Yesterday's Visitors ♥

Wish they could be here 24/7, but they sure did brighten my day.

Adjusting My Standards (from my hospital bed)

As I plan and research the changes we will be making when I get home in order to live a more environmentally sound, sustainable life, I am realizing and trying to get passed the hurdle a lot of people may face when choosing between eco-friendly or eco-harmful paths in their lives: self-entitlement.  We're conditioned, from a young age, to want.  We want more stuff, bigger stuff, newer stuff, better stuff.  And we often measure one's success based on the physical stuff he or she has acquired.  I'm not saying that having this sense of entitlement is always a bad thing.  I want certain things and believe I deserve them.  For me, being on my "gettin' greener" journey, it's a matter of adjusting these desires and recognizing what will really bring happiness... and maybe getting passed other's expectations of what would make me a "success."

Living Without Excess

Maybe we'll live here?

I don't look at these adjustments as making sacrifices, but as doing what is right for me, my family, and the future.  We don't need a McMansion.  Honestly, I don't even want a single-family home.  I know: crazy.  What about the American dream?  the white picket fence?  It's okay, that's not my dream.  I do want us to own a home, but for financial security (we rent right now).  A town-home with a decent sized yard (or maybe even a nearby park) will be far more energy-, cost- and space-efficient.  We don't need a giant SUV.  Okay, to be honest, we own a crossover that's not super efficient.  We were thinking about convenience, not the planet.  And filling the gas tank makes us cringe every time.  But our next car purchase will be based on fuel-efficiency, what we can afford and what will accommodate our family of soon-to-be four.  I'm a big fan of The Daily Green.  They offer great reviews on eco-friendly products and tons of articles on living and green.  Their article The Most Fuel Efficient Cars of 2011 was concise and to the point, but provided a lot of the info we'd need to jump-start a "new" car search (I'll always go with pre-owned).

I worked for a high-end clothing company a few years back.  As much as I love fashion, I know it's a complete racket and between manufacturing, shipping and packaging, it is so wasteful.  The industry creates a hierarchy of labels and changes trends every season to push consumerism, and we, especially women, totally buy into it (quite literally).  I bought into it for a good chunk of years and sometimes still do.  Even on my thrifting adventures when I score a designer item for a fraction of the price it retailed at, I have to ask myself:  Am I thrilled with the find because I love it or because of the label inside?  Usually, it's a combo of both.  I will always enjoy fashion and its history, but I am not a slave to the trends and I will always opt for second-hand.  Then there's the cosmetic industry.  This could be saved for a whole other post on it's own.  It suffices to say that cosmetics, for the most part, are wasteful, are creating unrealistic aesthetic expectations (again, geared toward women), and are packed full of questionable ingredients.  However, I still use some cosmetic products, but I am keeping it to a minimum and questioning the often extensive lists of ingredients.  My go-to site for this is EWG's Skin Deep Cosmetics Database.

Convenience

Something else we humans keep expecting evolution to bring us are ways to make our lives easier and ways to save time.  In our ever-increasingly fast-paced world we are always looking for ways to improve our quality of life, whether it be through technological gadgets, disposable items, processed food, or sometimes just by simply taking the easy road.  Often, the easiest options aren't the greenest.  So I am questioning all these little "conveniences" and how inconvenient they are in the long run.  How often could I walk somewhere instead of driving?  How many of our disposable products could we stop using and replace with reusable alternatives?  How much is getting chucked in the trash that could be recycled or re-purposed instead?  By asking myself questions like these I'll be able to make choices that will save money, energy and landfill space.

Baby-steps (photo courtesy of Sustainable Baby Steps)

I know executing a lot of this will be easier said than done, at least if I try doing it all at once.  My plan is to continue to question the main-stream standards of living in search of greener solutions.  Every time I see a change that can be made in my home, and even within my community, I'll write it down.  Each week I'll pick something from my list and determine how we can change or improve our current methods.  Some steps will be easy, some will take a lot of tweaking, but each will help us work toward a healthier, more sustainable lifestyle and future.  A site that has been a huge source of inspiration is Sustainable Baby Steps.  They outline the whole "going green" process in steps and explain why these steps are necessary when considering our health and the environment, helping me (and anyone that's interested) to maintain a clear and purposeful path.

This week's task: To stop receiving junkmail and to make sure all my bills are paperless.  For junkmail, I am going to the DMAchoice.org where I can select what I do or do not want to receive.  And to stop bills from coming in the mail, I simply go to my accounts online and there's usually an option for paperless billing.  I'm working on a list of other ways I can get green while on bed-rest... I'm going to have to get creative here.

The Plastic Debate

There have been many conflicting studies and opinions as to whether or not plastics leach dangerous chemicals. The bottom line for me is that plenty of these studies have linked over-exposure to plastic to an array of health issues and hormonal imbalances. And then there's just this gut feeling I have that something's not quite right about completely surrounding ourselves with this handy, oh-so-versatile super-material... especially when it comes to food storage. Maybe it's the fact that there often seems to be some sort of unnatural exchange going on between food and the plastic containers in which it is stored. You know how your water sometimes tastes a little funny when it's been sitting in a certain plastic container? or how a plastic storage container seems to retain the smell and sometimes stains of the food it was holding? That freaks me out. So, I'm on a mission to destroy all plastic. Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating... a little. But I am working on transitioning my family away from plastic food-ware and into a much safer, cleaner, more sustainable and more attractive alternative: glass. Here are some solutions we're already implementing:

Recycling Mason Jars (photo courtesy of A Realistic Wedding)

This is a super easy, ecological and cheap solution. I save glass jars from tomato sauce, salsa, jelly, etc. to store food and herbs (or anything really) or re-purpose as drinking glasses, vases, or candle holders. Also, you can find new lids and jar sets online or at most department stores. I love the look of mason jars, they come in a variety of sizes and they're a quick, easy, pretty sturdy alternative to plastic storage.

Baby and Kid-friendly Options (photos courtesy of Lifefactory)

The best glass baby bottle I have come across has to be the Wee Go bottle from Lifefactory. They're strong and from my experience very shock resistant; we haven't broken one. They come in a cute silicone sleeve, available in 8 fun colors, and are safe t0 go in the freezer, dishwasher, or boiling water. You don't even have to take the sleeve off... easy-peasy!

And Lifefactory just came out with the best feature: the sippy cap converter set. These little guys quickly and easily convert the baby bottles into sippy cups. Yes, the cap itself is plastic, but finding a sippy cup with no plastic was impossible and the exposure here is minimal. My only gripe is that the cap and valve are a little temperamental. Screw it on too tight and there's no flow; too loose and you may have a leak. Otherwise, it's a great product. It keeps things simple and cuts down on waste since we're using the bottles we already had on hand. (Sidenote: I have a Mommy-size Lifefactory bottle, which I love, and when I'm chugging water out of mine it encourages my 2-year-old to do the same... keeping her hydrated and keeping Mama happy.)

For Everyone (photos courtesy of Duralex and Kinetic)

When it comes to dishes these are great for everyone in the house. Duralex, which has been around forever, makes an assortment of tempered glass dishes and containers that are extremely durable, stackable, and microwave-, freezer-, and dishwasher-safe. They're also pretty affordable and far more attractive than cheap, plastic kid-ware or storage containers. Because glass is non-porous you don't have to deal with any residual smells or stains.

Another brand I like, which has been great for food storage, is Kinetic. They make tempered glass storage containers with air and water tight silicone lids. You can safely take them freezer to microwave and they're top-rack dishwasher-safe. Bonus: I've been able to find them at Marshall's on more than one occasion, saving a few bucks off retail.

Gettin' Greener

So, this is week 6 of being on bed-rest during my second pregnancy. It's given me lots of time to reevaluate my family's lifestyle, mainly when it comes to environmental decisions... both what we're being exposed to and what kind of mess we're leaving in our tracks. I've been a pseudo-environmentalist for some time, dipping my feet in the water, but never fully taking the plunge. When I had my first daughter two years ago I committed to nursing, feeding her an organic diet, cutting out harsh cleaning products in our home. We recycle, I buy second-hand whenever possible and we're slowly moving toward a greener existence. But it's a constant back-and-forth. I commit to being green and then get lax. I buy a week's worth of organic groceries and then give into my husband's desire to order out when I tell him he's in charge of dinner (I know... so wasteful). All too often, it's one step forward, two steps back. I need to commit for good. So here I am, announcing to the world (via this blog) that I am taking the plunge. Here, I will chronicle my green journey by sharing the steps we've already taken, the plans I'm making while confined to bed, and eventually how those plans work out when I get home with a newborn, a toddler, and a, um... environmentally indifferent husband (I'll go into more detail about that later).