Let Your Garden Grow

Sustainably Sadie

Let Your Garden Grow

Sure there’s still snow on the ground, but we can all feel the rumblings of Spring under the frost.  It’s no joke that 40 degrees Farenheit is T-shirt weather for us Montanans and whether we are deep cleaning, airing out the place, or sharpening the garden tools, we are getting ready for Spring! 

Seed catalogs arrive to inspire “Aahhh” and “Oohhh” and “Can I grow blueberries?”  All stores have seed packet displays front and center- ready to cash in on the deep desire for warmer, fruit-producing weather.  My Sustainable Tip for these late-Winter temptations—Give in!  Try planting something indoors on the windowsill (South-facing).  Buy a seed packet from a local source, day dream as you flip through a gardening magazine, and start mapping out your 2013 garden. 

We are 13 weeks away from Memorial Day, which could potentially mark the end of freezing night temps-- Here in SW Montana, we could have frost well into June.  So if you want to start something indoors that you will sow into your garden, you probably want to hold off for a few weeks before seriously starting plants indoors.  But you can start planning.  Start your Garden Journal now and you might actually get some entries jotted down—come summer, you’ll be too busy enjoying the warm weather to sit and write down details in your Gardening Journal. 

I wouldn’t spend the bulk of your Gardening Budget just yet, but with $10 or less, I know that you could do some small-scale gardening that will satisfy the craving to toil in the soil.  I believe you could start Kale indoors that you could plant into raised beds in May.  Kale is a hardy green with an anise-like bite.  I like to sauté Kale with garlic.  It is also great in salad, wraps and soup with sausage and potatoes. 

Start some herbs on the kitchen window sill.  Basil, Rosemary, Parsley, Oregano, Thyme, try something new.  Start Greens or Sprouts—there are many articles out there right about sprouts and you can grow them easily in the kitchen. 

Or have fun creating fake flowers.  Perhaps paint bright, colorful wooden flowers that you can stick in your flowerbeds.  Make flowers that you can use for decorations come Easter.  Do some drawing with the kids; give a tissue paper bouquet to someone special.  Playfully anticipate the coming Spring.  Share your ideas at www.facebook.com/SustainablySadie or at the blog, www.sustainablysadie.blogspot.com.  Thanks for reading!

Twin Bits

Weds. Feb 27: Mark Matthews will teach History of Social Dance and

dances at TBHS in the morning and SHS in the afternoon. Community Barn

Dance 5-8 pm. in the Square Building of the Fairgrounds. Please bring

a dish to share at a potluck supper before the dance! Music by Broken

Strings Band of Bozeman, with local fiddler Savanna Stewart sitting

in. Courtesy of your English and History Departments.

 

Thurs. March 7: Juniors Heritage Fair at Parent/Teacher Conferences,

Sheridan Schools Elementary lunchroom and gym from 4-7 pm.

The next TBCA meeting will be Friday, March 8, 8:30 am at The Old Hotel in Twin Bridges.  

From TBS Calendar:

Wed Feb 27:  Spring Picture Day; Madison County Spelling Bee @ Alder Community Center

Feb 28- March 2:  State Girls’ Basketball Tournament @ Belgrade

Sat March 2:  Little Guy Wrestling Tourney @ Main Gym

Wed March 6:  Booster Club Mtb @ MT Room, 6 pm

Thurs March 7:  Butte Science Fair, Grades 5-8; Ramblin’ Rose Group Practice (Sherrie High) @ MP Gym, 7 pm

March 7- March 9:  State Boys’ Basketball Tournament @ Bozeman 

I am here to promote activities and events in the Ruby Valley.  Please contact me at sustainablysadie@hotmail.com, call me at 684-5222 or snail mail: P.O. Box 491, 59754. 

A magazine my husband picked up for me to help with Sustainable Inspiration...

From a few products in our home...

Sustainable Influences

Sustainably Sadie

Sustainable Influences

Terry Tempest Williams, Wendell Berry, lexiconofsustainability.com, John Muir, frugallysustainable.com, Lynn Miller (my father-in-law) of The Small Farmer’s Journal, Ishmael by Daniel Quinn, Georgia O’Keefe, Walden…

When did you fall in love with Nature?  When did you realize that you are not separate from Nature but apart of it?  Who made you want to fight to preserve the natural world? 

A friend recently posted a picture online of the Hoover Dam with text, “Some of you may remember this.”  Our TBHS class got to travel to Las Vegas for our Senior Class Trip.  When it came time for us to visit the Hoover Dam, I squeezed my copy of Ishmael by Daniel Quinn to my chest and sobbed through the tour.  Carrying on as though my tears and The Monkey Wrench Gang could save the World, it was comical to my classmates and now to me as I look back on that adventure. 

Rachel Carson, Edward Abbey, storyofstuff.com, Western Sustainability Exchange, Buy Local, Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, Michael Pollan, The Lorax…

I live here in Southwest Montana because my parents moved to Waterloo in 1979.  Having grown up in the West, no part of me wants to live in a city. I don’t understand living in a box, tucked inside a massive maze of millions of other tiny boxes.   Even Twin Bridges – population 400- is too much town life for this country girl. 

This small-town, rural life isn’t just about Nature and The Outdoors.  It is also about community—living together, in support of one another in order to make the most of what we have. 

I recently came across, “Community in 17 Sensible Steps” from a speech delivered by Wendell Berry, November 11, 1994 at the 23^rd annual meeting of the Northern Plain Resource Council.  Check out the complete list for yourself, but I’d like to mention a couple of the steps pertinent to this conversation:

2.)     Include local nature—the land, the water, the air, the native creatures—within the membership of the community.

3.)     Ask how local needs might be supplied from local sources, including the mutual help of neighbors.

4.)     Supply local needs first

10.)     Circulate money within the local economy for as long as possible before paying it out.

15.)     Be aware of the economic value of neighborliness. 

Who has influenced your love of the place where we live?  Who do you look to for inspiration?  What is your role in your community?  Join the conversation on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SustainablySadie.  Comment at the blog, www.sustainablysadie.blogspot.com. 

Twin Bits

Weds. Feb 27: Mark Matthews will teach History of Social Dance and

dances at TBHS in the morning and SHS in the afternoon. Community Barn

Dance 5-8 pm. in the Square Building of the Fairgrounds. Please bring

a dish to share at a potluck supper before the dance! Music by Broken

Strings Band of Bozeman, with local fiddler Savanna Stewart sitting

in. Courtesy of your English and History Departments.

 

Thurs. March 7: Juniors Heritage Fair at Parent/Teacher Conferences,

Sheridan Schools Elementary lunchroom and gym from 4-7 pm.

From TBS Calendar:

Sat Feb 23:  FFA attending State

Feb. 20- 23:  Divisional Basketball tournaments, Boys & Girls @ Hamilton

Wed Feb 27:  Spring Picture Day; Madison County Spelling Bee @ Alder Community Center

Feb 28- March 2:  State Girls’ Basketball Tournament @ Belgrade

March 7- March 9:  State Boys’ Basketball Tournament @ Bozeman 

I am here to promote activities and events in the Ruby Valley.  Please contact me at sustainablysadie@hotmail.com, call me at 684-5222 or snail mail: P.O. Box 491, 59754. 

Sustainable Work Life

Sustainably Sadie

Sustainable Work Life

Carol Delisi of Facilitating by Design suggested on Facebook a ‘Sustainable Work Life’ as topic of discussion.  I have been following the Facilitator on Facebook and her daily tips for the workplace are inspiring.  Delisi commented, “I think a sustainable work life is one that prevents burnout.  You can manage it in a way that keeps you enthused, productive and efficient in your work. It's sustainable from a mental and physical perspective. It means being able to do your best work at a constant rate because you know your skills and knowledge and how much you can handle.” 

We have to work to pay the bills.  We work to keep busy and to have purpose in our lives.  In the course of a lifetime, a person can experience several career changes.  My husband and I are among many who are not using their 4-year college degrees.  Knowing at 18 what you want to do or be for the rest of your life is a tricky endeavor and I applaud those who were able to make it happen.  I also congratulate those who are able to walk away when a set-upon path is no longer fulfilling.  What you do to pay the bills should be rewarding, not soul-crushing. 

Also included under Education on my resumé is my Yoga Teacher Training.  I am grateful for the experience as it is something that I can use for the rest of my life, no matter where we live.  Yoga and writing are the closest claims I have to any sort of career.  And when our family needs it, I fall back on cleaning houses.  I have always been able to find work cleaning; cleaning at local fly fishing lodges was where I first made money as a teenager.  Working for Merry Maids in Missoula was my first job after I graduated from college.  It is not something that I want to do 40 hours a week, but it is something that compliments my Stay-at-Home-Mom gig. 

I’ve been trying not to take offense when people ask me “What are you going to do now?” when we talk about having the coffee shop kiosk up for sale.  I find myself having to explain further than “I’m staying at home, raising kids.”  I tell of the patchwork of writing these articles, developing my blog, teaching yoga, and cleaning.  It is not easy for Moms to decide between work and kids.  “Mom” doesn’t count as fulfilling career; I am okay with not having a defining career as long as whatever it is that I am doing, I am doing as well as I possibly can…to the best of my ability.    “Live to Work”/ “Work to Live”/ “Do What You Love”/ “Love What You Do”—and to live where we love here in SW Montana, sometimes you have to be a Jack of all trades.   Make sure to enjoy your time off and take vacation time. 

What tips do you have for a sustainable work life?  Join the conversation on Facebook at www.facebook.com/SustainablySadie.  Post comments at www.sustainablysadie.blogspot.com or email sustainablysadie@hotmail.com.

Twin Bits

Reminder:  The Twin Bridges landfill accepts clean plastic for recycling.  The plastic must have a #1 or #2 symbol on it.  No lids or rings.  Please rinse the containers.  They do not accept plastic grocery bags, but they could be reused and then dropped off at Wal*Mart. 

There will be a special TBCA meeting at the MT Room in Twin Bridges, Wed Feb 13, 7 pm.  “The meeting is scheduled to be a brain storming session and planning forum with representatives of area civic organizations... we will be looking at the root causes of why our organizations are struggling and what we can do to change for the future.

The Rotary Club will have light refreshments.

We look forward to this being an enlightening and engaging evening and hope to see you there!

If you have questions, please feel free to call Paula at The Old Hotel at 684-5959 or contact Jack Leber at Prudential Montana Real Estate.”

Support Local Art:  If you missed Donna Nolte’s book signings here in the valley this past weekend, you have another opportunity for the author to sign her book, Hazel, at the Book Store in Dillon, Saturday Feb. 16, 1 pm to 3 pm. 

From TBS Calendar:

Thurs Feb 14:  VFW Mtg @ MT Room, 7:30 pm; FCCLA Valentine’s Day Balloon Sale

Feb 13-15:  District Basketball tournaments, Boys & Girls @ Butte MAC

Mon Feb 18:  No School, President’s Day

Tues Feb 19:  JrHi BBB @ Ennis, 4 pm; School Board Mtg @ MT Room, 7 pm

Sat Feb 23:  FFA attending State

Feb. 20- 23:  Divisional Basketball tournaments, Boys & Girls @ Hamilton

Wed Feb 27:  Spring Picture Day; Madison County Spelling Bee @ Alder Community Center

Feb 28- March 2:  State Girls’ Basketball Tournament @ Belgrade

March 7- March 9:  State Boys’ Basketball Tournament @ Bozeman 

I am here to promote activities and events in the Ruby Valley.  Please contact me at the above Sustainably Sadie address, call me at 684-5222 or snail mail: P.O. Box 491, 59754. 

Candy-Free Valentine's Day

Sustainably Sadie

Candy-Free Valentine’s Day

Well, Christmas went away and immediately Valentine’s Day paraphernalia hit the store shelves.  Granted, not as pervasive as Christmas; it seems as soon as one holiday passes the next one is immediately in your face.  Since Halloween, it has been one big candy and treat roller coaster.  For those of us trying to stay healthy, the appropriately-colored, tinfoil-covered treats that match the hues of the season are a damning temptation.  And as parents, at some point the constant diet of sugar, sugar, sugar becomes worrisome.  Even the yogurt that I give my 3 year old has sugar listed as the second ingredient—and I thought it was so healthy.  It seemed appropriate to jump off the sugar train for one holiday and try for a Candy-Free Valentine’s Day.  Now I just have to stay away from Pinterest so I can avoid the temptation of trying out a batch of new Valentine’s sweet eats.     

Treat the special lady in your life to fresh flowers, a house plant, dinner out, a special bottle of wine, or maybe a pedicure/ manicure from a local stylist and help her keep to her diet resolutions.  Put together a Man Basket filled with his favorite beer/ spirits, jerky and superhero flick to watch together on Date Night.  For the kiddos, I hit up the Dollar Store to pick up shape bracelets and glow sticks.  Pinterest has lots of great ideas for putting together Candy-Free Valentine’s for kids and teachers.  You could also do crayons, markers, and coloring books; new reading books; flashlight; and other small toys…like plastic bugs for your “Love Bugs.”   

Handmade cards are budget-friendly and a sweet way to show the people in your life that you care.  Even if kids aren’t in the picture, you can take a few minutes being creative with crayons, water color paints, and cardstock.  It will be healthy break from reality that could score some major points when your sweetie opens your lovingly crafted card.  Glitter hearts on rocks, a few candles and a special meal and this Valentine’s Day will be memorable, budget-friendly and diet-friendly. 

Create a new Go-To Valentine’s Day sentiment and share your sustainable successes at the blog, www.sustainablysadie.blogspot.com, email sustainablysadie@hotmail.com or better yet comment at the new Sustainably Sadie Facebook page and remember to *Like* the page to follow along on Facebook.  Thanks for reading and I look forward to conversing with you about all topics sustainable!

Twin Bits

As part of the Big Read project, there will be a Twin Bridges Book Club/ community discussion of Willa Cather’s book, My Antonia, at the MT Room at TBS, Monday Feb. 11 at 7 pm.  Mrs. Kelly Downing’s sophomore class is participating in the discussion and there will be pizza.  Please contact Mary Beth Walsh (mwalsh@rubyvalleybank.com) so she can have a head count for pizza. 

From TBS Calendar:

Wed Feb 6:  Elementary Spelling Bee @ MT Room, 1 pm; Booster Club Mtg @ MT Room, 6 pm

Thurs Feb 7:  Elementary Dental Screening; Jv BB @ Dillon, BG, 6 pm

Fri Feb 8:  State Wrestling @ Billings; BB w/ Lima @ Home, BG, 5:30 pm, Senior Night!

Sat. Feb 9:  State Wrestling @ Billings; JrHi BBB 2 West Yellowstone tourney; BB @ Sheridan, 4 pm, BGBG

Mon Feb 11:  JrHi BBB @ Cardwell, 4 pm; Big Read Discussion @ MT Room, 7 pm

Tues. Feb. 12:  Motivational Speaker Jerry Traylor @ Multi-Purpose Gym, 10 am

Thurs Feb 14:  VFW Mtg @ MT Room, 7:30 pm; FCCLA Valentine’s Day Balloon Sale

Feb 13-15:  District Basketball tournaments, Boys & Girls @ Butte MAC

Mon Feb 18:  No School, President’s Day

Tues Feb 19:  JrHi BBB @ Ennis, 4 pm; School Board Mtg @ MT Room, 7 pm

Sat Feb 23:  FFA attending State

Feb. 20- 23:  Divisional Basketball tournaments, Boys & Girls @ Hamilton

Wed Feb 27:  Spring Picture Day; Madison County Spelling Bee @ Alder Community Center

Feb 28- March 2:  State Girls’ Basketball Tournament @ Belgrade

March 7- March 9:  State Boys’ Basketball Tournament @ Bozeman 

I am here to promote activities and events in the Ruby Valley.  Please contact me at the above Sustainably Sadie address, call me at 684-5222 or snail mail: P.O. Box 491, 59754.