Our Household

A bit about me and our household – though I really have a hard time talking about myself…I’d rather not be the center of attention!  I am a full-time working mom to a 5-year-old boy and a wife to a very supportive husband…. though he still thinks a few of my brilliant ideas won’t work – they usually do.   We live in the Detroit suburbs in a modest (small) ranch home – which you’d think would make cleaning it a piece of cake, right?  Wrong…. it’s just as full of clutter and dust as anyone’s!  Our tiny family accumulates a lot of STUFF as well as laundry.

I will be completely honest and transparent with you on this little blog of mine.   I am not Vegan, Vegetarian, Pescatarian, or remotely completely Eco-friendly.   Up until the last few months, the chemicals I use to clean our home didn’t even cross my mind!  I could do much more to be aware of our family’s impact on the environment.  What I am is trying to do is make baby-step changes in making easy, sustainable and better choices for myself and my family.

Here are some of the small changes around our home and perhaps you can also do some of these!

• Incorporating as many naturally air-purifying houseplants in our home.  
• Recycling everything we can and re-purposing household items in different ways (i.e., that big plastic coffee can gets used as a cute catch-all for my son’s junk…. I mean, small toys)
• Making my own granite/counter top cleaner with natural ingredients and essential oil.
• Researching products for their toxicity rating before use – and replacing them with a better alternative if possible.  Instead of using bleach/commercial spray cleaners/abrasive cleansers/laundry and dishwasher detergents – I find better, safer alternatives!
• Growing some of our own fruits, herbs and veggies in a small container garden.
• Shopping for fruits, veggies and whatever we can at local farmer’s markets during the summer.
• Utilizing reusable bags instead of getting plastic – honestly, I am horrible about this one, but trying to be better.  At the very least, we always re-use the plastic bags we get for our smaller trash cans so they do get double-duty.
• Using all natural hair and body products when possible.  I am amazed what our body absorbs in a very tiny amount of time!
• Learning to cook – all those things you purchase at big box stores and chain grocery stores?  Many can be easily made at home with a little time and some fun effort!  For example, instead of buying bread, buns, or bagels, I learned how to make my own.  Sure they don’t last as long, but I know how to pronounce all the ingredients! 
• When purchasing meat, we use highly rated organic suppliers with minimal packaging.  (Shoutout to Zaycon Foods!)

 The moral to this story is we have a LONG way to go compared to most people – and I’m fine with that…but we are trying our best to do a little better every day.  If you do the same, we can all make a huge impact!