In light of all the sweets and treats my daughter is going to bring home from school today for Valentine’s Day, I decided to take a different approach. Together we decided to give out healthy apples and oranges as a treat for her preschool friends.
I found the fruit tags on Pinterest and printed them out from Craftaholics on card stock. The tags were cut out using my paper-cutter for the sides and scissors for the top. The heart cellophane bags are from my local party store for $.39/each. Oranges and apples came from Trader Joe’s. I have a giant roll of red baker’s twine and I love any excuse to use it.
My little helper decorated the oranges with a face using a black marker. Then she wrote her name on the back of each tag. It was an exercise in patience for me as I watched her write her name and struggle when she made a mistake. Although I didn’t want to waste tags, I knew it was important for her to take the time to make them just right for her friends.
I know she will come from school today with a goodie bag filled with candy full of artificial ingredients. She will be happy and I will let her have her candy in small doses. (Read why we try to avoid artificial dyes.) At least if my daughter and her friends learn at a young age that there are other fun gifts to give besides candy at Valentine’s Day, there is hope for them to make their own healthy decisions down the road.
https://emilyroachwellness.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/02/Fruit-Valentines-RandomRecycling.jpg22173311eroachwellnesshttps://emilyroachwellness.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/Emily-Logo-header-1.pngeroachwellness2013-02-14 14:29:222013-02-14 14:29:22Have a Happy and Healthy Valentine's Day!
We haven’t bought a crib mattress since we set up my daughter’s nursery over four years ago. I remember there was just one organic option at the local big box store so we went with that product. Now there are so many more non-toxic mattresses available in crib size so you can sleep easy knowing your little one is sleeping in a healthy environment. A lot of conventional crib mattresses are covered with toxic fire retardants and other chemicals. The mattresses from Sopora are non-toxic and are available at an affordable price point. We are in the market for a new one since my two monkeys have a love affair with jumping in the crib lately.
Normally the caveat with Eco-friendly mattresses is that they are expensive, especially those that are made in the USA. Now, a safe sleeping surface is affordable with Sopora, the prices start at just $167 for a Classic Crib Mattress! Why buy a conventional, imported mattress when you can get one for a comparable price that’s made right in the U.S. and will let you sleep easy knowing your baby is safe?
Features of the Sopora Perfect Crib Mattress:
Greenguard: Children & Schools certified for emissions and off-gassing
Vinyl, PVC, lead, and phthaltes free
Eco-friendly ultra firm high density foam is 100% renewable
Fireproof Chemical Additive FREE
Features new Celliant biologically responsive cover for optimum health, clinically proven to increase oxygen levels in the body
Win It! Sopora is blessing one of you with the Perfect Crib Mattress.
Giveaway ends March 6th at 12:01 am, open to US residents, ages 18+. To enter please use the Rafflecopter form below (see directions on how to enter here). Thank you!
Disclaimer: AnaB Social, Eco-Babyz, and all participating event bloggers are not responsible for sponsor prize shipment. Special thanks to AnaB Social for hosting this giveaway. Huge thanks to all participating bloggers as well! I did not receive anything for this giveaway, just thought it was a cool product to share!
Sometimes as a blogger you just get lucky. You meet the right people at the right time. One of those meetings was with the people from Stonyfield Yogurt. I love their company’s commitment to organic food and creating healthy products for kids. When we don’t make our own yogurt, we buy organic Stonyfield. My kids are huge fans of the YoKids yogurt tubes, which I can’t make myself. When my friends at Stonyfield said I could review the new Stonyfield Blends yogurt I was excited. Then they said I would also get a Blendtec blender. Oh, my. I was giddy with excitement to test out the blender.
The yogurt arrived first. My kids think it’s normal to get yogurt delivered to their door. I still think it’s really cool! There was a big fuss as the kids picked out which Stonyfield Blends yogurt flavor to test out first. It’s fruity yogurt, without all clumpy “fruit on the bottom” flavoring of the past. No high fructose corn syrup or artificial food dyes either. Each flavor was a success in our house, plus I used one of the French Vanilla cups to flavor our homemade yogurt. It was delicious.
The smoothies we created with the Blends yogurt made us fall in love with the Blendtec. Our old blender was fine, but it doesn’t make smooth smoothies like the turbo powered Blendtec Wildside blender. No more ice chunks, no more leafy spinach in each cup. We have made some with and without yogurt, depending on the recipe. The pumpkin smoothie made with the French Vanilla Blends yogurt is my favorite so far. (Here is the recipe post!) The coolest thing is getting the kids to drink green smoothies. Green veggies are hit or miss at the dinner table so it feels great to see them drink up a spinach smoothie and ask for seconds.
Stonyfield wants to celebrate the launch of the new Blends yogurt line by giving one of my readers the opportunity to enjoy a case of the new yogurt AND a new Blendtec Blender, valued at $455!!
The giveaway will be open until midnight Feb 18th. US residents only. Winner will be notified via email. Please enter using the form below.
Disclosure: I was provided the blender and yogurt to help facilitate this review as part of my participation in the Stonyfield Clean Plate Club campaign, focused on providing healthy recipes for families. This in no way influenced mine, or my children’s, opinions shared here.
After a week of birthday celebrations, we feel very blessed to have two healthy children in our lives. We are excited to share the news that we will be welcoming Baby #3 to the family in late spring. A few of my local readers saw me recently without my coat on and were totally surprised about our news. Guess it’s time to share the news “officially” in the world of social media.
Before you ask, no, we are not finding out what we are having. There is just nothing better than that wonderful surprise at the end. Finding out if it’s a boy or a girl is such a major motivator to keeping pushing through delivery! Plus we would miss that phone call to the grandparents to tell them if it’s a boy or girl. We are lucky to have both already and look forward to meeting our new addition in a few months.
And now Giveaway Time! $200 value!
I’m excited about this giveaway since it’s a lot of items that I would love to receive as an expecting mom. It would also make a great gift! Thanks to the generous sponsors, you can win some gift certificates from Annee Matthew ($100 ea) and A Mother’s Boutique ($50 ea) to use toward nursing apparel as well as a nursing hat from Moboleez and breastfeeding baby apparel for your little one from One Creative Mama.
Some Favorite Things About the Prizes:
Huge selection of bras and nursing apparel at A Mother’s Boutique
Annee Matthew nursing apparel has some of the most stylish nursing clothing on this planet!
One Creative Mama breastfeeding advocacy baby shirts speak for themselves and break the ice
Moboleez nursing hats make nursing in public so much easier and more convenient, especially helpful when you’re new to breastfeeding and a nursing cover just makes things harder
Purchase: You can shop Annee Matthew and A Mother’s Boutique for a great selection of nursing bras and nursing apparel. They carry some of our favorite brands like Cake Lingerie, Bamboobies, and Bella Materna. You may also acquire a Moboleez hat and check out the adorable baby apparel from One Creative Mama (pictured below).
Win The Package! Our sponsors are blessing two of you with the entire package as outlined above.
Special thanks to AnaB Social for hosting this giveaway. Huge thanks to all participating bloggers as well! Giveaway ends February 27th at 12:01 am, open to US residents, ages 18+. To enter please use the Rafflecopter form below. Thank you!
Disclaimer: AnaB Social, Eco-Babyz, and all participating event bloggers are not responsible for sponsor prize shipment. I did not receive anything for hosting this event, just thought some of you might like to enjoy these products.
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Sustainable fashions have come a long way. Eco-friendly clothing and accessories are on trend, colorful, and easier to find through the help of the Internet. I use to think of “green fashion” as an oxymoron. Everything always seemed so bland and itchy. There were more items to say no to than YES! As a former retail buyer, I love finding new fashion lines that do something to reduce waste and create something people actually want to buy. Relan Bag is one such company that I happen to spot at Whole Foods one day.
Imagine all those billboards used to promote the latest theater showings in Times Square. They often end up in a landfill somewhere once the run is over. Relan is able to come in and repurpose the vinyl into handbags, totes and accessories. The product is cute, but also helps eliminate a giant waste stream.
I have the Tony Tote and one of the things that jumped out to me was the material used for the bottom of the bag. Since I have little ones, I often have to put my bag on the ground when we are getting in and out of the car. The material is super durable…turns out they use recycled rubber tires. My tote may become one of our beach totes this summer since it can hold up when we sit in the “wet sand” area. If only that would save me from the spilled sippy cups inside…
I think you all would love to see what Relan Bags can create. For the giveaway, I want you to check out their store and let me know which item is your favorite. When you want to make a purchase, you can work with the Relan team to suggest a color family for your item. The final item does depend on material availability, but it’s pretty cool to say you have a one of a kind tote.
The winner will get the entire package in the photo above: the Dandy Tote, Makeup Bag, and Makeup Brush Bag. Enter the giveaway through the Rafflecopter below. Contest ends on February 9th at midnight. Winner will be notified via email and have 48 hours to respond. Good luck!
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This little video about “green shoppers” made me smile. I’m constantly thinking about the question, what shade of green are you? There are so many different factors that come into play when you live a sustainable, or green, lifestyle. It can be hard to do it all. Food, clothing, car choice, baby products, face creams, and the list goes on and on. Sometimes we just need to take a step back and laugh at how complicated things have become.
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Both of my kids have birthdays shortly after the Christmas holidays. For anyone else in the same boat, you may share my hesitation to see any new toys come into the house. As we are committed to decluttering our home, one option that needs more attention is giving the gift of an experience, instead of another item from a store. Whether your kids are 2 or 20, there are so many options for them to enjoy that are outside the box.
Here are some of my favorite experience gifts for kids.
Trip to a show
Children’s museum visit, or a specialty museum that ties into your kid’s favorite hobby
Visit the zoo or aquarium
Spend the day at a local theme park
Let your child pick their favorite restaurant for a special birthday dinner
Attend a concert
Spend the day in the city, be a tourist even if you don’t live that far away
Sporting event. From basketball games to a gymnastics tour, there are many different options.
Movie tickets
Tour a local farm or orchard
Cooking or art classes
A session of classes: music, sports, dance, etc.
Giving the gift of experiences is also a great suggestion for the grandparents and extended family looking to do something special for a birthday or holiday. We recently took a trip as a family to see the Yo Gabba Gabba! LIVE!: Get the Sillies Out! event in Boston. It was just a delight to watch the kids get excited for the show. They danced, twirled, clapped and laughed the entire time. It made me realize that we are at the point where the kids are old enough to enjoy these type of experiences together now. (Although JJ is still saying “Loud” and covering his ears when Madison starts talking about the show!) I consider it a success when both Mom and Dad are happy coming out of the show and the kids are both singing on the car ride home.
As one of my readers said, “Making memories is better then a toy that will be obsolete sooner, then later.”
What are some other experience gifts you would add to this list?
Disclosure: We attended the Yo Gabba Gabba! LIVE!: Get the Sillies Out! event to help facilitate this review and story. It in no way influenced my opinions shared here. I’m sharing this with the Tuesday Baby Link Up , Frugal Days and Your Green Resource.
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Today I got to check out some of the latest and greatest updates in the car industry. The most exciting thing is all the advances happening in the world of fuel efficiency. At this year’s New England International Auto Show happening in Boston this weekend, there are 20 cars that get 30-40+ miles per gallon. As car companies prepare for the strict standards of the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) in the future, they are making great strides now offering hybrids, electric vehicles and more efficient power train technology. Since we are in the market for a new car, it was a fun opportunity for me to see a bunch of brands in one place to do some comparison shopping. I will say it was amazing how many funny looks I got from all the men in attendance as I arrived with my toddler in tow to listen to the green presentation by Ford. Don’t they know the ladies care about what they drive??
It’s amazing to see 47 mpg on the Ford Fusion Energi
I went specifically to the Auto Show in Boston today to hear from Dr. Mazen Hammoud, Ford’s chief engineer of electrified powertrain systems. He is the guy who can talk green. The new Ford highlighted was the Fusion Energi, a plug-in hybrid. For customers interested in buying a hybrid, fuel economy and mileage are the #1 decision makers. In a recent report, JD Power ranked Ford ahead of Toyota in fuel economy. I love that an American car company is making such an impact in the market, and is able to offer an electric vehicle in a mid-sized sedan. No tiny little electric vehicle here, you wouldn’t even realize it’s electric except for the glowing plug-in spot on the driver’s side. Also, the new Ford Energi charges faster and holds the charge longer than the Prius.
All new Ford Fusion Energi Plug In Hybrid
Dr. Hammoud also taught the audience that in order to maximize your charge, you need to be mindful of your driving habits. Driving over 80 mph is not efficient, but we all know that right? Also, heavy braking also decreases the charge of the car as well. Even if you don’t have an electric vehicle, these are good reminders anyway to maximize your mpg in your car.
The New England Auto Show is taking place now at the Boston Convention and Exhibit Center, located down in the Seaport district.
Here are the hours:
Thursday, January 17, 12:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Friday, January 18, 12:00 PM – 9:00 PM
Saturday, January 19, 10:00 AM – 9:00 PM
Sunday, January 20, 10:00 AM – 7:00 PM
Monday, January 21, 10:00 AM – 6:00 PM
While you are there, there are a number of companies offering you a chance to drive some of the models. If you are in the market for a new car, this could be a great opportunity to do some test drives hassle free.
We are trying to pick our next car and having lots of debates about SUV versus a minivan…anyone have a favorite with a third row? I want something with fuel efficiency but some SUVs now have comparable mpg. Would love to hear what car you are loving right now!
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One of the questions I get the most is “where did you buy that?” I decided to pull together a list of some of my favorite eco-friendly shopping sites, plus some of my favorite books for further reading. This will always be available as a page in the menu bar. Please let me know if you have any questions about the products/companies listed on this page.
I took some time to look back over the past year of blog posts to see which ones you all liked the best in 2012. This is a fun exercise and it helps me brainstorm about new ideas to talk about in the coming year. If you have ideas for a future post, please leave a note in the comments.
