Sunday, July 08, 2007

. . . o o o . . .

All this Live Earth stuff has me thinking....where is the Christian voice? Where to WE stand in all of this. I consider myself a moderate environmentalist. Since High school I have been aware of the waste I create. As a mother I feel a great responsibility to be an example and teach my children to be a great citizen of the world. The greatest way we do this is to share Jesus...but we can do more. I have always tried not to shelter them from the pain of the world. We must be aware of issues around the world, across the street and in my opinion all Christian's should be GREEN.
I wanted to share a few things I do. I have along way to go but I believe in small steps and doing what I can.
  • Recycling is an easy way to start. This costs no money but helps greatly.
  • Since putting in my cloths line 4 weeks ago I have only ran 2 loads in the dryer. This is better for my cloths and the environment. Also having us re-wear things that are not really dirty (jeans, shirts, pj's...but never underwear!) This also helps because your cloths don't wear out as fast.
  • Buying food at farmers markets, or growing your own food cuts down on packaging, emissions from trucks hauling..plus it is better for you.
  • I use refillable water bottles as much as I can. Especially in my kids lunch. Also trying to use reusable plastic instead of baggies for everything in their lunches is good too!
  • Insurance pays for Regan to have one feeding bag each day but we have started using them for three. This just cuts down a little but it is something. (It offsets all those diapers she is creating. And I do have friends that use cloth but I not quite ready for make that leap!)
  • Also trying not to use paper products. If I have a party at my house I try not to use paper products. How hard is it to just put it in the dishwasher (which is energy efficient). Plus it saves money.
If you have any tips of things that you do I would love you to post them on the blog for our 615 readers to read. I do not need this to sound wacky but would love to hear your ideas.

9 comments:

velvet said...

Who needs underwear! Just kidding. Scott is heading out to California next week, where there are actually recycling laws. In Littleton we do have to pay to recycle, and they don't take some things. We have adopted a more wholistic approach to health, but could do better with environmental issues. Thanks for the nudge. It was fun to talk to Brian on the fourth. If you haven't checked out the Yarb's blog, you should. I think Heidi has a link to it on hers. Okay, that's enough random thought ...

Mills Family said...

Great to talk to you too! We wished we were with you all...I am sure it was crazy!

Julie Russell said...

Don't forget the compost!

Unknown said...

I clearly remember saying that we need to be green (not those words) in my 6th grade confirmation class. I was told that it was considered earth worship. I never listened to that teacher much after that. I've tried to make an effort to bring this practice to LCC, but it hasn't happend. Maybe you can make it happen. Kids come and go...ugh! I am a bit green, I try and have for many years. Yup, I', a momma that cloth diapered my kiddos. When my little gram was in the hospital and we thought she would possibly get to come home, I began to look for cloth dipers for her. They aren't so bad. they are better for their little bottoms, the environment and the pocketbook. ;)

Unknown said...

Clothesline? What a novel idea!

Mandy said...

One thing I've thought about more is people's use of bottled water. It's so smart to just use a reusable bottle OR what I did was buy the PUR Water Filter for your sink faucet so you're still drinking purified water, and then you can drink that all the time instead of buying cases or gallons of drinking water. Plus, when I bought it, a percentage of the cost of it went toward providing clean water in Africa...something else I'm passionate about.

Mills Family said...

We use the purifier in our frig...

Mandy said...

know what else i was thinking about the other day? (this is why...i was at home @ lunch, looking @ my pringles can, and there was a chance to win to see some racecar driver)

How in the world can we have a sport like NASCAR or IRL racing when fuel is something we're trying to save and people are going crazy over hybrids and such... what a waste of gas!

Stacy Peacock said...

I recycle cuz it's free here, and area disposal even provides a tote, i reuse my grocery bags especially like going to aldi's where u have to reuse bags or it costs! I wish i could get my family to do the clothes thing, but it seems like they wear something for an hour, then it's just magically supposed to become clean, and folded or hung up... short showers and minimal water for dishes are another way i cut down, and cleaning products are another easy way to cut cost and be green...u know u can clean just about anything with a combo of baking soda, vinegar, or water! Talk about cheap, and none of it will hurt the fam.