Getting started.

Last month, I wrote about the "thinking green" idea, and then I dropped the ball. Well, I had a lot of my mind at the time. I was suffering immensely, due to morning sickness and lack of the food I wanted. It is a terrible thing to deny a pregnant woman the food she wants, especially when most food sounds nauseating. But there I was, gagging on food I (mostly) didn't want and counting the days until I could come home. It was a happy day when I could go to Panera and order exactly what I needed. Anyway, now I am 11 weeks along (due end of March), and while I am still tired and cranky, at least I can eat whatever sounds good. ;)

Now...the green stuff. I haven't started on any of the survival skills yet. I've just begun modifying some of the products I use. Changes thus far:

*Shampoo/soap/toothpaste/deodorant/etc. I actually have been cutting nasty conventional products out of my collection for a while. I don't buy anything with parabens, SLS, and the like. I'm now learning to identify more petroleum-based ingredients and avoid them. Brands to check out (though these are not all perfect): Kiss My Face, Burt's Bees, JASON, Tom's of Maine, Alba. KMF is my favorite for a lot of things. Also, anyone who knows me knows I'm a fan of homemade, all-natural bar soap. It's better for you, it doesn't have a bunch of junk in it, and there's no plastic bottle. Someday I hope to try my hand at making my own.

*Shower Curtain. I decided to replace my nasty plastic shower curtain (which emits toxic fumes) with a fabric one. Best choices here: organic cotton or hemp. The hemp ones cost a lot more. Cotton ones are available for $35-40. I have yet to find out how often it will need to be washed to keep it looking nice. I can't wait for it to get here. Oh, I also ordered a cotton shower mat - without the questionable rubbery stuff on the bottom.

*Shower head. I have no idea how much water comes out our current shower head, but I ordered a contraption that removes chlorine from the shower water, and it also has a reduced-flow shower head. Will let you know how that turns out. I also bought a little ball thing that hangs on the tub faucet to remove chlorine there too. Just sounded like a good idea.

*Cleaners. Conventional cleaners for the house have all kinds of evil things in them - chemicals that are bad for the environment, chemicals that are derived from petroleum, etc. I bought a few bottled things (laundry detergent, dish/dishwasher soaps, general cleaners) but I am also interested in using simple substances: baking soda, vinegar, castile soap. I got rid of all my chlorine bleach and will never again buy cleaners with bleach. "Oxygen bleach", however, is okay. Oxyclean is an example of a product that uses an oxygen bleach. Hydrogen peroxide acts similarly.

*Shower timer. I found a nice little model that doesn't require any batteries and has an hourglass that lasts five minutes. You put this in your shower, and you get out when the hourglass is done. I think I will have no problem with it, but certain readers might. You know who you are.

I think that's about it for now. Other items on my agenda: replacing old nonstick cookware, buying recycled paper products, getting houseplants (I am not good at keeping houseplants alive, and we do not have much light in our house, but we'll see), more aggressive composting, attic insulation, new cutting board (mine are plastic), and other miscellaneous things. I'm sure there will be more. I'm not done with the book yet.

For more information, check out Easy Living Green . I have another similar book, called Big Green Purse, but I haven't read it yet and can't give any review. I really like Easy Living Green. Very informative, with lots of suggestions.