About Me

Hi!  So, you stumbled upon my blog and are wondering, "Who IS this person in real life and do I want to know more about what they have to say?"  So, here I am, in a nutshell!

Great Horned Owl

I am a stay-at-home-mom with two biology degrees under my belt.  I have always been passionate about conservation, and believe the first step begins in our own backyards.  I live in an extremely remote part of the country, and other than raising my daughter, wanted a way to connect with others who share my interest.  Thus, this blog was born.  Posts fall into one of six basic categories: kids, green living, backyard wildlife, vegetarian recipes, favorites, and causes.

Kids:
Here I share my natural parenting philosophy, fun ideas I've done with my daughter and want to share with you, products I've tried and love, tips you may find useful in raising your own kids - pretty much anything interesting having to do with kids!  I also encourage you to share YOUR kid-related ideas and favorites.

Cooper's Hawk Fledgling

Green Living:
If you're reading this you're probably already striving towards living a "greener", more eco-friendly, sustainable life style.  Kudos to you.  In these posts I suggest products I've found that help towards that end and share tips towards greening your life - hey, we can all do more, right?  I encourage you to share your tips and tricks as well!



Backyard Wildlife:
The number one threat to the survival of many of the species on our planet is habitat loss.  We can ALL improve our own backyards, giving wild things a little something to hold onto.  When I have suggestions for making our own spaces wildlife friendly, I will post under this label.

             Bullsnake

Vegetarian Recipes:
I have been a vegetarian for 16 years - over half of my life!  I went veggie because I was opposed to how our food animals are raised.  I am NOT against eating meat, just the inhumane treatment of our mass-produced meat.  During my journey, however, I've learned how unsustainable the production of meat is, furthering my conviction that veggie is the way to go.  Even if you aren't a vegetarian, you may find some recipes here that you'd like to try!

Grasshopper native to Costa Rica

Favorites:
We all have those items we can't live without - that all-purpose cleaner, that oh-so-soft lotion, you know what I'm talking about.  When I run across one of these, on of my FAVORITE things, I will share with you.  Let me know what YOU think - did you like it?  Not?  Use that comments section!  And, I encourage you to share your faves as well, so I can find more faves!  For my VERY favorite favorites (like the ones I use daily, recommend to all my friends, basically my version of "Oprah's Favorite Things"), I will add them in a more permanent fashion to my Favorites and Giveaways page.  That way you can always find them!

          Meerkat

Causes:
I write about causes I think are important - environmental and social - and encourage you to get involved with any you are interested in.  Two of my most favorite quotes include:

In the end we will conserve only what we love, we will love only what we understand, and we will understand only what we are taught.   ~Baba Dioum, Senegalese ecologist

and

"It is not enough to be compassionate.  You must act."  ~Tenzin Gyatso

So, I try to ACT whenever something is important to me.  I subscribe to action alerts of numerous conservation and social organizations, making sure my voice is heard by lawmakers whenever a decision is to be made.  Sometimes a particular cause really tugs at my heart, and then I will share it with you.  I know not everyone will feel strongly about what I do, but perhaps from time to time one of my causes will strike a chord with you, and hopefully you will act upon it too.

Because I believe...
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed it is the only thing that ever has."    ~Margaret Mead

Child in Jamaica

Hopefully on this blog you will find something of interest to you, and hopefully by labeling my posts with one of these six categories it will make it easier for you to find what you're interested in.  (Okay, seven, because sometimes I post something about being vegetarian that's not really a recipe, in which case I just label it "vegetarian".  That's for those of you who just want the recipes and not my philosophy!)  Enjoy!