so i’ve decided. i’m going to be decorating baby’s crib in the fisher price rainforest theme. the colors are so vibrant and beautiful (and i LOVE green)!! i haven’t buy anything yet but this is it.

we also order a new platform bed for our new memory foam mattress. we were going to get something from jcpenney but their beds are so expensive and none of the jump at me. how disappointing!!

so i went to walmart and found this! i love the look of it, the color, and the curve headboard! plus it’s “earth-friendly and made with PEFC-certified sustainable wood”. can’t beat that! i figured if we were going to buy something, it might as well be a bit green. the price, $215, wasn’t too hard to swallow either for a bed. i only wished the memory foam mattress was too.

Looking for a relatively painless way to save money? Stop buying things you don’t need.

Next time you mindlessly reach for an item you’ve grown accustomed to buying out of habit, stop and think about whether you really need it. Consuming less (of anything) is not only great for your budget, it also benefits the planet.

Here are some things most of us don’t need to purchase:

• Air fresheners are not only completely unnecessary, but they can also release hazardous chemicals into your home. The Natural Resources Defense Council found phthalates (hormone-disrupting chemicals that are linked to birth defects) in 12 of the 14 common household brands of air fresheners it tested, including those that were labeled “all-natural.” Open your windows and let the fresh (and free) air in. If your home has a persistent odor, your best bet is to find the source and fix it rather than simply masking it.

• Bottled water isn’t proven to be any cleaner or safer than tap (in the United States). The New York Times estimates that it costs $1,400 a year for someone to drink eight glasses a day of bottled water, versus around 49 cents for an annual supply of tap. Drinking filtered water is a lot less expensive, just as healthy, and good for the environment.

• Dryer sheets can do more harm than good since they are loaded with a mixture of synthetic chemicals that can cling to your clothes and be absorbed through your skin. Here’s a cheaper and healthier alternative to make your clothes soft and static free: Add 1/2 cup white distilled vinegar or 1/4 cup baking soda to your laundry, suggests Patti Wood, at Grassroots Environmental Education. Want your clothes and bedding to have a scent? Wood says to spray a small piece of cloth with an essential oil and toss it in your dryer.

• DVDs and books are easily borrowed from the library. Worried about due dates or late fees? Check out the growing number of websites, such as Swaptree, that can help you trade books, movies, music, and video games. Some other money-saving and planet-friendly entertainment tips: Download music from the Internet instead of buying CDs. It’s not free, but you can save money by only purchasing the songs you like and cut back on landfill-clogging packaging. Eliminate your cable television service. See if your favorite shows are available for free on Hulu.

• Trash bags are a necessity for most of us, but that doesn’t mean you always have to pay for them. Consider using the shopping bags you get for free at the grocery store instead of buying new plastic garbage liners. You’re helping the planet by getting two uses out of a bag instead of just one. It’s like having a bag made from 50 percent recycled content, says Martin Wolf, Director of Product & Environmental Technology at Seventh Generation.

• Wrapping paper is something most of us can get along without since a little creativity can go a long way. Raid your recycling bin for old maps, sheet music, kids’ artwork, newspapers, magazines, paper bags, and more. Wrapping gifts in newspaper or magazines need not be dull, especially with a little forethought. Is the recipient a sports fan, gardener, or cook? Choose relevant images or wacky photos. Paper bags can be cut up and decorated (or not).

article from yahoo.

Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green’s users. Send Lori a question or suggestion for potential use in a future column. Her book, Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life is available on Yahoo! Shopping and Amazon.com.

first off, here’s a $10 off coupon for any $50 purchase at walgreens – now through may 2nd. enter code WONDERMOM at checkout.

the simple living guide

clear your clutter with feng shui

creating sacred space with feng shui

i finished reading scaling down, and clear your clutter with feng shui. the latter is a very good read, has great tips, and is very interesting how everything connect together. i’m going to reserve her book, creating sacred space with feng shui. now, i’m starting the simple living guide.

we’d gone through just about everything in the garage and have more donation items that we need to drop off.

i have greatly reduced the amount of clothes faith, jaelynn and i own. now, they have a very reasonable stash, and just the things that i know they will wear and fit. anything that was stained or doesn’t fit right were thrown away or goes in the donation bag.

i decluttered some cupboards in the kitchen – most of them are fill with dishes anyway – so that i left alone. the old spices and seasonings we no longer use or never liked went in the trash. i feel so much better with everything and feel like i have a lot of time each day. i’m starting to get an idea how content and free i feel with everything neat and orderly. sure, i was content before but this feeling is slightly different. you’ll have to experience it to know for yourself.

my next steps are the bathrooms – although i sorta declutter them a bit already. and the last step is my skincare and make up stuff. most of it is going to trash because i don’t care for them. you should see our walk in closet! i mean that in a good way. it’s clean and tidy.

i also didn’t just threw the clothes away; i cut and made a bunch of shirts into cloth rags. 2 goals i have for us in the next 2 months (until we’re out of our current supply of paper towels and water bottles) is to be paper towel-free and water-bottle-free. that’s going to be a big step for james but i feel we can make it work. therefore, all the cloth rags that we’ll need for the transition; by cutting these shirts into rags, we won’t have to spend money to buy any re-usable towels.

go to http://www.thatscaring.com/ and register to join their community and receive a free tote bag!

you should receive an email shortly after registration on where to have your tote bag mail.

thanks to amyc2000 from slickdeals.

i’ll post a photo of my stash soon. my original budget for cloth diapers was $150. well, i ended up spending $200. here’s what i got:

23 little lions prefolds

13 newborn fitteds

6 small gdiaper covers

9 small/newborn covers

some doublers and pins.

i was practicing using a prefold on one of jaelynn’s dolls to get a feel – i’m going to need more practice. LOL

OT: get 1 year of prevention magazine free by filling out this short survey! (i did!) thanks to slickdeals! i have always receive my magazines from rewardsgold. i actually have a bunch of subscription magazines that come every month. the ones i don’t bother to read are elle (only flip through them), interview, and some others. i just throw them in the recycle bin. i do love shape, glamour, redbook, and body and soul.

i bought some new things for the household again (i always buy things *sigh*. and i use “household” because it’s not really for me. )

preserve toothbrushes in soft – you can recycle them afterwards. i’ve tried them before and love them! $16.22 for a pack of 6.

preserver toothbrushes for kids in soft – these are so cool! i love the idea of recycling, don’t you? and comes in colors. $17.22 for a pack of 6.

dropps laundry pacs - you use 1 small liquid pack per load of laundry. biodegradable and eco friendly. looks great huh? i’m going to use them for the baby’s diapers. they’re suppose to be low sudsing too. can’t wait to try them. $25.50 for 84 pacs (2 x 42 pacs each).

for two of the above products, i subscribe to their auto-delivery and save an additional 15%! that’s a great way to save. you can always cancel the subscriptions after. what a great way to try some of these more eco friendly things that i can’t get at the stores or cost a bunch somewhere else.

as for the bella b tummy honey (see post below), i love it!! smells great and the cream is very nice! will love to buy when run out…but at $15?? ouch!

oh and my bella b glowing face wash/mask should be here tomorrow.

my ulta retractable kabuki brush is wearing out after lotsa abuse. so i’m looking to get a few new brushes and didn’t want to repurchase the sameone because…well it’s $30! i got it on sale way back but i just can’t justify spending that much on a brush…yea.

eco tools 5pc brush set – $10.99

eco tools powder brush – $7.99

i’m not sure what i was doing but i suddenly remember reading in one of my many magazines about these new eco tools make up brushes. so i googled it and voila! these look awesome and just about all reviews are good. plus the fact that it’s more environmental friendly and uses recycled material sold me. of course, the price is super attractive too! i’m making a special stop at walgreens tomorrow to pick these baby up.

ah…prestige cosmetics. 3 days ago, i’ve always passed the prestige cosmetics aisle without really looking at any of their products. probably because i’m not a big make up person. then the ulta ads came in and of course they have all prestige cosmetics at buy one get one free. since i obviously had alot of free time, i checked the prestige reviews on MUA. there were glowing reviews of their waterproof lipliner and wonder-full lipgloss. so i head to ulta and picked up the nude lipliner and the gloss in lavish – a peachy sparkling color that i really like (definitely HG status). i also picked up a couple of single eyeshadows – gold, green, black and pink. all very pretty even though i’ve only tested the gold.

st ives elements olive scrub – $6.99

st ives elements warming scrub – $6.99

and of course, on another of my magazine, there was a small sampe of st ives’ new elements olive scrub. after trying this i really like it. it hasn’t dried my skin out yet so i’ll keep using it until it does. coincidentally, the ulta ads had a coupons for 50% off all st ives skincare. okay, that was a sign. LOL i bought their elements olive scrub, and warming scrub for about $1.75 and $3 each respectively. this is the first time i’m trying out st ives skincare and very impressed so far. their elements line are “natural” and without parabens – a plus to me.

i guess i need to stop looking through magazines. *sigh*

radius intelligent toothbrushes – $7.95

radius kidz toothbrushes – $3.69

oh i got to join another frontier coop and i got these new toothbrushes called radius. looks interesting so i gave it a try – one for me and 2 for the girls. i don’t know why, but i prefer toothbrushes like these to the electric ones. oh well…

we are currently use the reusable bag from target and a few generic canvas tote bag that i dig up from somewhere. i was surfing and stumbled upon these Envirosax bags that are just so pretty! i ended up buying 7 of them to keep in my car and james’. they have a coupon for 20% off and free shipping (over $25) and no tax! use coupon code: instyle08 at the green loop.

beautiful huh?? love the colors and patterns. individual bag size: 19.5″ x 16.5″, individual rolled up bag size: 4″ x 1.5″ diameter. one of these bags is about the equivalent of what you can fit in 2 of the bad plastic bags.

2nd step, we are trying to get away from buying water bottles. actually, i don’t but i need to wean james away. sure i told him every reasons i can think of to NOT buy them. he buy them anyways because he takes them to work. i may have found the answer – a stainless steel bottle from kleen kanteen!

kleen kanteen stainless steel bottle

sigg’s baby and kids bottles with cute designs

i ordered 2 27oz KK bottles for us and two kiddie bottles for faith and jaelynn. with all the info about plastics going around, it make sense to me to try and be as healthy as possible. wish me victory! *evil laughter*