This month the Green Moms Carnival is tackling love for the month of February but not in the usual sense. Participants were asked to share the green books and authors they love. At first I was rather anxious because I thought it was just what books we love in general and that would be, for me, like picking which grains of sand I like best. I go to the library 2-3 times a week. I have 20-30 books checked out at any given time. I always have my nose in book and have since I was a teen. Books are like oxygen to me and I love quite a few of them. But green books is a much more manageable a task to identify. Or is it?

Once I got to thinking about all the memoirs, local food books, homesteading guides, green energy/green living books, eco crafts, nature enjoyment books, etc. that I have read, I started thinking maybe it wasn’t so easy to pick just a few to highlight here. With some heavy sighs I will try to isolate some of those grains of sand…

I must start off with some of the very first green books I ever read.

The Self-Sufficient Life and How to Live It by John Seymour – This was one of the first books I ever read about self sufficiency and sustainability. I had grand dreams of having a farm and growing/raising my own food. At the time my husband was so not interested in any of it. Now… 7ish years later he is the one devouring this book and others like it and insisting we take steps to become more self sufficient and responsible for our own food. This book is a true classic.

This Organic Life: Confessions of a Suburban Homesteader - It was this book that made me see that having a big farm was not necessarily the only route to go. The author, Joan Dye Gussow, is an inspiration and she lives on a suburban lot where she grows lots of her own food. As a big city lover I found this book very inspirational.

Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life - This book by Barbara Kingsolver was another important book in my own journey. Like me, she moved from the Southwest to the East in search of greener pastures, literally. It was her family’s mission to buy food raised in their own neighborhood, grow it themselves, or learn to live without it.

EcoVillage at Ithaca: Pioneering a Sustainable Culture  – A wonderful look inside an eco village, and planning for sustainable futures as a group and community.

Some Newer Books I Love…

Girl Hunter by Georgia Pellegrini – A book that made me change my mind about something I never thought I would change my mind about. A book that most likely will have inspired me to buy my first hunting license very soon. I almost hesitate to classify it as a green book but it is very much about local food!

The Dirty Life - It follows along on the real life adventure of Kristin Kimball who was a writer working in NYC. She met a farmer while on assignment, married him, and they started an ambitious “whole diet” CSA.

Frugal Luxuries by Tracey McBride - Choosing simplicity is green and that is what this book is about. The idea behind the book is to show us how being frugal and simple in our taste is really an art form. It has nothing to do with being miserly or being a cheapskate and everything to do with living well, even luxuriously, on less. LOVE this book!

Big Green Purse by Diane MacEachern – I think this is such an important book because it shows how we can create world change by being mindful about how we shop and what we buy. It doesn’t encourage senseless spending or rampant consumerism but it does address the fact that everyone is still going to spend money on the products that matter to them. If money talks then we need to be aware of what our money is saying. It is all about using the power of our purses to affect change. Read my review here: Shopping for World Change. Diane is also one of the most amazing, intelligent, and inspiring ladies you could ever meet. I feel honored to have met her last month.

A Mile in Her Boots – Women Who Work in the Wild (multiple authors) - It has essays and stories from park rangers, smokejumpers, field scientists, and other female outdoorswomen.

Fave Authors 

I could really only think of two non-fiction authors that are on my must-buy list… as in it doesn’t matter what the book is about, I must have it. I would of course buy other books by the authors mentioned above but the two below have multiple books on the market and I have them all.

Amanda Soule of Handmade Home, The Creative Family, and The Rhythm of Family. All her books are beautiful and inspirational. The projects inside them are green and resourceful usually and the whole concept behind them is to live in simplicity and with greater mindfulness.

Any book by MaryJane Butters. She is the Martha Stewart of homesteading and farming. My fave’s are MaryJane’s Ideabook, Cookbook, Lifebook : For the Farmgirl in All of Us and MaryJane’s Outpost. I get them out and re-read at least once a year.

What you think? What are your favorite green books/authors?

One of the really fun things I got to do on my trip to Detroit for the auto show (NAIAS ) was go to the Henry Ford Museum. I got to see an exhibit that has not opened to the public yet AND had a catered dinner right there among all the amazing cars. I felt kinda bad being there without my Dad though… he would have loved it! I did however, get to have dinner with some amazing green mom friends.

As a big history buff I just love museums so this was right up my alley even if cars really aren’t.

The highlights for me had to be the car Kennedy was in when he was assassinated…

The chair Abraham Lincoln was sitting in when he was assassinated…

And Rosa Park’s Bus.

We even got to sit inside the bus. Amazing.

My daughter thought Kennedy’s car and Lincoln’s chair were morbid when I showed her the photos. It was a very solemn experience seeing them and one I won’t soon forget. That is what I love about history, how it can reach out and grab you, and make you teary eyed even many years after the fact. It makes us think, and remember, and think some more. It makes us wonder what we would do if we were put in certain historical situations. Would we be that brave? Would we be that honorable? Would we stand for that injustice?

#FordNAIAS

** Ford Motor Company paid for my travel and accommodations at the 2-day Innovation and Design Fantasy Camp event, I was not compensated in any other manner for my time. Opinions posted here are my own.**

I don’t typically make New Year’s resolutions but I am feeling rather inspired for 2012. I had two goals for 2011 that I set for myself on March 1st (does that count?) to really concentrate on fitness and exercise and to also make more time for me. I guess I just decided that I needed to allow myself to be more than a mom now that my kids are getting older. I blew those goals out of the water and since I am feeling pretty empowered by those successes I think it is time to set some more goals. No time like the present right?

January is named after the Roman god Janus, god of doorways and thus January is the door to the year. Janus had two faces, one to see the past and one to see the future. Likewise we can reflect back on the previous year, learn from our failures and successes, and look to the future with exuberance.  This is the month we spend looking inside ourselves to set a path for the year and prepare for our journey with focus.

My goals for 2011 are still very much in effect. I will keep on hitting the gym and exercising. I will also keep carving out time for me. But I have some other goals too.

This year I resolve to…

Have More Fun

I was bemoaning the fact that I didn’t take many photos in 2011 but honestly we didn’t do much photo worthy stuff. I had grand plans but I let it all fall apart when life got busy. We had a big illness (ie cancer) within the extended family and my husband worked tons of overtime. The only thing even remotely close to a vacation for us was a day trip to the Hocking Hills. I also turned down several fun business travel opportunities because I felt my kids were still a wee bit too young for me to be away (been doing that for years). This year needs to be different. We will take a real vacation and I will make sure my family fun plans actually make it out of the planning stage. I will also travel for business and leave my kids in the reliable hands of my husband. For that to happen it would help if I…

Make More Money

I have a confession. I don’t work all that hard. I worked my arse off for several years when I was just starting my home business and ever since I hit a certain point in my income I have been happy to coast along doing the bare minimum. Yes, technically I earn more with each passing year but imagine what I could earn if I actually put some effort into it. I like to tell myself we don’t NEED more money but my husband has worked a little too much overtime for that to be true. I need to step up and earn the money I know I can make. If it turns out we don’t actually need the money, we can spend it on wants… like the aforementioned FUN. I hear DisneyWorld calling my name. Or we can send it along to our emergency savings and/or IRAs.

In order to make more money I think I need to buckle down and…

Get More Organized

I am sooo badly organized it is tragic and it has to change if I want to earn more money and remember all the fun events coming up that I want my family to take part in. I am sick of dropping the ball on opportunities because the pitches get lost in my email inbox or I just plain forget about a fun event in our hometown. I also need to spend less time on Facebook playing games and reading blog posts in my RSS feed that will not advance my goals. It would help if I knew exactly what I needed to be doing and make sure that was done BEFORE play time.

These 3 goals or resolutions are enough for now I think since my 2011 goals are still in effect… make time for me and also for exercise and fitness. To kick things off I am armed with a To-Do list that I print (on recycled household paper) each day. Each evening I brainstorm and figure out what needs done from blogging to cleaning the toilet. I keep it at no more than 15 things and I try to get everything checked off by the end of the evening. I also have a daily planner on my desk where I can write down all the fun family stuff I saw in the paper or online, even months out, so I will remember them. Above my desk I have a white board calendar with appointments, bill due dates, and work deadlines.

Also helpful are these 3 books. I hope to write more about them soon…

Organize Now!: A Week-by-Week Guide to Simplify Your Space and Your Life

Organize Now! 12 Month Home & Activity Planner

Organize Now! Your Money, Business & Career: A Week-by-Week Guide to Reach Your Goals

I also accepted a business travel opportunity in late 2011 and I leave in a few days. Woot! Plus I bought a ticket to BlogHer12 and reserved my hotel room in NYC for later this year. This year is going to be awesome. I just know it!

What have you resolved to do for 2012?

{this moment} – A Friday ritual. A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. – Soulemama

Around this time of year it is common to see lots of tips for how to keep kids entertained, how to make sure their getting outside to play, and generally having a fun summer. That’s all well and good but what about mom? If the start of my summer is any indication I think MOM needs to carve out fun time or relaxation time even more. So far this summer I have been feeling like an unpaid babysitter. My kids all have friends over every day that want to be entertained, fed, and generally looked after while their parents work. When I protest about the extra cooking, cleaning, and even laundry (towels for after water play) that I have to do I get rolled eyes and talk of how mean I am being. In order to keep my cool and be able to handle all this extra work and stress, and yes other people’s kids stress me out, I need to make sure I am getting some me time each day and taking it easy. Here are some of my ideas:

1. A Rockin Summer Reading List – Our public library is promoting summer reading for kids right now but instead I am making my own reading list. I am stepping away from computer work and reading something fun and entertaining every day. I love to read but usually work comes first, but for the summer I think I need to make more time to read. I recently read Divergent, a dystopian novel that I loved. Also The Iron King and The Iron Daughter which are two books in a trilogy about mythical creatures and fey. Just started reading The Iron Queen last night. I also recommend The Hunger Games trilogy and Graceling. I love that I can read wherever my kids are too.

If you have any good books to recommend let me know in the comments so I can add them to my library reserve list!

2. Catch a solo movie – In the summer the theaters open early with showtimes at 10 or 11 AM. I will often go catch the early show by myself. Sometimes I might take my oldest boy too. That way I can see Pirates, and Thor, and X-Men.. all the latest summer movies (I am a huge movie buff) and get time away from the house and my duties. I save money by going before noon (for only $5), by using a rewards card that earns you free movies, and by buying theater gift cards at Giant Eagle to pay for my tickets. Each $50 gift card I buy earns me .20 cents off up to 30 gallons of gas. We get tons of free gas by using this little trick… buying gift certificates for all the places we shop.

3. Get a pedicure – If you keep it simple and just get a basic pedicure… aka massage, buffing, nail painting ect. you can minimize exposure to chemicals and still get pampered. Most places will even let you bring your own nail polish so you can buy polish without toxic chemicals and still have pretty toes. Most places also have massage chairs so you get a whole body massage and gorgeous piggies. It is a great way to spend and hour!

4. Go to the Gym – My husband and I have become gym junkies of late and when either of us has to miss our designated time it can throw off our mood off for days. We NEED that exercise and time away. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays I get up before anyone else is awake is sneak away for water aerobics, a bit of running on the treadmill, followed by strength training with weights. I come home feeling refreshed and energized. I think a big part of why so many kids in the house this week has stressed me is because I missed two workout days!

5. Cook Easy Foods – I have stopped cooking big evening meals for summer because I hate heating up the house and I don’t just don’t feel like spending so much time in the kitchen. This is the season for watermelon and green smoothies for dinner! Other ideas are finger sandwiches, fruit kabobs, veggie kabobs (grilled outside), granola cereal with almond milk, chocolate/veggie smoothies served in a bowl like ice cream, flax crackers and salsa, and lots of salad. Time to whip out the 365 salad recipe book.

6. Park Fun for Parents - If you take your kids to a public pool or water park make a deal with your spouse that you will trade off watching the kids and give each other 20-30 minutes alone a couple times throughout the day. That way Dad can watch the kids while they play in the baby pool or on the water slides and you can go get in the lazy river for awhile. Another idea might be to find a couple tweens/teens you trust and offer to buy their park admission passes in exchange for 2 hours of the day spent babysitting the kids while you and hubby enjoy the park alone.

7. Take a Walk – Sometimes a 15-20 minute walk around the block can be just what we need to get away for a moment. A few evenings ago I was getting peeved about how the neighbor kids were making a huge mess in our house so I decided to round up my kids only and take a walk. We walked about a mile away to get sno-cones at the corner store. We could have drove but I need that walk! Going it alone is also a nice way to get some alone time.

8. Get Gardening – Gardening really is therapy. I enjoy carving out time to water my garden in the evenings or early mornings and also water all my houseplants. There is something about seeing your plants thrive that makes you feel content and thriving yourself.

What do you do to relax and make time for yourself during the summer months?