Green Planet

Imperfect Vegetable Soup

We recently took delivery of our first box of imperfect organic produce from a company appropriately called…Imperfect Produce. This new delivery service brings fruits and vegetables not “pretty” enough for grocery store shelves into the homes of eco- and open-minded families like mine. We don’t care if the apples have a spot or the carrots […]


Post Pumpkin Plan

November in Chicago. The month starts and the clouds roll in and the temperatures drop. We’re still early enough in the season where I find the weather to be somewhat delightful and oddly charming: cozy socks, cuddly blankets, hot tea. Hygge to the max!! Last month the kids and I carved pumpkins in the courtyard […]


Easter Egg Hunt

When I was growing up, my dad put on an annual Easter egg hunt for my four siblings and me. He numbered the eggs we dyed with our mom, and then he numbered king size candy bars so every egg matched with a candy bar. After the hunt, we traded in our collected eggs for […]


The Matters of Matter

When we were in Europe this summer, I was struck by two things: 1. Geez, Europeans use a lot of disposable plastic water bottles. 2. Wow, they do a ton of recycling and composting, too! I think about these two opposing realities often. It was so nice to see people genuinely care about the simple […]


The Paper Towel Blues

I recently had to purchase two rolls of paper towels for my daughter’s PK-3 classroom. As it has literally been years since I’ve bought paper towels, I was shocked – SHOCKED, I tell you! – by how expensive a roll is! I could not believe the grocery store charges $2-$3 dollars for a roll of […]


In Defense of Large Families, Part II

Last week I announced on Homemade Mothering’s Facebook page the impending arrival of our fifth (yes, fifth) bundle of joy. I want my small corner of the internet to be a place of encouragement and kindness, so reading everyone’s lovely words of congratulations really made my heart swell. It feels good to be surrounded by […]


Home Energy Report

Every month we receive not one but TWO notices in the mail from ComEd, our electricity supplier. The first is the monthly bill, which I always promptly pay. The second is a home energy report. The report sums up how our energy usage compares to 100 nearby occupied homes that are similar in size to […]


Cup Controversy

The latest controversy sweeping the interwebs involves the color of a Starbucks coffee cup. While I personally have more important things to worry about, like the length of my kids’ toenails or the starving children in third world countries, apparently some folks like it when their panties bunch up over whether or not a publicly […]


A Bad Bag Ban

All summer the eco-geek inside me had been looking forward to August 1. That was the day when our fine city was to join the likes of Seattle, Portland and Boulder, CO with a ban on flimsy plastic grocery store bags. I was so excited… …until I realized our ban was no ban at all […]


Six Reasons I Don’t Buy Hand Sanitizer

So, a new report out this week demonizes hand santizer. And, I can’t say I’m surprised. I’ve avoided buying Purell and Germ-X for my family, and hopefully the rest of the world will come around to my point of view. Here’s why I just don’t like the goo my kids refer to as “germ gel”: […]


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