Family Bed

I took the boys to an organic farm last weekend. We stayed 2 nights and the kids loved sharing the big king sized bed.
A platform bed made sharing the bed with little ones seem easier and safer, because we were closer to the ground.

Win a Green Diaper Bag

Go Natural Baby Blog strives to bring you earth-friendly info to help you and your family be green!
Ever on the lookout for great, eco-friendly companies, Go Natural Baby Blog wants to give you a chance to win another this tres chic Fleurville Re-Run™ Mod Pod Changing Tote from Nubius Organics. The Fleurville Re-Run™ Mod Pod Changing Tote is ideal for quick trips when you don't want to be loaded down by your enormous diaper bag.
But, really, I think this Mama could use one of these for a cosmetic bag (don't tell my baby, Deeds!).
This Changing Tote is something a fashionista wouldn't mind sporting, and it is also eco-friendly, weighing in at 100% PVC-free
Each Changing Tote keeps three plastic bottles out of our landfills.
Two winners get to take their pick of Botanical Azure or Khaki Berry Ogo.

Contest sponsor Nubius Organics have also offered a coupon code for 15% off your next purchase. Just type in ECO15 at checkout.

I pretty much want one of each product at Nubius Organics. Look at these cool bamboo bowls!

To enter to win your earth-friendly Changing Tote, visit Go Natural Baby Blog by December 14th and leave a comment on their post about your favorite product from Nubius Organics!

Nalgene Goes BPA-Free!

I am a traveler. There was a time when no self-respecting backpacker would be caught without a Nalgene bottle dangling from a carabiner on the side of his or her pack.
If you were REALLY hip, you used the same Nalgene bottle ALL THE TIME and personalized it with stickers that referenced obscure places, bands, or eco-clubs.
When the news about the possibly harmful side effects of BPA in plastic food containers came out, I didn't want to take any risks with my health, so I tossed all of my BPA plastics, including offending sippy cups, baby bottles, and my beloved sports bottles.

I was so excited to learn that Nalgene has a line of BPA-free bottles! I am proud to say that we have a set for the whole family!

Nalgene bottles are made in the USA, are indestructible, and are taste & odor free, so you can enjoy your drinks without that yucky tainted plastic smell.

The BPA-free bottles include:

The 32-oz "everyday" bottle, that my husband drinks coffee out of (kind of weird, I know...).
The Everyday retails for $11.50.


The OTG has a handy flip-top lid and holds 24 ounces of BPA-free hydration! The Nalgene OTG retails for $11.99.


My FAVORITE new BPA-free offering from Nalgene are these adorable Grip-N-Gulp bottles! It is the convenience and spill-proof qualities of a sippy cup, but the Grip-N-Gulp looks a lot more "grown up" than a standard sippy.


Both of my boys love using the Grip-N-Gulp. When we first got it, I removed the valve because it was almost too difficult to drink through. Even without the valve, there is very little leakage. At $9.25, I think the Grip-N-Gulp is a great value for a BPA-free kid's cup!



The first day I took the Grip-n-Gulp out on the town with us to run some errands, I left it in on the counter of the grocery store while I was checking out!

Luckily a friend of mine had seen me in the grocery store and realized what had happened when they saw my abandoned bottle. I was glad to be reunited with our Grip-N-Gulp! I was so afraid my son would be devastated if it was lost!

Nalgene is giving away a set of all 3 BPA-Free bottles mentioned in this post (ARV 32.75)!

To enter, tell me another product you would like to have from Nalgene!

For a second entry, leave another comment telling me how you would use your 3 BPA-Free Nalgene bottles.

One winner will be chosen at random.

This giveaway will close on November 1, 12 midnight CST!


*Giveaway closed! Congrats to Olga!*

WW: Ecofriendly, green toys

My boys have found some interesting things to play with this week.
On Saturday, we were at an organic market and purchased 2 sparrows in a bamboo cage for $1.20.


The boys took turns looking at the birds and holding the cage. After a few hours we let them go.

Yesterday, one of the neighbors gave Jojo a grasshopper to play with. He was really proud of it and used it as an action figure. He let it ride in his toy trucks.

I guess "eco friendly toys" are everywhere you look!

Children's Art and Poetry Contest

The Pheakkley blog is having a contest for children aged 12 and under to share their art work and poems.
I submited a drawing by Jojo (age 3). I think it is wonderful what they are doing over there and wanted to share it with you. Even if you don't have a child who can enter, please try to spread the word!
The more people who participate, the more fun we will have!

Children’s Art and Poetry, open to anyone 12 and under!

Winners will be announced November 3rd and take away cool prizes like fair-trade toys and original art by Etsy sellers!

This contest is intended to spread laughter, smiles, happiness, love and general feelings of euphoria and joy throughout the online communities we are a part of.

Please submit up to 3 scanned/photographed images of the child’s artwork and poems via email with the words “Children’s Art and Poetry Contest” in the title to:

rehrlund@gmail.com

Entries should include the child and guardians first and last names and location. You can exercise any rights here as guardian as to what information you want shared, and what information you want kept private. PLEASE add special HIGHLIGHTED notes with any specific requests and instructions with your entries.

Any relevant Etsy or blog usernames you subscribe to as guardian should also be included (links would be helpful so that Pheakkley can do some advertising for you).

Brief explanations or comments on the child’s poem or artwork, as well as candid photographs of the child would also be appreciated, but are not required. All information given with express permission is subject to use as content on this blog.

You will receive an email receipt confirming that your entry has been received. One submission per child will be considered, posted and up for review by the general public. If you have submitted more than one entry, they will choose for you. And this time, it’s your votes that count, so tell your family, friends, and co-workers to get in on the fun!

While you are at it, I entered a poem myself in last week's call for poetry by grown-ups! You can go vote for me here, in the left side bar. My poem is called "For My Boys" by CanCan!

William is Going Green!

Even William the Garbage truck is going green in this fun book for teaching young kids how to go green in a fun, exciting way!
William begins life as a smoky white garbage truck, but as William learns about conservation, he eventually transforms to a green hybrid recycling truck committed to the fight against global warming!

William is Going Green is the first in a series of children's books with an eco-friendly message that focus on a favorite subject for preschoolers: big trucks!

Other friends of William (crew members) include:

ASHLEY is a street sweeper truck.

	BLAKE, who carefully carries toxic household items like poisons, paints, oil, solvents, automotive fluids, cleaners and herbicides to the city dump.
	STAN, a garbage truck

This is a 38-page, hardcover book is a great pick for young children (I'm speaking as a mom of two vehicle-loving boys!). It is written for children aged 3-8 and features engaging, full-color illustrations.

Interestingly, my own preschooler doesn't have much to say on the subject of the environment.
"Going Green" is something I value and want to teach my children.
My little one is very interested in books of almost any kind, so I hope that kid-friendly books like William Is Going Green can help open his little mind to BIG ideas!

Author James Martin II was inspired to write a book highlighting environmental awareness by something that happened in his own life several years ago:

A few years ago, James, like most people, didn’t fully understand the intricate relationship between the earth and human beings until he inadvertently damaged the environment himself. While landscaping his home in Connecticut, he cut down trees on his property and was immediately fined and instructed to replant. Determined to be more environmentally aware, James educated himself intensely on global warming and conservation. The more he studied, the more driven he was to make a difference. So he replanted the necessary trees but didn’t stop there. He also committed to a daily conservation and recycling routine for himself and his family. Now armed with information, James is dedicated to educating adults and children about how to make our planet a safer, cleaner place to live.

I also love that these books were written from a father to a son, and the message is relevant for everyone!

For more about William the Garbage Truck and his friends, check out http://www.williamandcrew.com/!

The book is available to purchase directly on the website for $14.95 and is also available from other popular online booksellers.

Thanks to Parent Reviewers for the heads-up on this great new book!

Go Natural Baby: Zah Organics Giveaway!

Over at Go Natural Baby there is a giveaway for the winner's choice of their adorable Keiko Kimono Dress OR Fairfax Vest by zah organics™ (organic cotton).

The Keiko Dress is available in sizes 12 months- 4t and the Fairfax Vest is available in sizes 3 months-4t. A set of organic cotton washcloths will also be included $7.00).

Go enter! Everything is adorable!

Organic Baby Stuff SALE ALERT!

Today is an exciting day at one of my favorite organic baby and children's clothes stores, Go Natural Baby!

Firstly, I have my very own guest post on the Go Natural Baby Blog! Go check it out, and maybe even leave a comment or "digg it" to make it seem like I have fans *wink*.


Also, there is a HUGE BLOWOUT SALE staring today, with 40-50% off of organic baby bedding, blankets, some clothing items, and dolls!
Personally I'm drooling over this adorable Organic Cotton Baby Doll by Sckoon, which is now only $6.00!!!

Go shopping to your heart's content using coupon code: joy at checkout (stock up for Christmas and future baby showers!) Be sure to save me one of those dolls though...

Also on sale are these amazing fair-trade baskets, hand-woven in the historical town of Bolgatanga, Ghana in West Africa.

The Gathering Basket, pictured with Deeds, is now only $15! These baskets are truly works of art. You can feel the quality as soon as you wrap your fingers around the leather handle.

The pail shaped basket is also on my list; at only $13.20 I cannot pass this up!

I saw baskets similar to this at Whole Foods Market one time for about $40!

Jojo wanted one then, but I said "DON"T TOUCH THAT!" (I'm always afraid that high prices might be contagious; I can hardly shop there without hyperventilating). Now he has one from Go Natural Baby, so he shouldn't be traumatized.

Besides the attractive design, this basket is woven of soft elephant grass fibers. The handle is wrapped in hand-tanned leather. It smells like an open field on a breezy spring day. It is a piece of art!
Sometimes my desire for a good bargain meets conflict with my desire for high quality, eco-friendly, and socially conscious products. Things like this beautiful basket push me closer to the good.

At Go Natural Baby's online store you can find Fair Trade and organic cotton clothes for babies and children up to 4T.

This mama-owned company is “bringing the richness of organic cotton and the values of fair trade into the lives of our children”. What a worthy goal!

Inside Out Kidz

It is so exciting that "going green" is a bona fide trend in America these days. One of the fringe benefits is that there are LOTS of new earth-friendly companies now that sell a seemingly endless variety of products.

I really enjoy finding organic children's clothing companies that are new to me. Most recently, I was introduced to Inside Out Kidz!

Inside Out Kidz desires to help children be healthy in a healthy environment by creating onesies, lap-tees, and t-shirts that are 100% certified organic unbleached cotton.


The shirts are printed with simple designs and meaningful messages using water based inks that do not contain PVCs!

Inside Out Kidz clothing is made in the USA!

Use coupon code IOKPROMO for 20% off your order, until December 11, 2008!

Inside Out Kidz wants to give one My Greening reader an Inside Out Kidz clothing item in YOUR choice of style, color, and size! (*$18 value*)

To enter, simply tell me which item from Inside Out Kidz you would like to win (don't forget to tell me color, size, and style!).

One winner will be selected by random integer generator.

This giveaway will close on Saturday, August 23, 12 midnight!

*Congrats, Cool Crafty Mom * !

Go Green: Back to School

MyHealthySchool.com provides teachers, administrators and parents with action plans for creating greener, healthier, more socially responsible schools and children. As a result of this combined effort, our children will learn how to make decisions that benefit their communities, the environment and their own lives.

Sponsored in part by Kiwi Magazine, MyHealthySchool.com offers a wealth of resources for helping your school (and your student) to go green one step at a time. You can find a list of green school supplies (Office Depot brand folders make the cut!), advice on starting a school garden, starting a recycling program at your school, tips on packing a healthy lunch, and a waste free lunch guide.

Teachers and parents can also find ideas for how to teach concepts of social responsibility (and why it is important)! I find that children love to be a part of a cause and are usually very eager to do what they can when they learn about recycling or fair trade. There are also some free download able activities for kids from Kiwi Magazine.

You can send your child back to school in an organic cotton or hemp school uniform from Kid Bean. Don't forget a backpack made from recycled drinking bottles, and your little scholar will be on his or her way to saving the earth!

Eco-Friendly Birthday Parties

I was so excited to find www.OneMomAndAParty.com among my discoveries when I was browsing through the Bloggy Carnival last week.

Modern birthday parties, as we know, generate A LOT of waste. The typical birthday party results in a mass of disposable plates, cutlery, napkins, cups, balloons, wrapping paper, banners...the list goes on and on!

One Mom And A Party sells eco-friendly party supplies in a variety of festive themes. Check out the super cute Flip Flop Party Set (pictured) that includes a fabric flip flop table cloth, stripy napkins, and flip floppy goody bags.

I am totally smitten with the White Stars Napkin Set...it makes me want to have a tea party! I'm also looking forward to the Birthday Banners that are supposed to be "coming soon"! Think of it: a unique fabric, washable Happy Birthday Banner that can be reused for YEARS. That is a family tradition starting, my friends!

My favorite thing about One Mom And A Party, though, is not the super adorable table linens: Terry has assembled a wealth of FANTASTIC ideas for throwing an eco-friendly party of just about any type!

You can look at a list of possible themes for an Earth friendly party (do you prefer a Montessori party? Indoor? Outdoor? Destination? Take your pick!). Once you choose a theme, take a look at the Activity Ideas page. After that, you can plan the menu with the Eco-Friendly Party food section! But Terry didn't stop there (she is amazing)! You can look at ideas for a Baby Buffet (for a first birthday), Toddler Party Foods, Picnic Foods, Healthy Birthday Cakes (say what?), and even Free Recipes!

I can't wait to use One Mom And A Party as a planning resource for my next birthday party! Maybe I'll start planning RIGHT NOW!

ImagiPlaying

I LOVE toys made out of natural materials. There are so many advantages to choosing wooden play things, including durability, safety, and beautiful simplicity. I was excited to discover ImagiPLAY toys, which are made from plantation-grown chemical-free rubberwood and bamboo (which is actually a grass). ImagiPLAY uses safe, renewable materials, no child labor, and pays it's factory workers a living wage. But besides being ecologically responsible and crafting toys with integrity, ImagiPLAY toys are adorable and downright fun!
My 3 1/2 year old got a new ImagiPLAY toy called puzzleplay. It is a puzzle and an 18 piece play set all in one! In the rainforest play set that we have, the pieces are in the shapes of various rainforest animals. The animals are thick enough to stand up on their own. This is a terrific toy that can be enjoyed in a variety of ways.

I wondered if Jojo would have the skills to do the puzzle; it looked pretty challenging to me, but it was no problem for Jojo.

ImagiPLAY also has a line of toys for toddlers: Baby Deeds has his very own Pushalong Duck. The wood is gorgeous and smooth, hand painted using child-safe (lead free) paints. The wheels on the Pushalong Duck have little rubber "tires" so that it rolls smoothly and doesn't scratch surfaces.

Deeds has fun pushing his Pushalong Duck, but he also likes to kick it, making it roll really quickly, so that he can "run" after it and kick it again! I have tried to teach him that ducks make a "quack quack" sound, but Deeds makes his Pushalong Duck go "vroom vroom"!

Check out this cool Arctic Expedition play set! It has a variety of arctic-themed figures that store nicely inside of a fabric igloo! I think it is one of the neatest and most practical ideas for a play set that I have ever seen! Jojo likes to hook the dog sled around the dog's tail and haul the other members of the Expedition. The Arctic Expedition play set sees A LOT of action at our house. I'm going to borrow the igloo and polar bears for a Christmas centerpiece. Shh! Don't tell the kids!

Isn't this African Safari set the cutest? I love the baobob tree the little baboon that fits so nicely on top of it. The driver of the safari jeep also slides inside like a puzzle piece.


I think it is so important to give my children quality playthings that help them learn about the world around them. ImagiPLAY playsets are a great way to introduce simple concepts of ecology and zoology.



ImagiPLAY also has an ENORMOUS variety of Colorific Earth Puzzles for teaching numbers, letters, spatial relations, and hand-eye coordination.
The hand-painted, 3-D Number Snake is a fabulous manipulative for a tactile learner to explore number sequencing (as a teacher I get excited about these things!).


So, how would you like to win an amazing prize from ImagiPLAY?

You could win the VERY COOL ZOOM TO THE MOON playset ($27 value)!

To enter, simply comment here with your favorite ImagiPlay puzzle (besides the snake, of course!).

One winner will be chosen by Random Integer Generator at www.random.org and notified by email.

This giveaway will close on Sunday, August 3, 12 midnight.

*Congrats to jnmacdonald*

Handmade Beanies for Your Bean-head!

The Portland Beanie Shop on etsy offers adorable hand crocheted beanie hats in a variety of sizes from infant to adult.
The Portland Beanie Shop is a small, family-run business located in Portland, Oregon (naturally!). Judging from the wide variety of styles and sizes, Nili, the fiber artist behind The Portland Beanie shop, has been very busy!

You can win a beanie from The Portland Beanie Shop! Nili has offered the winner's choice of a visor beanie or flowered visor beanie in any size between 0-3 m and 2T-4T! You pick the color!

To enter, just go browse the WIDE selection at The Portland Beanie Shop.

Come back here and comment with an item you like from the store! You can tell me which size and color you would like to win, or another item you think is cute!

One winner will be chosen by Random Number Generator. Be sure I have a way to contact you if you win.

This contest will close on June 21, 9pm CST.

*Congrats to the winner, Team Chilton who said...

I LOVE the yellow with the flowers, visor style for a girl. LOVE IT....if I have a boy, I'd go with an ear flap style with the khaki color and blue, so hard to choose! Either way, probably 6-12 month size. Awesome giveaway!

Gardening with Matches

A few weeks ago I ran across a neat little invention called "matchstick garden". It is a little book of paper "matches" that contain seeds on the ends. When planted, they grow into herbs or wildflowers (as specified on the packaging).

This is info from their website:

There are two styles of Matchstick Garden available, either four herbs or wildflower seeds already mixed on the end of each matchstick. The Mixed Herb Matchstick Garden contents Basil, Chives, Parsley, and Thyme. The Wildflower Matchstick Garden contains Cornflower, Shasta Daisy, Corn Marigold, and Field Poppy. Each matchbook is 3" W x 2" H with 10 matchsticks. Easy to follow instructions are printed inside. The Matchstick Garden a great party favor, stocking stuffer and surprising gift!

My preschool-aged son loves gardening, and I thought something like this would be a fun and manageable way for parents without gardening skills (myself included) to start growing with their children.

This is easily more useful than growing "magic rocks". Hydrated Silica, anyone? Most likely NOT organic.

You ANAMALZ!

I should have a little sense of shame and avoid talking about recent purchases after my little "stop shopping" diatribe from yesterday, but I don't.
Actually I wouldn't call it a "diatribe"; it was more of a "time of reflection".
Anyway, what did I buy on my Birthday Excursion to Target? Toys. For my kids.
I couldn't resist. I found a super-adorable eco-friendly line of animal figurines called ANAMALZ.
I bought a zebra. We named him Zeebz (we aren't very good at original names).













Zeebz and all of the other Anamalz are made in Australia from (sustainable) plantation wood. They are painted with non-toxic, water-based paints. They are glued with formaldehyde free glues. They are painted by hand and put together by hand, and not in a sweat shop, either!
These are the kind of toy that I LOVE. Eco-friendly, high-quality, safe materials, and oh-so-adorable: anamalz are at the top of my list currently.
Look at these other cuties on my Anamalz wish list:

When I bought Zeebz he was packaged in cardboard. I was curious about the packaging, because the Anamalz company strives to be Green in their choices of materials and processes for toy making. I contacted the company and asked what that card board was all about, and here is what I found out:

Firstly, as we are 100% committed to producing environmentally friendly toys, we didn’t want to package our anamalz at all ,and they are usually sold in stores on an individual basis. They are displayed on an “anamalz” stand, and sold from there, rather than in the boxing you’ve seen. The only store which has boxing is Target USA, as this was necessary as part of their stockist requirements. That said however, it must be noted that the packaging used for our Target USA stock was 70% recycled cardboard.

I'm a bit disappointed in Target over this, as I was thinking how the packaging was very unnecessary. But at least it is recycled cardboard that I in turn re-recycled.

To get my spirits up I had a look at this cute animated music video featuring a song about elephant anamalz. And here is a non-official anamalz video that made me chuckle. Enjoy!

Buying BPA free Kids' Cups

The baby bottle collection at our house has been sorted. I tossed offending sippy cups and pacifiers.
For my 3 1/2 year old, I opted for a Sigg bottle. He got one 0.3 L size and one 0.4 L size.
He is so proud to take his little 0.3 L Sigg bottle to preschool. It has a cool look and it keeps his milk cold and free of toxins!

Our Sigg bottles were purchased from Reusable Bags.
ReusableBags.com have a nice selection of some of our favorite products...things that we have AND things that we wish we had!

The baby bottles that my 7-month-old was using were replaced with Nuby brand cups on the safe list at The Soft Landing.
I felt that he was too old for a glass bottle (since we are in the beginning of the self-feeding and throwing/dropping phase) but too young to handle a non-pliable sippy cup. The Nuby 10 oz 2 Handle Cup with Soft Silicone Spout:
Have you searched your sippy cup collection for unsafe plastics? If you are new to the BPA issue, check out Z Recommends: Catching Up on BPA to get yourself up to speed. Z Recommends: National Toxicology Program Concurs "Some Concern" with BPA Exposure.

Thanks to Z Recommends and The Soft Landing for making it easy to navigate this tangled web of plastic!

Read the Tupperware Plastics Information at Z Recs.

New BPA free Nalgene bottles!

Lots of help from The Soft Landing:

• The Soft Landing's Safer Kids Cup and Dish Guide
• The Soft Landing's Safer Pacifier Guide
• The Soft Landing's Safer Sippy Cup Guide
• The Soft Landing's Safer Baby Bottle Guide
• The Soft Landing's Safer Bath Toy Guide
• The Soft Landing's Safer Teether Guide
• The Soft Landing's BPA Free Sassy Product Guide
• another updated list of BPA-free kid's cups from The Soft Landing!

Maybe you can WIN a BPA-free sippy cup: Green & Clean Mom: WIN 2 BPA Sippy Cups- A review and a sippy good time!