Things my kid says: Plastic is bad for the environment

Dressed up in hand-me-down clothes, so cute!

In asking my 6 year old daughter on Friday as we were getting ready to go to daycare what she wanted for Christmas, she replied, "I don't know." That in itself was adorable. So I continued and asked her if she wanted new books. "Yes." Was the simple answer I received. Then I asked her if she wanted some new dolls. "No mommy." Curious, as I know she loves dolls, I asked, "Why not? I thought you liked dolls."

To which she replied, as though it were the most obvious thing in the world,

"I do like dolls, but they're made of plastic and that's bad for the environment."





Powerful stuff, I'm very proud of her. I have never once told her that her dolls were cheap plastic from foreign countries, or that they were made of a material that takes tens of thousands of years to decompose.

She recently began learning about materials, and what things are made of. So we were talking about it at home about a week ago, and she asked what plastic was. I told her [paraphrased] that plastic was made of oil and is bad for the environment. I told her that it kills animals if they eat it and that it is taking over the ocean.

She thought on that for a few moments, somberly, and then looked at me and asked, "what is made of plastic?" I told her, many things are made of plastic, and M and I make the choice not to buy them as much as possible.

She seemed content with that.

She put together on her own that her dolls were made of plastic and that she didn't want any new ones.

I am so proud of her. She can form independant thought and deduct information from many sources. I have never lied to her about where things come from, and she understands as much as she can about where her food and clothing comes from. Each time she asks me a question, I provide her an honest, age-appropriate answer.

Some might think that my answers are not age-appropriate, but I think that I know my daughter and her level of understanding better than pretty much everyone else. I know I can be candid and honest with her, and I know that if I take my time to explain new things, she will understand them.

She knows that she can ask me just about anything and I will give her an answer.

That is something I am proud of, and will continue to be proud of.

Peace and serenity,

Simply Me