Something I learned early on in our marriage about the Mr. is that he doesn't like his toothpaste messed with. He is a squeeze-from-the-bottom-type-guy, only likes certain flavors, and certain textures (yes, toothpaste textures) creep him out. I, on the other hand, don't really care about the flavor or texture and love to squeeze from the middle. (How we handle marriage I sometimes don't know.)
Anyways, in my quest to slowly but surely move our lives in a more eco-conscious manner I bought Tom's of Maine Whole Care toothpaste from Whole Food's while we still lived in Denver. The Mr. was less than impressed (understatement). The first time he brushed his teeth he complained that it felt weird. (You are rubbing plastic bristles covered in goop against something you eat with. How can that ever feel normal?!? Try doing it with something other than toothpaste sometime...like chocolate pudding....and you will get what I mean.) As I was saying, it felt 'weird'. I told him to grow-up, and I didn't hear anything about it until we used up the tube of toothpaste.
When we moved I realized that we had an extra tube of a name brand toothpaste under our sink from before the "dreaded hippie lovin' paste" so I decided we should use that up instead of buying a new tube. I expected to hear nothing from the Mr. because we were back to normal toothpaste.
The first night of the use of the name brand toothpaste and what do I hear from the bathroom, "Yuck! (Spit, spit.) What IS this stuff? This is gross." I ran to the bathroom thinking the Mr. had inadvertently used lotion or something to brush his teeth, but sure enough, it was the name brand toothpaste. I told him it was what we had always used before the "hippie paste". He seemed surprised and asked that we go back to the "hippie paste" after we are through with this. I still hear him mumble "Gross." as he brushes his teeth.
Score 1 for me and the "dreaded hippie lovin' paste". I am actually a big fan of it. I am still doing research about how eco-conscious Tom's of Maine truly is since I just read an article on Re-Nest (which you can read, too, by clicking here) that says they are owned by Colgate-Palmolive. I am usually leery of eco-companies that are owned by non-eco-companies. ie. Green Works by Clorox. This might make me crazy but hey, I accept that.
Do you use any "organic" or "eco-friendly" personal products at home? If so, what are your favorite brands? If not, what keeps you from doing so?
The Mr. got this for me not too long ago. (Background: The Mr. has lovingly called me "hippo" since we first started dating. I think it had something to do with the fact that I couldn't stop eating one day. I was constantly hungry. Get it, Hungry, Hungry, Hippo.)
I put "stuff" in quotes because I am not a huge fan of having lots of stuff. I feel like we always get too wrapped up in what we have instead of just being happy that we have enough. We are always wanting more. If you don't believe my shear hatred towards stuff talk to the Mr. sometime. That was probably our biggest fight about moving home. I was always complain....I mean helpfully reminding him that he has too much stuff for not even being midway through his 20s.
One of the biggest insight I have learned about myself is that clutter and disorganization make me stressed and irritable. I love the saying, "Everything has a place, and there is a place for everything." I need organization in my life, so usually while I am sitting in my bedroom with pictures, bags, and other random items on the floor, I think to myself, "Self, (yes, I call myself, Self. Don't judge.) what items in this room can I get rid of?" But for some reason today while I stared at all the things that haven't found a home in our apartment since the move I thought to myself, "Self, (I am serious about this Self thing.) what items in this room/apartment could I never get rid of?" And do you know what I realized (probably not, unless you have insight into my brain that I don't have)? Everything I loved was second-hand "stuff".
These are a few of my favorite things (Go ahead and try not to sing the song now):
My favorite "Old Lady" Sweater My grandma gave it to me around Christmas time, and it was actually her mother's.
My favorite decorative item I forget where this came from exactly but my mom always had it sitting in the window over the sink. She gave it to me when I got married.
My favorite gift from the Mr. This is my engagement ring. The diamond is actually from my Great-Grandma U's engagement ring.
My favorite thing from a loved one that died This is my birthstone ring. I got it from my Grandpa P. after my Grandma P. died since we had the same birth month.
My favorite item in my apartment My great-grandma (Granny. Same lady who owned the sweater.) hand-braided this rug. It was one of the last ones she made. My Grandma U. is letting me use it to bring some warmth into our bedroom.
While I like a lot of the stuff I own, I know that if there was a fire (God forbid) these would make it out before anything else. I guess my sentimentality kicks in before money. (Notice nothing on here cost me any real money.)
What things do you own that mean most to you? Leave a comment and let me know!
Even though I am a fan of booze, that is not what I am talking about here. (Maybe a post on green beer later, and I don't mean beer on St. Patty's Day.) I am talking about reusable bags.
While living in Denver last year and working at a church I wrote a lesson set on "Keeping God's Green Earth Green" and one of my teachers asked if we could make reusable bags for the kids to give to their parents. I loved the idea, and as I delved into the topic more I realized how important it really was.
Images like this one above haunted my computer screen. We live in a disposable country; where everything is made for a one-time-use-only. But why?
As you might have read in one of the comments of the blog, I was not raised like this. My grandparents, the U's, shopped at places like Aldi (a fine German discount grocery. I am slightly biased to most thing German, since I was a German major in college.). At Aldi, they do not give you free plastic bags. If you need a bag, you pay. Plain and simple. My grandparents always filled their cart with small boxes and fabric bags upon arrival to the store. I remember how embarrassed I was that they did this because they went against the norm, but now I realize how ingenious it really was. They just kept there boxes and bags in the trunk and had them on hand every time they shopped. Their house wasn't filled with plastic bags with no real use, and they weren't filling their trash with them everyday as well.
I remember buying my first reusable bag a little over a year ago. I remember how proud/embarrassed I felt when I walked into a store for the first time with it. But once I opened my eyes and looked around I realized that I wasn't alone. The store was filled with people carrying reusable bags. Awesome! I still get a giggle (yes, I giggle.) when I come in toting my bags and someone says, "Cute bag!" or "That reminds me. I need to stick those in my trunk."
One of the things that I love about my reusable bags is that I can get different colors and designs. Currently, none of mine match and I have different ones for different things. They are an expression of me. (Yes, I am comparing myself to a bag.) Also, at most stores you get a discount for bringing in your own bag. It is usually around $.03 a bag, but hey, every cent counts in my budget.
This Christmas I went a little out of my comfort zone and gave one Chico bag to my MIL and FIL (mother-in-law and father-in-law), my SIL and BIL (you get the idea), my mom and dad, and my SIL and brother. This is out of my comfort zone because I do not like forcing my ideals onto others. I do not consider this blog forcing because I am not holding anyone at gun point to read it. Anyways, I just thought this would be a little change they could all make without feeling like a tree-hugging-hippie. (No offense to any tree-hugging-hippies out there.) Even though I have no idea if they will use it or not, I am happy to know I gave them the option.
Do you use reusable bags? Why or why not? Do you have any favorites? Leave a comment, and let me know!
P.S. I find stats pretty boring to read, but I am more than happy to provide any for those of you that might be interested about the affects of plastic bags on the environment.
The Challenge:
Complete 101 preset tasks in a period of 1001 days.
The Criteria:
Tasks must be specific (ie. no ambiguity in the wording) with a result that is either measurable or clearly defined. Tasks must also be realistic and stretching (ie. represent some amount of work on your part).
Why 1001 Days?
Many people have created lists in the past - frequently simple challenges such as New Year's resolutions or a 'Bucket List'. The key to beating procrastination is to set a deadline that is realistic. 1001 Days (about 2.75 years) is a better period of time than a year, because it allows you several seasons to complete the tasks, which is better for organizing and timing some tasks such as overseas trips, study semesters, or outdoor activities.
Start Date: January 1, 2010
End Date: September 28, 2012
(in progress, completed)
Growth
*Take a self-defense course
*Go on a mission trip
*Read a book in German
*Learn a new word in a foreign language everyday for one month: 0/30
*Volunteer somewhere that is meaningful to me
*Read the entire Bible: 0/66 books read
*Fast once a day every month to teach me strength: 0/33
*Try 1 drink a month that I have never had before: 0/33
Health
*Do monthly breast self exams (since I am young and already had a lumpectomy): 7/33
*Drink 3 glasses of water everyday for 1 month: 0/30
*Quit drinking ‘Pop’, ‘Soda’, ‘Cola’, or whatever you call it.
*Work out 15 min. every day for a month: 0/30
*Become flexible enough that I can wrap my hands over my feet with my legs straight
*Quit caffeine (besides Excedrin Migraine because it saves my life every now and again)
*Quit eating chocolate (completely) since it makes me sick anyways
*Develop a cleaning schedule and stick to it for a month: 0/30
*Get CPR certified
*Take a yoga class
*Write a living will
*Save enough money so that we can consider starting to grow our family
*Don’t use facebook or twitter for a month straight: 0/30
*Put our wedding album together
*Learn how to sew
*Learn how to can foods
*Quit a bad habit
*Sew myself an article of clothing (bigger than a handkerchief)
*Make the Mr. and me a quilt (no sew is perfectly acceptable)
*Learn to recognize 5 native birds: 0/5
*Learn to recognize 5 native trees: 0/5
*Learn and memorize my local, state, and national representatives
*Research politicians with the same political agenda as me (if there are any)
*Make or buy second-hand (ie. books) Christmas gifts one year
*Make a monthly menu and stick to it for 6 months: 0/6
*Make a budget and stick to it for 6 months: 1/6 *Read 10 books on the All-Time 100 Novels list: 0/10
*Try 1 new recipe every month: 1/33
*Only go places that I can walk for one day
*Spend one day biking where I would normally drive
*Only eat foods that are in season for 6 months: 0/6 *Research how I can buy everything I need locally compared to buying from corporations
I discovered Preserve when we first moved to Colorado, and I visited my first Whole Foods. I needed a toothbrush, and I was interested in eco-conscious products. It was red, said it was made of yogurt cups, and it could be recycled. I was sold. (Let's be honest. I was sold after I saw it was red.) Anyways, I loved not only what it did for my teeth, but I was happy that I was using a product that was good for the environment as well.
Since that fateful day with the toothbrush, I have come to learn, and like, a lot more about Recycline and their Preserve product line. There products are made of recycled #5 plastics, which as you may or may not know are a royal pain in the rear to recycle. They take things like yogurt cups and turn them into toothbrushes, colanders, cutting boards, storage containers, and resusable dishes. They are BPA free and made in the USA.
If you weren't sold already (I was.) they also recycle all their own products after you are done with them. You can go to participating locations (such as Whole Foods) and drop them off or send them back to Recycline; they will recycle them back into more products.
I also just read they are now taking Brita filters as well, which is a mental burden off me since the Mr. and I are in love with our Brita pitcher.
Have you ever used any Preserve products? What is your favorite one? What is your opinion on them? I would love to hear!
Sustainable Susie is not receiving anything for this post. It is her opinion alone based on her own purchases and research.
I am Susie. A midwestern, sarcastic, moderate leaning (can you lean moderately in politics?), eco-conscious, wife of one, mother of none...for now. I strive to live a simpler life in hopes of causing less strain on the environment, my life, and my budget. I am constantly learning about better, more holistic approaches to daily living and hope that I am becoming a better person because of it.
This blog is dedicated to bringing an awareness to eco-conscious products and ideas through product reviews, life stories, tutorials, and more. I do not claim to be an expert on any topic and my posts are solely my opinion. I appreciate all comments, even those that disagree with my beliefs. But I will not allow any comments to be posted that include foul language or are generally just mean. I don't expect any but hey, you never know.
