While it would be ideal to buy only organic groceries all the time, the reality is that it can be cost prohibitive for most of us. The simple compromise is to focus on the items you consume a lot of and to go with conventionally made products you use sporadically. So, if it takes more than a month to go through a package of butter, it's OK to buy the much less expensive conventional butter than organic. But if your kids eat PBJs morning, noon and night, spend a little more on organic spreads. Prioritizing your eco-friendly grocery list will help you save money and be greener at home.

If you have a bunch of apples that are getting a bit mushy, use them to naturally deodorize your home before you toss them in the compost. Just cut the apples in half and place them wherever you have smells you want to neutralize: next to a litter box, inside a closet that stores shoes or even overnight inside a car overnight that unfortunately smells like cigarette smoke. The apples have the consistency of a natural sponge and they hold onto odor, so the longer they have their cut side open, the more neutralizing can occur. After 24 hours, just toss the cut fruit in the compost.

Sure, a plastic soda or water bottle can be recycled, but why not easily upcycle it into a modern bird feeder for the backyard? Just wash and dry out a bottle and fill it with a store-bought birdseed mix. Then use an inexpensive insert called the Soda Bottle Birdfeeder that screws onto the opening so you can invert the whole thing and hang it from a tree. The metal cap has chambers that release seed in small doses so it's bird-friendly and squirrel resistant.