Tina Thinking Green

Thinking Green...I have knoticed over the last couple of days that I am thinking green. I think green when I am at the grocery store and I am finding myself being very critical of not only what I am buying but also what the store is selling and its options. I think green when I am at the dorm; I find myself automatically using green alternatives without thinking about using the non-green products. I think that as I get more use to the green products and living comparatively greener I don't need to think as much about it. Being green becomes second nature. Not for everything, because I have not gone compeletely green but for the aspects of my life that I have gone green I don't need to think about as much anymore.

Tina

Accomplishments…. Since my last post I have been consistently better about going green. I have been using my green products and it has been rubbing off on my roommates. I have noticed that my roommates are implementing green habits such as bringing a thermos for coffee and using reusable bottles for other drinks. I like to think that I may be responsible for these changes. In addition, it seems like my roommates are using the green products I implemented in the kitchen, such as cloths rather than paper towels and my Seventh Generation dish soap. Seeing the small changes I have taken in my life rub off on my roommates is exciting and reassuring. It makes me feel like I am a difference.

Jimenez Food Control

So I'm kind of proud of my family this week. when I did the grocery shopping this past week I was really conscious of not being things that we didn't really need. Trust me..I wanted those 100 calorie snacks that I love and some chips but I just kept thinking we have some still left at home. I also put away some fruit that we did necessarily need because we had other fruit at home too. So we have cleaned out our fridge this week and had less waste. I'm excited because we typically throw out fruits and veggies and leftover children's soup before I go grocery shopping and we actually ate all those items and I had my daughter bring the leftover soup and spaghetti' os to school this week. so we had less waste and saves some money on groceries!

The Jimenez Family Goes Shopping

So this weekend I really wanted to go to Whole Foods to do my grocery shopping. I love that store and think the selection is amazing, but my wallet told me otherwise. I went to my usual grocery store, Market Basket, and thought there is no way I will find organic options. Surprisingly, I found a lot of options. It wasn't a huge selection but if I looked carefully enough I could find some alternatives that were organic. I was mindful to buy all of my cleaning products by 7th generation and method and also I bought my paper towels that were earth friendly. The only disappointment with the paper towels is that you don't get a lot for the money you pay. But it made me for conscious of how many pieces of paper towel I use in a day, thanks to children. so now I've started using towels or facecloths whenever I can.

I also this weekend, have been more careful about recycling. I've been more conscious of cleaning containers out and saving them for recycling. I can't believe how much recycling we have for trash day tomorrow!

Challenges for Tina...

Over the last couple of days I have had a couple of set backs. On a couple of occasions I forgot to bring my reusable cups to get coffee. I think that this is just a small set back but I don't want to dismiss it altogether. I think that people often ignore a fault, which makes them bound to repeat it. I feel that I need to acknowledge it, move forward, and try not to let it happen again. I think that it is important to acknowledge the accident so that I will keep it in mind for the future. I have realized I drink coffee a lot more than I had thought. I need to try and make it before I leave or remember to bring my usable cup before I leave the dorm.

On a positive note I am really enjoying my Lush soap and shampoo... :)

Rebecca Jimenez Makes Her Own Baby Food

So...when my first child was born I made everything for my baby. I would spend the time to boil vegetables and put them in the food processor and then freeze everything. Then it got to hectic with my second child and I haven't done it :( She is now 10 months old and should be at the point that she should be able to pick up pieces of food and "gum" them down but she does not like anything really except for baby food and Dominican food...rice and beans, very random. So the other night I thought there is not enough baby food options for stage 3 for her age and so I took the time to peel the carrots, boil them, and put it through the food processor. I thought she would go for it but my husband says she was not happy about her dinner option.

I'm gonna keep trying to give it to her because it is healthy for her and it is less packaging materials. but if all else fails I'm going to stop by Whole Foods and buy some organic baby food. I have started buying a large bottle of applesauce and large cans of mixed fruit and have been putting them in small containers that we have at home instead of buying individual applesauce containers. I don't think the baby will mind this change but my three year old does like certain things in individual containers. Hopefully I'll get her thinking green. :)

Tina

The Process Begins...
It takes a concious effort to go green. I find myself planning my day in more detail before leaving the dorm and trying to anticipate my potential needs. It sounds easier than it is... You have to keep in mind that if you plan on going to the store or getting coffee or anything of that nature before you return to the dorms you need to remember to bring your bags and stuff. I find this to be difficult but positive; it helps me keep better track of some of my habits.
I have begun using the products from Seventh Generation and Lush and find that I like most of them. The shampoo and soap smell fantastic and I feel very refreshed after using them, they're citrusy which always makes me feel rejuvinated. The Seventh Generation products work just as efficently as the products I was previously using. (They're a little more expensive, but not enough for me to really notice a difference on my grocery bill.) Although, honestly I haven't done much cleaning...(that's Nicole's job).
My roommate, Nicole, is really getting into the spirt of it all and is making a great effort. She's now making coffee in our apartment and bringing it with her more consistently, and when she does buy coffee, she has it put in a travel mug rather than the styrofoam cups.

I think what we're really noticing is that the best way to go green is to start making small changes. Replace those things you're out of, instead of buying all new things right away. Green products can be more expensive, but when you're only buying one or two things at a time, it doesn't seem unreasonable.

Isabella Jimenez recycles...like a 3 yr old would.

My daughter Isabella loves to be helpful. she likes to cook, clean, and even put her toys away. I know this won't last forever. The other day we were in the kitchen and my husband left our recycling on the ocunter. she began to put it in our trash and I stopped her. She said "Mommy this is trash". I told her we can recycle it and not put it in the trash. That it would be better for us if we don't put it in the trash. Now, I talk to her like she is much older then 3. But she really does listen quite bit. The other night I came down the stairs and she had out her two buckets. One is filled with legos and the other has her cars in it. All of sudden I hear her saying "This is recycle" and drops it into one bin. "This is trash" and drops it into the other bin. She continued to do this with all of her legos and cars. It was very funny...except now her toys are all mixed up.

The Jimenez Family cleans green

So I'm definitely the person that likes the smell of cleaning products. Maybe its weird, but I like the smell of fantastic and comet. I just think the house smells cleaner. so when I read the Eco Guide to Life, How to Live Fabulously Green she talks about making your own cleaning supplies. I am definitely not ready to go that green. But I did find a cleaning supply by Method that I like. It smells like cucumbers and I actually like the smell better then the other cleaning supplies. While I was cleaning my bathroom I then used comet which contains bleach and I have to tell you I felt sick form the smell after using the cleaning supplies from Method. You really could smell the difference and I really had a reaction to my old cleaning supplies. I think I might try some other products from this company to see how they are.

Beginning

I have recently decided to try going green. I was encouraged to do this in coordination with SSC’s annual Women’s Leadership Conference (this year’s theme is "Going Green"). The first step was talking to my roommates; I wanted support and perhaps participation by roommates. As I began talking to my roommates about it I got mixed reactions from total excitement to confusion. One of my roommates... um, Sara... thought I meant I was going to buy things in the color green. Sara, I just wanted to let you know this is exactly why we love you… :)

The next step was to figure out what I wanted to begin to implement. I discussed this with my roommates and I decided to go with cleaning supplies, shopping bags, and some personal care products. Some of you may be thinking what about recycling? Well, I live in a dorm and my roommates and I already recycle what we can with the program in the dorms. We plan to continue recycling but that won’t require changes on our part.

We also plan to just think greener about things we do on a regular basis. For example, bring our own coffee thermoses to dunkins and starbucks or buying things in bulk and packaging them ourselves rather than buying pre-packaged items. This past weekend, my roommate, Nicole, and I went and did some shopping for the fundamentals. We got things to make cleaning supplies (such as baking soda), bought Seventh Generation toilet paper and dishwasher detergent, and bought personal care products at Lush (shampoo and soap). Note: we used our reusable shopping bags for all our purchases!!

This is the beginning of what may be a long and interesting process. I think that it is important to implement things on an as needed basis, especially since we are all on a budget. In addition, I think that the hardest thing about changing aspects of one’s routine is remembering to do so and making a conscious effort to make changes.