Every aspect of a traditional kids party involves excessive waste. From paper invitations, decorations (plates, napkins, cups, etc.), presents, goodie bags…..I could go on! Times are changing and parents are looking to reduce, re-use and recycle even at their kid’s parties. When explained to children at the right age, you can give them a valuable education regarding helping our planet and the benefits of helping a social cause.

My son’s 6th birthday is approaching and we are trying to make it as green as possible…I’ve listed some tips that we’ll be following to create a fun, eco party!

Evite www.evite.com invitations to reduce paper.

Minimal decorations….we are having a ‘Superman’ theme, but my big boy has agreed that only 1 decoration on the wall is ok. We’ll later post it in the toy room or his room so it gets some use.

I usually buy matching themed napkins, cake/food plates, table cloth, cups and goodie bags. This will all be eliminated and we’ll use what the facility provides and bring re-usable cake plates.

I won’t be making my own cake, but doing this helps reduce the waste of plastic packaging from a ’store bought’ cake.

The goodie bags are wood planter boxes that a local carpenter created. They will come unassembled, with instructions on how to assemble, nails, a bag of soil, and a bag of seeds. I’ve always loved the gardening theme for give aways because it gives kids a lasting project and gets them outside in the fresh air.

Presents….hmmm now here comes the tough one.
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My son Angelo loves wild fish and gets so excited when we drive by a sign marking the road of a fish route. For years he yells “fish sign!!” when we drive near a creek or local fish hatchery. So when I saw a blurb on our local Ecology Centre’s web site regarding a project with storm drain marking, my ears perked up.

Why is this important? The yellow fish are there to remind us that storm drains on our roadways empty directly into local streams. Storm Drain Marking is a conservation and education project developed by Fisheries and Oceans Canada.

I had no idea this project was available to the public and I LOVE the idea of my family being able to assist with placing the fish stencils we’ve enjoyed seeing in the community for so long. With the fingerling festivals approaching in our local hatcheries it’s a great marriage of two very kid friendly projects.

The kits and procedure for storm drain marking has recently changed. The kits previously contained a fish stencil with a spray can of yellow paint. Now the kits contain a brush to clean the road, VERY powerful glue to spread in the cleaned area, gloves to handle the glue, and a fish sticker that actually gets glued to the road. There is also a huge mallet that you get to bang the fish so that it sticks to the road forever (smile). In a child’s eyes, what is there not to like about this project? They love glue, stickers, fish, and banging something with a hammer. I love it! Also included are door knob hangers that educate the neighborhood on the importance of caring for neighborhood streams and tips for protecting our fish. What a wonderful, educational project for young children. I have reserved my family’s kit and will post pictures and a description of the project when we complete. Oh yes, the kit comes with reflective vests….this is all just too fun. (Did I mention it’s free of cost??) I’m noticing a theme with ECO kids projects…most don’t involve money and everybody (including mommy and daddies) are learning!

Don’t get me wrong…until very recently, the shade of my eco footprint would be gray and the size of an NBA basketball player! I’m ashamed to admit that my previous lifestyle was nothing close to the color green. There wasn’t much conversation regarding the 3 r’s (reduce, reuse, and recycle) when I was living alone in my 20s. I would ‘reuse’ my store bought water bottle at work (one bottle would last me months… think of the BPA chemicals leaching through that thing!), ‘reduce’ my food intake because I was always too busy to eat (I miss those skinny days)….oh, but wait! I did always ‘recycle’ my empty wine bottles (I’ll have to check the resin code of a wine bottle before I brag about this). But as I’m approaching my mid-30s, everything has changed!

Thinking about the kind of world and the lessons I want to teach my children is a big thing in my life. It’s so cliche to say, but once you have kids, you want everything to be better, including the environment and your lifestyle. That is the magic of children. You stop and realize that the world you leave them is very important and as a parent, it’s your responsibility to educate yourself and raise your kids with a ‘green’ mentality. So lookout Ray (the hubby)….ready or not I’m going to make you one of the colors of your native Italian flag….and it ain’t the red one!

Check out this quiz and see what your ecological footprint looks like! It humbles you to learn how many earth planets would need to exist to sustain your current lifestyle.

http://www.ecofoot.org/