Mommy Goes Green

Halloween is just around the corner and we’ve already got our costumes ready.  It’s not hard at my house to come up with something.  My daughter is HUGE into playing dress up.  She wears a dress up outfit (or three) at least once a day.  She has quite the collection from things I’ve passed on to her to the Halloween clearance section where grandma has purchased numerous costumes for a buck or two.  Her imagination just lights up when she puts on a doctor’s outfit or lion mask.  Playing dress up happened to be one of my most favorite games as a child, too, so I’m having a lot of fun playing with her, too.

A great way to get your Halloween costumes this year is to take part in the National Costume Swap Day.  Find a local swap, pass along your kid’s old costumes and pick up a new (to you) costume.  It’s a great way to make your Halloween ‘green’.   If you can’t find a local swap, consider hosting one of your own.  It can be as simple as one between friends or neighbors, or as large as a city-wide event. 

What costumes will your kids be wearing this year?  Are you buying new or getting creative with DIY?

This post may contain affiliate links, please see my disclosure policy.

I keep a bag in my laundry room just for baby/kid’s clothing, toys and other gear that I no longer need.  I am constantly adding to that bag and try to empty it once a month.  Depending on the item and quality, I either give them to a friend with younger children,  take it to a local organization that donates them to charities and families in need or I drop them by Goodwill.   When I have large quantities of good quality items, I’ve always taken them to resale events.

I’ve just found another option: Freepeats!  Have you heard of it?  I just stumbled on it today and I love the idea.  You can pass on your baby clothing, gear, toys, maternity wear and more to local parents, and find items you want that others are giving away. And…..for FREE.  Sign me up.

What do YOU do with your used kid’s clothing, toys and gear?

This post may contain affiliate links, please see my disclosure policy.

When I was a kid, my mom threw me a 50′s themed birthday party complete with a jukebox made out of an old refrigerator box.  It wasn’t fancy but it obviously made an impression since I remember it over 20 years later.  Once the party was over, it stuck around the house for a month or two while we continued to play with it.  Quite a bit of use for an old refrigerator box that was otherwise bound for the recycling bin (although I don’t remember if we even recycled cardboard boxes 20 years ago?).

Now that I have my own kiddos, I love to watch them create games with simple things like old plastic dishes and a bucket of water.  Imagine what they could do with one of these dream playhouses made of just cardboard boxes using Mr. McGroovy’s Rivets to keep it all together.  

Mr. McGroovy’s even has 17 project plans with step-by-step instructions to build projects like a firetruck, castle, space ship or lemonade stand.    All you need is some free cardboard boxes, Mr. McGroovy’s Rivets and some paint.

For more inspiration, check out the photo gallery where people have shared their project photos.

This post may contain affiliate links, please see my disclosure policy.

I’m sure you have at least one (if not all) of Eric Carle’s books.  The Very Hungry Caterpillar or The Very Busy Spider ring a bell?  I had no idea that his collection has over 70 books- we are missing quite a few of these wonderful books in our library! These days, you can find Eric Carle involved with a lot of different children’s products like flash cards and toys, as well.

This week, we got a box of the Eric Carle Eco Series art pads to try out and as soon as we opened the book, we were thrilled!   The covers are beautiful illustrations from his children’s books and the quality of these art pads are top notch.  These are definitely the best art pads we’ve used and will be making great gifts for the birthday parties coming this year.  They are even affordable, from $2.50 – $5.50. 

The art pads are made by Canson on acid free paper made from sustainably managed forests.  90% of the Eco Series line is made from recycled material.   The company even has a “pledge to the environment” which encompasses:

1. Made from sustainably managed forestry
2. Reduced Energy Consumption
3. Low emissions to air and water
4. limited use of harmful chemicals
5. Recycling of waste material

I’m super impressed by these art pads, they will definitely be my first pick when choosing art pads for our kids and their friends!  Environmentally friendly, high quality and affordably priced.

This post may contain affiliate links, please see my disclosure policy.

My husband has asthma and while he hasn’t struggled seriously with it, I am hoping our children will not get it.  So far, I think our daughter is in the clear but time will tell whether or not our son has it.  I’ve done many things to reduce their risk including keeping harmful cleaning products out of our house, using organic dairy products, keeping pets out of our house and using allergen free products on our beds. 

I’ve also kept them out of chlorinated swimming pools.  Don’t worry, our kids aren’t deprived of summer fun in the water.  There have been plenty of pools and sprinklers, but we’ve limited their swimming in chlorinated pools to the occasional pool party or vacation pool. 

Several studies have found a link between chlorine in swimming pools and asthma in children.:

•  Science Daily reported that a study in Norway found that children with mothers who had asthma or allergies have an increased risk of wheezing if the child takes swimming lessons before 6 months.
• A study in Belgium found that teenagers who spent more than 100 hours swimming in chlorinated pools were up to six times more at risk of having asthma than other teens.
• The European Respiratory Journal reportedthat children who start swimming ( in indoor OR outdoor pools ) before the age of 2 may be at increased risk of bronchiolitis, and those who developed the infection were also at increased risk of developing asthma or respiratory allergies by kindergarten.

 All that being said, 20% of the U.S. Olympic swim team have asthma and they are obviously talented athletes, despite having asthma.

Alternatives to Chlorinated Pools

In the U.S., chlorine treated pools has been the norm for a long time but that is slowing changing.  Ozone and UV treated pools, common in Europe, are slowly making their way across the pond.  There are a couple salt water pools in our city, as well.  While many of these alternatives do use chlorine, the chlorine used is a lot lower.  The best way to find out how pools are treating their water is to call and ask!  The best way to avoid chlorine is to visit the great outdoors where you can find fresh water swimming opportunities at the beach, in the river or at the lake.

If you have your own pool, there are several purification systems that market themselves as chlorine-free including the Ecosmarte Pool, Carefree Clearwater, and EClear.

Now that my daughter is 3, she’s in swimming lessons, in a chlorinated pool.  With her age and interest in water, I think it’s important for her to have swimming skills for safety, exercise and lifelong enjoyment.  From current research findings, it sounds like she is also past the point of highest risk.  We will likely keep our son out of chlorinated pools until he is 2 or 3 and then enroll him in swimming lessons, too.  Hopefully by that time, we will have the opportunity to put him in a lessons in a pool treated with chlorine alternatives.  

Do you have chlorine-free pools in your area?  Are you concerned about chlorine in your pool’s water and the link to asthma?

This is part of the Healthy Child Blog Carnival about Clean Water and Air Solutions  – an effort by Healthy Child Healthy World to help inspire a movement to protect children from harmful chemicals.

This post may contain affiliate links, please see my disclosure policy.