The Ziplock Challenge

Ziplock bags are such a useful invention. They keep food dry and air out so our food stays good longer. They are good for keeping something clean that needs to stay (nearly) germ-free. They are wonderful organizers, helping to keep small things in useful categories and not spread all over the house. For families with children under 3, they are great for popping choking hazards into so you don't have to throw away all your daughter's Barbie shoes. Even if the baby did gete a hold of the bag, the challenge of the zip gives you enough time to confiscate the item before there is any real danger. For air travel, ziplocks are a lifesaver when your shampoo and lotion explode inside your luggage.

But the use of ziplock bags in our world is growing, and it seems to be getting a bit excessive. For awhile, they were a regular item on my grocery list, and I began to wonder where all that plastic was going. In the trash, of course. I started to think that maybe there were some ways to diminish my use of the bags, without making this useful tool the enemy. Much like my thoughts on disposable diapers. Use them for when nothing else makes sense, but don't use them when you don't have to.

I think it's been about a month now since I stopped buying ziplocks at my normal grocery run. I've had to be creative on how to get some basic chores done.

Packing lunches without ziplocks. I've identified several very small reusable plastic containers in my house that my grade schooler can open unassisted. This seems to be working out great.

Storing food. Again, tupperware is the solution I've used mostly. Not keeping food I know I won't eat just to make myself feel better has also helped.

I still reserve the right to use the ziplock. My working guidelines are for 1. sanitatary reasons, 2. emergencies (a soiled set of clothes on the go), 3. packing for trips, 4. for teachers and educational purposes, and 5. the classic pet goldfish in a bag.

These are, of course, working guidelines, and I am encouraged that I have been able to diminish my consumption quite significantly.

Diaper Dilemma

I have a friend that I admire for making the decision to use cloth diapers for her three kids. I don't know how she has done it. It seems like so much extra work. I haven't been so kind to the environment. For most of my kids' diaper time, I didn't even dump the poop in the toilet because, to be honest, it really wasn't dumpable. Now, my last child is in the final stretch before potty training, and I'm wondering, "How do I reduce my stinky affect on the environment without driving myself crazy or trying to potty train a child who isn't ready?" I can't undo the last 7 years of diapers on the curb, but there has to be something I can do. Dumping the contents in the toilet (when possible) is a start. I also have a pile of washable plastic pants that I could use when I'm home, and still use the disposables while I'm out of the house. Any other thoughts from moms out there?

Delayed Consumption

Look what I found! I went out to the garage and AMAZING, the artificial tree I talked about before was not in the landfill after all, but sitting neatly packed in its box on a shelf. We put it up, vacuumed, and as you can see, it looks just beautiful. We gave it a pine scented spray, and now we almost believe it's real. One more year of delayed consumption equals one more tree left on the mountainside to grow and one more artificial tree that doesn't need to come off the assembly line.

Oh, and by the way, the lights from last year did work, so I can put off figuring out a green lighting solution until next year. Let's hear it for delayed consumption! Who would have figured there was an upside to indecision?

Picture Perspective

When my preschooler brought in a picture of his Papa for show and tell, the teacher asked him, "Does this picture go in a book or a stack?" He looked at her quizzically and didn't know what to say. When she told me the story, I immediately knew the reason for his confusion. The answer was, "They go in the computer!"

For a long time I felt guilty at not having all my pictures beautifully cropped and layed out on acid free, color coordinated paper. Today, in the spirit of Thanksgiving, I am choosing to throw off all that negativity and be thankful that I have saved all that paper from being stored away in boxes with all my pre-digital camera photos.

Maybe when I'm ready to get my photos off the computer and into the tangible world, I will have thought of a greener way to go. I suddenly have an urge to back up my data...

Coping with Prosperity

I put a pile of goldfish in front of my little one, hoping to get enough time to load the dishwasher. Instead, I find myself two minutes later sweeping a pile on the floor. I’ve found that it’s more effective to give her two at a time, even though it means walking back and forth across the kitchen. We say in our house that kids can’t deal with prosperity. Put them in a room full of toys and they’re bored. Put them in an empty room with one toy and they can keep themselves busy indefinitely. Now why wouldn’t more fish keep her busy eating longer than two?

My theory is that it is a way of coping with prosperity. There is just too much everywhere. People ask, why are kids so different than in year’s past? Actually, I see a change in behavior in people of all ages. We’ve all had to go away from the finishing your plate idea because there’s just always too much on the plate! Kids turn their nose up at food because their bodies know they’ve had enough. Now they haven’t always had enough of the right stuff, but they’ve had enough calories to deal with for the moment.

But there is something that feels good about having a full plate. I keep a stack of two different size cups, one from a kids’ yogurt pack, the other from the Pringles single packs, and use them to serve snacks in. This way, the kids feel like I gave them something full, when I actually haven’t given them much at all…and I find I’m sweeping up a lot less.

I'm dreaming of a Green Christmas

We're in the market for a new Christmas Tree solution. The last two Christmas trees we had were given to us by parents who had gotten them second hand already. We used each of them several years and by the end I almost believed they were real trees because they were shedding needles all over the living room carpet. I chose to feel good about getting that many years out of an artificial tree and about all the real trees saved along the way, and decided not to dwell on the fact that it still had to go to the garbage dump eventually.

Now I'm wondering if there is a greener solution. Real trees can be burned, so that's good as long as they're from a source that isn't taking away from the trees we need to keep around. Artificial trees avoid using a real tree which takes time to grow and, as we see from our family, can be used for 10 years or more. I could get another used tree from our friends at Good Will. Hmmm.

Then there's the lighting situation. Strings of lights that are awkward to put new bulbs in aren't very practical, and almost demand that you buy new sets each year. But how else can you light your tree and home for Christmas? I've seen trees with crystals on them. I wonder if a spotlight with a pretty bulb in it would make the tree glisten nicely. I have two sets of glass icicles that sparkle in the light. For around the house, I could use candles this year instead of lights. Many musings. Now the challenging question, "Am I willing to change and sacrifice the comforting sameness of the classic white lights at Christmas?" We will have to see...

Take it Easy Being Green

Very rarely does the world have a major paradigm shift that changes everything. Usually change takes place little by little over years and generations—sometimes for good and sometimes not. So it is in our lives. There are moments that enact major change (graduations, weddings, births) but these are usually a reflection of change that has been happening in small units (hours of study, growing up, learning to love).

Habits and patterns are established little by little to align with our values and passions as well as our weaknesses and tendencies. Once we embrace the value of taking care of our world and working together to help, we can begin to make small changes in our patterns to align with this value.

In this site, the idea of going green isn’t to make new year’s resolutions to overhaul our entire lives, but to change small things over time to make a difference.

Learn as You Go Green!

We buy cinnamon rolls on a regular basis. The kids like to jump when the container pops and frost the perfectly round buns before they eat the sugar off the top and leave the bottoms. The frosting comes in a plastic container that I wash and put in the paint box because they're the perfect size for putting paints in (washable, please). Soon, I'll have too many of these little plastic cups which don't nest inside each other, so I'm considering (don't shudder), learning to make cinnamon rolls FROM SCRATCH. Shocking! As a child who thought meat was born and raised in plastic wrap, this is earth shattering. Still, I guess that bread maker is good for something. I've actually made them once, so it would be a relearning process, which isn't as hard as trying something totally new.

Sparse is Beautiful

It's a strange feeling to be surrounded by advertising encouraging us to buy more, and the call to beautify our homes through sparsity; uncrowded shelves with one to three trinkets lounging leasurely in living rooms, kitchen countertops with only the barest of necessities to block the granite view. But what do we DO with all the stuff we unclutter our lives with?

One good, but difficult task is to find a good home for it. I am constantly amazed at the women who ask me if I need ___, and it turns out to be exactly what I need at the moment I need it. Maybe it's a gift. Maybe it's the Holy Spirit guiding them to bless me, but my home is filled with adopted items from someone else's home. I haven't had too much luck finding homes for the things I need to part with, so I usually let the trained professionals deal with distribution--Good Will.

Coffee to Go

Ok, so here's an easy one to start with. Get out your to go coffee mug and take it with you. I noticed at church this morning that if I had just brought mine to Sunday School, I could have saved the landfill one styrofome cup and a plastic lid. At least I poured the creamer first so I didn't have to waste one of those little stir-ers. I used to have a backpack purse that had a side pocket a miniature thermos fit in, but the strap broke. I guess I should have sewed it, but I think it's in the landfill now.

Learning Green

In 2nd grade (it might have been 3rd), I remember that we had a guest speaker come to our class. He was a garbage engineer and I was fascinated by what he shared. The whole system of garbage intrigued me. But then, he shared with us the reality of the garbage problem. If we didn’t do something in the next 20 years, our world would be in terrible danger. It was an awful thought, but what could we do?

Unfortunately, if the garbage engineer offered any helpful advice on what we should do differently, I don’t remember it. I opened my lunch box to see a small sandwich wrapped in plastic, a shiny bag of chips, and a box of milk from the lunch lady. No one said anything at lunch about what we put in the trash can, and I grew up in the dichotomy of a prepackaged culture asking me to reduce, reuse and recycle. I knew something should be done, but assumed that my small part could not possibly make a dent in the global problem.

As going green becomes fashionable and we see marketing campaigns popping up encouraging us all to do our part, I started thinking that a hopeful, encouraging attitude could probably do more good than the doom and despair such a dirty problem could invoke. The Bible says to, “…consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.” Hebrews 10:24 (New International Version)

I know many chuckle at the naïve go green sentiment, but I have a feeling it’s not that we don’t care, but that we don’t believe our individual efforts can make a difference. Still, we do need to think about our patterns and ask ourselves what we can do differently to help. It won’t look the same for everyone, but change happens on the individual level. So don’t take this site as a place to lay guilt on your already loaded shoulders. Take it as a place to encourage you to adjust your patterns and think of simple ideas to help take care of the world God gave us.