A Great Week

We have been working hard here at green-ness this week.

Lots of reading and maths. The concept of time is proving to be a little harder to teach than money - which Rhianna picked up easily.

We have been doing a lot of shared reading in bed at night. I really do think this is one of the most enjoyable moments for me as a parent. I know I spent a lot of time laying in bed reading with Broc and I spend a lot of time reading with Rhianna. Not just her home readers which I find quite dull and uninspiring but lots of other sorts of texts too.

Today we did however finish a HR and then made a book about it.

We focused on the books orientation, characterisation and plot points. These were new terms to Rhianna but she picked up the concepts behind then easily enough.

Then some shark craft. We made some shark cut outs and painted them and then researched their features on the web. Tomorrow we are making a diorama for them.

For me, this week I have been focusing on the eco side of things.

A few more crocheted dishcloths to add to the collection....

...and yesterday I was in Katoomba so headed to the Food Co-op there to get some organic fruit and veg and found this little gem - I'm stockpiling for Winter.

Was pretty expensive but oh so worth it. (I hope).

Friday 4th February 2011

This week was the first week back at school for kids in NSW.

It has also unhappily coincided with the hottest week of the summer so far. So other than dropping Rhianna off and picking her up from school I've been barricading myself in the air conditioning.

My son Broc had an operation last week so he is home as well keeping me company.

As I tidy the lounge room this morning I can't help but be a little sad when I look at Rhianna's cubby that she built in the lounge room during the holidays and spent much time reading, playing and watching TV in there. Now there are no little brown legs poking out from under the sheet - bit sad really.

The up side is that we are having a fantastic time every afternoon after school when we both flop in the pool and play games till dinner.

One of the books I got for Christmas is called The Happiness Project.

It's a bit of a bio about a a New York Mum who decides that although her life is very nice there is always room for more happiness. She sets out to explore every month the things that she can do to increase the happiness in her life.

The book is set out in a monthly format running January to December with a challenge for each month.

For January she decided to get more sleep and exercise every day to see if it increase her general happiness with life.

For the month of January I did the same.

Not too hard to sleep in this weather though is it?

I started to go to bed earlier, no late than 10.30pm and I exercised every day. I mainly walked but did some swimming too.

Yes, I did feel happier. I felt more in control of myself and the house. I found I did not lose my temper as much with the family and had plebty of energy to do things with Rhianna through the holidays. I also lost 4 kilos.

For February she focuses on her relationship with her husband. I'll let you know how I go with that at the end of the month. Bill says he can't wait to see how I go either haha....

In retail therapy news, I have continued to buy with sustainability and no chemicals in mind.

In Priceline this week I found this lovely Sukin facial mist spray which is lovely in place of a moisturising cream in this heat we are having.

I also found another brand of aluminium free deodorant to try.

And for winter some foot and hand gloves made from sustainable bamboo. After moisturising your hands and feet at night, you pop these gloves and socks on and wear them to bed and they help to your hands and feet retain the moisture. I do tend to suffer from very dry hands in Winter.

Another busy weekend coming up for us. Keep cool everybody.

Organic Finds

Just had to let you know about the latest organic things I am onto at the moment.

A girlfriend recommended I try Organic Rosehip Oil. It's great for scarring and stretch marks etc. But I am just rubbing a little into my face each night after a shower and my skin is starting to glow - not to mention how it feels - a bit like a babies bottom, quite frankly.

Luckily I've always had quite good skin (thanks for those great genes Mum and Dad).

I've never had acne or pimples and I've never smoked or really been a big drinker. And I think it's at this time of life that you start to reap what you sow.

I did however bake myself into oblivion in my teenage years with the good old Reef Oil so I do have some sun damage but on the whole, I'm pretty pleased with my skin. But this oil is a fantastic pep up for faces. I highly recommend.

Now that my bank balance is looking a lot healthier (thanks to some recent work) I've been indulging in my number one love - books, books and more books. Check out Book Depository for the cheapest books ever.

Here is one new addition to the book case that is really worthwhile. It's all about living an eco life with kids. I like it because they are not suggesting you live off grid and start growing your armpit hair again. No, no, no..... just some simple things everybody (and their children) can do to save the planet (and save some money).

Now that November is well and truly here my thoughts have turned to Christmas.

How could they not when you walk through the shopping centres at the moment?????

My plan is to have all my Xmas shopping done by the end of November. I'm well on the way in that department.

My brother and his wife live on a big property near Canberra and are begging everybody to come to their place for Xmas day. But with us in Sydney, my sister in Perth and Mum and Dad on the central Coast I don't know if that is going to happen. This was us all together a couple of years ago. It was one of the best Christmases ever.

Have a lovely weekend - I hope the weather where you are is nicer than here!

Aren't Mums Handy?

Rhianna and I have just come back from a few days with my Mum and Dad. My Mum is very crafty too, so as you can imagine the house turned into craft central pretty much as soon as we got there. Dad left the house 10 minutes after that. Haha.

Here's Rhianna hard at work making some cards.

We found some child sized knitting needles in an antique shop at Lawson and the holidays seemed like the perfect time to learn to knit. Rhianna that is, not me. Much patience was required on my part not to take over and to avoid commenting on the many holes that kept appearing.

Mum showed me how to "sew" my knitted squares together to start forming my blanket. As this is my first knitting project I am quite pleased with how it is turning out.

And while at Mum's, I spotted this in the local Coles supermarket. It's an organic conditioning body wash and shampoo for kids. If you're interested it's in the body wash/ soap section of Coles and it was $3.99 which is pretty good as the container is a decent size.


Have a good week everybody.

Organic Goodness Delivered

After cleaning out the bathroom of chemicals it was time to tackle the fridge and pantry.

As soon as I got home from my holiday I got on the internet to find a good local supplier of organic fruit and veg.



I did this for 2 reasons. Firstly I was finding it hard to find a large variety of organic fruit and veg in the mainstream supermarkets and fruit shops. And secondly, I figured it would be cheaper to buy from a supplier who themselves was buying in bulk.



Enter The Organic Grocer. I ordered their $40 mixed fruit and Veg box on Monday and Tuesday morning it arrived. How exciting!!!!!!





This is what I received for $40. They have a weekly list of produce for the box but you can view it online and make any changes to the contents that you want.



For example, nobody in our house likes pears, so we exchanged the pears for more apples which we all love. I was very happy with the quality and roasted many of the vegies tonight for dinner. Both the boys commented on the difference in taste especially with the carrots and the grapes are the sweetest grapes I have ever tasted in my life.





I will definately be ordering again next week. I feel this is one of the best things I have done for my family in a long time.

Going Organic

Going on a road trip gives two people a lot of time to talk. Since Bill is an industrial chemist we started talking about chemicals used in food production and cosmetics. (We're an exciting couple aren't we??)



The upshot of the trip was that we've decided to become an organic family. Now, as this is still a fairly new concept to me I did what I have always done, I dived in feet first.



I proceeded to research all I could on the subject but I have started with cosmetics as Bill is familiar with the ingredients in these items and offered good advice.



He gave me a list of ingredients to avoid.



Here they are ( in case you are interested). I've given you the scientific name and what it may be called on packaging, what its used for and what research has shown it can do to animals and humans.



DIETHANOLAMINE (DEA) Used to make soaps and shampoos lather. Reacts with other ingredients below to form a carcinogen. Companies use the names cocomide, oleamide and lauramide on product labels.



FORMALDEHYDE A known carcinogen. Irritates eyes, nose and throat. Used in many products for shelf life.



PARABENS (Methylparaben, propylparaben, ethylparaben and butylparaben) Linked to breast cancer. Used in shampoos and conditioners and cosmetics.



PHENYLENEDIAMINE (PPD) Used in hair dyes and is a carcinogen.



SLS's (Sodium Lauryl Sulfate and Sodium Laureth Sulfate) This was in almost everything I owned. It makes stuff like shampoo and soap foam. Residue of these chemicals have been found in the brains, livers and hearts of cancer patients (on autopsy).



TOULENE In nail polish and hair dye. It's toxic to the nervous system and high exposure has been linked to birth defects and miscarriages.



TRIETHANOLAMINE (TEA) used to balance Ph. Causes allergic reactions and is an irritant to eyes and skin. Is absorbed and stored by the body to toxic levels.



HYDROQUINONE It's already banned in Japan and other Eastern countries. It's used for bleaching and is in creams used for skin and age spots.



ALUMINIUM - Used in deodorant to retard perspiration. It clogs up your pores so the perspiration can't get out.





Ok, so if I haven't lost you yet, I went through my bathroom and collected all the products I had that contained these ingredients. All into the bin. See picture one.

Picture One

Then I found a good organic store and replaced it all with Australian certified organic products. I still checked the ingredients though. Some companies have seen the dollar signs in organic products and have jumped on the band wagon without changing their ingredients.



I have still to replace my make-up but I have the name of a good company who specialise in organic make-up and I plan to investigate their range. My bathroom now holds these products. See picture two.

Picture Two

The products are not that much more expensive if you shop around amd I feel great knowing that I'm not putting toxic chemicals on myself or my little six year old.