Our Day Honouring the Earth

Although Lyla is still too young to understand Earth Day, this year we wanted to do something special, which will hopefully be the start of a tradition for many years to come.

On Earth Day, we decided to spend it as a family out exploring nature.  We had hoped to go to FortWhyte Alive, but after discovering how busy it was, we decided to go somewhere that my husband had never been and that I hadn't been for years: Oak Hammock Marsh.  From their website: "This 36 km2 Wildlife Management Area features a restored prairie marsh, aspen-oak bluff, waterfowl lure crops, artesian springs, some of Manitoba's last remaining patches of tall-grass prairie and 30 kilometers of trails for you to explore.

I was excited to take Lyla here for her first Earth Day because it would allow us to discover something new, spend some time outdoors, and take in a session or two that would teach us how our family could be more environmentally friendly.

When we got there, we started off our visit with a presentation on water stewardship and we discussed things that we could do as a family to help save water.  Did you know that even though the earth is covered in over 70% water, less than 1% of it is useable?  That's a neat little fact we learned at the session and one I hope to share with Lyla as she gets older.

Lyla having fun with Mommy.

Daddy showing the birds to Lyla.

Lyla - the Boreal Biologist :)

After that, we spent some time indoors looking at the exhibits, which Lyla seemed to enjoy - there were so many new things to discover!  Then, we went for a walk outside to enjoy the trails.  During our walk we saw lots of birds and other critters.  It is great to see that areas such as Oak Hammock Marsh are protected to allow families to come and see nature at it's best!  These are things you just don't see in the city.

Overall, we had a great Earth Day!  Besides lots of photographs and new memories, we walked away with more knowledge about the earth and even a couple of tree planting kits, which we plan to plant as a family later this summer at our new house.

Disclosure:  I am part of the Fisher-Price Play Panel and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.

Kids Konserve Giveaway

Lunch is something many of us have to take to work or school on a daily basis. Unfortunately, typical brown bag lunches are generally not very friendly for the environment. With the majority of a lunch being disposable (the paper bags, the plastic bags and plastic wrap, the napkins, etc.), it makes me wish there was something that would make taking lunch a little bit friendlier on the Earth. Finally, there is company taking this seriously. Kids Konserve manages their company with the following motto in mind, "Choose to REUSE." Kids Konserve creates and sells lunch kits and accessories that are complete, 100% waste free.


A couple of months ago I had the chance to review one of Kids Konserve's waste-free lunch kits (click here to read my full review). Now, thanks to the owner of Kids Konserve, you will have the chance to win a great item from Kids Konserve in celebration of Earth Day!

What can you win? One winner will receive a set of 4 Mini Stainless Steel Containers from Kids Konserve.

Information about the Mini Stainless Steel Containers:
"Mini, 2 oz., 304 food-grade stainless steel containers with etched Kids Konserve logo lids, 2.25" x 1.75". This perfect size fits more than you'd think! Ideal for nuts, berries, goldfish, baby carrots, stacked small cookies, hummus, ranch, ketchup and more. Great alternative to a snack sized plastic baggies when you are on the run. Also great for taking vitamins to work or while traveling."


To enter, go look through the Kids Konserve Store, then come back here and tell me another item you'd love to own. This must be done to gain an entry in the giveaway.

Each of the following will give you one extra entry in the giveaway. Please make sure to leave a separate comment for each thing you do:
-Reading my review of the Kids Konserve Waste-free lunch kits, then coming back here and telling me one thing you learned about these nifty lunch kits.
-Telling me the name of your favorite post on the Kids Konserve blog.
-Telling me the name of one retail store that sells Kids Konserve products.
-Telling me one thing you learned on the Kids Korner Fun Facts page.
-Adding my main button to your blog sidebar.
-Following me on Twitter (ihchicky). Please leave your Twitter name.
-Tweeting about this giveaway (with a link to this page) on Twitter. Please leave a link to your tweet. You can do this once a day.
-Blogging about this giveaway on your blog. Please leave a link to your blog post in your comment.

Important Entry Details: The above entries (main and bonus) can only submitted once per person (except for the tweet entry, which can be done daily). Please do not use more than one blogger account or add additional anonymous comments to gain extra entries. This is not fair to everyone else and this practice is strictly prohibited. If a person is found to be using more than one account to enter the same giveaway, they will be disqualified from that particular giveaway, as well as all future giveaways.

This giveaway will end on Saturday, May 2nd at 11:59pm (Central Standard Time). After the giveaway has ended, the winner will be picked randomly using random.org. EMAIL RULES: In order to win, you must provide a valid email. I will be notifying the winner by email only. Please make sure your blog profile includes your email address and make sure that it is visible. If you do not have a blogger account, please make sure you have included your email address in your post. If there is no email address provided, to contact the winner, another person will be chosen. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to the winning email notification with their complete mailing address (I will be forwarding all this information to the sponsor), If this information is not received within 48 hours, a new winner will be chosen. This giveaway is open to residents of the United States only!

Good Luck!

The owner of Kids Konserve have been kind enough to offer all my readers a specific discount for a limited time only. Until May 31, 2009, quote the coupon code 'upclose' during checkout and save 10% off your entire purchase!

**Are you looking for a unique fundraiser for your school? Kids Konserve now has a fundraising program that helps you school go green and raise funds at the same time. For more information, visit here.**