Greater Things

My grandson's recent creation is a desk set made from packages normally tossed in a bin.       With a little assistance from Granny and Grumpa, my little grandson put together this great little desk set for a classroom project during the "Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle" week at school. He used contact paper that we ordered online, and cut it to cover several containers and packages that would have otherwise ended up in the recycle bin. Recycling the packages is good, but finding a use for the packaging is even better, because it uses little energy to create them, aside from the initial manufacturing process of all the parts. Now he has a place for all his supplies on his desk.      Teaching children to use less, waste less, reuse, or donate items that are no longer useful to them is easier when you are using these practices at home yourself. When you develop the mindset that all items can become useful again, even if it means donating them, you als...

The beautiful view from the highway leading to Cockleshell Beach on St. Kitts      It has been almost a year since I visited the beautiful island of St. Kitts, but my memories of sun-drenched beaches have me longing for a return trip. So, my husband and I will go again in a few months, with every intention of soaking in the views and the warm water.      In order to make this trip more memorable and relaxing, I have streamlined my pre-travel arrangements so that I can spend more time on the beach. One of the most important things I have done is to eliminate unnecessary baggage. Here are my personal steps, and they may work for you: 1. I will no longer take along a beach towel, opting to dry off in the sun during a walk on the beach. Sometimes we just forget to let nature take a part in our plans. 2. I will take my snorkel and fins in the little drawstring bag they came with. This is a tote that can also hold my sunscreen.  I have a waterpro...