I Can’t Remember

Wisebread has posted a list of their authors’ Green Resolutions for the coming year.
mine for my family are:
1. eliminate paper towel use (I’m down to 2 rolls per month!)
2. eliminate plastic bag use (this is tricky with packing lunches and storage–maybe I’ll allow myself to use them for long-term storage only)
3. investigate an in-line water heater for my bath and/or kitchen so I don’t waste water warming it up.

What are yours?

Technorati Tags: environment, Family, green, recycle, reduce, resolutions

So, I saw this great widget: it was a money system for kids with different places to put their money: “Save, Spend, and Share.” The “toy” had won numerous awards! So I thought I’d shell out some money to buy a cheap plastic/waxed cardboard thingy in order to teach my children the value of money…
OK, maybe not such a great idea when I put it that way…
How about the made-in-china divided piggy bank? No?

Oh wait, how about I frugally have the children help me make a divided-bank system for themselves. Kids love crafts, and that way they have a chance to really invest some effort and thought into the process.

Basically, you will need three containers (I used 14 oz. yogurt tubs with lids, but margarine tubs would also be great.)
Then have the child label and decorate each one with “Share”, “Save”, and “Spend.”
Have them draw pictures on the container about what each term means to them.
Cut slits in the top to put them money in.
Tada! Pat yourself on the back for saving the cost + S & H of that award-winning “toy.”

Give them an allowance that is easily divisible by 3. (Cut them some slack–they’re kids!)
Have them deposit one third into each container when they get their allowance.

They get to pick how they waste…er…”spend” the money in the “Spend” container.

Discuss with them a goal to “Save” for, and come up with an agreed-upon goal.

The “Share” money should go into the collection plate every week, or should be put in an envelope and mailed off to the charity of their choice at least once a month (if it’s already been “shared”, there’s less of a temptation to “borrow” from the “Share” container.) If your place of worship has envelopes, use them so your child will get a reciept at the end of the year. Seeing how much they’ve shared will make them feel good about themselves and may encourage them to share more. If you mail it off to a charity of their choice every month, keep track for them, and tell them in January how much they donated.

Don’t keep track of their spending–ask them if they can remember what they spent it on. That’ll be a learning experience.

Living in the burbs of Houston, I was surprised to see a Houston toad this morning. I’m almost positive it was one, and not a cricket toad, because it had a stripe down the center of it’s back.

The Houston toad is endangered. But I remember when it was more common.

When I was a child, one of my favorite critters was this tiny little toad. We’d see what seemed like millions of them near the church grounds and in our favorite park. “Please, please, mom, can we take a couple home? We’ll set them loose in the backyard!” “No,” my mother would say. “But everyone else’s mom let’s them!” we would proclaim. “No they don’t,” she would answer.

Well, maybe they did.
I still look for them in the places I used to go as a child. At my old church I see the children and wonder why none of them are crouched around puddles at the trees’ edge, muddying their Sunday best like I used to do. I catch myself seeking out puddles in the park, puddles that are empty.

Until today, I hadn’t seen the little toads in any of these places in a long time, because the Houston Toad is now endangered. I just looked in a puddle in the park near the elementary school out of habit, and there it was at the puddle’s edge!

Perhaps pesticides and other causes made them endangered? Surely this is true. I can attest that it is also true that none of these little toads survived to this day in my friends’ parents backyards. Even the ones who lived in the country and didn’t have lawns to spray. Even the ones who lived just a few streets over from the park. The separating of different toad colonies by roads is now listed as one of the causes for it’s endangerment. Separating individuals from the rest in order to keep them in one’s own backyard could not have helped.

Please, PLEASE leave wildlife where they are. Even if it seems like there are a million of them. Even if they’re only a toad.

The Houston Zoo is now breeding the Houston Toad in a effort to repopulate them, and surprisingly, Bastop’s State Park is said to have a population of them. (Surprising to me, ’cause I always thought that they weren’t found much outside the middle of town!)

Kids love them because of their small size. (Only 1/2 inch long!) This morning I pointed the one I saw out to a child and her mother, telling them what I thought it was. The mother was interested in the fact that it might be an endangered animal.
The little girl wasn’t listening; she was utterly fascinated by the tiny little toad.
Some things never change…

Here is a link that might be useful: Houston Toad

Did you know how much alcohol is in hand sanitizers? Enough to kill your kid if they swallow enough of it.
This is rather freaky. We use this stuff to keep our kids safe, and basically it’s poison.
My sister has a baby and asked me what to use, because she was worried about putting it on the baby’s hands since the baby always has her hands in her mouth. (she’s teething)

So I found this stuff called CleanWell Hand Sanitizer.
Pros: it’s non-toxic and safe for kids (yeah!!)
Cons: I can only find it on-line and it’s in a spray bottle rather than a pump (I find a pump more convienient.)
Read the rest of this entry »

You’re buying school supplies for your kids. Aren’t you lucky! Some parents can’t afford to provide supplies for their kids. Can you imagine trying to learn how to write without a pencil or pen? or doing homework with no paper?

We can all help–and for not that much $, either.

For only $25, World Vision has a program called “Fill a School Backpack.” They have other offerings, providing education, supplies and tutoring for children in the US and around the world!

Mercy Corps offers School Supplies Kits for $125 that provide school supplies for children in Iraq.

However you choose to help, thank you!

(originally published in the KAD news 9-05)

Parents and Grandparents are frantically trying to get the kids ready to go back to school. But unlike in the past, when this meant reviews or reading lists, today it means cash, check, or charge. All of these purchases can have a negative or positive impact on the environment.

Buying a pre-packaged container of school supplies for Ms. Smith’s third-grade class at the grocery or mart may seem like the best option, but there are more eco-friendly choices. If you buy supplies at a large office supply store you can buy in bulk (great if you have more than one child), which usually entails less packaging per item, resulting in less waste. Large office supply stores also carry paper supplies made from recycled paper, while groceries and marts do not.

Charities and environmental organizations sell things on the supply list, so why not send your child to school with a Sierra Club backpack, a Ducks Unlimited pen, or pencils made from recycled newspaper? During election years, candidates sell office supplies for fundraisers (or give them away!) So why not support a candidate who agrees with your environmental stance? Earthpak sells backpacks made from recycled plastic soda bottles. Whole Foods carries these, as well as other eco-friendly options, or look them up on the web. Be creative!

New clothes for school are an old tradition taken to an extreme. If you’re still making decisions about what your child wears, take advantage of this. Would you rather send your Kindergartener to school in a T-shirt that says “Arbor Day” or “Old Navy”? Who would you rather advertise on your favorite wiggling billboard?

Jeans, a ubiquitous part of a kid’s wardrobe, are often made in sweat-shop conditions, and many of the dyes used are toxic. If you buy jeans (or any clothes) that are made in America the manufacturers have to comply with US environmental regulations, and you also ensure that the workers have fair wages and safe working conditions. “Oshkosh B’gosh” jeans and clothes are American union-made. The “No Sweat” brand (also union-made) carried by many stores includes shoes, outerwear, and casual clothes (lots of stuff teens would like.) Buying clothes made from organic cotton encourages cotton farmers to go easy on the environment.

If your child needs new shoes, consider that 70% of New Balance’s shoes (and almost all their athletic shoes) are made in USA. Birkenstock is a family-owned, non-polluting, and energy-efficient company. Timberland’s working conditions are inspected by independent auditors, and the company pays employees for 40 hours of charity work per year. Reebock has had problems in the past, but recently, vigorous internal inspections have been conducted to ensure safe and fair working conditions worldwide

When buying a computer for your child, consider that Dell is a leader in the industry when it comes to recycling. In 2004 alone they recycled over 102 tons of computer equipment and started using water-based paints in an effort to make their products more recyclable. Dell has also pledged to avoid the use of products made from clear-cut old-growth temperate rainforests, and their Dell OptiPlex GX280 chassis follows international standards to minimize or eliminate numerous chemical compounds including lead.

Who you buy from is as important as what you buy. When you buy from local manufacturers there is less pollution from transportation. Buying from small local businesses is also a good practice. While it is easier to shop at Target or Walmart, Target has been criticized in the past for discrimination and carrying goods produced using sweatshop labor, while Walmart has been sanctioned for environmental problems such as toxic emissions, and a whole catalogue of social violations including discrimination, use of sweatshop and child labor, health and safety concerns, workers’ rights violations, and union problems.

If you want to find out about a company, Responsible Shopper is a website that gives company profiles: which charities they support, and reports on their social/labor policies and environment impact.

When you support businesses that produce or sell eco-friendly products by shopping with them instead of a competitor, you give them the ability and encouragement to continue making responsible choices. Remember you vote with your money—give it to businesses that share your values and concerns.

You want to feed your family only the best, right?

But everything at the grocery store seems so complicated.

Tannaz Sassooni over at Wise Bread has a post on how to eat locally. (Local is the new organic, didn’t'cha know?)
“>Save the World and Save a Dime: Eat Locally

And Andrea Dickson has a post: Baby Carrots - The Frugal Idea That Isn’t on why you should save your money and just buy regular old carrots (they’re cheaper and more nutritous!)