I am becoming more & more frustrated by this. Don't get me wrong - Its been an issue I've been concerned about for years. But at some point I got lazy & wasn't quite as concerned as I used to be. And if I bought a few throwaway cleaning products or some such thing I could rationalize it. I mean, a busy moms gotta do what shes gotta do -right?

wrong!!!!

ugh. I am so tired of all the rationalizations. Too overwhelmed to wash diapers?
buy paper. too grossed out by your toilet brush? buy 1 use foam heads to clean with. dont want to wash sippy cups? throw them away instead! and on & on & on....

since when was our life supposed to be easy? Since when did our comfort become more important than the enviroment? Our EARTH!!!! Why are people who KNOW BETTER so willing to say "to hell with it, I wont feel guilty" and feel entitled to disposable products just so they wont be overwhelmed? What happens when our planet is overwhelmed? What of the legacy we will have left our children? Will it have been worth that load of laundry you didn't have to do? The toilet brush I didn't have to touch?

sigh.....I am *so* recommiting myself to this issue!!!

you know i had this same thought yesterday while in target.

i was getting a sippy cup for jackson and saw the disposible plates, cups and also they had INSULATED disposible cups.

I was like "what???...it's a cup...why would you throw it away???"

I know I know.

This Christimas I am giving canvas shopping bags as gifts. It makes me nuts to see people load up all their disposable products into plastic bags. I am shocked by how few things the baggers put in each sack, too. And what's the point of putting a plastic bag of potatoes into another plastic bag just for the ride home?

I know these are not sippy cups, but they are so cute and tiny and do not break. I bought a few a couple of years ago for playgroup. Enamel cups at www.novanatural.com The kids love them.

You can also get cheap camping mugs as well.

Have I been all over the map enough in this post? :kittypink

PS I just checked the website and the enamels are out of stock right not. Bummer.

nak

I am with you, 100% Anne Marie! It is maddening!! I am about as overwhelmed as it comes these days, but you don't see sposies on my baby or paper plates on my table. I just couln't buy those things in good conscience.

I agree. It frustrates me that the school will not let me use glass containers. (Course then Samantha's stainless steel thermos came home with a huge dent it in, so maybe I sorta understand. How do you dent stainless like that?) That is the only place I use "disposable" items. We use mason jars for storing leftovers, flours, nuts, seeds, noodles, etc.

I think my parents (mom) is terrible and I am hoping my girls are learning more from me about disposable items. I go through 3 or fewer rolls of recycled papers towels every 3 months or so. My mom goes through 3 rolls of Bounty a week. She puts all kinds of stuff in huge ziplocs (little stuff). They fill their outdoor trash receptacle every week. We usually only have one bag. Drives me nuts. And all the little single serve things she buys for the girls. Ugh!

How do we educate the masses?

I'm with you, and I have to be more vigilant. I bought some re-usable "sandwich bags" from a mama here--now I have forgotten whom. I hope to use those often when we send lunch and snacks.

DH LOVES paper plates, and he will use them even when the dishwasher is empty and waiting to be filled with dirty dishes. Fortunately, (LOL) we are short on cash and have been without them for a couple weeks. I am hoping it is breaking his habit. The same is true of paper towels, though I use them occasionally for cleaning up something gross.

I totally agree. My friends keep looking for my paper towels and I keep reminding them that we don't use them anymore. I have a little tree-like stand so I can wash and reuse ziploc bags (if I even use them at all). Some woman told me the other day "oh, so you're one of those 'save the earth' people, right? Well good, you can save the earth for my kids since I'm too lazy." OMG!!!!! I almost died.

I have to admit we use paper plates a lot - and even though we do we're still running the dishwasher 3 times a day some days (there are 7 people in this house - 4 adults and 3 kids). I don't usually pay too much mind to the disposable things we use but I've started paying attention and we take the trash out twice a day!

(We did, however, buy a set of glass storage containers for leftovers and I got rid of all the plastic)

I'm stepping up and vow to work on this in our home.

So... post your favorite things you use instead!

.

I was like "what???...it's a cup...why would you throw it away???"

I guess its not just cups! I just saw Avent sells disposable bottles!!! wierd!!!

I totally agree. My friends keep looking for my paper towels and I keep reminding them that we don't use them anymore. I have a little tree-like stand so I can wash and reuse ziploc bags (if I even use them at all). Some woman told me the other day "oh, so you're one of those 'save the earth' people, right? Well good, you can save the earth for my kids since I'm too lazy." OMG!!!!! I almost died.


Reminds me of my mother in law. years & years ago we were visiting & my oldest told her that we dont buy drinks that come in plastic bottles. MIL asked why & dd (then only 2 or so) told her it was because plastic is bad for the enviroment. MIL replied "so?" & then turned to me & said "I dont need to worry about that". Yeah... you just ignore it & we'll leave your grandkids to worry about the pile of trash you left behind....

I didn't use paper towels for years. For the last year I have. :( DS needs to realize he *can* clean the bathroom without them!

My SO is obsessed with things that he can just throw away. He is a clean freak and thinks that even if you wash things, if you re-use them, they are dirty. He uses paper plates and napkins and drinks bottled water. That alone makes me cringe. I try to make up for his eco-short comings though.

My SO is obsessed with things that he can just throw away. He is a clean freak and thinks that even if you wash things, if you re-use them, they are dirty. He uses paper plates and napkins and drinks bottled water. That alone makes me cringe. I try to make up for his eco-short comings though.
Ah! I actually kind of get it - I realized recently that I must have OCD to some extent. I think that is where the paper towels come in. Not wanting to put the dirty rags in the wash, especially with other wash used for other things. But I realized that I really need to come up with a plan to deal with it,so I have.(It never was an issue for me before though, so I'm not sure why that changed!) I can see how someone with cleanliness issues could have a hard time - and how maddening it must be to someone who does not! LOL

IKWYM. It drives me crazy when people use the excuse that something is so much easier. Not to go off on a tangent, but I hear that about parenting a lot. Not just diapers but bfing too. I have had so many people talk about it being easier to use bottles or need their freedom! Like you said, don't have kids if raising them well takes too much effort and deprives you of your freedom!Aaaccckkkk. Off to get my diapers off the line. Oh, gotta add a rant about our friends from France. They were in town for the summer. Everything I did they exclaimed how much work it was. CDing, EBfing, reusing things, etc. They could not get over all of the wonderful disposable products. They couldn't consume enough! Hmm...why don't we just quit washing our clothes, forget about repairing our cars, and reusing anything at all! That is a whole other issue of not repairing things any more just buying new ones. OK, better get off this soapbox now. Thanks for reminding us to keep at the reusing and take care of our world.

thank you for this post!
This is how I get after awhile too!
I get on myself about it because I use pull ups on my kids at night, I dont have recycling anywhere near me, and living in an apartment, i can only grow so much of my own food and dry stuff on two little folding sweater racks (one is about to fall apart).

I hate pull ups. i hate disposable diapers. I hate disposable feminine products too. I think they are all so very gross and every morning my kids throw away their pull ups and i cringe.
I dont know how to break them of bedwetting habits nor do i have the money to buy them new mattresses when theirs reek of overnight accidents, so i use pull ups.
if anyone has any suggestions to this, i would appreciate some advice.

we dont use paper towels at all, not for mirrors or windows..nothing.
I clean houses for a living and when i come home, i run my rags through a cycle with a tiny bit of bleach and hot water (yes bleach is bad i know, but it kills bathroom cooties), then wash regular with a load of laundry. then dry in the dryer or in the hot sun.

we use only cloth napkins, the majority of my cycle i use cloth pads.
i enjoy sewing cloth napkins, cloth pads, and have yet to recruit any of my IRL friends to using cloth pads...odd that i can't, none of them were keen on cloth diapering their kids either lol.

I buy what I can in bulk- azurestandard.com I think sells alternative brands to costco of more earth friendly items in bulk (dr.bronner's in gallon containers!)

ok, rambling.

I have to admit we use paper plates a lot - and even though we do we're still running the dishwasher 3 times a day some days (there are 7 people in this house - 4 adults and 3 kids). I don't usually pay too much mind to the disposable things we use but I've started paying attention and we take the trash out twice a day!

(We did, however, buy a set of glass storage containers for leftovers and I got rid of all the plastic)

I'm stepping up and vow to work on this in our home.

So... post your favorite things you use instead!


We have 6 people in our family. I use the dishwasher once at night, but sometimes I wait until after the next morning's breakfast to run it. One thing that helps is that people use the same drinking glass through the day (my 7 yr old often makes nametags she tapes on the glasses if two people are using glasses from the same set. lol) . We only drink water, so it's not to much of an issue-- nothing sticky at the bottom. If I have more than one cup of coffee in a day, I rinse my morning cup and use it again. That helps keep down what goes in the dishwasher. I also have the hser kids reuse plates at times. Not gross dirty one that they had scrambled eggs on it, but sometimes the small breakfast plate that held toast for 5 minutes is used for AM snack and even for a sandwich at lunch, depending what's been eaten off it. Now, I don't save 6 breakfast plates--that's a mess. lol But for those who are home, we will often just put them on the island neatly. The glasses are neatly lined up near the refrigerator water filter.

Have I grossed you out? I can also say buying larger containers of things (yogurt etc) is less garbage producing than buying a million little yogurt containers. Everything helps.

Here is a pic of our water glasses. And behind them is a basket of cloth napkins. www.geminiskies.vox.com

I hope that doesn't sound germy-- we hardly, knock wood--ever get sick. But it does keep down the dishes.

AAAk--I forgot about the pullups. DS uses goodnights every night. It got to be a bit much to put cloth diapers on him every night, and maybe I just need to break down and buy a couple of pairs of bedwetter cloth pants for him. He is 5, and I am beginning to wonder if he will ever stop wetting the bed...He has spells of dry nights, or a dry night here or there, but never for long.

I once walked through a store with a friend and we were looking at the individually wrapped hotdogs and she said to me "Whats next, disposable bibs?" and we laughed and laughed about how stupid that would be...

Now, sadly, 8 years later, this is a reality. It has become a fast food/single use nation. I have nearly everything reuseable, I have become VERY conscience on this issue, and I still throw away way too much garbage every week. I justify it by saying things like "My neighbors, who are just a couple, have a larger garbage can than we do for a family of 4." and it is true... but it doesn't make my impact less because their's is more. That should give me reason to recycle more, to use more reusable products, not justify the fact that the ones that I don't use... you know?

I use to bring my coffee cup to the espresso bar with me. Then I took a break from coffee and put my reusable cup away... time to get it back out. I threw one of those out today.

Time to think about the little things like that.

I too, run the dish washer once a night. I use my sprinkler system for 10 minutes a night instead of watering the garden with the hose becuase it actually saves us money/water. I do my laundry in the late evening when the water pressure is high and the usage is low. I do all of these things, but I could always do more. Always.

Val

Edit to add: have you seen the "ready to microwave" potatoes? People can't even wrap their potatoes in a towel anymore... they have individually wrapped in plastic potatoes! It is a strange world. Very very strange.

there is a city locally that doesn't make you pay for your trash pickup

instead...they charge you for their purple trash bags. they only pick up purple trash bags. but the cool thing is that you pay for how much trash you make. although there are plenty of people who don't care...i like to think that makes a bit of a difference.

Ok, they need that here Julie. That would make my mom think. My best friend lived on one of the islands outside Seattle for a while. You had to take your garbage to the dump and you were charged for each BAG, not each time you went. Makes you think. I wish we had better recycling here. I have to take my recycling to work for pick-up.

oh yeah...yogurt containers.
I buy Brown Cow or Clover oragnic yogurt only, and I save the containers and we use them for everything..leftovers, drinking cups, etc, etc.
The name brand scratches off eventually and I scrub the lids and relabel them with a Sharpie, but they are still functional.
I also buy margarine in plstic tubs and reuse the tubs over and over....

I try to not use baggies for much of anything. I have a plastic sandwich container (sort of bread slice shape) for a standard pb n j, and if i cant find a spill proof cup when i brown bag my lunch, i take.. dont laugh.. a sippy cup.

(actually, its not a brown bag, its an insulated soft tiny cooler of sorts).
I simply rinse my stuff out after i finish eating, stuff it all back in my lunchbag and take it all home.

I keep all empty/used containers that are resealable. I used to care because I wanted everything to look uniform, but it's become pleasing to me to see a variety of containers in my cupboard. I love all the different glass jars especially!

Oh yes... I have TONS of glass jars. I slowly started replacing them back when they still sold Mayo in glass jars. They were the best for putting labels on because they have no indentations of their own... now all my small (quart) bulk jars are old mayo jars. I also have pints and other seasoning sizes which I refill from bulk, honey jars (quart that was new to discourage bacteria) which I refill from bulk, half gallons (in which I keep other bulk items such as sugar, protien powder, small shell noodles, etc) and gallons (for larger bulk items like flour, oat meal, rice, etc). LOVE my glass jars... love them! I like everything about them. :D

the toilet paper isle at walmart is appaling to me. Those disposable pre moistened wipes. Why can't people just use FBW's if they want to wash after going? no no must throw it away.

I'm the rags queen around here. Heck, I've even fallen into my own mothers pattern & started using a cloth to wash the dishes instead of a sponge. I swore I'd never do that (modified: I swear to replace my rag with a fresh one when it gets super nasty) there are kitchen rags & towels, bathroom rags & a big sack of rags in the basement hallway. I can't remember the last time we even had paper towels. I don't know that *I* have ever been the one to buy them.

the 2 things we have currently that are a bone of contention in the disposable issue are the plastic zip top bags & the cans from dog food. There really isn't a way around the cans. The dog must eat & this is what he can & will & it's helping him get healthy again. I just make SO wash them and recycle them afterwards.

As for the plastic bags, I have no alternatives. They get some reuse, and we're not going through more than a box of 100 every yr -8 months. Still I like having them around to toss a sandwich in for DD when we're running out the door or to toss extra chopped vegies in for use later. Cans & jars take up to much space when not in use. My kitchen just doesn't have that kind of extra storage.

finally, since I'm thinking about it. I have to cheer for SO's new employer. They are an HVAC parts supplier & get this, They don't have a dumpster! The boss is crazy about recycling. They recycle all the scrap metal, messed up pieces & cardboard packaging. What's even cooler is that the boss drives a hybrid truck!

Chole

we dont use paper towels at all, not for mirrors or windows..nothing.


I use them for cat barf, dog barf, bird crap, and cleaning up the huge roach carcasses after I squish them (or are part of said cat barf).

I just can't even stand to use rags for those things.

Other than that we're pretty good. It helped to grow up with a very frugal mother.

This is a great thread. We use very similar strategies to Laurie/mamax4 to keep dishes down (no dishwasher though). Reuse glasses through the day, reuse or quick-rinse a plate, etc. Not anything unsanitary but it sure does help cut down on wash.

I have to use paper towels for my son's nebulizer, but try to keep it to that. Literally have to - as stupid as it is. Like Kathleen I will also use them for totally gross things like dog barf.

Um, "ready to microwave" potatoes?!?!??!? No. Way. I guess I'm out of the loop, LOL! I love living in the sticks where I don't even see these things. What killed me last year was when I tried to buy some readymade cookie dough, just wanting a roll of sugar cookie dough, as the leader of the girl scout troop had asked me to buy it, but they had sheets of precut cookies! Um, where is the fun in that?

We do use Goodnites every night for Jake. Otherwise I would be washing sheets like mad - as it is I use a reusable cotton absorbent/waterproof pad under him as he often leaks through that. I do not feel guilty about using Goodnites. Oh and for those who are wondering when the bedwetting stops: with my dd it was just after she turned seven years old. I thought it would never end, but it did; it just took longer than I thought it would!

We still make too much garbage. I need to compost more of my kitchen scraps - currently I only compost as I cook/prepare, and plates and coffee grounds go in the trash. Silly, but I just need to get a bucket set up at this house, and a place for compost to go where my dog can't get into it. For anyone else who is interested in composting, on the 23rd I'm going to a workshop on how to have composting worms *inside* in winter! (I'm assuming I'll have a worm box in the basement and compost scraps into that.) Just think - come spring instead of having paid for all that garbage removal we'll just have wonderful earthworm castings to use in the garden!

Choleblack, you crack me up - I recently ditched the kitchen sponge. I wanted to a long time ago but dh was grossed out by the thought of using a cloth instead. After he read "Not Buying It" (in which she describes this totally off the grid guy who uses an old sock filled with nasty old soap bits that's been hanging off his faucet for years, LOL) he finally caved. When his mom came to visit she was *aghast.* "WHAT, NO SPONGE?!??!?!?" I said, "Nope, that's what the cloth is for, we use a new one every day." She was just floored. And she would not wash the dishes with it! Grrrrrrrrrrr.....but fine, whatever!

so what's gross about using a cloth instead of a sponge????

I used a sponge until I started knitting. Now I knit my dishcloths the size I want them and they dry fast. I can't stand to touch something cold and wet. Ick!

so what's gross about using a cloth instead of a sponge????

Beats me! I guess some think it is less sanitary, but honestly sponges gross me out way more. And when I tried to microwave it to kill germs I often burned it, LOL!

I am still a sponge girl... but I use it way less often than I use my bamboo scrubing stick. I LOVE that thing. A little soap and the scrubing stick go a LONG way! (Esp when you only have stainless steal and glass... nothing sticks to that if you wash everyday. ;) )

But for the dirtier jobs, I like my sponges. One will last me 6 months, and I run it through the dishwasher on hot once a week or so with my dishes. It never smells. I used to cut them in half like I cut my dryer sheets in thirds, but I discovered that I used it quicker that way... lol... so I stoped. You learn strange things on this path to becoming less of a consumer.

Val

Ditto on all of the above
When we shop its scary the amount of plastic carp they sell these days, peoples yards are full of it for the kids to play with for 5 minutes until they want the next tv craze.
We were sorting out our HUGE recycling pile yesterday (I recycle everything lol) I was so proud of my kids especially my 9yr old dd, they put so much effort into sorting it out with me. I am sure they will carry this onto their children. I hope I have opened their eyes to why plastic is bad and about advertising etc.
I try and find comfort in the future through our children, I dont beleive it will always be like this. We have to teach them well, against the mass merchandise thats just there for company profits.
It will only get worse before it gets better, t has to for people to wake up

How funny cause I've been thinking a lot about this issue too lately. I started thinking about it the first day I packed my daughter's lunch for school this year. I put in a couple of napkins and thought to myself that's gonna be such a waste for the next 10 months. So I went out and bought a stack of fabric napkins to start putting in her lunch. Instead of buying little half size bottles of water, I got resuable plastic ones. I've been very concious lately about my waste. About how much garbage we generate in this house. I'm trying to make an effort to change.

Our family of 6 dish-users (the baby is still dish-free lol) only run the dishwasher once before bed. We re-use our glasses as mentioned above (although my dh is icked out by me as I will use mine for days, so he sneaks & washes mine out in the guise of being so kind & getting me a drink LOL). Dh has been known to eat out of the pot after everyone else gets their food just to save a dish LOL he also will wait til I'm done (since someone has to hold the babe while I eat LOL) & just use my plate.

I have been tempted to do as Janet Luhrs mentions in her book (I think it is her, its been many years!) & just have 1 place setting per person. (well, actually I'd have more but hide them away for company LOL)


I used to be so obsessed - never bought anything w/plastic. Only used bar shampoo even so as not to have plastic.

And to the mamas picking up pet ick -ewwww LOL

All the glass jar talk has me lol - I get so happy when I buy something in a glass jar & it has no brand imprint on it, cause then I can remove the label & use it for whatever I want with no sign of its prior life to show for it. My dh cant understand why that excites me so much. He also wasn't impressed by my formula can collection when we were fostering LOL I crafted up everyone of those babies! LOL I've got cans,bottles & other various containers in every cupboard of my house! LOL

Has anyone read Garbage land? I think that is the name. I will google it later. Anyhow, once you read that book, you will be forever changed about your former opinions of reycling and the environment.

I think we do an awesome job of recycling and compostin here. However, I do need to work on "pre-recycling" (that is choosing products more carefully before buying.

I do have to buy formula - about 3 cans per month. Otherwise, Vince gets breastmilk - I don't have a full supply, though. The cans are steel, so I throw them in the recycle.

Now we can only recycle 1 and 2 narrow necks here, so I haul the rest of my plastic to my mother's. (Which is not close by, lol). I take plastic on the plane with me. :eek: I am a nerd.

I also take cloth diapers on the plane with me. I am nuts, though. ;)

We compost all scraps that the dogs won't eat.

We don't buy paper towel or pampers or disposable bibs or wrapped potatoes. :D

I hate to buy those terrible plastic strawberry containers - but for a treat I do like to get Garrett organic strawberries a few times a year. Otherwise, we get the frozen ones.

I re-use the empty plastic bags from cereal, frozen produce, etc. but I wonder about germs.

I use dish rags, but my mom bought a sponge when she was here in the Summer, so we still have that. I put it in the dishwasher b/c of germs/odors.

I am sure there is more, but I must go.

I really hate plastic, though. It is so bad in so many ways.

I am not keeping anymore glass - I have too much. I do love it, though but my cupboards are loaded with the stuff, lol.

DS will be off the bus, so I must run...

so what's gross about using a cloth instead of a sponge????

Growing up it was the cloth itself more than the idea. I swear my mother *still* has the same 2 dish clothes. Using a cloth just brought back horrible memories of having to wash the dishes when I was a kid. Of course now I have this big collection of birdseye clothes that I made myself & they are kind of nice. Lots better than those green striped holey ones my mom uses!

Val what's a bamboo scrubbing stick?

Chole

oh, to all those that use a dish several times before washing. We did this when I was growing up too. My mom had a friend who called it "Second Use Dishes". We still do it & joke about 3rd & 4th use dishes too.

Chole

Val what's a bamboo scrubbing stick?

You know those plastic ones that have soap in the handle and bristles on them? Well it looks just like that, only it is made of all wood and bamboo with no empty handle. I got it from my co-op about two years ago, and I use it everyday. I have never even had to think about replacing it. I still can't believe that it is in as good of shape as it is. (It was like $13 though) I do have to remember to rinse it (or more likely remind dh to rinse it... becuase I do it on auto now) or it can get grungy and I only run it through the dishwasher when I absolutly have to... the bamboo has a natural anti bac property, but I don't want to push it when there is 24hr old apple peices stuck in it, and I also don't want to ruin the wood by running it through too many times. lol... but if I rinse it I never have to worry. The thing is amazing!

Val

Good news! The county we are in is getting recycling bins as of Jan 2007. Now we have a great program in our area currently, and we recycle so much we have a double set of bins and get $14 a month off our garbage bill... lol... but for the rest of the county this is a WONDERFUL development! And it also will free up other areas to start recycling #5 plastics (yogurt containers and butter tubs etc).... which will be wonderful! (I just have to say that because of the area we live in, I didn't even know until this newspaper came out that the rest of the county COULDN'T do that... we just always have been able to. Count me lucky!)

bamboo cleaning whisk

http://www.wokshop.com/HTML/images/pix/wok_brush.jpg

http://www.wokshop.com/HTML/products/accessories/access_brush.html

anything like this?

You know those plastic ones that have soap in the handle and bristles on them? Well it looks just like that, only it is made of all wood and bamboo with no empty handle. I got it from my co-op about two years ago, and I use it everyday. I have never even had to think about replacing it. I still can't believe that it is in as good of shape as it is. (It was like $13 though) I do have to remember to rinse it (or more likely remind dh to rinse it... becuase I do it on auto now) or it can get grungy and I only run it through the dishwasher when I absolutly have to... the bamboo has a natural anti bac property, but I don't want to push it when there is 24hr old apple peices stuck in it, and I also don't want to ruin the wood by running it through too many times. lol... but if I rinse it I never have to worry. The thing is amazing!

Val
Oh, I need to find one of those! I use a dishwasher, but I notice I run it a lot less when my dh is not here! Plus, he *insists* on buying detergent for the dw, and I just use baking soda. He would argue that it does a better job, but he hasn't noticed when I use the baking soda! I also stopped buying the disposable cleaning wipes. I don't buy paper towels anymore either. there are areas I need to improve, but I am much better than I was before. my favorite thing is to use the cloth diapers for Stephanie- but that's not so selfless, as I buy pretty ones:) Most of the girls' things now come from thrift shops, though. Lurking on this forum has really opened my eyes!;pop:

I do use paper towels for the really gross stuff too. Otherwise, I have a big bag of cloth towels to use. So, my really bad use of plastic is two plastic bags a day to pick up after the dogs. I really hate throwing these bags in the trash every day. I use the ones from the store (Target, etc--I use cloth for groceries) but it would be better to skip the bags more at the store.

I dislike our disposable society too, but stressin' about it isn't going to make it better really. I'm often shocked to see throw away items they come up with at the store. It's all about makin money. A new product they swear makes your life easier, but does it........ nope!

What blows me away is all the people who fall for the marketing that these throw away co's produce. I have "tried and true" things that I use that are disposable... There arn't many, but I have them... but fall for the newest fastest, cheapest, throwaway something or other? Na... I just wasn't raised that way. I was raised by people of the 'use it up, use it again' world and was taught about marketing at a very young age. I try to pass this on to my children (Alex and I have had some WONDERFUL conversations about marketing ploys) and if the trend continues, then I will have informed consumers as grandchildren too. What more can I ask?

I have a friend who is a 'user of all new fad things', and I adore her. I just don't comment, and resolve my recycling whenever we hang out. lol...

It really irks me also. I hate trash days around here. The amount of trash I see each family dispose of really sickens me. I can't believe it when I hear more and more disposable products coming out. We definitely are a throw away society. Seeing all that stuff only makes me more vigilent in making sure i don't fall into the disposable products pattern. I feel pretty good about what we do to help.

Very few people alive remember the Depression, or WWII for that matter. Those were times when people HAD to be frugal, HAD to re-use (in fact, that's where the "Use it up, wear it out..." saying comes from - it was on propaganda during the war).

Having grown up with older parents who had been through both the Depression and WWII, I grew up frugal. I don't emulate everything my mother did (jeez, I remember our holey old dishrags, too) but I try. The biggest bane of my existence in Missoula is the fact that they no longer recycle glass here, but we are finding ways around it.

One thing not mentioned but probably something many of you do already is to get smaller linen produce bags so you don't have to use plastic at the store. They're lightweight so they don't add to your cost, and they're washable. Most things we don't bag at all, but when it comes to green beans, peas, etc. most cashiers don't dig it when you plunk a handful down on the scanner...

I just realized all the political overtones of this discussion. In WWII they cut back drastically on manufacturing goods such as tires, clothing, etc. for production of 'war goods.' Those were the days when we actually MADE STUFF IN THIS COUNTRY. It's interesting that our current conflicts (or whatever you want to call them) have had virtually no impact on the nation's buying/using of goods. We truly have become a thoughtless society - people thoughtlessly putting stuff in their carts, their mouths, their homes. Half of me is a Luddite who wants nothing to do with cell phones, SUVs, shopping malls and the like, the other half of me heats up coffee in the microwave, loves watching DVDs and thoroughly enjoys the luxury of the internet.

I've been corrupted.

I am still a sponge girl... but I use it way less often than I use my bamboo scrubing stick. I LOVE that thing. A little soap and the scrubing stick go a LONG way! (Esp when you only have stainless steal and glass... nothing sticks to that if you wash everyday. ;) )

But for the dirtier jobs, I like my sponges. One will last me 6 months, and I run it through the dishwasher on hot once a week or so with my dishes. It never smells. I used to cut them in half like I cut my dryer sheets in thirds, but I discovered that I used it quicker that way... lol... so I stoped. You learn strange things on this path to becoming less of a consumer.

Val

I read a book called "Organic Home" or something like that and she said running your sponge through the dishwasher just depsoits its millions of bacteria all over your dishes.

I won't use a sponge for anything; I knew they were gross and that there was no real way to santize them, but recent information pushed me over the edge. Now we use the dishcloths that have the plastic scrubber mesh on one side. I hate plastic, but its the best I can do and still scrub. I use one rag per meal and never dry it out for reuse. Wash dishes, wipe table, wipe counters, wipe floor, wash rag!

thank you for this post!

I hate pull ups. i hate disposable diapers. I hate disposable feminine products too. I think they are all so very gross and every morning my kids throw away their pull ups and i cringe.
I dont know how to break them of bedwetting habits nor do i have the money to buy them new mattresses when theirs reek of overnight accidents, so i use pull ups.
if anyone has any suggestions to this, i would appreciate some advice.



Polar Fleece will protect your mattresses as washes and dries so quickly. It is inexpensize to buy the yardage and is much softer and breathable compared to plastic. (Wool works REALLY well too, but is expensive)There are bear bottom soakers...which are polar fleeece soakers that a mama here designed to keep her older son from soaking through to the bed at night. I don't remember who is selling them, but I am sure we can find them for you. You can post on the Market Board about what mamas do here for their nighttime wetters...I know a lot of moms here have the same issue as you do.

The only paper product that gets used in our house is recycled paper TP for dh. THe rest of us use cloth tp. I do even have some muslin type bags for purchasing bulk at th organic shop. My only holdout for plastic bag use is out kitty litter. We use wood pellets(like for pellet stoves) for the litter, so it should be entirely compostable. But my dh is very skittish about composting it even in a covered container. We live in the city and don't hve a big property.

We have one tiny bag of parbage a week, and most of it is the cat waste~ugh! We hardly have any recycling either as I just make almost everything from scratch. I admit, that can be exhausting!!! But I try to keep it simple. I bake all my own bread...or if I do buy it, I get it from the organic shop and I can put it in my own bag...or the baker at the farmers market usees paper bags. I never ever buy drinks in plastic containers, we mostly drink water and wine...lol! The girls if they get juice, get a black currant/boysenberry concentrate reconstitued in water which comes in a glass jar and is local to us.

I did use sposies for the actual days of travel for travelling internationally. I once made the mistake of having wet cloth dipes in my luggage, and let me tell you they weight a TON and can push you over your baggag limit quickly~lol! So we wash and dry everything...use about 3 sposies in the transition, and then I cloth dipe on the plane, cut I HATE sposies...Yes, I am a NUT.

For lunch boxes we have just started using these..

http://www.to-goware.com/
I really like them, they are stainless...You can also gently reheat stuff in them because they are stainless :)I HOPE they work for dd at school. THey work well for family outings. When dd goes to school, I am going to dye a set of PINK napkins for her and iron in her name to each one of them.

For food storage we use glass. Cleaning, rags. I wash my own load of rags, cloth napkins, placemats, kids face wipes, hankercheifs all together. I use tea tree in this load JIC. The rags I use on the toilet I just put in the diaper laundry.

We also use the same water glass all day long.

We use CHico bags and cloth canvas bags for shopping. The cloth canvas bags you can OFTEN find at thrift stores for nothing. And they are easy to make out of recycled jeans. There is a sew along here for square bottomed bags that would be perfect!!!

Disposable stuff depresses me.

:bow:

Can I be one of your apostles?

I just realized all the political overtones of this discussion. In WWII they cut back drastically on manufacturing goods such as tires, clothing, etc. for production of 'war goods.' Those were the days when we actually MADE STUFF IN THIS COUNTRY. It's interesting that our current conflicts (or whatever you want to call them) have had virtually no impact on the nation's buying/using of goods. We truly have become a thoughtless society - people thoughtlessly putting stuff in their carts, their mouths, their homes. Half of me is a Luddite who wants nothing to do with cell phones, SUVs, shopping malls and the like, the other half of me heats up coffee in the microwave, loves watching DVDs and thoroughly enjoys the luxury of the internet.

I've been corrupted.
I love to watch DVD's too, ****it. My dh 'just' gave me his work cell phone that he does not use, because he does us e a blackberry. Did you see 'Spirited Away"? One scene in there is very visual about al the stuff we throw away.

Here in NEw Zealand, things are VERY expensive. Food, clothes, durable goods...so people do a lot more of made do or do withot. Kiwi's are natural recylcers...most people have their own veggie garden of some size. But the fast paced life style, 2 working parents...it all makes people busy and thoughtless about their lifestyle and purchases. More sposies, and jarred baby foods...convenience foods...
I mean isn't a cheese sandwhich and an apple convenience food? You can even melt the cheese on the bread, slice a tomato on it, add dried basil and call it pizza. But, people think the frozen pizza is better.

Ah well...

:bow:

Can I be one of your apostles?
Yes, please, yes. HAving you along for the ride would make it all worthwhile, baby.

I can't believe you are here and posting. *Sigh*

Oh, and one more thing. ROTFLMAO!
My life is a LOT of work. But there is routine to it, and it MEANS something to me. It is so nice to do work that MEANS something~yk? Some days I am freaking tried of folding/stacking the cloth wipes, handkershiefs whatever. But, I would not like the alternative AT ALL. And, my kids are getting older and they are helping out.

Gotta have something to do while I watch those plastic DVD's. :o

:bow:

Can I be one of your apostles?
I'm in that line, too!!

I'm in that line, too!!

Aww....I didn't scare you off with my VERBOSITY? My holier than thou approach? My 'If I can do it, then you can too..." My "Well, I take wet diapers on 18 hour International flights speech?" :hahaha:
Maura you are sooo sweet. I hope one day to meet you. :hug:

OK...now off to complete my Gymboree order, for non-organic, chemically laden, sweat chop produced clothes from CHINA. :shake: :hiya:(I've ALWAYS wanted to use this guy) :wah:

and will spread the word of Dude-ness.

Our society will continue to evolve (or devolve, depending on yr mindset) so that very few people - say 5% - will have been taught or know how to bake, sew, grow food, etc. We will have gotten to a stage very 2010-esque where the computers will take care of it for us. And then we'll be royally fudged because that's when the world's most severe natural and/or manmade disasters will strike, leaving us at the base level of human existence (think Iraq or New Orleans). There will be a hold out of 'survivalist' and back-to-nature types who band together in loose groups to resurrect our society, but most of the convenience living types will become thieves, murderers or prey. Wait a minute - Mad Max has already gone over all that.

I don't prostrate myself before you because you're so good, Linda :smooch:, but because you're so right - you understand how important it is not only to teach kids to be loving and caring but also how to be responsible learners, because that will make a huge difference some day.

and will spread the word of Dude-ness.

Our society will continue to evolve (or devolve, depending on yr mindset) so that very few people - say 5% - will have been taught or know how to bake, sew, grow food, etc. We will have gotten to a stage very 2010-esque where the computers will take care of it for us. And then we'll be royally fudged because that's when the world's most severe natural and/or manmade disasters will strike, leaving us at the base level of human existence (think Iraq or New Orleans). There will be a hold out of 'survivalist' and back-to-nature types who band together in loose groups to resurrect our society, but most of the convenience living types will become thieves, murderers or prey. Wait a minute - Mad Max has already gone over all that.

I don't prostrate myself before you because you're so good, Linda :smooch:, but because you're so right - you understand how important it is not only to teach kids to be loving and caring but also how to be responsible learners, because that will make a huge difference some day.
Dude.
Yes, well, I do a lot of this, because I think it is 'right' I haven't managed to escape that thought in my mind, but the rightness idea does come from thinking that it all makes a difference in my life, the lives of others and teaching my children values and skills. I was thinking about the sewing thing that dd someday might not care if she knows how to sew, but if I teach her then she will have it in her skill set.

Oh, I was just thinking..I have dh set up at work with cutlery he keeps in his drawer, a press pot for coffee..and an insulated stainless mug, so once he makes his coffee it stays hot for a few hours and he does not have to reheat it. He also has his cloth napkings, but I don't put his name in them :smirk:

My "Well, I take wet diapers on 18 hour International flights speech?"


nak so i cant type much, but I was lol about flying w/dipes. for some reason our luggage is always chosen for inspection - those inspectors just *love* me when they get to the dirty diapers... :lol:

still nak, so sucky typing (its not great when i'm noty nak, so there ya go...)
but, I agree. I take much comfort in knowing that my kids will have these basic skills (now regarded as talents) when they are grown. If some disaster were to strike my children would continue to live comfortably.
crying baby....

I want to teach the girls more. Beth can sew minimally by hand and she can knit. I need to work on their cooking skills. I have so little time to cook at the moment that I just want it done. I also hate to sew. I may get a neighbor to teach them. I need to learn to can foods. Ooh, the same neighbor does that too. She does not knit, perhaps we can trade.

nak so i cant type much, but I was lol about flying w/dipes. for some reason our luggage is always chosen for inspection - those inspectors just *love* me when they get to the dirty diapers... :lol:
That happened to me too. We also had some dirty ones get lost in luggage when we were camping (it was loaded onto the wrong boat at Catalina Island) I don't think anyone opened it but I was really worried about what those dipes would be like when we got them back!

I want to teach the girls more. Beth can sew minimally by hand and she can knit. I need to work on their cooking skills. I have so little time to cook at the moment that I just want it done. I also hate to sew. I may get a neighbor to teach them. I need to learn to can foods. Ooh, the same neighbor does that too. She does not knit, perhaps we can trade.
I think trading is a WONDERFUL idea. We can all do it all...I am amazed at all you do with working full time and your eating restrictions.

BTW~I loved seeing a pic of you and M in the other thread. You are a beautfiul mama. :hbeat:

Thanks. It takes time management and a messy house. I bake a lot. I rarely fold clothes. :) I am trying to get the girls to do more, especially with cooking since they ultimately will be responsible for maintaining this diet to maintain their health.

I wish we could have a month where we could all get together and share our skills.

Thanks. It takes time management and a messy house. I bake a lot. I rarely fold clothes. :) I am trying to get the girls to do more, especially with cooking since they ultimately will be responsible for maintaining this diet to maintain their health.

I wish we could have a month where we could all get together and share our skills.
What a great idea! I still think we should just have an all out commune, sustainable living community... intential living community. We could all pool our resources..and we could hold classes for the comminty when people showed interest. Homeschool, cook, bake, milk goats, make cheese, farm, build a sweat lodge, make soap...sew clothes...spin yarn....build houses...ahhh............

I am thinking on it. Dh is finishing up his pilot license...that would be quite an asset to trade along with all his technical skills...The community could own thier own plane and he could fly people as needed. He is an awesome pilot.

TO dream a dream is fabulous...but I want to LIVE it.

I mean isn't a cheese sandwhich and an apple convenience food? You can even melt the cheese on the bread, slice a tomato on it, add dried basil and call it pizza. But, people think the frozen pizza is better.

Ah well...

And if you wrapped that exact sandwich in plastic, and sold it in a bag WITH the apple slices (precut and lemonjuiced to pucker-factor 12) then you could charge $5.75 for it. And don't forget the nonrecyclable waxed cardboard cup that your WATER goes into for those of you who like me, try to keep the caffine intake down. Yes... guilty. Completely. I have done this before... what am I talking about? I did this last week the day the kids started school. *sigh*

I make so many of our lunches and things that I don't often think about what we waste (including time and energy we have to work for those things) to get that "convinence foods) or whatever. I am the queen of getting something once (like a pesto Fresh motzerella sandwich at Starbucks (which is local for me, so no flames)) and then spending a week until I know just what is in it and making it over and over for myself at home for next to nothing. :D

Anyway... I have a hard time understanding it, but being in the US and not a place like NZ I have a hard time not falling into it too. This conversation has firmed my resolve a bit. I find it inspiring to see people who are on the same mental path as me... It makes me feel like after Halo's atomic holacost comes I will be one of the few that will still be eating and living. Hey Julie... would you mind waiting to blow stuff up until I have two helpers over ten? I would appriciate it. :D ;)

Much love my path walking friends. There are days I find the group of us truly inspiring just to talk and listen to. :heart:

My youngest is non-verbal and he gets fish oil supplements twice a day. He spits out some of his oil after I give it to him in his medicine syringe. I use 1/2 a paper towel to wipe his mouth.

You cannot get fish oil on clothing. It will never come out. When fish oil is exposed to air it starts to smell very very rank! If you wash something with even a drop of fish oil on it then the whole load will stink (ask my DH he knows).

We use Viva which are the softest paper towels I have ever bought. My son's therapist uses them too since they have babies that come there too.

Paper towels have their place. I clean up spills with old cloth diapers and save my DH's old white undershirts to use as rags.

What a great idea! I still think we should just have an all out commune, sustainable living community... intential living community. We could all pool our resources..and we could hold classes for the comminty when people showed interest. Homeschool, cook, bake, milk goats, make cheese, farm, build a sweat lodge, make soap...sew clothes...spin yarn....build houses...ahhh...........

We would have a community cop too. ;)

My youngest is non-verbal and he gets fish oil supplements twice a day. He spits out some of his oil after I give it to him in his medicine syringe. I use 1/2 a paper towel to wipe his mouth.

You cannot get fish oil on clothing. It will never come out. When fish oil is exposed to air it starts to smell very very rank! If you wash something with even a drop of fish oil on it then the whole load will stink (ask my DH he knows).

We use Viva which are the softest paper towels I have ever bought. My son's therapist uses them too since they have babies that come there too.

Paper towels have their place. I clean up spills with old cloth diapers and save my DH's old white undershirts to use as rags.

Yup. Did that once too. I could not figure out why my whole load stunk!!

Anyway, I am such a dunce today. I have been working on doing better at decreasing waste and then I went to Trader Joes today. I couldn't get to the coop today so I bought produce there. Aaaccckkk. I didn't even think as I loaded my cart w/ plastic boxes of produce! I buy things here and there but today I bought several items in those awful boxes. I really need to focus again on watching the packaging and on making more from scratch so I don't use those packages of crackers, etc.

For lunch boxes we have just started using these..

http://www.to-goware.com/
.

I had seen these through a co-op & went & ahead & ordered some today. Dh is looking forward to using them for work. :)

Yup. Did that once too. I could not figure out why my whole load stunk!!

Anyway, I am such a dunce today. I have been working on doing better at decreasing waste and then I went to Trader Joes today. I couldn't get to the coop today so I bought produce there. Aaaccckkk. I didn't even think as I loaded my cart w/ plastic boxes of produce! I buy things here and there but today I bought several items in those awful boxes. I really need to focus again on watching the packaging and on making more from scratch so I don't use those packages of crackers, etc.

One way to feel better about this is to reuse them. I reuse my plastic boxes from Trader Joes (I buy basil there all fall, winter and spring) to give friends cherry tomatos and beans from my garden in right now. (and they are recyclable here too... that helps). I get about 10 a year and just save them for this boutiful gift giving time. :D HTH!

This is such a great thread!

For those of you that use cloth grocery bags - what do you use for trash bags in the house? Do you not use trash bags? If you don't use trash bags, do you hose out your trash cans each week? If so - is it better to use that water or to use the bag, environmentally speaking?

I am from the younger generation and I am the only one of my peers that uses dishes more than once before washing them. I will use a glass for two or three days, mugs I just rinse out lightly between teas and plates and bowls I'll use twice before washing.

About a year ago I started using "solid" shampoo and conditioner as well as body soap so as to cut down on the amount of containers I throw-out. It amazes me how much more convenient it is as well. :) I think that has been my favorite eco-friendly move I've made. I look at all the bottles my SO has in the shower and my mind just reels. I have three little bars in a row and he's got 4 big bottles (shampoo, conditioner, body wash, facial cleanser) that he'll have to get rid of and they take up so much space. I just don't get it. :drop:

Great thread. I'm going to keep all of this in mind. A lot of it is things that we already do as a family but it's easy to forget in the name of convenience.

This is such a great thread!

For those of you that use cloth grocery bags - what do you use for trash bags in the house? Do you not use trash bags? If you don't use trash bags, do you hose out your trash cans each week? If so - is it better to use that water or to use the bag, environmentally speaking?


About a year ago I started using "solid" shampoo and conditioner as well as body soap so as to cut down on the amount of containers I throw-out. It amazes me how much more convenient it is as well. :) I think that has been my favorite eco-friendly move I've made. I look at all the bottles my SO has in the shower and my mind just reels. I have three little bars in a row and he's got 4 big bottles (shampoo, conditioner, body wash, facial cleanser) that he'll have to get rid of and they take up so much space. I just don't get it. :drop:

I have a stainless steel trash can and I wash it out about once a month. It doesn't get very icky because I compost most of the "ick" items. However, DH does bring home plastic bags from work that are on their way to the dump and we reuse those around the house.

Those of you that use shampoo bars- which ones work for you? I have very thick hair that becomes easily greasy and I have yet to find a shampoo bar that works well (or in some cases works at all!). I'd love to find something to replace the plastic bottles of shampoo.

One of the stores here STILL makes comments when I bring in my bags. I had one bagger refuse to use them and then walked off when I said I wouldn't use their bags. :eek:

Hey - I use paper towels too so I'm not judging, but I give J his fish oil in the tub. ;) Then soap him down/rinse him off if he spits any out. He is the king of spitting meds!

Also bowing down to Linda. I hope to be there at some point...not there yet. Still use some disposable stuff for sure. :( Also I wish I could feed my kids as healthy as you do, while I'm down here worshipping! ;)

- Mad Max has already gone over all that.

D@mn he was sexy back in the day, no? Heeler and all. Kept his mouth shut. *sigh*

What a slippery slope he's slid down these days. Bleck.

It's worrisome to me as well. We're almost entirely paperless--no cloth TP, my husband has a bit of a phobia--but everything else paper towels, paper plates, napkins, sandwich baggies, etc., are all cloth in our house. I have to say, I really am loving my sandwich baggies (though I am a bit biased because I made them ;)) because it is so fabulous to just throw them in the wash and stick them in the drawer where the cloth paper towels are. I love it! :)

I love my cloth stuff, and it really makes me feel as though I am doing SOMETHING, even if it's not a lot, or enough, or going to really make a difference; I feel like I might be teaching the boys to walk softly on the earth.

Hey - I use paper towels too so I'm not judging, but I give J his fish oil in the tub. ;) Then soap him down/rinse him off if he spits any out. He is the king of spitting meds!

Also bowing down to Linda. I hope to be there at some point...not there yet. Still use some disposable stuff for sure. :( Also I wish I could feed my kids as healthy as you do, while I'm down here worshipping! ;)

Oooh...I like the idea of giving the fish oils in the bathtub~lol!!!
You will get there. I have no IDEA how I got here..It is/was a process. But my kids sure do motivate me. I am so envious of your homestead progress. SIGH. We are moving towards that.

onlyboys~ I LOVE my cloth stuff too and feel the same way...it makes me feel goos to do it...and I prefer soft cloth anyway.

Bubbles...the first step to all of this is becoming concious of your purchasing and how you can do better. Really...don't beat yourself up. Sometimes I still forget my bloth bags when I run out to the organic shop. But MOST of the time I bring them/Everyone oohs and ahs on my linen bulk bags...and my chico bags...I give both as gists to people I know who will use them and appreciate them.

Schnookies~it is soooeasy to fall into the convenience trap. I am so grateful for living here in NEw Zealand, because it showed me how much better I could do without Whole Foods or Trader Joe's available to me. (don't get me wrong...I'd miss buying NEwman's O's for dh (and me) once in a while...and many other convenience stuff...) but it is kind of nice that we can't so we don't.

i want so much to do better. i use cloth tp, cloth diapers, cloth napkins and washies. i am looking into cloth mama pads. i have ziploc bags and rarely reuse them, i think about packaging at the store all the time and am trying to buy everything used so that i don't create more waste, but i still have tons of packaging from the grocery store that i don't want to give up, and i have clorox wipes. uggg...need to find something to change right away and keep working on the rest. funny...i am doing SO much better than most of the people around me, but it's not even nearly enough!!!

I have a stainless steel trash can and I wash it out about once a month. It doesn't get very icky because I compost most of the "ick" items. However, DH does bring home plastic bags from work that are on their way to the dump and we reuse those around the house.

Those of you that use shampoo bars- which ones work for you? I have very thick hair that becomes easily greasy and I have yet to find a shampoo bar that works well (or in some cases works at all!). I'd love to find something to replace the plastic bottles of shampoo.

One of the stores here STILL makes comments when I bring in my bags. I had one bagger refuse to use them and then walked off when I said I wouldn't use their bags. :eek:

One more trash can question - How large is your stainless steel trash can?
Compost question - We rent our house and only garden is in pots; what would be the advantage to composting if not making into soil/fertilizer?


Chagrin Valley Soap & Craft http://chagrinvalleysoapandcraft.com/ has the only shampoo bars I'll use. Ida (who makes them) is on vacation right now, but I reccomend placing an order. If you decide to do so you have the option of ordering sample sizes which last me about a week each. I have medium hair with a slight wave and I use the Honey Beer & Egg Shampoo bar. I have also tried: Carrot Milk & Honey, Chamomile & Citrus. Her body soaps are also incredible. The thing I like the best about them is that they really clean you up. It sounds obvious, but they eliminate any and all body odors 100% of the time. You don't have to over scrub either.

Which store comments when you bring in cloth bags? Just curious...*cough* boycott *cough

One more trash can question - How large is your stainless steel trash can?
Compost question - We rent our house and only garden is in pots; what would be the advantage to composting if not making into soil/fertilizer?


Chagrin Valley Soap & Craft http://chagrinvalleysoapandcraft.com/ has the only shampoo bars I'll use. Ida (who makes them) is on vacation right now, but I reccomend placing an order. If you decide to do so you have the option of ordering sample sizes which last me about a week each. I have medium hair with a slight wave and I use the Honey Beer & Egg Shampoo bar. I have also tried: Carrot Milk & Honey, Chamomile & Citrus. Her body soaps are also incredible. The thing I like the best about them is that they really clean you up. It sounds obvious, but they eliminate any and all body odors 100% of the time. You don't have to over scrub either.

Which store comments when you bring in cloth bags? Just curious...*cough* boycott *cough


Hey! You're my neighbor. I live in Oceanside for the next three weeks. LOL :smirk:

The commissary on base comments on them. TJ's and Boney's, etc are great and give bag refunds.

I'll definitely try the shampoo bars. I'll try pretty much anything!!!

The trashcan we have is small (bathroom size, fits a grocery bag). We compost just for the fact that it's good for the soil/earth/landfills but we've also found that heap composting is loved by the birds. The kids love taking compost out because they get to bird watch.



For anyone looking reusablebags.com has the to-go ware lunch boxes on sale for $12.50.

We have a worm composting system. It is just a large old rubbermaid type tub with lid outside the kitchen door. The worms eat egg shells, coffee pods, all vegetable scraps, fruit scraps, and many other things. It is really gross! :lol: The combination of dirt my worms create, and rabbit waste keeps my garden really healthy.

"...I give J his fish oil in the tub. ;) Then soap him down/rinse him off if he spits any out..."

I make sure my child is shirtless! LOL!

Sincerely,
Debra

We have a worm composting system. It is just a large old rubbermaid type tub with lid outside the kitchen door. The worms eat egg shells, coffee pods, all vegetable scraps, fruit scraps, and many other things. It is really gross! :lol: The combination of dirt my worms create, and rabbit waste keeps my garden really healthy.

I need to look into this more. Our composting isn't working so well. It doesn't break down fast enough to put on the garden and we always generate too much stuff to put into it. I guess this would make it much faster. The kids would love it! Is it as easy as you make it sound here? I am going to have to research it so we can do this too.

For those that use cloth sandwich bags, is one fabric better than another? Maybe a tightly woven organic cotton? I would like to make some for us.

Oh, on the trash can thing-has anyone had a problem w/ putting the trash into the big collection cans w/out bags? Our city wants things in bags (which I do understand as it cuts down on trash blowing around when they dump them into the truck) but I really hate using that bag every day. I used to feel better about it by using the paper bag from the grocery store (still not good as it is a waste of the paper bag) but I use cloth for my shopping. Hmm.... what to do.

We have a worm composting system. It is just a large old rubbermaid type tub with lid outside the kitchen door. The worms eat egg shells, coffee pods, all vegetable scraps, fruit scraps, and many other things. It is really gross! :lol: The combination of dirt my worms create, and rabbit waste keeps my garden really healthy.

I am looking into this right now. There is a great book written by an australian author that my friend is going to loan me. We went and visited a local lady who has a worm farm and sells worms and vermicast.(?) It is soooo cool. There are places in INdia ~a chicken processing plant) where they have huge long cement ditches that they but all the beaks, feet, fethers etc into the cement bins...and the worms eat it alll..the cycle is only 20 days.(it is a certain kind of worm) They have trees planted around the chicken/worm farm and when the trees look a bit scraggly they know something is up with the worm ecosystem and can adjust for it.

There is a worm for every job aparently.

I am looking into this right now. There is a great book written by an australian author that my friend is going to loan me. We went and visited a local lady who has a worm farm and sells worms and vermicast.(?) It is soooo cool. There are places in INdia ~a chicken processing plant) where they have huge long cement ditches that they but all the beaks, feet, fethers etc into the cement bins...and the worms eat it alll..the cycle is only 20 days.(it is a certain kind of worm) They have trees planted around the chicken/worm farm and when the trees look a bit scraggly they know something is up with the worm ecosystem and can adjust for it.

There is a worm for every job aparently.

That is very cool. I found this link just now
http://ladpw.org/epd/sg/wc.cfm
It may not be any new info for you (and maybe the book you are going to read will be better) but I thought I would share it. It looks very easy to do. I need to find out where to get the worms (and convince dh) and I will try it :)

It has been really easy. For us the key to keeping our worms happy has been making sure there is a wet decomposing egg carton on top of their pile in the tub. For some reason they like this. We also put a chunk of fallen rotting tree in the bin and they have tunneled holes through it! The only thing my worms didn't eat fast enough for my liking was a tomato vine, so I put that in the yard waste compost pile where I put the rabbit waste.

I'd like to join ;)

Does anyone know where I can get glass baby bottles? I'd like to get a few for grandma and grandpa's but cannot find them anywhere in stores.

I'd like to join ;)

Does anyone know where I can get glass baby bottles? I'd like to get a few for grandma and grandpa's but cannot find them anywhere in stores.

6 Pack Classic Real Glass Baby Bottles by Evenflo (http://naturalbaby.stores.yahoo.net/realglasbabb.html)

Strengthened Glass Baby Feeding Bottles and Pure Rubber Teats- We ship worldwide! (http://www.naturebaby.co.nz/organic_baby_products/organic_baby_formula_food/organic_baby_food/glass_baby_bottle.html)

Baby Bottles - Glass Baby Bottles by Evenflo (http://www.babysupermall.com/main/products/eve/eve10103.html)

I'd like to join ;)

Does anyone know where I can get glass baby bottles? I'd like to get a few for grandma and grandpa's but cannot find them anywhere in stores.

I bought some when I was fostering - ebay has them, as do amazon. I also found some at Big Lots (at least the one in Escondido had them!). I just read that Evenflo is going to start marketing them again in Jan, so they should be easier to find once that happens.

Oh, geez..the worm thread!!! WHY OH WHY DID I LOOK????? :wah: :lol:

Thanks Linda and Sunflower!

I am going to check out Big Lots first. If they are coming back with more glass bottles in January I bet I can even find them at garage sales then. My babe's not due until June anyway so I have a while!

Oh, geez..the worm thread!!! WHY OH WHY DID I LOOK????? :wah: :lol:

:lol:
I am starting a worm pile along my new veggie patch area. I am thinking you would not be a gardner type...hehe.

:lol:
I am thinking you would not be a gardner type...hehe.

I can't even pull weeds....sometimes there is a worm tangled in the roots, and I TOUCH IT!!!! :eek: :drop: :wah: :hahaha:

One of my city friends has a worm compsoter and it's so wonderful. She gives people worms. It's great.

Here's a thought on a 'regular' out door composter: Does it really matter if you can use the dirt quickly or not? It does take some time for it all to break down enough to use, but where ya goin', yk? At least the stuff in your compost isn't going to a landfill, kwim? Of course, if you are planning to move, you might not want a composter, but OTOH, maybe the people buying might want your composter?

I hope to sell my house soon, and I'll either take my composter with me, or not. ;) At any rate, all my years of composting have not been in vain.

A Target opened in my town recently,and it's depressing to think about all that crap people buy. I watched Over The Hedge with the kids last night and it was all so right on. The theme song Suburbia (is it?) is just so heartbreakingly true. What a disposable, plastic society we've created. I don't know how we can possibly continue on like this.

It won't continue forever. That is the sad fact... you can not sustain a world and trash it at the same time. More and more people are starting to think about these things. And the saddest part about it is, those who arn't are making up the difference in buying crap they don't need. As I get older I will walk though Target or one of those stores when I actually need something in there and just look with awe at the things that people are buying.

Not even judging... just looking.

Why oh why would anyone need disposable bibs? Is that 1/4 load of laundry a year so daunting or take so much time? But then I think, do I use old dish towels for my bibs? No... I make new bibs... so even I am not doing everything I can. (Ooooo... inspiration! I have 10 old stained white dish towels that I can make into bibs and then Dye with my friends in two weeks. Ooo...)

We won't servive another 50 years like this... but for the next 20, I think the change is going to come slow.

Val

We've just moved halfway across the country and we aren't getting trash service. It's prompted us to recycle every little piece we can. Even with all of our "move-in" trash we still haven't filled a kitchen size (13 gallon?) trash bag (recycled from a bag of clothing a former neighbor gave us LOL). I've had to think twice about purchasing items because of the amount of waste they will cause.

We've been composting since we arrived here but today we actually completed our compost bin. The kids helped find worms while DH dug out an area to place it into the ground. We had a heap previously but that won't work here since there are so many little critters that would make a mess of it. I need more worms.

We bought meat in bulk and really scrubbed out the containers it comes in so we can reuse them for paints or homeschool stuff or something. Not sure what yet. In Feb is DH's aunt's slaughter season and we're getting 1/2 a side of beef from her. Would that creat more waste than purchasing bulk containers from the store?

We're in the middle of nowhere. Total black sheep in this area. Anyhow, I took my cloth produce bags, etc. into a grocer a few days ago and the woman held them up, inspecting them and trying to figure out what was going on. She just nodded, speechless, when I told her they were in place of the plastic bags. :)

I'm using old sheets on the back of curtains to add thickness.

I did crochet and knit about 8 dishclothes after this thread started and I've been following (Kimberly's?) routine on using one per day, washing, reusing.

My MIL cleaned the house before we arrived and even though we had a discussion days before about paper towels and toilet paper she still insisted on putting them in the house. They are still sitting as she put them, completely unused. :lol:

1. If you type in India and worm composting, you actually get all sorts of interesting all over the world composting essays, including an E- Book by organic farmers in Kenya. I think that was the most interesting one, b/c the issues faced by the K. orgfarmers are the same ones faced by American farmers, except I think they sound way more optimistic.

2. What sort of fabric do you make sandwich bags out of?

I've made really nice lunch bags out of flag- weight nylon. It's the nylon sold at Hancock's. I got mine from a flag manufacturer.

3. If I put printed cardboard- cereal boxes- in the worm composter, will it poison the worms? How fast will they reproduce? I put in one styrofoam coffee cup with dirt and worms in the composter a week ago, to start it up. I put in some food, but I haven't since, since I dug around and found smelly food, and no worms. I assume they are hiding, and maybe I've been overfeeding? Yes? No? Clueless here.

4. The reason to package garbage is that garbage has the potential to be a biohazard, and really, the garbage guys don't want to be exposed to all the possible toxic germs that come from rotting food, rotting diapers, and rotting fluids, plus, say, chemicals, and so on. Unless your city contracts out to a private waste service, it's worth bagging it, b/c your tax dollars pays their pension and healthcare. And in the other case, it's just bad karma.

5. Crowns and scepters are totally recyclable- look at monarchies---what do you want on yours, Linda? Now, you'll need duchesses, and princesses, and - oh, a palace garden, right?

ari

this is an old post but...i found it VERY interesting to read!!! so i wanted to give it a BUMP :)

my family thinks i am kookie!!! i use cloth diapers & cloth wipes on enzo...make my own baby wipe solution...glass bottles...cloth rags to clean the house instead of paper towels...cloth napkins when we eat...glass containers for left overs...always use glass plates & cups...canvas tote bags to grocery shop...use shaklee organic cleaning products...

my thing is it is my family/our lives...don't judge me!!! i didn't grow up crunchy...i made the decision to live this way!!! i despise when people have the nerve to say cloth diapering/wiping is GROSS?!?!?! mind yourself. they ask why do i make everything so "difficult"...once you get used to doing things this way it honestly becomes second nature. it is not DIFFICULT at all imo.

even dh rolls his eyes at me sometimes but he won't dare to comment because i save our family tons of money by living a non-disposable life.

any new thoughts on this topic???????????????

probably not a new thought, and i'm not going back to read all 7 pages of the thread - but my mother thinks i'm a kook, too. not about cloth dipes (which i haven't been using :o ) but about cloth wipes, cloth hand towels in the bathroom, etc.

she uses disposable *everything*. she'll ask me if i want her to pick up XYZ and send it down when it's on sale. i'll ask if it's disposable, she'll say yes, and i say don't waste your money. my sister is the same as my mom. they both think cloth dipes are great, but only because they're impressed with my sewing skills, lol

rebecca makes a good point. our lives aren't supposed to be easy and convenient...it might be nice if they were, but maybe sometimes a little struggle/coping with inconvenience helps build character. (although i don't see how not using disposable stuff is inconvenient. admittedly, i stopped using c/ds on ds because i was getting burned out on everything - and it was the only thing that could be easily taken off my plate. it was more about the constant redundancy than any inconvenience, though).

I loved this thread.

The change is coming slowly... and sometimes I am grateful for those conviences that are way too readily available in our society.

In the judgement sense... it goes both ways. You know? I have had a really hard time with the choice for my sanity to use paper dipes for Logan. The ONLY disposable paper product we usually use is TP. I do get looks from my crunchier friends. But it saved my sanity when Don was away and I was already washing at least three full loads of laundry every day extra due to Logan's reflux... ie: puke on me, on him, our carpet is ruined now... etc.

I now have chickens and worms, and a huge bountiful garden... All in my own backyard on my single city lot. :)

Do you ever think of things like chickens as "disposable"? I have been thinking about that lately. What about the egg layers that don't lay anymore? Do they eat them? Or put them in crapy processed chicken for McDonalds? And what about the fast food places? Ever walked out of there with less than half a tray of perfectly recyclable garbage? I only go to places like that very rarely, but when I do I feel like taking my garbage home to my recycling bin. Am I the only one? What about the huge parts of cows we decide not to eat? "disposable"? And what about the food that is left over from our own bounty? I have more radishes right now than I know what to do with. I am the only one who eats them. I do put them in my worm bin, but what about them? "disposable"? I know how this thread started... talking about bibs, and napkins, and placemats, and cups... that stuff is just OVER THE EDGE for me in my reasoning... I mean really... you can't wash a sippy cup? Or the car is so dirty that you forget about one and then decide that instead of throwing that one away, you are going to throw all the others away that you buy after that just so you don't have to deal with being dirty or forgetful... gross... but in my head disposable goes to a whole new level when we start talking about food and food production. What is disposable really? How much or how little garbage can one produce and still be part of "normal" society?

I would love to test it out and see... First I need more worms. ;)

Hi Dawn Marie :)

I'm glad that this post struck a chord for you! :) I too get people asking why I have to make things so difficult - my dh's family finally decided years ago that they wanted nothing to do with us because I am 'too difficult". I feel bad for that, but I cant change who I am!

My resolve on the subject has only stregthened. yes, I fail once in a while, but I am still commited! My latest mission is getting my foster baby's mom to consider cloth diapering. ;)

My husband took a long time to get on board, but over time he embraces more & more.

My thoughts on this at this point in time are how can I bless the earth & my family? Living simply & forgoing disposable convenience is a blessing to my children & the earth. It is an act of love. :)

Blessings,
Anne-Marie

P.S. - Val, when my chickens no longer lay they will still be family pets. The ones who die become food for the wild animals. We dont eat meat so thats how it is for us. :) As for food that you have excess of if you dont have friends & neighbors that can use them, try a food bank or I have seen people offer food up on craigslist! :) I'm actually thinking of taking up a craigslist offer for apricots today! fresh from the tree! :)

It's been a very slow day at work here today and I've greatly enjoyed reading this thread.

My mom is quite the conservationist and I was raised that way but strayed greatly when I left home. I'm now slowly moving back towards it now that I've gotten what I needed to out of my system. I've never really thought about it much in the past, but in the last half year - year or so I've been incorporating more and more into my life. I've switched to cloth bags (both shopping and sandwich, thanks Amanda;)), reusable containers for lunches/drinks, cloth pads, being more careful about recycling... I'm taking small steps every day to make myself and my environment healthier. The next step I'm working towards is less paper towels.

In the judgement sense... it goes both ways. You know? I have had a really hard time with the choice for my sanity to use paper dipes for Logan. The ONLY disposable paper product we usually use is TP. I do get looks from my crunchier friends. But it saved my sanity when Don was away and I was already washing at least three full loads of laundry every day extra due to Logan's reflux... ie: puke on me, on him, our carpet is ruined now... etc.

;offtopic: ;offtopic: ;offtopic: Enzo has reflux too!!! Any luck with getting it under control? PM me...I'd love to chat w/ someone who I can identify with. When I try to explain to our friends/family how difficult having a baby with GERD is the kind of minimize it to "aawww, I hope his "tummy ache" gets better soon" :vent: :vent: :vent: "tummy ache" are you kidding me? well' PM me since we are in the same boat :smirk: