Play dough will keep my son occupied for hours. It’s also super easy and cheap to make at home, and you probably have the ingredients already. Most recipes seem to include flour, salt, cream of tarter, and oil. Coloring is optional. I don’t know about you but I do not have cream of tarter and…
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Valentine’s Candy and Gifts
It’s the time of year. Flowers, balloons, cards and candy. A few tips and helpful reminders are listed here. Flowers and plants can be composted. Please remove any container or plastic wrap/plastic sleeves before composting. Only the actual plant part should be composted, “If it grows, it goes!” Plastic containers (hard/rigid plastic) can be recycled…
Best Intentions: Pet waste bags, trash bags, menstrual products, diapers
*03.18.21 the word “feminine” was removed from this post and as much social media as I could without affecting post dates and comments, and replaced with “menstrual,” to allow for gender neutrality. In this new year, many of you are working to “be greener.” One of the areas you may be looking into is the…
Buy Nothing Project
I just learned about the Buy Nothing Project/group about a month ago. I’m used to seeing, reading, and writing about posting about (for or away/give or want) items on craigslist, Freecycle, Marketplace and our neighborhood social media platforms. My neighbors started mentioning our area’s Buy Nothing group as a way to re-purpose/re-home/donate items. It’s awesome.…
Tights
There was a great article published in the Nov. 26-Dec. 23 Central Austin Edition of the Community Impact Newspaper about local dancewear store Movin’ Easy. I’ve been wearing dance tights in the cold for years, but I don’t remember to talk about it! This article was a great inspiration to share the idea and remind…
Tiny Toys and Trinkets
I don’t know about you, but I always came home with a ton of little party favors and such from school at this time of year, not to mention all the other holiday/seasonal parties, birthday parties, stocking stuffers, treats, freebies, etc. When you’re a kid, it can seem like you get something at everything you…
Working Toward A Zero Waste Halloween
This article originally appeared in the October 2019 edition of the Front Porch Flyer. Holidays can offer an exercise in creativity and reuse, and an opportunity to connect with neighbors. Here are some ideas to “green” your Halloween: Candy/Treats Try to find boxed/paper candy that can be recycled/composted: Nerds, Dots, Milk Duds, Junior Mints, fake…
Target’s Car Seat Trade-in Event
Do you need a new car seat or an upgrade for your child or grandkid? September 3 – 13, 2019 is this fall’s Target Car Seat Trade-in event! Quoting from Target’s website, “Guests who trade in their old car seats will receive a 20 % off coupon toward a new car seat, stroller or select…
Back to School and Office Supplies
This month Earth 911 posted an article titled, “Everything Your Child Needs for a Waste-Free School Year” and “Be Prepared: Your Complete Back-to-School Guide” These articles point out some new “green” school and office supplies that are more environmentally friendly than traditional supplies. However; while I appreciate their intent, and yes compostable materials and recycled…
Libraries (Not Just for Books)
One of Austin’s zero wasters posted about an incredible new lending library she is creating for dishes! You can check out her post on the Dish Lending Library here; it’s so good I’m not going to repeat it! I would love to see this used at the block parties in my neighborhood! Libraries aren’t just…