Here is some of our favorite ides for you and your kids this Summer:

1. Grow a Garden

Kids love this.  We have found if we ask our children what veggie or herb they would like best for dinners they really connect and are more invested in building and caring for a garden.

When building the garden let your kids get right in there in the dirt when planting, tending and picking. Even toddlers can use a small plastic shovel, put seeds in the soil, and pull a carrot out of the ground.  Clearly you will want to make sure your camera is at the ready because this will be too cute.

No room for growing veggies? Grow a few in pots on a balcony or even inside by a sunny and ventilated area.

2. Get Crafty

Rainy day? Turn cereal boxes into magazine organizers (or a fun way to corral kids books) by covering them in used wrapping paper, or paper grocery bags you decorate together. Explain the importance of reusing materials that still have a useful life, rather than throwing them in the landfill.

Or make a quick model of the solar system with clay and straws — and talk about how Earth is the only planet we know we can live on, and why we all need to take care of our planet.

3. Take a Hike

Regardless if it is short walk or a longer hike, you will have the opportunity to teach your children about the nature, how to care for the planet and get in a bit of exercise.  We sometimes take a kids “specimen” kit to aid in our exploring and understanding.

4. Bike to the Store

Between 1990 and 2001, miles driven for shopping grew more than 40 percent — three times as fast as all other types of driving — according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Ride bikes to the store together — get a cruiser bike with a big basket (or take a backpack). It’s great exercise — and a great opportunity to talk with kids about how using fossil fuels impacts the Earth. Take a stash of reusable shopping bags with you.

5. Reduce Your Carbon Footprint Together

From recycling to composting to using less water, eco-friendly activities can start before you leave the house. Calculate your environmental footprint together using The Conservation Fund’s Carbon Zero Calculator. Let kids type in the numbers, and talk with them about what your footprint means. Then involve your kids in steps you can take to make it smaller — such as switching to compact fluorescent light bulbs, which use 75 percent less energy than standard incandescent.

Have a great summer!

Three  East Bay solar companies are also offering incentives of matching discounts ($0.60 per watt, up to $3,000). Check out Diablo Solar Services of Martinez, Ally Electric & Solar of Richmond, and Verengo, Inc. of Concord.

Come on Bay Area! Join the Solar revolution and start Doing a Bit Better!

1. Rake lawn to remove thatch and dead grass, which creates good seed-to-soil contact.

2. Apply grass seed; and use it liberally.

3. Cover with layer of compost; this helps retain moisture and keep the birds away, and it’s a lot cheaper than spreading straw.

For your kids, buy crayons made of soybean oil, not paraffin

Switch to a manual can opener.  Yes, a manual…you can do it.

Invest in a roasting pan instead of using disposable ones.  You will save money in the long run, and honestly, it is so much easier to pull out food in something sturdy.  (We don’t need to tell you the amount of time we have dropped food on the floor from a flimsy aluminum one).

Buy a bigger jug of milk. If you only use half a gallon at a time, you can pour half the milk into a carafe and freeze the rest. Then about a day or two before you need it simply put in the fridge.  And yes, it tastes the same.

Stop throwing away your dryer lint! Put it in the backyard for the birds — they use it to feather their nests.  Crazy-but true.

Clean your refrigerator coils — vacuum out the dust and wipe with a damp cloth. You’ll be surprised at how much nasty stuff accumulates down there!

Put a cover on your pool when you’re not using it. Not only will it keep the water cleaner, but it will keep it from evaporating, resulting in saving water.

• Ecolawn: This blend of fine fescue grasses is highly drought-tolerant and requires less fertilization than traditional grass. It can be grown anywhere in the United States.
• Buffalograss: As the native grass of the Western Plains, this variety thrives in drier areas of the country such as California and Nevada. It only needs to be mowed once a month.
• Seashore paspalum: This is an eco-friendly grass for Southern states with warm climates. It doesn’t even like fertilizer, and it tolerates recycled water, or even salty water.

2013 is going to be a great year for Massachusetts solar. Great job Doing a Bit Better!

Trees that are tall enough to block solar panels can cost the tree owners up to $1,000 fines (daily!). State Law requires homeowners to keep their trees, or other plant-life, from shading neighbor’s solar panels between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., when the sun is at it’s strongest.

Help your neighbors Do a Bit Better, it’s the law!