Welcome March

March 6, 2019March 10, 2019 by Katie | Leave a comment

On the first Wednesday of each month, we like to pause and take a look at what’s going on in the world around us. We’ll highlight some nature and environmental news, give you a bit of inspiration, and ask you to partake in a monthly sustainability initiative with us.

That old “in like a lion” proverb is really ringing true this year! It looks like most of the country was hit by that big winter storm and an arctic blast last weekend… so, what did we do in our house? Stayed inside and ate LAMB!

Please tell me you get how funny that is. In like a LION out like LAMB. {Sarah here: Dude, we get it. Alternately, ‘Mom! You’re embarrassing me!’}
Continue reading …

Donut Day Take Two – Two Donuts, Too Easy

March 5, 2019March 10, 2019 by Sarah | Leave a comment

This post was originally published in 2014. We’re republishing it today because donuts never go out of style.

Donuts are a bit sweet for my taste, so I rarely make them, but when I do I’m reminded of how quick, simple, and delicious they are. They’re so much fun that I almost want to make them faster than I can eat them, which is perfect if you have my sweet tooth of a boyfriend. I only ate two from the chocolate-cherry batch and he kindly took care of the rest. I can’t say the same for the little fried rings; we both scarfed those down at record speed. By record speed, I mean less than three minutes. They’re best when they’re hot, we all know that, and in this case, I almost didn’t get a chance to dip them in icing.

First is a delicious baked chocolate donut with cherry frosting and second comes the easiest fried donut of all time. I learned about the latter in YMCA when I was eight, yeah, it’s that easy. So cruise through these recipes with me, but I’m warning you, you’ll want to head immediately to the store to grab the ingredients.

Happy Donut Day!

March 5, 2019March 10, 2019 by Katie | 4 Comments

This post was originally published in 2014. We’re republishing it today, because making these donuts on Fat Tuesday is always a good idea.

Today is Mardi Gras, but it’s also known as Fat Tuesday or Donut Day; a day to celebrate and indulge before Lent. Traditionally a fried donut would be served today, so we’ll start with one this morning, but there are so many delicious (and easy!) donut recipes out there, that we thought we would be fun to check in again this afternoon with two different donut recipes, one baked, one fried, both glazed!

Getting Outside : Set a Park Goal

February 27, 2019February 27, 2019 by Katie | 2 Comments

Unless you’re hiding under a rock, you’ve likely seen the headlines and reports that getting outside and into nature is good for us… and if you’re under a rock, then getting outside is the least of your problems.

This past fall, we did a mini-series sharing ideas, big and small, for getting outside. Our first post shared a few ideas for getting outside at every energy and adventure level. Sarah followed-up with suggestions for week-day doses of outside time. We also wrote another post that suggested taking advantage of the awesome national and state park programs.

Today we’re encouraging you to create your own park adventure…

Read With Me : Deep Down Dark

February 26, 2019February 26, 2019 by Sarah | Leave a comment

In 2018, we started a series called ‘Read With Me’ where we are sharing all most of what we’ve read each month in hopes you’ll follow suit and dust off that book you’ve been meaning to devour! Here are all the previous Read With Me posts.

Deep Down Dark: The Untold Stories of 33 Men Buried in a Chilean Mine, and the Miracle That Set Them Free by Héctor Tobar

Environmental Holiday Calendar Printable

February 25, 2019March 10, 2019 by Sarah | Leave a comment

Happy Monday friends! Do you celebrate Earth Day? What about World Water Day and Bike-to-work Day? Well now you can because I created a calendar comprised of only environmental holidays. And Library Lovers Day because come on, why not?

If I didn’t check my environmental holiday spreadsheet on a weekly basis, I would miss more than half of these. Ok, I forget to check it and I do miss half of these. But, why celebrate environmental holidays? Earth days remind me of all the intricate beautiful pieces that come together to create our environment. Earth-centric holidays have nothing to do with consumerism, which is a plus. Lastly, environmental holidays are a great time to gather with other nature-loving peeps. If you’re in the Raleigh area, check out all the events I planned around earth days in March alone.

Good Stuff: Self Imposed Water Challenge

February 21, 2019October 10, 2019 by Sarah | Leave a comment

Happy Thursday from inside the hyperbaric chamber at Duke University. I’m sitting here at 12,000 feet pooping in plastic bags and collecting my urine all in the name of science. I like to conduct my own little experiments at home too. After reading an article in some magazine (maybe Outside?) in January, I was inspired to initiate a water challenge. My plan was to drink a gallon a water a day for a week and if it seemed sustainable, I’d do it for the whole month.

Let me break the suspense now, I did not do this insane challenge for a month and I wasn’t entirely successful at my smaller goal. Here’s my journal of a week of trying to drink 128oz per day for a week.

Day 1

First day was hard! Drank 20 ounces before bed and another 100oz during the day. I didn’t finish the last one until 2am… you think I could have swallowed another eight ounces, but I simply couldn’t. Was definitely sick of water by that point. Continue reading …

Make with Me

February 19, 2019February 18, 2019 by Katie | Leave a comment

As we continue sharing good habits in 2019, we want to remind you why it’s always a good time to pick up a creative habit.

Stitches knit in January of 2018 : 73,260 and counting…

and now I’ve started off 2019 by ALMOST finishing a sweater for Luc before realizing that the sleeves were two different circumferences. So, yesterday marks the first time that I’ve had to rip out most of a sweater to fix a counting error, but tomorrow I’ll push on and knit like crazy to get back on track.

Sarah wrote a post asking you to read with her more in 2018. I jumped on that train and shared the amazingly simple change I made that had me reading much more in 2018. I’m so happy that I kept up my bedtime reading habit, and I still love the change a year later!

How To: Create a Care Package in Five Simple Steps

February 18, 2019February 17, 2019 by Sarah | Leave a comment

Happy Monday friends! Create a care package in 5 simple steps. Make your friend’s day! I sent 15 postcards just yesterday and I have six packages to send out today. Can’t stop, won’t stop. I’ll spend all my money on stationary if I want! Here’s how to create a care package with items you already have at home.

Mocha Lip Scrub

February 14, 2019February 14, 2019 by Katie | Leave a comment

We first posted this just last fall, when coffee was our ingredient of the season, but we’re re-posting it again today, because maybe you’ll need some soft and supple lips tonight?

Have you tried a lip scrub yet? Lip scrubs contain a bit of texture to gently exfoliate your lips, and they’re perfect for this time of year when our lips can get dry from the cool winter air.

Giving your lips a gentle scrub will remove that dry outer layer, leaving you with soft smooth lips that are the perfect canvas for a bit of lipstick. Why do you need that? Cause it’s holiday party season! Have fun.