going green Archives

Change Your Energy Usage and Win New Appliances with Ford My Energi Lifestyle

May 20, 2013 by Momstart Leave a Comment

My husband and I just recently went electric/hybrid. We traded in our gas guzzling van in for an all electric Ford Focus and an Ford Fusion Hybrid and I’m LOVING the change. Going to the gas station gave me a heart attack because we were filling once or twice a week at $60 a punch. Sharing a car with my husband was ending up going to Redmond and back about twice a day if I wanted the car. (stay tuned for four different energy efficient car reviews) Since I’m so happy with my energy savings I want to find other ways to save energy and share them with you. Let’s all change our Lifestyle.

Ford and the MyEnergi Lifestyle^® initiative have kicked off the MyEnergi Lifestyle retrofit contest with Katie Couric on her syndicated talk show “Katie.” Homeowners can enter this national contest for a chance to win a package that includes a Ford C-MAX Energi –America’s most affordable plug-in hybrid vehicle, new Whirlpool brand appliances, a SunPower solar power system and other home products designed to bring energy-efficient living to a typical American family.

The contest is now open and runs through June 9, with the grand prize winner to be announced this summer.

Through the MyEnergi Lifestyle initiative, Ford is bringing together leaders in the home appliance, renewable energy and power management industries – including Eaton, SunPower and Whirlpool. Additional featured companies are semiconductor provider Infineon and Nest Labs.

WHY YOU SHOULD CHANGE YOUR APPLIANCES:

As Americans’ thirst for energy grows, recent advancements in technology make this the ideal time to demonstrate the benefits of optimizing a family’s energy footprint. Along with 729 gallons of gasoline and 122,000 cubic feet of natural gas, the average home in America uses more than 11,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity a year; in 1930, the figure was 500 kilowatt-hours. That’s an increase of 2,100 percent.

Home appliances have made huge gains in reducing energy usage. Today, the typical smart appliance, like a refrigerator, uses 70 percent less energy than one built in 1980.

Earth Day Sid The Science Kid Going Green DVD Giveaway

April 19, 2011 by Momstart 86 Comments

It’s Earth Week, and yes I missed the boat, it started on Monday, or Sunday, not entirely sure. According to Sid the Science kid and his Earth Day week it started on Monday. "Sid the Science Kid," the half-hour animated series that inspires preschoolers to discover their world, is celebrating Environment & Habitat Week April 18-22! You can enjoy them all on Sid the Science Kid: Going, Going, Green! as well.

His celebration starts off with four episodes commemorating Earth Day, Sid and his friends find the answers to these questions about water, clean air, trash and trees:

What happens to water that goes down the drain?
Why does Sid’s dad wear a mask when he paints?
Where does trash go when you throw it away?
Can an old stump be a home for tiny creatures?

We love watching Sid the Science Kid and watching these episodes was no different. Sid has a great way of putting things we may think of as difficult to explain to children in their terms. They find that if Sid can do it they can do it. We were watching the episode about when the air gets dirty. It started off with Sid’s dad painting and using a mask so he was protected from the fumes. Sid was confused because he couldn’t see the fumes, which is a true statement. How do we know when the air is dirty when we can’t see it. So Miles was pretty interested in learning as he watched Sid learn about air pollution.

Sid the Science kid going green will help you teach your children four different areas on how to keep our beautiful earth clean all year round.

Sid would love for you to celebrate Earth Day with him! Check your local listings for time to watch Environment & Habitat Week April 18-22!

Tuesday, April 19 (Repeats on Earth Day Friday, April 22)

207: “Clean Air!” Sid the roving reporter is investigating something strange in his backyard–his Dad is wearing a mask while painting. Sid discovers that his Dad is protecting his face so he doesn’t breathe in the dirty fumes. At school, Sid and his friends discover that people and animals on Earth need to breathe clean air, and when we pollute the air around us, it affects the air that everyone breathes. The kids also discover that trees have a really important role in keeping our air clean!

Wednesday, April 20

208: “Reused Robot” Sid’s toy robot is broken, so he wants to throw it "away." Sid’s Mom tells him there is no such thing as "away," and when we put something in the trash, we are actually creating waste. Sid and his friends explore the idea that everything we throw away goes somewhere. This leads to an investigation of how to recycle and reuse items so that we make less trash.

Thursday, April 21

209: “Save The Stump” Sid is super excited because his Dad is clearing out space in the yard for a basketball court! While Sid and Dad are surveying the land, Sid notices a big stump teeming with little creatures! During a special field trip to The Science Center, Sid and his friends discover that there are animal habitats all around us, even in old stumps, and if one habitat is destroyed, all of the other habitats and animals are affected.

Also for later use:

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Sid the Science Kid: Going, Going, Green!

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Earth Day Sid The Science Kid Going Green DVD #Giveaway @momstart http://bit.ly/fdvDnw

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This giveaway ends May 9th. All rules can be found under giveaway rules.

Disclosure – A product was provided to me free of charge by the manufacturer or representing PR agency for the writing of this review; however, opinions expressed are my own and are NOT influenced by monetary compensation.

Let’s Talk Green For Earth Day, With Wubbzy Goes Green #giveaway

April 2, 2010 by Momstart 24 Comments

Do your little ones love Wow Wow Wubbzy? Well Wubbzy is going green for Earth Day.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!

This DVD gets a green thumbs-up when the cute and quirky bendy-tailed character from the hit Emmy Award^®-winning Nick Jr.^® preschool TV series goes from yellow to…green in “Wubbzy Goes Green,” an exciting, brand-new DVD featuring a bounty of adorable and Earth-friendly episodes!

In order to help celebrate the new release – and Mother Earth Mom Start is giving away one of the DVDs. But also Anchor Bay has partnered with the Alliance for Community Trees (ACT). For every “Wubbzy Goes Green” DVD sold, Anchor Bay will donate $1 to ACT to help support the planting of trees in playgrounds and schoolyards across the country! The special tree-planting initiative “sprouted” yesterday (April 1) and continues through May 31, 2010.

And to further ”plant the seeds” of green-themed consciousness among the budding environmentalists in your family, following are some tips and cool “tree trivia” inspired by “Wubbzy Goes Green” and ACT:

v Take along washable cups or travel mugs instead of disposables.

v Turn off the faucet while brushing your teeth.

v Volunteer with community organizations that plant trees like the Alliance for Community Trees!

Trees make for thriving children!

For more information, please visit: http://actrees.org.

To Enter:

Tell me how you plan on celebrating Earth Day!

No Extra Entries on this one, I just want to have a conversation about going green. So you can mention anything you want as many times as you want. Let’s talk Green.

Repax Reusable Grocery/Shopping Bags #giveaway

January 18, 2010 by Momstart 464 Comments

Going green is on everyone’s mind, even the mass merchandisers. Companies like Target are offering cents off for every reusable bag you bring in for shopping. Most grocery bags end up in the trash can and then in a land fill and it takes forever for them to decompose. So it’s very important to remember to bring in your reusable bags. Save money and the environment.

Repax Bags are cute, stylish reusable bags that fold up super tiny so they are easily stored. They come four to a bag, and each one is a very generous size. Four durable, light-weight bags that hold up to 20 lbs each! Each stores in a easy-to-stash matching storage pouch. They are machine washable lay flat to dry. Each Repax bag is 22” wide and 24” tall.They sent me a set to review and here is my opinion:

They come in three different colors, Lagoon, Mango and Grasshopper. I received the Mango bags that are pictured above. I have found that they hold a great deal of groceries and that you have to tell the bagger to keep stuffing them full. They are strong little bags that hold a TON. I love how small they fold because it makes them much easier to keep in the diaper bag. You don’t even have to fold them, just wad them up and stuff them in the pouch, or keep them all separate in your purse. That’s the biggest issue with me and using reusable bags is that I have to remember to keep them in a place where they will be used. I think right now, most of my bags are in the garage and not the van.

Buy Them:

You can purchase them on-line or in Wholefoods Market.

One reader will receive a set of Repax Reusable Bags.

To Enter:

Visit Repax Bags and tell me which design you prefer (required)

Visit the Green Blog and tell me what the top story is about. (2 points)

Become a fan of Repax on Facebook (2 points)

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Going Green, cell phone recycling

January 9, 2010 by Momstart 8 Comments

This is just a portion of a large photo taken by photographer Chris Jordan. He has taken a lot of pictures regarding American Mass Consumption. It’s horribly mesmerizing that there is so much junk that he can take a series of photos about our trash and waste. The photos are beautiful but they speak loudly at our great amount of waste.

When was the last time you really thought about all your waste? Do you really think about your cell phone usage and that upgrade to the newest iphone or whatever version of cell phone that you upgrade to? What do you do with the last one. I once asked my sister if she ever considered it and she said, “we always pass our phones down”. So I asked her, what happens to that last one? She just shrugged her shoulders at me. Which meant, she didn’t really care and had never thought about it. She only thought about the fact that she thought she was doing something good because she handed her phone off to someone else, therefore making the problem someone else’s problem to think about.

What if you could recycle your phone and get paid for it too? I’m sure many of you already know about phone recycling programs. I’ve heard of them, like different cell phone recycling programs or making a cell phone donation to troops. There are a few, but I had never heard of Flipswap before. At Flipswap you can do a cell phone trade in for money donate it to charity, or trade it for a different one, and in the process you are reducing the waste on the planet. Flipswap will provide you with the shipping label so there is no cost to you making this donation. You print it out and slap it on your phone, it’s that easy.

Check out my new disclosure policy.

Giggles the Green Bean Turns Stinkytown into Greentown

November 24, 2009 by Momstart 5 Comments

Giggles the Green Bean turns Stinkytown into Greentown by Lauren Davis and illustrated by Michael Vincent Fusco is a children’s book teaching them about recycling and other ways to be green.

This book is for ages 4 and up, and I say that because my kids have trouble sitting still long enough for me to finish reading the pages. The wise old cabbage teaches Giggles that you need to recycle, use water wisely, use fewer paper products, save energy, and eat healthy food. All of these concepts are presented with an example that children can understand. So, if you want to learn more about being green and share these ideas with your kids, Giggles the Green Bean is the perfect way to go green as a family. Just watch as Giggles uses what he learns to transform stinkytown into greentown.

This book was sent to us for a blog tour hosted by The Parent Reviewers and Giggles the Green Bean..