Go back to school in the color "Green"

Now my little one is not old enough to go back to school, but I felt it was necessary to put up some ideas for all you parents or even just adults out there. There are so many options out there to make your back to school more green and your lunches "reusable". Take a look and hope you find something to add to your back to school or work routine.

Reusable Snack Bags from Itzy Ritzy

 These bags are great and one of my favorites. No longer do you need to use plastic zip lock bags which mean no more waste put into our landfills. They have a bunch of different designs and the price is very reasonable. Ideal for your little one but also for you adults. Use them for snacks, picnics, school lunches, plane/car rides, hiking and whatever else you come up with. They are LEAD FREE, Zipper closure, 100% cotton with PVC-Free waterproof lining. You can reuse by just washing them (machine washable)!

Reuse It 

This website has everything you need to makeover your lunches. Check out the different products by clicking here. Here are some of my favorites.

  

Built® Gourmet Getaway - Large Insulated Lunch / Tote Bag. I have used this bag for over two years. You can really pack a good lunch. The bag is great because it expands and expands plus it is machine washable. Comes in colors and these stripes/dots. 

To Go Ware

Make a statement but also make a great lunch with these amazing stainless steal containers. Pair with some bamboo utensils and a great green carrier sling bag and you will want to use this every day of the week. Go to To Go Ware.com or you can search on Reuse It.com. 

Reuse It also has many more products like reusable produce bags, reusable sandwich mats and much more. You might find a whole new way of being "green" once visiting here. Get your family set up for the new year.  

Another place to stop before you begin your back to school lists is 

Cool Mom Picks. 

 

They just came out with their back to school list and they have an eco-friendly section which has some of my favorite things. Get some great ideas for personalized lunch sacks, lunchboxes, insulated food jars and everything else you need. Check out their list here.

Back to school is going to so much more fresh, fun and green with the addition of these great products. Food and life never tasted this good. 

Babies...Check, extra One-Thousand Dollars...not so much

Recently, I did a little contest called the Green Quiz Quest. I had never participated before and I must say I am addicted now. There is info at the bottom, if you want to check it out. One thing I loved about the contest is the knowledge I picked up about all the different and amazing companies out there. It just helped me realized how deeply addicted I am to the cloth diaper industry.  I found so MANY new brands I had never heard of. Mind you, I have only been using cloth diapers for 4 months. Little did I know of how many other talented individuals are out there making their way in the cloth diaper arena.

Another area that makes me realize how much I love cloth diapers is I guess after speaking to my other girlfriends who use cloth, it seems I kept spitting out what I would do with an extra $1000? Most might think I would spend it on a vacation for my husband and I. Maybe drop it into what we call our "savings account", or maybe get some new items for the house. Not this wife,mom, sister, daughter, friend.  No, I would go and find all the cloth diapers I either have not tried or never heard of and put them to the test. I have the babies, our son is a little over a year and we have a new one coming the end of August, so trials will not be an issue. Then I would know what works, what doesn't, which styles are better or not and even offer some as giveaways on here. Unused of course. I have only tried cloth on our son but from what others say, it really depends on the baby, but also the quality of the product.

Oh cloth diapers, where have you been my whole life? I also would love to let everyone know out there that cloth diapers are NOT YOUR MOTHERS CLOTHS DIAPERS!!! I should do a poll to see what people first think when someone says "cloth diapers".

Here are just a few diaper sites, I would love to try. I am loving the diapers called "All-in-one" since they grow with your baby. You don't have to buy S, M, L just one or 50 and done! Check them out yourself. Just remember that these are just a few out there and there are a lot of web site stores that carry these brands which offer specials, even free shipping like: Diaper Junction, Diaper Shops, Kelly's Closet, The Green Nursery and Niki's Diapers. If you want to know of more brands, email me at helpfulsister@gmail.com. I would be happy to send you my list! Some you can even find on YouTube which shows off each of their features. Go to YouTube and enter in the diaper name, and see what shows up

Baby Kangas

BABY KANGA RED LADYBUG- ONE SIZE

Katydid One-Size Cloth Diaper 

Katydid One-Size MELON

Niki's Diapers: Best Bottom One Size- 

New Generation Cloth Diaper

 Rumparooz

Rumparooz All in One- GUMBALL

If you are interested in the Green Quiz Quest, it ends July 31st. Go to the web site to find out more, click here and you can follow them on Facebook, click here. There is also a ton of info out there now adays to help you determine what kind of cloth diaper to use, the cost, how to travel with them. Email me if you want more links but here are few to help. Also, you can find on all these websites links to their Facebook and twitter pages. Sign up with them. Most have sales all the time, or fun contests. Plus you get to keep to date on any changes or new products that are coming out.

http://www.clothdiaperblog.com/the-cloth-diaper-report/

http://www.bumsawaydiapers.com/aboutcloth/


Enjoy and let me know how your stash is growing. I would love to know what diapers you have and how they are working or not. Look for more posts with more info as my itty bitty stash grows into a MOTHERLOAD.

Monkey Farts...for the bath....who knew

Out and about the other day on the web and I came across a product that would make any bath fun. I have not personally used this product, but plan on having my son test it out very son. The product is called Carvel County Crayon Soup. The soup does not contain sodium lauryl sulfate(SLS) (learn more about SLS here)  The Monkey Farts scent is a combination of bananas, bubblegum, kiwi and strawberries. You can find this and all sorts of other fun products at Everything Eco or click here. 

This company is out of Canada and they only provide products from retailers that produce products that do not harm the environment. They include organic items that are from the best resources and even many recycled products. Their items are unique and make perfect gifts.

Enjoy your Monkey Farts and whatever else you find!!

Eco Phone Home!

Great little gift for your little one. Under $10....buy a few and pass them out when your friends have babies.

Deal of the day: Green Nursery....Get your toys and save!!!

Tuesdays Deal of the day!!! Toys Toys Toys!!

Tuesday's 'Deal of the Day' - Spend $50 on already discounted Plan Toys and get an additional $10 Off!! Use Coupon 'plan-10' after adding the correct amount to cart. Today only! Click here to start your shopping experience.

 

Don't leave behind your style! Get 20% off your order...that always helps

              As parents, do you sometimes feel that you have to leave behind your style when it comes to baby items like, nursing covers, car seat covers, even nursing pads. Then there is being eco-friendly with all the choices out there. So much to consider when a parent, but I found a site that I am loving. Itzy Ritzy is a great spot to find everything from nursing covers, car seat/ toddler covers, stroller covers, wet bags and much more. They have a great selection of very hip and stylish fabric, too. 

               Want me to keep going? Well, they also have a cool product called Baby Bamboo which is naturally anti-bacterial, anti-microbial, and deodorizing. Bamboo needs no harsh chemicals that can irritate tender skin .Bamboo fabric even has an inherent UV protection factor. They have so many items using this product. You might just have to get one of everything.

        Check them out. First go to Cool Mom Picks TODAY, click here. They are having a great little giveaway on one of their products, the Snack Happened Reusable Snack Bag. These little guys are washable, eco-friendly and stylish. Great for your little ones to get in out of too since they are made withe a lead free zipper. How could you not try them? Did you know you can get 20% off your order?  Get the code at Cool Mom Picks, plus the link to their site! 

Tuesday must be TOY Day!!!!

If you have babies, tots or children then you must have toys. You might have toys in your bedroom, your kitchen, under things, on top of things. What do you do with all these toys? How do you store them and be kind to the environment while not having the smell of toxins fill the air? 

Here is the answer! FranklinGoose.com offers some pretty neat storage boxes called Way Basics Eco Friendly Storage Cube. First off, I saw a great review on Cool Mom Picks which said they are easy to assemble, no tools actually, so you and your kids can take part and building these. They are made from recycled paper but are stronger and durable. You can even use them as a step stool. They come in all sorts of colors and are such a great price, $20 a cube!! How do you find them? Click the banner above for Franklin Goose then search for "Way Basics Eco Friendly Storage Cube"

                                                                                                                                                                      Now that you have your storage taken care of. You might need some more toys. How about this for ages 3-8? It is called the Balancing Cactus. This little toy challenges your toddler and develops planning and imagination. It also is fun and a great way to develop math and analytical skills. Your little one can make this a game with others or just sit and have some time by themselves. Click the link below to purchase or to learn more.

Aahhh Overwhelmed by all the eco-friendly, organic baby products out there?

Start here...

        With so many products out there how does a parent decide what to purchase for their baby when it comes to Organic, Eco- Friendly? As parents it is up to us to care for our child since they can not do it themselves. Parents want to do what is best for them, right? Well, maybe this short video from ABC News,  will help lead you in the right direction. 

          Dr.Alan Greene goes through the biggest things to look for and what products and brands to purchase. I highly recommend the book, Raising Baby Green, they discuss as well. There are so many things that a baby can ingest through their mouths, skin and nose so learn what things to watch out for but also what to put on your registry or "must have" list.

Click here to go to video