There's Snow Place Like Home

A new look

2012-01-22T02:10:00.001-03:30

I'm resurrecting this blog and giving it a new look. It's been a long time since my last post. A lot has happened. Jesse is 4 now, and doing fabulous. He still has his PDD-NOS diagnosis, but quite honestly, the vast majority of people wouldn't know there was anything "different" about him. He's a talkative, active, happy little boy. And we've added our sweet baby boy Quinn to our family. He was born this past March. He started out a very easy, laid back baby, but has recently developed into an active, not-so-easy-yet-still-happy almost toddler. I love him to pieces. We've also moved..."home" is now my parents new house. We're keeping it warm until they move home from Qatar. We're not sure when that'll be, but we're saving for a down-payment for our forever home, which we're hoping to buy whenever they decide they miss the cold weather. In the mean time, I'm going to keep trying to "go green" and reduce the toxins my family is exposed to in and around our home.

Calgon take me away!

2010-06-13T02:10:00.000-02:30

I could have used an escape from my life this past week...or at least on Wednesday. Our hot water heater conked out and started spewing hot water in our basement. Not good. Our basement isn't exactly your typical unfinished storage area type basement. It's completely finished. It has our family room (which includes our office area and Jesse's therapy space), a large 1/2 bath with a laundry closet, and a large storage room. Even though there wasn't a ton of water, and the flood was caught relatively early, there was still a fair bit of damage. All the flooring has to go, except for the storage are (that remains to be seen). The aspenite that was damaged needs to be replaced, and some of the dry wall has to go as well. The basement needs to be repainted throughout.

While we were planning on redoing the basement with new flooring and paint within the next year, we weren't planning on it this soon. Luckily, insurance will cover all but a $500 deductible. But they'll only pay to replace what was here, or something comparable in cost. So that means carpet and vinyl flooring. We were hoping for something like hardwood or cork and ceramic tile. But that's just not going to be in the card, cost-wise. So the flooring guy who showed up today suggested we go with laminate for the family room (a high quality laminate, that is...it really does look a lot like hardwood) and fiberfloor for the bathroom. Fiberfloor is apparently made of fiberglass. It's good in that it's affordable, easy to install, doesn't require glue, and is nearly indestructible. I'm having a difficult time finding info on its safety profile though.

***sigh***

I so wish I could go with hardwood and tile.

As for paint, I'm determined to go with no/low-VOC paint. I haven't heard great things about durability, however. Hopefully we'll find something that works out well.

On a positive note, I'm hoping this will help us kick off our home renos that we've been planning on doing for a while now.

A soft place to rest his sweet head....

2010-05-01T23:19:00.000-02:30

Thanks to a very resourceful friend (you know who you are!) I'm finally getting a safe, healthy pillow for Jesse bed! It's made of shredded latex rubber with an organic cotton cover. It's naturally antibacterial, hypo-allergenic, and dust mite resistent. It's also machine washable! If you want one, go fast! The store I'm getting it for is going out of business. It's www.kidbean.com

Another drive-by post

2010-04-29T01:54:00.000-02:30

I've been horrible about updating this blog. We've been so busy this past month with doing the autism training and working on hiring a home therapist for Jesse, that most everything else has fallen by the wayside. Hopefully I'll catch you all up soon! We've been working on some things related to this blog...mostly focusing on our food and personal care products. I will definitely try to update more this weekend!

Quick update!

2010-03-11T12:39:00.000-03:30

I don't have much time right now, but I thought I'd add a quick update.

I've gotten rid of my plastic cutting boards! Yay! I found a pair of Canadian maple wood cutting boards at Costco for about $15 total. They're really nice!

I'm also in the process of getting rid of all of my canned goods. No more BPA! Only problem is, what do I do with it all? I want to donate it, but then, am I passing the buck? I feel bad! But then, food pantries WANT canned goods, right? Oh, the dilemma!

I also got my Frontier co-op order from The Mamas co-op. Really awesome stuff! I got some organic fruit and veggie wash, some Earth Mama Angel Baby body wash/shampoo for Jesse, some natural deoderant for myself, some non-toxic make-up, some Kiss My Face toothpaste and hand soap for Jesse, and lot of other good stuff. I also got my EcoNuts natural laundry detergent. I'll have to take a picture later to show you.

I also just placed another order with Lands End for an organic cotton blanket for Jesse's bed. Until the end of today, you can get 25% off one item with free shipping. The blanket that would have cost $90 only cost me $60.

In other news, I still haven't gotten around to finishing Jesse's wool mattress protector. I have to figure out what to do with it. I'll probably just cut it to the size of the mattress and hem over the edges. I'll definitely post pictures when it's done!

Avoiding BPA

2010-03-06T17:02:00.000-03:30

Getting back to the Top 10 Ways to Detoxify, I thought I'd pick something that's relatively quick and easy. So here's to #4: Avoid plastics with Bisphenol A. Bisphenol A, or simply BPA, is a known hormone disruptor. According to Toxic Nation, studies have linked low-dose BPA exposure with such effects as: permanent changes to genital tract; increase prostate weight; decline in testosterone; breast cells predisposed to cancer; prostate cells more sensitive to hormones and cancer; and hyperactivity. You can watch the CBC's documentary The Disappearing Male for a more in-depth description of the effect BPA (and other chemicals, such as phthalates) are having on our world.

The first step in ridding your home of as much BPA as possible is to identify which items in your home contain BPA. It is used to make polycarbonate plastic food and beverage containers, plastic food wrap, and epoxy resins that are used to line metal cans for food. Look on the bottom of your polycarbonate plastic food and beverage containers. If they are labelled with recycling symbol #7 they may contain BPA. The BPA in these containers leaches from the plastic, particularly when the container is heated, or when the plastic becomes scratched.

One common source of BPA in the homes of young families has been plastic baby bottles. Early on, I stocked up on Avent bottles to go with my Avent Isis hand pump. All of it contained BPA. When Jesse was just a few months old, a report was published linking BPA to adverse health effects. Stores in Canada then voluntarily removed all BPA-containing baby bottles from their shelves, and many stores offered refunds on BPA containing bottles. I returned all of ours. Since then, the federal government has taken steps to ensure that baby bottles no longer contain BPA. You can find out more information about Canada's BPA regulations here. If you need to use formula, or give your child breastmilk in a bottle, there are now many BPA free plastic baby bottles on the market, or you have the option of using glass baby bottles. I'm personally a fan of Born Free bottles. They have both BPA free plastic and glass options. They are quite pricey though. If you're on a tighter budget, you might want to try the Evenflo glass bottles. They're quite good, and a fraction of the cost of Born Free. (And they have the added benefit of fitting on Medela and Ameda breast pumps.) When your child moves on to a sippy cup, stainless steel is a great option. We like the Safe Sippy. It's much less breakable than glass for your kiddo on the move.

Replacing other BPA containers in your home is also fairly easy. You can replace your BPA containing water bottle with a BPA free plastic bottle, or go with stainless steel yourself. You can also replace your plastic food containers with glass. If they have plastic lids, ensure they are made of a safe plastic (I'll get to this later). You can also make sure the lids do not touch your food, and don't place them in the microwave or dishwasher. And it should go without saying, but I'll say it anyway - don't place them in the oven either, since they'll melt.

As for canned foods, you'll want to avoid as many of those as possible. Use fresh or frozen fruits and veggies, rather than canned. They taste better and are better for you. Many soups can now be found in juice-type boxes. You can find many sauces now in glass bottles. Beans can be bought dried (and as I found out last night, they're quite easy to prepare!) Or, if you can find them in your area, use Eden Foods BPA-free canned goods.There are so many options out there!

And since BPA isn't the only harmful chemical found in plastic, I thought I'd throw this in here too. Care2 has a handy little chart of the different plastics, what they are, and how they compare (bad, OK, good). Read it, take note of it, and make sure you check any plastics you bring into your home.

If you're looking to replace plastic food and beverage containers, check your local stores to see what they have. I've found great success at Canadian Tire for glass food containers. I also check Green Baby Bargains daily as they often sell Safe Sippys and other safe food and beverage containers for children at greatly reduced prices. Life Without Plastic has a great selection of various plastic alternatives. They ship from both Canada and the US, so you can avoid paying customs fees for these. If anyone knows of any other great options, please let me know in the comments section and I'll add it in.

Baa!

2010-03-06T02:45:00.001-03:30

So my laundry room smells like I drowned a sheep in the washing machine. Yep, you've guessed it - I've finally gotten around to felting and lanolinizing the wool Army blanket I bought. It went well. I think. I guess I won't really know for sure until the first time Jesse wets the bed. If the mattress stays dry then this will have been a success!

In case you're wondering exactly what I did, either out of sheer curiousity (pun not intended) or because you might be interested in trying to do the same thing, here are the deets:

You start with a 100% wool blanket. I bought an Army blanket off eBay for around $40, shipping included.

It really needed to be washed, since there were pet hairs all over it. And well, that's part of the felting and lanolinizing process anyway. (Please beware - DO NOT treat other woollens like this! This is ONLY if you want to felt them!) So I stuck it in the washing machine on warm, but added a bunch of hot water as well, since you need temperature variation. I couldn't find my wool wash (argh!) so I just used a small amount of my regular green laundry detergent.

I let it wash and then go through a cold rinse cycle. This was the result - CLEAN!

AND FELTED!

Then it was time to lanolinize. If you've used wool diaper covers, this process will be somewhat familiar to you. I filled the washing machine again but with tepid water this time. And I located my lanolinizing tools.

Yes, that's Lansinoh lanolin (left over from those first weeks of breastfeeding) and a (gasp!) plastic water bottle. I half filled the water bottle with very hot tap water and added a decent amount of lanolin.

I put the top on, and I shook it like a polaroid picture. Seriously, you have to shake the sh!t out of that stuff to make sure lanolin is thoroughly suspended in the hot water. Then I added the water and lanolin mixture to the now filled washing machine.

I swooshed the water around with my hands, to make sure the lanolin was mixed throughout. Then I made sure the washing macine was shut off and left the blanket to soak all day. When I came back, I put the washing machine through a delicate cycle and spun it out.

I then laid out some old towels on the laundry room floor, doubled the blanket over twice, laid another towel on top of it, and then rolled it up.

To make sure I got as much water out of the blanket as possible, I walked along the rolled blanket-towel combo. Then I laid the blanket over a drying rack.

And then I swept up all the woolies off of the floor. I should have taken a picture of that too! It looked like I had shorn a green sheep in there! And I'm still going to have to take a lint brush to the blanket.

When it's finished drying, I'm going to decide what to do with it. I'll probably cut it to the size of Jesse's mattress and sew over the edges. I don't think I need to sew it to fit down over the mattress, like a typical mattress cover does. But we'll see how it goes.

There you have it. A natural waterproof (water resistant?) mattress cover. I'll let you know if it works sometime in the next year or so.

Out with the old, in with the new

2010-03-02T01:49:00.000-03:30

Sorry I haven't updated lately. There's been a lot of stuff going on with Jesse and getting stuff lined up for his therapies and such. I've been so busy. But I needed to post to share my progress this past week.

My Paderno order came in the mail! I'm so happy! (Though rather pissed at the Purolator dude who just left the box on my step without bothering to even ring the door bell, but anyway...). So I washed it all up and then rounded up all of the plastic crap in my kitchen I was able to get rid of. So here it is.

The Old

The New

Also note that I found these awesome stainless steel tongs at Winners to replace the plastic ones I used to have. Of course, our new glass containers do have plastic covers, but they're safe plastics, they won't be touching our food, and they won't be going in the dishwasher or microwave.

Also, Jesse's two new organic cotton sheet sets from Land's End came last week (again left on the step by the Purolator dude). I'm really impressed with the quality! They're very well made. They aren't overly soft though. More "crisp." Though I kind of like crisp sheets. I hope Jesse does too since he'll be sleeping on them! And the used wool Army blanket I bought off of eBay came today. I'll be washing that and lanolinizing it tomorrow, hopefully! I'll try to take some pics to post and let you all know how it goes. Then it'll probably take a couple of days to dry. I'm hoping to have it in place, on Jesse's bed, by the weekend. I already got rid of the cheap, vinyl-lined waterproof mattress cover that used to be on his bed. There's only a thin cotton quilt under his bed sheets right now. Hopefully we won't have any leaky diapers between now and when I get that wool blanket on his bed!

I really want to get moving and replace more of Jesse's bedding and our own, since Jesse spends so much time in our room. But I really have to restrain myself, since this stuff costs money! In a couple of weeks we'll be able to order Jesse's mattress protector and organic cotton pillow. I'd also like to get him an organic cotton blanket from Land's End. I got a coupon in the mail from them recently (sign up for their e-mail offers and free catalogues to receive these!) so I'll be able to save money there as well. I'm still looking for nice organic cotton bedding for Steve and I though. These isn't much selection out there. I'll keep looking though. I'm sure I'll find something I like soon.

I need to move on to some of the other Ways to Detoxify as well. I'll soon have 4 days off in a row (over the weekend) so hopefully I have a chance to catch up then.

Bedding

2010-02-20T02:34:00.001-03:30

Still working on Toxic Nation's Ways to Detoxify #1 Clean Your Indoor Air Quality, I've been in the process of purchasing new bedding for Jesse. This is a particularly expensive venture, since organic cotton doesn't come cheap. But it's definitely worth it, when you (and particularly your children!) spend such a significant potion of your lives in bed.

I was lucky enough to pounce on a 20% off sale and free shipping offer from Land's End. I bought two sets of 250 thread count organic cotton sheets for Jesse's bed. I was able to get them for about $40 US (plus duty charges) each. Definitely better than the $100+ that I was looking at spending elsewhere.

I also just purchased a old (circa 1990) wool blanket issued by the US army. I got it on eBay for about $40 US (shipping included). I'm going to wash it thoroughly, felt it, and lanolinize it, and use it as a waterproof (or water resistent?) mattress protector for Jesse's bed.

If you don't want to go through the trouble yourself, and you have the cash, you can purchase a ready-made wool waterproof mattress protector. This one from Rawganique.com looks awesome!

I still have to get:

-a high thread count zippered mattress cover (to contain the off-gassing from Jesse's non-organic, and likely flame-retardant mattress, which we can't afford to replace at the moment)

-a natural/organic pillow

-an organic cotton blanket

I'm going to get the mattress cover and pillow from Janice's. It's the only place I've been able to find a totally organic cotton pillow. Most "organic cotton" pillows are just an organic cotton cover over polyester fill. I also checked into wool filled pillows, but I couldn't find one with an organic cotton cover. (Frustrating!) I'll probably end up going with Land's End for the blanket. And I think I'm going to end up making a denim quilt for Jesse's bed to go over it. That can wait though. The kiddo hates being covered when he's sleeping anyways.

If you would like to forgo the mattress cover and shell out for an organic mattress, go ahead and fill yer boots! There are lots of options out there, actually. You can purchase mattresses made from cotton, latex, wool, or a number of other natural materials. Google "natural mattresses" and you'll come up with a bunch of options.

Another option you can avail of to avoid flame retardants is to order a mattress without them. You may need a letter or prescription from your doctor, though. But that shouldn't be difficult to get. And if, like for us, a new mattress isn't really an option, you can wrap your mattress in an untreated 100% cotton cloth barrier sheet with a thread count of 250 or more. It must completely cover the mattress though, top and bottom. Like this one (from Janice's):

And now, speaking of bed....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

The Disappearing Male

2010-02-16T02:06:00.000-03:30

A while back I watched a CBC documentary called The Disappearing Male. It really scared the crap out of me, as it should anyone watching it. If anyone doubts the harm that can be caused by plastics and the chemicals in them, you need to see this.

Does your house smell "clean"?

2010-02-14T22:40:00.000-03:30

Mine does. But it doesn't smell like bleach or Mr. Clean. I no longer use toxic household cleaners. And for good reason. Household cleaners are known to contain benzene, toluene, ethylebenzene, xylene, methanol, bleach (sodium hypochlorite), fragrances, formaldehyde, naphthalene, and phosphoric acid. These chemicals are associated with a variety of health concerns, including cancer, hormone disruption, and immune and organ damage. Some are also suspected neurological toxins. And they're so very unnecessary!

So here's to #9 on the list of the Top Ten Ways to Detoxify: No Need for Toxic Cleaning Products.

While I had already long since stopped cleaning with toxic cleaning products, I still hadn't gotten rid of them all. So last week, I decided it was time. I rounded them all up and bagged them to be removed from the house. Here's the proof:

Amazing, huh?

So, what can you use instead of Mr. Clean, Vim, Javex, and Pledge? There are now several companies who make non-toxic, environmentally friendly cleaners. I'm partial to Method cleaners, myself. And many people make their own cleaners with items found in their kitchen, like vinegar, baking soda, vegetable oil, and lemon juice. The Toxic Nation Guide to Spring Cleaning lists recipes for a number of household cleaners including all-purpose cleaner, floor cleaner, carpet cleaner, furniture polish, and window and glass cleaner, and tub and tile cleaner, to name a few. Have a look!

Thank Heavens for VISA!

2010-02-14T00:21:00.000-03:30

Paderno is having an awesome sale right now! So I decided that I might as well go ahead and replace some of the nasty plastic in our kitchen. Meet our new cooking utensils (on sale for $39.99):

And our new mixing bowls (on sale for $29.99):

I can hardly wait til it gets here! I want to get rid of the plastic NOW! I only wish that I had more cash to burn. There's so much more I would have liked to get. But I must be patient. I can't make this all happen overnight.

It's a start

2010-02-13T01:44:00.001-03:30

This challenge I've given myself to make our home a healthy home is going to be a costly (though entirely worthwhile) venture. It's going to take a fair chunk of change, and therefore a fair chunk of time, to complete. But you have to start somewhere, right? And where better to start than the kitchen, where you store and prepare the food that you put in your body. So, here's our new cookware.

It's a Kitchen Aid cook ware set made of stainless steel with a copper base. It is NOT non-stick, and therefore, will not off-gas! (And in case you're wondering, I got it for for 65% off the $500 price tag at Canadian Tire.) I'm a bit sad that I have to get rid of the Kitchen Aid set my parents gave me less than a year ago. But it was a non-stick set, and after emailing Kitchen Aid about safety and getting no response from them, I decided to play it safe. This helps me to partially accomplish both #1 (Clean Your Indoor Air Quality) and #7 (Say NO to Non-Stick and Stain Repellents) on the list of the Top Ten Ways to Detoxify.

Now I have to find all new cooking utensils to replace the plastic/nylon ones I have! Should I go with stainless steel or wood?

Off-gassing

2010-02-11T05:29:00.002-03:30

I'm still working on Toxic Nation's 10 Ways to Detoxify - #1 Cleaning Your Indoor Air Quality. Tonight I bagged up all of the toxic cleaning supplies and hubby is going to remove them from the house in the morning. We'll store them in the shed behind our home until we can bring them to the Household Hazardous Waste Depot.

In the meantime, I need to address an issue that contributes greatly to indoor air quality - off-gassing. Off-gassing is the evaporation of volatile chemicals from non-metal objects. Why is this bad? Well, because many of these chemicals are incredibly toxic, and can lead to health issues such as liver and kidney damage, nervous system depression and disorders, among other things. Some are also known mutagens and can cause reproductive and developmental issues and can harm a developing fetus.

So what household items contribute to off-gassing? Things like: paints, stains, varnishes, carpet, insulation, flooring, kitchen cabinets and countertops, plywood, particleboard, and paint strippers. Another source of off-gassing in almost any household is vinyl (and fabric water-resistant) shower curtains. In fact, in June 2008, The Center for Health, Environment and Justice released a document called Volatile Vinyl: The New Shower Curtain's Chemical Smell. It describes the testing of PVC shower curtains bought at 5 major North American retailers and makes recommendations for consumers, retailers and policymakers. It's a very interesting read. Other household items, including mattresses, pillows, bedding, towels, and even clothing contribute to off-gassing. If items are chemically treated to make them flame retardant or stain-resistant they're going to off-gas. If items have a chemical smell when you purchase them, they're going to off-gas.

So, what can you do? Personally, I think it's unlikely you'll ever be able to avoid all off-gassing. However, you can greatly reduce exposure by doing the following:

-Avoid carpets, curtains, and upholstery and furniture that contain or are treated with stain repellents and brominated flame retardants (instead use organic or natural fiber carpets, curtains, upholstery and furniture or at least opt for untreated alternatives)

-Avoid vinyl floors (instead use wooden, ceramic, marble, cork or bamboo flooring)

-Avoid non-stick/teflon cookware (instead use cast iron or stainless steel cookware)

-Avoid sheets that are wrinkle-resistant or made with pesticide-treated cotton (instead use sheets that are 100% cotton, hemp, linen or wool, and preferably organic and unbleached)

-avoid mattresses with brominated flame retardants, plastic, or foam (instead use mattresses with cotton stuffing or cotton padding around the foam core. You can order a mattress without flame retardants with a letter or prescription from your doctor. If a new mattress is not an option, wrap your mattress in an untreated 100% cotton cloth barrier sheet with a thread count of 250 or more.)

-Avoid clothing with stain repellents, wrinkle-resistant treatments, brominated flame retardants, pesticide-treated cotton, or plastic labels. (Instead use organic, unbleached clothing made of cotton, hemp, linen or wool. Also ensure all clothing is washed prior to wearing.)

-Avoid vinyl shower curtains, and fabric shower curtains with a water-repellant coating. (Instead use organic cotton or hemp shower curtains.)

-Avoid off-gassing children's products such as PVC-containing toys or soothers. (instead use non-flexible plastic, wooden, or organic, untreated cotton toys)

-Avoid children's clothing with plastic labels or chemical treatments. (Instead use organic, untreated cotton or hemp clothing.)

-Avoid wood with a toxic finish, particleboard, fibreboard, and plywood. (Instead use solid wood with a non-toxic finish, metal, or used furniture manufactured after 1960.)

-Avoid computers and other electronics with brominated flame retardants. (Instead use electronics from companies that have eliminated PBDEs from their products, such as Apple, Dell, Fujitsu Siemens, HP, Hitachi, IBM, Intel, Panasonic, Motorola, NEC, Philips, Sony and Toshiba.)

-Avoid products with toxic chemicals and high-level VOCs. (Instead use products that are water-based, plant-oil based, and those that have low-level VOCs.)

These, and other suggestions are can be found in the Toxic Nation's Make Your Home a Healthy Home Challenge. Of course, I'd be nuts to think that everyone could make all these changes at once. I know I can't. Non-toxic alternatives (like hemp and organic cotton) aren't always cheap! But you've got to start somewhere, right? So that's what I'm doing. I'm going to start, and not stop til I have cleared out all the sources of off-gassing that I can reasonably remove from our home. In the coming days, I'll list sources of alternatives, particularly where I find my non-off-gassing alternatives.

Toxic Nation

2010-02-09T01:31:00.002-03:30

So a dear, dear friend of mine led me to this website called Toxic Nation which has a list of the Top 10 Ways to Detoxify. Since I'm a bit of a head case right now, and not overly educated on this stuff, it's a great place for me to start. So there they are:

The Top 10 Ways to Detoxify

Clean Your Indoor Air Quality
Eat Organic
Choose Personal Care Products Carefully
Avoid Plastics with Bisphenol A
Choose Chemical-free Lawn Care
Get Green School Supplies
Say NO to Non-stick and Stain Repellents
Get Rid of the DEET Insect Repellent
No Need for Toxic Cleaning Products
Avoid Toxic Flame Retardants (PBDEs)

Bear with me, since I'm likely going to be jumping around a bit. Many of these ways to detoxify are related to each other. Also, some are easier to accomplish (in regard to both time and money), so they're easy to accomplish while working on the more difficult ones. Since now is as good a time as any, I'm going to start with number one.

1. Clean your indoor air quality

According to Toxic Nation, the potential for harm comes from pollutants like volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and mould that lead to poor air quality. The solution involves things such as not smoking inside, controlling the humidity in your home, allowing ventilation, dusting and vacuuming regularly, not storing paints, solvents, or varnishes in the home, and keeping fuel-burning appliances maintained.

Hmm....this task appears a little more daunting than I thought. Breaking it down should make it a bit easier to digest though. Environment Canada has a great little online guide to combating Indoor Air Pollution that really spells things out for you. Here are the things they list that you and I can do at home:

1) Do not smoke inside the home.

So this one's pretty obvious and not really an issue for us in our own home. We are an absolutely smoke free home. If any visitors wish to smoke, they have to go outside, no matter what the weather. A little more difficult of an issue is going to other people's homes where people DO smoke inside the house. This is the case with my in-laws. While I will never argue against someone having the right to smoke in their own home, I have, and will continue to assert my right to not subject my child to that. So Steve has talked to his parents and they have agreed to smoke outside for the few hours we visit every few weeks. Is it optimal? No. Obviously not. But I do think it's a decent compromise.

2) Ensure a sufficient air exchange rate (this will help to control humidity and to evacuate some of the gaseous chemicals, as there will always be a certain amount of chemicals emitted in indoor air).

We do have a working air exchanger that helps to control the humidity and redistribute the moisture in the air. This past summer, though, it wasn't enough, so we did have to invest in a dehumidifier for the downstairs area. It felt and even started to smell damp. It wasn't nice. And given that the majority of the basement is carpeted, making it even more susceptible to the growth of mould, it was a good call. In the long run, I'd like to rip out the carpet and install a more environmentally and health friendly alternative.

3) Avoid excessive humidity (not more than 50% RH (relative humidity) in Summer and 30% in Winter)

I think this is very related to #2. I didn't realize til now though that there's an actual tool you can buy to tell you what the RH is in your home. It's called a hygrometer. The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation has a great fact sheet on measuring the humidity in your home. (I guess I'll be adding a hygrometer to my things-to-get list.)

4) Repair and diligently dry out any water damage from leaks, infiltration, or flood and clean any mould.

OK, so this is one we have to get on top of. I KNOW we have at least a small amount of mould in our master bathroom shower. It's in desperate need of being re-caulked. So I'm going to put that on my to-do list for this weekend. I'm just dreading stripping away the old caulk (sorry, can't help but giggle) and finding a bigger problem. Though I guess it's best we find out now, right? Other than that, we're pretty mould-free around here.

5) Have any combustion device (furnace, water heater, gas stove, fireplace) inspected by a specialist at least once a year, and properly maintained.

Oh dear. I guess this is something we'll have to do. I'll put it on my to-do list to call our home inspector and see how much he'd charge to come out and take a look...or at least refer us to someone who could. The good news is that it's only been a little over 2 years since this house (water heater included) was inspected. We don't have any of the other devices, since we have electric heat (no furnace! right?) and we don't have a gas stove or fire place. I'll get our air exchanger inspected as well, while I'm at it!

6) Use any chemical (varnish, paint, cleaning product) according to the manufacturer's instructions, e.g., most of them should be used only in well-ventilated areas.

I'm definitely kicking myself in the ass for using harsh chemical cleaners. If you need to wear a mask while using them, that can't be good. So instead of using them "according to instructions" I'm just going to ditch them altogether. No more bleach or sprays that make you feel like you can't breathe. I'm going to pack up all the caustic chemicals and send them to work with Steve (so that he can properly dispose of them). I'll stick with my Method cleaners and I'm going to learn how to use water, vinegar, and baking soda to keep our home clean. If it's safe to eat, it's gotta be safe to clean with.

As for varnish and paint, we haven't had to worry about that. We've been too busy (lazy?) to do any home improvements since we moved in 2 years ago. We are planning on doing a fair bit of painting this spring/summer though. I'm definitely going to go with low-VOC paints and make sure the doors and windows are open. (Guess I need to add "find low-VOC paints" to my to-do list.)

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So I'm thinking I'm going to need more than a day to tackle each of the 10 Ways to Detoxify. Cleaning your indoor air quality is no easy task! And we've barely scratched the surface, I think. There is a lot more I need to find out more about, including formaldehyde and other specific pollutants. But it's getting late so I think I'll save that for another day.

A new chapter, a new challenge

2010-02-08T01:24:00.000-03:30

February 2010 has marked a new chapter in our lives. On February 1st, our son Jesse was diagnosed with Pervasive Developmental Disorder - Not Otherwise Specified. But this blog isn't going to be about that....it's going to be about our endeavors as a family to make our home (and hopefully our world) a safer, healthier place for our child. While we're unsure as to how much of Jesse's PDD is caused by environmental factors, we figure it certainly won't hurt, and could possibly help, to try to make our home and lives less toxic.

I don't think I'll be starting tonight, however. It's been a rough day....

I'm a blogging failure!

2009-04-14T00:36:00.004-02:30

I admit it. I'm a blogging failure. I haven't posted in many months. And this time I'm not even going to kid myself or anyone else by promising to catch-up or do better in the future. I'll take it one day at a time! So, what's new in our lives?

Jesse has now slept through the whole night 4 times! Last night he slept from just after 10 PM til 7:30 am. We had to check on him to make sure he was breathing! I hope it keeps up. If I can get used to him sleeping, maybe I can get some too!

Jesse has 4 teeth now. It's really helping with his eating, which has long been an issue. I think he's teething again now actually. Poor little guy.

I went back to work in January. I'm now part-time. I only do 5 12-hour shifts every 2 weeks. It was really hard at first, leaving my little boy all night, but I knew he was in his Daddy's capable hands. I actually think it's been a good thing for Jesse and Steve's relationship. I think Steve has gained a lot of confidence in caring for Jesse. Still though, I'm glad I don't have to work full-time. It's really nice to not feel like I'm working ALL THE TIME. Also on the work front - I may be going on strike in about a month's time. Contract negotiations between the NLNU and the provincial government haven't been going well. I have to vote on their latest offer sometime in the coming couple of weeks. I have no idea how that's going to go. At the end of the day, I hope it turns out that we have a contract that we can live with.

Help Dr. Jack Newman!

2008-09-21T17:31:00.004-02:30

I know I've been horrible about updating my blog, and I do promise to be better, but for now I want to post about Dr. Jack Newman's Breastfeeding Clinic. If you go to his website, www.drjacknewman.com you'll see that their clinic is in danger of closing. They lost government funding in 2005, and have been running off donations since then. Please, if you're reading this, and are able, follow the directions on their site and make a tax deductible donation to their clinic to help keep it (and their website) open.

Here's the message on their site:

WE NEED YOUR HELP!

AS OF SEPTEMBER 30TH WE WILL NO LONGER BE RECEIVING ANY PRIVATE FUNDING.
(GOVERNMENT FUNDING CEASED IN 2005)

WE NEED IMMEDIATE DONATIONS TO KEEP OUR CLINIC OPEN.
WITHOUT FUNDING, THE NEWMAN BREASTFEEDING CLINIC & INSTITUTE AND THIS VALUABLE WEBSITE AND ALL OUR EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES WILL DISAPPEAR.
FOR A CHARITABLE TAX RECEIPT PLEASE SEND YOUR DONATION TO www.canadianbreastfeedingfoundation.org.
Please direct your donation to NEWMAN BREASTFEEDING CLINIC

Thank you for your support.

If you are at all able to help, please do so. This man has done so much to help Canadian women (and women all over the world) with breastfeeding. He has a number of publications currently in print, including "Dr. Jack Newman's Guide to Breastfeeding," which is probably the best book on breastfeeding that I've read. He also has a video available titled "Dr. Jack Newmans Visual Guide to Breastfeeding." I personally think both of these should be required reading/viewing for anyone planning to have a child. I only wish I had read this book and watched this video prior to having Jesse. It would have saved me a world of trouble and pain. We're doing great now, but our start would have been so much better!

Anywho, this man is a personal hero of mine right now, and I'll do all I can to help him keep helping women and babies.

Thanks for reading.

"Mama"

2008-08-25T01:32:00.002-02:30

It's got to be the sweetest sound in the world. And my little guy started saying it this week...probably Tuesday or Wednesday? (Don't ask someone this sleep deprived to remember ALL the details, please!) I'm convinced he knows what it means, and that it applies to me. It really helps get me through those "sadistic baby" episodes, where he's screaming, pulling my hair, ripping my glasses off my face, and pinching my arm. And it really makes those moments when he's asleep in my arms more real. I have a living, breathing, TALKING baby. He's mine.

Just call me Bridget....

2008-08-19T02:13:00.003-02:30

I just figured out how to put into words how I feel as a mother. I said it in a message to a friend of mine tonight and thought I'd post it.

I often feel like I'm the Bridget Jones of motherhood....awkwardly working my way through, arsing things up more often than not, and constantly sticking my foot in my mouth and looking like an idiot. The physical similarities are there too. We're both overweight (though me more so than "Bridget"....I'd KILL to weigh what Renee Zellweger weighed while filming that movie), wear clothes that cling in all the wrong places (though I do have a baby to help show off my ample cleavage by pulling down the neck of all my tops), have limp hair (no matter how much I TRY to find a decent style), and we're both just generally uncomfortable in our own skin.

I really hope the Bridget Jones author comes out with another sequel about Bridget becoming a mother. I'd LOVE to see that. It would really make me feel better.

Here a prick, there a prick, everywhere a prick prick...

2008-08-15T00:00:00.002-02:30

Please excuse the title of this post. I'm incredibly tired, and very much lacking in creativity right now. We took Jesse for allergy testing today. The doc's name is Dr. Kamra (not sure on the spelling at the moment). She took a history, and we told her of the three reactions he's had. Then she got herself set up. She did a skin-prick allergy test. She tested him for allergies to bananas, watermelon, oatmeal and penicillin (the 4 things that he was possibly allergic to). She also tested him for allergies to latex, kiwi, barley, rice, fish, peanuts and a few other things. I think there were 9 pricks on his left arm and 16 on his right. Poor little bugger. He did really well though. Steve distracted him, and so he barely noticed what was going on. He noticed when Dr. Kamra did an intradermal penicillin injection. He screamed through that one. When she read the reactions, his only allergies (of those tested) were to penicillin and barley. That's a bit perplexing. But I've heard that sometimes different grains can be cross-contaminated in the packaging process. Then we had to take him for blood work. To be honest, I can't even remember exactly what they're testing. I can't believe I didn't ask. And I didn't even look at the requisition to see what was written on it, since Steve was the one who took it. I know she's doing a CBC. (I asked her to check his hemoglobin.) I guess I'll just have to wait til our follow up visit. She also gave us a script for 1% hydrocortisone cream since his poor little body is covered with eczema. She wants to see him again in September or October.

In the meantime, Jesse had a really bad reaction to bananas. I don't know what that was about. I'm hoping he doesn't have any more reactions. I'm going to wait a bit before starting anything new with him again though. I want his tummy to recover from that round of antibiotics first. Perhaps that could be why he reacted to the oatmeal.

Oh, and then we went to the Janeway for his blood work. NOT FUN! The phlebotomist was quite contrary, and did a lot of digging around with the butterfly needle before finding a vein. Steve had to hold back from clocking her. Jesse screeched through it. The paper on the examination table was soaked with his tears when they were done. I'm just glad it's over and done with. And I'd like to never have to do that again.

HE SLEPT!!!!!!!!

2008-08-07T09:43:00.004-02:30

Holy freaking God! My son actually SLEPT last night! I mean, for more than an hour at a time! He fell asleep lying next to me in bed last night around 9 PM. When I was sure he was asleep, I put him in his crib and left the room, closing the door quietly behind me. I went downstairs, turned on the baby monitor, and settled in to watch the second last show of "So You Think You Can Dance." (I always dreamed of being a professional dancer, but never had a chance, so I live vicariously through this show.....it's sad, I know.) Jesse didn't wake until 12:30. Yep, you got that right. That's 3 1/2 hours of sleep. I nursed him back to sleep after that, but he woke up shortly after putting him back down in his crib. Steve tried a couple time to get him back down, but it didn't work. At around 2 am I just gave up and took him in the bed with us and nursed him and he did eventually go back to sleep. I woke up a couple of times after that, and Jesse was STILL sleeping. Crazy. Then, at 5:30 am, the child woke up. He nursed, and then WENT BACK TO SLEEP AGAIN! For another 2 hours! I couldn't believe it! For some reason, Steve felt like crap when he woke up, and thought it was a horrible night. But for me, it was heavenly! I felt more rested when I got up this morning than I have in over a month!

I am NOT, however, expecting a repeat performance tonight. I'm not that naive anymore.

Why I Breastfeed....

2008-08-04T00:24:00.006-02:30

In honour of World Breastfeeding Week, August 1-7, 2008, I decided to make a post on breastfeeding. I don't remember how old I was when I decided that I would breastfeed my children, but I can't remember ever NOT knowing I would. Maybe it was because I was breastfed, and my brother was breastfed, and I have an aunt who breastfed both her children into their toddler years. It was just NORMAL in our family to breastfeed, or at least give it a go. My education certainly solidified my resolve to breastfeed. During my behavioural neuroscience degree I took several courses in child developement and developmental psychology. Then I completed my nursing degree. I just couldn't ignore what I felt were the risks of formula feeding. Anywho, here are the reasons I breastfeed:

Formula feeding
-is expensive
-is time consuming
-is wasteful
-is less easily digested by a child's gut
-puts the child at risk from contaminents during the manufacturing process
-increases the risk of infection in the child
-increases the risk of obesity in the child
-increases the risk of the child developing allergies
-increases the risk of developing numerous illnesses in the child, including cancer
-increases the risk of ovarian and breast cancers in the mom

Breastfeeding
-is the biologic norm (human milk is designed for human babies)
-is quick and easy (even though there is often a sharp learning curve in the beginning)
-protects children from illness
-releases hormones that help the mom and child de-stress
-helps mom and baby connect with each other

And perhaps the reason to breastfeed that struck me as incredibly important, but isn't talked about enough, is the overwhelming sense of empowerment and accomplishment that you feel when you look at your baby and know that he or she is THRIVING because of you. I've felt it to some degree at numerous times throughout Jesse's life, but around about 5 months, I looked down at Jesse as he was feeding and just got so overwhelmed that I started crying. I looked at my beautiful, happy, healthy, perfect baby boy, and thought, "I DID THAT." It very much feels like an extension of pregnancy, whereby my body continues to grow my child. It amazes me.

Sure, breastfeeding isn't always easy. I know that from experience. It was probably on Jesse's 6th day of life that I knew I was in trouble. My nipples were horribly cracked and the pain was so bad that I'd start crying when Jesse would get hungry. I had to breathe through the first few minute of each feeding as if I were in labour, just so I could relax enough for my milk to let down. I'll tell you right now that it didn't feel very "natural." But I was absolutely committed to breastfeeding. Formula wasn't an option for me, unless it became necesary for Jesse's health. So I called my public health nurse and asked her to come see us. We worked out a plan and 2 weeks later, my nipples had healed, and Jesse was nursing like a champ. There was no more pain. Just joy. Had I not had the full support of my husband and my family though, I'm not sure we would have made it through. I'd like to think we would have, but I just don't know.

Why am I sharing all this? It's not because I want to pressure people who don't want to breastfeed into breastfeeding. I've long given up the dream that every child on earth will be breastfed. I'm a bit more realistic these day. I'm sharing this because it's part of how I parent my child, it's part of my life, my identity. And maybe someone who reads this will learn something they didn't know. Maybe someone who wants to breastfeed will be encouraged to give it a go. One of these days I'd love to become an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and help people overcome obstacles in their breastfeeding relationships. For the time being though, I'm going to be doing a breastfeeding course in order to become a DONA certified doula, and maybe even work towards becoming a La Leche League leader. I want to do everything I can to help those moms who DO want to breastfeed.

No wonder he was such a monster this weekend!

2008-07-28T08:46:00.002-02:30

I don't know what possessed me to check this morning, but for some reason, I stuck my finger in Jesse's mouth and felt that tell-tale sharpness....yup, Jesse has his FIRST tooth! But leave it to my child to be different! His first tooth is his TOP left incisor. Most babies get their bottom incisors first. There won't be any pictures of this for a while....he's still being a bit of a monster at the moment!

Addicted to cloth

2008-07-28T02:35:00.002-02:30

So, considering I'm a complete cloth diapering addict these days, I thought I'd post about it. It all started when I just found out I was pregnant with Jesse. I met a chick named Sara, and she and I became fast friends. And I found out she used cloth dipes on her little guy. I never even knew people still cloth diapered. But I saw the cute pics of her son, and learned about it from her. My obsession sort of took off from there. I started off with a stash of small Fuzzi Bunz. And that's primarily what I used on Jesse for the first few month. The, before I knew it, they were getting really small on him. I expected to be able to get about 6 months out of them, but Jesse is such a long baby, that he was getting plumber's crack by the time he was 4 months old. So, I needed a new stash. I know a lot of people who use cloth now, and I've seen some really cute dipes and heard what works for other people, so I decided to branch out. I have some Bum Genius 3.0 one size dipes. They're fabulous for overnights. I never get a leak! I also LOVE Blueberry diapers. They're so nice and trim! Baby Kangas are also fabulous. They're a one size dipe as well, and very trim. They also come in some great colours. I've also gotten into fitteds and pre-folds and covers, including wool. I started out on this cloth diapering business to save money, but that's out the window now. But I've since learned a lot about the health and environmental benefits of cloth diapering, and I'm so glad that I'm doing it! It's so much easier than people realize. And they're so freaking cute! I'll post some pics of Jesse's fluffy bum later as proof!

My baby boy is growing up!

2008-07-28T01:18:00.003-02:30

Jesse's growing up. I have to face facts. There's nothing I can do to stop it! So I might as well go with it, right? ***pout***

So yesterday my baby boy started crawling! Like, bona fide crawling! Forward crawling! He's been doing the backing up thing for a while now, but hadn't started the forward thing. He'd always look like he was going to. He'd do a bit of that humping-like action, but never actually moved his hands or knees forward. He crawled a little bit yesterday, but today we actually got it on video.

Oh, and Jesse's started solids! He's tried banana twice, but the second time had massive vomiting, and that's a sign of an allergy, so we'll be avoiding banana and anything related to bananas for quite a while (maybe until he can be allergy tested). So last Saturday we tried sweet potato. That didn't go over so well. He hated it! I tried it with him again another two times, and he gagged on it. So we'll be moving on to other foods. I pureed some nectarines yesterday, and tried those, and he liked it! I'll have to add some pics of those too. I think we'll be trying watermelon next.

Here's the sweet potato shots:

And these are from the nectarines. See the difference?

Anywho, I guess that's it for now. Must go finish the laundry...

Can we all please just be healthy for a while?

2008-07-25T04:11:00.000-02:30

So the whole fam-damily has some medical issues on the go right now.

Steve had day surgery today to remove 2 golf ball sized lipomas (fat tumors) from his back this morning. It was done under local anesethetic. Poor guy. I would have at least scammed some valium out of it had it been me. And they sent him home and told him to take tylenol and/or ibuprofen. What do people have against good ol' narcotics these days?

Jesse has had a rough month. First it was 2 solid weeks of diarrhea....foul, watery green, burnt rubber tire smelling diarrhea. He wasn't "sick" though. No other signs or symptoms. He stopped peeing as much, but with 4-7 diarrhea poops a day, that would be expected. We took him to the Janeway ER, and the ER doc pretty well laughed at us since the kid is the picture of health. He had no idea what was causing the diarrhea....didn't think it was a bug because Jesse was otherwise healthy. Jesse had a vax appointment with our family doc a few days later and she delayed the vax because of it. Had it not gone away on its own a few days later she was going to have us come in to culture it. We had a return appointment this past Tuesday for his vax, but the doc noticed Jesse's tonsils were red while examining him. So she took a throat swab and lo-and-behold, it grew some Group B Strep. Not a big problem. It's usually not even treated unless it's causing problems. But she wanted to be cautious and prescribed amoxil anyways. So we have to wait another 2 weeks and then try again for that vax.

As for me....I've got some weird joint issues going on. About a month after Jesse's birth, I started noticing a lot of joint pain in my knees, hips, shoulders, wrists, etc...I figured it was just the relaxin hormone leaving my system and causing some temporary stiffness in my joints. My doc gave me a req to go get some bloodwork done to rule out any freaky medical conditions, but I never did go get it done. I would have had to find someone to watch Jesse for me, and that's a bit difficult. Plus, I never really tried that hard. Anywho, the joint pain seemed to disappear on its own around 3 month post-partum, confirming (so I thought) my hypothesis that it was the declining relaxin levels. Fast-forward to last weekend, and I woke up one morning with a very sore right hand (this had been going on for about a month). I took a good looks at my fingers and noticed my ring finger on my right hand was different. The proximal joint is rather swollen on the sides....very much like the arthritic hands of an 80 year old granny. And the other joints hurt badly too. So my doc ordered some x-rays of my hands. I got those done last Thursday. I also went for bloodwork on Monday. I still don't have the results back yet, but I have an appointment this coming Tuesday to find out what's up. I'm hoping it'll show something (to explain the pain and swelling) that's easily treated. I would really rather NOT going on any medication right now that would necessitate me having to give up breastfeeding. It's just not an option for me.

I have a lot of catching up to do!

2008-07-25T04:05:00.000-02:30

OK, so I'm starting this blog, like, 10 years too late. I think that can be forgiven considering I've only known what a blog is for about a year. So I have a lot of catching up to do. I want to share a little bit about our (mine and Steve's) lives up til now. It'll take a while, since we've been married for eons (well, more like 6 years), and I'm a huge procrastinator, but I'll get there. Perhaps the best thing to do would be to post current stuff as it comes up and post the catching up stuff as I get the chance? Sound good?

Good. Now I have a plan...