How to be an Eco-friendly Mum.
What does being an eco-friendly Mum mean to you? What kind of image does it conjure up?
I used to think of some kind of Earth Mother. Someone completely at one with nature, who made her own natural remedies, doesn’t wear shoes and lives with her children completely off the grid. She can make a fire in minutes and probably has some kind of hippy like dreadlocks.
Of course an eco-friendly Mum can look like this but she can also look like me. Someone who drinks prosecco while nibbling on packaged crisps on the summer solstice rather than celebrating at Stonehenge. I have no idea about how the moon should be making me feel, nor do I even know what star sign my daughter is, because that’s what eco-friendly hippies talk about right? (Come to think of it I really should know what star sign my daughter is.)
I’m not the only one that has thought of this stereotype. I know this because it gets used on me all this time, “Oh yeah, your all eco-friendly hippish now,” like it’s some kind of cult I’ve joined. The roll of the eyes in the office when I pull yet more recycling out of the bin.
Luckily this is becoming less and less as more and more people start to, dare I say it, awaken to the reality. The reality that we are damaging our planet. And not just our planet, this week saw the Black Lives Matter movement come to the fore front after the horrendous killing of George Floyd. I’ve spoken before about how our habits and daily norms are not just an environmental problem but a humanitarian problem to, that effects the poorest in our societies and around the world, mainly people of colour. I believe environmentalism and racism go hand in hand. We cannot tackle one without the other. Start with who made your clothes. This is a message I feel is the most important thing we can teach our children and of course children learn by example.
So no, you do not need to be a stereotypical hippy, who wears homemade clothes and rarely wears shoes. You can be just like me… your average 2.5 kids, Victorian terrace living, 30 something, English girl, who might just help you become an eco-friendly Mum yourself.
How to become an eco-friendly family.
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Get a compost bin.
I’ll start with the totally un-glamorous but simple. Why would you want to send all your veg straps to landfill where they will turn into greenhouse gases, when you could pop them in a bin in the garden to be put back on the garden a year later, making your geraniums bloom. I’ve got you covered if you thinking already this isn’t for you, you have no idea where to start with a Beginners Guide to Composting. Saturday night reading sorted.
2. Quit Fast Fashion.
Teaching your children from a young age that we should love the quality, ethical clothes we own rather than wearing them a few times and disposing of them is a one of the biggest things you can do to A. help cut carbon emissions, B. stop the exploitation of other humans, often women of colour by big corporations.
When is comes to second hand clothes it could not be easier than when buying for kids. eBay as well as hand me down are your best friend.
3. Change your food shopping habits.
This will look different to everyone depending on your needs and your budget. For me the best way to cut down our food waste, plastic waste and budget was to start buying bulk and to start getting things delivered. I buy bulk rice, lentils, pulses, spices from our local Asian store, bulk pasta from the supermarket and get a veg box delivered from our local green grocer. Meaning it cuts our supermarket trips way down. We have pretty much everything we need to cook with in our pantry. This also forces me to bulk cook. I mean why wouldn’t you when you’ve got all the supplies in front of you. Whatever I cook there’s leftovers, whether that be for lunches, or portions for the freezer. There’s nothing better than pulling a home cooked meal out of the freezer when you have no time to cook or are feeling lazy. Plus a hot meal for lunch that you don’t have to cook is life goals.
You might be thinking “that is going to cost me way more.” Trust me it doesn’t. What it does do however is cost you more at ONE point. £20 for a 11kg bag of rice feels like sooooo much, but when we went into the supermarket and worked out how much we would spend on the same amount of the same brand it was exactly DOUBLE. The same with pasta. Look at the labels on the shelves, how much are they selling the small bag at per kg compared to the huge bag. I guarantee is it more often than not double the amount for the smaller bag.
What this takes is just a little extra planning and organizing. For me I know however careful I am at the beginning of the month after pay day, I’ll still be counting the pennies at the supermarket shop at the end of the month. I just cannot budget weekly however hard I try. That’s why this system works well for me. Stock up the pantry on payday, buy what you need for the month. It will feel good.
Plus going to the supermarket less will save you money. Who’s guilty of popping in for a pint of milk and coming out with £50 worth who knows what. Every time, I don’t know how it happens.
4. Do a plastic audit in your bathroom.
The bathroom was the easiest place for our family to ditch all the plastic. Apart from toothpaste and Mat’s moisturiser plastic is a thing of the past. This we were able to do pretty much over night. The shampoo and conditioner took a little longer which I’ve talk about in Zero Waste Hair Care but everything from razors, deodorant, soap bars, all the way to menstrual products went over night. So to speak, obviously I waited until we had run out of things and brought what I needed when I needed it. Throwing things away would negate the point of zero waste. Having said that I still have a pack of tampons and some disposable sanitary pads left because once I switched to the menstrual cup there was no going back. Tampons now make me cringe.
Start by doing a little plastic audit. See what’s in your bathroom cabinet. Do you have a ton of products you never use? You know the one’s that came in the fancy box set at Christmas. Could you use them up before you buy anything new? This is the first step in simplifying your bathroom. Then decide what your essentials items are. Next time you go to buy them could you buy a more ethical or plastic free version? I go in more details about my essential items in my post about a zero waste, minimalist bathroom.
5. Start with a minimal nursery.
If you are yet to become a parent or are pregnant with another baby this one is for you.
Babies need very little. Having too many gadgets for them will clutter your home, get in the way, maybe be used for a month max and in turn end up being a waste of money.
However I’m not suggesting you don’t buy things that will make you life easier. Having something you can plonk them down on in each room was a must here. My daughter would never sit on these contraptions, no matter how all singing all dancing they were for more than 10 minutes but 10 minutes gave me enough time to get dressed, make a cuppa, or hang the washing up. Buying secondhand was the best thing for all of these. Facebook market place came up trumps every time.
In the actually nursery I brought very little. We painted, made it look nice but honestly she’s only just started sleeping in it at 21 months. You maybe be different and want baby out of your room as soon as possible, however as soon as possible is a recommended minimum on 6 months. It is safest (according to the NHS) that they sleep in the same room as you until then. I think this is a good thing, because that gives you at least 6 months to figure out what you really need in the nursery.
Of course you’ll want to make it pretty before baby arrives, who doesn’t? That’s one of the big excitements during pregnancy. My advice to you is to leave it at that. Save buying the big rocking chair and fancy mobiles until baby’s here and you know what your needs are.
As for a changing table and everything being perfectly laid out ready on it, I used this for about a month, when I started changing where ever we were in the house. At 4 months I couldn’t use the changing table even if I wanted to because once they can roll you’ll be scared to put them on it. Save you money and just get a changing mat.
6. Raise environmentally conscious, earth loving kids.
This is THE most important part of becoming an eco-friendly parent. What’s the point in saving the planet if we are not going to put it into the care of a conscious next generation.
The first step is to immerse them in nature, teach them where their food comes from, how it grows and an appreciation for it. Teach them why it is important to know where their clothes came from, (if your ensure start with my post on fast fashion).
Bring environmental issues into the book shelves to help them understand the importance in a fun way. My lovely blogger friend Emma Reed has a great list of environmental kids books to choose from.
Remember it is also important you have some diversity in your children’s book shelves. We need to break the culture of un-conscious racism in our society and the best way we can do is to teach our children to be anti-racist. The Brown Bookshelf is a great resource for any parent.
7. Buy vintage toys.
My new favorite pass time is looking for vintage toys on eBay. My latest purchase was a whole set of vintage tommy vehicles. I can’t tell you how made up Reeva is with her diggers, tractors, planes and cars.
Some of our other current favorites are a wooden picture toy I found at the tip shops, a tea set with pretend boiling kettle I found in a charity shop, a dolls pram my Mum brought on Facebook Market place, complete with a dollies blanket knitted by Nanny. A trike also found at tip shop and a scooter given to us by a neighbour.
I like to think of all the lovely toys out there waiting to be loved again just like in Toy Story. No toy should end up in landfill.
8. Cut out the toxic cleaning products.
This is an important one for me. I stopped use strong chemical cleaning products a long time ago, never having really like the smell of strong, fragrance heavy products. What has always amazed me is when I’ve tried them again, I’m so used to not having them in the house the smell seems to hang around for days and give me a headache. I guess when we use them a lot we get used to them. It’s the same when I use fragranced washing powder. The fact that they give me such a headache makes me very anxious to have my children exposed to these products too.
I now use a homemade spray for most things around the house, made of 1/3 vinegar, 2/3 water. I add some citrus peel to make it smell nice and aid the cleaning too. I use this on windows, taps and shower. Most other surfaces I just use a damp cloth with a little washing up liquid if I need a deeper clean. I also use washing up liquid in the bath. This may be controversial but if it can cut through tough grease and leave your plates good enough to eat off then it’s good enough for everything else in my book. It works a treat with a scrubbing brush on the bath and sink, even the toilet. Again if I need an even deeper clean I’ll use bicarbonate of soda. Sprinkling this in the toilet works well too.
9. Think about switching to reusable baby products.
Reusable baby products are the point most Mum’s stop. Cloth nappies. The main thing I hear is “but don’t you have so much washing?” or “you’ve got to deal with poo?” To which I answer “yeah but I have a baby both come with the territory,” it really isn’t bad at all. In fact I believe the pros far out way the cons. Their money saving, highly efficient, easy to use, and very very cute.
Why send roughly 4000 nappies to landfill when you got use 25-30, then use them on subsequent babies or sell them on. Yes the pre-loved cloth nappy market is a big one.
If cloth nappies are a step too far I would still highly recommend giving cloth baby wipes ago. These really are super easy, kind to babies skin and 100% money saving. Even if you don’t use them for the dreaded no.2’s why not just use them when you wipe a clean bottom, or on hands and face after dinner. You’ll dramatically cut down the amount of wipes you’ll use. Check out the cheeky wipes set for what you’ll need to get you started. I recommend just buying the wipes and some wet bags. One for clean when your out and about and one for all your dirty, you can throw this in the wash when you ready. At home I have a pile of clean dry wipes in the bathroom, I wet one when needed.
10. Be an organised Mum.
Easier said than done right? I can’t tell you how many times I say I’m going to pack the changing bag the night before and the run around like a headless chicken in the morning. But essentially I’m saying you just need to make new little habits. Get used to popping to the bathroom and running a wipe under the tap. Have nappy washing days. I wash mine of Tuesdays and Saturdays (this works for our working days), make sure you stuff the nappies when you have time, it never takes as long as you think. Bulk cook food so you have lunch in the fridge you can just warm up. Make sure you bring snacks with you to avoid buying plastic covered rubbish ones. Always bring your water bottle and your coffee cup.
Are you on a mission to become a more eco-friendly parent? Let me know how it’s going for you.
Hannah xxx
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