new blog/new site

if you are following us here - I just wanted to update you that we have a new spot for our blog on our website - if you want to check it out here is the link:   http://peaceloveswap.com/blog/
- enjoy!
happy swapping,
meg

What Matter's Most

I thought I would include this on the blog (it was actually written on Wed. Aug. 24th 2011) - every Wednesday I send out a motivational "blurb" to our Swap Organizer's. We call it the Wednesday "Blurb". Here it is below:

Hello Everyone!

I am happy to report my family and I have not been evacuated! But our thoughts and prayers are with the brave firefighters, police, and specialists who are currently trying to prevent a thermonuclear blast from destroying our quaint downtown area of Lincoln, CA. We live outside of the evacuation zone and are anxiously waiting to hear what the scoop will be on a moment by moment basis. For those of you who are wondering what is going on - A propane tanker caught on fire yesterday afternoon next to a propane factory. The thought of having a ticking bomb in our beautiful historic city has brought a great deal of alarm to families and business owners as well as put many people's lives at risk as they try to "disarm" this huge "bomb."

Yesterday I was shopping at Target picking up some school supplies for my 5 year old who was scheduled to start Kindergarten today (but all schools are closed due to the crisis). While we were discussing the choices of glue sticks that were most appropriate I received a phone call on my cell. I picked up with the usual, "Hey hon! What's up?" My husband's tone immediately straightened my back and all my senses were on high alert. Not only was his tone of that of warning, but the words that followed brought me into a very serious and thoughtful state of mind.

"Honey, where are you?" my husband spoke in a grave and serious tone.

"I'm at Target with the kids. What's going on?" I asked.

A sigh of relief from my husband.

"Good. I'll meet you there. I'm being evacuated. We have to close the office."

"Whoa! What?" I responded quickly, demanding more information.

"What's going on? Is everything alright?"

My husband quickly relayed the circumstance as I heard him packing up his things in the back ground. Oh no... I was stunned, my husband is in a danger zone??? An explosion??? I knew exactly where the propane factory was from my husband's office. Not even 1/2 a mile. I ended the conversation with a meaningful "Get out quick. Meet you here - love you. Be careful." As soon as we got off the phone I told the kids to say a prayer for their Daddy and for all the people that were working on containing the situation, as well as the surrounding homes and businesses that were being affected. It was one of those moments in life where you learn to appreciate what you have and make the most of every moment. Daddy got to Target safely, we spent the rest of the afternoon enjoying each others company. Today we got some house stuff done, went out to lunch, visited some family and overall had a really nice day. With schools closed, no office to go to, we are exceptionally grateful that at least we have our family and our home. When you are faced with trials like these, you are reminded very quickly that there are very few things in life that truly matter.

Right now, planning my next swap may not be on the priority list today, but I know that as soon as this crisis is over, I will be helping out my community with my next swap. Our family, our community - we will have answers and solutions to the problems we may face. This brings me great comfort. To know, to be prepared, to have a solution to some of the problems, and a way to help. If people in my community lose their homes or lose their loved ones, I know exactly what I will do to help. That's all for tonight. I need to go snuggle with those who matter most.
~Elle

the Why, the How, the Who...

One of the coolest things about our particular era is the "GO GREEN" initiative.
History was always my favorite subject in school. Why? Because it's just so
interesting! In every culture, every academic discipline, and in every aspect
of life, History tells the story of how we got to where we are NOW. I have
always found that so fascinating. History shows us our mistakes, our victories,
our perspectives, and ultimately defines in many ways, who we are as a society.

When I was growing up, my mom was just about the "Greenest" person ever! I
mean, she wouldn't even throw away a paper towel after she had wiped her hands
with one! Literally, if we were in a public restroom, she would wash her hands,
then she would grab a paper towel and dry her hands. Because her hands were
already clean when drying them on the clean paper towel, she would save the
paper towel. She would fold it up, and take it home. She had a special drawer
where she saved those used (but clean) paper towels. These paper towels were
for cleaning the floors, bathrooms, or to mop up messes. When I was young I
thought that was normal. But as I got older I soon realized how NOT normal that
was!

Furthermore, she would take me to her work place every month on her day off. On
her day off (mind you) we would collect the aluminum cans from the recycle bin
and crush them, bag them up, and then take them to the recycle center. I asked
her one day, "So how come your job makes you do this?" She laughed and said,
"My job doesn't make me do this! I set out this recycle bin and started
collecting the cans so they wouldn't just get thrown away! I can't stand to see
people be so wasteful." That was my mom. On top of that she would use the
money that was collected from the cans to sponsor children in developing
countries. It all made sense! I always wondered why my mom always got those
"Thank you" cards from children in Guatamala and Africa. A light bulb went off
in my head. Ahhh! I know the why, the how, the who, and ultimately the
definition of the who. My mom is a Saint. That's all there is to it. And that
is how it will be recorded in History.

My mom taught and continues to teach me many wonderful things. Be "Green", and
be charitable. I guess that's why I love this organization so much. I know I
am teaching the same lessons to my kids by doing these swaps. But our hope is
that all people in all communities will get these valuable lessons. Not
everyone has a mom like mine ;)

Which brings me to all of YOU. Whatever your purpose for becoming a swap
organizer, being a volunteer, or being a swapper, one thing is for certain - there was, and is, a why, a how, and ultimately a definition of YOU. I am pleased to report that YOU are a Saint.
And that is all there is to it. And that is how it will be recorded in History.

Have yourself an awesome week ;)

The Importance of ATTITUDE

Hi Everyone! I hope the middle of the week is finding you all well. This week I have a personal story to share that hopefully uplifts your spirits (be warned, it's a little gory):

On Mother's Day we found ourselves in the ER because my 5 year old climbed up the back of a rocking chair, then fell and hit the back of his head on a ceramic planter. The back of his head had a serious laceration that bled like you wouldn't believe, and he ended up having to get his poor little head stapled back together. Long story short - he's fine, and he seems to love the fact that he has metal in his head. Needless to say, it was stressful. But the one thing I can add is the fact that my 5 year old once again has masterfully taught me the importance of ATTITUDE. While we were in the ER he had nothing on his face but a huge smile. His smile certainly calmed our worried selves, but I kept thinking about that HUGE gash in the back of his head! I wasn't dealing so well with it, but Han seemed perfectly content despite the fact that his head was throbbing, and we were holding a blood soaked rag up to his blood soaked hair! The doctor said it would be best to go ahead and staple his wound without anesthesia because the shot to the wound would hurt more than the stapling. The horror on my face told her that was not acceptable, and so she suggested a topical numbing cream, which would help... BUT... it was still gonna hurt.

I wanted to be honest with my boy, so I held his little hand and told him what they were going to do and that is was going to hurt. He quietly said "k" and closed his eyes. As each of those staples went in he squeezed my hand, clenched his teeth, and my husband held his body as he jerked from the pain. I waited to hear a scream, but to my surprise, no scream! When it was all over I let out a breath and to my astonishment not a single tear was streaming down his face. He just looked up at us with a smile and asked, "Are we done?" I couldn't believe how tough he was! All I could really say was, "DAAAANNNGGG! Didn't that hurt???!!" And to our further astonishment, he replied, "Yeah, it did, but I'm really strong and really brave too. Can we go now?" The room filled with laughter and amazement. We survived, we got through it, and the wise words of a 5 year old resonated within our souls: "Yeah, it hurt. But I'm really strong, and really brave too. Can we move on now?"

I have thought about these wise words that came (not from me), but my little 5 year old boy. I thought about what a profound message it was and how it totally applies to our lives in every way. Important things always take struggle. We feel the swaps are important to communities, and as we grow, we naturally are going to experience some growing pains. Our hope is that when you come to a swap, you will remember that one of the most important things you need to have, is A GOOD ATTITUDE. Even if we're bleeding from the back of our head, we can still somehow muster a smile on our face, and CHOOSE to have a POSITIVE outlook. What's more is that we can get through it, learn from it, even ENJOY the experience, and move on. So if you ever feel disappointed that you didn't get what you were looking for, your kids were acting crazy the entire time, the venue wasn't that great, or you woke up on the wrong side of the bed (or ran into someone who did) - don't let that discourage you. Look at the big picture, put a smile on your face, and find a way to see the glass half full. You are a part of something special, truly unique, and together we are ALL strong, we are all brave, and we are all moving forward.

peace. love. swap. is going strong thanks to all of you :)

Extracurricular Education

One of the most awesome things about the swaps is the extracurricular education that my children are getting. I really think the example we are setting for our kiddos is HUGE! When we're loading up to get in the car on swap day, they ask: "Where are we going?" I respond, "To our swap!" They all cheer with glee and my 5 year old who is also the most articulate of the group excitedly talks about how he is going to get to play, and get some new clothes and toys. My kids look forward to swap days. Not only that, but my kiddos are used to getting used items. They don't care... AT ALL! They get just as excited to get the used items, as they are to get new items. What makes me laugh sometimes is that when my twins open a new present, they HATE the packaging! They honestly don't like the toy until it is out of all that yucky plastic packaging. It goes to show that we are conditioned to like, or unlike things. And so far, my kiddos prefer the greener approach - which makes me very excited to be a part of this. And one of the MOST POSITIVE things is the example that my children are getting. There are so many great teachings they can get out of the swaps, too many to list, so I'm just going to name a few:

-resourcefulness

- sharing

- importance of community

- down to earth attitude towards materialism

- how to recycle

- respect for our Planet

- awareness

- organization

- a healthy attitude towards our excess consumption

- thriftiness

- charity

Our hope is that these swaps do much more for you than just be a fun way to get rid of your stuff and get some stuff back. Our hope is that you will remember that swap shopping really matters. It means something to those closest to you and it means something to your community, as well as beyond.

Our swap organizers know that they are much more than just that. They are a philosopher, a pioneer, and a philanthropist. The reality is that our regular swapper's are just that as well! By coming to the swaps, showing your support, and getting involved, you are in reality a huge part of this incredible movement. We hope you take that into account.

We hope to see you at the next swap!

-Elle

What our local swaps do for our community...

So it had been awhile since I had said the peace. love. swap mission statement out loud - and when I did the last blog post, it made really made me realize that our 3 main goals ( and pretty much in this order ) are to keep things out of landfills, donate as much as possible to charity and produce fun/family friendly swaps.  It occurred to me that I could measure the amount of swaps we have produced - 60+ since 2009 - but I haven't measured what we have kept out of landfills and most important.. how much we have donated to charities.  Well if we just average the amount of stuff that comes in and goes out - we have easily donated 45,000+ items to charity. This includes baby, kid & maternity clothing and gear, books, shoes, movies, accessories, etc. Which means we have easily swapped 65,000+ items ... this is amazing!!! I wonder how much of this stuff would have ended up in a landfill?? We all did this together!! And, it's only been two years - and.... we are only just getting started.  We will easily double that number of charitable donations by the end of the year. On top of that, some of our swaps are doubling as fundraisers, so a portion of the proceeds are being donated to different causes as well.  I am so happy to be a part of this with all the moms that organizing swaps and all the volunteers - to actually see my vision come to fruition. I love the fact that every month we give something back to our communities.
See you soon,
Until then
happy swapping
meg

I always bring more than I take ...

Holy Cow!! Talk about Spring Cleaning!! This is what I am taking to the next swap - We just had one 6 weeks ago, and I have absolutely NO PROBLEM getting rid of all this stuff - about 1/3 of it is from previous swaps, the little farm house (lola wants to keep that - but it's time to pass it on & she just got a weeble wobble house from the consignment store) - and the "hyperdash" game were big hits - time to pass those on. Lots of clothes, puzzles, books, shoes, dolls, baby tunnel play mat thing! Again, you could never swap this much stuff online - the shipping would cost too much, it wouldn't make sense. Swap sites like Thredup are great for swapping clothes once in awhile - and super if you only have one kid - but once you pay the fee and pay for shipping ($15+ per box) it can be cost prohibitive. It's a fun and addictive site for in between swap events though. Also - I will re-use the box/garbage bags to pack up the leftover items for donation after the swap.
I often take this much stuff - (as do many people) which raises the question - should you take as much as you bring?? My answer? I don't WANT that much stuff back - I want to get rid of that stuff and maybe take a bag home - maybe 2 (rarely 2- and that's because I have 3 kids.)
So sometimes the question comes up - when people are 'shopping' how much is too much?? I guess it's all relative, but I would expect people to not take as much as they bring, I would anticipate some of your items being donated to charity. peace. love. swap is an environmental and philanthropic event first and foremost... our mission statement is (and has been from day one):

to keep gently used baby, kid and maternity items out of landfills, and to donate to local charities, by producing fun and affordable family friendly swaps on a regular basis. 

It has never been our mission (or my personal vision) to have people load up on as many items as they possibly can.  I created this event so that moms could get rid of their unwanted things that they were going to take to a thrift store or consignment store - but instead of just donating them or getting a less than stellar credit, they could exchange them/recycle them, meet other moms, let their kids play, etc.. I still shop at consignment stores, and donate and shop at thrift stores - but the swaps are a way to kind of 'complete' that green lifestyle/way of shopping if you will. My personal vision is for people to ONLY take what they are going to use for the next few months - only what they truly need perhaps until the next swap, and then make sure it is clean, and then bring it back - so obviously you wouldn't need bags of clothes and other stuff- my kid's don't wear that much!! Did you know (I read somewhere) we only wear 20% wardrobe 80% of the time? - So most of the stuff we have (and our kid's have) we don't even probably wear.

Anyway, as a sort guide to what is too much?? because no one ever seems to think they are taking too much, We will start posting some pictures - good and bad - don't worry, I won't post anyones faces - A sort of ode to Glamour magazine's "Do's and Don'ts"  - There will be lot's of Do's photos posted - as most people I see - do get the concept of peace. love. swap.  --- hellooooooo.. doesn't the name say it all???? We will post some photos soon here and on Facebook - they will be sort of humourous - so stay tuned - but they will also answer that question - am I taking too much????

Until then,
happy swapping~
meg

Recycle your Easter Stuff!! : )

Just wanted to remind everyone that Easter is almost here - and if you celebrate by doing the whole Easter basket thing - PLEASE rethink the whole go to kmart or walmart thing and buying the grass and  the eggs and the baskets!!! Please check your local consignment stores and/or thrift stores for baskets/grass/eggs etc. - they have a lot of that stuff or post a want on freecycle.org - or re-use your stuff from last year. I went to the market the other night and looked down the Easter aisle and it made me want to gag (plus I am pretty sure all of that stuff is made in china - don't get me started). I don't know why anyone would buy all that stuff new every year- the kid's rip through it so fast -and my kid's don't know that the little eggs I put their candy in are 14 years old. : )   I swear I have been using some of the same grass and eggs since my son was little and he is 16!! Also, after the holiday -please don't throw any of  it away. If you don't have the time or space to store it  - take it to a thrift store so someone else can use it next year..
Thanks!
meg

what i got ... (and I was the last one in!) ; )

So, every once in awhile I hear or see a post on Facebook that 'I didn't get anything' or 'I didn't find anything good' Now, granted - I brought 3 boxes of stuff - and I ALWAYS bring in more than I take - and for me, that's ok. I am never looking to take home an equal amount. My kid's closets are overflowing with stuff and I am always trying to get rid of stuff, so I am happy to just get the items I need to hold me over until the next swap. If you are looking to get the exact amount of stuff you brought in - it's probably not going to happen all the time for you. One of the whole ideas of peace. love. swap is to purge - get rid of the items you don't need and/or don't use anymore.. But, my point here is that - I went in last - after everyone else started swapping and gathering stuff. I was in no hurry & most of the stuff in the picture is stuff that was actually left over and was going to go for donation. Things I didn't picture here are the toys I got for the girls (because they are already scattered somewhere- I should have taken a picture of them at the swap : ) )  Anyways.. they got a cool dress up flowery fairy crown, a cool barbie makeup set, a bunch of little rattle type toys for Ava, a book, and a pair of gardening gloves (Milla and Lola have a worm farm going outside right now)- that's all I can think of right now. So, for $5, well when it's your swap you don't actually pay $5, but if I was a swapper - and I was the last one in - and I paid $5... there is still stuff to go around - that's my point! : ) I basically got 11 pieces of clothing and the toys I mentioned above - and there was still more to go around. What a deal!!

upcoming swaps:

4/11/11 SF Bay Area/ Tri Valley, Pleasanton, CA email: plstrivalley@gmail.com
4/22/11 Swap-a-palooza - Roseville, CA (not just kid's stuff!) email: plsrocklin@gmail.com
4/29/11 Virginia Bch/Chesapeake, VA email: plschesapeake@gmail.com

until next time,
happy swapping,
meg

it IS easy being green...

Well we just celebrated our 50th swap and when I started the swaps over a year and a half ago - the whole idea was to reduce waste, and reuse things- keep these baby and kiddo and maternity items in use for as long as possible. I like it when people show up to the swaps with their reusable bags - : ) most of them do. I really dislike icky plastic grocery bags and discourage anyone from using them. : /... Anyways, with Earth Day coming up - it's a good time to take little steps towards 'being green' it really is easy- I am sure most of you already do all the little things that come with being green but just adding one new one is so cool. I am really going to try and make the swaps at some point (hopefully by the end of the year) zero waste events (or as close to zero as possible) -  it's a lofty goal - but something to work towards. One of my pet peeves, is when people bring me their stained and smelly clothes. I can't really take this stuff to charity - they can't sell it. True, they can be used as rags. But you can imagine how many rags I have at home - I have been doing swaps for almost 2 years. I am going to start looking for a use for these, shredding them and making something of them - I don't know.... If anyone has any ideas please let me know. Other than the stained and/or dirty stuff at the end of a swap we really have very little waste left over - Items go to charity, people take what they need in their bags. It's a beautiful thing. It's local - It's green. It's awesome. ;)
And, if you can't find what you are searching for at our swaps, check your local thrift or consignment stores - that is next best recycling option.
Feel free to post any new or cool things you are going to do this Earth day to be a 'greener' human : )

until then....

happy swapping.
meg