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Suz Lipman's Blog (30)

Join the Great Backyard Bird Count

I am very excited about the Audubon Society and Cornell Lab of Ornithology's upcoming Great Backyard Bird Count. It takes place Friday-Monday, February 15-18, all over North America.…

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Added by Suz Lipman on February 15, 2013 at 8:30am — No Comments

Have Some Shadowy Fun on Groundhog Day

Just in! Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow. He predicted an early spring on Groundhog Day.

Groundhog Day, February 2, has basically everything going for it that I love in a holiday -- It marks a…

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Added by Suz Lipman on February 2, 2013 at 9:30am — No Comments

CLIF Kid Backyard Game of the Year Playoffs Sat. 7/14 in San Francisco

For the second year in a row, the CLIF Kid Backyard Game of the Year Contest inspired kids from 6-12 to create the ultimate slow games, ones that can be played outdoors with simple or minimal equipment, like hula hoops, balls, or household items.

Last year's winner, 9-year-old Sara from Plaistow, N.H. (shown here with Julie Foudy, three-time Olympic…

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Added by Suz Lipman on July 10, 2012 at 2:30pm — No Comments

Join a Jane Jacobs Walk in Your Neighborhood

If you have enjoyed a walk around your neighborhood, and certainly if you have participated in civic discussions about the way your neighborhood should grow and be planned, then there is a good chance that you, or your process, were influenced by Jane Jacobs.…

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Added by Suz Lipman on May 4, 2012 at 1:47pm — No Comments

Lyrid Meteor Shower May be Best in Years

The Lyrid meteor shower, expected to peak late Saturday night and into Sunday morning over North America, promises one of its best shows in years, astronomers say. Especially beneficial is Saturday's near-moonless night. The Lyrids are set to peak after midnight, early April…

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Added by Suz Lipman on April 21, 2012 at 9:30am — No Comments

Enter the "First Peas to the Table" Pea Growing Contest

Each Spring, in the colonial U.S., founding father and extraordinary gardener Thomas Jefferson held a friendly contest with his neighbors to…

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Added by Suz Lipman on March 20, 2012 at 11:00am — No Comments

Forget Tiger Mom and French Mom: Meet Hunter-Gatherer Mom

Last year, Amy Chua managed to push a whole set of collective parenting buttons when she asserted in the Wall Street Journal, and later in her book…

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Added by Suz Lipman on February 8, 2012 at 4:17pm — No Comments

First Meteor Shower of 2012: The Quadrantids

The year's first meteor shower may be a great one! The Quadrantids are set to peak on January 4th, 2:30 am ET. Astronomers are calling for clear skies and a dramatic show in much of the Northern Hemisphere, especially in the pre-dawn hours.

Can't watch it at the exact time? Don't worry -- astronomers tell us that…

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Added by Suz Lipman on January 3, 2012 at 4:30pm — No Comments

New Year's Resolution: Spend More Time in Nature

Happy New Year!

I recently had the opportunity to take two very special hikes on Mount Tamalpais, the mountain near my home that is laced with trails for seemingly every mood and workout. One I took when one of my closest and oldest friends came to visit, and the other I took on…

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Added by Suz Lipman on December 29, 2011 at 4:00pm — No Comments

Be a Citizen Scientist: Join the Great Sunflower Project Sat. July 16

Do you have 15 minutes to spare? If so, you can be a citizen scientist. Over the past few years, citizen scientists -- ordinary people who help scientists and organizations track the count and behaviors of such creatures as birds, hummingbirds, butterflies, bees and others -- have been active and helpful information gatherers. After all, scientists can't…

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Added by Suz Lipman on July 15, 2011 at 1:30pm — No Comments

Slow Down for Summer: Join me for a Webinar June 30th and Find out How

Yearn to slow down and fully enjoy summer? I will share lots of great ideas Thursday, June 30, 11 am Pacific Time, 2 pm Eastern Time in the U.S., in a Slow Down for Summer webinar hosted by…

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Added by Suz Lipman on June 28, 2011 at 1:30pm — 3 Comments

In GPS Era, Map Reading Skills a Lost Art

Are GPS devices making us overly dependent on technology at the expense of learning about and orienting within our surroundings? Studies say they are. They also may be partially responsible for Nature Disconnect around the developing world.

There are positive aspects to GPS…

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Added by Suz Lipman on March 9, 2011 at 5:29pm — No Comments

Punxsutawney Phil Predicts Early Spring

Groundhog Day, February 2, has basically everything going for it that I love in a holiday -- It marks a point in a season; it's full of folklore and wisdom, superstition, ceremony, civic charm, mystery, agrarian history, and weather -- and it was featured in perhaps my all-time favorite movie of the same name, which itself is a study in acceptance and inner calm while…

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Added by Suz Lipman on February 2, 2011 at 1:35pm — No Comments

Look up! It's the Geminid Meteor Shower and a Lunar Eclipse

Now playing overhead: The dramatic Geminid Meteor Shower, which many astronomers agree is the best meteor shower of the year. Following that, stargazers could keep their necks craned for 2010's only complete lunar eclipse, which coincides with Winter Solstice December 21.

The Geminid Meteor Shower is forecast to peak late Mon./early Tues. Dec. 13-14, between around midnight and…

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Added by Suz Lipman on December 13, 2010 at 6:00pm — No Comments

Greeting Summer Solstice at Muir Beach

Happy Summer! My family likes to celebrate the longest day of the year and the Summer Solstice at Muir Beach, CA, at an annual event hosted by the Muir Woods National Monument park rangers. This year's celebration was especially lovely, well-attended, and relatively warm and fog-free.…

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Added by Suz Lipman on June 24, 2010 at 11:30am — No Comments

Bike to Work and School Day

May is an especially great month to be a biker. Many U.S. and Canadian cities have declared Friday, May 21 to be Bike to Work and School Day. The League of American Bicyclists has declared the entire month of May Bike to Work Month. Their site lists… Continue

Added by Suz Lipman on May 20, 2010 at 3:00pm — No Comments

Dance Around a Maypole for May Day

Happy May Day, everyone. I find this mid-spring holiday full of inspiring and fairly simple traditions. Since I last wrote about May Day wreaths, I thought I'd look into the tradition of the maypole.

The first maypoles were humble pine trees, which were carried in processions to Ancient Roman temples to honor the goddess Flora and celebrate spring. In Pagan Medieval… Continue

Added by Suz Lipman on April 30, 2010 at 12:00pm — No Comments

Celebrate May Day with Floral Wreaths, Crowns and Baskets

Inspired by Kari's beautiful video about making dandelion crowns, I decided to look into the practice of making floral crowns, wreaths and May baskets to celebrate May Day, which will be on Saturday and marks the mid-point between the Spring Equinox and the Summer Solstice.

It turns out that… Continue

Added by Suz Lipman on April 28, 2010 at 4:00pm — No Comments

Earth Day and Every Day: Ways to Make Gardening Extra Fun for Kids

With Earth Day upon us, not to mention the warmer and longer spring days, many of us have been heading into our gardens. Around much of the Northern Hemisphere, this is the peak time to sow some seeds into the ground, as well as plant a lifelong gardening habit into the children in our lives.…

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Added by Suz Lipman on April 22, 2010 at 3:30pm — 4 Comments

Dye Eggs Like the Ancients with Plant Dyes

Wondering what to do with the eggs you might find in nature or during an organized egg hunt? Lots of ideas and instructions for dying, decorating and enjoying can be found on my blog, Slow Family Online.

Some of these were contributed by Molly de Vries of The Fabric Society who dyed eggs with natural plant dyes such as onion skin, turmeric,… Continue

Added by Suz Lipman on April 2, 2010 at 1:07pm — 5 Comments