Saving Trees (and your nest egg!)

Here's a great site I found out about: https://www.catalogchoice.org/dashboard

If you click on it and take a few minutes to sign up, you can opt out of some of the catalogs you receive in the mail. I don't have the stats on hand right now, but it is amazing how many trees can be saved when just one person opts out of receiving one catalog.

Plus an added benefit that I've discovered, is that when I don't see the items "I just have to have" I'm less likely to spend money. This is a phenomenom I've discovered since having three small children (it's just not as easy to dash out to a store - a definite blessing in diguise!). Without going into stores, I don't know what I'm "missing" so I'm less likely to buy. It's funny, too, because when I go into stores now I alternate between the overwhelming amount of stuff there is and starting to think, "Oh that would be nice to have."

I think the same applies to catalog shopping - if you don't see, you won't think you need it.

Any other tips on reducing mail or to share your experience...post a comment.

Gardening Journal

For a couple of years now, we've been growing our own vegetables organically and with great success (thanks be to God!). This is the first year where we are expanding our efforts which involved more planning and potential for combatting pests and diseases. This journal will track our experience and hopefully help others as they experiment with organic gardening practices. We are located in Zone 5.

Catching Up

Weather notes: May started out unseasonably warm with only a few frost nights. This latter half of the month has been really cool - barely making it out of the mid-60's, especially here near the lake. Nighttime temperatures have hovered around the mid-40's. Had quite a bit of rain in the past couple of weeks. We're headed into a warm, sunny spell for this long weekend.

So far, we've modified our plans back because our original plans required more time and money. "Phase 2" of our garden expansion plans will happen next year.

The most challenging piece of this has been the planning...what to plant, in what quantity and where, since, of course, I need to do a wealth of research and work out a tricky crop rotation schedule. :)

Before last week, all we could show for our efforts were a few herbs planted in pots (and placed on a sled for easy transport into the garage in case of frost!), some lettuce planted along the side of the house, and faint areas of regenerating grass from the places where we dug into the sod to outline the anticipate garden. Oh, and lots of paper with drawings and notes.

Last week we started making some progress. Dave rented a sod cutter and took out the grass where we will be planting. On the weekend, I was able to get some free mulch from neighbors who had to have a couple of maple taken down, and this past week, Dave borrowed a rototiller from other neighbors (thank God for good neighbors!) and turned over the soil. Here's what it looks like now (for a before picture, just imagine grass, actually weeds, where the soil is now):

Total $ invested so far: 250

Total hours invested so far: countless

We've also done some weeding, creating mulched pathways so we can avoid compacting the soil, and moving around a few plants. I also moved the stones which lined our front beds to the side of the house to create four 4X4 raised beds. I'm closer to completing our planting zone and rotation schedule and will post that when it's completed.

Today, we have 12 yards of topsoil (which is 30% peat hummus) being delivered and so will be spreading that around to create the new beds. The above cost also includes the price of 5 pea/bean towers we purchased on line. They'll give an artsy flair to the garden!

Looking forward to a long weekend of earth moving, stone moving, plant moving and planting.

Undone

Then said I, Woe is me! For I am undone and ruined, because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts!
(Isaiah 6:5 AMP)

So often when I am made aware of how we humans are degrading the earth - this amazing gift from God - and, ultimately, each other, this is the exact response (the quote from Isaiah) that I have.

We have been given so much, so much more than even we are aware, and we take and defile it. Much of the time this is done out of ignorance for we who are temporal, here for a moment, can't always know the impact of our actions. It is the next generation, or the one after that, which identifies exactly "what went wrong" with our thinking. Perhaps, this isn't surprising, as God often is subtle, quiet. It may be His way of ensuring we, His creation, don't enter the dangerous mindset of believing we can fix everything.

However, when God enables us to see the error of our ways, it seems to me the only response is to fall before Him, ask His forgiveness for the part we played and ask Him to cleanse us. It also is an opportunity for praise for He has revealed His holiness and glory to us - we have received a glimpse of the Living God!

This is rather a long introduction to say: Welcome! The purpose of this blog is to capture the journey God has invited me on. It is a journey where I often stop in wonder and delight as He reveals the secrets of His creation and shows how our bodies are specifically designed to function at their best when we reverantly use the resources He has provided. It is also a journey of heartbreak, despair and helplessness. These are vital to the journey, for without them, I would be less inclined to change. This is not to say I believe I must shoulder the responsiblity for all the damage we are doing or that I've got it all figured out. However, I believe if we all do our part and pay more attention to how we are living, choosing to honor God with all our actions, then this will add up and make a huge difference.

At the writing of this introduction, I believe God would have me share the knowledge He is giving me and my struggles in living with this knowledge, particularly in the areas of:

• food - from how it gets to the table to what we decide to ingest
• cosmetics - from knowing what is in them to freedom from surface-level beauty
• consumer economy - how our purchase decisions help or hurt us and the world
• environment - sustainable practices, helpful resources

I pray this blog would strengthen you for the journey God places you on and that you would share your experiences, knowledge and struggles.

For God and His glory,

Andrea