I heard about Thursday Thirteen from my friends Lee and Breana so here is my first installment.
Mamazen's 13 green habits
1. Recycling. Ryan used to work in the recycling industry, so we're pretty well versed in recycling.
2. Reducing. We only have our garbage picked up once a month. Shocking, I know! but we really don't produce much when we recycle so much.... and don't buy packaged stuff.
3. Cloth bags. We use cloth bags 99% of the time we are shopping. When we forget, or stop somewhere unexpectedly, we ask for paper whenever possible. We use canvas bags and cloth produce bags (for produce and for bulk items)
4. Cloth Diapers. Ruby has been in cloth diapers almost exclusively since birth. It's so much easier than anyone who hasn't tried it will tell you! We use a variety of things, and she's NEVER really had a rash (well she had one when she had hand foot and mouth, but that wasn't diaper related!). We wash them ourselves (in a HE washer/dryer) and hang them to dry often in the warmer months.
5. Cloth pads. Yes! i use cloth pad for my monthly cycle. I started using cloth right after I had ruby for post partum bleeding, and I never looked back. I hadn't used reuseable products in a long time, but using cloth is so comfortable, and I bleed less, and have less cramps. Ok, i never really had cramps before but still.
6. Reuse. We shop used whenever possible. Honestly I try to shop used before I shop new all the time, but sometimes, it doesn't work that way. I love thirft shopping, and so do many of my friends, it's fun that way, and you find a lot of fashion you wouldn't be willing to try if you didn't have other eyes looking!
7. Green Cleaning. We use non toxic cleaners exclusively in our home. There are so many enzyme based cleaners available (we use Life Tree and BioKleen) that we don't miss using the bleach and chemical based things of the old days. lol
8. Klean Kanteen. We use stainless steel water bottles instead of plastic. Water smells good, tastes good and they're cute! We've got multiple sizes, and even a sippy cup for ruby! She also has a Sigg bottle, that she loves too.
9. Ditching plastic. We are trying our best to reduce the amount of plastic that lives or passes through our home. We use glass for storing our left overs, and are trying to avoid buying new plastic toys or objects. It's not always possible, but we're trying!
10. Hybrid. We bought a used (yay!) 2002 Prius last year, and love it. It's cute, fun to drive and SO EFFICIENT!
11. More cloth! we use cloth napkins, cloth dish rags and cloth for cleaning. Like Lee it takes us a long time to go through a roll of paper towels.
12. Shopping locally. We avoid big box stores as much as possible. It's not hard, if you're willing (and able) to occasionally spend a little more at a small independently owned shop for the same things. As a small business owner, i love supporting others in the same boat. We shop at the farmers market in the summer, at our local grocer instead of the big box grocer and local shops as much as possible.
13. Fresh food! we try to avoid eating very much prepackaged processed food. less waste, less production, more yum!
So there it is... next week I'll give you my Un-Green Thirteen! It won't be pretty!
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