Celebrate Earth Day with Planet Ocean

There's one thing that consistently bums me out about living in Kansas. We're totally landlocked. I was born and grew up with easy access to the ocean and my kids don't have that in their lives. Of course, they have a vast and open sky and plains that go on forever to make up for that but they won't grow up with the beach in their blood.

Today is Earth Day and I plan to celebrate with my family by thinking about the ocean. We recently received a copy of the excellent documentary Planet Ocean, which was released on Blu-ray and DVD last week. Directed by highly-acclaimed photographer, filmmaker and environmentalist Yann Arthus-Bertrand and narrated by actor Josh Duhamel, Planet Ocean provides a gorgeous look at ocean life across the globe, with sweeping aerial and underwater cinematography that allows you to see marine life as you never have before. Especially if you live in Kansas!

This trailer does not feature the vocal stylings of Josh Duhamel but you can get an idea of the epic scope that the filmmakers have captured:


How are you celebrating Earth Day? 


In accordance to the FTC Guidelines and the WOMMA Code of Ethics, I am disclosing that we received product samples to facilitate this review. No compensation was provided. All opinions are, as usual, entirely my own.

Jasper and the Bird

Fluffy brought us a present this weekend. Jasper wanted to kiss it back to life.



It amazes me that somehow, Jasper always matches his surroundings. He's like a tiny human chameleon. Sadly, the bird did not make it. Fluffy was very proud.

Naked Nure by Royal Ranch

Naked Nure is full of poop. Well, actually it IS poop. Llama poop, to be exact, made into 100% all-natural "teabags" to brew up nutrient-rich compost tea for your garden or indoor plants. There are two varieties available for purchase, both in handmade reuseable cloth bags that are great for gift-giving. The indoor bags are smaller and contain six teabags made of a compostable paper. They will brew about 12-15 gallons of compost tea for your plants.



The outdoor bags are made of heavy-duty burlap with a sturdy denim handle and a zipper closure. This one will make more than 20-25 gallons of tea for your garden. See how "clean" the llama poop looks? It is very low-odor as manure goes.



First you steep the bags in water:




We did a couple of the indoor tea bags in a barrel (above) and the outdoor bag in the trailer bucket (below).



After a couple of days, the tea is rich and dark:




(The floating pellets in the barrel are because we ripped one of the tea bags.)



Bob was really into the reflective quality the Naked Nure developed while it was brewing. I won't tell you how many self portraits he took in it. Dork.



The garden seemed to enjoy Naked Nure! Can't beat a non-chemical fertilizer. Especially one that comes from such adorable creatures.




Naked Nure is made by the fine folks who operate the Royal Ranch and Royal Roost B&B in Bailey, Colorado. Tom and Judy Jeute are the proprietors. Aside from producing Naked Nure, their llamas are also trained rescue animals and lead wilderness hiking expedition with Royal Llama Adventures. The first photo shown is the very handsome Marcel the llama participating in a royal llama wedding! And the one below is Judy with Marcel and Jasper the llamas. (Someday I hope my Jasper will be able to meet his llama counterpart…)



Now is the time to stock up on Naked Nure! Everything is 50% off. Indoor Naked Nure is only $6 and Outdoor Naked Nure is just $11. These would make a surprisingly attractive and unusual gift for your favorite gardener this holiday season!




Disclosure: We received two bags of Naked Nure to sample in order to write this review. I left it to my husband (the green thumb in the family) and it seriously took all summer to coax these pictures out of him. Sorry, Judy! He really likes the product and actually wants to check out the Royal Ranch sometime for a family trip. No joke! And I've always secretly wanted a llama. I think we're zoned for one…

Winged Migration

Here's a video Bob filmed of birds in flight last fall. Crazy little critters.

Vote for Roo on Facebook!

**click here to comment on Roo's birdhouse picture on Facebook**
I'm a Graco Nation Ambassador, which basically means I tell people about how much we've loved our Graco products. It's not a paid endorsement or anything like that*, I just love the company and the corporate culture it espouses. Read their Heart to Heart Blog and you'll see that they are not merely employees and coworkers, they are part of a huge extended family that has grown to include a network of bloggers, the Graco Nation Ambassadors.

Anyway, all of the Graco Nation Ambassadors received a special treat a couple of weeks ago: a make-your-own birdhouse kit. This is usually the kind of thing that Bob tackles with the kids since he is imminently more crafty, and patient, than I am. Since he's out of town, though, Roo and I made it together. She's handy with a hammer, that one. Oddly, she didn't want to use the paints included in the set so she decorated it with markers. I love it, especially the dog-bird hybrid and labelling it as a bird house, just so they know…







Anyway, you can see the other Graco Nation Ambassadors' birdhouses in the Home Tweet Home album on the Graco Facebook page. If you leave a comment on Roo's birdhouse picture, we could win a set of Calphalon One cookware, which would be awesome since the teflon is flaking out of our nonstick pans. The Graco Nation Ambassador with the most comments by Friday night will win, so feel free to tell all of your Facebook friends to stop by and vote for Roo. (You will need to have a FB account and become a Graco Fan.) If we win the pans, I'll cook something for you should you happen to find yourself in Wichita…


*I've never received any compensation from Graco or even product samples to review, either, although I was very grateful that they very generously sent a gorgeous travel system to my friend who lost her husband suddenly while expecting their third daughter. All of the many, many Graco products we've owned, we have bought ourselves. Have you seen the new MyRide Convertible Carseat? Sweet!

Eco-Citizenship 101

Are you looking for a good way to teach your children about living green but aren't sure where to start? The Little Environmentalists have your back. The company is committed to producing quality children's educational and entertainment materials that promote environmental awareness and a love of nature. The Little Environmentalists is also dedicated to sustainable business practices and producing products in an environmentally friendly manner. Their books are printed with environmentally-friendly inks on 100% recycled paper with 100% post consumer waste that is chlorine-free.



We received a copy of The Little Environmentalists' first book, Nature Discovery in My Backyard. I was impressed with how much information is included in what seems like an ordinary children's picture book! You can choose to read the basic story with its sweet rhyme about taking a closer look at things around you on a nature walk but the best part, to me, is the "Nature Notes" section in the back that gives you more in-depth information about all sorts of things you might find in your backyard. I didn't spend much time outside when I was a kid, so I felt like it gave me a little more insight into the kinds of questions my children might ask on a nature walk. Nature Discovery in My Backyard also includes links to early model learning standards, if you're the kind of parent who likes to keep track of that stuff. Roo was mostly interested in seeing what the little girl in the story found in her backyard- bluebird, butterfly, praying mantis. She wanted to go outside immediately and find stuff for herself, which I took as a sign that the book was doing its job!



The second book from The Little Environmentalists has just been released. I’m Turning Green teaches young readers tips for energy, water, and natural resource conservation. (Start them out early and let them deal with sorting your recycling!) In I’m Turning Green, the little girl turns green both literally and figuratively to illustrate the importance of thinking green in everyday life.



***Superdumb Supervillain Bonus***

Enter code Environment for 25% off and free shipping when you order two or more books from The Little Environmentalists.

Caterpillar Girl

Here's a wriggling mass of fuzzy caterpillars stuck to a tree in our front yard. Roo found it but she didn't want to get too close. She almost burst into tears when her daddy said he was going to get rid of them because they would kill the tree. (Four year olds are so melodramatic.) She has plenty of compassion for the downtrodden, that kid.



Jasper was blissfully ignorant of the circle of life tableaux unfolding beside him. Which is just as well, since he probably would've popped a couple of 'em into his mouth. Roo didn't want to be photographed with the caterpillar hive, you know because they're icky, but she wanted it documented for her teachers since they were learning about the little critters in school. Naturally, she made her little brother pose with it for a sense of scale…



In the end, Roo let Bob leave the silky tangle out in the driveway so birds and the hot Kansas sun could do the dirty work. Her hands and her conscience were left moderately clean.