Welcome to Earth Month! This month, I’m profiling a number of “green moms” who purposely live in a sustainable way.
For our third Green Mom Profile, welcome Julie. She’s in Germantown, MD, a suburb of Washington D.C. just north of where I am. She has two kids, who are one and five years old. She’s a mentor for Vegan Outreach, a group who is dedicated to reducing suffering through the promotion of a vegan diet.
Welcome to Earth Month! This month, I’m going to be profiling a number of “green moms” who purposely live in a sustainable way.
For our second Green Mom profile, welcome Caryn Chmielewski. She lives in Springfield, Virginia and has a 15 month old daughter.
Why is it important to you to parent your kids in a “green” way?
I choose to parent “green” because I have serious concerns about the safety of most consumer products available in the U.S. today. While I don’t particularly want to go back in time, I do truly believe that many of the products we used to eat and live with (food, storage containers, cleaning products, etc.) used to be much safer and healthier prior to the 1980s (approx, I would have to do some research to support my gut feeling here). I could go on about this topic (i.e. American businesses being permitted by government to sacrifice quality and safety for convenience and bigger profits, etc.) but I will stop there. Ultimately, I want my daughter and any future children I might have to have the best possible health and part of that, in my opinion, means choosing to give her organic, natural, whole foods as much as possible and using safer/greener storage items (glass over plastic, for example).
Welcome to Earth Month! This month, I’m going to be profiling a number of “green moms” who purposely live in a sustainable way. If you’re interested in green transportation in particular, check out the Family Biking Profiles I did last year for Bike Month in May!
Our first Green Mom profile is of Jen Mendez, who lives in Southern Maryland with two kids, who are four and six years old. She’s one of the most holistically sustainable folks I’ve ever met. I first encountered her at D.C.’s annual urban agriculture festival Rooting DC. Last year, she provided invaluable input into the Outdoors Family Challenge and highlighted it several times on her website and podcast. She runs the PERMIE KIDs Community Supported Education Network and its Facebook page, which has loads of great resources.
Gardening is all about science, from the life cycle of a plant to the nitrogen cycle of the soil. I combined both of those loves in a guest post for Raising Nerd about using gardening to teach your mini-nerds about science, engineering and math. It’s heavy on the ecology, but touches on a bunch of areas.
Here’s a preview:
Dirt covered the table. Dirt covered my son’s hair. Dirt covered everything. While I wanted to be annoyed, I really wasn’t. It was all in the name of learning – and growing food in our new garden.
While trowels and compost may not seem like obvious tools for teaching science, vegetable gardens can be incredible classrooms. That day, my son was learning about the life cycle of plants while we started tomato seeds.
The best part is that gardening provides the potential for kids of all ages to learn. While my three-year-old is just beginning to learn the basics, even I’ve learned quite a bit in my years of gardening. If you don’t garden yet, consider planting a few flowerpots so you can share the benefits with your kids.
Want to eat vegetarian meals more often in your family but not sure how to introduce your kids to it? Check out these 9 tips!
“Come on, try a broccoli tree,” I say, my voice taking on the edge of a whine. My three-year-old pokes at his broccoli with a finger. Most of the time in this situation, he tries at least one. For a preschooler, that’s not too bad. While I love the health benefits of eating your vegetables, I also want to eat vegetarian more often for the sake of the environment.
Agriculture contributes to nine percent of the greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. that cause climate change, with meat and dairy production making up a large percentage of that. In addition, many livestock farms also have negative impacts on the air and water in their local areas. Fortunately, you don’t need to go full-on vegetarian or vegan to make a difference. Not eating meat once a week – such as meatless Monday – can reduce your carbon footprint.
Since many kids are resistant to trying anything new, here are some ways we’ve found to eat vegetarian food and make it more appetizing.
Among the many skills I want to pass on to my kids, getting around on their own power is actually pretty far up there. Biking and walking places provides exercise, helps get kids outside (with all of the associated benefits!), and provides them a level of independence that they won’t be able to get any other way.
That’s why I’m thrilled that I have a guest post up at Parent.co on teaching kids to value bicycling and walking.
Here’s the first two paragraphs:
“In my day, we walked a mile uphill both ways in the snow” is the ultimate cliche for cranky parents to compare themselves to kids these days. But walking and biking have huge benefits beyond the ability to complain later on.
Active transportation establishes lifelong healthy habits for life, builds relationships with neighbors, minimizes greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change, and increases kids’ independence. While our society advertises a minivan as the ultimate family vehicle, it is actually possible to shift trips away from the car.
Want a low-maintenance garden you can grow and tend with kids? Check out lasagna gardening!
When I first started gardening, growing my own vegetables seemed impossible. I participated in a group community garden, but at least the other volunteers knew what they were doing. I knew nothing about planting seeds, keeping them growing, or protecting them from anything.
But one day, a friend, urban farmer, and fellow volunteer introduced me to a concept that she refered to as “lazy gardening.” It was a way to grow a low-maintenance garden that was also totally organic and sustainable. As both an ecologist and even before kids, a pretty busy person, it immediately made sense to me. To this day, I garden this way. Despite having two small children, my garden is relatively productive. The best part? That the short amount of time it does take to maintain it is often things I can do with my kids. No fussy tasks here.
What is this miracle low-maintenance garden approach?
Sometimes, I question the decision to teach my four-year-old how to compost. Like when he spent 10 minutes today ripping up a tiny piece of newspaper to add to it. Or touched the composter after I turned it and it was dripping with decomposing goo. Thankfully, he didn’t put his hands in his mouth. At least not this time.
Despite the gross moments, composting with kids is worth it. As a way to reduce waste and save money, it’s a worthwhile skill in and of itself. It’s also a pathway into so many other lessons in ecology, food waste, and biological cycles.
Cloth diapering is cheaper and arguably better for the environment than using disposable diapers. While they’re easier and more convenient than most parents realize, they do have their quirks. After using cloth diapers with two kids, here are a few lessons learned and tips I’ve picked up:
Earth Day doesn’t need to be limited to April 22 for you or your children. You can make Earth Day everyday by trying one of these six activities that start conversations about bigger topics.
“What are we going to do for Earth Day this year?” I wondered to myself. While we try to embrace a sustainable lifestyle all year long, I wanted to make Earth Day a little special. It’s one of my favorite holidays, after all!
After poking around on some local websites, I found an event at the local nature center. But if you don’t have any organizations putting on Earth Day events, there are still plenty of options. Best of all, these ideas can spark new patterns to help you make Earth Day every day.