Festival of Trees

A Common Heritage

"Adoption of the name Salish Sea better describes a common natural heritage for a vast international water system for which political boundaries are not real. Local names are kept, but a richer, complex setting is recognized and celebrated."

-Editorial, The Seattle Times

Read the full editorial.

Everything + The Sink

Peach and Plum

Imogen served up a plum to her stuffed dog Peach, alongside a "chicken for drinking."

Love Bug

Holding Out Soap

Perspective

You Sure Are

"I'm a 'fart' little 'gill,' 'amn't' I?" -Immy

Magnifique

I just showed this picture of Glinda the Good Witch to Imogen, who exclaimed "magnifique!"

A Tea Party

Smurfette

Oops

A couple weeks ago, Imogen wrote "OOPS," her first written word.

She learned to recognize it in her book Blue Hat, Green Hat.

Bonfire Night

Up Her Sleeve

To fix kids' shirt-sleeve cuffs stained with paint or ink, crop both sleeves (to match) above the highest stain and stitch around the new cuffs to prevent unraveling.

Saturday's Child

Seeing a sun break for the first time in days, parents across Western Washington were heard to say, "Let's get out of the house!"

Our first stop was the Port Angeles Library where the Fire Department was showing off its equipment and reading to kids. Thanks to "really nice" firefighters, Imogen got to go inside the engine three times! Next was the Farmers Market where I managed to grab some beets before being pulled along to the beach by Immy. It was free-admission day at the Marine Science Center, so we spent a lot of time exploring the touch tanks and exhibits (molting kelp crabs and skate egg cases are amazing). Then it was back to the Farmers Market for a cinnamon roll from Camden and Berkeley's dad.

Saltair

"I want to go to the sea."

Imogen, this morning

Rock the Vote

"Bikini Bread"

Baked & Delivered with Love by Grammy

The Botany of Desire

Watch the excellent PBS documentary based on Michael Pollan's book.

Image: "Great Bearer," 1894, by Deborah Griscom Passmore

USDA Pomological Watercolor Collection, Apples

Trick-or-Treat Night

Catgirl

"Gaea" (our cat),

by Imogen

The Salish Sea

It's official.

Map: Stefan Freelan

'Pooky Stuff

Little Ims is so excited about Halloween this year. She's been talking a lot about "'pooky houses" and "trick-or-treat night."

'I Hided Myself'

A Seattle 4-year old nearly became the victim of a violent sex offender sent to her family's home this summer by a company hired to install fireplace doors.

Link: The Washington State Sex Offender Information Center

Flu Shots

Imogen got the seasonal flu shot last week and H1N1 mist this morning at Clallam County Public Health. Because she is 3, boosters for both were recommended in a month.

Field Trip: Tree Farm

Imogen has snack this morning on our co-op preschool's field trip to a Christmas tree farm

One Hand in the Dishpan

Photographer Imogen Cunningham said during the mothering years of her professional life, she had "one hand in the dishpan, the other in the darkroom."

Imogen's twins Rondal and Padraic Partridge, 1922

Image: Imogen Cunningham Trust

Sew Sweet

This morning Imogen told me she wanted to sew. I thought she was skilled enough for a real needle--a big darning needle with a blunt tip--so I threaded it with pink embroidery thread. She tried sewing felt, but the needle was too big, so I put cross-stitch fabric in an embroidery hoop. Imogen sewed all by herself with no instruction!

Life Without Vinyl

Avoiding Vinyl Products At Home

What products are made of vinyl, and what are the healthy alternatives?

Shower curtains: choose curtains made of cotton, polyester, or nylon.

Toys: avoid soft plastic toys, such as plastic squeeze toys and soft plastic dolls, as much as possible. Healthy alternatives include plush and cloth toys, and bath toys made of fabric (such as animal-shaped bath mitts).

Rain gear: choose waterproof outerwear coated with polyurethane and rubber boots (check tags on clothing and avoid any item that contains vinyl, or PVC).

Flooring: choose linoleum, cork, bamboo, or wood instead of vinyl.

Wall coverings: choose zero-VOC paint, paper-based wallpaper, or wood paneling.

Windows and doors: the healthiest choice is wood, especially from certified sustainable sources.

Plastic wrap and food containers: plastic bags, plastic food storage containers, and cling wrap for residential use are made of PVC-free alternatives. Commercial-grade cling wrap is usually made of vinyl (PVC). If you buy deli items such as cheese that are packaged in cling wrap, cut off a thin layer where the food contacted the wrap and store in waxed paper or a food storage container.

Other products that can be made of PVC include: siding, electrical wire coatings, packaging, piping, garden hoses, fencing and decking, inflatable furniture, shutters and blinds, mattress covers, and notebook covers.

There are so many vinyl products to avoid, where should I start?

• If you have children, start by replacing vinyl toys that they mouth, chew, or play with regularly. Soft plastic toys such as bath toys, squeeze toys, and dolls are commonly made of vinyl. Learn more about safer toys and explore a searchable database of over 1000 toys at www.HealthyToys.org.
• Replace vinyl shower curtains with cloth curtains.
• Choose cloth lunch bags instead of vinyl lunch boxes. Lunch boxes made of plastic are typically made of vinyl.
• Don’t allow children to drink from garden hoses of any type.

Explore www.SafeStartForKids.org for more tips on choosing the safest children’s products!

Source: Washington Toxics Coalition

Citizen of the World

"I'm not American, I'm a person!"

-Imogen, laughing

A Book About Design

Read it.

Image: Macmillan

Jack the Lantern

Come Again a Saturday

Image: Cliff Mass Weather Blog

The Birthday Boys

Happy Birthdays to Gabriel + Durkin!

Image: Little Dreamer Designs

Stitchhikers

Collector-Redistributor

Immy's in what I call the "Collector-Redistributor Phase." Today, she nearly emptied her dresser and dress-up box and relocated the contents to the bathroom.

Pumpkin Craft

Imogen brought this pumpkin home from Sunny Farms and gave it a face.

Patch Work

Before: Second-hand patchwork blanket

with avocado-green acrylic yarn ties

After: Refashioned with pink fabric discs

and embroidery-thread ties

H1N1 Vaccine

Below is a sample of H1N1 vaccine recommendations with respect to pregnant women and children only (the websites have recommendations and rationale for the entire population):

The United States Centers for Disease Control recommends that pregnant women and all people from 6 months through 24 years of age receive the 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccine.

Public Health Agency of Canada advises that pregnant women and children 6 months to under 5 years of age will benefit most from the H1N1 vaccine.

The World Health Organization recommends that priority for the vaccine should be given to pregnant women, followed respectively by people over 6 months of age with chronic health conditions, healthy people age 15 to 49 and then healthy children.

Double Digits

Happy 10th Birthday YaYa!

You have always been extraordinary.

We love you.

Image: Red Stamp