We have a lot, and I'm OK with that. However, when I get something new, if I have a choice I go with no plastic.
This is us and I am slowly switching over time, as I am able. We have almost no plastic cups and bowls left. I do still have little tupperware containers with lids that Maggie takes lunch for school.
The rest of the house is riddled with plastic and such is life. No point in filling the landfill with it, if we can still use it.
__________________
Chris
Mama to 4
Do what you can reasonably, and leave the rest to God" ~Fr. Joseph Quigley
Alex, my 12 yo who is growing up SO quickly
These posts have really made me realize how much plastic we really do have! I guess the best thing is to just reuse, reuse, reuse whenever it's safe and do the best you can to donate toys and such when you're done.
I would love to take the time to make my whole list!
This is reminding me of the section on plastics in a book I read with my kids recently. It's called Oil, one of those DK single topic "encyclopedias". It is was a good reminder to me that not too long ago almost none of this stuff was around! My children too were asking how you could do without a lot of those things.
We have little enough plastic that some (perceptive) people comment on it, but there is still plenty in my opinion. I have tried to make the plastic high-quality stuff that will last. (Ie, not the buckets they sell berries in here that are so cheap they literally break into plastic shards within a year.)
I have the Pyrex containers that have glass lids, and I am annoyed at how the plastic holds smells. But I can choose the right size without even thinking now.
It can be so expensive to buy the non-plastic versions of things. We also find that they are heavy, and we move with a limited amount of weight every year or two! But they truly do bless the house, be they wood, ceramic, even metal.
I have been giving this a lot of thought too. I know some things will not leave like the playmobil, but I would love to cut down even more in other areas. We have gotten rid of a lot, but it seems like in some areas it is really hard to avoid plastic.
i spent time at a friend's house the other day who truly does not have any plastic in her house. i'm sure there's *something,* but close to nothing. the house is just so very wonderful and natural every where you look. it's hard to explain. it was just inspiring. i don't think i should waste and spend money and just throw everything out now that i was with my friend, but it was just a feeling that i love being there and was inspiring.
so here's what i see that is plastic at my house
coffee pot
toaster
a few snack bowls
a couple of sippy cups
doctor kit
riding toy
a few little people
legos
playmobil
shower curtain liner
potty seat for toilet
toilet brush and holder
potty chair
step stool
games/pieces
clothes basket
trash cans
baby monitor
ziploc bags (used sparingly, but still)
a few plastic animals still (most wooden)
play dishes
a few kid spoons
storage bins
i'm betting there's more than i can think of/see out right now. how is it not that much, but seems like lots? or is that lots...i don't know.
but anyway...have any ideas for making that list smaller?
How whould that mama substitute all these?
Me
so here's what i see that is plastic at my house
coffee pot - ditch it all together - coffee is addictive, drink water instead )
toaster - there are all metal ones
a few snack bowls - go metal too for kiddie bowls
a couple of sippy cups - klean kanteen! The cap is still plastic though
doctor kit - dunno
riding toy - yeah, they have expensive wooden riding versions
a few little people - same - wooden toys.
legos -
playmobil -
shower curtain liner - install glass shower door
potty seat for toilet - they have them in wood too
toilet brush and holder - they have them all metal.. well, but the bristles of course
potty chair - i dunno
step stool - wooden one
games/pieces - wodden games
clothes basket - real baskets?
trash cans -
baby monitor
ziploc bags (used sparingly, but still) - make your own cloth bags or buy them on Etsy.
a few plastic animals still (most wooden)
play dishes -
a few kid spoons - get silver spoons for kids - silver has some cool super powers
storage bins - baskets
Just my thoughts though.. we still have lot of plastic too, but some things I just don't sweat, like the toaster for example - we don't throw them away after 1 use and it doesn't leach anything harmful into our food, so I am ok with the plastic handles on it. No one's perfect, and I bet even your cool mama friend had electricity with plastic cords and outlets.
I don't sweat it much either. I don't really like using plastic for food purposes and if there is another option i often take it...but plastic does have it endearing qualities too in some spots.
how fun to see scarlett's sweet face when i came to post on this thread, julie. i love her!
anyway...to all...i am definitely not sweating or stressing about the plastic. my feelings, and i have been back to the same friend's house several times now, are that i just LOVE the incredible warmth and depth and life that i feel from a home full of natural materials (and of course, the house and its character, and personality and all of that play a huge role as well). i have also gotten passionate about buying most of our groceries locally and have made huge differences there in order to improve our health (organic and whole foods usually) and also reduce our negative impact on the environment/world. reducing the plastic is, to me, another way to fulfill my passions, help me feel great about life, and reduce our negative impact. i'm certainly not meaning to compare myself to my friend or others or to be sounding trendy at all.
__________________
Stephanie, wife to Tim and mama to Isaac (4) and Kendall (2)
I have lots of plastic in my house, but I don't stress it. I do feel it's a more positive thing to use natural materials, than a negative, deprived thing...but that stems from my natural gravitation and attraction to solid, natural materials, as opposed to cheap plastic. Choosing glass, wood, or metal over plastic gives me a nice feeling of weight and..I guess wealth, since they are more of an upmarket kind of thing. It just feels nicer. So choosing them, for me, isn't about trying to do the right thing, and maybe sacrifice, because I can't get what everyone else has; but more of a bonus, that I can have something so beautiful, instead of just plain utilitarian plastic. I will choose the natural material every time, because it makes me feel good, rather than just because it's the "right" thing to do. I think it helps a lot, both in my acceptance of the fact that I don't have a completely natural house yet (cause these thing take time, and careful choosing, and a bit more effort and money), and in my acceptance of the extra effort it takes to either use the natural products (re-usable, vs disposable, etc) or the more care they need vs cheap plastic. Make any sense?
__________________ I am the original fragrance of the earth, and I am the heat in fire. I am the life of all that lives. Bhagavad Gita 7:9
You don't have a soul, you are a soul. You have a body. -- C. S. Lewis.
)
Linear Mode
