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Have a Lovely Weekend + A Few Green Things

September 19, 2014 0

fall

Hello, Friends! How was your week? I hope it was a nice one. Are you experiencing fall weather or maybe even winter weather where you live? It’s amazing how quickly the weather changes, and all of sudden we are in fall. Even here in Florida, it has been a little cooler than usual. It will only last a couple of days though, so I better enjoy it! As the mister and I were sitting on the patio last night, he pointed at my legs and laughed that I had goosebumps!

The cooler weather has me thinking of Halloween which just makes me more excited. Am I the only one? I have found myself pinning all kinds of Halloween ideas lately! And I have already started to think of costume, food, and decor ideas too. I jokingly asked the mister if it was too early to break out the decorations – he just gave me the look. I guest October 1st is early enough for him. Ha! While I pin a few million more ideas, here are a few green things to take you into the weekend:

– This adorable piggy knows how to cool off in style.
– Have you ever tried Aloe Vera Water? I want to try it.
– You can still plant a fall garden, this will get you started.
– I am happy to hear Whole Foods is offering more affordable produce and core items.
– What if everyone swapped their cars for bikes! Yes.

I hope you have an amazing fall weekend, I will see you back here on Monday!

xo,
Sweet Greens

Rock Your Child’s Lunch Box with These Great Green Options!

September 18, 2014 0

Rock-the-Lunch-Box

Back to school time means so many things for all of us – new school schedules, jugging family/work, after school activities, homework; the list goes on and on!  With so many things on our daily agenda, you need a back-to-school lunch menu to get you through the week!

Ebens Lunchbox

When Eben was younger, we loved the Laptop Lunches bento box, we had an extensive menu that we would pack for him! Now, that Eben is in middle school – it means that lunchtime is actually social time, and lunch is really an after thought – we really had to get creative to ensure he was eating. So instead of packing him a huge lunch in a bento box that he won’t have the time to really sit down and enjoy, we have resorted to sending him with several mini-lunch options that he can nibble on throughout the day.

We participated in Rock the Lunchbox this year and received a bunch of great coupons and healthy lunch ideas, so we decided to take the coupons and start to build a new lunch menu for Eben. We have been packing an assortment of organic meats, cheeses, fruit, vegetables, nuts and seeds too – all in the Kids Conserve nesting tins! We also tried out the new Applegate Half Time Lunches, these are perfect for those mornings when something pops up and I start to run out of time! We already love Honest Kids pouches and utilize them when we are short on time too!

Lunch

For fun, I asked Eben to draw me a picture of his dream lunch – and I about died of laughter! I love the blue “natural Jello” – is that an oxymoron or what? And hi drawing a pickle is spot on! Too funny!

To learn more about Rock the Lunchbox, visit Rock the Lunch Box and grab your coupons and get more healthy lunch ideas to rock your child’s lunch box too! So, I’m wondering – what’s in your child’s lunchbox?

 

Full Disclosure: This post was created in partnership with Stonyfield – however, I would have told you about these products anyway, since we already use them!

Have a Lovely Weekend + A Few Green Things

September 12, 2014 0

Jennie Lyon Green Market

Hello, Friends! How was your week? Are you getting into the back to school routine? Can  you believe it is already September? It’s been a good school year here so far, just chugging along. So nice!

Since summer seemed so crazy busy to me, I have a lot of fun plans sprinkled into the Lyon family schedule for fall and winter. And with Thanksgiving and winter break right around the corner, I find myself giddy thinking about it! Are you the same way? Do you find yourself craving more family time, game nights and secret road trips? Me too! Well, I better get back to work – it is Friday after all, which means there are a lot of last minute things to finish up! While I get back to work, here are a few green things to take you into the weekend:

– This adorable dog just wants to take a dip in the ocean! Me too!
– Have you seen this adopted dog lay in a dog bed for the first time?
– A mongoose takes on 4 lions! Yikes.
– Would you live in a house clinging to a cliff?
– I am so glad that the mister and I decided to embrace “our normal” a long time ago!
– Getting married this fall? I love these DIY wedding edible favors!

Have a great weekend – I will see you back here on Monday!

xo,
Sweet Greens

P.S. The above photo is from our green market that opens again in 1 month! I can’t wait!

 

The Main Differences Between Living in Costa Rica and the U.S.

September 9, 2014 1

Costa-Rica

by Beth

For those of you I haven’t bragged to yet, I live with my boyfriend, cat, and dog in Costa Rica. Yes, it’s everything you’d imagine it to be! We recently moved to a beautiful space near the Arenal Volcano, with a view of the largest man made lake, Lake Arenal. I could write for days about how wonderful Costa Rica is, so I’ll start off with the basics, and some differences between Costa Rica and the U.S.

Costa Rica is so incredibly different that the United States in many ways. For one, it only has two seasons, the dry, high, tourist season, which runs from November to May, and the wet, low season, which runs from June to October. This means of course, no snow! But that being said, there is plenty of variation between the seasons to keep things interesting, although spending Christmas in 90 degree weather will be quite a change! We moved to Costa Rica at the end of April, after a very, very harsh winter in Cleveland, so being here during the rainy season has been such a great change. We’re excited to see what the dry season brings!

With no official winters, this means that there’s exotic fruit available all year round, and there’s always something tasty in season! We head to the fería (farmer’s market) and buy pineapple, papaya, mangoes, oranges, star fruit, watermelon, cantaloupe, and the like and enjoy fruit as our snacks. It’s great! We also get raw chocolates, raw goats milk, and can buy handmade jewelry, as well.

The culture here is very hard working, but laid back at the same time. All people let the elderly and seniors get on the bus first, eat first, drink first, etc. People are all generally nice to one another, and will do what they can to help you.

And lastly, Spanish is the main language, and if you don’t know any, you can seem to get by on hand signals and pointing! We know a couple who literally know zero Spanish, and they’ve lived here for three years. How crazy! I on the other hand, prefer to know enough Spanish to get around, which makes things much, much easier.

Of course the United States is beautiful in so many ways, but Costa Rica brings a tropical beauty that is incomparable. It is one of the most bio-diverse countries in the world, aside from the Amazon rainforest, and brings with it an amazing array of plants and animals, some of which can be deadly!

All in all Costa Rica is an amazing place. I can’t wait to write more about what it offers and how we live a simple, green life here. If you have questions or would like me to cover a certain topic, let me know in the comments section above!

REVIEW: Beautiful Eco-Friendly Shoes for Your Green Journey

September 8, 2014 0

Nisolo Shoes

by Jennie

I’d like to think we each strive on a daily basis to do our best in the world. On most days I’m sure most of us do our best to make it to work on time and get the kids to school with all their homework. Oftentimes shopping is a luxury we don’t have time for with our busy lives. Not to mention shoe shopping can become a guilty pleasure for some who may have significant others who think they have too many! However, once you check out Nisolo there’s no turning back!

Living in Florida, my go-to shoes are sandals, really they are all that I wear – unless I am heading out to go paddleboarding or biking. Nisolo sent me a pair of their Delicias Sandal in Scarlet (which is more of a firey orange, and I immediately feel in love.) Not only are they super comfortable, but they look amazing with both skinny jeans and fun dresses and shorts – perfect for these last few weeks of summer and early fall!

Nisolo Shoes 2

However, all of dreamy shoes featured at Nisolo are backed by their mission statement which reads, “As consumers, we are not alone in the world. We recognize that our small choices have a big impact somewhere else. As producers, we are not alone. We have access to the global market and fair compensation for our work. We are a team of makers, doers, and storytellers working together to facilitate a healthy connection between consumers and producers in the global marketplace.” Their game changing impact is about rethinking the way fashion is done. Nisolo facilitates international market access, pays above fair trade wages, offers skills training, and provides safe working conditions. Their stated result? Consistent employment, an average income increase of 300% per producer, improved living conditions, inaugural access to education and savings, and above all, dignity and empowerment.

Mustard Flats

Aside from the overall good feelings your purchase itself has to offer wait until you check out the shoes! The Scarlet Delicias Sandal come highly recommend (you will adore them!) but I think I’ve also decided to pick up a pair of the Espresso Bolivar Wedge and the Mendez Flats in Mustard!

The point is you should do yourself a favor and take a few minutes today to do a little shoe shopping and empower the world!

 

Full Disclosure: I received a pair of Scarlet Delicias Sandals to review – however, I would have shared them with you anyway, because they are fabulous!

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