The baby and I were at Babies R’ Us at the Irvine Marketplace the other day and I noticed they’ve dedicated a small product stand for “green” products near the checkout registers. Like a mosquito to a flame, I automatically walked over to ooh and aah at the stuff. Most of the stuff was organic cotton things, with mottos like “Green is the new black” and “It’s easy being green” (with Kermit the Frog’s mug) were emblazoned on the front of bibs and onesies. Cute, I thought, and took one of the Kermit bibs for Ethan.

I took a couple of steps away and realized something … while he goes through them like there’s no tomorrow, my son already has a ton of bibs which have been graciously donated by his cousin in New York. The bib ended back up on the stand because after the hype, I remembered something important: the rules of living green is REDUCE, REUSE, and RECYCLE.

REDUCE:
As consumers, we are SO trained to buy what we want, not what we need. Again, while it wouldn’t hurt to have more bibs, Ethan certainly did not need any more.

REUSE:
Nearly ALL of Ethan’s bibs (as well as most of his clothes) are hand-me-downs. OK, so my son doesn’t have the latest and greatest, but for goodness’ sake, all he does is barf on them anyway. He’s a baby, not a fashion model. Besides, he has some spiffy outfits — just because they’re used doesn’t mean they’re ugly.

RECYCLE:
Well, this doesn’t really apply now, but it’s a safe bet that if we have any other kids, Ethan’s things will be handed down to him. If we have a girl, a lot of things are gender-neutral so they can still be handed-down, but if we can’t use them again, there are still plenty of options to prevent old baby clothes from ending up in landfill. Donating to other parents who need them, Goodwill, or the Salvation Army are just a few. Things that are too worn-out to resell can be made into rags or shredded into fibers to make new products.

So while it’s nice to see more organic products being sold in big chains such as BRU, it’s a shame that they’re not also promoting the three rules of green living. Buying new things just because they’re organic or even recycled doesn’t necessarily mean you’re making the greenest choice. Yes, organic material — especially those that have been fairly produced — is better than non-organic, but the first question should always be: is this really needed?

Filed by Maria in baby, environment, ideas, shopping