Sustainable Christmas Gifts for Kids

I am getting way excited about the gifts I've gotten for the kids, especially the ones that were "found." To me it gives the gifts more meaning because this practice is one way that we can live a more sustainable lifestyle. Some of the items we are gifting were passed our way and we have been saving for the occasion. Some of them we "rescued" from the thrift store, and I still need to clean them up and add the finishing touches for Christmas morning. My kids are going to be thrilled! I hope to post pictures of some of those in posts to come, but first, here is my current sustainable gift I have ready to give.

This little gal is a 2004 Cabbage Patch Kid that I rescued some weeks ago. Although in great shape, when rescued her, she was only wearing a bow in her hair and an undershirt. I've worked on her hair and made her a dress from an old shirt that I thought had a cute print, (and also some pleats that I integrated into the bodice.)

I save old fabrics that come my way, as well as old ripped or stained clothing that cannot be donated. They all go in boxes, and when I want to make something, I just dig through the boxes. I always find what I need. I love the reconstructing process. Much to my husband's dismay, the boxes of fabric are always floating around in inconvenient places, but he does always support me in my recycling ways. My next project will be to find a better way to organize the stuff.

Even though the little girl this is going to won't care, I decided that she reminds me of a young Emma Woodhouse from the Jane Austen novel. She will love her Emma!

Another Chem Free Idea

Here's my son's used, beat up tube of toothpaste. He has actually been using this type of toothpaste for quite some time. I guess this one was a no brainer for me since it goes in his mouth and he swallows it. It is completely natural, and I opt to give him the fluoride free version. Why? I guess I am skeptical of this fluoride stuff when it comes to my sensitive little boy. I mean, if the label of fluoride toothpastes say that poisoning can occur if more than a pea sized amount is swallowed, it can't possibly be safe for his delicate system. That's what my fears have been, anyway.

Poor Earth and Poor Us

I've been thinking lately about how toxic our earth has become. In Jenny McCarthy's book, Mother Warriors, she quotes this story about how back in the day miners used to take canaries with them into the mines. The birds were far more sensitive to toxins in the air, and so when a canary kicked the bucket, the miners quickly got out of the mine. Her conclusion is that occurrences of autism should be a 'toxin indicator' for us. If you are like me and believe that autism is often triggered by toxins in genetically prone people who reach their "toxin tip" earlier than most of us, this all makes sense. (I was persuaded to believe in this theory by Dr. Bryan Jepson in his book, Changing the Course of Autism.) For example, when I was a junior in high school, I did a pretty big report on autism for biology. (Well, ok, so it was big for high school.) My sources then said that autism occurs in 1 of every 300 children. Now if you follow studies of any kind, you know that most sources nowdays state something around 1 in 100. Granted, my sources in high school may have been dated at that time, but the change in occurrences is still phenomenal. I did not graduate from high school all that long ago!




So in view of these facts, I was going to write a blog about how frustrated I was when I looked at my kitchen garbage container one day to see what is pictured above. Yeah, a garbage can full of recyclable items. I was alittle shocked to realize that it was mine! For awhile there I could not find a recycling drop off site in this new city I have moved to. I tried the phone book and looking it up online. I was getting pretty frustrated and was wondering where the local pro-earth friendly groups were. Then I discovered www.earth911.com. I recommend it! I now will be doing some of my shopping at a grocery store that isn't that convenient, but they take recycling, and I support that.
Not that I think that just recycling is going to solve our problem, but it is a small step that many of us can take, and I hope to discuss many more earth friendly ideas here in the future. Just think of the things that would happen if everyone made earth friendly tactics more of a habit.