Tag Archives: holidays

Tips for an Eco Friendly Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving is getting pretty close already, so it’s time to start planning. I posted last year on having a green Thanksgiving, and now it’s time to revisit the topic and see if I have any thoughts to add to it.

Hmm, no, not really. Guess I got it perfect last year.

Kidding folks, kidding.

Last year I suggested decorating with things you have on hand, using natural decorations, organic turkey & produce, less excess, borrowing, limit carbon from travel or stay home, recycle, compost, be thankful for what you have and sharing with the less fortunate. If you want the details, go read last year’s post.

What to add, what to add?

How about a reminder to bring your reusable bags when you go shopping for Thanksgiving supplies? It’s a crazy time of year, but don’t get so behind that you forget the little details like that.

Also consider turning your heater down just a couple degrees if you haven’t already. Sweaters are good for helping you to cope, and having company warms the house a little too.

If you’re buying a turkey it’s kind of hard to take the focus off of it, but do your best to have interesting side dishes that don’t include meat. All that meat can be used in smaller quantities for a number of meals if you don’t go through it in one nights. Just cut up the excess and freeze it for later use to avoid the inevitable turkey boredom.

The Eat Well Guide may help you find the right kind of turkey and produce in your area. It’s nice when you can get free range or organic. LocalHarvest.org is another good resource.

Candles are a popular decoration at this this time of year. Try to find beeswax candles rather than the usual paraffin ones. Beeswax burns much cleaner.

And of course, just do what you can to minimize waste. It’s easy to get caught up in the tradition of having too much, so just try to be sure that your “too much” isn’t so much that the leftovers won’t get eaten before they spoil.

Make Green Easter Baskets for Your Kids

It’s just a couple of weeks to Easter, and I’m thinking already on what I want to put in my kids’ Easter baskets. It’s a holiday they have a lot of fun with, and I like to keep up the excitement without overdoing the spending.

With that in mind, I thought I would offer some tips on keeping Easter a bit greener for the kids.

1. Buy Easter baskets that can be reused.

Our kids’ Easter baskets get reused every year. We didn’t get the cheapie ones from the store. We found nicer ones that will hold up for many years. The kids love them.

You can find good baskets at thrift stores or any store in your area that sells baskets. It’s been a few years, but I think ours came from Cost Plus.

You can also consider using a bucket as a basket. This is great for kids who are still young enough to really enjoy playing in the sand.

2. Reuse other supplies from year to year.

Sure, you don’t like all that ugly plastic stuff you may have bought for Easter in years past, but if you have it there is no further harm in using it. Just don’t go buying new plastic eggs or plastic Easter grass.

Build up your supply as needed with more environmentally friendly Easter basket supplies.

3. Real grass in the Easter basket.

Two ways you can do this. The first would be to take lawn clippings the day before and use them in the baskets. It should be simple enough to time mowing the lawn so that you would have the clippings ready when you need them.

Another would be to line the basket with foil, add dirt and grass seeds, then grow the grass in the basket. Best to get started now if that’s what you want to do, as it will take a couple weeks to get things growing tall enough.

4. Skip the egg dying kits.

Nothing wrong with dyeing Easter eggs, but the little kits are relatively wasteful, especially if you have what you need to dye the eggs already at home.

I like to dye the eggs with food coloring and vinegar in a colander. We did this last year, and it turned out really beautiful.

You can also use natural food colorings. You can start with the raw eggs and boil them with the dye agents and some vinegar, using:

  • Carrots or turmeric for yellow,
  • Red cabbage leaves or blueberries for blue,
  • Beets or cranberries for pink,
  • Yellow onion skins for orange,
  • Red wine or purple grape juice for purples.

5. Think about what you put into the basket.

Go easy on the candy and think more about what the kids will use. As it’s spring, seeds and small garden tools can be fun. Books can also be a good gift.

The Beauty of the Season

What can I say? I don’t expect to post much this week.

Time instead to enjoy the beauty of the season, whether or not you celebrate Christmas. Enjoy the snow if you have it. Enjoy your favorite hot beverage… hot chocolate for me, thanks!

Take a walk if weather permits. If not, get cozy as a family, enjoy a good movie, a good fireplace or play some games together.

I’ll be making cookies with the kids at some point this week and trying to get the house organized. It’s a bit tough doing all the things I’d like to do while 7.5 months pregnant and dealing with hip issues that keep me from feeling comfortable cleaning anything off the floor… good thing the kids are closer to the floor and can handle it when I insist!

I’m determined to have the time to just enjoy things. To enjoy the holiday season. To enjoy being pregnant. To enjoy my family.

I hope you do likewise.

Practical Green Gifts

It’s almost Christmas, but there’s still time to find gifts for those you care about. My favorite kind of gift to give combines green with practicality. It’s not always an easy combination, but finding it can be great.

You have to know, of course, what will be welcome. Giving CFLs is green and practical, but not everyone is going to appreciate being given light bulbs, no matter how much money they’ll be saving.

Reusable shopping bags can work. Interest in these has been increasing as cities look at banning or having stores charge for plastic bags.

A composter can be a great gift for the gardener in your life. You can find models that will work indoors or out, depending on the space available. It’s really amazing how much food waste happens just incidentally, as well as from failing to use food up soon enough. Seeds from Seed Savers would be another good idea.

Cloth diapers can be a great help to the expectant mother… says the expectant mother. If you know the type she wants, so much the better. You could also make some cloth wipes at home and include a recipe to soak or spray them in for use on baby’s bottom.

And of course, many of the ideas I gave in my post on Green Gift Ideas to Give to the Non-Green will work just as well for the enthusiastically green.

The most important key here is to think about what is needed. So many people have much more than they need, but you can probably find something practical and green, rather than something that will sit about, unused. Give it some thought and try not to rush into something just because you need to buy SOMETHING. Think about books you can give, gifts of time and other such things. Sustainablog has a great post on holiday gifts that keep on giving.