My Very FIRST Works For Me Wednesday (Like Water Under the Bridge)

*This is my first WFMW, a meme that rocks in my dryer started....

With all the talk about "greening" and improving the environment, I have been trying to figure out what to do to reduce my carbon footprint. We were originally going to buy a hybrid vehicle, but with gas so high, it seems prudent to wait. Currently, both of our cars are paid off, and J is loathe to take on a car payment until his car completely dies. He drives a Kia Sportage ( Yes, we are a Kia household, we have been very happy with the way the cars hold up) that has been around at long as JBug has: 14 years. It is definitely on its last legs, though we have been saying that for years. Currently, the heater has to be on as he drives, or the car overheats. Yes, you read that right. But I didn't start this to talk about his car. I wanted to tell you about my Sigg bottles.

First of all, no one paid me to write this, I just love my bottles that much.

For about the last year or so now, I have been gradually replacing plastic in our house with healthier alternatives. I switched the kids plastic cups for glasses that were shorter and with a wider base to keep them from tipping. I only buy glass containers and only microwave in glass to keep us all from growing a third arm or something. But with three kids and being on the go all the time we were going through water bottles by the case monthly. All that plastic couldn't be good for us. (not to mention the expense of bottles that we use and then throw away).Then I read the report that some polycarbonate bottles were leaching BPA and whoa, nelly! That was enough for me! Being smart, I went to Target and bought the hard plastic nalgene bottles. Thinking I was done, and wasn't I smart, then I read this! The nalgene bottles aren't any better than the throw-away bottles! Ok, so clearly that wasn't enough. I had to figure out something else. I did some research and ended up on the Treehugger site, reading about BPA leaching. From the site:

CEO, Steve Wasik says that SIGG uses a proprietary liner formula from a Swiss supplier with "an impeccable reputation for quality" but that "as there are many copy-cat manufacturers in the market (most based in China) that would like to get their hands on this formula, our supplier has an agreement with SIGG to keep his formula confidential." Wasik continues: "Very thorough migration testing in laboratories around the world is conducted regularly and has consistently shown SIGG aluminum bottles to have no presence of lead, phthalates, Perfluorooctanoic Acid (PFOA), Bysphenol A (BPA), Bysphenol B (BPB) or any other chemicals which scientists have deemed as potentially harmful.

That was enough for me. They could have looked like dog butts as long as they didn't smell that way! and I wouldn't have cared. But surprise! There are many designs, pick the one that strikes your fancy. And since they have been around for a hundred years, they are definitely trustworthy. From the website, there is a slideshow that talks about how a bottle is made. They say it undergoes twenty-six steps just to create the neck of the bottle! Then they spray the interior coating. The bottles are made of aluminum but are safe, and the coating won't flake off. My ice cubes fit right out of the ice maker, so I don't have to buy any weird-shaped ice trays. One thing, Sigg recommends that you do not put te bottles in the freezer, they might explode. Also, would you really want to ruin your bottles by forgetting they are there? Sigg is made to hold "fizzy" drinks and also fruit juices, and sports drinks, as well. You won't get a metallic taste.

The bottle interior is now sprayed with a taste-inert, food-compatible stove enamel which is baked on.

I liked the safety factor, definitely. But I also liked the great designs. I have this one:

and it is even better looking in person! Each of my kids have their own water bottle, and they are responsible for filling it before we leave the house. The designs reflect their personalities:

This is JBean's:

This is JBear's:

and this is JBug's:

Currently, SIGG is having a really hard time meeting demand, but if you search, you can still find a few internet retailers that are selling the products. Hopefully, that will ease up in a few months. I am going to buy a couple back up bottles, just in case.

So though it isn't much, it is something little that I can do...and that works for me!

T, who likes being all environmental-y

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