Earth Day

I am ashamed to admit that I am not very earth friendly. I don't recycle and usually never think about anything that might effect our earth in the years to come. I know some of you are very upset with me, but isn't the first step in correcting your problem acknowledging it? So, here I am watching Oprah and listening to all the tips on "going green". I will list some of what she said:

1. plastic bags can take 1,000 years to decompose in a landfill and paper bags use an estimated 14 million trees in one year - what we should do is bring your own reusable bags. Okay this one will be hard for me ... not sure why, but it will be.

2. Buy organic b/c no pestisides are used in growing - okay I can do this one.

3. Green dimes says they can stop an estimate of 70-90% of junk mail from coming to your house. Aaron will love this one. He HATES junk mail. In fact just a few weeks ago he decided to make a statement to the mail lady and refused to remove the junk mail from our mail box. I tried and tried to explain to him that it wasn't her personally that was responsible. To no avail he said someone had to pay and unfortunately it was her. Don't worry, I slip out there and take it all out when he isn't looking! I know it is not our sweet mail lady who is in charge of the amount of junk mail we receive!

4. Napkins - we use 2200 per year on average per person. If we all gave up one napkin a day it would save a billion paper waste from going to landfills per year. WOW!

5. Cleaning products are putting stuff in the air that can cause asthma and other problems. The "clean" smell that we love is not really clean. It can be toxic. Visit these sites to see NON TOXIC products. Seventh Generation which they said you can find at Target and other health food stores. Meyer's cleaning products can be found online. Method cleaning cloths so you don't have to use spray. These can be found at Target too. Shaklee is also very good too. I think I might go online and get some of their stuff. I just hate to think that I'm hurting my kids with my cleaning. Good thing for them I don't clean that often!!! GO visit now b/c they are having a sale for Earth Day!

6. When stuff is plugged in and not on it is still using energy - about 40%. You should use a smart power strip ($32.99) that will save you money on your electric bill and save energy too.

7. Change your light bulbs - buy a compact florescent light bulb - 75% more effecient and you'll recognize savings on your electric bill! They last 8-10 years. One lady saved over $50 her first month! WOW! Look for CFL light bulbs! They are about $5.99 but last forever!

8. RECYCLE - I am guilty of NOT doing this. How do I get those bins so someone will come pick it up???? Takes 100 years for glass to break down in landfill! Remove the lid and rinse them out first. Find out the rules in your area, go here.

9. Did yo know that Starbuck's offers you a 10 cent discount if you bring your own mug! Wow and then you don't trash anything!

10. Keep thermostat at 78 in summer - UM we won't be doing that. Aaron would DIE! Ours is more like 68!

Okay so this is a lot of information and I can't believe I just sat here and watched this whole show and typed out what I was hearing. I am going to make small steps. We'll start with new light bulbs and a smart strip. I'll start looking for new cleaning supplies and will look to find out about recycling in my area.