[Anna] We’ve been very busy, as always.Recently Eric and I have explored the issue of how obvious the link is between posting pictures of our children and sustainability issues (the theme of this blog). We agreed that one of the main elements or strengths of this particular farm is its emphasis on the multigenerational, extended family unit. American society now emphasizes the nuclear family and it can be very difficult to follow sustainable or permaculture based values in the nuclear family because there is less labor and no shared resources (eg., two nuclear households each using 2.0kw of power is less efficient that one extended family household using 3.0kw of power). The extended family is one model to address this issue as are the increasingly popular intentional communities of friends living in close proximity. Community is important to sustainable living whether it is formed by family or friends. You can push to live sustainably in a nuclear family unit, we’ve tried it, but I think it is harder to do. Of course, there are different opinions out there on this and which can be valid for different reasons.

Our children are an important part of this enterprise. Not just because I hope (although I’m not wedded to) they’ll carry our torch and keep the farm going as we age but because we are doing this so they will have a better future and because how we raise and nurture our children as parents and grandparents is integral to living sustainably. Our belief in parenting techniques like attachment parenting, babywearing, EC, homeschooling, etc. are outgrowths and expressions of our desire to live sustainably.

The January 30th post has photos of Juney on the potty, a playmat, and in a sling with her grandpa. Supporting Juney using the potty and using cloth diapers (and the night-time disposable …aggh … to be completely honest) is a manifestation of our values regarding sustainable living. In fact, just today all her poops have gone into the potty. Yesterday she used only two cloth diapers all day because she urinated/pooped mostly in her potty. Her 82 year old grandfather using a mei tai baby sling to carry her is another expression of parenting values overlapping with sustainability values. The lovely playmat Juney sits on in another Jan 30th photo is also an expression of sustainability in that the material was recycled from another project and it was made at home by her aunt. In fact, Gillian should have been given a sustainability award for this past Christmas because she either made all her presents (mostly from recycled materials) or found items at the thriftstore. She is amazing and it took a lot of work on her part.

Knitting is another venture I’ve taken up in addition to crochet for both economic and mental health sustainability reasons. I’ve done a number of projects now but I just finished knitting up Bruce’s scarf last week and in time for it to get warm … but then we got 1′ of snow on the farm last night so maybe he’ll actually wear it. He wasn’t too keen on putting it on inside the barn. I used more of Gillian’s faux fur to create a Charlie poodle dog impression on the pockets. The ends are folded up to make hand pockets which may or may not work for him. I used a nice red merino wool since I think red is his favorite color … he hasn’t actually said but he usually picks red shirts over blue shirts.

I wanted to swiss darn his name over the face pocket but I couldn’t get it to work out (too few stitches to work with) so Nani helped me straight stitch embroider his name on.

Learning to knit and using natural fibers is another path to not only creating our own clothing but appreciating the true value of clothing and the exploitation required to sell a scarf for $5 (at a profit) at Target. I still do buy those new, cheap clothes periodically … but I am aware of the system I am supporting and I am making an attempt to escape that system by making our own clothing and by buying mostly second-hand clothing. I could go on for way too long about the potential long-term benefits to sustainable living from knitting/crochet with natural fibers which I hope will one day be made from homespun yarn from sheep, alpacas, and/or goats we’ve raised.

The bathtub and park photos below I mostly posted because they were cute but sustainable values can also be found in them. The kids are sharing their bath water which, typically, will then run into the graywater line and irrigate the frontyard plantings. The parks are for the community, paid for by tax dollars, and help provide green spaces of grass that can be shared by many and, as such, are more frugal uses of irrigation water. Parks do not tempt you into buying sodas or happy meals so you feel it is ok to use the play equipment.

Juney just started sharing the tub with Bruce. He’s somewhat ambivalent but she’s ecstatic. She actually will pull herself up on the side of the tub and when I ask her if she wants to take a bath she starts bouncing and smiling and cooing. Note the bubble beard in the second photo.

Juney and Bruce at the park with playmate “Superboy.”

What are we being sustainable for if it isn’t for our children and future generations.