So excited to share my space today with my pal Karen, aka Ting’s Mom.  After I presented my question last week about how to handle my “trashy” dilemma, I remembered seeing her share something on Instagram about a few books she has recently used, to talk to her kids about taking care of the environment. Since we are both South Arkansas gals, I thought it might be the perfect bridge to participate with #NWArkCares and what we can do about it in our small, rural Arkansas towns!

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Go green. Save the planet. Reuse it.

A year ago, those phrases were far from my vocabulary. I lived my happy life in South Arkansas oblivious to the world around me. My hubby, the kids and I did what we wanted and how we wanted. Not a care in the world about the environment around us.

And then it happened. We purchased new couches and took a family trip to the local land field to dispose of our old ones. I think I spent the entire trip with my jaw on the ground. All that trash we drag to the curb each week – it was there, just sitting on the ground. Everyone’s unwanted stuff piled high as far as my eye could see. And we live in a small town.

My brain started spinning with what the land fields must look like in Texarkana. Dallas. New York! Suddenly I was hit with such a huge conviction to take better care of our planet and teach my kids the importance of being good to the land we live on.

Thankfully our county has a recycling program. One call to the trash department and a blue recycling can was delivered to our home. I sat my kids down and went through a long spiel about not throwing away our trash. We reviewed the instructions the county gave us about what could go in our recycling bin, and I tried to make it fun and entertaining for my kids.

My kids got on board – maybe overboard. Within five minutes our kitchen recycling box (don’t tell the post office I stole one of their bins, yikes!) was full of recyclables. The kids were running all around the house grabbing things and yelling “Hey Mom, can I recycle this?”

Thankfully, they have calmed down a bit, and recycling has just become a part of our everyday life now. Emptying the kitchen bin into the outside blue can have become a daily chore for my kids. Each week we are cramming stuff into the recycling bin trying to make it all fit while the green can full of trash can go two weeks without having to be emptied these days.

However, I do not want to stop at recycling with my kids. There are so much more ways we can help care for our planet. I found these great books from Scholastic that have been a great teaching tool with my kids. We all know we need to conserve energy, turn off the water, protect the soil – but do we know why? I admit these book may have taught me a thing or two as well.

I’d love to hear what you are doing with your kids to Save The Planet!

This post is part of the #NWArkCares series by the
Northwest Arkansas Bloggers group. To view other posts, visit the Northwest
Arkansas Bloggers Pinterest Board or follow #NWArkCares through social media.

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Karen is a wife, mom, avid reader, and (newly proclaimed) semi-crunchy gal. She blogs about her family life at Ting’s Mom Blog. In addition to her newfound desire to save the planet, she is transitioning her home and family to a toxin-free lifestyle. You can read all about it on her ‘Mission: Safe & Health Home’ page on her blog. When she is not raising her family, she is posting about them on her favorite social media site, Instagram. Come say hi, she would love to chat with you!