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Category Archives: Green Parenting

Reflecting On The Best Of 2008

Written on December 22, 2008 by Guest Contributor

As the end of the year draws near, we all get inundated with the “Best of 2008” programs, lists and commentaries.

Well, as I am a junkie for montages that reflect on what happened over the past year, and how it impacted one’s daily life, I thought I would share my own!

The Best Eco Friendly Changes I Made In 2008:

1. Used Miracle Mulch (eco-friendly coconut)
2. Added weather stripping to conserve energy.
3. Used motion sensors for outdoor lights to save energy. Turned off the porch light whenever we could.
4. Installed ceiling fans throughout the house. Never turned on the AC in 2008!

in Activism, Conservation, For The Home, Frugal Living, Got Energy?, Green Holidays, Green Outreach, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts, Reduce Reuse Recycle, The Green Consumer

- 2 Comments

Don’t Let Handmade Toys Become Extinct

Written on December 15, 2008 by SusanC

5 Comments

There has been buzz all around the handmade corners of the internet about the recently approved Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA), passed in August of this year in large part because the United States Congress rightly recognized that the Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC) lacked the authority and staffing to prevent dangerous toys from being imported into the US.

Among other things, the CPSIA bans lead and phthalates in toys, mandates third-party testing and certification for all toys, and requires toy makers to permanently label each toy with a date and batch number.

All of these changes are great for children and will be fairly easy for large, multinational toy manufacturers to comply with.

in Activism, Eco-Friends, For The Home, Green Parenting, The Green Consumer

- 5 Comments

The Green-Eyed Monster

Written on December 9, 2008 by Guest Contributor

4 Comments

No one ever said that attempting to live an eco friendly lifestyle makes you a better person. It doesn’t give you super powers. (Too bad; I’d love to be able to freeze time!) And it doesn’t make you rich (at least for most of us).

So why do people treat you differently when they find out?

Recently I was invited to go in on a holiday gift; however, when I found out that the suggested gift was an extremely frivolous luxury item created in another country, I could not participate. I politely explained that I try very hard to buy only locally produced environmentally friendly gifts that perform multiple functions.

in Blog, Frugal Living, Green Holidays, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts, The Green Consumer

- 4 Comments

What You Can Do to Get Rid of Hormone Disrupting Phthalates in Your Household

Written on December 4, 2008 by Guest Contributor

4 Comments

pregnant woman If you have been paying attention to the news reports on buying safe toys this holiday season, you’ve probably heard about phthalates.

Pronounced tha-lates (or sometimes thay-lates), this group of chemicals has been shown to disrupt hormones in laboratory animals. Fetal exposure to phthalates has also been linked to reproductive diseases later in life in baby girls. Fetal exposure has also been associated with decreased ano-genital distance in baby boys, leading the lead researcher to charge phthalates with causing the “feminization” of baby boys (this research has been challenged by other scientists).

A recent study found occupational exposure to hairspray by pregnant hairdressers and others doubled their risk of having baby boys born with the genital defect hypospadias (where the opening for the urinary tract is not located at the tip of the penis).

in Beauty and Body, Blog, Green Parenting, Green Safety, Green Thoughts, The Green Consumer

- 4 Comments

Cold Weather Roadblocks to our Green Schedule

Written on December 1, 2008 by SusanC

1 Comment

I feel like we got into a green groove this spring. The weather got warmer and we started walking everywhere.

By summer the car was getting dusty in the garage and we covered miles and miles on foot every day. Add the fresh fruit from the local market and the long lingering days at the beach for supper, and now I can see why things are changing around this house with the onset of winter.

We use the car way too much. Rather than risk the slippery walk to preschool as the cold rain pours from out of nowhere, we seek the safety, and moreover the comfort, of the car.

in Blog, Eat to Live, For The Home, Frugal Living, Green Holidays, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts, The Green Consumer

- 1 Comment

Green Resolutions Anyone?

Written on November 25, 2008 by Guest Contributor

1 Comment

It dawned on me today that since summer ended time seems to be moving in fast forward and the new year is fast approaching. What better time for me to meditate on my New Year’s Resolution!

As cliché as it sounds, the Type A side of me loves to make goals and see them come to fruition. Let’s see, in 2008 I tried to share my true feelings instead of sugar coating. (Some would say I do it really well now!)

After some thought I decided that my resolution for 2009 will be to eat only organic foods, with a focus on locally grown products.

in All About Us, Eat to Live, For The Home, Frugal Living, Green Holidays, Green Outreach, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts, The Green Consumer

- 1 Comment

Avoiding Flame Retardants In Cozy Children’s Pajamas

Written on November 18, 2008 by Guest Contributor

12 Comments

boy in pajamas with teddy bear With the turn of the seasons and the cold weather, you might be looking to buy your children new pajamas. Or, if you are like me, new pajamas are given the night we decorate the tree.

But if you are concerned about being green and your child’s exposure to toxic chemicals, you might be wondering whether those new pajamas have been treated with flame retardants? And does it matter?

Whether or not it matters is a decision you’ll have to make yourself.

The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) considers chemically treated pajamas safe. In the 1970s, it banned brominated Tris and removed chlorinated Tris from being used on children’s pajamas after they were found to mutate DNA and identified as probable human carcinogens.

in Blog, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts, The Green Consumer

- 12 Comments

Voluntary Simplicity in a Bad Economy

Written on November 12, 2008 by Guest Contributor

5 Comments

Family

One of the biggest misconceptions that people have about living simple or living in a frugal manner is that it means great personal sacrifice.

Yet the idea behind simple living, or voluntary simplicity as it is also called, is not to live as cheaply as possible, but instead to see just how well you can live on less. It is entirely possible to be perfectly content and have all of your needs met and satisfied by living in a simple and frugal manner, no great sacrifices required. A vow of voluntary simplicity can bring a sense of inner peace and certainly less financial pressure.

in Blog, Eat to Live, Frugal Living, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts

- 5 Comments

Green Gratitude

Written on November 10, 2008 by Guest Contributor

2 Comments

Autumn brings not only a rash of holiday events, but birthday parties for my two sons. So when I started thinking about presents, favors and hostess gifts, I tried to put on my thinking cap (Sister Carolyn would be proud!) and get creative.

Halloween was a breeze. Despite my husband’s protests, we gave out locally produced apples from Nichols Farm purchased at our local Green City Market. Whew! Something I could believe in, an item my kids actually prefer over candy, and used dollars to benefit a local business. Perfect! No plastic crap made in another country to mindlessly buy to give.

in Frugal Living, Great Green Finds, Green Holidays, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts, Reduce Reuse Recycle, The Green Consumer

- 2 Comments

The Undertow of Materialism

Written on November 4, 2008 by Guest Contributor

11 Comments

Trust me, I know how it is. You feel like you can just dip your toe into that ocean of consumerism this holiday season and walk away unscathed. Keeping it simple this year, you say? Not that many gifts or toys or decorations, you promise? And then one turns to two which turns to ten and whoosh! You are swept away. Just like that.

And in that rip current of consumerism, there aren’t only dollars floating into oblivion, there is waste.

Think of all the things thrown away during the holidays: wrapping paper, tissue paper, special little note cards, holiday cards you mail, tape, that do-hicky that holds the tape on your wrist (this includes all those other “helpful” plastic gadgets), shopping bags, receipts, fuel, gas, electricity, food, decorations and the list goes on and on.

in Activism, For The Home, Frugal Living, Green Holidays, Green Outreach, Green Parenting, Green Thoughts, The Green Consumer

- 11 Comments