Celebrating Earth Day :: Making Small Changes that add up to Big Mother Earth Hugs

Earth Day art by Dana Gray

Happy Earth Day!!

What did you do to celebrate Earth Day Weekend?

My plan on Earth Day weekend always includes being outdoors as much as possible. Luckily, my kid loves being outdoors as much as I do, so my hubby and I spent a lot of time doing yard work while Lily played. Our favorite hummingbird, who has chosen our trees as her property and chases off other birds, chirruped at us all day. I need to make her a feeder soon...

Our happy little painter.

We did spring cleaning in our greenhouse (which is a huge enclosed covered patio with an "indoor" tree growing inside). Things were SO overgrown, so it was a ton of work. But it really does look so much better! Still a lot to do, though.

Time to wake up the gnomes!

I was inspired by Anne's craft idea post, so we rode our bikes to the craft store to get some pony beads so we could make sun catchers. Lily was SO enthused when I opened the window the next morning and showed her that I had hung the sun catcher! She swung it like a pendulum, and was just so pleased! Definitely a hit!

Enjoying the colors.

And we participated in the local Great Cloth Diaper Change event, which was pretty fun! I had to bribe Lily with fruit snacks (her kryptonite) to pose for the photographer who was volunteering at the event.

My little lady in her adorable Sauconys.

Aside from one major meltdown after a little friend's 2nd birthday party, we had a truly lovely weekend.

So I would like to leave you all with a few ideas to consider for making your lifestyle a little more green.
It really is easy to make a few small changes in the way we do things to help love our Earth.

• Recycle! It's so important!
• Purchase reusable grocery bags - or make your own!
• Use reusable lunch bags - I use Planet Wise brand.
• Use cloth diapers - I recommend Thirsties or Charlie Banana.
• Use cloth menstrual pads - read more about what I think of these by clicking here.
• Switch to cloth napkins - I have made a few sets for myself and have rescued sets from thrift! They are awesome!
• Grow your own fruits and veggies, or shop at local farmer's markets. This reduces carbon waste in transporting food from far away. Eat organic when possible - pesticides are awful for our environment and our bodies.
• Upcycle clothing, disposable containers, and more into reusable goods and craft projects!
• Reuse! Thrifting not only helps to reuse things that have been cast aside by someone else, but it saves you money too!
• Natural cleaning products - use vinegar and baking soda to clean your house and wool dryer balls in your dryer. Also, dry laundry on a clothes line in good weather.

Hopefully you will feel inspired to make greener choices based on some of those suggestions. I have found that being "green" really is easier than I expected!

Cheers!

>^..^<