Okay, so it might take more than a sign in a restaurant captured by Flickr user Loren Javier at a Disneyland restaurant to say that Mickey Mouse has finally gone green but at least it's a start!  They are urging you to save the plastic baskets from your lunch for re-use and that's definitely a step in the green direction.

What else is helping one of the world's biggest companies to go green-ish?  How about some eco-friendly souvenirs available for sale in downtown disney?  They are getting in some of my favorite family friendly eco-chic products at a Disney store called Tren-D at Disneyworld such as purses made from candywrappers or seat belts that have been reclaimed from wrecks.  I think a seat belt bag may just have to make it onto my wish list...

The Disney company as a whole has been working hard to become more eco-friendly and that's a huge deal when you're talking about such a massive company.  They are working on reducing plastic bag usage at all of their stores and events.  They recommend not using plastic wrap or plastic bags.  If you go to your local Disney store, chances are that you'll see that most products are wrapped in plastic and that they do not charge for plastic bags.  They're talking the talk but I'd like to see them walk the walk if you know what I mean.

They have a classroom based program that helps kids to discover a love of science, teamwork and competition by joining an environmental competition.  It's a free program that actually does look pretty cool.  You can check it out here.  The bad parts are that it's only available for grades 4 through grade 6 and that it is only available to American students.  Very strange to have something called a Disney planet challenge to be only open to classrooms in the United States.

They are (and have been for quite some time) heavily involved in conservation efforts throughout the world (not just in the U.S.A.!).  Their projects are many and far ranging.  They are, of course, also heavily publicized efforts but if they are doing some good then they deserve all of the good press I guess.  Their conservation efforts support non-profit charities that are working with eco-systems, wildlife and communities.

They are also involved in promoting environmental awareness to kids.  To me, this is one of the most important things to promote to kids.  In reality, today's kids are going to have to deal appropriately with whatever mess the planet is in when they inherit it from their parents generation.  These kids are going to need to know the issues, understand them backwards and forwards and be brainstorming ways of trying to negate all of the damage that has already been done.

Could Disney be more eco-friendly?  YES!!!  However, I think it's important to recognize the efforts that the company is making.  They may only be tiny steps but at least they are in the right direction which is more than I can say for other companies that make money from our kids!

When you're planning your next vacation to a spa (I wish), try using one of the online spa filters so that you can search for an eco-friendly one such as this one called Vil Uyana Sigiriy Hotel in Sri Lanka photographed by ByFlickr. It's important, especially when travelling to visit environmentally responsible companies. When you support an sustainable enterprise, you are supporting green living. Believe it or not, this is one of the easiest ways to make your life a little more greener. Eco-spas can also be counted on to use a variety of natural products when performing services such as massages and facials. Natural products are often better than preservative laden products because they contain natural aromas which can help to relax and heal body and mind. Consider looking into visiting an eco-spa today!

My main focus in life right now is my kids.  Like most parents, everything that I do is for them in one way or another.  In the last few years, I've really tried to focus our home life on making eco-friendly choices to ensure that my kids (and grandkids and great grandkids) actually have a planet to inhabit.  Some of these choices are small ones, like choosing to use only recycled content toliet paper and some of them are big ones, like choosing to buy used products whenever we can.

I've really tried to make going green relevant and fun for the kids so that it just becomes a part of their day to day routines.  My preschooler has a litterless lunch box that came with fun stickers to customize it.  My high-schooler is a little trickier to make anything fun for but he is in charge of household recycling.

A big part of teaching kids to be eco-friendly is to give them the gift of loving nature.  How exactly do you do that??  Well, you  spend time outdoors enjoying it!  This means nature walks pointing out various things such as when the leaves and flowers are budding, trips to local farms and corn mazes, shopping at farmer's markets, trips to zoos and bird sanctuaries, etc.  Teaching kids a love of animals is especially important.

Last year, our family made the trip to Anaheim.  We visited the San Diego Zoo, WildLife Park and Seaworld to check out some of their hands on, up close experiences with animals including feeding sting rays and giraffes.  Many of my friends are checking out orlando vacations as well to experience some of the same sorts of things.  Sea World, regardless of it's location, is really a great way to spend an educational day with your kids teaching them facts about some of the less familiar sea creatures.

However you involve your kids in loving nature, ensure that you get out there and experience it.  It will change their perspective (and perhaps your own) on how animals and their eco-systems contribute to the well being of everyone.

Travel can really teach you a lot about people.  The more you travel and see the world, the more you realize that people are more the same than they are different.  This is true regardless of race, religion, occupation, age, gender, sexual orientation or political affiliation.  Travel teaches you that Seattle personal injury attorneys are much the same as personal injury attorneys in Toronto or Australia or Europe.  In fact, they are much the same as waiters or accountants or neuro-surgeons too.

People have many commonalities such as the need to be safe and secure.  The need to be loved and respected.  The need to speak and be heard and understood.  The need to learn and evolve.  What these things in particular are vary from person to person but the ideas themselves remain the same.

The next time you travel, or have to deal with an obnoxious co-worker, try to find your similarities instead of dissimilarities.  Discover a love of humanity and nature.  Travel can broaden your horizons in many ways.  Learning how to deal with people and how to come to respect them (even if you don't love them!), are some of the most important lessons that you will ever learn.  These lessons are ones that are not taught in a classroom.  They are learned only through experience.

Traveling in your rv can be an eco-friendly adventure even if you don't paint it up like the TV shown here by Andrew Ciscel. RVnet offers forums and blogs for travellers to share their adventures, stories and tips on the RVing lifestyle.  You can get the latest eco-friendly information and all sorts of general information on where to buy used RVs, how to reduce your fuel consumption, how to live in an environmentally responsible way on the road, where the best campsites are, etc. etc. etc.  Of course, you could get all of this great information and still paint green lifestyle slogans on your RV.  I'm sure I'm not the only one who totally digs it!

Las Vegas isn't one of the first locations that pops into mind when you're talking about eco-tourism but there are definitely ways to green up a trip to Vegas.  You don't have to feel guilty about everything that you do there! lol

Las Vegas Hotels are definitely known for their excess, overconsumption and simply being completely over the top.  With the completion of the MGM Mirage City Center Las Vegas in the end of 2009, I'm hoping that they become known for being over the top green.  It's the largest LEED certified project in the United States at 76 acres!  Since it's not open quite yet, I'd recommend the Palazzo if you are looking at getting into one of the green Las Vegas hotels.  They've upgraded to energy efficient windows and insulation to cut down on their consumption of energy through air conditioning.  They have also converted their showers to low flow shower heads which can really make a big difference.  Water conservation is a major issue in Vegas because it is in the middle of the desert after all.  The amount of people there really uses a huge amount of water so every tiny bit that each person conserves can really add up to a huge difference overall.

For green travel options, there is the monorail and double decker bus service.  If you absolutely need private transportation, there are green car services with fleets of Priuses to transport you around.  All you need to do is ask your concierge.  If you're headed out to Area 51, I'd recommend renting a hybrid which will cut back on your costs as well as being more environmentally friendly.

While you're out of town, check out the Las Vegas Springs Preserve which is a mecca for all things eco-friendly in the area.  They can help you reconnect with nature and get you out of the casinos and into the fresh air for a while.  You can even catch some of their environmentally friendly speakers go over green building techniques and issues of sustainability.

Afterwards, you can grab a bite to eat at one of the many environmentally friendly eateries available in Las Vegas.  There are many organic options at Puck's Spring Cafe by Wolfgang Puck or you could head to one of two Go Raw Cafe locations.  If you're looking for a way to have more eco-friendly meat options, check out the Canyon Ranch Cafe to have a range of grass fed organic meat choices.  For dessert, you can head to Ronald's Donuts to grab some of their supposively very addictive and delicious vegan donuts.

Shopping???  Check out the Buffalo Exchange for previously enjoyed high end designer fashions.  Buying used is the greenest clothing choice available.  Second best, of course, is organic or sustainably made clothes which are widely available at many stores.

There's always a way to go a little greener.  Vegas doesn't need to be a consumer driven holiday.  You can even go green in Vegas, baby!  Sorry, couldn't help that one -- lol.

There's a new movement in travel companies -- that of having specialized travel groups.  They have vacations and groups specifically designed for all kinds of different target audiences.  I know that my mom and son love to travel together.  Recently, they've discovered something called intergenerational travelling which is just a fancy term for grandparents and grandkids travelling together.  They've got all kinds of different specific interest destinations and considerations just for this group.  I think that it's absolutely fantastic that such a wide range of travel plans are available now!  All travel related industries must really be hurting during the recession and this kind of innovation will really help to increase their lost sales.  Some of the other special interest travel groups are eco-travel, gay travel, seniors travel, family travel, volunteerism travel and couples travel.

In these uncertain days of economic recession and masses of people going through depression, travel can be an important way of release.  Many people will be losing their jobs in the upcoming weeks and may have to search outside of their areas for new jobs.  This sagging economy may actually get a boost by people travelling looking for work.  A side benefit of looking for work outside of your hometown is that you may actually get a bit of a vacation.  Buy cheap flights, look for great sales on luggage and hit the road!  You may have to travel cheap or drive instead of fly but at least it's a chance to get away for a moment and try to collect yourself again.  Moving to a new area may be the best thing that you can do right now.  Try to look at the positives in your financial and emotional situation instead of listening to the doom and gloom heard on the nightly news broadcasts.  The economy will once again stabilize in time and we'll approach a new global normal.  Perhaps we will all learn a lesson on what is really important in our lives, how to cut back, how to save more and waste less.  These can all be very good outcomes of a very real and depressing financial outlook.

It seems like the time of year that everyone is going somewhere. A bunch of Mark's family is going to New York for his Grandmother's 100th birthday. Yeah, that's right 100! And a bunch of my girlfriends are heading down to Las Vegas to catch the Madonna show. If I were them I'd get a las vegas strip map.
When I went down there to get married to my first husband, we wandered way off the strip after we got totally lost. We were looking for the Elvis Chapel but ended up in major gang territory. We got lucky and one of the drug dealers with a gun decided to take pity on us and escort us back to the strip. I think that I really owe that guy -- although maybe if I'd gotten shot, I wouldn't have married such a doofus! Oh well, live and learn. I just wish we were travelling somewhere too. I start to feel a little stagnant when I'm at home too long. Travelling to the grocery store is a big deal for me right now though so I guess I should stick close to home.

Our families definitely have the love to travel. Joe travels so much that he is completely a nomad while Doreen and Dee seem to go on at least one big trip a year. Things have been hectic at our house with just one thing leading to another to another. This last weekend is a good example of how our lives are in total upheaval right now. First, the kids got the flu. Emma threw up every half and hour all night. Even Kris was up puking a couple of times. Then Paula got it and was sick for a couple of days and then I got it and was sick for a couple of days. Kris broke his tooth at the movie theater with Doreen on Saturday and had to get an emergency dentist appointment on Sunday. Monday morning, Paula and Emma were in a car accident -- everyone's okay, not to worry. I wish that we could travel right now but I think if we did we'd need a heck of a lot of travel insurance. I hope things calm down soon. We could really use a break!