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Kirsten
Canberra, Australia
The basics: I'm a left leaning, feminist, happily married, Australian mother/writer/blogger. I have three kids. I am no longer studying. I write. That about sums it up. Also, I used to go by the name Kay in the blogosphere, but now I don't. I work part-time in writing, editing and web roles (it varies) in a nameless government department. I share the working (paid and unpaid) with my partner Chris, which is basically awesome but sometimes frustrating for both of us. I write at SustainableSuburbia.net, as well as having my personal blog here at Typepad.
Interests: sustainability, writing, parenting, organic gardening, chooks, web 2.0, sleep, steiner education
Recent Activity
Eliane loves to play with shells. She can...
Posted Oct 10, 2019 at narrating kayoz
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We use zucchinis in a lot of our everyday type recipes, because, well, when you are growing zucchini's you end up with a lot of them! But one of my favourite glut recipes is chocolate brownies. Just the sweet tooth in me :)
Embracing the zucchini glut {and a recipe for zucchini bread and butter pickles}
Zucchini are at their best right now. This versatile and prolific vegetable is a boom and bust vegetable. Prices have dropped and those of you growing it at home are likely to be searching for new ways to use zucchini. I’ve been exploring ways to embrace the zucchini glut – and in particular h...
I am so with you on the unnecessary toys - even things like Uno, the card game, is just a version of Switch (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switch_(card_game) ) - why do we need a whole different set of cards for it?
My older two kids sometimes play cards now, which I love, although they are at such different stages. We'll definitely be taking a couple of packs along on our big o/s trip later this year though.
Questioning the games we play {Games for children that can be played with a standard 52-card deck}
I’ve become a toy grump. On a recent visit to a toy shop, I spent most of my time grumbling about the large number of expensive and unnecessary toys. High on my list of complaints are toys that can be easily played without spending a cent. An egg and spoon race game, complete with fake eggs and ...
You know, I keep reading that you clean your face with honey, and I have yet yo try it. I actually just use water (I have to admit, my 'beauty routine' is practically non-existent, through no special intention - just laziness!), but everytime you post about this I am curious about it.
I think I will make a special time to do some "pantry pampering" with my seven-year-old too. I think she'd think it was a fun thing to do together, just the two of us.
Pantry pampering - Do you really want your family to bathe in carcinogens?
There are a whole lot of chemicals in cosmetics and personal care products that I’d prefer to avoid. There’s lead in lipsticks, mercury in mascara, and cancer-causing chemicals in bath products for babies and kids. Even so called ‘natural’ products contain ingredients best avoided. I checked ...
Oh yes, we had this from the library. My three year old loved this book. Maybe I should take it as a sign.,.
Finding joy in having less
The desire to reduce my impact on the environment motivated me to learn how to live better with less. However, over time the environmental benefits have become almost secondary to the happiness and wellbeing benefits. I’ve discovered that having and doing less creates a sense of happiness and...
My dad used to have them too, blue and brown ah nostalgia!
Finding joy in having less
The desire to reduce my impact on the environment motivated me to learn how to live better with less. However, over time the environmental benefits have become almost secondary to the happiness and wellbeing benefits. I’ve discovered that having and doing less creates a sense of happiness and...
Tricia, this is such an awesome post, I think I might print it out and give it to the grandparents... Maybe it will help them to understand our philosophy a little better (and by grandparents I really mean my FIL, but its better to be even handed about these things!).
Finding joy in having less
The desire to reduce my impact on the environment motivated me to learn how to live better with less. However, over time the environmental benefits have become almost secondary to the happiness and wellbeing benefits. I’ve discovered that having and doing less creates a sense of happiness and...
What an awesome idea!
We live right next to a footpath between streets, and I've often thought of planting out the space between the path and our driveway with herbs - but then I never get my own garden fully sorted, so why add more? I think...
But this is a great idea. We too have kids in our street at a bunch of different schools. I wonder if I could get them excited about something like this? I bet my son would be.
Verge of greatness
Children playing in the front yard is something I rarely see these days. This apparent lack of neighbourhood play saddens me a little, so I was thrilled when I heard about a verge veggie garden created by some Newcastle kids. The garden is only a couple of weeks old and already has become a p...
One of the things I love about Canberra winters is:
Posted Jun 25, 2013 at narrating kayoz
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What a fantastic initiative, thanks for sharing Tricia. I hope it comes to Canberra... off to look at the website now :)
Eying off the car next door
My car sits unused for 23 out of 24 hours most days. Apparently mine isn’t the only one sitting idle, with most cars used on average for only one and a half hours per day. In an ideal world we’d happily share our idle cars, perhaps even making a little money doing so, so that others could get by...
Me and my colon and my empty stomach
I've been meaning to write a post about how this year so far has been filled with accidents and illness (right now Liam has a sprained ankle and Mikaela is sick with a virus that's been going around at school... Continue reading
Posted Jun 19, 2013 at narrating kayoz
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I love this idea! I think we have gotten worse at this over the past decade since having kids - not that we buy a lot of stuff for them (we are mean, mean parents), but more that we have gotten overwhelmed and stopped budgetting, so instead of always knowing how much we have saved for any particular thing (gifts, trips, house expenses etc), we just have a bunch of money in the bank and spend it without thought. And then sometimes run into trouble at the end of the month when it comes time to pay.
I am getting back into budgeting at the moment, because I much prefer to have money allocated and know that if we are buying something, it's because we can afford it. And yeah, often times, if you don't buy it straight away, sometimes you realise you don't 'need' it after all!
I love that cubby though. I think I will add it to my wishlist :)
Learning to be a slow spender
With the rise of the slow movement we’ve seen people embrace slow food, slow travel, slow fashion and numerous other ways to slow down and reduce consumption. I’m thinking many of us could also do with a good dose of “slow spending”. If my grandparents wanted something they saved for it. They l...
That sounds fabulous Joy, I would love to hear about it - anything that gets more pitching in is always a bonus!
Tips for reducing TV time
I’ve just enjoyed five months without a television. Instead of being distracted by the box we spent time outdoors, played board games as a family and were snuggled in bed reading by a sensible hour. It was bliss. Then the days started to shorten and we sensed just how dark and cold winter is...
I love that idea of "an hour for an hour".
My kids only get to watch TV on weekend mornings (mostly), which is a way of us getting to sleep in! But, I do often feel that behaviour deteriorates afterwards. We have TV free weeks from time to time, but I'd love to do a TV free month. My husband would rebel though (mind you, he only watches TV at night after the kids are in bed - and often not till I'm in bed too).
Last weekend we have a very successful cleaning up day with the reward of our first ever family movie night afterwards. I'm thinking of dropping Saturday morning TV and moving towards that model instead, but I may have some rebellion on my hands! Have to make the two changes seem unrelated, so they don't feel the movie nights (earned) are robbing them of the free for all in the morning.
Tips for reducing TV time
I’ve just enjoyed five months without a television. Instead of being distracted by the box we spent time outdoors, played board games as a family and were snuggled in bed reading by a sensible hour. It was bliss. Then the days started to shorten and we sensed just how dark and cold winter is...
I love these posts Tricia. And I love to see the photos of Little Eco and see how she is growing up. I am always amazed when other people's kids continue to grow when I'm not looking!
I think my kids would love to declare Monday night campfire night (or any night really). I'm thinking we might have one tonight, in honour of the Queens birthday weekend, and firecracker night that was - we always used to have a fire along with our fireworks when we were kids :)
Autumn was.....
Autumn 2013 was the season we finally took a deep breath and looked beyond the struggles of living in a shed and started to appreciate how lucky we are to be creating a home in such a magical place. I shared one of my favourite childhood memories with Little Eco - damper twirls cooked on a ...
We've had such a mild autumn here in Canberra, it's hard to believe it's going to get really cold, though the past few days have been a bit wet and miserable.
I think the thermos of something hot is an excellent idea. We often stay around outside after school for a while, especially on Mondays when my 11 year old has choir until 4pm. And I could see a thermos of hot chocolate making the difference between staying and playing, or retreating to the car, now winter is here.
3 Tips for Getting Outdoors When It’s Cold
I’d like to welcome you to Little Eco Footprints first ever guest post. For something a little different, today the Childhood 101 contributors are planning a game of online tag. Debi of Go Explore Nature is here sharing tips for getting outdoors when it’s cold, while I’m over at Small Potatoes s...
Thanks Jody. Ridiculously, one of my issues is that I made it to 41 without ever being in any kind of car accident, and now my poor kids have had one - and a fairly serious one (bad for the car anyway, as Mikaela kept saying) - at the age of, well, in Elli's case only three. I know that is a daft reason to feel bad, but that's the irrational human in me I guess!
The Car Crash
I was in a car accident last week, and this week I am struggling. I think it's partly because I'm not sleeping well, mostly due to injuries. Nothing major at all, just bruising, maybe some muscle strains, but enough to ache at night and make it difficult to get comfortable. Also my left hand (w...
The Car Crash
Posted May 30, 2013 at narrating kayoz
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Great post Tricia. There's a clothing swap day at my kids school coming up - this weekend I think. It's a great idea, and really pretty easy to organise.
Loving pre-loved clothing
I love vintage and pre-loved clothing. Clothes that are durable and timeless appeal to me far more than the mass-produced disposable clothes of today. Durability aside, favouring pre-loved is an easy way to minimise the negative environmental and social impacts of my wardrobe. From wastewater ...
Haha, I didn't get far with this meme, did I?!
52 Weeks Photo Meme
I saw this meme somewhere, a photo of each child every week for the year. I can't remember where I saw it, and I'm a month late to the game, but I have decided to do it anyway. (I'll find the link up and add it in later). This is all three of them from last Monday:
When Mothering Is Political
"However, so-called ‘mummy blogging’ is not a purely personal endeavour. Despite the gleeful mocking of ‘serious bloggers’ and ‘hilarious male columnists’ the issues explored by ‘mummy bloggers’ are often highly political. For many women of my generation, motherhood is a... Continue reading
Posted Apr 5, 2013 at narrating kayoz
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Thanks for publishing this Tricia. I was just discussing this issue the other day with my cousin, who lives in inner city Canberra on a main road, and has been worrying about how that might affect her children. I'll be forwarding this to her :)
9 steps for lead-safe urban gardening
Urban chook keepers may be feeling a little wary after learning that a recent University of Newcastle study found high levels of lead in home-grown backyard eggs. Thankfully, it is possible to garden safely and grow your own food in lead-contaminated urban areas. Nine steps for lead-safe urban...
Goodbye Kindergarten, Hello Class One!
Posted Feb 5, 2013 at narrating kayoz
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