As parents one thing we all face, is keeping our energy levels up, as we keep up with our children.  This month Whole Foods Market current podcast series suggests tips and action steps to support our energy levels naturally and safely.  For a great list of energy supporting herbs, and to listen to these podcasts visit the Whole Story blog.

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The other day as I was watching my daughter play outside and she started to freak out about a bee. If it wasn't a bee it would have been a bug. She HATES the creepy crawlies and I can't blame her since I was the same way. It was well into my adult years that I started to accept them and not shriek and jump onto the nearest high surface. I wish I could say I had bad experiences that made me that way, and I did get bit by black widow spiders a couple times but overall I have to say that I was just born being afraid of bugs and crawly things. My parents used to joke that they could send me into any room and I would find a bug.. even if it was the size of a flea… I would find one and scream. 

Nowadays I wouldn't say I love them but I can tolerate them and for the sake of my daughter I try to make bugs seem like a fun part of nature. I want her to see a female who thinks bugs and spiders are cool, not something to be terrified of. Yesterday that meant going outside to check the mud and puddles in the yard for worms. This morning was another worm hunt. I even assisted my toddler in trying to sneak one to school but alas the bus driver caught us and gave me the evil eye. As soon as she heard him say the word "worm" she got ghostly white and almost physically pushed him away to arms length and demanded to know if he had a worm. That is the look I don't want my kids to see..  the look that says that nature and bugs are gross, dirty, nasty, scary, etc. That takes me out of my comfort zone sometimes but the things we do for our children…

Half the battle is won by learning about how beneficial bugs and spiders are. If you take the time to learn, you develop respect and you see why they are important parts of the ecosystem. When you are outside and you see a particular bug or spider see if you can identify it on the Internet and learn about it. Demystifying and naming certain critters is half the battle. Kids are afraid of the unknown and once they "get to know" the local wildlife they will be more comfortable.

Take the Orb-Weavers for instance. They are spiders that weave large, beautiful webs that sometimes look as if they have writing down the middle (hence another name for these yellow-and-black striped beauties: writing spider). These spiders are quite large, and their elaborate webs are lethal to all kinds of flying pests, such as mosquitoes, moths, wasps, hornets, etc. Such webs can be annoying to humans, but there are few things more breath-taking than one of these orb webs covered in dew drops on a sunny morning. They kill the bugs I don't particularly like.. mosquitoes and wasps, and they are gorgeous spiders, even if slightly terrifying looking. I leave them alone and they leave me alone. That is the major lesson I impart to my kids… they have a job to do and we need to leave them to it.

I don't like spiders and bugs in the house so the kids and I talk about what kind of things WE do that makes spiders want to come in the house… aka leaving clutter on the floor for them to hide in, leaving food and crumbs on the floor, poking holes in screens, etc. I find it is an excellent incentive to my kids to clean up after themselves when they think about bugs crawling around in their rooms at night. It is incentive for me too. After finding two huge spiders in the laundry I was piling on the floor, I converted to a system that kept clothes OFF the floor, LOL. For more tips check out my article on how to get rid of spiders naturally. It mostly talks about spiders but also some insects.

Because we want to be left alone in our home we take preventive measures and we have to respect that the outdoors is their domain. To respect existing spiders in our yard we do not spray broad-spectrum insecticides (spiders are not insects, but they will succumb to insect sprays). If we spray anything, it is usually natural and geared towards one problem insect that is eating our crops. We never spray herbicides to kill weeds either. Another thing you can do is spread thick mulch that gives hunting spiders a place to hide and spend the winter. Encourage web-weavers with an outside light that attracts flying insects. Spiders will weave their webs near the light to take advantage of the bugs.

We don't need to love bugs and spiders but certainly we don't need to fear them and we can learn to respect them and co-exist with them.

Some good books to read with your kids about spiders and bugs:

The Looking Book – A very clever book a mom who gives her kids some "lookers" and sends them on an assignment in their backyard. My kids like this one a lot.

Are you a Spider? – Walk a mile in a spiders web.

Aaaarrgghh! Spider! - An adorable book about a spider who wants to be the family pet but she keeps getting swept outside.

Yesterday my daughter pulled me out of photo taking doldrums. I have sorely missed using my dear camera and when I discovered my daughter camped out in her favorite tree again, I had a reason to grab it. There just isn't much to inspire me in winter and that is rough on someone who feels like taking pictures is as vital as oxygen. But spring is returning and I am getting a second wind.

Check out my Squidoo lens on Taking Great Pictures of Your Children and my review of the Nikon D60.

I don't know about you but this time of year when I go to the store and see lots of plastic Easter grass, plastic eggs, and huge chocolate bunnies… it makes the environmentalist in me cringe? This is the big green mom conundrum… how to make holidays fun for our kids without leaving a large mark on our planet. Lucky for us though there are numerous ways to make Easter green without festooning our lovely planet with fake grass! 

1. Give your children a decorative cloth bag with a set of child's garden tools, seeds, or other gardening supplies instead of an Easter basket. You can put a few eggs in it with seeds and it can even contain "instructions" from the easter bunny asking your child to help plant spring flowers for bunnies and children everywhere to enjoy. Kids will LOVE getting a special assignment.

2. If you still want to go with a traditional basket, choose eco-friendly materials such as cotton, hemp, or jute. Or purchase hand-made, fair trade certified baskets that you can find other uses for after Easter (how about toy storage?). Thrift stores usually have baskets this time of year too (I know mine does)… used is better than new! Also, you can make your own Easter basket from materials around the house, such as hand-decorated bags, totes, wastebaskets, laundry baskets, etc.

3. Fill the Easter baskets with biodegradable, sustainable materials that can be composted, such as natural straw, hay, moss, or simply grass from outside. It is really easy to grow your wheat grass in the house, so start now to have some ready by Easter. You can also shred up the Sunday funnies or colorful scrap paper or shred some of those colorful catalogues and magazines that come in the mail. Kids won't mind.

4. Make your own treats for the basket instead of buying the processed junk – make some raw cookies or brownie balls or dehydrate some fruit.

5. Re-use what you have. This is our secret weapon. We bought Easter stuff a few years ago from yard sales and thrift stores mostly and we keep it all in a box in the garage. This includes everything from plastic and ceramic eggs, baskets, and Easter decor. We even have an Easter egg wreath made using leftover Easter eggs from years past and a Christmas wreath we got at a yard sale. We made it about 4 years ago now and it is still one of my kids favorite Easter decorations. If you already have plastic grass, use it as a base for a centerpiece or a creative springtime scene.

6. Decorate using scrap paper and junk mail – cut out bunny shapes and string them onto colorful yarn, or cut out Easter shapes into a chain. You can also use leftover felt  or fabric scraps to make cloth eggs or to make stuffed bunnies. Cloth scraps can be used to make a decorative banner with felt letters thats says "Happy Easter".

7. For your Easter feast eat bunny food. Serve cut vegetables, fruit, and maybe some dandelion greens in a green smoothie.

8. Dye eggs using natural easter egg dyes -mix a tablespoon of white vinegar per cup of boiling water and add onion skins (yellow), red cabbage (light purple), shredded raw beets (deep red), spinach (light green), coffee grounds or tea (brown), etc. 

9. Get your eggs from a local farmer or urban chicken-keeper. If the eggs are brown, you can use eco-friendly paints on them instead of dyes. Also try blowing the eggs first so they can be kept for future years. Wooden eggs or knitted eggs are another good option.

10. Fill your children's Easter baskets with enduring sustainable toys (puzzles, cute games), a deck of cards, dominoes, these cute Easter mugs, bunny books, etc. Take your child's personality into consideration rather than just giving the "usual" stuffed bunny and plastic trinkets. Then you can build a basket theme around your child's interests.

All of these ideas will help reduce waste this Easter season while preserving the "fun". What is your best green easter tip?

Guess I am easy… the little things make me happy. Little things like this tablecloth with teeny strawberries, and Tea Tree/Lemongrass shampoo bars, and cucumber melon lip balm in a cute metal tin.

All these things remind me that spring is around the corner…