Check this out...

Monday, January 31, 2011

Custom No-Sew High End look Bed

Lyds’ No-Sew Upholstered Bed, here is the link to this gorgeous project shared by Ana White. I love her blog, read it often, she shares great do-it-yourself projects, some for even the most skeptical DIY'ers.
This particular bed is not only gorgeous, but also cost effective (steal at about $100), looks high end & because you're making this yourself & it's not a mass produced (or over produced) purchase product, it's eco-friendly as well.
I really feel like I could make this bed; that being said...stay tuned. I will be making this within the next couple months & will post pics of my progress.
If any of you decide to try this I ask that you share as well.
As always thanks for reading & please follow my blog, or subscribe to my RSS.

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Very Sad Letter Today from our CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) Farmer Dave

Very Sad News to report from Plato's Harvest (our local CSA farm)  This is a letter I received today (email) from Farmer Dave to the CSA members:

Hi All. Happy Snowstorm! (again)




The lease on the land at Fuller Street was changed abruptly, unexpectedly, and unacceptably and I have decided to not renew it. I still have three acres at the Soule farm that I will be growing on for 2011.



What this means for the csa is that there is no distribution spot, and I will not be selling shares this year. I will continue to sell at the Plymouth and Cambridge farmers markets.



I have been putting this email off in the hope that I would figure something else out by now. My first impulse was to look for another piece of land to serve as a distribution spot and continue what I've done for the past several years. There are a couple of other local possibilities that may be available to lease, but it's not going to happen in time for this year.



These weeks since I decided not to renew have made me see 'the farm' in a new light, and think hard about what it is I'm trying to accomplish, how and why. The thought of trying to maintain separate locations, with insecure tenure agreements, that I don't own is no longer attractive. It's hard to be able to make long-term plans, decisions and investment in land that you don't own, or a situation that you can't control.



So 2011 will be a year of scaled-back operations which will allow me to explore other possibilities for the future, hopefully locally, hopefully farm-related.



I sincerely appreciate the support you all have shown me. I know that we have a viable model, a desirable and valuable community resource, that I can use to make a winning pitch to the right opportunity. It's also been a pleasure to get to know you all, some for several years now, and some quite well. Stay tuned.



dave



ps, if you know of someone with an old farm with from 10 to 100 acres of stone-free sandy loam cultivated fields, pasture, and wood lot, trustee land, conservation-restricted land, looking to sell or for long-term tenancy, send them my way :`)



pps, we will continue to have farm field days, with the first scheduled for early april for potato and onion planting, details to follow.

Blog Author's Note**Please, Please if you know anyone with a farm as described above, will you please comment, or contact me**  Thank you, Colette

Monday, January 17, 2011

Today I dedicate my blog to Martin Luther King, Jr.

A man who once said, "A man who won't die for something is not fit to live."
Martin Luther King, Jr.

I'm sure when it was said he did not know how unfortunately true those words would be.  As his life was cut short we will never know how much more he could have given to the world, but we can be thankful that he gave us what he had and that was all of himself. 

Today's post is in Memoriam to Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the most prolific leaders in our Nation's history.

Peace and Love to all!

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

A site that offers Sweat Deals....

Mamapedia - Daily Sweet Deals! Check out this site, the deal today is one near & dear to my heart - a "green" deal.  $10 for $25 worth of home products. 
Here is a little more information about the Eco-Friendly site itself:

LetsGoGreen.biz is a business that believes their products can make a positive difference one home at a time. They’re environmentally friendly, and are selected specifically for use in every room in the house.




We were sent a few items to take a look at. Their 100% Recycled Toilet Paper is free of dyes, inks and fragrances and is recycled without chlorine or bleaching. Frankly, as far as I can tell, this was the same as the non-recycled type, so there is absolutely no reason not to switch from the non-recycled type which are cutting down ancient forests. If every home in America changed just one roll for a recycled roll, then it would save a million trees a year.



Another no-brainer is to switch to Ecosafe degradable trash bags. We have the 13-gallon Tall Kitchen Bags. Ecosafe bags are just like regular plastic bags, except that they will totally degrade and compost in 12 to 24 months. They contain an additive called DCP which remains dormant until triggered by sufficient UV light, heat or mechanical stress. The bags leave no toxic or harmful residue.



Finally, I’m getting quite good at looking at reusable bags. Their canvas totes are made in the U.S.A. and are grocery-sized and sturdy.



LifeGoggles.com

Here is a link directly to the site itself:
Green your 2011 with Let's Go Green Biz Free shipping on orders $49 & over.  (always love free shipping!)

Happy Shopping, Happy Tuesday. 

Friday, January 7, 2011

Go Credit Card Free Today!!

There is a website that I joined awhile back offering personal daily challenges: https://www.meyouhealth.com/challenge/2011/1/7/go-credit-card-free-today?challenge_how_id=58909#challenge-how-58909

Well, today the challenge was go credit card free today, I'm sure they meant for 1 day, but here's the thing.... we have been credit card free in my household for over 2 years now. We made a conscious decision that they were just more bills at the end of each month that we couldn't eventually afford. We were able to get "things" in the now, but in the long run it hurt, you pay more, because you're paying interest, etc. Some give rewards and we had those too, but the rewards never added up to much! So, we cut them up, paid them off & haven't touch a credit card since.

We actually have to save to buy things & yes that means sometimes we don't get them. I do suppose that one day we might have a card again (for emergencies), but not any time soon. We sacrifice, but it's not forever, and we have what we need.

Don't get me wrong, my kids still got totally spoiled for Christmas - I bought them way too much, but it was worth it & I have no credit card bill to look forward to that will make me cringe; it's all paid & behind us, so we got to enjoy them opening gifts without having to think about a bill that will come next month. I can honestly tell you that makes me feel so much better when I do spend "too" much on an occasion, or event.

We started the process of going credit card free over 3 years ago, it took us some time to pay a couple of them off. It's a process, but it's worth it in the end. If anyone would like advice, please feel free to ask.

Check out that daily challenge site too, I find some of the excercies are helpful & make me think.

Thursday, January 6, 2011

Time to get honest in 2011 ...

Hey folks, sorry I've been "off the grid" for a bit. Was busy with a new job, and moping about not having any money. But HEY - it's a new year & I've got a wonderful, happy, healthy family - I've got to remind myself sometimes to appreciate all of that & not focus on what we don't have!

Well, the job did not work out & so back to the drawing board I am looking for legitimate work from home. (why from home you might ask, I have 2 young boys that I stay home to raise & my husband works full time outside the home)

And this year I decided to be completely honest on this blog. We live as green & eco-friendly a lifestyle as we can, well...actually more than we can afford to!! We're like a lot of families living in America today, we live paycheck to paycheck. It's not how we used to be, before kids; I worked & made a very decent amount of money, we never worried about money, we had it; right? lol That's when you don't worry about it!!

My husband & I made a tough decision, based in large part to the way we each grew up, in divorced homes & myself as a latch-key kid; that when we had children, I would stay home to raise them & he would work. It's actually what brought us to the town we currently live in, my husband works in this town, so it cut down on car maintenance/wear & tear & commuting costs, such as gas, etc. For over a year we even did it w/only 1 car in the family. That got to be way too difficult last winter; my son was older & I wanted to be able to take him places, do stuff w/him and he was going to be starting preschool, so I would need a car to drop him off/pick him up.

We fought for over 2 years to get a loan modification on our home mortgage (our interest rate was too high, that's the only reason - it became unmanageable when we lost $20,000 on our old home that we sold) through the homes made affordable program & it worked!! Our mortgage was lowered by $700 per month! Huge, right? Yes! We now really have to figure out a way to lower my car payment, which might mean trading it back in to get a used car at a lower payment, which I'm perfectly okay with, it needs to happen soon, we are pretty strapped for cash right now.

Well, as all of this is probably pretty boring, it's my first post of 2011, I will continue to write mostly about "green" topics, but with a more doses of reality thrown in & some posts will be more personal. One thing all of my posts will surely be is honest. I will try to help other families, like ours and different to give their families the best on a budget! I'm also always open to ideas, suggestions & questions. Please drop me a line, or two...I would love to hear from you.

PS -if anyone knows someone who is looking for an experienced transcriber, guerrilla marketer, social media savvy blogger/poster, "Green"-minded individual, Notary Public and all around telecommuting professional - well....look no further!!

Have a great night all, feels good to be back.