What a great challenge! Learned so much and helped keep me conscious of the plastics I use.

Saw this posted at a bar I went to. I was pretty stoked to see a bar/restaurant also working to reduce the amount of plastic they use! 

Double check the challenges for extra points and ideas for lessening your plastic use! I forgot to select and check the composting one! I started composting my chickens waste a couple weeks ago for my neighbor to use in their garden and my little garden once it gets going! I also switched to a makeup AND deodorant that didn't use any plastic in the packaging! I'm a little nervous about the deodorant, but I'll keep trying them until I find one I like :-)

Haven't been able to join a cleanup at home yet so my husband and I cleaned up around our cabin on our vacation, hiked through the woods picking up trash and in the Great Smokey Mountain national park. Seriously, what are people thinking?! "Oh, look at this amazing scenery and all the beautiful wildlife! Let me throw my trash just anywhere, I'm sure the animals clean up at night!" Ugh

I cant believe its been a month already! I feel that the changes I made are sustainable and now part of my routine which feels great :)

I now use refillable bottles and purchase every product I can in bulk to use fewer containers. The one time use items I already had I’m trying to repurpose and reuse as many times as I can. 

Overall, I really enjoyed participating in this challenge. I also saw a lot of media press regarding plastics this month. Several franchises announced that they would be removing straws from their restaurant-which is great. I wish more people would get on board with removing plastic bags from stores. I know some states have taxed bags and some have gotten rid of them altogether. Florida needs to jump on that bandwagon! I also realize this challenge specifically targeted individual behavior change. However, in many cases, humans can't change their behavior unless we change our culture. Depending on what you need to buy, there may not be a plastic-free option at your every day grocery store. I really do think Plastic Free July got a lot of media coverage, though, and I hope we see some changes in the near future!

Went out to breakfast the other day and our server was so excited that we had brought our own containers for our leftovers . She explained that she too was trying to reduce the amount of plastic in her life. It made me smile knowing that other people (outside of the zoo) are also partaking in this practice.

My family made sure my drink wasn't in  a plastic bottle. Next step is making sure everyone's isn't a plastic bottle!

My letter to Publix about wrapping broccoli in plastic has been answered which means they are taking it seriously! Now to stalk the stores and see if they change something. You never know!