Goin' Green

My conscience begs me to make this post today. I have become more environmentally friendly in the past year. We started doing little things around our house to contribute (in a small way) to the future of this earth. Yes, the hype now is to reduce, reuse, and recycle. I might add repurpose to that list as well. It is hard to imagine our world in 100 years and, most likely, I won't be around to see it. However, my grandchildren will be and I want them to enjoy the same beautiful world I see everyday. I'm not a tree-hugging hippie but here are the simple things we do.

1). Change light bulbs to fluorescent bulbs and save over 35% in energy costs over the life of the bulb. Plus, the heat put off by the bulb is less. Gradually change the ones that are in use everyday and watch your energy usage go down (check your electric bill to see!).

2). I bought a reusable bag from Wal-Mart for $1. I take it with me when I shop there and it replaces 2-3 plastic bags. I do love my plastic bags to line small trash cans and to bag dirty diapers but my house was being overrun. Now, I bring home fewer bags and the excess that accumulates in my pantry are taken back to Wal-mart and recycled. There is a green box by the front door that is the drop for bags. Check it out the next time you go. I noticed Target got on this bandwagon and has their own reusable bag. I think it's red. Target sacks are made of heavier plastic and are great for hauling books back to the library. I'm not sure if Target has a recycle program for their bags. Let me know if you have seen one. My next step is to find a generic shopping tote for shopping in other stores as well to keep from taking home plastic bags from every little stop. Some plastic bags are not able to be recycled. Look for the symbol on the bottom of the bag.

3). We practice conserving water by shutting off the faucet when brushing teeth. If I'm waiting for water to warm for a bath, I stick a pitcher under the faucet to catch the cold water and use it to water plants. I keep a plastic pitcher in the bathroom for just this reason. My next step with this is to put a water barrel under the gutter to catch rainwater and use for the garden on a dry day.

4). My school has a big green and yellow dumpster looking thing that is to recycle paper products. The school gets the money from the recycling. I put a plastic tub in the garage and put newspapers, food boxes (like cereal, etc.), magazines, paper towel rolls, and any other paper product in it then recyle when it's full. Our trash consumption has been cut in half by not throwing away boxes. Less trash= less landfill space.

Some of these things do save us money but, more importantly, they are helping the earth. I challenge all of my faithful blog readers to choose something to start at your house this month. I didn't even begin to list other ways to "go green". Find your niche and go with it!

$ Talks

For a couple of months, Brent and I have been tossing around the idea of starting Lillian on an allowance. She is constantly asking for things in the store and has to hear, "Did you bring your own money?" everytime. She has robbed her piggy bank now and again when she just "has to have it" but that isn't the point of her piggy bank. Finally, the timeless act of learning how to manage money has begun. We discussed the amount she would get every Friday for simply being a member in our household. That means picking up toys, taking care of the cat, and anything else we need her to do. She has 3 containers for her money labeled Save, Spend, and Church. Then, she can earn extra money by doing chores that are above and beyond normal 4 year old living. For Brent, that means paying her to do his dreaded chore of putting away laundry. For me, that means paying her to hold a bottle for Lucas so I can get ready. Yeah, she is learning something- Mom and Dad are suckers when it comes to finding ways to get out of our own chores.

Lucas Begs To Be Recognized

I realized that my last several posts were focused on only one child. Before anyone thinks I am playing favorites, Lucas is getting his own post today. He has been alive and well in our house, taking the day to day happenings in stride. Lillian continues to fascinate him and I can tell she is/will be a great source of entertainment for him. Our big almost 6 month old is almost sitting alone. It has made him much happier to be able to view the world from a vertical position rather than a horizontal one.

Lucas meets SpongeBob
Gimme a hug!

Pretty Picasso

Well, her medium isn't exactly like Picasso's but her talent is top notch. Lillian has progressed with her writing in the past several months. She practices her name, Mommy, Daddy, Lucas, and Ty. We are working on other sight words like cat and dog. I think she is an exceptional colorer (a real word?) for her age.

Nature Lesson: Part 2

In an earlier post, I took a picture of a nest on the ground in our backyard. We checked it fervently, hoping to catch a glimpse of a hatching bird. We were finally rewarded when Brent found 2 little birds waiting impatiently for their mother to return. Over the next few days, Lillian returned to the nest to check on the birds. Nature Lesson: Part 3 When she found the birds gone one day, her assumption was that they learned to fly and flew away (doubtful when only a few days old) but we went along with it instead of telling her that Elephant, the cat, was the probable culprit.

If Only...

Sanity Resumes... I Hope

We returned home today after spending 2 days with my parents. Brent rolled in around 8 p.m and the family is together again! I think Brent is the favorite parent because Lillian is a much happier child when he is around. Now I feel like the summer can officially begin- complete with to do lists, sunscreen, and trying to beat the heat. I always start a summer break with a list of things to accomplish. This year, I didn't make a list; I'm trying the mental approach. Judging by the brain dead things I've done lately, it may not be a very productive summer.