A new baby often means rethinking every part of life: use this impetus to start living sustainably, and teach your child great green habits for life.
In the past 20 years, humankind’s environmental footprint has increased dramatically with our snowballing use of natural resources, land, and energy. How you work and travel, where you live, what you eat, when (or it) you sleep are all up for grabs after giving birth. Start making a difference with the resources consumed on your baby’s behalf. This might seem crazy at a time when you’re encouraged to consume more—to buy booties, beds, and bottles—but your baby’s future is a mighty motivator.
Simple green tips
- Do you need to fill the tea kettle to make up a feeding? Boil only the amount of water you need.
- Are you doing more laundry now that you have reusable diapers? To reduce your impact on natural resources, replace detergent with laundry-balls and hang diapers out on the clothesline to dry.
- Do you find that you’re using more tissues and toilet paper to clean up? Switch to a brand that’s at least 80 percent post-consumer recycled; plant a tree or two; and join an environmental organization.
- Are you switching on the lights and heating more frequently now that you’re at home more? Insulate everything you can; turn off or unplug appliances instead of leaving them on standby; and fight the urge to buy electronic baby gadgets. Ask your electric company if you can choose to buy a portion of your electricity from renewable resources.
- Another mouth to feed? Choose seasonal produce from your region (more greenhouse gasses are emitted flying in food than by the air-travel industry). When you eat meat, make sure it’s locally sourced and ethically raised.
Before throwing something away, first ask yourself where its ingredients come from and where they’ll end up; are any hazardous for the environment? Could the item go somewhere else (for example, to a friend, or the recycling center), or could you have bought an alternative item with a longer life? If thinking this way causes you to buy less in the future, going green will make your life noticeably more streamlined, even with a baby.
How has having a baby changed the way your family considers the environment? Share your response by Wednesday, September 17th for a chance to win a copy of the book Green Baby.
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Comments: 30
I shop thrift stores on the rare occasion I do need to buy something - this saves not only the Earth but our wallet as well!
We shop our local farmer's market, friends gardens, and our own herb garden. I also volunteer at the local co-op, where we get bulk grains and beans to make baby food with (along with fresh veggies and fruit).
peace, recylce, eat organic and go green woohoo :o)
Frankly? We are thrilled we eliminated even the minor chemicals we used to use. We are all healthy as horses.:)
I hang my clothes out to dry but that's mostly because my electricity to the dry doesn't work.
On their bums- Cloth /Diapersnappies
I nursed for as long as it worked for him, and I made a lot of homemade baby foods (from my in-laws garden), and I still prefer to make his snacks--trail mixes, applesauce, etc--whenever possible. They also supply fresh veggies for us all summer out of their garden, as well as things they've canned throughout the winter. Our beef is usually local, as my brother-in-law's family raises cattle.
A lot of the things that we have implemented in our house over the last couple of years are things that I'm sure I've seen other people mention in the past
--energy efficient lightbulbs
--carpools and combining trips (biking/walking is not an option, but I do walk errands at work when I can)
--friendlier cleaning supplies, reusing burp cloths and t-shirts for dust cloths
--installing a water filter
--Buying used and donating
--cold water washes for laundry and hang-drying most clothes
--omitting high-temp, air dry, and heavy load options on dishwasher, because they are not necessary for the average load of dishes
-buying refill packs or economy size whenever possible
--reusing things around the house (junk mail=coloring pages, diaper wipe tubs=containers for everything, and lots of odd & end junk can be used for scrapbooking!)
--turning off or unplugging anything not being used
--conserving water by using only what my son actually needs for a bath, using leftover boiled water for plants, only giving the dog what she needs so I'm not throwing out wasted dirty water
--online banking and bill pay and I don't ask for receipts/statements at the bank since I work there and have easy access
It's strange that we don't realize how these little things add up, until it becomes personal. I was looking for ways to keep my son healthy and safe, (and save a few bucks!) and I found that by doing these easy things I can have a huge impact.
I breastfeed my son, so we didn't use plastic bottles (or any bottles for that matter). Most of the toys that my son has came from re-sale shops. The items are still in very good condition, and we are re-using something that would otherwise end up in a land-fill. I also participate with FreeCycle, CheapCycle, eBay, Craigslist, and other web-sites to save money and the environment. Paperback swap is a great way to share books that you no longer want.
Oh, and this year was the first time I planted potatoes and tomatoes. My son loves to eat tomatoes; we go out to pick tomatoes almost daily now and he will sneak a bite or two from a ripe tomato. The green ones, I've been making green tomato pie from. We also have a walnut tree and a peach tree that we got fruit from this year.
I once heard a clever quip about how the packaging for breastfeeding is very ecological and follows the reduce, reuse, recycle philosophy.
Think that one through.
* I made my own cloth diapers using old towels and scrap fabric.
* Use 1/2 the laundry soap required - you'll find your load of laundry is just as clean. It's the goal of the soap companies to sell you more soap, not to get you to conserve.
* Run your laundry at night with a special electrical outlet installed by your electric company - your washer/dryer will only work after peak electric hours, and you'll get a discount for running your appliances at these "cheaper" hours
* Make your own baby food - WHILE dinner is cooking. Use that second rack in your oven! I baked my baby's squash while the casserole was cooking.
* Steam your baby's fruits/veggies in a microwave steamer. When you puree your veggies, use the steamed water from the steamer. Not only are you saving water, but you have the nutrients that might have been steamed out of the fruits/veggies in the water.
* Stop with disposable bags, paper towels, etc. Use reusable everything. You're already doing a ton of laundry and dishes, so why not?
* The best possible thing for baby items: FREECYCLE. Do a yahoo search for a freecycle group near you. I haven't had to purchase a single item of clothing for my 19-month old daughter. As soon as items are outgrown, I freecycle them again. Swings, outfits, slings/carriers, strollers, exersaucers, you name it.
* Buy in bulk. Less trips to the store. Less per-capita packaging.
* Goodwill practically gives away baby items. Outfits, strollers, exersaucers, playmats, etc.
* Use a towel instead of a fancy changing pad. My friends actually *purchase* liners for their OWN changing table - why?!? Use a towel - this is especially important for newborn boys who are little fountains for the first month or two.
* Breastfeed. If your baby won't breastfeed, you can rent a hospital grade breast pump from a lactation consultant or even your local hospital that has a labor/delivery section. You'll have to purchase the horns (the collecting cups that go on your breasts), but even with the $40 purchase of the horns for a breast pump, all you need to do is pump a ONE WEEK supply of breast milk to get your money back - that's right people, you spend between $150 and $300 a MONTH for formula (depending on the type of formula, and whether or not you need special allergenic formula for your baby).
* Junk mail and a pair of safety scisors makes for GREAT fun for your toddler. Get a box (an old wipes box is perfect) and toss your junk mail, free crayons from restaurants, free stickers, etc. in it as a "crafty box" for rainy days. Doesn't cost you a dime and the kids LOVE it.
* Have your kids plant a garden. This has been a summer LIFESAVER for us. My son LOVES to dig in the dirt for earthworms, and has had a terrific time this summer with the fireflies, ladybugs, even pulling weeds is fun to him (thank god!). We planted 4 dwarf fruit trees at the side of our house, and my son loves to water them (collected rainwater from our house gutters). Not only do your kids get out of the house and learn a lot, you get fresh fruits/vegetables/herbs!
* Get your kids into recycling. My daughter LOVES tossing bottles, cans and paper into the trash can, and my (older) son ADORES the can crusher. They've begun to fight over who gets to step on the milk jugs!
Glitter Graphics
Gardens, Chickens that lay fresh eggs anything I can do at home grow or make I do it.
The products I buy are the green products like Green Works natural all purpose cleaner for my house.. its made by Clorox. (its not tested on animals) you would be suprised at how many cleaners and make up that are tested on animals.....
I breastfeed my baby. and use BPA-free bottle to feed him water.
I use empty daiper box to take my baby's clothes. then put the boxes under the crib.
I started a garden plot this year and planted some vegetables. unlucky, we got flood these year...
I change the dishsoap. use "green" one like 7th generation...
get some free used baby stuff from some friends. and give some baby stuff to the other friends whose babies are younger than my baby.
let my boy play with the other babies, then they can share the toys. so I don't have to buy too many toys.
Now we vote, because we now realize how much our elected officials affect us. We didn't think much about that before. We buy local more now than ever- both for the environment and for the economy. We conserve everything from energy to the products we buy. We don't turn on the heat or AC unless we can't stand it and then we keep it at reasonable temperatures. I bought more clothes and rags to use instead of papertowels and I bought a clothes line for our balcony to hang dry some items after washing them, instead of using the dryer. Clothing that is no longer wearable is recycled into rags as well. I trade clothing, toys and movies with friends and family so that we aren't buying new and spending more. We realize that we have to be more careful what we use to clean our home and things inside the home. Instead of buying lots of cleaning products we try to use things we already have, like vinegar, baking soda, water because it is safer, cheaper and cleans just as well.
I swear that going natural is the best way and the best thing you could do for your family.. We are all "making the earth happy" little by little!
Rachel D. and Alex In Wonderland