Mama Eva

My Baptism

2011-04-23T01:01:00.000-04:00

This Saturday at Coastal Community Church I am going to be baptized. The time is right for me in my path with God. And it happens to be Easter, too. A great time to do it!

"But, I thought you were Catholic?" you might ask. "Weren't you baptized as a baby? And confirmed in seventh grade?"

"Yes I was." I will answer. And I am glad my parents did that. I am also thankful that I was raised in the church. Catholic school, however is another story ;)

So as a German-Polish Jew (heritage only) who was raised a Catholic, married a Protestant and takes our family to a non-denominational community church (which I LOVE), I am called in this stage of life to become baptized.

May God Bless me and my path with Him!

p.s. I believe this post is my 101st blog post!

The light at the end of the tunnel...

2011-04-14T22:08:00.000-04:00

We are more than half way through "self-induced poverty" and doing well! It has been a struggle, but we are surviving. We have run out of our frozen raw milk and trying to decide if I should go and get some the next time orders are due.... I actually got Publix milk (half gallon), mostly just for cooking, and tasted it...YUCK YUCK GROSS YUCK!!! It was not past it's expiration date and tasted HORRIBLE! I am NOT drinking that stuff again! I posted it on Facebook and people reminded me that almond milk exists...duh :P I could have gotten some almonds and made my own milk! I DO have a wonderful Blentec blender from my awesome MIL (Thanks Star!) that I HAVE made almond milk in - successfully, might I add ;)

But besides that - and my husband is sick of oatmeal - we have been home (okay, we have a bit of cabin fever...yes it happens in Florida), not going many places, walking more, enjoying each other and the kids more, taking it easy, catching up with housework and homeschool work.

Patrick and I have also been loosing weight so much and so noticeably that we had to get new pants a couple of weeks ago. I went from a size 14 to a 10! And he went from 42 to 38, and even those are now loose! So when poverty is over - which is only a couple of paychecks away (we're so excited!!) - we need new clothes :)

And I get a new vacuum, because my current one is being held together by duct tape and hot glue....really.

Extreme Savings mode begins....

2011-02-14T00:03:00.000-05:00

Starting later this week, we are starting three months of "Extreme Savings Mode." We were calling it "self-induced poverty" but that sounded too depressing. What is this exactly? It is a controlled experiment with our family to pay down our debts (mostly credit cards). All of our debts would have been paid off sometime next year, but we wouldn't have any fun in the mean time. So instead we decided to hunker down and pay off much more in a quicker time frame, thus ending our debt (except for our house payment) sooner! What does this mean for us?

We are going to be driving one car instead of two. We will NOT be driving unless it is to the store for food shopping every other week.
Chiropractic will probably go from once per week to every other week.
Music Together class - we will finish out this session but not continue until the summer.
I will not be picking up food at the Co-op in Orlando until June.
No extracurricular activities (for me or my husband or children)
No field trips unless we can walk there. Might also have to miss a few Park Days.
Walking to the park or library (Thank God they are pretty close!)
ABSOLUTELY NO EATING OUT!

This is scheduled to end in June. At that time our credit debt will be zero, our cars both paid off, and we will be able to afford to replace a few things in our house! (like a vacuum, power tools, and a kitchen ;)

We can ultimately thank Dave Ramsey and those who we know have taken his classes in financial freedom.

Wish us luck!! I really ~~want~~ need a new vacuum ;) My current one is being held together (I use the term very loosely) by duck tape and hot glue....

Deep in the Heart....

2011-01-30T01:02:00.000-05:00

....OF TEXAS!!!!! This is where we shall be in the future for a time, then back home again, jiggity-jig. My husband's paternal Grandfather is turning 90 years old...so the whole family (well, a lot of them) are gathering to celebrate. Because of the insanity with the scanners at airports and Mamas being harassed for breastfeeding on planes (as I plan to do) and it might end up being cheaper to drive it anyway...WE ARE DRIVING TO TEXAS! Two parents, a five year old, and an almost two year old......Family of four in my parent's van (thanks Mom and Dad!) from here to there....I think I can...I think I can...I think I can...with lots of books and snacks, and a DVD player for the car, we should be able to survive....right?

Latest Updates in a Mama's life

2010-10-18T00:09:00.000-04:00

Dang it! Time got away from me again and Life handed me way too much to do....well, honestly, I guess I found too much to do...crazy days....

So here is my quick list of what has happened (I know I will leave things out just because it is late and I really should be in bed...):

We have started - and continued - homeschooling our five year old and have been loving that decision :D If I haven't mentioned it before, we are using Oak Meadow, a Waldorf based school. It has curriculum and educational tools for K-High School and are really liking

We have not been going to the chiropractor weekly and I am feeling it :( I hope to be able to get back to it in a few months, though ;)

I went to the Florida La Leche League Conference last weekend...well, just Friday and Saturday, and for just a day and a half instead of three days. I was there with Sandy Jamieson and Sandy Hill, my ladies full of lactation wisdom.

And I killed three chickens (not our own!) at a friend's "Meat Harvest"...got the war-wounds to prove it! It was something that I have been thinking about for a while and am in a place in my psyche/life that I can/could/did do it. One more small step away from the grid....and I will be there again for more "Harvesting" next Sunday!

Confessions of a Homeschooling Mama

2010-08-25T12:36:00.000-04:00

There are great days and there are not so great days. I have only schooled The Older three days and already we have had both. The first day, we - Mama, Dada, The Older, and The Younger - went to the beach...it was called Paradise Beach, with a park/playground, beautiful sand and it is the only beach in the south part of my county to be staffed year-round with lifeguards. If it wasn't so far away, we would be there more often.

When we got in the water, the lifeguard (Georgie) came over and commented on how wonderful that I was using a Fuzzibinz cloth diaper (she used them on her kids years ago) on my littlest and we talked about homeschooling and natural mothering things. Would have liked to talk to her more but had to watch The Younger because she was getting pummeled by the rough waves (and liking it).

It was unfortunately way too hot to play on the playground (all the equipment was burning from sun exposure), but vowed to come back when the weather cooled off. But they had a wonderful playground, kids swings and toddler swings, slides, and a large resin boulder with rock climbing handles on it! So cool!

But not all is so wonderful. The first week, we are learning to make the capital letter A correctly. Up until now, she would make good letter As the right way, but lately, she has been getting sloppy....and refusing to accept that the way she had always been making As was correct....

Ah, joys of life!

Next Chapter

2010-08-11T23:35:00.000-04:00

I am about to embark on a new adventure: Homeschooling....a five year old...with an 18 month old in the wings. At least I have a fantastic support group to help! (Hey Ladies!)

Since before my husband and I got married, we decided that if we were still living in this area when we had kids, we would homeschool. We talked about it, defended our position, chose friends that had the same mindset, got info from our family that does homeschool, found a good starting curriculum, planned out the next few months, got school supplies..... and I am scared sh!tless... because it is just around the corner! We are finally here!

But like I said: fantastic support group, et all shall get me through it! Woo hoo! Yeehaw! Here we go.....

Knee-jerk reaction

2010-08-03T07:32:00.000-04:00

I have a knee-jerk reaction to all things Mama related: pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding, child-rearing... Every time I hear another mother being oppressed or told misinformation, my first reaction is to fight someone! Or let loose a barrage of tips to the Mother, "Have you tried...?" or "Did you know...?" But I must refrain, and find just one or two things - helpful and doable - for that Mother to say or do to get control back in her life.

I JUST WANT TO SAVE THE WORLD!!

...or just a reasonable portion of it...

But the truth of the matter is: there IS a revolution happening...we just aren't physically feeling it yet...It is only online, on the internet, on Facebook, on Twitter...we are socializing without shaking hands or hugging...or kneeing someone....

I don't know if that is better or not, but different from those in the past.

Dehydrator Lust

2010-06-19T07:14:00.000-04:00

I....have dehydrator lust. I admit it! I just got this email from a great blogger and want it bad. But instead of trying to convince my self that I need it now, I will just enter the contest to get one (go ahead, you can too! you KNOW you want to ;) then go and feed my chickens.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Keeper of the Home: Naturally Inspired Living for the Christian Homemaker

1000th Post Party Giveaway: Deluxe Excalibur 3900 9-Tray Dehydrator ($220 Value)

It's been a hard secret to keep, but at last I can announce that after the smashing success of our Excalibur Dehydrator giveaway last fall, it's time to give away another one!
I've owned a 9-Tray Excalibur for about a year and a half now. I keep it on my kitchen counter the way that most people have a microwave or toaster oven. Yes, I use it almost that often!
As someone who uses my dehydrator so extensively, I can't imagine going back to the cheaper model I used to have. This is the ultimate dehydrator. It is absolutely top-notch and I cannot say enough good things about it.

In my previous review, I mentioned the main reasons that I chose to go with an Excalibur Dehydrator in particular:

Large, square shaped trays (as opposed to round with a hole in the center). The means no more wonky-shaped fruit leather. No more grains falling through the cracks into the dehydrator motor. Less wasted space in arranging items on the tray.

Adjustable trays. You can remove the tray above if you're drying something tall to give it more space. You can remove all of the trays to do something like mason jars with yogurt, or for rising bread. You can remove the bottom half of the trays to do pint sized jars of yogurt and still keep drying nuts or herbs or fruit on the upper trays. The possibilities are endless!

Trays that slide out through the front. With a round dehydrator, I had to lift off all of the top trays in order to access something in the middle or on the bottom. With the front access, I can just open it up and pull out the exact tray that I want to see.

A heating/fan unit along the back, rather than down at the bottom. This allows for more even heating of the entire dehydrator and items that finish more or less at the same time.

Read the rest of my previous review.

There are so many things that I use my dehydrator for! These days, the most common is probably for making crispy nuts (nuts that are soaked and then dried). I also use it frequently for making granola, for soaking and dehydrating oats for granola bars, for drying herbs or vegetables, for making dried apples or pears or fruit leathers, for making "cheese" crackers... just to name a few.
One additional feature about the model that is being given away is a 26 hour adjustable timer, so that you can set the dehydrator to turn off while you are out or during the night, so that you don't over-dry things or waste energy! This is new since I bought mine, but it would be such a handy feature to have!
To learn more about my thoughts on the Excalibur Dehydrator, definitely check out my review.
Another great place to learn more is in this promotional video. I wanted to embed it into this post, but wasn't able to. It's worth clicking through and visiting their website, though, so that you can get more of a feel for how the dehydrator functions and what makes it unique.

So who wants to win themselves a Deluxe Excalibur 3900 9-Tray Dehydrator ($220 value)?

To streamline giveaways a bit more, we are experimenting with a new system. Rather than leaving multiple comments to get all of your extra entries, simply click on the link below and complete one survey, checking off the entry options that you have completed! That's it!

Click Here to Enter the Giveaway!

Giveaway ends Friday, June 25th at 4pm PST.

Plan for the Future...

2010-05-09T00:49:00.000-04:00

It would be great to have one of those! And time to do so :) I did recently have 24 hours to myself, away from everyone, got to do things by myself...it was weird and wonderful at the same time. It was a gift from my husband - he watched the girls, they did fine - and I got to catch up on a bit of reading and TV watching (we don't have live TV in the house, so I watched it in the hotel room...still nothing on! So glad we don't have cable or dish or whatever :).

I did get to start planning for the immediate future of homeschooling my 4 1/2 year old which is starting in August. I have the first day of school planned: we are going to the beach! Hopefully all day or at least most of it. After that...well... I have curriculum from Oak Meadow that I will be working from. And this first year (kindergarten) is really practice anyway. If I can homeschool this year, I can homeschool all the years! Of course, now that I think about it, that will be (in total with both girls) 17 years at least!! wow.... but let's just try the first year and not think of the rest....

And in my immediate future (this month), enjoy Mother's Day, shop for shelves, purge, reduce, and clean my house...without a working vacuum.....and get backyard chickens...I wonder how much grass two chickens can eat? (my lawnmower is not working...)

Follow-up to "My 3-hour-tour..." 2009

2010-03-12T13:43:00.000-05:00

Last year, I gave birth to my second daughter. It was beautiful and wonderful! And it was at home! My midwife discovered a vaginal cyst and it was decided to go to the hospital for quick removal and then back home....three days later (!) we left the hospital. Read my postpartum story here.

Go ahead. I will wait. Get yourself a drink and read it if you haven't before.

Why did I have elevated liver enzymes? They never could figure it out... I went to another GI doc as an outpatient and he wanted me to have more tests done...SCREW THAT! I never had it done.

Then today I came across this article on shower curtains and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). And I remember reading something many months ago (1, 2, and 3 different articles - I can't find what I did read originally) about how VOCs can cause a variety of problems, including elevated liver enzymes.

The key element in this is that I bought two new shower curtains - one for my shower and one for my bed - for the birth. I had been exposed to VOCs without even knowing it! And that, I believe, raised my liver enzymes, causing an unnecessary problem of me being in the hospital for three agonizing days!! It kills me because I carefully chose a no-VOC paint to use in the bathroom just shortly before the birth.

I currently have a shower curtain from IKEA that is either low- or no-VOC, so I hope I don't have to worry about that....just wish I had time and energy to clean my bathtub ;)

And here we are...

2010-02-20T22:47:00.000-05:00

Daciana, my second child, will be one year old this Thursday. I could continue with a cliche, like "time flies," but I already did that. I have tried to be in the moment with her as much as I could, trying to balance my attention with everyone else in the house. It is very hard.

I have talked to other Mamas about maternal guilt and they have all encouraged me to know I am doing the best I can and to not let guilt have any of my precious time. This is also a hard thing.

Advice has been given to "Make time for yourself." This is possibly the hardest thing to even think of.

I know that Motherhood is a very difficult position for a woman to be in. I chose this. I wanted this. I got it, I am in it. I love my girls, and at times, they are very....challenging. Life is constantly testing me. Right now, I feel like I am failing. I have a wonderfully crafted sickness that involves much mucus and constantly hacking up a lung, which lowers my energy to zero. Mothers don't get sick days - we don't have the time! I am already behind on everything, why do I have to get sick now? *cough*cough*wheeeeze*

I know. I can hear you yelling, "This is just a test! You can pass it!" And then along comes an email from a dear friend (here is an excerpt):

------------

"We really need moms just like you, the ones who have had such diverse challenges and experiences, and are setting such a good examples for other moms to follow. It gives them hope and faith that breastfeeding and committed mothering really do work and payoff with great rewards.

"It’s my pleasure and privilege to be with you and the girls ~ they are such precious angels and YOU are such a wonderful role model of good mothering. I have used you and [Daciana] as good examples of kangaroo mothering many times. The time I spent with you at the LLL [La Leche League] conference seemed miraculous ~ I’ve never been around a baby for that long w/out hearing them cry ~ multiple times. {I wish I’d known about it when I was a young mom.}

"I think you’re probably really wise to realize that the meeting environment can be a challenge for Anastasia ~ I wish more moms were as tuned in to their children’s needs as you are!!! This world would be a much better place."

------------

I took the girls to the last La Leche League meeting which was at night and kind of last minute, so no time to prepare Anastasia in my expectations of her, and since we are no longer a breastfeeding pair (it's all for Daciana now), she didn't have anything to do or look forward to. It got a little crazy. There were lots of little babies and she wanted to play with them all like she does her one year old sister. So we left the meeting early after I warned her many times to chill out. Future LLL meetings will also become another Daddy-Daughter night.

God only gives you what He knows you can handle. I know this to be true because I am still alive. My life - and all its "adventures" - has made me stronger, and I don't think I am done yet. At least I hope not.

TA-DA!

2010-01-01T14:14:00.000-05:00

New look for a new year...may still tweak it a bit here or there but i think this will be it for a while :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2010 !!!!!!

And now, for your Moment of Holiday Zen...

2009-12-26T11:51:00.001-05:00

"Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn, or consumed. Happiness is
the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude."
~ Denis Waitley

Cloth Diaper and Babywearing Class

2009-12-05T20:16:00.000-05:00

Cloth Diaper and Babywearing Class

Who: Expectant Parents, Moms and Dads, Doulas, Grandparents, and anyone interested in Cloth Diapering
What: Cloth Diaper and Babywearing Class
When: Saturday, December 19, 2009 at 11:00 am OR 4:00 pm (each class is 2 hours)
Where: 59 Barton Ave, in Rockledge, FL 32955 (St Mary's Youth House)
How Much: $20 per couple

You are invited to Cloth Diapering 101! Confused by the vast world of Cloth Diapering? Not sure what it will cost? Which diapering system is right for you? Bring all your questions and learn about diapering you baby with cloth. Also, get a chance to see different baby carriers, from the Moby wrap to the Maya sling and the Baby Bjorn and more!

The cost for class is $20 for two people (couple, birth partners, Mom-to-be and doula, or any other "2-person" combination). You will receive one booklet of information on Cloth Diapering full of resources.

PLEASE RESERVE YOUR SPOT NOW! Classes fill up fast! Contact Eva Algermissen via email - BY DEC 16 - to reserve your spot for one of the classes on Saturday, December 19, at either 11:00 am OR 4:00 pm. Both classes will be held at St Mary's Youth House located at 59 Barton Ave, in Rockledge, FL 32955.

Lap babies welcome - please no children. (Snack provided)

Eva Algermissen
algermissenmama@gmail.com
MamaEvaUSA.blogspot.com
"Find me on Facebook!"

Next year

2009-12-02T15:24:00.000-05:00

I plan on changing the look of this blog to something else...not sure what, but I think it needs to be done. Right after bathing the dag ;o)

I may also start another blog for Space Coast BirthNetwork, which used to be Brevard BirthNetwork, but that is a story for the future....

"Trees are nice..."

2009-11-28T10:32:00.005-05:00

For many reasons, my husband and I decided to homeschool. Our oldest is 4 so now we are investigating all our options. I am part of a Mom's Book Club which used to be a playgroup and is becoming a homeschooling group. We had a Nature Project at one mom's house last month and I volunteered to do the next one here at my house. I really love to teach those who want to learn. Especially things I am interested in :)

This month, the topic is "Trees." Broad subject, I know, but I am trying to keep it simple. 'Tis the season so we will be making Christmas trees out of construction paper and decorating them in addition to other activities. I am posting a few videos here so I don't have to look for them later :)

There. That should do it....

ZOOM...........!

2009-10-19T08:55:00.003-04:00

Another stretch of time - gone. Girls a bit older, and so am I. My husband is starting his new job today: telecommuting! Thus begins the home office adventure! He woke up this morning, took his shower, came out of the bedroom, said, "I'm late for work!", then walked into the next bedroom (temporary home office until we get the cottage fixed up), sat down at the computer, and said, "Okay, I am at work!"

Gone is the hour long commute to Orlando. Hello new possibilities and flexibility!

Time is still flying!

2009-07-30T06:59:00.003-04:00

The Younger just turned 5 months! and I am - and have been - awake for several hours now... 'tis the wee hours of the morning...and Patrick's alarm HAS gone off and he crawled back into bed...I should go and wake him up....

I just posted to one of my favorite sites: "Mama Is..." done by Heather Cushman-Dowdee of the Hathor the Cowgoddess fame. Check it out!

My "3-hour tour" after Daciana's birth...

2009-06-24T14:20:00.003-04:00

After my beautiful 4 hour homebirth on Feb 25, 2009, my midwife discovered a small vaginal cyst that was only visible because I tore. After much discussion, it was mutually agreed that I go to the hospital to have it removed, stitched up and sent home to enjoy my new family. Simple, right? Of course not! Hold on to your butts...you are going on a ride through our "Great American Health Care System".

My doula drove my husband, our 2 hour old newborn, and me to the hospital (not the one that was actually closer to us because that one was not covered by our insurance). My midwife called ahead and told them our situation. I think she also faxed over my records. She said to go to the ER and tell them that we were expected. Of course they were confused by us telling them that we just had a baby at home, I needed a cyst removed and to be stitched up. (BTW, this is what hospitals are for!)

We got to a triage room pretty soon (after I was put in a wheelchair of course...) They took quite a lot of blood for "admission into the hospital" and because you can't go to a hospital without them sucking you dry (in more ways than one!). The ER staff were all friendly and seemingly unbiased about homebirth. Finally the on-call OB comes in, we tell her what we want and she mumbles something about "that's why we shouldn't do homebirths..." What the ?!?!?! Okay, we know what side of the fence she is on...

So (several hours later) I am in the pre-op room getting prepped. They want me to sign all sorts of things and I only make it longer trying to understand it all. I know I do not need to be put under general anesthesia for just such a simple operation but they keep trying to push it on me! All I need is a local anaesthetic (lidocaine) and to be sent home...

Then my blood work comes back...and my liver enzymes are elevated.

"What does that mean?" I ask. "It could be late-onset preeclampsia. We would like to keep you for observation and put you on magnesium sulfate."

Okay. With my first birth, I had preeclampsia (and I promise to write that birth story soon!) and my midwife thought well, maybe, it is possible. But having no other symptoms throughout pregnancy or labor (seeing spots, dizziness, high blood pressure, swelling, protein in the urine), I thought it was weird. But I trust my midwife. This is what the doctor/OB is for. So because of my history, I let them hook me up to mag sulfate..."for 24 hours" they said...they couldn't find me a room in the maternity wing until late afternoon...I would have to be there with my husband and new baby overnight...

ACK!

By the way, Anastasia (my 3 yr old) went with my parents (Thanks Mom and Dad!) to stay the night...thinking that we would all be together the next morning........

By 6 pm they hook me up to that crap...er, I mean mag sulfate...which means that I would be there at least until 6 pm tomorrow!!!

We had our baby at home THEN went to the hospital...I think we did it backwards ;o)

Throughout the entire night and day, my BP had never been lower in my life! I felt like crap because that is just what mag sulfate does. And I had to eat hospital food full of refined carbs and sugars and HFCS and the occasional GMO fruit...

...again, ACK!

I had such a wonderful diet during pregnancy - whole foods, organics, NO HFCS (well, maybe a tiny bit that one cannot escape in this day and age) - and they expect people to get better on this sh!t? I hope Health care reform also includes hospital food reform!

It was NOT preeclampsia. But my liver enzymes were still high. They kept sticking needles in my arm to draw blood several times during my stay. Then they wanted to do a sonogram of my guts, which involved me fasting for 8 HOURS! (I thought this was ironic because it was the Friday after Ash Wednesday ;o)

...again, ACK!

A new mother that needs to breastfeed having to fast?!?! Maybe it was better than eating that cr@p food ;o) Eight hours actually turned into 10 hours because the ultrasound room was understaffed that night and slammed for what ever reason. Of course! They found very little 'wrong' but also did not talk to me during the procedure...yes, I did ask questions...I do have gall-stones...whatever that means...

They ruled out 'late-onset preeclampsia' and the GI doctor had no clue either as to what made my liver enzymes so high. That second night there I had a feeling that they wanted to keep me much much longer so I decided before I went to bed that we - Patrick (who was sleeping on those damn 'Dad' beds), Daciana (who was nursing and sleeping very well and did not seem phased by any of this) and I (who was quite ready to literally kick some butt) - were going home. We could not just leave because of the fear of the insurance not covering any of the hospital stay. I told God I wanted to be home by noon on Saturday.

From the first moment I awoke from a restless nights sleep, I was a very squeaky wheel. I wanted some grease and lots of it!! "I want to go home today. Where are my discharge papers? When can I go home?" is all I said to anyone. The only way they were going to let me go is if I agreed to become an outpatient and be referred to another GI doctor (this I suggested).

To speed the story up, I ended up staying in the hospital for 3 days! And for what? No one knows...but by 11:30 almost noon, I got my discharge papers: we were going home!!!! Thank you GOD!!

Now I am going through my itemized bill for the hospital, trying to see where they are nickle and diming me. After the insurance covered their portion, somebody thinks I still owe over $2000! Patrick is already working overtime and taking on a couple of paying gigs on the weekends just to make ends meet. We are not living beyond our means or overspending on things we think we should have. The last time I bought new clothes for myself was a couple of maternity items and before that maybe eight months without having new things. I have been wearing the same pair of shoes everyday for over a year, have not gone shoe shopping since Jan 2008 and before that probably when I was pregnant with Anastasia in 2005! We spend money on good food for the family, gas for Patrick to go to work (2 hours driving to and from work 5 days a week...), electric bill, water, and mortgage (this is what is killing us...can't sell because the market is cr@p right now)

Sorry about the rant and rave there...we, like many of you, are living paycheck to paycheck. Whether one or two incomes per family, and tightening our belts every month, it doesn't seem like enough. I believe the only reason the doctors and the hospital kept us there as long as they did was because we have insurance. If we didn't, they would have patched us up and kicked us to the curb.

Wish me luck on interpreting the paperwork and disputing it!

Note to self...

2009-06-21T17:20:00.001-04:00

Must remember this for later!

Florida U-Pick Farms

Mari-Lee Farms

10 N.W. 42nd Street
Ocala, Florida 34475
Marion County
Telephone: (352) 867-1941
Products: Blueberries
Call for hours

And now...your moment of Zen:

2009-06-18T19:00:00.000-04:00

"I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by."
Douglas Adams

Time still flies...

2009-06-18T18:52:00.003-04:00

Well, it's been practically one month since my last post. Two kids sure do fill the day! I am now posting to my Facebook profile almost daily and now I just started a LinkedIn profile. It is a much more professional site similar to Facebook.

So if you want to know my daily grind, check out Facebook!

"I did it!"

2009-05-19T09:00:00.003-04:00

INSPIRATION FOR THE DAY:I guess it can be done ;o) And she has four kids!

Local Food for Brevard County, FL!

2009-04-21T16:18:00.005-04:00

This is only a short list! I am finding new places every day. I live in Central Brevard County (Florida), so many of these places are "close" to me. If you have any other favorite places, let me know and I will include them in a part two:

Local Harvest (search engine for local farms, farmers' markets, grocery stores, etc.)
The Green Marketplace at Adamson Road, Cocoa, FL and NatureWise (they sell produce, goat milk products, Florida native plants, etc.)
The Heart of Christmas Farm in Christmas, FL (they sell RAW goat milk and products, and hydroponically grown produce to organic standards)
Greens and Things Delivered (a deliver-organic-produce-to-your-door service for Brevard and Indian River Counties and my new favorite!)
Brevard County Farmers' Markets (a bit of everything different days of the week)

I highly recommend these places. I have visited them or used them in the past and continue to get high quality, great tasting food from them (when I can get out of the house with my 3 yr old and 8 week old! and have some cash ;o)

I also recommend signing up for their emails or newsletters as they can give you updated info every week or month. These are all great people providing awesome food for reasonable prices.

SUPPORT LOCAL BUSINESS!! It is how we, as a people, a culture, a community, are going to survive.