Intentions for 2016: Mindfulness

Like many people these days, I'm not a fan of making new years resolutions that will be long forgotten before the end of February. I do, however, like to reflect upon how things are going and check in with how I'm feeling overall in the lull after the craziness of the holiday season. In previous years I have chosen one little word for the year to guide me and help me reflect back upon what is important to me. In previous years I have chosen make, move, breathe and grateful.

This year it is important for me to choose mindfulness. 

I have been feeling like I have lost a little bit of control and have not been present is with my commitment to living what I preach environmentally. Since returning to work full time and being sick on and off all autumn I have done what I needed to survive, even if it has meant ordering take out food, grabbing food on the go and doing what is convenient.

I have not had time to spend outdoors on a regular basis, and this has been very hard for me. I feel more relaxed, happier, and have more energy after even a short walk along our local river. People care more about making environmental choices when they care about the world around them. When people spend time in nature and connecting with the natural world it is an important step toward living environmentally.

Continue reading at The Green Phone Booth>>>>

DIY Faux Batik

I'm always on the lookout for crafts and DIY presents that upcycle materials we have around the house. Never mind that I am a horrible packrat when it comes to recyclables and I have multiple stashes around the house "just in case" I need them for a fabulous craft idea. I have a whole closet dedicated to toilet paper rolls, egg cartons and glass jars.

When I saw this post about creating Elmer's Glue Gel Batik at All Our Days I knew I had finally found the perfect craft for some old worn and ripped sheets I have been saving for a few years. It was on my summer bucket list and in keeping with my one little word for 2014, "make".

I am making bunting flags for my garden and I knew I wanted to try this technique for some of the flags.

I didn't, however, have the glue gel. I decided to try it with regular white craft glue, and the results are in.... it worked perfectly.

At All Our Days they suggest using this technique to make cloth napkins, which I could see working if enough of the paint is rubbed out of the fabric so that it is soft enough. I didn't worry about that because I am making flags and want the colour to be more intense and the fabric is slightly stiff from the paint, although ironing the fabric at the end made them softer. I imagine that after repeated washings the fabric would soften up as well.

Materials:

• pieces of fabric, hemmed or edged on a sewing machine so that it won't fray (I used upcycled sheets). I only sewed around the edges on three sides for mine because I will be folding over and sewing the top edge to create my bunting. 
• white craft glue
• acrylic paint
• paint brushes (I used the wedge sponge type)
• hot water in a shallow dish, and more hot water to rinse

Method:

• "Draw" the pattern or shape onto the fabric using the glue. I practiced what I wanted to do on paper first to be sure that the design would fit. 

• Lay the fabric in a sunny location to help set the glue on the surface. Luckily I did this on a hot day so this part of the drying process only took about an hour. The glue shouldn't be fully dry throughout or else it won't wash off in the hot water. To test if it is ready, run a dry brush lightly over the surface. The glue shouldn't smear and should still be white. The longer the glue is left to dry the harder it is to get out of the fabric later, but I would rather err on the side of leaving it too long than trying to paint over the glue and having it smear.

• When the glue is sufficiently set, paint the fabric using the acrylic paint. I decided to water my paint down quite a bit and slightly layer the colours. 

• Lay the fabric out to dry. Wait until the paint is completely dry. Again, because I did this on a very hot day it only took about an hour.

• Pour hot tap water in a shallow dish in the sink and leave the fabric to soak until the glue rubs off easily. I had to add hot water a few times and rub with my fingers to completely remove the glue and paint. This took away some of the intensity of the colour but I was pleased with the final result so this didn't bother me. 

• Lay the fabric to dry in the sun again.

I tried this process minus the glue for a few pieces of fabric
and they look great. The colour is more intense on those ones
because I used more concentrated colour and a fine paint brush.
I should have put something underneath the fabric while
it was drying because it stained my table and now I have
to figure out how to get it out.

• Iron the fabric if so desired. 

I ironed mine because I wanted them to lay flat. Turn it
over and iron the wrong side. I also trimmed the fraying edges
up close to the sewing edge that I did.

• Voila!

I really like the blending of the colours in the batik versions, and the imperfections in the paint that give them a
one of a kind appearance. My daughter designed the veggie flags and I did the chakra flags. 

Chocoholic Black Bean Brownies

I am a straight up chocoholic. If a sweet treat doesn't have chocolate, I don't see the point in having some, so I have been very intrigued by the black bean brownie recipes I have been seeing all over Pinterest and Facebook lately. I have made a pledge to try more gluten free recipes this year, not because I have gluten sensitivities, but for more general reasons like cutting back on carbs. I know that when I am cleansing I need to cut out wheat, and flours in general, so the idea of using black beans instead of a flour sounded perfect. The cherry on top was that I might get my family to eat more beans if they liked the brownies.

I am on spring break with my daughters and now that I have had sufficient time to de-stress I feel like tackling some items on my one little word "to make" list. We decided to have a home day today, which gave me the time to try making the brownies. I couldn't find a single recipe that I liked completely; some used sugar or brown sugar, others were vegan, using egg substitutes (I prefer eggs), and most called for canola oil, which I do not like using (it is a PUFA, poly-unsaturated fatty acid, read about why here). I knew I was going to have to substitute and mix & match recipes to get what I wanted, and cross my fingers everything would turn out.

I substituted coconut sugar for white and brown sugar, so feel free to use either in place of the coconut sugar. I like coconut sugar because it is low on the glycemic index and a healthier sweetener that can be used 1:1 in place of other sugars or sweeteners. However, I ran out and had to use some raw cane sugar (still sugar, but a little better because not as processed as white sugar). In place of the canola oil I used melted coconut oil, but I suppose olive oil could be used instead (it should be used only at lower temperatures).

The only unhealthy part was the chocolate chips which are a must!

Ingredients:

• 1 can (450 mL or 15 ounces) of black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1/4 cup of semisweet chocolate chips (I may have used more)
• 3 tbsp of coconut oil (or oil of choice)
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup of coconut sugar (or sweetener of choice: sugar, maple syrup, etc)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa
• 1tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/8 tsp salt

* I try to use all organic ingredients when I have them, including vanilla extract and unsweetened cocoa. I also try to find fair trade cocoa and chocolate because of child slave labour in the chocolate farming industry.

Method:

• Preheat the oven to 350 F. 

• Combine all ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth. Some recipes blend the first three ingredients before adding the rest, but I skimmed too quickly and missed this part. As mine still turned out wonderfully I think I will stick with my mistake and declare it intentional.

• Pour the mixture into a baking pan. I use stoneware so I do not need to coat mine with oil. I have learned, however, that if I use stoneware for baking I need to put it in the oven while I preheat it. While most people say that stoneware does not need to be preheated, I have found that it takes longer to cook and is less moist if I do not. 

• I sprinkled many chocolate chips over the top for extra chocolatiness (I'm declaring this a word). 

• Bake for 20-30 minutes, depending on your oven and type of baking dish you use. A knife should come out clean when inserted. 

My daughters, aged four, seven and nine loved it and kept asking for more squares. I think they may have sneaked a few behind my back because as of tonight there are only three squares left. 

This photo was taken a half an hour after I took them out
of the oven. Yes, I would say this was a hit.

Enjoy delicious, healthy, fibre filled brownie treats fit for a chocoholic!

Card Making Fun

True to my nature as an all or nothing sort of person, I have been a bad blogger recently because life and other activities have been taking my focus away. My obsession over the past couple of weeks, in between getting over a lingering cold that decided to set up shop in my chest and throat, has been making cards. I have been making cards for at least ten years now, thanks to some friends and fellow teachers who got me hooked. One of those friends is now a Stamping Up rep and she keeps us well stocked and up on the latest card trends.

This year my one little word is make because I value homemade things. I hope to do a post per month on the latest things I'm making and enjoying, so for January I thought I would post a selection of cards that I've made recently. 

Making cards isn't particularly green, given that I buy new card stock paper, embellishments, inks, pens, glue and various adhesives. I could use more recycled paper and upcycled materials from around my home. However, I use as much of the paper and paper scraps as I can. I believe that making and giving my own cards has a personal touch, which is important to me. 

Most of these cards were inspired by ideas found on Pinterest, where I virtually hang out quite a bit. I get inspired by all of the creative people out there and it get my juices flowing to make. If you hang out on Pinterest you may have seen some of these ideas. A link to my card board is here.

I love the blended sunset colour of this silhouette card using
the bird builder punch from Stamping Up.

I love the owl punch, also from Stamping Up, because
of the multitude of ideas you can make with it.

This is for my middle daughter's birthday.

This minion card is made using the owl punch
(see above). I haven't added a sentiment yet.

This is for my youngest daughter's birthday.

It's always good to have girly cards ready in this house.

Another card using the owl punch (see above).

I'm obsessed with the Keep Calm memes, so this stamp set
was a must for my collection. 

I've knitted little heart thank you cards for people
who donate yarn to my knitting club. The pattern
can be found here.

I always forget to make cards for men so here are two
attempts at more masculine cards. 

One Little Word for 2014

Welcome to the January 2014 Carnival of Natural Parenting: The More Things Stay the Same
This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama. This month our participants have talked about the continuity and constancy in their lives. Please read to the end to find a list of links to the other carnival participants.
***

Every year I like to pick a word to help focus my attention and actions.

Last year I chose gratitude for my one little word because I wanted to change our habit of focusing on the negative and being frustrated with life. I wanted my family to be happier with what we have and how we live. The previous year I chose move, because I wanted to be make being more active a daily habit.

This year I have chosen make as my one little word. This isn’t a change in direction for me, and it isn’t going to cause big changes in my life. I have already made a commitment to make things by hand or from scratch. I enjoy crafting and learning how to make things myself. So if I already do this, why did I chose make as my one little word?

My latest batch of fire cider. The peppers were so hot
my hands were on fire. 

I spent very little time in stores and malls over the Christmas season this year, and when I did I continually noted all the things that I didn’t need because I could probably make them myself. I love the creative process, but somehow it ends up being on the bottom of my list, with three daughters, a job and activities.

Some of the presents I made for Christmas this year:
lip balm, lavender bath salts, cup cozies, hand towels.

I already grow my own food in my kitchen garden in the growing season. I make cards and presents for friends and family as much as possible. I enjoy knitting. I have been learning more about making my own personal care products. I make food from scratch as much as time permits.

I enjoy making cards.

This year I am committing to doing all of this as much as I can, as much as I enjoy it. I am learning which things are worth the effort of making by hand (and homemade goldfish crackers are not one of them, which I learned the hard way). I like knowing how things are made and what the ingredients are.

Delicious homemade crackers that took half a day to make.
Not sure they're worth the effort.

Some things I want to continue making this year:

Now that I make fresh pasta I can
never go back to store bought pasta.

• Pasta
• Bread
• Hand knit items for children, toys, small presents like cup cozies
• My garden
• Meals from my garden
• Shampoo
• Lip balm
• Plastic free food wraps
• Cards
• Presents for teachers (like handmade cards)
• Presents for family members, such as homemade photo canvases
• home cleaning supplies

Some things I hope to make this year:

• gluten free pasta and bread (so far I have only had abysmal failures with gluten free breads)
• A hand knit sweater for me
• Something on my sewing machine (this has been on my list for a number of years)
• Canned food from my garden
• Mascara and other makeup
• Kombucha tea
• Jewelry (for presents)
• yogurt
• cheese
• deodorant

I am not going to be disappointed if I don’t meet some internal standard that I have set for myself, however, because I am not setting a standard that I feel I have to meet. I know that life ebbs and flows, and there are times when I will need to walk into a store and just buy something for my own sanity. But there are times when I will have time to learn how to make new things. I am fortunate to have my summers off because I am a teacher, and this gives me great latitude to take on projects that require time and energy.

So I am hoping to play and create more this year. It may be my easiest and most fun one little word yet.

***
Visit Hobo Mama and Code Name: Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!
Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:
(This list will be updated by afternoon January 14 with all the carnival links.)

• Always an Artist — Some kids take longer than others to come into themselves, so you have to stick with them, as a parent, long after everyone else has given up, writes Douglas at Friendly Encounters.
• Not Losing Yourself as a First Time Mom — Katie at All Natural Katie continues to stay true to herself after becoming a new mom.
• Using Continuity to Help Change {Carnival of Natural Parenting} — Meegs from A New Day talks about how she is using continuity in certain areas of her life to help promote change and growth in others.
• Staying the Same : Security — Life changes all the time with growing children but Mother Goutte realised that there are other ways to 'stay the same' and feel secure, maybe a bit too much so!
• Harmony is What I'm After — Tribal Mama gushes about how constant change is really staying the same and staying the same brings powerful change.
• A Primal Need For Order and Predictability – And How I Let That Go — Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama shares how she overcame her primal need for order and predictability once her awareness shifted, opening her eyes to the impact this had on her young daughter. Take a short journey with Jennifer and she bares her soul, exposes her weaknesses and celebrates her new outlook and approach to living life, even in the face of total chaos.
• Breastfeeding Before and After — Breastfeeding has come and gone, but Issa Waters at LoveLiveGrow finds that her relationship with her son is still just the same and just as good.
• A Real Job — Back in high school That Mama Gretchen had a simple, but worthwhile career aspiration and today she is living her dream … is it what you think?
• Comforting — sustainablemum never thought she would want things always being the same, but she explains why it is exactly what her family wants and needs.
• 'The Other Mums' and The Great Illusion — Marija Smits reflects on the 'great big magic show of life' and wonders if it will continue to remain a constant in our lives.
• Unschooling: Learning doesn't change when a child turns four — Charlotte at Winegums & Watermelons talks about the pressure of home education when everyone else's children are starting school.
• Finding Priorities in Changing Environments — Moving from Maine to a rural Alaskan island for her husband's military service, Amy at Me, Mothering, and Making it All Work found that keeping consistent with her priorities in changing environments can take some work, but is vital to continuous health and happiness.
• Keeping it "Normal" — Kellie at Our Mindful Life has moved several times in the last two years, while doing her best to keep things stable for her kids.
• The Evolution Of Our Homeschool Journey — Angela at Earth Mama's World reflects on her homeschooling journey. Homeschooling is a constant in the life of her family but the way in which they learn has been an evolution.

• Sneaking in Snuggles: Using Nurturing Touch with Older Children — When Dionna at Code Name: Mama's son was a toddler and preschooler, he was the most loving, affectionate kiddo ever. But during the course of his 5th year, he drastically reduced how often he showed affection. Dionna shares how she is mindfully nurturing moments of affection with her son.
• Steady State — Zoie at TouchstoneZ writes a letter to her partner about his constancy through the rough sailing of parenting.
• A Love You Can Depend On — Over at True Confessions of a Real Mommy, Jennifer has a sweet little poem reminding us where unconditional love really lies, so it can remain a constant for us and our children.
• Same S#!*, Different Day — Struggling against the medical current can certainly get exhausting, especially as the hunt for answers drags on like it has for Jorje of Momma Jorje.
• New Year, Still Me — Mommy Bee at Little Green Giraffe writes about how a year of change helped her rediscover something inside herself that had been the same all along.
• One Little Word for 2014 — Christy at Eco Journey In The Burbs has decided to focus on making things this year, which is what she is loves, as long as she doesn't kill herself in the process.
• The Beauty of Using Montessori Principles of Freedom and Consistency — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now shares the continuity of her teaching, parenting, and grandparenting philosophy using a combination of freedom and consistency.
• My Husband's Mini — Crunchy Con Mom shares which of her sons looks more like her husband's baby pictures — and the answer might surprise you!
• Growth Happens When You Aren't Looking — Lori at TEACH through Love is treasuring these fleeting moments of her daughter's early adolescence by embracing the NOW.
• A New Reality Now - Poem — As Luschka from Diary of a First Child struggles to come to terms with the loss of her mother, she shares a simple poem, at a loss for more words to say.
• Making a family bedroom — Lauren at Hobo Mama has decided to be intentional about her family's default cosleeping arrangements and find a way to keep everyone comfortable.
• New Year, Same Constants — Ana at Panda & Ananaso takes a look at some of the things that will stay the same this year as a myriad of other changes come.
• I Support You: Breastfeeding and Society — Despite how many strides we've taken to promote "breast is best," Amy at Natural Parents Network talks about how far we still have to go to normalize breastfeeding in our society.

One Little Word

For the fourth year I am participating in One Little Word. I have been living with my word, gratitude, for almost a month now, and I think it is my favourite One Little Word so far.

On and off in 2012 I kept a daily gratitude on my iPhone, and I do believe that it made a difference for me personally. Finding something that I was grateful for each day, even on those days that just need to end, definitely did turn things around in my mind. I said that I would do something with my list, but after emailing it to myself it languished in my in box and I may have even deleted it by accident. But I suppose it is the thinking that is important, not the documenting.

Including my family in a daily gratitude is part of my 2013 intentions list. It is all too easy to complain about how the day went, the mishaps and unfortunate things that happen. I want my daughters to be resilient in the face of hardship because life does not go smoothly for very long; things always happen. I don't want my girls to have their steps backward overshadow their steps forward. Or even better, I want them to see that the backward steps in life are perhaps just nudging us toward a different path. And if I want them to believe this, I must also believe it. Yikes!

Instead of losing my cool (which I never do, by the way) on a particularly trying day in late December, I had a flash to do a family daily gratitude. I made a gratitude box (because pretty things are motivating) and announced to my family that every night, after dinner together, everyone has to write one thing for which they are grateful, then put it into the gratitude box. I never said anything about sharing, but this is sometimes part of the routine now. Surprisingly everyone (including my husband) agreed. In fact, my daughters were very excited. Pat on the back for me!

We haven't written a daily gratitude every night, because occasionally we are busy and don't all sit down together for a family meal at the end of the day. But because I leave the gratitude box on the kitchen table it is a visual reminder for us all and we do it the majority of nights.

This is a random sampling of some of our daily gratitude writing. I love my husband's:

"I am grateful that the NHL is back", and my daughter Ella's: "I am grateful for my loud screaming voice."

It hasn't been a full month yet, but I can already see some positive spin offs:

• My five year old is sometimes so excited to write her gratitude that she does hers before dinner. A few times she has even said part way through the day that she knows what she wants to write for her gratitude, or if another thing comes along she asks if she can write two for the day! 

• If someone has a stinker of a day we have fun guessing what they are going to be grateful for; sometimes it lightens the mood because we make up funny ones for each other. 

• Once or twice my daughters have said that they have nothing to be grateful for that day, and I appreciate the discussions we have had about their lives and others they know. This has been good for my five year old, who naturally seems to be more of a glass half empty sort. I worry about this and I'm glad that doing a daily gratitude forces her to think of positive things. 

• My almost three year old was in emergency last week with a sore leg and we were all worried it was broken (thank goodness it wasn't!). My older daughters were quite anxious about this so our discussion for the daily gratitude expanded from this into the importance of health. I find that this is hard for young children because unless they have had direct experience with someone who has been seriously ill or died, it doesn't resonate with them. They think in terms of catching a cold or the flu and because they always get better they don't think to be grateful for good health.

• I am grateful that my eight year old is starting to understand that our deepest gratitude should come from non-tangible things in life. Happiness does not come from stuff. 

• I love how doing the daily gratitude makes my girls write more. My eight year old is starting to discover journaling and making personal lists and so independently seeks opportunities to write at home, but my five year old is an emergent writer. When she has to write her gratitude she asks us lots of questions about sounds in words and I love the invented spelling she does on her own. Yay for motivation!

I don't know what I'm going to do with all the slips of paper in the gratitude box at the end of the year. Perhaps they can be glued into a scrapbook? Or put into envelopes by month and into a scrapbook? I'm open to suggestions. 

I am grateful for my One Little Word.

......................................................................

Gratitude Box D.I.Y.

To decorate my gratitude box I used a shoe box, scraps of decorative paper from my scrapbooking stash, chipboard letters (magazine letters or letters cut from paper could be used as well) and modge podge (I don't like the glossy look for this project so I used matte modge podge).

First I carefully measured the paper to fit on the five visible sides of my shoe box.

Then I applied a thick layer of modge podge to one side and carefully placed the piece of paper to top.


After slowly smoothing the paper to remove any air bubbles or wrinkles, I applied a layer of modge podge on top of the paper and smoothed the paper with my fingers one more time. *

I repeated this for each side of the box (excluding the bottom - I don't need it covered).

* Immediately after applying the layer of modge podge to the top of the box I placed the chipboard letters directly on top, then added one more layer of modge podge over the letters.