Walden Island Days

We left for the lake early Friday morning so that we could enjoy the entire gorgeous day there with friends. Jason, Dylona, Kylah, Kallie, Dawn & Logan also came to spend the day with us. It was Dawn & Logan's first time visiting Walden Island and Silver Lake.

Uncle Jamie inflated a toy for the kids, and then we went straight to the lake. It was almost 80 degrees by 11am and only getting warmer - perfect Walden Island weather!

We sat out in the 'party float' for a bit.

Then Jamie took the kids out on the wave runner.

We had a late lunch and then took the boat out for some swimming and tubing.

Logan got to drive the boat back in. He was so very excited about that! (Thanks for helping him Uncle Jamie.)

When we got back to the shed, Jamie bbq'd dinner for everyone. We enjoyed the new deck for a while before everyone had to head back home. Thanks for spending the day with us (at Auntie Amber's Island) we had a great day!

Jamie and I hung out in the 'party float' for a while again on Saturday. Just enjoying the day.

We woke up to clouds and light rain on Sunday, but the sun broke through around 1pm. Just enough time to play on the wave runners before heading back home.

I love our Walden Island Days...

City Photography Class #2

Our second photography class took us across the Hawthrone Bridge, by the water front and then back across the bridge. Makena was not (at all) happy about walking across the (moving) bridge with cars, buses, bikes and people.

These first pictures are some of Makena's:

*I did the editing on my laptop, so the photos are darker than inteneded. Yes...still working on that. It was also a bit darker than the week before.*


The drawbridge went up twice while we were there.

These next photos are mine:

This is the best sticker I've ever seen!

Good Things #23

Read this this morning at The Greenest Dollar.

UPS has a carbon neutral shipping program. Under the program, you can pay a bit more to offset the carbon emissions of your shipment.

And we’re not talking major bucks here…we’re talking 5 cents for a ground package, 20 cents for an air package, and 75 cents for an international package. The money goes to purchase carbon offsets from Garcia River Forest Climate Action Project, which is overseen by the Nature Conservatory. And the cool thing is that UPS is 100% matching all carbon offsets through 2010.

Carbon Banking
So after I found out about UPS’s Green Shipping Program, I was excited but still had some questions.

For instance, what does it mean when you pay that extra 20 cents? What does that money actually DO?

Although the UPS site has some great information, it was a bit lacking in this department. So I went digging, and found my answers on NPR, who interviewed two of the scientists that help run the Garcia River Project.

Here’s the rundown, in plain English:
UPS has carefully calculated the carbon impact of every package it ships. This has been, and will continue to be, third-party verified with the SGS Climate Change Program. That’s how they came up with the monetary offsets.

Now, when you pay that extra 20 cents, it goes to the Garcia River Project. The scientists and non-profits that run the project use that money to do several things: one of them is to thin out the Big River Forest.

Yeah I know…it doesn’t SOUND like you’re offsetting your carbon right? Not if they’re cutting down trees. Well, there’s a good explanation.

The scientists say that if you don’t trim forests, then it’s just like when you don’t weed your garden. The good stuff gets choked out, and the entire plot is not near as productive as it could be.

Well, that’s exactly what it’s like in the Big River Forest. The thinner trees get cut down, leaving the big redwoods more space and resources to grow bigger, at a faster rate.
According to NPR, a typical 25-inch-diameter redwood can store about a ton of carbon. And, they said it best here: The accounting is tricky. If you cut down a tree, its carbon eventually goes up into the atmosphere. Foresters have to prove their “weeding” will produce a net gain — meaning more carbon will be stored in the trees that remain and grow than is released when the foresters weed.

The calculations definitely sound tricky. And I’m sure they also have to offset the carbon intake the trees they’re cutting down would have made if left standing.

I had no idea forestry was getting so complicated.

Hand Over That Nickel…
Frankly, I’m amazed that a measly nickel is enough to offset a package I’m sending across the country. But UPS, and their their-party verifiers, swear their numbers are accurate. I don’t know how I’d come close to calculating it myself, so I guess I’m just going to have to trust them.

The program starts nationwide July 12, so if you have to ship something after that then hand over that extra nickel and help those redwoods suck some more carbon out of the air.

Love this!

Walden Island on the 4th

Carol, Jamie, Moxie and I headed to the lake on Thursday afternoon.

By Thursday evening, it was raining.

By Thursday night, it was pouring.

My sister and Chad arrived early Friday afternoon. They had originally planned to come
Thursday, but see above. I left for a bit to pick up Makena & Hailee.

Then we were all back on the island again, hoping for sunshine.

Makena & Hailee spent most of Friday and Saturday in the shed playing Gameboy or reading.

I tried to read and nap and enjoy our deck.

Carol bought me these new planters for my birthday. I filled them with color and added them to the deck. Thanks again Carol - they're perfect!

Then Jamie and Chad built a horse shoe pit. Thankfully, it's at the bottom of the hill. (Which is the perfect spot for it Honey.)

We did get a little sunshine on Saturday. I thought they were crazy, but the girls went swimming.

And later we went for a boat ride.

Jamie was given a grill by one of the neighbors - she was told it would cost $300 to fix it. Jamie cleaned it up and got it working right away. Then he made us dinner on his 'new grill'.

It rained off/on again on Sunday so we mostly just sat around the fire. Later that night, we enjoyed fireworks at a neighbor's house.

On Monday, Chad helped Jamie take the trampoline and party float back out in the water. I can't wait for the sun to come out again so that we can enjoy them!

Speaking of "enjoying" - we also ate a few (too many) S'mores this weekend too.

We hope everyone enjoyed their 4th of July!