Are household pests beginning to take their toll on your stress level? If you’re like me, and millions of other Americans, you’ve probably come home from work to find a trail of ants leading the charge, or an errant mouse hopping out of your sink of dirty dishes, as surprised as you are that someone else is there.

As much as it pains me to admit it, I’ve been there more times than I’d like to remember. The first, and probably most important thing I’ve learned is that prevention is key. In most cases, prevention is code for keeping a very clean, very organized, and crumb-free home. No exceptions.

But even with prevention as rule number one, there are still circumstances that are beyond our control. I once lived in an apartment in Austin, Texas, where roaches ran rampant. It was at this very apartment that I began my habit of wiping down counters obsessively, vacuuming at 3 a.m., and keeping every food item in an airtight container.

It was all for naught, though, as the apartments above, below, and next to me were not quite so fastidious, and roaches, ants and mice found their way through air vents and teeny tiny cracks I didn’t even know existed. …read more of Get a Rest from Pests, Naturally here

The owners of Bellevue, Idaho’s Cottonwood Ranch think that goats make such great pets they believe not only should every neighborhood have a backyard dairy, but that there should be one at the White House.

“We think Michelle’s daughters would love to have baby goats,” explains Lesley Moore. “That’s our push is to take the baby goats to the White House and to introduce the daughters to baby goats,” elaborates her husband Richard Barney while bottle feeding 3-week-old kids in their own backyard. …read more of The Campaign to Take Goats to the White House here

They’re as playful as dogs and they also provide milk (and if you chose, meat). Backyard goats may not have reached the popularity of pet chickens, but they’re gaining ground, even in cities.

It’s now legal to farm goats in cities like Chicago, Portland, Seattle or Detroit and campaigns are raging to change ordinances in places like Denver and Hillsboro, Oregon. The Goat Justice League of Seattle was founded to legalize keeping goats in Seattle’s backyards.

The league’s founder Jennie Grant argues, “why not let people with yards keep dairy goatdoes or wethers (castrated males). They are not smelly. Their poop is a valuable fertilizer. They and make delicious milk.”
  Thanks to the groups’ efforts, in 2007, the Seattle City Council passed a measure allowing small goats to be kept within city limits. …read more of A Pet That Makes Milk here

If you have a dog then you’ve most likely spent hours trolling pet food stores or boutiques, searching for the perfect, healthy food, toys and treats for your pup. If you’re anything like me, it has left you confused.

Having recently adopted my first dog, I have scoured the Internet night after night, trying to make sense of it all. Last week I covered healthy toys and chews to make playtime fun, and safe for your pup and for the environment.

Today I’ll give you the scoop on shampoos and grooming products that will keep Spot spiffy and green. …read more of Healthy Dog, Healthy Planet: Bath Time here

First an admission: it was the back of the book that sold me.

“Want a low-maintenance bathroom that takes 30 seconds a day to clean?” Why yes, I do. “Need whiter whites that get white for free?” Had the author been to my home?

Green Housekeeping (Simon & Schuster, 2006) by Ellen Sandbeck seemed almost too good to be true, as it sat on the shelves of my neighborhood used bookstore for just $7.

Sold.

And off I went to my favorite reading spot, where I procrastinated on all of the house cleaning I desperately needed to tackle, for some research by a pro. Feet up, let’s go.

I was a little miffed when the book began with organizing techniques, but I stuck with it, trusting that someone who could write a whole book on housekeeping, must know a thing or two that I don’t.

Trust is good, as this book turned out to be a helpful keeper that will stay on my bookshelves for years. I think I’ll reference it often, as apparently, housekeeping is more than just a quick vacuum, followed by a spray and wipe. Who knew? …read more of Book Review: Green Housekeeping here