In regards to green living there are three different kinds of people in this world:

#1 - People who are willing to pay whatever they have to for an all organic, green lifestyle for themselves and their families.

#2 - People who want to eat organic vegetables and grass-fed beef while wearing their organic clothes washed in all natural detergents but don't see how they can afford any of it.

# 3 - People who think that all this organic, green living stuff is a made up conspiracy theory and will continue to eat their $1 double cheeseburger three times a week.


Now what kind of person am I you ask? I used to be in group #2. I knew the importance of eating and using organic products, I just didn't see how I could afford to do so. $4/lb organic apples just wasn't in my budget, neither was $6/gallon organic milk. I decided that when I got pregnant I would be a #1 person, but that did not last long as it got too expensive.

But the more I read about the importance of avoiding pesticides and artificial growth hormones, the more appealing these choices became. However, I am still not completely a #1 person now. My income has not changed. I am still a stay-at-home mom (yes, yet ANOTHER mom blogger ...) with the same monthly expenses. Let's call me a #4 person:

#4 - People who want to feed their family as best they can for as little as it takes. People who like to get the most for their money and aren't willing to sacrifice quality and health for convenience. People who want their kids to grow up knowing where their food comes from, to appreciate the hard work that goes into it, and to enjoy natural, whole foods as God intended. People who want to keep toxic chemicals out of their houses as much as possible. People who want to reduce the amount of waste they produce and their carbon footprint.

So with this little blogging project I hope to not only continue to improve my green living but to challenge myself to (gasp) actually stick to a grocery budget* and prove that it is possible to be both green and thrifty. In doing so I hope to turn all you #2 and #3 people into #4 people. Heck, I might even save you #1 people some money in the process. Or in the event that no one reads this blog (the more likely scenario), it will allow me to pretend that this little housewife is greatly influencing the masses from her little corner of the blogosphere.

* And just what is that grocery budget going to be? Why, $200 a month, of course. That goes for food, cleaning products, and cat food/litter. Go ahead and laugh, but I will show you (and myself) how I can do it.