trying Green/Simple ways

    With all the stress out there I find myself trying to lower stress and live more simply. My parents recently sold their big 5 bedroom house that they had for 20 years and moved into my grandparents old farm house. The farmhouse is half the size the big house was. So, mom & dad had to do some MAJOR downsizing. Looking at the process in the beginning or even in the middle seemed to be an overwhelming task. But now that they have done it (minus some extra furniture in the garage, just until they sell it, and with winter around the corner having a garage for the car is re-inspiring them to get it all sold) they are so calm and don't get stressed about stuff like they use to. So "less is more" is true and very inviting!
     So, following the path that mom & dad went down, I've been looking at our "stuff" differently. Do we REALLY need this? Why did we get this in the first place? Do we REALLY still need it? Would I rather keep this and have stress or get rid of it and live more simple? Our local consignment store just moved to a bigger buliding, and just in time! I LOVE CONSIGNMENT! Ya just go through your stuff put what you don't want to keep in a box/bag and take it up there. They assign you a number and then you just go in later and see if they have any money for you! Its that SIMPLE! You don't have to price anything! Which for me would give me a chance to change my mind and keep what I don't need! And I don't miss anything that I've taken up there! Honestly I don't remember what I've taken up there! So that's the "simple"part, getting rid of extra clutter and making some money too!
     Now for the "green" part. I've always been abit of a "Hippy Chick". I like to grow my own herbs, make bread, and that sort of things. There are some things that I desperately want to try to make... bees wax candles, soap, bath salts and scrubs just to name a few! But lately I've been thinking "green", not in a tree hugger/save the whales/throw red paint on things I disagree with, just in a "live simple and need less" way. The mom in me is careful about what cleaning chemicals I use. When our daughter was about 6-7 months old and just starting to pull up on stuff, I was mopping the kitchen floor and she was sitting in the floor in the between the kitchen and living room, I looked over just in time to see her try to pull up on the yucky mop water bucket! It tipped over and she fell and the yucky water just covered her top to toes! We ran for a bath! Being a new mom I was worried for days, "what if she swallowed some of the water". When I dust and see the cleaner in the air, i wonder what it lands on? does my little one put that item in her mouth? or just simply breathe it in? So, I'm doing some research into "green cleaning". I've found a site 1001 uses for vinegar and I'm gonna try them out! I'm very excited!!! I will post pros & cons to this experiment!