Milosmom’s Blog

           Most everytime we go to the retail grocery stores we always see the reusable store shopping bags.  They are usually attractively priced at one or two dollars and look pretty sturdy.  But, how many of those bags do you own? Do you make it to the store with them everytime you go out to shop?

           If you are a bag diva, like myself, you want something compact, that fits in your pruse so you CAN remember to bring them everytime you shop.  Besides, I just don’t shop at one store.  Since the recession began, we all have been forced to use coupons and use sales papers to find bargains.  Do you really want to bring a 99 Cent Only reusable bag to Whole Foods Market or vice versa?  To me, its like wearing an 80’s prom dress to a black tie event!

           So, the question is, “Are your reuseable shopping bags making a statement about YOU?”  Does it fit your fashion styel while being protable, yet durable?  Here are some of the solutions we have found at EmagineGreen (and is the OCTOBER GIVEAWAY PRODUCT)!!!  Yes, ladies and gents, on Halloween Night I will draw one of your names for either one of the Elemental Totes, Retro Totes, or Metro Totes!  http://greencoach.emaginegreen.com/nicolesullivan

How do you enter?  There are several ways!

1)     Comment on this post and answer the following questions (1 entry):

         Do you own reusable bags? 

         Do you use them everytime you go to the store?

         How do you recycle or reuse plastic grocery bags?

         Would you be interested in learning more on how to be more green at your home or business in a home/business Eco-party or Online Eco-Party?

2)     Follow me on Twitter @nicoleisgreen (1 entry)

3)     Retweet:  RT: Fashionable resuable shopping bag giveaway @ https://milosmom.wordpress.com #fashionshoppingtotes

         That’s 1 entry per Retweet

4)     Book an Ec0 Party with me in the month of October at your home, business or online (requrements:  at least 3 attendees with at least $150 in retails sales at your party) Not only will you get FIVE ENTRIES, you will also receive a travel sized Body Gel and a Heart Shapped Loofah for FREE!)

GOOD LUCK FOLKS AND THE DRAWING WILL BE OCTOBER 31st at 9 PM Pacific Standard Time!

EmagineGreen is coming out with a new line of personal products that are healthy for you like it is the environment.  Right now we are having a contest to see who can get the most surveys done.  So, if you complete the four to five question survey, I will put your name in for a drawing for a bottle of our rejuvenating shower gel or our hand + body lotion.  They come in either Tangerine Coriander or Geranium Rose w/ Lemon!  Check them out at http://greencoach.emaginegreen.com/NicoleSullivan !  Go to “shop”!

As with everything else that I do, the information stays with me and is never sold or given to a third party.  Our company is more interested in interest in the product.  I, of course, think it’s a great time to give away something for free!

Here are the questions:

1)     Do you currently wear fragrances daily?

2)     Do you wear perfume, lotions, or body sprays?

3)     Are non-toxic ingredients important to you?

4)     How Eco-friendly is your household on a scale from 1 (not at all) to 10 (extremely)?

MOTHERS ONLY

5)     Do you use lotions and shampoos on your child with fragrances?

If you are interested in learning more about what’s in your personal care products or how you can make your home more eco-friendly, email me at nicole.greencoach@gmail.com or indicate that on your comment below!

Good Luck!  The drawing will be held on September 30th!

Hello all,

I do hope that you all had a great weekend celebrating Earth Hour!  I’m not sure if your town or city participated, but Las Vegas was amazing.  I really thought there would be only a few people excited about Earth Hour.  I was very wrong.  My Saturday started out getting ready and going to a craft fair called, “Spring Fling” at Cactus Joe’s.  Cactus Joe’s is an awesome place not very far from the house.  I’ve been told by several people that if you want a healthy cactus that will grow when you take it home, get it from Joe’s!  Just about all of the vendors were selling products made from other products they reused and recycled.  I was really inspired to buy a loom, a small blow torch, and glass lided jars.  Not in that particular order, mind you and not for the same craft project!  🙂  Everywhere I went I was reminded that at “8:30 pm Tonight, they will be dimming the lights in Las Vegas to celebrate Earth Hour”.  We were invited to a few parties to celebrate, but we were still getting everything ready for the wedding and didn’t get home in time.   On the way home from getting our wedding rings, we looked off the 215 and saw Las Vegas go black!  Suddenly, Las Vegas looked like every other city at night.  All you really could see was a few guest room lights and the lights to keep the planes from flying into the buildings.  That was it!  There were no neons, no billboards lit up, it was dark.  You could actually see stars above the Strip.  It was just amazing.

I’ve been talking about how it’s been frustrating getting my fiance to follow suit to be more green.  Well, that night on I-215, Brandon was in completely, and utter awe.  He couldn’t quit talking about it.  He couldn’t call enough people in surrounding areas to talk about it.  He was like a small child seeing something for the first time.  Occasionally, he would make the comment that it takes more electricity to turn things back on the casinos than to leave them off, but I understand the meaning behind what was done in Las Vegas.  The casinos were making a point.  Las Vegas was making it clear that they are working to reduce, reuse, and recycle.  I am very proud to be living here.

Back to my personal journey, I do have a black thumb of death.  Nothing has grown in my makeshift pots.  I’m sure I did a bunch of things wrong, but it’s been a very VERY long time since I planted anything.  I’m starting to think that I should have started out with (duh) starter plants.  It would have made things much easier.  I’m going to give the seeds one more shot and we’ll see what happens.  My recycling is ready to go for this Friday.  My bins are seriously overflowing right now.  I wish they would pick up more than just every two weeks.  My thoughts really are on the wedding right now.  It’s a little less than 3 weeks away now.  I’m trying to see how we can be more green about the reception.  Since it isn’t really a big wedding, there aren’t many things I can change.  I know our carbon footprint may be a little big with all of us going to the wedding site.  People are planning to carpool together.  For the reception, I’m trying to decide if we are going to use reusable plates and silverware, or if we get disposable to make sure we have a bin for people to throw things into.  Oh, we are having such a redneck wedding!  We are having South Louisiana BBQ!  If I can get them booked on that short of a notice.  Otherwise, we might just be all going out to eat together at a restaurant.  I have no idea.  I’m working on it, but I’m sure we’ll figure it all out before the big day gets here!  Send happy thoughts and prayers my way, if you can spare any.

What did you do for Earth Hour?  Anything unique and interesting?  Did you keep kids busy?  Did you sit in the dark or with candles?  Or did you just sleep through it?  I want to know.  I want to hear from everyone that’s keeping up with this blog! Talk to me people!

I would really like to take this opportunity to say “Thank You” to all of you who have been commenting on my blog and reading.  This is my first blog and I am blown away by some of the comments that I’ve gotten on it.  I know that there are people out there who are greener than my family and I.  I love the advice that I’ve been getting as well as being able to share with many of you who haven’t begun your “green” journey yet.  It has been a privilege.

With that being said, this week hasn’t been very much fun.  I’ve been sick for over a week now.  I probably forgot to mention that I’m really really stubborn.  I just went to the doctor yesterday and the doctor was threatening to put me in the hospital.  It reminded me of how busy we get as mothers, wives, WAHMs, SAHMs, sisters, daughters… We are always moving.  We don’t have the time to slow down because there are people WE need to take care of.  Like I didn’t have the time to take a whole HOUR to go down to the doctor’s office and for her to take care of me.  I’m glad that I went to see her.  I had exactly what I thought I had and after two antibiotic pills, I have a bit more energy today.  I’m not going to push it for another couple of days.

Today, I’m going to water my seedlings and sort through some of the trash that was thrown away in my absence as “garbage monitor”.  Of course, the baby doesn’t contribute to throwing things in the garbage, but I haven’t got my fiance trained on what goes in the garbage and what doesn’t.  It does no good to yell about it.  I just hope ONE DAY, he will act on my example and follow suit.  I feel the same way about church.  If me and the kidlet go each Sunday that maybe he’ll eventually figure out he needs to go with us. 

Are you going grocery shopping today?  Going to the store for anything?  Skip the plastic bags.  Check out the Elemental Tote set from emagineGreen!

In the Elemental Tote Pouch you get five reusable, not to mention FASHIONABLE totes.  I’ve been told by several grocery sackers that they prefer bags like these because they can fit more groceries in them.  Not to mention, when was the last time that you could put a plastic bag all the way up your arm and onto your shoulder for an easier carry?  They are made out of great material and I usually have the pouch in my purse everytime I go out.  The totes fold very nicely right back into their pouch!  Check them out today!

http://greencoach.emaginegreen.com/NicoleSullivan

I decided to go to Walmart because I now have a small child that is mobile and likes to get food and milk in our carpet.  I was out purchasing more food for the kidlet to eat and a cheaper steam cleaner for the carpet.  I was so excited because I remembered my reusable bags.  I haded my bags over to the cashier and made the comment, “I bet you dislike eco-people like us!”  She replied, “Believe it or not, I can get more items in your bags than I can in a normal plastic bag.  It saves me more time when I don’t have to grab another plastic bag!”  Of course, when the cashier said that, the lady in front of me and the family behind me were checking out my FASHIONABLE reusable Elemental Totes and asking where they could get one. 

I don’t know.  I think I’m just excited that people are starting to take notice that I’m working on living a greener life.  If I don’t get all of my garbage separated, I feel guilty.  I look at things in my house that clutter my life and wonder, “who can I give this too or where can I recycle this?”  You know I really hate to give restaurants and fast food places crap, but I LOVE LOVE LOVE Sonic’s drinks.  I love me a Cherry Coke and a Cherry Limeaid.  They make my stomach feel all happy.  I love their food, but HATE the fact that all their drinks come in a styrofoam container.  I’ve done a bit of research around and even in Vegas, there is maybe on vendor that will take styrofoam containers and make them into something else.  Normal recycling doesn’t cover it.  I asked the assistant manager at Sonic if a person could bring their own container, but they said that it was against health codes.  What I don’t understand is that you can buy a container for a convenient store and get $.50 refills if you bring your own container, yet it’s against a health code if it is filled by an individual other than yourself?

Mind you, I’m not boycotting Sonic, by any means.  I can eat their Cheddar Peppers all day long.  I’m just not getting my drinks from there anymore.  Since I can’t recycle the styrofoam, I don’t want to spend money on something that really never breaks down in the landfill.  So, I’ve decided to find me my very own cherry limeade (I guess you could say “recipe”) compliments of www.allrecipes.com.

Rated: Submitted By: CINDYM457 Photo By: JenInCalifornia Prep Time: 5 Minutes Ready In: 5 Minutes Servings: 12

Update on the planting situation:  So far, nothing has sprouted.  I’m so sad, but as I’ve said before, I have no patience what so ever.  So, I’m giving it another four days, if nothing happens, I’ll just try again!

Have an Eco-Friendly day All!

Last night I had the opportunity to be a part of a shopping event put on by http://www.momchats.com.  I was privileged enough to be the last speaker of the evening.  The good news is that most of the people in attendance were other direct sales people.  Many of them were amazed to know that there was a company like emagineGreen out there.  I enjoyed going over several of the products in our catalog and giving out information about the environment and meeting people from different parts of the country.  Overall, it was a great party.  I hope to be a part of another shopping even soon for those who may have missed it. 

This morning was recycling pick up.  I swear, the more into recycling that I get, the earlier I have to get up to make sure I get all of it out on the curb in time.  Those bins get heavy after a while.  I think I made about four trips from the house to the curb.  I just hope that they leave my plastic container that I have all of my cardboard boxes in.  I’m only getting rid of the smaller boxes.  I save the bigger boxes on the off chance that we have to move again.  With this economy, who knows, right?  Today, I’m going through my closet to find out what I wear and what I don’t.  I started noticing that there was a lot that I wasn’t wearing when I would go to a full closet and couldn’t find ANYTHING to wear.  So, we are reducing.

In an effort to lessen our monthly bills, we had my cell phone turned off and my fiance’s plan lowered on his cell phone.  We called Cox Cable and had them install a digital house phone for us.  I believe that we saved an extra $100 for the month.  Now that we’ve done that, my mind is racing to see what else we can cut.  I swear I’m like a little kid running through the house with scissors to find out what else I can “cut up”.  I’m thinking about implementing a few new rules when it comes to shopping too:

1)            A shopping list has to be in hand when one of us goes to the grocery store.

2)            There are about five grocery stores that mail us their weekly specials.  During the week, we kind of go all over the city.  Maybe we could find one of the five stores throughout the week close to our destinations and get the lowest prices from each store. 

3)            Organize a coupon book to put in my purse.  I’m finally going to start printing off coupons online.  I was skeptical at first, but all I’ve heard is great things from other moms.

4)            When it comes to work, sending more emails and making more phone calls than mailing packages. 

Those are just the ones I’ve come up with this morning.  How are you cutting your spending and meeting your budget goals?

Would you like a chance to show your family and friends what they can do to help the environment?  Don’t do it alone!  Book your Eco-Workshop today for online or in person!  You can earn free and discounted emagineGreen products for your home so you can tell the world how “green” you are!  Sign for a workshop today at:

http://greencoach.emaginegreen.com/NicoleSullivan

After this weekend, I finally got my potting soil and am ready to begin starting my seeds.  So basically this means I have a little over a week to finalize what containers will go to which plant.  I would find some of the hardest plants to do in pots, but I’m up for the challenge of making it work.  We’ll see how well I’m doing.  I still haven’t found my old camera.  I’m beginning to guess that it may be in our 5th wheel RV thats in storage right now.  I’ll have pictures up shortly.

I’m still adding to my small compost bin for fertilizer when I move the plants to bigger containers.  I’m growing Roma Tomatoes, Eggplants, Squash, Chives, Oregano, and Parsley.  If this all goes well this week, I may go back and get more things to plant.  I have accumulated a few more milk jugs to plant in.  I realize that I’ll need the bigger containers for the tomatoes, eggplant and squash.  They have those for 99 cents at the 99 cent only store and I’ll get those next week.

I’m beginning to get my recycleables ready for pick up on Friday.  Why am I getting it together now?  Because this chick knows that things get busy during the week and I really don’t want to wait to the last minute and contribute to the stress that I already put on myself.  With that being said, here are my accomplishments since the last time that I blogged:

1)            I have only managed to use ONE plastic bag from the store.  The only reason I did this was because I forgot my purse in the car and my Elemental Tote Reusable Bags were in my purse.  I won’t forget the next time. 

2)            I’ve only spent around $8 on my little planter garden.  I had to purchase my seeds and my potting soil.  Other than the $8, I haven’t spent anything else!

3)            I’ve cut my dishwasher back to just washing dishes and not drying them.  We need to save money on energy!

4)            I’ve been like a vampire slayer!  I’ve been unplugging most everything that we aren’t currently using such as:  Coffee Pot, Electric Can Opener, Space Heater, Computer (instead of sleep mode), phone chargers, ect.  I just walked through the house and looked at the plug ins.

5)            I’m trying to get a carpool together for my mom’s day out groups.  This way we won’t be driving so many vehicles to get our get togethers!

So, what have you been doing this week to lessen your carbon footprint (Saving you money too!)???

Let me rant for just a quick minute.  It aggravates me so much that they only collect recycling once every two weeks here!  It’s a shame because I have so much for them to pick up every two weeks.  The recycle baskets get heavy enough I need help getting them out.  But on a more positive note, it was GOOD that today was not recycling day because I haven’t sorted through my recycle bag yet to put them in their proper places!  I’ve decided that it’s easier for me to just keep a bag in the pantry of items that I recycle and at the end of the week sort them.  It keeps me from running to put things in the garage every half hour or so.

Today may be Friday the 13th, but I have a feeling today is going to be a great day!  I am FINALLY getting my potting soil today.  Since my fiance will be gone all day tomorrow, I can take that time to set up my corner of the patio for my plants.  I have a small container with my compost materials in it.  It’d been decomposing for a little over a week now.  I am planting Chives, Parsley, Oregano, Squash, Cherry Tomatoes, and Bell Peppers.  Trust me, I now have the containers to do it all.  Between what I retrieved from the trash can and what I picked up at the 99 cent only store, we are all set to go.  I can’t wait to see the seeds starting to sprout!

You do know that the best time to think of the most brilliant ideas in the world is when you are in the shower.  I was thinking about how the Las Vegas Valley is in a serious drought.  The county and state are really beginning to crack down on water usage.  Unfortunately this wasn’t thought about when they built our house.  Our hot water heater is all the way in the garage.  You have the garage, the patio, and then the house.  So, when you want hot water, you waste water by waiting for the hot water to get there.   SO, instead of wasting that water, I’m going to set aside some cleaned milk jugs and try to save that water to water my plants.  Waste not, want not.  Right? 

Today, I am looking for my spare camera since the death of my old camera.  I plan on taking pictures each week to show you my progress and hopefully how green my thumb will be!

Oh, and my recommended business of the day is:  Learning is an Art .  If you are looking for something to help your children understand Math, Reading, Social Studies, and Science, they have the products for you!  Learning is an Art has games, toys, and DVD’s that help children with their core subjects.  They even have games that can teach Sign Language and Spanish.  Visit them at:  http://nicole.learningisanart.com .  They also have a great affiliate program if you are in need of some extra cash each month.  They give you a free website, you direct traffic their way, if people buy, they send you a commission check! 

Tell me what you are doing green today!

Did you know that 149 households that compost keep 218,136 lbs of food scraps out of landfills annually? (Imagine what their garden or their flowers look like… 🙂 ) Did you also know that there are some retailers that are charging their customers at the register for the plastic bags that they use? It cost money to make those plastic bags and they are passing that cost on to you, the consumer!

I’m sure many of you have gone into Wal-Mart or maybe even The Dollar Tree and see that they are selling reusable bags to keep people from using the plastic bags that litter our landfills. The stores would love for you to use your own bags so that they can reduce the amount the company spends each year.

Truly there are small things we can do every day that can make a difference in our environment. I know some areas like my hometown that the papermill is the main employer. If you use paper bags, reuse them or recycle them. Instead of grabbing a papertowel every time you spill something or need cleaning, pick up a rag or towel that can be reused. I know that our family makes it into a game. We see how much money we can save a month by using products that can be resued instead of things like paper towels or plastic water bottles.

I challenge you to see if you can lessen your garbage to a bag or less a week. Believe it or not, it can even be done with a large household. Try it, see how well you do the upcoming week!

Thanks for joining me on the blog. Please post any ideas that you have for reusing items. I love to see how creative people get.

This morning I read that the city of Austin, Texas has approved the building of the nation’s largest solar plant that should be able to support up to 5,000 homes. That may not seem like a lot, but they are using a wonderful renewable resource and it isn’t causing any damage to our planet! Check out the article at:

http://www.greendaily.com/2009/03/09/austin-approves-the-nations-largest-solar-plant/

If we weren’t renting and in a wonderful house governed by the Homeowners Association, I would be interested in installing a solar panel on the roof.  I’ll own my own home soon enough and can do with it what I want.  Today, I am picking up my potting soil so I can at least start my seeds today.  I have my chives, oregano, and parsley that I want to start.  We’ll see how it goes.  I was going to take pictures for you all, but my camera decided that it wasn’t long for this world and sadly died last night at 8:48 pm Pacific Time.   I have another camera that isn’t quite as good as my Kodak, but I’m going to try to locate it and take the pictures that I promised.

In the meantime, here is the information again for the contest for the Urban Compost Bin.  It is valued at $75 and you’ll never have to pay for fertilizer again for your garden.  Even if you don’t grow your own garden, it would be a great gift for someone that does.  It even has a spout at the bottom to let the water drain from your compost to water your flowers.  It has some amazing nutrients that we call “Green Tea”, but I wouldn’t drink it myself.  But plants LOVE it!

Here are the contest rules and ways to enter:

1) Follow me on Twitter!  If you are already following me, CONGRATS, you already have on entry into the contest!

2) Comment on the current blog (1 entry per post limit)

3)  RT on Twitter with “A Chance to Win a Free Urban Compost Bin… http://www.milosmom.wordpress.com @nicoleisgreen”

The contest ends when one of the following happens:

1)   I am able to book and hold 10 Eco-Workshops for emagineGreen either online (U.S.) or in the Las Vegas area.

2.)  Sell 40 Urban Composting Bins by March 31st 2009.

3.)  Get 500 followers on Twitter!

Good luck everyone and I can’t wait to see who wins!