Reducing Your Plastic Use

By now you've likely come across a post on plastic waste in the ocean, or a campaign against drinking straws, or seen pictures of the tons of plastic rolling around and rapidly engulfing our planet. Terrible, isn't it? But have you really taken a close look at plastic in your everyday life? Have you given any thought to what you use, throw away, recycle?

 When you throw away something that could have been composted or recycled, when you chose single serve packs of apple sauce for the kids' lunches rather than buying a large a glass jar that you dish up into smaller, reusable containers, when you put a plastic spoon in the lunchbox to go along with the apple sauce...and you think something like, "What difference can I make, I'm just one person?" Every person, every gesture, every effort is valuable. I laughed when I read this, "The person who thinks they're too small to make a difference has never tried to sleep with a mosquito in the room." So never dismiss your efforts as being inconsequential.



We have done more damage to our planet in the past 150 years, than mankind had managed to do in the previous 1000. If we want to be able to leave something for future generations, taking action isn't really an option anymore. It doesn't have to be painful either. It's all about becoming aware of our actions and adopting healthy ones.

So come on, let's start the journey together, invite friends and family to join in, and make a party of it. I'll get the ball rolling and share some simple steps you can take to do the same. To make it more interesting, share what you've done with us here. Invite friends and family to join in.

Let's start with 10 items. Here goes!


1-Straws. We gave up plastic straws for glass and stainless steel. Now, I prefer the glass to the stainless, but glass is not practical with kids. Last week I found bamboo straws for them!
2-Utensils. We bring our utensils from home anytime we pack a lunch. Bamboo utensil packs are affordable and come in a cloth pouch. The adult kit has a pair of chopsticks in it as well. We went out for veggie burgers the other day and we got to sample one of their desserts,  using compostable utensils. Now how cool is that?
3-Plates. Be it for a beach picnic, a school lunch or a lawn party, there are alternatives here too. Paper, bamboo, stainless steel, and yes, banana leaves, (totally Awesome!) or even glass, depending on where you're going and what you're doing with these.
4-Bottles. Here too, we can buy glass, (sport bottles have a silicone casing to protect them), stainless steel, or even a mason jar can do the trick.
5-Coffee cups. Bring your own coffee cup to fill at your favorite morning stop. There are many models on the market to choose from.
6-Shopping bags. Most stores offer reusable bags, from IKEA to Costco to Walmart. In the end, it doesn't matter where you get them, it just matters that you use them. You could even make your own.
7-Produce bags. I am fortunate enough to do my groceries online (I love my awesome organic grocery store! Shout out to Bio Sattva up in Val David, Qc!) I pick up my order in 2 big bins, so no grocery bags, and no produce bags. Everything is placed directly inside the bin as is, without plastic. My daughter bought herself a set of mesh reusable produce bags, so that's another option, or again, make your own.
8-Food storage containers. I donated all of my Tupperware and plastic containers a while back and switched to glass containers. I also use mason jars a lot! There are also silicone stretch covers that fit over almost any size bowl.
9-Soap, shampoo and  domestic cleaners all come in plastic bottles. It's getting easier and easier to bring your jars and refill them at bulk stores. We have zero waste stores for both food and soaps/cleaners, so we just refill our jars or containers.
10-Plastic wrap/bags. It is now possible to buy reusable lunch bags to pack sandwiches and such. They come in different sizes with cool colors and patterns. To replace plastic wrap, beeswax covered organic cotton is another option.

Amazon and organic health food stores carry most of these products. If you find other places, let us know!

I came across this on Facebook one night...definitely food for thought. Even if we recycle, we're still contributing to the problem, not the solution. Plastic is everywhere and in almost everything, from your phone, television, computer, car, home and more. Every bit we can cut down on helps. Just look around you and count how many things are made of plastic. My laptop, screen, printer, wall plug/switch covers, thumbtacks, mp3 player, phone, pencil holder, pens, fake fireplace heater, and multi-frame wall art are all made of plastic to varying degrees. It's everywhere. I can't imagine a wooden printer either. So for now, we're still stuck with it. But that doesn't mean we can't start to eliminate the over-consumption and waste choking our planet.

Let me know how you are doing on your end. Together, we can and will make a difference.  I love sitting back and watching discussions between my 2 youngest, (4 & 10), on composting, recycling, organic foods and healthy choices. Every bit helps, every step makes a difference...not just for us, but for our beloved planet.

Spring into Your New Life -step 5

Hello everyone, I'm back! My laptop decided to take a vacation, and refused to cooperate, telling me I didn't have a hard drive installed...and of course someone else turns it on, and it opens like it should. So, after being a whole week, (with multiple attempts to correct the problem -including replacing said hard drive,) I'm going to hurry and do my best to get this post out to you.

Step 5

Now that we are reading ingredients and swapping out personal care products, household cleaners, and food...what's next?

Let's pause a moment to mention scented candles, air-fresheners, sprays and plug-ins, and just how toxic they can be. Studies have shown that the residual chemicals from our beloved air-fresheners contain toxic chemicals that accumulate in consistently-increasing amounts over time. You don't need me to tell you how bad that can be. Chemicals such as Phthalates, which have been known to interfere with the production of testosterone and have been associated with reproductive abnormalities. Formaldehyde, has been linked to things such as throat and nose cancer, is known to cause chronic irritation to the airways, increasing the risk of asthma, infections and other respiratory ailments. Naphthalene, found mostly in plug-ins compounds the risks formaldehyde brings, since it was shown from studies done on rats to cause tissue damage and lung cancer. And the list goes on.

Essential oils can be used in diffusers to spread not only a pleasant aroma throughout the house, but a

beneficial one as well. Oils on their own and in various combinations can have beneficial effects on the household, from uplifting or calming, odor removing and purifying, to respiratory aid and more.
If you love your candles, make your own using beeswax or another safe wax and essential oils. It's that easy. There are recipes for reed diffusers as well as simply placing a few drops of your chosen oils on some un glazed pottery beads. Fortunately for us today, you can google a DIY in a split second. There are so many safe, fun and beautiful recipes out there. Indulge yourself.

Of course, you can get yourself a diffuser and some essential oils and go to town. You won't regret it, because if the blink of an eye you can set the mood with a beautiful diffuser that'll be beneficial to those fortunate enough to be in the room. My absolute favorite one is called the Desert Mist diffuser because it will stay on all night (if that's what I want) and shut off afterwards. It offers different operating modes and white light, candle light or any of the beautiful rainbow colors. Oil diffuser packages are available and you can learn more about them HERE. If ever you decide to get one, leave me a message and II'll throw in a free gift.

One last thing...A great way to help rid your body of all these toxins we've been talking about is to take a bath with Epsom salts and a few drops of essential oils! This soothing, relaxing, detoxing or even invigorating baths will do you a world of good. 1 drop of Lavender in 1 cup Epsom salts will help you unwind, the Stress Away blend is pure magic. Raven or eucalyptus for soothing the respiratory tract  or Pan Away to ease a sore body after a workout is ahhh-mazing. (All these blends are from Young Living, the only company I trust, and I've been using oils for 30 years now...I have tried so many over the years, organic and all...but these are simply the best. You'd need to put 20 drops of any other lavender oil to get the same benefits of a single drop of our oil...I kid you not. So in the end, you're spending more on the cheap oils getting less out of them on so many levels.)


I wanted to add a pic of my favorite diffuser...It's on a shelf on my room, so it's not a pretty promo pic, but it'll do. The candle setting really looks like a flickering candle, it's sooo pretty. The girls like it when it's cycles through the different colors. To each his own.

Spring into Your New Life -step 4

Hello!
How are we all doing?

Hopefully we're all reading labels and rethinking what we've been using and consuming. And with a little luck, a few light bulbs have been going off, not to mention a few red lights as well.
If you're feeling a little overwhelmed and wondering where to go from here...then maybe this'll help.

Stop and take a deep breath. My journey in the kitchen started with a mason jar filled with dried chickpeas, and it took me a long time before I figured out what to do with them. By taking it one step at a time, replacing food and products with non-toxic, non-GMO organic alternatives, you are already doing something great for your body, your family, your home, the environment and our planet.
Did you know glyphosates are water soluble?
Meaning they get into ground water, so they are not only on the plants and foods we eat, but in them as well (since the plants drink the tainted water), and they contaminate our environment. The coral around the Hawaiian islands where some of these crops are grown are now dead or heavily damaged because the toxins that wash into the ocean. I was going to post a link, but there were too many to choose from and they made me feel sick. So...suffice it to say, choosing  organic has a greater impact than you might realize. Just think of the Bees.

Your next step is finding a new recipe you'd like to try and integrate it into your weekly routine. Try adding a new one every week (depending on your schedule), until the good things have crowded out the bad. The great thing about this approach is you won't even notice it happening.
You'll just look back at your pantry somewhere down the line and realize how far you've come.

Every day, new products, recipes, tips n tricks become available. These veggie-kabobs on the left...drizzle a tiny bit of avocado oil, sprinkle with salt, pepper and marjoram, and my mouth is watering just thinking about it! I will BBQ this as soon as the snow melts. Marjoram is amazing on veggies. Or if you're fully raw...salad on a stick. Either way...it'll be yummy!

What lies ahead? Well, we're going to take a look at plastic, recycling, composting and all that stuff. Again, baby steps. A little knowledge goes a long way, but sadly in our world today, we seem to be living life in fast-forward, with barely time to catch a breath. So we end up going with the flow, not even realize what's going on behind the scenes. We fail to see how great an impact  our choices can have. On the plus side, there are those who have gone before us, and we're already starting to see the change their choices are having. It's just the tip of the iceberg, but it's promising.

If you go through my blog, there are a few recipes and DIY's you might like to try. If you come across any great recipes or products on your side, don't hesitate to share! If you'd like to be interviewed on this blog, sharing your journey (be it day 1 or 1000), let me know. It'll be fun.

See you in Step 5