15 week re-cap

It’s been 15 weeks since we started our green’olution (have you ever noticed that the difference between the words resolution and revolution is only one letter?) and so far so good. Probably the hardest change has been to remember to clean our furnace filter every 60 days... the furnace seems so far away sometimes. The Energy audit was fun and we learned a lot (we’re still waiting for our rebate from the government). I love my Druide moisturizer and am planning on replacing more of my beauty products with Druide’s line as I need it. I’ve noticed a reduction of junk mail in our mailbox which makes me happy (though some flyers still get delivered... if I ever catch those flyer guys... I'm considering doing a stake-out... can't you read? NO flyers PLEASE!!!). I’m LOVING E-post (it actually makes paying bills sort of fun!). I’m counting down the days until May 1st so that I can officially switch us over to Bullfrog Power (and also counting down in a sad way because my days at home with my baby are numbered). The G Diapers are pretty cool. I haven’t had a chance to use them very much yet so I’m reserving my final judgement on them until I do. I LOVE my green toothbrush. It’s angled in a nice way that makes it easier to clean the inside of your mouth. I haven’t seen my dentist yet but when I do I’ll be talking to him about them. The toothbrush did spark a little tiff between Derek and I a few weeks ago which started like this:

Me: I got you a surprise.
Derek: Let me guess, a toothbrush.
Me: How’d you know?
Derek: A toothbrush isn’t really a surprise... this’ gift’ is more for you than it is for me. Why are you spending all of our money on all this ‘green crap’? Isn't being green about NOT buying stuff?
Me: For your information I paid for them with my own money, and it’s NOT crap. If you’re going to buy a toothbrush anyway, why not buy a green one?

And on it went from there... this is not to say that Derek doesn’t support this challenge, but he’s more of a sceptic than I am. Which I suppose in some ways is a good thing. It always comes down to the money issue doesn't it? While I agree that there are probably some green products and companies that are only in it for the money, I think that in most cases it is worth paying a little extra money up front which usually ends up saving us money in the end. Besides you pay for what you get and our planet and our human health is worth it. After seeing the story of stuff (it really is worth the 20 minutes of your time) I had an epiphany. All of this green stuff is more pricey for a reason... because they reflect the 'true cost' of making the stuff. Sure other things might be less pricey but what is the 'real cost' of those items to our planet and our health? It's definitely worth your money folks!

By far though, one of the best outcomes of this challenge so far has been hearing from friends and family about the changes they’ve been making in their own lives. It is really inspiring and motivating! Woo hoo! Go GreenFamFriends!