Self-sufficiency
I’ve recently started reading about self-sufficiency or sustainable living, a concept similar to/also known as living off the land, living off-grid, green living, living simple, homesteading and permaculture.
Some pages I ran across that explain some of these concepts:
Another Site on Self-Sufficiency
This is by no means a comprehensive list … but you get the general idea.
It seems like a lot of people involved in this type of lifestyle are … honestly, either paranoid anti-government types or extreme earth-worshippers who are mainly concerned with reducing their carbon footprint. I am neither, but the more I read, the more interested I am. I don’t think this is anything we could pull off soon, and I might be more apt to have a more modern home (as opposed to building your own) with things like solar panels and windmills to power it, which I know are expensive. But honestly, I try not to be paranoid, but it’s always nice to plan ahead for your family’s future. There’s a lot of “what-ifs” I could go through, but basically, the bottom line is, how bad of an idea could being self-sufficient (even just somewhat) actually be?
Whether or not you have a “green” bone in your body, I’m sure we can all do more to reduce waste and slow the rampant pollution of the planet we call “home.” After all, God gave us the earth and I’m sure he didn’t mean for us to be careless with it.
I don’t know if we’ll ever actually do anything as drastic as those Web sites above … what an adventure that would be, huh? This all reminds me of “The Farm” in Tennessee. I took a class with a guy who’d grown up on The Farm, and he was really interesting.
Woohoo
I’m down 11 lbs. and one pants-size!
I have been really good … no cheating at all.
I am, however, planning on eating a really nice meal on my b’day (Apr. 22). I am going to lust about it for this next month. I’m thinking steak, a baked potato, a salad with real ranch dressing, and something decadent and chocolate for dessert. Oh, my gosh … the anticipation. And I’m probably going to cry the next day when I weigh myself.
I am still eating odd combinations of things, but two of the main things are turkey and grapes. I should write a book and call it the turkey and grapes diet. 
Hey, it beats bland “diet” products.
I did find a TV dinner that I liked, though … Lean Cuisine’s Lemongrass Chicken. It was SO good, and it’s one of the few TV dinners that I’ve ever seen that has brown rice instead of white.
It was a far cry from a Healthy Choice TV dinner I had not too long ago. I think it was BBQ Chicken. It was absolutely, honestly, terrible. The chicken tasted really strange, like it was some other meat altogether. Blech.
Weighing in
I have purposefully tried to turn a deaf ear to the election year drama because I decided I don’t want to hear a years’ worth of candidates’ blabbering … just wake me up in time for me to give the candidates a good look right before the election.
But if you keep up with the news (or if you haven’t crawled under a rock by now), it’s hard not to absorb some of the political goings-on.
Clinton scares me. But Obama scares me even more, with his smooth talking and his most-liberal-in-Congress voting record. Why does the presidential race basically have to boil down to who is the most convincing, moving orator? I could make an anti-Christ crack here, but I will refrain. Please, for the love of God don’t say something about him being black. That’s completely a non-issue to me.
I may as well give up and put a freaking Republican sticker on my bumper. If I ever found an anti-abortion democrat, he or she would probably get my vote, but I don’t see that happening anytime soon. There are a lot of issues that I don’t agree with the GOP on, but none nearly as important as the sanctity of life. So, I guess, McCain it is.
Bluebonnet photos 2008
Taking photos of your children sitting in the bluebonnets is a time-honored central Texas tradition. We’ve done it every year since we moved here. This years’ were a little bit better than last year’s …. but I guess they would have been better if the kids weren’t squinting from the sun’s glare.
Diet/Lifestyle
So far so good. I’ve been eating lots of strange food combinations trying to find the foods that will give me the most bang for my … uh, calories, fat grams and carbs. And that taste good. I don’t ask for much, do I?
For breakfast today, I had 2 oz of Butterball mesquite smoked turkey breast and 1/2 cup of red grapes. Odd, I know – but they both taste SO good compared to “diet” foods – and the combination kept me full all morning. And it was only 91 calories, 2 grams of fat and 9 grams of carbs. That’s less than a bowl of oatmeal, something that I have to choke down due to it’s lumpy, mushy texture – and it only holds my hunger at bay a couple of hours.
Because we needed at least one obedient, appreciative creature in this house
A couple of weeks ago, we went to the pound and found a really sweet 3-year-old dachshund mix. We adopted her and re-named her “Daisy.” She’s laid-back and sweet, and the kids like her. She also seems really smart. She learned her new name quickly and she actually obeys me when I tell her to get off the couch (I didn’t make any gestures, yell, or anything – I just said “get off the couch, Daisy.” and she hopped down). Read the rest of this entry »
Well, BOO FRICKIN’ HOO!
This makes my blood boil. Bravo to the judge in this case. Other judges should take his lead (although I’m definitely pro-jail-time in cases like this as well). Hell, I say tattoo it on their foreheads. I’m not talking about the 16-year-old whose daddy finds out she’s sleeping with her 18-year-old boyfriend and presses charges … I’m talking about sickos like the guy in this video. God help the person who ever tries to do something like that to one of my kids.
Easterblog
The last few days have been super-busy for our family, but good busy. Friday morning was breakfast with Jay’s sister’s family, who were on their way out of town. Shortly after that, we went to the kids’ playgroup, where they got some good playtime and learned about painting and mixing colors. It was some messy fun.
Later Friday we got some gardening in … we were still trying to dig the bazillion rocks out of our garden so we can put some topsoil down. Since there’s nothing behind our house but a field, we’ve been tossing the rocks over the back fence. Gabriel has been helping with that. Every time he tries to toss a rock that doesn’t make it over, he says, “aw, that’s a tricky one!” Read the rest of this entry »
Goosed
So, my sister-in-law Tracy and brother-in-law Glen, as well as their 10-month-old baby, Lucy, are in town. We’ve really enjoyed their visit, and Lucy just couldn’t be any cuter. My kids and I (along with Jay’s parents) met them at the park today for a picnic lunch and some park/goose-feeding fun. Read the rest of this entry »
Easter baskets
I went shopping for the kids’ Easter baskets yesterday and I’m proud to say, I didn’t go overboard (for once).
I learned how to make gourmet/boutique-type gift baskets working for a florist when I was 16; I’ve been enjoying doing it ever since. But every time I do a custom basket, I wind up sinking WAY more money into it than I originally intended. But this year, I kept it around $30 for both … I’m proud of myself.
It would be so much easier (and probably cheaper) to buy pre-made baskets, but I just can’t bring myself to do it. It feels so impersonal.
While I’m on the subject of Easter, an open message to you retailers out there: I am not buying your product if it says “spring basket.” That annoys me to no end. The holiday is Easter, and if atheists don’t want to celebrate it, that’s just peachy. But don’t dumb your product down just to appease them. Thanks.
Day 3
So I’m on day 3 of a new “lifestyle.” I’m not calling it a diet because that mindset is a temporary fix … I know I have to make a permanent change.
When I was in Birmingham last week, I climbed the steep stairs up to my parents’ home and – in Southern parlance – liked to’ve died. Something snapped in my head and I knew for sure it was time to stop dragging my feet and make a change. I can make many excuses about the reason I got this way (depression, blood sugar issues) … but that’s not helping.
I started with the 5-to-6 small meals a day mindset, but I’m probably just going to wind up watching my calories and fat grams (and carbs as well) and just making sure they’re not going over a certain point. I’m using Fitday.com to keep track of my foods … it’s so convenient. That link actually takes you to my page. If anyone wants accountability, this is a great way to do it!
I’m also trying to get some activity back into my life. I’ve been working with Jay out in the garden, digging up seemingly endless layers of rock before we can plant the seeds. Now that it’s warming up, I’m going to try to walk with the kids to the local playground most days. I can’t afford a gym membership, but it’s OK – I really prefer “productive” exercise anyway.
If you’re the praying type, please pray that I will stay on track and not slip off. I feel like if I don’t make a major change, I’m going to die young. That’s an incredibly sobering statement to write, but I believe wholeheartedly that it’s true. High blood pressure and high cholesterol run in both sides of the family…. even in people who are on the thin side, like my mom.
Anyway … I feel hopeful for the first time in a long time. Maybe this time next year, I’ll be on the cover of a magazine or something … ha.
Rock band
My husband’s family had a get-together yesterday, and we wound up playing Jay’s oldest sister’s kids’ “Rock Band” video game. The game is similar to Guitar Hero, except that this version also features bass, drums and vocals – in other words, you can have 4 people playing/singing together at the same time, just like in a real band. I tried bass and vocals and had an absolute blast. I’m not sayin’ anyone’s going to vote me into the rock ‘n’ roll hall of fame, but I had fun anyway. If I had the $$ I would totally buy this game.
Incidentally, when I told my sister about this, she said my 14-year-old nephew says Rock Band is for dorks. Well, I guess I’m a dork.
Update
I’ve been neglecting this blog lately and I’m sorry! I feel like I haven’t quite recovered from my road trip with the kids. Maybe some psychotherapy would help….
Some random bits and pieces:
- Mikaela slid down the slide into her kiddie pool (did I mention we hit 91 here in Austin a few days ago?) for the first time, landing in the water and saying, “This is AWESOME, man!” Incidentally, not even a week earlier, the kids were in Knoxville, TN playing in the snow.
- Gabriel isn’t testing me quite as much lately … thank GOD.
- Jay and I are working on planting a veggie/herb garden in our backyard. Well, it’s really his garden, but I’m helping some.
- Mikaela is speaking much more clearly the last few weeks. She has a pretty large vocabulary and surprises me every single day by something she says.
- Jay’s sister Tracy, her husband Glen and their 10-month-old, Lucy, are in town all week. We’re so excited to see them!
- I am embarking on my first diet/lifestyle change in a year. Please pray that I would have the willpower to stick with it for the long-haul. I’m doing the ‘5 to 6 small meals a day’ diet. It supposedly keeps your blood sugar at an even keel, which is something I’ve always struggled with. I often eat because I’m dizzy/shaky, not hungry. But that’s another post altogether.
- Last but certainly not least, I have been feeling an even stronger calling to home-school my children. I am more than a little scared, but if God really is calling me, I know He will equip me with the ‘tools’ I need to succeed. Aside from my trepidation (which mainly centers around wanting to do a really good job at homeschooling our kids, and also being able to make ends meet financially), I am really excited. I walk into teachers’ supply stores and get giddy. I’m slowly building up a pretty good collection of teaching materials and resources, from books to educational games. I am already trying to work with them somewhat, but I want to start something more formal soon.
Summary of my TX-to-TN-to-AL back to TX roadtrip
1. Got a wild idea last Wednesday morning to drive to TN to surprise my sister for her birthday. Packed, washed, stuffed Jay’s car and left that same afternoon at 6 pm. Yes, I took the kids with me.
2. Drove and then drove and then when I finished that? I drove some more. Through the dark. With no radio. So I sang every song I knew and then made up a few. I drove 10 hours straight and finally had to stop in Jackson, TN around 4 am. Stayed at the lovely Motel 6. Felt itchy all night and wondered if it was my imagination or bedbugs. Ick.
3. Woke up from my sleep (more like a nap) last Thursday a.m. and loaded back up in the car. The car was riding like one of my tires was square. Turned out to be flat. Drove to a nearby auto shop and got it fixed. An hour later, I was back on the road to Nashville.
4. Stopped in Nashville to see my brother-in-law and 9-month-old niece. Also stopped by work, since I was in the neighborhood.
5. Drove to Knoxville and called my sister from her doorstep on Thursday evening. I told her I had conspired with some people to make a special delivery for her birthday. She opened the door to find Gabriel and Mikaela on her porch (I was a few feet behind them) with chocolates and flowers. She was very surprised and had the greatest reaction. I loved it!
6. Had a great visit with my sister and her family, and my parents when they drove up.
7. Loaded up Tuesday morning and drove to B’ham, to my parents’ house, where I spent the night.
8. Got up this morning (well, technically, yesterday) at 6:30 am and drove 800 miles from Birmingham to Austin. I had to stop multiple times for the kids. It was so much easier the first time, when I drove overnight while they slept. Anyway, I didn’t get home until 10:30 pm. What a long day.
9. I’m going to go sleep now! I’ll write more details soon!!
Snow fun!
An unexpected surprise while we were up here in TN: Read the rest of this entry »
Worth it
Gasoline: $103
Miles driven in 27 hours: 1,022
Flat tires: 1
Surprising my sister for her birthday: PRICELESS Read the rest of this entry »
Sonic-style ice
I love Sonic ice. I just went on a search to see who makes their ice makers and if there’s anything similar on a smaller scale for home consumers. So far, it doesn’t look like it.
I did find out that the Sonic type of cylindrical ice is called “nugget” ice. The manufacturer is Manitowoc.
Hm. Well, maybe if I can’t buy a Sonic ice maker of my own, I can just go by some ice from them? I’m sure they’d think I was nuts.
Any other nugget ice lovers out there?
Must work on my phrasing
What I said: “Don’t make a huge mess in here.”
What they heard: “… but it’s OK to make a medium-sized mess in here.”
