Going Green

I'm pretty excited about all the little ways we're "going green" in our household this summer.

1) Green cleaning. Although my mom literally laughed at me when I told her I was hosting a "green cleaning" workshop earlier this spring and she questioned my green cleaners when she cleaned my house recently, I do use green cleaners and promise they work! (Well, maybe not so well when you've been in the hospital and haven't really cleaned the bathtub in a few weeks....!)

2) Eating locally. There are several ways we're reducing our carbon footprint as far as food goes and I'm loving all of them.

First, back in April we started getting our milk delivered in re-usable glass bottles from South Mountain Creamery. Every Tuesday morning we put out our cooler and ice packets and receive milk, butter, yogurt, free range eggs, grass fed beef, or any other delectable item I order that week. I can't tell you how wonderful this is. And, the milk is actually cheaper than buying organic in the grocery store!

Second, we bought a share of a CSA -- that's a community supported agriculture farm. Every week we go pick up fresh veggies, herbs and flowers as our share of the farm's harvest that week. Half of the harvest goes to people like us who have purchased shares and the other half is distributed free or at reduced prices through the Capital Area Food Bank. So far this summer we've enjoyed amazingly sweet strawberries, wonderful spicy salad greens, bok choy, Chinese lettuce, chives, fresh lavender and all kinds of other wonderful treats.

Third, we've been patronizing our local community market. Started by a local citizen, our community markets will run every other Saturday morning through the summer. Last weekend I spent just under $40 on fresh bread and pastries, fresh homemade pasta, homemade pasta sauce, Maryland wine, a big bag of organic salad greens and baby squash. Our dinner on Saturday, breakfast on Sunday and lunch on Sunday consisted entirely of these local, fresh ingredients. Yum!

3) Rain Barrel -- Last Saturday Abel attended a workshop hosted by Progressive Cheverly and made a rain barrel for our back yard. Total cost $20 (plus a $15 donation we made to help defray other costs) and total time less than 1 hour. After last night's big storm, we've got a good amount of water in it to use to water our new plants!

My next project is to start a compost pile--I'm just a little nervous about getting started. I'll keep you posted!