Going Green

The term “Green” has long been a part of my self-description. My Midwestern family and friends, refer to me as a “tree hugger”, “bleeding heart liberal” and “granola girl.”
Is it any wonder I retreated to California?

Since the energy crisis of the 70’s I have been a supporter of renewable energy research. I remember having political debates with my father at the dinner table. I supported solar power; he said “we’ll never get away from our dependence on foreign oil.” But I haven’t given up. Two years ago I installed a 3.25 Kilowatt solar panel systemmy home, and my electric meter is now running backward!

From the 80’s to the present, from anti-nuclear rallies and sit-in’s for peace, to beach clean-ups and signature drives, all my actions had been directed at the BIG PICTURE – a cleaner and safer world for the future. But, it was my pregnancy that got me looking at my own home environment. How “Green” were we… really?
My investigation began with reading the labels of all the cleaning products aroundthe house. Much to my dismay my home was full of toxins. Harmful ammonia vapors filled the air as I cleaned the mirrors in the bathroom. Chlorine and phosphates cleaned my clothes and killed the local waterways and its inhabitants. Pesticides, perfumes, solvents seemed to be everywhere!

I felt so discouraged. What a joke! Here I was buying organic vegetables and fruit, free-range-no-antibiotic meat, organic milk and eggs. I was composting my organic wasteto create clean organic soil for my organic garden. I had been removing, by hand, the weeds in my lawn. Yet, I was cleaning my home with poisons. This had to stop!

I started looking for environmentally friendly products at the local health-food stores; where I bought my other organic products. I started doing performance tests and price comparisons. One common factor, they were all expensive and few performed up to expectations. A friend told me about a company called Melaleuca that offered a complete line of household cleaning and laundry products that were environmentally and people friendly. The catch: Melaleuca is a multi-level marketing business. I really detest having home parties for the purpose ofselling a product. After closer examination, I found this company was NOT at all like the images of Amway that were racing through my mind. You could buy at a retail rate and never sell a thing; there was an option to buy at a discounted rate if you bought a certain amount of product each month; or you could be a
distributor, recruit and sell.

The Laundry Challenge:

Massage sheets really put laundry detergent to the test. The Mommy Spa’s 100% sueded cotton sheets absorb a lot of massage oil and lotion. When an eco-friendly product can take on that challenge, I’m sold. The Mommy Spa has been using Earth Friendly MelaPower, MelaBrite and PreSpot in the laundry room for 3 years. One thing that surprised me; I noticed a large reduction in lint. So, not only are our linens clean and fresh smelling, they are lasting longer, keeping their smooth and soft texture, which is important to our clients.

The Mommy Spa is now offering Green Home Conversion packs to help our clients convert their homes to a clean Green Home. This pack includes everything you need to clean your home, from the laundry room to kitchen and bathrooms to furniture polish. It’s a terrific gift for someone you love; especially those with young children or family members who are battling cancer or other auto-immune disease. Although currently not available online – we are able to ship to the US, Canada and the UK. Space for ads