For some kids, an early morning trip to the farmer’s market might not be the ideal way to spend a Saturday, especially when bikes, baseball, or the park are the alternatives. However, spending a day together as family, enjoying the great outdoors, supporting your local community and purchasing fresh, whole foods and other goodies is always better than staying at home. You can get your children just as excited about a trip to the farmer’s market as a trip the park by following my favorite seven ways to get kids involved.
Karna of Cocoon Designs created a collection of quirky, colorful dolls and creatures in her Etsy shop. Wow! They are fantastic. Made from eco-friendly, recycled and upcycled fibers and fabrics. They look so unique, fun and absolutely lovable!
I think finding wonderful handmade toys that your child can love for years and that can be passed down through the generations is lovely. I love the eyes and expressions on her sweet little creatures!
Do you like quirky stuffed toys? Would these be a purchase you would surprise your children with?
We have a energy star, front loading washing and dryer set from Frigidaire that I ADORE. However, the door handle on the washer completely broke off during our move. And it wasn’t just the fact that the washer didn’t look pretty, but because the door handle was missing, a steady stream of water would drip out during the wash cycle. It’s not exactly conserving water!
I called a repair man to find out what the cost would be to replace the handle. Wowzers! It was going to cost almost as much as it would to just buy a new one! I didn’t want a new one, I wanted the washer that matches my dryer, not to mention, simply buying a new washer because the handle was broken seemed crazy. Then, I thought, I should replace the door handle myself, except I had no idea where I would find the right replacement piece.
PartSelect (who has been a Sweet Greens’ sponsor for years) offers an online service where you can look up parts for your appliances and order them — popped into my head. Guess what? They had my door handle (at a fraction of the cost, that the repairman wanted to charge) and the installation video showed that it would take less than 15 minutes for me to replace the part myself! How great is that?
I love the idea of fixing a broken appliance instead of simply purchasing a new one. I feel that if an appliance can be fixed, that is the best eco-friendly option (in most cases!) My washer was in perfect condition, except for the broken door handle and now that it is replaced, it is like new again. Win. Win.
Do you fix your own appliances?
Or do you still feel more comfortable calling the repairman?
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Thanks to PartSelect for sponsoring this post and for sharing these great tools to give consumers the option to fix their broken appliances by themselves. Repairing a home appliance not only saves the customer money and time, it is also great for the environment!
Did you know that peat moss is a non-renewable resource? Did you know that it takes a peat moss bog thousands of years to evolve? How about the fact that once a peat moss bog is harvested, it’s gone forever? Peat moss is very important to the health of the bogs’ ecosystem and water filtration, while being the home to many different species of wildlife and flora. Most importantly, peat moss is the single largest terrestrial store of carbon, equivalent to 75% of all the carbon in the atmosphere. The consumption of peat moss for horticultural use is not necessary. When you are picking up your gardening supplies, steer clear of the peat.
Yesterday, we had a celebration for Eben’s 10th birthday.
You probably already know how special Eben is to me! Really, he is a sweetheart and spending the day celebrating his 10th birthday was the perfect way to start the week.
This year we decided to host a surprise gathering of family members. Surprisingly, Eben said it was his favorite birthday ever – even though it was low-key! His face when he walked in the door and everyone shouted “Surprise!” was priceless.
The decorations were all from my craft closet – a yellow tablecloth (these wash up perfectly and can be used again and again), confetti and stripey hats that we have used for several parties and a handful of napkins leftover from a previous party was all that was needed! The gift wrap is either 100% recycled (unless the gifts were from family, then I am not sure) or reusable bags that we have used over and over again too! I made the tassel decorations hanging over the table with recycled tissue paper. I carefully took them down, so I can use them again in the future!
For each place setting, I used our everyday dinner plates, silverware and a wine glass filled with bubble gum. Our guests enjoyed Izze’s, organic lime rickeys, make your own organic sandwiches, coleslaw and potato salad. Easy Peasy and yummy too.
Eben wanted to help make his birthday cake this year (he is a big fan of those ultimate cake off shows). So, he and I spent Saturday afternoon making a hilarious shark cake made of organic pound cake and frosting. We used these all natural food colorings. Can you see the fishy in Mr. Sharks mouth?
One of Eben’s favorite birthday presents? This adorable set of organic stuffed elephants from Dandelion. Aren’t they adorable?
Do you host parties for your child’s birthday? Do you prefer quiet parties with just close family and friends? Or huge blowouts?
For some kids, an early morning trip to the farmer’s market might not be the ideal way to spend a Saturday, especially when bikes, baseball, or the park are the alternatives. However, spending a day together as family, enjoying the great outdoors, supporting your local community and purchasing fresh, whole foods and other goodies is always better than staying at home. You can get your children just as excited about a trip to the farmer’s market as a trip the park by following my favorite seven ways to get kids involved.
