Thursday 22 December 2011
Apologies
We've been bad bloggers who have only updated our Facebook page regularly. But never fear, over the weekend this will be rectified and you'll have all new posts from us about what to donate, where it goes and other One a Week Project related news on a much more frequent basis!
Friday 7 October 2011
All about nappies
I just wanted to follow up on the last post about nappy need.
In a time where utility prices are going up dramatically, as is food and fuel and rent, some 'necessities' tend to go by the wayside.
One thing I never thought would be sacrificed is a clean bum for your baby.
Unfortunately, that's just not true.
Now, I couldn't find any Australian statistics - which is disappointing - but Huggies did a study in the US and Canada and found that 1/3 American mums and 1/5 Canadian mums are running out of nappies for their kids because of financial hardships. 20% of mums are leaving their babies in nappies for longer to conserve them, 7-11% are just using more nappy cream and 3% are re-using dirty disposable nappies. That's just heartbreaking.
I don't want this to be a cloth v's disposable post. We use cloth part time for our son. Modern Cloth Nappies are a big outlay initially, but they save heaps in the long run. And there is the alternative of using the old fashioned terry flats. I think, what I really want to demonstrate, is the desperation of mums who are in financial hardship.
Which makes something like our little project all the more important. Organisations like Foodbank take donations of goods such as nappies. And yes, they are more expensive than your standard can of tomatoes or packet of pasta. But maybe once, before Christmas, you could spare a couple of extra dollars to give a baby a clean bum.
Just an idea
If you want to check out the huggies study you can find it here
We will be donating our food and other items to Foodbank. You can find them here
And the only domestic nappy donation service I could find is here. If you know of another, or any information about Australian need for nappies or other baby items, I'd love to hear about it
In a time where utility prices are going up dramatically, as is food and fuel and rent, some 'necessities' tend to go by the wayside.
One thing I never thought would be sacrificed is a clean bum for your baby.
Unfortunately, that's just not true.
Now, I couldn't find any Australian statistics - which is disappointing - but Huggies did a study in the US and Canada and found that 1/3 American mums and 1/5 Canadian mums are running out of nappies for their kids because of financial hardships. 20% of mums are leaving their babies in nappies for longer to conserve them, 7-11% are just using more nappy cream and 3% are re-using dirty disposable nappies. That's just heartbreaking.
I don't want this to be a cloth v's disposable post. We use cloth part time for our son. Modern Cloth Nappies are a big outlay initially, but they save heaps in the long run. And there is the alternative of using the old fashioned terry flats. I think, what I really want to demonstrate, is the desperation of mums who are in financial hardship.
Which makes something like our little project all the more important. Organisations like Foodbank take donations of goods such as nappies. And yes, they are more expensive than your standard can of tomatoes or packet of pasta. But maybe once, before Christmas, you could spare a couple of extra dollars to give a baby a clean bum.
Just an idea
If you want to check out the huggies study you can find it here
We will be donating our food and other items to Foodbank. You can find them here
And the only domestic nappy donation service I could find is here. If you know of another, or any information about Australian need for nappies or other baby items, I'd love to hear about it
Thursday 6 October 2011
Things to buy
So we're getting quite a big stash of stuff going and every week when we go to the shop, we think - what are we going to add this week. Can't say that we really have a plan of what we are going to get until we get there. But what we try to do is get multi-buy specials - so we get a discount when we are buying something for ourselves and we can put the extra into the box. Or if something just catches our eye as we wander around, we pop it in the box. Sometimes, because of super specials, we get two items in one week.
However, we did make a list of what we thought might be good to put in a hamper. So here it is - and, as you can see on the left, we have quite a few of the items.
Pasta
Pasta sauce
Rice
Tinned tomatoes
Tinned fish
Spaghetti
Baked beans
Chickpeas/legumes
Rice
Peanut butter
Vegemite
Jam
Oil
Cake mix
Jelly
Cordial
Juice
Washing powder
Dishwashing liquid
Toilet paper
Nappies
Shampoo
Conditioner
Pads/Tampons
Soap
Toothpaste
Crackers
Sweet Biscuits
UHT milk/powdered milk/condensed milk
Porridge
Sugar
Tea
Coffee
Milo
Flour - SR and Plain
Gravy powder
Tomato and BBQ sauce
Mayonnaise
Honey
Tinned Soup
We're trying to not just buy food, but also important household items that can be neglected when you're a bit short on cash. I have heard recently that, with the financial downturn, babies are being left in their nappies for longer because their parent's can't afford to buy them as often. Isn't that so sad.
Would love to hear your suggestions for additions to the list!
However, we did make a list of what we thought might be good to put in a hamper. So here it is - and, as you can see on the left, we have quite a few of the items.
Pasta
Pasta sauce
Rice
Tinned tomatoes
Tinned fish
Spaghetti
Baked beans
Chickpeas/legumes
Rice
Peanut butter
Vegemite
Jam
Oil
Cake mix
Jelly
Cordial
Juice
Washing powder
Dishwashing liquid
Toilet paper
Nappies
Shampoo
Conditioner
Pads/Tampons
Soap
Toothpaste
Crackers
Sweet Biscuits
UHT milk/powdered milk/condensed milk
Porridge
Sugar
Tea
Coffee
Milo
Flour - SR and Plain
Gravy powder
Tomato and BBQ sauce
Mayonnaise
Honey
Tinned Soup
We're trying to not just buy food, but also important household items that can be neglected when you're a bit short on cash. I have heard recently that, with the financial downturn, babies are being left in their nappies for longer because their parent's can't afford to buy them as often. Isn't that so sad.
Would love to hear your suggestions for additions to the list!
Monday 3 October 2011
Saturday 3 September 2011
Items of the week
Sometimes it's hard, when things are on special, to only buy one thing.
So this week, two were added to the box.
Self raising flour and tinned tomatoes.
Though now we have 2 tins of tomatoes - but surely you cant have too much of a good thing!
So this week, two were added to the box.
Self raising flour and tinned tomatoes.
Though now we have 2 tins of tomatoes - but surely you cant have too much of a good thing!
The story behind the project
We started this project a couple of months ago, after looking at the tin of unopened infant formula we had purchased after we brought our baby home from the hospital as a 'just in case'. Turns out, we never needed it. Thank God, because formula is expensive and breastfeeding is just so much better!
So we thought, what can we do with a tin of formula? It was $25. Seemed a shame to throw it out. Could we donate it? Seemed a bit odd to rock up somewhere with a tin of formula. What was the alternative? Could we do more?
We have always had the ambition to be more charitable. But on a single income and now a baby, the extra funds never seemed available to make what we thought to be a meaningful donation. The formula was the answer.
Every week, when going on our weekly grocery shop, we decided to buy one extra non-perishable grocery item. Put it in a box in our laundry. Donate it to a charity in need at Christmas-time.
And it feels good. To select something that someone will actually use. To know that the item you are putting in your trolley will make someone else's life a little easier.
But it doesnt end there. We don't want to be the only ones. This is a simple way to give something back and to make a difference.
So join us. Lets do something to help out people less fortunate - one week at a time
So we thought, what can we do with a tin of formula? It was $25. Seemed a shame to throw it out. Could we donate it? Seemed a bit odd to rock up somewhere with a tin of formula. What was the alternative? Could we do more?
We have always had the ambition to be more charitable. But on a single income and now a baby, the extra funds never seemed available to make what we thought to be a meaningful donation. The formula was the answer.
Every week, when going on our weekly grocery shop, we decided to buy one extra non-perishable grocery item. Put it in a box in our laundry. Donate it to a charity in need at Christmas-time.
And it feels good. To select something that someone will actually use. To know that the item you are putting in your trolley will make someone else's life a little easier.
But it doesnt end there. We don't want to be the only ones. This is a simple way to give something back and to make a difference.
So join us. Lets do something to help out people less fortunate - one week at a time
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