Being Green=Saving money & the planet!!

One of the biggest things I've realized with being "green" is how much money we are saving, especially on our electric bill. Not only are we keeping our wallet green, but also stopping the release of a whole lot of carbon into the atmosphere. So, here are some simple ways to lower your electric bill!

*Get CFL's-enough said. (they are no longer the ugly spirals that first came out!)

*Adjust your Thermostat- One degree up in the summer, down in the winter, that is all I ask. I doubt you'll notice.

*Shorten your Shower-Again, 1 to 2 minutes...Again, I doubt you'll notice!! Shave when your done showering with Olive Oil- You will be BLOWN away by how smooth your legs are afterwards! Seriously, I have some in a water spray bottle now. I sit on the side of my bathtub, spray it on, and shave! My legs are gorgeous-except all the scraps and bruises and veins (thanks mom)!

*Wash all your wash in cold water-I know I know, my mom always said the only way to get your undies really clean is with hot water...News flash, your soap will disinfect just as well as the hot water, plus, your pretty undies won't fade when washed with cold water! (90% of the energy used by a washer is used for heating water). BONUS- hang your clothes out to dry and skip the dryer. There is NOTHING like going to sleep on fresh air dried sheets!!

UNPLUG!!!-Your CELLPHONE charger! (as well as your iPod, electric toothbrush, and digital camera chargers)! Your HAIRDRYER and CURLING IRON. Put your stereo on a power stripe and turn it off when you're not rockin' out. (I'd recommend the same for a TV and DVD, but ours resets every time the power goes off and it drives me nuts!) If it has a big box on it where it plugs into the wall, that is a transformer. As long as that is plugged into the wall it is stealing energy and your money! Unplug it if you can.

*Turn off your computer!-Leaving a computer on all day for a year could result in more than 1500 pounds of CO2 being released into the atmosphere. To put that into context, it would take 100-500 trees to offset that amount of extra CO2! (thanks Greenmomfinds!)

Any one else got a great tip? Post it in the comments and I'll add it to the list!

Bleach?

My husband and I bought "green" carpet for our house. It is made from corn and has no "new carpet smell"! While we were shopping around one of the biggest things the sales lady tried to sell us on about this carpet was, if you dropped blueberries, wine, or the grosser side of it, the dog pooped, the kids puked, you could use bleach water to lift and disinfect the stain without removing the color of the carpet. I agreed with her that the idea of using bleach to clean up sounded fantastic, but it sort of blew me away that she was trying to sell me such a green carpet with such a un-green, toxic way of caring for it.
So-instead of using BLEACH, here are a few ALTERNATIVES:

*Borax, baking soda and lemon juice combine to form an excellent cleaner, stain remover and disinfectant.

*Vinegar with salt in a spray bottle is an excellent disinfectant. (Think potty training little boys) It even kills mold-bleach only "whitens" the mold so you don't see it.

*For whitening clothes try adding 1/2 cup of white vinegar to your laundry load.

*To whiten stained spots on clothing: put some lemon juice on the spot, rub in a bit of salt, and leave it in the sun for an hour or two. It lifts the stain.

Think Green Tuesday

Organic Produce

In my local newspaper today there was a great article about buying organic food and how most mom's tend to feed their kids better than they feed themselves...Shame on you! It also had a list of the most important produce to buy organic, and the ones that aren't as important (based on how many pesticides are used while growing and how much each food absorbs-very scientific details I won't go into, but at least someone has taken the time to figure it all out). I have a list like this in my coupon book, because I quite frequently get "mom brain".

12 Most contaminated food (Consider buying ORGANIC)
Peaches (highest pesticide level of all fruits and veggies)
Strawberries (right behind peaches)
Nectarines (I consider peaches and nectarines one in the same)
Sweet Bell Peppers
Celery
Lettuce
Spinach
Cherries
Grapes-imported (don't forget that if you like wine, grapes are the #1 ingredient! Consider trying an organic variety next time you're at the liquor store)
Pears
Potatoes
Apples



12 Least contaminated foods (ok to buy conventional or organic)
Onions (lowest pesticide levels)
Avocado
Sweet corn-frozen
Sweet peas-frozen
Pineapples
Mango
Asparagus
Kiwi
Bananas
Cabbage
Broccoli
Eggplant


If I don't have my list with me and I am trying to remember what I should buy organic and what I should pass on I just try to think about what do I usually pick up, rinse, and eat- strawberries, peaches, apples- and what I have to peel to eat-bananas, oranges, avocado. That skin is a great protective layer, but as silly as it sounds it is also important to wash bananas, etc., before you eat them. The skin is where the pesticides rest and they easily can transfer to your hand and right to your mouth!

I've been lacking the last few weeks...I can explain.
I've always tried to "live green", at least I thought I was. So when one of my blogger mom friends passed along, Green Chic: Saving the Earth in Style by Christie Matheson I figured it would be a quick read and their wouldn't be too much new stuff for me.
Plus I am always overly skeptical of a book about going green...come on, trees!
Was I wrong.
Besides ingraining the bad plastics in my head in the first few pages, #3, #6, #7-HORRIBLE STUFF! (I've been busy trying to recycle sippy cups, Nalgene bottles, and cooking bowls left and right) she really is all about making the change slowly, simply, and cheaply. She also had her book printed on 100% post-consumer recycled waste and used vegetable friendly inks. Plus half the profits go to charity. No more skepticism- don't judge a book by its cover, or its insides! (I've read nothing but praise for this book too...Here, Here, Here, to name a few)

But besides being skeptical of books I am also very careful about what I buy that claims to be green...Greenwashing is a huge problem these days, and unfortunately those advertisers (my husband included) do a great job to make us believe that buying Fuji water is really good for the earth. (Don't worry, he had nothing to do with that campaign.)
So this blog is going to make some changes. While I'm still all about a bargain and free stuff, I'm going to explore ways to truly go green in ways that are cheap and free! In the mean time while I'm putting together this new start, pick up Green Chic (and then pass it on to a friend) and memorize those bad plastics (they are all bad...but 3, 6, 7 are the WORST). Seriously, flip over that plastic water bottle, I bet there is a 7 there...If you don't read the book I'll get to why it is so bad very soon.

**What? Today only-A free pair of sock (they are really cool looking) for registering with the SELF 2008 challenge. Plus you might just lose some weight!

**Where/Click? Self

**When? TODAY only for the socks, but you can sign up anytime for the challenge

**Anything else? You do not need to enter your phone number
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**What? Ace in Space is back. Fisher Price's Planet Heroes DVD giveaway with a new movie-Here Comes the Sun

**Where/Click? Planet Heroes

**When? Order now, takes 12-18 weeks to ship

**Anything else? Start by clicking on the top right where it asks where you live...
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**What? Free YoMommy Yogurt!

**Where/Click? YoMommy

**When? Request til May 31, 2008. 1 per household

**Anything else? Fill our form, wait for the mail.
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**What? Women's Day Magazine, free for a year!

**Where/Click? Women's Day

**When? While supplies last

**Anything else? Fill our short form, and "qualify".
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