Written on
August 8, 2008 by
SusanC
Let me make one thing perfectly clear. I am a LAZY green mama. That’s not to say that I don’t do my part to protect the planet. But when I do make an effort to go green, I need to know that it is not in vain. And I’m the last person on Earth who would want to make extra work for herself. So when I tell you that I have used cloth diapers for both of my daughters, I hope you’ll understand that this was not an undertaking that I accepted lightly. I looked at the facts, I talked to the experts, I tried it myself, and I concluded that cloth diapers were the best thing for both my children and the planet.
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I love to read. If you’ve read my blog, you know this because I allude to it often. I read parenting books, fiction and now going green titles. Last week, I wrote about how to start going green and I thought it would be a great follow up to recommend some of my favorite green reads that have helped me on my journey, thus far. I’m sure my list will continue to grow. Mind you, these aren’t all the books that I’ve read but I’ve compiled my top five reads for the new greenie. A few are downloadable from Eco Brain where you can just download the book onto your desktop or laptop and save a tree.
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Written on
August 6, 2008 by
SusanC
With prices skyrocketing at the pump, you’ve probably already taken some serious steps to improve your gas mileage and reduce the amount of money you spend on gas. Carpooling, avoiding aggressive driving, and giving your car regular tune-ups are great ways to save money on gas, but don’t forget these equally effective yet surprising ways to save money at the pump….
1. Go green, get clean. The latest research shows that washing and waxing your car on a regular basis can improve your fuel efficiency by up to 7%.
2. Get rid of that junk in your trunk. A junky car could cost you more than just your sanity.
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Written on
August 5, 2008 by
SusanC
One of the aspects I’ve enjoyed about homeschooling is that I can include a new activity, or course of study, at anytime throughout the school year. As I began learning more about green living, I thought it would be a great subject for my children and me to study together. This past school year, I introduced green and natural living lessons into our school schedule. Each week, we took on a green project or participated in an activity that promoted environmental appreciation and preservation. Some of our projects included visiting farms and orchards (we’ve been to a lot of these), collecting about $5 at the recycling center, and planting our first fruit tree.
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I’ll tell you it is easy to be an organizer if you have no limits. But what about an ecochic organizer like me? My boundaries are simple. I will try at all costs to use what I have already in my home first before ever buying something. I’ll go to my recycling bin, think of how to sew something or just plain rethink a way to make it work. If I do buy something I usually try to purchase second hand. The last resort is buying local if possible, fair trade, environmentally friendly, organic materials.
Some simple thoughts on organizing:
- Since sewing has become a new obsession for me, I have taken outdated purses and filled them with supplies.
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Annabelle sits in her booster seat, smiles at her dad and me, raises her hands above her head until her fingers touch, and says, “T-wee!” My husband laughs but his eyes betray his curiosity. “What is she doing?” he asks me. “Yoga,” I tell him. “She’s showing you the “tree” pose.”
Our summer has not been slow, to say the least. Between making out-of-state visits with family, building our first vegetable garden, working on our house, and seeing friends, we are on the go 24/7. The result? A tired and frazzled family in serious need of a break, or for us–an activity that allows us to reconnect with our surroundings and each other.
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I must confess, I have never written a confession post. When I was invited to write for 5MFGG, I was eager to express more personal feelings about being green. As much as I love writing at teensygreen about eco-products, services, and activism that helps all of us, being eco is also simultaneously a deeply personal part of my life (as I know it’s probably yours if you’re reading this). That being said, I do have some ranting I’d like to “put out there” in a purely hypothetical, non-offensive manner.
My oldest daughter is turning six in October. I’m not ready to let go of birthday parties just yet, so we’re going to have a small gathering of some friends and family.
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When I had my son, four years ago I was far from green, but my husband was–kind of. He was the one that hassled me to recycle or to not go over board on purchasing and consumption. I was the wife that threw the soup can out verses cleaning it and recycling. Sorry, but I just wasn’t in to it and frankly, I didn’t get it. Now, I’ve got it. Funny thing is, it took having my second child for me to wrap my head around toxic chemicals and how bad they are and how I want to be more earth friendly.
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While I certainly know that we are all connected, sometimes I forget. Not today. I was shaken out of my complacency today. I usually think I’m doing my best to go green and save the world, making solid choices, trying to consume less, and teaching my children to do the same. But, sometimes some story or event comes along and smacks you in the face, jolting you so much that you have to go out and do something. And thus, an advocate is born. Or hatched. Or created.
A story this week on Yahoo! Games regarding The Playstation War shook me out of my complacent, I’m-mostly-doing-good-in-the-world, minivan mom bliss.
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There are times when I wish I had the knowledge I have now, back when I was starting my family. It seems that parents are so much more informed environmentally than they were even 13 years ago when I had my first child. There was no internet when I had my son. What I learned was from books I read or people I talked to. There was no emphasis on cloth diapers or BPA issues. It’s wonderful to see parents of young children and babies making the conscious effort to teach their kids from the start how to live “green”. These children will grow up understanding that our earth is precious and worth saving from the beginning.
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