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

Until a few years ago, bamboo was, to me, something that grew like crazy in my neighbor’s backyard and occasionally turned up in my Chinese food. These days, however, bamboo is turning up in all kinds of places like flooring, clothing, towels and sheets. Yes, I said sheets. Super soft sheets, in fact, because it turns out that bamboo fibers are very silky and yet strong and durable. But bamboo isn’t just soft and silky and durable. It’s also highly sustainable and renewable, requires no pesticides to grow, is fast-drying, hypo-allergenic and has remarkable natural antibacterial and antifungal properties. I’m thinking bamboo sheets are the ones I’d want to sleep on and the ones we want you to sleep on, too, which is why we’re giving away a set of fabulous, luxurious, awesomelicious Karen Neuburger bamboo sheets to one lucky reader!

Find It Here: BonTon

Win It: We’re giving away a set of Karen Neuburger queen/king-sized bamboo sheets to one randomly selected winner. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter KN5 as the giveaway name and answer the question: Do you have any other bamboo products in your home? Enter by 5/27/09. $130 value. Open to US residents. Contest Closed. Congrats to Michelle!

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!

Some women collect shoes. I collect stainless steel reusable water bottles. It’s true. As soon as I find a new line, I get super excited. No, it’s not as sexy as a new pair of Louboutins or Manolos but I love finding new and interesting reusable drinking bottles made of stainless steel - especially when they come with cool designs, like these from Otterbottle. Available in small (500 ml), medium (750 ml), and large (900 ml), these canteens are made of 100% 18/8 stainless steel inside and out, which means no BPA to worry about. The only downside? They’re not available for sale in the U.S. (yet), but the good news for our friends up North is that they are available in Canada. So Canadians, you’re in luck! We’ll try not to be jealous, and in the meantime, we’ll keep an eye out for these babies to be available in the States.

Find It Here: Otterbottle

We’ve mentioned this in the past but it bears repeating…even stuffed animals, which look so cute and harmless, can be toxic. Naturally, I find the idea of my children snuggling up to poison very disturbing but luckily non-toxic and eco-friendly plush toys are out there. and right now I’m quite taken with the Eco Stuffed Naturally Bunnies from Celery Street. Extremely soft and totally huggable, they’re made and filled with an eco-friendly alternative to traditional synthetics that is made from 100% soy fiber and the stuffing is 100% kapok, a golden silky fiber known for its hypoallergenic softness.  Additionally, kapok is a sustainable rainforest crop that comes from the seed pod of the kapok tree. Green and yet affordable, these adorable bunnies would look perfect in the center of an Easter basket but little ones (and their moms) will love them long after the Peeps tummyaches are but a distant memory.

Find it Here: Celery Street

Win It: We’re giving away two Eco Stuffed Naturally Bunnies. Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter CS4 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: What are the names of the three colors of Eco Stuffed Naturally Bunnies? Enter by 4/11/09. $30 value. Contest closed. Congrats to A.

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.

If there’s one baby item I wasn’t sad to say goodbye to, it was the highchair. Yes, it served us well through two children but it’s ginormous footprint made it one of the few things I couldn’t wait to give away to some other poor, unsuspecting family. And the fact that it was 100% plastic? I can only plead ignorance. I simply didn’t know any better all those years ago. Now, if we’d had a minui HandySitt…I might be bragging instead of lamenting because the ultra cool and modern HandySitt is small, lightweight (5lbs), portable, adjustable and best of all made with steel and Forest Stewardship Council-certified birch. Additionally, all paint and varnish finishes are formaldehyde free, and the plastic guard contains no phthalates or bisphenol A (BPA). I’m actually a little jealous that new moms today have so many safer, greener options to choose from, but just to show you all that there are no hard feelings, we’re giving away a minui HandySitt portable highchair to one lucky winner!

Find It Here: minui HandySitt

Win It:  Click here to fill out our simple entry form. Just enter MH21 as the giveaway name and provide the answer to this question: The HandySitt is safety-certified by what group? Open to US and Canadian residents. Enter by 3/6/09. $149 value. Contest closed. Congratulations, Melissa!

When I turned eighteen, my mom gave me a large cedar chest as a gift. She used hers for important documents because cedar prevents mold and mildew, which is great because nobody likes mildew, but I don’t think any of my friends were exactly envious of my gift at the time. As it happens, that cedar chest has proven quite useful for storing a couple of my grandmother’s handmade quilts and keeping them in tip-top shape. Unfortunately, the cedar chest is a little impractical for protecting all my clothes. A more compact alternative are natural cedar and lavender blocks by Cedar Fresh. I know…cedar blocks sound so old school right? But you know what’s really old school? Mothballs. Do you really want your treasured coat, the one that looks great with every outfit, or your child’s heirloom baby blankets hanging out with toxic chemicals like naphthalene and paradichlorobenzene (for that special “fruity” smell)? NO! Using cedar and lavender blocks will preserve your clothes and blankets and other items around the house without any toxins. Also? Cedar Fresh makes their cedar blocks from non-endangered red cedarwood and because of the lavender, they smell really good—naturally. Your Grandma’s handmade quilts (and that awesome coat) will thank you!

Find It Here: Cedar Fresh

Every now and then, we come across some kind of organic clothing that we think is really special or unique. These organic cotton onesies by Mermapillar are one such example. As you probably know by now, organic cotton is mega-soft and is grown without the heavy pesticide load and processing chemicals associated with conventional cotton so two thumbs up for organic cotton, right? But the Mermapillar organic cotton onesies are special because you get to choose from 21 different little super-charming “merma-critter” appliques to be sewn on your item in the color of your choice so you essentially get a totally custom product. You can choose from hats, t-shirts, bibs, onesies and thermals to customize. Be warned, though…they’re so cute, you might be hard-pressed to choose just one!

 Find it Here: Mermapillar

Stumped about what to stick in that cheery holiday sock (assuming coal is not an option)? Then Glee Gum just might be the green alternative you need to reward all the sweet-toothed members of your family—from the young to the young-at-heart on your “nice” list. According to the folks who make Glee Gum, not only is their gum gluten-free and vegetarian, but the chewy goodies (emphasis on good) provide employment to chicleros in Mexico and Central America who sustainably harvest the natural gum base, or chicle, to help create Glee Gum products. I was also delighted to learn that this gum contains no artificial preservatives or sweeteners such as aspartame or saccharin. You can choose from traditional flavors including peppermint and spearmint or try tangerine or triple berry. If your children are older than mine, you might also love Glee’s three “Make Your Own” kits, which allow you to cook up a lesson on teamwork, math, and chemistry, with a dash of rainforest ecology-nomics, all while testing tasty recipes for chocolate, gummies, or chewing gum! Mmmm…it’s educational and tasty!

Find It Here: Glee Gum

One of the first things I did when I starting going green was to stop buying disposable water bottles. Ever since, I’ve been having fun trying out all of the different reusable bottles out there. One of my favorites is the Kleen Kanteen. While the colors and patterns are somewhat limited as compared to the Sigg, I personally love the simple, classic silver and so does my husband. But most of all, I love that the interior is made of non-leaching, high-grade stainless steel. My current dilemma, however, is that I only own one and my husband I fight over who gets to use it when we go out together. I guess we know what he’s getting in his stocking this year!

Find It Here: Natural Pod