Tuesday, April 22, 2008

EARTH & HEART = anagram (photos from today)

I usually don't wear message shirts. Just not my style I guess.

But today I felt good wearing it.

The shirt felt right and good. Literally because it's 70% bamboo & 30% organic cotton and is the softest shirt I own; and figuratively because today, on Earth Day I felt free to be passionate about the environment.



We know Earth Day should be Every Day, and that is even more crucial after 8 dismal years with Bush (arguably the most anti-environmental president in our nation's history). No matter who wins, it'll be a greener white house. We can make sure of that by educating ourselves and those around us, becoming politically active, and voting with our dollars by supporting those who are making efforts to use good environmental practices. Be a proud tree hugger!


Feeling empowered, I decided to make cupcakes! I only needed: Cherrybrook Kitchen chocolate cake mix and vanilla frosting mix, Keebler Bug Bites (yes, they're vegan), the usual suspects, and a jar of beet juice.

I've been "dying" to try natural food dyes since learning that artificial food colors are derivatives of either coal tar or petroleum. Eck. Red #40 has been banned in at least 8 European countries and linked to several health problems. Oooh.


For a craft, the kids painted ladybug rocks.

I vowed that I wouldn't buy anything from the store, and I didn't.

I'm proud of my resistance to not buy more black paint, even though we were dangerously low. You can see, that as it turned out, there was plenty to go around.




We went for a hike to explore some of nature's wonders.


There were 4 moms and 9 kids whose age ranges 1 to 5 years.








Then, we came back for cupcakes. Ta Dahhh!


I like this pastel shade of pink and will keep the beet juice in the fridge. Next time we cook kale, I plan to bottle some of that juice as well.

Anna mentioned that on St. Patrick's Day she put some kale water in with the mashed potatoes and they turned a bright shade of green. Very cool!



My eco-friendly friends brought some cool gifts. Wendy was finished with a couple copies of 'body + soul' and passed them on to me. I flipped through and spotted ads from Matt & Nat and articles on power foods. Another green gift was a basil plant from Anna. Thank you!

Next time, I'll post about my Earth Day gift to myself.... A COMPOSTING BIN!!!!!! Can you tell I'm excited?! Thanks for your composting tips, Anna and Lynn, I'll add water tomorrow. Until then, happy Earth Day today and always.

16 comments:

radioactivegan said...

i love your little tree hugger! adorable

LizNoVeggieGirl said...

Happy belated Earth Day - love how you celebrated!!

Body + Soul is one of my favorite magazines!

Hooray for purchasing a composting bin! :0)

Catherine Weber said...

Vicki -- got your comment on my blog. I forgot to tell you . . . Dan and I decided not to go to my brother's wedding, so we won't be in Boise next month. Bummer, I know! But we will get out there to visit eventually, (we decided to make the trip when we could actually visit with my brother and his wife, rather than be wrapped up in busy wedding-ness,) and when we do, I'll let you know!

Vegan_Noodle said...

Sounds like a great way to spend Earth Day. For a minute I thought the ladybug rocks were your cupcakes!! Excited to hear more about your compost bin!

DJ said...

I love your shirt - very cool! And those ladybug rocks are the cutest - what a great idea!!!

Anonymous said...

happy belated Earth Day to you!!
I love your tee. and you seem to have had a splendid day, only rendered better by these super cute ladybug-rocks. (I thought they were cupcakes too, OOPS!)

moi + toi PHOTOGRAPHIE said...

Excellent 2 posts, I hope all of you had a wonderful time hiking and got lots of beautiful fresh air!

Wheeler's Frozen Dessert said...

Aw what a cute post!

Mrs McAvoy's Buzz said...

Love it!
Thanks for the comment on the blog, sorry I've been slow to respond, am in the process of moving!
So how did the IQ test go?
p.s. I can't wait to hear about your new compost, I was a composter for years but now am going to a city flat. I'm going to be searching for a city wide composting scheme...once I get an allotment I'll be able to hopefully compost on that site.

urban vegan said...

Love your shirt. Love your attitude about everything. You are such a great example for your kids and for all of us!

I did a post on natural food colorings a few months ago--hoep it helps:
http://urbanvegan.blogspot.com/2008/02/make-your-own-natural-food-coloring.html

julie hasson said...

Happy belated Earth Day Vicki! What a great eco-friendly post.

Love the t-shirt and the cupcakes.

bazu said...

Happy Earth Day! It's definitely one of my favorite holidays, and you look like you celebrated in style!

I'm sorry to say I won't be in CA any time soon- I would have loved to have hooked up! Have a wonderful time there, though, and I can't wait to see pics!

jd said...

Love the shirt, & those ladybug rocks are so cute!

BTW: I read "body + soul" too! I check out old copies from the library to save a few trees. Yay!

Can't wait to hear about your composting bin! I bet it's awesome :)

Tuesday said...

What a cool shirt! I love tees that say it all...

Anonymous said...

what a nice post! i love your t-shirts and little tree-hugger :)

Veggie said...

Such cute cupcakes and I love the t-shirt.