Going Green in Comfort

(Photo by Ian L / FreeRangeStock.com ) Back in March, I wrote about a blog post I had come across titled " 8 bits of plastic you can quit right now ," and one of the "8 bits" was the drinking straw. Based on my Facebook feed over the past couple of weeks, I think going strawless might be catching on, as at least three of my friends have recently shared a link to another article talking about giving up straws. But for me at least, I've found going strawless isn't as easy as I thought it'd be. I didn't realize how attached I was to those silly bits of plastic. For instance, have you ever been drinking a glass of water and crushed ice without a straw and when you tipped cup up to take a drink, a whole mass of ice and liquid slammed against your upper lip and nose and spilled onto your shirt? That doesn't happen when you have a straw. Straw also mean you can take a coffee or tea or soda or whatever your favorite drink with you when...

Leafy spinach (Photo by Chance Agrella / FreeRangeStock.com ) A couple of days ago, my six-year-old asked if we could make our own garden in our backyard. "What would we grow?" I asked. She said she wants flowers she can pick anytime and to plant food "so we can save money." Though she doesn't have her eye on living as green as possible, I'm proud of her for considering the benefits of having our own garden. Starting my own home garden has been a goal each year for the last decade or so, and each year, I never get around to it. I get caught up trying to decide what to grow that won't go to waste (both my husband and daughter are picky eaters when it comes to vegetables), and how much of our yard should I use? Where would it get the best light? Where would wild critters be less likely to visit? This past spring was no different, so yet again, no garden. With a little encouragement from my daughter, though, I hope to break that c...