Natural Familly World » Green Household

4 Ways Of Reusing Tea Bags

Monica — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 04:47:35 +0000

If you like tea but dislike throwing away those tea bags, here are 4 ways to reuse them:

#1 – Throw Them In The Compost Bin
Tea bags make wonderful compost for your garden. Just add them to your compost heap and let nature takes its course.

#2 – Under eye soother
This is my favorite: Used tea bags, particularly chamomile bags, can be cooled and placed on the eyes for a wonderful soothing relaxant.

#3 – On sun burns
Peppermint tea bags work wonders healing sunburns. Leave to cool then place the bags on the burnt areas.

#4 – On cuts and bruises
Used tea bags are also great on cuts and bruises. You can use any variety but green tea, peppermint and chamomile have good soothing qualities.

Have fun reusing those bags!

photo credit: anaulin

5 Easy Ways For Natural Families To Get Clutter Free

Monica — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 10:09:00 +0000

When you first move into your home it seems like you have so much space. As the years pass, it´s common to find yourself surrounded with unnecessary clutter. So how do we get rid of all the stuff we have accumulated?

Natural families tend to live with less baby gadgets and toys, right?….Well, not always.

Just in case you need some organization tips, I’m listing some easy ways to get back on track. It will take more than a day or even a week to get everything manageable, but once you do staying organized is an easier task.

Here some tips to get you on the clutter free track:

1. Start with the high traffic areas. The living room and kitchen are usually the two most used rooms in the house. Everything gets dropped on a counter or the couch in these two places. Concentrate on getting everything set up the way that you like it before moving on to another room.

2. Divide items into categories. You can use large cardboard boxes for this part. Everything that you find can go into a pile: KEEP, THROW AWAY, GIVE AWAY, and RELOCATE. Items that will stay in that room are to keep. Things that you don’t need or are broken can be thrown away. Clothes or furniture still in good condition can be sold at the second hand shop or donated to a charity organization. Anything that definitely belongs in another room can be labeled for relocation when you get to that room.

3. Remove everything from drawers and cabinets. This is a time-consuming process but it is easier to start with an empty space and fill it instead of simply pushing things around. If you line things up on the counter, someone else can help by putting the items in some type of order.

4. Make good use of of your available space. In the kitchen, for example, appliances or extra containers can be stored on top of the cabinets provided they don’t extend all the way to the ceiling. Keep objects with similar shapes together to maximize space usage.

5. Label your containers. Use tape and a marker to identify the contents of your storage containers. Avoid writing on the actual container in case they are reused and the contents are changed. Labeling also makes for easy identification if you decide to sell or give away a container. You won’t have to open each container to locate them.

Organizing your entire house takes time. But, once you get rid of all the clutter, returning everything to its proper place will maintain that same level of organization.

photo credit: Elsie esq

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Think you need more help with home organization and cleaning? Go check the Secret Confessions Of A Clean Freak to learn more on how to get clutter free so your cleaning time is reduced to just some minutes a day.

Could Your Family Live Without a Car?

Monica — Fri, 21 Aug 2009 09:36:26 +0000

Riding a bus in Quito, Ecuador

No, I don’t have a car.

I’ve never owned a car myself, although I’ve been able to drive since I was 15, and at least once a week drive a family member’s car to accomplish household errands.

I grew up in a car owning family, so until adulthood I had in my mind a car was absolutely necessary in any household, even for singles. Not to mention people with young kids or babies.

How I Discovered A Car Isn’t Always Necessary.

Living abroad gave me the opportunity to experience true car free living. Having neither relatives nor close friends with a car, I quickly learned to rely on public transportation or my own feet for everything outside home.

However, it was when I had my baby in Japan, with no car nor car owning relatives, when I realized it was possible and even advantageous to stay car free when you have little kids or babies.

Of course, owning a car could be convenient in many cases, especially in environments with scarce or nonexistent public transportation offer. Anyways, here are my reasons for considering going car free when you have babies or kids:

Riding the bus or the train has been found to be safer than riding or driving a personal car (this according to US data, but probably it’s also safer in most parts of the world);
On public transportation you can concentrate on the needs of your baby or toddler, so they usually go calmer and happier than in a car;
As you spend less in gas and other car related expenses, you can go further, stay longer and have more fun;
You can babywear, breastfeed, and EC on the go– The EC part, of course, requires some skills ;
By far less environmental guilt than car owners;
You get to know nice people on the go, while your kids learn real social skills;
If your kids are like mine, they’ll love to learn the names of the stations and routes, read maps and guides, and all thing related to riding a mass transportation system, making it a cheap unschooling resource;
Once you get used, you become proud of your car-free living, resulting in less anxiety about buying a new model or budgeting for car maintenance.

I know for some people it’s not possible to live without a car, especially for those with no access to public transportation. However, you can always set up a car free day or even a car free week or month to introduce your kids to other ways of transportation and its benefits.

Take the money for the bus tickets and enjoy!

Herbs that are easy to grow

Monica — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 14:38:32 +0000

I love herbs for everyday use. They can be added to a a variety of dishes, provide flavor to home made bread and to make healing drinks.

They´re one of the most useful items to grow in your yard or home. They grow quickly and a quick snip of the scissors brings fresh taste to your recipes and dinner table. Let’s go in detail with these 5 herbs that are easy to grow.

Thyme

In drier climates, Thyme is used as a xeriscape ground cover. This means it requires minimal irrigation and grows like a weed! You can grow them in a container garden, right in the soil, or on your window ledge. Thyme is another one of those herbs that comes in a number of varieties. It’s best to grow it from a cutting rather than directly from a seed because seeds take a long time to cultivate.

photo credit: busbeytheelder

Mint

Mint is delightful in drinks, deserts and in many Middle Eastern dishes. Mint, a perennial, is easy to grow because it really doesn’t care much about the soil it’s planted in. If you’re growing mint outside then take care because it spreads like a weed and can take over your garden or lawn. This makes it a great herb to grow indoors in smaller window ledge containers. Leaves can be harvested as soon as plant reaches six inches.

photo credit: quinn.anya

Basil

There are a number of basil types including spicy Thai Basil and Sweet Basil, which is commonly used in Italian cooking. Basil can be grown either indoors on a sunny window ledge or in your garden once the fear of frost has passed. Place the seeds in the ground per the package directions. The plants can grow up to two feet high which means you’ll want to start thinning them until they’re about six inches apart. Leaves can be picked and used for seasoning when the plants are six weeks old. If you’re going to dry leaves then pick them before the plant’s bloom spikes appear.
photo credit: nathanborror

Dill

Dill grows to about three feet tall and produce yellow flowers, so it fits quite nicely in a flower garden. Both the greens and the seeds from the flowers can be used to season food. The leaves are best harvested before the flowers open. The seeds can be harvested when the flower is open and they’ve ripened. It’s advised to sow them from a seed as transplanting dill plants is difficult. Like Basil, plant seeds after danger of frost has passed.

photo credit: Jochen Laier

Parsley

Parsley, either curly or flat leaf, is another quite versatile herb. It grows quickly and reseeds itself, which means you could end up with a garden full of parsley if you don’t prune and keep an eye on it. Sow from seeds directly into your garden. They’re not choosy about their soil but they do like a lot of sun.

photo credit: quinn.anya

Growing herbs at home is one of the easiest gardening tasks even an amateur can have success at. Many herbs are so easy to grow and practically raise themselves. Whether you garden indoors or out, in containers or in a small plot in your yard, herb growing is a great way to add flavor and fun to your meals year round.

Life without plastic

Monica — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 07:36:29 +0000

I’m from the generation of plastic. I remember plastic items all over the house since I was very young, so I can’t really say I know what a plastic-free life is.

However, I’ve been told by my mom that she grew up without plastic, and I wish she would add more detail when she tells me about the different materials they used instead of plastic.

For example, I recently learnt that in the past the grocery stores delivered lard and other products in cabbage leaves. What a great compostable and even edible package that now is being replaced by plastic bags.

What I remember is that when I was a child (living in Quito) plastic bags were still a sort of an expensive thing. The stores were not so liberal at distributing them and would give you the smallest size needed or even charged for them. Now things have changed and everyone seems to be careless about the plastic bags monetary costs.

I’m not all into completely eliminating plastic from our life, but I find that we’re getting too much of it unnecessarily, and even worse, we’re throwing away plastic items all the time thinking those are recyclable and not expensive. I’ve heard in other corners of the world this is improving, but in Quito and other Ecuadorian cities the plastic bag is still the queen of the shopping.

Anyone here with plastic free life experience? I’d love to hear from those of you who live in cities where plastic bags have been banned.

In my search for alternatives to plastic I’ve found an interesting website about plastic free living, featuring safety and environmental information about plastic and other materials. They also have a blog with related insights and an online store carrying nice alternatives. That to say that I fell in love with the wooden bento box they carry. It seems like the perfect item for our frequent outings, especially having a born-in-Japan son who loves all that has to do with his birthland

Meanwhile, I’ll continue asking my mom about her past plastic free life…

photo credit: me and the sysop

Ideas to celebrate Earth Day as a Family

Monica — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 07:06:47 +0000

photo credit: MissFancyPants

I’m not into big celebrations. Especially not into big Earth Day Celebrations that include lots of talk and after-party garbage. I’ve been there and it’s not fun to be given a flyer with a message telling you to save paper and after the event finding them flying all over the place.

That said, there are trully eco friendly activities we can do as a family to celebrate Earth Day, and here I share some options:

Kids love being a part of efforts that they know will help to protect the earth. Not only do they like knowing that they have a respected role to play but they like the fact that their parents and other adults acknowledge their abilities and maturity enough to discuss important issues with them like the environment.

Earth Day is an opportunity to seriously think about the messages and actions that are being taken both locally and globally. “Reduce, Reuse and Recycle” are messages that can take on greater meaning through purposeful activities that you choose to do with your kids on Earth Day.

A good start could be to gather as a family to discuss the following:

What can we recycle in our household and how can we recycle these items?

How many disposable items, from diapers to plastic bags do we use as a family, and how many items can we choose to do without?

Where can we reuse items we no longer want?

Here are some uses for existing items that might be in your household:
• Reuse a plastic or paper bag for different uses so you don’t have to buy new
• Reuse empty food containers as storage for leftovers.
• Habitat for Humanity accepts building material donations in some chapters – contact your local chapter for this non-profit group before disposing of old building material.
• Your local Goodwill can make good use of your gently worn clothing and gently used furniture or other household items. Contact them to find out delivery options.

Hiking is a great family activity that can turn into a enjoyable Earth Day Activity if the purpose of the hike is to pick up garbage in your local park or trail. It’s a satisfying project that will make kids feel they are doing their part to take care of an area that gives them and their friends in the community much enjoyment – especially animals!

One of the best ways to teach our children about the impact of trash on our environment is to show them the “trash trail.” Where does the trash go after we put it out for the garbage truck? On Earth Day why not take your kids on a little journey along the “trash trail.”

The garbage workers or sanitation engineers take residential garbage usually to a transfer station that collects the community’s waste/rubbish before shipping it off to a regional solid waste facility. In many cases the garbage gets trucked to a landfill or incinerator plant. Sometimes that garbage is then burned to produce electricity – depending on where you live. Here in Quito the garbage goes all mixed up into landfils, a pretty big stress to nearby people and the environment. That’s why I wouldn’t dare to take my child thru the end of the trash trial, but in some cities this might not be a big health concern.

Finally, why not consider making your own fridge and saving on electricity? My old home made pot in pot is out of business right now, but it worked for us for more than a year. Learn more about it here: Pot-in-pot, our low cost, home made, non electrical fridge.

Cultural thrift store differences

Monica — Sat, 04 Apr 2009 13:47:42 +0000

Living in Ecuador I never thought I would ever want to got to a second hand shop. When I was a child there were many of them selling old clothes from the US, probably arriving to the country as donations. Thrift stores had a very bad name, selling foreign used clothes for the same price you could find a brand new cloth made locally and claming they were selling “Amarican clothes”.

I discovered the real value and fun of thrift stores when I first visited the US. Of course, there were American brands but I was in the US, and the prices were really low. It made sense to me that local people would benefit by selling their clothes to other local people, very different from what I´d seen in Ecuador by the time.

Several years later I was a foreign student near Tokyo and really got the second hand love. Our sempais (elders) taught new students the second hand shops where we could get our household appliances for a fraction of their value if bought new, which were great considering we needed them only for a few years.

I discovered other second hand stores selling dishware, clothes in good condition, and almost everything. I got the love and enjoyed finding real treasures, but it was especially helpful when I got my child. I found really unique toys of my like, that otherwise would’ve cost a good deal of money to get. For instance, I got him a wooden xylophone, a wooden car, kanji cards, and books that we even brought with us to Ecuador. (a few books and the cards).

After we were done, we just gave them away to the same store to be loved by the next family. A great way to put in practice the first of the 3 R´s.

Back to Ecuador, I see the second hand business are not anymore what they used to be, with a few exceptions. Customs are very picky with what enters the country and used clothes are banned (not always good, if it´s your own clothes you shipped by mail). Middle class is just getting to know the second hand love while some real thrift stores featuring local second hand goods with truly low prices are starting to get popular.

What about where you live? Are you able to enjoy thrift stores with locally collected second hand goods at enjoyable low prices?

Today 8:30 pm local, let’s turn off the lights

Monica — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 08:48:26 +0000

The Earth Hour Initiative is calling you and me, people, from all over the world, to “vote earth” by switching the lights off at 8:30 local time.

Many cities are joining this world event, and here in Quito the Municipality is going to participate by turning off not extrictly necessary public illumination.

This can’t be any hard for someone living in Quito or any other city in the world where energy supply is not 100% constant. We’ve gone thru serious energy crisis with long hours energy outages for several days or months. But even when we’re not in declared crisis, we can have an outage here and there, just as part of our lifes. In fact, my last energy outage experience was a few hours ago, when I was comming back from a dinner invitation (yummy japanese food!) and suddenly the street got dark. No lights inside the buildings, no lamps, no traffic lights!…But nothing too extraordinary for me either.

So tomorrow we’ll be joining the event by turning our lights off, that should be fun and in fact *very* easy for us. Contrary to what other online folks are recommending, I don’t think watching TV or real time blogging are good options for spending this short hour. If we’re to save energy then let’s save it by spending our time away from electronics (come on, it’s just an hour!)

Is this too hard for today’s people? I’m affraid it is for some. I totally understand that a few years of living in a developed country can make you very electricity dependent. During my 3 years of stay in Japan I never experienced an energy outage, even during strong typhons and electric storms. That’s the future, I’d say.

On the contrary, a couple of months ago we experienced an hours-long national outage. They said it was caused by an electric storm.- back to reality

Anyway, I’m turning my lights *and electronics* off and hope other energy-privileged families are joining as well. Would love to hear your thoughts on energy dependance and your plans for tonight!

Bye bye pot-in-pot

Monica — Tue, 17 Feb 2009 05:40:28 +0000

For more than a year I enjoyed a fridge free life using a homemade pot-in-pot to store food. This period was over since we moved to my mom’s in November and here there are no place for our green homemade fridge. Also, she already had a big green-color fridge (of the kind that needs to be plugged to the energy socket ) that does the same work that our pot-in-pot, so it went from being one of the main objects of our household to a relegated corner in the patio.

During the move, the outside pot broke in two, breaking into a ring in the upper side or the pot, so it could’ve been used without problem. However, it was abandoned from the day we moved . These days have been raining in Quito and the water made the sand between the pots to leak, so I was finally forced to disassemble it.

I was surprised it was easier that I thought and feeling good that the disaggregated parts found a new function very quickly. My 4yo started playing with the sand right away (as expected), the inner pot is intact and will be used as a regular clay pot for my mom’s plants or for a new pot in pot if we have the chance to build one in the future. The base of the outer pot (the broken one) will also be used as a plant pot. I only need to throw away the broken part (upper ring of the outer pot) . I only had to fix the irregular borders with sandpaper and the 2 pots are ready for being used.

Voila! What could be greener than that? I’m feeling good that 80% of our green fridge was easily reused, and only the clay ring has to be thrown away. We saved most part of the pot in pot and easily found new uses for the single items.

I’d be looking forward to the time I’m able to build another green fridge. I’t’s a great choice that I strongly recommend to ayone willing to reduce electricity bills and have some fun making a homemade fridge.