There are many mom things I would like to be better at: there are never enough vegetables at our table, I yell more than I should, my kids watch more TV than they should and none of us are as green as we should be. I’m what you might call “crunchy-lite.” I do what I can to teach my family that protecting the environment is important because, well, science, but I know there is so much more we could do. This year, I want to honor Earth Day by making it not just a single day that I appreciate our beautiful earth, instead I want to be better every day. However, I NEED help. I’m certain that there are moms out there who have tricks and ideas for everyday environmental friendliness that haven’t even occurred to me.
So here’s what we’re already doing:
- Recycle: my kids are great at this, hunting down the little triangle and putting it in the right bin.
- Reusable shopping bags: if you’ve ever had a woman insist that you take one of her shopping bags instead of the plastic ones it might have been me.
- Paper-free kitchen: no paper plates, no paper cups, no paper napkins and no paper towels.
- Chemical-free lawn: we’re not inspiring any neighbor envy, but I feel better knowing we aren’t adding pollutants to the lakes we swim in.
- LED light bulbs: they even make the super cool decorative ones in LED now so no excuses.
- Low flow faucets and toilets: to be honest, these were in the house so we inherited someone else’s greenness.
- Reusable lunch containers: no plastic bags, plastic wrap or tin foil, and I try to buy bulk items without individual wrapping.
- Bee friendly and native plants: my thumb isn’t as green as I’d like either, but I love bees so no neonicotinoids in the garden.
This list is embarrassingly short and I’m certain I only do the really easy ones. Please, please add your tricks and secrets. I know there are truly crunchy moms out there who could double this list. Do you compost, tell me how you keep it going in the winter? Do you cloth diaper, share all the dirty deets? Does your house have solar panels or do you belong to a solar farm? I want to know about the process. Please dish, I (we all) NEED more ways to make every day Earth Day.
