After the Storm

My Christmas was picturesque this year. We woke up and watched my 18 month old scoot down the stairs. His first exclamation was “wooooow!” The look on his face was priceless, and the kind of thing you will remember forever. This was really the first Christmas where he could open presents by himself and really notice that the living room was full of things for him.

Pretty soon, there was a sea of wrapping paper that resembled a very choppy ocean and if not for the movement I probably couldn’t tell where my son was. Amidst this I thought to myself, “I wonder how many trees it took to make this wrap?” Though we recycled everything (except the bows and ribbons of course) it still weighed on my mind.

Our recycle cart is overflowing and it gives me some comfort knowing that we at least are recycling. As I drive down the street on garbage day, I can see just how many people didn’t recycle their wrap, boxes, bags, packaging from their family meals, and all the rest of the “stuff” that goes along with the holiday.

What happened to Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle? I try to live this but I must admit that I hadn’t thought about my holiday impact very much until now.  I think next year, Santa is going to put together all toys and have them sitting out without being wrapped.  After all, every Christmas movie I have seen shows Santa leaving toys under the tree without them being wrapped.

Anyone have any other tips or ideas on how to reduce the impact of the holiday season on the environment?