Its Easy Being Green...

As long as you live close to a Target at least! I honestly never gave any serious thought to anything I bought or used in my house till I had my first babe. And then you bring home this tiny bundle, and you think about his delicate skin and his tiny immune system and all those chemicals that you never thought twice about haunt you in your dreams. As a family we've made a lot of little changes to "do our part" and I try to keep the number of chemicals in my house to a minimum. We've tried to cut out any plastics that aren't BPA free. We try to buy organic off the dirty dozen list (the twelve fruits and veggies that use the most pesticides, find a list here). The kids use a shampoo and lotion that is phthalate free. Would I do any of this if these things were not readily available at reasonable prices at my beloved Target? Meh. Maybe not. But since it is there, and the difference in price is negligible I go home feeling good about what I buy and use. Here's my list of favorite green things you can find at Target, or any other major grocery store.

1. Method Brand - the picture above shows the products I've used and loved. In fact, with just these products and some vinegar and baking soda, I'm able to keep my house fresh and clean, and smelling like a dream. And most of Method's products are so safe, they are actually edible (though I don't recommend it). I also love it because I can safely let the kids clean up with it (which is win win all around, they are amused, I get my house a little bit cleaner).
2. 
   Burt's Bees Baby Bee Shampoo & Wash and Baby Bee Buttermilk Lotion - This by far is my favorite "green" shampoo for babes, it makes them smell like honey! A few other shampoos we've tried left our son's long locks still greasy, and my daughter's curls dry, but this one works on both their hair. And it seems to last forever.
   
   
   
   
   
3. Clean Well Hand Sanitizer - Here comes my confession time. I hate washing my and my kids hands in a public restroom. The soap makes my hands dry and cracked, there's always water on the counter that gets all over the kid's clothes, while I'm washing one kid's hands, the other is picking stuff off the floor. I just want to get in and out as fast as possible. Hand sanitizer is how I do it. I was so excited to find this all natural one, since my kids love using the sanitizer and it made me nervous to use the ones with alcohol in it. This one is safe for them, smells super clean and is easy to throw in my purse or diaper bag. Everyone I've recommended it to loves it.

In a perfect world everything I bought would be organic and reused and chemical free. But just by making a few small changes to the things I buy everyday, I feel like I'm doing my small part. And its a totally selfish move. I do it because I care about my kids, and figure any little thing I can do that might help them be stronger and healthier is worth it. Helping the earth is just a byproduct. :)