What we've been up to...

In the last week or two, we've:

• Attended our church's Easter play. Craig is taking a class at church and the instructor, who is in the play, tried to tell us it was a big event so we got there 45 minutes before it started but the line to enter the sanctuary was still all the way down and back the Sunday school hall. I don't think even at that point we knew what was coming. The market scenes had chickens and a donkey, a golden retriever and her litter of pups as well as a goat and several kids. But when the roman soldier rode through the sanctuary on a horse, I realized they were serious when they had asked all audience members to stay in their seats throughout the performance. Unfortunately it was a 2 hour show and there was no way Ms. Preggo can last that long without a trip to the ladies room so I just waited for a time when it seemed implausible for a horse to appear and made a mad dash down the aisle. It was quite the experience.

• Attended the symphony. We decided to splurge a bit on entertainment the next month or two and have bigger date nights. I've been to the symphony before but I normally fall asleep partway through the second half. Not this time, there was too much kicking going on for that. We actually felt like we were pulling a fast one on the company since three of us enjoyed the show for the price of two. Baby Nigel really responds to classical music. I've been listening to it on Pandora whenever I'm on the computer. Not because I put a whole lot of stock into the baby genius thing, but I have heard that if a baby hears the same music he heard in the womb, it can have a calming effect. I don't know if that will work out but it can't hurt right? Now I'd like to think that all the moving and kicking in response to the music means Nigel likes it, but I suppose it could just as easily mean he hates it and we are torturing the poor kid. I guess we'll find out in a few months :-)
  

• Went to our first Slow Food (city in which we live) event and watched Mad City Chickens. The movie was about 80% documentary, 20% weird trying to be funny bits. I could have lived without the funny parts, mostly because they weren't funny and nothing makes an unfunny scene more annoying that listening to other people gaffawing at it. But still, I enjoyed the movie. Of course, now I really want chickens. I wanted them before but mostly because I wanted fresh eggs. Now I want chickens because I want fresh eggs and chickens seem awesome! Chicken friendly neighborhood had now been added to our buying a house checklist. I pity the person who ends up as our Realtor.
• 

• Gone on three hikes. We found a park just about 10 minutes from here that has several small hikes. The first one we went on was about a mile which isn't too long but there ended up being a few more hills than I expected. Craig practically had to push me up the last 10 minutes of the walk but I made it. The next time we just went down as far as I wanted to, then went back and it was a little more pleasant. I'm getting really tired of walking the same path through the neighborhood every day so it's nice to switch things up now and then.

• Went to a ladies tea with our Sunday school class. Okay, only I went to this one, Craig was not invited. I had a great time getting to know the other wives better and it turns out that several others in the group are "hippies" too. One of the other women is planning a home birth and several of us are looking for raw milk and grass feed beef sources. It was so exciting to meet people with the same interests.
  

And that's about it!

Easy Cuts

In this time of budget trouble in states across the nation, in which massive deficits are common but balanced-budget requirements prevent states from kicking the can down the road like the feds do, it is becoming clear that state government employee salaries and benefits are part of the problem. From the WSJ via Power Line:

In a separate survey, the federal Bureau of Economic Analysis compares the compensation of public versus private workers in each of the 50 states. Perhaps not coincidentally, the pay gap is widest in states that have the biggest budget deficits, such as New Jersey, Nevada and Hawaii. Of the 40 states that have a budget deficit so far this year, 28 would have a balanced budget were it not for the windfall to government workers.

There was also this tidbit from the governor of New Jersey:

One state retiree, 49 years old, paid, over the course of his entire career, a total of $124,000 towards his retirement pension and health benefits. What will we pay him? $3.3 million in pension payments over his life and nearly $500,000 for health care benefits -- a total of $3.8m on a $120,000 investment.

The governor of Missouri is trying to make some common-sense moves to remedy this situation. For one, he wants to reduce the number of holidays for state employees from 13 to 10. Seems pretty fair, since this article states that the average private sector worker only gets 8 holidays. But, as can be expected, there's resistance to even this measure, which is projected to save $3 million per year:

Cutting employees' benefits "will worsen already high turnover rates and work against the quality care and services they are expected to provide," said a statement from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 72, which represents employees in the departments of mental health and public safety...

"We understand the financial crisis," [Gary Gross] said "But we also don't think they're looking at all the right options. There are many other things that could be cut rather than trying to take benefits away from state employees."

This is why cutting spending is so hard, when people fight against ideas like this that should cause little controversy. It sounds like most Missouri legislators realize this is a fairly painless cut, though.

I'd like to address this idea that this move will increase state employee turnover. Are state employees going to say, "I refuse to give up those holidays. I'm going to find a different job that gives me my 13 holidays?" Probably not, since we know that nowhere else do employees get all those days off. Second, times are not good right now, so I don't think too many people are going to quit their jobs in the near future, especially over something rather trivial.

If you are going to try to argue against common sense budget cuts, at least you should use reasoning that is not absurd on its face.

MSM: More Wooly Wonders!

Y'all didn't think I was finished with wool, did you? No, I've got two more wool projects to show you.

The first is wool dryer balls. A natural alternative to those spiky plastic balls, they decrease your dryer time and eliminate the need for dryer sheets by fluffing, softening and reducing static manually. I've never use dryer sheets because they cause my sensitive skin to break out in a rash but I don' t think I would want to use them even without that issue. They cost money and are full of icky chemicals. I've heard some positive reviews about how the plastic balls work but they can leave a plastic smell on your clothes and somehow heating up plastic doesn't sound like a good idea if you want to reduce household toxins. In addition to not stinking up your clothes, the wool balls are a bit quieter and there is something about how they absorb the water from your clothes that is supposed to help your dryer not overheat or your clothes not over dry or something. I don't really understand the science behind it but it sounded impressive. Oh, and unlike the sheets, these can be used with cloth diapers and towels.

There are several ways to make them. I'll explain two ways to make wrapped ones but I've also seen them made using sewn pieces of felt or felting stuff that has somehow tufting/needling them. Those ways are cool since you can make designs but I don't know how to do that. This is probably the easiest way.

Let's get started!

Basically, all you will be doing to make them is wrapping a ball of yarn and felting it. But since you want the final ball to be quite firm, you need to do it in two steps, starting with forming a solid core. This is where there are two options:

1) Use acrylic yarn. Acrylic yarn won't felt so all you have to do is wrap a small (golf ball size) ball as tightly as possible. Then using a knitting needle or crochet hook, weave/tuck the end of the yarn inside the ball so it doesn't unroll. That's it! Move on to the next step now.

2) Use wool yarn. Since this will felt, you will have to wrap a small ball as tightly as possible the same as with the acrylic, then felt it as you will the outside (see below). It will shrink a bit now. You want that to happen so that when you wash it again, the outer layer won't cause it to collapse and be soft.

I did both methods and I think if you have extra acrylic and wool yarn around, use the acrylic. It is faster, easier and cheaper. The benefit to using wool is that you can say they are 100% wool if you sell them on etsy but the acrylic is completely contained in the end product so it shouldn't make a difference to your clothes at all.

Now you have a little core. This is my wool core:
This is my acrylic core. Oops. I got so excited that I wrapped the second layer before taking a picture but you can imagine in since it would look just like a little ball of yarn.

Now you need to make the outside and felt it. For this step you have to use wool. Wrapping as tightly as you can over the core, keep wrapping until it is about tennis ball size then use a needle or hook to hide the end inside the ball and prevent it from unwrapping.

Or leave the ball on the floor for a minute while you go off in search of a crochet hook, come back and find that your cat has enjoyed herself, untangle the yarn and repeat the wrapping process. You can also skip these steps, it's your choice :-)

Now you need to felt the ball. But even with the hidden end, if you try and felt it as is, it would probably come undone in the washer. Or clog up your machine with fuzz and pills. So first put it in an old sock or piece of hosiery. Tie the end real close with a piece of acrylic yarn. You can actually felt two or three balls together in one sock/hose as long as you tie each separately so they don't felt themselves to each other. I stole a sock from Craig so mine looked like this:
Throw it into your washer with 1/4 of the normal amount of detergent and a couple towels or pairs of jeans to increase the agitation. Use hot water and at least a 12 minute cycle. Unlike other projects where you only want to felt so far, the more these are felted the better. No worries about overfelting make this a great first felting experiment!

After one wash, they should hold up okay but they might not look completely felted. You can put them back in the sock for another round or you can just throw them in the washer and then dryer with your next load of laundry like I did. And as you keep using them with wet clothes in a hot dryer, they will continue to get more firm and smooth although after a few weeks, you might notice pilling. It won't impact it's function but you can take them off if you want. (If you are felting the core, one cycle should be enough to get it firm but let it dry before you wrap and felt the second layer)

Here are my final ones.
They look pretty much identical to the core except larger. They started out the size of the tennis ball but shrunk slightly. I did two acryclic core and two wool core (the cat has stolen one which is why you are only seeing three). I made them separately but I honestly can't even tell the difference now between the two types.

How do they work? Well, my main goal was to reduce dryer time. The week I started using them, my drying time was reduced by quite a bit BUT we also had our dryer repaired so most of that reduction is probably due to that. I could do some sort of scientific test where I compare the drying speed with balls and without I suppose but I do think they help soften the clothes so I'm not going to bother. That's not a very definitive answer but it's all I've got.

And if you want some dryer balls but don't want to make them yourself, there are lots available on etsy. Or just check it out to see all the different styles and designs you can try. Happy Felting!

Dirty Baby Business

I am so excited about cloth diapering it is ridiculous. Sometimes Craig has to remind me that I'm getting all giddy about something that will soon be covered in poop. But I can't help it.

We pretty much knew from the beginning that cloth diapering was something we wanted to at least give a try. For one, it's better for the environment. Most studies, as well as common sense, say that washing and reusing a diaper is more environmentally friendly than making a new one and having to dispose of it. Otherwise we would all be wearing disposable underwear, right? But as nice as I think our planet is, environmental reasons weren't really that big of a factor for us.

For me, it was the health factor. Neither of us have a good track record when it comes to skin issues so genetically, this kid has no chance and the idea of putting a chemical filled plastic sack on his/her skin just doesn't sound appealing. One argument I've heard several times as a negative to cloth diapering is that they need to be changed more often. Now, a baby in cloth diapers shouldn't be peeing more than any other baby so for me that is a plus. It will force me to make sure my baby isn't sitting in a dirty diaper just because I don't have to worry about leaks.

For Craig, it was definitely the money factor. Cloth diapering is so much cheaper. Even factoring in additional water usage (3-4 additional loads a week) and accounting for coupons and sales for disposables, we are going to save quite a bit. And the more kids we have, the more we save!

Yes, it will be more work but there is so much additional household work that comes with a baby that, I figure what's a few more loads of laundry? And since I won't have daily access to a car, at least I won't have to worry about running out of disposables and being stuck. The dealing with poop issue isn't a big concern to me either since the changing of the diaper is the worst part and that is the same no matter what type of diaper you use. All I have to do is take the whole wet bag, empty it into the washer, toss in the bag itself and run the load. I don't even have to touch anything until it's all clean again.

I think the biggest thing about using cloth diapers is that you have to want to. If you don't, no amount of saving money or health issue will make it worth it. Right now, as about to be evident by my excessive number of pictures, I'm really excited about them and most cloth diapering mamas I know are just as excited as me. But there may come a day when other things have to take priority or it really weighs me down and I have to be willing to adjust.

My biggest dilemma when it came to cloth diapering was what type I wanted to use. There are soooo many options out there. There are a 4 main types and withing each type there are different options such as sized or one-size, material options, and different brands to choose from. It's a lot to take in.

In the end, we decided to do a mix to start out with. The least expensive option is pre-folds and covers and that is what I am planning on doing for the bulk of my diapering. This is the old-school style but better (no pins and way more options than just gerber plastic pants). I've heard the pre-folds from green mountain diapers are some of the best quality. They come in more sizes than traditional pre-folds which means a bit more expense but the fit is better. I hope to get 1-2 dozen of the infant size to start out with. Pre-folds need covers to be waterproof but don't need that many covers since they are just the outside protective layer and can be reused a couple times unless you have a big blowout.

Here are my two flip covers which are one size. They will work from itty baby to toddler but I plan on also getting one of each of the most popular types of sized covers in small to see what works best with our baby. (Some work better on chunky thighs, others with long torsos, etc). I've also made a few wool covers to use too. (More on those in an upcoming post!)

Then I got a few fitteds. Fitteds are shaped like a diaper but still need a cover. They are one of the more expensive options so I wasn't planning on getting any but my mom and I were able to find some great bumgenius bamboo fitteds for 50% off since they were seconds. And the only reason they were seconds was because there is an extra tag!

They are supposed to be the best for the younger stage at holding everything in when it is more, uhm, flowy. Plus, the bamboo is really soft. They will use the same covers as the pre-folds.

Then I wanted a few one-sized pocket diapers. These are normally $17-20 a diaper but they can be used from ~8lbs up to toddler and work basically like a disposable except you wash them so they are handy for when you have a babysitter or grandparent who is confused by things that need to be folded or pinned/snappi-ed. I'm planning on using these for overnight since the pocket can be filled with extra absorbency pads (called doublers) and seem like they would be the quickest thing to try to use in the middle of the night when I'm barely coherent.
I'm now got two BumGenius ones and hope to get at least one from each of the other two brands I've heard great things about: Happy Heinies and Fuzzibunz.

I've also got this one as a gift.It's really neat but I'm not sure what to call it, it's not quite a pocket but it does have a snap-in liner and doubler so it's a complete diaper or I can use just the yellow wool part as an additional cover over pre-folds/fitted.

So that's my little but growing stash. As you can see, when I said before that I had finally decided what I wanted to use, I meant I didn't decide, I'm just going to go with them all! Once baby grows out of the smaller size pre-folds and covers, we will see what has worked best and go with that for the next size. I think the key to making cloth diapering work is being flexible and willing to try things to see what works best for us. (Well, that, and not going crazy and buying a lot more than we need.)

Black Beans Bonanza

To be honest, black beans are not my favorite bean. In fact, I used to get annoyed when Craig would use black beans instead of kidney beans in recipes. But I have come around with a few recipes.

Now canned black beans aren't that expensive but I normally like to use dry. Soak overnight in a big bowl with water and a tablespoon of lemon juice. In the morning, drain and rinse. I like to do mine in a crockpot all day, just add enough water to cover by about an inch and set to low. In about 6 hours, they should be done. Even if I only need a small amount, I make the whole bag and freeze the extra in 2 cup increments. 2 cups is about the same as a 15oz can which makes it easy to substitute in recipes. Now onto the recipes:

Beany-Cheesy Burritos - This is an adaption of a Sweet Potato Bean Burrito recipe from allrecipes. I've made some substitutions as well as altering the steps so that you can make the filling with only one pan. Sweet Potatoes sound like an odd thing to put in burritos but it works. This is one of Craig's favorites because it is tasty and really hearty for a veggie meal. It's one of my favorites because while there is a bit of prep work, it only takes about 45 minutes to make and it makes several meals worth (they freeze well)!

3-4 Sweet potatoes
1T oil
1 onion, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
6 cups black beans (that is about a whole small bag cooked or 3 15 oz cans)
1 cup water
3 T chili powder
2 t cumin
4 T prepared mustard (the kind you put on hotdogs, not the spice)
Pinch cayenne
3 T soy sauce (naturally fermented is best)
12-16 Large Tortillas
8 oz cheddar cheese

Microwave the sweet potatoes until soft (or bake in the oven but I always forget to do this ahead of time and don't want to wait that long). Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet. If you don't have a fairly large skillet, you might want to use a pot since this makes a lot. Saute the onion and garlic until soft then add the beans and mash. It's easiest with a potato masher but I've used a wooden spoon before. Add the cup of water and stir in the spices, mustard and soy sauce.

By now the sweet potatos should be done. Peel and mash them. Then add to the bean mixture and stir to combine. If the bean mixture seems to be getting too dry, you can add more water. You want the mixture to be thick but you don't want it to burn :-) Continue heating until warm.

At this point, your sweet potato/bean mixture will look incredible gross and you will be worried.Don't panic, it doesn't look appetizing but it taste good. Now you just have to fill the burritos, top with cheese, roll up and bake/freeze. I can normally fill 14-16 9" burritos which is about 5 meals (They are pretty filling, I can normally only eat one but Craig can handle two).

To bake now, put them in a casserole dish and bake at 350 for about 10 minutes.

I freeze them in ziploc bags then to bake after freezing, let them thaw overnight (or a few hours if I forget to take them out which I often do :-) then bake at 350 for about 15 minutes. You can also microwave them straight from the freezer but I think they taste better baked.

I serve topped with lots of lettuce, tomatos, salsa and sour cream. See how much better that looks.

Black Bean Salad/Dip - One of my standard potluck dishes mostly because it makes a lot more than the two of us can eat but unfortunately doesn't keep very long.

15oz/2cups black beans (if using canned, drain and rinse)
1.5 cups frozen corn
1/2 cup green onions, chopped
3 plum tomatos, chopped
1/2 c cilantro
2 T Lime juice (about 1 lime's worth)
1 T Olive oil
1/2 t sugar
salt and pepper to taste
sprinkle cumin (optional)

Combine all ingredients and chill for several hours. Serve as side salad or with tortillas chips as a dip.

What about you, how do you fix black beans?