Mindful Momma

Practically Green Anniversary Bash! Day 5 - Green Yourself!

Can you believe it's Friday already?  And the last day of my virtual anniversary party. :(  I hate for it to end but if you're a regular Mindful Momma reader, you know that I host giveaways from time to time when I find a particularly cool new product that I just have to tell you about!  In fact, I've got a couple of good ones in the pipeline right now...

When I started this blog (way back in 2006!!), my goal was to try to make sense out of the confusing information about green and healthy living and to share what I learned with others.  Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that 4 years later, my blog would still be active and I would be a published author to boot!  The process of writing Practically Green was intense, fascinating, frustrating and rewarding all at once.  I'm incredibly thankful that I had the opportunity!  My wish for the book was that just about anyone could pick it up and find something inspiring and useful in it.  I hope I achieved that goal!

Although the book is meant for anyone, today's prize does have a certain appeal to the ladies.  Sorry guys - I didn't intend to leave you out but when LunaPads offered up a prize, I just couldn't resist!!  But before I tell you about the prize I have a funny story to tell.  Back in the late 1980's my crunchy, little sister gave me some reusable menstrual pads as a gift.  For some reason I just couldn't quite go there - so I used them to polish my shoes.  (They worked quite well for that purpose - I still have them - LOL!)

Nowadays I'm much more open-minded to reusables of all sorts - including pads.  And the way Lunapads does pads is much better than it used to be (no safety pins!)  Their 2 part system includes a pad base with wings that fastens underneath and a fleece liner insert to absorb the flow.  The designs are much cooler-looking too.  They come in a variety of colors and fabrics - in organic or regular cotton.  Are you intrigued??  

LunaPads is giving away a Pads & Pantyliners Intro Kit to one Mindful Momma reader!  It has everything you need to get started so you can ditch the disposables forever!  Just for kicks I'm adding a copy of my book Practically Green: Your Guide to Ecofriendly Decision-Making to the mix.  

If you'd like a chance to win, leave a comment on this post sharing a your favorite practically green tip of all!  Extra entries for subscribing to Mindful Momma (either by RSS feed or email) or following me on Twitter.  (please leave a separate comment for each thing you do - 3 entries max per person).  The giveaway will be open through midnight, Central time on Thursday, November 4th.  (US mailing addresses only)

Don't forget to enter my other Practically Green giveaways:

• Green Your Baby
• Green Your Lunch
• Green Your Shopping
• Green Your Kids

Good luck!!  And thanks for all those wonderful practically green tips you've been sharing!!

(Note: there are Amazon affiliate links in this post)

This contest is now closed.  The winner is Lisa @CondoBlues who has been trying unsuccessfully to make her own cloth pads....but now she won't have to!

Practically Green Anniversary Bash! Day 4 - Green Your Kids

Do you tell you kids to go green or do they remind you to do it? These days it could go either way. Recently my 10 year old son encouraged me to "buy local Mom" when we were at the grocery.  He also frequently reminds me to turn off the tap and turn out the lights.  I've trained him well!!

In my book, Practically Green, I talk about establishing eco-minded chores for kids.  Things like helping with the recycling, picking up trash and weeding the home garden all help teach good, green habits and appreciation for the world we live in.

In celebration of green kids I've got a fun, eco-friendly kids prize package to raffle off.  Here's what it includes:

• A Global Green Pals Cloth Doll - These award-winning, educational dolls are made with Oeko-Tex 100 certified organic cotton and stuffed with 100% post consumer recycled PET plastic bottles.  The hardest part will be choosing which pal you want:  Recycle Kyle, Clean Air Kate, Carbon Offset Chet, Pink Coral Laurel or Pani Rani.
• A Hopscotch Kids Nailpolish set - Non-toxic, water-based nail polish made especially for kids!  The set includes an Eenie, Meenie, Miney, Moe green nail polish, a bottle of nail polish remover and a nail buffer.
• A copy of the book The New 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do To Save The Earth - This revised version of the best-selling book by The Earthworks Group is full of experiments, facts and fun things to do at home with the kids.

If you'd like a chance to win, leave a comment on this post sharing a practically green tip for getting kids to go green.  Extra entries for subscribing to Mindful Momma (either by RSS feed or email) or following me on Twitter.  (please leave a separate comment for each thing you do - 3 entries max per person).  The giveaway will be open through midnight, Central time on Wednesday, November 3rd.  (US mailing addresses only)

(Note: there are Amazon affiliate links in this post)

This contest is now closed.  The winner is Catherine whose 4 year old son helps her recycle #5 plastics at Whole Foods!  Congrats!!

Practically Green Anniversary Bash! Day 3 - Green Your Shopping

How to green your shopping.  Is that some kind of a joke?  (along the lines of how to train your dragon?) Wouldn't it be better if we just gave up shopping altogether???  Hmmmmm....well, barring that extreme solution, there are certainly some things you can do to make your shopping excursions a bit easier on the earth. 

First of all you can aim to buy less. My Less is More shopping mantra keeps me on task whether I'm window-shopping or looking for essentials.  Read the post for the whole scoop but basically it's all about buying only what you need, focusing on quality vs. quantity and reusing as much as possible.  Nope - buying green isn't just an excuse to shop for more stuff.

And when you do need to shop, choosing to use reusable shopping bags may seem like a small thing to do....but small adds up to big over time. Consider these statistics from reuseit.com:

• About 1 million plastic bags are used every minute.
• 500 billion to 1 trillion plastic bags are used in a year.
• A single plastic bag takes up to 1000 years to degrade.

Last week I wrote a review of a cool, new reusable bag system from Esse and I've had a lot of great feedback about it.  People agreed that it would be nice to have something more durable than those freebie reusable bags that begin to fall apart with heavy use.  Well, this week I've got one to give away!!  One Mindful Momma reader will win an Esse 3 pocket Carryall Tote (in black with the Esse leaf -as shown).  It comes complete with 3 durable grocery bags, 2 produce bags and an everyday bag.  Basically, it rocks!

To go along with the bags, I'm including a copy of my book, Practically Green: Your Guide to Ecofriendly Decision-Making.  Read it for even more green shopping tips, including copy & clip guides you can take with you to the store.  Plus lots of fun DIY projects & ideas, like how to make your own cleaning products, beauty products and crafts out of repurposed materials.

For a chance to win, please leave a comment on this post sharing a practically green tip for shopping with the environment in mind.  Extra entries for subscribing to Mindful Momma (either by RSS feed or email) or following me on Twitter.  (please leave a separate comment for each thing you do - 3 entries max per person).  The giveaway will be open through midnight, Central time on Tuesday, November 2nd.  (US mailing addresses only)

And come back tomorrow to talk about how to green your kids! 

(Note: there is an Amazon affilate link in this post)

This contest is now closed.  The winner was Beth C who said "I have tried to find things that can be re-purposed rather than rushing out to buy new all the time."  Enjoy!

Practically Green Anniversary Bash! Day 2 - Green Your Lunch

Welcome back to the party!  Are you ready to talk lunch?  Today's Practically Green giveaway is all about lunch...a green & healthy lunch, that is!! 

Whether you are packing a lunch for yourself or your school-age child, the eco-friendly thing to do is to limit disposables as much as possible.  Investing in durable, reusable lunch products (like bags, containers, bottles etc..) is a good first step.  Limiting individually packaged foods like lunchable-type meals, applesauce cups and bagged snacks is another. 

Ditching processed, packaged food means a healthier lunch too.  Just try to carve out 5 extra minutes in the morning (or the night before) to pack a real, homemade lunch - I'm sure you'll find it worth your while!!  Here are a few ideas from my book to get you started (as well a link to one of my popular healthy lunch posts):

Soon, one lucky Mindful Momma reader will find lunch-packing time a little more fun....that's because someone is going to win a Bento Laptop Lunch Kit, courtesy of Alicia from The Soft Landing!! In case you didn't already know, Laptop Lunch Kits are like the Cadillac of lunch sets.  Everything you need for a waste-free lunch is all packaged up in a handy-dandy carrying case.  Well maybe not everything - I noticed that the set does not include napkins.  So I'll remedy that by offering a set of 4 handmade cloth napkins to supplement the prize.  I made these napkins as examples for my book, Practically Green. (the book has directions for how to make your own napkins - it's super easy!)

Leave a comment on this post sharing a practically green tip for packing a green & healthy lunch and you'll be entered for a chance to win!  Extra entries for subscribing to Mindful Momma (either by RSS feed or email) or following me on Twitter.  (please leave a separate comment for each thing you do - 3 entries max per person).  And while you're thinking about it, be sure to visit The Soft Landing for some great lunch packing gear for both adults and kids.  They offer free shipping on orders over $49 or a flat rate of $5.95 per order.   The giveaway will be open through midnight, Central time on Monday, November 1st.  (US mailing addresses only)  

Come back tomorrow to talk about how to Green Your Shopping!  And don't forget to enter the Green Your Baby contest as well!

(Disclosure:  there are affiliate links for Amazon and The Soft Landing in this post)

This contest is now closed.  The winner was Lisa G who said "We avoid prepackaged foods and instead always pack homemade items so we don't use lots of extra plastic."  Enjoy your new Laptop Lunch Kit and napkins, Lisa!

 

Practically Green Anniversary Bash! Day 1 - Green Your Baby

Whoa Nellie!  It's been a year since my book Practically Green: Your Guide to Ecofriendly Decision-Making made it's earthly debut!!  I'm finding that darn hard to believe.  And worthy of a celebration!!

I'm still so very grateful that I had the chance to write the book (thanks to Jessica Gordon & Andrea Somberg who "discovered" me via this blog!) and to everyone who helped and put up with me along the way - especially my husband John. :)  It's been an action-packed year with many fun events, TV and radio appearances and lots of generous reviews.  Special thanks to all my blogging friends who reviewed the book - you know who you are!!

In celebration of this nice little milestone, I've got a bunch of eco-friendly goodies to give away!! It looks like it will take me 5 days to get through them all - so come back each day next week to see what's on the docket and try your hand at winning.  Each giveaway will run for 1 week and I'll use a random number generator to pick the winners at the end of the contest period.

Today's prizes are all about baby.  If you have kids then you know how it hits you the minute you become pregnant....that you would do anything and everything to keep your baby safe...plus the world they live in.  So if you are expecting or know someone who is, this one's for you! 

Green Baby Package #1

•  An organic cotton receiving blanket (pink mod circles) from Swaddle Designs.  Bundle up your baby in this 42 inch square blanket complete with swaddling instructions.  Made from GOTS certified organic cotton. 
• A set of two 5-oz baby bottles from thinkbaby.  Thinkbaby products are free of BPA, phthalates and PVC and are recommended by Healthy Child Healthy World as a safe and healthy choice for baby.
• A copy of the book Raising Baby Green by Dr. Alan Greene.  Renowned pediatrician Alan Greene gives sage advice on the greenest, healthiest choices for pregnancy, childbirth and baby care.
  
•  A 4-pack of stylish, eco-friendly corner protectors from Rhoost.  Who would have thought corner protectors could be stylish?  These plum-colored protectors are BPA, lead and phthalate-free and don't look ridiculous on your table!

 

Green Baby Package #2

• A sleepy hat and a Natursutten pacifier from Zoe b Organic.  The dual-purpose hat blocks light while baby is asleep and is made from 100% organic cotton.  The classic, BPA-free pacifier is made from 100% natural, sustainable rubber.
• A copy of Itsabelly's Guide to Going Green with Baby book.  Written by Melissa Moog (the founder of Itsabelly Baby Planners and Jennifer Lo Prete, this book has over 300 product reviews and tons of good advice for living green with baby.
• A 9-oz baby bottle and a 9-oz trainer cup from thinkbaby.  The trainer cup has easy to grip handles and an extra soft spout for an easy transition to "big kid" drinking.
•  A copy of Organically Raised - Conscious Cooking for Babies and Toddlers by Anni Daulter. (I'm passing along my review copy of this book and believe me there are some good looking recipes in this book!)

Enter to win by leaving a comment on this post sharing a practically green tip for pregnancy or raising baby.  Extra entries for subscribing to Mindful Momma (either by RSS feed or email) or following me on Twitter.  (please leave a separate comment for each thing you do - 3 entries max per person).  I will be picking 2 winners - one for each of the two packages.  The giveaway will be open through midnight, Central time on Sunday, October 31st.  (US mailing addresses only)

Good luck!

(Disclosure:  there are Amazon affiliate links in this post.)

The contest is now closed.  Sara S-V and Steph C were the winners of Green Baby packages #1 and #2 respectively. 

 

 

Reusable Grocery Bags - From Mess to Magnificent

So you're into using reusable bags when you shop for groceries.  Which would you rather have:  a pile of those cheap bags that often come free with purchase laying in a jumble in the back of your car?

 

 

Or a nice-looking, highly organized carryall tote, holding everything you need?

 

Esse Reusable Bags makes this slick bag system that holds everything you need for a shopping excursion.  It's cute.  It's strong.  It's easy to carry.  And it looks good in the back of your car.  What more do you want?

Here's what a Carryall Tote includes:

The grocery bags are made from 42% recycled PET plastic bottles and are much more durable than those freebies shown above.  They fold up neatly into an 8 inch square and close with a snap.  The produce bags are a lightweight, nylon mesh with a drawstring closure.   The everyday bag is washable, Renewtex material made from plastic bottles.  It folds up tiny and is secured with an elastic band.  All the parts are easy to fold back into the tote.  The basic 3-pocket carryall tote comes in black, but if black is not your thing, then choose from a whole slew of cool prints and patterns in the 5-pocket tote! (it has extra pockets for coupons etc..)

Can you tell I'm smitten with it?  The Minneapolis-based company sent me a carryall tote to try out for size.  It fits well and I've been proudly toting it all over town!  Even my husband thinks it's pretty cool.

Now I will say this:  I'm not one to tell people to buy a pretty new product just for the sake of "going green".  If you've got other reusable bags that are working for you, by all means keep using them.  I've used my cheapo bags (the ones in the top photo) so much that they are falling apart.  (But I'm still using them to pick up my CSA produce every week - so they aren't in the landfill yet!)

I think an Esse Carryall Tote would make a rockin' gift for someone in your life who might need a little encouragement to commit to the reusable bag thing.  Or for someone who's been doing it for years and  deserves a little upgrade over what they've been using.  Now's the time to buy because Esse is offering a discount for Mindful Momma readers!  Use the code INTRO25 to get 25% off at checkout!  That's a savings of over 9 bucks on the 3-pocket Carryall Tote!! (discount code good through Nov. 15th, 2010)

Plus - come back next week for my big Practically Green Anniversary Bash!  I'll be giving away an Esse Carryall Tote plus a bunch of other great, green prizes!!

(Full disclosure:  Esse Reusable Bags provided me with a free Carryall Tote for review.  The opinions of the product are my own.)

Walking for Water

When you turned on the tap today to get a drink of water, did you think twice about it?  I know I usually don't.  It's easy to think that water is abundant and everlasting because of the ease in which it flows from our taps. Truth is, only about 1% of our Earth's water is drinkable and almost a billion people on this planet are without access to clean, safe drinking water.  Even worse, every week almost 38,000 children under 5 die from unsafe drinking water and unhygienic living conditions. When I mentioned that fact to my 10-year old he thought I was joking for sure.

Then I told him that in Africa and other developing countries, it's often the children who have to take on the task of getting water for their families.  They walk for many miles and long hours to find the nearest water source, carrying water jugs that can weigh as much as 40 pounds when full.  Ironically, while we try to think of ways to get our kids biking or walking to school, children in developing countries are walking to get water instead of going to school.  Walking for water also puts children at risk for harassment, sexual assault and physical ailments. And we worry about letting our kids walk home from the bus stop!

Sometimes it takes researching a topic to really open my eyes to the enormity of it.  When I think about the issue of water, I tend to focus on the little things that a family can do to conserve water in the home - things like turning off the tap when you brush your teeth, using a rain barrel to capture rain water for your garden, investing in a low-flow toilet or taking a shorter shower.  These are all valid and important things to do but it's hard not to feel like it's a (pardon the pun) drop in the bucket next to the humongous task of bringing clean, safe water to all people in the world.

 

 

What else can you do to help?  Consider making a donation to an organization that funds safe water projects.  One that builds wells and works with the native people to develop sanitation solutions that work. Fixing the water problem is an integral part of breaking the cycle of poverty in developing countries. Here are a few worthy nonprofit organizations to choose from:

Water.org

The Water Project  (specifically their Wells for Schools program)

Charity: Water

Unicef

Why am I writing about water today?  October 15th is Blog Action Day - an annual event that "unites the world’s bloggers in posting about the same issue on the same day with the aim of sparking a global discussion and driving collective action".  Change.org, the group leading the event, got it's readers to vote on a topic for this year's event.  The issue of clean water was chosen because it "rarely gets the attention it deserves".  Please help the effort by tweeting and talking (oh yes - talking in real life still counts!) about it as much as you can.  This is much more than a one day effort!

(Note:  This is a sponsored post written on behalf of BlogHer to support Blog Action Day.)

{Photo credits:  water.org}

8 Ways to Reduce Waste at Home

Here's a question for you to ponder today: 

How low can you go? 

No, I'm not talking about doing the limbo, I'm talking about garbage here folks!  How low can you get your garbage output to go?  A really obvious way to see the results of your green efforts is to pay attention to the amount of garbage you kick to the curb each week.  Depending on where you live, you might be able to switch to a smaller garbage can or even go down to one garbage pickup a month.  If you pull that off, you'll not only be going green, you'll be saving green!  Even if you don't change your pick-up service, you'll probably save money by trying some of these low-waste ideas:

Buy Reusable, Not Disposable - Invest in durable, reusable products instead of wasteful disposables.

• Microfiber or cotton cloths instead of paper towels and disposable wipes.
• Rechargeable batteries instead of traditional.
• Reusable tableware and utensils instead of the throw-away type.
• A glass straw instead of one-use plastic straw.

Buy Products with Less Packaging - Reduce the amount of packaging waste you throw out by simply not bringing it home in the first place.

• Forget all those mini packages of snacks you see at the store.  Buy a big box or bag and send it to school in reusable snack bags.
• Purchase meat wrapped in butcher paper instead of packed on un-recyclable styrofoam trays.
• Avoid food sold in big plastic clam-shells.  There is usually an alternative way to buy the same product with less packaging.
• Look for concentrated versions of cleaning products that come in smaller bottles.
• Buy food in bulk to reduce packaging waste.

Refill It!! - Fill up an old container instead of buying a new one.

• Bring jars or bags from home to fill with nuts, seeds, beans, flour, granola and more from the bulk bins.
• Pay a deposit on a glass milk jug and bring it back to be refilled when you are finished.
• Purchase cleaning products that offer refill packets (like Green Irene or Simply Neutral)
• Look for refillable beauty products like shampoo, lotion or liquid soap at your local co-op or health food store.
• Refill printer cartridges instead of buying new.

Repurpose - Use something you already have instead of buying something new for the job.

• Old t-shirts and towels become absorbent rags.
• Plastic yogurt tubs are great for holding crayons, paintbrushes, nails etc...
• Keep shoe boxes for storing old papers or favorite mementos.
• Egg cartons are perfect for separating craft supplies.

Compost Food Waste - Turn food scraps into valuable dirt for your garden!

• Start small with a kitchen composter.
• Find an outdoor space for a compost bin or tumbler.
• Let worms do the work!
• Read my post on composting for more info!

Recycle Everything You Can - Go beyond curbside recycling and commit to recycling as much as you can.

• Office supply stores often take printer cartridges and old cell phones.
• Turn in old sports shoes to participating REI and Nike stores
• Fundraising programs like Terracycle.net take used drink pouches, yogurt cups and snack packages and turn them into useful household products.
• Bring dry cleaning bags & hangers back to the dry cleaner.
• Donate old pillows and blankets to the Humane Society.

Be Prepared - Keep reusable items in strategic places to keep you from wasting even more.

• Take a reusable water bottle with you everywhere you go!
• Carry a compact shopping bag in your purse or briefcase.
• Keep reusable grocery bags in your car (no excuse for forgetting them at home!)
• Store reusable utensils and a cloth napkin at your desk or in your car.
• Keep empty food storage containers with you for when the take-out bug strikes.

Be Selective - Don't take it if you don't need it!

• Pass on freebies that you really won't use.
• Think twice before you buy.
• Don't buy it just because it's cheap!

What other ideas do you have for reducing your waste at home?  

Note:  Many of these ideas are expounded upon in my book Practically Green: Your Guide to Ecofriendly Decision-Making.  Pick up a copy for yourself to learn more!

(Full disclosure:  there are affliate links in this post.)

 

Refashion Inspiration

I've got skeletons in my closet.  Of the clothing variety.  Skirts that don't quite fit right.  Shirts that are boring beyond belief.  Sweaters that I wish I'd never bought. Lots of things that would look much better IF....

Now I'm looking at my closet in a whole new light.  I've been inspired by Melissa of one little minute and her Project Repurpose series. She went through her own closet and turned old, damaged, ill-fitting and uninspiring items of clothing into some of the coolest refashions I've seen!!

This hand-me-down blouse was too baggy so she made it fitted and added ruffles for flair:

 

This long red skirt got attacked by an iron so she remade it into a shorter version with the ruffles in a completely different spot:
 


This way-too-big halter top became an adorable, fitted shirt:

Another skeleton of mine - the half-finished refashion project sitting in my basement.  I'm hoping this inspires me enough to get out my sewing machine and finish it up. 

Do you have skeleton clothing in your closet?  Any ideas for what to do with it?

Two Dips and a Keeper Casserole

We've been going to a lot of potlucks lately.  I love potlucks 'cause I get to eat so many different things and try other people's favorite recipes.  Lately, I've been trying to bring healthy food to share because there always seems to be plenty of desserts and snacky things like chips & salsa at a potluck.  Have you noticed?

These two dips were super delish.  The green one is Todd's Minty Pea Dip.  There's a funny story behind this dip.  I was reading the recipe on Dinner: A Love Story and suddenly I realized that I actually know Todd, the guy who made the dip!!  Long story but he's married to a very good family friend. I tell ya - this world gets smaller every day.  What I love about this dip is that no one can guess what's in it.  No one expects a dip to be made with green peas.

The reddish dip is an olive and sun-dried tomato tapenade from The Homesteader's Kitchen.  It's a classic tapenade - full of flavor and healthy goodness.  Great on crackers or crusty bread.

Last night I took this vegetable gratin to a potluck at my boys' school.  Wow - was it good - a total keeper!!  The recipe came from someone at my CSA and I adapted it a bit to what I had in stock.  I used butternut squash from the CSA  box and a bunch of mixed dark greens for cooking from Trader Joe's.  I also increased the amount of topping.  You can never have enough topping!

Squash & Greens Gratin

4-5 cups winter squash, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch chunks (I used butternut)

4 cups greens, chopped (mustard, collard or turnip greens, kale, Swiss chard)

1 leek, halved and cut into chunks

2 large onions, cut into large chunks

5-6 small to medium cloves garlic, left whole

9 T olive oil

2 T chopped rosemary

salt and pepper to taste

1/4 cup white wine or chicken stock (I used wine because I had a bottle open)

1/2 cup Parmesan cheese

1 cup bread crumbs

Preheat oven to 375.  Butter or spray a large roasting pan or casserole dish.

Place squash, greens, leek, onions and garlic into roasting pan.  Toss with 6 T olive oil, rosemary and salt & pepper.  Pour in the wine or chicken stock. Roast 30-40 minutes.

Meanwhile, mix Parmesan cheese, breadcrumbs and 3 T olive oil together in a small bowl.  Sprinkle mixture over the vegetables and continue roasting for another 20-25 minutes - until the vegetables are soft.  Enjoy!!

{Disclosure:  There is an affiliate link in this post from which I may recieve a small commission.}