Hopefully, we are all recycling our newspaper, glass bottles and plastics with a 1 or 2 on the bottom. But did you know that there are several additional things we throw in the trash that could be spared the landfill fate?

Here are just a few of the biggies...

1. Old Appliances: There are many retail appliance stores that will recycle your old appliance when you purchase a new one from them. Goodwill also takes used appliances off your hands if they are in good working condition. Finally, you can try the Steel Recycling Institute at recycle-steel.org. They may be able to take what you no longer need and make it into something useful.

2. Used Batteries: Batteries have lots of toxic chemicals in them. That makes it important to keep them out of the landfill. Click on batteryrecycling.com. They take any type of battery and they supply you with everything you need to easily pack them up and send the batteries off to them. However, if you live near an Ikea, they'll also take your used batteries. I store mine in a box in my trunk until I'm headed in that direction and then I drop them off at my convenience.

3. Clothing: Clothing that you're tired of looking at but is still in good shape can be sold on Ebay or Craigslist. This is a great way to make a few extra dollars while recycling your clothes. But if you'd prefer to donate them, take them to a Goodwill outlet or a shelter. You can also donate wearable women's business clothing to the nonprofit organization 'Dress for Success.' They will then give them to low-income women who are searching for a job. Go to dressforsuccess.org. If you have some clothes that are totally un-wearable you can take them over to a local animal shelter and they'll use them for the animal's bedding.

Recycling is not that much trouble and your children will really appreciate the fact that you kept their environment a cleaner place to live.

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