Score!

Downtown trick or treating should never be done without a hidden flask of something potent.

Safe from traffic, yes. Safe from being mobbed by sugar crazed halflings, no.

I had choir practice afterwards so I was forced to fight the horrendous crowd with the slowest human on the face of the earth in her big ole hoop skirt bumping into everyone as we went along with all my senses fully intact.

Oh yeah and somehow we did everything against the flow of traffic.

My only happy out of the whole thing (other than the "snow princess" loving the gross abundance of miniature sized torture to her mom's lack of self discipline) was when she saw the Hot Tamales in the candy bowl at the sports table, she thought of me... and grabbed 3 packs.

"Here Mommy, I got these for you!"

Thanks kiddo!

What is your list of "non-negotiables"

*Tip 2 (Try this for one week) Instead of using paper towels to dry your hands use a kitchen or hand towel.*


I just want to go ahead and say this may not sit well with most. But this blog has really opened my eyes in light of the upcoming election. This particular post by Jim Wallis (click on his name and read the post before going on) asks the reader to come up with their own list and then share it with family and friends.

"In 2004, several conservative Catholic bishops and a few megachurch pastors
like Rick Warren issued their list of “non-negotiables,” which were intended to
be a voter guide for their followers. All of them were relatively the same list
of issues: abortion, gay marriage, stem cell research, etc. None of them even
included the word “poverty,” only one example of the missing issues which are
found quite clearly in the Bible. All of them were also relatively the same as
official Republican Party Web sites of “non-negotiables.” The political
connections and commitments of the religious non-negotiable writers were quite
clear.
I want to suggest a different approach this year and share my personal
list of “faith priorities” that will guide me in making the imperfect choices
that always confront us in any election year — and suggest that each of you come
up with your own list of “faith” or “moral” priorities for this election year
and take them into the voting booth with you."

Now I am not a biblical scholar or have a degree in political science so bear with me if these sound a little simplistic. Here goes....

1. I will choose the candidate who is most likely to take care of the poverty stricken people of this country and those of the world. I will willingly take more personal responsibility to take care of my local community with money and time. I will learn more and educate myself so that if the government fails on their promises I will be able to act.

2. I will choose the candidate who can no longer justify this seemingly never ending war. I will choose the candidate who will protect us without bullying others, one that will consider alternative means to war that are peaceful and respectful of all human life. I will longer pretend that innocent lives are not being lost and that our country is a big reason.

3. I will choose the candidate who will preserve the sanctity of ALL human life. Unborn and living equally. Period. I will support a consistent life ethic based on the premise that all life is sacred as it pertains to abortion, capital punishment, assisted suicide, economic injustice, euthanasia, and unjust war.

4. I will choose the candidate who takes the responsibility of protecting our environment seriously. I will support wise choices in the use of our world's resources and make more strides to use only what is needed and renewable. I support better stewardship of God's creation and will make greater strides to live and teach our children about a more sustainable life.

5. I will choose the candidate who leads by example in their daily lives. I will support one who promotes healthy, moral, ethical, and mentally stable families. I will support the well being of children in families no matter what that looks like. I will not support taking rights away from families based on gender, race, sexual orientation, or religious affiliation.

6. I will choose the candidate who treats every human with equal respect. I will not support any form of torture or inhumane practice done in our country or by any American.

7. I will choose the candidate who is a voice for the people. One who does not only adhere to the policies of a particular party. I will support a candidate who will not back down because the elite says so.

OK, I want your lists! Even (or maybe I should say especially) if they strongly disagree with mine. I think the key thing in this election year is that we as individuals refuse to be silent and take more personal responsibility in this great country where we have so many opportunities to make a difference.

Looking for a little inspiration

So I know a while back I said I wouldn't "waste time" with lists on how to be more environmentally friendly, instead I thought it might be fun to add a "tip" to each post from now on. Now when I say tip I am not talking about huge financial investments like solar panels on rooftops, tank less water heaters, energy efficient washer/dryer (not that those aren't good...just probably not feasible to a typical household especially now!) but things that we might could try today with little to no costs. Wes and I have tried different things throughout the years....some have stuck, some not so much.

So, first up is recycling. When we lived in Nashville I was obsessed! It was easy because the city made it so that almost everything you would normally throw out could be taken within 100 yards of our apartment and put in huge bins. Here in Auburn it takes, in some instances, huge efforts and time spent for very little recyclable materials. However to me it is worth it not to fill the trash can and thus the land fills.

This is not a hard project to start in most cities. You can call your local recycle center and ask if they do curbside pick up. Some cities will even give you a bin for free. Auburn does curbside pickup for no extra charge (taxpayer dollars go toward this so you pay whether you use it or not) but you have to buy your own bins. We went a year just using extra small trash cans around the house to separate the newsprint, cans, plastic bottles, and glass. I just recently went to Target and bought $8 stackable milk crates for easier storage. The few things you can't leave curbside we take across town to the city's facility.

Save your plastic grocery bags!!! You can take them back to the grocery stores or Walmart and they have their own recycle bins for the bags. If you live in Auburn you can go one step further and take them to the Community Market behind Durango so they can use them to bag groceries for low income families.

OK so my "tip" turned in to the post...oops! I will leave you with this precious drawing of Peyt at a local fall festival we went to last night. This lady did this for all the kiddos for FREE and it only took her like 5 minutes per kid.