Shop Smart, Save Forests

I hope everyone had a great Christmas, or whatever you and your family celebrate! Sorry for the lack of posts this past week...it was a bit crazy.

In this season of runny noses, perhaps some additional thought about the environmental impact of home tissue products is warranted. Click here to review an online Shopper's Guide to Home Tissue Products from the Natural Resources Defense Council.

DID YOU KNOW that if every household in the US replaced just:

• one box virgin fiber facial tissues (175 sheets) with 100% recycled ones, we could save 163,000 trees.
• one roll of virgin fiber toilet paper (500 sheets) with 100% recycled ones, we could save 423,900 trees
• one roll of virgin fiber paper towels (70 sheets) with 100% recycled ones, we could save 544,000 trees
• one package of virgin fiber napkins (250 count) with 100% recycled ones, we could save 1 million trees.

The NRDC guide has detailed ratings for many of the top brands of home tissue products, so that we can make more informed choices.

And, even better than using recycled paper products is to use reusable ones! While there isn't a palatable option (for me at least) for toilet paper, in our house, we have taken to using plain washcloths instead of paper napkins and paper towels. (When we had babies, we just seemed to have a couple stacks of plain washcloths always at the ready...and we now use washcloths instead of paper napkins and paper towels for everyday messes!) We use ones from IKEA, but I'm sure that there are lots of inexpensive options out there.

Three tips from the NRDC to help save forests

1. Buy paper products with recycled content -- especially post-consumer fibers. Look for products that have a high recycled content, including high post-consumer content. Post-consumer fibers are recovered from paper that was previously used by consumers and would otherwise have been dumped into a landfill or an incinerator.

2. Buy paper products made with clean, safe processes. Paper products are bleached to make them whiter and brighter, but chlorine used in many bleaching processes contributes to the formation of harmful chemicals that wind up in our air and water and are highly toxic to people and fish. Look for products labeled totally chlorine-free (TCF) or processed chlorine-free (PCF). In some cases, elemental chlorine-free (ECF) may be acceptable.

3. Tell tissue manufacturers to stop using virgin wood for throwaway products. If a brand you buy for your home doesn't have any recycled content, contact the manufacturer. Tell the company to use more recycled fibers, to avoid sourcing from ecologically valuable forests such as those in the Cumberland Plateau and Canadian boreal, and to ensure any virgin fibers used are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. Saving forests also helps reduce global warming pollution.

Oh the weather outside is frightful (for shopping)! Uncommon Goods for last minute green gifts

If you're looking for some last minute online gifts, check out Uncommon Goods. They are a company with an 'uncommon mission' that includes a focus on conducting themselves in an environmentally friendly and socially conscious way. Seriously, it's part of their mission, and so they feature a huge selection of gifts that you can feel good about giving! They have fun and elegant items in all price categories. Some of my favorites include:

• Urbano Eco Can - a good way to store and easily re-use plastic shopping bags (although I know we all get fewer and fewer, they're still out there). It's much better than the mess of bags in a ripped paper bag that is currently a disaster situation under my sink! It's made from recycled polypropylene in the USA. $20

• Flip Flop Doormat - made from surplus rubber from a flip flop factory, this colorful doormat is not only welcoming, but keeps a whole lot of rubber out of the landfill! Made in the Philippines. $20-$40, depending on size.

• Protect Our Wildlife Glasses - Made from the bottom half of wine bottled rescued from the waste stream in North America, these lovely glasses also feature a silk-screened print of an endangered species and the phrase "Protect our Wildlife" in four different languages. Made in Wisconsin. $45 for a set of 4. plus, for each purchase, Uncommon Goods will make a $2 contribution to Defenders of Wildlife.

• Bike Chain Bottle Opener - I actually bought this for my brother-in-law two years ago. (They're big bikers...he and my sister biked from California to Wisconsin a few years ago, and are currently on a bike trip in New Zealand). Anyway, it's a bottle opener made from reclaimed bike parts - a chain and part of a gear-thingey. Like I said, I'm not the biker in the family! Handcrafted in Oregon. $10.

There are tons of great gifts on this site...and if you can't get out in this snow to support local independent business, you can still feel good about supporting an online company that focuses on handcrafted, unique, environmentally friendly, socially conscious, high-quality goods.

They say that they can get it anywhere in the US (with expedited shipping, an additional $2) by Christmas Eve, as long as the order is placed by 5 pm EST on December 22!

RethinkRecycling.com: the go-to guide for waste & recycling in the TC

A fantastic local resource for waste & toxicity issues is back up! Previously known as GreenGuardian, RethinkRecycling is the outreach campaign of the Solid Waste Management Coordinating Board (SWMCB) and is loaded with information about waste, recycling, and toxicity reduction.

The SWMCB manages the Community POWER program, which is one of the primary funders of Linden Hills EcoParents.

Make it a bookmark, and check it out whenever you have a waste related question!

EcoTuesday Holiday Party at Twin Cities Green

The EcoTuesday Holiday Party is this Tuesday, December 16 6:30-9:00 pm at Twin Cities Green (2405 Hennepin Ave). Geared towards eco-networking, it'll be a great time to learn lots of tips. Bring in a non-perishable food item and receive 10% off purchases at Twin Cities Green during the event.

And, if you haven't yet been to Twin Cities Green, it's a great store to check out! The owners Ryan and Tina are parents themselves and are loaded with great tips and information, not to mention a fantastic selection of green, local (or fair-trade), innovative products at their store. Lots of items that are eligible for the EcoParents rebate program...

Our green holiday party! Walking the walk...not just talking the talk.

Our annual holiday party had a decidedly 'green' flavor last night. While not entirely ZERO WASTE, there was much less 'trash' produced than in previous years, with just a little additional effort or cost. We had 100+ friends, including adults & kids, with a buffet of food. Some of the small changes this year included:

• Set up 'disposal stations' with collection bins for compostables, glass (beer bottles), plastic (i.e., water bottles), and trash.
• Used compostable plates (Chinet dessert plates) and compostable cups. Paper hot cups for the hot cider, and corn-based "PLA plastic" cups for punch and wine. The corn cups were printed with a green stripe indicating that they were made from corn and compostable, so folks knew that they were not regular plastic cups!
• Did NOT have chocolate kisses as in past years, due to the non-compostable foil wrappers.
• We did use plastic utensils, but we collected and washed them, rather than throw them away. (Using corn-based utensils would have been another option, but we had leftovers from buying in bulk for last year's party.)
• Collected bottlecaps (instead of throwing in garbage as in the past) since I just learned at the EcoParents meeting that bottlecaps can go with the metal recycling collected curbside!
• Purchased food in bulk at Costco (where possible) to reduce packaging waste (e.g., big bags of Goldfish crackers and Pirate booty)
  

And of course, we put the beer boxes with the organic recycling NOT the boxboard recycling since those have the wet strength additive. :-)

Our little green organics carts is overflowing! And the big black garbage bin has only one big bag from the party. And an added bonus - lots of our non-Linden Hills friends asked about the organics collection and expressed a desire to have that in their neighborhood as well! The corn-based cups were definitely a big conversation starter.

More to come about green parties later this year, as we will be asking for EcoParent volunteers to host green parties with non-EcoParent friends to help spread the word! (That was part of the original grant proposal plan...)

It was a lot of fun and very satisfying to host our annual party with a much lighter footprint!

Thanks to Susan Young & Minneapolis Recycling!

A belated THANK YOU to Susan Young for coming to our EcoParents meeting last week to speak with us. Who would've guessed how interesting and dare-I-say exciting to learn about garbage and recycling?! Susan is truly a treasure. We are lucky to have her guiding a world-class solid waste management and recycling program for our city!

For those who were unable to attend the meeting, click here to learn more about what and how to recycling in Minneapolis. Some of the (new-to-some) info we learned:

• Boxboard with 'wet strength' additives (e.g., pop boxes, freezer boxes) cannot be recycled. In fact, it can muck up the whole recycling process. So, remember "If it goes on the counter or cupboard, it can be recycled. If it goes in the fridge or freezer, put with your organics recycling or garbage."
• The city will give you as many blue recycling containers as you need. Click here for information to request additional bins, or call (612) 673-2917.
• Minneapolis sends all of our garbage (not recycling) to HERC waste-to-energy facility to be burned at 2200 degrees and converted into energy. The city of Minneapolis doesn't send garbage to a landfill...except what comes out the 'back-end' of the incinerator.
• Though it may seem cumbersome to sort recycling at the household level, that is actually what gives our recycling program its value!!

For those who were at the meeting, make a comment about something new or interesting you learned from Susan or our discussion!

More to come...

Learn the ins & out of Recycling: EcoParents Meeting - Wed Dec 10

Just a reminder that the next Linden Hills EcoParents meeting is this Wednesday, December 10 from 6:30-8:30 pm at the Linden Hills Park building (43rd & Xerxes Ave S.)

Our guest will be Susan Young, director of the Solid Waste and Recycling Division at the City of Minneapolis. Susan will help us to understand the ins & outs of our municipal recycling program - what's collected, what's not, how to sort for collection, how to prepare materials for collection, etc..., and answer every question that we have!

Linden Hills Natural Home has donated a porcelain counter-top compost pail and biodegradable bags, which will be given away FREE at the meeting (but you have to be there to be eligible to win!). Also, coupons for $5 off a purchase of a compost pail at LH Natural Home AND $2 off a purchase of a set of reusable mesh produce bags will be distributed to meeting participants! Thanks to Linden Hills Natural Home for their support of EcoParents!

Also, FREE kitchen scrap buckets from Hennepin County will be available for pick-up at the meeting. We have a couple extra if you haven't signed up for one. AND, you can pick up your gorgeous fair-trade organic canvas reusable tote with the Linden Hills EcoParents logo, if you haven't gotten yours already!

See you Wednesday!

Healthy Toys - resources to help you be sure!

Here are two quick resources to help you feel confident that the toys you may be giving your kids are non-toxic.

HealthyToys.org is an online consumer guide to toxic chemicals in toys. They have test results on over 1,500 children's items and toys, as well as additional information. Check out their list of best toys, and more importantly, their list of worst toys! More to come soon...

I saw in the paper today that a local engineering firm will be testing toys at the Community Bank in Plymouth on December 15, during regular bank hours. The bank is located at 3455 Plymouth Blvd. Crane Engineering will scan up to four toys or pieces of costume jewelry per family. Their scan can detect heavy metals and other foreign elements in toys, even at very low levels. Please note that no clothes nor fine jewelry will be tested.

Local Green Shopping Opportunities

Here are some upcoming opportunities for holiday shopping that are sure to have lots of 'green options' as well as support local businesses, artisans, and organizations.

Reindeer Days, sponsored by Linden Hills Business Association. Saturday, December 6. In addition to hot cocoa, sleigh rides, and special activities at many of the local businesses in the 43rd & Upton business district,

• Linden Hills Co-op is hosting it's Reindeer Room with fair trade, well-made, local & environmentall friendly little gifts...all priced under $10. No charge. No reservations. 11 am to 2 pm
• Wonderment is hosting an advent wreath workshop (suggested for ages 6 and up). Suggested donation is $5 to support Joyce Food Shelf. And pick up some great non-toxic, high quality kid gifts as well! 10:30 am to 2:30 pm.
• St. Thomas the Apostle is hosting its "JustGiving" Fair, with fair-trade good from Peace Coffee, Ten Thousand Villages, Birch Clothing and more, as well as information to connect you with nonprofits supporting our community and the larger world. 11 am - 2 pm.

No Coast Craft-O-Rama at Midtown Global Market. December 5, 3 pm - 8 pm. December 6, 9 am - 5 pm. This annual event features a variety of designers, artists, crafters and other talented creators of unique handmade goods. Not everything may be 'green' - but they explicitly have a green focus this year so expect to see crafts from recycled, repurposed, recyclable, etc... materials. There is sure to be lots of options, with many under $25. I think I'll be looking especially for unique teacher gifts there...

Craft Sale Benefit for Friends for a Non-Violent World at Mpls Friends Meeting House (44th & York Ave S). Dec 5, 3 pm - 9 pm. Dec 6, 9 am - 3 pm. Again, not specifically a 'green' event, but many of the handicrafts will be from local artists and feature green elements.

Know of something else?? Make a comment and let the rest of know too! (or email me so I can post it.)

Sustainably grown holiday trees from LH Natural Home

Linden Hills Natural Home is offering sustainably grown holiday trees from Oneota Slopes - no chemicals, no dyes. Quanities are very limited, so please call 612-922-1159 to reserve one. They are scheduled to be delivered on November 30 and I'm sure they'll sell out quickly!

Greening Your Holidays - tips from Hennepin County...PLUS comment to win solar powered LED lights!

For those who were unable to come to the last EcoParents meeting, we distributed a great little flier from Hennepin County on "Greening Your Celebrations," which we also discussed quite a bit.

It's chocked full of great tips on how to reduce waste, save energy, and just generally reduce the additional negative environmental impacts associated with the holidays...25% more waste typically produced between Thanksgiving and New Years! Check it out online here.

At the meeting, we bdiscussed the tips and talked about some of the ones we plan to put into action this coming season. Make a comment about what YOU plan to do and be entered to win a string of 50 LED solar powered outdoor holiday lights!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone, and keep checking back for more ideas about greening our holidays!

Pop-in to local artist eecee bb on Saturday - cute organic & recycled clothing

Local artist and owner of eeceebb and Small Sage (and EcoParents participant!), Beth Bogle, is hosting a pop-in event at her Linden Hills studio on Saturday, November 22.

eecee bb is a super cute design business that uses vintage fabrics, recycled cashmere, remnants, and other surprising materials that are carefully chosen for softness, texture, color, top quality, and visual impact.

Small Sage is her line of organic cotton tees shirts, skirts, and sometimes pants for babies, children, and women. The cottons are exceptionally soft, and hand dyed them in fantastic hues.

eecee bb also has a really neat 'collaborative design' process where your child can help to create a whole original and one-of-a-kind outfit which uses your child's artwork as inspiration!

The pop-in event is Saturday, November 22 from 10 am to 4 pm at eecee bb, located at 4409 Beard Avenue South in Linden Hills behind Turtle Bread.

"Gift Your School" at Wonderment; this Thursday, Nov 20

Super-big thanks to Lisa MacMartin from Wonderment for coming to our EcoParents meeting last night to share great tips and ideas for purchasing for kids in a more sustainable and eco-friendly manner, as well as donating a fabulous wooden rainbow toy for our giveaway! Some of her tips included:

• Buy Appropriately. Kids don't need every toy option under the sun. Too many choices can actually be deadening to kids. Pick a few nice pieces instead. For sets such as blocks or marbles, start with the smallest 'set' and add to it over time, if your child shows interest in it, rather than buying the biggest set out there.
  
• Plan your toyroom. Consider having one 'centerpiece' item that can grow with kids over time, such as a dollhouse, barn, kitchen, etc...
  
• Invest in open ended play toys. Toys that can be used in a variety of ways have a longer life in your playroom. An example could be a set of nesting bowls. They can be used in a play kitchen, for stacking, for nesting, dumping, etc... It encourages creativity as well, rather than toys will clearly one purpose only.
• Appropriate quality. You don't need to buy the top-of-the-line for everything, especially items that cater to a relatively short period of development oe fleeting interests. Considering investing in high quality items for items that are likely to have longevity in your children's lives.
• Pay attention to packaging. Look for items with minimal packaging and made locally to reduce environmental impacts associated with excess packaging and shipping.
• Encourage creativity. Consider items that have creating, building, and playing aspects, such as a set to put together a car or a craft kit. Your child can design the car, put it together, and then play with it! This is also a good suggestion if there are different ages in your house, b/c the older one can build something, but both kids might be able to play with it.

If you are considering shopping at Wonderment for the holidays, you'll want to go THIS THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 20 to take advantage of their first ever "Gift Your School" event at Wonderment. Shop on Thursday and Wonderment will donate 10% of your total purchase to a school of your choice! They will send a donation check directly to your school at then end of the event! What a great way to support our local independent businesses AND support your school, not to mention purchase a high quality gift!


Thanks again to Lisa and Wonderment for their support of Linden Hills EcoParents!

Linden Hills EcoParents Mtg - Mon, Nov 17; "Greening Your Holidays"

Just a reminder that the next meeting of Linden Hills EcoParents is Monday, November 17, from 6:30-8:30 pm at Linden Hills United Church of Christ (4200 Upton Ave S, Mpls), in Fellowship Hall on the lower level. Enter at the door marked 'office' located on 42nd Street.

Lisa MacMartin from Wonderment will present ideas about purchasing for kids in an eco-conscious manner, plus we will have a sampling of green gift ideas and waste reduction ideas from Linden Hills Natural Home. We will learn how to wrap gifts using furoshikis (Japanese cloth) or any other cloth, as well as how to make gift boxes from paper! If you have a square scarf or other piece of fabric, please bring it to practice various 'wrapping' techniques!

We will also outline the EcoParents Rebate Program at tomorrow's meeting, as well as distribute the kitchen scrap buckets generously donated to us from Hennepin County.

Hope to see you on Monday!!

Reminder - Green Gifts Fair THIS SATURDAY!

Just a reminder about the Green Gifts Fair at Midtown Global Market (Lake St & 10th Ave) on Saturday, Nov 15 from 10 am to 5 pm. See the original post here.

There will be lots of options for green gifts and green holiday ideas, plus food, a fashion show, workshops, lots of local vendors, etc...

Also, I will be a guest on the Everything Green radio program this Saturday, talking about Linden Hills EcoParents! The show is on from noon to 1 pm on AM950, and a podcast is available from their website as well.

Carpet Cleaning with no residue...

Some of you may have heard my yapping about the messy work in our house the past couple of weeks. For those who haven't...we got a new boiler. Which meant that our OLD boiler (as in original to the 1914 house OLD, and wrapped in asbestos) had to be removed...and then a new boiler installed. Oh, and we also switched out our super inefficient electric baseboard heaters for new copper fin hot water baseboards, which is GREAT, but meant that the workers were running pipe all over the house and various already messy rooms had to be cleared out, etc... ARGH.. Chaos here. And lots of dirty carpet...

ANYWAY, the point of this post is not to complain about the messy chaos of my life, but rather to let you know about the CARPET CLEANERS I found. Based on the recommendations of a couple of friends, we had ZeroRez come to clean the carpets. ZeroRez (as in zero residue) uses no toxic chemicals in their cleaning. Instead, they use 'empowered water' via low-pressue spray to loosen embedded dirt and clean the carpet by eliminating bacteria. The dirt and water is then removed with a unique extraction wand. They claim that the carpet is clean without any residue and the dry time is dramatically reduced.

They also do tile, drapery, air ducts, leather, upholstery, hard surfaces (e.g., countertops) and hard flooring, and they have a 'protectant' service as well that they claim protects against bacteria. If you're in the market for some deep cleaning, check them out at http://www.myzerorez.com. We had our basement carpet, one bedroom area rug, and the bathroom tile floor done, and the total cost was $218. This is a bit pricier than some traditional cleaning services, I think, but they claim that the spot removal lasts (b/c they get it all out rather than just the stain at the surface) and that it is gentler on your carpet (less wear & tear)...plus the piece of mind that you don't have to worry about kids or pets on the carpet due to chemicals.

Make a comment if you've have experiences with other low/nontoxic cleaning services...

Free Electronics Recycling (TOMORROW ONLY)...and $100 Samsung coupon!

While I was at yesterday's Vikings-Packers game, I spotted a notice for an electronics recycling event TOMORROW (Nov 11), sponsored by the Vikings and Samsung. (My dear hubby also told me about this event, as he heard about it last week on KFAN radio, but it slipped my mind until I saw it again at the game.)

Bring electronics to the Main Parking Lot of the Metrodome and you'll receive a $100 coupon, courtesy of Samsung, towards the purchase of a Samsung HDTV. Vikings players, cheerleaders and Viktor (the mascot) will be there as well to meet participating fans.

This is a no-cost recycling program, limited to ONLY consumer electronics. Home appliances will NOT be accepted.

Sorry for the late notice.

Skip the Plastic at the Grocery Store

Are you ready to move beyond just saying no to the plastic grocery bags at checkout when you shop? There are SO many other ways you can skip the plastic at the grocery store if you take the time to think about it. I've been uber-conscious lately of all the grocery products that are typically packaged in plastic and trying to switch to 'better' containers when I buy things.

The arguments against plastic are many: it is made from a non-renewable resource, the production process creates pollution, it can leach chemicals into your food, it never truly biodegrades and there's a big, ugly mass of it sitting in middle of the ocean.


Keep your eyes out in the store - even in categories that are usually packaged in plastic (like juice for instance), you can almost always find alternatives:

• Glass - it's easily recyclable and can be reused in your home for so many things.
  
• Peanut Butter - Maranatha and Arrowhead Mills are both brands that come in glass.


• Mayo, salsa and other condiments - Most conventional brands come in plastic jars but some, like Spectrum and Newman's Own come in glass jars.
  
• Juice - Knudson and Santa Cruz Organics use glass instead of plastic.


• Pasta Sauce - It's especially important to buy tomato products in glass. The natural acid in tomatoes makes leaching from plastic jars a big problem.


• Oils - Olive oil is commonly sold in glass, while most other oils are usually sold in plastic. Spectrum uses glass for all cooking oils.


• Milk - You might need to make a deposit on a glass container but bringing it back to be refilled is double good for the planet!


• Paper or Cardboard - Recyclable in most areas. Paper made with recycled content is best of course!


• Meats - Buy straight from the meat counter wrapped in butcher paper and you'll skip the styrofoam tray and the plastic wrap.


• Pasta - Pick the cardboard box instead of that crinkly plastic bag.


• Milk - Paper milk cartons are recyclable in many areas.


• Bread - Fresh bread from the bakery usually comes in a paper bag - and there's no comparison to the plastic wrapped version.

Better yet - make your own, homemade version of many of these foods and skip the packaging altogether! And don't forget that a few of these items can be refilled at your local food co-op - peanut butter and vegetable oils for example.

Can you think of any other food items that traditionally involve plastic packaging - and a plastic-free alternative? No doubt I've forgotten a few!

Hello from Mindful Momma!

Hi! I'm so happy to be guest posting on the Linden Hills Eco-Parents blog! Isn't Keiko doing a great job getting this all set up?!! I can't wait to get more info on recycling at our next meeting.

In the meantime, if you are looking for some more 'green' reading, check out the monthly Green Mom's Carnival. In case you're not familiar with the concept, a blog carnival is a collaboration of blog posts all on a similar topic. The Green Mom's Carnival is a group of Moms and 'mothers of the earth' who care passionately about the environment. We're a very diverse group of women from all over the country and it's really cool to see our different perspectives on the same topic. The group is constantly growing - anyone can submit a post - you don't even have to have a blog! We write about a different topic each month - check out the carnival homepage to see what's coming up!

For November we wrote about gratitude for our favorite green things. I wrote about gratitude for good food and I raved about all the fabulous farmer's markets and food co-ops we have here in the Twin Cities! We are truly lucky!

Green Gifts Fair - Nov 15

Shop for all your green holiday gifts in one place! The Green Gifts Fair will be held November 15 at the Midtown Global Market (Lake St & 10th Ave) from 10 am to 5 pm!

Shop! LOCAL GREEN BUSINESSES
Shop over 40 businesses and artists offering unique recycled, organic and green gifts such as clothing, gift bags, jewelry, toys, organic flower arrangements & more!

Celebrate! DO IT GREEN! ANNUAL
Kick-off event for the 2009 Do It Green! Magazine fresh off the presses — Give them as gifts to friends, family and co-workers!

Learn! GREEN YOUR HOLIDAYS
Alternative gift wrap ideas, energy efficient lighting, repurposing clothing, green holiday tree ideas, earth-friendly decoration & more.

Eat! TASTY HOLIDAY TREATS
Sample warm holiday foods and drinks with local chef demos, and stay to eat lunch from a variety of vendors at the Midtown Global Market!

There will be also be an Eco Fashion show and workshops, as well as music, food tasting and local vendors. Sponsored by Do It Green, Midtown Global Market, Citypages, KFAI, and MetroTransit. Find a complete list of vendors and workshops at www.doitgreen.org.

Change a Light for Daylight Savings Time

Daylight saving time ends Nov. 2, which means more hours with the lights on. If you haven't made the switch to compact fluorescent light (CFL) bulbs at home, now is a great time.

Lighting accounts for about 20 percent of the average home’s electric bill. An Energy Star qualified CFL produces the same amount of light as an incandescent bulb, but uses about 75 percent less energy and lasts up to 10 times longer. Using a CFL bulb saves an average of $30 in electricity costs over its lifetime and will prevent the release of more than 450 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions.

Because CFL bulbs contain a small amount of mercury, they must be recycled to protect the environment. It is illegal to place fluorescent light bulbs in the trash. Easy and convenient recycling options are available to households for CFL bulbs. Home Depot, Menards, and Ikea stores offer free recycling of unbroken CFL bulbs.

Hennepin County also accepts all types of fluorescent, high intensity discharge, and neon bulbs free of charge (up to 25 light bulbs) from households at drop-off facilities located at 1400 W. 96th St., Bloomington, and 8100 Jefferson Highway, Brooklyn Park.

The above was reprinted with permission from Hennepin County.

"Get to know your plastics"

There was a brief article in today's Star-Tribune about plastics and Bisphenol A (BPA). It was an Associated Press piece, in response to the release this week of a scientific assessment report of the FDA original report on BPA from this spring. (I know...very confusing.) A scientist from Consumers Union was quoted in the article as follows:

"Get to know your plastics," says Urvashi Rangan, a senior scientist with Consumers Union, which publishes Consumer Reports. Avoid polycarbonate plastic containers, those imprinted with the recycling number "7" and the letters "PC." Don't microwave foods in these containers. Don't use polycarbonate plastic baby bottles. Consider powdered infant formula instead of liquid formula in cans. Cut down on canned foods.

"If you the consumer want to take matters into your own hands while the science is being sorted out here, those are the things you can do that will directly reduce your level of exposure to BPA," said Rangan.

You can read the full article here. And Mindful Momma will be publishing a recent post from her blog about plastics soon. Stay tuned...

Welcome Guest Blogger - Mindful Momma!

Welcome to Mindful Momma - a fantastic (and local) eco-momma blogger! She has agreed to share some of her posts with us and do an occasional guest post here at our new little blog at Linden Hills EcoParents. Mindful Momma is a much more exhaustive blog than this little one, with tons of fabulous resources.

Be sure to check out her blog at www.mindfulmomma.com. There is also a link to her blog on the right of this page, along with a few other related blogs that you might find interesting.

Thanks to Mindful Momma!!

Mailing Envelope --> Jack-o-latern

Want a super easy Halloween craft using recycled paper? A kraft mailing envelope is the perfect color for a jack-o-lantern! The two here were made by my kids by just cutting open a USED mailing envelope, cutting it in half, and then cutting it into a pumpkin shape and gluing on eyes, nose & a mouth! Pretty cute, eh?


Also - you can make some spooky spiders from a paper egg carton. Just cut apart the carton, flip the sections over, and paint them black. Once dry, use chenille stems as legs. (Just remember to pull off the legs before you toss them with your organics recycling!)



Happy Halloween!

Linden Hills Co-op offering special on Graham Cracker Treats for Halloween

Want an alternative to passing out candy on Halloween this week?

The Linden Hills Co-op (located at 43rd and Upton for those who may not be familiar with it) has worked out a special arrangement with Country Choice Organics to be able to provide an affordable, locally-made, healthy and organic alternative to typical Halloween treats. The co-op will be offering several specially-priced cases of Country Choice Fit Kids graham cracker snacks in individual 1-ounce serving sizes. A case of 40 1-ounce bags costs only $3.99, and they come in chocolate or cinnamon toast flavors.

It might not make me the most popular grown-up on the block among the kids, but the kids will still get plenty of candy. Plus, any leftovers will make better snacks for my kids (and me) than traditional candy leftovers...

Good articles re plastics

I was in the MSP airport on Thursday as I was readying to go to Maine for the weekend without kids and realized I needed a magazine for the plane trip (did I already mention no kids?!). Anyway, I think I am officially old b/c the magazine I selected from the huge wall of choices was...Good Housekeeping! Argh. Oh well. It worked out though because the current issue of Good Housekeeping has a very good article on plastics - BPA, plastic wrap and phthalates. It's a good primer that includes the results of their testing plus a discussion of the current scientific research and policy situations.

The Good Housekeeping article can be read online here.


Also, the current issue of Minnesota Monthly has a long article discussing toxicity concerns about plastics and BPA. Click here to read the article online.

We will address the whole plastics issue in a coming EcoParents meeting - probably in Feb?

Curbside Organics Collection

Do you have your super cool green organics cart? Yes, the city of Minneapolis will collect your household organic material CURBSIDE as part of a pilot project. Thanks to Linden Hills Power and Light (yeah Felicity!) and the City of Minneapolis (woo woo Susan Young) for all their hard work to get this pilot up and running.

Collection has already started, but it's not to late to sign up! If you live in Linden Hills and want to participate, click here. For more information, visit Linden Hills Power and Light.

To check out a KSTP news-story on the project featuring yours truly and my kiddos, click here!

We've launched!

We had a great kick-off for Linden Hills EcoParents on Tuesday, Oct 14! Thanks to all those who came to learn more about EcoParents, as well as share your experiences, preferences, and visions for this exciting project. I was thrilled to see folks both from Linden Hills as well as from outside the neighborhood, those who are parents and those without kids, and a DAD (although we'd love more dads!).

Attendees to the kick-off event received a lovely reusable bag with our gorgeous logo - FAIR-TRADE, organic canvas, and produced locally - and filled with resources and coupons. A special thanks to Bob Bayers of Bayer's Do-it-Best Hardware for donating coupons for $5 a package of compact fluorescent lightbulbs (CFLs)!

I am busy tabulating the results of the survey (administered at the kick-off and on-line) Click Here to take survey) to determine the best dates/time and topics for our next meeting. Check back soon!

If you're not on the email list, please email ecoparents@lindenhills.org and we'll add you to the list for updates and notifications of upcoming EcoParents events.