That is the question on the lips of every four year old. Well, at least mine. I recall wondering a year or so ago if we were in the 'why' stage. I can now say, with certainty, that when your child is in the 'why' stage you WILL know!
'Mama, why do policemen carry little guns?' (As opposed to Daddy's big hunting guns I suppose)
'I don't know Hunter, why do you think?'
'To shoot little bad guys?'
'I think thats probably why'
The 'why' questions continue all day long, particularly while we're driving.
'Mama, why are you stopping?'
'Because the light is red.'
'Why is the light red?'
'So the other cars get a turn to go across the road'
'If you don't stop will the policeman get you?'
'Yes, and he has before and it cost us $150.'
'Why does it cost money to not stop at the light?'
'Because the law says to stop.'
'Why is there a law?'
ETC!!!!
Its aggravating but its also very entertaining and I love seeing the little wheels in his head turning.
Saturday, May 19, 2007
Saturday, May 12, 2007
I'm back and the kitchen is clean
So last week during a thunderstorm our computer was fried by lightening! It was terrible, I went over a week without the internet. I wish I could say I caught up the housework during that time but instead I learned that its not just the computer that keeps me from doing housework. I just don't like doing it and I will avoid it, with or without excuses. I manage to maintain things but the house is never spotless. I envy the housewives I see on Wife Swap who keep their house meticulously clean. Who has that kind of energy and motivation? Its very defeating to clean with three little monsters coming along behind me tearing things up just as I put them straight.
Several days ago I had an epiphany. Although the boys tear the rest of the house apart, they don't create havoc in the kitchen. They don't dump dirty dishes in the sink and they don't clutter up the counters. AH HA, says I. I can keep the kitchen clean! So today is day three. I've been keeping the kitchen nearly spotless, washing dishes regularly throughout the day and keeping the counters wiped down. Its very refreshing, when the rest of the house looks like a tornado has just gone through it I can go sit at the kitchen table and enjoy the tranquility of ONE clean room. My goal is to keep it up for 21 days, thats how long they say it takes to form a habit.
Several days ago I had an epiphany. Although the boys tear the rest of the house apart, they don't create havoc in the kitchen. They don't dump dirty dishes in the sink and they don't clutter up the counters. AH HA, says I. I can keep the kitchen clean! So today is day three. I've been keeping the kitchen nearly spotless, washing dishes regularly throughout the day and keeping the counters wiped down. Its very refreshing, when the rest of the house looks like a tornado has just gone through it I can go sit at the kitchen table and enjoy the tranquility of ONE clean room. My goal is to keep it up for 21 days, thats how long they say it takes to form a habit.
Friday, April 27, 2007
The Hook
What is it? What is the hook about the computer that some days won't let you alone? You feel this constant draw back to the glowing screen... to mindlessly browse the internet. What are you looking for? What is drawing you back here? You don't even know, but it keeps calling you and bringing you back....
Conveniencing Ourselves to our Demise part 1
I believe our society is plagued by our modern 'conveniences'. Not only do I think it will be the undoing of our society, but it is leading to the destruction of our ecosystem as well. Of course these are all my opinions and are not founded on any research but I think I'm onto something here...
Of course there is my previous blog/rant on disposable diapers. But thats just the tip of the iceberg. Lets consider fast food. First off there is the ENORMOUS amount of waste generated by the fast food industry. But thats not the big issue. The bigger issue is what fast food does to our bodies. The over-processed, very far from the farm type of food those restaurants are feeding the American public. Obesity rates in this country are at an all-time high, over 50% of our population is considered 'obese'! Why? Convenience foods! Its a lot easier to swing through the McDonalds drive through on your way home from work than to get home and slave over the stove.
But is it worth it? What are we feeding and TEACHING our children? For one, we're perpetuating the obesity crisis. The number of obese children in the US is growing at an alarming rate. Today, 15% of children between ages 2 and 18 are overweight. And that number is sure to grow. Secondly, we're teaching them to be lazy. Sounds harsh but it is the truth! Homecooked meals are not that difficult to make. They're healthier AND cheaper. They enhance family togetherness when the family sits at the table to eat the meal you've prepared. What do you do with fast food? Throw a bag of food at each child in the back seat?
I know I sound critical and self righteous. I have realized the error of my ways and I'm determined to do something about it. I'm hoping to convince a few others as well. Maybe I'm preaching to the choir, and if so, KUDOS to you! But to the rest of you, cut out fast food. Skip the drive thru and feed your family some real food and feel GOOD about it.
Of course there is my previous blog/rant on disposable diapers. But thats just the tip of the iceberg. Lets consider fast food. First off there is the ENORMOUS amount of waste generated by the fast food industry. But thats not the big issue. The bigger issue is what fast food does to our bodies. The over-processed, very far from the farm type of food those restaurants are feeding the American public. Obesity rates in this country are at an all-time high, over 50% of our population is considered 'obese'! Why? Convenience foods! Its a lot easier to swing through the McDonalds drive through on your way home from work than to get home and slave over the stove.
But is it worth it? What are we feeding and TEACHING our children? For one, we're perpetuating the obesity crisis. The number of obese children in the US is growing at an alarming rate. Today, 15% of children between ages 2 and 18 are overweight. And that number is sure to grow. Secondly, we're teaching them to be lazy. Sounds harsh but it is the truth! Homecooked meals are not that difficult to make. They're healthier AND cheaper. They enhance family togetherness when the family sits at the table to eat the meal you've prepared. What do you do with fast food? Throw a bag of food at each child in the back seat?
I know I sound critical and self righteous. I have realized the error of my ways and I'm determined to do something about it. I'm hoping to convince a few others as well. Maybe I'm preaching to the choir, and if so, KUDOS to you! But to the rest of you, cut out fast food. Skip the drive thru and feed your family some real food and feel GOOD about it.
Our impact on Planet Earth
Lately I've been giving this a lot of thought. I truly feel that we are destroying our ecosystem with all of our 'modern conveniences'. This morning I started pondering the disposable diaper issue. We use cloth diapers but haven't always and still use some disposable diapers. I decided this morning to crunch some numbers.
The US Population is approximately 300 million. EVERY SINGLE ONE of those 300 million people wore diapers til an average age of two. A portion of the population, the over 50 crowd, were born before the modern 'convenience' of disposables, so we'll assume they were cloth diapered. So a rough 'guesstimate' would be 50% of the population, or 150 million people wore disposable diapers. Lets assume that that their parents changed them every 3 hours, until age two. By their second birthday each child has used 5,840 diapers. Multiply that by the 150 million (half the US population) and thats 876 TRILLION disposable diapers. TRILLION!
I was just searching the internet to find out a weight for those 876 trillion diapers but to no avail. Instead I found a few 'studies' citing that the environmental impact between cloth and disposables is negligible due to energy and water consumption in the care of cloth. Now I'm no scientist but that sounds plain ignorant to me. Nothing can convince me to believe that washing diapers in my home and line drying OR drying them in my dryer is more detrimental to the environment than dumping 7000 disposable diapers per child into a landfill.
Maybe the same people who wrote those studies should start advocating disposable clothing, since the environmental impact should be the same whether we wash and reuse our clothing or toss them into a landfill and buy new ones. Thats what I got out of it, ignorant rubbish. I wonder how much the disposable diaper companies paid them to publish their 'studies'.
The US Population is approximately 300 million. EVERY SINGLE ONE of those 300 million people wore diapers til an average age of two. A portion of the population, the over 50 crowd, were born before the modern 'convenience' of disposables, so we'll assume they were cloth diapered. So a rough 'guesstimate' would be 50% of the population, or 150 million people wore disposable diapers. Lets assume that that their parents changed them every 3 hours, until age two. By their second birthday each child has used 5,840 diapers. Multiply that by the 150 million (half the US population) and thats 876 TRILLION disposable diapers. TRILLION!
I was just searching the internet to find out a weight for those 876 trillion diapers but to no avail. Instead I found a few 'studies' citing that the environmental impact between cloth and disposables is negligible due to energy and water consumption in the care of cloth. Now I'm no scientist but that sounds plain ignorant to me. Nothing can convince me to believe that washing diapers in my home and line drying OR drying them in my dryer is more detrimental to the environment than dumping 7000 disposable diapers per child into a landfill.
Maybe the same people who wrote those studies should start advocating disposable clothing, since the environmental impact should be the same whether we wash and reuse our clothing or toss them into a landfill and buy new ones. Thats what I got out of it, ignorant rubbish. I wonder how much the disposable diaper companies paid them to publish their 'studies'.
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