Woot! Time for another another exclusive discount for NatureMoms readers, courtesy of one of my favorite online stores, Reuseit. The discount is available for their uber stylish glass water bottles found here. I have one myself (see above) and I use it all the time for water and hubby uses it for iced coffee. It makes the rounds during the warmer spring and summer months! I like that the design is simple and it is easy to clean. Below are some of the lovely designs you can get:

Glass bottles can be expensive and this one is a great value for the price, which I why I was quick to buy one. If you want to get an even more amazing deal you can get one of these bottles for only $8.45. Use code GLASSBOT at checkout to reduce the price.

Update: This deal is now EXPIRED. 

I am somewhat of a reusable bottle collector/junkie and Reusit has been one of my fave stores to shop at for many years now. So I am thrilled that the lovely folks at Reusit are offering NatureMoms readers a great discount for two select CamelBak products. They are stainless steel resuable water bottles. One is perfect for all ages and one is designed for kids. They would make a great stocking stuffer/gift for the holidays and the exclusive code CAMELBAK60 will give you an awesome 60% discount. Enjoy and please share with anyone who may be interested in saving some money on these CamelBak products.

Valid December 12 and 13, 2011 only.

CamelBak Stainless Steel , 0.75L Reusable Water Bottle

CamelBak Stainless Steel, Kids 12 oz Water Bottle

I have been a gig fan of Bazura bags for a long time and just look at them… they are so darn clever! There is nothing inherently cute about juice bags and plastic waste but when recycled into these adorable bags I think it just works. It become stylish and functional.

My daughter has been taking the mini lunch box to school every day. It is the perfect size for child’s school lunch and she seems to enjoy it as well. The regular lunch tote is actually quite roomy. We took it with us hiking this past weekend and it held egg salad sandwiches and some extra water for a little post hike noshing (served 3 easily). Since it is insulated I felt comfortable keeping the sandwiches in the trunk while we hiked. It was nice to have a rewarding little picnic afterwards.

We probably have more than enough lunch boxes… we seem to collect them along with water bottles, but I think these two are permanent additions.

More about Bazura Bags:

• Made from recycled juice packs by a women’s co-op in the Philippines
• Very durable and well constructed
• Saves non-biodegradable juice containers from landfills
• Every one is handmade, colorful, and totally unique.

They also have coin purses and shopping bags. Plus I think the lunch totes double well as purses. ;) These would make excellent Christmas gifts for the eco savvy folk in your life.

Also available at Reuseit.

Just saw this morning that the awesome glass water bottles that usually accompany me outside for summer play are on sale for only $7.95. Just had to share a deal that good! Enjoy!

I have written extensively about BPA or Bisphenol A on this blog. It is a hormone mimicking chemical that can be found in some plastic types. It is most commonly found in baby bottles, water bottles, kids feeding items (cups, plates, bowls, utensils) toys, etc.

Today I saw an investigative journalism report from Fast Company that takes the BPA issue and really tells it like it. They accuse plastics manufacturers and chemical companies that make BPA of using the same tactics used by Big Tobacco to fund fraudulent studies and sow seeds of doubt about their dangerous product.

They did their own in depth investigation and found that the BPA debate is nothing but “a battle to protect a multibillion-dollar market from regulation”. This quote was especially telling:

Just five companies make BPA in the United States: Bayer, Dow, Hexion Specialty Chemicals, SABIC Innovative Plastics (formerly GE Plastics), and Sunoco. Together, they bring in more than $6 billion a year from the compound.

Of the more than 100 independently funded experiments on BPA, about 90% have found evidence of adverse health effects at levels similar to human exposure. On the other hand, every single industry-funded study ever conducted — 14 in all — has found no such effects.

It is a long article but worth the read with shocking info about scientists requesting that their names be removed from reports that claimed BPA was safe and final report statements about BPA being safe being made BEFORE studies even started!

The government is unlikely to start controlling the use of BPA. The United States has a long tradition of keeping harmful substances — lead, DDT, tobacco, PCBs — on the market for decades after scientists find adverse effects.

This is why consumers need to educate themselves about BPA and let their money do the talking. We can vote against BPA ourselves by not buying products that have it and supporting companies that don’t use it. Here are some of my BPA articles with product links:

BPA Free Sippy Cups – Foogo, Klean Kanteen, Sigg, Avent Naturally, and Born Free

BPA Free Sippy Cups Part Two- Boon Fluid, The Safe Sippy, Nuby, ThinkBaby, and Funtainer

BPA Free Water Bottles

Glass Baby Bottles- Evenflo, Medela, Playtex, Born Free

BPA Free Baby Bottles Part Two- Glass bottles with protective sleeves (Siliskin and Wee-Go), and polycarbonate plastic baby bottles, Green to Grow, Nuby, Dr. Brown, Evenflo, Adiri

BPA Free Teethers and Pacifiers- Sophie, Natursutten, Raz-Berry, Playtex, Gerber, Chan Pie Gnon, Nuby, Sassy, and more.

BPA Free Plates, Cips, Bowls, and Utensils-  Boon, Camden Rose, Mini-Me, Emily Green, Dombo, Trebimbi, Sassy and more.

BPA Free Lunchboxes, Nursing Gear, and Toothbrushes

BPA Free Popsicle Molds

BPA Free Blender