Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

We recycle on a regular basis at our house. Jeremy had this habit before we were married and I've learned to embrace the habit. We take egg cartons, meat trays and plastic bags to Publix and the rest to the recycling center. I've been known to peel the plastic off the front of a spaghetti box to recycle the cardboard as well as throw away a can instead of clean it out because it was just too much of a mess. We also reuse objects we have - yogurt containers for snack bowls and leftover containers, toilet paper holders for Christmas decorations, odds and ends for craft projects and we shop at thrift stores. I also try to fix things that break instead of buying something new. Samuel calls me the "blacksmith" when I fix his swords with the hot glue gun or I'm the surgeon when I sew up a bunny or a doll with the needle.

I can see these habits growing in my children. Samuel and Lucy were playing near the computer and I told them to be careful because they could break it -
Samuel replied "Mama, you could just fix it with your hot glue gun!"

And then there was the junk mail I put in the recycle container but Samuel thought we should save it "just in case we might need it to start a fire, Mama."

And I have mentioned our toilet paper holder people/animals the children love to make. They fight over who gets the newest empty holder and can't wait to make things with them. Well, today - I really should have taken a picture - Lucy came and said the toilet was stopped up. Our toilets can get stopped up easily even when Lucy goes to the bathroom so I didn't think anything about it. When we reached the toilet it looked like she had put the whole roll of toilet paper in the toilet...and that is exactly what she did. I couldn't keep a straight face because I knew it wasn't because she needs to learn how much toilet paper to use - I knew it was because she wanted that toilet paper holder. She was upset that we told her not to waste toilet paper but she was even more upset that she didn't get the toilet paper holder she worked so hard to get.

I'm glad my children are learning some of these habits - now if I could just figure out how to help them use things wisely without becoming pack rats!