I discovered Abe’s Market sometime last year when I came across a cardboard dollhouse with furniture that I knew my 7 year old daughter would just love. It ended up being a birthday present and my daughter still plays with it quite often. Even though it is made of cardboard it is still going strong.

This store is part Etsy and part Whole Foods with a mix of posh and sustainable toys as well as some handcrafted stuff. But they also have a little Amazon, Groupon and Home Shopping Network thrown in their to to make a really well rounded online store. Abe’s Market is about combining the best things that Grandpa Abe represented – health and wellness, mom and pop, reliability, trust, honesty, community and personal connection between business owners and customers. They also have great prices IMO. I recall that dollhouse being a real steal.

Well, the folks at Abe’s Market are celebrating their new “In the Know” video series by offering my readers a kickin coupon deal. The idea behind the series is to help consumers find out where the the products they are buying come from and the story behind them. This valuable background goes beyond what can be found on a label. Who makes the product? What’s in it? Where is it made? How? I recall watching their video about the dollhouse when I purchased it. I already thought it was an amazing idea but it looks like they are taking that idea even farther and adding educational videos on all sorts of other topics. This one below talks about shopping for natural, organic, eco friendly toys.

With Christmas coming up I thought a $10 off coupon might come in handy. Enjoy!

Visit the store and use the special one-time only discount code “ENB-dk49hy” at checkout for $10 off a $30 purchase or more. Also visit @AbesMarket on Twitter and Facebook.

We have owned several cardboard toys from mini treehouses and castles to spaceships to actual child size play houses. I like cardboard because it is recyclable or compostable and durable enough for kids to fully enjoy it before it needs to be tossed. You can also paint them all sorts of groovy colors and customize the way they they look.

These days my kiddos are playing with a cardboard ice cream truck courtesy of Build a Dream Playhouses. They graciously offered to send us one on the house and I knew my kids would get a kick out the truck as opposed to their other (but equally fun) cardboard toys.

It came in a fairly large but skinny box and my kids loved playing with that too. I had my husband put it together cause that’s how I roll. It took about 10 minutes I would say. We noticed right away that the truck comes out of the box plain so that it can be an ice cream truck like we have OR an ambulance… it came with a few extra pieces for that, if you want to go that direction. That is why they call it The Imagine Wagon as opposed to the Ice Cream Truck.. pretty clever I think. This giant truck sat on our kitchen table for about a week while I painted in spurts.. with the kids helping of course. I picked the yellow and teal color scheme for the truck and my daughter chose the ice cream flavors.

We used water based acrylic paints and it dried very fast. It was also pretty easy to paint since we had it up on a table. The most time consuming part was painting the ice creams on the side of the truck.. the sno cone, ice cream cone, ice cream sandwich, and the popsicle. They had to drawn by hand but it was easy enough after I printed some vector images off the computer and then traced them onto the truck. Then I painted over where I traced and voila. I think they came out very well. My oldest son claimed that I was a big fat liar for claiming I was not artistic. Ha! I would not go so far as that but it was a nice if not slightly insulting compliment. They still need to paint the inside dash with markers and it will be all finished.

After it was all painted it hung out in the garage for far too long as we waited for a non rainy day to play with it. But that sunny day finally came!

They LOVE it! But I knew they would. I also figured it would draw other kids and boy did it. At least half a dozen other kids made their way over to play with it in just a few minutes. It was a big hit. They all took turns pretending to order their favorite items.

My only criticism is that the big Popsicles on top come off really easy when it moves or the wind blows. The sides can cave in a bit when kids move around it from inside, like they are driving. The design in those two ares could be a tad sturdier. Stickers would nice for parents that don’t want to hand paint the ice creams but in the end I am glad I had to paint them. It was a lot of fun.

There are many other options other than the ice cream truck too. My kids woulds also dig their lemonade stand, their play kitchen, and their space rocket. In fact we may need to buy that space rocket or Cosmic Cruiser as they call it, soon. I see a lot of open ended “pretend” play with these toys, which is the best kind. I also love that they were designed by a Cleveland Dad, very cool. These playhouse definitely get an enthusiastic thumbs up from us!

Buy the The Imagine Wagon (Ice Cream Truck ).

My ten year old loves to listen to music while he roller blades… which is usually a couple hours each day. He all but commandeered my older iPod shuffle so this week I decided to just gift it to him. Perhaps I was just sick of hearing my son’s music.. “We Will Rock You” in particular. Either way I got a new one for me and the husband. I use it at the gym and for meditation, he uses it while at work.

A new shuffle meant new headphones so I opted to get some of the new wooden earbuds I have been hearing about. The housing around the tip is Mohagony wood, the tips are plastic free silicone, and the cord is braided rope with wires on the inside. Supposedly the sound is supposed to be richer and warmer than regular earbuds but I couldn’t really tell much difference. Though I can’t have the volume very loud because my ears will start to hurt… a side effect of my cancer treatment was ear issues. The colon (what’s left of it) is okay but the ears are wacked, funny how that works. These earbuds do appear to be just a bit greener than other types and these particular ones have a lifetime guarantee, so hurray for that.

If you are in the market for any or your kids need some for school try some wooden ones. They work just as well and I think they are slightly cooler looking myself. You can buy some for anywhere from $20 to $50. Enjoy!

In my post on Healthy Cookware I mentioned that I was trying a new-to-me brand of safer pots and pans called Xtrema by Ceramcor. They sent me a skillet a few weeks back and I have now had a chance to use it in the kitchen. Their pans are high temperature ceramic that is non-scratch and easy to clean. I don’t see a non-stick claim on their site but in my opinion they are very much non-stick. They can be used on stove top, oven, under broiler, freezer, frig, microwave and on a barbeque grill. The company recommends that you use nylon, silicone, or wood cooking tools with these pans but as you can see in the photo above I used  a metal spatula for cooking eggs. I don’t like plastic or silicone spatulas and wooden ones are too thick for flipping eggs. It didn’t scratch the pan but for all other types of cooking I used wood spoons.

For fried eggs this pan was great. They cooked like a dream and they flipped very nicely without sticking. The pan was also a snap to clean. I also used it to make some fresh fish for the kids, and also to saute mushrooms and onions for other dishes. IMO it took a bit longer for food to cook with this skillet than in my stainless steel skillet. That said, I must also share that I recently went from cooking on an electric range to a gas range again and I am NOT digging the cook times for gas, so that could be the issue as well.

This isn’t my new favorite pan or anything but it is very nice for cooking eggs on weekday mornings, or browning up some mushrooms for lunch… when I don’t have too many people to cook for. It is super easy to clean, which makes me VERY happy and it is a nice looking skillet as well. I am happy to give this healthier skillet a home. I would like to try the Xtrema Wok and give it a nice test run as well.

Why Its Healthy:

* Handmade using natural gas, clay and water

* No trace metals or chemicals leach from the cooking surface

* There is no harmful PTFE coating and it produces no harmful PFOA gas which can occur with most popular petroleum based non-stick coatings.

Why Its Green:

* Materials are inorganic natural minerals from our earth’s crust

* The non-scratch ceramic cooking surface on the Xtrema cookware is non-reactive and 100% non-toxic

* Durability – These pans will last for a long time and cannot be scratched… even if you use steel wool. There is even a 50 year warranty.

A couple years ago I compiled big lists of BPA free kids cups. Most of us were used to giving our kids plastic sippy cups to avoid spills but when we found that BPA or Bishpenol A had the potential to harm our children we sought better options. Our demand for better products was so loud that MANY companies reformulated their products to offer safer cups and many new companies popped up to fill this need as well. Still for many moms, myself included, there was still something missing.

Yes we had safer cups but they were made of plastic.. which frankly can have other issue besides BPA. While I gave moms who wanted plastic options they needed I scoured the net for stainless steel cups and I bought up small mason jars at thrift stores for my own kids. With out mix of stainless steel tumblers and little glass jars we made do, but I DID miss the sippy cup option!

Now a company has stepped to the plate to provide an answer for us picky moms… a glass cup with plastic sippy attachment, and a sleeve to prevent breakage. It is quite simply the most awesome safe sippy cup I have yet seen. I am really loving it… the EIO Glass Cup for Kids.

The design is similar to what we now see in glass baby bottles. It has a silicone sleeve that prevents breakage of the body.. which is glass. The top portion is BPA, Phthalates and PVC free plastic with a small hole in the inclined area. There is no spout or valve that is impossible to clean or that allows for mold growth. It is dishwasher safe. The BEST part though is that the lid fits on to virtually any 8 ounce canning jar!!! Yes… if your cup breaks (which is unlikely IMO) you can replace with a canning jar, easy peasy! I just love the whole concept, especially the part where I do not have to buy another cup if the part most likely to break, does in fact break.. I can just use a caning jar I already have. The top plastic part is very sturdy and unlikely to break IMO. The sleeve is nice but not really a necessity.. if it were to rip somehow, the cup would function just fine without it.

Up until we got the EIO cup we were just using open cups (both metal and glass). We had lots of breakage, which was no biggie really but the spills were getting out of hand. Since we have started using the EIO that issue is gone, thank goodness. We have the green cup but there is also purple and orange and I am considering getting one for my 6 year old too because the cup does not have a babyish appearance and it would help with dinner time spills. This cup is great for older kids too.

I don’t like using plastic or buying new plastic but I will buy “smart” plastic. Something that will be reused over and over again, that will last, and that makes it easier to use less plastic overall. This cup definitely qualifies.

All in all, I am pretty excited about his new innovation. Some companies see a need and they do the bare minimum… like take the BPA out of their existing cups. Other companies see moms who are concerned with not only the chemicals but also the reliance on plastic and the move towards other materials and they come up with a solution. I love the EIO cup but I also love the fact that one company stood up and took notice of what I (and other moms like me) wanted in a kids cup and they delivered. It should be no surprise to anyone that is was in fact a mom who invented this cup… a mom that wanted to empower her kids to use REAL, earth friendly dinnerware at the table.

Much thanks to Kathy Haskell of EIO for the awesome product and for sending me a sample cup to review at my request.

As indicated in my round up of greener menstrual products I am not a fan of the mainstream menstrual products for women. Paper and plastic pads and tampons just aren’t good options for the planet nor for a woman’s comfort. More than anything I think those mainstream options allow us to distance ourselves from the process as much as possible and not take responsibility for it. Either that or it is just pure convenience… aka why wash cloth pads or rinse out a Diva Cup in soapy water and get your hands dirty when you could just throw the problem away… literally.

I was very interested in trying Lunapanties because I see nothing wrong with convenience myself and having panties that also double as a cloth pad seemed genius to me and ooohhhhh it is genius. Even if you use paper sanitary napkins I dare you to see this as less convenient. Other than the washing, which I am assuming you won’t be doing by hand, down at the river, beating your panties against rocks, then this is such an easy solution. Follow me here for a second.. put the panties on… then take them off to wash. Easy! No unwrapping a sanitary napkin, peeling off the gazillion stickers that are affixed to them, no sticking it to the crotch of your undewear, no cursing when your monthly gift misses the napkin and stains your panties, no feeling like you are wearing an adult diaper, no wrapping the napkin up in toilet paper (or a time capsule to protect from pets) and throwing it away to sit in a landfill for all eternity… see… easy!

Lunapanties are basically just panties that come with some extra padding in the crotch area and they have a couple loops sewn into that area as well that allow for you to double up, or triple up even, on the protection by adding absorbent inserts. The panties and the inserts are made of super soft organic cotton (95%) and they are oh so comfortable. The other 5% is lycra to make the panties snug fitting. The ones given to me for this review are a pretty purple color but I see from the web site that they also come in black. I like the purple.

After using them for a week recently I can say that I REALLY love them. I plan to buy a couple more pairs and they, coupled with my Diva Cup, will be what I reach for every month. I also like the fact that I can still use many of my other cloth pads with them too. On heavy flow days I do need to use inserts just for my own peace of mind, and for a couple days I just used the underwear and the Diva Cup with no issues. On the last day or so I just wore the panties with no insert. I didn’t even feel like I was on my period and that ladies is lovely, as I am sure you know!

There have several different sizes (S-3XL) and have several different styles from briefs to thongs. I would recommend getting one pair and trying them to see how you like the fit and style and then ordering more. I requested large size granny panties (briefs would be the name they use) and the large seemed… well… kinda large. They seemed to me that they are sized a little to big.

The price for the panties is $29.99. If you usually buy panties at Wal-Mart for $2.00 a pop then this might seem expensive. If you buy panties at Victoria’s Secret then these will seem like a good deal. I think they are a great value, especially given that they are high quality and organic. 3 panties, my inserts and pads, and my Diva Cup will do me just fine and I will still save in the long run because I don’t have to buy sanitary napkins or tampons every month.

The washing is also very easy. I just threw them in the wash on cold and let them soak for an hour and then rinsed and spun. Then I washed them with a load of towels. They did not stain but I wouldn’t have cared much if they did…. that’s just not a big deal to me. The Luna company recommends Nellie’s A-Natural Laundry Soda Soap Detergent, which I have used and like and they suggest BunchaFarmers Biodegradable Stain Remover Stick for stains. Never heard of it but I may have to try that now!

All in all I find this to be one of those great products that really makes life more comfortable and convenient and yet has the benefit of being the greener option to. A++

Friday mornings are often crafty times for us because it is the only day when my two youngest are both home all day. This morning my daughter colored her Kidzsack Backpack an my son colored with his Eco Stars (more on those later). We set up the perfect place to do all this busy work… on the back porch, soaking in the fresh air and sunshine. This area will double as our dining room until Fall.

Anyway, the Kidzsack is a durable kids backpack made from eco friendly fibers. They come with an uncolored picture on the base of the pack and the kids get to color them in and make the backpack their unique creation. As a future fashion designer (her words not mine) my daughter really appreciates this product. It comes with 8 washable markers so that you can wash and then "create" all over again.

There are numerous different designs from which to choose from, for boys and girls. The bag my daughter has is called Sea Life but you can also get Sports, Castles, Jungle, etc. My daughter is anxiously awaiting Monday so she can take her new pack to school and show it off.

What I like about this product is that it gives kids control over the creative design. I like the fact that this "craft" is actually useful too. I know we will get much use out of it at school and during trips this summer. I love bags you can wash too!! The bag gets bonus points for being partially made out of recycled plastic bottles… they gotta go somewhere.

I am not so crazy about markers in general because of the new plastic, but what can you do? Usually we donate the markers that come with craft projects but these will be kept for future colorization of the bag. We give this product a A+ for fun and a B+ on eco indicators.

For more info on how it works watch the video below:

I have been meaning to write up a review of this lunchbox… which I bought many moons ago when they first hit the market. But I rarely have time to pack lunches AND snap pictures in the wee hours of the morning. Some days I cannot even believe I used to have a bento lunchbox blog where I blogged daily pictures of my son's lunches. The addition of a second child to the mix is throwing me off my game. But Mondays are much more nice now that my husband is home for them (at least for now) so I actually had time to throw a quick lunch together and take some pictures! 

The lunchbox we used this morning is the Goodbyn. I grabbed it because I had personalized it with an "I love you" message that I felt my daughter needed to see. Yes, mommy was feeling major guilty this morning over her own bad behavior. So I grabbed the "I love you" box and already that is a major plus for Goodbyn. The stickers may not be eco friendly, they are probably plastic based, but the idea that you can personalize the lunchbox is a big hit in this house.

On the menu: Banana, baby carrots with hummus dip, green smoothie in a bottlle, PB&J Lara Bar, Strawberries, dried blueberries, and goji berries chilling with two fruity cubes to keep them cold, Brazil nuts, and two fair trade chocolate earth balls. Everything is raw vegan except the chocolate. The container with the Hummus is not from Goodbyn… I borrowed it from one of our Laptop Lunchboxes.

The whole concept of this lunchbox is awesome… BPA free (safe) plastics, compartments to eliminate the need for plastic baggies and single serving packaging, and it is a pretty hip looking bento. You know me.. I LOVE bento. I also like the carrying handle and the ability to use the stickers that come with it to make it completely unique to your child. There are even stickers for kids with allergies. It is dishwasher safe if you happen to have one (I don't) and you can recycle it if need be later on down the road.

The Goodbyn does have a pretty big drawback though. You have to instruct your child on the proper way to open and close the lunchbox to avoid spilling the contents everywhere and even when adults do it I am not so confident it will stay closed. I have yet to buy some rubber bands because I have a fear of them after an "incident" with my toddler but ideally I hope to get a rubberband to wrap around the box so my daughter can actually use the carrying handle to carry it. Every time she takes this lunchbox I worry that I will find out she had to eat her lunch out of the bottom of her backpack. The closure mechanism just isn't very secure… a rubber band would fix it though and I hope Goodbyn addresses this issue some day. Another drawback is that the box is heavier than her other lunchboxes, like the afore mentioned Laptop Lunchbox and her Yubo. I also find the side compartments a bit too small. This morning I wanted to add a few more greens but the side compartments are just teeny.

All in all, we like the Goodbyn and think it has some awesome features. The execution is a bit flawed but it is also workable. While it isn't my personal favorite it does make my daughter happy and that counts for a lot.

One of the first steps in moving towards any greener, more sustainable lifestyle has to be the step where you ditch chemical cleaners and start using cleaner, greener options. It is my number #1 recommended step in fact because everyone has to clean house and by using green cleaners we make our homes and our planet safer.

Its not always an easy switch though. We may get used to using harsh cleaners like Clorox or Windex and using something more mild like baking soda and vinegar seems like more work. I know when my husband quit his old job that took him out of town all but a few days a month and he was around to do some cleaning, he was kinda baffled by my cleaners. He kept asking how do I clean this up with no paper towel and no cleaners? I would point to the cleaning cabinet and you would have thought it was empty by the look on his face. What was he to do with spray bottles, peppermint Castile soap, vinegar, baking soda, and ripped up towel remnants?

For his sake, and my own, I usually try to keep a couple non homemade green cleaners on hand so he won’t have an excuse not to help with the cleaning. Other people just want to use conventional cleaners and that is okay… there are greener choices available. I get lots of requests from companies to test their green cleaners and since I know I will use them I agree to act as a tester on occasion. The cleaners below are some of my latest adventures in this area.

The ones pictured above are called wowgreen and there are 12 of them from an all purpose cleaner, to a dish soap, to a wood and dust shine. I got a big box from the company and dove right into testing them since I had some guests coming over… the kind of guests that bring TV cameras. I rather enjoy cleaning and do it thoroughly so they got a good run. Ultimately they clean pretty good but not good enough to keep me buying them. They don’t blow my homemade cleaners out the water but they do have one very cool feature. You buy the bottles once and then refill them with little packets of concentrated cleaner and water. It is a much better alternative then buying bottled cleaners over and over again at the supermarket. But with homemade cleaners I can refill my own bottles AND not have the little plastic pouch of concentrated cleaner to throw away.

Another drawback was the fact that all the cleaners have dye in them. They are all groovy colors like red, blue, yellow, and orange but that is not necessary and the dyes can’t be natural. They also stained some of my white rags which is kind of annoying. But they didn’t give me hives like many of the more conventional cleaners do so that is a good sign. All in all I I found them efficient but they didn’t “wow” me. I ended up donating what I had left (which was a lot) to someone who could use them.

A company called Earth Care Market sent me some of their cleaners and I like their stuff much better although I had tried most of it before. The soap nuts they sent are already a hit here. The Wipe-Its are coin sized pellets that turn into a paper towel-like cloth wipe and I have tried them before to. I like them a lot but not so much for every day cleaning. I keep some on hand for vacations, camping, and hiking though.

Their Clean-It Mop might have been a nice change of pace from my usual routine… which is to use my feet and two rags to clean my hard floors. BUT I didn’t have a mop stick on which to attach the mop head and wasn’t about to buy one (plastic) just to test out a mop head that would only last a few weeks. So I donated it as well and is was liked well enough but I am told it fell apart rather quickly.

The last thing that I tested was the big winner IMO. It is Vaska laundry detergent. Soap nuts are good and all but the shipping aspect is a pain in the butt. I would like to try making my own but as yet have not ventured there. When we ran out a few months back I just got a bulk tub from Costco with powdered detergent. Well, in addition to the stuff smelling noxious and giving me a headache if the lid falls off, the powder does not want to dissolve in my washer. I am not sure if that is a detergent problem or a washer problem but little pebbles of detergent all over our clothes did not go over well with me. Getting the Vaska liquid herbatergent was a life saver.

I love the smell, it is really mild, and it gets the clothes cleaner than the powder did with no visible residue. It uses herbs and potent botanical cleaning agents for high performance stain removal and extreme freshness. INGREDIENTS: Plant based surfactants, vegetable conditioner, water-soluble degreasing agent, lavender extract (leaves no scent) and filtered water. My recycling center recycles the bottles too so I would definitely buy again.

Vaska is also getting pretty cool press too. One of the oldest Chinese laundry services in California recently switched to Vaska AND it won a Wash Off with Tide at the Fashion Institute of Technology. There is no reason to use harsh chemical cleaners when the greener, natural stuff works just as well ya know?

Thanks much to the companies for sending me products to test. I am kind of “harsh” when it comes to green cleaners, so sorry bout that. Some products I just have no use for. All that I tried were decent but Vaska is the only one that made me sit up and take notice.

On the heels of my post on ethical toys and I wanted to post about cardboard toys. They are certainly not new… I remember I had a full size cardboard house that I used to play in when I was a little girl. It was very big, and it was black and white so that you could paint or color it yourself to personalize it. After many months of use, when it was starting to tear and generally look raggedy, we tossed it. Every year at Christmas time we would get another one from Sees Candy.

Cardboard toys are low cost and eco friendly. You can recycle them in your own backyard compost pile. They are also wonderfully creative toys for kids. Kids can assemble them and they can personalize them making the toy their own unique creation.

For the past couple weeks my kids have been playing with cardboard toys from the Creative Toyshop. They have TONS of awesome Calafant cardboard toys that go way beyond the simple house I used to play with. They have castles, tree houses, pirate fortresses, dollhouses, and so much more. They provide hours of open ended play and when your kids are done they can be folded away for storage or recycled if they are getting a little too well used.

My oldest son has the Calafant tree house. He was pretty much able to put it together on his own from looking at the pictures. The written instructions were kind of useless IMO but the pictures rocked. After putting it together he got busy coloring it. In true creative form he opted not to let the color photo on the box guide his color choices. I knew he would like cardboard toys because for years he has made his own creations out of leftover cardboard boxes. Creating a tree house of cardboard.. heck what could be better?

My daughter has the Calafant Rosegarden Palace. I put it together for her in about ten minutes and she colored it. She referenced the color picture on the box but more often than not chose her own colors… which surprised me since she is all about pink and purple. On a side note she complained that the markers that came with it stunk really bad, LOL. They just had a really strong marker smell which she didn’t care for (she’s a soy crayon girl)… we ended up donating them after she used them.

They both loved building and decorating these toys. My son now lets his sit in his room on display and my daughter plays with hers… putting her wooden fairy dolls in it. She plans on embellishing it with glitter and rhinestones… I just keep forgetting to check out the craft section of the thrift store.

I love that these toys are rather small since we don’t have a ton of room in our tiny 1000 square foot house. The child size cardboard house I used to have wouldn’t be practical but these are perfect. All pieces are pre-cut and pre-punched. They can be put together without glue and scissors thanks to the Calafant slot-system. They are creative, they provide hours of open ended play, they are eco friendly, and they are fun.

We probably all have memories of playing in cardboard boxes as kids. We too save any big boxes for the kids to play in before they get recycled. Cardboard toys take that concept and run with it. Calafant (German) makes small, medium, and large toys for all ages and interests. There are some larger ones that kids can play in too, just like I did. Fun!

I never much liked the play dough you buy in stores. Its smells funny and it has lots of chemical dyes in it to get those nifty colors. It stains carpet when it gets mashed into it to. ;) But every kids likes play dough right? Well, for several years we have either made it ourselves or bought homemade dough from crafters on Etsy.

Recently though we used a DIY play dough kit called Yohoho Dough. It comes in a nifty canister that can be reused for numerous other things and inside it you have everything you need to make 4 pounds of modeling dough. My youngsters give it a thumbs up. It is fun to watch mommy make and fun to play with. Using the canister to hide their treasures in afterwards is a bonus.

The dough is organic and non-toxic and it is a USA made product. The whole pirate concept is a winner too, my kiddos love it. Our dough is still going strong after a couple weeks. We keep it in a bento container on top of the fridge and pull it out almost every day for a few minutes or hours of doughey fun. I could REALLY see myself using Yohoho Dough for all future play dough requirements. It is waaay smoother than anything I have ever made on my own, more like modeling clay and the process was so simple.. just combine the wet and dry ingredients, heat and mix. It was easy and my kitchen stayed clean.

I used an old plastic spoon to mix because I didn’t want to get a wood one all sticky but the plastic one almost broke when the dough got stiff so use metal or wood!

You can jazz up the dough with scents and food coloring too! We plan to try that soon…

One of the few NEW items my daughter will be sporting to school this year is an organic tee from Little Green Star. I made the commitment to buy mostly used and I am sticking to it. I make my final thrift store run next weekend. BUT I have no qualms about spending money on new clothes when they come from ethical companies with green values and Little Green Star is one of those companies IMO. And my daughter has to go to school with some shirts that declare our values right?

My daughter loves this natural tee with a ladybug on it that says “Ladies Don’t Litter”. It has become a motto for her and she goes around saying it all the time. And their other slogans are just as cute:

Peas Out
Water Pollution Makes me Crabby
Bee Green

I love that they have sizes for older kids (4-6T). It drives me batty when I see cute organic clothing and it is only for babies. The tees are 100% certified organic cotton and the designs are printed by hand with water-based inks that are PVC-free and phthalates-free. The prices are not out of ths world either.

Now that I have found my groove with used clothing, my new purchases are dwindling, but for Little Green Star I will make an exception.

I don’t know about you but I HATE walking down the toy isles in stores. I know all the plastic is not healthy for my kids or the planet but the flashy, techno toys can suck just about any kid in. My 3 year old son for instance is all about robots these days. I am not quite sure how that happened but since Transformers (which he has not seen) is all the rage these days he cannot help but be over the moon for the robots he sees everywhere. Now he is the proud owner of a few robot toys.

But still I can’t help but look at all those flashy, plastic toys and want something better for my kids… something that won’t break a week later or get tossed in boredom. That is why I stopped taking my kids to stores with me so much and started stocking up on toys that will stand the test of time and get the creativity flowing. When one child is done with them they can be passed on to the next… Legos, wooden blocks, wood tinker toys, puzzles, etc. Toys that are American made are also a big bonus.

My two boys have been delighted lately with the American made toys from Down to Earth Toys, especially the Marble Run. It has provided hours of fun for both boys. It is new and exciting for my 3 year old who is enamoured with the marbles and giggles when they fall down the track. It is stimulating and never boring for my nearly 9 year old too. In fact my older son is spending the weekend with his grandparents and he packed two changes of clothes, his toothbrush, his Nintendo DS, and the marble run.

The blocks and marbles set is “old school” and yet still such a wonderful toy. It allows for hands on creativity as they can come up with hundreds of different ways to build their block towers. It used marbles, blocks, some holes, and some elemental physics to create good old fashioned fun for kids. It helps build spacial, sequential, and organizational skills and keeps kids intrigued for a long time. It is the prefect toy for my oldest boy who seems to love anything architectural. And this toy was designed by an architectural artist!

I would like to buy another set or two and see what they could come up with when they combine them… it would be an awesome site.

This is a non violent educational toy. No one is blown up for laughs and there are no toys guns as is so common in today’s toys. As the box says “Our best hope for a healthier, happier, world is in the quality of the learning environment we provide for our children today.” The maker is TEDCO and they have lots of other toys we are going to have to explore.

I highly recommend the marble run for green kids, just be careful with the marbles if you have kids smaller than three!! Enjoy!

I have fallen in love with a new reusable bag. This one is more like a bag/basket hybrid and ever since I got one last month I have been using it non-stop. They are polyester bags (wish they were canvas), on an aluminum frame. Mine has an attached cover that zips around it to enclose the basket. It is super light too.

Here are some of the things I have already used it for:

Shopping the produce isles at the supermarket
Shopping at farmer’s markets
Using it to hold books at the library
Packing lunches for the zoo or a picnic
Holding towels and sunscreen at the public pool
Cleaning out miscellaneous junk from the car
Holding my other reusable bags in the trunk
Holding takeout so I don’t have to take a plastic bag home

How did I manage without this nifty bag before??

You can find them on Amazon and Reusablebags.

Over the years I have heard many a mom sing their praises but I admit I did not quite understand what all the hoopla was about. To me they looked kind of big and oddly shaped and just not very practical. I don’t have a huge kitchen so this just looked like a big piece of furniture to maneuver around. Of course that all quickly changes when you actually USE one. Then it becomes your right arm or your best kitchen helper and you wonder what life was like without one. You want to shake the hand of the man (or woman) who made it for you and tell them that this is the best thing to happen to your kitchen since the Vita-Mix.

What exactly I am talking about? Why these marvelous kitchen stands for kids of course. They are all the rage and I can see why. They basically act as a booster for kids so they have a safe place to stand, play, help mom, observe, or learn at the kitchen counter. I love to have my kids in the kitchen with me helping or playing but this means they end up sitting on the counter or we have to pull up a couple chairs to the counter and I have to worry about them falling off AND not having enough space to work with anymore.

So many times when my kids asked if they could help make meals I just couldn’t deal with the hassle of worrying that they would be in my way or that one of them would go toppling to the floor and get hurt. It really was heart breaking to me that I had become so hesitant to let them in the kitchen when I was making our meals. Or to let them wash dishes, something they find fun at the moment. I was also not using the best space available for making play dough and mixing up homemade finger paints… the kitchen counter… because pulling chairs up just wasn’t safe. Kids want to be in the kitchen because that is where all the action is at and they should have a seat front and center.

This is why the Kinder Perch has really become indispensable in our house. We got it from Down to Earth Toys, a wonderful online store with an amazing Natural Toys selection and we use it constantly! The kids get to help with meals, make their own smoothies and snacks, observe me while I work in the kitchen, work on messy crafts. etc. It fits flush against the counters so they can reach everything and the side bars prevent them from falling off. When we used chairs to boost them up I always had to make sure I got my toddler down before I walked over to the frig or pantry because I was afraid that while I was gone he would fall. Now I don’t have to worry. They can dance a jig in there if they want to and not have to worry about falling.

It holds up to 500 pounds so it is VERY sturdy and it has multiple levels so that it grows with your children. The “floor” piece of ours sits on the highest rung right now so it is perfect for my toddler. When he gets bigger we can move it down as needed and since it locks in place I don’t have to worry that it will slip while they are standing on it.

As you can see above, it comes un-painted which I really like. You can make it match any kitchen decor that way. I think we may just get a safe varnish and leave it as is to keep the natural color. My daughter has already started personalizing it with stickers anyway. :)

My husband put this together in about 20 minutes and was impressed with the quality of the design and construction. He loved the fact that it is joined together with metal to metal joints. This means he can assemble and disassemble as much as needed without having to worry about stripping the wood. It also has two wheels on one side so that you can move it around easily. You just tilt towards the side that has wheels and roll it wherever you need to. My husband WAS a bit leery that we needed something like this but now even he is convinced. Especially after his surgery recently and he couldn’t lift the kids at all for two weeks. The fact that they could jump in their Kinder Perch themselves when they wanted to see what was going on in the kitchen or wash their hands for dinner was very helpful.

My mom is convinced to. She saw it sitting in the dining area (where we put it when not using it) and asked what is was. I told her and she asked why I would even need such a thing. But not long after that she used a rare day off from the tax office to make cookies with the kids and the two youngest used their Kinder Perch to observe and help. Now she sees first hand why it is so awesome. They can see everything up close while still being somewhat out of the way of the action and they are safe even though they are up at counter level.

In addition to using it as a booster they also play in it. They hang towels and sheets over it to make a little house and they can even put on a  puppet show if they want to. Who knew it would have so many other uses. ;)

There are a couple different companies making kids kitchen stands. I think the most common one is the Learning Tower but we like the Kinder Perch from Down to Earth Toys the best. I have a friend who has another brand and I just don’t think it is as well built and substantial as the Kinder Perch. Other brands are made in China too and most styles are painted which could mean unsavory elements in the paint, like lead. I LOVE the fact that Kinder Perch is completely unfinished, allowing me to choose the perfect color AND the safest paint.

And while buying China made often means a lower price tag, it is just not so in this case. A US made Kinder Perch, constructed with Ash wood from New England forests, is about the same price so making it and getting it into my hot little hands has much less of an impact on our planetary resources. It is the more eco friendly option by far and buying it means supporting other US families which is important in this economy.

Finding something really, truly useful that you want to purchase is all the sweeter when you can buy green too! Be sure to check out the KinderPerch and Down to Earth Toys which is run by a Michigan family. They have tons of other earth friendly, natural, safe products for kids.

And much thanks to Jon at Wicked Decent Woodworks who makes the Kinder Perch. We love it!

I have been a fan of Ecostore products ever since I tried out a vast array of their green baby products including the Nappy Balm and Sleepytime Bath Soap. This week I tried some of their green cleaners and was impressed once again. Not only are they a company dedicated to green products, they fully disclose ingredients and they will be coming soon to Meijer stores in the Midwest, so they will be readily available. This company started out in New Zealand so now the US can benefit from their quality and safety standards. I think it is pretty awesome and I like Meijer too.

Ecostore offers more than 100 products, and each one meets the most stringent environmental and sustainability standards. Their products are good for the user and for the planet or they don’t sell them. Also because they know how expensive it can be to buy natural or organic products, they have super-concentrated each formula so it goes a long way and you get your money’s worth.

This week I test drove the Dishwash Liquid and the Pure Oxygen Laundry Whitener.

The dishwash liquid has very nice, fresh scent and it was very sudsy which I like in a liquid dish soap. Ingredients include:

I would definitely buy it.

The pure oxygen whitener contains oil of citrus and coconut and other plant-based ingredients. It cleans and whitens clothes and does not contain any harsh chemicals that could irritate delicate skin. It did get our whites whiter I think but I cannot compare to something like bleach because we don’t use it. Ingredients include:

• Carbonates (simple mineral salts)
• Sodium percarbonate (oxygen producing whitener)
• Sodium bicarbonate (baking soda)
• Citrates (from citrus)
• Highly biodegradable surfactant
• Natural citrus oil

I am not a stickler for keeping whites gleaming white…I don’t place that much importance in it but I think this is a great alternative for those that are. ;)

This week my toddler, Mr. Parker, has been digging on his new BPA free feeding gear from ThinkBaby. It is a complete stainless steel feeding system encased in safe plastic (polypropylene). It contains a baby bowl with lid, a soup bowl with lid, a bento box with air tight lid, a cup, a fork, and a spoon. They are free of BPA, PVC, phthalates, lead, and melamine.

My first impression of the set was that it is VERY attractive and functional. We got rid of the cheap plastic and melamine plates and cups a long time ago and started using regular dishes. But there is just something to be said about pint size dishes that can be tossed around without fear of breakage. I can’t recall if I ever mentioned this before but Mr. Parker has a one inch scar on his cheek from a glass bowl that broke. It was a very traumatic experience so I fully understand why many parents want kiddie dishes instead of adult dishes. I could care less about the expense of broken dishes but I care very much when I have to spend half a day in the hospital having my baby stitched up. :(  And I care that he is now scarred for life.

The Thinkbaby Feeding Set is very attractive, it is much more sustainable then pure plastic options, it is sturdy and functional, and much safer than other many other feeding products. BPA, PVC, phthalates, lead, and melamine are deal breakers.

This set is also perfect for travel and packing a lunch. This summer the family will be spending a lot of time at the zoo, the science museum, and picnicking in area parks. We plan on packing lunches in our bento boxes and Parker’s will be packed in this set. If I fill up a Laptop lunchbox for him, I would be wasting a lot of food… the Thinkbaby set is the perfect size for young kids. I think I will buy one for my 5 year old as well. They are not heavy at all so there won’t be extra weight to lug around either. They would be phenomenal for taking food to day cares and preschools.

My favorite piece in this set is the cup. It is the perfect size for my toddler and it has a handle so drinking is easier to master. Since we are not using sippy cups anymore it is the perfect solution. We use the cup more than any other item. The bento box is also great for snacks…either at home or on the go. Parker has been using the bento to eat his breakfast every morning of late… fresh and dehydrated fruit slices, sprinkled with crushed nuts and seeds. If he doesn’t manage to eat it all I just put the lid on it and stick it in the fridge until lunch. The bigger bowl is great for small salads and fresh cut veggies for dipping as well as soup.

I the only things I would change about this set are the utensils. I think they need to be bigger for toddlers and older kids. As they are, they reminded me of baby utensils…which is perfect for babies I guess but not so much for toddlers. I also wish they came in more colors. I would ideally like to have a set for my toddler and my 5 year old and each having their own special color would be awesome and would make traveling with these dishes even easier.

All in all though I think I can safely say this is my favorite set among the BPA free, safer kids dishes and cups. They are a good value for the money and I know we will get a lot of use out them. I would recommend them highly to other parents!

On the menu: Egg drop soup, a green smoothie with spinach and fruit, and sliced bananas sprinkled with dried cranberries, almonds, flax seed, and banana nut granola from Bare Naked.

Watch the video below to see Parker in action. He loved the green smoothie (of course) and the fruit…he would not touch the egg drop soup, he only played with it. He is soooo my vegan baby. ;)

As you already know, I have lots of love for snazzy lunchboxes and bentos. One of my favorites lately has been a very simple and classic stainless steel lunch carrier from Healthy Kitchenware. It is stylish, easy to clean, and easy to use. When my hubby returns to work at some point I think this is the lunch carrier I will be packing for him.

It is a rectangular container with a stainless steel lid that latches with metal clasps. It includes a small ss container with a plastic lid (polypropylene). The smaller container is perfect for salad dressing, soups, or smaller snacks you don’t want to mix with the main dish. The whole carrier could also easily fit inside another lunchbox if the portion size is too small for you but I thought it was perfect. Overall it is a very good lunchbox that we will use often I think and I love the fact that it is stainless steel and very sustainable and safe. I can feel good about my family eating out of it.

The picture above is my husband’s lunch from yesterday…white fish fillet, egg drop soup, and fresh fruit.

Parker had his first speech therapy session today so we did a simple lunch before hand with drink bottles that he and his sister could take along with them to his appointment. The appointment was interesting…he got very frustrated with the session and hated to have to sit and try to talk or keep identifying pictures over and over. Unlike last time he was happy to leave.

But I digress… we have been using Bilt stainless steel water bottles lately and they are great for travel. They are small sports bottles for kids with a lid that goes out the spout and a loop for easy carrying. The bottom half is stainless steel and the top half is BPA free plastic. Parker’s has a black lid and a little monster on the bottle. Paige has a plain steel bottle with a green top.

We only put water in them so they are easy to clean, they are very light, and they are easy for my toddler to use. They are a bit cold to the touch during winter but that is too be expected. They do at least have a nifty plastic lip at the top so we don’t get any frozen lips. ;) They are more eco friendly than plain plastic and they are more durable than lacquer coated aluminum bottles. I like the design too… very simple, stylish, and with grooves for easier grip. These are also the perfect size for school lunches.

Reusablebags.com has some for $13.99 each in all blue and and all green. I could only find the kind I have, plain steel and print graphics, on the company site which is Canadian.

On the menu: Apple slices, banana slices, walnuts, dried cherries, baby tomatoes, carrots, and celery.

My favorite thermometers hands down are temporal artery thermometers.  They are very accurate and very easy to use. The temporal artery is connected to the carotid artery so you just put the probe end of the thermometer on the temporal artery and you get a very accurate temperature. It the most convenient way to take a temperature IMO.

I used to like the ones that go in the ear but the problem with them is that they require probe covers. Not only do you have to keep buying those cheapy pastic things that are wasteful…it is horrible to discover you need to take a temperature and not have a cover…and they don’t work without one.

So the easiest, greenest option I think has to be the Exergen Temporal Scanner. It has a silver ion antimicrobial head that requires no disposable covers.  The silver destroys  bacteria, mold, mildew, and fungi…although I am not sure why that is necessary but cool anyway. Harvard Medical School also says this thermometer is as accurate as a rectal temperature.

Even though we rarely if ever worry about fevers here any more since they are no longer synonymous with seizures, it is nice to have this around just in case. AND I don’t have to keep stupid probe covers stocked. It is a clean, green option.