How To Eat Dirt & 20+ Earth Day Ideas for Kids

Happy Earth Day! We want to help our kiddos understand why taking care of our planet is so important, and why we all love Planet Earth... like, love it so much we want to EAT it! Here's our favorite way to EAT DIRT! (If you're grossed out and thinking we're just as 'psycho' as our name implies, check out this article in the New York Times about how eating dirt is good for you.)

 

This dirty recipe is basically for the beloved pudding "dirt cups" we all remember, we really like the twist of layering the filling. You could use these to teach kids a mini lesson on sedimentary rock! Um... we know, we're grown-ups, but these are still totally delicious. 

This dirt treat is probably a little more appropriate for the holiday at the end of October, but why not celebrate Dirt Earth Day with a creepy dirt pie!

More Cool Earth Day Snacks & Recipes

• Earth Day Cupcakes - these are almost too pretty to eat!
• Earth Day Muffins - almost as cool looking, and with a healthy twist.
• Spooky Graveyard Dirt Pie - RIP, PIE!
• Dirt Cake - ...dig in!
• Dirt & Sand Pudding Cups - for kids of all ages.  
• Fruit flowers - 'plant' these on your plate
• Earth Day Bars - using ingredients from all around the world.
• Homemade Limeade - sayonara, Kool-Aid! This has only two ingredients! (plus it's green!)

Cool Earth Day Crafts!

• DIY Bubble refills - love the recycling of yogurt cups = no new plastic!
• A million things to make from a paper plate - almost every animal.
• Paper plate globe paint project - results are way cool.
• Tiny terrariums - so cute, we'd line the windowsill with these.
• Fun shaped crayons - use up the broken green and blue bits to make "earth" crayons!
• Recycled egg carton bugs - creepy, crawly, and totally eco!
• Shake-n-paint Earth - a fun slightly more active craft.
• Recycled magazine rack - decorate however you want! 
• Craft flower bouquet - use up those crafty bits & pieces, + doesn't need water.
• Printable Earth Day pledge - for kiddos, but we could all stand to fill one out!
• Earth Day Sensory Science - neat way to talk about different animals & their habitats.
• Lights out! - Cute & easy way to remember to turn the lights out when you leave a room

Why are we doing all of this, anyway? Because our Earth is awesome. Check out this collection of photos of the Earth, it's remarkable what a cool, crazy, planet we live on!

If you have any up-cycled projects you want to share, we'd love to see. We're talking, taking an old rock t-shirt of dad's and making a cool summer dress, that kind of thing. However you choose to celebrate, we wish all of you a very happy and tasty Dirt Day!

Happy New Year - 2014 is Here!

Happy New Year! We hope yours is getting off to a great start!

There's nothing like a fresh box of crayons, a blank piece of paper, a whole new year to try new things! We'd love to hear what your resolutions or plans for 2014 are. We love the idea of doing a photo a day project for an entire year - how great would 365 daily photos of your kiddos be to look back on?

If your little ones are old enough to take their own pictures, here's a great resource for helping kids out with their own photography - projectlife365.com/photography-for-kids

While you're at it, check out this terrifying photo-a-day project of a fast food Happy Meal. Yikes!

You could also do a year long project as a family -  how about choosing 12 books to read aloud at night, one every month? Or compile a list of recipes and cook one new dish together every week!  In case you didn't catch this cool idea last time we posted it, here it is again. All you need is an empty jar and paper! Every time (every day) something good happens in your family, write it down and put it in the jar. Then, at the end of the year, you can read these and look back on all the awesome moments of 2014.

If you have any neat ideas for year long projects, please share them with us! Be sure to check out the Psychobaby Pinterest boards for DIY projects, recipes, great kids fashion and more; and have a happy New Years Day!

Earth Day: Make It Easy To Be Green!

Kermit the Frog's wise words "It ain't easy being green." may have been true when they were first uttered by the popular Muppet way back in 1970, but nowadays being green is as easy as changing a light bulb! (In fact, one of the ways IS changing your light bulbs...)


Today is the 41st anniversary of Earth Day, and as adults we are trying our hardest to keep this planet clean, or basically reverse all the bad stuff we did to it...remember the 80s? We need to be kind to Mother Earth in order for the next generation to enjoy her sunsets and green park spaces well into the future. It's never too early to teach your children about recycling and energy conservation, even if they don't quite know what it means yet.


You can start today with these 10 easy tips to help stop global warming from TIME for Kids:

1. Change a light
Replace a regular bulb with a more energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulb.

2. Drive less
Walk, bike, use public transportation like a subway, bus or even car pool. Talk to your parents about considering a hybrid, or alternative fuel vehicle. And keep your tires inflated properly. It can improve gas mileage by more than 3%.

3. Recycle more
Think before you throw away trash. Recycle instead. Cut down on how much you throw in the trash, which ultimately ends up in a landfill. And be sure to take e-waste, like computers, cell phones and hazardous waste to a special recycling facility.

4. Avoid products with a lot of packaging
When it comes to your shopping habits, consider buying products that are better for the environment or that are made from recycled materials, and have less or no packaging. And when it comes to food, support local farmers markets.

5. Use less hot water
It takes a lot of energy to heat water. Install a low flowing shower head and wash a full load of clothes in cold or warm water.

6. Adjust your thermostat
Moving your thermostat down 2 degrees in winter and up 2 degrees in summer can save a lot of energy. And ask your parents if your local utility company offers alternative power. If so, consider switching.

7. Plant a tree
A single tree will absorb one ton of carbon dioxide over its lifetime.

8. Turn off electronic devices
Simply turning off your TV, DVD player, stereo, and unplugging your iPod and cell phone charger when not in use, will save you thousands of pounds of CO2 a year.

9. Spread the word
Talk to your friends, family and school teachers. Teach them what you've learned and make your house and school as green as possible. Think of ways to raise awareness & educate others; create fund-raisers in your local community to make a change.

10. Go Green
Work to make these changes in your daily life so it becomes second nature.

So on this Earth Day, Reduce, Reuse and Recycle...because Muppets know best.

Source: http://www.timeforkids.com/TFK/kids/specials/articles/0,28285,1601933,00.html