With Earl on his way, I thought it might be a good idea to go over some very important information.

I am of the belief that you should be prepared for the worst and hope for the best. That being said here is a link to LIPA/In Case of Emergency , everything you need to know is on this site. I would add to that list, that you make sure you charge all your re-chargeable batteries, phones, laptops and even your camera (you may need it to take pictures of any damage).

Here is where you dig into that recycle bin and pull out bottles to wash and fill with clean water. See aren’t you glad you recycle? Freeze some filled bottles and keep in fridge, freezer and a cooler to help keep food cold. You will also need plenty of water to drink. If you have any infants in your household, make sure you have enough sterilized water to make formula with. It may be a good idea to buy a few cans of ready made formula. Also make sure you have plenty of sterilized bottles ready.

If you have young children I would also suggest getting them involved with the preparations. I ask Stephen to get all the flashlights together, make sure they work and have extra batteries.He also puts together a fun box with cards and games. I think coloring books and crayons would be great for younger children and maybe get those little car travel games out. Oh and you know those battery operated Christmas lights, the ones that are supposed to look like candles? those are great to have on hand also. We used them the last blackout we had, they were great to keep next to your bed and also in the bathroom.

As far as food goes, I like to keep a box in the kitchen ready filled with cans of beefaroni, tuna, veggies anything your family likes in a can. Boxes of cereal, crackers and maybe some granola bars are good. Canned fruit and fruit snacks are also a good idea.

Don’t forget your pets when you are planning how much water to prepare. Make sure you have plenty of food for them and don’t forget the treats.

I also make sure we have plenty of clean towels on hand and of course a first aid kit.

I know this all seems like a lot, but it’s worth it. Please check with your local weather service for emergency phone numbers. Here’s the link for LIPA weather emergency.

So I will prepare for the worst and hope for the best.

I hope we never have to use any of these emergency procedures but just in case…it’s best to be ready.

If anyone has any other suggestions, I would love to hear them. Please share your wisdom with all of us. Thank you.

Have a Good Green Day!

JoAnn

I apologize for the lack of posts the last few weeks. My brother Henry C. Henning jr. passed away suddenly on Aug. 18th, 2010.  It was a shock and blogging was the last thing on my mind. So I hope you’ll forgive me for not posting. Click

Chloe Eleanor was born at 5lbs 4oz, 19″ and Alexander James was born at 7lbs, 21″, yup that’s 12lbs, 4oz of babies. Both babies and Mom are doing very well.

Aren’t they precious?? (If pictures are missing click on the title “They’re Here” to see them) Stephen is going to be a wonderful Big Brother..He was a little nervous holding her for the first time. He thought he might break her, she is so tiny. He did a bit better with his little brother.

They weren’t supposed to be here yet, so for now it’s disposable diapers until they can fit in the new cloth diapers. Then she will use a combination of both cloth and disposable. We do the best we can, it’s difficult to not be lured by convenience especially with twins or more. We have however, lessened our use of styrofoam plates, which makes me very happy.

I love hearing from you all, so please leave a comment, question or suggestion.

In the meantime, try to re-use and recycle as much as you can. Try to take a baby step today toward being more green minded.

Have a wonderfully good green day!!

JoAnn

My husband and I share our house with my daughter and her family, we get along great and it just makes more sense this way. Now we will have two more people to share our home with. I love it. What’s better than a house filled with love. It’s definitely worth giving up my sewing room, I’ll just take over the smaller room, we call it the “Library”, but it’s more like an office/guest room….now /sewing room. It’s small but cozy. So now I can read, take a nap, pay bills and sew all in one “cozy” room. I’m sure in the future I’ll also do crafts with the twins. I see lots of fun coming my way.

Lisa’s Baby Shower was this weekend. We had a wonderful time, she received so many wonderful gifts and is so appreciative of them all. She was a Girl Scout Leader last year and her girls all chipped in and went shopping with her co-leader. They decided to get her an assortment of essentials….diapers, wipes, bottles etc. so she could try them all and decide which she likes best.

I made her a “cake” out of cloth diapers in hopes she will give them a try. If not they make good burp cloths and then later on great dust rags.

I will post later on and let you know what green decisions they have decided to make. I’m thinking it’s going to be hard to not go for what’s convenient with twins, a teenager and a job. It’s so much easier to be a Grandmother. Can’t wait to hold those babies.

Aunt Joanne gave her this wonderful basket full of very cute and useful goodies. It’s wrapped in this very light fabric that Lisa said I could have. I am going to make produce bags out of it so we can leave the plastic bags at the store. I’ll post a tutorial to share with you. Someone once told me that sheer curtains can be re-purposed for this as well.

If anyone has any other ideas on re-using gift wrapping materials please share with the class.

She also got 6 handmade blankets, one more beautiful than the next.  Actually, there were 8, I made two quilts, another friend made her two and another had her sister in-law make four crocheted afghans. There is nothing like a handmade gift.

I could go on and on about baby stuff but I’ll stop now.

I’m hoping to post some tutorials soon re-using and re-purposing old items. If you have an ideas that you would like me to try out please let me know, I would be happy to post them here.

I wish you all a Good Green Day.

JoAnn

I hope everyone will forgive the inconsistent postings, I’ve been busy with helping my daughter get ready for the twins and taking some time to spend with my 13 year old grandson, Stephen, while he still likes all of us. lol

Anyway, I have been planning Lisa’s baby shower, which takes place this Saturday. As I picked up the pretty little paper cake plates, I felt like a fraud. Here I am suggesting we stop using disposables and I’m about to buy some paper plates. So I made a compromise….paper not plastic and no styrofoam. I will do the best I can to not waste and make it easy at the same time. The shower is not at my house so I don’t have total control, but I think just the fact that we stop and think a minute before we buy can lessen the footprint we leave behind. I promised myself I would take this slow and not stress myself out over it and that’s what I do when I compromise.
My advice for today? Don’t let it become stressful, compromise and choose wisely. Recycle when you can and reuse, re use, reuse. My next few posts will be on reusing and repurposing. It’s going to be fun with pictures, tutorials and some great links. So I hope you keep on coming back.

Have a Good Green Day!!

JoAnn

I have been doing a lot of thinking lately about babies. No, I’m not having one but my daughter is. Actually she is having two. Twins, wow. A boy and a girl. She also has a 13 year old son. Twins and a teenager, she’s going to have her hands full but I know she will love every minute of it.

I thought I would take some time to look into what it takes to go green while bringing up baby.
The thought of using cloth diapers and doing laundry every 3 minutes makes my head spin.
So, of course, I am in the process of finding some alternatives for all the moms out there.
As usual I do not take an all or nothing at all approach to going green. There has to be a choice for each mom’s lifestyle and I hope I can put you in touch with some web sites that can help you choose.
I also hope to bring you some tutorials to make some reusable shopping totes.
In the meantime, remember to reuse and recycle whenever possible.

Have a  Good Green Day,

JoAnn

Now it’s time to get back to plastics.  Although I’m still confused  ~seems to be a constant with me lately~I have found some interesting sites.

Back in April 2008 the Today show did a story on plastic safety. This story talks about the numbers on the bottom of plastic that were used for recycling purposes but are now used to determine safety.

To read more go here.

The Washington Post has an article that goes into more depth about chemicals here.

Then I went to  plasticinfo.org  and it tells a different story.

So basically there is still some confusion but I say lets err on the side of caution. Use BPA free baby bottles, baby cups and other plastic containers. If you are going to reuse your water bottles make sure you clean them well and let them dry before you use them again to keep bacteria from growing. Better still when you can, get out a pretty glass fill it with ice and tap water add a little lemon and enjoy. How about getting out those beautiful casserole dishes and pretty bowls and use them in the microwave. I think it’s a good excuse to use all that great stuff everyday instead of waiting for a special occassion. Most casserole dishes are microwave safe, make sure you check first. I think I’m going to do a little shopping on e-bay to see if I can find some pretty casseroles for myself.

Have a good green day and don’t forget to leave a comment. I love hearing back from you.

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I took my Grandson to see the latest Harry Potter movie today. I take him to see every new Harry Potter movie the day it comes out. I’m a little sad that there are only two movies left, and then the tradition ends. Of course, by then he will be 14 and probably won’t want to be seen with his Grams. Anyway, on the way out to the car we passed Michael’s craft store. Right inside the door they had a recycle bin just for plastic bags. I knew they were out there but this was the first time I had seen one. I was excited because I always feel so guilty about throwing those bags out. I try to use my canvas bags when I shop, but sometimes I forget them, and you know Hubby is not gonna leave the house with a pink canvas bag. I’m just so happy he’s willing to help with the shopping that I don’t want to push it. So I’m left with all these plastic bags lying around. I even got one of those cute little bags that hold them. You stuff the plastic bags in through the top and pull them out the bottom. I try to reuse them when possible but recycling them is so much better. Some grocery chains will give you a couple of cents back for every bag you reuse. I’m still unemployed so anytime someone wants to give me a few cents back, I’m going to take it.

Our baby step today is recycling those plastic bags. Next time you go shopping check and see if they have a bin. I found two in one day, one at Michael’s and one at the grocery store. (Stop and Shop). It even gives me an excuse to go to the craft store, gotta love that.

Do you have any traditions you share with your children or grandchildren, maybe a niece, nephew or cousin? I would love to hear them. Thanks for visiting, looking forward to reading your comments, stories, questions and suggestions.