Eco Child’s Play

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How would you like to win a $350 shopping spree on Etsy?  Imagine this, 14 people will win a $350 Etsy shopping spree. Really, I detest a contest where I know I don’t stand a chance of winning. This one has some really good odds. 14 winners? I’m one of them (yeah, that’s my mantra).

All you need to do is go on over to Etsy and vote for your favorite item(s) in the Handmade Kids Challenge. What could be greener than handmade crafts sold by their respective craftsmen online? There is a Handmade Kids Eco Friendly category with some great looking stuff.

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As the mother of FIVE, (Yes, I know what causes them. That’s why we have so many.) I am constantly on a mission. My purpose in life is to raise responsible and socially conscious children. After all, the children of today are the future of this place we call home. I might have five children, but we have only ONE Earth. As such, it is vitally important with each passing day that we learn how to best care for and nurture our planet.

Every family has different methods for motivating their children. Our kids all know the why and how of what we do and I have discovered this to be vital in their training. I also strive to make things fun. For without fun, what holds the child’s interest? Our most recent find is, Michael Recycle by Ellie Bethel. Kids love Super Heroes and often want to be one. Why not encourage your child to be a Green Super Hero? Read the rest of this entry »

I am so wasted on cheap wine tired from all the summer activities that this will be a short post.

Y’all may or may not remember my head lice trauma. If you don’t recall, the journey begins here. Unfortunately it continued here (careful I cuss a lot). I learned a lesson, it’s a horrible lesson.

Not every mother will keep their child home when they have headlice. *sigh*

Today we did the lice wash. Not because we’re infested, but because we don’t want to be. We’re a few weeks out of any infestation, and I’d like to keep it that way. In preparation for back to school I’m washing everyone with Happy Heads, I’ll continue doing so two to three times a month ad infinitum.

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Breastfeeding moms can now enjoy the comfort of luxuriously soft bamboo nursing pads from Bamboobino. Made with bamboo fleece, these pads are breathable, anti-bacterial and super absorbent even though they are surprisingly thin.

The 70% bamboo/30% cotton blend is not only machine washable, it also makes the nursing pads soft, smooth & non-bulky.

Bamboo kun, a naturally occurring element in bamboo, makes it naturally anti-bacterial. It’s also hypo allergenic, has a cashmere-like softness that is great for babies and its porous fibers naturallys wicks moisture away from skin.

Sometimes it is hard to get children to do anything more than sitting around watching TV or playing video games. I like to see my kids go outside and play or use their minds for something creative. Derek’s post about wood working projects is great, a fabulous way to inspire a child’s creativity.  In his post Derek said kids love to make things. That is so true and definitely something that can be encouraged easily, even with the little ones. Read the rest of this entry »

Hah! Another completely misleading title from me. I refuse to eat this because it’s baby food and, frankly, my kids are bigger and I’ve done my time. If you’ve got a baby though, you’ve got to get some of this goo food for him/her.

My neighbor has an infant who is just adding solids (squishy ones) to her diet. Like many other really great parents my neighbor wants to feed her daughter good organic foods. She loves the idea of making it herself and freezing it all into little cubes a la Martha Stewart.

But she’s too farking tired.

In any event, the UPS guy came and brought her this.

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I feel the consumerism of back to school season like a stiff wind in my face. I’m sending my oldest off to preschool, and after 3 years of not caring what she is wearing except for holidays and birthdays, forgetting to brush her hair for days on end, and rarely buying things new for her, I am a bit swept up in how to get her ready.

I’ve been obsessing about backpacks. Really, there is a lot to think about: No PVC (vinyl), lead, no or not much plastic, preferably made in the U.S. with sustainable materials. And all this for under 50 bucks.

I can tell you for preschoolers, it doesn’t exist. (Mama entrepreneurs, take note!). After searching each link on the Center for Health and Justice’s list of back to school items without PVC, I found nothing that would work. I’ve also searched some great resources posted recently on Enviroblog.

I think the search for the backpack is really a front for feeling anxious about letting her go. She is beginning that journey, up up and away, and while that is beautiful and exhilarating, it is also painful and sad for me.
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My family has just returned from an awe inspiring vacation on Catalina Island. One of the (seemingly endless) ways that the camp lessens it’s carbon footprint is by composting. Can I take a moment and make an announcement please?

I am not a farmer.

I am a housewife from Los Angeles who happens to have access to a computer and an insatiable need to leave the world a teeny bit nicer than I found it. That need does not include turning lemon rinds into bougainvillea. Travis Langen, I blame you, because today I am researching what we need to begin composting. Why? Because you presented composting to my children in such a manner that they are very excited about the process.

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Future Marine Biologist? Future Environmental Engineer? Future Eco-Savior? Earth Warrior? EcoKid? Planet Patrol? Green Teen? Captain Crunch? ECP readers and Idea hamsters rev your brainpower to gear up for a FREE baby “Treehugger” onesie/tee!

These fun GirlMogul.com tees are a refreshing alternative to the rampant retail ‘pink think’ and “So Sexy So Soon” flash-n-trash that’s predominant in Packaging Girlhood as of late.

GirlMogul’s aspirational identity-wear offers positive personas that are Shaping Youth in favorable ways… I’m sold!

“We believe in encouraging girls’ dreams. You won’t find any princess messages here; just positive, encouraging messages…Future Leader of the Free World, Future CEO, Future Zoologist, Future Brain Surgeon”…

Quite a refreshing change from the snarky tidbits of consumerist tripe with the ‘shop ‘til you drop’ mentality I’ve come across with back to school shopping lately, eh?! Seems like they could use a few more eco-focused nudges toward going green, so I contacted founder Andrea Stein to pitch her the idea of encouraging ECP readers to create the phrase THEY’D most like to see on a tee-shirt…Here’s our mini-interview: Read the rest of this entry »

Recently I was invited to a perfectly civilized barbecue and managed to find myself screaming the words, “how dare you punish your children with cancer because you’re afraid of sex!” Screaming back at me was, “What about the deaths?” Huh? What deaths?

I am, by all accounts, a deeply flawed woman, and had the hostess been anyone other than who she is, she might have decked me. Some of these parenting issues become hot buttons before we realize it. The immunization debates rankle many. I live in a neighborhood where illegal immigrants with unknown backgrounds routinely care for young children. I see childhood vaccines as prudent. I understand waiting a few extra months, but skipping them altogether seems foolhardy to me.

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