My mommy green list

1. Leave your car at home for a day and try walking or biking. If work is too far away to walk, take public transit or carpool. One city bus eliminates the emissions of 40 cars.

2. No more water bottles. Instead, I am buying a refillable drinking bottle made of aluminum. These bottles are 100% recyclable even at the end of their lives. This means no more wasted water or plastics for me. http://potterybarn.com/ for great bottles that say "do your part". Luv them!

3. Make your own baby food! It is so much fun to do with all the cool things they have out now try http://giggle.com/ for great ice trays to store by fresh baby. I also save about 25.00 a week buying local fresh veggies & fruits instead of that "organic" baby food in glass jars.

4. Choose foods produced organically. Support your regional farmers and farming industry: buying locally and in season is better for the environment than buying foods that have been shipped hundreds of kilometres to your local market.

5. Put a composter in your backyard or use your green bin to reduce household waste. ( I am looking for a cool white ceramic composter right now for the kitchen, they have them with carcoal filters so you won't smell a thing...I want to stop paying for dirt!)

6. Paint a room in some of the new paint with No Voc"s! I just did my house and in the midst of doing a room soon to be a daycare. Try http://freshairechoice.com/ and get 3 FREE samples of this great paint.

7. Set your thermostat above room temperature in the summer and below room temperature in the winter. For each degree you adjust, you can save 5% on your utility bill and 1% on your energy use.

8. Replace incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs (CFLs). A CFL uses only 25% as much energy as an incandescent bulb and lasts 10 times longer. ( I did this and reduced my bill by $150 a month!) I spent 150 on the bulbs so it paid for itself in only a month.

9. The simple act of recycling has more impact on the environment than the average person thinks. The amount of wood and paper North Americans throw away each year is enough to heat five million homes for 200 years.

10. This is a great opportunity to brag. Tell someone what you're doing to make the world a better place. Support the cause. Encourage them to get involved too. (Crazy how it is actually trendy now to be GREEN, so take advantage!)