Healthy Child Healthy World: Creating a Cleaner, Greener, Safer Home has convinced me that our family must establish a Pesticide Free Home. In fact, next month when the Buy Nothing Challenge is over, I’m ordering this sign from the Pesticide Free Lawn site where for $6 I can order an attractive sign that says, “Pesticide Free, All Living Creatures Welcome.” Considering that we drag in a lot of dirt (especially if we don’t have a doormat or no shoes inside policy), our children are exposed to pesticides from our lawns even when we think they’re safe inside our homes. Pesticides, or insecticides, according to Gavigan, are potentially linked to childhood leukemia, and may cause birth defects. As my friend Allison put it, “I don’t want to have children with five heads.”
Encourage guests to take off their shoes and borrow a pair of slippers or clogs. At our last major kids’ party, I posted a sign at my door stating: “Little ones undertow. Please remove shoes for their sake.” I am even considering posting a permanent sign that says “Pesticide Free Home. Please leave shoes at the door.”
What do you think? Is it too extreme to ask our friends, family, and even strangers to participate in our family’s health and wellness while they are in our homes? Isn’t it the least they can do? At my house, anyway, there’s a washroom next to the front door for folks sensitive about foot odor. I just don’t want my little one ingesting all that poison from the outdoors. . .
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OK… I was thinking about this today when, while weeding my garden, I smelled smoke from my neighbor’s yard. I actually for a moment thought that there should be a law not allowing others to smoke outdoors when the wind is blowing toward someone else’s property. Anyway… then I had my little epiphany: Would you ever hesitate to ask someone not to smoke in your house? Is this not a similar situation of exposing yourself and family to known carcinogens?
Besides, get some cute slippers for folks to wear, and you can always blame it on wanting to keep your wood floors scratch-free or your carpet clean.
Yes, we could encourage folks to de-shoe themselves at the door saying that we want scratch free floors, but in the past, some visitors seem totally put off by my request. Oh well. I guess I’ll have to ruffle some feathers.
“Pesticide Free Home. Please leave shoes at the door.”
I do like that.
I think removing shoes at the door can really make a difference.
I dedicated an whole blog to this subject. You might want to take a look.
I couldnt agree more with you.There are five in my family and we always take our shoes and usually our socks off at the door and put slippers on.All guests remove their shoes and are enouraged to bring their slippers with them.
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