With flu season upon us, I know many moms are cringing at the prospect of sick kids. I know I am.

I heard some great information from a medical professional on how to survive the flu season and I wanted to pass it  along. So, want to stay as well as possible this flu season? Try vitamin C. The recommendation we got was to stick with the powder form of vitamin C (less sugar for you or your little one) which you can then add to water or juice. You can’t really taste it, so you don’t even know you are taking vitamins – perfect if you have a little one who hates vitamins or if you are one of those people who can’t stand the taste of vitamins.

It is really important to stick to the recommended dosages, so you should talk to your doctor before starting any new regiment like this. This is especially true if you are giving any vitamins to a child.  As always, this site is not dispensing medical advice, so please check with your doctor before making any changes.

The amazing thing about vitamin C is that our body uses it to fight off infection, so if you are sick or getting sick (or just plain trying not to get sick) then taking a little vitamin C helps give your body the fighting chance it deserves to kick out the bacteria or viruses that are attacking it. 

Good luck!

-Jennifer

Founder, We Can Live Green

Author, We Can (All) Live Green

Before you pack up the family and head out on your annual summer vacation, read this. We did a bit of math for you and calculated the cost of two summer vacations for a family of four. The results may surprise you.

 Amusement Park Vacation

Gasoline (5 tanks of gas for a 20 gallon tank)  =  approximately $500

Hotel for Family of four (2 nights on the road, 2 nights at the amusement park) = $520

Amusement Park Fees for a family of four (2 adults and  2 kids, averaged price of $100 per day) = $200

Food = (averaging $100 a day for food) = $400

Miscellaneous expenses (souvenirs, etc) = $250

 TOTAL = $1870 (Some would say this estimate is too low, while others might say the estimate is too high. Feel free to do your own calculations based on your local amusement park attractions to find an accurate dollar amount.)

 National Park Vacation

 Gasoline (5 tanks of gas for a 20 gallon tank) =  approximately $500

Camping Gear Rental (if you don’t already have the gear) = $100 for camping trailer rental for one week and $50 for extra supplies; $150 for camping gear rental (including tent) for 5 days. (You could camp on the road or add $130 per hotel night stay to your total.) 

National park fees = $80 for an annual pass which covers the driver and three passengers over age 16; children under age 15 get in free.

Food (cooked by campfire or grill and bought from the store, packed lunches on the road) = $200

TOTAL = $880 (Some would say this estimate is too low, while others might say the estimate is too high. Feel free to do your own calculations based on your local national park to find an accurate dollar amount.) 

You could save over $1,000 by traveling to a more eco-friendly (and wallet-friendly) destination. You can save money and still take the yearly family vacation!

By Allie, Reporting Green

 The Folks at We Can Live Green

For those of you who don’t know, WCLG published a book on how to save green while going green entitled, We Can (All) Live Green: Simple Steps to Save Money, Stay Healthy and Support the Planet. If you follow one tip per section of the book, we estimate a savings of $5,000. This is a very, very conservative estimate. By the way, anyone out there need an extra $5,000?

1. Buy produce in season. Have you ever seen how much a wintertime basket of berries costs? Ouch. Off-season produce usually requires much more energy and resources to produce and transport, and it often retains less nutritional value too. Buying in-season produce only can skim $250 or more off your yearly grocery bill.

2. If you can’t afford fresh fruits and veggies, try frozen or canned. It’s usually cheaper to buy frozen or canned fruits and veggies, rather than fresh produce at the chain markets. Nutritionally, fresh is best, but frozen is a close second. Canned is fine too, if price is an issue; just make sure you’re always getting organic, and not a lot of added sugar or sodium. Depending on where you live, if you buy frozen or canned, you can save $200 a year and up on your grocery bill.

3. Try at least one vegetarian meal a week. You will save money on your weekly grocery bill! And it’s easier to cook a delicious vegetarian meal than you might imagine. When you’ve mastered one veggie meal a week, try to increase to two, and so on. It will add up: Having just one veggie meal a week can save you $200 a year; five meals a week saves $1000 a year! 

4. Embrace hand-me-downs – from friends, family members and fashionable neighbors. Participate in giving hand-me-downs too! Be creative – organize a “swap till you drop” party. There are lots of ways to save money and share your clothing with others, all while getting a few new duds of your own. An especially good option if you have children, since they often outgrow their clothing before our pocketbooks are ready for another trip to the store. Depending on your usual clothing expenses, you can save $200 to $400 a year and more.

5. Rideshare. The National Safety Council projects a $3000 yearly saving for commuters who rideshare. I want to be as conservative as possible in my promises, so I can assure you of savings above $2,000 a year, and hope you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how much more you will actually save! Anyone out there who can use an extra $2,000 or more right now? Coordinate a commuting strategy with coworkers or neighbors and start saving now: at least $2,000 a year.

6. Consider making your own household cleaning products. For a small investment of time and effort you will be supporting your health and the planet, while putting some cash in your pocketbook. You can save $200 or more a year.

7. Reduce your energy consumption. If you utilize any combination of suggestions from the Energy Vampire section, you can save up to 50% off of your energy bill. Cost savings: a minimum of $600 a year.

8. Stop buying bottled water. Purify your tap instead. There are a few exceptions to this, but if you purify your tap, you are getting equally pure if not purer water than most bottled water – all for a fraction of the cost. For a family of four, bottled water costs about $10 a week, minimum. Over the course of a year, you can save a minimum of $400 – and you are reducing plastics in our landfills as well!

9. Recycle…and get paid. Through a little organization, planning and time commitment, you can actually make money by doing the right thing. Depending on recycling options in your community – and your family’s commitment level – you can actually make (at the very least!) $300-plus a year. Look into it!

10. Take the “One Tank of Gas Challenge.” We Can Live Green issues a friendly challenge to you and your family to find a suitable vacation spot that you can travel to on…you guessed it…one tank of gas. Get the whole family involved and see what destinations your family or friends come up with. When you agree on a choice, take the plunge and take your trip. Happy trails to all of you!

Buy the book to get more great tips – you can find it at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Borders, Tower and much more! Check it out!

By Chase – Die Hard Greenie

We Can Live Green

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Videos - Carbon Footprint 101

For more information go to We Can Live Green

If you are in need of a model school district for a greening initiative in your state, look no further. Poudre School District is leading the charge on greening initatives. With an energy conservation plan dating back to 1994, Poudre School District in Fort Collins, Colorado has paved the way for like-minded schools.

A few stats about Poudre School District (PSD):

1. PSD is located in Fort Collins, Colorado, 40 miles north of Denver.

2. PSD covers 1,800 square miles, 48 schools and 3 charter schools and 24,500 students.

For more information, go to Poudre School District.

Written by Allie, Reporting Green for We Can Live Green

Who doesn’t love the sweet, reminiscent sound of Auld Lang Syne at the stroke of midnight to ring in the new year?

And who doesn’t love the promise of starting fresh in the new year?

I’ve always been a fan of the song (which roughly translated means “times gone by” - more directly, “old long since”) and I’ve been an even bigger fan of the prospect of starting fresh on January 1.

What will 2008 bring to America and the planet? My hope is a renewed commitment to our home, planet Earth. I encourage everyone out there, in whatever capacity is possible for you, to make ‘going green’ (or ‘going greener’ for those of you well on the path to a greener lifestyle) your New Year’s Resolution.

At We Can Live Green, we’ve devised a 365 Day Pledge to Go Green. You don’t have to start it at the beginning of a new year. But if you’re searching for a New Year’s Resolution, why not try it? You can find the pledge at 365 Day Pledge.

Good luck!

Chase the Die Hard Greenie, We Can Live Green

We’ve been scouring the California countryside for the perfect hybrid car. Last week, we drove the Toyota Prius and the Toyota Highlander Hybrid. This week, the Honda Civic hybrid.

Marina: The Honda Civic hybrid is gorgeous and drives so well! With a reported
40 mpg city and 45 mpg highway, the Civic is comparable to the Prius, except it is roomier and feels safer.

Jim: The Honda Civic has a 5 star crash rating for frontal and side-impact crash testing. Safety is my number one concern and Honda definitely passes the test.

Marina: The mpg is great! Fuel efficiency is my biggest concern.

Jim: At first glance, it seems that Honda might be our car.

Marina: Except the Civic isn’t roomy enough for our trips to the mountains and to the oceans.

Jim: We need clearance for the snow and the ability to get where we need to get in the mountains. For our days at the ocean, we need room to store our surfboards.

We found a great document to review that gives the scorecards on all 2008 hybrid vehicles. It also breaks down the different rating systems for the hybrid vehicles. Take a look.

While we are excited about the Honda’s mpg, safety and track record, we are still looking for just the right fit for us. We both secretly have our preferred vehicle but we will keep looking. We only have a few more cars we are considering. We’ll keep you posted!

Jim and Marina - We Can Live Green

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Popular Culture - How Green is your Candidate?

New Green Gadgets - Transformer Furniture

Product Review - Kissably Delicious Toothpaste

Videos - Pacific Ocean Death Zone

For more information, please go to: http://www.wecanlivegreen.com/index/hotnow.html

The summit featured:

• 75 educational workshops and sessions
• an exhibition floor complete with a model green school building and more than 200 companies offering green products and services
• a special “Student Summit” featuring green-school projects for California high school students
• keynote speakers
• an awards ceremony to celebrate sustainable schools throughout the state.

As Secretary Rosario Marin and State Architect David Thorman wrote in a recent commentary for the Summit, ” A school is not just a building, as any parent or teacher can tell you. Our schools provide an environment that fosters learning and provides young people with knowledge and experience that enable them to imagine their futures.” Indeed, it is no minor task to create a school that facilitates learning and provides a safe and healthy environment for students to learn. Add in the moral mandate we all have to build in an ethical, sustainable and socially responsible fashion, and one can quickly ascertain that the task set before Californians for greener schools is an immense challenge.

But it is not an impossible challenge, as evidenced by the tremendous number of exhibitors, state officials, educators, students and community members who participated in this event. California has set the pace for other states in recent legislation titled Proposition 1D, which allocated $100 million to assist the process of greening California’s K-12 schools.

Never one to shy away from leading the rest of the country, California is setting the pace once again.

For more information on the Green Schools Summit, please go to Green Technology.

Allie - Reporting Green for We Can Live Green

We drove a few hybrid models this week. We focused this week on Toyota - so we tried the Prius and the new Highlander Hybrid. We had mixed reviews on both based upon our goals of fuel efficiency (Marina) and safety (Jim). Following are a few of our thoughts:

Jim: The Prius gets great gas mileage, but when driving in it, I felt a bit like it is a deathtrap on wheels. You’d have to drive the Southern California freeways to get what I mean here. Any one out there that does knows that safety is always a concern when driving on the freeways. Speaking of safety, the crash test ratings are great for the vehicle. However, these crash tests are always measured as a straight on or direct side collision with one object stationary. Accidents don’t happen that way and the laws of physics will definitely be in the favor of a larger vehicle if this Prius gets hit on the road. There’s got to be a safer option out there.

Marina: Yes, it is a smaller car. I happen to think they are cute. And I love what they stand for. Freedom from the gas pump. I like feeling like I am making a strong statement every time I get in my car. The Prius feels like a taller vehicle inside than I imagined. The only thing I really didn’t like was that I felt very vulnerable in the event of a side crash. There’s not much between the occupants of the car and the world outside. I don’t like that. Also, no more trips to the mountains (snowboarding) or oceans (surfing) with this car.

Jim: Now the Highlander Hybrid is a different story for me. It’s safe - all five star crash test ratings except for the passenger side which received a four star crash test rating. It’s a little bulkier. Due to its size, it should survive a crash better, and there are front and side curtain airbags. It would fit our lifestyle, Marina’s interest in fuel efficiency and my goal of safety.

Marina: I liked the way the Highlander Hybrid drove. Very smooth. It has a great feature where I can monitor my fuel efficiency as I drive. The Highlander Hybrid is an SULEV which means it is 90% more fuel efficient than an average vehicle. The Prius has a PZEV rating and it is 95%plus more efficient than an average vehicle. I don’t know how much difference that 5%plus makes. I’m looking that up this week. The Highlander Hybrid does feel safer and it fits our lifestyle. I think we are both interested in the Highlander, but I want to explore all options first.

Until next week -

Jim and Marina, Newly Married and Newly Green, writing for We Can Live Green