Hey, you! I’m still here. The past month has been very busy with travel, a new job, making holiday plans and working on our wedding, but I’m going to try to make an effort to write more regularly. Even if it’s not strictly about green living, which I don’t have a whole lot of updates about for you right now! Blogging is funny, for me it can either be an outlet to relieve stress, or a source of stress if I’m being a perfectionist about it, which it has felt like for the past month–but I’m working on having it be the former 🙂 At any rate, I think I’m going to continue my mostly-break from social media a little while longer. It’s been very refreshing!… Read More »
10 Food Staples that are Easy & Cheap to Make from Scratch
I’m passionate about food! I love to garden, cook, bake, and read everything I can get my hands on about the food industry. I also love to be as close to my food as possible. I love to see it go from its component parts–that I grow or produce, if possible–all the way to its final jarred or plated version. There is something incredibly empowering about knowing exactly how what you’re putting in your mouth was grown, harvested, and made edible.
But even if you’re not especially passionate about gardening or cooking, another great reason to make more staples from scratch is money. Simply making yogurt from scratch, we save $5 to $10 per week. We’re definitely not through with our transition from prepared foods to foods made from scratch, but today I thought I’d share the changes we have made, including recipes and how-to’s! … Read More »
6 Ways to Practice Self-Care At Home + A Reader Question
When I was in elementary and middle school, I was hardly ever sick. As a result, I rarely had to stay home from class. However, my sister was the opposite, and I was jealous (yup, I wanted to stay home so badly that I was willing to be sick for it!). So my mom gave me permission to take one “mental health day” per quarter. She’d call in sick for me, and I’d snuggle up on the couch in front of the TV with some cookies and forget about school for the day.
Once I started high school and college, I stopped taking days off—it was more stressful to miss all of the day’s lessons and homework assignments than to be in school! However, now I’m fortunate enough to be “working from home” for the next few weeks (or more—but let’s hope the job search turns up something soon!). As a result, I have the luxury of being able to take “self-care days” (as I prefer to call them) again.… Read More »
15 Easy Ways to Go Plastic-Free in the Kitchen
We all know that plastic is bad for the environment and for us. Different kinds of plastic take anywhere from hundreds to thousands of years to break down. Plastic that makes its way into the ocean kills millions of sea animals every year. It contains dozens of harmful chemicals that leach into the ground and our water supplies. And it’s extremely dirty energy-intensive to produce.
Yet eliminating plastics from our everyday lives can be extremely challenging. It often feels like just about everything we buy comes boxed, bagged, or wrapped in some form of plastic, from toys to makeup to power tools. And don’t even get me started on grocery stores! Even if you follow the advice to “shop around the store’s perimeter” for healthy eating, meat, berries, and salad greens alike can usually be found packaged in styrofoam and hard plastic containers.… Read More »
A Complete Guide to Moving Across the Country (When You’re Fresh Out of College)
When E got the call that he’d gotten his dream job last fall, we couldn’t have been more excited. E was employed, and we were California dreamin’! All the work that moving across the country would entail hadn’t occurred to us yet, and the reality didn’t actually sink in until we in the thick of planning our move in April:Â how do we find an apartment when we’re living 2,000 miles away? Do we need a renter’s insurance policy? Why is shipping SO expensive? We don’t even have that much stuff!
In light of our experience, today I’m going to be sharing the information I wish we’d had when we started planning our move two months ago. It’s a step-by-step guide to finding and furnishing an apartment, setting up necessary services in your new home, and getting all of your stuff where it needs to go. Everyone’s moving checklist will look a bit different, but all of the basics are here. Let’s jump right in! … Read More »