Eco Child's Play

Don’t Forget the Batteries Grab Fuji’s New EnviroMAX Batteries

Wenona Napolitano — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 19:23:14 +0000

Yes, I know most eco gifts don’t need batteries but some tech gadgets and other goodies do, like digital cameras and who is going to be without a camera on Christmas?

This year you have a green choice when it comes to batteries-other than the often expensive and hard to find recharge-ables (why can’t they just put them with the rest of the darn batteries, but no you have to go searching and end up in the electronics section if they carry them at all). Anyway this year you have the option of buying Fuji’s new EnviroMAX batteries.

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The Joy of Green Cleaning by Leslie Reichert

Wenona Napolitano — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 15:14:31 +0000

If you want to clean green but don’t want to pay extra for green cleaning products consider making your own. The Joy of Green Cleaning by Certified Green Cleaner Leslie Reichert is full of recipes to make your own eco-friendly cleaning supplies with things you probably already have in your home. Like lemon juice, baking soda and white vinegar.

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Fleurville Bags: Eco-friendly, Family-friendly…and Sexy?!

Terri Bly — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 04:31:01 +0000

In my experience, there exists quite the chasm between mothering and sexy. Perhaps it’s because designers suspect moms are too tired and busy to shower, let alone concern themselves with the latest fashion trends. Consequently, our bag selection tends to force choices between washable and roomy vs. something a childless woman would actually consider carrying in public.

Fleurville to the rescue.

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A Green Guide to Bringing Up Your Baby By Claire Gillman

Wenona Napolitano — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 20:09:17 +0000

A Green Guide to Bringing Up Your Baby: The Kind Way for You, Your Baby (0-3) and the Environment is one of the newest books to offer advice for raising a green baby.

You’ll find everything you need to help you green your home, nursery, clothing, cosmetics and so much more.

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Grow Your Own Tree Hugger: 101 Activities to Teach Your Child How to Live Green

Wenona Napolitano — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 01:04:03 +0000

Here’s a fun book you may enjoy. It could inspire you with new ways to teach your child about living green. Or it may make a great gift for another parent that you know who could use some help in the eco-department.

Grow Your Own Tree Hugger: 101 activities to teach your child how to live green by Wendy Rosenoff is full of activities, crafts and recipes that can easily teach children about the environment and about being green without being preachy.

Some of the activities sound like so much fun your kids won’t even know they’re learning.

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What Is the Matter with Us? Lead and Other Toxins into the Mouths of Babes

Allison Wolff — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 18:10:48 +0000

Over the weekend, someone sent my husband a link to a video called “The Girl Who Silenced the World” from 1992 where a 12 year old girl named Severn Suzuki addresses the UN’s Earth Summit Meeting in Rio de Janeiro. Severn essentially gives the panel and every living adult a well-articulated lashing for leaving the planet in this state for her generation to contend with. Had the Internet been in full force then, this video would have flown around like wildfire. I’d like to help spread it around now. Everyone on this planet should watch it-it is more relevant now than ever.

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Eco-Friendly, Natural Tree Branch Blocks and Felting Kit by Natural Pod

Jennifer Lance — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:56:29 +0000

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: Natural Pod is one of my favorite natural toy vendors! Natural Pod gets it, they really get it. Only the highest quality, sustainable products are featured, and you can shop freely without having to scrutinize each product for greenwashing. Recently, my children and I had the pleasure of playing with two Natural Pod products: Tree Branch Blocks and Felting Kit.

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Green Books Campaign: Let Me Out! How to enjoy the school run

Jennifer Lance — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 18:00:08 +0000

Editor’s Note: This review is part of the Green Books campaign. Today 100 bloggers are reviewing 100 great books printed in an environmentally friendly way. Our goal is to encourage publishers to get greener and readers to take the environment into consideration when purchasing books. This campaign is organized by Eco-Libris, a a green company working to green up the book industry by promoting the adoption of green practices, balancing out books by planting trees, and supporting green books. A full list of participating blogs and links to their reviews is available on Eco-Libris website.

Let Me Out! How to enjoy the school run by Ann Kenrick is a book about sustainable school travel. Any parent, no matter the size of their child’s school, has witnessed the traffic jam and exhaust fumes associated with the start and end of the school day, but it wasn’t always so. According to Kenrick, if you picked a random group of 40-year-old and asked them how they traveled to school, over “90% will say they walked” to school. Let Me Out! How to enjoy the school run contemplates why school transportation trends have changed in such a short time and suggest methods to “reverse the trend.”

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Open Ended Play Lets Kids’ Imaginations Set Sail!

Jennifer Lance — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 16:29:12 +0000

Editor’s note: The following piece is guest post by Dalit Holzman from Natural Pod, one of our favorite eco-friendly toy companies. Dalit is part of the Natural Pod team (www.naturalpod.com) and raises her two daughters as open-endedly as possible…with the help of some boxes.

We’ve all heard it. In fact we’ve all said it: “the best toy in the house is the cardboard box!” As parents we are constantly reminded that the active imaginations of children really don’t need much stimulation to get going…and going, and going, and going!

Just the other day my very own living room was transformed from, well, a living room into a series of caves and burrows, an enclave for ambushing mini- pirates!

Kids constantly mimic and replay the world around them, and though I am no pirate (lol), my daughters do seem to have many of my mannerisms and modes of communication down to a science (arrr me hearties!) They listen to learn to repeat.

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Rebekah Green Sustainable Earrings: Precious Gifts for Little Girls

Wenona Napolitano — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 14:25:17 +0000

Rebekah Green has been globally aware and environmentally conscious since the second grade. Throughout her life she’s done a lot for the “green” movement.

Her latest efforts include a sustainable line of earrings made from recycled gold. She even has several designs devoted to children.

Including these precious little turtles which will be going in my daughter’s holiday stocking…if I don’t snag them for myself first (because I adore turtles).

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