Summer in Texas

It's been just ridiculously hot as of late here...and yes, we live in Texas and yes, we should expect that, but still. I am a summer gal and love the season, even with the scorching sun and often uncomfortably hot temperatures. But still...it's SO hot...even in the shade!

Our goal was to make it to July without turning on the A/C. Well, we didn't quite make it and turned it on 2 weeks ago for my birthday. So we missed our goal by 3 weeks unfortunately! I was diappointed, but our dinners were becoming a bit unpleasant since our dining room is the hottest room in the house for whatever reason :(. My Love and I can handle it, but seeing Lovebug with a little sweat mustache at dinner was too much and my birthday served as a good excuse too :).

It hasn't been that bad though with what we typically do, which is open the windows at night to let the "cool" fresh air in and close them once we wake up to keep it in. Of course, minimal clothing is helpful too, as is little to no oven and stove use. I didn't feel bad the first week because the A/C didn't flip on until around 5 PM (we have it set at 84 during the day and 83 during the really hot late afternoon/evening time). Then the second week it started to come on around 4ish, which was OK. But yesterday it flipped on at NOON, because it was our first official 100-degree day! Wow...so it's definitely summer in Texas now!

I have so many things on my list for this season and cannot wait to get more of them started and done with. The thing I am MOST excited about though is our upcoming trip to the beach. It will be our first vacation with just the three of us and it could not come soon enough! Do you have any summer trips or projects planned?

Well, have a great Wednesday! I guess we'll see what time our A/C flips on today...

Those darn yellow pages

Today was just beautiful here so we enjoyed ourselves outside for a good while! The next two days are supposed to be extremely nice too so we'll have to take advantage of it while we can!

Alright friends, so every once in awhile we get that massive yellow book on our porch and every single time we put it straight into the recycling bin...You too??? Not so green, is it? We just don't have a use for it. I am sure there are many people that still use them (like my sweet Mommy) but we just don't. I really do not like that we get them unsolicited in the first place as it's alot of wasted paper. If people want one, they should have to ask for it, right?

But anyway, when I saw this grassroots campaign called Yellow Pages Goes Green recently, it made me very happy and I immediately "opted out" of receiving the yellow and white pages here at their website. They will contact the publishers with the names of whomever opts-out, BUT the publishers are not currently liable if they continue to send the books to you unfortunately. The campaign's goal is to get the industry to stop the 540 million books they are currently delivering unsolicited on their own (uh-huh). If that doesn't work, they want to get a National No Delivery Register set up (like the National Do Not Call one). So hopefully it works, but we'll see. It certainly is worth a shot as it's free and only takes a minute...

I've gotten tagged here twice so maybe Friday I'll do a little of that for fun...and then I have that darn birthday party post of Lovebug's that has been sitting in my Draft folder forever so maybe Monday on that one. Hope everyone's weeks are going well! It's already Wednesday...WOW!

Clean Your Air - Household Cleaners

Awhile ago I did a post on cleaning your air with plants...wanted to follow that up with how to clean your air with healthy household cleaners. In college, I bought Windex and the "typical" cleaners because that's what my Mom used, but once we got married and started re-analyzing our choices, the way we lived, and the effects these had on our home, health, and the environment, we knew a change needed to be made. Started by buying green cleaners but then soon after that began making our own, which ends up being a far cheaper alternative, but more on that later...


Since so much time is spent indoors and the air quality is much poorer than outside air, it's really important to do as much as we can to keep it clean. One of the best ways this can be done is by NOT bringing toxic cleaning products into our homes, as the majority of indoor pollutants are actually from cleaners. So what is supposedly cleaning our houses is dirtying the air we breathe!! Have you ever gotten a headache or been irritated at all whilst cleaning and wondered why? I know I used to!

With most regular cleaning products you're allowing toxic chemicals into your home that can lead to fatigue, illness, and disease. Especially if you have children (or are pregnant), you need to be careful, as little one's developing bodies are MUCH more susceptible to damage, specifically their nervous, reproductive, and respiratory systems. Think about where children play - on the floor - where they are much closer to the pollutants than adults are, because the floor is where allergens, dust, and heavier-than-air chemicals settle and collect. Further, children are constantly putting their hands into their mouths and thus more easily tranferring the toxic substances into their bodies...AND household cleaning chemicals are the most frequent type of chemicals involved in children's poisonings, which is scary.

I would suggest getting rid of the toxic cleaning products you have RIGHT NOW (some would suggest finishing them and then starting over "green"/healthy, so that's another option, but I think it's better to just rid your home of them). BUT don't throw them away - you have to dispose of them properly - if you just dump them, those chemicals end up in our landfills and then in our waterways!!! SO, contact your city or go to your city's website and find where/when to dispose of hazardous waste, because that's what your cleaning products are - HAZARDOUS waste! Isn't something wrong when what we're "cleaning" our houses with is considered hazardous??


Most people just continue to buy what they have always bought or what their parents did (me!!!) without really looking at what's in the products. But we need to, have to, because WE are responsible for our health, we can't trust the government and certainly NOT big business to take care of us! It's our responsibility, especially as parents. Thank goodness, there are many green options readily available now for purchase...Seventh Generation has some great products...and Ecover.

Look for products that ARE:

Biodegradable
Bio-based and made from renewable sources - plant, vegetable, or fruit-based
Color-less/Clear - NOT formulated with dyes
Non-flammable

DON'T buy products with these ingredients:

Petro-dyes
Artificial perfumes (like if it says "Fragrance")
Petroleum distillates or crude oil
Ammonia
Bleach
Chlorine
Benzene
Ethylene
Formaldehyde
Optical Brighteners
Solvents
Acids
Phosphates
Borates
Nitrates
VOC's - volatile organic compounds
AND any Synthetic ingredients

Here are some others that you should look out for!

BUT really be wary of greenwashing from companies..."Greenwashing" is basically advertising and marketing of a product/company that makes it look "green" when in fact it really isn't - it's very misleading! S.C. Johnson and their GreenList line is a good example of this. The commercials and ads for their "green" products really upset me because some of their ingredients are certainly NOT green, not healthy, and are actually toxic (ethylene glycol and isopropanol, amongst others) and they themselves created "The GreenList" that their products fall under, which doesn't really make sense. So just be careful - really read the ingredient list and any warnings that the product has. Some others offhand to look out for include Target's Method line (thus the pretty colors of their products - and they have SLS and petroleum-based ingredients in some of them), and Clorox Green Works...supposedly Green Works is 99% "natural" (which really doesn't mean anything), but that 1% of "un-natural" ingredients is from petrochemicals (dyes) which give it that light green color, namely Kathon, which according to the MSDS for it, can be irritating to skin, damaging to eyes, and may cause long term adverse effects to the aquatic environment..." Hmmmm...doesn't sound very green!


As mentioned previously, I highly suggest INSTEAD making your own non-toxic cleaning products from common household items like baking soda, vinegar, lemon juice, salt, olive oil, castile soap, and pure essential oils. That way you know exactly what ingredients are in your products, and if you buy in bulk from places like Mountain Rose Herbs (try Costco or a grocery for bulk vinegar), you're reducing the amount of packaging you buy, as well as saving money. Find some inexpensive containers and spray bottles you can label to store your products in, some good reusable cloths, natural bristle brushes, and there you go! Here, here, and here are some excellent resources for making your own cleaning recipes - we use many of them and they work great!! BUT THIS ONE, this one is the best !!

One concern some people might have about non-toxic cleaning products is that they don't clean as well...well I'm here to tell you they REALLY do - I promise!!! A mixture of vinegar and water is the BEST window/glass cleaner I've ever used and baking soda is AMAZING - nothing cleans our sinks, showers, tubs, etc. better - seriously! Vinegar is effective at killing mold, germs, and bacteria due to its acidity and it's extremely economical - here are 1001 uses for vinegar, involving everything from cleaning to pet care! Baking soda is another cheap incredible cleaning ally and here are some great uses for it! Many pure essential oils have amazing antiseptic and antibacterial properties, such as tea tree, lemon, lavender, and many others, plus they smell beautiful! Really, you can get your home as clean (and healthier) with non-toxic products!

In the long run, it ends up being much cheaper and is SO much better for you and your family's health, as well as the health of the environment. Plus, it's so simple and easy....Do you see a pattern in my posts?? - Simple, easy, and inexpensive...:) So get to it - do some green summer cleaning - and get your home (and air) truly clean!

Making soaps during the storm

Yesterday while the storms rolled in Lovebug and I made liquid soaps and lotions to refill the bottles we have throughout the house. Hand soaps for the bathrooms, dishwashing liquid for the kitchen, bum cleaner and an oil for the babe, shampoo/body wash for all of us, and two lotions for me...it's been on our list for quite awhile but finally got around to it.

The hand soaps, dishwashing liquid, and shampoo/body wash are all basically castile soap and whatever essential oils I want to throw in...usually lemon, lavender, and tea tree...but sometimes we'll throw something else in to fit that particular season. Since we CD (cloth diaper) we cloth wipe too, so the bum cleaner is put into a spray bottle and used during diaper changing time...then whenever needed or ever so often, the bum oil is used on her sweet behind :). I got the bum cleaner recipe from here...We use the castile solution one but the others sound good too.

The bum oil is just about 4 ounces jojoba oil, some lavender (just started this - wait until 6 months to use essential oils on babies) and a couple drops of wheatgerm oil as a natural preservative. We also use it as a massage oil for baby which she loves!


One of the "lotions" we made is from this awesome book my friend Emily turned me on to awhile back but it really ends up more as an oil, but it works great on extra dry spots. For a true lotion, I LOVE this recipe from ehow.com...it smells yummy with the coconut oil! Our little immersion blender works perfectly for this...

Coconut Oil/Cocoa Butter Lotion:

Put (3/4) cup Coconut Oil, (1/4) cup Cocoa Butter, and (1) T of a liquid Lecithin (used rice bran oil) into an immersion or regular blender...Add 15 (or more if want) drops of essential oil (lavender is my fave) into mixture. Then squeeze a 2,400 IU Vitamin E capsule into mixture and blend (used drops of wheatgerm oil instead b/c that's what had...Either will extend shelf life of your lotion). Pour mixture into a bottle with tight-fitting lid. Shake before using and best if stored in a cool dark place...or in refrigerator if so desired.


All the bottles we use were either antiqued, thrifted, or bought from Specialty Bottle and all the ingredients are from Mountain Rose Herbs (which is THE greatest thing out there for organic bulk ingredients - LOVE them!). It really is best to use organic ingredients and 100% pure essential oils when making your homemade products!

There are SO many nasty ingredients in all of the products out there and by making your own natural ones you're greatly lessening the amount of chemicals and toxins that your body absorbs...PLUS when you buy in bulk, you're saving money as well as lessening the amount of packaging you consume, and you can find some beautiful bottles/containers to store your homemade products in (or re-use some that you already have)...make some labels for them and they're you go! They also make great presents. There are so many great recipes out there, organic bulk ingredients readily available, and it's super easy. As an added bonus, I find it to be a very relaxing and fun process - the whole mixing and making...especially when it's raining outside as it was yesterday :)!

Make the switch

I got this video clip sent to me earlier this week...was aware of what he spewed (parts that are true at least)...poor guy comes across (to me) as an ignorant Texan man (HAS to mention Monday night football, Dimebox, and OH how wonderful coal plants are of course:)...and as a Texan myself, I was a bit embarrassed and annoyed by the guy. He does bring up one or two interesting points and some issues that are highly misunderstood regarding CFLs though...Been meaning to post on them for awhile now so I thought there was no better time than the present.

Early on this last year we decided to give CFLs (compact fluorescent light bulbs) as Christmas gifts to promote their use. I think most people thought it was a funny present but in reality it's a very practical gift (and money-saving!). We also made sure to include info on CFLs, and where/how to properly recycle them (which is very important - more on that later) per each person/family('s) location. When we bought our house one of the first things we did was put CFLs in - a more expensive investment up front but well worth it! We researched them greatly before doing so and decided it was the best option currently out there. The way we see it, replacing your incandescents with CFLs is something that can easily be done by everyone to reduce your home's energy use and, thus, it's greenhouse gas emissions. Here are some interesting info/facts on CFLs:

-CFLs use 75% less energy than incandescents
-CFLs last 10 times longer
-CFLs are 4 times more efficient
-When you replace an incandescent with a CFL you keep a half a ton of CO2 out of the atmosphere over the life of the bulb
-If everyone in the U.S. used CFLs we could retire 90 avg size power plants
-CFLs can be used nearly everywhere incandescents can and are readily available at local home improvement stores

New CFLs give off warm inviting light (they're no longer harsh)...there are dimmable, 3-way, flood, and candelabra CFLs, as well as ones with globe and dome covers that look like standard incandescents in case you're not a fan of the spiral. There should be a CFL out there for all of your needs! REALLY!

NOW, CFLs as the guy mentions DO contain mercury...they are not perfect YET and do contain a small amount of the toxic metal...BUT here's some info on that...The average CFL contains 5 milligrams (mg) of mercury...compare that to the wrist watch that many of you wear - the battery inside contains 25 mg of mercury...the old wall thermostat that many of you still have in your houses or buildings may contain up to 3,000 mg, and glass thermometers contain about 500 mg...So that gives you an idea of how small the amount is...SO it would take quite ALOT of CFLs to equal any of those amounts, but ANY mercury is not good for sure! The levels have already gotten much less since CFLs came out (there are ultra-low mercury bulbs available too -check below) and the industry is saying in 8-10 years, they will all be mercury FREE so that's great news.

NO mercury is released when they are in use - only when they are broken and the concern is when they are broken HOT not cold...and any breaks are most likely to occur when they are being installed/uninstalled at which time they would be off and thus cold. AND the glass of CFLs is much thicker than incandescent glass so they are harder to break...BUT, if you happen to break one, DON'T panic - most of the mercury adheres to the glass anyway, but here's what to do:

1.) Open a window and leave the room for a bit and close the door - the longer the better as the mercury will circulate out the window(s) ...
2.) Use gloves and carefully scoop up the pieces and the powder w/cardboard and place in a glass jar with a lid
3.) Wipe down the area with damp paper towels and place those in the jar as well.

* If the breakage occurs on a rug or carpet, follow the first and second steps above, but then use sticky tape to pick up the powder and any remaining tiny pieces...

NOW that jar needs to be disposed of (as well as CFLs once they reach their end-use)...they SHOULD NOT just be thrown away because then that mercury in the bulbs can end up in our lakes and oceans, which will build up in our fish, and will then be transferred to fish-eaters...This seems to annoy some people -that they have to make an extra effort - come on - it's not that hard! Just check your city website (normally with Household Hazardous Waste info) to see how/where you're supposed to dispose of them...Most cities have somewhere for you to take them, along with your household chemicals and whatnot. Some cities even pick up your hazardous waste curbside, so check...A couple stores also take them and properly dispose of them (like the wonderful Ikea)...Hopefully more retailers that sell CFLs will do this soon too - like Home Depot, Lowe's, and Walmart...

Check locally first to purchase your CFLs, but a wide variety can also be purchased at websites like Earth Easy...they have the LOW-mercury ones that contain about 3 mg of mercury, like the Philips Alto...the Sylvania micro mini, and I believe GE has a low-mercury level one as well. This is a great site to help you find where to dispose/recycle your CFLs - but check your city website first. Here's another helpful website w/ CFL info...AND HERE is a awesome kit that you buy for $17.50 from this company - once you fill it with any broken or end-use CFLs, you simply send the pre-paid box off to be recycled - easy as pie!!

There's some interesting opinions out there that argue that CFLs actually keep a great deal of mercury out of the air as a CFL uses a very small amount of power compared to an incandescent...and most power in our country comes from the beautiful coal plants which constantly release ridiculous amounts of mercury (actually they account for about 40% of our country's emissions). Thus, CFLs can help to reduce mercury emissions from the coal plants because the electricity needed for the use of an incandescent bulb emits 13.6 mg of mercury into the air, compared to 3.3 mg of mercury from a CFL. However, all of that mercury from the coal plants that is emitted from the use of both CFLs and incandescents is unrecoverable unfortunately, but it's less mercury with CFLs...Further, the mercury inside a CFL - IF it's taken to a place where it's recycled - will be contained and recycled/reused to make new CFLs...and it will never be released into the air!

One argument against CFLs the Rep. in the clip had is that ALL CFLs are made in China...well, not ALL but yes, most of them unfortunately...some of the Philip Altos I've found are made in Mexico...Lights of America did have a U.S. CFL plant but I've read it no longer exists since 2007.

Like I said, in 8-10 years (or sooner hopefully) CFLs will be mercury free, even more efficient, and (hopefully much sooner) easier recycling of them will be available...but until then we still think they're the way to go in order to lessen our negative impact. Probably by then though, LEDs will have taken over the market as they are a MUCH MUCH more efficient light than CFLs overall...time will tell but for now go out and get you some CFLs (preferably the low-mercury ones listed above) - the pros really do outweigh the cons and they're worth making the switch, both financially and environmentally! Gosh, this ended up being REALLY long - geez! Sorry - just trying to get the info out...:) Hope I made some sense!

Birthday creations

My Love had a birthday recently and inspired by a post from Danny, I decided to make him an office detox box...Office buildings have such dirty air and since much of his day is spent there, it's very important to do everything to help make it as clean as possible (started with plants awhile back)...SO I took an old shoe box and filled it with newspaper to put under his feet to collect dirt and other allergens tracked in on shoes, added a microfiber cloth to be used periodically to collect dust, a spray bottle of rubbing alcohol to use on his keyboard, phone, etc. to help rid them of bacteria, and some homemade deodorizing room sprays with essential oils to make it smell decent. For some de-stressing moments, I included a mini zen garden made in an old cigar box we had lying around, sand obviously, some black river rocks from the garage, and a mini rake made from branches leftover from J&G's wedding. I made one for my Mom for her birthday too and she loved it!
Also made him a little days of the week countdown with pics of Lovebug for his desk which he loves and this black hemp apron (no, I didn't make it - should have...but there were time constraints so got it at Hemp Sisters)...but I did embellish it with the camouflage "Jolly Roger" made from a used baby onesie got at a resale shop.
Don't you just love making things for your loved ones and eagerly anticipating their reactions? Gosh I do - so enjoyable! Alright, I feel a cool breeze through the windows and it's getting dark quickly so I better run and get clothes off the line before the rain arrives...Hope everyone had a wonderful Memorial Day!

Clean Your Air - Add Plants!

The air inside houses and buildings is very very dirty and we are surrounded by toxic chemicals - gross! Actually, according to the EPA, the air inside is 10 times more polluted than outdoor air. There are many unpleasant reactions to the toxicity of our air such as headaches, asthma, fatigue, mood swings, etc. etc....and long term exposure has been shown to be a cause of many different types of cancer. BUT there are many things you can do to help clean your air and I'm going to write a couple of posts about different ways to do that.

Open your windows for one and let the spring breezes in and the toxic chemicals out....turn on your fans and maybe your attic fan or a/c unit fan to help circulate the air.

You can buy air purifiers, which do work, but they're expensive, require power, and many of them put off alot of ozone and end up creating home smog which isn't desirable to say the least and kind of defeats their intended purpose. However, air purifiers with HEPA (high efficiency particulate air) filters are the BEST and do NOT put off ozone, but they are the most expensive as well.

A cheaper, prettier, and overall better alternative is to buy houseplants!! Not only do they help bring nature inside your house and are beautiful, but they also help clean your air significantly. Plants function like air pumps basically and can accumulate the toxic chemicals inside your home or office.

Three of the major air offenders in most homes/buildings is Formaldehyde, Benzene, and Trichloroethylene...and the plants that are best at absorbing these chemicals from the air include:

Spider Plant
Ficus
English Ivy
Draceana "Janet Craig"
Peace Lily
Bamboo Palm
Snake Plant or "Mother-in-law's Tongue"
Golden Pothos
Philodendron
and Spathiphyllum...amongst others

From my experience, I think the easiest to start with is a Golden Pothos or a Draceana "Janet Craig"...For you locals, Nicholson-Hardie has the best selection of houseplants I've seen anywhere!

We have many and are planning to get more and I love having them everywhere! They say that for an avg home of 2,000 sq ft, 15-18 houseplants are needed in 6 inch or larger pots for the best results. We constantly give houseplants as gifts to our fam and friends which they probably tire of :) but I think they make great green gifts!

We spend so much time at home and in our offices, and thus they really need to be healthy environments for us and our loved ones - so let's try to make our air cleaner! ...Oh yes and the adorable button flowers in the one pot - my friend Emily made those and I LOVE them!

Make EVERY day Earth Day!

Today is Earth Day - a day specifically designated to remind people to love and care for the Earth and all of its creatures. Our planet isn't doing too hot (actually it's just getting hotter) and we have to take care of it! We need to be good stewards of the Earth as God asked, and that means living a "green" life in which you conserve as much as possible. Our little nest has been a green one for quite awhile now, which I'm so proud of, and we truly try to live each day conscientious of our decisions and the impact they have on our planet, on others, and on us. But there is always something else we can be doing or NOT doing to make our nest and our planet healthier...and that's part of the fun - always adapting and evolving to better ourselves in some way and lessen our negative impact. We want to have the GREATEST impact on the planet with the SMALLEST footprint!! I hope that even if you're already living the "green" life that today your eyes will be opened in some way to something else you can do to better the Earth. For you others, I pray that you will see the importance of what we're doing, join the green team :), and learn to make EVERY day Earth Day!!!!!

Here are some green keywords/tips:

SIMPLIFY!!! Learn to live SIMPLY!!!!
Give away! Don't buy excess!!! Buy used!!! Buy only what you need!!!!
Eat local!! Eat seasonally!!! Eat vegetarian!!!! Eat ORGANIC!!!!
Rather than hug a tree, PLANT a tree! Plant native!!
Clean naturally!! Say NO to chemicals!!! Make healthy smart decisions!!!!
RESEARCH!!!
Have houseplants!!! Open your windows!!!!
Turn off your A/C and ON your fans!!!!!
Turn your refrigerator to 37 degrees and freezer to 3!!!
Turn OFF your lights!!!
Install CFL's in your home!! Wash laundry COLD!! Air dry your laundry!!!!
THINK!!! ACT!!!!
Buy organic cotton products or other sustainable materials!!!
Buy fair trade!!!!
GREEN REMODEL/BUILD!!!
Walk and bike where possible!!!! Take public transportation where possible!!!
Use biodiesel!!! Install low-flow showerheads!!
Collect rainwater!!! DON'T overwater! Install a water filter!
Get a reusable water bottle and coffee mug!!!! DON'T buy bottled water!!!
Buy and USE reusable bags in lieu of paper or plastic!!
COMPOST!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Refuse!! Reduce!!!! Reuse!!!! Recycle!!!!! Restore!!!!!! Precycle!!!!!!!
CONSERVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Earth Day!!!!

So fresh and so clean clean...

Yesterday's weather was glorious...just beautiful, and I was able to put the laundry outside to air dry which is one of my favorite things (see Lovebug's adorable rainbow of diapers air-drying above). To me, there is nothing better than line-dried laundry...especially sleeping on crisp air-dried sheets that smell so fresh and clean. To me, there is something so beautiful and nostalgic about seeing laundry blowing in the breeze. When we lived in Italy, it was something we saw all the time (as you can see in the pic below in San Gigmiano) and I loved it. I started line-drying in college on indoor racks but am so happy now to have an actual line outside. Not only does air-dried clothing have its beautiful look and scent, it is also better for your laundry and the environment!

Switching to air-drying can decrease your household power use significantly, thus helping the earth and saving you money...It will also keep your clothes longer-lasting (as well as cold water washes only) as dryers are tough on laundry. Do you know what the lent is that builds up in the lent drawer? It's tiny pieces/fibers of your laundry that are being stripped away...and dryers can shrink and stain your clothing!

Air-drying can also make your whites whiter as the sun is the oldest and best natural "bleach", as well as a disinfectant and wrinkle releaser...Plus for me, it's something fun to do and it's a bit of exercise too! Some people say the sun fades their clothing, but we have never noticed that with ours.



Not everyone can do a clothesline due to lack of space or HOA rules (which is ridiculous!), but you can still do drying racks which we also use and they work just as well. They can easily be found at discount and hardware stores or online at places like Abundant Earth and Gaiam.

When it's too cold to put our laundry outside, we dry most of it on racks inside, which acts as a great humidifier to the dry air.

So, consider giving air-drying your laundry a try...and I hope everyone was able to enjoy yesterday, even if it was for only for five minutes, before the weather changes here in Texas and is cold yet again...