Podcast Suggestions {Earth Day Edition}

April 23, 2015April 29, 2015 by Sarah | Leave a comment

Hey ~~party~~ podcast people! Remember way back in January when we shared our goals for 2015? Well, one of mine was spreading the news about great podcasts. Maybe you listen to them and maybe you don’t, but after reading this you MUST. Podcasts are pretty nifty. I think of them like blogs for the radio. Some podcasts have huge budgets and a big staff and others are created by an individual out of their home office (or closet!). Plenty of podcasts are free and simply ask for donations if you really dig the program, but obviously you don’t have to give any money if you can’t spare it. Podcasts are really easy to download (for free!) and you can also subscribe to your favorites and they’ll automatically upload to your phone, computer or ipod each time there’s a new one. I find podcasts through iTunes, but if you use a different music program just do a quick google search and you’ll certainly find a tutorial about how to find, download and subscribe to podcasts.

I loveeee listening to podcasts because radio is awesome, but commercials suck! It’s also nice to be able to really control what you’re listening to in the car. I get so frustrated, annoyed and tired if I don’t have something good playing on the radio. I love music, but ~~sometimes~~ I want to learn something nifty in my spare time and podcasts are perfect for bits of information or unique perspectives on different topics. Today I’m going to share some recent interesting episodes that have a little something to do with the environment, ’cause ya know, earth day was yesterday and arbor day is tomorrow! Did you do anything special for yourself and our planet yesterday? I hiked to the top of Mount Sanitas and I won’t forget about it anytime soon – SO sore. Totally worth it of course!

Making a Space for Native Bees

April 22, 2015 by Katie | Leave a comment

Happy Earth Day (again)! We’re excited to check in this afternoon with a second post, especially one about making a space for native bees in your backyard!

You may not be aware, but the honey bees that we all know and love for the pollination services and delicious honey are not native to North America. The bees arrived in North America by Europeans in the 17th century, and they are such efficient pollinators that over time our agriculture became dependent upon the insects. This dependency is due in part to honey bees living in such large colonies that we are able to easily move from field to field in portable hives. I love the idea of fostering different habitats in our backyard for a variety of animals from birds to insects to mammals; especially since observing these animals in our backyard is such a simple way to introduce and connect Alex and Luc to nature. As such, one day I would love to have a colony of honeybees in my backyard, but I know that requires time that I don’t have right now to learn about their care and monitor the hives throughout the year, not to mention the work that would be required to collect the honey. Meanwhile, our native bees are really interesting insects that receive relatively little attention yet are the perfect guests for a low maintenance backyard! Knowing that, we thought Earth Day was the perfect time to encourage everyone to invite these gentle creatures into your yard!

Today when discussing native bees, we’re referring specifically to Mason Bees, of which, there are over 100 species in North America. Unlike honey bees that live in large colonies, Mason bees are solitary insects and they do not produce honey. Another difference between the two types of bees is that Mason bees do not sting unless squeezed or stepped on. For that reason and for their interesting nesting habits (read more below!), they are a great bee to encourage to nest in your backyard; kids will enjoy watching them create their nests without the threat of being stung!

Happy Earth Day!

April 22, 2015May 28, 2015 by Katie | Leave a comment

Greetings fellow earthlings and a happy earth day to each of you! You may have noticed a major theme on Seasoned is our love of mother nature so naturally earth day is one of our favorite environmental holidays. Earth day is pretty awesome for a number of reasons: there are a bunch of great events held around the world and at educational facilities, these events spark interest in folks and may lead to greater environmental awareness and responsibility on an individual and business level, and it gives us an excuse to talk about how much we love the natural environment.

We are all SO LUCKY to have an amazing planet that puts up with our shit. Am I right? I feel absolutely blessed (a term I never use, this might be the first time actually) to step outside in the morning and take a deep breath. To experience natural wonders large and small. To be rained on. To get sun burnt. To see wildlife and to get stung by bees. Nature is wonderful and it’s powerful. If you’ve never felt absolutely stunted and small because of the natural environment around you, it’s time to climb a mountain or paddle a kayak far away from the shore. There is nothing I love more than feeling absolutely terrified of how small and insignificant I truly am when I’m in the presence of a monolithic landscape. It is times like these that I realize oceans and mountains will and should be here long after I’m gone. They should be enjoyed and appreciated for centuries and they shouldn’t be taken for granted, not even for a day, which is why I love earth day so damn much. It’s the largest, most celebrated environmental holiday in the world and thank ~~god~~ mother nature. It’s one measly day, but I’m ecstatic that we even have that because maybe someone who littered yesterday will know better today and teach someone else why it’s wrong tomorrow. What message are you passing on today? How are you bettering this beautiful planet that we have the privilege to live on? If you can’t make it to an event today, simply go outside and marvel at the world we live in and remember, earth does not belong to man, man belongs to earth.

Later today we’ll share a little project that was inspired by earth day, but until then, check out these eco-sculptures we featured last earth day or learn how to take better photos of the natural world.

Welcome Baby Luc!

April 15, 2015 by Katie | 2 Comments

While we’ve mentioned that the newest member of the Live Seasoned family arrived, we thought it was time to formally introduce the little guy! Meet Luc Turning Muir D.

I was 41 weeks and 2 days pregnant (more on that in another post!) when I went into labor with the help of the full moon. Luc arrived on Easter after a relatively easy labor, weighing 7 pounds 2 ounces and measuring 19 inches long. In his short time on the outside, he’s been a champion eater and sleeper!

More about his name ~

His first name is pronounced like Luke.
His big brother Alex calls him baby Luc, and now we do too 🙂
He’s named Turing after Alan Turing, the inventor of the computer
And Muir after John Muir, the naturalist

I hope you’re ready for a few more baby-related posts because we’re having too much fun photographing and caring for this little guy.

You Are Enough

April 13, 2015April 13, 2015 by Sarah | 3 Comments

You have enough. You do enough. You are enough. I’m constantly thinking about abundance, about enoughness. I feel as though I have so much and yet my bank account is never abundant. It’s always almost completely empty. Yes, like empty, empty. Why? Because my ~~bills~~ life is abundant. I’m paying for college, for rent, for food, for gas, mostly for gas actually. I have enough. I could live off the food in my fridge for at least another two weeks, but I’ll probably go grocery shopping tomorrow. My clothes will last years before they grow holes, but I’ll buy a new dress this summer. My bank account could use some fluffing, but instead I’ll drain it for a plane ticket to Colorado. Abundance. Abundance and the piece of mind to grasp onto all these good things and enjoy them while I can because while life is abundant today we don’t know what will happen tomorrow.

I’m constantly struggling with this idea of work and money and time and life. It’s pretty confusing and I’m sure none of us have it completely figured out. I do know that I value my time and happiness above all else, money included, which is why I will try to make this freelancing thing work as long as I can. I know money buys pretty things and it buys travel, something I adore, but it doesn’t make life any easier, although I’m sure sometimes it appears to make life less stressful. Each day I strive to experience the world on my own terms without the comfort of a 9-5 job. Some days it’s really easy and other ~~days~~ months I cannot seem to find enough gigs to pay the rent. It’s really shitty sometimes and somehow you feel that failure to find work independently as a reflection of yourself instead of our society that values worker bees instead of happy ones. It’s tough, but there’s enough to go around. I could easily get a different job, but an bigger bank account does not equate to increased abundance, at least not the kind I’m thinking of. Abundance is spare time, happiness, and laughter. Abundance is care packages, volunteering and bartering. Abundance is a million things and each of us know how to practice abundance in our own way. If you yearn abundance, share some of your own and it will come back to you. Until then, know that you have enough. You do enough. You are enough. That is my current mantra and it would delight me if some of you adopted it today and tomorrow and forever.

Welcome April

April 9, 2015 by Katie | Leave a comment

On the first Wednesday of every most months, you can find us checking in with what’s coming up on the calendar, both literally and figuratively.

Don’t you feel like April is the month when we have at least one foot firmly planted in Spring? Sure, there was a little snow shower up in the mountains last week, but it didn’t seem to dampen any spirits, because there’s no going back to winter now : the first flowers are blooming, and spring is definitely on its way! I love seeing the definite transformation from winter to spring. Tiny buds, blossoming flowers and pollen in your sinuses. It really is a beautiful world we live in. That and it’s finally dress and moccasin season.

I’m so excited to see how the perennial gardens develop at our house in the mountain. Currently, the daffodils and grape hyacinth are in full bloom. The larger hyacinths are starting to develop, but I think it’ll be a couple of weeks until we have flowers yet, but down the mountain in Boulder proper, I saw a few hyacinths in full bloom just in time for Easter! It’s expected that peak bloom for the National Cherry Blossom Festival will be April 11-14th this year, again later than the average bloom date of April 4th. In Sarah’s neck of the woods (North Carolina) the magnolias, dogwoods, crabapple and cherry blossom trees are blooming already. The weather has hovered in the seventies for the past week and looks to be warming up even more next week.

I have to be honest, we have bees on the brain this season (maybe we need an insect of the season category!). During last month’s welcome we highlighted bees and talked about some of the early spring activity that you may observe in their colonies. When introducing nuts as our ingredient of the season, we mentioned the valuable services bees provide as pollinators to the country’s almond crops, but their work doesn’t end there. Migratory beekeepers have many miles yet to travel this spring as they move their hives across the country. Around this time, hives have been placed in the cherry, plum, and avocado orchards in California, some have moved north to the apple and cherry orchards in Washington state, and others have traveled east to pollinate the tupelos and gallberries in Florida.

In other buzzin’ buddy news, hummingbirds are on the move! I spotted my first of the season earlier this week, which prompted a post about filling and hanging hummingbird feeders. Unfortunately I haven’t seen any drinking out of the feeder yet, but I’m hoping that’s because they hit the nectar early in the morning.

Besides birds, I’ve seen lots of reptile and insect activity this past week. There was an enormous black snake in the driveway of the pottery studio and I saw a tiny green garden snake in my yard yesterday. Spring is a popular time of year for our slithering friends. They’ll be boppin’ about during the warmer days this month and next so watch where you step! In insect news, I spotted my first tick yesterday *groan* while I was hiking with Cash. It was crawling on my leg. If you’re a dog owner, vaccinate your pup! It looks like we’re getting a little bit closer to preventing Lyme disease for humans too. I’ve also dealt with my fair share of fire ants this past week. Apparently my yard is full of fire ant mounds, which became apparent after a few barefoot escapades. Ouch. As the season rolls on I’ll let you know if I take action or try to ignore the enormous underground anthill that is my yard.

Arbor Day is celebrated on the last Friday in April, which is the 24th this year and the eve of baby AMax’s second birthday! We’ll have to plant a tree in honor of that little guy and all the growing he has done over the past 24 months. If you’d like to plant a tree or ten, you should become a member of the Arbor Day Foundation. It’s only $10 and you receive ten free trees when you sign up! Sounds like a steal to me.

Earth Day – It’s the 45th anniversary of Earth Day this year and we think focusing on the health of our environment is of utmost importance today and every day. We also love a good Earth Day celebration. There’s an Xtreme Zero Waste event going on in Boulder that we may have to check out. How will you be celebrating? Planting any trees? Walking to work? Every bit counts.

Seasoned View: Vol. 13

April 6, 2015April 5, 2015 by Sarah | 2 Comments

Each month we share our Seasoned View. Snapshots of nature and daily life taken by the Seasoned sisters. Find last month’s here and past months’ here.

Happy Monday Ya’ll! Seasoned View: (lucky) Vol. 13 today! I can’t believe Kate and I have been on this blogging adventure for over a year now. Thank you SO much for following along and remember if there’s something we do that has been driving you crazy this past year, you can tell us in the comments. We are already aware of how horribly we spell, but besides that bring it on. Tell us what is up.

Oh yeah, PS. I’m an aunt times two now!! Yep, Katie had her second baby boy yesterday! Once she is rested I’m sure she’ll give us an update on his stats and the little guy’s name. Until then, you can upload one or all of these photos to use as your desktop background or as phone and tablet wallpapers. Simply click on the download link below each photo and save the image. Enjoy!

Click here for blooms on black. This image was inspired by this fine lady.

Click here for the nest.

Click here for sun on seed.

Click here for macro Mike. Sidenote: I name all the spiders that live in my house and most bugs I meet on the street. Anyone else do this?

Click here for full bloom.

Wondering what my desktop actually looks like? I’m a leeeeetle bit embarrassed to show you, but here goes:Initially it looked like the photo above, but I was able to trash a bunch of things and pare it down to this photo:

Ugh. I know it’s ridiculous, but at least my actual desktop doesn’t look like that, right?! If you look closely, you’ll see one of my folders is “entire desktop” well that little baby also contains folders with the names “everything ever” and “OMG so much stuff” this is what happens when you take and edit photos for a living. So. Much. Stuff.

How To Use It: Coconut Oil

March 31, 2015January 30, 2016 by Sarah | 2 Comments

Hey all you nutty kids! Katie and I have a bunch of products that make their way into our daily lives in some form or another and one of those is coconut oil. We thought it might be helpful to explain how we use coconut oil in case you’re at a bit of a loss. Personally coconut oil is used so often in my house that I have a jar in my kitchen, bathroom and car! I can’t get enough of the stuff and while I like other oils too like argon and olive, coconut is so cheap and versatile that I find myself using larger quantities of it than the others.

Preparing for Baby #2 ~ Mamma Care!

March 30, 2015March 30, 2015 by Katie | 2 Comments

A couple of weeks ago, we shared some of the gear that I consider essential for the first few weeks of a wee babe’s life. Today I wanted to share a few ideas for the new mamma, even if it’s not your first time to the rodeo. It was hard to break these ideas into two posts, because some items in the baby post may look like they’re for the mom (hello, nursing tanks), but really, few moms are excited to wear those things ~ we’re wearing them to give the little ones easy access to their food. Likewise, I have a few things on today’s post that seem like they are for the baby, but when you really think about it, we’re using them to make the mamma more comfortable, and that’s so important.

I think that the best thing a mom can do after a pregnancy is to relax, make yourself comfortable, and give your body the time to heal. You’ll see that my priority items really focus on those ideas. I also believe that addressing every aspect of mamma care is equally important (from physical to mental), so don’t think of this list as being in any sort of order ~ all items would come first if they could!

Two Bits

March 13, 2015 by Sarah | Leave a comment

We want to break down these internet barriers and invite you into our lives and we’re hoping you’ll do the same. You are welcome to share your a bit of your week or day in the comments, or if they’re better represented by a photo, tag us on instagram @liveseasoned

Katie here:

Actually Katie isn’t here, I think she’s off being a mom somewhere. Who knows, maybe she went into labor early?! JUST KIDDING. Don’t get excited ~~mom~~ readers!

Sarah here:

I had an awesome week space cadets! I’m feeling a little zapped right now so I’ll let these photos tell most of the story 🙂 Above you can see my haandy work. Which is your favorite color? I think mine is fog or celadon. Starting from the bottom: pollen, celadon, lake, white, clementine, robins’ egg, coral, fog, sand, sea foam and white again.

Catahoula_Cash and I went on a hike every day this week! We even went some place totally new. We hiked along the Haw River and Cash even took his first dip of the season. I was a little bit worried that he would try to jump into the river, which is high right now, but he’s a smart pup. Instead he rolled around in a stream and hopped into a pond!

I also found a family-owned dairy farm on the way home from the pottery studio. I bought a dozen eggs for $3. Major breakfast plans this weekend!

A nature-inspired lifestyle blog.

Category Archives: nurture

Podcast Suggestions {Earth Day Edition}

Making a Space for Native Bees

Happy Earth Day!

Welcome Baby Luc!

You Are Enough

Welcome April

On the first Wednesday of every most months, you can find us checking in with what’s coming up on the calendar, both literally and figuratively.

Seasoned View: Vol. 13

Each month we share our Seasoned View. Snapshots of nature and daily life taken by the Seasoned sisters. Find last month’s here and past months’ here.

How To Use It: Coconut Oil

Preparing for Baby #2 ~ Mamma Care!

Two Bits

We want to break down these internet barriers and invite you into our lives and we’re hoping you’ll do the same. You are welcome to share your a bit of your week or day in the comments, or if they’re better represented by a photo, tag us on instagram @liveseasoned

Katie here:

Sarah here: