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We are Moved into our New Small Space

May 28, 2013 11

Hello, Friends! How was your Memorial Day weekend? Were you able to spend the weekend with family and friends. We spent the weekend cleaning our old home and moving into our new one. While this wasn’t a long distance move for us – it was still pretty time consuming! We are almost completely moved in – the only things left to do are hang the curtains and organize the garage. Hooray!

Initially, I was concerned with the size of our new home, it is 1/2 the size of our last home and the smallest home that we have lived in since the mister and I married. This was deliberate, we wanted to downsize and have been talking about it forever. And while saying you want to downsize is very fine and dandy, actually doing it is quite another thing. I quickly realized that not all of our furniture or belongings would fit into our new space – so it was time to do a lot of editing. It felt good to donate a large portion of items to our local shelter and it’s funny how you really don’t miss “things” as much as you think that you would. We also found several simple creative ways to maximize our space – I will be sharing these ideas soon.

The best parts of downsizing so far include; being super close to Eben’s school, the mister’s work and friends (our commute has almost completely disappeared), a small two bedroom home takes just a few minutes each morning and evening to tidy up (not to mention heat and cool – our first electric bill just came – 1/2 the price of our last home and our large front patio is quickly becoming my favorite space, watch for that makeover to come soon as well.

How was your weekend? Did you move too – I hear that Memorial Day weekend is the busiest moving weekend of the year! I would love to hear how you are doing – what adventures lay ahead for you?

Full Disclosure: This is a sponsored post written by Sweet Greens – thank you for supporting the companies that keep Sweet Greens in business, I really appreciate it! 

Save Money and Energy with Electric Radiant Floor Heating

May 24, 2013 4

Note from Sweet Greens: The following post on saving money and energy with electric radiant floor heating is a post from Nick Johnson. Nick is an author and a contributor to Heat Tech Products, an online retailer of electric floor heating mats. Thank you for supporting the companies that help to run Sweet Greens!

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Underfloor, or radiant, heating dates back to the Neolithic and Neoglacial periods, when ancient Asians and Aleutian islanders used smoke from their fires to heat trenched dug into their floors and filled with stones. The heat from the stones rose, warming the subterranean living space. Today’s radiant heating follows the same basic concept; it uses electrical coils or panels installed beneath the floor to heat the flooring itself, allowing the heat to radiate upwards into the room.

Electric in-floor radiant heating offers many benefits over traditional heating methods, for both one’s immediate environment and the larger ecosystem as well. Forced air furnaces often suffer heat loss through leaks in their duct work, essentially wasting heat and energy. Furnaces system heat cold air, releasing warm air into the room, where it rises and dissipates, leaving cold spots and causing the system to continually cycle on and off as it calls for more heat. A radiant floor system, however, only heats the floor above it, and while the warm air still rises, it does so much more slowly. The flooring itself often retains heat for hours afterward, thus requiring less energy to heat the room. If combined with the installation of a large thermal mass, such as a concrete floor, and your utility company offers time-of-use rates, the energy and money savings is even more significant. The floor is “charged” only during off-peak hours, and retains enough heat to warm the room for 8-10 hours before requiring another charge. Large furnace systems can be quite noisy as they run through their cycles; radiant floors effectively heat rooms without disturbing sound.

Another big advantage of in-floor electric heating is the reduction of allergens and pollutants. Forced air furnaces blow air through ducts and vents, picking up dust and bacteria along the way, and distributing them throughout the home. Radiant heating heats only the floor, eliminating the need for dust trapping returns and vents. Radiant floor systems also create a safer environment by reducing moisture on floors and in rooms, thereby reducing mold, dust mites, and bacteria, as well as the risk of slipping on a wet floor. Electric radiant systems are even more efficient if installed beneath masonry surfaces like tile, terrazzo, and concrete, all of which have low volatile organic compound emissions(VOCs.)

Radiant floor heat saves money-up to 40% more than radiator or forced-air systems, and is a better, safer choice for our planet as well.

photo credit

Kids DIY: Simple Organic Pinecone Birdfeeders

May 22, 2013 5

Our backyard is a huge nature preserve and one of Eben’s favorite spring time activities is to sit on our patio and watch the birds darting in and out of the trees. After a few days of minimal visits from our feathered friends, we decided to entice them to visit our backyard more often. We grabbed a couple of pinecones from the front yard, a huge scoop of organic nut butter, some baker’s twine and a bowl full of organic nuts and seeds and headed outside to make them a little treat. This craft only takes a few minutes, however it combines everything that children love – getting their hands dirty, having a little snack, making something fun and nature. Read on for the full directions and enjoy an afternoon making simple, spring organic pinecone birdfeeders for your backyard.

What you will need:

  • pinecones
  • baker’s twine
  • organic nut butter
  • organic nuts and seeds
  • scissors

Step 1: Add the Baker’s Twine
Simply tie a piece of baker’s twine around the pinecone near the top. This would be the perfect time to reuse a large piece of ribbon, string or yarn that you have lying around the house.

Step 2: Add the Nut Butter
Roll the pinecones in nut butter until it is completely coated, you can also use a knife – Eben decided to dig right in and use his fingers and hands to get the nut butter into every nook and cranny. 

Step 3: Add the Nuts and Seeds
Then, he rolled the nut butter covered pinecones in the nuts and seeds until the entire surface of the pinecone were completely covered. He even pushed a lot of pieces into the folds of the pinecones for added hidden bonuses.

Step 4: Hang It
Pick a place in your backyard where you have seen birds visit before. We hung out pinecone birdfeeders next to our regular birdfeeder hoping that it would easily attract our friends.

Step 5: Listen and Watch
After we hung our feeders, we sat on the our patio and waited for the birds to arrive. We had a delightful afternoon watching the birds nibbling at our pinecone birdfeeders!

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This organic pinecone birdfeeder DIY was featured in this month’s issue of Green Child Magazine, grab your copy here or download it on iTunes here.

Twelve

May 15, 2013 5

Today is a very special day – it is the birthday of my favorite person in the whole world, Eben. 12 years ago today my life was forever changed and has been better in every single way possible. Eben can always make me laugh, teaches me new things everyday and always has a hug waiting for me. I am very thankful that I get to share my life with this amazing person. He is my sunshine, my inspiration, my heart. He is the best thing that I have ever done in my life – my masterpiece.

Happy Birthday, Eben – I love you to the moon and back!

Ecocentric Mom Box Review + Mother’s Day Coupon Code

May 8, 2013 2

As part of my partnership with Ecocentric Mom, I will be receiving one of their monthly subscription boxes for review each month. So fun! When I found this month’s box waiting for me with my mail – I was super excited, kind of like it was my birthday. Eben loves it too – he immediately wants to sift through all of the goodies and pick out something fun to try!

If you are interested in giving Ecocentric Mom Box a try – you can get a 10% discount on any subscription with the coupon code ECOMOM10. Wouldn’t this be a perfect Mother’s Day surprise!

If you were a member this month, this is what you would have received:

#1: Natures Gate Rice Bran Facial Moisturizer
Free from harmful toxins including phathlates, artificial fragrances, mineral oil, parabens and petroleum. I really enjoyed trying this out, so yummy and refreshing.

#2: Good Green Bar
I loved this gluten-free, vegan wellness bar made from dehydrated super foods. I threw it in my yoga bag for a great post workout snack!

#3: Linwoods Super Food Blends
These are also gluten-free and vegan and are perfect for sprinkles
on your morning yogurt, cereal or your dinner salad.

#4: Biotin Shampoo, Condition + Body Wash
These are also made by Nature’s Gate and are super yummy – I have really enjoyed using them.

#5. Fryefly Organic Serenity Tea
Tea is my thing – so I was excited to try the 100% certified organic herbal tea. I enjoyed the flavor and these are perfect for packing in my handbag for on the go.

#6: Nature’s Kick Honeystix
Eben loves Honeystix, so he immediately confiscated these – I had to get them back and give them to him as a little treat when we are driving home from school. These would also be fantastic to keep in your handbag for that afternoon tea on the go.

#7. WEXY Biodegradable Snack Bags
These fun biodegradable snack bags are BPA free, recyclable and reusable too! They come in an assortment of fun graphics – perfect for your child’s lunchbox.

#8. 7th Heaven 100% Natural Face Mask 
 I love a good face mask and this one is vegan and organic too! What a great way to pamper yourself after a long day of work.

#9: Boring Goats Goat Milk Soap
I love goat milk soap, it is so creamy and refreshing. This particular goat milk soap comes from a family farm located in Oregon. Fantastic!

#10: Kelapo Extra Virgin Coconut Oil
We use this to substitute for butter or oil in our baked good. I also use it as a deep-moisturizing mash for my hair a couple of times a month.

#11. There was also an assortment of coupons for these particular products included in the box, including a Frego (plastic-free food storage) $5 gift card and a Bamboo Bailey (eco-friendly and recycled product emporium) $10 gift card.

Full Disclosure: As an Ecocentric Mom Team Blogger, I receive monthly subscription boxes for review. All of the opinions expressed are completely my own. Affiliate links appear in the post.

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