Tuesday 28 June 2016

Seasonal Living.....

A book I ordered after seeing it recommended on a blog was delivered this week....have had my nose buried in it ever since it arrived.  It offers up advice on how to live in accordance with ,  nature and your soul...adhering to seasonal and yearly rhythms and living simple and natural lives, honouring yourself and nature....as with all of these type of books some of it is a little unrealistic but have certainly enjoyed reading it and will definitely try to stick to the parts I find relevant to myself .

One of the themes is mindfulness and being in every moment...this is the sunrise from my bedroom window this morning...just glorious but I don't usually make the time to enjoy it....I took the time to really embrace the beauty ...well worth it.


Beautiful sunrise seen from my bedroom window.
 The Winter Solstice has come and gone and I really want to feel the connection with the seasons and the cycles of the moon which is covered in some depth in the book.....It says Winter is the time for hibernation, rest, reflections and preparation.  The books highlights how the pull of the moon affects us and I have to admit I personally find it very hard to sleep when it's a full moon...apparently this is very common....so much to think about.


the book involves taking the time to ask yourself lots of questions to help connect yourself to what is essential ...... nurture the body, invigorate the mind and lift the spirit. Sounds good to me.

Wednesday 15 June 2016

What To Do About Must Haves .....!!

The no plastic July challenge is coming up....I am going to get involved this year and give it all I've got...some great information shared by Tammy from Gippsland Unwrapped is terracycle ... it's a great website to join to help with recycling the things that seem impossible to give up...like toothpaste !! I have very sensitive teeth and no amount of home made paste is going to help with that.  I find there are some things that are unavoidable and the angst associated with "what to do with the packaging" has been a genuine concern.....at terracycle  you can drop off or send your items to them (for free) to be recycled...I love this.

Empty toothpaste tubes, toothbrushes, dental floss cases can all be recycled

I run a small business from home and receive quite a few express post bags and mail satchels (completely out of my control as people send water testing kits and samples)... this plastic can also be dropped off / sent to terracycle for recycling....there are several other product groups that can be recycled including plastic cleaning product spray packs and pump packs.... well worth joining their project and making sure that the things you find difficult to replace without the use of plastic can still be recycled and not sent to landfill...
Plastic satchels, post packs can be sent to terracyle where they are recycled.
  
Something that I always find poses difficulties for eco solutions is parties....I threw a surprise 60th birthday party for my lovely brother on Sunday....catering for 35 poses lots of decisions regarding plates, cutlery, cups, decorations etc....I decorated with paper lanterns I had saved from my gboy's baby shower over 5 years ago!!.... re-purposed decorations from his birthday party in March and my daughters party last month...she also had left over paper plates (pink with white polka dots no less) , napkins and plastic forks....they were all going to be binned so I had to weigh up the choice of them going into the bin or being used for my brother's 60th...it made sense to use them and I added some bamboo paper plates which are sold as eco but I still think china plates, cutlery and cloth napkins would have been better.....but it seemed so much worse to throw unused items away rather than use them....the rubbish that went into our bin at the end of the day was upsetting though!
Speeches .....I think Rob has forgiven me for surprising him with a 60th Party.
I'm sure difficulties will arise in July but I hope that I can find solutions to drastically reduce (if not completely eliminate) the amount of plastic that enters and leaves our home.

Sunday 5 June 2016

Making Sense of Plastic.....

I read/follow lots of blogs from people whose lifestyle choices are similar to my own.  Simplicity, permaculture, growing your own food and reducing waste etc.....I have followed Tammy on her blog for several months....she is a huge campaigner for the no plastic revolution and is an extremely passionate and committed individual...I was amazed to meet her as a guest speaker at last week's Permaculture meeting.....Small World ...she also lives in the Gippsland area and came to the meeting to discuss/share her no plastic journey..... I am aware and do try to reduce the use of  plastic , but Tammy highlighted loads of areas where it is possible to refuse the use of plastic...including taking her own containers to the butcher..... which I hadn't thought of myself and while I do take my own carry-bag the butcher puts the meat in single use freezer bags ........don't think I have been making quite enough effort.....very inspired to step up and introduce more of her ideas.  It does take quite a bit more effort but plastic is a huge environmental problem that will not go away unless people refuse to use it in all it's shapes and forms.

Image of Tammy from a report in a local newspaper.
It just takes a few minutes to check out these horrific images of seabirds who have died with stomachs full of discarded plastic which has found it's way into the ocean.
Heartbreaking image of decomposing Albatross full of plastic stomach contents.
A lot of plastic bottle caps....which can be a difficult one to avoid because they are used on so many containers...even eco products...... That is my goal for the next 6 months....try my hardest to avoid any purchases that have plastic tops...and keep the ones I haven't managed to avoid in a jar as a reminder of how I need to do better......  How do you avoid these?

Wednesday 1 June 2016

Au Revoir Autumn.....Welcome Winter !!

The last days of May here in Drouin were crisp as we headed into Winter.....but the sun still put in an appearance most days....A lovely autumn day trip to Warburton with the girls was a real treat....the walking path along the river is so beautiful.....enjoyed lunch and bought delicious home made pies which we had for dinner.
My man with the girls...they loved the walk with all the new smells...lots of distractions

Warburton township is so beautiful...the river is a major attraction.
The Lake/Pond  around the corner from our house has a visitor who arrives most days and spends several hours dipping his head in and out......fishing for whatever.....  I was astounded that we would have a pelican so far from the coast....swimming around on this small lake....by himself....It's a real joy to see him there ....usually its just all the local ducks.
Fishing in the Pond.
He appears not in the least disturbed by me taking his picture.
This month I also joined the group at Baw Baw Beekeepers.....I am keen to get my own hive set up and the members share lots of useful information ...and discuss any issues they are experiencing....a really diverse group and a great bunch of people ....My first meeting and it was a honey tasting from everyone's hives!!!....amazing how different they tasted.... a great experience....I was actually able to detect an orange blossom honey...my favourite...among the 24 samples...it was the only one I was able to guess by taste......delicious.



My eldest daughter also celebrates her birthday in May.....(yes I have two Taureans!! ).....We all shared a lovely dinner at her favourite local restaurant....free meal for the birthday girl, who can resist that......my gorgeous gboy pulled his goofy look....can't resist adding his recent school photo to show his beautiful face......I love this little guy so much...I miss my Monday's minding him now he has started school. 

His fresh faced smile.......gorgeous
Birthday celebrations ....