Salad Saturday!
May 31, 2008 | 2 Comments
Each Saturday I’ll post a free salad recipe from my new salad cookbook. It ha
s over 365 recipes, so you can either buy it now or just hang around here for the next 6 years. LOL!
BLACKENED CHICKEN WITH CAESAR SALAD
—–FOR CHICKEN—–
1 Bottle Italian Dressing (8oz)
1/2 cup Dry white wine
4 Chicken breasts halves
Skinned and de-boned
1 tablespoon Dried marjoram leaves
1 tablespoon Dried oregano leaves
1 tablespoon Dried thyme leaves
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Black pepper — freshly ground
1/2 teaspoon Ground red cayenne pepper
1/2 cup Butter, melted
—–FOR SALAD—–
1 can 2 oz Anchovies
3 tablespoons Fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon Fresh parsley — chopped
1 teaspoon Dijon style mustard
1/2 teaspoon Freshly ground black pepper
1 Garlic clove — crushed
1/4 cup Olive oil
2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese — grated fresh
10 cups Salad greens — mixed
Stir dressing and wine in shallow dish to blend; add chicken; marinate 1 hour, turning several times. Grind marjoram, oregano, thyme, salt, black pepper and ground red pepper to fine powder in coffee or spice grinder or mini chop food processor. Spread mixture on plate. Heat 12 inch cast iron skillet over high heat until smoking, 5 to 10 minutes.
Drain chicken; dip into seasoning mixture to coat both sides, shaking off excess. Place in hot skillet; pour 2 T butter over each piece. Reduce heat to medium; cook chicken 3 to 5 minutes on each side until cooked through. Serve chicken, sliced, on top of Caesar salad.
CAESAR SALAD: Use a fork to mash the anchovies into a paste in a small bowl; stir in the lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, chopped fresh parsley, Dijon style mustard, freshly ground black pepper and the crushed garlic. Whisk in the cup olive oil, slowly; stir in the freshly grated parmesan cheese. Pour the dressing over mixed salad greens in a large bowl; toss thoroughly to coat.
Electronic Waste And What To Do About It
May 30, 2008 | Leave a Comment
This post is courtesy of Gary Hillery of GreenPathCompany, a previous guest on Natural Moms Talk Radio.
ELECTRONIC WASTE
Here’s a Jeopardy question for you… What weighs 200 million tons? The answer: the amount of electronic waste that goes into our landfills every year. Computers, monitors, cell phones, DVD players, copy machines, TV sets… you get the picture.
Most, if not all of this electronic waste, contains hazardous chemicals like mercury, lead and chromium that end up leaching into our ground water from landfills or being emitted into the air from incinerators causing a GROWING environmental and health crisis. This problem is fueled by the fast paced growth of new technology that renders electronic products obsolete long before their normal lifecycle ends and the fact that most people do not know how to properly dispose of these types of products. In fact, most don’t know that these products can be recycled and reused.
But discarded electronics can be properly disposed of or recycled and it is easier than most people think. Tons of companies have programs that allow you to donate usable electronics to churches and schools, and other companies will recycle usable components, raw materials and materials like plastics, glass and aluminum. Many cities also have e-waste pick up as part of their hazardous waste pick-up programs.
You can even take advantage of tax breaks when you donate your unwanted electronics. The 21st Century Classrooms Act for Private Technology Investment allows large companies to donate used equipment to public and private schools for tax breaks and donations to nonprofits can be written off. You will need to check with each nonprofit organization regarding its particular documentation for your tax returns.
The environmental benefit to donating or recycling used electronics goes far beyond just keeping harmful chemicals out of our landfills; it also helps conserve our precious natural resources. It takes approximately 530 pounds of fossil fuel, 50 pounds of chemicals and 416 gallons of water to produce one desktop computer. Recycling electronic components can help preserve these resources and can also help use far less energy than the production of new components. Mining of aluminum, for example, uses 20 times the amount of energy it takes to recycle the same amount of aluminum from electronic components. Last year alone, electronics recyclers recovered over 100 million pounds of materials like aluminum, steel, glass and plastic which was reused.
Now that we know the benefits of e-cycling let’s, figure out how to find an e-cycler in your area. You can start with the Electronic Industry Alliance . This site has an easy to use map that allows you to search for e-cycling by state and offers you several other helpful links to guide you through the process. You can also check with your city government to see if it offers e-cycling as part of its hazardous waste programs or with Goodwill industries . There are several additional organizations you can check that offer training programs that teach students and individuals how to refurbish used electronics which are then donated to local schools:
Students Recycling Used Technology (StRUT)
Learning and Information Networking for Community via Technology (LINCT)
Reuse Development Organization (ReDO)
Even Sam’s Club has an interesting program that runs in cooperation with N.E.W. Customer Service Companies, Inc. Members of the organization who want to recycle computers, LCD monitors, printers, camcorders, digital cameras and MP3 players, can log onto the program’s website and print a FREE shipping label to have the products mailed to N.E.W. Those members will receive a Sam’s Gift Card for the value of the donated item. All donated items are either refurbished or disassembled and the parts are used to rebuild electronics or recycled into raw material and reused.
The final pieces to this recycle cycle are personal data security and rethinking your purchasing habits. You need to protect all your personal data contained on computer hard drives and cell phones. Please make sure to remove ALL stored phone numbers and call logs from your cell phone and you may even want to remove the SIM card to insure protection. Cleaning up your computer may prove a little more difficult but is equally important. If you are unsure of how to do this you can find FREE hard-drive erasers through your favorite search engine. Type in “free hard-drive eraser cleaners.”
Although there are no laws governing the use of hazardous materials in electronics equipment you can help to encourage manufacturers to move in a “greener” direction by considering the following when buying your next piece of equipment:
- Does the manufacturer use recycled materials in their products?
- Are the products designed for easy upgrades and disassembly?
- Does the manufacturer offer a lease or “take back” program?
- Does the manufacturer use minimal toxic materials in their equipment?
- Does the manufacturer use minimal or recyclable packaging?
The age of electronics is upon us and with the constant introduction of new technology, system upgrades and fancy new gadgets coming at us daily we need to be more conscious of what we do with our e-waste. Take the time to do the right thing, remember one man’s trash is another man’s treasure and you may be surprised at who would love to have your “old” computer.
Gary Hillery is the owner of The Green Path Company. He is an advocate for simple green living and is dedicated to helping build a greener path to the future. He writes for his blog and is a guest blogger for several other sites and his Simple Green Living Tips are used by several online groups like Mommy Perks, Arizona Mamas and Vegan Family Living.
A Little Thing Called Benign Neglect
May 29, 2008 | 7 Comments
I remember reading this term once in Mothering magazine when they published a feature article praising “benign neglect”. I don’t think it’s online, but a Google search turned up a bunch of references to the article, so it must have struck a chord with a lot of other moms as well.
Today after reading a blog post by Jennifer at Beyond Mom, I got to thinking. And when I get to thinking, I usually get to blogging shortly thereafter. And this is what I want to ask:
Where did we get the idea that hovering around our kids all day was good mothering?
I agree with a lot of what SuperNanny has to say: avoiding physical punishments, spending lots of time with kids and using positive discipline (physical touch, praise, etc). But calling a mom lazy because she cleaned her house instead of doing crafts with the kids all day?
I don’t think so.
I think there is a balance. I don’t particularly enjoy crafty type activities. I also don’t really love playing dolls and stuff like that. If my 5 year old asked me to play with her I would – but she rarely does. And my boys are usually busy with their homeschool work and Legos and playing ball and the oldest has his nose in a book for much of the day, so they don’t really need me to “play” with them either. Although sometimes the oldest will want me to play a board game with him, and I do enjoy that.
One thing I do love to do with my kids is read out loud with them. So that’s something I do every day with them, sometimes several times a day. I don’t do a lot of “playing” with my kids. And I don’t think my kids suffer for that.
For one thing, they have each other. The boys play together a lot, the girls play together, the two in the middle play a lot …. they have their own little playmates built in, which is one of the nice things about having a whole bunch of kids!
Another reason I engage in a little benign neglect is because I’m with my kids all the time. Perhaps too much if that’s possible. Lately I’m making an effort to get out more and socialize with people my own age. 
Seriously though, because I both homeschool and work at home, I’m with my kids 24/7. We eat together 3 times a day and talk, tell jokes, etc. The kids do schoolwork while I’m at my laptop nearby, we go outside for walks or to hang out… they are not lacking for time or attention from me, that’s for sure.
I think benign neglect makes kids more independent. My kids very rarely ever say the dreaded words around me (I’m bored). Probably because they know I always assign some chore when they say that. LOL!
Because they aren’t accustomed to me entertaining them all the time, they are creative and learn how to keep themselves entertained. (yeah, the chore thing helps!)
I think it’s a positive thing for kids to see the adults around them engaged in their own tasks and lives. Keeping the house clean, preparing nutritious meals, and earning a living – my kids see me doing this stuff all day long. They know it’s important, and they know Mommy has to do important adult stuff, stuff that sometimes doesn’t include playtime with them. Am I silly to think they will benefit by this – learning what it means to be a grown up with responsibilities?
When my babies were babies, they sat in a sling close to my body all day and watched me do stuff. They were entertained, but I didn’t spend hours playing with them then either. Of course, I don’t recommend plopping kids in front of the TV – I strictly limit all forms of “screen time” so my kids are doing more important things. That’s different from the kind of benign neglect I’m talking about. Even when I’m working, my kids are almost always free to interrupt me and ask questions, get help with something, show me something they’ve done or built or what have you.
What do you think? Do you engage in a little benign neglect with your kids? Or are you the Martha Stewart of Moms?
The Benefits of Homeschooling – from a Kid’s Perspective
May 28, 2008 | 4 Comments
My 9 year old son came to me the other day and said he wanted to write an article on the ten best things about homeschooling. I thought what he wrote was so interesting because it showed me what he values the most about the experience. Some of the things made me laugh too!
Other than assisting with opening up Microsoft Word and showing him how to use spell check, he did this on his own.
The Ten Benefits of Home Schooling
1: Kids can get their chores done faster.
2: Some schools have a dress code but you can wear what you want when you are home schooled.
3: At school you have to sit down for SEVEN HOURS! Moreover, you can spend more time with your family. And that is the important thing.
4: You can save money because, you don’t have to drive your kids to school and you don’t have to spend money on school clothes or lunches.
5: There is not as much schoolwork to do. You can learn faster.
6: You can do your work at just about any time of the day.
7: Kids can learn at their own pace.
8: Kids don’t miss their favorite PBS show.
9: Kids can have more fun with mom and dad.
10: Kids don’t have to worry about bullies, mean teachers and not being able to go to the bathroom when they want to.
My favorite was the “moreover”. Oh and the part about not missing CyberChase (his favorite PBS show). LOL!
My Experience of Nursing Through a Pregnancy and Tandem Nursing
May 25, 2008 | 1 Comment
Welcome, Carnival of Breastfeeding readers
Have you ever wondered if you can breastfeed your baby when you get pregnant again? A lot of moms automatically assume they must, or they are told to wean by their Doctors. The truth is, however, is that most women don’t have to wean their currently nursing child. The thinking that a mom can’t breastfeed while pregnant comes from the fact that the uterus contracts during breastfeeding, and the possibility exists that contractions can cause early labor or miscarriage. This isn’t the case however. The uterus contracts during normal activities and sex, so as long as these activities aren’t deemed off limits by your Doctor, nursing is probably ok too.
While weaning may turn out to be the best decision as your pregnancy progresses, you don’t have to assume that at the beginning. Many mothers have kept nursing while pregnant and then gone on to nurse both children after the baby’s birth. You can join that rare breed of tandem nursing mamas if you and your child want to simply keep nursing. Moms who have tandem nursed have found that the older baby experiences less sibling rivalry and feels less displaced by the birth of the new baby.
There are other benefits too – for instance, tandem nursing moms enjoy a very plentiful milk supply yet don’t experience engorgement. Personally, I found that nursing while I was pregnant and very sick with nausea helped me get some much needed rest with a toddler who was otherwise keeping me on my feet! Here’s what’s in store for you if you decide to breastfeed through a pregnancy.
The first part of tandem nursing is nursing through an entire pregnancy. It is possible to temporarily wean during pregnancy and have the older child resume nursing after the baby’s birth. The child may want to, or she may not. In either case, you will be nursing through a significant part of your pregnancy.
The pregnancy hormones cause nipples to be more sensitive to touch in general, and nursing may be uncomfortable for you. At times it can be painful. Every woman’s body is different so you will have to
decide what you can tolerate. In many cases, the discomfort comes and goes at different times of the day or stage of the pregnancy. If it starts to hurt, you should try to figure out if it hurts all the time or if there’s a pattern you can detect. There are reasons why a mom nursing an older baby may have soreness that have nothing to do with pregnancy – for instance she and the baby may have gotten into some sloppy habits and aren’t latching on and positioning properly. This can happen even if you’re an “old pro”. If despite taking measures to prevent nipple pain there’s still too much discomfort, that may be a good reason to wean.
Another change pregnancy brings is in the taste of the milk. Often called weaning milk, the milk a mother produces during pregnancy is often more salty and the nursing child will notice this change in milk
quality. Many children will wean on their own because they don’t like the taste of the pregnancy milk. Some children will enjoy nursing so much they’ll put up with the saltiness. This was the case with my own breastfeeding toddlers – they hardly seemed to mind the change, it was a small price to pay in exchange for the continued closeness with Mom.
The quantity of your milk will also decrease. You will produce less and less as your pregnancy progresses. Some children will wean because there isn’t any more milk (my kids who nursed through their sibling’s pregnancy never seemed to care). Others will continue to comfort nurse even though they aren’t getting any milk.
It can cause discomfort or pain when a child is nursing and there is no milk. That may be another reason to wean. Regardless of whether you produce no milk or a little milk, your older child will be getting most of his nutrition from solid foods. Once the baby’s born and the milk comes in, there will be plenty more milk for both of them if the older child is still interested – and he might very well be, although some rare toddlers will wean when their mother’s milk supply returns in abundance. Mine didn’t, but I’ve heard of this happening. Mine just acted like they had hit the jackpot. The Milk Fairy had returned. lol!
While it is possible to continue to nurse through a pregnancy, it’s going to be an extra drain on your system in addition to growing the new baby. You will need to consume enough nutrient dense foods to make sure you have enough reserves for yourself, your children, and the many activities you no doubt will be doing throughout your pregnancy. Make sure you are eating well and often and getting much needed rest. Remember that since nursing is a relationship, there is nothing wrong with setting limits with your nursling in order to make yourself more comfortable.
Read more: Adventures in Tandem Nursing
Other carnival participants:
Amy at Crunchy Domestic Goddess
Permission to Mother
Breastfeeding Mums Blog
Attachment Parenting International
Motherwear’s breastfeeding blog
Milk Donor Mama
Breastfeeding 123
MomBiz Profile: Alicia of BabyJoysReviews
May 24, 2008 | Leave a Comment
Periodically I’ll be spotlighting a work at home mom here on the blog. I love talking about internet marketing, and any information you can get from other moms who are doing it can help you reach your goals of starting – or making more money with – your own business.
This time it’s a blogging mom, Alicia Simon.
What is your business?
Baby Joys Reviews reviews products for babies, kids, and moms. We review products that are natural minded, made by small businesses, organic, Attachment Parenting friendly, or just natural minded. We do not sell any products. The purpose of Baby Joys is two-fold, help small businesses advertise and market their products, and to help moms find cool stuff for their kids! We 100% stand behind the products we feature, and won’t even sell ad space to a product we don’t agree with.
How do you market your business?
Many businesses I work with will put links to me on their press page. I also do many giveaways and try to get my site listed on giveaways announcement pages. I am working on more local advertising. I also have recently sent out press releases about an upcoming special event to many local and nationwide magazines.
What inspired you to start your business?
When I had my son I had a hard time finding products I agreed with, I did a lot of research (still do) and people constantly asked me to suggest products to them. Eventually it was suggested I start a review site, and I did! I think natural minded moms need reviews even more so then any one else because natural/ap/organic options can be so expensive. No one wants to pay $60+ for a sling and find out it is awful.
Thanks Alicia!
If you would like to be featured here, just copy these 3 questions and your answers in an email to me.
More information about working at home
Start your own natural online business
Salad Saturday!
May 24, 2008 | 3 Comments
Each Saturday I’ll post a free salad recipe from my new salad cookbook. It has over 365 recipes, so you can either buy it now or just hang around here for the next 6 years. LOL!
BLACK BEAN AND CORN SALAD
2 cups Dried black beans — – (picked over and rinsed) or
30 ounces -Canned black beans — – (rinsed and drained)
1/3 cup Freshly squeezed lime juice
1/2 cup Olive oil
1 Garlic clove — minced
1 teaspoon Fine sea salt
1/8 teaspoon Cayenne pepper
2 cups corn canned or (thawed) frozen corn
1 Avocado — – peeled, stone removed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 small Red bell pepper – seeded and cut into 1/2″ pieces
2 medium Tomatoes — – cut into 1/2-inch
6 Green onions — with tops finely chopped
1 Fresh hot Chile pepper — – seeded and minced
1/2 cup Coarsely chopped cilantro — – (optional)
If using dried beans, place the beans in a large bowl and add enough water to cover by 2 inches. Place the bowl in a cool place and let the beans soak for 6 to 12 hours. Drain and rinse the beans.
Put the beans into a large pot and add enough fresh water to cover the beans by 1 inch. Bring to a simmer over medium high heat, reduce the heat, cover, and simmer until the beans are barely tender. 1-1/2 to 2 hours (depending on the age of the beans). Thoroughly drain the beans and let them cool.
Put the lime juice, olive oil, garlic, salt, and cayenne in a small jar. Cover with the lid and shake until the ingredients are well mixed.
In a salad bowl, combine the cooked or canned beans, corn, avocado, bell pepper, tomatoes, green onions, Chile pepper, and cilantro. Shake the Lime Dressing and pour it over the salad. Stir until well coated. (The salad can be prepared a few hours ahead, but don’t add the avocado until serving time. Refrigerate, and adjust the seasonings before serving.)
Makes 4 to 5 main-course servings or 8 to 10 side-dish servings.
Making Your Home More Energy and Cost Efficient: A Review
May 21, 2008 | Leave a Comment
I recently had a chance to read The Household Helper’s Guide to Making Your Home More Energy and Cost Efficient.
This is a topic we’re all concerned about – whether our motivation is using less fuel or saving money – or both!
This ebook was a quick read and didn’t waste time with too many details, it got right down to the business of making changes in your home to lower your energy costs. It starts with knowing what you’re currently spending to find out if you can lower those rates.
The book explains how to research products that claim to lower energy costs to make sure you’re getting what you pay for. It also lists many immediate tactics you can employ right away as well as long term approaches that might cost a larger investment of time and money. It explains how to check your home for leaks that lead to higher heating and a/c costs. (Pretty easy to do, even if you’re not the handyman type.)
Even the way you decorate and believe it or not, clean can cost or save you money. It even shows how your landscaping can help lower your energy costs. (We know trees are nice to look at but who knew how much money that can save you?)
All of these energy saving habits you can develop will add up over time to equate into a whole lot of savings. You can download your copy of the book right away here.
Natural Moms Podcast #82
May 20, 2008 | Leave a Comment
My first guest this week is the Crunchy Chicken herself, Deanna Duke. Deanna started a project called Goods 4 Girls that provides cloth menstrual pads to African schoolgirls.
Many of these girls are forced to miss school during their periods. Another well known organization is donating disposable pads to them but that brings its own problems – for one, it’s difficult to dispose of these safely, and there are some health issues associated with that too.
I was really impressed with what Deanna was doing so I asked her to tell us more about it on the show so that you can get involved in supporting her organization. You can help Deanna in her efforts by sending a paypal cash donation, buying cloth pads to mail her or sewing pads of your own design and sending them her way.
After we hear from Deanna, we’ll listen to my guest host Elizabeth Ashe as she interviews Shazi Visram of HappyBabyFood.com, a company dedicated to providing the highest quality fresh organic food for your baby.
A Year Ago on Natural Moms Talk Radio
May 19, 2008 | Leave a Comment
In case you just discovered this blog and haven’t been following it since its inception (how did you ever live without me? LOL!) I’ve decided to search through my archives and link to some of the best old posts periodically.
This time last year, I wrote about how to have a frugal baby. Does it really take $400,000 to rear a child? Not in my house.
I also wrote about my beloved MBTs (Masai Barefoot Technology shoes).
I interviewed Elizabeth Yarnell, author of Glorious One Pot Meals, and shared her story as well as a recipe here. (This is still one of my favorite cookbooks, ever.)
What were you blogging about a year ago? Leave your link in the comments.
