Natural Teething Necklace for Mom & Baby Review/Giveaway #2 ~ Ends 9/13

by Carrie Wells, Ed.D.

When Lydia was about 8 months old, I hosted a review/giveaway for a Creative Addiction natural stone teething necklace. Andrea of Creative Addiction has since created some great new designs and has asked me to host a new review/giveaway ~ Of course I said YES!

Natural stone teething necklace

The new style I am reviewing features small turquoise-like natural stones. Instead of one large stone, this necklace contains 13 small stones. Andrea at Creative Addiction said that she created this design because her 7-month old loves teething on the individual beads. Because it is made of natural stone, it is safe for babies (not a choking hazard). This is a great alternative to all of those store-bought plastic teethers. Because the beads are on a nylon-type cord, you can tie the top part tighter for a shorter necklace or leave it as is for a longer necklace to pair with all different types of outfits. Fashionable for mommy and functional for baby! Lydia enjoys wearing it to play dress up, but I definitely look forward to my son using it as a teething necklace when he is ready.

Lydia "modeling" the necklace with her Dora bracelet (and very goofy 'cheese' smile). 

BUY IT! You can purchase a teething necklace or many other beautiful jewelry pieces at Andrea's etsy shop, Creative Addiction. Followers of my blog receive 15% off their orders for the next week.

WIN IT! You can win your own natural stone teething necklace just like the one above.

Mandatory entry: VISIT the Creative Addiction etsy page and let me know one item you would love to have!

For additional entries - leave one comment per entry:
1. 'Like' Huppie Mama on Facebook.
2. Follow Huppie Mama on Twitter.
3. Become a public follower of Momma Maven.
4. Become a public follower of Huppie Mama.

(*If you are already a follower of my blog, twitter, or Facebook, leave a comment telling me that - one for each.)

Be sure to include your email address with each entry so that I know how to find you. This giveaway ends on 9/13 at 10:00 pm. Winner will be chosen using random.org. If you are the winner, you will have 48 hours to respond before I choose another winner. Good luck!

Congratulations to our winner, Tina!

* I received the aforementioned products for free to review. The opinions expressed are honest and provided without monetary compensation.

Eco-Friendly Choices (Day 23 of 30)

Let me begin by saying...the 4-week countdown is ON!

So last night, I participated in a Healthy Child, Healthy World and Seventh Generation twitter party. We talked about eco-friendly choices, and it made me really think about how many eco-friendly choices I have made, especially since giving birth to Lydia:

• Breastfeeding
• Cloth diapering
• Reusable shopping bags
• Recycling pretty much everything I can
• Donating unneeded goods to charities
• Composting
• Gardening using seeds from my kitchen
• Reused tire mulch under our playground set
• Greener household cleaning products
• Organic food choices
• Using reusable bottles for water and a Brita pitcher instead of buying water bottles
• Some eco-friendly toys for Lydia
• Conserving energy as much as possible 
• Not using excessive quantities of gas - just driving when I need to
• Refusing plasticware, bags, packaging in restaurants as often as possible
• Reusing containers, butting back on zipper bags

I'm sure I'm forgetting several, but it feels good to confidently make these choices. Being more eco-conscious is a way of life. It makes you think about each decision you make, how it affects your life, the lives of your children, and the future generations. 

Green to Grow Glass Bottle (4-pack) Review & Giveaway

Because I breastfeed Lydia and for the first 8 months of her life I either worked from home or brought her to work with me, I rarely used bottles. In fact, I only had about 5 of them. She used bottles maybe a dozen or so times, always with pumped milk, so I didn't think too much about it. When Lydia was about 4 months old, every time I went to drink from a regular glass, she'd grab my glass to take a sip (and expressed very little interest in using a bottle). I'm a big water drinker, so no real harm in her trying some of my water, even if she spilled a bit.

HOWEVER, I recently (and temporarily) returned to work full-time, and I didn't want to pump milk only to have it spill everywhere in an open cup. So, I had to find some bottles to use. Luckily, during a trip to Whole Foods, I came across the Green to Grow glass bottles. I contacted the company, and they sent me 4 bottles to review: two 4 oz. bottles and two 8 oz. bottles (pictured below).

Here are a few facts about Green to Grow bottles:
1. The bottles are made in the U.S.A. Why is this important? This means that they wasted less fuel transporting these bottles from abroad, making them ecologically-friendly and economically-friendly.
2. They are BPA-free and phthalate-free.
3. The bottle-opening is a standard size, so the nipples can be used on other bottles.
4. The nipples are made of a medical grade silicone. They are slow flow nipples, which are recommended for young babies (esp. if you are breastfeeding).
5. The packaging itself is made from 100% recycled materials and is 100% recyclable. If your bottle accidentally breaks, it is also recyclable.

These bottles have been helpful to store pumped milk in the refrigerator and are safely transported using a small insulated cooler bag with an ice pack! I feel great knowing that my child is drinking from something that is safe when she is away from me. Besides, who wouldn't love those cool, funky designs on the bottle? Did I mention that green is my favorite color?

BUY IT! You can purchase Green to Grow bottles online or at your local Whole Foods Market. Green to Grow also sells reusable totes, cloths, and BPA-free plastic bottles.

WIN IT! Would you like to win four eco-friendly glass bottles for your little one (RV $31)?  Mandatory entry: Visit Green to Grow, click on the 'learn' link, and tell me something you learned!

For additional entries - leave one comment per entry:

1. 'Like' Green to Grow on Facebook.

2. 'Like' Huppie Mama on Facebook.

3. Follow Green to Grow on Twitter.
4. Follow Huppie Mama on Twitter.
5. Become a public follower of Huppie Mama.
6. 'Like' Abi's Place (the non-profit where I work) on Facebook.
(*If you are already a follower of my blog, twitter, or Facebook, leave a comment telling me that - one for each)
 

Be sure to include your email address with each entry so that I know how to find you. This giveaway ends on 6/7 at 11:59 pm. If you are the winner, you will have 48 hours to respond before I choose another winner. Good luck! 

**Congratulations to Rachel! Thank you to all who participated.

Eco-litism?

I was engaged in two different discussions yesterday that have led me to write this post. This is in not intended to offend anyone or cause any conflict, but I'm somewhat eager to get some feedback from others, so please read and comment!

Conversation one: I engaged in an online discussion with someone who was questioning different aspects of parenting/child development. These exchanges led to me saying: the only thing a baby really needs is love, 2 arms, 2 boobs, and some cloth diapers. And in actuality, when you narrow it down to needs, you basically need to be sheltered, fed, and clothed. This led to all kinds of other stupidity (why I continued to engage in it, I don't know. Ignorance just gets under my skin and my fiery Scorpio personality comes out) and she was like..."They still make cloth diapers? No thanks, I will stick with my Huggies." So I said "I'm not wealthy, so I'd rather breastfeed, cloth diaper, and put the money in a college fund for my daughter instead of a landfill." At that point, she told me I need to save money for my child's therapy since I'll drive her nuts. We were done at that point!

Conversation two: My best friend growing up lives in NYC. We got into a conversation yesterday about how people in NY take the whole eco-friendly/green-living thing too far. She said there was an unpasteurized milk movement a few years ago that seemed to be dangerous. I have heard from other people that they like to give their children unpasteurized milk. Her point was that it almost becomes a "who can do the most outrageous eco-friendly thing?" contest.

Is there an eco-litism? I have to say, it feels good to share my eco-choices with others. Why? Not to be an elitist, but because I am proud of the decisions I have made for my family and my planet.

• Shopping for fresh vegetables, going to farmer's markets, etc. is so healthy for my family, supports the local growers trying to produce great food, and eliminates all of the unnecessary waste (e.g. gas to transport food from other places, extra packaging, etc.) 
• Wearing cloth diapers (something I only began recently) has already saved us money and protected my baby's skin. 
• Composting reduces the amount of waste we create and helps produce really great soil for my garden. 
• Using fewer plastic bags helps the earth...and honestly, who wants plastic bags lying around the house with an infant learning to crawl? That's just dangerous! Additionally, a lot of places give a discount now for bringing your own bags.
• Best of all is the decision to breastfeed. The benefits are endless: building my daughter's immunity, helping her to relax/soothe/go to sleep, saving us tons of money, reducing waste from packaging, gas, etc., and if you want to get technical, saving us money on feminine products as I have not started to menstruate yet.  Besides, it just feels good to know that I provided her with all the nutrients she needed to survive the first 6 months of life, and I continue to provide her with so many nutrients now at 8 months.

Is it pride? Is it elitism? I think I'm just happy with the research I have done and the knowledge I have gained in such a short period of time and the decisions I have made based on weighing the pros/cons... and I just want to share that information with everyone else! Nothing wrong with that, right??

Here's some additional information regarding Raw Milk.

I love raw milk cheese - my favorite being Organic Valley Raw Sharp Cheddar Cheese. I also just tried some raw milk goat cheese from a farm I visited in Central Florida. I know my doctor told me not to eat unpasteurized cheeses during pregnancy, and I listened. In fact, as a first time mom, I avoided a lot of foods while I was pregnant for fear that they would be harmful. But the more I think about it, isn't our breast milk just unpasteurized milk created by a mammal? Isn't that the same as raw cow's milk? And isn't breast milk the best thing for our babies? I decided to do some quick research regarding unpasteurized milk. I came across this raw milk website. Here are some facts I learned about raw milk:

• Raw milk is cow's milk taken straight from animals fed only fresh, organic, green grass, rapidly cooled to somewhere around 36-38 degrees F., and bottled.
• Do not drink raw milk that is going to be pasteurized. It is generally mass-produced, and cleanliness standards are not nearly as high as they are for milk that is meant to be raw milk. In addition, milk is often produced by 'supercows' who are given additional hormones to produce more milk. This leads to a condition that many breastfeeding women can relate to: mastitis (I have been fortunate to not experience it, but I have heard it's awful).  Mastitis produces increased white blood cells - which leads to pus in the milk. Great to know, huh??
• Raw milk has amazing medicinal properties and was used to treat illness for hundreds of years (until midway through the 20th century). Clean raw milk from pastured cows is a complete and properly balanced food. You could live on it exclusively if you had to - kinda like human breast milk for babies!!

I'd like to end this with a quote I've seen on a few websites recently:
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has." - Margaret Meade

The Real Farmville

While on our way home from our first family vacation, we stopped at Crone's Cradle Conserve. This is an amazing place in Citra, FL. Where's Citra, FL? Basically, in the middle of nowhere. We took I-75 to the Orange Lake exit, then drove many miles through the wooded areas, until we had to veer off the paved road. After that, we still had to drive a few miles...until we found this absolutely amazing place! It's a farm with a country store. They sell fresh goat cheese, eggs, grass-fed beef, jars of pickled items and jellies, and all of these wonderful fresh veggies and veggie/herb plants. They had chickens and pheasants and a big ol' pig. They're also extremely eco-friendly. I spoke to one of the employees, and he said that they try to avoid using any plastic products. It felt like stepping back in time to a simpler life, where people took pride in their work. The raised garden beds were so well-taken care of, the animals roamed free or in very large cages, eating healthy fruits and vegetables.

Here are a few pictures I'd like to share:

We purchased some fresh arugula that I put in a quiche, carrots, some romaine lettuce, several veggie/herb/fruit plants (cantaloupe, watermelon, oregano, and a few others), fresh goat cheese (which tasted so different than the store-bought stuff...so much earthier), and Richard got some grass-fed beef that he used to make meatballs.

Eco-Friendly Family Travel

We celebrated this spring break with a great family vacation!

We traveled from Fort Lauderdale, FL to St. Augustine, FL (spent one night there). Then we went to Savannah, GA (spent two nights there) and Gainesville, FL (spent one night there) before returning home. This was our first family vacation since Lydia was born. As much as I normally consider every detail when planning a vacation, I really thought things through this time, particularly when it came to the idea of traveling 'green' and on a budget.

So here are two areas where I had to compromise my 'green' desires:

1. I drive an SUV. It's a 2008 Honda CR-V. One of the features that attracted me to this particular model is that it gets great gas mileage for an SUV. We got about 25 miles to the gallon on our trip.

2. I just didn't think I could manage cloth-diapering while traveling, so instead we opted for some chlorine-free diapers. This was convenient, but did cause Lydia to get more diaper rash than she'd normally get using our GroBaby diapers.

Okay, here's the good stuff...my list of ten 'green,' budget travel suggestions! 

1. Try to plan roadtrips where you can park your car somewhere and leave it there. Most of our trip was spent walking around. Some highlights were Castillo de San Marcos in St. Augustine and Forsyth Park in Savannah. The Savannah tourism website even has a "Go Green" section with lists of accommodations and activities. If walking isn't really an option, try trolleys, buses, or even horse-drawn carriages as these are still more eco-friendly than driving your car around.

2. Stay at a bed & breakfast. This supports independently owned businesses. Since your stay will also include breakfast, it is generally a good choice financially as well. In addition, they tend to avoid using disposable dishes, silverware, napkins, etc. so it can be earth-friendly, too.

3. If we're staying at a place for just 2 - 3 nights, we place the "Do Not Disturb" sign on our door. It's not that we want our privacy; but we want to be eco-friendly. By placing the sign on your door, the maid will not clean your room. This saves gas/electricity/water because your bedding and towels are not being replaced. Unnecessary cleaners aren't being wasted either. And, honestly, who changes their sheets daily in their own home??

4. Either bring your own toiletries or feel free to take any partially-used bottles of shampoo, lotion, and conditioner home with you (the small bottles they place in your room). Wasting so many little bottles of soaps and such is just that - wasteful. One thing I do is collect sample shampoo and toothpaste packages that I receive in the mail sometimes, and I bring those on vacation with me. If I am going to use them anyway, I might as well use them instead of what the hotel is providing to me.

5. Bring snacks in reusable containers. This is an easy one. If you're on the road for any extended period of time, instead of stopping at a rest stop and getting small bags of chips, nuts, or candy, just bring your own from home. It's a great 'green' choice that will also save you money, as those rest stops tend to charge big bucks for small portions.

6. This is the first time I brought my own earth-friendly water bottles along on a road trip. Usually I get bottles of water and recycle them, but it's even easier to bring my own bottle along and refill at water fountains and water coolers. Plus, the metal bottles act as great ice packs (when filled with ice) to chill snacks in a cooler.

7. Another easy one - Bring your own reusable shopping bags.

8. Avoid fast food restaurants. Between the gas wasted traveling pre-packaged low-quality food across the country and all of the disposable silverware/dishes, it's just wasteful. Food is one area where I don't mind splurging a bit. We ate at a few amazing restaurants, including breakfast at 700 Drayton and dinner at the Olde Pink House, both in Savannah. You may spend a little extra, but it is so worth it. If you are going to opt for more casual dining, consider places that still use real dishes/silverware. We got dessert at Maude's Classic Cafe in Gainesville, and even though it's just a small coffee shop with an outdoor eating area, they use reusable dishes/silverware, and you just clean up after yourself when you are finished.

9. Buy local! If you are buying souvenirs for yourself or as gifts for others, buy the items that are created in that area. Avoid items like shot glasses, metal spoons, souvenir books (which you can make yourself - personalized), and snow globes. We visited some great places on our trip, including the Savannah Bee Company where I purchased a small jar of honey for my sister and some handmade soap for my mom. They let you sample all of their honey so you know exactly what you are purchasing. We also tasted 7 different types of wine at the Shannon Vineyards store in town. All the wines are made from muscadine grapes, grown about 50 miles outside of Savannah. We also tried some delicious pecan pralines. Yum! It's great to support the local, independently-run companies who are either doing some innovative things or keeping traditions alive. You're also avoiding all of the costs involved in shipping items form other areas to that particular city, just to sell to you as a tourist.

10. One other suggestion for eco-friendly budget travel is to find free souvenirs. If you are going to the beach, take shells. The forest, find some nice pine cones. One of my favorite ideas that I did on a trip to Friday Harbor, WA in 2008 was to pick some of the beautiful wildflowers and press them. I did this by laying them flat between paper (mostly all of those brochures and coupon books you're handed when you check into a hotel) and placing them under something heavy (I actually used my laptop and a copy of the bible, which is pretty much found in almost every hotel room). The flowers looked beautiful and made great gifts, such as decorated bookmarks.

What does your family do to save money and our planet while still enjoying an amazing family vacation?