As Crunchy as I Want to Be
I’m so, so far from the most consistently green/crunchy person around (or, really, the most consistently *anything* person). But as I do make changes in my life—ever so slowly so much of the time—they do tend toward the health-conscious, the environmentally responsible, and the frugal side of things. Perhaps that’s obvious, as it’d be hard to imagine someone consciously making decisions in the opposite direction, but just go with me on this. In theory, I’d like to be considerably more crunchy than I am/we are as a family. But realistically, there are so many aspects to consider—so many habits, so many products, so many projects, so many ideas, so many opinions, so much information—and I know from experience that if I try to make too many changes too fast I get way overwhelmed and end up paralyzed and discouraged.
Some changes seem to take a long time brewing. After considering (and not doing) it for at least three years, we finally took the plunge to participate in a CSA this summer. It has been quite a challenge—in a good way—to use all the beautiful vegetables that we get in the box each week. The best surprise has been how much the boys (especially Ian) have taken to the veggies; I had to cut Ian off of beet greens because I worried what all the fiber would do to his little digestive system.
Other changes are more along the lines of impulse buys. A few days ago I found a recipe for homemade toothpaste on Pinterest and thought it sounded magical. Plus I had a little helper eager to stir the “gredients.” (He also looks like he could host a cooking show. I would totally watch that.)
And, oh good heavens, we will not be making the switch to homemade toothpaste—at least not with this particular recipe. I don’t want to say anything too bad about it because I actually can see how you could get used to it. I think, though, that Jason was relieved when I admitted I didn’t think I could do it. For me it was mainly texture, partly taste—perhaps both. And I suppose that you could tweak it a bit to fix that (more baking soda? more peppermint?), but for now I’m going to concentrate on finding other uses for the rest of the coconut oil.
The same day I made toothpaste, however, I also made some baking soda “shampoo” and apple cider “conditioner.” I’m going to give going ‘Poo Free at least a month. So far, so good.
I’d be so eager to hear what other people do (or don’t do) to be healthy/crunchy/green/frugal/some or all of the above. What books and blogs do you read? What do you make instead of buy? What products do you use? Which ones do you do without? How do you decide? Discuss.
