Going Green Check in?

RockiesNugget

I haven't seen this check in for a couple weeks, did I just miss it or have we stopped doing it? I loved getting ideas and it reminded me to think of new ways to be green.

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unaveragejane

I'm pretty sure @chickypoo2468 will post it as soon as she gets back from driving her Hummer to the mailbox and back. In the meantime, could someone please bring me a Happy Meal and some bottled waters?

RockiesNugget

I'll go tear up my garden and start watering my lawn at 2pm then

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unaveragejane

SecretAgentKate said:

i know you were joking, and I know they're not even real meat, but I could totally go for some chicken mcnuggets right about now

I love you, but bleeeeeehhhhhhh. Please make mine a fake-beef cheeseburger and all the fries you can carry.

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stoneycakes

SecretAgentKate said:

@rockiesnugget --is this fast food talk the kind of environmentally friendly discussion you were hoping for?

Yeah, this one derailed at breakneck speed!

unaveragejane

I have been cooking freezer meals for my family and a friend all week. I'm so sick of the smell of boiling chicken. DS and I are going to visit said friend at the hospital around 4:00, and we might just happen to accidentally stop at Burger King on the way home.

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RockiesNugget

You guys are making me hungry and contemplate stopping on the way home from picking LO up from daycare for fast food since DH is out of town. I really shouldn't since I already have leftovers for dinner tonight and it would be out of my way.

RockiesNugget

SecretAgentKate said:

@rockiesnugget --is this fast food talk the kind of environmentally friendly discussion you were hoping for?

What McDonald's isn't green?

unaveragejane

SecretAgentKate said:

Jane, please eat a huge Whopper and think of me.  

TWHS?

stoneycakes

unaveragejane said:

SecretAgentKate said:

Jane, please eat a huge Whopper and think of me.  

TWHS?

I came so close to posting this exact same thing, LLOL.

PipSqueak0313

I don't know if I've been green or "ungreen" lately. I ran a prewash cycle on my towels a couple days ago and the water was black-grey. So after I washed the towels with normal amounts of detergent I ran a second wash.....water was again a black-grey. On a load I did the wash using soap nuts the second wash had clear water. I have come to the conclusion that's how to tell if there is still detergent residue....so now I've been doing extra washes trying to figure out how much detergent is really needed.. Maybe "ungreen" short term and green long term???? As a side note: after the extra wash without detergent, my unpaper towels are absorbent again.

unaveragejane

Oh, Stoney! It's just like old times!!!

Amores0121

SecretAgentKate said:

Jane, please eat a huge Whopper and think of me.  

And some onion rings with zesty sauce, please. Yummm

stoneycakes

Sorry, MK.  When Rockies posted, we all acted like a class with a substitute teacher.  We'll be sure to toe the line now

Into+the+Kitty

@Chickypoo2468‌ Tell me more about the strawberry syrup, please!

stoneycakes

I'm still waiting on the farmer's market.  We drove past one the other day and I got all excited but then DH said, "We're not stopping.  It's just leaves."  LOL.  It really was all lettuce!  I saw some strawberries at another one, though.  So the selection will be expanding shortly.

Amores0121

Did a complete purge of the apartment since we are moving this weekend. I mean..everything. Kitchen cupboards, all closets, bathroom.  Got rid of so much stuff.  I donated several garbage bags of things and the items I didn't think were good for donation I posted on my "everything is free" page and people came and p/u.  You can literally SEE the difference in my closets and bathroom storage spaces. It's so nice to not be toting extra junk to the new place. 

I also got rid of all my expired meds---which was ALOT.

zaraceligon

Really can a freeze tomatoes, @stoney please share the idea again. I just wash them and put them on the freeze or how it works.

Into+the+Kitty

Amores0121 said:

Did a complete purge of the apartment since we are moving this weekend. I mean..everything. Kitchen cupboards, all closets, bathroom.  Got rid of so much stuff.  I donated several garbage bags of things and the items I didn't think were good for donation I posted on my "everything is free" page and people came and p/u.  You can literally SEE the difference in my closets and bathroom storage spaces. It's so nice to not be toting extra junk to the new place. 

I also got rid of all my expired meds---which was ALOT.

We're not moving, but I'm in the process of doing the same thing. It feels so great to get it all done with, congrats!

PipSqueak0313

Chickypoo2468 said:

Omg you guys. I was just going to post the check in and I find THIS?! What is going on??! Btw @PipSqueak0313‌ what color are the towels? I would assume the grayish water had to do with the towels being darker colors. At any rate, thank you for staying on topic. Gold star for you.

I did the test with a few different loads so far and got the same results with all except the ones where I didn't add more detergent.....since I've got a curious mind, I'll let you know if I continue to get the same results after a bit of additional testing.

CLLDLL

Well my garden is starting to produce. We've also been getting most of our produce from the farmers market.

I passed down a bunch of G's outgrown clothes to my baby nephew.

I'm toying with the idea of buying a butchered cow or half a butchered cow and storing the meat in our deep freeze that no longer has BM in it.

RockiesNugget

Chickypoo2468 said:

Omg you guys. I was just going to post the check in and I find THIS?! What is going on??!

Btw @PipSqueak0313‌ what color are the towels? I would assume the grayish water had to do with the towels being darker colors. At any rate, thank you for staying on topic. Gold star for you.

I didn't mean to steal your check-in! Just wanted to make sure I hadn't missed it somewhere.

RockiesNugget

My going green items:

Cleaned out items from spare room and took to goodwill

Started leaving a water picture next to the sink to pour water that has been used or left out but safe to water plants and animals.

TJ1979

Mapleme said:

Wait. Did MK just jack this conversation ONTO topic?

It's a reverse MK-jack. Rare, highly coveted.

ElleBeeDub

Green hasn't exactly been at the top of our list, but we have been purging like mad (movers pack up 90% of our stuff in just under 3 weeks). I've also been having massive issues with my washing machine not getting things clean, so it seems like everything takes twice as many washes to get clean these days (I did just pick up some water softener, though, so I'm hoping that helps).

Anyway... Can I use my green points from using cloth in the kitchen and cloth napkins for basically my entire life to pretend like I'm still good?

PipSqueak0313

ElleBeeDub said:

Green hasn't exactly been at the top of our list, but we have been purging like mad (movers pack up 90% of our stuff in just under 3 weeks). I've also been having massive issues with my washing machine not getting things clean, so it seems like everything takes twice as many washes to get clean these days (I did just pick up some water softener, though, so I'm hoping that helps).

Anyway... Can I use my green points from using cloth in the kitchen and cloth napkins for basically my entire life to pretend like I'm still good?

Wait a minute: you are about due AND moving? Moving to a bigger house or changing countries?

ElleBeeDub

PipSqueak0313 said:

ElleBeeDub said:

Green hasn't exactly been at the top of our list, but we have been purging like mad (movers pack up 90% of our stuff in just under 3 weeks). I've also been having massive issues with my washing machine not getting things clean, so it seems like everything takes twice as many washes to get clean these days (I did just pick up some water softener, though, so I'm hoping that helps).

Anyway... Can I use my green points from using cloth in the kitchen and cloth napkins for basically my entire life to pretend like I'm still good?

Wait a minute: you are about due AND moving? Moving to a bigger house or changing countries?

We're moving to Ohio... We don't actually leave Germany until the end of August, but because the military ships our stuff, it goes by boat, so we have to ship it a couple months in advance or not have anything when we get there. We'll ship all of our furniture and most of our pots and pans (as well as decor, books, tv, etc) mid-July. Everything else (that we can't carry on a plane) will get shipped mid-August. I've been a bit scattered lately trying to keep track of everything But I should have a baby by Tuesday!

Amores0121

Into+the+Kitty said:

Amores0121 said:

Did a complete purge of the apartment since we are moving this weekend. I mean..everything. Kitchen cupboards, all closets, bathroom.  Got rid of so much stuff.  I donated several garbage bags of things and the items I didn't think were good for donation I posted on my "everything is free" page and people came and p/u.  You can literally SEE the difference in my closets and bathroom storage spaces. It's so nice to not be toting extra junk to the new place. 

I also got rid of all my expired meds---which was ALOT.

We're not moving, but I'm in the process of doing the same thing. It feels so great to get it all done with, congrats!

Thanks! I know it does feel so good, like I lost 100 lbs or something. LOL

Amores0121

ElleBeeDub said:

Green hasn't exactly been at the top of our list, but we have been purging like mad (movers pack up 90% of our stuff in just under 3 weeks). I've also been having massive issues with my washing machine not getting things clean, so it seems like everything takes twice as many washes to get clean these days (I did just pick up some water softener, though, so I'm hoping that helps).

Anyway... Can I use my green points from using cloth in the kitchen and cloth napkins for basically my entire life to pretend like I'm still good?

We are in the same boat...moving this weekend. Although not moving to a different country.  Someone on a different board said to me "I hope you have good movers" which made me LOL. DH has literally packed like 2 boxes (b/c he's working so much) and I have packed everything else.  Though last night I made him load up the trucks and take some boxes over to our new place.  I am trying to get through to him that being nine months pregnant, working, and preparing for a move when he's never home isnt' easy.  Somehow he's just not getting it....

Is it weird having other people pack your stuff? Do they do a good job of it?

Good luck with the baby and the move!  

ElleBeeDub

Amores0121 said:

ElleBeeDub said:

Green hasn't exactly been at the top of our list, but we have been purging like mad (movers pack up 90% of our stuff in just under 3 weeks). I've also been having massive issues with my washing machine not getting things clean, so it seems like everything takes twice as many washes to get clean these days (I did just pick up some water softener, though, so I'm hoping that helps).

Anyway... Can I use my green points from using cloth in the kitchen and cloth napkins for basically my entire life to pretend like I'm still good?

We are in the same boat...moving this weekend. Although not moving to a different country.  Someone on a different board said to me "I hope you have good movers" which made me LOL. DH has literally packed like 2 boxes (b/c he's working so much) and I have packed everything else.  Though last night I made him load up the trucks and take some boxes over to our new place.  I am trying to get through to him that being nine months pregnant, working, and preparing for a move when he's never home isnt' easy.  Somehow he's just not getting it....

Is it weird having other people pack your stuff? Do they do a good job of it?

Good luck with the baby and the move!  

I hate packing (and moving in general) and we've moved so many times (this will be the 6th time in 7 years) that I basically refuse to pack/move our stuff. I'll unpack all day long, but J knows he's the designated mover. That being said, because we're military moving back from overseas, we don't really have the option to do it ourselves. Basically, packers come and pack all of our stuff, then the shippers come and pack all those boxes/furniture/everything into giant shipping crates. They do a pretty good job, and we get reimbursed if anything is broken, so they're pretty careful. In August, they'll pack the rest of our stuff like normal since it will fly over instead of shipping. We have a few things that we prefer to pack/carry ourselves, but mostly they're good. On the way here, we lost a tiny lid to my garlic pot, and one glass was broken.

PipSqueak0313

ElleBeeDub said:

PipSqueak0313 said:

ElleBeeDub said:

Green hasn't exactly been at the top of our list, but we have been purging like mad (movers pack up 90% of our stuff in just under 3 weeks). I've also been having massive issues with my washing machine not getting things clean, so it seems like everything takes twice as many washes to get clean these days (I did just pick up some water softener, though, so I'm hoping that helps).

Anyway... Can I use my green points from using cloth in the kitchen and cloth napkins for basically my entire life to pretend like I'm still good?

Wait a minute: you are about due AND moving? Moving to a bigger house or changing countries?

We're moving to Ohio... We don't actually leave Germany until the end of August, but because the military ships our stuff, it goes by boat, so we have to ship it a couple months in advance or not have anything when we get there. We'll ship all of our furniture and most of our pots and pans (as well as decor, books, tv, etc) mid-July. Everything else (that we can't carry on a plane) will get shipped mid-August. I've been a bit scattered lately trying to keep track of everything But I should have a baby by Tuesday!

Even so, I remember the flights from Germany to the US (and vice versa)....I wouldn't want to do that with a newborn.....it's hard enough to finagle the way around on those cattlecars they call the military charter flights with toddlers and older.....especially since the plane we flew back on had passengers already on board and there was no preboarding with young kids.

ElleBeeDub

PipSqueak0313 said:

ElleBeeDub said:

PipSqueak0313 said:

ElleBeeDub said:

Green hasn't exactly been at the top of our list, but we have been purging like mad (movers pack up 90% of our stuff in just under 3 weeks). I've also been having massive issues with my washing machine not getting things clean, so it seems like everything takes twice as many washes to get clean these days (I did just pick up some water softener, though, so I'm hoping that helps).

Anyway... Can I use my green points from using cloth in the kitchen and cloth napkins for basically my entire life to pretend like I'm still good?

Wait a minute: you are about due AND moving? Moving to a bigger house or changing countries?

We're moving to Ohio... We don't actually leave Germany until the end of August, but because the military ships our stuff, it goes by boat, so we have to ship it a couple months in advance or not have anything when we get there. We'll ship all of our furniture and most of our pots and pans (as well as decor, books, tv, etc) mid-July. Everything else (that we can't carry on a plane) will get shipped mid-August. I've been a bit scattered lately trying to keep track of everything But I should have a baby by Tuesday!

Even so, I remember the flights from Germany to the US (and vice versa)....I wouldn't want to do that with a newborn.....it's hard enough to finagle the way around on those cattlecars they call the military charter flights with toddlers and older.....especially since the plane we flew back on had passengers already on board and there was no preboarding with young kids.

True (although I'm more concerned about the 2 year old than the newborn). It also doesn't help that J's brother is getting married at the beginning of September, so we're not even going straight to Ohio. We're going to Baltimore, then buying our own tickets to get to Albuquerque (where J's parents live), then driving to Denver for the wedding, then back to Abq for a few days, then to lubbock to visit my family (since we haven't seen them since G was born), then go to Ohio to start house hunting. At least I wasn't expecting to sleep with a newborn anyway, right? 

Amores0121

ElleBeeDub said:

PipSqueak0313 said:

ElleBeeDub said:

PipSqueak0313 said:

ElleBeeDub said:

Green hasn't exactly been at the top of our list, but we have been purging like mad (movers pack up 90% of our stuff in just under 3 weeks). I've also been having massive issues with my washing machine not getting things clean, so it seems like everything takes twice as many washes to get clean these days (I did just pick up some water softener, though, so I'm hoping that helps).

Anyway... Can I use my green points from using cloth in the kitchen and cloth napkins for basically my entire life to pretend like I'm still good?

Wait a minute: you are about due AND moving? Moving to a bigger house or changing countries?

We're moving to Ohio... We don't actually leave Germany until the end of August, but because the military ships our stuff, it goes by boat, so we have to ship it a couple months in advance or not have anything when we get there. We'll ship all of our furniture and most of our pots and pans (as well as decor, books, tv, etc) mid-July. Everything else (that we can't carry on a plane) will get shipped mid-August. I've been a bit scattered lately trying to keep track of everything But I should have a baby by Tuesday!

Even so, I remember the flights from Germany to the US (and vice versa)....I wouldn't want to do that with a newborn.....it's hard enough to finagle the way around on those cattlecars they call the military charter flights with toddlers and older.....especially since the plane we flew back on had passengers already on board and there was no preboarding with young kids.

True (although I'm more concerned about the 2 year old than the newborn). It also doesn't help that J's brother is getting married at the beginning of September, so we're not even going straight to Ohio. We're going to Baltimore, then buying our own tickets to get to Albuquerque (where J's parents live), then driving to Denver for the wedding, then back to Abq for a few days, then to lubbock to visit my family (since we haven't seen them since G was born), then go to Ohio to start house hunting. At least I wasn't expecting to sleep with a newborn anyway, right? 

Wow, that is rough.  You're a brave lady!

abby8279

My life has turned into a goal to be greener every day.  As I run out of household cleaners I am replacing them with homemade green cleaners.  I just ordered some cloth napkins.  I put up a clothesline mainly for diapers, jeans, and other misc. stuff.  But I ended up hanging everything b/c I love it.  I got a Klean Kanteen that I refill instead of using bottled water.  TMI warning: I got my 3rd pp af and am happily using my mama cloth (except for the 1st day when I was at the water park YIKES first tampon in a couple of years).  We took snacks to the waterpark in re-usable PW snack bags.

unaveragejane

@CLLDLL - Have you bought beef by the side before? If not, just FYI it can take up a lot of freezer room, especially if the farmer picks a big cow. We ordered 1/8 of a side last year, and it took up about 1/4 of our rather small chest freezer. This year they slaughtered a 900+ pound steer, so that 1/8 side takes up more than half of the same freezer. Our farmer did give people the option to buy less than they had originally committed to since it was so much meat, meaning more freezer space and more expensive in total.

PipSqueak0313

@ElleBeeDub‌ I sometimes miss the NM state question. We were stationed at Kirtland AFB when we returned from Ramstein. Don't miss the base medical folks though. They were beyond crappy.