Green Mom: Spring Cleaning

I get a newsletter from Seventh Generation. In the most recent issue, there was an article entitled Talking to Children About the Dangers of Toxic Cleaners. I’m all for non-toxic cleaners and am slowly replacing all the cleaners, soaps etc. in my house with non-toxic versions as they run out. Since my son isn’t even two, we don’t really talk about why we choose certain cleaners…nor do I really plan to. I can’t get through the grocery store without him pulling things off the shelf, reaching into the back of the cart and dropping things out, or kicking off one of his shoes, so I just don’t see myself stopping to talk to him about the labels on cleaning products. I also don’t know about the suggestion of telling your children that some families think regular cleaning products are fine but that we’ve done research and have decided not to take chances with our cleaning product. I am just envisioning my child, sitting at his grandparent’s dinner table or at a friend’s, and when they bring out the Clorox wipes to clean up, saying “My mommy says she did research and those wipes are poison. Do you want to get sick and die?” Kids do say the darndest things, and it almost feels like I would be teaching him to judge others that don’t make the same lifestyle choices as we do. Many people can’t afford or don't want to use the non-toxic cleaners or organic food, but they shouldn’t be lectured for that.

If you are looking to replace popular cleaning products with non-toxic, this is a great one stop shop for starter kits. It offers a variety of brands so you can figure out which ones you like.