For every 5 bags of food, the average American throws away 2 bags.
For the month of August, I completed the #reducefoodwaste project over on Instagram inspired by the book "Waste Free Kitchen" by Dana Gunders. It was quite a learning experience and you think you know stuff, you are schooled yet again. Fitting as I am writing this recap in September while many are back to school.
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From my experience and probably from every other parent out there, children go through clothing quickly so spending a lot of money on clothes that rarely get worn is not worth it. Think about the COST PER WEAR/USE when buying an item. How much use will you get out of it for the price that you pay? The past few months I’ve learned where to find the best secondhand baby clothes and I’ve listed them below. Buying secondhand is a great way to save money and save resources in the end.
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While my immediate family and I stopped exchanging gifts a few years ago, I'm not opposed to presents completely. I still like the occasional gift, but as someone who has ventured into the world of minimalism and zero waste, I offer some suggestions on what to give folks on this journey. Consequently, these gifts are also good for someone who has everything already. Gift giving is rooted in tradition, in showing love, in showing appreciation so keep these in mind that large gifts don't necessarily mean big love. Small things, small actions can mean big love.
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While, I don't have children yet, as I get invited to baby showers and Christenings, I want to give gifts that are sustainable, responsibly made, BPA free plastic, wooden, made in the USA and generally good for the children and environment.
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“Children are human beings to whom respect is due, superior to us by reason of their innocence and of the greater possibilities of their future.” - Maria Montessori
With our little girl turning 1, I thought I would share with you some of the book that helped us in the first year. There is no shortage of books out there for new parents so this isn’t the most comprehensive list. It’s funny how many of us become parents without formal guidance or education. Many think that parental instincts kick in when the baby is home, but sometimes that’s far from the truth. It helps to be prepared by reading a book or two from people you’ve been there and done that.
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I’ve never really been a makeup person. It’s just not my thing and I am OK with that. So I was happy to come across this brand called Iris & Romeo. The company offers two products: Best Skin Days - a 5-in-1 serum, moisturizer, sheer coverage, sunscreen, and blue light/pollution protector and Power Peptide Lip Balm - a 3-in-1 lip balm that hydrates, plumps and adds color. Both products are in glass so a big plus for my sustainable packaging criteria. Vegan, cruelty-free, made in the USA and free from all of the -ates.
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A review of Organic Basics SilverTech™, an active shirt for work, play, hike and everything in between, treated with Polygiene Stay Fresh and Odor Technology. Sustainable wear for those who are actively on the go.
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In the book, Fed Up: Emotional Labor, Women and The Way Forward, Gemma Hartley talks about Emotional Labor and Mental Load. One of the biggest things that has help me come to terms with all of the mental load that I carry is the practice of minimalism. For me, a lot of the tenets of Minimalism is refuting many of the societal norms that have been ingrained in our lives. My mantra some days is to make a decision that removes a thousand decisions after that. This has been crucial to ensure my sanity, but to also reduce the mental load I personally have to carry.
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Happiness is work.
Do you agree or disagree with that statement?
I had the chance to read and review the book The Happy Mind: A Simple Guide to Living a Happier Life Starting Today by Kevin Horsley and Louis Fourie. This book is about the dynamics of what constitute happiness and I think deep down we all know what these are, but may have forgotten these basic and simple rules in our busy lives and our distracted world.
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“Checking your “likes” is the new smoking.”
I couldn’t help the feeling that technology was taking over my life and it wasn’t for the best. Even after implementing a few digital minimalism strategies, I still coudn’t help the feeling that I wasn’t doing enough. I still felt distracted and not as focused. This past week, I finally picked up Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport and found so many interesting strategies in there to help find focus amidst the chaos of the digital attention economy.
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I’m sure by now you’ve probably seen the news that Beyond Meat became the first vegan meat alternative brand to go public. Is this the solution to our climate change and food woes? Is this healthier in the long-run?
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A review of Zero Waste Cartel bamboo toothbrush and case. The softer bristles bamboo toothbrush made it easier on my sensitive gums.
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I am trying to do my best to make this process as sustainable as possible. Since this is my first child, I’m still navigating what’s really necessary from the mesh of baby must-haves and lists available on the web. I attended a Just Between Friends Sale to find some good, quality secondhand items for baby to use. Here’s what I got:
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A review of Boody Bamboo Underwear. Eco-friendly and sustainable underwear and other basics made of bamboo.
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A review of My Big Fat Organic Cotton and Hemp Nut Milk Sacks. Perfect for non-dairy milk making. Perfect for nuts, rice or oat milk.
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As I am now in my 20th week of pregnancy, I thought I would track how I am dressing my growing belly. My goal with this pregnancy, my first one which is exciting is to keep it as low cost and low waste as possible. Of course, I am not sacrificing my overall health or the baby’s health, but I am being mindful with how and where we spend money. It’s so easy to get caught up buying the latest maternity wear and being on trend, but it’s not necessarily the most sustainable on the wallet or the planet. After all, pregnancy really only lasts a few months and some items will get as much as a few weeks to a few months wear so putting in loads of money and buying all new stuff doesn’t seem like a good sustainable practice. New stuff also always means excess packaging and exposure to chemicals due to the manufacture of the clothing so the less exposure the better. So with some research and some out-of-the-box thinking, here’s how I’ve been managing my maternity wear. Of course, I will update this as my belly grows and my body changes to see what other resources I am tapping into.
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AmazonSmile is a simple way to support charitable organizations through your Amazon purchases at no cost to you. The AmazonSmile foundation will donate 0.5% of purchases to the charity of your choice. You simply head to smile.amazon.com/ and use that as your portal for shopping on Amazon. The caveat with this is that you must use the Amazon Smile portal in order for all of your purchases to be counted and there is no support on the app so you have to actually navigate on a desktop or mobile browser. Not the end of the world, but there’s a convenience to the app.
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A review of WowE LifeStyle Stainless Steel Tongue Cleaner made of surgical grade stainless steel to keep the tongue and mouth clean and fresh.
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Forbes recently listed Armenia as a destination for 2019. It has been untouched by mass tourism so you will find lots of cool things to do, eat and experience. Armenia is a growing country. Yerevan, its capital city is thriving on the power of its youth and is capitalizing on technology to propel itself into the future. This travel guide shows you a sample itinerary for a few days.
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Misfits Market is a produce delivery service that strives to rescue “ugly” organic produce from going to the landfill.
I was happy when someone from our Zero Waste New Jersey Facebook group posted about Misfits Market. I quickly read up on the company and checked to see if I was in the delivery area. Thankfully I was so I signed up.
This review covers my first 6 boxes each received on a weekly basis from December until now.
**If you are looking for a referral link, click here for 25% off your first Misfits Box.
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