Tag Archives: being green

April 22, 2013

Win with P&G on Earth Day

Did you know that today people around the world are celebrating Earth Day to demonstrate support for environmental protection? The theme is – What everyday small changes can we make to help make a difference to the environment? To help celebrate I’ve been offered an Earth Day kit which one of my readers has the chance to win. The fun kit includes:

A blackboard made from recycled coffee cups
A cardboard rocket for the children – and eco-paints so the whole family can get involved too
A selection of P&G products

Big changes don’t have to start with grand acts; they can start much closer to home. Like, choosing to walk to the shops instead of taking the car. Or, using a recyclable water bottle instead of using a plastic one each time you’re on the go.

In fact, 81% of Brits say that even simple, everyday actions help them feel like they’re making a contribution to the environment.

To help inspire these acts, P&G have launched a video called Everyday Earth Day:

I hope the video inspires you to discover how your own everyday actions can have a surprisingly positive impact on the environment.

Giveaway

I have been given one an Earth Day kit to giveaway (containing the products mentioned above) to a lucky reader of the gingerbread house. If you would like to win simply watch the video and answer this question in a comment below:

According to the video, what product is used to make roofing tiles for housing projects in Mexico? a) paper b) rubber c)plastic

for an extra entry tell others about the giveaway using the Retweet button below or tweet this message: I want to #win an Earth Day kit with @gingerbread_mum http://tinyurl.com/cjjpg4g

Don’t have twitter? Follow the gingerbread house page on Google + or Bloglovin’ - just leave me a comment and let me know.

Small print:

There is one prize consisting of one an Earth Day kit. The giveaway ends May 1st at 8pm. The winner will be selected at random from all correct entries received and notified by email or their twitter handle. The prize is as stated: no cash alternatives are available. UK only.

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Filed under being green, competition, housekeeping

Tagged as being green, competition, housekeeping

December 18, 2012

Saving money at Christmas

We love to recycle and are always on the lookout for new ways to be green. It’s definitely more noticeable at this time of year just how easy it is to be excessive. There are only four of us so we’ve tried to put a limit on how much we spend and we’re definitely going to be careful with how much food we buy as I hate throwing away food. There are lots of ways to save money and have fun this Christmas.

We’ve made our own decorations – hand print Christmas trees, yarn wreaths and Christmas cards

Recycled last years Christmas cards into gift tags and a paper garland

We’ve gone through toys we don’t use or play with and donated them to the charity shop

Bought ingredients to make our own mince pies, sausage rolls and marzipan stars (much more tasty than shop-bought!)

Decluttered and made money from unwanted goods like prams, baby clothes and mobile phones. Sites such as Top Dollar Mobile are brilliant for making some extra money, especially if you know you’re going to get a new phone for Christmas! It’s so easy to use and much simpler than listing and selling on a well known auction site where it might get lost in hundreds of similar listings.

With Top Dollar Mobile you simply select the phone model you have, send it off using the free post envelope and you will be paid within 5 working days. That’s not a lot of effort for the unwanted phone lying forgotten in a drawer.

I’ve actually quite enjoyed our seasonal de-clutter. There’s something energising about having a good clear out and getting ready for a new year. Our main priority in January will be putting our lovely house up for sale and moving somewhere new which will be a whole new exciting chapter for us. Just got to get through Christmas first!

This is a sponsored post – Top Dollar Mobile were awarded ‘Best Overall’ by Housekeeping Magazine from a selection of recycling websites offering the best prices. In addition they send you a free envelope complete with FREEPOST address on it; so it really is simple to declutter, do the green thing and make some money.

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Filed under being green, Christmas, handmade

Tagged as being green, Christmas, handmade

October 7, 2012

A day with Yeo Valley

A couple of weeks ago the husband and I were invited to spend a day at Yeo Valley, the people behind the delicious organic Yeogurts, milk, butter, cream, compotes and rice puddings, on one of their farm tours. We jumped at the chance as we love Yeo Valley and, more importantly, the children weren’t invited.

Yeo Valley is perhaps best known for making yogurt which started back in 1972. Today there are four production dairies (at Blagdon, Cannington, Crewkerne and Newton Abbot) and the company employs over 1500 people. It is an independent, family-owned farming and dairy business and the largest organic brand in the UK.

I was expecting a long day walking around muddy farms but it wasn’t like that. We started off with tea and cake at the very glamorous Yeo Valley HQ and were taken by minibus to the restored Wills Barn where we had an introduction to Yeo Valley and organic farming from Les Davis.

Our group were taken for a walk along an ancient drovers road then on to admire the view from the top of the Valley. There was plenty of time to ask questions and we learned lots about how the land is farmed.

After working up an appetite we were treated to an amazing lunch made with locally sourced seasonal ingredients back at Wills Barn. There were fresh raspberries and lashings of Yeogurt for pudding too!

After lunch a tractor appeared outside and I was allowed to see the view from the tractor seat and made my husband take some picture to show the toddler. A bumpy tractor and trailer ride followed and we arrived at the dairy farm to see the 160 British Fresians in the huge cow shed. The cows produce a whopping 8000 litres of milk every year. We also learned how each cow has 3 names!

Our final part of the day was a breathtaking walk along the top of the Mendips where we saw how the land had been cultivated to provide areas of habitat for smaller animals and birds and also helped raise the temperature (and gave us some very welcome relief from the chilly wind!). After all that fresh air I must admit this City girl was very pleased to see the minibus which took us back to HQ for more tea and cake.

As part of the tour we (both of us!) received generous goody bags filled to the brim with yummy Yeo Valley products which we have been working our way through ever since (with a little help from the recipes on the Yeo Valley website!). Yeo Valley run regular farm and garden tours during the summer months. For more information take a look at their website.

Did you know that Jamie Oliver is a huge fan of Yeo Valley? A new on pack offer has just been launched to win 10,000 new Jamie Oliver cookbooks – ‘Jamie’s 15-Minute Meals’. Just look out for the Yeo Valley Natural pots which feature an instant win for your chance!

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Filed under being green, days out

Tagged as being green, days out