December 21, 2009

Green Ideas for Santa

With the holidays quickly approaching, I’ve been thinking that the best gift we can give our children and grand children is a healthy environment and a clean planet.

Here are some simple Green ideas for the holidays:

Buy a decorative, potted pine tree to plant outside in the Spring.
Save energy by using LED lights. If we all switched we could save a lot of electricity. There are many different lighting options now, even some that are solar powered.
Consider recycled alternatives for gift wrapping including gift bags (preferably made from recycled paper) which can be easily reused again. Another idea is to paint or have the kids color on paper trash bags to make a really personal package.
Use last years Christmas Cards to make gift tags for packages or buy plantable gift tags. Found at stores like Target and Walmart, plantable gift tags look have seeds inside and can be planted directly into soil.
Consider rechargeable batteries. There are new USB Cell batteries that plug into the USB port of your computer to recharge.
Gift cards are a great Green choice because the recipient can choose exactly what the need. No fuel wasted on returning gifts or waste on gift wrapping and boxes. Consider wrapping in a recycled Altoid tin.

Gifts from the heart and time spent with family and friends are the gifts I cherish most. I’m looking forward to relaxing by the fireplace with some eggnog and spending time with my teenage sons and all of my family. Wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas!

Posted by:Debbie Cobian