Taking better care of ourselves and our families, communities, and ecosystems.
Making healthier choices. For you, your family and community, and our Earth.
You're into strong values, natural living, real food, and healthy families and communities.
You want to live in ways that don't keep unraveling life on earth so your kids and grandkids can get a fair deal, AND, you need to do it in ways that are manageable for you.
You need affordable steps that make your life easier, not harder.
And you need to hear ideas and concepts that bring a sense of relief and hope, not guilt and despair.
Is that how you feel?
Hi, I'm Kate
I’m a homeschooling mother of two, an advocate for real, local food and simple, natural living, and a writer and teacher.
I’m deeply interested in health. I believe that “health” is not only physical but also has social and spiritual dimensions, and that in order for individuals to be healthy our families, communities, and environments must be healthy. And vice versa. It’s all connected.
That’s why for the last 15 years my mission has been to learn to care for myself and my family in ways that build and regenerate all aspects of health.
It’s complex. I don’t have it all figured out yet, far from it. But I’ve come a long way, I feel confident in my direction, and I’m ready to help you do the same for yourself and your family.
Hi, I'm Kate
I’m a homeschooling mother of two, an advocate for real, local food and simple, natural living, and a writer and teacher.
I’m deeply interested in health. I believe that “health” is not only physical but also has social and spiritual dimensions, and that for individuals to be healthy our families, communities, and environments must be healthy. And vice versa. It’s all connected.
That’s why for the last 15 years my mission has been to learn to care for myself and my family in ways that build and regenerate all aspects of health.
It’s complex. I don’t have it all figured out yet, far from it. But I’ve come a long way, I feel confident in my direction, and I’m ready to help you do the same for yourself and your family.
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Wondering where to start? I have a suggestion...
What we put in our shopping trolleys and baskets impacts our own health, obviously, but it goes way beyond that. Our basic shopping choices also directly effect the ecosystems and communities that produce our consumables and those that absorb the by-products and waste-products of what we eat and use.
Since we're making these choices every day anyway, paying more attention to them is a powerful way to start making a difference - without adding anything extra to your to-do list.
Use my free Guide to Healthier Shopping Habits as a starting point. The ideas in it will help you think through your shopping choices more clearly, and they might also save you money.
Imagine being able to learn how to...
- rely less on supermarkets, pharmacies, and the whole industrial complex -- so you can live a healthy life that doesn't cost the earth
- meet your family's food and basic healthcare needs more economically, using simple ingredients with less toxins, less packaging, less waste, more meaning, and better ethics
- parent yourself compassionately so you can be more effective at taking care of what matters to you
- feel connected and comfortable in the relationships, communities and ecosystems that hold you, knowing you're supported by them and also accountable to them
That's an attempt to describe what I mean by "a real green life." Every day I have moments of deep gratitude for how far I’ve come with everything I've just described... And some days I still have moments where I fumble and stumble and am reminded of how far I still have to go.
A Real Green Life is about the transition from "business as usual," which is making us and all of life on earth very, very sick, to a way of living that restores and regenerates Life.
A Real Green Life comprises two kinds of offerings:
- Practical, as in "how-to-do-things," and
- Philosophical, as in "who am I, why am I doing things the way I'm doing them, and how does that relate to the rest of Life on Earth?"
Here's a bit more about each of these...
1. In terms of "how-to,”
I share hands on, step-by-step learning about practical skills of self-reliance. My goal here is to help you decrease your reliance on industrial foods, pharmaceuticals, and toxic cleaning products by helping you:
- ditch the two most toxic aisles in the supermarket—the cleaning aisle and the bathroom aisle—and replace them with simple, healthy alternatives that you can make at home from basic ingredients for a fraction of the cost
- ditch the packaged convenience food aisles and gradually replace them with real, whole, foods and wise, frugal kitchen strategies that will greatly improve your nutrition without taking as much of your time as you might be thinking (to get started with these supermarket shopping changes, check out my free guide above)
- grow some of your own food to further cut your costs and increase the nutrient density and cleanliness of what you eat
- make some of your basic healthcare needs cheaply and simply, to significantly lower your exposure to the health threats hidden in pharmaceuticals
2. In terms of "who I am and why I'm doing it this way,"
I share stories and ideas about empowerment, perspective, and hope. My goal with this is to help you examine the stories we've been living in--about who we are, how our world works, and what kinds of power we have to influence it--and choose whether you want your life to extend these same stories or tell different ones.
Here's what I mean by "real" and "green"
I use the word "Real" in the sense that it's focused on what's real and important to you. It's living according to your values, as opposed to allowing your life to be driven by capitalism and consumerism.
I use the word "Green" in the sense that it's about making choices that are regenerative as much as possible, or at least that do no harm. Industrialization and consumerism have conditioned us to live in ways that are extractive and destructive. A Real Green Life recognizes that conditioning and engages in ways to undo it.
When you sincerely commit to caring for your self and your family with a focus on your truest values, you are indirectly taking care of the Whole. Even if this is all you do, you will be living what I call A Real Green Life.
Readers have said...
"Honest, genuine, thought provoking...
As a homeschooling Mum pursuing a more meaningful life for my family, ARealGreenLife supports me in questioning and expanding my existing world view."
Melita
"Love your non-threatening, easy to read, commonsense style.
Reading ARealGreenLife offers people the opportunity to question what, where, how, and why they live the way they do.
Gina
"No fluff.
So much interesting and important info, neatly packaged, no fluff. "
Gunter
"Insightful ideas and concepts...
I love your stuff - you come up with very insightful ideas and concepts. For example, I never realized that essential oils had become such a big industry that it was impacting on the environment.
Cathy
"Realizing how numb we are...
Dear Kate, Thank you for posting such deep and thought provoking blog posts. ... I think you are doing a great service to make us all aware of the consequences of our actions. It makes me realize how numb we are, and how comfortable it is to be numb, just doing what everyone else does and not questioning the real, true and deep impacts of our lives."
Anonymous
"Food for thought...
I subscribe to quite a few homestead/green lifestyle newsletters. Yours is so relatable, informative, and gives excellent food for thought; Get Off the Bus is a great example. Thanks so much for your work. Cheers from a Nova Scotia!"
Jessica
Raven's Ridge Permaculture
"Lucid insights...
Thank you Kate. You express your insights and understandings lucidly...
I appreciate the broad perspective you share on subjects that are meaningful to you—social, spiritual, environmental, economical—and the research and reading you do to inform your writing."
Meg
Recent Posts about creating healthier supermarket shopping habits...
(and there's a free guide here that accompanies these posts)
Whole foods require more planning and organization than processed convenience foods, but the pay-off is worth it. The benefits include: better nutrition, a feeling of empowerment and reconnection as you learn to engage with your food closer to its source, and the satisfaction in knowing you’re taking better care of the Earth just by how you eat.
Our physical and social environments have huge influence on our habits and behaviors. People who design supermarkets and sell products know this and take full advantage of it. This post will help you examine what’s shaping your shopping routines and your buying decisions, and learn how to change them.