Being Green

I am not perfect, but I do the best I can with what I have and what I know. Here is what I currently do in my life or try to do, to walk gently on Our Mother Earth:

• Reduce, Reuse, Recycle ~Buy in bulk when possible- to save in packaging and trips to the store.~Use reusable bags at the grocery store- some stores actually pay you 5 cents for every bag you use!
• Buy used clothing at thrift stores, and give away clothing we no longer need. I could definitely work on doing this more often. http://www.freecycle.org/ is a great place to give and get items in your local community.
• Joined Greendimes stopping junk mail and saving trees. http://www.greendimes.com/
  
• Plant trees every year as a member of The Arbor Day Foundation
  
• Buy locally at Farmer's Market, and buy seasonal items at the grocery store.Our Farmer's Market is open from June-October here in CT.
  
• Buy organic foods whenever possible. Trying to stick with minimally processed and whole foods.
• Eat vegetarian, and organic dairy if at all. Agricultural farming is not only cruel, but is also one of the biggest contributors to Global Warming. It has proven difficult to eliminate dairy from my diet, but I am a work in progress.
  
• Compost leftover food scraps, yard scraps and other material.
• Organic gardening. Last year was my very first garden and we had great cucumbers and tomatoes all summer! I hope to make it bigger this year. We never use chemicals on our lawn.~I mow the lawn with the old fashioned push mower.
• Household cleaning products and health/beauty products we use are natural (baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice, water), earth-friendly (no caustic chemicals), and cruelty-free (never tested on animals).
  
• Our appliances are energy-efficient. We installed a tankless water heater. I don't run the washer all in one day, but spread out the laundry throughout the week usually at night. I run the dishwasher only when full, and wash all the plastics by hand.
  
• The family uses clothe napkins, but I also use recycled paper towels.
  
• Line dry clothes instead of using a dryer when able.
• Energy efficient lightbulbs are in every socket, and I am a light nazi when it comes to shutting off when not in use.
  
• We also unplug everything we are not using- toaster, coffepot, radio, computer, microwave (which isn't used often).
  
• I use a Diva Cup for my menses, and it is so much better than pads or tampons, and on those days when my flow isn't enough to justify it, I use hemp reusable pads.
• My VW Golf tdi gets about 46 mpg. but would love to run some biodiesel.
  

Things that I want to work on or improve are:

• More thrift store, less Walmart.
• Eliminating dairy or as much dairy as possible, or at least using organic (local) sources.
• Drink microbrews instead of imported beer, and local wine....this shouldn't be too hard!
• We'd also like to install an alternative energy source like solar, wind, or geothermal units. I'm happy that my husband is on the same page, and we are doing the best we can and being great models for our daughters.

Remember to Think Globally, Act Locally. Do the best you can and with good intentions. Your Mother will thank you. :) If anyone has ideas to share, or questions just let me know!
Stacie.