I was just wondering how green everybody is? I'm extremely passionate about the environment, but don't really know what more I could be doing. I do buy local produce when possible, use green light bulbs, recycle, buy green cleaning products, and have given up bottled water (we use a britta pitcher now), etc... What about you guys? How concerned are you? And what do you do about it?

I love that everybody is going green!! Yippee!! We have started using the spiral light blulbs, we recycle, and buy organics when we can afford it. Actually, I just found a store called Sprouts that appears to only be in a few states but they have lots and lots of organics and you don't have to sell one of your kids or spouse (whichever is being more aggravating at the time) to pay for it. We also get the younger kids involved by reminding them to turn off lights and t.v.s when they leave a room. My step-daughter has stopped eating meat which I support but no one else in my casa is down with all that. We're still figuring it out, but we're off to a good start.

We've switched over to fluorescent bulbs in all the lights that we use most, use programmable thermostats and set them to only 67 or 68 degrees when we're using the spaces, and 64 or so when we're not. I buy organic whenever I can, and my husband gardens, so I can and jam and pickle and freeze a lot of our own fruits and veggies. I make most of our food from scratch.

We have a long way to go, though, before I think we're anything more than a light-green family! We use disposable diapers, disposable wipes. I use plastic containers in the freezer and for leftovers. I tried to use all green cleaning products, but wasn't happy with some of the results, so I use mainstream products for some things. There's so much room for improvement!

Lylah, we sound pretty similar! We do everything you've mentioned (even the 3 year old knows that lights and the TV have to go off) and I've gotten better about unplugging things like the cell phone and battery chargers when we're not using them.

We are ANAL, and I can't stress that enough, when it comes to recycling. Our town is a little strange (worcester, ma). We put our garbage out in yellow bags we purchase which means there isn't a garbage fee added to our taxes. The bags are $1 each so we do our best to limit our waste. Composting has always been big and recycling is fun. We recycle EVERYTHING. Scrap paper which has probably been printed on both sides, craft materials, tubes from tp and paper towels, tissue boxes, etc. Old batteries get brought to the EPA where they take care of them (thank you MIL who is the EPA librarian in Boston) and all other products that can't be recycled in our town we just bring to the in-laws b/c their town recycles everything.

Hubby commutes to work via bike and train so we opted to become a one-car family to cut down on all of the car related issues.

All of that being said, I know there is so much more we could be doing. Fluorescent bulb warning: in our effort to be green we even replaced the outdoor flood lights with fluorescents. Um, DUH. By the time they warm up to be bright enough you're already in the house having tripped over a cat or slipped on the ice. We had to scrap that one!

Mandy - laughing about the flourescents outside . . . we had the same thing! Tho we haven't traded them back out yet.

We're not green. Would like to be, but we're kind of like Lylah - a very pale green.

We recycle *SOME* stuff (mostly the cardboard), turn off lights, unplug appliances, drink our water from the big bottles (that the company recycles/refills) - - but to be honest, that's about as far as I can go right now.

I'm pleased with our efforts . . . don't call myself green, but am not against a greener lifestyle. . . if we can do something, we do. Hope that doesn't sound bad?

Like Mandy, we recycle everything. Our city has a blue-box pickup for aluminum, glass, and several forms of plastic; it has a black-box for paper and cardboard; at certain points in the season, it has a yard waste pickup, too. There are special depots set up at intervals for hazardous waste collection (batteries, spray cans, paint cans, etc.) So we have all that made easy for us!

There are a couple of charities that make the rounds collecting used household items, so all the kids' out-grown clothes go into the bag on the back porch, awaiting the next pickup. Clothes that are too ragged to pass on are turned into cleaning rags, because it has to be VERY disgusting before I'll use a paper towel. (A roll of those lasts us a couple of months, I think.)

We use fluorescent (I think that soon it will be legislated here in Ontario, but I'm not 100% sure of that).

The biggest thing: we don't run a car. I have two kids at home; my husband has three (there are three more living independently), and you know what? We just don't need it. My husband bikes to work in the summer and buses in the winter. The kids all bus, bike, or carpool with friends. We couldn't do this if we lived in the country, obviously, but in a city? Ottawa's a nice manageable-sized city with a decent (not stellar, but decent) transit system.

We shop in used clothing stores a lot. This is primarily financially motivated, but it's green!

With a household that averages about 10 (including daycare tots), we fill two garbage cans a week (mid-size ones, not enormous). That's decent, I think, given the daycare tots are all in disposable diapers...

We live in a small house. 1200 square feet.

The thing we don't do, but I'd like to, is compost. Though the hamster and the guinea pig do their best to eliminate a lot of vegetable scraps, they can't really keep up! We used to compost in our last house, but our very tiny back yard is also very shady. You need a little sunlight to help with the heat. We tried it back there, but it doesn't decompose, only rots and gets grossly stinky. The house is simply not big enough for a vermicomposter (the one with the worms), and besides, with all those people we make too much!

So I'm a bit stuck on the composting...

We too are in the "light green" category. I am also a rabid dog about recycling, we have the bins and the county pcks up newspaper, office paper and glass and plastic so it is easy. We have changed our lightbulbs and have a programmable thermostat. We live in a small town so I bike alot and combine trips when I use my gas sucking SUV.I have almost completely quit using my dryer and hang my clothes outside, we live in Florida so that can be done year round. I keep the kids involved by helping me shopfor local and organics and TURNING off lights....what a battle that is...

I started to shop green for ecofriendly products and got rid of all the harmful chemicals to my family and the environment-which I buy online and it gets delivered. Saves me time, gas and money.

We curb side recycle what we can - live in a small community with limited. Switched out all the bulbs, added insulation to our house, changeed doors, all to cut down on energy use. Use a metal water bottle. Try and buy products with minimal packaging.

Always looking for additional ways.

I'm working on getting us greener. Eco friendly cleaners, some homemade, some not. I'll recycle anything that doesn't run fast enough. Recycling for me includes Good Will. My in-laws are true New Englanders so I have good role models. CFL's in most lights. Programmable thermostat set low. Our house is a sieve, so I'm constantly trying to figure out ways to make it more efficient. No worries about fresh air for me! I'm considering building some blanket curtains for a couple of the bigger windows. We're not good about turning off lights so I'm constantly threatening to buy motion detectors for all the rooms.

I buy used clothing for my daughter, but I buy cheap and new for myself because when I finally need something, it's specific and I don't have the time to scour the second hand stores. That will hopefully change once we're done with grad school. I mend and make some things by hand. My husband also buys mostly new clothing when he needs it and I mend a lot of his clothes or he takes them to a tailor. I'm saving Pidge's stained clothing for a memory quilt and the rest get turned into rags. We use cloth napkins. We have a clothesline that I try to use when I think of it.

We have a garden and subscribe to a CSA for veggies. I tried to go entirely local and seasonal but we, meaning my daughter, didn't eat enough fruits and veggies, so we're back to the cans and tubs for the winter. But I did manage to switch her milk to a local organic in returnable glass jars vs a big brand organic. We eat local and natural (but not organic) eggs and meats. Local flours. I'd love to go organic for butter and cheese, but I need to massage the budget a bit first. I'm also trying to serve a few more meatless meals. And I'm trying to make more things from scratch to avoid all that packaging. I do use the reusable plastic food containers but I'm planning to switch to glass as soon as I have money and space. I've tried composting but I'm not very good at it.

Our town is not bike or pedestrian friendly. Meaning you're very likely to get run over. But my husband motor scooters to school most days and I drive a small Saturn with ok gas mileage.

My biggest frustration right now is that my Canon printer, the one I use for my business, has 8 individual, NON RECYCLABLE, ink cartridges. I've looked everywhere for someone who will take them and no luck. Sigh! And I'm just not in a position to buy a new printer. I can't bear to throw them away, so I'm saving them all. They're not fun to look at. Maybe I'll ship them off to Canon.

We recycle newspapers, really need to start recycling paperboard (like cereal boxes, etc) because I realize we go through a lot of those.
I also highly recommend buying gently used clothes or getting hand me downs from friends. Use Freecycle!

We replaced all of our bulbs too with the lower wattage fluorescents. At first, that really annoyed me because I like LIGHT and they aren't as bright, but it saves us money. We try to recycle cans and other scrap metals. In good weather (from Ohio) I walk to work instead of driving. I'm not far away so it's not bad. We also turn off all lights, televisions, or whatever other electronic devices when we're not using them (accept the computer). Our fish tank lights are on timers so we don't forget to turn them off (or on for a little while each day). I buy most of my daughter's clothes at a consignment store that I absolutely LOVE. I just can't reason spending $20-$30 on a shirt that is sized 18 months! That's ridiculous spending when we clearly aren't rich. We are a pay check to pay check family.

I've been thinking about doing the canvas shopping bag thing. They don't break the handles so easily and I hate having a million plastic bags around. Giant Eagle has a plastic bag recycle bin here though so I can return them.

We try to avoid lots of processed stuff with tons of packaging/additives. Plus we recycle everything we possibly can. Our city, Tallahassee, FL, has a great recycling program. However, even before that, in Savannah, GA, where there was no city-organized recycling, we still hauled all our stuff to a recycling center every few weeks.

When my baby was 6months old I switched her to cloth diapers, which I have to say I feel pretty darn good about!!

We switched to ecco-friendly cleaning products and laundry detergents as well. Nothing petroleum-based.

We only have one car, which is energy-efficient as far as regular cars go, and we share it. That would not be practical for many families, I'll admit, but it works for us because I work from home and stay home with baby, while my husband splits his time between his home office and his "real" office.

Oh Marcia. I've been thinking we need to start using canvas bags at the supermarket. Think how many that would save over say ten years!!

hi there! i am trying!! but not always succeeding. our county requires recycling of certain products (or you get fined if they find it in your garbage repeadedly!) and i drive a hybrid (yay me!) since i commute so far... i keep telling myself it helps but not sure it really does!! we could be better... we do still have a lot of waste

We feel like being Green is part of everyday life. Then again, we are Oregonians.

In our little corner of the world we do a few small things that add up...

I drive a Prius and Hubby carpools several times a week.
We RECYCLE everything (literally).
The majority of our shopping is done locally, and always natural and/or organic.
I look for FAIR TRADE CERTIFIED Products.
In addition to energy saving light bulbs we also use chemical free products (from laundry soap to toothpaste).
I only wash FULL loads of laundry (none of those mini-loads as they use a ton of water!)
The cloth vs. disposable diaper debate is always a tough one. I spent a lot of time researching this, and one can argue that the amount of water consummed and the additional cleaning products used poses a negative impact. A great alternative for peeps who want to be more enviro-friendly, but don't want to do cloth (or simply don't have the time) are gDiapers (and they are pretty stylish as well!).
We support small, locally owned businesses... from coffee shops and diners to clothing boutiques and farmers markets.
We teach our children about being socially conscious and globally responsible. (And pray that at least some of it sticks!)
Recently we made the switch the reusable grocery bags... and hey, Whole Foods even gives us a 5 cent credit or tokens for each one we bring in (we opt for the tokens to donate to local wildlife preserves).
We also can our own beans and make jams in the summer.
During the night and when we aren't home, our thermostat is at 62. In the afternoons when everyone is home we turn it up to 67. (Never over!)
Our home is super energy smart certified. (This helps the pocket book as well.)
With five kids we also pass clothing down the line so everything gets lots of use!
Lights and electronics are all off when the room is left (with the exception of the hall light at night so kiddos can find the bathroom).

Some of our favorite websites:
www.thesustainablevillage.com
www.recycline.com
www.gDiapers.com
www.store.gxonlinestore.org
www.Treehugger.com
www.ecos.com
www.earthfriendlygoods.com


I feel like no matter what we do... there is always more we could be doing, and I am constantly looking for ways to improve.

Over the last decade or so I have been investigating 'green' products available in a commercial sense, and after some issues with chemicals and reactions, I went pretty much chemical free.

I use bi-carb soda + white vinegar for everything (nearly!) and have recently switched to using 'soap nuts' for my laundry. They work well, leave no 'smell' and make the fabrics soft all in one. Fabulous. Bit odd to use at first but I am so used to my little calico bag of shells from this wonderful fruit that I will never go back to commercial detergent again.

Also got onto a great company called MiEssence which have certified organic ranges of skin care, make up and more. Here is their link...
https://www.mionegroup.com/home

And for those of us with bubbies or one on the way, here is a link for a helpful site for all those bably products. Its also where I order my soapnuts from.
http://www.ecobambino.com.au/store/WsDefault.asp?C at=Soapnuts..

We are conscious of being energy efficient in many ways and that includes the products we buy and the packaging they come in. But saying that, we are not overtly strict with ourselve and make compromises when we need to.

Great group! lets have some more links for us to peruse!

Many Blessings
Jannette

Check this out... Target will start carrying Seventh Generation Products.

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2005/08/target_beg ins_c.php


I find this exciting... especially the letter from Seventh Generation's President explaining why they chose Target.

Check it out.

And here is another one... the carbon footprint of your vehicle. Interesting to learn that my Prius consummes about 360 gallons of gas a year, compared to a large SUV at about 1330 gallons a year (thats a savings of almost $3000 annually in fuel costs!).

http://www.terrapass.com/

My family isn't completely green yet but we are making the effort. We try to recylce most of our trash and have switched out many of our lightbulbs. There is are many, many more ways that we could improve but the important thing is that we have started. If more people would start making an effort, that would help the environment so much more than what one individual could do alone.

My family is getting more sensitive all the time to "green" issues. I think it's wonderful that Cleveland has been dubbed "The Green City on the Blue Lake". We are targeted to be ...get a load of this....a model mini city---downtown CLeveland, with wind energy and enviro-state of the art new building.

I am an older mom....and this is a continuation of a 30 yr+ journey. From Brown Rice and Yoga in the 70's to Holistic medicine and Homeopathy in the 90's...so much of my life has taken me back to basics...we use organic lawn care....and recycle as much as possible.

One of my children is chemically sensitive...BIG TIME...and was introduced to a company with superior products that are safer for your home and family. I was so impressed that I decided to do this as a home business which I am passionate about.

I would love to hear from other moms who have found superior alternatives!