The Proper Way to Soak and Cook Beans AND My Secret To Perfect Refried Beans

Long before I knew that the quality of a margarita was paramount to the the success of a Mexican restaurant, there was this little place in Memphis called Molly’s La Casita. There may still be a Molly's downtown on Central Ave, though I am not sure if it is open today. We would frequent the Park and Mendenhall location before it shuttered in the early Ninties.



Like the routine loving child that I was, I would always order the exact same thing at Molly's, the Tres Tacos. Three crispy tacos of seasoned ground beef with Mexican red rice and the most ridiculous refried beans imaginable. I can still imagine the taste, but I could not ever find a replacement to them. A nice dark brown color, they were the right balance of meaty and salty. They were ever so slightly pasty but the beans still held their shape creating a balance of texture. They did not reduce to a soupy one note sauce as many lazier restaurants' beans do. Molly's sublime legumes defined refried beans in my mind and virtually all my subsequent encounters with the side dish have been met with abject disappointment.



Recently I have unlocked the secret to these beans, these pearls of protein. Lard.



Yup. Sorry to burst your bubble. You were expecting paprika maybe? Lard is the secret of the best refried beans imaginable. But lard needn’t scare you. It is not any higher in fat than butter or olive oil. And many people are surprised to learn that lard is highest in monounsaturated fats, though it does contain some saturated fat like all fats do. Lard from ethically treated pastured animals is also high in Vitamin D. It is not a fat to be feared. But lard is tricky. Although it is an animal fat many manufacteurers hydrogenate lard to make it more shelf stable. And hydrogenation is bad. So few people are buying and cooking with lard these days that it is much better to render your own. Any butcher could get quality leaf lard for you. I order mine from Lewis-Waite Farm. It freezes well and the rendered fat keeps in the fridge indefinitely. And while my recipe isn’t necessarily authentic (I don’t know, maybe it is! I just kind of made it up), this warm-your-bones side dish is a great accompaniment to a lean meat dish!







Refried Beans

2 pounds of dried pinto beans, or a combination of pinto and kidney beans

Salt to taste (I used around 1-2 tablespoon)

1/4-1/3 cup of rendered leaf lard

Optional sliced onion, garlic, cumin, paprika and black pepper



Stay with me...the following recipe is longer than it needs to be. But I am specific for a reason.



Start by soaking your beans. It takes times. Properly soaked beans not only digest better, allowing your body to access the nutrition better, but proper soaking and long slow cooking helps to de-gas those beans as they work their way through your tummy. The Weston Price Foundation has a wonderful article on exactly how to soak beans called Putting the Polish on Those Humble Beans In it Catherine Czapp schools us on the proper temperature for your soaking water and why that is. I will attempt to recreate that here.



Start by placing a medium sized pot of water on the stove stop, about 10-12 cups. Take your beans and place them in a collander. Wash them thoroughly and remove any dirt, sticks or rocks. Transfer your beans to a large bowl. When the water begins to form tiny bubbles on the bottom of the pot but BEFORE it begins to boil, take the pot off the heat and pour it over your beans. Although the water is hot, you should be able to touch it without burning your hand. If it feels like a comfortable warm bath your water is not hot enough. If your hand burns upon touching the water, it is too hot. By the way, please use your common sense. Please DO NOT stick your hand in a pot of boiling water. I am absolutely not advocating that.



Once you've added your hot water, stir the beans and allow then to soak. Drain the soaking water and repeat the process 3-4 times over the course of 24 hours. After a day of soaking they will feel springy like fresh, uncooked beans.



Drain the final batch of soaking water and place them in a Dutch oven or large pot. Cover them with cold water and put them on to boil. To the pot place add half a sliced onion, one to two minced garlic cloves, paprika and cumin, a good tablespoon of salt and freshly cracked black pepper. If I was a better blogger I would have written down all the measurements. But I don't really measure as I cook. Oh well, I will make that as a goal for NEXT year. Let the beans come to a boil and then turn down the heat to a simmer. As they cook you can add more water if you need. You want to avoid a roiling boil or else the beans will cook too fast and the beans will be GASSY! Give yourself several hours to cook them. A crock pot is also a wonderful thing to use to cook the beans slowly. But whenever I use use a crock pot to cook beans I always end up finishing them on the stove top....but more on that later.







When the beans are cooked through and very soft, taste them for seasonings. Add more salt as needed. Remember you can always add more, but you can't take any away. Turn the heat on higher to evaporate any water. The higher boil will also begin to break up the beans. Stir the pot and they will break up more. That is what you can't get from a crock pot. The crock pot gets the beans soft, but it doesn't break them up. That's why I always finish them on the stovetop. When they are the right consistency, kinda pastey kinda spreadable but not destroyed, heat up a good heavy pan. And throw in your lard.







Melt your lard. When it gets hot enough to fry, spoon in your beans slowly. Stir them around to incorporate the fat. Add more water or adjust the seasonings.







And there you have it, refried beans. Meaty. Salty. Amazing with tacos. Not slightest bit vegetarian. Use the leftovers to make chili, or throw them over eggs with hot sauce for fantastic huevos rancheros. Or just eat them over rice with sensual slices of avocados. But please please please whatever you do, don't substitute the fat. It is lard, or it just isn't as good.



This post is shared with Traditional Tuesdays and Real Food 101 and Real Food Wednesdays and Healthy 2Day Wednesdays and Simple Lives Thursday and Fight Back Fridays and Momtrend's Friday Food Link

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When Life Throws You A Hurricane, Throw A Hurricane Party!

As you ALL know Hurricane Irene slowly trodded it's way up the Eastern Seabord of the US yesterday. I think it is still hitting Canada. The excitement here in New York City began Thursday when I was with a co-worker who excitedly decided to take Friday off in order to purchase one of the only generators making their way into the tri-state area before the weekend. By Friday there was talk of a subway shut down and I decided that DH and I should get to the supermarket early instead of waiting until Saturday morning when it was forecasted to already be raining.



No one was sure if Irene would be a category 1 or 2 by the time it made landfall in the US. But everyone was sure it was coming. There was no spinning out to sea scenario. And the community responded. Lines at the checkout counters at grocery stores boasted 30-60 minute lengths. The line at Target was equally as long. And the energy in the air was a restrained frenzy. I was certain the the kids had picked up on the emotions wafting in the wind because they were buzzed with unusual excitement, not to mention stubborn crying fits and all out public meltdowns.



DH and I hit Fairway at 3pm on Friday. The parking lot was packed like the Sunday before Thanksgiving. I made a list for my usual Fairway items. I tried not to buy more food than we needed just because I was anxious about the storm. I did not buy eggs and milk or meat because we would be going to the farmer's market in the morning before the storm got too bad. Unfortunately, after we had returned from the store, I got an email from a friend alerting me that all NYC Greenmarkets would be closed for the weekend to keep anyone from getting injured due to falling trees or debris. I was very uspet, and of course I was lacking in milk and eggs. Still, there are other stores within walking distance of my apartment. So DH and I agreed, the 4 pound grass fed pork roast that was taking up way too much room in the freezer was getting evicted, and what better way to weather a massive hurricane than by drinking beer and eating pork tacos with good friends? We had just planned a hurricane party!!







But while the paty was fun, the pork was good and the beer was cold (the tortillas were unfortunately not my best, but at least we didn't run out), I write this post to remind all that our choices in food are subject to our situations and availabilities. I was unable to get my wonderful milk this week. And so I had a decision to make. I could choose conventional milk that had been conventionally pasteurized or I could choose organic milk that had been ultra-pasteurized. I knew my kefir grains would not be able to thrive on UHT milk. And I don't think highly of UHT milk, nutritionally speaking. But I was concerned about the conventional milk. While many dairy farmers do not use growth hormones and some do not administer unnecessary antibiotics, I the consumer have know way of knowing if that is the case for this jug of milk, for me, today. I decided that I would buy both. I bought organic for the kids. One week of UHT milk will not likely hurt them in anyway. And I bought conventional for the kefir and my own coffee. It isn't enough to say 'eat this, not that', different people have access to different foods for various reasons. And I found myself faced with store closures and flooded roads. Sadly, my milk example is trite. How long would any of our food ideals hold up when faced with shortages, hunger or true natural disaster? So we make the best choices we possibly can, with what is available to us.







The storm was not a bust. The rain we got was torrential. And personally I am supportive of the way the city government handled the storm. No New Yorkers were killed during the storm and likely only minor damage was sustained because people reacted responsibly. The eye made landfall around 9am in Coney Island and by 9:45 I saw a strage patch of sun on the horizon in the direction of LaGuardia Airport and Yankee Stadium. Then I watched that patch of sun march up I-87 until it kind of blended in with the surroundings. Creepy.



I haven't left my apartment since 10am Saturday morning. I am itching to get out and so are the kids. What a crazy wet weekend!!



If you got caught by Irene this weekend, what did you do in the storm?

Hummingbird Favorites in My Garden

Hummingbirds evoke a joy and wonder in humans that is almost universal: those tiny bodies, those fast wings, that slender beak!  While I don't plant flowers specifically for them, I am always thrilled when my choices meet with their approval.  Here is one of the little guys enjoying a bit of Turk's Cap Hibiscus.

Looking back over the blooming season, here are the plants that I have which attract their attention.  In early spring, the Red Buckeye (Aesculus pavia) feeds the earliest hummingbirds.  The tubular red flowers are the perfect flower for them.  Can you imagine how those clusters of red tubes must serve as a brightly lit buffet sign to passing Hummingbirds?

Aesculus pavia

 After the buckeyes are gone, the Salvias come into bloom.  These early summer flowers come in a range of colors, but it is the red and pink ones that Hummingbirds find.  You probably already know they have a fondness for red tones.  Look at these luscious reds - the buds on the Salvia coccinea remind me of little lipsticks.

Salvia greggii

Salvia coccinea

While the Salvias are blooming, the Red Yucca sends up a spike.  This year was a spectacular display of blooms.  Every day, a few blooms would open up to reveal flowers that were like little works of art!

Hesperaloe parviflora

Hesperaloe parviflora

Lonicera sempervirens

On a fence near the red yucca is a new addition to my garden: Coral Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens).  This is the native honeysuckle; it has very little fragrance compared to the japanese one, but the color can't be beat!  I had just a few blooms this year, but I know it will be even more floriferous next year.

Rhododendron prunifolium

Plumleaf azalea (Rhododendron prunifolium) starts blooming in late June and continues through July.  The bright red blossoms keep the hummingbirds coming.  This azalea has no fragrance, but the color is spectacular.





The next plant to bloom for my hummingbirds is known as Turk's Cap Hibiscus (Malvaviscus arboreus) or Turk's Cap Mallow.  The species is naturally red, but I also have a pink form that a friend brought me from Texas.  The soft pink petals look like roses.

Malvaviscus arboreus

Malvaviscus arboreus

Lobelia cardinalis

The last flower to bloom is Cardinal flower (Lobelia cardinalis). The intensely red blooms of this plant capture the attention of the Hummingbirds that haven't flown south for the winter.  Rivalry is intense and you can often see them chasing each other around this plant.

 The flowers bloom on a terminal spike that lengthens as it blooms.  The lowest flowers open first and by the time the topmost flower blooms, seeds are already forming from the first flowers.  Each flower makes a seed capsule that holds dozens and dozens of tiny brown seeds.  Cardinal flower can be a short lived perennial, so let some of the seeds fall to the ground to make new plants.  They do best in a slightly moist area, and the rosette of leaves, which can persist over the winter, does not like to be covered by fallen leaves or mulch.

Campsis radicans

And not blooming in MY garden, but a spectacular plant on the side of the road for at least the last four weeks is Trumpet vine (Campsis radicans).  It is a little too aggressive for most gardens, but it looks swell on a telephone pole or a big tree.







So if you have a mind to garden for Hummingbirds, some of these native plants might work for you.
 

For the Love of Gratitude

Every now and then I like to write a post that has nothing to do with food. We eat and food nourishes us, but we are also nourished emotionally with the love from those around us, the beauty that we see in the everyday world and things that inspire us. Gratitude for all the good things in my life nourishes my soul especially.

Agrigirl (whose blog I follow and adore) recently wrote a very thoughtful post about how laughter keeps us healthy. Her post reminded me of all the emotional, physiological and psychological things that keep us healthy. Emotional crying actually has health benefits and releases stress hormones and laughter releases endorphins and generally keeps us healthy and happy. Gratitude is something that may not illicit a physical response that has been studied but it's effect on my health is unquestionable.

I have been through a thing or two in my 32 years. I have watched marriages crumble first hand and I have seen true love grow from the tiniest seed. I have seen smart young people grow into amazing adults. I have buried one parent, all my grandparents and a whole separate theoretical career that never blossomed into anything except regret. I have had to work not only hard but smart for everything I have in this life. Yet when I look around all I see are things to be grateful for.

A very dear friend told me once a very long time ago that when you pray to God for the things that you want, always make sure you start off the prayer with some special thanks for all the good things you have. Adding the thanks in all my prayers may have been more for me than for God. Because now when I pray I get to mentally list out all the things I shouldn't take for granted and all the things with which I shouldn't become complacent. I try to start each day out with a simple prayer thanking God for all the good things in my life, and would He please make me strong enough to handle all the obstacles I will encounter in this day?

Recently I challenged myself to keep track of all the things I was thankful for in a day. It takes some time...my family, my home, my job, my friends, my health. Of course those are the biggies. But as I walked through my day I saw all these wonderful things around me, the subway might be late but it always shows up andnthat is no small thing. The guy who 'waters' the street always stops the hose to let me walk past so I don't get wet. My office is a few blocks away from the Union Square Farmer's Market-how awesome is that?! My clients are truly nice people. Our garbage is always picked up on time by our city. I have access to clean fresh foods, virtually anywhere I am in the city.

Having gratitude for the little things in life makes us stronger people, better able to handle it when life tosses us lemons. My heart feels truly grateful when I look outside and see a beautiful clear sunrise. I believe that my feeling grateful for all the life around me makes me happier in the long run. And all that extra happiness keeps me healthy with low blood pressure. And my guess is that it helps more good things happen to me too! I watched an interesting 20/20 several years ago all about luck. Luck, they proclaimed, had alot to do with one's world view. The producers of the show took a few people who identified themselves as 'lucky' and an equal number who identified themselves as 'unlucky'. They asked each person to walk down a half block of a city street while being filmed. The producers had taped a $20 bill to the sidewalk for each person's turn. We the audience watched as each 'lucky' person walked down the street and found the $20. They couldn't believe their luck!! And every single unlucky person walked right on by, not fully understanding why they had been asked to walk down a street for a documentary on luck. Ok, that isn't science. But it is interesting. Perhaps luck isn't luck at all but more a personal willingness to be open to finding the good in this life.

Finding 'luck' or 'happiness' is a greater task than it may seem. How do you go about 'getting happy'? While that concept might be too abstract for most people, it is possible to invest in gratitude. That is even an easy task. Simply list all the things that you appreciate or are grateful. Eventually gratefulness leads to happiness. I am grateful that my kids like me. I glad that my husband is an invested dad, and equal partner in our marriage and parenting. I am happy, even with all our political and social problems, that I live in the United States. This is a special country.

Things truly could always be worse, so look around. What inspires gratitude in your heart today?

'Losing The Harvest' or 'My $150 Half Green Moldy Tomato'

I was cherrily mix and straining my kefir one morning when I heard Thing 2 reapeating 'Oh No! Domo!! Oh No! Domo!!' over and over again. There is really nothing funnier than a baby saying the phrase 'Oh no!' because usually it is over something trivial and it is rather sweet to see them be concerned over something so small. I thought he was just playing. Perhaps he was having trouble getting his toy trains to stay hooked. But then I saw him sitting on top of the radiator, right next the to our lone tomato that I had recently supported with a quick fix bungee cord trellis. I stopped what I was doing after I heard him continue to repeat 'Oh No! Domo!' a few more times.



I had noticed a few days eariler that the tomato, the only child of our indoor heirloom Abe Lincoln plant was not fully attached to the plant. Though it was not broken off either. I constructed a trellis using some bungee cords to support the fruit lest the weight of it snap the branch. Then I secured the thin branches of the plant to the cords and hung the tiny tomato over the side to keep it safe and supported. It had been 2-3 weeks since we had first discovered the fruit. It had about tripled in size. But it was clear to me that it was not done and it may double in size again before it began to turn red on the vine. I walked over to Thing 2 but I already knew what I was going to see. My once and future tomato was lying on my floor, green and hard.



Thing 2 looked at me with a very sad face. I knew he hadn't picked it, per se. But I suppose the tomato had just been hanging on by a thread. He probably just tapped it and it fell on the floor. I was really disappointed, but how can you be upset with cheeks as chubby as his? I sighed, picked up the tomato and placed it in the bowl alongside our farmer's market and CSA tomatoes on our countertop. I thought, 'At least we'll get to eat this one even if it is small.'



I don't know alot about gardening, either indoor or outdoor. So I don't know the optimal time to pick a tomato. Should one allow it to ripen on the vine? And if so, how ripe should it be? Should one pick a tomato when it begins to turn from green? Either way, I was pretty sure that picking a tomato when it was very underripe was a bad idea. I knew the tomato would turn red if left on the countertop, but I wasn't sure if it would be fit to eat. Or if it was fit to eat, I wasn't sure if it would be delicious.



Since I began the great O'Brien tomato fiasco of 2011, we have had dozens of flowers and all of them have died and shriveled up and fallen off the vine. This was the only tomato that was born between the two plants. I believe that I have 3 or 4 more tomatoes on the way, but boy oh boy they have been slow growing. I don't have alot of faith that any delicious tomatoes will materialize. Overall I have grown a little tired of this grand experiment. It has been alot of work, daily watering, about $150 of investment and a fair amount of feeling foolish as I take an electric toothbush to the flowers to attempt to pollinate them. There has been little, well really no payoff. And now that my only tomato had been tragically growth restricted, I was feeling over the whole thing. I am going to hang in there and keep watering the plant in the hopes that those 3-4 tomatoes do grow. And I am going to try and pollinate the remaining flowers in a different way. And I am thinking of pruning both plants to encourage new shoots. Right now the only new flowers are coming from new shoots. And there is no more room for new shoots to grow. We'll see if this can continue into the off season.



After all my malaise I was even more disappointed to awake one morning and find this...







As my tomato began to turn blushingly red one half stubbornly remained green and proceeded to mold. I weighed two heavy questions, do I eat the red part? Or let this one go? I decided that since this could very well be my only tomato of the season, I had to try it. I couldn't throw the only tomato in the garbage and say I had never tried it!



I cut off the still good red part. Only about a teaspoon of tomato was still good. I cut it in two pieces and..gulp..took a bite. It was pretty good. The mold certainly hadn't affected the whole tomato. The taste was very summery and had the grassy taste of an heirloom variety. But it did have an awfully thick skin. I am guessing that is because it was young and underripe. Overall, not a winner.



Tomorrow I will still water the tomato plants. But, I am kind of counting down the days until winter.



To read the previous indoor gardening posts click here:



The Hanging Garden of Washington Heights



On Flowering Tomatoes and Daughters



And Just Like That We Have a Tomato!



This post is shared with Fight Back Fridays and Traditional Tuesdays

Introducing Blissmobox!

Hey all, so I am trying out this new program. It's called Blissmobox. It's a wonderful program which helps members discover organic and Eco-friendly products at up to 70% off through curated boxes delivered to your door monthly.



Here's how it works. You go to the site (see Blissmo site here), and sign up. There is a monthly $19 charge, plus $3 s&h OR you can pay $57 for a 3 month period and get free shipping. Once you have registered you simply choose the category of items you are interested in and they will be delivered to your door. Each month there are new category choices and each box will range in approximate worth of $30 to $60.

You'll experience full sized and sample products from top of the line organic and Eco-Friendly products! With new options available each month!

They ship on the 30 of each month, and the box is supposed to arrive around the 5th. SO I don't have my box of stuff yet. But trust me, I'll be back to let you know what I got and how I like the program.



*If you decide to join, please use me as a referral! My referring Email is SabrinaMBowen@gmail.com By doing so you'll get a discounted member rate!

Common Myths About Cloth Diapers - BUSTED!

When I mention to people that I cloth diaper my kids I hear a list of excuses and reasons why they could never imagine doing cloth...  Rarely do I hear a reason that makes much sense... So here we go...

1. There is NO WAY I'm dunking and rinsing a poop filled diaper in the toilet!
If you're going to be a parent, your going to have to come to terms with poop, pee and quite a few other body fluids, functions and grossities! There simply isn't any way around it. But I'll be honest, the idea of dunking anything in the toilet grosses me out as well. Good news here is, you don't ever need to do it!

Fun Fact: Disposable Diapers should be emptied in to the toilet before being thrown away! The packaging notes a warning that states diapers need to be emptied before disposal. It's illegal to throw human waste in a landfill. Do most parents even know this? No. And less actually do it, but it is in fact the way it SHOULD be!

It's true that cloth diapers need to be emptied and rinsed... However it's not nearly as bad as it seems to be. There have been huge strides in the cloth market which have made diaper care easy and virtually mess proof. Heavy soil can simply be shaken in to the toilet and "Diaper Sprayers" easily attach to your toilet so that rinsing takes less time and you don't ever have to touch the toilet! If you're still squeamish, some moms keep a pair of latex or rubber gloves on the back of the toilet. Slip them on and you are free to wash, rinse and clean with no worries.

There are also those parents who do not rinse them at all. Personally, I wouldn't do this, but if you're washing every 2-3 days like you should be, it's not really a big deal, I guess... If you're using a diaper service though, they won't expect you to rinse, just toss and go, they will take care of everything.

2. Diaper Pins are dangerous! They can come open and hurt my baby!
This is not completely a myth, diaper pins are pins and have been known to stab babies and mommies. Which is why most cloth users rarely, if ever, use them. IF you choose to use flat or prefold diapers you have the option of using "Snappis" or other fasteners that replace the need pins of any kind.

If you're using diaper wraps or diaper shells with liners you don't need to worry about closures at all. The outer shell or wraps have snaps or Velcro closures that will keep everything where it needs to be.

3. Cloth Diapers STINK!
Okay, here's the thing, diapers stink - PERIOD! I don't care if you're using cloth or not. But in my own experience, cloth don't smell nearly as bad. Disposable diapers are chalked full of chemicals that, in my opinion, tend to make them smell bad before they are dirty. Once they become wet or soiled they somehow tend to magnify the funk. And since disposable diapers are doomed to sit in your trash til the weekly pick up, they add up much more than cloth does. Once they are tossed out in the outside can the heat magnifies the odor and attract flies and other insects which bring with them their own odor...

Cloth diapers on the other hand are both chemical free and do not collect the way disposables do. Plus, since you should rinse them out, and they are kept in a diaper pail, there is rarely any offensive odor! If you choose to go more than 3 days without washing (not recommended) you could begin to notice an odor as your pail over fills, however, again, if you're washing in a timely manner, this isn't an issue.

To further reduce the smell you can purchase a pail liner. They are water proof and washable, so you just lift it out and throw it in the wash with the diapers. You can also put baking soda and/or Tea Tree Oil in the bottom of the pail as that helps reduce the smell as well.

4. Disposables keep babies drier, so they are better for baby.
This is partly true. Disposables do wick moisture away from the babies skin and do keep them feeling drier. But drier isn't always better. Sure, you don't want them sitting in moisture, but the truth is because disposables make baby feel dry longer they get changed less often. This means infants are sitting in their dirty diaper longer. Since disposables aren't as breathable as cloth feeling dry or not the skin is being exposed to moisture. Plus disposables are chalk full of fragrances & other chemicals that can cause both infection and irritation - even chemical burns for those babies with sensitive skin.

Fun Fact: Many diapers contain Sodium Polyacrulate. SP is used in diapers because it absorbs up to 100 times it's weight in liquid. However the FDA banned the use of Sodium Polyacrulate in menstrual products because of it's link to Toxic Shock Syndrome.

 In fact the number of diaper rashes has climbed exponentially since the introduction of disposable diapers. An article published in the Journal of Pediatrics in 1959, before the introduction of disposable diapers, stated that only 7.1% of babies studied (1505 babies, Tanino, 1959) had experienced diaper rash. A similar study in 1987, a little over 20 years from the introduction of disposables, showed that 63% of those studied (1050 babies, Gaunder & Plummer, 1987) experienced diaper rash. More recently, in 2005, as cloth makes it's comeback, showed that at least half of babies will experience diaper rash.

5. Disposable Diapers are cleaner, Cloth leaks!
Here's the thing... Any diaper which is exposed to a large amount of fluid (or other filling) quicker than it can absorb or in greater amounts than it can absorb it is going to leak. Depending on the type of diaper, cloth can actually have LESS leaks than disposables.

This is because cloth diapers will better fit to the baby than disposables do. Disposables are sized by weights, but each baby is going to have a different shape. Some are tall and thin, others short and round and others will fall in to different categories. While a size 3 disposable diaper is a size 3 disposable diaper and isn't going to be adjustable beyond what they feel is proper sizing they don't tend to fit every baby right. For babies like my daughter with a small waist and big thighs a diaper that properly fits her waist is to tight for her legs, but to keep it large enough to fit her thighs without pinching or chafing completely opens her waist to leaks...

Cloth diapers on the other hand are able to be fitted to your babies needs. Today most covers have gussets around the legs or if you use flat or pre-fold diapers you can purchase fitted covers to go over them. And when diapers fit better they leak less...

 6. Cloth Diapers Are Bulky
Okay, I'm sorry, but this one always makes me laugh...  Does it really matter if your babies butt looks a little bigger than the other babies butts? Have you ever seen a baby in a stroller and thought, "Hmm, someone needs to hit the gym. She should be in 6month clothes, not 9!"  Really?  Here's how I see it. If their clothes don't fit perfectly, but their pants a size larger and lean to hem the legs. Is a bulky baby butt really an issue to worry about?

Plus, when babies are learning to walk they fall on their butt A LOT! So an extra layer of padding isn't really a bad thing.

7. Cloth isn't sterile.
Okay, this is true. But it's worth noting that disposable diapers aren't sterile either. They come from dirty factories and sit on dirty store shelves until you take them home. They are not individually shrink wrapped nor are they sold in sealed bulk packaging, so you don't even know what kind of germs, fungus and bacteria they could have been exposed to before you put them on your baby.
Cloth, of course, isn't sterile either, but since YOU wash them in YOUR washer, and YOU dry them in YOUR drier or in your yard, YOU are in complete control of what your diapers may or may not exposed to.

8. Cloth Diapers Spread Illness and are Unsanitary.
This one really goes hand in hand with the Sterile one. However it's flawed in it's assumption that diapers, underwear or any clothing are in fact sanitary. But diapers spread illness no more than any other layer of clothing and in fact less than things like shoes and coats which we wear over and over again between washings.

It is true however that diapers, and any other clothing, should be extra clean in the case of a stomach flu or other infectious illness. But washing diapers in HOT water and making sure to dry them in the sun or in a HOT dryer will kill off any germs able to cause an outbreak. If you are terribly worried about killing germs you can add any number of things such as a table spoon of bleach or a few drops of Tea Tree Oil to the wash.

However, if your family is spreading the flu back and fourth the culprit is generally NOT diapers! It's more often than not commonly touched surfaces, hand towels which are not properly cleaned or not cleaned often enough, or people not covering their mouths when they sneeze or cough.

9. Cloth is EXPENSIVE, I simply can't afford it!
This is my favorite myth to bust! If you go out and spend $1000 on top of the line designer cloth diapers with your child's name embroidered on the butt, you will still save money in the end!

IF you purchase store brand or generic diapers you will pay AT LEAST $0.12 each diaper. Now, that seems low! I realize that! But lets do some math...  The average baby will go through a minimum of 6 diapers a day... So that becomes a MINIMUM of $.80 a day when the are newborns. All the way up to $.20 per diaper, 10 changings a day which works out to be about $1.20 a day for toddlers... And remember, that's with generic or store brands - which you have to change much more often, so to be safe, add at least another 50% to those numbers... All that means your paying a MINIMUM of $5.60 a week in the beginning and a MINIMUM of $8.40 a week later on... When my oldest was in diapers I used Parent's Choice. They were (and still are from what I see) the cheapest disposable on the market! I spent an average of $30 to $45 a month on diapers. Which by itself is $720 to $1080 on diapers in 24 months...  Of course if you decide to use brand name diapers - which most people prefer, you'll most likely double that. But to that price let's add wipes and diaper cream (since diaper rash is rather common with disposables) and you're easily going to spend much more on disposables than on cloth!

My daughter has been in cloth - and only cloth - since birth. She is now 8months old. So what's the total I've put in to diapers? $200! What's the total I've put in to wipes? $20 Plus my water and sewage bills have gone up about $5/mo (total) since her birth. So again, lets add this up... Over 24 months I will put in less than $350. And the diapers I use are on the "expensive" side. You could easily use pre-folds or flats with a water proof liner and spend less than $200 to stock everything. Or you can make your own. Or you can get them second hand from any number of websites...

So put it all together and here's what you get - Add up what you spend for cloth diapers, wipes and washing and you'll still save HUGE over disposables!

10. There is to much extra laundry.
Is washing laundry harder than tossing a diaper in the trash? Yep. But is it really harder to do an extra load of laundry every 3 days? Personally, I don't believe so! Think of it this way, does it take you more time to go to the store, buy diapers & wipes and take out the trash than it does to toss a load of diapers in the machine? I have to go all the way down stairs to use the machine and it doesn't take me any time at all... The hardest part is folding them, and there are those days when it just doesn't get done and they sit clean and dry in the basket next to the bed where I change my daughter... But it's the same place I used to leave the pack of disposables sit when I used them...

And when your car breaks down and you are running low on diapers you'll be thankful you can just wash rather than have to find a ride to the market to buy more!

Manufactured Parts and Hip Replacements

From Public Citizen today, 10 January, 2012

It’s never good news when a global, multibillion-dollar industry is trying to convince Washington to put its profit-making interests above public health.

The medical device industry is doing just that by lobbying the Food and Drug Administration to take shortcuts that will put millions of lives at risk.

Tell your members of Congress to oppose these dangerous shortcuts in the medical device approval process.

For example, consider the defective artificial hips manufactured by the DePuy division of multinational pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson. Two years ago, the company’s metal-on-metal hip implants were recalled because they carried the risk of releasing metal toxins into the hip tissue, which caused inflammation and serious internal damage.

Just a few years after receiving the hips, which were implanted in 40,000 patients in the United States (and tens of thousands more worldwide), many patients required costly, painful and risky operations to replace the devices. (1)

This is just one of many examples of medical devices that fell through the cracks of our nation’s system for regulating medical devices, injuring or killing thousands of patients.

Catastrophic failures like the all-metal hip implants show that the FDA approval process should be strengthened — not weakened.

Tell Congress: Put patient safety before corporate profits.

Shockingly, lobbyists representing the powerful medical device industry are trying to persuade lawmakers to make the already-insufficient approval process even weaker than it is.

Their aim is to ram their products through a weakened process and get their products to market as quickly as possible, even without undergoing adequate testing to assure that they are reasonably safe for patients. In other words, profits first.

We’re up against a powerful industry with tentacles of influence that reach deep into Capitol Hill. But with help from activists like you, we can fend of the attempts to weaken medical device regulation.

Please tell your members of Congress that the device approval process should be strengthened to protect the public, not abbreviated for industry profits.

October 2011
Metallic Hips Fail at a Fast Rate

August 2011

Hip Implant Complaints Surge, Even as the Dangers Are Studied

Originally posted 2009

Total Hip Arthroplasty
Every year approximately 200,000 hip replacement surgeries are performed in the United States and the success rate appears to be about 90 percent. The most common reason for hip replacement is osteoarthritis of the hip joint; however, surgery is not a “quick fix” for every person with chronic hip pain. Surgery, in this instance is used only after medication and other, less-aggressive treatments have failed.
More than 21 million people in the United States have degenerative osteoarthritis, and it is the leading cause of chronic disability. The number of arthritis related hospital admissions doubled between 1993 and 2006.
Most people undergo hip replacement as a result of osteoarthritis of the hip joint. But you might also consider hip replacement if you experience severe pain, loss of motion or deformity of your hip joint. Hip replacement is also used in people with hip injuries, rheumatoid arthritis, impaired nerves, loss of muscle strength surrounding the joint, and other medical conditions, such as a bone tumor or bone loss due to insufficient blood supply (avascular necrosis).
Symptoms that may lead to the decision to undergo hip replacement include severe pain and loss of motion or stiffness in the joint. Pain that keeps you awake at night, little or no relief from pain medications, difficulty walking up or down stairs, trouble standing from a seated position, or having to stop activities because of pain are additional considerations that can lead to interference in everyday living.
Today’s hip prosthetics can be expected to last up to 20 years. Usually hip replacement has been an option for adults older than age 60. Because the newer technology has brought about stronger and longer lasting artificial joints, younger and more active people are choosing this surgery.
Hip replacement may be the only choice after failure of other less invasive therapy fails to relive increasing pain. While hip replacement, or total hip arthroplasty, can relieve pain and improve range of motion, it is not without risk.
The current rate of obesity is of major concern to surgeons who provide this type of orthopedic surgery. Only recently has this data been made available through the Mayo Clinic.
Researchers have found that there is a 50 percent increase in complications when obesity and super obesity is present. In order to be considered a “best candidate” for hip replacement surgery, there must first be significant joint and cartilage damage shown on X-ray, severe and deep pain, no relief from medication for pain and inflammation, and interference in daily activities of living.
Usually if a patient has disabling heart disease, uncontrolled high blood pressure, infection or very poor overall health, this surgery will not be scheduled.
Currently either metal-metal or ceramic-metal hip prostheses are used in replacement surgery.
A third type of prosthetic hip joint was in use from 2003 until 2008. In July 2008, the “Zimmer Durom Acetabular Cup,” a metal-polyethylene prosthetic device, was removed from the market. At that time the manufacturer began a significant effort to provide new training to orthopedic and general surgeons and began to develop new educational support materials.
Considered by surgeons for at least 30 years to be highly durable, the Metal-on-Polyethylene prostheses had been the leading artificial hip component material and had been approved.
The Zimmer Durom hip replacement device is made with a cobalt chrome molybdenum alloy metal ball with a polyethylene liner. Polyethylene is the most understood and had been the most used of all liner materials, which offered surgeons a range of stability options while the operation was underway.
The ability of polyethylene to be adaptively customized during surgery is considered important; however it is the least expensive bearing.
Since all implants, including the Zimmer Durom hip implant device, are subject to wear and tear, they shed debris. After about 10 to 15 years of use the debris shows up with symptoms of inflammation and bone loss. The wear rate of Metal-on-Polyethylene implants, such as the Zimmer Durom hip replacement device, is about 0.1 millimeters a year.
To overcome the issue of “debris” manufacturers chose to treat the polyethylene liners with radiation to create new wear resistant polyethylene. This new substance is called “highly cross linked polyethylene.”
In July 2008, after reviewing data on more than 3,000 cases, Zimmer, the world's largest manufacturer of hip replacement parts, suspended sales of the Zimmer Durom Acetabular Component (Durom Cup).
The Indiana-based manufacturer states that it was unaware of any design or manufacturing defects and a Zimmer Durom hip recall was not issued. Zimmer has plans to place the Durom Cup back on the market on completion of its training and education projects.
Several Zimmer Durom hip implant lawsuits have been filed against Zimmer Holdings Inc., claiming it failed to provide proper warnings, instructions and training to surgeons.
In early 2008, one prominent orthopedic surgeon wrote openly about problems he experienced with Zimmer Durom hip replacements. His data showed that out of 165 implants, 14 were "revised or required revision" within the first two years after surgery. The surgeon added that he believed the Zimmer Durom hip replacement device was defective and there were seating problems with the surface where fixation in the natural joint was to occur.
Zimmer advised that people who have received the Durom Cup to contact their doctor if they experience pain more than three months after surgery.
This article is part of a consumer health education series written by Gayle Eversole, DHom, PhD, MH, NP, ND, of Creating Health Institute, in collaboration with Bernstein Liebhard, LLP.

The views expressed in this article are solely those of the author, Gayle Eversole.

More about the GMO Salmon Conundrum

If you sincerely believe that the FDA's "science-based" system is trustworthy then perhaps you might read this with aplomb.  Otherwise I's encourage you to give this some real thought.

We Have Not Seen the Last of the Genetically Modified Salmon

by Dinah Everett Snyder

Aug 21, 2011

38 Agricultural organizations have signed a letter to Congressional Leaders urging them to allow the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to complete its review of the world’s first genetically engineered fish for human consumption.

The move follows a recent amendment to the Agriculture Appropriations Bill (HR2112) that would stop the FDA from spending appropriated funds to finalize its review of the fish.

Read complete article - http://farmwars.info/?p=6726


Selections from Natural Health News

Natural Health News: GMO Salmon Coming to a Table Near You

Sep 19, 2010

I've been searching in the stores for fresh wild caught salmon for some time and have not found any. The closest I came was Organic farm raised, whatever that means. I hope with every fiber of my being this GMO salmon is ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Farmed Salmon Not Best Choice

Jan 15, 2011

You've probably heard that the FDA is considering whether to approve the first-ever genetically-engineered fish [1]. Developed by a Massachusetts-based company called ... GMO Salmon Coming to a Table Near You. Jun 26, 2010 ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

What You Are Not Hearing About GMO Franken-Fish

Sep 27, 2010

AquaBounty researchers compared the allergenicity—or potential to cause an allergic reaction—of a control group of salmon to both the genetically engineered diploids and triploids. They found (PDF [8], see page 102) that the diploid ...

http://naturalhealthnews.blogspot.com/

Natural Health News: FDA Set to OK Genetically Altered Fish as Food

Oct 27, 2010

A fast growing genetically engineered salmon is a good bet for approval by the Food and Drug Administration. It would be the first genetically modified animal sold as food. Dubbed “Frankenfish” by opponents, ...

Whaddya Do When Your Kid Doesn't Eat?

I keep looking over my shoulder. Because I have been here before.



When Thing 1 was born I got an epidural, much to my disappointment. He came out groggy and lethargic. He had trouble latching. I had trouble keeping him awake for feedings. He slept so much, but only when I had things to do. Whenever I laid down to rest with him he would wake up and howl.



I made every mistake in the book with Thing 1. I tried keeping him on a schedule, rather than nursing on demand. I introduced the bottle too soon. I gave supplemental bottles too often. Nursing and working and pumping all day were really hard. Like evil awful terrible hard. But to my amazement my kid who was always in the 40th percentile for weight and the 90th percentile for height ate solids pretty well. And when he transitioned to table foods he would eat broccoli and corn and even spinach in his 'baby soup', just not much at all, sometimes only 3-4 bites.



When I got pregnant with Thing 2, working and caring for my older son became a true challenge. I was wrecked and pulled in a million different directions. I started relying a little more heavily on the hormone free chicken nuggets and the nitrate free hot dogs and the organic frozen pizzas. Thing 1 was never a GREAT eater. But serving him these processed foods made me feel like I was getting something into him. He didn't like soft mashed foods, he didn't like meat if it was too grainy, certain vegetables he flat out refused. Every meal time was a difficulty. He would refuse to feed himself. He cried and thrashed so badly that we kept him strapped into a high chair until he was three. But I blamed myself. 'If I had offered him better foods he would be eating kale and roasted chicken and sweet potatoes. I served him junk and so he eats junk' I told myself. But being a pregnant mommy, working full time and then bringing home another baby two days after Thing 1's second birthday proved too much stress. I didn't have the energy to clean up our food act.



It wasn't until much later, when Thing 2 started table foods, thatI realized we needed to make a change. I didn't want to give my 9 month old processed foods. That is when I started the blog. I didn't (and still don't) plan on getting pregnant again and so I was sure that I could keep Thing 2 on a straight and narrow food path.



I am pleased to say that I delivered Thing 2 without the aid of an epidural. I really got the birth that I had wanted, the birth I was unprepared and uneducated to perform the first time around. Thing 2 came out super fat, 10 days before his due date and 9 pounds 3 ounces. He, naturally, came out hungry and latched on right away in the delivery room. Our time in the hospital together was almost like being at a hotel. The staff was supportive and friendly. And I just nursed around the clock with the confidence of a mom who'd been around the block before.



Thing 2 was a fantastic nurser. He maneuvered between the breast and the bottle effortlessly. Pumping at work proved to be no problem. And unlike when Thing 1 was born I had no supply problems. When he switched to solid foods he ate like a champ. And even the switch to solid foods was easy. He ate everything and in such great quantities! Mashed avocado, bananas, beans and rice, finely chopped poultry, mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes, all fruits. I never had a shortage of things to feed him. I could always take one or two of the elements of our dinner and put something nutritious together for him. And when he started to feed himself he ate most of the same things, but loved my cumin patties and he never minded when I slipped kale into his smoothies. I noticed early on that he wasn't crazy about vegetables and he flat out refused the baby soup. But his love of fruits and berries was good enough for me. What a good mother I was to my good eater! He had favorites and would stuff himself on those items, Thing 1 was never like that. Even with his favorite foods he would never just eat for the sake of eating.



Then it happened, one day right around the time that Thing 2 was 18 months old. He just stopped eating. Ironically it was around the same time that Thing 1 started eating more rationally. So I had the sense that there would be some difficult times even for my good eater. I gritted my teeth, but did things slightly differently.



1-I didn't force him to eat. I figured that if he was hungry he would eat. Unfortunately our babysitter often fills him up with snacks in the late afternoon, even though I have discussed my concerns with her. She agrees but bad habits die hard. And anyone who works knows that a problem with snacks is no reason to fire or reprimand a long time babysitter who truly loves your kids and whom your kids truly love. Besides, he doesn't eat lunch for her and she has a hard time just letting him go hungry.



2-No time outs for food related offenses. It was obvious (to at least me) that Thing 1's issues were behavior related, not food related. He would get time outs for throwing food or purposefully spilling his glass of milk, for example. He would act out with his food. Thing 2 never did any of those things. He just doesn't eat. Even in my most stressful moments I didn't feel like it was right to punish him for not eating.



3-I didn't force him to stay in the high chair. At a certain point he refused to stay strapped into his chair. And so we just got rid of it. The month afterwards was hard. He ran all over the house and still wouldn't eat. I spent more time out of my chair than in it. But that's getting better now.



4-No special dinners. That one goes without saying. I believe that everyone in the family should have the same dinner, but there should be elements in each meal that appeal to each of the different diners. I try to make sure that there are nutritious things on each person's plate that each one will like and eat, even if it isn't everything that is served.



But even with some of these common sense measures, the kid just doesn't eat. And the list of things he will eat is awfully short. Today he will eat hot dogs (the ones I get are from a biodynamic organic local farm), turkey sausage, all whole fruits except blueberries and honeydew melon for some reason, and wheat in general. He will sometimes tolerate Greek yogurt, hummus, nitrate free deli meat and pasta sauces, but those are hot and cold. Oh! And milk. He would drink milk instead of eating all day if he could. This prompted me to think that maybe he was drinking too much milk. So I moved away from sippy cups to straw cups, now he won't always finish his milk. He doesn't always accept the straw cups. And I started reducing the number of ounces he gets in a day. He drinks between 12-14 ounces of milk in a day, so I highly doubt that he is drowning his appetite.And now it is getting worse. His eating habits now seem preferential and purposeful. It doesn't seem to matter if he is hungry, he simply will not eat what he doesn't care for. Last week he ate breakfast, no lunch and no snack and I caved and made his favorite turkey sausage for dinner. He was ravenous. Had I made something else he would have probably gone to bed hungry.



Thing 2 is not unhealthy. His weight is good, so I am not worried about that. Though he has thinned out alot in the last few months as a result of a growth spurt and eating less. But he eats zero vegetables that haven't been pureed and hidden in something and he seems so picky that I am nervous about building good eating habits. I thought I had done everything right. I didn't get lazy and serve him lousy food. But now my weekly dinner rotation is a painful 4 or 5 dishes that I know he'll eat, so I feel stuck in the same rut I was with Thing 1. I don't think it is fair to serve him summer squash and swiss chard pizza with feta cheese when I know he will just starve for the night.



Fortunately though, he always eats breakfast. He will eat my 'green eggs' even if I load them with kale and onions. He always finishes his overnight pancakes. Oatmeal is a fav too. French toast is also a big hit. Usually even if he hasn't eaten in 18 hours I know I can get some protein and fat into him during breakfast.



So my conclusions? Maybe I wasn't to blame for Thing 1's poor eating habits. I did my best by him and got through a particularly stressful time in our lives. I kept him fed and served him mostly good pastured meats. So even though he had a love affair with turkey Bologna, maybe it is time that I stop blaming myself. And again with Thing 1, he eats veggies really well. Today we have moved forward from his standard broccoli and corn. He eats green beans, celery, cucumbers and carrots. He still likes the 'baby soup', and eats whatever I throw into that. Now though I make the broth with pastured chicken feet and he adores it. Maybe I shouldn't beat myself up over his food transgressions, but perhaps I also cannot take credit for his good eating habits. I am simply the cook. I make the food and he chooses what to eat. Perhaps no parent should pat themselves on the back for having 'good eaters', because it isn't really up to you at all. Besides is such a distinction fair to a parent like me who bore such lousy eaters, even though I cook like mad and model such good behavior for my children?



Thing 2 is so young, it is frustrating to see him struggle with eating. It really upsets me to see him refuse foods that I know he used to love. I worry that this is truly who he is. I worry that he will not follow the same pattern as his brother and just work his way out of this. I worry I will be fighting over vegetable consumption for the next 16 years. I get so irritable that he prefers one plate or cup over another. I get so irritable that his choices seem so random. But perhaps it really has nothing to do with me. Dear Lord, please help me to breathe today.



This post is shared with Traditional Tuesdays and Real Food Wednesdays and Fight Back Fridays

Kiddie Dough

I have three small children and I've become almost hyper aware of what I'm buying them when I purchase toys. I have started checking companies to make sure they are within the us, stopped buying dollar store stuffed, plastic or metal toys and make a point to check every ingredient in just about everything... Way to many toys have slipped through our loosely written regulations with toxic ingredients which poison our children and our environment. And way to many companies use terrifying employment, production and testing practices for me to ever support...

Because of this when my boys told me they wanted a package of Playdough I felt it was up to me to make sure this product was truly as safe as most parents feel it is. Sure, the box says non-toxic, but what does that really mean? I mean, this is something my kids are going to be putting their hands in, rubbing on my table and dropping on the floor where their baby sister could possibly eat it...

So what's in the stuff anyways? Well, according to Play-Doh's current manufacturer, Hasbro, the compound contains water, salt, and wheat flour, while its 2004 United States patent indicates it is composed of water, a starch-based binder, a retrogradation inhibitor, salt, lubricant, surfactant, preservative, hardener, humectant, fragrance, and color. A petroleum additive gives the compound a smooth feel, and borax prevents mold from developing.

I'll be completely honest, some of that frightens me! Sure, it's considered "Non-Toxic" but safe? No, not safe by MY standards! And when it's MY kids, all that matters are MY standards! So I did some research, and some testing... And found what I consider to be the best "Kiddie Dough Recipe."

Ingredients:

    1 cup white flour
    1 cup water
    1/2 cup salt
    2 Tablespoons cream of Tartar
    1 Tablespoon vegetable oil
    3-4 Drops Food Coloring

Instructions: Combine all ingredients in a saucepan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly. When the playdough begins to form a ball, it’s cooked. Cool for one minute. Then knead in food coloring.

That’s it! You’re done!

I store mine in small "Ziplock" 1 cup containers. You can also use baggies as long as they are air tight. When it starts to get a little dry, add a drop or two more vegetable oil and it will soften up for you...

Dealing with Deer

This little fella is a cutie, no doubt about it.  But as I watched him and took pictures, he wandered around the woods, stopping to munch a tender leaf here and there.  And unfortunately, his favorite leaves were on the native plants!  Well, to be fair, the area was wooded with few invasives so it was 95% native anyway.

I live in a neighborhood that has 2 acre lots and is surrounded by lots that are even bigger.  There are a fair number of natural areas – certainly over 50% of the land is not landscaped.  Add that to the fact that there are fewer predators than ever and you can understand that we have a large deer population with many new babies each year. Oh and some of my neighbors feed them corn.

This blog entry is about what I do personally to deal with the potential for deer browsing in my yard.  Because that’s what they do, by the way, they don’t “eat”, they “browse”.  Picture them wandering around the neighborhood, grabbing a bite or two as they go along.  If you see them with their nose to the ground, they are likely not eating grass, but eating acorns or something else that is in the grass.

Know what they like: I know what they like by what other affected people say (for example, experienced gardeners consider hostas to be “deer candy”), and I also know because of personal observation in the 8 years that I’ve been here.  Hydrangeas (native and not) are a favorite, Alumroot (Heuchera americana), Azaleas, Ginger (both Asarum and Hexastylis), Bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis), Trillium, and early spring (tender) leaves.  Which means they eat almost anything if it is tender enough!

Deer damage on a perennial

And learn what they don’t like – they don’t eat ferns much, plants with stiff foliage like Agarista and Leucothoe (sometimes the tender new growth), aromatic foliage like Wax myrtle (Myrica cerifera) and Florida anise (Illicium floridanum), and I have not seen them eat the prickly foliage of junipers and creeping Phlox (Phlox subulata) – BUT they will eat anything if they are hungry enough, plus they might try something “once”. 

Siting – don’t put the plants they like out in the open.  I have one hosta, for example, and it is behind the ONE piece of wooden fence that I have.  Other potentially tasty plants live up close to the house where the deer are LESS likely to go (but sometimes they stop by for a nibble!).

Fencing – you might consider this a type of “siting”.  Fencing is not just to prevent the deer from browsing on the foliage, it also can protect young tree trunks from being rubbed in the fall.  So you may want to fence a young tree that they might eat ... or to protect the bark (rubbing can be fatal to a young tree because it damages the cambium tissue under the bark, interrupting the flow of nutrients).  There are also plastic tubes that you can place around the trunk for this reason.

Damage from rubbing (now healing)

Wire cage

Smelly sprays – my family hates these sprays but they work.  The smell fades after a few hours from a human’s point of view.  I have used brands like Deer Off! and Liquid Fence.  They seem to work equally well so it is just a matter of which one is more available or cost effective. I apply it at least four times a year on the plants that I know are potential targets - during the spring on tender growth, in early summer on plants like ginger, alumroot and trillium, in early fall to protect the flower buds of azaleas, and again during the winter on azalea flower buds.  Excessive amounts of rain may require re-application as well - it's kind of a trial and error situation, but one rain alone won't wash it off in my experience.

There are do it yourself recipes on the internet, but be prepared to screen the liquid to eliminate chunks or the sprayer will clog.  Actually, even the ready-made products can get lumpy over time.  But they do work and apparently if you do it consistently, the deer will learn to circulate elsewhere ... like to your neighbor's house!

If I can make it until fall, then copious amounts of acorns fall from the many mature oaks that the area has, and the deer will happily switch to eating them instead.