It's been a great morning here. Diva and Little Man have been good children according to Santa and the elves :-) In comparison to last year's un-green bounty, this year Santa has brought an array of envioronmentally sound toys and gifts. Organic clothing, Wooden toys, paint made with flower petals and essences. We have made a great start. I can't wait to see what next Christmas brings!
PS. Here's a little tidbit on weather our Christmas Tree tradition is eco-friendly.
Last week's grocery list included an upgrade on my cleaning pals. After a week, i'd like to report that i LOVE the ECOS laundry detergent, and after spending an obscene amount of time perusing the isle for liquid dishwasher fluid; i found a powder by Seventh Generation. I have been using the dishwasher less; having cut down from 2x a day to 1x every other day. The dish washer soap works very well, no spots - squeaky clean. 
One of eight tiny garlic bulbs under the withered post-harvested sprouts. The utter glee which overtook me when i saw this little guy took me quite by surprise! Is it so cute, or what? I've fallen very deeply in love with my medicinal herb plants. So far, all that was needed to get to this point has been a sprouted garlic bulb from Whole Foods, a planter, encouragement, a kitchen windowsill, soil, water, "conversations", sunlight, harvested sprouts, and a little apprehension (see pic of the week)..... And now....GLEE!
I ventured away from Whole Foods grocery shopping to attempt to save gasoline and went to a local supermarket that carries a limited selection of organic and green products and found these towels! I have made a switch to buying 100% recycled paper towels, but i feel i could still do better. Made from bamboo and corn viscose, i thought i'd try these as an alternative to the paper towels. They are wonderful. I used and reused them, and they have retained their integrity. I have yet to toss them into the laundry. The best part is that they are biodegradable ! I can toss them into my future compost bin :-) I will see how long my first two towels, shown above, will last; i will keep you posted. I took the liberty of looking up whether viscose was safe. I will try to find a Litrax paper towel alternative as from my preliminary research it looks like the processing used for Litrax bamboo linens seems to be 100% natural .
WOAH! These grew at least half an inch since i planted them some days ago. This is definately a motivation booster for the green life...and so easy...and so elegently economic :-)
Pumpkin and Corn have teamed up in a brilliant display of cleverness: the adorable Mini-Muffin. This clever costume has my vote for 1st place. Made from all organic ingredients, in under 25 minutes, not so bad for you (my own puree and maple syrup substituted) and deliciously freezable; my kids have enjoyed taking their veggies and i have enjoyed the $$$ savings. Organically Green Muffins on the Cheap for all!
Getting back in gear on the recycling front. Our bins were overflowing. It is so hard to keep track of all the boxes, plastic, paper, etc. that one uses in a busy household. Would we be better off if we found a way not to buy so much of those pre-packaged items? It's almost like...we are creating extra work. I've heard that recycling plants use up a good amount of resources in order to run. What if we rethought how we lived so that we didn't need them anymore?
k under the Project of the Day feature.
Firstly, forgive the didactic nature of this post - I'm in the throws of completing my requirments for upkeep of my licensure as a mental health clinician so i'm in that "mode". Part of this work is reading and being tested on updated research in the field. I read something on sleep improvement that dovetailed so nicely with saving energy and maximining energy that it blew my mind. I had never heard of the circadian rythm and how 30-45 minutes of natural morning daylight regulates your night time sleep cycle. Amazing. I also learned that you should avoid "blue" light that comes from TV and computers at night. That you should do the best you can to not use artificial lights once night falls and engage in quiet activities like reading so that your body can achieve regulation of chemicals that induce a good night's rest. Everyone knows that a good night's rest = more energy. SO! if i am spending more time outdoors in the morning soaking up the sun's energy and charging my own battery, thus spending less energy on electricity at home, as well as less at night to light up my home, then i will save energy, money and actually BOOST my own energy by giving myself a better chance at better quality sleep. What a great motivation to get out the candles and read a good book with the family after dinner. Goodness all around.
GERBERA - $6.99
PEACE LILY $6.99
Chrysanthemum (seen in middle - those other red orchids are my silk flowers) - $2.49Amazing Discovery on my quest for indoor plants!!! Harmful chemicals such as formaldehyde and Benzene are significantly reduced in the air by indoor plants. An introduction to the heroes: Peace Lily, Chinese Evergreen, Bamboo Palm, English Ivy, Gerbera Daisy, Janet Craig, Marginata, mass ane/Corn plant, Mother in Law's Tounge, Pot Mum,Warneckii. My favorites for plants that go with any type of home decor are the Peace Lily, Gerbera Daisy, and Warneckii.
My tablecloth is coming along. I'm handsewing because i don't trust sewing machines. I couldn't wait till it was finished so i put it on the kitchen table last night and it looked so beautiful i had to share. We were going to repaint our kitchen walls but the fabric does such a nice job pulling the whole kitchen together that it's not even necessary anymore. Some money on paint, paint supplies saved, not to mention time saved as well. Sewing is a good thing :-)
Rich in vitamin C. Great for an immune boosting tea for the flu season. And it's in my backyard! I have used the following rosehip tea recipe to effectively reduce the duration of a cold. It works!
Spent many days on vacation contemplating the grandeur and simultaneously relative smallness of "us". The blue planet. glowing blue in a sea of so many other unsustainable planets...perhaps planets that once were blue like ours, but not anymore. questions flowed in and out about the existence of a creator, other intelligent life, etc. Star gazing at night at the edge of the vast ocean. what if....what if this is all we've got and that's that? what if...THIS. THIS is the "heaven". THIS is the gift. THIS - a temporary holding ground for our relatively short existence? Well, then. I'm sold that my job here is to feel, be, live, and generate it's magic, weather it be energy that can be quantified, or cosmic energy that is unexplainable. My job is to give, create, and sustain - this lovely blue living jewel that gave, created, and sustained me.
This is the perfect activity to get all my goals met in one sitting....baking bread. Organic, Whole Grain, Cheap, Green. Not to mention it serves as a great sensory as well as scientific activity for the kids ("wow Mommy, it's growing!") great family time, encompassing all my love. A truly spiritual activity that will serve to ground me throughout this 365 day adventure.
I took this picture from a website i was looking at this morning while researching the ABC's of composting. I love this bin. I think it's pretty. I never would have thought,as a NYC native, having lived in a few cities in my short life, that i would feel a box full of dirt was charming....but it is. This is the one i want to build. The best place to put one is near a water source, in a place that has half-day's sunlight, away from the house. Hmm...another challenge...nevermind the one that comes with trying to convince the Hubs that this will be satisfying work!
I know that the path to better more responsible living is lit up and i can see pretty clearly where to step. Convenience - this crazy running jaguar that just keeps running. Hard to resist hitching a ride on this wonderful and dangerous creature. I have finally run out of those paper towels and i will be using old washcloths, the kids' old hospital blankets, and some cut up t-shirts to nurse my house back to health today.
