Get Outside: It's Earth Day, for crying out loud.

OK, so while I try to take steps in my everyday life to improve the environment, and I oh-so-enjoy spending lots of time outdoors, I'm not a huge fan of special Earth Day activities. This is very cliche, but every day should be Earth Day, so please don't make so much of an effort today, that you're too tired to do anything the rest of the year!

So yes, talk about green stuff today with your little chippamunks, take them outside on a lovely nature adventure, but seriously think about one or two changes you can make in your everyday life that will spread the joy all year long. That's what it's really all about.

Here is a list of some things that my family does in our everyday life to green it up. Now, we're by no means perfect, but we do make a conscious effort, so maybe this will offer a little inspiration (and just a note, we do live on a tight budget, so it isn't always super-expensive to think earth-friendly):

-We have a compost pile for kitchen scraps
-We grow our own herbs, and several varieties of vegetables
-I try to can and freeze our own harvest, and also locally purchased fruits and veggies when in season
-I buy from the local farmer's market
-I buy organic when I can
-We only eat meat or fish 2-3 times per week (this is a huge cost saver!)
-We use cloth bags at stores, including mesh produce bags (not just the grocery store, the drugstore and others too.)
-We try to walk and bike when possible, and plan our car trips efficiently
-We purchased our vehicles with gas mileage in mind
-Our chippamunk wears cloth diapers, line dried when the weather allows (gets out the stains better anyway)
-This one is tough, but we try to pay attention to packaging, and avoid excessive packaging when possible.
-We have a programmable thermostat
-Our ornamental garden is mostly native plants -- they don't need to be watered or fertilized
-We've planted much of our lawn in native prairie to reduce the need to mow
-We recycle (duh). We're lucky, our city has an easy and thorough recycling program. However, they just stopped accepting #5 dairy tubs. We're not going to stop eating yogurt, so I discovered that Whole Foods will accept these containers as part of their 'Gimme Five' program.
-If we need to get rid of something that can't be recycled, we do our best to find it a good home or donate it
-If we need something new, we try to find it used, if appropriate (especially for kids' stuff! They go through it so fast!) Sometimes this one is hard...my husband hears me grumble everytime I take out our standard stroller -- the newest designs are so stylish!

Make a small change today, and every day will be Earth Day.

Now go outside,
Anna