More reasons to filter water

Yahoo published a list with just another reason of why you should filter your tap water. The list contains the cities with the best and worst tap water. I was shocked and pleased to see my city is in the top three listed. To view the entire article and a link to the list of cities, click here.

Directly from Yahoo's article, "Experts still agree that drinking tap is preferable to drinking bottled water. Bottled water is much more expensive than tap, it takes a huge toll on the planet, and it's not necessarily any safer than tap. "Bottled water is not regulated in the same way as tap water," says Olga Naidenko, a senior scientist at EWG. "With bottled water, consumers often do not know what they are getting, and 25 to 40 percent of bottled water on the market is simply tap poured into a bottle."

Knowing what's in your water is the key. Once you know which contaminants are present, you can find the best filter to get rid of them. EWG put together a thorough buying guide to help you find an affordable water filter that works for you. You can read the guidelines or search for products based on contaminants you want to get rid of."

Here is also a direct link to the National Drinking Water Database that provides details of what is in the tap water of your city.

2009 Resolution continued

I am not a fan of coffee but I do enjoy drinking chai tea. I know it can be costly to purchase these drinks from large coffee chains so I have found one that I can make at home that is made by Oregon Chai. I found the chai concentrate at Super Target in the tea section. Oregon Chai offers several varieties of the chai that are organic, vegan and sugar free. It tastes great when you just add milk and heat or even if you prepare it as a cold treat.

Even though I will make the tea at home, I still enjoy going to the local Starbucks with a friend to just sit and relax. This is where I started to think, just like all the water bottles I was using, about all the cups that Starbucks goes through in a day. Not just paper cups but lids, paper sleeves, plastic cups, plastic lids, etc. When I started to think about the amount that one Starbucks goes through, let alone ALL of their stores...wow. This goes for any beverage or food chain that is giving you something in a disposable container.

I decided to purchase a reusable tumbler while I was there. It doesn't take much effort to wash it out and then I put it back in my car in case I stop for an impromptu drink. I found out that Starbucks also has a program called Shared Planet where they are helping to reduce their carbon footprint and you can sign up as a participant and reuse your mug or tumbler each time you get a drink at Starbucks. For each drink you purchase and use your own tumbler for Starbucks will give you a $0.10 discount.

Starbucks is currently researching to create a cup that is 100% recyclable but until that happens I will be sure to take my reusable tumbler with me.

2009 Resolution

It is almost that time of year where everyone starts to make resolutions for the new year. I have already started on a few more this year and have some others I would like to try for the next.

One of my resolutions this year came from watching the Biggest Loser. I realized that even though I did recycle all of those plastic water bottles I was using, I still went through a lot of bottles. At the beginning of 2009, I went out and purchased a Brita pitcher and began to filter my tap water and was using a reusable bottle to take with me to work each day. Prior to doing this, I would go through at least three bottles of water while at work each day. I usually also carry a bottle with me everywhere I go, so I have purchased different reusable BPA-free bottles to fit in my lunchbox and different bags so that I will always have one with me.

To help others get started using reusable water bottles Brita also began a Filter for Good campaign where you are able to join the campaign and receive coupons towards purchases of Brita products. Sign up today to help reduce bottled water waste.

Finally!!!!

In an attempt to eat foods that were not grown with pesticides, that are natural and have real flavor I wanted to try to grow some of my own vegetables this year. I think I originally received my first tomato plant as a gift back in March. The information that came along with it said I would have tomatoes in 45 days. Here we are a "few" months later and I FINALLY have some tomatoes from my own backyard. :) I will admit that I started to think it just wasn't meant to be. The Texas heat seems to be a little bit much. I guess the cooler weather in October and November is just what my little plant needed and just enough time for the bugs to take a hike.

I still plan on figuring out composting soon so that I can have some rich soil to plant a real garden this next year. For the time being I am just pleased I finally have something that I can eat. :) I actually still have about five more tomatoes and a few bell peppers in the works as well. Hopefully, the weather will still stay decent long enough for them to become ripe.

Making the switch to Renewable Energy

I was excited to change my electric company recently to Green Mountain Energy. This electric company uses renewable energy which is an energy generated from natural sources like the sun, wind or rain. In this case, Green Mountain uses wind from local wind farms. This form of energy helps to offset our carbon footprint and produces no greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide or methane. For my first month the carbon footprint reduced is equivalent to 130 miles NOT driven. Not too bad when all I did was make a phone call to switch. :)

Eating Organic

One of the main things that I keep reading about lately is eating organic. What qualifies a product as organic? I went to the National Organic Program's (NOP) website to see if there was anything to clarify what is considered organic. Depending on the product there are different guidelines that must be met for a product to be considered organic. For the details on how a product earns the label USDA Organic, click here.

This was one of the reasons why I started going to the farmer's markets to look for produce that was grown without the use of pesticides. There is definitely a difference in price (higher!) as well when you are trying to eat organic products. Which is why I was pleasantly surprised this weekend when I finally joined Costco. I couldn't believe all the organic products that were available in bulk. Being able to buy more for the same price as what I was getting at the grocery store is great, but I still can't believe the variety of organic foods that were there.

I have noticed that while I am trying to eat more organic foods I have been eating less meat. I love a good veggie burger and found a great recipe on Everyday Food. I am going to try to find some different variations but the Veggie Burger with Tahini Mayonnaise was a great start.

Disney!!!

I had the opportunity to go to Disney World for a week and was excited to see recycling bins at every park! The bins are near every trash can and you are able to recycle all bottles and cans.

There was also a line of recycled paper products available from their "Choose to Reuse" campaign; all with the cute Mickey logo pictured above. A variety of t-shirts made from organic cotton were also available.

It is great to think about all the trash that Disney is having recycled instead of adding it to our landfills. Thank you!

Reusable bags

I like using my reusable bags when I go into the grocery store. If I remember, I will take them into every store I plan on making a purchase at. There are some stores that will give you a small discount for each reusable bag that you use. The most recent store that I know of is Super Target and they are now giving a $0.05 discount for each reusable bag that you use when you shop there. It may not sound like much but every penny adds up!

A little over a year ago I got some great cotton bags that I love from Macy's. They are perfect. They are the perfect size, have a long enough handle so that you can carry it over your shoulder and they also have a square bottom so they sit well in the back of my car. I use these bags at the store and then once I have unloaded my purchased items at home I put the bags back in my car for the next shopping trip.

For some people the issue is remembering to bring the bag into the store to use in the first place. That is why I thought these little bags I found were great. Eddie Bauer has a tote bag in a pouch that can be clipped on your keychain. It seems to fold up into a small pouch-like compartment like some raincoats. Once you unzip it the pouch is then on the outside of the bag where you could put your keys while shopping. It can easily be folded/rolled back up into the pouch too. I thought these were a great idea and could make a great stocking-stuffer for family members this year. :)

Farmer's Market Outing

People, people, people! I finally got to take a few trips to some local farmer's markets this weekend. I wanted to check everything out and see what all was offered by our local farmers and keep the business going in our community.

I started out on Friday night by going to the Bedford Farmer's Market. On Saturday morning, I made it to the Rufe Snow Farmer's Market, then Ridgmar and finally Cowtown Farmer's Market. The markets in Bedford and off of Rufe Snow both are a small market selling local produce, hormone-free meats, tamales, salsas, dressings, bread...it is like a small grocers. I like the idea of these two markets since they are closer to home than the other two that I went to; which makes it easier for quick trips during the week.

The other two I went to were Ridgmar and Cowtown. The Ridgmar market was similar to the first two I went to but larger. They had more of a variety of fruits and also carried fresh eggs. The strawberries I bought here smell soooo good! I just kept sticking my head in my bag after I purchased them so that I could keep smelling them. ;) Inside there is a wide variety of canned items (homemade preserves, pickles, etc.) and a variety of nuts and candies. There was also a small BBQ place inside if you needed a quick meal during your weekend shopping.

After Ridgmar, I went to the Cowtown Farmer's Market. This one was definitely my favorite and I only wish I had gotten there sooner. They are currently open every Wednesday and Saturday from 8 -12 (or when they sell out for some vendors). I arrived late so some of the vendors had already left. This was more like a row of tents set up by each farmer/vendor who is out there to personally sell their product to you. It is a great opportunity to talk to the people working so hard to make the foods/products. Some of the vendors even let you taste their products before you buy and I even had a great pork tamale!

I think one of the best foods you can eat fresh is a tomato. I planned on growing some this year but unfortunately things did not turn out as I had hoped (I only produced one that wasn't eaten by something else). So to be able to buy some fresh tomatoes at the farmer's market made my day. I needed to make a tomato and mozzarella salad for work on Monday and they had exactly what I needed.

I also bought some homemade strawberry preserves from Dolly's Jellies and it is fantastic! I had to taste it as soon as I got in the car and since then I have had a couple of biscuits, some crackers...I can't find enough foods to put jelly on! There was a variety of flavors so the next on my list to try is blackberry.

I can't wait to go back another weekend and I will try to get there when they open so that I can check out the grass-fed beef, fresh breads, homemade granola...*sigh*..so much great food! It is worth the drive to get food that tastes so much better, fresh and comes from a local business.

I made two tomato salads. I love grape tomatoes and Cowtown Farmer's Market was the only place that sold them. ;)

Recycling at Work

Does your workplace or school recycle? Over a year ago, my employer did not have a recycling program in place. It wasn't until someone I worked with was recommending everyone watch the film Al Gore is known for, An Inconvenient Truth, that I was able to bring up the question - why weren't we recycling at work? The idea of implementing a recycling program was rejected in the beginning due to various costs, people putting trash in the recycling and a list of other excuses. So we got permission to bring our own recycling bins to work as long as we were the ones who emptied them.

For about a year we had three recycling bins and a few people who would take turns bringing the recycling home to put in their own bins that were picked up by the city they lived in. My point is, just because the opportunity is not there or the service is not offered does not mean you should give up what you believe in. There were other people within the company who began to take their recycling home as well.

Eventually a company-wide recycling program began and a committee was put together to address other ways we could be more environmentally friendly at work. Every employee was issued their own mug to cut back on the use of styrofoam cups. A ride-share or carpooling program began for those who wanted to cut back on the cost of gas or reduce their carbon footprint.

Just talking about this to my family and friends made others realize that their workplace was not recycling either. I had a family member take some bins to work and put in place a recycling program too! Since it is a chain of stores it started to catch on at more stores and people were taking responsibility to make those small changes to help make a difference.

What are small changes that you can make at your work or child's school to encourage recycling?

Posh Pouches

On my search for other ideas for waste-free lunches I came across the website for Posh Pouches. I love this idea of having a reusable bag instead of using all the little plastic baggies. I like to have all of my food items separated so before my Laptop Lunch Box arrived I counted using SEVEN plastic baggies for lunch and snacks in one day, yikes! I can't believe I had used so many. The next day I used four more. It really started to hit me how often I use plastic bags when I could be using a reusable container instead.

Once I really started to read everything on their website I was in shock at what I found. One of the external links referenced something called the Great Pacific Ocean Garbage Patch. I had never heard of this. I started to read more about it and could not believe that our garbage is just floating around in the Pacific Ocean. The pictures made me feel sick and the video by Good Morning America just pushed me over the edge. I really need to make more changes. I was recycling but all the plastic I was still using had to be cut back, big time. It was one of the main reasons why I started to think about beginning the blog as well. I was talking to all my friends and co-workers and no one else had ever heard of this either. I needed to get the word out and started by posting the link on Facebook and hosting an online party for the Posh Pouches.

I love the Posh Pouches since they are portable and I like to carry snacks around in my purse. They can be washed easily in the washing machine or by hand and then line dried. They are sturdy and seem like they will last a long time. I think they are great for wet or dry foods due to the liner inside the pouch. They have three sizes and tons of fabrics to choose from. Check out their site to learn more!

Waste-free Lunches

I am a professional adult who works full-time at a large corporation. I have to tell you one of the highlights of my work day is lunch. :) I found out about these lunch boxes from a friend and once I saw them I just HAD to have one. It is a bento box style lunch and the lunch box itself is cute, colorful, easy to use and clean up, has built-in portion control; but what I love the most is that when I am finished with my lunch I have absolutely no trash to throw away. It seems odd to say that but everyday the trash cans are so full after lunch we are all shoving our trash in there trying to make it fit. The first day I took my new lunch box I was able to just stand up and leave. :) It was a great feeling.

The lunch box I purchased was from www.laptoplunches.com. It is a great purchase for any age. It keeps me motivated to continue cooking healthier meals instead of getting lazy and picking up lunch in the cafeteria or ending up with fast food. The Laptop Lunches website even provides you with lunch ideas each week to help keep you trying new foods and methods of preparation. The lunch box comes with silverware and if you order a carrying case you will also get a reusable drink bottle. You can order additional containers for the inside of your laptop lunch as well in case you have a busy night and need additional time for clean up. I have even packed a kitchen towel in my carrying case to use as a napkin everyday so I truly have a waste-free lunch.

There is an additional link on the Laptop Lunches website that gives more information and statistics on waste-free lunches, www.wastefreelunches.org.

Each lunch seems like art when you are finished so I jumped on the bandwagon and started taking pictures of my lunches too!

Homemade egg rolls and rice, edamame,

applesauce and then a luna bar for my snack.

Sara Snow

I don't have cable but I finally heard about Sara Snow's TV show on the Discovery channel. I still haven't seen an episode but I did go out and buy her book, "Fresh Living". The book goes room by room through a home with ideas on how to make changes to help the environment. I am still only on the kitchen chapter and already have a list of ideas I would like to start incorporating to my daily life.

Until I started reading her book I had no idea what CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture) was about and that I had so many local resources for fresh produce, grass-fed beef and other organic products. CSAs allow you to buy fresh vegetables, fruit, herbs, beef, dairy and even breads directly from the farmers. You pay a certain amount up front at the beginning of the growing season and then you pick up your box of produce each week from a pick up location. Everything is fresh and organically grown!

To find local farmer's markets, CSAs and other local resources go to www.localharvest.org and search in your zip code. I am considering joining a CSA when the next season starts if I can find one with foods I enjoy. In the meantime, I am going to try out a farmer's market that is near my home. I can't believe it was this close and I never knew it!

Getting Started

I believe that small changes can make a big difference. I grew up in a home where I was taught about Earth Day, recycling and getting involved in your community. Once I was older, I believed that everyone cared about the environment and recycled. Recycling seems so easy to me that I was very surprised when I found out that there are so many people not doing it. The worst realization was that some of the people not recycling were my own friends and co-workers!

I am now on my own mission to increase what I am doing for the planet and encouraging others to do so as well. I know there is so much more that I can do to help; many small changes to make a bigger difference.