one. simple. sunday.

it’s easy to remember and acknowledge the sacrifices and bravery of our military service men and women around holidays like memorial day, armed forces day and veterans day. but not always top of mind during other traditional family-gathering holidays like thanksgiving and christmas.

guilty. 

and because many active military persons aren’t able to spend these treasured holidays with their families, it seems more important now than ever to show our appreciation and support.

so when I stumbled upon the non-profit organization a million thanks, I knew it would be a perfect holiday art project for the kiddos.

A Million Thanks is a year-round campaign to collect cards, letters, emails, and prayer messages of appreciation for distribution to U.S. Military Men and Women, past and present.

check their site to find a drop off location near you or just mail in a letter. they can be sent year-round, but the deadline for christmas correspondence is december 1.

while this isn’t directly related to or impacting our environment, it is beneficial for the heart and souls of so many.

thanks a million.

one. simple. sunday.

to my fellow daycare parents:

WHY do you leave your car idling in the parking lot when dropping off/picking up your little one(s)?

i’ve been in west texas for over a year, so I’m still adjusting to the small town culture, perception and likely reality that we are safer than in the metroplex. and I get that it’s a church parking lot, but what a target for thieves?!

and I know since our move we’ve endured an icy cold winter and one of the hottest summer’s on record. so if the reason is temperature control for the aforementioned extreme weather conditions, I might understand. but even on the most beautiful of spring and fall days this occurs.

i realize we don’t have the most energy efficient vehicles, but did you know you are wasting gas? possibly damaging your engine? and most importantly, pointing your exhaust pipe directly at OUR children’s playground?

shutting your engine off and restarting it bears a lower emissions cost than allowing it to sit idle -- and it might actually save you gas money. furthermore, you aren’t releasing superfluous toxic exhaust emissions like hydrocarbons and carbon monoxide onto OUR playground and into OUR atmosphere. Car Emission Facts.

so for a new blog series, how about one simple thing every sunday which YOU, ME and WE can do to protect OUR health, hearts and environment?

and I promise they won’t all be written by negative nancy, I’ve just been stirring on this one for over a year now.

apologies.

but, shut’er down folks.

“I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do.” Helen Keller

hello…

my name is erica and this is my blog.

which some of you may have thought i alienated.

and sadly, I kind of did. but it was only temporary.

so for any new followers, nice to meet you.

we’ve been really busy, yadda yadda yadda. I won’t bore you with the details, but I’m hoping to find more time and inspiration to chronicle our family’s journey to be more environmentally responsible to ourselves and the planet.

because we are still very much on this journey.

changing MY routine has been relatively easy. it’s the routine of toddlers and our home which requires more time, effort and preparation. for instance, I usually remember that we are out of milk just before bedtime. the gas station isn’t always a reliable source for whole milk, much less the organic variety. or how about those overflowing recycle bins consuming more real estate in the garage than my vehicle. yeah well, I’ll get to that too. all the while, I’m still trying to relocate all “the sugar residue” from our festive Halloween activities.

in lieu of all the candy and fruit snacks (which my DB thinks should be classified as fruit, not candy), I’m always looking for wholesome, desirable and portable snacks. consequently, I jumped at the chance to try a new snack product via KIWI Magazine & Green Moms Meet sampling program.

meet Kashi.

I hadn’t tried their products before, but wrongly thought it was just cereals. they also have snack bars, cereal bars, granola bars, pizzas, chips, frozen entrees and even waffles. but the best part is, they are natural, minimally processed and free of highly refined sugars. yes, please!

our sampling was the TLC Peanutty Dark Chocolate Granola Bars.

chewy texture. not crumbly and messy like others, and the dark chocolate is soft and smooth.

subtle flavor. not overwhelmingly sweet, which is good by me. but the peanut butter flavor could be a little stronger.

natural ingredients. I’ll usually read the ingredient labels versus caloric labeling on packaging, and there are 7 whole grains and no artificial flavors or preservatives here. thank you.

compact size. they are pretty small in comparison to other brands, but the perfect size for a quick treat and an easy fit for a few in the diaper bag pocket. 

easy to find. occasionally I’ll find a snack that we really like and then find it impossible to locate at a variety of retailers, so I was happy to see a huge selection at target and natural grocers.

DB calls them “mommy’s cookie bars” and CJ is at my feet looking for her bite when she sees the package. We’ve since tried the Dark Chocolate & Coconut Granola bars (my FAV!), Cinnamon Harvest Cereal and Strawberry Cereal Bars. All of which have been delicious and enjoyed by our family’s signature blend of four very independent opinions.

thank you Kashi, the pleasure was ours.

try them, try them and you will see.

otherwise, I will let you be.

have a good weekend.

Disclaimer: I received this product for free from the sponsor of the Moms MeetSM program, May Media Group LLC, who received it directly from the manufacturer. As a Moms MeetSM blogger, I agreed to use this product and post my opinion on my blog. My opinions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of May Media Group LLC or the manufacturer of the product.