My husband just sent me this link to a short article on Current about how there is no “local vs. organic.” I was glad to read it because when I hear people say that buying local is better than organic and vice versa, it made no sense to me. They’re two completely separate things. Buy organic AND local, if you can, or choose the one that’s most important to you but don’t feel like you’re choosing between two equal options. One is specifically better for Read the rest of this entry »

Try as I might to control it, I have a terrible sweet tooth that frankly makes me wonder why haven’t developed Type 2 diabetes yet. In hopes of sparing my children from this curse, I’ve always tried to steer them away from junky, sugar-laden sweets in favor of healthier stuff. Yes, I’m a total hypocrite. Unfortunately, it’s gotten a lot harder since they’ve started school. Every birthday party and holiday is an excuse to sugar the kids up with cupcakes (covered with that nasty bakery icing) and then send them home with a buttload of candy. Suddenly the healthy stuff I’d always given them was more like a punishment than a treat *sigh* Since they’re now fully aware of the appeal of candy, I’ve tried not to make it out to be some forbidden fruit because I know that will backfire. Instead, I let them have it in moderation and only after they’ve eaten something healthy. Searching for not-totally-unhealthy candy, however, has been a bit of a challenge (particularly because it has to peanut-free) but I recently picked up a bag of YummyEarth organic lollipops and it’s the smartest thing I ever did. They taste awesome because they’re sweetened with organic fruit extracts, they’re colored with cool things like organic carrots and pumpkin instead of chemicals, they’re peanut-safe (also gluten, wheat, soy and tree nut-free) and the ones I got have 75% of the daily recommendation of vitamin C. So to recap…I can bribe my kids with give my kids these little YummyEarth lollipops and they’re totally psyched, getting a lot of vitamin C and best of all, NO high fructose corn syrup. Oh, and as a total bonus? They satisfy mommy’s sweet tooth, as well. WIN.

Find It Here: YummyEarth

We don’t feature a lot of green stuff for the men here on The Green Mom Review. I’m not really sure why that is but I suppose it’s because we’re not men and what the heck do we know about guy stuff like power tools and beer and remote controls and cars? Do they even make green power tools and remote controls? Hell if I know… But Father’s Day is coming up yet again and we figure most men shave and most shaving stuff is toxic crap (no, really—it is) so why don’t we feature some yummy, non-toxic, organic, pamper-him-with-the-good-stuff shaving products. Hey, it’s better than neckties AGAIN or heaven forbid, a Billy Bass singing fish plaque. So anyway, I got my own husband to try  MiEssence shaving gel and after shave balm and while he’s not one of those metrosexual types that’s all IN to his  personal care and hygiene regimen, he really liked the MiEssence and I like it because I know he’s not introducing all kinds of toxic junk straight into his freshly shaven skin. Father’s Day is settled! He’s getting more MiEssence!  And just so you know, because only the best for my man—MiEssence products are pretty much the gold standard in USDA certified organic personal care products and are also guaranteed to be of organic food grade standard—meaning they are safe enough to go IN to your body, as well as go ON your body—not that you should eat them. But you could. Just sayin :)

Find It Here: Grand Strand Organics

Win It: We’re giving away a bottle of MiEssence Shaving Gel and a bottle of MiEssence After Shave Balm. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter MI6 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: What are three other MiEssence products you’d like to try? Enter by 6/24/09. $48 value. Open to residents of US and Canada. Winner will be notified by email.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve grappled over a gift for a new mom or mom-to-be because I wanted to give them something useful but also non-toxic/green/organic etc. Basically, I wanted to give them the same kinds of things I’d want for my own babies. The problem, however, is that we are a one income family and we have to live within certain budgetary constraints. Translation? I can’t always afford to buy the awesome new baby gifts I want to give. That’s why when I came across the baby gift sets at Lolababiez Organics, I had to share it with you. Not only do they come in a range of prices to suit every budget (starting at $25 and under) but the items in the sets are 1)cute/hip  2)useful (no stupid rhinestone-encrusted pacifiers!) 3)non-toxic/green/organic etc. and come in 100% recycled material boxes. Another item I HAVE to mention even though it’s not specifically green are the doorbell covers printed with messages to let guests know that your baby is sleeping so they don’t ring the bell or knock on the door. I wish I’d had one when my kids were babies. At this point, though, I just want to know why I didn’t think of these first because THEY ARE GENIUS. And lucky you! We’ve partnered with Lolababiez to give you a chance to win not only one of those genius doorbell covers but ALSO a Personalized Gift Set from Lolababiez containing one personalized embroidered organic tee and an organic doll of your choice. See details below!

Find It Here: Lolababiez Organics

Win It: We’re giving away a Personalized Gift Set and a doorbell cover from Lolababiez Organics. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter LB6 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: What kind of coupon do you get for signing up for the Lolababiez newsletter? Enter by 6/12/09. $34 value. Open to residents of US and Canada. Winner will be notified by email. Contest Closed. Congrats to Tina!

Note: This week the Great Green Post Awards are launching and we’re giving away FREE ad space in our sidebars to THREE random participants! Learn more here

Changing diapers on the go? I’m not a fan—but if you have to do it, it might as well be done on top of something organic and non-toxic and if it’s pretty and portable, so much the better (back when I didn’t know any better, I had this lovely vinyl *cringe* portable changing pad). We like the One Small Change changing station/tote from JourneyLight. It’s made of organic cotton, hemp and low-impact dyes, has compostable cornstarch foam padding, a non-toxic water resistant finish plus handy pockets and a shoulder strap—completely cool (with nary a bunny, ducky or teddy bear in sight) and totally uncringeworthy!

Find It Here:  JourneyLight

Win It:  We’re giving away a One Small Change portable changing station/tote. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter OS5 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: JourneyLight products are certified by ___? Enter by 5/11/09. $65 value. Contest closed. Congrats to Amanda!

Deal: Use the promo code “GreenMom” to get 25% off your JourneyLight order plus free shipping!

You know I love all things green, right? Green is good. No, actually green is AWESOME. But even better than the awesomeness of green is the awesomeness of green combined with style.  While I love many traditional childhood decor themes, I’m a big fan of nifty modern designs for the wee ones, as well. One shop in particular that makes me swoon is Saplings. They have oodles of  stylish eco-friendly kid and baby decor, all with an emphasis on being chemical-free, organic, fair-trade, sustainably-produced and locally procured whenever possible. Perusing their site is like a little slice of mass-marketed-characters-free heaven, with timeless designs that won’t become embarrassing or uncool as your child grows older. In a culture where everything is designed to break or go out of style in a shockingly short period of time (aka “planned obsolescence“) Saplings is like a breath of fresh, VOC-free air.

Find It Here: Saplings

Win It: We’re giving away a $50 gift certificate to Saplings. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter SAP as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: What is your favorite item in the Saplings shop? Enter by 4/19/09. $50 value. Contest closed. Congrats Katie!

When heading to the park, a walk, or long car ride a snack becomes a necessity in my world. Sometimes, I even share them with my 3 yr old (ha!) which is why I like to make sure, if I am not packing homemade treats, that I buy quality organic and natural snacks.  Thank goodness companies are hearing the cry for wholesome snacks that are not loaded with high fructose corn syrup and other artificial additives I can hardly pronounce. Here is a rundown of a few sure-to-satisfy goodies.

If you prefer a little crunch and salt in your snack, then Happy Herbert’s offers over 30 fun-to-eat snacks. Happy Herbert’s Organic Spelt Mini Pretzels are a crunchy and tasty alternative to conventional modern wheat pretzels.

Find It Here: Happy Herbert’s

Or maybe you are the fruit and veggie type person? That’s cool and lucky you, Sensible Foods offers a line of Crunch Dried snacks. Each bag is fat free, 100% natural, gluten and GMO free and nothing but fruit or veggie. Choose from flavors such as 100% Organic Sweet Corn, Cherry Berry, or Apple Harvest. Don’t be surprised if your kids mistake them for candy instead of something healthy. We won’t tell if you wont!

Find It Here: Sensible Foods

Finally, I know there are parents out there saying, “Hey, my kid is allergic to peanuts. What about us?”  Well, a mother in 2005 started a company for that very reason.  Nonuttin’ Foods is a family-run business producing 100% peanut-free snacks, including granola bars. Nonuttin’ Foods maintains very high standards for making sure their products do not come in contact with anything nut-related which means parents of peanut-allergic kids can dole them out, worry free!  As an added bonus, all three of the aforementioned companies are involved with giving back to the community and providing an environmentally-friendly workplace. Happy snacking!

Find It Here: Nonuttin’ Foods

We know if you come here, there’s a chance you have older kids and thus, you may be familiar with Element for their skatewear and boards. What you may not know is that they also have a line of sustainably-produced 100% organic cotton clothing called Power to the Planet. The Power to the Planet project is about making a difference in the world, which is way cool. What makes their clothing a little different than your average line of eco-friendly clothing, however, is the distinct lack of…crunchiness. Nope, not an earth tone or green colored piece in the whole Power to the Planet collection. It’s all monochromatically colored in shades of white, grey and black and it’s incredibly edgy and hip (and those are words I don’t use loosely, lest I sound like a total dork) Of course, Element’s Power to the Planet line is for anyone who wants to wear it, but we think picky, way-too-hard-to-shop-for teens might really dig something from this collection. Hell, they might even think you’re cool for three and a half seconds for knowing about it ;)

Find it Here: Power to the Planet

Win It: We’re giving away a black organic cotton scoop neck Power to the Planet tee. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter PTP3 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: How many items are in the Power to the Planet collection? Open to residents worldwide. Enter by 3/10/09. $24 value. Contest Closed. Congrats to Linda.

When I think of organic products, I don’t think hard liquor has ever sprung to mind—but lookie! Organic vodka brought to the masses by the good people at Square One Organic Spirits! Let it be known, however, that Square One is not your usual big name liquor company. Why? Well, for starters, Square One vodka comes from organically grown American rye—not mass-produced corn, potatoes, or grapes—and is made with a certified organic fermentation process developed especially for Square One. Additionally, founder Allison Evanow chose to start a company where the bottom line was not profit but social responsibility to the environment and a living a life of quality which is why Square One donates a portion of profits to environmental causes and encourages work-life balance through flex-time and virtual office options. It looks like high-spirited fun and sustainability can go together. Cheers to that!

Find It Here: Square One Vodka

If there is one thing I can count on when visiting my mother, it’s that she will always have ice cream and ice cream cones on hand. Now don’t be jealous but when I was growing up, we ate ice cream cones practically daily and though I was not blessed with the same “skinny” genes as my mom, I still indulge in the occasional ice cream cone. If you think about it, ice cream cones are really one of the more wholesome novelty food items ever invented and what a clever invention they are because first, they keep you from eating out of the container—hello portion control! Second, cones are cost effective because you can splurge on decadent ice cream and make it last a lot longer with a cone. And finally, you have to admit there is just something fun and satisfying about an ice cream cone. Personally, I prefer a sugar cone and Let’s Do…Organic totally comes through with an organic sugar cone that satisfies every time. Oh, and if you’re craving a little treat, Let’s Do…Organic also offers a line of really yummy organic gummi bears that will tide you over until your next ice cream cone!

 Find It Here: Edward & Sons Trading Company

While it would be ideal to have all the foods we eat be organic, we know that’s not always possible. Oftentimes, budgets dictate that we cannot buy everything in organic form and sometimes, certain organic foods simply aren’t available. That said, The Daily Green ran a helpful piece today on the foods  for which buying organic isn’t critical because their pesticide loads are among the lowest. Hopefully this will ease your mind a bit when you’re shopping for produce!

Here’s the list:
Read the rest of this entry »

Cloth diapering has come a long way since the days of diaper pins and today’s mamas have it a quite a bit easier with all the various cloth diapering options - prefolds, all-in-ones, pocket, fitted… Personally, my favorite diaper covers are those that grow with your baby from birth to toddlerhood, like the new econappi from Swaddlebees. Because it comes with three sets of height-adjustment snaps on the outside, this diaper fits children from 8-35 lbs. That’s like three years of use out of one diaper! Made with hypoallergenic organic cotton velour on the inside (sooo soft!), the econappi can be used two ways - as a regular diaper cover with an absorbent organic cotton/hemp pad (included) on the inside or as a pocket diaper with the pad inserted in the pocket. Bottom line: this diaper is super soft, versatile, easy to use and comes in some really cute prints, like “pink lemonade” for girls and “blue summer” for boys. Those tired old bad-for-the-environment disposables ain’t got nothin’ on these babies when it comes to style!

Find It Here: Swaddlebees