I am embarrassed to admit that we’ve never been a recycling family–until now. I hope we’re making you proud, Pope Francis!
In Omaha, every house received a green recycling bin, and recycling pick-up was part of the trash removal services. Why we never participated when it was so easy is beyond me. I’m gonna blame it on being in survival mode for most of our time in Omaha!
This last year, Jane and Walt got on the recycling bandwagon thanks to the great modeling they learned at St. Joseph’s. Their preschool classroom has different receptacles for the different kinds of recyclables. They learned about the importance of reducing, reusing, and recycling. Walt come home from preschool one day wanting to know where our recycling bin was and why we didn’t have special containers like they had at school.
Sheepish mom moment.
If I were honest, I would have said, “Well, honey, it’s because we’re lazy and wasteful.”
So, I started researching. In Lincoln, you have to pay a pretty penny for a special service to pick up any of your recycling (separate from the fee you pay for trash removal). I didn’t want to pay the obnoxious fee, so I told Philip I wanted to start small and create our own recycling center. It started as an empty diaper box that I filled up with all of the recyclables during the week. Then, when the box got full, I would take it to the nearby recycling center. This went on for about a month.
Before this point, I didn’t realize how many recyclable items we were just tossing. When Philip saw how many items were piling up and how many trips I was having to make to the recycling center, he agreed that we could invest in some durable containers to sort the recyclables. I found this bright, colorful set on Amazon. (FYI – it retails for the same price at Walmart.)
Here’s how the set looks in our garage:
I used my to-do list notepad and handy dandy roll of blue painter’s tape to stick on some makeshift labels. I didn’t want to spend too much time on them in case I decided to change categories, etc. They’re still gettin’ the job done, and I haven’t switched ’em.
We had the green tub to the left of the trash can hanging around. I enlisted it for cardboard since the cardboard we go through gets to be unwieldy, and I didn’t want a lid. The larger boxes that don’t fit in the tub go against the wall until recycling day. Pro tip: Buy green tubs in January like I did when they’re on clearance after Christmas!
Our 3 categories for the stacking bins:
- Paper
- Plastic
- Aluminum/Tin & Glass
Paper goes on top so that it’s handy. That way, junk mail never has to enter our home from the mailbox. It just goes straight into the recycling bin. Yay! After using the bins for nearly two months, I’m thrilled with the minimal investment. They are the perfect size for our family. The lids limit the visual clutter, and they are effective in containing smells. Yummy! Even if you wash out all of those recyclables, they still have an, uh, organic aroma to them. I usually go once a week to the recycling center, but we could get by with going every two weeks.
I am glad we decided to create our own recycling center instead of just paying for a service. This way, we are much more conscientious about what can be recycled, how much we’re recycling, and how much less waste we’re hauling to the curb each week. Before we started recycling, I thought we were going to need to get a second trash can. Now, we can very reasonably get our week’s worth of trash into one can.
Also, the kids absolutely LOVE the whole process! They volunteer to bring the various recyclable items out to the bins. “Mom, I’ll put that in the yellow bin! Can I SMOOSH it?!” I affectionately call them my little recycling police because they’re constantly wanting to know if something we’re about to throw away can be recycled. “WAIT! Can’t that go in the green bin?!”
Their favorite part is the visit to the recycling center. I simply stick the bins in the trunk, and we head out. It helps that our library is just a few blocks away from the recycling center, so we usually make it a recycling center and library trip. I know there’s going to be a day when my kids think going to the recycling center and library with their mom sounds like just about the worst way to spend a morning ever. Until then, I’m enjoying the simplicity of this chapter.
All done! Recycling is tough work, people.
The recycling truck blockaded me in today. I was ticked off until I realized that meant that the kids would get a front row seat to see how their recyclables get transported. They loved watching the truck’s arms lift the metal boxes and shake the contents into the truck bed. JACKPOT! Who knew a trip to the recycling center could be such an exciting field trip?
What small (or big) steps are you and your family taking to go green(er)?
First time commenter here! Live in the Omaha area but not the city. We have a big bin that is picked up biweekly, but we have to run recyclables outside sonce it is a large trash can. I might have to get a covered bin like that so my husband isn’t constantly piling up the recycle on the kitchen counter! To be greener, we cloth diaper, I use mama cloth, try to use vinegar and baking soda for our cleaning, and a few other little things. I want to get my family switched over to using “un paper towels” because it is just crazy the money and trees that we waste on paper towels!
Sorry for my delay, Carrie! Thanks for popping over to my blog and for taking the time to comment. I love hearing how other families are making recycling work for them since we’re so late to the game. Slowly but surely it’s becoming a way of life for us. Glad to hear you’ve found a system that’s working for you, too!
First time commenter here! Live in the Omaha area but not the city. We have a big bin that is picked up biweekly, but we have to run recyclables outside sonce it is a large trash can. I might have to get a covered bin like that so my husband isn’t constantly piling up the recycle on the kitchen counter! To be greener, we cloth diaper, I use mama cloth, try to use vinegar and baking soda for our cleaning, and a few other little things. I want to get my family switched over to using “un paper towels” because it is just crazy the money and trees that we waste on paper towels!
Sorry for my delay, Carrie! Thanks for popping over to my blog and for taking the time to comment. I love hearing how other families are making recycling work for them since we’re so late to the game. Slowly but surely it’s becoming a way of life for us. Glad to hear you’ve found a system that’s working for you, too!