krissy's blog

Ahh, wintertime.  Holidays, snow, cookies...and COLDS.  Ugh!  I'm at the tail end of one right now, and it got me to thinking about different ways to treat my cold symptoms while being green as possible.

For a sore throat, I love good old fashioned hot tea with honey or some piping hot soup.  Today I had a bowl of udon soup for lunch and it felt great on my throat.   For sinus congestion, I also like something spicy!   As for tea, I love Traditional Medicine's Organic Throat Coat Tea.   Meanwhile, my husband swears by Gum Wall Cha. ... read more

When I was little, I spent a lot of time with my grandmother, or "Nonna."  I always remember that she would save the little plastic yogurt cups and I would use them as drinking cups while I was there.  It dawned on me that my grandmother was actually quite green.  While today's generation is getting more eco-conscious, our grandparents and great-grandparents generations did a lot of very green things, without even realizing how green it was.  ... read more

Today I ventured to Ikea.  I'm really not a huge Ikea fan, mostly because the maze-like layout of the store annoys me and stresses me out.  I also don't live super close to this Ikea - it took me a little over a half hour to get there.  However, I do like their kitchen products and kid's stuff.   Today I wanted to do some holiday shopping for my son before Ikea got too hectic for the holidays.    

This was my first time going to the Stoughton, Massachusetts location and I was impressed to see how green it was.

I went specifically to get a wooden train set for my 2 year old.  It's a much less expensive knock-off of the Thomas the Train sets and compatible with Thomas trains, as well.  Most of the toys were wooden or cloth.  The plastic toys they had were mostly BPA-free.  The prices were reasonable, so I stocked up and my holiday shopping for my son is pretty much done! 

While there, I noticed signs mentioning that their Stoughton location has a green roof.  When I got back, I found some awesome pictures of the green roof.  Check them out at GreenRoofs.com.   Very cool!  ... read more

There are two things I love about our aloe vera plant:  One - I haven't killed it yet., which I often do with houseplants.  And two-  Fresh aloe at my fingertips.  It's free, it's non-toxic, and it's useful.  What's not to love?  

Here are some of my favorite common uses for aloe:  

1)  Treat minor burns.

2)  Help moisturize dry, chapped lips and skin.  When I had a cold last week, I used aloe on my end-of-the-cold under-nostril rash AND on my painfully dry lips.  

3)  Soothe sunburns.

4)  Use instead of hair conditioner.  Mix extra virgin olive oil with equal parts aloe vera gel.    

5)  Boil leaves in a pan of water and breathe in the vapor when you have a cold.  I hear it also works well for asthma.  ... read more

Check out Planet Green Recycle's FREE e-Waste recycling event THIS WEEKEND in Valencia, CA!  All raised funds will go towards Sunshine Learning Centers!  Here's the Facebook event.    If you live in the area, definitely stop by and get rid of some old electronics!... read more