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This past weekend I had the privilege of spending a couple of days at the first annual 12 Step Buddhist retreat at Breitenbush. What started as an uncomfortable and awkward endeavor transformed into a revealing, peaceful, amazing journey of fellowship, recovery, and spirituality. I left on Sunday feeling refreshed and committed. I left with a sense of purpose with my own personal path, but also a sense of understanding and companionship in my relationship with my husband that wasn’t there before.

If you’re looking for a way to integrate your recovery (or the recovery of someone you love) with the principles of Buddhism, I highly recommend Darren Littlejohn’s book, The 12-Step Buddhist: Enhance Recovery from Any Addiction. And if you have the opportunity to participate in any of his classes, meditations, or groups, I suggest you go. His retreat was my first and I promise it won’t be my last.

The main service I offer is a 60-to 90-minute Green Home Makeover. The steps I recommend and the products I offer, as well as referrals to specialists, can help save you energy and water. I can also help improve your indoor air quality, remove toxic chemicals from your home, reduce the waste you generate (which ends up in landfills) and improve the purity of the water your family drinks. By doing an inventory of your wasteful incandescent lighting, I can also show you how to save $1,000s on your electric bill.

After I have finished the consultation, I will show you tips and products to make your home healthier. I can help you replace your wasteful incandescent bulbs, install low-flow shower heads, upgrade your thermostat and show you toxic-free cleaning options. There are many other green options I offer, which you can find in my online product catalog.

I also offer Green Office Makeovers for small businesses to help them adopt and implement green practices. The tools and solutions I can show businesses will not only help them take their first steps to going green, but also show how to successfully reduce costs and waste. I will present a set of recommendations and concrete steps in areas like energy conservation, creating a toxic-free workplace, green purchasing strategies and sustainable travel and transportation.
Along with the Green Home Makeover and Green Office Makeover, you will receive a three-month “Ask Green Irene” Membership. This extensive, green database allows you to research green questions that may arise after the initial Green Home Makeover and Green Office Makeover. It also allows you the ability to email questions to a Green Irene researcher for an answer to any green question not yet covered in the database.

I welcome you to visit my website at www.GreenIrene.com/rustyrogue where you can find more information about my consulting services as well as look at the products I offer in my product catalog (click on the SHOP NOW icon).

I look forward to talking with you soon about steps you can take for a healthier, greener home and office!

The more I read about our food supply chain (reading now: “Recipe for America: Why Our Food System is Broken and What We Can Do to Fix It”) the more I realize how out of control it is. And the more I want to get back to a place where my family eats real, whole food.

For more information on eating gardening or local and whole foods, check out:

• http://www.lavidalocavore.org/
• http://beginningfarmers.org/
• http://www.goodenoughgardening.com/
• http://livingliberally.org/eating/
• http://www.growingfoodguide.com/
• http://www.livablefutureblog.com/

How does a post-consumerist, reformed brand nazi, shoe loving, gadget toting, Mom of the Millennium make amends to our planet, become a frugal rock star and start back on the green and narrow? One little step at a time. I’ve decided to share some of our ups and downs with you here. What’s working for us and what is not. Maybe you can share with me some of the things that are working for you. I do want to share our latest projects which include the two biggest and most life changing: the simplification and organization of our little cottage AND our new organic veggie and cutting garden. This stuff is all new to me and I’m very excited about all of it. But those posts will have to wait.

Since I promised little steps, I thought I’d start with an easy and very necessary step: bath, body and beauty. Using natural bath, body and beauty products does not have to be an expensive luxury reserved for the wealthy or the occasional splurge of normal folk, such as myself. As a woman and a mother I have to clean and beautify not only myself, but my kids (and the hubby, too). So over the last several months I have been slowly replacing our toiletries and other bath/body goodies with more green and gentle versions. In a perfect world, I’d be able to afford only Origins products and be on my merry way. Unfortunately, I’m not that lucky. Fortunately, there are many great and affordable products out there I can use and even buy at my local Fred Meyer. I’ve jotted down just a few things below to help give you an idea of grocery store ready items you can start using to replace some of your every day stuff. In a post next week, I will share with you some of the amazing handcrafted cosmetics and bath/body goods that are available, as well as how to get started making some goodies on your own.

Bath and Body:

• Burt’s Bees Orange Essence Facial Cleanser
• Burt’s Bees Herbal Deodorant
• Burt’s Bees Green Tea Collection Kit – shampoo, conditioner, soap
• Tom’s of Maine Natural Whole Care Anticavity & Tartar Control Plus Whitening Gel Fluoride Toothpaste, Peppermint, (Pack of 6 is much cheaper)
• Tom’s of Maine Natural Anticavity Fluoride Toothpaste for Children, Silly Strawberry

Makeup:

• Kiss My Face Organics Under Age Ultra Moisturizer (Pack of 3)
• Organic Wear Tinted Moisturizer Light to Natural
• Organic Wear Natural Loose Powder – Translucent Light
• Burt’s Bees – Lip Shimmer – Rhubarb
• Organic Wear 100% Natural Origin Duo Eye Shadow, Hazel Eyes Organics (Pack of 2) – my eyes are blue, but I like this eyeshadow anyway
• Ecco Bella Brown Mascara

Learn more:

• Gorgeously Green: 8 Simple Steps to an Earth-Friendly Life

Composting:

• http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/homecompost/building.html
• http://journeytoforever.org/compost.html
• http://www.howtocompost.org/
• http://www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/rrr/composting/index.htm
• http://vegweb.com/composting/
• http://www.thegardenofoz.org/composting101.asp
• http://sustainable.tamu.edu/slidesets/kidscompost/cover.html (for kids)

Organic veggie garden:

• http://organicgardening.about.com/od/startinganorganicgarden/a/newgarden.htm
• http://www.gardenguides.com/how-to/tipstechniques/vegetables/veggie.asp
• http://www.wikihow.com/Start-an-Organic-Garden
• http://www.ehow.com/how_137608_prepare-organic-vegetable.html
• http://gardeninglaunchpad.com/kids.html (huge list of links for gardening with kids)
• http://www.organicgardening.com/feature/0,7518,s-2-10-1577,00.html (with kids)