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Parenting With Sustainability

Going Green With The Fam.

By LPublished 3 years ago 3 min read
Top Story - April 2021
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Parenting With Sustainability
Photo by Mike Scheid on Unsplash

Being a parent comes with great responsibility, not only to one's children but also to the planet. The truth is children go through clothing, diapers, gear, and food at a rapid rate. This in turn can affect the planet.

A less is more approach can create sustainability.

For example, over 2 billion pounds of consumer textile waste in landfills is from children's clothing.

A simple, fix for this is creating a capsule wardrobe for children. Yes, a capsule wardrobe is not just for adults and Marie Kondo enthusiasts!

Twelve to Fifteen every day, mix and match articles of clothing per child is a great place to start. It is best to plan which clothing items are needed and then purchase them in one shopping trip.

Primary is a perfect place to build a child's capsule wardrobe. Primary's clothing features no labels, no slogans and are made with sustainable fabrics. Second-hand and thrift shops are also great options.

By Baby Natur on Unsplash

Having a small, sustainable set of clothing may even inspire you to wash the clothing by hand. Now that's going green! Don't forget to use a planet-friendly detergent!

By Micael Widell on Unsplash

I'll be the first to say, there are so many fantastic new items in the baby gear space. However, how much of it do we truly need? Before buying gear, ask yourself if you truly need it. I used a stroller with my first child, my new baby is 18 months, and so far, we haven't needed one. Every situation is different. If you do need gear, consider buying used. I was able to buy an 800 dollar stroller barely used for 100 dollars and then pass it on to a friend. Planet love and friend love!

Some of my children's most loved items were bought at a local consignment shop.

As long as our planet exists, there will always be babies. And as long as babies exist, there will always be tons of poop, literally.

An estimated half-ton of disposable diapers per child from going into U.S. landfills each year! There are a few bio degradable options available but they are not cheap. Cloth diapers are an option though to truly reap the environmental benefits, hand washing and organic diapers make a difference.

So what's an environmentally conscious parent to do?

There's a simple no-cost solution that many parents around the globe have employed since the beginning of time.

For a time I used an 80/20 mix of cloth and biodegradable diapers.

One day, I came across an article that talked about indigenous people in African and Asian countries who rarely used diapers. I was intrigued and dove further into this topic.

A growing number of westerners had adopted this practice, and it is known as elimination communication.

Elimination Communication is simply gentle toilet learning that any parent can teach from birth!

It is a foreign concept to many, so it may seem hard but I promise it's not!

I've been able to successfully practice elimination communication without much time or effort. My children were 98 percent potty trained by age one and fully potty trained before 18 months.

Here's how I did it occasionally from birth I put them on a blanket or a safe clean spot on the floor and observed them. I made notes of the sounds they made before using the bathroom and as they went to the bathroom I made a pssst sound for pee and a hmmmmm sound for poop.

After observing this for a while I then placed them on a child sized potty and made the sound for peeing or pooping. I also used the ASL sign for potty/toilet.

Soon their “ahahah” cries were alerting me to their need to use the potty. Communication and a significant contribution to reducing landfill waste accomplished!

The best way to be a green parent is to continue learning and making changes. As our children see us make sustainable choices and talk to/educate them on why; they will soon join in. The sustainanable,green eco friendly choices we model will have far reaching effects now and in the beautiful green future.

Sustainability
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About the Creator

L

“By hell there is nothing you can do that you want and by heaven you are going to do it anyway”

Anne Spencer

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