Tag: food

Preparing for Life as a Working Mother of Two

- Alexis Leave a comment
My son modeling his new spaceship backpack

This is my last week of maternity leave. I don’t plan on having any more kids, so heading back to work on Monday marks the end of the newborn season of my life. I had anticipated having children for a long time, and after I had my son, I’d looked forward to experiencing a second pregnancy and birth, and to welcoming a daughter. I have my ideal family now, but it’s a little bittersweet to think that I won’t be doing it all again.

As hard as it will be to leave my baby on Monday, I’m eager for something of a return to normalcy. I’m not sure what normalcy even means in 2020, but maternity leave can feel like a pause in life, and I think I’m ready to hit play again.

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Benefit Your Health, the Local Economy, and the Environment with a CSA Share

- Alexis Leave a comment

Close-up photo of strawberries

I’ve been making intermittent efforts to eat locally produced food since I read Barbara Kingsolver’s Animal, Vegetable, Miracle some years ago, although I’ve never had the dedication of Kingsolver’s family to eat exclusively local.  I try to grow some veggies at home, but my success with gardening varies.  Foreseeing that weekly Saturday morning visits to the farmer’s market would likely be a challenge this year, I recently signed up for a CSA share.

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Feeding Ourselves: Thoughts on Cooking and Convenience

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Drawing of a bowl a fruit and a pear and orange on a table

I came across this article yesterday that reported the findings of a study showing that “[o]nly 10% of consumers now love to cook, while 45% hate it and 45% are lukewarm about it.”  The 10% number surprised me, as many people in my social circle cook most of their meals and seem to enjoy making their own food.  I’ll admit that I tend to fall into the lukewarm category, though it’s more accurate to say that my desire to cook ebbs and flows.

I know that cooking my own meals is generally healthier and more cost-effective than eating at restaurants.  Cooking can be a lot more satisfying, too.  I don’t live in a big city with an endless number of restaurants, and sometimes I’m just not that excited about my options for eating out.  On occasions when I want a specific dish, my chances of satisfying the craving are sometimes better if I make the dish myself rather than trying to find the precise offering at a local restaurant.  I also imagine that for families with kids and hectic schedules, eating at home is probably easier than going to a restaurant.

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Becoming a More Conscious Consumer

- Alexis Leave a comment

A square still-life painting of vegetables and fruits.
Farmer’s Market Finds, 2012. Private Collection.

Over the past year, I’ve made a few significant changes in my purchasing habits. These changes weren’t part of any resolution or major life overhaul. They came gradually as I educated myself on certain issues and decided I no longer wanted to contribute to certain problems. I changed what I buy to support positive practices and avoid supporting negative ones.

Now, I don’t mean to be preachy. I don’t judge people who haven’t made these changes, because it wasn’t very long ago that I changed my ways. I also understand that I am privileged to be able to make these choices. I am paid a good salary and can afford to choose more expensive products that align with my values. I realize not everyone has that luxury. Some people must accept what is available to them. With those caveats in mind, here are three steps I’ve taken toward building a better world with my dollars.

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