Reusable sanitary pads= education opportunities

For the month of May, we are inviting you to make the world sweeter with us, once again!

We thought that this month we would focus on making the world a little sweeter by doing something about the needs of the developing world.

In about 2 weeks, I (Marissa) will be going to Uganda to do some humanitarian work with an organization called HELP International. While there, I am planning on teaching people about health, and specifically, teaching women about menstruation and how to make their own reusable sanitary pads.

Living in a developed country, I don't think that we typically think about the idea of not having feminine hygiene supplies at our disposal. It is something that I know I have always taken for granted in the U.S. It wasn't until I learned about an organization called Grow. Learn. Give., that it struck me that not all women in the world have access to feminine hygiene supplies. Whether there are no nearby stores that would have the supplies, or because there just isn't the money to buy them, many women and girls in under-developed countries never have the opportunity to use proper feminine hygiene supplies. Sadly, what is used instead is things like old rags, and in some cases, even bark or mud.

Now, this may seem like a trivial issue. What's the big deal? Well, it is a much bigger deal than simply being clean. Often times, girls will stay home from school each month during their period, to avoid the embarrassment and discomfort associated with having a period without the proper supplies to care for it. The result can be very heart-breaking - dropping out of school, losing a job, etc.

The following is a video that talks about this problem. (We are not affiliated with this group in any way, but the first part of the video explains the problem very well.)



Ok, Rochelle speaking here: Every child- girls included- should have the opportunity to get an education. Society in general should have a deep interest in seeing girls obtain an education, because when girls and women are left ignorant, we see families as a whole that have poorer health and education. So, how can we address this problem?

One thing you can do to help is sew reusable cloth pads and donate them. There are non-profit organizations that provide education and sanitary supplies to girls so they can attend school and work.

There are so many free patterns for pads available on the internet, with different designs and pros/cons (Check out Jan Andrea's pattern, and Make Your Own Pads). Our favorite is the type with the base pad with removable top liner. There are many reasons for this. First, when laundering the pads, this type is less bulky so it washes and dries quickly. This is especially important when handwashing and hanging to dry. The second reason is that having a removable liner means that you don't have to deal with changing bulky pads every time- just the top piece. So, for most women, just one pad and three liners (or less) are necessary each day of their period. Third, unlike envelope-design pads with removable liners that go underneath the top layer, you can change the liner and be totally dry- no soiled layer still on top after changing the liner. Fourth- versatility! This design means you can mix and match based on you needs for the day- heavy or light protection.

So where can you find this type of pattern? You may want to start with this very simple pattern on the Grow. Learn.Give. website, or this one from Empower Women in Africa (scroll down).

Marissa and I sat down a couple days ago and made several pads from fabric we already had- old towels, scrap batting, a couple of t-shirts, and an old diaper changing pad for the waterproof layer. Marissa even sewed one by hand just to make sure it could be done, since she is not sure what kinds of resources will be available to the women she'll be teaching in Uganda.

Now, I admit that I heard about reusable pads a couple years ago and I couldn't get past the first "Ewwww", but after taking the time to learn about all the benefits and possibilities of cloth pads, I have to say that I am definitely going to give them a try. Here is a good article to read about how to actually go about making the switch, if you are interested. I am not going to focus this post on converting anyone to cloth pads, but I find it worth mentioning that reusable cloth pads save a lot of money compared to disposable products that you have to continually purchase. Also, reusable pads don't contribute to waste in landfills, and are a nice alternative when dealing with allergies, sensitivities, and yeast infections. Even if you love using disposables, these would be a great addition to your 72 hour kit (eek- ever thought what would happen if you ran out of pads during an emergency and there were none available anywhere?)

Ok- back to business. Would you like to get involved?! Make reusable cloth pads and send them to the Days for Girls International Feminine Hygiene Program (there are actually many programs like this, like Empower Women in Africa, but we really like this particular program as a whole, so for the sake of simplicity we are providing contact info for only one program. Feel free to research other programs if you wish.):

Days for Girls HQ
810 H Street Road
Lynden, WA 98264

Days for Girls will distribute the pad kits in Cambodia, India, Haiti, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. They have a goal to meet over 1000 requests for these reusable pads by the end of June. If you can take an hour or two and sew up a few pads (patterns are also provided on their site), you will be directly affecting the life of at least one girl- and the influence of one girl can be far reaching. Ahhh! Let's make the world sweeter by helping young girls stay in school!

How to host a bubbles activity

My friend Sherilee and I recently started a neighborhood playgroup that meets once a week.  We try to have a variety of activities planned, and as it gets warmer we are trying to do more outdoor activities.  A week or two ago we wanted to do something to take advantage of the warm-ish and sunny-ish weather- something fun outdoors that wouldn't get anyone too cold (it was an even 60 degrees).  I remembered some fun bubbles activities that I did growing up, plus a few more I'd heard about but never tried, so I suggested an all- bubbles activity.  We planned a few stations for the kids to rotate around in a grassy area next to my home.  Some things turned out great, others not- so great.  Here is a run down of what we did (and in some cases, what I would do differently the next time around).

Station 1: BIG Bubbles

Materials:
Bubble solution, big wands, large, shallow Tupperware container(s) (i.e. the under the bed type)
Bubble solution:
Make your own bubble solution by combining 10 parts tap water (soft water works the best but if your water is too hard and you don't mind the expense, try distilled water), 1 part Dawn dish detergent, and 1/4 part glycerin (which can be expensive, so you can try substituting white Karo syrup).
Tips:
Mix up your bubble solution the night before if possible (the longer it sits, the better it works).  Use Dawn detergent, it seems to work the best.  Joy detergent comes in second.

Big wands:
Round up any bubble wands you may already have, and make a few extra in creative shapes using old wire hangers. just bend them to the shape you want, and bend the hanger part upwards to be the handle.  These can be dipped in the Tupperware tub and waved to make bigger bubbles- lots of fun.

Bonus: If you want, fill a kiddie pool with a couple inches of bubble solution and use a hula hoop to pull a giant bubble up over your kid standing in the pool.

Station 2: Creative Bubble Blowing

Materials:
Old washrags that can be cut up, rubber bands, plastic water bottles to cut up, small, wide containers for bubble solution (such as an empty sour cream container), pipe cleaners, fly swatter, various kitchen utensils or toys with holes, regular bubble solution, cheap, clean stretchy gloves.
Foam snakes:
Cut the water bottle all the way across about halfway down, and rubber band a square of washrag just larger than the opening to the piece that has the drinking opening at the other end (if you didn't have old water bottles you could use toilet paper tubes as well). Get the material damp with water, then dip in the bubble solution (or just dish soap) and blow through the other end and you will get cool bubble foam snakes.  Check out this link to Family Fun Magazine for more details if that doesn't make sense.

Photo credit to http://familyfun.go.com/assets/cms/crafts/steps/foamerator-summer-craft-step2-photo-150-FF0809EFW19.jpg

Creative bubble wands: twist pipe cleaners into fancy shapes for customized bubble wands, and use mason jar lids, slotted spoons, fly swatters, or anything you can come up with for creative bubble play.  Put on the stretchy fabric gloves (just the kind that are usually a couple dollars- you probably already have a pair) and try bouncing the bubbles! Check out this link for more info.

Station 3: Bubble Art

Materials:
White paper, regular bubble solution, small containers for bubble solution, bubble wands for each container, food coloring or tempera paint (which would probably work the best), markers

Photo credit to http://bubbleblowers.com/Party/art.gif

Bubble "Modern" Art:
Add several drops of food coloring to each cup of bubble solution.  Write each child's name on a piece of paper, then have the kids catch the bubbles you blow on the paper.  This works best when it is not too breezy.  Make sure to do several different colors, then let the papers dry in the sun with a rock holding the paper down while the kids move on to the next station.

Station 4: Snacks and Clean-Up

Have one or two buckets filled with clean warm water for kids to rinse their hands (or faces, or heads as the case may be... speaking from experience here) and some paper towels.

Any circle foods would be great for a snack- whether it is grapes or olives, or tapioca pudding prepared ahead of time, or other foods cut in circle shapes.  It would be a good idea to have some water in a pitcher and some little paper cups.
Keep a garbage bag handy to collect all the litter.

Other Set-Up:

You will want to have chairs set up for the adults to watch from, and a picnic blanket for snack time.  A few card tables might come in handy for setting up some of the stations, but you can just put everything down on the grass as well.  Other things that would be useful are balls to play with for really young kids, a bubble machine for the kids to just go crazy and try to pop all the bubbles before they get away, and sunscreen.

Have fun with bubbles this summer!

Tapioca pudding (aka comfort food)

There is something supremely comforting to me about tapioca pudding.  Maybe it is the memories that come with it of my grandmother cooking a large pot of the stuff and us kids running around hardly able to contain ourselves until it was finished.  Or maybe my love of vanilla, and the fact that it is delicious hot or cold makes it irresistible.  In any case, I like it- a lot!  I have been making it quite a bit over the last few weeks.  I'll be honest and tell you that I have been making minute tapioca, not the whole pearl stuff.  I'm not really one for planning way ahead when I want to make a treat like this, so soaking it over night and all the egg separating stuff is not really up my ally.  But minute tapioca- so easy!  And still so delicious.  After making it the sugar and calorie dense way from the recipe on the box, I decided to change things up a bit to fit my low- sugar lifestyle and make it a bit healthier.

The original recipe with my substitutions in italics:

Minute Tapioca Pudding

1/3 c. sugar Substitute 2 Tbsp + 2 tsp agave instead, OR 2 Tbsp agave + 1/4 tsp liquid stevia
3 Tbsp Minute Tapioca
2 3/4 c. whole milk Substitute 1% milk
1 egg, well beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix egg, milk, sugar or agave, and tapioca in medium saucepan; let stand 5 min. Cook on medium heat, stirring constantly, until mixture comes to a full boil. (Pudding thickens as it cools.) Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla extract. Cover saucepan with lid or plastic wrap and cool for 20 min. Serve warm or chilled. Makes 6 half-cup servings.

My Chocolate Variation:

3 Tbsp agave + 1/4 tsp liquid stevia
3 Tbsp Minute Tapioca
3 c. 1% milk
1 egg, well beaten
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp almond extract
2 Tbsp each of unsweetened chocolate and unsweetened carob

Mix egg, milk, agave and tapioca in medium saucepan; let stand 5 min. Add chocolate and carob. Bring to a full boil on medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla and almond extracts. Cover saucepan with lid or plastic wrap and cool for 20 min. (Pudding thickens as it cools.) Serve warm or chilled. Stir before serving. Makes 6 half-cup servings.

Notes:

• If you use Stevia, use it as part of a sugar blend- not as the only sweetener in the tapioca!  It will taste awful if you use more than 1/4 tsp or so- take my word for it! 
• The original recipe yields six 1/2-cup portion sizes, each with ~145 calories.  Making it my way, with 1% milk and agave/ stevia, there are just over 100 calories.  But the chocolate/ carob version brings it up to 150 calories.  I am not really into counting calories, but I was just interested to see how a few changes would affect the overall nutrient density- so there you have it.
• You can add raisins, dried cranberries, nuts, etc. to the original recipe but in my humble opinion less is more.

 Enjoy!