It’s here and you can celebrate with me for three reasons. First, we get to save the planet today like Batman or Super Why. Second, there is still a ton of free stuff up for grabs over at Seattle Mom Blogs for anyone in the US to win. Third, today is the last day I’ll be talking about green things for a while. After today I will go back to blogging my kids’ vomit and my adventures in parking.
It seems like for every good thing I’m doing, there are ten more things I feel like I should be doing and then half the good things I’m doing turn out to be not as good as I thought they were. I think I’ve taught Laylee pretty well just to do her best and that her best is good enough for me. I guess my best should be good enough for me too. Here are a few things I’m focusing on this year.
1. Buying more whole foods and cooking from scratch, organic when the price is affordable. I can afford more organic if I plan carefully and don’t let produce rot as much. I frequently end up throwing away food because I over-buy or under-eat the good stuff. When I can’t buy organic (which is more than half the time), I wash produce carefully in diluted vinegar to remove surface pesticides and other contamination.
2. Buying more gifts from local artists and craftspeople instead of stockpiling sale gifts I may or may not WANT to give from my gift drawer when occasions arise.
3. Buying less of everything and being mindful of where things come from. I plan to do more with freecycle, eBay and Good Will this year and shop at one of the many antique stores in my area.
4. Figuring out what to do with my composter so I can build my very own useful landfill in the back yard for the benefit of my garden.
5. Growing a successful container garden that actually lives long enough to produce something edible.
6. Remembering my reusable grocery sacks at least half the time.
7. Turning off the water while I’m brushing my teeth.
8. Finding a way to wean off bleach by 2010.
9. Buying at least one fair trade item this year and research my favorite companies to see which of them have responsible business practices and treat their production employees well.
10. Walking to the library instead of driving. Teaching the kids to think it’s fun that we’re walking to the library instead of driving.
12. Turning the heater down 2 degrees next winter.
11. Buying thousands of hamsters to run in little wheels that will power my computer for blogging purposes.
If you’re interested in getting a free copy of Gorgeously Green (which I highly recommend), I now have 4 copies to give away at SMB.com. There are also gDiapers, Klutter Katchers, Belli Facial Care, and Method Baby products. Today’s the last day to put your name in the running.
