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Happy Earth Day!

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Happy Earth Day!

Check out our Earth Day giveaway!

I’m thoroughly enjoying the Earth Day ideas from the comments on the giveaway post. I’m surprised and please by how many people are planning on planting a tree. Some other great ideas include planting vegetable and flower gardens, participating in town cleanup, turning the compost pile, and going WITHOUT electricity!


Here are some Earth Day ideas
for little ones birth to five

Newborns and Babies

  • Visit the park
  • Sit on a blanket outside
  • Feel the textures of different things outside: grass, leaves, flower petals, the bark of a tree.

Toddlers

  • All of the above
  • Have them accompany you to take recycling to a local facility
  • Dig in the dirt, plant seeds and water
  • Play in the water outside

Preschoolers

  • All of the above
  • Practice sorting plastics and cardboard into two bags for recycling
  • Learn about conserving water and electricity
  • Turn off lights, appliances, and electronics when not in use
  • Turn off water while scrubbing hands with soap/brushing teeth

5 year olds

  • All of the above
  • Help pick up debris/litter at a local park or in your own yard
  • Talk about/show how products are recycled
  • Talk about decisions you’ve made to be more aware of the environment
  • Decide one thing together to do to be more green
  • Go on a scavenger hunt to find environmentally friendly products in your home or at a store
  • Change light bulbs to energy efficient ones

All Ages

  • Visit local events that promote Earth Day
  • Make a craft using recyclable materials in your home
  • Go on a nature walk and pick up any trash you see along the way
  • Buy your produce from a farmer’s market or local farm

What are you doing to celebrate Earth Day? I wanted to go see Disney’s OCEANS as it’s in theaters today. But the closest theater is over an hour away so I’m not sure it’s worth the drive. I think we’ll spend some time at the park and plant our flowers.

WW: Recycled Earth

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Check out the giveaway from Hanes to win your own Earth Day tee. Ends Monday.

We took Make and Takes’ Recycled Art Challenge. We made this earth from old newspapers lying around. We crumpled them up and then somehow managed to form it into a lopsided ball. Then we paper-mached it to give it a good painting surface.

After it dried, we painted it blue. Then we painted a cereal box green and cut out the shapes of the continents. We taped them on and there’s our finished Earth.

Today we’re linked up with 5 Minutes for Mom and Seven Clown Circus.

Top Ten: Ways to Celebrate Earth Day and a Giveaway

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Let’s Celebrate Earth Day!

Sharing the fundamentals, fun and future of Earth Day and the environment
with our little ones. Oh, and a giveaway, too!

1) Earth Day crafts: Last year we made bugs from egg cartons. This year we’re making the world from old newspapers and cereal boxes. We’re finishing them today so I’ll post the picture tomorrow.

2) Earth Day books: At the library yesterday we read Clifford’s Puppy Days-Earth Day Puppy. I think it was the combination of this book and making the earth on the same day that helped it all click for Sammi.

3) Earth Day events: There were a ton of events last Saturday in the Knoxville area to help kids and families celebrate Earth Day. Unfortunately Sammi’s soccer game was in the middle of the day so we didn’t get to go to any. But we are going to the Botanical Gardens this week as part of their Tapestry of Flowers.


4) Another Earth Day craft: Speaking of flowers, we made these cute flowers and I even wrote an action poem to go with them. I’d love some feedback on the 5 Little Flowers poem, if you have a minute!

5) Earth Day outdoors: Get outside and enjoy the sunshine. Ride a bike. Play at the park. Or our newest favorite: put on your swimsuit and run through the sprinklers in the backyard! Sammi even got me in my bathing suit yesterday. It was so much fun!

6) Earth Day inside: Teach your little ones the importance of turning off lights; conserving water; recycling cardboard, plastic or glass; using energy efficient light bulbs or appliances; using green cleaning supplies.

7) More Earth Day books: Check out these great recommendations for Earth Day themed books from Mom Tried It: It’s Earth Day! from the Little Critters series. And Annie’s Home recommended two: The Berenstain Bears Don’t Pollute (anymore) and Clifford’s Spring Clean-up.

8) Earth Day volunteering: It’s also National Volunteer Week. What a great way to combine caring for the environment with serving in our communities. We need both to survive to have a bright future for our little ones. Find volunteer opportunities here: www.scholastic.com/cliffordbebig or here: www.handsonnetwork.org/bebig.

9) Earth Day garden: Sammi asked and prodded and finally convinced us to plant a garden. We got some shady plants to plant in our front planter box. She and Elli has so much fun turning the dirt, digging holes and planting the seeds. I hope they grow because it’s a really shady spot!

Earth Day Giveaway

10) Earth Day trees: Plant a tree with the help of Hanes. Hanes has partnered with the Arbor Day Foundation to plant to help consumers plant trees in north Michigan’s Hiawatha National Forest.

How you can get involved: Purchase any three Hanes products. Just complete the claim form here, attach the original UPC codes, original cash register receipt and/or original packing slip from your purchases, and mail them in.

In your honor, Hanes and the Arbor Day Foundation will plant one tree. Hanes will also send you the cool T-shirt shown above as a thank you and reminder of your involvement in Earth Day 2010. This promotion goes from April 1-May 15, 201 so there’s still plenty of time to stock up on socks and under shirts and help save the environment.

Hanes has offered to give one Because Babies Grow Up reader an Earth Day tee!

To enter, leave a comment below telling me how you are sharing Earth Day with your family.

If you’re interested in an additional entry, you can tweet “@ajpassey and @Hanescomfort are teaming up to #giveaway an Earth Day tee: http://bit.ly/d3KPQO ” (Leave a comment with a link to your status)

Giveaway open until April 26 at 11:59 pm. Winner will be announced and contacted Tuesday, April 27. Good luck!

This list is linked to Oh Amanda‘s Top Ten {Tuesday} carnival.