WINNER WINNER!  I'm thrilled to announce that the WINNER of the free Project Wild Preschool Curriculum is DAWN :)  Dawn works with kiddos this age, so I'm thrilled that this will have a great impact on MANY kids!  

Two years ago, my sister (an elementary teacher with a love of science) gave me the Growing Up Wild book.  For the past two summers, I have intended to crack open this awesome book and DIG IN with my own kids.  We have looked at the guide and done a few of the activities, but now I'm ready to to really work through the 27 lessons (with about 400 activities)!  Ok, we're not going to do every single activity, but A LOT of them!  And I want you to JOIN ME!  

Starting July 14th, I will start a 6-week series using the Growing Up Wild lessons.  You will need the guide to join me.  We'll work through the lessons together and have a blast while spending quality time with our kids and helping them to GROW UP WILD!

You can either buy your own guide for $24.95 or ENTER TO WIN ONE HERE :)  Project Wild is generously giving one guide away to a LGM reader who will be joining me in this 6-week series (though you can adapt it to your own time frame)!  Simply leave ONE comment below to enter.  (contest open to US residents only.  winner will be chosen on July 7th using random.org.  Only one entry per email address.)

Each lesson offers multiple activity components including:  Healthy Me ideas, snack suggestions (oh how I love themed snacks), Take Me Outside (unplug those kids!), Music and Movement, Art, Home Connection ideas, and MORE!  Seriously, this is a wonderful resource for anyone with preschool-kindergarten youngsters in their life!  Read more about the guide here.

Lesley, our fitness and Etsy expert is back with perhaps the best tutorial I've ever seen.  She poured her heart into this one folks, who is going to join me in making a set of these?  Granted, I'm lucky enough to have two Rugrat Design snack bags that we use ALL.THE.TIME!  Perfect for on the go snacking :)

__ For those of us with school age children….the time has come….summer is over and it is time for back to school. There may have been tears (theirs or your own) or there may have been celebratory moments (again, theirs or maybe your own too!) Regardless of how it happened….it happened….the school supplies were purchased, first day of school outfit selected and laid out, teachers and schedules assigned and just like that- the 2013-2014 school year began. Along with those supplies, book bags, “perfect shoes” and the coolest styles comes the lunchbox. And that is where the subject of this month’s entry begins….

If you’re reading this blog- it means you are at least partially green. If you were looking for the “How to fill the landfill ASAP” blog- you’re in the wrong spot. So- back to that lunchbox. In packing daily lunches for my daughter I was determined to do my part to be a little more green. I went a tad crazy seeking the perfect lunchbox.  My daughter is carrying a Goodbyn lunchbox this year and so far I pretty much have a crush on the thing. Truly.

In addition to this lunchbox, we use reusable sandwich wraps and snack bags instead of ziplocs, foil or saran wrap when I pack lunch and snacks. We also use a reusable drink bottle instead of juice boxes. Since I can’t tell you how to make a drink bottle, you’ll just have to go to Target to get one of those bad boys. But, as the woman behind Rugrat Design. I CAN tell you how to make the reusable wraps. So I will do that. That’s right, I’m telling you how to make something instead of sending you to my shop to buy it. Aren’t I nice!? For those of you who don’t sew or don’t want to- then just head right over and do your shopping and I’ll happily make it and mail it to you :)

So, shut up already Lesley and tell me what to do. OK. I hear ya!

With no further ado….THE REUSABLE SNACK BAG AND SANDWICH WRAP TUTORIAL This is my first tutorial and therefore I request your patience as it may be a tad wordy. But I promise you, at the end, you will have a reusable snack bag and sandwich wrap and you can send stylish and green lunches for your Rugrat (or yourself!) Goodbye waste…hello style!

This month I’m sharing a fitness related post with you- but it’s not the type of fitness you’d expect. No lifting. No cardio. No sweat or special equipment required.  This is about a mental fitness – and taking a mini challenge to give yourself the gift of clarity and mental freedom.  I truly believe that a clear mind is critical to physical fitness success too. So, we’ll start with the head. 

What on earth is she talking about you ask? I’m challenging you to an Un-plugged weekend.  Why on God’s green earth would you do that? You like your phone. Your iPad keeps you happy. Your kids are quiet when the TV is on.  I get it. Believe me. I do.  But now, after my own 48 hours of being unplugged- I get the other side.  (Those Amish may be onto something yet! And I say that with the utmost respect…and also realize they can’t be offended as they don’t know what I said because well, this is an online blog so well…you get it.)  

Anyway- last week I had the bright idea that we would have an “unplugged” weekend at our house.  Let me preface by saying I don’t think my family is on a phone, iPad or in front of a screen nearly as much as we could be (kids only get 60 minutes/day) - but we are no strangers to the screen (especially me and my phone!) OK. There. Confession time. This challenge was for me. I run two businesses online so I’m on my phone/iPad a lot running those.  And while I try to use my phone when I’m not with my family- I admit that it’s on my mind likely more than it should be. SO – we unplugged. The originally idea was for just me to unplug.  I was thrilled when my husband and kids joined the “screen free/unplugged” weekend.  Here is how it went. 

Friday Night at 11:45 p.m.  

I have 15 minutes left plugged in. AH.  This is actually happening. 

Midnight Friday:

Time to unplug.  I’m still sitting on the couch uploading photos onto the computer.  I add some to facebook.  I want to finish them. Then people start to “like” the photos. I want to see what they say. AH. I didn’t get to finish what I was doing.   My sister was over and literally takes the computer away from me and turns it off.  

OK. This just got real.  

Saturday Morning: 

I wake up and get out of bed. I head to the kitchen to make my Shakeology smoothie for breakfast. Grab my iPad and sit down at the table to enjoy breakfast and checking email, facebook and my Etsy shop as I do every morning. CRAP. Unplugged time.  Sigh.  Return iPad to the kitchen counter and drink my shake.  I make a to-do list for the day. I finish my breakfast and to-do list making and am in the shower earlier than I usually am. (OK, so I may stall my mornings with my screen time. Noted but not accepted yet. This is a fluke I’m sure.) 

Husband is up and complains he can’t read the news or check the sports scores (again, on the iPad.)  He recovers from this trauma and then gets ready for the day…and actually takes less time than usual in the restroom to get ready! (Read – the score updates and news sucks some serious morning time for him. The jury is still out for me- I’m special you know!) 

Kids wake up- stumble to couch and oldest grabs remote to flip on the TV. I remind her it’s screen free/unplugged weekend.  I may as well have told her Santa Claus wasn’t real. “NOOOOOOO- why!? I want a show.  It’s the weekend.  PLEASE!? I WANT SOPHIA THE FIRST!”  The youngest chimes in “Pleeeeeaaaase!? Just one show?  Please Mommy!?”  No.  No screens this weekend.  TV turns off.  Remote is back on shelf.  It’s breakfast time.  

We sit and talk over breakfast about why we are having an unplugged weekend and what the kids want to do.  The to-do list grows with kids activities….buy rollerblades, go on a bike ride, play outside, Legos, clean up rooms, color and get the water table out.  

We shower- get dressed and we’re off for our un-plugged weekend. 

By noon on Saturday we have accomplished more in a few hours than we normally do all weekend.  The kids have cleaned their rooms (by choice). This wasn’t just a “shove it away” cleaning. This was an actual deep, get it all off the shelves, organize it, make piles of what to keep/donate/sell and then put it all away cleaning.  WOW.  The rooms look beautiful.  Piles are loaded into the car to donate to Goodwill and items are ready to list for sale.  Awesome.

In part of the cleaning, I organized the kids’ baby books and scrapbooks.  My oldest has 5 scrapbooks (she turns 6 next week. Yes. A book/year. I used to be a good mom.)  We all look through the scrapbooks and laugh and recall special moments.  The youngest gets her books and opens it and asks a question that makes my heart sink “where are all my pictures mommy?”  OUCH. Stabbed through the heart.  Parenting Fail of the year. #worstmomever.  The child has a scrapbook….but the pages aren’t…well….done.  There are photos stuffed into the photo pages.  Her sister had 2 completed and beautiful books by age 2.  The youngest, well, she has a book of photos shoved into sleeves. 

Note- this was corrected this weekend! The babybook for the oldest had its final pages completed.  Baby books end at Kindergarten. So I shed my tear, finished her book and stored it into the newly created Rubbermaid tub for such special books. And, the youngest now has 1 completed babybook, photos for the 2nd have been ordered and will be completed by the next weekend. Maybe she won’t need therapy after all.(I’m starting to think there may actually be some merit to the fact that screens are time suckers.)  

Afternoon Saturday:

By the afternoon the thought of screens was out of everyones' minds. I couldn’t even tell you where my phone was.  We had gone on a bike ride, the hubs had finished his ENTIRE to do list for the weekend (note, this is rare- that list usually carries over to the next weekend), kids rooms were spotless, floors were cleaned (not just a brief sweep- but actually cleaned, mopped, baseboards cleaned and I even switched the vacuum bag.)  We had spent time outside, oldest had a play date (those things are a lot easier to arrange when you can call someone. Instead, we walked to the friends house….asked her to play…then walked home to play.  It worked.  It was very, well, Amish. All that was missing was our horse & Buggy, but it worked).  We had dinner on the porch with family and sat around talking, laughing and enjoying one another.  Someone asked what the weather was to be like tomorrow- and everyone started to reach for the phones- then remembered “oh, we can’t.” So we just accepted “we’ll see what it is.”  On our way inside from our picnic, our oldest picked up some items from the yard- took them to their “home location” and then came inside. She did this on her own, unasked, just did it.  When we thanked her she simply said “I saw they weren’t where they belonged so I wanted to help.” Um, WHAT!?  OMG.  Call 911. My heart just stopped.  

Saturday night: 

We played a game as a family, read books together, then the kids went to bed. The kids were asleep and the hubs and I poured some wine (OK, let’s be honest- we took the bottle and a couple glasses to the porch) and sat there for a couple hours – alone- in peace- sitting, talking, drinking. No interruptions. No phone “pings”. No checking of emails or looking at the latest text or notification that buzzed.  Just us. Wow.  It was great.   The kids didn’t get out of bed to see us. They didn’t complain when we put them to bed. They went to bed, let us have our adult time and they didn’t wake until ….

Sunday morning at 9:15 a.m. That’s right. They went to bed without compliant (especially rare for the youngest), slept all night, and woke up nearly 90 minutes later than normal. WHAT!?  The kids slept in on Sunday- but so did we.  We were still asleep when we heard the kids wake up. But they didn’t come to our room. They didn’t turn on the TV. We woke when we heard the sound of laughing and Legos drawers opening. They woke up- let us sleep- and started playing with Legos together. Oh. My. Gosh.  Is this Heaven?  I’m feeling like Mother Teresa. Clearly I have provided such an environment for my kids to thrive while I lay in bed sleeping in.  

Sunday continued to amaze me with the difference from being plugged to unplugged. We went to lunch as a family.  No one asked to turn on the TV in the car.  No one asked to play a game on the phones or iPads.  We talked uninterrupted.  The kids were cooperative.  They played together.  We heard more polite manners from them than I’ve heard in a long time.  You’d have thought Recuse Nanny 911 was in the house.    

The Amish life had a few “oh my gosh- I use my phone for that too” realities such as needing to deposit a check and instead of using my phone, I actually drove to the bank and used the ATM (who knew those were still around?!)  I also needed directions and instead of the typical plugging into the phone GPS, I used a map.  Yes. Something with paper and lines and a legend.  I felt very 1985 doing so.  AAA and their trip-tiks would have been proud.  I filled in our weekly family “fridge calendar” and when I asked the hubs his schedule, we realized that it was on his phone and I’d have to wait until Monday to find out his details.  When driving, I believe I was a better, more focused driver.  I knew the phone was at home so I wasn’t tempted to call, text or use it at all. I just- well- drove (novel concept huh?!) 

Why did this work? Well, despite Steve Jobs best efforts….life beyond the screen is pretty awesome!  

Everyone was fully present with one another.  No one was distracted with a screen in the face. No one heard “Just a minute while I check this”. No one was interrupted mid sentence by an incoming text.  We were focused and present. 
The kids didn’t have any influence other than our family. They didn’t have any behavior they saw on TV or movies. They didn’t have an excuse to tune out and play brain dead while a box entertained them.  
Hubs and I are always very busy- but were so much more productive unplugged. We didn’t have the option or planned distraction to plop on the couch and do nothing, to watch hours f sporting events (even if it was a true interest), or flip channels until something caught our attention. 
The kids didn’t see us tune out. They saw us active and making steps toward goals at the house. They did the same. 

And on Monday morning when the phones, iPads, computer, remotes were allowed back in our lives….they still weren’t reached for as quickly as they were last week. I had 64 texts and 50 emails to review. But you know what- the world was just fine without me checking those messages over the weekend.  It was still spinning without me.  So much for my self esteem.  While we did check our emails, texts, pings, etc.- the feeling of being unplugged was definitely on my mind and one I am going to try to channel more on a daily basis. 

So…..now that you’re done reading on a SCREEN that is likely PLUGGED IN or CHARGED somehow….go unplug. You may be amazed just how much you learn! I was. 

Screen-Free Week starts tomorrow (April 29th) and runs through May 9th.  Last year, I had to resort to unplugging our TV and putting it in a closet for a week!  It's just so so so easy to turn it on for a wee-bit while I enjoy my morning coffee or send some post-work emails or veg on facebook after dinner.  While it's easy to snub the statistic that the average preschooler watches a staggering 32 hours of tv a week, when I sit up and take inventory, I begin to squirm uncomfortably.

While I will still need to work at my computer, my family will otherwise be powering down this week.  I have a STACK of magazines that I've ignored since receiving my Kindle Fire and heaven knows, my girls have an awesome new selection of books (go here for our recent toddler book wish list that has been mostly fulfilled!) that need read a few hundred more times until I have them completely memorized :)

Here are the TOP 10 TV alternatives that we'll be indulging in this week:

1. FAMILY GARDENING!  My husband is an avid gardener and our girls LOVE helping out.  Truth be told, I often use that time for my own recreational screen time.  This week, I'll be digging in the dirt with them and most likely strengthening my marriage while I do it :)  Double win!  Head here for my woojr.com post about toddler friendly gardening.
2. BOOKS!  I LOVE to read, but sometimes it takes a little energy burst to read with my kids.  Once we start, I always enjoy it and this week we'll work our way through our stacks and stacks of books!
3. NATURE HIKES!  It's spring in our neck of the woods and this week I'll let the kids set the pace and direction.  So often, we walk with determination and purpose and miss the delicate buds poking through the fallen leaves or the newly arrived bird calls.  One of my favorite activities:  Wrap your child's wrist with masking tape (sticky side out) and let them make their own bracelet!

  4.  MAKE PINECONE BIRD FEEDERS!  If you live in an area where birds are finally returning to, take some time to 
       bird watch AND why not enjoy a simple craft as a welcome home gift to the birds?
  5.  DO NOTHING!  Is it cheating to include this one?  Well, I cannot say enough about giving your kids the gift of  
       freedom (even if it's boredom).  Just this past Saturday, I let my almost 4 year old have some SOLO TIME 
       outside (the gift of living in the country).  She enjoyed swinging, walking, dancing, talking & singing, but each time    
       she caught me checking on her, she would STOP and NEED ME.
  6.  MAKE A PINTEREST BUCKET LIST!  Yes, you'll need a little screen time to make this list and read the 
      directions, but how many of us "Pin" awesome kids crafts, but never get around to doing them?  THIS IS THE 
      WEEK! Here is my "to do with kids" pinboard.
  7.  VISIT LOCAL ATTRACTIONS.  The Public Library and perhaps the local science & history museum are on our 
       agenda this week.  We don't have a library card (we live out of area), but we can still enjoy the kids area and 
       enjoy reading new books & playing new games!  We're also going to Camp Lutherlyn's FREE Camp Blast event  
       on Sunday.  If you live near Butler, PA, I highly recommend attending (think horse rides, camp games, fishing, 
       sing alongs, food, wagon rides, campfires, etc!!
  8.  COOK TOGETHER.  This is one of the times I rely on the TV the most... to cook in peace :)  However, my girls 
       LOVE helping with dinner preparations!  They're especially good with pizza toppings and {destroying} cookie cut-
       outs. Time to pull out the sugar cookie dough I froze over the (gulp) Christmas holidays!
  9.  SCHEDULE A PLAY DATE!  There are so many special people in our lives that we don't see regularly.  This 
       week, I'd love to treat my girls to a play date with a friend (or two) they don't see often.
  10. CREATE YOUR OWN PLAYS.  Whether it's with puppets, capes or drawings, grow your imagination and take 
        your kids on a fanciful journey.  My husband is especially good with story telling and our almost 4 year old has 
        picked up on the skill.  The stories she tells are AWESOME... wait till she discovers that we can ACT THEM 
        OUT!

Whether it's one-hour, one-day, or one-week, please join me in being SCREEN FREE!  

TELL ME:  What activities will be replacing your screen time?

When it comes to Easter baskets, there are some things that must not be changed:  gourmet jelly beans (no generic or jumbo ones for me!) & a Reese's peanut butter egg.  Those two things will keep me fishing through the plastic green grass with a smile on my face all day long!

However, the rest of the traditional Easter items NEED TO GO.  Forget the waxy tasting chocolate crosses and bunnies!  Forget the foil wrapped eggs.  Dear me, puh-lease leave out the marshmallow peeps.  The malt balls and speckled eggs, meh...

Let's raise a generation of kids who covet their SMALL amount of high quality chocolate* (here is where I back-track and snub Reese's...do as I say, not as I do) and get giddy over the healthy treats found in their Easter baskets!

*I recommend heading to your local Aldi for the best selection of chocolates.  It's one of life's great perks that the local "budget" grocery store is originally from Germany and therefore full of reasonably priced German chocolates!


Lazy Green Mama's 10 Healthy Easter Basket Fillers Recommendations:

As snow begins to fall, the birds that decided not to fly south are looking for nourishment everywhere they can!  Help them out with this fun craft that even my 1.5 year old can do!

To add an educational component, learn to identify the birds, visit:  www.whatbird.com


Materials:
● pinecones (if not available in your neck of the woods, try any household item that can withstand weather like a wooden spoon)
● peanut butter (crisco is a great alternative for those with allergies)
● bird seed
● yarn
● child-friendly knife

How to:
Tie yarn around the top of each pinecone, leaving a long tail to hang.  Pour birdseed into a shallow container.  Using the knife, slather peanut butter all over the pinecone.  Roll in the tray containing birdseed.

If transporting, place pinecone birdfeeders in plastic bags since some of the birdseed may flake off.

Did you know that indoor plants can make your house healthier? As the late spring allergy season hits with the strength of a thousand stampeding elephants, I'm desperate for clean air. Without paying a premium for a whole house filter, I'm excited to delve into learning about how to clean the air.

According to Health Magazine, there are five greens that are especially effective with cleaning indoor air quality. These five give off oxygen and remove toxins like air fresheners and formaldehyde. With childhood asthma and allergies so common, I'm sure every household is looking for effective ways to clean up their act!

1. English Ivy. I love ivy because it quickly looks lush as it trails over your pot. Hang it high on the wall and enjoy some living art work! Simply mist it with water to keep it healthy.
2. Bamboo palm. Who doesn't love a little tropical oasis in their home? Bamboo grows easily, just make sure it gets a few hours of sunshine and water regularly. Put it in its own container or it will quickly overtake any others!
3. Peace lily. Perhaps the most beautiful and effective indoor air cleaner. This white flowering gem takes a little extra care, but removes more toxins than any other.
4. Lady palm. Another tropical choice, that grows into a TREE! You've been warned! Easy to care for and resistant to insects.
5. Rubber plant. Growing up, our house ALWAYS had rubber "trees". I doubt my parents knew about its air cleaning super powers and it had more to do with the fact that these babies are indestructible! It also had to do with a silly song my dad loved to sing, "an ant can't eat a rubber tree plant, but he had high hopes...". Even the most inattentive gardener will have success with this one!

Feel free to link pictures of your lush houseplants... I need a little inspiration to remember to actually WATER these air filters!

Note from Julie, the LGM:  Hello readers!  I've been feeling under the weather and am impatient to be back to normal because I have a bunch a great product reviews & giveaways for you!  I was contacted by a reader who wanted to contribute an article on biodiversity.  I've been lamenting about the lack of content on LGM, so I was happy to post this article.  Thanks Kori!

“In other environmental issues we tell people to stop something, reduce their impact, reduce their damage,” states US Ecologist Gary Nabhan in a recent interview. Nabhan is a ethnobotanist/gardener whose promotion of biodiversity has caught the attention of many over the years.  He is known for his work in biodiversity as an ethnobotanist.  Since <a href=” http://www.garynabhan.com/books.html “>Coming Home to Eat</a> was published in 2001, the local food movement has ignited, causing a worldwide green epidemic.

Over the past few years there has been a dramatic rise in the number of organizations and businesses that have contributed to the promotion of sustainability through conservation. The Earth Day Network has been playing a large part in bringing conservationist and green enthusiasts together, sharing ideas and discussing new ways to support the planet. Other large organizations and non-profits like Doug Band and the CGI (Clinton Global Initiative) have been working on successful emission reduction projects in the San Francisco Bay area. While climate control has continued to worsen, collaborative and individual acts are vital for any successful green campaign. As human beings, we’re constantly told to reduce our carbon footprint, consume less unhealthy foods, and spend less time in the shower! But let’s take a minute to step back and look at this from a different perspective; one that Gary Nabhan strongly suggests.

According to The United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization, only about a quarter of crop diversity is left and that a dozen species now gives 90% of the animal protein eaten globally. In accordance, just 4 crop species supply half of plant based calories in the human diet.

Nabhan suggests that eating foods that are home-grown will have a greater impact on sustainability for our planet as a whole. Otherwise known as “eat what you conserve,” is a well-established theory in that by eating the fruits and vegetables that we are attempting to conserve/save, we’re promoting the granular dissemination of various plant species.

Agriculturist Marco Contiero also mentions that “biodiversity is an essential characteristic of any sustainable agricultural system, especially in the context of climate change.”[1]  According to Conterio’s theory, this would suggest that as individuals we tend our own crops/plants, and should make sure to purchase localized farm products at supermarkets and groceries. In the end, this condenses export/import reliance, thus reducing our carbon footprint.

Nabhan and Contiero’s theories both rely profoundly on an action oriented approach at conservation and sustainability. With an abundance of green movements following Earth Day 2010, organizations and individuals have taken a stronger following to expert opinions like the ones demonstrated by both of these highly influential agriculturalists. So remember, as the fall season approaches, be sure to visit your local farmers marketing to purchase your fresh fruits and vegetables. Also, as eco-conscious individuals, don’t hesitate to stop the next time you drive by a yard stand with fresh crops. Promoting biodiversity and localized farming is a crucial piece of the conservation puzzle.
 

An Excerpt:  How Low Can They Go?
  Check out this Starbucks offer:  Buy a bottle of Ethos Water for $1.80, and they give a nickel to "help children around the world get clean water."  Hmm... How about we fill our bottles from the tap, then donate the whole $1.80 to a group like the Blue Planet Project, which fights for water justice against greedy corporations."

Rockliff continues to discuss the world's water problems.  The solution ends at disposable water bottles, but the book is geared towards teens and just how deep of a solution can they handle?  I really appreciate the solutions given and have learned a lot about my own buying power and how to use my POWER FOR GOOD ;)  The book does make me feel a bit guilty at times, but that's my problem... actually the Earth's!

WIN IT:  This giveaway was open for the month of August to all my facebook friends.  Jennifer G. won this book!  Congrats Jennifer... perhaps this will be a handy tool at work (I happen to know the weener!).

BUT IT:  Head over to LGM's Amazon store and pick up a copy for yourself and your favorite teen/ college kid.  It's on sale!  NEW, only $7.88