Tag Archives: clean

Benny Bungarra’s Big Bush Clean up by Sally Morgan and Ambelin Kwaymullina

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Have you ever been out on a bushwalk, seen some rubbish but thought – it’s not mine, I’ll just leave it? Or have you ever left something behind because you didn’t want to carry it home?

Perhaps reading Benny Bungarra’s Big Bush Clean up by Sally Morgan and Ambelin Kwaymullina will help you to consider the ramifications of those small bits of rubbish we leave behind and the effect they have on Australian bush animals.

Benny Bungarra’s Big Bush Clean up is a great story about a very friendly lizard called Benny Bungara. We meet him on a beautiful day, warming himself up under the sun – but  when he hears a strange sound he just has to find out what it is.

Thinking it might be a new bush creature he scrambles up a tree to see but once there he discovers it’s a friendly Olive Python with his head stuck in a bottle. Benny helps remove the bottle only to find other creatures who have been effected by rubbish humans have left behind – broken glass and fishing line.

The friends know they need to ask the humans for help but while they are waiting for the help they decide to start cleaning up the place themselves by reusing some items, recycling others and putting some in the bin.

A simple message comes across in this book and young readers will understand what they need to do.

Humans have a huge impact on the planet and we all need to be much more mindful of what we leave behind each and every day.

Benny Bungarra’s Big Bush Clean up by Sally Morgan and Ambelin Kwaymullina teaches children in a fun way about how to never leave rubbish behind and always think about the best place to put it once we have finished with it.

So what else can you do with this book?

 – Check out my (in very draft form) resource to help minimise the amount of waste you have in your house: https://www.dropbox.com/s/xnstqsthasuz2tu/How%20much%20plastic%20is%20in%20our%20pantry.docx?dl=0

– Look at your bin at the end of the week and work out what could have been reused, refused, repurposed, composted or recycled!

– Pack a waste free lunch box for a week and come up with different ideas that help you to leave less rubbish behind.

– Explore images of animals around the world who have been effected by the rubbish humans have left behind.

Love this review? Join my facebook group where we delve deeper into these issues facing children, parents and teachers. 

JOIN MY FACEBOOK GROUP FOR PARENTS AND TEACHERS WHERE WE EXPLORE BIG ISSUES AND HOW TO BEST TALK ABOUT THEM WITH KIDS.

https://www.facebook.com/groups/362368594250457/

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The case against fragrance by Kate Grenville

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Have you ever thought twice about what you spray on your skin?

Have you ever considered the possible damages you are doing to yourself, your family or the water system when you use heavily fragranced laundry detergent?

Have you ever thought – what are those fragrances made of?

No matter what your answer is, you need to read this book to gain a greater understanding as to why we need to cut back on fragrances in our lives.

Kate Grenville couldn’t work out why every time she had a book launch migraines would come on until someone suggested to her – have you ever considered the smell in the air?

After doing has done extensive research on the Fragrance industry, Kate Grenville has brought us this easy to read and understand book.

As you will discover, the fragrance industry is regulated by the people who make them so with no rules on informing the consumer about the ingredients in each bottle (they are trade secrets!), we really don’t know what we are spraying on our skin, washing our clothes in or spraying in the air to freshen it up.

This book is easy to read, there is no over the top jargon or unnecessary statistics. It is told to us in words we need so that we can understand how the air we breathe affects our health.

After reading this book it really made me think – why does the market tell us our air needs to smell like roses or that we must smell of the latest perfume? Why do our clothes need to be washed in lemon scent and bathroom cleaners smell like oranges?

There are so many things we need to question and so many ways we can live healthier lives and have less impact on those around us.

What fragranced product can you ditch?

Sustainability and parenting

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Parenting isn’t easy and when you throw in trying to be more sustainable, things can get a little more complex – why?

Working full or part time can seem to leaves you time poor for things like baking your own bread, making your own moisturiser and riding or walking everywhere.

I have read several times on health and wellness bloggers who seem to make everything themselves that they have had burnt out. They have landed in a heap and have had to have a couple of weeks off – which makes me think, are we trying too hard to have it all when it can all be done in simple ways?

  • You don’t have to go to the markets every Saturday when you can get your fruit and vegetables delivered to your house or to a central location. This gives you your weekend back to do what you want to do. Try harvesthub.com.au

 

  • You can try to make your own skin cream but you can also buy your own from locally made, organic and fair-trade companies. Many of these companies have a small eco footprint due to the fact they produce in bulk – leaving less packaging behind. However, if you do want to make your own products aim for buying the ingredients in bulk to minimise extra waste. I’ve bought mine through Aussie soap supplies and The inspired Little Pot has some great ideas and products too.

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  • You can also make your own cleaning products – which I do on a regular basis and although the task is something I never want to do, it is something that can take me only ten minutes once the kids are asleep. I make my own dishwasher powder, washing liquid (washing machine), hand soap and different household cleaning sprays. I’ve chosen recipes that take minimal time and products that can be bought in bulk. Those ten minutes spent at home save me half an hour going to the shops for the same product!!

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  • Making food from scratch is fun – and should be something you should try to do instead of buying store bought, plastic wrapped snacks. And even better – buy your food in bulk from great places like The Source

 

Most important of all – by doing all of these things you are silently showing your children that we can all take small steps to make a difference. 

Down the drain

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I’m talking the talk so I’d better walk the walk.

I’ve read and blogged about many books that inspire us to take better care of our rivers, lakes and oceans and the creatures within.

So here is a recipe to make your own toilet bombs.

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Simply pop them in the bowl, scrub whilst they fizz and your bowl will not only be clean but will also smell lovely!

  •  1 cup of bicarbonate soda
  •   1/4 cup of citric acid
  •  3 tablespoons of castile soap.
  • 1 teaspoon of lemon essential oil
  • 1 teaspoon of eucalyptus oil. (feel free to change these oils around as you please)

Mix dry ingredients then add wet ingredients.

Push into ice cube moulds and let set for 3 hours.

The mixture may fizz and rise a bit in the moulds so just press down until it settles down.

Enjoy the smell!!

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