a peek inside the fishbowl

But first, here’s something else that’s green that I like. :)

I first wrote about terra20 when they first came on board as a Fishbowl patron. I’m so glad to have them. I’ve visited the store many times and have always found great stuff there.

Earth Day is coming up on April 22 and terra20 is celebrating all month long. And they’re doing it up BIG. Many terra20 vendors will be visiting the store throughout April. (Psst! Stay in the loop by following terra20 on Facebook and Twitter or bookmark their handy events calendar.)

The general idea for Earth Month is promote easy sustainable living, and each week they are celebrating different ways we can make positive (and noticeable!) changes in our lives.

So for example, on Saturday (the 6th) you can learn about cloth diapering. You can meet the folks behind AppleCheeks, a Canadian cloth diaper company, and also talk to a parent who’s done the whole cloth diapering thing and can share some words of wisdom.

Next Saturday (the 13th) you can learn about litterless lunch options with Julie from Credible Edibles. Julie will be making some special treats that include Grainstorm baked goods. (Hello. Big fan over here. I have a blog post to come about Grainstorm!)

Anyway, yes. There is great stuff happening at terra20, and I cannot recommend the in-store visits enough. It’s a great way to get to know the people behind the label (and ask questions!) and look at some great products up close.

Sooo, drumroll please!

The people at terra20 are giving one lucky Fishbowl reader a $100 gift card to help their family start making manageable eco-friendly changes in their day-to-day lives. (And as we know, the smallest of changes can make a huge difference, right?)

Interested?

• This giveaway is for ONE (1) $100 gift card to terra20 and is open to anyone residing in the Ottawa area but is void where prohibited by law.
• In order for your entry to qualify you must answer the following questions in the comments below: What kind of eco-related change do you want to make? And how would you spend your $100 in order to facilitate that change? (Do note that terra20 carries a lot of different brands in a wide variety of categories including cosmetics & personal care, eco-friendly cleaning products, kitchen and housewares, clothing, pet toys (and more!) and there are products being added to their online store every day.)
• One entry per family please. We want lots of people to have the opportunity to win.
• The winner must pick up the gift card at terra20 in a timely fashion. If it’s not picked up within 30 days I will do the draw again and choose a new winner.
• If you can’t post your comment here for whatever reason, you can email it to me for posting. Send it to andrea at quietfish dot com … however I cannot be responsible if your entry is misdirected or gets stuck in my Spam folder.
• Good karma goes to those who tweet or share this giveaway on Facebook. Do you know someone who would appreciate the chance to win? I bet you do. Forward this info to them!

I will do a random draw of all qualifying entries using Random.org at noon EST on Friday April 12, 2013. Sound good? But wait, there’s another amazing contest going on right now too! How would you like to have someone clean your house for a year? (Er. I think I know what you’re going to say. Nevermind.) It’s the big prize if you happen to be the lucky winner of terra20’s Greener Clean in 2013 contest. (!!) You can get the whole scoop on their blog.

Over to you. And good luck!

A friend of mine once told me about a time she was sitting in a theatre waiting for a movie with her eight and 10-year old nieces. The girls decided to pass the time by belting out Katie Perry’s “Kissed a Girl”:

I kissed a girl and I liked it
The taste of her cherry chap stick
I kissed a girl just to try it
I hope my boyfriend don’t mind it.

(Here’s the video for that song in case you’re interested.)

As parents of two girls, we explained why some people have two daddies (or mommies) pretty early on. But this is another ballgame altogether. How do you explain this song to an 8-year old?

Was the mom in the theatre mortified or did she find it humorous? I don’t know, but I do know that the girls didn’t have a clue what the lyrics were about. I’m sure the other people waiting for the show were quite amused too. :)

I have a post up at the MediaSmarts blog writing about kids and music this week. Sex, coarse language, gender stereotyping – it’s a fast-changing world we live in and I’d love to get your thoughts on this topic. I offered a few of my own tips but I’m sure you Fishies have a few of your own to add.

• How do you handle the radio (it seems weird to type that out) when you’re in the car with your kids?
• Do you have any rules about downloading music at home? For example, do you have a family iTunes account or do your kids have their own?
• What are your biggest issues and concerns as it pertains to today’s music?

I’d love to hear what works – and what doesn’t work – for you and your family. Let’s help each other figure this stuff out, shall we? You can leave your two cents over here.

We had The Most Excellent Ham last weekend. It was the final nail in the coffin for those spongy football-shaped packages of meat one normally finds at the grocery store. This ham was from a Richmond-area butcher shop called Christopher’s Meat Market.

It didn’t require a lot of fixin’ up. Mark mixed up a quick glaze of brown sugar and grainy mustard and slathered it all over before popping it in the oven.

And you know what? I had been a slice away from giving up on ham completely but it came out tasting exactly how ham is supposed to taste.

I had forgotten how much I liked a good n’ proper ham!

Anyway, here’s something I whipped up using some of the leftovers. It comes together very quickly, which makes it the perfect dinner!

• 1 package lemon-chive fettuccine ribbons from Farm Boy (I think it was about 350g. You can use any kind of pasta but I happened to have this in the pantry. It was fresh and light. Perfect for this kind of dish.)
• 4 tablespoons virgin olive oil, divided
• 1/4 cup green onions, chopped into 1 cm pieces
• 3 garlic cloves, chopped
• some leftover ham, cut into bite-sized pieces (Maybe a cup or two? I eyeballed it. Use what ya got!)
• 4-5 pieces of asparagus, cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1-2 tablespoons lemon juice (a bit of zest might be nice in this too!)
• freshly ground pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cook the pasta according to package directions. While it’s boiling, heat 2 tablespoons of oil over medium heat. Add green onions and garlic and sauté for a couple of minutes. Add the ham and asparagus and cook for 3-4 minutes. Add the lemon juice and pepper, stirring well to combine.

Toss ham mixture with the pasta. Drizzle with remaining oil and top with parmesan cheese.

Here’s what it looked like when I had it the next day for lunch:

I fried a bit of extra ham and asparagus in a pan for a few minutes and dumped some leftover noodles in along with it. And then I lightly fried an egg and served it on top. It was AMAZING.

But the question remains… did THEY EAT IT? As usual the answer is yes and no. Mark liked it. I loved it. One kid ate it and the other picked at it. I still consider 75% a win. That’s why I will make this again.