Toilet Roll

This is a real concern for me due to the amount that is flushed away each day, the way around it is to use recycled paper even cloths that could be washed after use (not an area i have ventured in, i think this would take a lot of persuasion for my family). With toilet rolls i don’t like the packaging that they come in, i can’t recycle them which means they end up in landfill. An other issue is that my son does not understand one at a time so alot of toilet roll is wasted at the moment. I have found an alternative though, recycled box of tissues from tesco which does not contain any plastics which some boxes do. I am giving it a trail run for the month because i am not sure how James and the boys are going to react to it.

Noses

The concept of blowing a runny nose on a hanky would put my family off, this is only because we have never done it. I used to have a hanky when i was younger, it was second nature then and they are very easy to wash so my family are going to get another shock when i send them out with a hanky instead of tissues. This will save on the amount of tissues my family will get through.

These are a mild filed, there are far to many on the market at the moment and for the next 9 weeks i don’t need to worry about this particular area but by christmas i’m going to have to find an alternative to the high street brans. towels and tampons are like nappies they take many years to decompose. I can’t believe that 75% of people flush tompons down the toilet, that is disgraceful. Well with the amount of toxins in the recognisable brands i have stayed clear of these even before i became pregnant.

I have however found a few alternatives.

This is a moon cup it comes in two different sizes, and is fully reusable so there is absolutely no waste. It will need washing and sterilising before each use. It can be cleaned in the same way as baby equipment: with sterilising fluid, or by boiling for five minutes in an open pan of water. The Mooncup is made from a special medical grade non-allergic silicone. Silicone is derived from silica which is one of the most abundant minerals on earth. The Mooncup will hold 30ml of fluid, which is roughly one third of the average total produced each period. A light seal is formed with your vaginal walls allowing your menstrual fluid to pass into the Mooncup without leakage or odour.

The smooth surface of the Mooncup allows the mucus membranes of your vaginal wall to continue their essential cleansing and protective functions. It does not absorb your body’s natural defence mechanisms and will not deposit fibres in your vaginal wall. It will not cause irritation and is suitable for women with sensitive skin, thrush, eczema or allergy.

Eco-Femme Washable Reusable Menstrual Pads Sanitary Towels

These are great because they do not produce any waste to put into landfill, you get a liner so you can put more than one liner in the pad if you have a heavier flow. Completely washable. Having looked through the web this one is the best that i have found and it looks the best product around.

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I found this book and thought it was great for a beginners crash cause in green living, its simple but really effective, its not to in your face and scary but runs through the basics. I like it because it is not to over powering.

I found mine at Play,com but why not save yourself £5.99 and go to the library.

I wanted to let off a bit of steam about the world of advertising. I loath it, it actually frustrates me. (even though eventually i will put advertisements on here about eco products and i have already advertised things), I especially don’t like adverts for children because its all i hear from them as soon as it comes on the telly “i want that” and then they expect. With my new eco life though they are not getting. Cleaning products is a big one on tv, since i only use my soap nut cleaner i have noticed that a lot of the adverts are all for the latest cleaning product, i really find it hard to tolerate them. i only watch the odd few programs now but i like to record them and then i can skip the adverts.

I think it is down to frustration though of how i used to love the adverts and then buy them, now i am not drawn into them anymore they don’t mean anything more that chemicals that are going to ruin our planet.

As a housewife i should probably really enjoy cleaning but i can’t say that i am that fond of it. Building this site has changed the way i look at housework.

I used to be a little bit of a product obsessive, i used to love going around the supermarket looking at the cleaning products but now it is totally avoided. My cleaning cupboard is getting very empty which is a really exiting thought.

This is great as a parent because my cleaning cupboard is no a longer toxic dangerous place. I am enjoying the cleaning now, i’m now proud of my home were i was not at all last year.

My cupboard now consists of

Soap nuts

white vinegar

tea tree oil

Orange oil

Lavender oil

Bicarbonate of soda

borax

spray bottles

We used to live with out these gadgets but now there everywhere. There are millions of mobile phones in the uk and about 20 million in draws unused. I do own one, it gets used when i go out and my son is at school other than that i keep it turned off to save the battery,

Next time your survice provider asked you if you would like an upgrade, why not say no (unless your old one is broken).

Some parts of mobile phones contain toxic materials so you need to dispose of your old mobile phone properly. Don’t put them in the rubbish to end up in landfill sites. Car phone warehouse reuse mobiles so if your going to throw it away why not give it to them or a mobile bank.

My doorbell ran out of batteries over a year ago and after 8 months of not having a doorbell i decided i didn’t want one, instead i am investing in an iron door knocker. The best thing about these is that they do not need batteries (which is a pet hate of mine). There are a lot of websites out there which sell door knockers and the range of them is amazing. I really think they look a lot better than a plastic doorbell, i gave my doorbell to the charity shop for someone that does not share my view.

I have just purchased my door knocker from the door knocker company.

I have found a very easy recipe for a soap nut soak which can be used as a laundry liquid.

• In a heavy saucepan with a lid add 4 cups of water and 7-8 soap nuts.
• Bring to the boil and then gently simmer, covered for about 15 minutes.
• Remove the pot from the heat and let it sit, covered at leaset until cool. (leaving the liquid over night will result in a stronger solution).
• Strain the liquid with a cheese cloth (or you can use your wash bag) to remove any pieces of shell.
• Add your favorite essential oil if you would like a sent to your soap nuts.

This batch will last for about 8 loads of laundry. (use 1/4 to 1/2 a cup for each load). Your soap nut liquid will keep for about 4 weeks. If it is kept covered, and away from direct sunlight.

I have found a really nice website called the laundry tree were i found the recipe and there are different things you can use this recipe for with alterations to the recipe to suit the type of cleaning you want to do

Our diet is changing but i think this is a hard area to tackle because there are so many foods out there that are packaged all wrong and there impossible to recycle. I do buy organic were ever i can but supermarkets wrap there organic food in plastic. So when this is the case i go British (which would be my first option) and packet free (i have my onya bags for that),

My Best option is Able and Cole for my fruit and veg. I like there boxes but there organic boxes are packed in hard plastics which can not be recycled. For my meat i am going to do a weekly meet shop at my local butchers, this way i can have it weight to my likeing and then they use less packaging.

This is still a learning curve but a fun one because i get to decide and really healthy nice meals instead of keep going back to frozen things.

In the past i have survived of drinking tea and coffee and now realizing that it has not been good for me I’m cutting it out altogether. I have been cutting down over the last 28 weeks but now i am 29 weeks pregnant i have cut it completely. I am not completely selfish i do have it in for visitors. Coffee is my biggest pain becaise they all come with plastic lids which can not be recycled.

At the moment i am drinking fruit and herbal teas from twinings because the tea is really nice but you have to be careful with the packaging most of them have a cardboard seal which means it all can be recycled but on the occasion the bags are individually wrapped and the box is sealed in plastic (these are the areas i am cracking down on in my cupboard). My view is though that if you can make some boxes recyclable why not make them all the same way.