Cheap & Green Momma

Thoughts for garden layout.

2010-05-19T11:08:00.003-04:00

Here are my thoughts for how to lay out the new garden. The topmost box is our shed, the lower part is driveway/ house. It would border on a small stone wall (about 1' high) that overlooks a drop off to our "lower" lawn, and the pond. I think, besides the front lawn, that this is the sunniest place, most out of the way, but also accessible to the hose and the kitchen. Being the cheapskate I am, I made a big splurge when I purchased a raised bed kit (cedar, put it together with my son in about 30 minutes; $40, 4'x4'). However, I realized that would be waaaaaaaaay too small for what I want to do. I could build the carrot/pea box from rocks around the yard (they are abundant and big), and the longer 3'x9' one would likely just be a mound, if I can pull that one off. I have plenty of chicken wire and a couple posts left over from constructing my compost bin a couple years back, so hopefully costs are at a minimum. Here's the costs for my new-from-scratch garden so far:

Raised cedar bed: $40
2 bags organic garden soil: $14
Seed packets: $10
Peat starter kit: $12
Peat pots and tray: $10
New shovel: $10

Peat moss, compost, chicken wire, lime, posts: all leftover from previous things, $0.

So I am already at about $100, which in my mind is a lot. I hope to scrounge up anything and everything I need from now going forward, and that will be an exercise in my true frugality. I want to still purchase or trade some nice strong tomato and pepper plants, but maybe I can trade those with someone.

As of 3 weeks ago, here are the basil and carrots. The carrots got planted in my tiny herb garden to start, then the rest will go in the bigger area as shown above. The basil is MUCH larger now, and has been transplanted until, again, the bigger bed actually exists. I've made a mean Pizza Martguerita with it already though. Hooray!

I'll get some updated shots as soon as I can.

Starting Fresh

2010-04-23T13:23:00.002-04:00

I don't even remember the last time I posted to this blog, but with Earth Day just having gone by, I want to start again.

My daughter just turned 1 year old... where has the time gone? I spent that first year focusing on being a new parent again. That's what it was like with my son... his first year I was just trying to figure stuff out, then after that I could loosen up and focus on other things too. Bigger picture things.
So here I am, one year in again, and ready to re-shift some of my energy back to the earth. The past several summers I have had a small little garden, which has been pretty successful with herbs and cherry tomatoes.

Well, this year it is time to expand. I went a little hog-wind getting seeds, and I hope to grow an actual honest-to-goodness organic garden that will provide (almost) all that my family needs this summer.

Here's the first stab at it: starting basil, carrots, and cherry tomatoes from seed. This was week 1:

I'll post some pictures of what they look like NOW a little later, but things are actually GROWING!

Little Factoid about Cars

2009-03-06T14:07:00.000-05:00

Just read this little factoid about cars:

"According to the AAA, on average it costs almost one dollar to drive the typical car one mile. That's after factoring in the cost of the car/depreciation, gas, insurance, maintenance, repairs, parking, tolls, traffic tickets, etc. The average American spends almost 20% of their income on their cars, and spends about 20% of their work week sitting behind the wheel ... much of it to get to and from work, in order to earn that 20% of their income they need to pay for the trip!"

Mind you this is from thedailygreen.com, therefore I am not sure what their other sources are on the 20%'s, but even just the AAA info about it costing $1 per mile I thought was shocking. I WISH I could give up my car, dammit, but I have to have one. Frustrating!!

Kid Clothes Hand-Me-Downs

2009-02-27T03:29:00.002-05:00

I feel like buying new baby clothes is the biggest racket out there. Like everyone else, preparing for a new baby means preparing your home with supplies, supplies, supplies. With that comes the need to clothe said child appropriately across all 4 seasons, for a body that grows like no other time in it's life (outside the womb, that is). That calls for a lot of different sized clothes, in different weights and combinations. It is a daunting thing to try to amass such a wardrobe with little cash, and with an eye on the environment. Sure, there is an abundance of "organic" clothing on the market these days, but, as we have seen, a lot of it is very expensive. Sure, I can purchase organic cotton crib sheets for twice the price, but I already have a couple of crib sheets from Lincoln, and I am still going to take it home and wash it with my regular detergent. Let's be honest now.

So in the spirit of my cheap-n-green-ness, and at the heart of this blog, I am sticking with one of the 3 R's for baby clothes as much as possible: REUSE. Now I will admit, shopping for new baby clothes online and with my mother was SUPER fun and I LOVE LOVE LOVE all the frilly beautiful things we were able to score, but for the bulk of her clothing, we are relying on hand-me downs. This all started with my first child; a couple dear friends gave us TRASH BAGS FULL of their children's lightly used clothing. One loaned it all to us (a great idea and tradition; THANK YOU Liz!), another few people outright gave it to us (THANK YOU Missy & Justine!). There were some new clothes that never even got used through his infancy (did I mention how FAST babies grow??), so I was able to return them for other much needed supplies.

As he grew out of things, I was able to wash and label and store everything, and that whole wardrobe is being cycled through by another friend, to whom I was able to pass along just about the whole kit and caboodle. Now, with this baby, I still have Lincoln's old clothes coming back from that loan as a base to start, and in no way am I above dressing my little gal in blue. Great! Combine that with even MORE generous friends who were willing to part with their super cute pink clothes (THANK YOU Kate and Mel, you guys are incredible), and now we're talking. Sure, this is a "cheap" way to go about clothing a new baby, but it is also incredibly good for the earth. Anyone with kids knows that sometimes new baby clothes are puked or pooped on beyond recognition, and therefore rendered useless for another generation, but for the most part, when cared for, baby clothes get worn just a few times and then are too small. This makes for plenty of opportunity for clothes to be loved and cherished all over again.

If you can get your mind past using "used" baby clothes, do it! This is one of the single best traditions we are carrying on with this babe. And when she grows out of it all, it will be passed on yet again. :)

Good Article

2009-02-18T14:53:00.003-05:00

http://www.thedailygreen.com/living-green/blogs/save-money/save-money-stimulus-460209

Some of it is a little tongue-in-cheek, but he's right! You could make some really decent changes for only $8...

Christmas Update

2008-12-30T16:02:00.003-05:00

OH! And I should also note that my sisters both consciously purchased some really lovely things for us for Christmas that fall in line with this blog. One got me and my husband our own Sigg canteens (which she swears she got on "crazy sale" which you KNOW I love to hear, hahaha).

The other got us 16 CFL's (we're set for LIFE!), as well as an all-wood European-made block set for our son.

Good shopping, guys!

Converting to Glass Bottles

2008-12-30T15:38:00.003-05:00

For the new baby (coming in about 3 months... GULP) I decided to switch over to glass bottles. Of course, you recall that BRU took back my BPA-laden Avent bottles and give me the full new cost for them in exchange. However, this meant I was left without bottles for this new kiddoo.

Fast forward to now. Babycenter, the online parenting community where I have found a lot of great info and a lot of great friends, also has an online store. They will be closing that part of their site come January 6th, so lucky for me there are some good deals a-plenty (Bwhahahaha!!)

Anyway, in searching through their listed 70% off sale, I found something crazy and ridiculous. They were selling Evenflo 3-packs of glass bottles for way cheap: the 4 oz was $3.75 (I got 2, so 6 bottles), and the 8 oz was only $1.50 (I got 4; so 12 bottles of the 8oz)!! Also, the slow flow nipple 4-packs were $1.20 (I got 3). CRAZY! I am so psyched. It was clearly an error on their part, because both size bottles are now listed at $7.50.

Yeah. Gots me a steal (if you are interested, they still have the 6-packs for $6, which if you have tried to purchase glass bottles lately is reallllllly inexpensive. And if you spend $49 on that site for anything, you get free shipping with the code FREESHIP49).

In case you are curious, I do fully intend to breastfeed (hopefully for longer this time; only made it to 6 mo. with Lincoln). However, the need to work means I'll need to pump again, and send bottles to daycare. I feel so much better now that I have a full stock of bottles ready to go.

Update on compost bin

2008-12-23T13:16:00.003-05:00

See you later, compost bin!!

Sorry I haven't posted in so long, but I have a good reason. For a full update on our crippling ice storm, check my other blog, Hooray for Baby.

The Season of Expensiveness

2008-12-03T10:26:00.003-05:00

Oh, what to do. Holiday giving is such a difficult time for those who are trying to be thrifty. I know that, when you think about it, the consumerism and waste that comes with Christmas time is a really, really, really bad thing. BUT... I LOVE CHRISTMAS!! I have such wonderful memories of warmth and family and love from my childhood. Being a parent now, I want my OWN kids to experience that joy and wonder. So within reason, and keeping my cheap-n-green goals in mind, I am plowing full steam ahead into this wintery wonderland that is Christmas. And trying to do it as responsibly as I can.

First, here is a GREAT article about green giving tips. And if charitable giving is the way to go, then I think that giving to your local arts or cultural non-profits are a GREAT way to use your financial power. Museums are going through this tough economic climate like everyone else, and our money means more now than ever. I plan on giving at least 1 membership this year to the museum I work for... and we offer GREEN memberships!! What an awesome idea. We also bought a membership for our family for Christmas to our local Science Center. I get in free anyway (as an employee of a partner museum), and my son is still under 3 so free all the time as well, so our only expense was an Individual membership for my husband. There are lots of fun toddler-esque things to do indoors, and in the winter time, the more of that we can get, the better. It has already paid for itself with our frequent visits.

Other than that, I have the toddler to buy for. I was able to snag a used train table off of Craigslist for cheap (god bless Craigslist for cheap/good stuff). Way to recycle a quality toy!! Other than that, I have *tried* to only purchase wood items in conjunction. Cyber Monday was very good to me. I found the best deal on a wooden train set at KB Toys. Now, I'll admit, the shipping part was not very green of me, but I felt using my spending power to purchase something NOT made out of hazardous plastics & chemicals outweighed that. Sure it will take gas and packaging to get it here, but I would have used gas to go buy it in-store, and my time is valuable. I guess that has to be my trade-off. It also came with a free wooden train station, and I found an inexpensive wooden toolkit as well, and it all included free shipping. Score! Found a wooden train whistle at the dollar store and BAM! DONE with the little man.

The toys:

If I find other tips/good sales, I will post them here, too.

Ohhhh, I should add.

2008-11-25T11:19:00.002-05:00

Something NOT so cheap OR green in our lives; but thrilling and wonderful nevertheless. :)

Updates

2008-11-25T11:09:00.002-05:00

With the pellet stove roaring, the heinous cough I've had for nearly 5 weeks, and a VERY cold bedroom, we decided to move our bedroom into the room with the pellet stove. It is a little awkward (it is at the bottom of the stairs to upstairs, has 2 open doorways on either side of the room, plus the front door), but with the bed, dark curtains, and not much else but the glow of the fire, it has been a WONDERFUL place to sleep. I am loving it. Romantic too! Our old "bedroom" now contains all of Link's toys... it might turn into the permanent playroom, but who knows. It is really cold in there, so if we are in there playing, we have to run a space heater. We just don't have an ideal place for a master bedroom. Anyway, we were in for a bit of a shock when we got our energy bill. After 10 days of having the stove, our energy consumption more than doubled, and it went up $90. *GAG*. We've had to run all sorts of humidifiers, space heaters, fans, and other small appliances a lot lately while we try to find the right balance, so I am sure that is part of it... but still. Yikes. We'll have to look into that. I'm concerned that there is not much we can do about it, though, sadly. Hmm.

We're hunkering down for the winter now. It has been so cold the past few days, that the stove has been on full blast, nearly round the clock. Our pond actually froze over enough that we can walk on it!! (Last winter I don't think that really happened at all... except for perhaps a few days in the middle of winter. It was never in good enough condition for skating). Mike completed all of the necessary yard work; it looks immaculate. Big kudos to him for all his hard work. It should make springtime that much easier. Last year the snows came early; before most of the leaves could get picked up. Made for a very messy spring. Luckily this week is supposed to warm up a bit, so hopefully we'll have a bit of a break for our heating needs.

The golf-for-plow program is in full effect this year too. I LOVE the old trade/barter system. If you have a talent or a resource, what better way for mutual benefit than to trade it for something you need. Awesome! Mike took our "plow guy" out golfing several times this year, and now we don't have to pay $40 a whack every time it snows (or worry about shoveling, for that matter). Hooray!

Try These Healthy, Low Cost Foods

2008-11-03T07:14:00.002-05:00

I found this good article on Yahoo this morning (here is the original link).

Try These Healthy, Low Cost Foods

No matter what your economic hardships are, you always want to invest in your own health and eat the foods that will nourish you and give you valuable nutrients. There is no substitute for proper nutrition, and today's savings on foods can spell tomorrow's medical bills. That said, there are ways to have it both ways - healthy and economical. Here are some tips to get you started:

1. Produce that is big in health, small in price
Here are some healthy autumn staples that won't break the bank.

• Vitamin-rich vegetables can become the centerpiece of your meals without putting a dent in your wallet. In season right now are broccoli, mustard greens, arugula, bok choi, chard, carrots, onions, parsnips, sweet potatoes, leeks, beets, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, mushrooms, and squashes of all shapes and sizes.

• Opt for apples, pears, and cranberries for inexpensive fruits packed with nutrients.

• Some healthy, flavorful foods that can spice up any dish are ginger, garlic, burdock, scallions, and parsley.

2. Get protein from less expensive sources

Soy Products: Get in touch with tofu, which is much less expensive than high-quality meat. Tofu, or bean curd, has very little flavor of its own, so it can be seasoned or marinated to work with any dish. You can get more mileage out of your scrambled eggs by combining half soft tofu and half eggs. How about making a vegetable stir fry that is seventy percent bean curd and thirty percent meat. Low in calories and relatively high in protein, iron, and fiber, soy is filled with histidine, an amino acid that helps your body digest protein, protect red blood cells, and maintain healthy immune function.

Beans and legumes also cost very little, but bring a robust flavor and a bounty of benefits to your health. Beans and legumes are packed with protein and fiber, provide the good kind of fat, and are loaded with complex carbohydrates, the nutrients that provide energy to the body. And you can buy in bulk - another savings tip - because dried beans and legumes will keep their quality for 6-12 months in an airtight glass container stored in a cool, dry place.

Whole Grains: Few other foods offer such a diverse array of benefits at such a small cost. A good source of dietary fiber, protein, and essential fatty acids, whole grains are filling and delicious. Also, there is much evidence that suggests eating whole grains reduces the risks of coronary heart disease, stroke, cancer, diabetes and obesity. Try barley, brown rice, oats, quinoa, rice, rye, sorghum, spelt, organic wheat pasta, buckwheat pasta, and amaranth. Again, you can buy in bulk and store in glass containers for up to 6 months.

3. Smart tips about leftovers
When you make more than one meal at a time, you save money and time. The trick is to plan in advance so that nothing goes to waste. Get creative so that you don't end up eating the same meal over and over. Yesterday's chili can be today's Southwestern quesadillas and tomorrow's stuffed bell peppers.

4. Soup: the low-cost, low-calorie superhero
Not only is soup one of the healthiest ways to fill up, due to the ease at which the body can assimilate liquid nutrients, it is also one of the most cost-effective. Yet another bonus? Studies have shown that soup, because if its liquid content, is a wonderful way to lose weight. You can use the vegetable scraps from the preparation of other meals to make your own vegetable broth. Nothing could be simpler than throwing in leek tops, onion remainders - whatever is left over - in boiling water with a couple of garlic cloves. It's healthier than the high-sodium canned broth found in the market, and perfect for making soups or sautéing vegetables with.

5. Eat in
Eating out is fastest way to blow the budget. Get in the habit of bringing lunch with you. Be adventurous; bagged lunch doesn't have to be a sandwich every day. Get a short wide stainless steel thermos and bring soup, marinated vegetables and couscous, or eggplant parmesan - whatever will satisfy and inspire your tastebuds.

For dinner, why not prepare a fancy, candle-lit meal? Go all out and have an appetizer, a main course, and even a dessert, just like the restaurant you are dreaming of going to. To make it yourself is an enjoyable, creative experience - and it will cost less and taste better. Another option is to throw a party. Have a potluck where each of your friends brings a dish, and have fun being on a budget together.

6. Leave the bottle behind
Buying a bottle of water every day, or sometimes several times a day can really add up! Instead of subtracting from your wallet and adding to the recycling bin, invest in a water filtration system. What seems like a big cost at first ends up saving you money - and the environment - in the long run. To learn about a high-performance filtration system that I recommend, click here.

7. Grow your own food
Bring back the victory garden! Start simply by just growing your own sprouts in a jar. Then upgrade to making your own yogurt. Eventually, as weather in your region allows, start planting a garden of fresh herbs and vegetables that will bring you a bounty of health benefits. Take it one step farther and learn how to preserve your food - you will be stocked no matter what. And nothing tastes better than food you have grown and prepared yourself.

Yessssssssssssssssssssss! HEAT!

2008-10-30T22:32:00.003-04:00

The pellet stove is IN! FINALLY!! Huzzah!

In a whirlwind, the installer called us to schedule installation today (the very next day from when he called). Looooove the last minute cancellation appointments. In every walk of life.

It is up and running, and runs off of its own wall thermostat (not pictured). We'll eventually have a fence in front of it for the little one, but this happened so quick that we didn't get it yet. In the meantime, lotsa watching him like a hawk. Luckily, when I came home, he already was telling me how hot it was, so hubs had trained him well. The hearth itself still needs trim, and we'll need to deal with those obnoxious looking wires, but we'll iron those things out.

It feels good to know that for the most part, our entire winter's worth of heating is sitting in our basement, and is 100% paid off (Now, paying off the stove is another thing, but we've got a year at 0% so we'll use that to our advantage). And so GREEN!!

PS. As I write this, the temperature is 28 outside, so the timing was impeccable.

Fall Has Come to New England

2008-10-21T11:01:00.003-04:00

Compost bin! Here's what it looks like now that it is the end of the mowing season. Believe it or not, this is ALL of our lawn clippings and kitchen scraps since we built the bugger. It really compressed/decomposed a LOT. Of course there are some leaves that made it on top from the last mow, but after this, all the leaves will just go in our compost HEAP in the woods. My goal is to use this stuff for garden planting in the spring, so we don't want too many leaves or sticks in there right now.

Winter is definitely on the way. Here is my glorious monster cherry tomato plant. Can you tell we had a frost last night?? Time to rip it out I guess (sigh...). I took a gallon-size container FULL of still-green tomatoes off of it. They may or may not still ripen, but I am giving them a shot on the kitchen windowsill.

Pellet Stove, Continued.

2008-10-08T10:43:00.004-04:00

We went through a little bit of drama with the pellet stove store a couple weeks back. We got a letter that said installation was looking like sometime around January 2009. Ummm, WHAT?! We supposedly HAVE our stove, we are just waiting for the guy to call us to install it, any day now. Right?? WRONG. Basically the custom hearthboard that we had ordered for the corner of our room still had NOT been ordered yet, and they said it would take at least another 4 weeks to be made. DUMB. That, and the DOOR to our stove was backordered. What the heck?

Anyhow, very long story short, we confirmed that our stove really was still waiting for us at the store, and cancelled the hearthboard order. To heck with it, we'll lay the tile ourselves.

Mike, Lincoln, and I made a trip to Home Depot, and got some great looking (though inexplicably cheap) ceramic tile. I had a bunch of tiling supplies from a mosaic class I took a while back, and a friend has a wet saw, so bingo, we are back in business.

Right now, the tile-laying is still mid-process, but will hopefully be done within the week. THEN we can call the store & schedule installation, which they promised us would be no more than 2 weeks out from when we call. Regardless of whether or not our door comes in, they will install the stove, then send out some OTHER guy to put the door on so we can actually use the darn thing. I'm starting to get panicked now, because we had to turn on our heat this week. It has been low 40's at night, max of 60's during the day. I didn't want to turn on our heat at ALL this winter, but it looks like we'll have to let a whole month (at least) go by burning oil. I am really upset about that. NOT in this cheapo's budget at all.

On the upside, we have our pellets. 3 tons!! They are already bought and paid for, so that does feel good (that was supposedly my whole winter's worth of heating bill that I already paid, but like I said, it isn't quite going to work out that way). Anyway, welcome to my suddenly MUCH smaller basement. This is what 3 tons of pellets looks like:

A little conversation with my son

2008-10-01T12:30:00.001-04:00

Yesterday Morning

Lincoln: Good morning, bunny!
Good morning, Tigger!
Good morning, bwankie!

Me, looking out window: Good morning, nature!

Lincoln: No, I Wincon.

Me: No, I KNOW you are Lincoln, I was just looking outside at Nature!

Lincoln (climbing back up the stairs a couple steps to see out, confused): Nature?

Me: yes, Nature! Everything that we see outside is part of Nature. The trees, the rocks, the animals...

Lincoln: wocks?

Me: yep! and the sky...

Lincoln (staring, mouth agape): twee?

Me: yep! everything we see outside is nature.

Lincoln: (pauses for a long while just looking, then starts down stairs again): good morning, nature!

Then he made nature bracelets at daycare, so the convo was good timing!!

Sorry!

2008-09-09T13:20:00.002-04:00

I have not forgotten about you, oh faithful blog. The good thing about being cheap & green is that when you are doing it right, there is not a lot to report. You aren't buying much, and those "green" things you already bought are lasting you through those tight times.

I promise to post an updated shot of my wee garden & compost bin relatively soon.

Another Great DIY Recipe

2008-08-29T16:18:00.002-04:00

Passed on to me by my friend Lindsey: DIAPER WIPES!

"omg, it's easier than brushing my teeth and it's going to save me TONS of money! (not to mention it's completely non toxic-always a plus). I would HIGHLY recommend it if nothing else because it's WAY cheaper!

Use a serated knife. Cut a paper towel roll in half (she suggests trying BOUNTY because they absorb best). Take our cardboard roll from middle. Mix your favorite (non toxic) baby shampoo and water and throw in some baby lotion if you want in a tupperware bowl or old wipes dispenser. Throw the paper towels in. Turn upside down. Wait 20 min. voila!

Per half paper towel roll:

2 Tbls of baby oil
2 Tbls of baby bath (her suggestion: Dr. Bronner's Almond soap [totally non-toxic])
2 cups water

...but I just eyeballed it and it works just fine!

If you want to get REALLY crunchy, you can buy rags (a lot of moms buy those blue automotive rags that come like a million per bag) and keep the solution in a jar itself and dip the rag in it which last apparently a REALLY long time, and really helps bottoms because they do not have excessive moisture."

Something Imma Try This Week

2008-08-21T08:57:00.001-04:00

Cheap & Green Weed Killer:

4 cups white vinegar
1/2 cup salt
2 T dish detergent

Mix well, put a a spray bottle and get to spraying. Warning, this will kill whatever it’s on, so be careful in your lawn. It’s great for sidewalk cracks, etc. Use on a dry sunny day, weeds will be dead in a day or so.

(Thanks for the tip Ang, I will definitely try this this week... FINALLY!!)

More Free Stuff

2008-08-19T12:02:00.003-04:00

Free 14 day Supply of Nature Made Vitamins

The front page of their website offers a choice of Vitamin D, Vitamin C, Super B, Multi for Her, Multi Complete, or Calcium. I requested the multivitamin, and it got to me in less than 2 weeks. SCORE!

My Wacky Diet

2008-08-07T00:00:00.002-04:00

For the past 12 years or so, I have suffered from Migraines. Over the past year, I have been getting daily headaches, and suddenly migraines every 3-4 days. Dreadful. It got so bad I FINALLY went to see a neurologist. Besides insisting I start taking sleeping pills (insomnia to boot), I needed to up my B-complex & magnesium intake (right now, via daily vitamins), take a daily headache preventative, and start a strict "migraine diet." I think I have been on this for a little over a month now. I must say, my daily headaches are gone, and the couple migraines I have gotten I have been able to combat with my old migraine meds. Anyway, as far as the diet ges, I have to avoid:

Caffeine (coffee, tea, iced tea, cola, chocolate; as well as medicines with caffeine such as excedrin, anacin, etc. If you know anything about me and my coffee drinking habits, this was the absolute hardest thing to stop.)

Ripened Cheeses (cheddar, emmentaler, gruyers, stilton, brie and camembert)

Yogurt & Sour Cream (especially those with "live cultures")

Nuts (including peanut butter. Say WHAAAA!?)

Processed Meats (including those that are aged, canned, cured, pickled, fermented, marinated, or tenderized. Also, any that include nitrates, including hot dogs, sausage, bacon, salami, bologna, pepperoni, and herring)

Vinegar (all but white)

Monosodium Glutamate (or, MSG; including Chinese restaurant food, many snack foods and prepared foods. This is often labeled as "accent"; I've been forced to actually read labels. You may think that MSG simply isn't in food anymore, but you're wrong. For example, Tostitos Chili con Queso doesn't have cheddar or onions... yay! BUT, it has MSG. Who knew?!)

Citrus Fruits & Juices (including oranges, grapefruits, lemons, limes, and pineapples)

Certain other fruits (including bananas, raisins, red plums, canned figs, and avocados)

Certain vegetables (including broad beans, lima, fava, and navy beans, pea pods, saurkraut, and onions)

Certain Breads (including homemade yeast breads, sourdough breads, other yeast-risen baked goods, such as doughnuts & pizza crust)

Sinus Decongestants (sutafed, dimetapp, nasal sprays, etc).

...and, of course, alcohol, and anything that contains sulfites; both of which I already know trigger headaches/migraines for me.

TOO MANY!! I had a really hard time at first even finding anything to eat. I've definitely forgotten a couple of times, and slipped up. For example, I got an all-American hot dog at the park with the family; got a headache. Chopped onions on a buger? Headache. I never seriously thought diet would play such an important role in my silly headaches.

Why am I writing about this here? Well, for one thing, it is truly forcing me to eat more healthy. Not being permitted to eat any kind of processed meat is a GOOD thing. My body knew immediately when I made a slip up on that one, for sure. No fruit juices (well, my usual citrus ones) & no alcohol means that I am not getting a lot of needless calories.

I'll admit I caved on quite a few of these rules. I'll have the occasional beer, and I am back to eating yeast-risen bread. But the caffeine, sour cream/yogurt, nuts, etc... I have stayed pretty steadfast on.

A great side effect: I am consciously creating more healthful meals, made of fresh and good-for-you foods. Hummus is my friend!

Grocery Shopping

2008-07-30T13:06:00.003-04:00

I think I have figured out how to do some better grocery shopping.

As I mention in my goals, I want to try to purchase as many organics as possible, even though conventionally these are more expensive. Therein lies the challenge with my whole "going green" goal.

Luckily, so many local supermarket chains are starting to carry their own generic organics. Stop & Shop created Nature's Promise, which seems to be gaining more and more products all the time. For example, they carry a wide array of organic juices. The lemonade and apple juice have become staples in our house, and the bottles are well under $3. That's full strength juice too. So when we cut the apple juice with 50% filtered water for our son, it yeilds twice as much, and is essentially the same thing as Motts for Tots. Only organic. And less expensive. And twice as much. Cah-CHING!

Organic milk is still very expensive. The Nature's Promise 1/2 gallon organic lowfat milk is roughly the same price as a full gallon of non-organic branded milk. I figured we couldn't possibly do this, but I realized our family's milk consumption is way down. We could really get by on a single 1/2 gallon a week durring the summer. Therefore, I made the decision to reduce our milk consumption and go organic. We're drinking a ton more water now, so that is a good thing anyway. So no savings on that one, but we were able to go organic without paying MORE.

(And FYI, the 2-year-old is on Silk Soy Milk which is organic, and we can get that for $7 for **3** half gallons at Sam's Club. Perfect!)

And PS: I just found this forum: http://www.organicgrocerydeals.com/forums/
Looks like a great place to find a deal!

Let's all take a moment to think about the earth.

2008-07-25T09:02:00.000-04:00

I'm Running a Green Event!!

2008-07-22T16:06:00.003-04:00

Eeep! Those that know me, you know that I work at a local mid-size art museum. As the public programming person for the education department, I get to plan fun events for both adults and kids.

Well, I figured now was a good a time as any to use my power for GOOD and not evil (not that I used to use it for evil, but I digress). I am planning a Family Day event for November... it will be a "Going, Going, GREEN!" Family Day! Woo hoo! It is time to put my convictions to the test; not only for the "green" things I want to do, but also for my very, very restricted non-profit-esque budget. Hey, I am supposedly cheap and supposedly green, I could do this in my sleep, right?!

Well, these Family Days are not small little gatherings. I typically am able to get over 1,000 kids and their parents in the doors in the span of 3 1/2 hours. We have 4 artmaking studios going at once, with 2 different art activities to choose from. I bring in storytellers, musicians, dancers, and artists to do demonstrations... the possibilities are endless. I know that my institution is happily on board with the topic. We've recently begun to sell Green Museum Memberships; the first program of its kind in the country.

But the problem is where to begin. I've gotten some really great suggestions from my friends so far (and may eventually post a few here), but I would love to hear some ideas from the rest of you people out there in techno-land. What could be a fun artmaking activity? Know a great performer in New England who you've seen and can reccomend? Lay it on me!

My Little Garden (& Helper)

2008-07-09T11:00:00.004-04:00

My little garden helper! This cilantro definitely did NOT need more water, but oh well.

Watering the catnip.
The pitiful garden. The gone-by phlox are taking over!! They do very well in this bed, so in the end I might allow the flowers to take over in this particular location.
See what I mean about the phlox? So far the garden is a lot of very successful herbs (chives, rosemary, thyme, parsley, spearamint, and the newly added from-my-sister's-garden oregano and cilantro), and some less than successful peppers and strawberries.
However, there ARE cherry tomatoes coming!!

My master plan is to have a really real in-the-ground big garden next summer. That means a bit of testing out what works well now and how much I can keep up with. The compost bin is composting, so that will be ready to go long before then... it is the layout part and where on our property to put it that has me stymied. I want to do it 100% organic.

One probelm I already forsee: the chipmunks are terrible this year (hence my less-than-successful strawberries and peppers). If anyone has tips for keeping them away, outside of killing them, I am all ears!!

Online Coupons = Green Stuff For Me

2008-07-08T16:18:00.003-04:00

I came across this promo: Get $10 off any $25 purchase at Lowes as long as you use a Visa card. (Click on the link and fill out your info; they email you a coupon super fast: http://www.lifetakesvisa.com/?id=lawn_editorial2).

I spent only $15 out of pocket to upgrade all of my home's lightbulbs to CFLs. Finally!! Only a few have been switched over. Now I can ensure that all of our non-dimming bulbs can make the change (please know that CFLs should not be used in lights that use dimmer switches. We learned that the hard way, or so says our electrician. Apparently there are CFL bulbs that can be used in lights with dimmers, but they are still close to $15 a bulb. Not something this cheapo can justify right yet). I always forget about the exterior house lights, hallway lights, and bulbs within ceiling lighting fixtures.

We bit the bullet and bought...

2008-07-03T12:43:00.002-04:00

... the pellet stove!

We decided to shop around and had heard about another local shop (Enchanted Fireside) that was offering 100% financing for 12 months, and decided even if the stove was a different model or price, we'd consider it.

We found a model that was simmilar to the other we were considering, but had larger SF heating capacity and can burn a select few other things as well (in our case, it can also burn shelled corn and black oil sunflower seeds). PHEW, pricey, but I am so happy we did. Our model was still in stock, so it should actually be able to be installed in 2-3 weeks.

Once we got to the sales desk, we got a bit of runaround. We were told that they do still offer financing, but you have to put 50% down. They apparently changed their financing deal just this week because they have been so overwhelmed with sales and just can't afford to do it anymore. They were literally taking the signs off the walls while we were shopping. There was a waitlist that you had to put your name on at the door, just to get help from a salesman. Anyway, we had heard that this had happened to our friends (told that they had to put 50% down when all of their advertising still mentioned 100% financing), so we went in prepared. Mike and I pulled the "That's it! We're walking!!" routine and it actually worked. We ended up getting the "pretty" version of the stove (nickel metal pieces on the face, fake-o logs inside, and a custom base), and it didn't cost a helluva lot more.

If you are thinking about getting a pellet stove, and live in the Northeast, it seems like every place we have looked are overwhelmed with the demand. I KNOW it is 90 degrees out and it seems silly, but walk into any showroom and you'll see what I mean.

Why use CFL bulbs? Cheap AND green!!

2008-06-25T11:22:00.001-04:00

This cute video says it all. Not only are they green (well, unless you chuck them in the trash. BAD!!), but in the end, cheaper too. Check it out!

Took 3 steps backwards.

2008-06-24T08:40:00.003-04:00

Airline travel is a really really bad thing for the environment. I guess not only that, but business travel in general.

This past weekend, my job paid for me to go on a business trip half-way across the country. On all those online "what-is-your-carbon-footprint" calculators, frequency of air travel is a biggie. I'm sad to say, that I now see why. Just seeing all of the CRAP that people haul from one place to another in huge bags made me realize how much of that air traffic is just inert bags of things going from one place to another and back again.

WORSE is if you forget something. And in the interest of saving $$$ just buy one small thing to get you through. Individually sized things are just the biggest waste of packaging. EVER!
Maybe the most frustrating was that my supplied lunches all came in very sturdy throw-away plastic containers which may or may not have been recycled. Plus, they all had single-use forks, knives, napkins, plastic cups, etc., etc. I would have taken them home had I been out to lunch at home. There were over 200 people at my seminar alone. So, multiply that by 200. For just my teeny tiny itty bitty seminar.

So, I am disapointed. Travel isn't set up for being green.

On a happier note, if you would like to see the photos from my trip, click here.

Nothing thrilling going on.

2008-06-18T11:10:00.002-04:00

I've let my garden get out of control... ACK! The parsley looks like an alien plant. I've GOT to get out there and start hacking away at things. All of the herbs are growing like mad, and the vegetables are doing nothing. Hm. This does not bode well for my ever-so-grand plan of growing my own veggies exclusively next summer.

We've been thinking so much about the pellet stove lately, that it seems like everything else has taken a back burner.

One small good thing to add to my list-o-good-things-we're-doing: reusing ziplock baggies. There are many instances where in the past I would have just thrown these away, but not only is that expensive, but it is wasteful and lazy. If the bag is holding dry things, a quick rinse under the faucet and an afternoon in the bottle rack make it like new.

Baby steps.

Went shopping today.

2008-06-16T12:56:00.004-04:00

Today, Mike and I (and Lincoln!) went shopping for pellet stoves. We went to the local Higgins Energy Alternatives in Barre, MA.

Great thing they do #1: they had a BUNCH of kiddie toys tucked into the back of the showroom. Lincoln was in heaven, and it kept him away from the other stoves and allowed us to talk to the salesman. Even though they had a very polished looking showroom, it made me really happy that this was a family-centered business.

Great thing they do #2: the salesman was great. LOW pressure, and seemed almost more intersted in just answering our questions. He didn't discuss money or sales unless we asked about it.

The drawback: cost. With install ($900), the type of stove we want (the cheapest one with automatic ignition; $2600), and a couple of add-ons that would be absolutely necessary (another $500 for its own thermostat, remote control, and a pre-fab hearth), we're talking $4 G's. Ouch. Add on the pellets (they are selling them at $279 a ton, and we'd get 2 tons to get us through the winter), and potentially a new window or two, suddenly this is some serious bread.

Here's the stove (above). I asked if the manual orange-juice press came with it, because it was featured so prominently. I don't think the guy got it.

The positives:
* They can direct vent the stove. Unless you have a pre-existing chimney with 2 stacks (one for your oil heat and one unused), this is what most people do. This just means that the installer punches through a selected wall, and runs a pipe out there. We've got the perfect spot for it. If you have a window that opens within 18" of the vent, then you have to run the vent up and away; we may or may not have to do that.
* The pellets are still so unbelievably cheap. Under $600 to heat our home for the whole winter? AWESOME! We'd still need to fill the oil tank at least once to heat our water, but c'mon now. The cost for the whole winter is what we were paying each MONTH, LAST winter!!
* Auto-ignite ones like the one we were looking at heat evenly and efficiently. This is a very different thing than WOOD stoves.
* It is CHEAP and GREEN energy.

The drawbacks:
* The up-front cost. It is a lot of money to shell out up front. We are looking at this as a long-term investment in our home's efficiency & sustainability, however, so we think it might be worth it. But still; that is scary money.
* The facade: the glass window on the front is pretty, but it does get hot. It makes me worry about little fingers, and we'd have to find a solution to keep the baby away from it. The body of the stove does remain just moderately warm, though, so in that way it is actually very safe.

We've got a lot to think about.

Online Friends Rule!

2008-06-13T08:20:00.003-04:00

You know who you are!

I had heard about the possibility to the BRU/BPA bottle return from one of my home girls, and tra la! It worked out great. They did NOT take back my old steam sterilizer, extra bottle nipples, extra caps, or manual breastpump, BUT! They did take back (8) 9oz Avent bottles and (10) 4oz storage bottles. The result? $87 in merchandise credit! Holy cow!! They credited me the cost of brand new bottles. Unbeliveable. I'd assume they are losing their shirt on this, but I suppose it is to their benefit to do this now before there is a real recall.

Even though they directed me to the BPA-free section for my "exchange," their selection sucked, and I just left. The card said it was good for both BRU and TRU, in-store, and online.

Cheap people like me love this crap.

BPA & BRU

2008-06-11T15:48:00.002-04:00

So, the rumors are TRUE. I just talked to my local Babies R Us. I have all of Lincoln's old Avent bottles; they said YES they would take them back, but their policy has changed. Now, they require you to exchange them for BPA-free bottles (rather than giving you store credit), and you have to show your driver's lisence. That must be to make sure you aren't a scammer, who has a line on 1,000 old Avent bottles at your local recycling center or something.

Who cares, they are going back! Yay on new BPA-Free bottles! Woo hoo! I'll scope out what they will give me, and whether or not sippy cups can be the exchange item. Worst case, I get brand new bottles for whenever we have the next kid. Of course, by then, THOSE bottles will have been recalled. I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Alternative Sources of Heat

2008-06-10T10:23:00.004-04:00

I mentioned in a previous post that we're thinking of investing in a pellet stove. We had what I would dub a heating crisis last winter.

WELL, I just found out the CURRENT lock-in rate (I mean, if we lock in & buy all our oil right now; this number is projected to increase before next winter) for oil is $4.79/gallon. Holy CRAP. With us burning about 5 gallons a day, that is $718/month. No. We cannot afford that.

With just 3 months of paying that price, we would completely pay off the cost of a brand new pellet stove, installed. We might as well buy one now, while Mike has a job and we have a bit of extra income.

(A wee bit ugly, but maybe we can get a more attractive one)

You buy the pellets (pictured above) by the ton, and they are made of highly compressed sawdust (so wood, but only refined pellets of it, that burn very hot and produce way less ash). Some can run off of biomass pellets, which use other natural materials (corn, etc), but the sawdust pellets are the most common. It is considered a pretty eco-friendly thing to do too, which is an added benefit.

3 other couples we know are planning on getting one too. I hate that we have to think about this durring the first heat wave of the year (the irony is not lost on me that it is going to be close to 100 today, and all I can think about is winter heating), but I think it is the smartest thing to do.

Hey!! Our stimulus check would just about cover the cost of the stove!!

Heating Our Home

2008-06-05T09:36:00.002-04:00

Our heating oil costs this past winter ran us $500+ per month. The last month, it was close to $600. This was with keeping the thermostat set to 62-64. How can that even BE?! Our house isn't very large (1600 SF living space), but there are a TON of very inefficient problems with it. I can see gaps in the wood in our front door. We have all old single-pane windows. We have the old dial thermostats.

The laundry room off of our bedroom is perhaps the worst offender. I have no idea how insulated it is, but to keep the pipes from freezing out there, we have to keep the door from our bedroom open to heat it. There is a door within THAT space, and it is only a storm door. It has big, single-pane windows. We are hemmoraging heat.

Realistically, we can't afford another winter like that. When one spouse only works seasonally and collects unemployment throughout the winter months, money can get really tight for us. So, the only real solutions are to (1) make the house more heating-efficient, and (2) look into alternative heating sources.

Oil is a horrible way to go. Right now we are looking into whether a pellet stove might be what we need.

The Compost Bin & Organic Veggies

2008-06-05T09:13:00.003-04:00

The compost bin is going well, though after 1 lawn mow, it is 2/3 full. Ooops. Well, if certainly gives me a good base to work from. I have a regular air-tight container in the kitchen that I chuck all my veggie wastes into, and I bring it out when I feel like it.

I did my first round of truly organic fruit and vegetable shopping. Stop & Shop seems to have a great variety, and the prices aren't bad. Though the peppers were pricey (2 for $4), the apples were really reasonable. I was also psyched to see that several Seventh Generation items were randomly 50% off, so I snagged a few things there too.

Lincoln LOVES apples, and I was thrilled that he ate an entire one all by himself last night for dessert, after downing a Morningstar Tomato & Basil Pizza Burger. That's my boy! For dietary reasons, he is only on Soy Milk too. If only all meals went that smoothly. Please note that this is not a regular occurance however; the kid is still getting a hot dog for at least 1 meal a week, and regularly has something-with-syrup for breakfast. But it does feel good when we do get it right.

On another note, the rest of my super-mini garden are in the ground! I have big plans to make a large, expanded garden next summer, but as for now, I have a very small planting box. I now finally added jalepeno & bell peppers & a small tomato plant. It is a start. Photos to come.

All our new stuff.

2008-06-03T08:54:00.005-04:00

We got our order from Diapers.com. Yay! It felt like Christmas. OK, why has my life changed so much, that I am sooooooo excited at the thought of brand new diapers and a sippy cup? Yikes.

Anyhow, here's my reviews on the new investments.

1. Sigg Sippy

I spent an insane amount ($17!!) on a new water bottle for Lincoln. What this means from here on out is that I pledge to use the current plastic sippy cups in our house until they are no more, and use the Sigg Sippy until he is, say, 18 or so. I refuse to invest in any more plastic ones. We've been working on using a "real" cup too and he is doing great with that. Normal cups with a straw are great too. But when we are on the road, this is what he will get.

So far, so good. It is really very sturdy. He immediately loved it and started carrying it around, so I guess that is a good thing! So hooray, no more BPA concerns.

On that note, I heard through the grapevine that Babies R Us is taking returns on all used Avent and Dr. Brown bottles, due to BPA concerns. I have not been able to find any reliable info about this online, but I plan on calling my local branch to find out if this is really true. I've got a treasure trove of bottles I would love to bring back.

2. gDiapers.

The price still has me doubtful, but these things really are pretty cool. It might be TMI, but we've used them for a couple poo-filled diapers, and I am still trying to figure out how to clean them out. The insert comes out, you tear the sides, drop the innards into the toilet, and then toss in the rest. Then you use a "swish stick" to break it all up, which happens really quickly and easily. No problem flushing at all. I'd only want to do maybe 1 of those a day in our septic (I am still a scaredy-cat there, no matter what their website says), but even tossing them with the regular diaper trash makes me feel good. When it gets messy (all over the permanent liner) that's when i don't know what do do. I chuck them in the wash, but what if I don't have a wash to run? Yuck. It's a work in progress though, so we'll stick with it.

Trying Out gDiapers

2008-05-28T11:22:00.003-04:00

Last year alone, 18-23 billion diapers went into landfills across America. That works out to be approximately 38,000 every minute and adds up to about 3.5 million tons of waste! Scary and terrible. What's worse is we've been contributing to that nightmare.

When our son was first born, we were going through 12 diapers a day, easy. Those little buggers pee and poo a LOT!! And gross, too. I couldn't even fathom doing cloth diapering, because it seemed so inconvenient.

I've been looking into alternatives to disposables now, however. He's on the verge of potty training (he's only 2ish, so it may be a little while), and since we're down to 5 or 6 diapers a day, I thought I might give cloth a whirl. gDiapers seem like a step in the right direction.

The benefits of these (as posted on their website):

* gDiapers consist of a washable, cotton outer “little g” pant and a plastic-free flushable diaper refill. They are made of breathable material just like sports clothing. So, babies stay dry and happy and are far less likely to get diaper rash.

* The inserts can be flushed, composted or tossed. Can't flush? It's ok to toss our flushable diaper refills because they're plastic-free. Or garden compost the wet ones. They'll break down in 50-150 days. Tossed ones will break down in the landfill in about 90 days vs. up to 500 years for a disposable.

Sounds great! But... they're costly.

I snagged a decent promo at 1-800-Diapers. With a coupon code I saw in Parents Magazine, I got $10 off my order and free shipping. With a few other items tossed in the mix (i'll mention these in another post), I met the minimum to order. So, I got:

* gDiapers Starter Kit (Large) for $26.99
* gDiapers Flushable Refills (Med/Large, 32 ct) for $14.49 (45c a piece. Yikes!)

With my $10 off, this took the total from $41.48 to $31.48. For that, I got 2 shells, 42 refills, a "swishing stick" (for breaking up the insert before I flush it; yuck!), and a how-to guide.

Since we usually get Huggies disposables at Sam's Club for $36.87 (21c per diaper) this is a significant increase in cost. The good thing about gDiapers is I can use a cloth diaper inside the shell, and keep using them that way. I decided it was worth it to bite the bullet and try them out. I'll report back on how well they work, and whether the cost is really worth it. Stay tuned.

Starting a Compost Bin

2008-05-27T12:16:00.003-04:00

This past weekend I built my first compost bin!!

(Before I go on, let's all get something clear. I am by no means an expert on ANYTHING I am attempting to do. I think people learn just as much, if not more from FAILURES than successes. So if I do something dumb and ammetureish in this process, I'm going to tell you so).

And with that disclaimer, here's how I made this contraption. :P

4 u-posts and chicken wire. That is all.

Actually, it looks a lot like this, only square. I realize that when I begin to add food wastes, I will need to create a "lid" to keep pests out, but I really just envision trying to rig it with my leftover chicken wire. Or something. I'll keep you posted.

We DO already have a very unofficial compost heap behind our defunct chicken coop, and it is working great. So far it is lawn waste only, but since we have traditionally used fertilizers and weed killers on our lawn, that waste is not "organic." My end-goal of this NEW compost bin is to create organic matter that will go into my already-in-the-works garden for next summer. I hope to eventually grow my own organic veggies, but this will require a lot of planning on my part. I missed some primo planting time for this year, so a selection of herbs (so far: parsley, chives, mint, rosemary, and tyme; later cilantro & basil) and small things (like strawberries and patio tomatoes) are on the docket for this summer.

Starting out; my pledge to be a better mom.

2008-05-27T11:51:00.002-04:00

Let's set the record straight from the get-go. To this point, I have been a relatively reckless parent. By that, I mean I have parented via convenience. The paralyzing fear that took over my life and mind for the first year and a half of my son's life was what directed me to act as I did. I ignored the earth and my impact in it.

The reason for this is fairly simple. I didn't know how to be a parent, and put my heart and soul into that and that alone. If anything remotely politcal, controvercial, or debate-worthy came up, I would tune out immediately. It was (and still is) hard for me to hear all the bad things in the world. It is scary and overwhelming. I want to change everything, but feel powerless to do anything.

Finally... enough. By doing nothing, I was actually acting against those things that in which I believed very strongly. Dumb!! I am a firm believer in the philosophy that even small amounts of "good," when added up over time and across many individuals doing a little, can create significant change.

However, I am cheap. REALLY cheap. I hate to spend money and when I do I have massive regret. What is a mom to do? I have a VERY limited budget, but "green" things tend to cost a lot of money. From going all-organic in our food, to transfering our electrical output to alternative sources of energy, "green" things are gonna cost me.

Sigh.

So, I have started this blog with the effort to track my progress in greening-up my life and the life of my family, and the very real costs to do so. I BELIEVE that it is doable, but there are going to have to be some big changes at home.