November Mtg Notes: Future of cityMamas, Books & Lunch

Thanks to all who attended our meeting today.  Lunch was hosted by DEEP, our parent organization (thank you!). We have an awesome group of Moms working at the City!  We know there are many more of you who could not attend today but who gave us great feedback and who will be a large and active part of cityMamas moving forward.

 

Thank you also to all of our Moms who filled out the survey!  The results were posted earlier this week - they can be found here.  Today, we shared a brief overview of what we heard, and discussed how we can together respond to your voices! 

Here's the short version of what we heard:

• We mostly represent moms with young children (babies to early education), but there are many others with children from middle school and beyond.
• We need to work more on outreach (Thank you to those who volunteered to help with this!  I will be contacting you soon...)
• Although the timing and location of our meetings often do not work for everyone, the group collectively does not want to just be a "social network" via the web.  That said, many of you read our blog or Facebook posts, and want us to continue to expand our blog functions.
• Our most popular meetings and topics of highest interest are: parental coaching, life coaching, organizing, home/work balance, finances, and health and food.
• Many of you responded that you can help us!  If you haven't, but you are interested in outreach, blog posting, meeting organizing, or you-name-it, please contact us!  We'd love to hear from you.

 
Based on what we heard from you, for 2012, cityMamas would like to make the following changes:

• We will start rotating format of meetings: once a quarter host a professional (e.g. Practical Parenting, life coach, organizing solutions, etc.); once a quarter host a social event; once a quarter have a mom-lead topic
• According to the survey, happy hour was popular for a social event, so we’ll host the first one DECEMBER 15 at Trees, 4:30 to 6:30.  Come when you can, come for 15 minutes, stay for all two hours, come meet fellow CityMamas!
• We’ll post more to the blog: book reviews, “what’s for lunch?”, mom testimonials, guest posts from our quarterly professionals, food topics – in addition to the weekly recipes.  A number of moms notified us that they want to help us with posts, so we will tap into you!  Please let us know if you want to write/post on a topic.  We will either allow you permissions to post, or you can send us your post/book review, etc.
• ‘New Mom Buddies’ – a number of you responded that you want to help us with this.  We will get organized and hopefully start making this available starting in 2012.  This is not a full-time commitment!  Just a chance to give a new mom your support or listening ears.  Another mom offered to be support to moms who are in the throes of teenage years.  Let us know if you’d like to be a buddy!
• If your location/schedule does not allow you to meet with the larger group, but you want to host a cityMamas gathering in your office (PDC, 1900 bldg, etc.), let us know!  We'll post it!  cityMamas is for you - if you have any ideas for how you want to be involved, contact us! 

 

 We had a great discussion during our meeting today.  Here's some of what we heard:

• HR should have CityMamas info/flier for new moms as part of FMLA packet (Lora to check in with “outreach team” and new moms to weigh in on what would have helped them as new moms returning to work)
• Can moms post that they are attending an event/activity outside the group (e.g. zoolights, children’s museum) to the blog?  (YES – email one of the co-chairs and they can post to blog)
• Are there guidelines for pump rooms?  CityMamas should do draft something up (In the past, CM advocated for pump rooms in the Portland Building and gave some desired features – we could revive this list and contact Debbie?  DEEP?)
• How much advocacy can CityMamas do? (co-chairs to check in with Debbie/DEEP)
• Other ideas for meeting topics: 
• Safety/Emergency preparedness (future mom-lead/city-lead topic?  Darcy will post her family’s experience/tips/what’s in her emergency kit)
• “Mom tips” – e.g. technology or otherwise (future mom-lead topic?)
• PTA/School involvement (future mom-lead topic or blog?)
• "Family-friendly" city - how can we advocate for change via the Portland Plan or otherwise? (future mom-lead topic or blog?)

Moms - did I miss something?  Comment below...
Courtney also gave us a quick reminder about cityMamas' Fourth Annual Adopt-A-Family.  This is a great way to help families in need and to teach our children about giving to others.  If you are interested in giving this year, please look at the spread sheet and let Courtney know what you'd like to donate.  If you want to give cash, that is always welcome too.  Or, better yet, if your child is enrolled in a Portland Public School that uses Scrip, use it to purchase gift cards at participating stores, such as Fred Meyer and "double dip"!  Talk to Courtney for details.  

No December meeting - See you at Happy Hour!  Details/reminder to follow.

 

Thursday 11/16: we will have lunch!

One last reminder about our meeting: Thursday, 11/16 @ 12:00 (Fir Creek, 3rd floor, PDX Bldg) to review our survey, talk about next year, sell books, review sponsor a family, etc.

Lunch will be provided! We will have a deli tray (make your own sandwiches), fruit salad, and cookies from Bridge City Cafe (formally Paradise). Thank you DEEP for the funds. See you there.

Motherhood Manifesto - March 10th mtg

Our next meeting will be part of Women's History Month - please spread the to your co-workers!

Motherhood Manifesto – A film by MomsRising.org

March 10, 2011

12:00 to 1:00

Portland Building Auditorium

Light snacks provided

Sponsored by: CityMamas – Working Mom’s Affinity Group

Film description and reviews:

Narrated by Academy Award-winning actress Mary Steenburgen, The Motherhood Manifesto shows dramatically just how far behind all other industrial countries the United States lags in its support for families.

Moving personal stories combined with humorous animation, expert commentary and hilarious old film clips tell the tale of what happens to working mothers and families in America and how enlightened employers and public policy can make paid family leave, flexible working hours, part-time parity, universal healthcare, excellent childcare, after-school programs and realistic living wages a reality for American families.

"The Motherhood Manifesto documentary is a funny, fascinating, informative, and finally infuriating film about motherhood in America. At the end of this one, you'll want to jump out of your seat, rush out the door, and start demanding change immediately!"
-- Ann Crittenden, author, The Price of Motherhood

"Beautifully shot, incredible, well researched content. It had me laughing, crying, mad, sad but most of all MOTIVATED."
-- Cooper Munroe, business owner

CityMamas is an approved affiliation of Diverse and Empowered Employees of Portland (DEEP). For more information, contact co-chairs Courtney Duke, Darcy Cronin, and Lora Lillard.

February Meeting Notes: Part-time/Flex time/Job share

Our meeting today focused on job-sharing and part-time.

Ingrid Fish, Naomi Tsurumi, and Havilah Ferschweiler shared their experience with job-sharing.  Ingrid worked in a job-share with OMF for almost a year and is now at BPS part-time.  Naomi currently works for BES in a job-share position, and Havilah is returning from an extended maternity leave where she is beginning her job-share with ONI.

Each of these job-shares ranged from being initiated by the employee (as in Ingrid’s case, where she and a co-worker went to their supervisor proposing the job-share; and in Havilah’s case, where she asked her manager specifically for a job-share position) to being initiated by the employer (in Naomi’s case, where she had requested part-time and her manager proposed a job-share to keep 1.0 FTE). 

Ingrid and her co-worker first proposed their job-share to their manager who did not like the idea, and they dropped the idea altogether.  When he retired and their new supervisor seemed open to it (his wife works a job-share position with the state), they brought it up again.  Her new supervisor went to council to ask for the extra .2 FTE so that she and her co-worker could each work .6 FTE (totaling 1.2 FTE).  Their positions required lots of communication.  They overlapped by one day, so that they could meet and coordinate.  Her experience may be unique to OMF because of the intense budget season and “off-season”.  It worked well because she maintained a good relationship with her co-worker (fellow CityMama Stacey Jones), whom she also sees outside of work.  During budget season, it worked less well – she and Stacey found themselves putting in a lot of extra time for which they were not being paid (it was a salary position, fixed at .6 FTE).  The stress and inflexibility eventually ended the arrangement.  She advised that it may be easier if the job-share partners don’t share the workload but work independently; otherwise communication is the key, and it helps to be friends outside of work, though that is not always possible. 

Naomi and her job-share partner work independently, and that arrangement has worked so far.  They are the only job-share in BES currently.  Job-share has been frustrating when holidays force her to take 4 hours of vacation or unpaid time (see COPPEA notes below). 

Havilah is in the midst of arranging her job-share situation; she is currently filling one of the slots and the other slot is currently being filled by a temp but will soon be an open recruitment position.  She feels the pressure to “make it work” since this is a first for ONI and she feels she is setting a precedent.  Her manager felt that the job-share would be less vulnerable to cuts than a part-time position during budget time since ONI is very budget-conscious and part-time positions are often the first to get cut.  She will keep us posted!

Rachel Whiteside, COPPEA Vice President, shared some of the new contract rules with regard to part-time employment. Highlights:

o   When eligible for vacation accrual increases, they occur on the year of your anniversary (not the specific anniversary date, as before) – for part-time or full-time employees

o   City maintained its 95-5 percent split for health benefits

o   PTE, permanent employees have the same seniority/recall rights as FTE.  It is based on years of service, not prorated to hours worked.  For instance, if a part-time position gets cut, the PTE with more seniority than a FTE would have the option to take the full-time position.

o   For the first year of the contract (June 2010-June 2011), the PDF (professional development fund) and COLA (cost of living allowance) have been suspended but will return in the second year of the contract

o   If a holiday falls on an employee’s regular day off, instead of being able to take deferred holiday and banking the hours, an employee is forced to take the day before or after (it is specific, but depends on the situation) – ** the workaround is through changing your schedule in SAP to accommodate holiday

o   BHR has changed their interpretation of existing language regarding flex-time and holidays.  The new interpretation does not allow people to use flex time to make up remaining time on holidays, thus requiring people to use vacation or unpaid time.  Naomi gave the following example: she works a Wed-Friday schedule, working 8 hours on Wednesday and Thursday and 4 hours on Friday.  When a holiday falls on a Monday, she is forced to take it on the following Wednesday (per the change explained above).  Since she’s half-time, she gets 4 hours of holiday pay for each holiday, leaving 4 hours to be accounted for on the Wednesday she takes the holiday.  BHR’s new interpretation does not allow her to make up the 4 hours within the same pay period.  She has to use vacation or take unpaid time.  ** The workaround is as above- have your supervisor temporarily change your schedule in SAP.

Rachel urged COPPEA members to stay in touch by logging into the COPPEA website (www.coppea.org) or contacting their bureau rep if they have any questions with the new contract.

There was a discussion over part-time vs. job-share, which is easier, more flexible, etc.  Mindy Brooks, who formerly had a job-share at BES, now works part-time for BPS, offered that her job is flexible because she is “positive pay”, which means that she does not have a set schedule in SAP.  Her workaround for taking forced holidays is to make up the time within the pay period.  When asked if it was more pressure to work more if one is part-time (versus job-share, where there is a fixed number of hours) she mentioned that it depends on the manager.  That seemed to be the consensus of the meeting: it depends on the manager, it depends on the bureau.  Some bureaus at this time seem to have more capacity (or the stomach for) part-time employees, others do not.

Darcy offered up the idea that this group write a letter to Commissioner Fritz or Council to advocate for more flexibility throughout the City when it comes to part-time employment, as a family-friendly approach and a strategy for job-retention.  Additionally, it was mentioned that the City explore a family-leave policy that is greater than above-minimum Federal and state requirements (Darcy mentioned that during election time, Commissioner Fritz had been surprised before that the City does not have a paid-leave policy).

Notes:

HR was asked to come to the meeting to explain new administrative rules around part-time, job-share and flex-time, but they were unable to find someone to attend.  If there are any questions, please forward them here and we will try to get a response from HR.

If we missed any points or notes, please comment!

February 10 Meeting: part-time/flex time/job share

Calling all CityMamas! Our topic this month will be part-time, flex-time, and job sharing.  

What are the new COPPEA/DCTU changes?  What are the new HR rules?  Do you have experience with any of these?  Come share and learn!

Also: 

• Learn about Women's History Month's "Dress for Success" efforts and how you can help!
• Have any magazines you've read and want to pass along?  Bring 'em in!

Thursday, February 10th

12 - 1:30 pm

Portland Building, 3rd Floor,

Blazed Alder Room

 

See you there! 

Your CityMamas co-chairs

Ideas for 2011 Meetings?

Comment  and let us know!  Help shape the year of topics for 2011!


A list of collected ideas is below:

• Part-time/flex-time rules, experiences, perhaps with COPPEA, DCTU, other unions and Moms who have some experiences navigating this world
• Buddy system for New Moms
• How to talk to your children about sex/stranger danger
• How to talk to your children about bereavement/loss 
• Kindergarten Roundup Update

Do any of these resonate with you?  Let us know!

Thanks,

Your CityMamas Co-chairs: Lora, Darcy & Courtney

January Meeting Notes: Spring Break and Summer Camps!

Special thanks to CityMamas Sandra Wood and Andrea Matthiessen and Portland Park &; Recreation's Joan Hallquist for facilitating today's discussion on Spring Break/Summer Camps!

Before our meeting, we quickly discussed events/film suggestions for the City's Women's History Month (March 2011) Planning Committee, which Lora had offered to take to the CityMamas group.  The theme is: Our Women Making History, and the focus will be on local women.  If you have any suggestions in this vein (especially with a local mom bend), want to know more, or have any questions, please email Lora.

Also, we are taking suggestions/recommendations for topics in the upcoming meetings!  Some suggestions to date have included:

• Part-time/flex-time rules, experiences, perhaps with COPPEA, DCTU, other unions and Moms who have some experiences navigating this world
• Buddy system for New Moms
• How to talk to your children about sex/stranger danger
• How to talk to your children about bereavement/loss 
• Kindergarten Roundup Update

If any of these are at cost, would the group be willing to pay $5-10/per person?  Lora will check on DEEP funding.  Please send any other suggestions/recommendations to your co-chairs: Lora, Courtney, Darcy.


Joan, from Parks:
Portland Parks & Recreation offers many camps for all ages!  For the older kids (teenagers), Junior Leaders is a great way to build community service hours and learn to be a leader!  Also, they can enroll in becoming a Junior Lifeguard to teach swim classes.  Highly recommended by Joan, who is the mother to a teenage daughter herself.

Year-round opportunities are on all PPR "Sites" (go to the website above, click on "Find a Park" and click the "Community Center" button to find the site near you.  Other sites include Multnomah Art, Environmental Community Center, and Community Music Center.  Many of the camps also interface with OMSI, the zoo, and pools.

Note: The Portland Parks summer schedule comes out on the 2nd Monday in April (unfortunately, several months after many of the private camps open registration and consequently become full).  Call your specific site NOW if you are interested in a certain program, especially to find out if there's a wait list for pre-school, as these fill up the fastest.

Also, check out PPR's Summer Free-for-All, which includes concerts and movies in the park, the playground program, and the mobile program - all free, and many include lunches (for 18 and under - parents are on their own).

Sandra and Andrea: 

• Plan your summer according to WHEN you need care (about 11 weeks of summer).  Figure out start and end dates, plus your vacation weeks.
• Plan vacations along the traditional weeks (Sunday - Saturday), because most camps are offered Monday - Friday.  This way, you don't have to pay for camps that your child won't be attending completely.
• Talk to other parents to coordinate your child's camp with friends (camp can be scarier than daycare or school - lots of unfamiliar faces, unfamiliar routine)
• Consider if the camp has a before or after camp program since most camps are 9-3
• In planning, think about commute
• Give your kids a choice in camps?  Allow them to pick from choices of camps that are convenient to get to, in your budget, etc.  Ask if there were any camps from last year that they didn't like
• Recommend scheduling your summer so that you have some "down time".  Don't overschedule vacations and camps every other week. 
• Put together a matrix - chart your schedule.  This can include:
• Location
• Cost
• Before/After care? Times
• Available ages
• What friends can also attend camp - carpool?
• Phone number of camps

• Register early.  (Andrea usually has the summer scheduled by end of March - which makes the earlier point about PPR's schedule coming out as late as April difficult.)
• Start your child in camp as early as before kindergarten (that way, if they are still in daycare and don't like camp, they can always return to daycare - also a good transition before kindergarten)
• Sandra organized a "girl camp" one week for her daughter and two other friends (3 kids seemed a manageable number).  Each parent took a day off to spend with the girls, and they had "unscheduled" time.  Less expensive and less scheduled.  Recommends this once in the summer.
• CityKids will allow kids throughout summer, as long as they are under 6
• Recommended, tried camps among Moms present:
• Trackers
• Y camp downtown
• BodyVox
• Oregon Children's Theatre
• Saturday Academy
• Mittleman Jewish Community Center
• Camp Vida
• Camp Namanu
• Audobon Camp
• Zoo
• OMSI
• Many of these camps are open now!  Check them out.
• What about cost of camps?  Portland Parks ~ 150/week.  Other private camps can cost up to $300/week
• MetroKids comes out with Summer Camp guide March 2010  - last year's edition is not online anymore :(

Other suggestions?  Comments?

September Meeting Notes: Panel Discussion with PPS and PTAs

Special thanks to our PTA moms: Amy and Rebecca and also to our Portland Public Schools reps: Judy Brennan and Nancy Hauth!

Resources:
http://www.pps.k12.or.us/departments/kindergarten/1591.htm
There are some great materials on this page, including a calendar of activities to do before kindergarten and also, the ABCs of Kindergarten.  Great stuff!

Question 1 – How to start getting involved at your school

• Be very specific with the teacher about wanting to be involved
• Be open to the teachers style and what that teacher needs; focus on learning achievement
• Don’t be afraid to ask how to do things or asked to shadow a more experienced volunteer
• You can volunteer for other things as well
• Cafeteria or library – ask the office about what they need
• Kindergarten round-up always needs volunteers and it will get you plugged in early
• Room parent – kids love it!
• PTA is a great place to be involved on committees and get to know other parents
• Each school is different but PTA generally focuses on fundraising, e.g. events, books for library, support artists-in-residence – budges vary depending on the schools
• Sometimes it’s best for committees if working parents pair up with stay-at-home parents to spread work and time
• Site Council – governance with staff and teachers; there are usually 2-3 parent positions
• Anecdotally, there is not much difference between working and non-working parents
• Get to know parents of students in upper grades – helps you navigate the school, teachers, etc.
• Keep yourself grounded in achievement and learning for your child and other children in the classroom

 Question 2 – Communicating with your child

• If your teacher sends out weekly communications, then you can use that to ask lead-in questions of your child
• You have to pretend you are the talk show host and they are the guest
• Be open to teacher’s communication style
• Facebook parents in the PTA or in your child’s class – get to know them
• In Portland, the Parent Assist tool is being revamped and will be a good online tool

 Question 3 – What about before/after school care

• Many schools have programs but you need to inquire early and often because space is limited
• Ask about this at Kindergarten Round-Up
• When you meet teachers, administrators or other parents ask them what questions you should be asking.
• There are other programs, not specific to the school, that are good alternatives – YMCA is an example
• Multnomah County Child Care Resource and Referral can help you find a good program
• When you start interview programs for your child be “business-like” about it.  Figure out what you need most to make your schedule and life work and focus on those things.

 Question 4 – What is the best way to work with the principle

• Always start with the teacher.
• If you have worked with the teacher, send an email or letter to both the principle and teacher about what happened. 
• Be diplomatic
• Focus on the issue
• Keep written communication for a record
• The principle and/or vice principle is usually at the PTA meetings, so you can chat with them then
• Don’t wait until you are really upset or until you have to say “We’ve been having trouble all year long.”  Address things right away so you can be level-headed and get it resolved before it becomes a big problem.
• Try to act like your child is an employee and you are addressing a concern with their manager.  Don’t be in “mom mode”, be a business woman.

 Last words of advice

• You are your child’s 1^st teacher.  Be open with them and set a good example of how to deal with difficult or frustrating situations.
• Give yourself credit – this is hard
• Maintain a good sense of humor
• Pick your battle wisely – think if this is really worth the anxiety
• Always speak positively about school, tell your child about your good school experiences
• Keep an open mind about the teacher – they may not be your favorite but they may be doing a great job teaching your child. 
• Practice opening lunches before school starts (some kids have trouble with juice boxes, containers, etc.)
• Remember that many teachers are also working parents

Reminder: CityMamas meeting this Thursday!

June 10 Meeting: Food Preservation 101

Food Preservation 101

June 10 @ 12:00 – 1:30
1900 Bldg., Room 4A  <--------- NOTE LOCATION!

Join cityMamas to learn about freezing, jamming, drying, pickling, smoking and pressure canning. We will highlight equipment, tools, talk generally about steps for each process, and discuss the best foods to use for each technique and where to get them. Recipes and tips to take home.

There will be food! We will bring some samples including pickled cucumbers, pickled green beans, smoked salmon dip and more.

Hope to see you then.

June 10 Meeting: Food Preservation 101

Food Preservation 101

June 10 @ 12:00 – 1:30
1900 Bldg., Room 4A

Join cityMamas to learn about freezing, jamming, drying, pickling, smoking and pressure canning. We will highlight equipment, tools, talk generally about steps for each process, and discuss the best foods to use for each technique and where to get them. Recipes and tips to take home.

There will be food! We will bring some samples including plum jam, pickled green beans, smoked salmon dip and more.

Hope to see you then.

May Meeting Notes: Three Pillars of Optimal Health

This month, CityMamas joined the Women's Affinity Group Meeting on May 13th.  Dr. Greg Nigh, a Naturopathic Doctor and Licensed Acupuncturist from Nature Cures Clinic presented three strategies that can dramatically reduce stress and increase your health.  Here are some notes I jotted down from his presentation:

In Naturopathic practice, there are a few basic principles:

• Find and treat causes of symptoms (not symptoms)
• Symptoms are the clues and not the problems to cover up.
• Avoid suppression
• Bodies are good at being healthy, if we stay out of their way.

*****************************************************************

He presented 3 pillars of optimal health: 

  

1.  Eliminate anything that isn't supposed to be there.

• allergens, infections, heavy metals (such as mercury or lead), hormonal imbalances, and most importantly, FOOD
• FOOD is the most important clue that pushes people out of balance
• Dr. Nigh practices elimination of foods and then reintroduction to determine cause
• a book on the Nature Cures Clinic website takes you through elimination dieting
• the brain is made up mostly of oil.  Unhealthy oils = unhealthy brain
• occasional mild short-term stress is good.  chronic heavy stress is very bad.

2.  Provide whatever isn't there in sufficient amounts.

• vitamins, minerals, oils, sufficient blood (circulation in general), and other nutrients
• basic vitamins: B complex (6 & 12), A, C, D, E
• basic minerals: magnesium, potassium, lithium, boron, zinc.
• for instance, most people don't get enough magnesium.  When magnesium deficient, blood pressure goes up, hypertension.  Epsom salt bath helps!
• basic herbs: ginkgo, green tea
• Labs are essential for understanding the underlying cause of symptoms

3.  Remove stress.

• Stress isn't a thing; it's a way of thinking or a pattern of thinking about our circumstances
• Stress management is THOUGHT management
• Stress is one of the single greatest contributors to poor health.
• Stress is a choice we make about what will occupy our thoughts in this moment NOW.  
• Thoughts + physical reaction to thoughts = stress.
• Time and effort spent in meditation that occurs earlier in the day can carry over in stressful situations that occur later.

Dr. Nigh's take-home exercise (to practice any time, all the time).  He uses a pill-timer that vibrates in his pocket every 20 minutes to remind him to do the following:

• Stop.  Stop thinking what you're thinking.

• Notice, categorize, and scan your body.  Notice what you're thinking and categorize it to see if there are patterns, e.g. I'm remembering an argument with my child, I'm feeling right about something that happened today, etc.  He says you will start to notice the same types of thoughts occurring.  It helps to be aware of what is causing you stress.  Scan your body to determine what contracted with that thought, and to relax the muscle that contracted. 

• What are you doing now?  Start to narrate what you're doing now, e.g. I'm reading this blog.  I'm sitting.  I have my legs crossed.  The longer you can keep up the narration, the more you can manage our stress, because it is challenging to hold "present awareness".  

This whole process takes just a few seconds.  It may help you to stop the stressful thoughts, and to think and live in the present.  It may even stop you from thinking the stressful thoughts before they happen. 

There were about 8 CityMamas in attendance.  
  

Any thoughts on the presentation?   Has anyone tried the exercise?  Anything to add that I've missed?

March Mtg - Toxic Free Families

Our March meeting will be held this Thursday, March 11th at noon in the Blazed Alder Room on the the 3rd floor of the Portland Building (1120 SW 5th Ave).

We will have two guest speakers, Jen Coleman from the Oregon Environmental Council and Caran Goodall from Metro. They both specialize in helping families reduce their household toxics and find environmentally friendly solutions. Caran will teach us about healthy alternatives and provide some household cleaning recipes. Jen will give an overview of family related toxics policy and how we can advocate for our children.

We hope you can join us!

Meeting Notes: Ready, Set, Garden - February 11, 2010

February's meeting brought a roomful (twelve Mamas and one baby Ruby! Thanks, Colleen, for bringing her in) all ready to start gardening.


**Announcements**

• COPPEA is in the middle of contract negotiations. All options must be on the table by March 1. Questions? Contact Lora Lillard.
• Daycare for city of Portland employees children remains to be a challenging prospect. Contact Colleen Jenkins if you want to discuss daycare issues with the City.
• Mayor Adams wants to expand benefits to include gender reassignment surgery - why not fertility treatments? Discussion?

CSA Information
Lora shared some information about CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture). For more information about CSAs and Portland area options, click here. Some things to consider when you contact the CSA or browse their website:

• Location and pick up times - if weekday is not convenient, can you pick up at a nearby farmer's market?
• What do they grow? Will you eat it? For example, does it have only vegetables? Are eggs important to you?
• Cost/week - comparison
• How long is the season
• How much food? Should you share a box?
• Is there an open farm day/work days/educational opportunity for your family?
• What's the history of the farm? Family owned?
• Newsletter and recipes?

City Mama recommended from the CSA Coalition List:

• Deep Roots Farm - Kristen Erbes: "I used Deep Roots because they offer a Farmer's Market Credit - buy a share in advance and then use that credit at their stand @ the Farmer's Market. Works for me because we often travel - might not use something in a box, etc. I get to choose what/how much of what I need & will use. And they allow credit to be carried over from season to season if you don't use it all."
• Vicki's Harvest Box at Sungold Farm - Lora Lillard: "Recommended! Joined last year - loved that they include fruit (berries!) and veggies and had open farm day for families. Wish they had eggs too. Newsletter & recipes a plus!

There are also two charity CSAs that you may consider using:

• Living Goddess - donates all proceeds to SafeChoice for domestic violence resources
• Project Grow - provides employment for adult's with developmental disabilities, inner NE

Have you used a CSA? Care to comment/share your experience?

Ready, Set Garden!

Mindy got started on a lively discussion for What to do in February, assuming that you have a garden spot now. She passed out a worksheet and proceeded to dive right in. The worksheet had a lot of great tips and notes, but here are some additional highlights:




What to do in February?

• Now is the time to get your garden spot ready - turn over the soil and add compost.
• You should compost in between plantings as well.
• Great resource for buying seeds: Territorial Seeds - they also have great how-to videos! Check it out.
• Plant fruit trees/ berry bushes now.
• Prune existing fruit trees now.
• Rotate your garden every year. Never plant the same plants in the same spot every year. For many reasons, but some plants are hard on soil, or extract too many of one type of nutrient from soil - needs to be replenished with a different plant.

Design your garden:

• Write a list of what you want to eat from your garden
• Make sure it will fit.
• Figure out what things need to grow and how long they need to grow.
• Think about companion plants (Worksheet has some good tips.) Pay attention to things that are BAD companions.
• Also, decide how you want to eat your food, what freezes, what can be preserved, etc. E.g. Lettuce must be eaten when it's ready - can't preserve or freeze it.
• Think about perennials that come back and don't need replanting, e.g. asparagus, rhubarb, etc.

Specific crops:

• Corn. Don't plant corn unless you have LOTS of space. They need 4 rows at least, and they have a large growing season (85-100 days). If you want corn, try "Precocious" variety. It has a relatively short growing season, 65-75 days.
• Winter Squash. Trails a lot. Needs lots of space. 100 day growing season. It does well here, because it needs late summer heat.
• Tomatoes. Prune the heck out of tomatoes when they start flowering. They hate getting bushy. Cut the leaves above the flowers. Later in the season, you can cut the flowers so that the plant can concentrate on fruits that are already there. Heirlooms are easy to grow, and expensive at the farmer's market. Recommend growing from starts (not seeds).
• Peas. Grow on a trellis. Don't trim them. They can grow very early. Should go in now. Use stakes - wood or metal - and twine. Can use this system for cucumbers as well, once peas are done. Cut twine when ready to harvest and retwine.
• Pole beans. Plant in a round - 3 stake tee pee, 6 feet tall. They grow all the way up. "Kentucky Wonder" a good, standard green bean.
• Lettuce - Grow in thirds, so that you don't have all your lettuce at once. Mezcalin, "Cut and come again" variety. Grow now until June, and plant again in September. Tuck into places near other plants.
• Green onions/leeks. Ready when they look like you want to eat them.
• Cilantro and mint (and other "weeds"). Yummy but take over. Grow in containers.
• Parsnips, carrots, and beets. Overwinter. Better to eat if you leave them.
• Marigolds and basil. Tuck these in the garden. Marigolds bring good bugs.

Other notes:

• Liquid fence helps against deer, rabbits, etc. A combination of egg white, garlic, etc. fermented. Reallly smells bad.
• Slugs - Ground up egg shells around the stalk of plants or copper or hand-removal works best!
• Avoid weeds by agitating the soil with a stirrup hoe (or regular hoe). Walk around the plot, and "agitate" - hit everything that is not a plant, once a week (all soil and weeds). Seeds of weeds do not have a chance to sprout.
• Tip from Spin Gardening class for planting and weeding rows: Stand with legs wide apart, squat, plant 2 rows at a time, back up, repeat. The paths you create with each foot becomes a walking path. Can weed this way too.
• How much is soil by the yard? Around $90? With a minimum delivery. Share with your neighbors to cut costs!
• Planting strategy: Plant now - peas and lettuce, broccoli, radishes, spinach, cabbage.
• Mother's Day: Plant tomatoes and peppers.

Urban Growth Bounty Classes - sign up here. Classes now until fall.

Happy planting! Thanks to Mindy Brooks for all her wisdom, and for sharing these great tips! Share your planting stories this year as you garden!

Upcoming CityMamas Meeting: February 11th

Our very own food and garden guru/Mama, Mindy Brooks will lead the discussion, and we'll have information about the new Urban Growth Bounty classes offered by BPS.

Also, if you belong to COPPEA and want to collaborate on recommendations for the upcoming contract negotiations, we will have some information at the meeting!


Hope to see you there!

Note: Our new meeting day is the second Thursday of each month at noon.