There wasn’t a blog post last week because I ended up pulling it at the last minute. I had written a long post about some of the things that’s going on in the publishing and romance industry at the moment but I decided there already so many posts about #CopyPast Cris and the Book Theieves aka Pirates that my voice wasn’t really needed. Especially since I was a little heated when I wrote that post and it came through in the writing. I might write something on the topics of plagiarism and the illegal downloading of ebooks in the future but not today.

I’ve had to make a lot of changes this last year due to my health, and that means Hubby has had to make a lot of changes too. Anything with a scent makes it harder for me to breathe. I had stopped using fabric softener several years ago because I noticed it effected my breathing, but I’ve since given up, scented candles, dish soap, most household cleaners, store bought shampoos, body washes, face washes, etc. I never realized how much of the world is scented until my diagnosis. 

Now, instead of fabric soften, I use a half a cup of baking soda in the washing machine and wool dryer balls in the dryer. I’ve found a shop on Etsy were I can buy homemade soap bars that are coconut oil free (since I’m also allergic to coconut oil).  https://www.etsy.com/shop/Truelovesoap

Since I started using Jayne’s soaps my hair is softer than it’s ever been and the healthy shine has returned. And the acne that suddenly appeared once I hit 30 has also cleared up in just eight months. I use the Honey Calendula Shampoo and Shave bar for my hair and shaving. I use her charcoal and tea tree bar for my face and body. And I use the Himalayan Sea Salt bar and her Coffee bar for washing my hands. I ordered one of the samplers and I’ve ordered a few more bars just recently so I still have several yet to try. I would also recommend her deodorant and her lotion bars.

I love that she has scented and unscented stuff and that her packaging is eco friendly. 

Because you see, once I started paying more attention to my environment, I began to realize how much waste we produced and how much plastic we used. So now I’m also trying to cut back on the waste we produce each month and to eliminate as much plastic from our lives as we can. We’ve stopped buying some things because of the packaging they come in and we’ve started remembering to use our cloth shopping bags. We don’t eat out very often but when we do I make sure to tell them no straw with my drink.  

We’ve also stopped buying paper towels and paper napkins and have switched to cloth instead. I have different towels for different things. I have some lint free towels that I use for things like soaking up grease after frying bacon or drying tofu. I have others that are for dishes and others that are for cleaning. They are all different textures and fabrics so it’s easy to know which one is for what task.

The changes haven’t happened overnight. And we’re still adjusting to the new normal for us, but knowing it’s better for us and the environment makes it all worth it. At least for me.