Thursday, April 22, 2010
Earth Day, Green Tips, and Deals!
1:05 AM
Since becoming a mother, I've found myself more concerned with the planet we all live on. I'm far from being totally "green", but I try to make changes here and there whenever I find an opportunity. For example, thanks to my frequent pestering, our apartment manager finally got recycling service for our entire complex! As our usual chemical household cleaners and personal care products run out, I try to find a natural product to replace it. I'd LOVE to hear what kinds of things you are doing today, and always, to become more "green". I hope many of you will share tips that myself and others can use :-)
You can help needy families go more green by cloth diapering! The Cloth Diaper Foundation (you may remember them under the name "Miracle Diapers") is holding an auction for Earth Day to raise funds. They're auctioning off all sorts of awesome cloth diapers and tons of other great items, so you can shop AND help a good cause! Check out the details (HERE)
Stay tuned for Freebie Friday coming up and a series in the next few days where I'll be interviewing unschoolers!
I've also compiled a list of small (mostly WAHM-owned) businesses that are offering deals on Earth Day, so have a look and let them know that I sent ya ;-)
10% off everything in their store! Visit Just Hatched on Etsy HERE
FREE SHIPPING on everything, and a SALE on the Valentine's collection of dryer balls. Visit C & E Creations on Etsy HERE
FREE SHIPPING on all Nursing Necklaces! Visit Little Nurslings on Etsy HERE
FREE SHIPPING on all orders over $20. Visit Yellowhouse Candles HERE
and check them out on Facebook HERE to find out about the new body washes and soaps coming out that aren't posted on the website yet!
Books on sale as low as 99 cents!!! Visit Barefoot Books and see what's on sale HERE
FREE SHIPPING on all Canadian orders until midnight on the 23rd. Visit the Cloth Diaper Shop HERE
Nursing pad sets as low as $2.20! Check out Baby Appleseed on Etsy HERE
20% OFF for Woman Uncensored readers, use COUPON CODE "WU20" at checkout when you shop at Retro Rags HERE
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11 comments:
There are so many little things, I mean a lot of people compost or recycle different things but have you thought about other things that make little differences?
Buying products in bulk (maybe even with some friends and saving money and packaging). Try the product in a small version and then refill.
Instead of throwing out your bread scraps, pop them in a bread bag in the freezer and when you've enough, pop them into the oven on low and dry them out to make your own breadcrumbs.
If you still have plastic bags around, cut them into large strips and then plait them to make plant ties in the garden and keep reusing them (eg. ties around tomato stakes etc), if you are really industrious, get the family to make your own lattice work out of it for bean support or such! (Also great for Dads to learn how to plait their daughter's hair without the complaints!)
Green Home ideas:
1. Got a bunch of holey socks? Mismatched socks? Don't throw them out! Stick them into a sack and use them when you have to clean the outside of your toilet! If you do loads of rags, throw them in...otherwise you can chuck them and know they had a last life!
2. Still using paper napkins? Why not get some (or make some) cloth ones. You can use them a few times before washing and throw them in with kitchen towel laundry. It will save money and paper.
3. TRY CLOTH DIAPERS!!! Get online and read read chat...it's not how it was when our mom's did it. SO much easier..and healthier for your baby. Environment wise, it may NOT be the best option depending on where you live, but look into it! It also helps potty train!
1. Shut off the shower while you're lathering up or shaving.
2. Cloth in place of: paper towels, toilet paper (wipes), napkins, disposible swiffer-like junk, etc.
3. Reusable feminine pads or a cup.
4. Reel mower instead of gas or electric (bonus: you can mow at night if it suits your fancy)
5. Manual clippers instead of electric or gas hedge trimmers. Good to use for touch ups.
I like to carry my water in a bottle and have one for my children basic and I am sure we all do it but it saves ALOT of money when we are out. I also take my thermos mug to uni with me and reuse my tea leaves for the day Keemum and Buddahs Tears are good for that
I saw your post on FB and you said to leave Earth Day tips/deals so I hope this is the right place!?
Dandelions and popping up everywhere and if you have not eaten them before or made a tea, try some today! Pluck the greens before the flowers appear for best flavor. Wash and enjoy raw in salads or saute with your favorite veggies and olive oil or ghee. The flower petals are also edible and look beautiful as a garnish on mixed in a raw salad. The roots can also be harvested and eaten or boiled into a tea as a full body tonic. The dandelion plant is more nutritious than anything you can buy, so try some today!
~Lost River Naturals (Connie Young)
With 4 million births per year in the US alone Breastfeeding and Elimination Communication are extremely important "green" activities. I know not everyone can do one or both of these but if every family capable of doing them would do them - we could prevent so much earthly insult.
Lisa
We moved to AZ from VA and I miss the dandelions! We would pick the open yellow flower heads just below the cap, dredge them in tempura batter and fry them in olive oil. Dipped in a light sauce of soy sauce, rice wine vinegar and scallions, they are nutritious and free!
I don't buy paper napkins or paper towels and I have a stash of cloth grocery bags IN the car. No excuses!
We're vegan, so that saves, for example, about six months' worth of showering for every pound of burger that we don't eat (if it comes from cows that were fed irrigated crops), and saves a ton of animal wastes from polluting waterways, and saves a lot of antibiotics from being used...saves a lot of forests from being razed to make way for grazeland, etc.
I also use cut-up t-shirts instead of TP for #1. I put them in a pretty basket and, after I use each one, I place it in a discreet Umbra mini-can (they look great, they're like $4, they're made in Canada and they're made of recycled plastics!). When I'm on my period, I just add some cold water and detergent, and they never stain. It's great, too, because it feels much cleaner than TP and doesn't leave any little linty bits behind, and I'm not wiping my tender spots with bleached stuff.
Oh, I have a big organic garden, we keep it mellow, we use a lot of bulk products, and we try really hard not to buy things we don't need, even if we really want them, because we know it had to be mined or otherwise culled out of the earth or mixed in toxic potions in labs, and will end up in a landfill or the ocean or other place that is taxed enough as it is.
I also cook most of our food from scratch, so that saves a lot of packaging from, ex. Lean Cuisine and such.
Oh! And we have a solar oven, which we mostly use in the summer, and it cooks stuff just by sitting in the sun and trapping heat. This way we don't run the oven or stove and we also don't need extra energy to cool down the house after it's been heated more by cooking indoors. It doesn't cook everything, by any means - I'm too busy for that - but I try to use it several times per week.
lots of earth day specials at A SQUEAKY FOOT on hyena cart too!! stop on by to enter the drawings to win FREE stuff-like squeaky shoes!!
Today I gave a lot of stuff away on craigslist. I really hate having too much stuff. This way I don't throw it away, and someone else doesn't have to buy it :)
Super-green.
I wanted to add, instead of a "wipes warmer," we use a thermos and just fill it up every couple of days or so. We use it with cloth wipes, and we use cloth diapers.
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