Lent Blog Continues : Meat Free Monday

March 7th, 2016

Meat Free Monday

Hello Everyone, so today we want to talk to you about something that's really important to us. We've already done a few blog posts on trying to save the planet and stop climate change but one of the simplest and most important ways to do that is just to eat less meat.

Not so long ago, eating meat was a treat for most people. It was a lot more expensive to buy and people ate a lot less of it generally. Now it is really cheap to buy meat and you can buy a cheap burger for less than a pound in some places.

There are lots of reasons why this is bad, including for the animals, our health and farmers who produce the meat but to start off with, we want to talk about why it is bad for the planet.

Animals take up a lot of space when they are being kept to make food. They also give off lots of greenhouse gases, which isn't good for the planet either. The amount of space they take up is huge though and in some places, rainforests have even been cleared to make way for them. It is not just the animals, it is the food which is used to feed the animals which is a really big problem.

If we use the space we need to grow food for ourselves to grow food for animals it is going to have a really bad effect of the planet and also on people's ability to buy food who can't buy the meat. 

We really like meat and don't want to become vegetarian just yet but we are definitely trying to eat less of it. We try to do simple things like "Meat Free Monday" and once a year we do "Meat Free Week" just to prove to ourselves that it is easy to cut down on meat.

As Erin said in the video, we also try to buy Organic meat whenever we can but it can be quite tricky to find at times. The only way the supermarkets are going to stock more of it is if people keep asking for it and keep buying it. We'll be talking some more about why Organic farming is important for the animals and for the planet but we'll leave it there for now.

There are some links underneath where you can find out more information about why factory farming is so harmful but also one of our favourite videos of Erin when she wasn't even 2 - you can see, she's always liked her meat!!!

Thanks for visiting - Amelie and Erin xxxx

http://www.ciwf.org.uk/factory-farming/ 

https://uk.meatfreeweek.org/home 

http://www.theguardian.com/environment/georgemonbiot/2015/may/29/its-time-to-wean-ourselves-off-the-fairytale-version-of-farming 

https://www.organicconsumers.org/news/factory-farms-wide-net-pain-and-destruction 

http://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/sep/25/industrial-farming-one-worst-crimes-history-ethical-question 

N.B - There are lots of places you can find out about factory farming by doing research yourselves - because this blog is run by the little people though, we don't want to put links which might click you straight onto a picture or video of something really horrible happening to an animal. Just in case a small person clicked it by mistake. Says a lot about the issues though that so many horrible practices take place.

WORLD BOOK DAY - Help the whole world have the books they need....

Day ??? - (We've lost count but it's)........WORLD BOOK DAY

Help the whole world have the books they need....

Today is World Book Day, so we are going to spend even more time than usual reading all the books we love and hopefully getting some new ones! We love books and there are lots of places we can get them, like the library, school, in shops, online and people often give us them as gifts.

We want to talk about books you can give as gifts to others who don't even have enough books to learn at school. In the past we've given gifts like that through Oxfam at Christmas but there are lots of other charities too and you might even want to send an e-card for Mother's day - it's not too late!

Charity gifts are a nice way to give someone a gift that they know you have put thought into and will help lots of people. We've put some links below, but we're going to make it a very short blog tonight because we really want to get back to reading  before bed!

We hope you enjoy your books today - Thanks for visiting - Love Amelie and Erin xxxx


Oxfam

Unicef

Save the Children

The Book Bus

Presentaid

Day 19 : Fairtrade - Use your Brain, not just your eyes

Day 19 : Monday 29th February 2016

Fairtrade - Use your Brain, not just your eyes

Hi everyone, today is the start of Fairtrade Fortnight, so we are going to stick with the Fairtrade topic we began talking about last night.

On the video we showed you some Fairtrade items that were basically food, but Fairtrade is about much more than just Bananas, Chocolate and Coffee. There are lots of things which come from the

Third World like clothes, gifts, flowers and just about anything you can think of. 

While it's good to be looking for the Fairtrade symbol wherever you can, lots of things aren't covered by Fairtrade schemes but you should still be looking at ways that you can buy things where people have been treated fairly and ethically.

Clothes are an obvious place to start because we all use them . A lot of clothes companies don't treat their workers well, and they might even use children to make their clothes. It is somtimes hard to tell but if you are buying a top for less than the price of a couple of pints of milk, that's probably a good indication that it isn't a fair trade.

That doesn't mean that if something is expensive, the company will be treating their workers well, but you can do some research into the sorts of policies companies have and decide which shops and companies you are happy to buy from. If you make those decisions before you go shopping, it is a good way to avoid getting sucked into buying cheap things just because you think they are a good deal.

Some companies seem to use Fairtrade in a bit of an unfair way too. They might get one or two of their products to get the Fairtrade symbol but then not treat workers fairly in lots of other parts of their companies. I am not going to say who those companies are but you can so some research for yourself, because they do exist. 

It's a bit like the school bully sucking up to the teacher and getting lots of praise for being good but then behind their back, they are really mean and nasty to everyone and treat people really badly. 

My main message tonight is that Fair Trade is a really good thing and a really good place to start when you go shopping. But you have to use your brain too and think about what you are buying, so that you can see the bigger picture.

If we all do what we can to shop ethically, we will make the world a better place.

Thanks for visiting the blog today - bye......Amelie ; ) 

(Erin is asleep...but we think she's dreaming of eating Fairtrade disc shaped chocolate, covered in delicious crispy multi-coloured shells....)

http://fortnight.fairtrade.org.uk/learn-more/#breakfast-map

http://www.ethicalconsumer.org/

Day 18: Fairtrade Sunday

Day 18 : February 28th 2016

Fairtade Sunday

Hello Everyone. We're just back from shopping and Mum let us buy some chocolate from the supermarket......but we had to make sure it was Fairtrade first!

Fairtrade is something which is really important to us and we're going to talk about it a bit more on the blog over the weeks ahead.

Basically, when you buy something which is Fairtrade, you are making sure that the people who made the things you are buying, were treated fairly and paid a fair price for the work they did.

Lots of things you buy which are fairtrade come from countries where they don't have laws to protect workers. In this country there is a minimum wage and lots of rules about working conditions but in other countries it isn't always like that, so it's easy for companies to treat workers badly so they can make more money.

If we all work together to buy Fairtrade whenever we can, we will show companies that people care about how workers in other counties are treated and they will have to act to protect their workers.

We particularly want to talk about Chocolate because it's coming up to Mothers' Day and maybe you are thinking about buying her some chocolates as a present. Our mum already has too much chocolate (!) but if we were buying some for her we know she'd appreciate knowing that people didn't suffer for her to have treat and your mum probably would too.

There are lots of other Fairtrade things you can buy but if we all start somewhere, it will help to make the world a better place.

We're off to eat OUR chocolate.....bye.....Amelie and Erin xxxxx

Day 16: Celebrate Libraries

Day 16 : February 26th 2016

Celebrate Libraries 

It's a late blog and I've just finished putting the girls to bed after a few fairytales on National: Tell a Fairytale Day.

They wanted to talk about their love of books and their love of libraries in particular. Libraries are always coming under pressure when it comes to cuts in local government and the girls (particularly Amelie!) are genuinely shocked when they hear that some people don't see the value in libraries.

For them, they have been a place of wonderful discoveries, of excitement and adventure, where they entered new worlds and took them home too. Since they were babies they have raided them, attended events, heard stories, gone on treasure hunts, sang songs and met authors. For children, Libraries are a place of fun.

Hand on heart, I can honestly say that without those experiences, I don't think the girls would love books so much or be such talented readers (and writers!). Having somewhere inviting, where you can grow your mind and explore from the earliest age, surely fosters a love of books which may last a lifetime.

At the moment we couldn't do without the book ordering service because Amelie finishes box sets within days of receiving them and we would never be able to afford to feed her appetite (neither would the rainforests!) When she goes on a raid, she discovers new authors and won't stop until she has read everything. She's a little mad but it's inspiring, and of course, she wants to be an author.

Erin is enjoying the huge selection of early reader titles which means that learning to read is not monotonous and boring. Having a choice over what to read and discovering these new worlds for the first time, makes reading more exciting, and surely that's a buzz we want to encourage.

The girls' message is simply to support your local library, just by using it more and letting local

government know that you value that service if cuts come up in your area.

An educated world is surely one of the most important things we need to make the world a better place. Without Libraries, that task becomes much harder. We need to celebrate them more.

On behalf of the girls....have a great weekend!

http://www.voicesforthelibrary.org.uk/
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

p.s. Since the girls are in bed and not able to tell me what to write...here is a wee story from Amelie, my very favourite author ever.

The Centipede with No Legs

Callum was a centipede, but you wouldn’t have thought that if ever you’d met. ‘For what is a centipede with no legs?’ the other centipedes would ask him. ‘You are no better than those common, good-for-nothing earthworms!’

Callum took this very seriously and continued to listen to the constant taunting of the other centipedes with great sorrow pulsing through his miserable, legless body. One day he got so depressed that he found he couldn’t take it anymore and decided to visit Earth Worm Town to see if he would be happier there. It was, like he expected, covered in unpleasant grumpy earthworms. They had shouted at him, “You don’t belonghere” and “Go back home”. Callum felt desperately disappointed and distraught that no one would accept him for who he was. He simply wanted to find a friend.

A fly who was passing by saw the sadness welling in Callum’s eyes and went to comfort him. He told Callum about someone who could help him and suddenly the bitterness inside his heart melted into hope.

At once he set off to see Wise Old Worm (the only earthworm ever known of without a temper). He spoke kindly to Callum and said, “You are neither a centipede, nor an earthworm, but a mix. You see your mother was a centipede and your father was an earthworm, they fell in love and then they had you. You are one of a kind. You are the special chosen one we have been waiting for.”

The wise old worm told everyone the good news and soon Callum became King. The centipedes and the earthworms bowed down and reunited with each other.

They learned not to judge others by what they looked like and felt disappointed in themselves for

how they had treated Callum. From then on, they were always friendly and thought twice before saying nasty things to others. Everyone lived much happier lives, especially Callum, who was a tremendously kind king. He ruled the kingdom with understanding and fairness, made of lots of friends and was loved by all.

Copyright - Amelie Purdon 2016

Day 14: Fight Against Cancer :(

Day 14: 24th February 2016

Fight against Cancer

Hello everyone....We've been asking our Mum over the past week if we could do a blog about helping people with cancer, so tonight we finally got enough time to sit down and think about what we wanted to say.

It's something that makes us pretty sad because we have lost friends and family to cancer but we also know quite a few people who have survived and are still fighting against cancer and we want to help.

Over the past few years we have been taking part in Race for Life to raise money for Cancer Research and there are lots of other ways you can raise money to help them and other cancer charities too. It's good to do something with other people and it makes us feel that we are joining with other people to help and it will make a difference.

There are lots of cancer charities like Macmillan Cancer Support who provide nurses for people with cancer, which can be very expensive to fund. Lots of people run Coffee Mornings and hold events - I made some loom bands to sell in the summer - so there are lots of ways to help a charity that you want to support.

Cancer is an illness which can affect anyone and unfortunately scientists don't really know all the reasons people get cancer. It seems like a lot of the time it is just really bad luck and it makes us especially sad that we know children at school who have had cancer since they were very small. There are some things we know that don't help though, like smoking and eating lots of meat but charities like Cancer Research do research into other things that might cause cancer and raise awareness of symptoms, so that people know what to look for and what to avoid.

One of the most important things though is paying for scientists and equiptment to help find cures for all the different cancers there are. Lots of progress has been made and new medicines have meant more people survive cancer than ever before.

One cancer I want to talk about though is Pancreatic Cancer because it doesn't get as much attention as a lot of other cancers. There has also been very very little improvement in the treatment for Pancreatic cancer and because it is so hard to detect, often people don't live long once they find out they have it. This is really sad and we have lost members of our family to Pancreatic Cancer, so it is especially important to us to raise awareness.

We will put some links underneath to the charities we have mentioned and we hope we have helped raise awareness of how you can help in the fight against cancer.

Thanks for checking in - Love Amelie (and Erin xxx)

Cancer Research

Macmillan Cancer Support

Pancreatic Cancer UK

 

Day 13 - Whaur's the Birds

Day 13 - 23rd February 2016

Whaur's the Birds?

Hello there. It's been a lovely sunny day here in Scotland but very cold and when we woke up this morning, the ground was frozen. Before we went to school, we put out some more seed for the birds as it can be really hard for them when the ground is so frozen solid.

We like to encourage the birds to come to our garden and have lots of different feeders to help different types of birds. Here are some tips:

• If it's really cold, break the ice on any water sources you have around the garden. If you don't have any, an old lid or plant dish will do. You can add a rubber duck or ball to these to help stop th ice freezing in the first place (but that doesn't work so well when it's -9 ;0
• Birds love peanuts but make sure they are in a peanut feeder because small birds can choke on whole nuts. just live babies!
• Mealworms, Hearts and Nyjer seeds are great treats and attract really colourful birds like Goldfinches and Blue Tits.
• Throw out your apple cores on the grass - the birds love them.
• As well as feeders, leave some little piles on top of fence posts - the birds love this - especially shy ones, like the wrens
• We have made some home made bird boxes and feeders - it's fun and easy and you can get lots of ideas on the internet.

Why not visit the RSPB website to get some ideas and find out about the birds that visit your garden.

It's passed for this year, but every January you can take part in a survey about the birds which visit your garden but there are lots of other ways to get involved too.

Birds are a very important part of our environment and many need to be protected because their habitat is under threat. The more we can do to help them, the better it will be for everyone.

We hope you enjoy the birds visiting your garden too,

Thanks for visiting - Aelie and Erin xxx

(Erin's favourite bird is a Blue Tit......Mine is a Goldfinch....or a Bittern....or a Heron....I can't decide!!!)