Happy Halloween!

I haven't carved a pumpkin in years, so last night, I decided to get into the holiday spirit and carve my freshly ripe, bright orange pumpkin. I picked it from the local pumpkin patch in Lawrence, Kansas, a few weeks ago!

At a loss for what to do with the gooey insides, I chatted with my colleague Tabitha Alterman at Mother Earth News. She suggested I roast the pumpkin seeds after talking about what fun she was having making her spicy pumpkin seeds. Though I love spicy and hot foods, I really love sweet food. Here's my easy recipe for cinnamon-sugar roasted pumpkin seeds. Enjoy!

Step 1: Rinse the pumpkin seeds with warm water. Be sure to get off any remaining pulp from the seeds.

Step 2: Dry the seeds. I don't use paper towels anymore, so I spread my seeds out on a cloth napkin to dry.

Step 3: Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Step 4: Lightly grease a baking dish with canola oil. Toss the dry seeds in there to get a little oily coating. Now your seeds will be ready for the sweetness to come!

Step 5: Sprinkle on cinnamon and sugar. There's no real measurement to this—just cover the seeds with as much of the stuff as you like...and I like a lot!

Step 6: Place the dish in the oven and set the timer for 10 minutes to start. Listen for popping noises (bad!) to make sure that your seeds aren't exploding in the oven. I turned and shuffled my seeds after five minutes for even roasting.

Step 7: After 10 minutes, check your seeds. If they are not golden brown, let them roast for five more minutes. Check again after that time—it's OK to sample a few, too, to see if the texture is to your liking.

Step 8: Remove the seeds from the oven and let them cool in a new container. Pumpkin seeds are loaded with fiber and rich with protein, so they make a great mid-day, healthy snack. Enjoy!

The quest for food-grade personal care products is getting easier.

I've been using Intelligent Nutrients shampoo and body cleanser for the past few weeks, and it's been an organic experience.

A USDA-organic experience.

This line, formulated by Horst Rechelbacher, the mastermind behind Aveda, boasts certified organic ingredients and most products bear the USDA seal of approval. It's packaged in sleek, chocolate brown bottles with pump dispensers.

“We’ve created something that has not been done before with Intelligent Nutrients. We’ve merged food science and cosmetic chemistry to create a new paradigm in beauty,” says Rechelbacher.

All Intelligent Nutrients products are free of conventional ingredients commonly used in beauty products today, including sulfates, petrochemicals, plastics, phthalates, parabens, formaldehyde donors, heavy metals, silicone, mineral oil, petroleum and 1,4 dioxane. The company also purchases renewable energy credits to offset its carbon emissions.

But, does it work "as well" as conventional cleansers?

Leave it to the experts at Mode Organic Salon in Seattle. The chic salon is the first to carry and entrust Intelligent Nutrients to its clients' manes.

“This is the product line I’ve been waiting for,” says Joe Carling, founder of Mode Organic Salons.  “Since the concept of opening an organic salon first came to me, I have been scouring the globe for a high end product line that would live up to my standards of what I feel an organic professional beauty line should be. Intelligent Nutrients not only exceeds this standard, but it’s also an incredible organic health and lifestyle line as well,” Carling says.

As for me, I think the body cleanser is great. It lathers and moisturizes and has a faint scent. As for the hair shampoo, I was also impressed. It provided enough lather (which is usually achieved by sodium lauryl sulfate or sodium laureth sulfate) to make me feel like I was getting clean without stripping my hair of its natural oils. After using this product for two weeks, my hair felt softer, but it also retained water more (because polymers and chemicals were not binding my hair together), so it took a little longer to dry.

But, as with any quality personal care product (and especially one that is USDA organic), price is always a restricting factor for many people. Both the hair and body cleansers retail for $39—quite a lot more than the average product on today's shelves, including the "organic" products without the USDA seal of approval.

What do you think about that? Would you rather spend you money on an "organic" or "natural" personal care product that doesn't bear the food grade organic seal, or do you go for conventional products to save money in tough economic times? What about DIY treatments for hair and skin to save money and save your skin? Do you think personal care products that want to be labeled "organic" or "natural" should be better regulated?

So many questions—I need your input. Leave me a comment and discuss!

It's Wednesday, and that means it's discount day at the dry cleaners. I'm in desperate need for clean work pants, but have avoided taking them into the cleaners because of all the startling information I'm learning about dry cleaning. I'm also a little disgusted by the fact that dry cleaned clothes aren't really clean...they're just pumped full of chemicals and then pressed to toxic perfection.

First, I know that dry cleaning is a "necessary evil" to most people. But is it actually necessary? Growing up, my mother always ironed my dad's shirts and pants—not only was this eco-friendly, but it was wallet-friendly. Unfortunately, much to my mom's (and my old roommate, Rachelle's) dismay, I never fully grasped the concept of ironing, especially when it comes to putting that crisp line into pants. I'm not good at it. I always ask someone else to do it for me (sorry, Rachelle!) or show me how...again and again.

But now that I'm making a better effort at greening my life (and keeping money in my wallet!), I'm reconsidering that ironing board. Here are a few great tips for avoiding the dry cleaners and keeping chemicals off your skin. Because if I'm making this much of an effort to use natural beauty products and home cleaning supplies, I might as well not dilute my efforts by putting chemical-fresh clothing on my body—discount or no discount.

How do you deal with the dry cleaning dilemma? What are you eco-sins? Leave me a comment and let me know!

After being paper towel-free for two weeks, I now own eight cloth napkins (to which my friends exclaimed, “Wow, these are fancy” on girls’ TV night) and six kitchen towels. Previously, I only had three kitchen towels that were more for decoration or hand-drying.  

Every week, I try to change out the kitchen towels, and this has encouraged me to keep up with my laundry (I’m very bad about letting laundry pile up). My only complaint is when I’m cooking something germy (eggs, raw meat, etc.), I always tend to splatter some on the floor or counter and wipe it up immediately. 

My solution? Soak the cloth in hot, soapy water and then hang dry. This cures my inner germ-freak. 

What I want to know now: Is it even necessary to purchase recycled paper towels? Which is better—spending the extra money for something recycled but still disposable or using the extra water to wash the reusables? Do you consider it “extra water” use if you’re throwing it in the regular wash? 

Thanks to everyone for the wonderful, encouraging comments! Stay tuned for the next eco-challenge…

Do you have an idea for an eco-challenge? Leave me a comment and your most daring challenge!