3 Things 1.28.17: Rainbow Le Creuset; Family Read Alouds; Niagara Falls in the Winter

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Happy Saturday, dear friends. Thank you for taking a few minutes out of your lovely weekend to enter my world. In today’s post, I’m sharing pictures of my completed Rainbow Le Creuset Collection, our current family read aloud, and beautiful pictures of Niagara Falls in the Winter.

3-things-at-simplifylivelove

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3 Things 1.28.17: Rainbow Le Creuset; Family Read Alouds; Niagara Falls in the Winter

le creuset

3-things-1 Rainbow Le Creuset

My rainbow Le Creuset is complete with the addition of a 3 quart Soleil Balti cast iron dish! I’m so excited to see the complete rainbow, but part of me feels a bit bummed…because Lead Safe America recently found unsafe levels of cadmium and lead in the paint of some Le Creuset products. I heard this sad information a while ago, before I got the last yellow piece. I love cooking with my Le Creuset – I use my 7 1/4 quart cassis (purple) round French oven the most, but I do use them all.

So when I heard about the heavy metals in Le Creuset, I was sadden. I did a little research and couldn’t find any information on Le Creuset’s own website (go-figure). But I am encouraged by research conducted by The Soft Landing. They claim only two cookware companies address the issue of heavy metals in their cookware at all and say that Le Creuset strictly controls cadmium which they use in the paint that adorns the outside of the pots and uses agents to prevent it from flaking off. They also claim that Le Creuset is one of very few companies to subject their products to third party testy to verify safety.

The one thing that makes me squirm a little is that Le Creuset claims not to use lead at all, yet Lead Safe America found lead in their products. Hmmmm. All I say is I am struggling right now with my love for Le Creuset.  

story of the world

3-things-2 Family Read Alouds

Do you read aloud to your family? I used to read a lot to the kids when they were younger, but I have gotten away from it since they went off to school. We just started a new read aloud, though, and it’s a lot of fun. We’re reading a chapter from the Story of the World, Volume 3 after dinner every night, or as often as we can. We’re all learning a bit about history before out trip to Europe in March. The kids are fascinated, and admittedly, so am I, because I either never learned a lot of the facts they discuss in this book, or have forgotten them. I even had the kids watch the hilarious Netherlands Second Spoof because it touched on topics from the book! It is possible to find modern connections to make learning history more interesting.

beautiful niagara falls in the winter

3-things-3 Niagara Falls in the Winter

It turns our that Dan and I are on an impromptu trip to Niagara Falls this weekend to pick up supplies for the Passive House we’re currently building in Wilton. I guess we’ll find any excuse to take a road trip. At 10 hours away, it’ll save us quite a lot of money to go get this stuff ourselves, as opposed to having it shipped, so we’re off.

The kids and I actually went to Niagara Falls in the winter – January of 2013 – with my amazing friend Robin and her three boys. The funniest part of the trip were the Chinese tourists who were enamored with the nine of use – two women and their seven collective kids. They took a picture of our group even and I wish we would have thought to have them take a picture with one of our cameras, but we didn’t. I laugh every time I imagine the stories they told their Chinese friends about the two crazy American women with seven kids!

Niagara Falls lookout

Niagara Falls in the winter is really beautiful, but we were not properly prepared for the brutal cold we faced there, and I swore I would NEVER go back to  in January…yet here we are. I’ve been promised 40 degree temps and a balmy beach vacation. I’ll keep you updated on how that works out for me – lol. If you’d like to visit Niagara Falls in the winter, here are some of the amazing sights you might see!

Niagara Falls Frosty Trees

Niagara Falls in winter

Frost at Niagara Falls
And that’s it you guys. Another week at the Passive-Aggressive house has come to close. I look forward to catching up with you next week. What’s been going on in your world?

Niagara Falls in the Winter pin

About Michelle Marine

Michelle Marine is the author of How to Raise Chickens for Meat, a long-time green-living enthusiast, and rural Iowa mom of four. She empowers families to grow and eat seasonal, local foods; to reduce their ecological footprint; and to come together through impactful travel.

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2 Comments

  1. Your pictures of Niagara Falls are beautiful!
    The lead issue with the cookware is a real bummer.
    The only thing going on here is the Pantry Challenge @ Good Cheap Eats. I have only spent $35 for groceries for January. Obviously I have way to much food in the house. My pantry and fridge are looking pretty good and have lots of empty spaces but my freezers still have plenty of proteins, frozen veggies, broth and lots of tomatoes.

    1. Thank you, Pat! I used to to the Pantry Challenge from Good Cheap Eats as well, but we didn’t participate this year. Great job on spending so little! 🙂