No one believes me when I tell them that I would like to live in the country, on a small farm, grow my own vegetables, and live a more organic life. I've had people actually laugh out loud at the thought--knowing that I am a little vain, materialistic and caught up (at times) with "what's in". But the truth is-- I don't need a lot to make me happy. I'm a simple girl and for a lot of my life I was even a vegetarian. And since I started working from home, I've really enjoyed not wearing make-up, only washing my hair every other day, and not really caring about wearing the latest styles of clothing. Compared to a lot of women I know, I am not high maintenance. But I'm also not going to turn into a "granola" anytime soon and stop shaving my armpits! But I think my soul would be happiest living somewhere with wide open spaces, fresh air, and in a place where I could dig my hands in the soil. Someday, Ian and I will make this dream a reality. In the meantime, we're just going to have to live smarter and work with what we have.
Here's a few examples of some of the steps we've taken to live "greener" lives:
1- We ripped out the grass in our backyard and replaced it with turf. It looks great all year round and requires NO water or mowing! And our pooches even like it!
2- Our front yard landscaping consists of mostly desert plants, which require little water.
3- We had sunscreens installed on the front bedroom window of our house, which keeps a lot of the sunlight and heat from creeping through and this saves on energy bills.
4- All of the bulbs in our kitchen have been replaced with energy efficient light bulbs. They take a little longer to heat up and light up the room, but they also last a lot longer.
5- We recycle everything we can.
6- Ian recently planted two new fruit trees in our backyard.
7- I work from home--so I drive a lot less than most people which means less carbon emissions.
I know we can do better though and here's a few things I'm going to change right away.
1- We're going to buy/use less plastic water bottles. We go through a lot of cases of bottled water each month. I told Ian tonight that I'm going to go buy a water tank and get the refillable water jugs filled at Water & Ice. This will save us money this summer and will reduce the number of plastic bottles we throw out (even if we recycle them).
2- We're going to try to do a better job of remembering to turn our lights out in rooms we're not occupying.
I believe these small changes could have a lasting impact on our world, and each one of us has a responsibility to at least try.
I've been re-inspired to be more green after watching Frontline: Poisoned Waters on PBS last night. And watching today's Oprah show. Check them out if you have a chance.
We owe it to ourselves, to our children, and to the animals of our world to be informed and take action. We've already lost so much.
I'm so excited to go to Yellowstone this summer for our family vacation and show Ava our nation's first national park. Appreciation and respect for nature and wildlife starts at such an early age and I'm hoping Ava will get a better understanding of why it's so important to preserve our ecosystem. And I'm so looking forward to the fresh air, wide open spaces and many days of just waking up, throwing on a pair of hiking boots, pulling my hair back in a ponytail and going on an amazing hike.
1 comment:
You might also remember to always bring your own bags to the market and ban plastic bags. Buy a stainless steel water bottle so you can completely eliminate plastic water bottles from your house, and switch from paper napkins and paper towles to cloth. Our family has taken these steps over the past year. Once you start it just makes you want to do more and more. Good luck and congrats on the changes you have made to make our world a cleaner place to live.
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