My Little Garbage Man

My son is constantly picking things up off the ground.

It kind of puts me in a difficult position, because given the fact that he's only four, he's not as aware of hygiene as an older child would be. He would think nothing of picking up a juicy piece of garbage, and then using that same hand to touch his face.

I'm constantly stuck between telling him not to touch: "just leave it there, OK?" versus trying to be green: "Hey! Let's put that in the garbage can!". I must confuse the heck out of him because my response is different every time, depending on how close we are to the garbage, and how offensive the piece of garbage is.

I know this will all iron itself out as he gets older, but meanwhile there are days when I feel less green and more like the colour our grass gets after two weeks of no rain...