When I got an email from the peeps at Imagine Childhood asking that I take a look at their site, I clicked over and instantly fell in love—like “WHERE have you been all my life”? love. Why? Because their site reminds me of my childhood, of being outdoors, of exploring and learning and playing and life’s simpler pleasures. If you haven’t yet heard about nature deficit disorder, you soon will. It’s a hot topic and one that plagues my mind when I think about my own children’s distinct lack of free time spent outdoors (mostly for reasons beyond my control). Imagine Childhood may not be able to fix nature deficit disorder but damn if it isn’t a great place to start trying because they carry so many things that are geared toward free, imaginative, explorational and outdoor play. And the books they carry? Pure awesomeness. I urge anyone with kids to hop over there and take a gander and also note that Imagine Childhood is not just a storefront. It’s also an inspiring blog totally worth bookmarking.
Find It Here: Imagine Childhood
Win It: We’ve partnered with Imagine Childhood to give away a super cool Nature Study Kit and the amazing book I Love Dirt. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter IC6 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: What are one of the five questions the folks at Imagine Childhood ask themselves when choosing new products? Enter by 6/22/09. $50 value. Open to residents of US. Winner will be notified by email. Contest closed. Congrats to Steven!






















It may be yellow. It may be cute. But is that rubber ducky in the tub actually rubber? Or some icky PVC facsimile covered in lead paint? I know it’s distressing to think that even the beloved rubber duck has not escaped being tainted by cheap, greedy manufacturers but there’s good news — actual rubber duckies are not yet extinct! Crafted in Spain of sustainable latex rubber and devoid of any toxic paints or phthalates, the Natural Rubber Duck is soft and safe for babies to chew on and even gives a little squeak when squeezed. I’ve already ordered one to replace the not-rubber duck that my daughter used to love to play with before it accidentally disappeared from our bathroom. Not that I would know anything about that. Ahem.
A big part of going green is reducing what we consume and not buying things we really don’t need. In support of buying less stuff and having more fun, the folks at New American Dream have put together a tidy list of ways to have fun without mountains of toys. I actually printed this out (on the back of previously used printer paper, natch) and have it up on my fridge as a reminder of all the cool things we can do when my kids cry boredom. Go check it out and consider getting all retro with some good old-fashioned fun!
Making your own non-toxic play dough is a super fun rainy day activity you can do with your kids:
Putting your hands in paint and squishing it through your fingers has got to be one of the top ten best experiences of toddlerhood. If you’re thinking of getting some fingerpaints for your kids, check out chemical-free, hemp-based Natural Finger Paint for Kids. What you’ll get with each set: 6 glass bottles of paint in white, yellow, red, blue, green and black (paint colors derived from vegetable dyes or all-natural mineral pigments). What you won’t get: heavy metals, VOCs, petro-chemicals or other harmful ingredients. Added at no extra charge: Peace of mind and some awesome refrigerator art.