Start Living Green Today!

Some people think that living green is a hard lifestyle to maintain. It isn’t. You do in fact need to make changes and be more aware of your environment. Now if that is too hard to do than I would question your priorities and the everyday choices you make. Not to be judgmental but there is a certain responsibility that we all have as humans to take care of our planet and live the best lives we can. If we don’t understand the importance of that than we are in big trouble.

Now is the time to change your life for the better and finally feel a sense of pride that you never thought you could. Its 2011 people. It’s never too late to try to become the person you never thought you could be.

The first thing to do is take a look at your life and see what you can change asap. Whether its buying natural and organic food or taking a walk instead of driving, taking baby steps is perfectly fine. You want these changes to be fun and exciting! And with a positive view and peaceful state of mind you will get there. You must realize that a lifestyle change such as this one will also change who you are as a person. That is the true meaning of being green.



Having the eco-friendly vision everyday come natural and not thinking twice about an earth-friendly decision. Its about observing yourself and realizing that you, the people you love and the earth from which you live are worth much more! Here are 10 easy simple ways to get started. You can do them at your own pace and take the time you need. The more you start doing, the more you will be comfortable with your new lifestyle!

Recycle & Reuse
I am surprised when I hear that someone does not recycle. Shame on you! If everyone in America recycled we could decrease the waste in landfills by 75%. Sounds good to me! Another way to recycle is to reuse. Bags you get from the grocery store, packaging, rags to clean and even refilling your ink cartridges for your printer. These all make a difference.


Take a Shorter Shower
You can conserve more than 10 gallons by just shortening your showers by 2 minutes. Not to mention your water bill! Just think how much that would be if everyone did the same.


Junk Mail
We all get crap in the mail that goes straight to the garbage. Instead of throwing it out recycle it instead. If you want to reduce your junk mail or rid of it forever you can register with the Mail Preference Service. It only costs $1 and you can do it online. Its that easy so there is no excuse! Just go to www.dmaconsumers.org/cgi/offmailinglist.


Curtains & Blinds
During summer and winter keep your blinds closed. That will keep your house cooler when its hot out and warmer when its cold. By doing this you can reduce your energy needs up to 25% and save on your electric bill!


Use Fewer Napkins
When you are out try to take 2 -4 napkins instead of 10. We all do it. You go to the movies and get popcorn. Well you need tons of napkins because of the butter! Do your best to conserve and more than a billion pounds of napkins could be saved from landfills each year!


Subscribe to Magazines:
You could save up to 75% off the newsstand price if you simply subscribed. Plus, who wouldn’t want the convenience of coming home to your favorite publication! About 60% of the magazines at stores aren’t sold and wind up getting dumped. What a waste!


Unplug Electronics
Not only will you save money but tons of energy as well. Surprisingly enough, even though they are turned off your electronics are still using 10 - 15% of energy. Just unplugging your TV alone can save more than $1 billion in energy bills if we all did it. 


Carpool to Work
If it is possible, try to hitch a ride with another coworker or even a friend that may work in the same area. You would save hundreds of gallons of gas and not to mention the $$ in your pocket. Another plus of carpooling is less traffic. We don’t need any more cars on the road or any more road rage!


Pay Your Bills Online & Go Paperless
Why waste money on stamps and envelopes when you can pay all your bills online. Thats the convenience of the internet! Take advantage and save time and money.
 Most companies offer to go paperless as well. In fact, they recommend it! Who wants more mail they are just going to throw away.

Paper or Plastic
The best solution is to use reusable bags. Nowadays, every retail store sells them and they are usually only $1 or so. Its worth it. Plus they are stronger and more reliable. But if you have to choose one than go with paper. And don’t forget to recycle and reuse!



I hope that you can follow these steps and have fun in the process. Just think about all the great choices you are making and the difference you are able to achieve. With these 10 steps you are well on your way to an eco-friendly life!

Apples!

How can you not LOVE apples? They are so good! Well, this season why purchase them from the grocery when you can rent your own apple tree. You get to choose from seven different varieties - Empire, Macoun, McIntosh, Honey Crisp, Gala and Ginger Gold - and receive a gift box of 48 apples from your tree. Not only that. You also get one gallon of apple cider with a personalized label and free shipping.

Why not support Stony Ridge Orchard located in Erin, New York. You can keep updated on news with their quarterly newsletter you receive for free and everything is stated in the rental agreement certificate. It would make a great gift too :) Sounds good to me!

A Belgium Breakfast

Every other weekend or so I like to make pancakes or belgium waffles for breakfast. Sort of a nice little treat for Danny and I. My vegan pancake recipe is awesome but I recently found a waffle recipe that came out really well too. I am going to tweak it a bit but as of now, it's pretty damn good.

I like to warm up the syrup and butter so its nice and hot for dipping and sometimes add vegan chocolate chips for extra sweetness. Add a little powdered sugar on top and you have one might fine breakfast. Yum! Recipe coming soon :)

It's About Time

I'm watching the Food Revolution with Jaime Oliver and am so happy he is doing another season. It is no surprise that our school system is somewhat destroyed. From education and teacher positions to the food they feed your children. There definitely needs to be change because our kids aren't learning what they should and most of them are fat and unhealthy. Is this okay with you because it's not okay with me.



Now, I don't have kids yet but in a few years I will. I have friends that have children and also young ones in my family. I care about all of them and they deserve the best. When I do have kids of my own, they will eat the freshest, most healthiest food from the start. No nasty meat. No chemical filled junk. No food that has been sitting on a shelf for God knows how long. They will consume plenty of fresh veggies and yummy treats that are pure sweetness. And they will love them all.



The key is to give your kids the good stuff from the start. My Mother fed me tons of vegetables, fruits and organic foods when I was a child. I LOVE tons of vegetables and fruits to this day and I thank her or that. She didn't feed me lots of red meat, mostly chicken. That was a good thing too. Because of that I was never a big meat eater. This made it easier for me to go veg when it was my time to.



I don't care if your kids won't eat certain things. I know tastes change and little ones can be picky and quite frustrating. However, they only know what you give them. Get creative with foods and trick them if you have to. It's worth it for them to be healthy and develop good eating habits. I sure hope you all agree. If you feed your children crap, they won't like fresh "real" food when they have it. That is seriously sad and it's pretty much your fault. No one ever said parenting was easy. Buckle up and get ready for the ride.



My advice to parents, especially young parents, is to involve your kids in the preparation. Show them where food comes from, how it grows and why each is so amazing. When they see that there all types of delicious foods out there that are healthy too, it will make all the difference. Plus, they are learning and will have fun in the process.

As far as the school system goes, they need to grow balls and lose the greed. It's either the district doesn't get enough funding or they would rather pay administration money they don't deserve than supply the schools with healthy food. Both are screwed up but both can surely change. Right now, everything is falling apart. That is why people need to be strong and use their power to make change in the home. You all have the power to do so.

Stop being lazy and cook for your family. Make time if you feel you don't have it. Too bad. Stop complaining about money and stop using it as a reason why you don't buy natural and organic foods. Its old and annoying. Get over it. If some things are a little more expensive than cut back funds somewhere else. Food is important! Your body needs to thrive on it. Not crash. If you need help budgeting your money or help shopping for better food than ask. There is always a resource out there you can go to.

I sure hope that things in the near future. It's a scary thing. 2012 is right around the corner and we should all expect a shift to come into play. I am not saying the world is going to end but something is going to happen. Just be prepared, thats all. We all need to eat better, move more and take care of friggin planet! The more we destroy our surroundings, the more we destroy ourselves. Being selfish and greedy is disgusting. Money isn't everything and material things are just garbage compared to the real needs of human beings.

Do the right thing for yourselves and your children. Help others make the right decisions. Love all animals because they are Earthlings too. This planet is a home to all of us and we are all equal. We need nature to survive. We need to consume the gifts of the Earth to thrive and be amazing. We need each other for support, love and inspiration. It's about time we all Evolved for Change.