Waste not, Want Not Wednesday

 There have been a couple of days now for the Halloween sugar high to wear off. The starburst have stuck to teeth, the Sweet-tarts have caused adorable pucker faces and the chocolate has been unfairly taken in a cruel "mommy tax". I even let them eat one of those nasty dracula teeth gummi candies.
 But what next? When I went to hide the rest of the stash I found that there was still candy from Easter up on top of the fridge. That was when I remembered a very cool website I had seen about a better way to put your candy to use. At our house the choices are fairly clear. Throw it away, put it on top of the fridge to wait to be thrown away at a much later date, or try some really fun science projects with it.

My kids picked choice number three.

Some of the leftover Easter stuff.  

A whole bucket of new Halloween loot.

 Already grossed out? It's a little early for that!

  You can just tell he is going to be a BIG help...

Warm water vs cold water

Which works better?

 Doesn't that look appealing?

 He sure is concentrating on something 

 Less then half way through Zion decided that he was a gorilla

and entertaining faces was the entirety of his input for the rest of the experiments. 

At least he tried. 

Canaan loved every minute. 

 Bubble gum made an interesting texture when melted in water. 

 Several candies let off a waxy substance which floated up to the top of the bowl or cup when they dissolved. 

 But in all our work we only found one candy that floated, and I have no idea what it was called. I had never seen it before, and Canaan had torn up the wrapper before we knew it was going to be something special. 

 The colors from skittles and jelly beans did not transfer to coffee filters very well... m&m's are supposed to work, but we weren't willing to sacrifice them. 

 By far the favorite of the day was adding baking soda to dissolved sweet-tarts. They fizz and bubble like a miniature volcano. Smarties worked a little bit, but nothing like Sweet-tarts. They win, hands down!

 It was a day full of fun, and experimenting. Learning, instead of simply throwing away. 

 The rest of the hard candies, safe for travel, will go into the Operation Christmas Child shoebox. 

Don't forget to start packing yours this week. The Christmas countdown begins, because giving time starts now! 

Waste not, Want not my friends. 

Waste and Want, and do it again Wednesday

 It is Wednesday, but we aren't conserving. It is far from waste not, want not. It is more along the lines of waste, covet and brainwash.... and certainly want. But it makes really cute pictures.

 Our annual Toys 'R Us catalog arrived in the mail yesterday. With that as a bribe the boys whipped (well, almost) through their school, then eagerly devoured it from front to back, and then in reverse.
 Canaan chose a green marker, Zion an orange, and they enthusiastically circled everything they were interested in. Which was pretty much everything in the entire catalog. Why, even on the "girl" pages there were thing worth circling. Cute little stuffed animals, an amazing play kitchen (which Zion is completely in love with because it has a pretend washing machine and laundry basket) and on the Barbie page Zion insisted on circling the giant three story Barbie house because he thought I needed a toy too. Why wouldn't mommy want Barbie? Every little girl does, right? Even a few baby toys were circled, because they want a baby sister or brother and it made sense to them to be prepared, just in case.

 In preparing his Christmas list, Canaan looks at the catalog from a slightly realistic point of view. Yes, he likes to circle everything in it, and have some dreams, but he also looks at the price and considers the potential of actually receiving some of the items. He makes his prioritizes and lets them be known.
 Zion, however, believes in Santa. I really don't know how, or why. We have never spoken of Santa as a reality. We have never made a big deal about him. We read "The Night Before Christmas"every year, but we have also talked about the "history" of St. Nicolas, and how the idea of someone who shares with those in need is what Santa is about. I am realizing this week however that Zion believes that his presents are going to come from Santa. Money doesn't matter. Location doesn't matter. Reality doesn't matter.
 Santa will take care of it all.
 Somehow, that puts a lot of pressure on me. I hate to break his heart.
 It was much easier with Canaan, who never believed. I certainly didn't plan for Zion to think that a fictional character was real....
 How did this happen to me?!?!

 In the meantime, Zion put on his homemade hat, just because it made him happy, and proceeded with another run-through of the book of brainwash.

 At least he circles things he thinks others will like too!  

Waste not, Want Not Wednesday

It is Wednesday, and I am supposed to be thinking green.
 I took the recycling out to the bin a little while ago and realized I hadn't posted yet today. The clothes are on the line out back - I could write about that. The boys made very interesting forts out of the cereal boxes a few days ago - I could write about that.
 Thinking green is second nature to me, as much as I can afford to.
 Today however I feel like preaching to myself, and I listen so much better if I write it out, and have you all (am I southern enough to say ya'll?) to hold me accountable. If I type it up it is not just words floating around in my head, but black and white in front of me, and something I have to accept.

 Waste not - those words are something I write about as a reminder for protecting the beautiful earth that God created.
 But what else do I waste besides natural resources? Time? Energy? Emotions?
  This week I must admit to being very guilty of wasting my energy on emotions that accomplished nothing. It is much easier to preach about it now, chastise myself now, when it is over and I don't have to stress any more.
 The truth is that I really should have spent less of my time stressing during the middle of the stressful situation.
 Day after day I laid it down, told God that I trusted Him, and knew that whatever He had planned for us was the best.
 And then I worried anyway.
 "What can I do to fix it" "Is it happening because I did something wrong?" "Did we hear God incorrectly?" "If we just work harder, sleep less, stand on one foot and hop up and down with our tongue to our nose...."
 You know how it goes.

 There were things that had to be done. But worrying about them didn't help them get done faster, or better. Stressing about "why" the problem occurred in the first place didn't help fix it.

  What a Waste.

 And it left me Wanting.

 Wanting for peace. Wanting for comfort. Wanting a reminder, which my Savior gladly gave, that I am not in control. He is.
 I seem to be learning that lesson a lot lately.

 I never would have thought I needed to learn that lesson.
 I wouldn't have described myself as something who thought she was in control - but with the way I have been acting lately, I guess I was wrong.
 I certainly hope I am done learning it - but I am not going to hold my breath. Learning how to live the right way is a lifelong commitment, and some of those lessons take longer to learn then I would like to admit.
 Waste not, Want not - in more ways then one my friends. There is more then just God's beautiful earth at stake here. Our souls are part of his creation too, and He guards them with infinitely more love and care.  

Waste Not, Want Not Wednesday

Our summer full of gardening, an attempt to be green, hasn't really been a success. 

We tried. Truly we did. 

Our crop so far has included one strawberry

and this beautiful red pepper

barely bigger than a grape or blueberry.

My squash and cucumber bloom over and over again, but so far not a vegetable has emerged. 

The only thing that seems to really show any promise for a usable crop this fall are the potatoes, which are taking over the entire back porch. 

So today's Waste not, want not Wednesday is an encouragement to keep trying. 

 I will.
Even though I seem to be a completely failure~ I won't give up!
Perhaps next year I will live somewhere I can plant in the ground, rather then just containers.
Maybe that will help? 

Waste not, Want not, Wednesday

I have missed a few weeks of Wednesdays on here, but I am back.
 Today's is slightly different then some of my others. Rather then creating something, or recycling something, I am just going to point out something obvious.

 The library.

 The public library system was created for the sharing of books. How often do you buy a book, read it once, then leave it on the shelf collecting dust? How often do your children outgrow a book, move beyond that reading level or interest level, and, once again, the book just sits there, collecting dust.

 Ever think about donating those books to your local public library?

 There are thousands of patrons, of all ages and personalities frequenting the library in YOUR town, I guarantee it. After your interest has waned, pass the book along. The dust will be shaken off and it will be shared and loved.

 And on the flip side... save yourself some money and consider checking some books out rather then buying every single one you want to read.

 Obviously, you have seen pictures of my house if you have been reading this blog for long. I love books, and buy entirely too many of them. But I try to clean out, donate the extras, and remember to check them out rather them buy them if they are "read one time" books.

 The written word is a precious gift. The ability to pass along wisdom gleaned, comedy shared, history's lessons and even romance to make a girl's heart skip a beat - that it to be appreciated.
 Please, appreciate your library.

 Waste not, want not my friends.

Waste not, Want Not Wednesday

It had completely slipped my mind that it was Wednesday until I saw my friend Carrie's blog. She did a post on Waste not, Want not Wednesday this week too! Be sure to drop by and see her children's adorable spaceship.
 My easy trick this week is one of my favorites. Cloth napkins. It may seem like only a little bit of paper to use a paper napkin, but it is only a little bit of fabric in a cloth napkin, and they fit right in with a load of towels or sheets that you have to wash anyway.
 We started using them full force, full time, after my sister Kelsey got married two years ago. My mom made 200 for her green wedding, and afterwards there were quite a few leftover.

They started out really lovely. 

They look more like this most days now. 

This one may never recover!

I had used them off and on during our first few years of marriage, so the older ones came back out of retirement, and I have picked up some on clearance here and there. (I got the six plaid ones in the bad lighting the other day for less then $2.00) But my favorites remain the simple crosses from Kelsey's wedding.
 Simple, easy, and saves a tree or two. Waste not, want not.
 See you next week!

Waste Not, Want Not Wednesday

 I am running a little late today, and though the early bird may get the worm, better late then never, right?
 I am allowed a few overused and trite phrases on occasion...

 Last week the thing that started this whole "Waste not, Want Not" idea was Canaan's desire to use a cereal box for a project. I think what inspired that was our use of cereal boxes last year.

 They make wonderful closet organizers. Just trim off the top, and down the sides, and, voila, a free magazine holder.
 Old magazines that you just can't bear to part with yet... cereal boxes to the rescue.

Newspaper articles that were interesting... cereal boxes to the rescue.

Big boxes like Cheerios work best, especially for magazines, but some of the smaller ones can find their uses too. Guideposts are nice and small, if you want to keep them - but as the magazine suggests, I tend to pass it along rather then keep it.

 There are three of them on the third shelf down, surrounded by coloring books.
 Unfortunately, this post is revealing that I do feed my children un-organic, sugary cereal more then I would like to admit - and have the boxes to prove it. At least they are serving a greater purpose!

You can buy others, many different places. Just a quick search online found these adorable ones. 

These are only $14.99, plus shipping, and will probably last longer. However, mine are free, and use something that would otherwise just be trashed... or possibly recycled. (depending on who you are, and where you live)

 That green circle you see everywhere you go, the focus is on first Reducing, both our waste, and perhaps even more importantly, what it is we think we need to "survive". Then, those things we still think we need, Reuse as many as possible. Make those things earth friendly, people friendly, next generation friendly, and use them over and over. Real wood, clay, stone, metal and glass, rather then plastic when possible. Lastly, when it cannot be used anymore, and there is no other option, Recycle it. 

 Please, whenever possible, do not just throw things away. Our children have to live here, and unless Jesus returns, their children will too. God commanded Adam and Eve to care for the garden. They did not keep the one rule - to not eat from the one tree. And we have not kept that first request given - to care for creation. 

 So, keep those cereal boxes around - there are more ideas for them coming later!

Waste Not, Want Not Wednesday

Wednesday seems to be the day for themed blogs.

 Wordless Wednesday, with a picture (or two) just crying out for attention.

 Word Filled Wednesday, overflowing with the words that give life.

 But I don't like to do what everyone else is doing. Call it the rebel in me. So, I have been mulling over an idea of my own. This morning was the clincher - we finished off a box of cereal and rather then just put it in the trash, or even in the recycling bin, my seven year old automatically asked "Mom, what can we make with this?"
 That is my life and something, I will admit, I am proud of.
 I am not promising a long term commitment. No contracts here. However, I have several Waste Not, Want Not Wednesday ideas.

 If you have something to add, please, add a link and join in. I would love to have your ideas too. There is nothing like taking the beautiful earth we were given as a gift and enjoying it to it's fullest, while carefully saving it for our children, and their children... and on and on.

 We'll start with a very playful and kid friendly one. Not precisely Earth friendly... but still, Waste Not, Want Not. 
 This weekend when my in-laws were visiting we made brownies and finished off a batch of eggs. Since I buy my eggs from a lady down the street, I never know what kind of container they will come in. This week they were in an old Winn Dixie carton. My boys immediately claimed it to color, and cut and generally make a disaster with.
 My MIL, a former art teacher and current gifted teacher remembered a project she had done with her students before, "shrinking" packing peanuts down for homemade jewelry. Thus, our shrinky-dink day was born.

 We decorated with permanent markers (regular crayola's will not work). 

We punched holes in them to make them "beads"...

so we could string them together.

Happy boys!

We later moved to plastic bottles. The bottom of those are already shaped almost like a flower, so when they are colored and shrunk just a little, they are lovely. I went to take pictures of their creations to post here, but they seem to be missing. I can almost assure you that Daddy has something to do with that. He really likes to "clear out" (trash) anything that is not being used at the moment. So, unfortunately I cannot show you pictures of anything they made except for the beads... 

 Just use your imagination. Beautiful, colorful, melted plastic and foam. 

 Waste Not, Want Not. 

 How do you save the earth, a little piece at a time?