More Changes

A little less than two weeks ago, we spent our first night in our new home. Moving from the city to a small town (population less than 400) would mean lots of changes and we knew it when we made the decision. But I was totally unprepared for such a disruption in the way we eat! Ironically, this area is full of farmers but doesn't sell any locally produced food! To get locally produced food, I will have to drive into the city, which is half an hour down the highway, too far to go more than once or twice a week. 

After several trips to the only local grocery store, a very small IGA, it became apparent that not only was I not going to see any local food, but there isn't any organic either! With the exception of Horizon Organic Skim Milk. I don't want skim milk! If I'm not buying raw milk, I prefer whole milk. Their egg choices are store brand or Egg and I Farm (which is local but is also your typical inhumane egg farm with miserable birds in tiny cages). If I can't have fresh eggs, I'd at least like to be able to buy free range organic eggs. 

No thank you! 

They also do not sell any natural cat food or any cat food with greens in it (I have an elderly, long-haired, indoor kitty). If you have a recipe for homemade cat food with greens that won't be hard to chew, please share!  



I just find it incredible that moving to farm country could make it more difficult to get fresh produce, meat, eggs, and dairy! I even checked MMC's most recommended website, localharvest.org and found nothing in my area!

My plan, for now, is to go to the small organic farmer's market in the city on Thursdays during my lunch and to make a list of things we need so that if I find myself there on Wednesday or Saturday I can pick up what we need without making a special trip on another day. I will have to pick up cat food in larger quantities, too, until I come up with a better solution. 

My plan in the long run is to build a coop and buy some laying hens, plant a nice garden, buy a deep freezer, and buy meat in bulk from the farmer I was using before the move. 

Do you live in a rural area or tiny town? Have you encountered similar obstacles? What did you do?

Photos in this post are courtesy of www.freedigitalphotos.net. 

V is for Vegetables

I am a big fan of buying local whenever possible for so many reasons, not the least of which is supporting your local economy. There is also that you actually know where you food or product is coming from, no jet fuel or Mack trucks had to be used to get it to you,  and you put money in the pocket of your neighbor instead of a big corporation.  

Farmer's markets are a great way to buy vegetables from local farmers and I highly recommend them over supermarkets. However, be aware of what is seasonal and regional for your area. If you live in Maine and you find a local farmer has oranges in his booth at the farmer's market, they aren't likely to be locally grown. Likewise, if you find tomatoes on any table at any farmer's market in the dead of winter, they were most likely grown indoors or in another country so question the farmer about who grew them and where. 

In South Carolina, there are quite a few veggies in season at the moment...

• asparagus
• onions
• cabbage
• garlic
• kale
• spinach
• collard, mustard, turnip greens
• leeks
• radishes

And it's not a vegetable, but...It's Strawberry Pickin' Time!!!!

Click here to find out where to buy local produce in your area. If you aren't sure what's in season in your area, try one of the links below to find out. And then head out to the farmer's market equipped with all you need to get fresh local produce this weekend!

Cuesa Seasonality Chart 

Field to Plate links by state to seasonal produce guides 

Midwest Seasonal Food Chart 

PCC Chart of What's In Season Now in the Northwest 

Chart to Determine Which Fruits are in Season

October Blog Carnival: Ethical Purchasing

Welcome to the October 2012 Natural Living Blog Carnival: Ethical Shopping Choices This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Natural Living Blog Carnival hosted by Happy Mothering and The Pistachio Project through the Green Moms Network. This month our members have written posts about how they make purchasing choices.

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Mama Making Changes is pleased to be able to participate in the Natural Living Blog Carnival for October 2012. This month's theme is Ethical Shopping Purchases. We all shop regularly, whether for groceries, gifts, clothing, or other items. What influences your purchases?

The majority of my shopping is for food. I buy whatever I can at one of the local organic farmer's markets. We are blessed to have two of these in town and I usually visit at least one of them every week. I firmly believe in supporting the local economy whenever possible, and I love that I am also supporting organic sustainable farms and businesses. At the markets I am able to get whole grains, fresh seasonal vegetables, butter, milk, eggs, chicken, beef, pork, an assortment of cheeses, breads and tortillas, honey, and more. In addition to food, there are local businesses at the markets selling non-food products like essential oils, locally made soaps and shampoos and other toiletries, aprons and other handmade sewing and knitting. I could go on, but the point is that it makes me feel good about my purchases when I can hand the money to the farmer who grew the food we are taking home, the artisan who created the purse from her old sweater, the lady who baked the bread that I am taking home to my family.

When I am at the grocery store for other items, I look for products that are healthy, while still reasonably priced. I don't mind paying a little more because I know that I am supporting the farmer whose crop was smaller due to a lack of pesticides and fertilizers. However, I am a single parent on a tight budget and prices must be within reason, not exorbitant. I also look for organic produce whenever possible and I also look at the country of origin on produce and meat. I look for products with less packaging waste and buy organic fair trade certified coffee whenever my budget permits. I also use the Better World Shopping Guide, which I have written about recently, to help me decide which companies to avoid. 

I've only recently started paying more attention to my clothing purchases. Bamboo is my new favorite fabric! How wonderful that an eco-friendly sustainable plant can be turned into a soft and beautiful piece of clothing! Organic cotton is getting easier to find, too, and only costs slightly if you shop around. 

We also make a point to buy used whenever possible. I buy used clothing, furniture, kitchen ware, and more. Ebay is a great source, but to avoid shipping (which uses fossil fuels and contributes to global warming), I try Craigslist and other local sites first.

What affects your buying decisions? What eco-friendly choices do you make when shopping? Or does price come first in your household?

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Visit Happy Mothering and The Pistachio Project to learn more about participating in next month’s Natural Living Blog Carnival! Please take some time to enjoy the posts our other carnival participants have contributed:

10 Easy Ways to Get Greener Now (Part II)

Getting serious about going green can be difficult at times and sometimes requires us to get a little less comfortable. But other changes can be easier and don't require much of an adjustment at all. Here are 10 suggestions for simple changes you can make to get greener now:

1. Plant a fall garden, or even just one thing that's edible. What to plant and when varies depending on where you live, so if you aren't sure, try this interactive map from Mother Earth News. Just click the appropriate link to the right of the map and then click the month you want to plant for a list of seeds you should sow now. 
2. Buy local food. Go to the nearest farmer's market and save money by asking for seconds (the slightly less than perfect specimens of fruits and veggies). Be sure to ask where it was grown because many booths will have food that was shipped from other states. While you're there, look for milk, eggs, or pastured meats, too.
3. Freeze your leftovers. Too much food ends up in landfills that are already overcrowded. Save money too if you buy and cook larger quantities of meat, then slice and freeze the leftovers for sandwiches, soups, pastas and more. Leftover veggies can be frozen for a later pot of vegetable soup.
4. Re-use glass containers. Larger pickle and jelly jars make great canisters or use them to store buttons, loose change, kitchen utensils, etc. Smaller jars and bottles can be used as drinking glasses or portable water bottles. Even smaller containers can be re-used for dried herbs and spices or those miscellaneous screws and things that you find in your husband's dirty pants pockets.
5. Plant ivy. Use less electricity in the summer by planting ivy around the foundation of your house. It will block hot sunlight and keep your home cooler. 
6. Use the water while you wait for it to heat up. When you wash your face or shower, you let the water run till it's hot, right? Brush your teeth while you wait. Or capture some of the water in an old milk jug to water plants later. Get inventive with this one!
7. As the nights get cooler this fall, turn your ceiling fans on reverse. They will push the rising warm air downward and keep you comfy without turning up the thermostat. 
8. Stop junk mail. Register online at OptOutPrescreen.com to stop receiving unsolicited credit and insurance offers. You can choose to opt out for 5 years or forever. Stop unwanted catalogs by signing up at CatalogChoice.org.
9. Plug your electronics into power strips. Those electronics and chargers are drawing electricity even when not in use. This is called phantom energy. By turning off the switch on the power strip when they are not in use, you stop the flow!
10. Switch to CFL light bulbs. You don't have to switch all at once, which would be expensive and wasteful. As bulbs blow, replace them with CFLs, which use less electricity to put out the same amount of light. These bulbs cost a little more but, in addition to saving you money on the power bill, they also last longer, which means you purchase fewer bulbs in the long run and put less garbage in the landfills. 

For more ideas on how to go green without going crazy, check out the previous list of 10 Easy Ways to Get Greener Now. If you have your own easy ideas to share or any other comments, please leave them below. I always love hearing what you have to say!

Wordless Wednesday: Our Day In Pictures (Sorta)

Did that "sorta" get your attention? Well today's post isn't completely wordless. I felt some of the pictures begged a little explanation in order to express how truly wonderful our day really was.

All of our weekdays start out with schoolwork. Today we knew that we had a lot to do away from home, so we gathered everything we needed, including the lesson planner, and took it all with us. One of the many wonderful advantages of home schooling is the flexibility!



First stop...Weight Watcher's Meeting #3. I lost 2 more pounds in the last week! Yay me!

Next, my daughter had a doctor's appointment, closely followed by dentist appointments for both of us.

Look ma, no cavities!

Of course, in between each stop and in each waiting room we worked on today's lessons. 

Next stop...History field trip! We have been studying archaeology, so where better to see actual archaeological finds than a museum? This local museum is really great and most of the artifacts are local. The  thousands of artifacts in the museum are accompanied by photos, letters, models, manequins and more. 

We bought a South Carolina state flag in the gift shop on the way out and with it received a lesson from one of the curators on what each element of the flag was intended to portray. Even I learned something new! Then the proud owner of the flag took some time to have a bounce on the jostling board that sits on the museum's front porch. I even joined her for a few bounces!

Nope it didn't end there! We headed off to the organic farmer's market that is held each Wednesday downtown. The first stop is always the booth with the homemade whole wheat organic cookies. She never minds spending her own money on these! Today, my daughter also bought a basil plant to put outside beside her lemon balm and sunflowers.

Of course, I had to stop to grab a few tomatoes. The ones in our garden are mostly green still. And we went by to see our CSA farmers who had squash, kale, russian kale, arugula, and mustard greens for us this week.

The market even had live entertainment this week! The duo seen on the left here was the most amazing of the ones we heard. They were really good and so entertaining!







After the market, we needed to eat dinner in a hurry because it was almost time for my women's group from church to meet. We headed over to a locally owned restaurant where everything is made from scratch and tastes just like it came from your own kitchen. How do you like the name?

My daughter babysits all of the little ones while the ladies meet on Wednesday nights. 

Tonight was extra special because we had a new addition. 

Baby Jaxson, only 1 week old,  was watched over closely by his big sister Kailyn!

We wrapped up our day with a relaxing game of cards when we got home. I won! Yay me again!

If only everyday could be so much fun! 

How was your Wednesday?