6 ways to celebrate a GREEN Christmas with children

It’s been quite a while since my last post and things have been very hectic, from kids getting sick to computers bogging down, it has made me stay offline for a while.

But with the holidays coming, I felt its about time to come back (sort of).

I have always loved Christmas and I still do, so I want to pass it on to my kids.  Of course, its easy for them with all the gifts and toys that come with it, I also would like them to know it and enjoy it beyond the gifts, and of course, in the eco-friendly way.

But how do you celebrate a GREEN Christmas?  This year, that is our project.

1.  Do some cleaning

How many of you do some “Christmas” cleaning (”spring” cleaning done before Christmas and before the New Year)?  Our family does it almost like a ritual, not really imposed but it feels right doing it.

Especially if you do it before Advent, then you really get into the groove of things and prepare for Christmas.

2.  Do some giving

After a whole year of acquiring stuff, most of which we don’t really use nor need.  This is a great time to edit some of our stuff and SHARE.

We do this for everything, clothes, toys, office supplies and school supplies.  For kids, it may be hard to part with some some toys, but I just tell my kids, it’s time to make room for newer toys and for other children to have some new toys as well.  In the end, it worked out well.

You’ll be surprised by just how much we were able to collect and some are even so new we wrap it up to give it more cheer!

3.  Do it naturally

This year, I decided to make a real Advent wreath with real evergreens (flat-leaf cypress).  We light the candles every night while I tell my children the Christmas Story.

There are of course store-bought ones, but nothing beats the real thing, especially when you use Baguio cypress, and Christmas is literally in the air.

4.  Enjoy the cool Christmas air

There’s so much going on during Christmas with all the parties, shopping and events we attend.  But for many, it goes by in a blur, mainly because we do so many things in so little time.  So the challenge is to slow it down and you’ll end up enjoying it more.

5.  Do more family time together

What is Christmas if it weren’t shared and enjoyed with family.  Doing some Christmas crafts together not only makes for an enjoyable afternoon, but makes even keepsakes all the more memorable.

6.  Recycle and reuse even Christmas decors

I’m a florist and its not unheard of for people to really lavishly decorate their tree in a new motif every year.  But for us ordinary folks, it really makes economical sense to take care of our ornaments so we can enjoys it for years to come.

I have been collecting really nice ornaments, mostly export overruns.  Not only do I keep them from going to waste, but I get very nice and durable ornaments as well, a win-win for everyone!

I keep my “treasures” in book boxes I got at our local bookstore, which were also destined to the trash.  What’s even better is, I was able to get the Harry Potter #7 book boxes!  By itself, something really special to me.  It helps remind me and my family to take care of it better, I don’t have to buy expensive boxes and it’s not plastic.

These are just some ways to have a cool Green Christmas and usher in an even Greener new year!

Be happy.  Be Healthy.  Be Whole.

Make the Quaint things count,

Theresa