know that nasturtium helps keep away the squash beetle?
June 5th:
My little sister graduated. We’re all grown up now!
June 6th:
We decided that we needed to start using cloth wipes for Vera. I mean, we’re just washing all the diapers anyway, so what difference does it make to wash wipes too? Then we got to thinking… why do we use disposable wipes for ourselves? I mean, really, why? Imagine how many trees we would save just by eliminating toilet paper… I know that most people think “eeewww, gross” when we talk about it, but the more I think about it the less strange I think it is. I think we’ll hook up one of these, and use it for both diapers and ourselves when necessary, and then use the wipes and toss them in with the rest of the diapers. I really hope that more people start to do this. I see no need for toilet paper anymore- as long as you have access to washer and dryer. We will of course keep around a roll of tp so that our guests don’t feel uncomfortable… So here they are, our homemade cloth wipes. They have a soft flannel side that’s yellow with little stars on it, and a sage green terrycloth side. They work really well. I haven’t had to use more than one wipe with Vera at a time, compared with the three or four disposables I’d have to use sometimes.
I wonder what my life will look like in a couple years. I don’t mind these changes, if anything they make life more interesting. I guess I just mean that I am starting to realize the magnitude of our crunchiness, and while it delights me to know that I take an active and spiritual approach to my life, it also separates me in some ways from others. Like this cloth wipe thing. I have gotten strange looks for this, but it just makes so much sense to me that I wish those people would hop on board. I feel like we really live in a fantasy world, and that to not strive for sustainability is foolish and destructive. So who cares if cloth wipes seem gross and different. I dunno. The other day a like-minded friend told me that she was proud of everything I’ve done to live this way. It was surprisingly encouraging. Although it doesn’t stop me, I sometimes worry that I am viewed as strange or naive or overly idealistic. To hear that she respects and admires our way of life was a gift to me.
June 7th:
We have volunteer tomato plants from last year! I was so dang pregnant last year that I was lazy cleaning out the beds, so I just tossed some of the old rotting tomatoes into here thinking they’d be good compost. Well they sprouted, through all this cold and craziness! I don’t think we have enough room to grow them in any of the beds, but I think I’ll pot a couple and see what we get.
June 8th:
Bonus: A Mama/Vera session!
People have been saying that she looks a lot like me. What do you think?
The second one I had to include because of her delicious chub. The last one turned out really strange, must’ve caught the light in a weird way, but I’m sad it didn’t turn out because I can see us both smiling at each other. I kind of like it though.
I want to just say that I am impressed with Hillary Clinton, for what it’s worth. I am an Obama supporter, and I was disappointed by Hillary throughout their race, but I respect her and think that she was up against some incredible odds. To clarify- I read in the news that at one of her rallies someone had a sign that said “Iron my shirt.” I read this and thought it was stupid and mean, but then they said that if at one of Obama’s rallies someone had a sign saying “Shine my shoes” that people would have been outraged. And that’s true. I would’ve been outraged rather than mildly annoyed. I won’t waste a lot of time talking about this, because honestly I’m sick to death of the whole thing, but I really think that Hillary deserves some credit for being a strong and determined woman in light of some serious setbacks. Sexism is truly alive and well. That story really solidifies it for me, and I admire her for being herself and subjecting herself to this kind of public scrutiny. That all being said, I am really excited to vote for Obama in this coming election. What an amazing time to be alive! I really really hope…
Quote of the day:
“If I’m gonna go down I’m gonna do it with style. You won’t hear me surrender, you won’t hear me confess cause you’ve left me with nothing but I have worked with less.” -Ani DiFranco
Latest posts by Gracie (see all)
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I think it’s a great idea to use cloth wipes 🙂 You and Vera do look alike… the second photo is just adorable!!
How did you learn yoga? Is there a website you got the positions from? I used to do it in a class but I’ve forgotten all of it now.
xxx
Oh I use a DVD. I have always imagined coming up with my own routine, but I’m not familiar enough with it all yet, and plus the videos have a “flow” to them. You gotta get back into it! I also have pilates on DVD too. Plus they have this really soothing/cheesy music in the background that is actually really nice by the end of it all. haha.
I switched to cloth menstrual pads two years ago this week, and it was the best decision of my life. I can’t quite get on board with the cloth wipes thing yet though. I could handle my own, but not anyone else’s (tho I will be using cloth diapers and wipes for my kids, but somehow that’s different). And I don’t think Patton is quite as on board with some of the stuff I’m trying to do as I am. Though admittedly, he is totally on board with the reusable coffee filter idea I threw at him last week. I was actually really surprised at his favorable, non-hesitant reaction.
But I haven’t found any recycled TP that doesn’t give me a rash. So, I’m stuck with conventional for now. Boo.
This heat is really getting to me and I’m not looking forward to the record highs I expect we’ll be seeing this year. I was going to try to make it without AC this year. I think after the other night when I was soooo hot and then the frat house was having such a loud party that I couldn’t sleep but we couldn’t close the window because it would be too hot… well, sleep is about the most important thing to me ever. And AC would help fix it. So I’m going to break down and bring mine back over here I think. Just to sleep.
Happy cloth-menstrual-pads-anniversary to you! On the cloth wipe front- you wouldn’t really be “handling” them. You get a “wet bag” and line a small trash can with a lid. Then when washing time comes (every few days or so), just pull the whole bag out and wash all of it. Plus if you have the sprayer then it’s just that much less handling to do. Anyway, there are so many ways to make it a really easy process- but we all have to be ready to make these transitions, so I just think it’s cool that you dig it. Sounds like Patton is pretty open minded!
Yeah, we caved and got an AC unit to use only in the event of a grouchy sweaty baby… which may be soon. Oh well. We do the best we can, right?
Honestly, it’s that “every few days or so” comment that I think is my biggest clincher why I’m not ready yet. Because I only do laundry every 2-4 weeks, and it requires a trip to my parents’ house (on the NE side of Ypsi but still, it’s an all-day and sometimes two-days affair). I will be more likely to try it once I have washer and dryer in my own home.
Man, I’d give my right arm to be ambidextrous!
Obama is black.
Asswiping-ability is one of the main reasons that god invented trees.
It’s true. Ask him.
I’d use a bidet.
The biggest advantage of yoga is the strengthening of your kegel muscles from trying to hold in farts while doing those crazy positions.
Re: Man, I’d give my right arm to be ambidextrous!
Hahahaha I love you.
Yoga IS amazing! Jake has a bad back (I think it comes from being 6’8″) and puts it out really easily. He’s found that the best thing for helping with the pain and realignment is doing yoga. It works even better than going to the chiropractor, amazing as that sounds! And, since our TV got updated for free, we get the fitness programs on demand and can do yoga or pilates any time!
We got plants and potted them today– will have to see how the little patio garden turns out!
Oh man, he’s 6’8? Wow! How tall are you? I thought Jeff was tall and he’s only 6’4… Yes, Jeff used to go to the chiropractor all the time before we got hitched, and he was in a lot of pain for a while because our insurance wouldn’t cover chiropractic. I know that people swear by them, but I was concerned about the fact that people seem to have to keep going in order to remain happy with the work that had been done. I dunno, it just seems sketchy to me. I’m sure I’ll learn all about it when I go to the massage institute.
Yay for your plants!! I bet that felt awesome to get them all potted!
It makes me happy to plant things. I hope we see growth soon!
Yes, Jake is 6’8″. I’m only 5’2″, so there’s a great height difference between us. We’ve completely adapted, so everything that I ever need is always in low cabinets or drawers and his stuff is always on top!
PS- I love the 3rd ‘Mama and Vera’ pic!
Hey, nice to see ya friend! Yay, you should go for it- we can start the no-more-TP revolution!! I am going to make cloth pads too- although I haven’t really needed to since I started using the keeper. http://www.keeper.com/
Oh and thank you! I’d love to hear more about you and your son!
There are actually lots of menstrual cups, several varieties. 😉 check out community for more information. I had a keeper first and moved on to a divacup and i much prefer the silicone.
If you haven’t read the humanure handbook, you should. I think it’s even free online now. Don’t buy into everything in the book, but all the information is worth thinking about.
I’m glad that Hillary finally bowed out with grace, but it’s unfortunate that a lot of her fan base isn’t. Lots of them want to teach the Democrats a lesson by voting for McCain.
I got really annoyed that I was called a sexist by several people because I said I couldn’t support Hillary, even when I told them the specific issue (Monsanto) that leads me to vote for just about anyone other than her. There were lots of people with what they considered valid reasons not to vote for Hillary, but to her base it was all about her gender. That made me sad.
The “Humanure Handbook”… for free? I’m there!
I know. I actually had a conversation with someone who said that they wouldn’t vote for her because they wanted women to be elected in the future, and they thought that were she elected that she would somehow ruin their chances (because apparently all women get plopped in the same bucket). I also heard people say that they would vote for her because she’s the first woman to get this far, and so they have to for some reason. I just wish sometimes that people could just really make up their own minds. I really thought that I would want to vote for a female candidate, but I also need to vote for who I believe in. It’s unfortunate that those people called you sexist for treating her fairly and not favoring her purely because of her gender. I’d say you’re giving her more credit than they are. And I guess that’s what I mean. She was up against some serious odds- even from her own supporters who (in many cases) were blindly following her for what I think she would see to be the wrong reasons. In any event, I’m glad it’s over (this part at least)!
Cloth wipes are a great idea! I have to use a public laundry though…hmmmm…might be a little weird.
Hilary’s final speech was pretty good. I agree that sexism is seen as not as big a deal as racism. Same as homophobia isn’t as big a deal as sexism, and transphobia not as big a deal as homophobia. They are all serious! Gah!
You look great Grace, by the way.
Yeah, I think you’ve got a good point there. They are all a big deal to someone!
Thank you! I feel pretty great.
We’ve got to find a solution to this laundry situation…
I love that Ani quote!! And i’ve thought a lot about cloth wipes, but at this point in my life it’s too much laundry for me at the moment. No laundry machine would make it too much of a hassle for me…i barely wash my clothes! haha
those pictures are soooo cute! and i definitely think vera looks for you!
🙂
It looks like it comes down to the laundry for most… I guess for us it’s a perfect tipping off point for us because we wash her diapers every 3-4 days anyway. I don’t wash my clothes that often. I’ll have to brainstorm and see if there’s a way to make it easier on people.
You know, I live in a large apartment building and I share a washing machine with several people. I think I’d be grossed out to learn that someone was washing their shit in the shared machines all the time.
No amount of rinse water would make me feel comfortable with it.
Well, I guess we’re out of luck then. I think it’s just sort of mind over matter on this one. It doesn’t gross me out because I do it all the time, and it really doesn’t mean that there is a bunch of shit everywhere. It drains out- it really gets washed and it’s not gross at all. Anyway, this is the reaction I’ve been getting, which is fine except that I think this kind of reasoning is the problem in so many areas. We want to eat chicken but we don’t want to deal with bones or skin, we want to have a picnic with loads of food, but we don’t want to wash the dishes, hell, we even want to clean our floors, but damn if I’m gonna use a bucket of soapy water and a mop. I believe that whether it goes in the trash can or down the toilet or whatever, it is still impacting our world in a very real way. We will have to deal with the repercussions that come with the incredible amounts of waste we produce, just in different ways. I’m gonna get my hands a little dirty, so to speak, so that I can live in a cleaner world.
You still haven’t watched the story of stuff yet, have you? WATCH IT! In fact, anyone reading this comment WATCH IT!!!
http://www.storyofstuff.com/
I watched it last night, actually.
So what did ya think?
There were a few things in there I didn’t know. Like the how bad the breast milk situation is.
I did like when the government shined the big corporates shoes. That’s perfect imagery.
that is interesting… i guess i knew most of it, in theory, but i’ve never seen it all laid out like that.
also, i like the yellow picture!
Those were my thoughts exactly!
I wouldn’t really have a problem with it if I had my own washer and dryer. But I share the building with 1300 people, so it feels different in my brain.
OMG SO HUGE! shes huge!
Hahahah, so is yours… it’s crazy how they grow, yes?
absolutely crazy, yes.
You win for comments. But you’re tied for cutest baby.
Tied with Tuula?!
Of course
If I say yes, do I get a smile or do I get bonked?
Re: Of course
A smile of course! To be tied with Tuula is an amazing feat! She’s a cutie badooty!
I love that you are using cloth wipes with your cloth diapers. If I had more time to devote to diapering I like to think that I would have lasted longer with cloth diapers. Maybe the next one if I can work less. ha! I may HAVE to use cloth then because we wouldnt be 2 income!
I WANT SUSHI!!!!!
Sorry I just saw your facebook status 🙂
Grace – what I admire most about you and your changes is that you “preach” by example and you really go all the way. I don’t feel judged by your changes I feel inspired to make more of my own. And the Very-pie – she just gets cuter and cuter!
What an incredible thing to say. I am really encouraged by that! I only have control over my own life- and sometimes I feel like maybe I can’t make a difference, but then I have to toss that notion aside and have faith that I will in ways that I may not be able to see. I also sometimes worry that I come off as preachy, and I’m glad that I don’t. Plus, I love to show off my baby!!!
🙂
I think she does look a lot like you 🙂
It’s great that you’re using cloth wipes! I love them. <3