MAGIC MUSHROOMS

image via photobucket

Morel mushroom "hunting" season has officially begun. I have never even bothered to look before, but my new found respect for the mushroom has me quite curious. The farmer's markets and country stores sell them for $20+ per lb. My neighbors across the street just found a bunch of them in the woods behind their house, so I know they are close by! I'm more than a little freaked out about the fact that there are false morels that are poisonous but look quite similar also in season right now. There are a few distinguishing traits that make identifying them easier, but if I do find any, I'll be sure to get a second opinion before I serve them up!!

It's Here ...

This past weekend was absolutely perfect and kicked off the beginning of (our) boating season. We went out with Jay and Bones, a couple of our friends, and had a great time! It was really weird to be out before all of the trees were green and covered with leaves.It was well into the 80's, but the water was no where near warm enough to jump in!

We cruised around and also ventured into a little cove where Bones did some fishing and Benny explored the shore.It was such a perfect day that I couldn't help but cheese :) I can only assume it will snow next week!!

WEEKLY RANDOM PHOTO(S)

Benny showing off his big, strong muscles!!!

Celebrate Earth Day Every DayTake the time out on April 22nd to truly celebrate our beautiful planet and acknowledge that we cannot continue to dismiss her worsening condition! We need to spread awareness and show people that even one good act for Mother Earth is better than none at all. Hopefully, through the help of legislators and proactive citizens, we will be able to slowly reverse some of the damaging effects we've had on her. It starts right here with you and continues on as you spread the message to a friend, co-worker or family member and then they do the same. Saving the planet doesn't have to be an impossible feat. Get your children involved and make it fun! After all, they will be the future generation responsible for keeping this green movement alive and improving upon it so that many more generations will be able to enjoy this planet's beauty. Here are some small ways in which you can help make a big difference:

1. TURN OFF LIGHTS AND APPLIANCES you aren't using. Sounds easy enough, right? Turn off the lights every time you exit a room. Simply turning off your computer or television when you aren't using them will be taking a small step in the green direction. Turning your thermostat up or down even one degree will cut down on energy use and in turn, save you some green!

2. PLANT SOMETHING. Plant a seed, a tree or an entire garden, depending on the space available, and reap the benefits of cleaner air and the beauty of watching something grow. Children love digging in the dirt and will be more than enthusiastic about helping you! Have them help water and keep the weeds under control!
3. GROW YOUR OWN FOOD. Take planting something to a whole new level and grow your own fruit and vegetables. Not only will your homegrown produce far exceed the store-bought variety in taste, it won't be tainted with harmful chemicals or pesticides that can also seep into our drinking water. Even organic produce can take it's toll on the environment when it has to travel from across the country (or from another one entirely) just to make it onto your plate!

4. USE LESS WATER. Simply turning the water off when brushing your teeth or hand-washing your dirty dishes rather than loading them in the dishwasher every time will make a worthwhile impact. Opt for showers over baths and try limiting them to once a day as well as shortening their duration, if possible. You can even build your own rainwater collection system, like this one, which you can then use the recycled water for your lawn and garden, creating less waste!
5. RECYCLE! This is the biggest thing you can do to drastically cut down the amount of waste thrown into landfills each day. Some cities offer recycling drop-offs so that community members have the option of recycling without the extra monthly cost usually involved. In order to make sorting the recyclables easier, choose a container for each type of material and let the kids decorate and label each one with non-toxic paints. Keep them actively involved in the recycling process and make it fun for them. You can turn sorting into a game and turn in your aluminum cans for cash! Let the kids spend the proceeds or save them up so that you can do something fun together as a family with the money you've made. Click here to find a recycling center near you.
6. REDUCE the amount of waste you create. Opt for regular plates, silverware and cloth napkins rather than their tossable counterparts. Instead of buying cans or individual bottles of soda or water, buy two-liters or gallons. Read magazines and newspapers online instead of in print. Whenever possible, buy in bulk. Sure, individual servings are convenient, but they come at a higher price both out-of-pocket and at the expense of our planet. Even though recycling dramatically reduces waste, there is still a lot of energy involved in physically getting those recyclables to the processing plant and turning them back into a reusable materials.
7. REUSE things. The disposable mentality that our society has so freely adopted is doing a great disservice to our earth and cannot continue without drastically negative results. Wash plastic containers and ziplock bags and use them several times before recycling them. If you are cleaning out the garage or moving, donate unwanted items to the good-will instead of trashing them. Donate (appropriate) magazines and newspapers to local schools so that they can use them for art projects, etc. Bring your own canvas or reusable totes to carry your groceries in instead of the paper or plastic bags at the store. Use both sides of a piece of paper before it ends up in the trash. Try to fix what is broken before you replace it with something new!
8. DRIVE LESS. Walk or ride your bike instead of driving whenever possible. If you live in a remote area, you can still do your part by combining errands and scheduling multiple activities in one outing so that you don't have to drive as often. Carpool for your drive to work, school or extracurriculars, if that is an option. You can search for riding matches here. You'll be cutting down on carbon emissions and saving money on your fuel costs.
9. CLEAN UP YOUR COMMUNITY. Whether you volunteer through a local organization to clean up parks in your area or simply collect trash and recyclables from the ground in your neighborhood, no good deed is ever too small! You can easily teach children through your positive example that littering is wrong and taking pride in your community by keeping it clean helps make our world a more beautiful place.
10. COMPOST. It is way easier than you might think and the result is rich, organic soil that your plants will love. Decaying food and yard waste, buried in landfills, releases methane gas, which is a greenhouse gas even more harmful to the environment than carbon dioxide. By composting, you will keep a considerable amount of waste from entering a landfill and causing more harm to our ozone layer. You can compost vegetables, fruits, coffee grinds, egg shells, tea bags, paper towels, napkins and newspaper (shredded works best) from inside and combine it with grass clippings, yard waste and dead leaves from outside. You can easily create your own compost bin or pile in your backyard. Just make sure you keep it in a black plastic container or covered with black tarp and in direct sunlight and "stir" it often so that it will decompose quickly. You want the materials to remain damp, but not too wet. If you are limited on space or don't have yard waste, an indoor home composter that emits no odor, like this one, would be the perfect solution. Learn more about composting here.

Earth day comes only once a year but forming green habits and instilling them in our children will last a lifetime. Whatever each of us can do to reverse the negative affects we've already had on our planet will be better than simply doing nothing at all. Plant the seed, spread the word...

MAKE A DIFFERENCE!!!

image via Hinton Library

The Sweet Smell of Spring

It's just after eleven and the morning dew has all but disappeared, though the faint smell of honeysuckle has not. The scent of fresh-cut grass and wild chives lingers in the breeze and the familiar sound of tractors mowing is a sure sign that spring has arrived. Just as promised, She has littered the hillsides and lined the country roads with daffodils. The blossoms on the apple trees look stunning against the barren branches of her cousins, which are just beginning to bud. Against a perfect blue sky, a yellow butterfly flutters gracefully without a care. The goldfinches are beginning to brighten and gather to gossip around the feeder hanging from a tree. The urge to begin planting my garden is strong, but I know better than to test Mother Nature this early. Here in Ohio, she always has a few tricks up her sleeve. It wouldn't be entirely crazy for it to snow in April (it already has twice this year ;) For now, I'll work on organizing my seed collection and start some seedlings indoors. It would be best to wait until almost Mother's Day before I really start going crazy out there. I can plant my potatoes right now and I'm even tempted to try out broccoli, which is another veggie that can withstand lower temperatures. My annual potted herb garden might extend to the flower bed on the side of the house this year as well. I couldn't grow the basil and mint fast enough last summer...too many mojitos and grape-basil drinks!

I'm taking my lead from Mother Nature herself this season, and I will continue to grow and bloom, one day at a time. Despite the occasional rain clouds and thunderstorms, it's hard justify transplanting your entire life when you have deep roots that are tangled in rich soil. I'm starting to realize that without any rain, we couldn't truly grow and appreciate the warmth of the sunshine.

Hope is in bloom...

Weekly Random Photo My absolute favorite piece of artwork hanging on our walls...a personally hand-signed print of Jerry Garcia's "Feeding in the Light". I could literally melt in this piece!

(UN)GRATEFUL MAMA

The past few days have been cold and grey, and I'm not just referring to outside. I know that everyone's family is somewhat dysfunctional, but mine brings a whole new meaning to the word! You can choose your friends, but you don't have a choice when it comes to family. Hurtful words were said that can't be taken back. It's funny how when you're really young, your parents can do no wrong in your eyes and they have the answers to everything. Then, we grow up and sometimes our theories on life don't measure up at all. What may be so important to one person might matter little to the next. Sometimes we are so caught up in ourselves, we forget that other people in our lives need us as well. Some people are so concerned with their own personal gain and search for happiness that they completely discount everyone else's. Sometimes we are sick of reaching out only to be hurt and disappointed time and time again. I know that it's not the cost of a gift, but the thought behind it that matters most. Try explaining that to a small child though! I want my son to have a special bond with his grandparents that comes from spending time and doing fun things together. That doesn't cost a dime! Material goods cannot possibly act as reparations for someones absence, but they would be better than nothing at all...

If that makes me ungrateful, I guess that's what I am!

EASTER WEEKEND WRAP

Outside Sovereign Collective, a tattoo shop in the short north where Sidro was doing a guest spot while he was in Columbus.Watching Mikey get inked......his Jerry Garcia portrait almost finished!My "traditional-style" butterfly with not-so-traditional colors!


Easter Sunday at Mom's house...
Rileigh, my little cousin, cute enough to put the Easter bunny out of a job!
My little stinker who REFUSED to allow me to take any decent pictures of him dressed up. After he was half-undressed, disheveled and dirty, I was able to snap this ONE photo :(

WEEKLY RANDOM PHOTO

image via www.blackjackhumboldt.com

Somewhere over the rainbow ;)

Etta's Lunchbox Cafe

After two days of snow in April, we were more than ready to enjoy some more spring-like weather today! Other than a trip to buy an Easter egg coloring kit, we had nothing else on the agenda, so we decided to take roam the "hills" in search of a new place to eat. I have always wanted to check out Etta's Lunchbox Cafe, but for one reason or another, we just hadn't made it out there yet. I am so pleased that we finally discovered this little jewel!! Driving through the little town that it was closest to, I was starting to have second thoughts, but when we pulled up and saw a bunch of animals around the side of the cafe, I knew Ben would be thrilled no matter what the food tasted like!

When we walked in, Bob Marley was playing and there were all sorts of paintings and drawings on the walls (for sale). There was a large back room they called a "lunchbox museum", but it was $2.50 to enter and Ben wasn't interested, so we skipped it. In another room, they had tons of lunchboxes on the walls for sale and it was interesting to see a few familiar ones from when I was a child!
Besides the fact that the owner was a total hippie and as nice as could be, my favorite part about the little cafe was that all of their ingredients were fresh, natural and local (whenever possible). After going back and forth for what seemed like forever, we finally decided on the pepperoni pizza. The dough and the sauce were both made from scratch and it was, hands down, the best pizza I've had in the Hocking Hills! While we waited for it to cook, we went outside and checked out all of the animals. There were baby goats that were only six days old, llamas, chickens and horses. I would definitely eat there again and would recommend it to any one who is visiting or lives in the area!

Racing Runs in the Family

Myself, I'm not one for going fast. In fact, I've never even gotten a speeding ticket! But, on the Bray side...that is another story entirely! Mike and his brother, Joe, are both adrenaline junkies, although I think Mike might be a little bit crazier! Joe has definitely passed this "dare-devil" gene onto his three boys. His oldest son, Skyler, is ten and has been racing quarter-midgets for two years now. Landon, who just turned five, has been practicing a lot and wants to start racing as well! I'm afraid that Benny may also have this gene because he was pretty insistent this past weekend at Skyler's race that he wanted to get in a car a race on the track! He watched his entire race (and quite a few others) glued to the fence in amazement. All he kept screaming was, "Go! Go! Go!"

From what I've gathered, this is a pretty expensive "activity" to get involved in once you add up the race car, the trailer, the parts, the entry fees, the traveling expenses (races are all over the state and country). Not to mention, it's quite a commitment for the parents as well! We always have a good time cheering Skyler on, but it's not something I would necessarily encourage. Those cars go pretty fast and sometimes they CRASH!! Unfortunately, if it's something Benny really wants to get into, I might be outnumbered on this one!!This was Ben's favorite car...Lightening McQueen, of course!

Weekly Random PhotoI have this new appreciation, umm, I mean, love for moss...so much so, I decided to bring the outdoors INSIDE!! I might be the only one in the house who thinks "moss is boss", but I love the unique and simple statement that it makes! And, since I'm the boss when it comes to decorating...for now, it stays!!

Day in the Sun Despite some early morning rain showers, the sun was shining brightly by the time my little man had woken up this morning! After breakfast, we put on our mud clothes, grabbed a pail and the camera, and set off into the woods for an adventure. After last week's amphibian preschool class at Clear Creek, Ben won't stop talking about tadpoles, frogs and salamanders. He was determined we would find some... No puddle of water went undisturbed as we spent hours on our pursuit. Meanwhile, I was hoping to score some morel mushrooms which should be sprouting up any time now! We didn't find any tadpoles or frogs, but his diligence did pay off... We found some eggs (possibly salamander) that were in big jelly-like clumps, much like ones we saw last Friday. By the time I thought to take a picture of them, though, they had been poked and prodded so much that they looked more like a pile of mud than anything else! ...still looking!!!Stopping to enjoy the first signs of spring!!!Finally ready to end the amphibian search......but still not ready to go inside. Inspired to enjoy the rest of the day outdoors, Ben and I jumped into the truck and drove down the street to this covered bridge I've always meant to stop at, but never have... ...loving the wooden beams!!!We ended up having an AWESOME day, just exploring and hanging out together! To finish off our afternoon adventure, we ended up at Clear Creek, visiting two historic cabins that were always on my "list", but hadn't gotten around to checking out yet. Unfortunately, the batteries in my camera died before we got there!!

YIPPIE...IT'S FINALLY SPRING!!!