Hey folks,

I've been absent around ecofriendlymomma.com because I've been focusing on the direction I want to take the website. EcoFriendlyMomma is getting a makeover! Well, actually this site will remain here (neglected) as I could not figure out how to migrate from Drupal to Wordpress :(

I'm excited about the things to come -- new design, product reviews, giveaways, AND a new domain name (think: my twitter username) to name a few. I will be moving to the new site in the next week and I certainly hope all the readers here at EcoFriendlyMomma will join me at my new home. Stay Tuned...

This is the first post in my series entitled "Eco-friendliness in Unexpected Places." My intention is to highlight tools that contribute to a green lifestyle, but may not be marketed as such.

About five years ago I was employed at a security company that aggressively pushed for a paperless work environment. The practice left an impression on me and now I've adopted that philosophy in my own life and since that time have been working to eliminate the unnecessary use of paper.

I've used Google Documents for over a year now and have noticed a decline in my paper consumption (the environmental impact of our HIGH levels of paper consumption is a tad frightening).

I also have the task of finding a document sharing application to be used by the employees at my job. I'm hoping to implement Google Documents in the workplace to eliminate unnecessary printing of documents. Google Docs allows you to upload various files, including: HTML and plain text documents; Microsoft Word docs; PowerPoint presentations; spreadsheets and PDF files. You can then easily and securely share documents with others and utilize their multi-user editing feature.

Let's eliminate the need to print EVERYTHING, especially when the printed material is likely to be discarded upon reading. When you do print, remember to adjust the margins accordingly to help reduce paper consumption.

I've been trying to get to the Farmers Market for the past couple of weeks to no avail. The babe and I planned to take a trip following my last post, but it rained all weekend. Then a host of other situations (including a nearly 2,000 mile road trip last weekend) arose keeping us from visiting our local farmers' markets. Despite the recent obstacles, I've still been able to enjoy some local fruits and vegetables by shopping at Earth Fare and Deep Roots (a co-op). Both markets offer a select variety of locally grown foods including peaches, tomatoes, and even honey. I recommend checking out your local grocery stores to see if they offer locally grown options of your favorite fruits and veggies. This is great for those who want to support local farmers but may not have the ability to buy directly.

Happy shopping!