These are frugal times, and these are times when environmental consciousness is rising. How can you prepare your kids to live as adults when times are more frugal and much more ecologically conscious? This generation of parents has lost a lot of the skills that our grandparents had. I know I have, and I’m trying to regain them. Here are six ways that you can help your children become frugal adults. By modeling these skills and allowing your kids to help, you’ll give them great know-how for the future. Preparing Food Prepared food is something that is easy for kids … Continue reading →

Do you want to go green in the kitchen? Cost can be a big factor that prevents families from eating organic and local food. Here are more ideas to help you eat healthy, local food and support local farmers! Get local! Food deserts are a rising concern. In these places, it’s hard to find any sort of healthy food aside from a convenience store. If you have a hard time getting to a store to shop for healthy food, you may be living in a food desert. In this case, programs like Farm to School programs or mini seasonal markets … Continue reading →

You’ve chosen to eat organic and local to reduce your impact on the earth. If you also want to eat on a budget, how can you eat frugally and be green? Switching to organic food reduces the amount of pesticides, antibiotics and hormones used to grow your food. Switching to local food reduces the travel distance and greenhouse gases emitted when your food travels from far away to your plate. However, for many people eating organic and local food seems totally out of reach. How can you go organic and local without breaking your budget? Create connections with local farmers. … Continue reading →

These composting solutions will have gardeners creating soil with a creative flair! Composting ideas from worm bins to bokashi, from compost tumblers to garden benches. Gadgets are gradually coming to the composting world. Whether it’s a tumbling composter to make aeration easier or a swish stainless steel compost container that doesn’t retain smells, here are some composting ideas for avid green gardeners this spring. While some go for a plastic compost container under the sink, these containers quickly become saturated with fermenting compost smells. For those who like to move compost from indoors to outdoors less frequently, a ceramic or … Continue reading →

There are simple things that you can do in your home to make it more Earth friendly. Make a few changes or a complete overhaul. Either way, you will be making an impact that can affect future generations. Speaking of future generations, a lot of these ideas are great for kids. Assign children appropriate earth-friendly tasks around your home. Not only will they learn a great lesson about being environmentally responsible, but they will also get a kick out of being in charge. Purchase and place reusable shopping bags in the front hall closet, so you can grab them on … Continue reading →

Recently I was the delighted recipient of a new fridge and stove. I was delighted because our old fridge didn’t work very well and was so broken inside that a piece of ancient, jagged plexiglass was holding up our vegetables. In spite of the state of our old fridge, I must admit to feeling slightly guilty about getting a new one. I’ve never gotten a new fridge and stove before. I’ve always repaired the old ones. However, the fridge and stove were just barely usable and were getting to be beyond repair, even if we really, really wanted to repair … Continue reading →

Yesterday evening I spent some time in the room where I keep the canning. Until recently, this was known as the rec room. It still is, by those not in the know. For me, this room has been transformed from a room dedicated to toys and random assortments of stuff into a room of pride and beauty. This is where I go to stare at my canning. I could say that I love canning, but I would not be telling the truth. I find canning to be an arduous process. It is sticky. It is wet. It is hot. No, … Continue reading →

Solar power is green energy that not only helps the environment but also saves you on your electric bills. Solar power, however, is not right for everyone. If you are thinking about converting your home to solar power, take a look at the following information. Do you live in a location that gets a lot of sun, such as the sun belt, California, Texas, Florida, etc.? If you live in overcast Seattle, solar may not make as much sense for you to install. Do you spend a lot of money on electricity, at least $125 a month on average? Is … Continue reading →

Comfort. It means that your house is warm, but not too warm. It means that in the coming winter, your furnace keeps chugging along. But all of that comfort costs you money. On average, Americans spend around $1000 a year on natural gas. Some of this goes to hot water, but a portion of this goes to warming the air in your home as well. So what can you do? You don’t want to compromise comfort, but you do want to get a gas bill that doesn’t cost the world, especially since so much of that bill comes in a … Continue reading →