Remember the Reason for Christmas
Dec 24, 2009 Eco Friendly Parenting
With all the craziness of this time of year it can be really hard to keep in mind the real reason we celebrate at this time of year. For my family it’s the celebration of the birth of Christ, but even if that’s not your belief there should be more to celebrating at this time of year than just “gimme, gimme, gimme.”
Appreciate Your Family
The holidays are a great time to remember just how much your family means to you. Not just your kids, but your spouse, your parents, your siblings and extended family. Make the most of the time you spend together this holiday season and try to really appreciate each other.
Fun things to do can include sharing favorite stories, baking or doing crafts together.
Appreciate Your Good Fortune
Even if times are tight for your family, you’re probably better off than a goodly percentage of the population of this planet. A good way to remind yourself and your family is to give to charity. Feed the Children, for example, lets you give animals such as goats to families that need help. Or you can seek out a favorite charity of your own.
Appreciate Your Faith
The entire holiday season can be exhausting, but don’t let that keep you from celebrating your faith. Get to church or otherwise join in the celebrations at this time of year that so many faiths have.
You can also talk to your children about why we celebrate at this time of year. Get beyond Santa and the excessive consumerism that are so dominant at this time of year.
Tags: appreciate, celebrate, christmas, holidays
What to Do with All Those Christmas and Holiday Cards?
Dec 22, 2009 Going Green
Much as you may try to limit your own use of cards and such at this time of year, you can’t easily stop other people from sending them to you. What do you do with all the kind Christmas and holiday wishes sent by card by loving family members and friends?
For a time, they do make nice decorations. You can hang them around a door frame or have them set up on a table or shelf. But what about after?
I know some people keep them all. But I’m not into cluttering up my life that way.
They can of course be recycled in many areas as well.
But I like to give them a little bit of reuse before they hit the recycle bin. I have kids, after all, and they love to do crafts. Cards give them something fun to work with.
Kids are good at coming up with their own ideas, which is nice for temporary use before you send their projects off to the recycle bin… those that the kids don’t want to keep for a time, of course. But you can direct their creativity a little bit as well. There’s a lens on Squidoo with some cute card craft ideas.
Another good use is to send your used cards to St. Jude’s Ranch. They are accepting cards now, and will continue to do so until February 28, 2010 for the current program. They do this many years, so keep it in mind for the future also.
Gift cards can also have the backs cut off, and then they can be reused as gift tags the following year. Just be sure nothing is written on the part you’re reusing.
Encourage the Kids to Make Christmas Gifts
Dec 11, 2009 Eco Friendly Parenting
There are a few things that are true about most kids, especially younger ones.
- They love to make crafts.
- They love holidays.
- They don’t have much of their own money.
Put it all together and what do you have? The perfect excuse to have them make the Christmas gifts they give.
Gifts don’t have to be complex. Last year my kids made frames out of wooden craft sticks, with magnets on the back so they could be stuck on the fridge. They painted them and added glitter because, well, it wouldn’t be a fun craft in their view if things didn’t go just a little overboard.
The frames are really easy to make. You’ll need:
4 or 8 craft sticks, depending on if you want a single or double layer to the frame.
Glue
Photograph to be framed
Paperboard or thin cardboard
Magnet (strong enough to hold the whole thing up)
Decorating supplies
Have the kids glue them into approximately a square. Don’t fuss about perfection, these are kids and a little off looks good. My kids like to do the double layer frame.
Allow the glue to dry, then let the kids decorate the frame as they please.
As the decorations dry, you can cut the photograph to fit the frame. Glue its back to the paperboard and attach the magnet to the back.
When everything is dry, glue the photo into the frame.
There are many other crafts kids can easily make that will be appreciated by grandparents and other relatives. Having them make the gifts encourages them to give things that have more meaning, rather than spending a dollar or two on what appeals to them at that instant at the store.
Tags: christmas, gift ideas
Are You Ready for a Green Christmas Shopping Season?
Nov 23, 2009 Going Green
The holiday season is perhaps one of the most difficult times to be green. There are so many temptations to shop, shop, shop… and so many of the temptations are such poor choices for the environment. These are some of my thoughts on how to green things up just a little.
Avoid Black Friday Crowds
Admittedly, I have a long standing bias against Black Friday shopping. Comes from even before I thought much about the environment. Too many years working in retail and dealing with Black Friday crowds from the other side.
But it’s really ridiculous to fight the crowds that are so common on that day. To me there’s no Christmas present so important that I have to deal with that nonsense. The bargains are nice, but if you really need them, do consider that there’s Cyber Monday and you could just shop online. It can be more efficient. Sites such as Amazon are even starting “Black Friday” deals today and you might find something reasonable in their special deals.
Carpool if You Just Gotta
If you need to fight the crowds, think if any friends want to go shopping with you. It’s more fun, although you may have to be careful if you tend to buy more when you shop with friends.
And don’t worry about how good a parking space you get. A little extra walking isn’t going to be that much of a problem.
Think About What is Wanted and Will Last
Try not to buy gifts just to have something to give. It’s an easy mistake to make when you’re desperate for something to give, but it also results in a lot of unnecessary junk being bought.
Instead, think about gifts that really will last. It doesn’t have to be perfectly practical, but have some thought behind it.
If you don’t want to give something that lasts, think about free trade chocolates, organic produce gift baskets and such.
For the Kids?
Even kids who spend some time thinking about the environment are likely to want the latest trendy toys. It’s hard to blame them. There are a lot of really cool toys out there.
At the very least, think about if the toys you buy will have more than a momentary fascination for your kids. How many end up eternally in the toy box after a few days?
There are some great toys for kids that are more environmentally friendly too. Try to balance things out as best you can for them.
Tags: christmas, consumerism, green shopping, holidays, shopping
Will It Be a Green Christmas?
Nov 19, 2009 Green Gift Ideas
Smiling Green Mom has a cute version of “I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas” done as “I’m Dreaming of a Green Christmas” up on her blog. With Christmas not all that far away (eep!), the post also includes some good reminders to be green in your Christmas shopping and places to shop.
This is easier in some families than in others of course. But an awful lot of people do appreciate things such as special self care items, bath salts and the like, and those are pretty easy to find in organic versions.
Others will appreciate gifts of your time or creative skills. Still others may appreciate it if you donate to their favorite cause in their name.
In so many ways I’ve learned to love a simpler Christmas rather than one full of gifts bought to fulfill the giver’s notion of the right number of gifts or dollars spent. The thought really does count for much more.
You can almost always find a green gift even for people who aren’t that into the environment. Just look at what they do enjoy and work from there. It may be challenging but you can do it.
