Farmers Markets

It’s almost time for Farmers Markets here in the Northwest! I love this time of year. Spending Saturday morning looking through fresh produce and flowers has been something I look forward to each Spring.

It started with the Boulder County Farmers Market when my parents would come up to Boulder to visit me when I was attending the University of Colorado at Boulder. We would go to breakfast at Rocky Mountain Joe’s and then head to the Boulder County Farmers Market. After college we would plan Saturday’s to meet up in Boulder and do the same thing. Once I was married and my husband and I lived near the Cherry Creek area of Denver, we would hit the Cherry Creek Farmers Market. It didn’t quite have the atmosphere of the Boulder County Farmers Market, but had the wonderful aroma of fresh roasted peppers in the air.

Now that we live in the Northwest we are blessed with the bounty of what the Oregon and Washington farmers have to offer. It is, by far, more than the markets in Colorado had to offer! I am looking forward to coming home with fresh strawberries and asparagus on our first few visits. The additions will come each week, with some coming and going faster than others, until pumpkins at the end of October. These days, I especially love watching our son eat the berries fresh out of the containers while we pull him around in his Radio Flyer wagon!

Here is a listing of websites for some of our favorite Farmers Markets:

www.boulderfarmers.org

www.coloradofreshmarkets.com

www.beavertonfarmersmarket.com

www.tigardfarmersmarket.com

www.ci.oswego.or.us/farmersmarket

These websites should have dates and times listed for each of the markets. In addition, you can visit www.localharvest.org to find Farmers Markets in your area.

Finally, if you know of a Farmers Market in the Portland area that has fresh roasted peppers will you please leave a comment and let me know where it is? That is definitely something the Colorado Farmers Markets had to offer that we can’t find here in Oregon!

Happy Earth Day…it's that simple

I’ve been thinking for days about what I wanted to write about for my Earth Day post.  It hasn’t been easy.  I’ve watched my twitter feed, read magazines, surfed the internet, read many other blog posts, and searched my own book shelves and knowledge base to find something that was right, but I couldn’t.  I was overwhelmed!

Is that how you feel when it comes to Earth Day?  Do you feel inundated by “green” in what you read, watch and hear?  Do you wonder how you can participate in Earth Day, but don’t know where to start?  Or, do you feel that the little thing that you might do for just one day isn’t enough, so you just decide not to do anything?

Here’s my tip…do something.  I often wonder if I am doing enough, learning enough, teaching enough, and participating enough in the environmental movement.  I have figured out that the answer is YES.  We all do our part.  Some of us more than others, but we can all do something.  Start with today, Earth Day.  Switch to a CFL, carry a reusable bag, recycle, drive less, choose low-VOC paint, buy organic, buy local, turn off your lights and electronics when not in use…it’s that simple.

To help you get started, here are some links to a few websites with more ideas and tips:

http://www.epa.gov/earthday/

http://www.thegreenguide.com/earth-day

http://www.epa.gov/earthday/takehomekit.htm

If you have more ideas or are still overwhelmed, please leave a comment on this post.  We can all help eachother on this Earth Day…and that will help the environment!

Happy Earth Day!

the boy who was raised by black labs

Our first “children” were animals.  In December 1999, a diluted calico cat named Murphy was adopted from the Dumb Friends League in Denver.  In March 2000, a black lab puppy named Ben came from our good friend and Grand River trainer/breeder Mike Gould.  In September 2000, an orange and white tabby named Hobbes was adopted from the Dumb Friends League.  In November 2003, an 8 year old black lab named Oak was adopted from Mike Gould.  In April 2004, a black lab puppy named Odyssey, again came from Mike Gould.

For almost 8 years we were the proud parents of our five-fuzzy-faces.  The dogs would go everywhere with us.  We drove across the country to Upstate New York with a stop in Chicago for a family wedding…all with Ben in tow!We went on many roadtrips through Wyoming, Montana, and Idaho with all 3 of them…learning what hotels were pet friendly along the way.  My husband would take the boy dogs hunting anywhere from 40-60 days each fall.  They would all go camping and hiking with us during the summer.   They drove with us from Colorado to Oregon when we moved.  Oak used to go to work with me almost everyday here in Oregon.  They lived the high life!

Then July 5, 2007 came.  The world as they knew it stopped.  Our baby boy arrived and they were relegated to the dog runs and scolded for getting too close to the baby.  Oh, I was afraid that we wouldn’t be able to give them the attention they were used to…and we weren’t…but our little guy is!

The little guy LOVES his doggies!  The first word-like sound he made was “woof”; his first word was “doggie”; his first 2-word phrase was “good girl”;  the second 2-word phrase was “bad dog”; and his first 3-word phrase was “no bark dog”.  When he wakes up in the morning he asks where Oak is.  He loves to share his toys and food with the dogs.  He crawls all over them, snuggles on their dog beds, and loves to play chase with them in the house.  He is part of their pack.

When we are outside in the back yard he loves to play in their dogs runs.  He opens and closes the door, pretends to fill up their water buckets, and likes it even better if they will play along with him…Odyssey usually obliges.  Oftentimes, I will find him hiding in the dog crate we keep in the house for “doggie timeouts”…sometimes he will be in there with one of the dogs.  I am sure that he thinks every kid has a house full of black labs  just like he does.

The dogs (and cats) may not get the attention they used to from us, but our little guy sure thinks the world of them.  Their days are lazy, and they get to stay in the house most of the time, now.  My husband runs the boys down at the river once or twice a week…when he can. Oak is pretty much blind, deaf, and very needy so I try to give her extra attention whenever possible.  I am not sure how much longer we will have her around…she has been a mom to around 30 puppies…and acts as a “doggie nanny” to our little guy.  They are all wonderful pets and “children”…including the boy who was raised by Black Labs.