Two More Questions Answered

Mommy Kerrie from the Kerrie Show asked

...
how can i remember to take my cloth grocery bags when i go shopping???? i have so much junk in my diaper bag and van as it is!

I have a couple of suggestions (on these suggestions I'm going under the assumption that you keep all your bags togther stuffed into one bag.)

#1 Keep them with your shopping list and coupons. By keeping them in the same place it will be hard to forget them when you grab your list.

#2 Stick a note on your front door or dashboard where you will see it before you go shopping. This one is a little messier looking but once you get into the habit of grabbing them before you go you can get rid of the note.

#3 If you take your kids shopping with you assign them to grab the bags before you leave. This ones results will vary from kid to kid but most kids love to help when given the chance. (though remember if they forget them not to get too mad you've forgotten them too LOL )

#4 If all else fails then clean the car and set aside a spot in the car for the bags and return them to that spot as soon as you finish emptying the bags.

If any other readers have any suggestions for this one please post a comment. We could all use some help in how to remember things :D

my2boyz from MY 2 Boyz asked...

I am green..or I try to be..how do you handle cleaning? More importantly killing nasy bathroom germs?

The first thing you should remember is that Most bathrooms are cleaner then most kitchens. (they've done studies ) so unless your bathroom is extra grungy then Good old soap (not antibactierial soap its bad for the environment) and water will kill the germs you are worrying about.

If you need some extra scrubbing power say that ring around the bathtub try taking a lemon and cutting it in half then pour some salt on it and scrub. Salt is a mild abrasive that will clean with out scratching and the lemon will help power off the grime (why do you think its in so many commercial cleaners)

To clean the mirrors try Equal parts vinegar and water in a spray bottle .

For the toilet try Baking Soda and Vinegar: Sprinkle baking soda into the bowl, then squirt with vinegar and scour with a toilet brush. Cleans and deodorizes.

I hope these help you.

Time to Answer Another Question

Melanie from Living with me

Asked:
I would also like to know about the light bulbs. We have considered buying the better ones (I don't know what they are called). But they are so expensive. And I don't think they light up the room as well. What do you use? And do you find that they really last longer?

Lets start with what I use. I use Compact Fluorescent bulbs in about 90% of my lights. I am renting and this is all I can use because it is not my house so I can't renovate if I want to use something else. I do have a couple of solar lamps that I like to set out to charge during the day and use at night inside (they are meant for using on the patio and such) it adds a nice glow at no extra cost. Most of the time I don't turn on the lights at all Especially during the day. Even on cloudy days I have plenty of light from outside.

LED lights are more energy efficient but not as popular because they are more expensive don't give off as much light and you would have to renovate your home because as far as I know they don't have any that will just screw into your current fixtures like compact fluorescent do.

I also have a couple of lamps that have Incandescents bulbs in them. Yes they waste more energy but they are brighter (and fluorescent give me a headache when I try to read by it) so I use them when I read at night.

My suggestion to anyone looking at Lighting in their home is to use bulbs as needed. If you need a bright steady light for reading or sewing or anything were you need good lighting use a incandescent bulb. For general Lighting where you need to see well use Fluorescent bulbs and where you need light to see around the room use LED lamps (think romantic dinners, watching TV, etc)

Now as for how long they last I can't say about LED's because I haven't had the chance to use them on a regular basis. I have had the same fluorescent bulbs for about 6 years now ( when we move we take them with us and replace the incandescent bulbs that were there when we arrived) so I do think they last longer the incandescent bulbs.

Can I now say Award Winning Blog?

Thank you Sherrie and Michelle for the awards. I know I'm suppose to pass them on but I'm going to have to wait a bit for that.

Winners

Here are the winners of the Crazy Green Contest
I had 8 Entries and planned on 11 winners so they all win.

Sherrie

Jami

Mom's Mind

Amen Wolf

Melanie

Mommy Kerrie

Marianna

My2Boys

I will be contacting them on their blogs to let them know they won. I haven't answered all of the questions yet but I will. All heck has broken loose the last couple days and I've had to do an emergency replacement of one of our tanks. It cracked all the way from top to bottom and I had to make a new one to replace it. It took three days to do.

Last Day for the Contest

Today is the last day of the Crazy Green Contest so if you still want to enter click the heart over on the right and get your question in. I will be answering a couple more of them tonight.

I'll announce the winners and the prizes on Monday because weekends are family time and I don't get on as much.

I've been very busy the last couple days you may have noticed my lack of posting here or on your blogs. I've been getting the frog habitat ready. My Hubby decided the little tank was going to be too small and purchased another one. So I've been getting it fixed up with half land/ half water setup. I love designing my own tanks but it was a bit of a rush job because we don't know when the tadpoles will be here. There delivery date was suppose to be yesterday but they were a no show. I've also been looking for a part time job. Guess where I interviewed today.....

PetCo

How appropriate would that be. I'll have to switch all my blogging to the evenings but the extra money means a trip to Disney World while the kids are still young enough to enjoy going with us old uncool parents LOL. Well that's it for now I'll be back on later after I finish the tank (and paying a few bills :P )

Little Baby Animal

Who doesn't love pictures of a Little Baby Animal?

Cute puppies, sweet little kittens, even baby cows are adorable.

All Little Baby Animals are so cute and cuddly RIGHT? Go check out the picture of the newest members of our animal family at Cats and Dogs Turtles and Frogs and decide for yourself.

Ok enough with the shameful promotion of my other blog I don't do that often but its new and it's quiet an interesting picture (at least I thing so LOL).

There is still time to enter the Crazy Green Contest it doesn't end until Friday all you have to do is click the Button over there on the Right and post a question in the comments section. That's it you'll be entered and right now you have a really good shot of winning I'm giving away 11 prizes and have only had 3 entries. Thanks Ladies for entering.

I've Been TAGGED

I've been Tagged by Sherrie over at Boogers, Screams,Headaches and Dreams
A fun creative blog that I enjoy reading.

Ok, so this tag is supposed to be 8 random things about me. Hear goes:

1. I spent 10 years in the Air Force and have been to all but 2 Continents Australia and Antarctica. I have been to Chile, Egypt, Kenya, England, Turkey, Germany, France, Spain, Russia, Japan, Okinawa, Crete, Greenland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, There is a couple more in there but I can't remember the name of the city I was in so I can't find the country :P Old age will do that I guess LOL Hey wait I"m only 39 :P.

2. I've lived in 10 States and visited another 6 : Lived: Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado, California, Arizona, Arkansas, New Jersey, New York. Visited: North Carolina, Louisiana, Florida, Wyoming, Nevada, Washington and Washington D.C.

3.I love to read. So much so that when I get into a good book I can't put it down until it's done. House work and Hubby be damned LOL. My Hubby says I ignore him too much when I'm reading. The only thing that comes before finishing a good book is my kids :D

4. I have 2 kids My daughter Sam and My son Billy. My mother told me it was because I was so determined to be different from my sisters that I had a daughter first. They had sons first.

5. I walk the kids to school every day.........well almost every day when that wind chill kicks up forget about it.

6. I love to play video games. I have several systems because I like to play RPG's and puzzle games and they only make so many for each system.

7. I love snow. Most people are against winter because it's cold. I don't mind the cold because you can always put on another layer to keep warm but you can only take off so much when it's hot. Snow makes everything look magical even if its only for a little while its still beautiful and peaceful.

8. I want to go Kayaking in Alaska. I have to save up and lose some more weight before I can even think about it but it is something I really want to do. I also want to hike the Appalachian Trail this will probable be a retirement trip since it takes over three months to hike the 2,175 miles. I'm working on getting in shape for it though. I have takin the miles off the web site and every day I walk on my tread mill at least 2 miles a day (not inclucing the walking I do to get the kids and stuff). I hope to move up to 5 miles a day soon.


Now here are the RULES for this tag:

1. Each blogger starts with eight random facts/habits about themselves.
2. People who are tagged need to write their own blog about their eight things and post these rules.
3. At the end of your blog post, you need to choose eight people to get tagged and list their names.
4. Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them they're tagged and to read your blog.
5. For the recipients, leave a comment for the person who tagged you, so they can go and read your answers.

I'm Tagging:

Barry from An Explorer's View of Life He has some wonderful stories if you stop by you must read his 6 part story of Lindsey.

Bev from BevB's Backyard she is from Queensland, Australia humm one of the continents I haven't been to yet.

Kelli from Gohn Crazy a Stay at home mom with a crafty side.

Olivia from Life of a work at home mom she posts her tips and stories about being a work at home mom.

Mom or Mum Wars I love how she referers to her hubby as "Him Downstairs" it makes me laugh I wish my hubby would go downstairs and stop trying to read over my shoulder all the time LOL

Kerrie from The Kerrie Show lovely stories of life.

Shaunalynn The Art and Science of Parenting she has a great brag post right now so If you want someone to listen to something your proud of go post.

Thrifty Thumpers who is also having a giveaway right now ( I said also cause I'm having one too why haven't you entered the button is over there on the right)

Ok that is my eight go take a look.

Question 3 of the Crazy Green Contest

Comes from Mom's Mind at Thrifty Thumpers...Who is also running a contest right now so stop on by and enter her's too.

What part of living green do you feel has been the most challenging to become accustomed to?

This was a little harder to answer because there are several things that are challenging.

For Example we move every few years because of my Hubbies Job. So every couple of years I have a new house to figure out how to make green as possible and if we are renting I have to figure out how to make it as green as possible without altering the house in any way. Renting is a royal pain when it comes to being green.


Another challenge is my green wish list far exceeds my cash flow. There are things I would like to do but can't afford (and since I'm renting can't do right now anyway). I would love to put in solar panels. I think it is something they need to do more research on and improve to make it more affordable for the masses.

The hardest thing for me personally is packing my kids school lunches. Not just making sure they have a variety of good food to eat (my son is super picky) but when they go to school with their home made goodies they see what their friends are eating and come home with "Why can we have this and that?" "My friends get to eat (insert junk food here)." I know I'm teaching them to eat healthier then a lot of their peers but I worry about making them feel alienated from their friends.