The Four-Finger Flapper goes to Sunday School

Remember those fun cootie catchers that we made when we were kids?  Sometimes we called them 'four-finger flappers' and they served to amuse us by telling us our benign fortunes.  As in: your day will be filled with laughter or you're going to marry a prince or (puzzlingly) you have freckles.

My daughter came upon one of these in a kids magazine.  She was absolutely taken with this toy, offering to read our fortunes over and over again.  I found myself being increasingly unsettled about this simple plaything.  I heard myself explaining to her that the fortunes are pretend and you can't count on them and don't trust things that you read in magazines.

Then I closed my mouth and opened up the craft supplies and my sacred text.

The results: the four-finger flapper goes to Sunday School!

Inside, instead of wispy promises, are words of truth and well-being.

Words my daughters can count on, trust, and look for their fulfillment.

With promises like this, they can read my future all day long.


Update: here are the verses that I used.

You are fearfully and wonderfully made!

It says so in Psalm 139.

God has plans to prosper you and not to harm you. 

It says so in Jeremiah 29.

You have the mind of Christ. It says so in 1 Corinthians 2.

Take delight in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.

It says so in Psalm 37.

Your citizenship is in heaven! It says so in Philippians 3.

You are the work of God’s hands, like a potter shapes clay.  

It says so in Isaiah 64.

You are a child of God, shining like a star in the universe. 

It says so in Philippians 2.

May you grow into a woman of God, clothed with strength and dignity, just like it says in Proverbs 31. 

Use What You Have, insulated lunch bag

A friend of mine handed me an insulated grocery bag and whispered, "Let's talk."

Her daughter needed a lunch bag to bring to preschool.  The mom had an insulated grocery bag with a top that didn't latch anymore.  She asked if I could help her, and could it please involve purple fabric.

Yes!

So we found a style that she liked and fit into my ability level.  Then I spent a sunny winter afternoon with my sewing machine.

The result:

 

Because the insulated bag is from Ikea, this just might be considered an Ikea-hack!

Skill-share, Mystery Wellness Foods

What do you get when you cross a Girls Night In with wanting to learn something new with a feisty cold/flu season?

You get a room full of cheerful ladies with ideas, samples, and skills to share.  You get yogurt, kefir, vanilla extract, sprouts, kombucha, and lots of snacks.

My favorite thing about all of the living foods that we talked about is that, aside from a bit of attention at the beginning and the end, these foods pretty much prepare themselves.  And they are so much cheaper and fresher than their supermarket counterparts.  And, because so many of them are loaded with healthy bacteria, they prevent against sickness. Which is so much smarter than a trip to the doctor's or a bottle of medicine.  Sign me up!

Here is SL explaining her experiences with the Stove Top Method and the Crock Pot method of making yogurt, and her uses of the resulting whey.

She brought homemade vanilla yogurt samples.  She also brought some homemade vanilla extract, xylitol mouthwash, and peppermint mouthwash.  Overachieve much, SL?

Here is AMH sharing her mother-in-law's kefir grains (curds?).  She whipped up some delightful kefir/spinach/orange smoothies and won us all over.

I passed around jars of sprouted wheat berries and some legumes.

Garden in a jar, anyone?

I referred to this diagram, sent to me by TC, for inspiration.

What can you do with sprouts?  Well, they sure do jazz up a grilled cheese sandwich!

The highlight of the whole night, for me anyway, (no, it wasn't the after-hours reenactment of childbirth, although that was a close second) was the kombucha demonstration by LE.

Phrases like fermented tea, distilled water, scoby hotel, and continuous brew now have a little more meaning.  And the kombucha was oh-so-tasty!  As soon as my house stays about 70 degrees, I'll get my first batch started.

As far as the non-mysterious snacks that we enjoyed, there was the all-famous Chunky Salsa, the Chocolate Marble Bread with Ganache, an impromptu potato frittata, and some Curried Nuts.

As an FYI, for the Curried Nuts, you just toss into a crockpot 28 oz of almonds/cashews/walnuts/pecans, 1/4 cup oil, 3 T butter, 1.5 t ground ginger, 1.5 t curry powder, 1 t salt, 1 t sugar.  Cook on Low for 2.5 hours, stirring several times throughout.

For my first project, though, I think I'll start another batch of yogurt and expand from there!

So this is Christmas!

There's been a flurry of activity in our family, both exciting and sweet.  Here a few of those moments.

Wishing you and yours much merriness!

Ah, Lunasa.

You gotta love Lunasa.  This online farmers' market is such a creative idea for connecting food producers with local customers in a warm, festive way.  In fact, I first connected with Lunasa during their December Open House Market one year ago.

This past Friday was their first of two December Open House Markets, so anyone (members and non-members alike) are welcome to come.  It's housed in a vacant barn at the Washtenaw Food Hub, so that's always fun!

There was a host of beautiful and delicious items.  There were regular farmers' market goods like eggs, meats, jams, breads, and produce.

Then, just for the yule of it, there were vendors who brought their jewelry, yarn, cutting boards, and teepee tents.

Intrigued?  See for yourself at the next Open House Market on December 21st!

Last stop for this crazy train

Percolating in the back of my head for the last three weeks was the probably the largest, riskiest, most creative scheme I've had yet.  So large, risky, and creative, that to most people (including myself, immediate family, and strangers on the street) it seemed borderline crazy.

The facts: an abandoned property with a condemned home was being auctioned off by the county treasurer's office this past weekend.  The property's backyard is adjacent to our own backyard.  The lot is 0.43 acres, is just 1 mile south of a state university, is just a couple of blocks west of our city's pedestrian friendly downtown, is around the corner from a forward-thinking gardening non-profit.  The home's listing claims it is 2500 square feet, with 7 bedrooms.

Right away I think: total green rehab (solar panels by SolarYpsi, geothermal heating/cooling, local tradesmen to do the work), Bed & Breakfast, Retreat Center offering sustainability skill-sharing events (breadmaking, knitting, spinning, couples retreats, gardening, canning, etc, etc, etc), with a couple of friendly alpaca decorating the backyard.

This idea lived on and gained momentum in my head while I talked it up to anyone who would listen, including a handful of city officials.  The conversation's purpose was to work out the details, gauge public reaction, and gather ideas for funding.  All of those things were successful!  Ah, but, another bidder, with a more concrete plan (and hopefully fewer city ordinances to amend), is now the owner of this property.

I was surprised and disappointed, but a little bit relieved when the auction ended with the word "Sold!" next to the listing.  I hope the new owners are alpaca-friendly!

Thanks to all of you who rode this crazy train with me, smiling and nodding politely while I unfolded this idea out before you!

KindleFest, 2012

I'm happy to report that my first outdoor night market was lots of fun.  While I'm not exactly sure what the word KindleFest means in German (Kristy, wanna help me out?), for me it meant 'best market ever'!

The booths were so beautiful, colorful, fragrant, creative.  The vendors were cheerful and welcoming.  And the customers were curious and generous.

Here are some visuals:

warming station

sweet wooden dollhouse

soap, not fudge!

fairy houses

wooden cars and trucks

what's a night market without a lantern parade?

wooden spoons

beeswax candles

skinny santas

here's my booth, notice the fun mobiles of the vendor next door!

Next market, Lunasa, Friday 4 - 7pm, Washtenaw Food Hub!