Television stations are going green. Celebrities are encouraging consumers to buy green. Stores, municipalities, churches and private citizens are building green!  Didn't they do this is the 70's???

Yes they did - but now it seems with all the talk of Global Warming, people have decided it's a cause worth  re-exploring. It goes beyond recycling. And everyone can do a little and it will equal a lot!

Fellow bloggers Franke James and Karen Hanrahan both know about being green! Karen in fact was just featured in a local Chicago paper.

Green living, also sometimes referred to as ecological living, is a conscious effort to reduce carbon footprints.

Proponents of this lifestyle make changes and choices in their everyday life with the earth in mind. But can there be various shades of green?

For some people, hopping on the green, fuel-efficient bandwagon is a trend brought on by the likes of Leonardo DiCaprio and his eco-celebrity buddies, but others were green way before it became cool.

That's what happened to La Grange resident Karen Hanrahan.

"When my kids were little, I began to wonder about cleaning products and their toxicity," said Hanrahan, a mother of two.  She began looking for alternative means to clean -- products that were safe but that didn't have diminished power. She started by using natural household items.

She found  alternative's through Shaklee Corp., a company that manufactures and distributes eco-friendly cleaning products. Karen  has incorporated other eco-friendly practices in to her life. More than a decade ago she stopped using disposable paper towels, except for what she refers to as "animal messes." She uses cloth towels for everything else. She runs her washer and dryer only every two weeks, and she brings her own drinking cup with her everywhere to cut down on trash.

"If everyone brought their own cup to Starbucks, think of all the garbage that would be eliminated!" Karen said.


Starbucks has 15,000 stores in 42 countries. They use 1.5 BILLION cups per year! That's staggering to visualize.

Everyday, we see it more and more and we are hearing more and more people use the words. Green. Eco. Sustainable. Plus there are lots of resources online to get you started, if you haven't already.

The Green Guide, Tree Hugger has a WHOLE list of everything from Green Pets to Green Babies to Green Electronics! Find out the top 10 green Cities!

Just start small and pick ONE thing.  Every little bit counts!