My bEARTHday.

April 22nd, 1984. It was Easter and Earth Day. A fitting entrance into the world if I do say so myself.

Are you celebrating Earth Day? I hope so. I hope with the passing days, we ALL continue to try and better our Earth, and be more environmentally aware. Obviously, this doesn't mean rush out and buy a Hybrid, but hell - if you can, do it!

There are other, smaller things that can make a big difference. Recycle.You can help reduce pollution just by putting that soda can in a different bin. If you're trying to choose between two products, pick the one with the least packaging. If an office building of 7,000 workers recycled all of its office paper waste for a year, it would be the equivalent of taking almost 400 cars off the road.

Re-use shopping bags, or even buy cloth bags to carry your groceries in. Ditch buying bottled water and invest in good water bottle and a water filter. You could also cloth diaper. Cloth diapering is not like our Grandmother's cloth diapers of yesteryear. You'd be surprised how hip they are now.

Don't run the water as you wash dishes, or brush your teeth. Got a leaky toilet? You might be wasting 200 gallons of water a day. Wash your clothes in cold water when possible. Turn off the lights when they aren't being used.

Leave your car at home. If you can stay off the road just two days a week, you'll reduce greenhouse gas emissions by an average of 1,590 pounds per year.

Change your light bulbs. Compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) last 10 times longer than a standard bulb and use at least two-thirds less energy. If you're shopping for new appliances or even home electronics, look for ENERGY STAR products, which have met EPA and U.S. Department of Energy guidelines for energy efficiency. In 2006, the ENERGY STAR program saved energy equivalent to taking 25 million cars off the road and saved Americans $14 billion in utility costs.

There are also fun activities you can do with your kiddos, to encourage them to learn about the Earth, and to be Earth friendly, as well. Plant some flowers or trees, have a "Clean the neighborhood" party, make a compost pile. Reducing the amount of solid waste you produce in a year means taking up less space in landfills, so your tax dollars can work somewhere else. Plus, compost makes a great natural fertilizer. Composting is easier than you think.

I constantly get asked, "Since you were born on Earth Day do/are you Earth friendly?"

Sadly, no. There's so much more that I can be doing, that all of us can be doing but some of us do have limitations. I wish I could do more. Perhaps, one day - I'll be able to.

We take our Earth for granted.