Here's My Great Green Idea!

Our family has gone to green extremes! We currently began recycling everything possible, instead of throwing it away. We recycle all cardboard, plastics, glass, etc. This has cut the amount we actually throw away by at least 75%. We also recycle alum. cans and use the money we make from them for our vacation fund- 3 years ago we paid for our Dineyworld trip with pocket change and recycling funds. We also replaced our old ac/ furnance with a new high effiency one and our planning on at least replacing our front windows this summer to help conserve energy. We try to buy in bulk to conserve packaging materials and we use cloth grocery bags. When the weather is nice we all walk to the nearby grocery store. This spring/ summer we are planting a rain garden- using native plants with longer roots which will help stormwater runoff and we are purchasing two rain barrels to collect rain runoff from our gutters. The rain barrels will allow us to water our lawn and plants without using tap water. We are also purchasing a reel mower so we can "mow" our yard without hurting the environment. We have also tried to connect with parents that have children participating in our childrens activities to carpool. We have come a long way in the last couple of years and are constantly looking for ways to improve our "greenness".