Take the bite out of teething *Updated*

Olivia and I are heading to Whole Foods today to buy Camilia with the hopes that it will soothe her in the painful teething process. All I know is, thank goodness we don't remember what it was like to cut teeth!

Camilia was recommended by our pediatrician, who is a woman after my own heart. She's always opting for what is natural and least invasive, (i.e: drug free) but most effective. The liquid drops in in the Camilia package come in easy dose capsules and are 100% natural. What's best about this product is what's NOT in it: alcohol, sugar, artificial colors, preservatives. It's a homeopathic chamomile remedy that apparently works wonders. I'll have to update this post once Olivia has tried it.

Each dose comes in a recyclable unit, and makers encourage you to please recycle the discarded containers.

Wish us luck!

Update: The Camilia works best for Olivia when taken as a prophylactic, before her teething pain sets in. I have not found it helpful in alleviating or soothing her discomfort once she is already in the full swing of teething troubles. Many moms swear this product calms their babies immediately upon one dosage, so clearly it works differently for everyone.
I tried a capsule of Camilia myself, and it's very mild, and Olivia had no problem taking it, which is a huge plus, because she typically rejects and spits out any and all remedies!

It's Beginning to Look A lot like Christmas!

I'm sending out a heartfelt wish to all of my readers for a magical holiday season and a great 2008! We are thrilled to be celebrating Olivia's first Christmas. Enjoy your loved ones and celebrate all you hold dear.

P.S. This sounds like some sort of goodbye, but I'm not going anywhere! I just wanted to share the love and show off Olivia's precious photo!

Green is the Name of the Game

Parker Brothers no longer has the Monopoly on board games. Something greener has moved into the neighborhood, and I am passing "Go" to get my hands on it.

Beyond Learning has invented the "world's first eco-friendly board games." Word Chase is geared toward helping children develop their reading skills, and Number Hunt is designed to help with math skills. Both are filled with artful illustrations that are colorful and unique.

These games are specially made on recycled paper and printed with soy based ink(derived from soybeans). Most board games are manufactured with petroleum based ink. The soy ink makes Beyond Learning games recycle friendly and saves the environment from pollutants.

A percentage of sales from the games goes to "Healthy Child, Healthy World," an organization which educates parents and caregivers about toxins that may affect children's health. Beyond Learning also supports Global Re-Leaf, which enables them to replace the trees they have used in the production of their games.

Each game is reasonably priced at under $20, so giving these as gifts to the children in your life will teach them so much more than reading or math. They'll gain a global perspective that will make them more sensitive to those "Hungry Hippos!"

Having these games in your home will also help eliminate unnecessary toxins under your roof. Cleaning up your playroom was never this easy or fun!

A Better Bottle

I have previously written about the dangers of the chemical bisphenol A leaching into the breast milk or formula contained in most plastic baby bottles.

The company Babylife has a new glass baby bottle out on the market, with sassy sleeves in a rainbow of colors that not only look groovy, they protect the glass from breaking. The sleeve and the bottle are both free of toxins, and both are dishwasher safe. The bottle's nipple is silicone, not latex, and it too gets the all clear for goodness.

From tip to bottom, these bottle makers left no part unchecked in the mission to assure consumers their bottles are the best choice when it comes to avoiding toxic materials. They care about more than your baby too, they are concerned with the environment, listing the following as their "commitment."

"The long-term future of babies lies with how we treat the earth now. At Babylife, we have given lots of thought to making our products and our company as “green” as possible. We try to use organic and/or sweatshop free fabrics. We use low-impact dyes that contain no metals. We do background checks on the factories... we make sure our materials are FDA-approved. We keep our packaging to a minimum to leave less of a footprint on our precious earth. Babylife plans to donate a portion of its profits to an environmental charity as well as to an international children’s fund."

Remember to always be aware of the products you choose for your baby and your family, as the integrity of their components could be vital to your health.

Old Friends

2007 brought with it my most precious gift in life, my daughter, Olivia. But given the Yin and Yang of life, it also brought with it one of my darkest moments, the passing of my beloved best friend, Shazaam.

Thinking about writing this post all weekend gave me a lump in my throat. I still think about Shazaam every day and often imagine her still scurrying by underfoot or screeching into the kitchen at the mere tapping of a can of tuna. I always wish she was still curled up on my lap, her warm body still, except for the constant hum of her purr. She was the ultimate companion in life. She gave me unconditional love, comforted me during times of sadness or anger, and she always knew when I needed a hug. She was my soul mate when I lived alone for a decade, a constant trooper, moving with me from city to city, flying in the seat next to me from Los Angeles to New York while I tried to "find" myself, she was the lovely answer always waiting for me at the end of every day. As people came and went in and out of my life in droves, she stood by me, an open door.

Her meows no longer fill our home, but her memory still fills my heart every day. In her final moments, my husband told me that "God must have wanted the best cat he could find on Earth for his own." I told Shazaam that her seat in Heaven would be on God's lap, and I am sure she sits perched there now. And another perk of the afterlife will be meeting up with my old friend again.

Thankfully, I didn't have to look back and wish I had been nicer to Shazaam, as we were the best of friends and I showered her with love every day. But, this Christmas, I urge you to pamper your pets, and to remember to appreciate them. Bring them inside to sit with you by the fire, take them for a walk even though it's cold outside, buy them their favorite toy and feed them tuna as a special treat.

I also found an eco-friendly pet bed that would make quite a Christmas gift. If Shazaam were still here, I'd buy her one. They are currently on sale too!

So squeeze your furry friends a little tighter every day, and enjoy all they have to offer. I really believe they are here to teach us about the brevity and preciousness of life. Lesson learned.

One is all you Need

There are only two weekends left before Christmas, and I have a very easy tip to green your way through the shopping malls. Consolidate your shopping bags.

All the stores are giving out sassy, bright bags for the holiday season, but really, how many of these bags can one possibly need? Get ONE bag at your first stop, and then pile your future purchases into that one bag as you go.

An even better bet would be to take your own bag, but that's a whole different topic that I'll touch on in another post!

Good luck out there!

5 Ways to Recycle your Holiday Cards, and an Ingenious Card Trick

You're probably in the throes of putting your Christmas cards up all over the house. Ours have taken over our dining room table as I decide how exactly I'd like to display them. This of course brought recycling to my mind. What will I do with all these cards when the season is no longer jolly?

5 ideas include:

1. Tear off the fronts of the cards and use them as postcards. Teach your children about the postal system, and the dying art of letter writing via "snail" mail, and have them send these cards to their grandparents and others who would be thrilled to hear from them.
2. Cut the cards into small shapes, circles, squares, triangles, and use them as ornaments the following year.
3. Let your children use the cards as scrap paper for testing crayons and markers, or as the canvases for "drawings" while at church or in other places they may need to sit still and not make a peep.
4. Use the cards yourself in lieu of post-it notes. Make them your reminder cards and keep a stack at your desk where you often jot down to-dos or things to buy at the grocery store.
5. Cut up the cards into small rectangles and use them as gift tags on presents next year.

And now for that ingenious card trick! Check out what Danny Seo of "Simply Green" does with HIS holiday cards here. Finally, a house of cards that won't topple over! This is a really great, fun idea and a way to wile away an afternoon with the little ones. If you decide to do this out of season, have your children color the cards different colors and display their "house" or village at different times of the year.

Eco Shop till You Drop this weekend

This Saturday and Sunday, the eco-conscious gift expo is taking place in Santa Monica. 150 eco-friendly companies will be selling their wares. Go to www.EcoGift.com to purchase tickets.

Fair trade, organic chocolate company, Theo will be on hand, so grab some sweets for all of your sweeties., and don't forget to buy some for yourself!

This event in and of itself is also "green." Here's an excerpt from the EcoGift website on steps taken to tread lightly on Mother Earth:

• Vinyl table covers will be replaced by linen.
• Event signage is made with recyclable, reusable or biodegradable materials.
• Event collateral is printed on a "green printer" with vegetable-based inks and recyclable paper.
• Food sold at the event will be packaged in biodegradable, compostable food ware.
• Biodegradable cornstarch or potato plates and utensils are mandated.
• All food served at the event is local, organic, and vegetarian fare.
• Implementation of a carbon offsetting program will reduce emissions generated by equipment, heating/cooling, shipping, and electricity.
• Resource Recovery Stations are placed throughout the facility. Now this doesn’t sound exciting…BUT…an anticipated 90% or higher landfill diversion is expected through this effort. Exhibitors will not receive wastebaskets in their booths, rather, the waste stream is strictly controlled and diverted. Each RR station will be hosted by a knowledgeable and friendly volunteer ready to tell you which of your items is recyclable, compost, or landfill.
• Complimentary purified water is provided on-site by Pure Water Science and will be served in biodegradable cups to eliminate plastic water bottles

The only thing that's not so easy on the green is the $10 admission fee and the $8 for parking, but at least it's all for a good cause!

Vacationing one inch at a time

Fair trade chocolate is one of the last fair things in my life. Yes, I am blessed in many ways, but being a first time mom has brought with it some not so fair realizations. I never imagined that people would come into my home, physically, or via telephone or Internet, and tell me that what I am doing as a mother is wrong in their opinion, or make comments about how right they did things and how they never dealt with such and such, insinuating that they must have done a better job to get a baby that never cried, and always slept in her crib, and on and on and on...

Olivia is four months old now, and you would think I'd have gotten used to people's ongoing commentary and criticism, but for some reason, it still irks me. I liken it to walking into someone's home and saying, "Wow! Your couch is hideous, and it doesn't match your drapery at all... and that driftwood on your end table is so very Brady Bunch." But in actuality, that would be a more polite thing to do... insult someone's interior design over their parenting choices.

All I know is that my sweet baby may not be sleeping through the night, and she may still be nestled safely in between her father and I in, GASP! dare I say it... the family bed! but she is happy and evolving beautifully. Yesterday, she laughed from her belly for the first time... all out, hysterical and spontaneous laughter. I don't know many four month old babies who laugh for no reason and then keep giggling for ten minutes, but you can bet if I meet one who hasn't laughed by that age I won't tell her mother that Olivia had.

My vow to all mothers is, I will never judge you, tell you what I think you could be doing differently, or make you feel wrong in any way. No one loves your baby like you do and no one knows better what she needs. Period. Right or "wrong." That said, there are indeed a couple people who have supported me no matter what, and to them I say THANK YOU!

So... chocolate has become a dear friend of mine as a stay at home mom who constantly dodges the "we know better than you" bullet. Trader Joe's sells an amazing bar of Swiss Milk Chocolate that's fair trade. It's $1.99 and it can last a week, depending on how stressful the week is! All you need is one inch of the bar, as it is rich and creamy and does in one inch what most candy can't do in a whole bar. Of course, there are several other fair trade options, including Dagoba, that I keep hearing people rave about.

To learn more about fair trade, visit Make Trade Fair. This quote on their website says it all:

"Before you've finished your breakfast this morning, you'll have relied on half the world."
- Martin Luther King

Stop by this page especially if you're pressed for time.

And in the meantime, play fair.

Start Spreading the News

Have you ever considered how many newspapers go to waste each day? Here are a couple of ways to spread the news out and save some trees.

The "funnies" in your newspaper are worth more than a chuckle at this time of year. Save the comics section, especially Sunday's colorful and vibrant pages of strips, and use them to gift wrap your holiday presents. Teach a child recipient of one of your cleverly wrapped gifts about recycling in this fun fashion.

If you're friendly with your neighbors, share a subscription to the newspaper. Our sweet neighbor has been giving us her Sunday paper for the past year when she's finished reading it. There's simply no need anymore to have the news delivered to your doorstep at 5am, with the Internet in everyone's back pocket, so 'read all about it' with your afternoon tea instead of your morning coffee.

If enough of us do these small things to save our earth, perhaps the "Extra! Extra!" will be our trees!

Let it grow, let it grow, let it grow!

When picking out your tree this season, the magic words are fir, spruce and pine, preferably with the roots still intact, so that replanting your tree after its lights go out will be a simpler gesture.

The tradition of planting your "used" Christmas tree in your backyard or near your home, will teach your children to preserve the wonders of nature. You may also start having Christmas in July by decorating your tree outdoors during the summer months with homemade ornaments such as macaroni chains... I'd avoid the popcorn strands unless you want every bird in town nesting on ole Tannenbaum...

My thumb is just a light shade of green, so I'll direct you to what the folks at www.motherearthnews.com advise on how to replant your Christmas tree.

Color me Happy

A friend gave me a fabulous indoor activity idea that your child will cherish for a lifetime.

To teach your baby about colors, dress her up in all red, all orange, all blue... you get the idea, all of the colors of the rainbow. Take her picture in each color, perhaps surrounded by household objects of the same hue. (apples, oranges, pears, plants, toys, rugs)

Upload the images to your computer and type the color across the top of the page. Take your pages to Kinko's and have them laminated into a keepsake book that your baby may even share with her own child someday.

Safely Spritz Away Monsters in the Closet… or under the bed

This is the kind of product that will have you hitting yourself on the forehead with an open palm and saying, “Why didn’t I invent this?”

We all have at least one person in our household who is afraid of monsters. In ours, it happens to be me. I am hoping Olivia is a braver soul once she reaches monster fearing age! But just in case, Boo Be Gone is a clever way to rid your home of monstrous pests who threaten the sleep continuum. Boo Be Gone is a spray scented with lavender and mandarin essential oils. Take your child by the hand and let him mist his fears away before bedtime.

An alternative to buying Boo Be Gone would be to buy a spray bottle and simply fill it with water. Affix your own personal sign to the front. If your child’s “monster” has a specific name for instance, head to the computer and print up “Harry Be Gone!”

Be a Wrap Star this Christmas

It's Olivia's first Christmas, and she won't be receiving any large, awkwardly shaped gifts this year, but I did buy something completely impossible to wrap for my husband. Alas, it currently sits slumped in the corner, with some wrapping paper thrown at it, secured by several overworked pieces of tape.

The perfect solution to having a battle with a roll of wrapping paper is the Santa Sack. Made of cozy flannel, this sack may be personalized with a name, or left blank to house large gifts year after year for multiple recipients in your home. It may even become a family tradition to guess... "Who's going to get the Santa Sack this year?" Or, it may be used in lieu of wrapping paper to cover several small gifts, as if Santa himself dropped off all of the presents for each person in a new Earth friendly fashion!

Reasonably priced at $9.50, it looks like it's time to scrap the paper and reach for the sack.

Say Bye Bye to Germs with CleanWell

The "Happy Holiday" season brings with it symphonies of coughing, sneezing, nose blowing, sore throats, and that icky three letter "F" word, the flu.

I used to religiously Purell, (yes, the brand name became a verb in our household) my hands to fight the spread of germs, but the intense alcohol odor left me and the entire car or immediate area smelling like I just rolled out of a bar after downing six shots of whiskey.

I realize the high alcohol content is what makes Purell effective, but I have also come across the news that if a child ingests Purell, (not the normal pea sized amount needed to effectively clean their tiny hands...) but a relatively small amount, they may get alcohol poisoning.

CleanWell hand sanitizer is a product that literally saves the day. It is pure and natural and made from botanical sources. It contains no alcohol and no toxins, so it is safe for children. The folks at CleanWell use Ingenium in their products, which is comprised of essential plant oils that kill 99.99% of germs. The main component of Ingenium is Thyme, which has been used for thousands of years, across many cultures, for its antiseptic properties.

The earth saving component of opting for CleanWell is that:

"CleanWell hand sanitizer delivers a variety of environmental advantages, as the plants used in the main ingredient are rapidly renewable resources that are sustainably grown with no pesticides, irrigation, or fertilizer. Additionally there are no toxic byproducts resulting from the distillation process. Harvesting these plants provides jobs for people living in remote communities."

CleanWell is available at Target stores or online at http://www.cleanwelltoday.com/. The hand sanitizer would make a great stocking stuffer!

A (somewhat) Guilt Free Disposable Diaper

Like other ecologically aware parents, my husband and I had the whole discussion on whether to go the disposable diaper route or the cloth diaper route. We don't have a washer and dryer in our house... yes I am at the laundromat every week, joy of joys! Given that fact, for now we have opted for disposable diapers.

Olivia initially wore a Pampers diaper here and Huggies diaper there, as they were given to us by friends and relatives. We noticed redness in her diaper area and my husband did some research and discovered that Seventh Generation diapers are chlorine free and are comprised of non-toxic materials. We guessed these diapers would be the answer to ending her irritation, and we were right.

Pampers and Huggies also have a weird odor to them, even when unsoiled. Maybe it's due to an attempt at a deodorizer, but the smell was a turn off for us. Seventh Generation diapers are fragrance and latex free and hypo-allergenic. These were all a plus for us as Olivia had a bout of baby eczema and we required that only the purest things touch her skin.

If all those reasons aren't enough to convince you to make the switch, Seventh Generation goes so far as to claim that using these diapers will help alleviate the spread of cancer by reducing the amount of cancer causing dioxin that pollutes the air when the diapers are disposed. They add,

"If every household in the U.S. replaced just one 40-count package of size 3 conventional diapers with our chlorine-free diapers, we could avoid 133,000 pounds of pollution from entering the environment."

And finally, you'd think that these diapers would be more expensive than leading brands, but when bought in bulk they are comparable in price. We order ours from amazon.com and they are shipped to our doorstep for free so we don't have to use gasoline to go get them at the store.

We also use Seventh Generation baby wipes, which are also chlorine free and alcohol free as not to dry out baby's soft, precious bottom!

Will Burt's Bees Goodness get Bleached Out?

When I heard the news that Burt's Bees sold themselves to The Clorox Company, I blanched visibly. Clorox, always synonymous with harsh odors and ingredients, was now at the helm of my beloved choice of bath products for my baby, Olivia?

I visited the Burt's Bees website where I found "a letter to our loyal customers." They insist that selling their company to Clorox will help them attain, "The Greater Good." They promise that they'll maintain the quality and integrity of their products and continue to be conscientious of nature via packaging and contents, however I believe the proof will be in the pudding so to speak.

I will definitely be double checking the labels of my Pomegranate and Soy Shampoo and Conditioner and of Olivia's Burt's Baby Bee Shampoo Bar and Body Wash. I just don't trust that a corporate giant such as Clorox won't try to cut corners and sacrifice the philosophy of those busy bees.

One thing the letter stated that I am happy about is that perhaps being bought by such a large corporation will really equate to Burt's Bees being more readily available for consumers. If their supply is increased and they demand to keep their standards, this pairing could be a recipe for grand success. Who knows, we may even see a price drop?