I have always been an advocate for living a green and sustainable lifestyle but it wasn’t till recently that I fully comprehended the philosophy and the financial benefits. In the beginning I played into the greenwashing and various ploys to spend substantial amounts of money in order to declare myself, my family, and my home as green. Thankfully with each subsequent child I have evolved as not only a mother but an environmentally conscious one.
It all started with the birth of our first child. The pressures to have all the necessary baby gadget and playthings as well as the cleanest and safest home were my goals no matter what the cost. If you asked my husband he would definitely agree that cost was the main consequence of my mommy greenest actions. You name it and I bought it! Organic everything including, formula, baby food, clothes, blankets, plush toys, etc. Masses of Green cleaning products including, toilet, shower/tub, floor, countertop, furniture, wood polish, disinfectant spray for pacifiers (which was pointless because my children never took a pacifier), etc. We purchased biodegradable disposable diapers and wipes. I was even contemplating clean air machines for each room in the house but then the spending had to decrease because we were expecting again.
With our second child I realized that we could no longer afford the ridiculously expensive disposable all be it, biodegradable diapers. Which has me contemplating just how it could possibly biodegrade in the landfill? ((Side note- In school a fellow grad student did her thesis on landfills. She was able to get a drill to excavate garbage 40 feet below the surface. Her findings were shocking. The garage did not decompose at all; she was able to read a newspaper from ten years ago as if she just purchased it from the corner stand yesterday. This was really alarming because paper should only take 5 months to decompose. Peak your interest? See how long it takes your garbage to decompose- http://www.greenecoservices.com/how-long-does-it-take-for-trash-to-biodegrade/)). So I switched to a diaper that was a hybrid of cloth with a pad that would insert in the center of the diaper and could be easily removed and dissolve in toilet water (sounded easy enough). I had to cut back on all my cleaning products. I started using vinegar, water, and a dash of lavender for countertops, floors, glass, and disinfecting. I used baking soda in the bathroom and olive oil and lemon for furniture polishing. The money we saved by no longer purchasing all the various cleaning products and disposable biodegradable diapers was significant and I was minimizing my carbon footprint. All those cleaning products, diapers, and food had raw materials that needed to be excavated and they were not often indigenous raw materials so they needed to be transported, and then manufactured. Once manufactured the products then needed to be packaged and transported yet again. With my carbon footprint at an all time low I was living on cloud nine. Even though our disposable income had declined with the birth of our second child I was saving more by going green. Next challenge, baby number three!
Ok, so the economy is in the dumps, enrollment is down at the university where I instruct so I am not bringing in any green and we are having another bundle of joy- pressure was on. This time around I went with the good old fashion cloth diapers, pins, and liners. I use small washcloths and soft rags as wet wipes. I am breast feeding this baby- no formula, and making my own baby food. No fancy gadgets, just the old fashion throw the (inserts veggie type here) in the oven/or the range and mash it up type of baby food. When it comes to clothes I am no longer a slave to fashion and I am not above the second hand stores. After all what is more sustainable then giving clothes second life? Not to mention some of the baby stuff still has the original tags on it. I wish I wasn’t so egotistical with my first baby; I could have saved so much money and used it to pay for at least her first year of her college tuition.
So, I challenge you to make a list of all the baby items and cleaning products you have purchased in the last year, add up the cost. Now, start small and simply substitute one of your cleaning products for a home made version (http://eartheasy.com/live_nontoxic_solutions.htm#substitutions) or make your baby food ( http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/) for one meal a day and see the savings add up.
Do you accept the challenge?
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