Cheap green Tip 4: Have patience

So I'm a little, let's say, frugal. This is not eco-friendly scrimping that have made sites like Freecycle and Zwaggle so darn popular, but rather an innate cheapness aided by too many years of Ramon noodles as my main source of nutrition.

But re-sale goodies, especially on the big stuff like furniture, can help keep quality items in circulation. It's always better to buy something used than new, even the greenest-of-green products.

I once bought a tiled oak table for $250 and our bed frame (which was broken, but just barely) was a scant $30. And with kids, because they use things for such a short amount of time, it's crazy to buy some of this stuff new if you can help it.

Take my daughter's big-girl bed, for instance. We found this Pottery Barn masterpiece at a garage sale for $200, including the Sealy mattress and two identical princess quilts. The key was patience. We looked for months before we found what we wanted. And we didn't want junk because a)we don't like junk and b) junk is a lot more likely to end up at the landfill.

So this summer when we go searching for my 4-year-old's first bike, we won't be paying the bike store $100, and we won't be buying junk from Wal-Mart. C'mon garage sale season. I know you're out there.

Tip: Don't forget about the old-fashioned classified section. Sometimes when people move, or get divorced or whatever, they need to get rid of some big-ticket items fast.

Cheap Green Tip 3: No More Corn Syrup

I love to cook. Love it, love it. I bake my own bread. I freeze meals made ahead of time. I insist my kids at least try the arugula pesto, which they love.

But I've also been known to give my girls cereal for dinner. I love the planet and all, but seriously, I'm not giving up Cheerios.

Prepackaged food is hugely wasteful. It's more expensive then the home-made counterparts, uses unnecessary packaging and has unpronounceable additives.

Here’s a little trick that'll let you have it both ways: Get rid of high fructose corn syrup.

Food companies add this sweetener, thought to be a key source of the obesity epidemic, in everything from bread to yogurt. Banning it in your household still allows for some kid-friendly foods like Triscuit crackers, only-fruit jams and applesauce.

Jarred spaghetti sauce, which almost always contains high fructose corn syrup, doesn’t make sense when the simple concoction of canned tomatoes, garlic and olive oil tastes infinitely better, is cheaper and doesn’t have a bunch of mystery ingredients.

Tip: Save the containers from food you buy (like Parmesan cheese and cream cheese tubs, and yeah, I like cheese) to use as snack containers. This cuts down on additional waste from plastic baggies.

Cheap Green Tip 2: Go outside

I live in the Midwest. I understand cabin fever. I know how it feels to be so pale you're worried you might become translucent.

I get it. Honest I do.

But you've got to get the kids outside. For your sanity. Today, I spent the morning outside with my 4-year-old shoveling out from a snowstorm. We made a snowman and then walked to preschool. I felt exhilarated. I felt like it would be OK to have a huge lunch.

One of the greatest ways to help your kids grow up green is to take them outside. There’s a growing movement that suggests kids need playtime and exploration in nature.

Worried about creepy old men in vans? Sure. Who isn't! You’ll be happy to know violent crime is much lower today than when you were a kid.

In snow. In sunshine. In rain and wind. Kids aren't as concerned about the weather as morning commuters. Dress for the weather and work with it. You won’t be freezing with proper gloves. You won’t get as stinky-sweaty under a shade tree.

And if you aren't worried about cars (a much more relevant concern than crime) go ahead and send them out alone. Think of all e-mails you can send to long lost friends while your kids look for bugs under rocks.

Really, it’s win-win.

Tip: Invest in a good pair of snow pants (these are pretty easy to find second-hand). They’ll keep kids outside twice as long as wet and frozen jeans.

Cheap Green Tip 1: Sell your car

(I’ll pause while you stop laughing. Done yet? How about now?)

Hopefully I haven’t lost you. So maybe giving up your wheels seems a tad extreme. I get that. I’m pretty certain most people think I don’t drive because of some recent series of drinking-and-driving incarcerations.

But…


If moms are to lead the way toward a greener future, they need to drive less. We drive too freakin’ much, and sometimes for really stupid things. If you think a special trip to the store for organic polenta is eco-friendly, think again.

Start small. Combine errands. Shop close to home. Have somebody hide your car keys once a week so you won't be tempted to drive around town listening to Dr. Laura while your kids scarf down a large order of fries.

Americans produce an annual average of 15,000 pounds of carbon dioxide, almost a third from driving. Reducing annual mileage by 20 miles a week eliminates 1,000 pounds of CO2 emissions each year. Also, you'll save about $130 in gas.

If you’re like me, maybe you’ll find the extra car sitting in the driveway isn’t necessary. And consider the money saved from car payments, insurance, maintenance and gas, a price put near $20,000 for some high-end models.

Tip: If you live in a fairly small town, or in a green-dreamland like Oregon, biking around town for errands in the warm months is fun for the kids, efficient and helps you look fantastic in a bathing suit. My girls love a bike ride to the playground.

Welcome to my blog

Mine is not the most eco-friendly household on earth.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m green. Green as grass. My little one-car household eats veggies from our Community Supported Agriculture group. We line-dry laundry like crazy. I clean the toilet with vinegar.

But in between bus trips to the library and walking my daughter to preschool in a snowstorm, we watch Dora and Elmo, shop at Target and (gasp) use paraffin wax crayons. Going green doesn’t mean going broke on sweaters of organic cotton handpicked by shamans. I guess it could mean that, if you’re rich or trendy or an organic cotton salesperson. But it’s not for me.

What it could mean is using less energy. Buying less stuff. Driving less.

It means going outside and playing. It’s always surprising that when you give something up (like selling a car or banning fabric softener) you find you don’t really need it as much as you thought you did.

This blog will offer tips on simple mothering for a healthy earth. Coming in the next few weeks: 10 tips to going green on the cheap.