Story of Cosmetics

Posted on November 26, 2019 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

I don’t remember when I first saw The Story of Stuff, but I do remember feeling so excited to see this film and know that people like Annie Leonard were out there spreading this message. When I saw The Story of Cosmetics back in 2010, my life hit a major turning point. I had always been on board with environmental causes and doing my part, but to hear about the toxic chemicals in our products, especially in our personal care products, shocked me. I was eager for more information. And through books and blogs and articles, I pieced enough together to realize what a major problem this really was. I immediately began on a path of making my own products. And with the resources I was using, my world quickly opened up to other areas in my life where I wanted change. I didn’t like what was in my soaps and shampoo, but I also didn’t like what was in my cleaning products, my packaged food, my craft supplies, and many other of my everyday items. I went into extreme do-it-yourself mode, making my own laundry detergent and dishwashing soap, bar soap and shampoo. I made our bread from scratch, but also things like our yogurt and almond milk and chocolate. Baking soda and vinegar became the only cleaning supplies I used. And while the arrival of our kids led me back into the land of buying some of these products, I was able to make smarter choices and continue much of what I had started. And now that I’m coming out of “survival mode” a bit, I’m feeling ready to reduce our packaging and store-bought purchases once again.

I love that this one video changed my life in such a major way. I love that I became a label reader and learned what ingredients to avoid, not just in food items, but in all our products. I have seen a big shift since I started my own journey. I see information and conversation around this topic in more and more places. I feel like companies are catching on and we will be seeing more products that use fair and good ingredients and that stop trying to fool us with false labels and packaging. We need to demand safe products in eco-conscious packaging. We have enough on our plates without having to worry that what we’re buying and bringing into our homes is dangerous to our health and our environment.

If you haven’t seen The Story of Stuff, watch it now. And if you’re one of the millions who has seen it, I strongly urge you to watch, not only The Story of Cosmetics, but also the many other videos offered by this truly amazing company. The Story of Stuff Project gives me hope for our people and our world.

Sparrow Club

Posted on November 25, 2019November 25, 2019 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

I have just learned about this incredible program, and, if you aren’t familiar, I must share. Sparrow Clubs is a program started in the 1990s to help children or teens in medical need. Schools and organizations adopt a child, or “sparrow,” for the year and help raise funds for the family’s medical expenses. But here’s where it gets even better. The funds are actually donated by a local organization, but are only earned once the children from the organization do volunteer work in their community.

There is so much to love about this program, and the first time I watched a video, I didn’t even realize hot tears were pouring down my face. The sparrows are not only given assistance with their expenses, but they also have a community of support behind them. The children or teens who are volunteering take on a new purpose and are often opened up to the idea of helping others. And then, the community itself is benefitting from all the hours and hours of community service given. It is definitely a win-win-win situation, and my heart is lit up to know programs like this exist. It looks like this program seems to mostly be in Oregon, but I do also see some locations in Washington and Arizona. I hope to see programs like this spread. We need more of this in our world.

While there are many videos, here is a sampling:
Sparrow Club: 25 Years
The Sparrow Effect
Trailer
In Their Own Words

When Jessie Came Across the Sea

Posted on November 25, 2019July 17, 2020 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

When Jessie Came Across the Sea
written by Amy Hest, illustrated by P.J. Lynch 1997

This picture book tells the story of Jessie, a girl living with her grandmother in a small village in Europe. When she is chosen to go to America, Jessie must leave the life she knew and make the tough, exciting journey alone. This picture book, although not super long, sometimes feels like an entire novel when I read it, in that it covers so many emotions and so much story. I cry at the end every time. This is a great book to read whenever, but especially if you’re studying immigration.

About the Books Here

Posted on October 31, 2019January 18, 2023 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

Many years ago I started keeping a reading journal where I’d write a short summary and a quick impression of each book I had completed. As with a lot of my journals, this one was eventually forgotten as life got busy, but I found it one day and really liked the idea of keeping this record of books. This became increasingly relevant for me as a mama. I knew that doing this in blog form would be an easy way to reference books by topics. Also, by sitting down to write about each one, I find my brain is more likely to remember these books. So, in theory, I’ve got a running catalog of books we’ve read so I can reference them as needed.

I love books! I read and reread books. Mostly this is because I enjoy my favorite books so much and love to revisit them. Sometimes, however, I feel I’m kind of cursed/blessed in that I can forget a story’s plot quite easily and be completely surprised by it over and over again. (And if I don’t write about books on here right away, I sometimes have to wait until a reread before I write about them.)

My typical order starts with checking books out from the local library. (I’m the one with a stack of 20 books on hold at any given time and the mom who is telling her kids, “No, you may not get any more books!”) If I fall in love with a book, it goes on my wish list. I look for it at local used book shops or at library book sale or on BetterWorldBooks. The books we own and keep are the ones we love. There is nothing haphazard or random on our shelves. I believe that with so many books out there, there is zero reason to read anything less than the best.

…which brings me to my next point. On this blog, I will only write about books I have really enjoyed. While they might not all be my all-time favorites, they are all ones I think highly of. I do this for a couple of reasons. The main reason is that I don’t bother reading books I don’t like. I know a lot of people who will struggle through books they don’t enjoy simply because it’s on a book list or bestseller list or they’ve just got some sort of self-imposed obligation to finish it. This is not to say that I give up on books too easily. I know that sometimes I’m just distracted or not in the right mood for a certain book. A couple of my absolute favorite books are ones I gave a second shot after initially putting them down. It’s a bit of an art figuring out how much of a chance to give a book and if/when to return to it at a later date. But, I definitely won’t spend too much time with a book I don’t like.

The other reason I won’t write a negative review on here is that, while I haven’t written a book, I can only imagine the amount of time and courage involved in such a process. This world’s got enough real problems to write about without criticizing authors or artists for putting themselves out there and doing their best.

Lastly, you’ll probably notice most of the books on here are picture books or children’s books. The picture books are because I have kids–although, I will say some of these are up there with my favorites of all-time. The kid and YA books are because I love them; I always have. For me, a book is about escape, and I find that many books for adults cover adult topics. In my escape time I don’t want to read about the sad or scary stuff of life. I’m sure there are many amazing adult fiction books out there; I’ve read some of them. But just because they are done well or are interesting doesn’t mean they’re necessarily enjoyable for me. It’s the same reason I don’t like watching overly dramatic movies or scary movies. It’s not that I’m trying to shy away from the “real stuff” of life; it’s just that, for me, especially with very limited time these days for reading, I want my entertainment outlets to be relaxing, enjoyable, and fun.

This blog is only a small sampling of books. I’m sometimes shocked to realize that some of my dear favorites are not on here yet. It’s hard to keep up with writing about each book in the daily craziness of life. But, I’m doing my best to get them posted. Thanks for being here!

Dreaming of America: An Ellis Island Story

Posted on October 31, 2019 by keepinthesunlightblog@gmail.com

written by Eve Bunting, illustrated by Ben F. Stahl

Fifteen-year old, Annie, and her younger brothers are on a ship to America from their home in Ireland. Their parents had already settled in America three years before. The journey isn’t always an easy one, but Annie does her best to keep everyone’s spirits up, and their new friend helps them out when he can. When they finally arrive at Ellis Island, the book offers a gasp-inspiring surprise for the reader (or at least for me, it did). While this book is fiction, it is based on the story of three actual travelers from the 1890s.

We picked this book up while studying Ellis Island. To be honest, I don’t know that I would have found it otherwise. But I’m so glad we read it. I love that the book offers beautiful illustrations as well as actual photographs from the time period. I sob out loud every time I read this to our daughter, to the point where I can’t get words out—always a sign of great book.