Category Archives: Home and Garden

This week we celebrated our third anniversary in our home. It’s our first house and I still love it, but three years feels like a long time considering our history. In the 13 years before buying this house, we inhabited nine different apartments across four states. (They exist in my memory as a string of street names: Daniel, Goodwin, Clark, Madison…) That’s an average of 1.4 years per residence. So, it’s no wonder I am getting itchy for new surroundings. I’m not ready to move, but I’m beginning to compile a wish list for my next home. And since February is my month of fun, I’m dreaming of an eco house built from scratch. Construction Let’s begin with timber and straw bale construction, plastered with nontoxic, mold-resistant American clay walls. Straw? Yes, it’s come along way since the three little pigs. I first read about straw bale houses fifteen years … Continue reading →

With spring in full bloom, Mike and I have turned our attention outdoors. The yard we inherited with our house is kind of a mess with no real plan or aesthetic. We have ugly box hedges, tree roots popping up everywhere and not much in the way of plants. The only thing we’ve done since moving in is to install a playset for Sofie in the backyard. We don’t care about nice grass. Not in the way my father did. He was a big fan of fertilizer, weed killer and anything that might achieve the lush green lawn of suburban euphoria. Often my sisters and I were not allowed to play on it because chemicals had just been applied or he feared we’d “ruin” the lawn. In contrast, my message to Sofie: Yards are for fun! Run around, play ball, enjoy digging. That picture-perfect lawn isn’t environmentally friendly anyway since … Continue reading →

A week ago we had a home energy audit. It’s free, sort of. (You actually already pay for it through your National Grid bill, so might as well take advantage of this service.) Ron from RISE Engineering probed throughout our house from basement to attic. And what did he discover? That our walls have absolutely no insulation! Fabulous news to hear right after we’ve spent our Obama money on other home improvement projects. Really, I can’t understand how the previous owners (who had the house custom-built for them and lived here for 50-odd years) could not have insulated their abode, but for a few measly inches in the attic. Unfortunately, as oil heat consumers, we are not eligible for the current awesome National Grid discounts on home insulation. However, all you gas and electric heat customers out there should jump on this opportunity now. You’ll get sprayed cellulose insulation, which is … Continue reading →