Posts filed under 'Uncategorized'
Earth Day: Make a green resolution
There are many ways to go green and it can be very simple to do. Plus it’s healthier for your family and the planet.
While you don’t need to do a greening overhaul, taking baby steps is a great way to get there and a great choice to make. Take things one step at a time and replace those cleaning products as you run out, doing spring cleaning and replace BPA-ladened cups, dishes, etc., vow to bike/carpool/walk to work, eat more organics.
Whole Foods is having a Green Resolution contest. And while you are at it, please comment below your green tip, green resolution or favorite way to go green.
Mine is I am going to start cleaning the tub with baking soda!
1 comment April 21, 2009
Create an eco-nursery; County bans BPA baby bottles and Rubber mulch is toxic
Something new: Link Round up!
It’s difficult to post even weekly now with 2 kids and working full time, so I decided when I have several interesting topics at once, I will give a smaller summary and post the link to the article.
Eco-proof the nursery this is a great little article highlighting common concerns for today’s new parents (or new again). It shows how parents are concerned about the expense of raising a “green” baby and offers tips on how to go free for free or for very little money.
One NY County Bans BPA Baby bottles Hats off to them! I hope this catches on, though with manufacturers stopping the production of them and national retailers stopping the sale of them, bottles made with BPA will be hard to come by soon enough.
Rubber mulch is not non-toxic and contains metal fragments. And Obama just used it on his girl’s White House playground. Hopefully he will replace it. While it seems like a great idea to turn used tires into mulch for playgrounds and landscapes, it really is not non-toxic or safe for kids or the environment. Plus, rubber is highly flammable and difficult to extinguish once on fire.
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Add comment April 8, 2009
Bottle makers to stop selling BPA containing baby bottles
It was bound to happen sooner than later – the six main baby bottle manufacturers have decided to stop selling polycarbonate baby bottles containing BPA in the US. HOORAY!
The six manufacturers Avent, Dr. Browns, Evenflo, The First Years, Gerber and Playtex all already have BPA free bottles. It really is a no brainer move since large retailers including Target, Wal-Mart and Babies R Us vowed to stop selling baby bottles containing BPA at the end of 2008, and Canada banned the sale of polycarbonate baby bottles last year. So if there is no market or sales channel, then why bother? Either way, this is to be applauded. But sadly, these bottles will continue to be sold outside North America.
This is a great first step; however, there is still work to be done on this issue. BPA still lines the insides of canned foods, soft drink cans, lids of many jarred foods, dental sealants, etc. And of course the FDA still is trying to convince us BPA is safe even though 130 studies have linked BPA exposure to behavior problems, breast cancer, obesity, diabetes and several other disorders.
See how to avoid BPA.
See my lists of BPA free items for children and some for mom too.
BPA free bottles, sippy cups and food storage
BPA and phthalate free pacifiers
BPA and phthalate free teethers and rattles
BPA free dishes, utensils, snack containers and food storage
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Add comment March 6, 2009
I’m on Twitter
So I am getting on board with all this keeping in touch technology and am now on Twitter. Follow me at www.twitter.com/amomsblog
Tweet, Tweet!
Add comment February 4, 2009
Christmas on a budget: Homemade Christmas Gifts for Everyone on your list
With the economy on a downswing, many are wondering how they can still have a great Christmas, or a Christmas at all. Luckily, there are many thoughtful gifts you can make for just a few dollars or even less.
Gifts for Kids
- Consider a toy swap with neighbors and friends. They may have new or gently used toys that their children are not interested in or are too old for.
- Check garage sales or thrift stores, you can find great toys, clothes and games at great prices. You will certainly have to dig a little, but great finds await you.
- Coloring books from the dollar store.
- Board games like Candy Land are often on sale for 2 for $10 at Wal-Mart
- Buy discount fleece and make a no-sew blanket
If you have very young children, you can make many things at home for very little.
- A cardboard refrigerator box can be turned into a playhouse. Most toddlers prefer the box the toy came in to the toy themselves. You can cut out windows and door, then use markers, crayons, paint, fabric, etc. to make curtains, pictures, a fireplace, etc.
- Old socks can be turned into puppets with a couple button eyes and a permanant marker for a mouth. You can get creative and use fabric scraps for ears, a tougue, arms, etc.
- Fabric scraps can be turned into blankets, doll clothes, dress-up clothes… or use to make book or photo album covers, which you can also make yourself.
If you really cannot provide for your child(ren) this Christmas, check out local charities and see if you can get your child(ren) on an Angel Tree.
Parents/Grandparents
- A framed photo of your child with the grandparent(s)
- Have your child draw a picture and frame it
- Personally monogram a coffee mug, or have your child paint it
- Create a blog to share stories and photos of your family. This is especially great if there is some distance between the grandparents and grandkids
Neighbors/Friends/Anyone
- Stencil napkins or linen hand towels and tie together with a pretty ribbon
- Bake cookies or bread and deliver in a pretty basket, a plate or tin
- Potted plant
- Make bath soaps or bath salts with the kids. You can make all-natural soaps and milk-based soaps for eco-friendly options.
- Bargain books from Amazon or Barnes and Nobles
- Make ornaments with thick poster board and glitter
- Melt your old candles and make new ones. Or make them from scratch.
- Make a book of coupons: use services you can provide such as free babysitting, grass cutting, oil change, music or singing lessons… whatever you can provide to the recipient. This is completely free, other than for your time
- Check local trade schools. Many offer free or discounted prices for massages, manicures, and hair services.
- Decorate old jars with ribbon or craft foil and fill with candies or other treats
- Cookie jar – fill an old jar with the pre-measured dry ingredients for cookies or brownies with the instructions to add the “wet” ingredients and how to bake. Decorate with festive ribbon.
- Make a calendar. You can use your own photos or find images online. You can add birthdays, anniversaries, sporting events, and other important dates that would be important to the recipient.
- Make your own bath salts and put in a jar with a pretty ribbon
- Make a trivet. Buy a discount tile from a home improvement or flooring store and glue felt to the back. For a personal touch, add a monogram. If it’s for a grandparent, you can have the child paint it.
- Coupon for soup of the month club – give a quart of soup each month of the year. Great for an elderly neighbor or even a college student. Don’t like soup? Do a casserole or other dish theme instead.
- Create your own spice rub. Google spice rub recipes, make your favorite and deliver in a glass jar decked out in a festive ribbon.
Spouse
- Coupon book for a night out without the kids, massage, or whatever you desire.
- Framed family photo
- Collage of family memories
- Make a photo album of favorite memories of your years together
College kid
- Make a hamper of essentials like shampoo, loopha, lotions, cotton balls, towels, washcloth, toothpaste, etc.
- Gift cards in any amount
- Make a scarf from discount fleece. Cut the desired length and then cut fringe on each end
Today Show: Martha Stewart’s Homemade gifts and goodies
Today Show: DIY sweet and stylish gifts
What are you making this Christmas board
Holiday projects board
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2 comments December 11, 2008
Did the plastics industry write the FDA’s report on BPA?
I found this article awhile back saying the FDA’s report on the safety of BPA, released in August, may have been written by the folks at the plastics industry, who obviously have a large stake here.
MILWAUKEE, WISC.; October 23, 2008 (WPVI) — A government saying that bisphenol A, a controversial chemical in plastics was safe came largely from research supplies by the plastics industry.
In a special report, writers for the Milwaukee Sentinel-Journal say the FDA’s own documents say most of the work was prepared by major stakeholders in keeping bisphenol A, also called BPA, on the market.
That includes Stephen Hentges, executive director of the American Chemistry Council’s group on bisphenol A, who commissioned a review of all studies of the neurotoxicity of bisphenol A and submitted it to the FDA. The FDA then used that report as the foundation for its evaluation of the chemical on neural and behavioral development. The American Chemistry Council is a trade group representing chemical manufacturers.
The FDA’s report, which came out in August, said concerns about BPA were unfounded. It is used in baby bottles, water bottles, the linings of infant formula containers, dental sealants, eyeglasses, and inside food cans.
One month later, advisers from the National Toxicology Program – an FDA advisory panel – came to the opposite conclusion – that there is cause for concern on how BPA affects fetuses, infants, and children, as well as how it affects development of the brain and prostate gland.
A congressional committee is now investigating the August report, and the FDA’s links to the plastics industry. The agency had been criticized before for using industry figures to make its case for BPA’s safety. The FDA has promised to do an independent study on BPA safety, but that has yet to be done.
Bisphenol A has been detected in the urine of 93% of those tested.
Last weekend, the Canadian government officially declared BPA as a toxin, and banned its use in baby bottles and children’s products.
Numerous university studies on BPA using lab aninmals showed the potential for serious health effects.
A government committee is currently analyzing the initial FDA report finding no harm. Its report is due out on in Washington next Friday, October 31st.
/end article
Additionally, there was a report earlier this week that one of the top FDA officials reviewing the BPA case accepted a bribe from the plastics industry.
The good news is there are folks in the US who are taking action.
- Attorneys general of 3 states have written letters to 11 companies asking them to ban the use of BPA in their products. This includes popular bottle and formula makers.
- The Environmental Working Group continues to study BPA in formula and issue the findings so parents can choose safer formulas.
- Blogs by concerned parents are helping spread the word and providing parents with lists of BPA-free options so they may choose safer products for their children.
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Should you get the flu shot or just take Vitamin D?
Add comment November 24, 2008
EPA ignores the toxic threat in our drinking water
Well, isn’t this great… there is rocket fuel contaminating our drinking water, or at least in the ground water, drinking water and/or soil in 43 states.
The article states:
“Independent testing of milk nationwide has shown near universal perchlorate contamination, often at concentrations well above safe limits. In 2004 and 2008 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration published studies revealing contamination of most of the nation’s food supply….
Small children and the unborn are the most vulnerable to perchlorate, which impairs endocrine function by interfering with iodine uptake by the thyroid gland. Perchlorate crosses the placenta and shows up in breast milk, leaving infants and fetuses with even higher blood concentrations than their mothers. In even the most minute concentrations perchlorate can cause enough thyroid inhibition to impair proper neurologic and brain development in children.
Fantastic, right? There’s more. The CDC found significant effects on health at doses 5 times BELOW what the EPA considers “safe.” A 1 year old can consume more than the safe level, just from consuming food, not counting any water or milk he may drink that is also contaminated.
Another excerpt:
“One out of every six children nationwide has a learning disability or behavioral disorder severe enough to require therapy. Numerous environmental contaminants could be contributing to this alarming trend: mercury, radioactivity, generic air pollution and chemicals like bisphenol A, dioxins, PCBs and certainly perchlorate.”
Of course, like the BPA issue, it appears nothing is being done on this issue because of money and industry pressure. I love that economics is more important than human health and well-being, especially when children are most at risk; all the while learning disabilities and behavior disorders are at staggering numbers (as in affecting 1 in 6 children). Something is clearly wrong here.
And sadly, there is not much we can do. Even if we grow our own food or purchase organic, the rocket fuel may still exisit in the water these plants and animals received and the water and milk we drink.
This is one of those cases where we just need to write letters — to the EPA, to our senators, congressmen, etc. until someone will listen.
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Add comment October 13, 2008
Silicone bottles: the latest in BPA-free bottles
I had heard about a silicone baby bottle and thought, what in the world is that? So I Googled it (like I do everything!) and it sounds very interesting! The Innobaby Silicone bottle is derived from safe, natural ingredients like pebbles and sand and grow with your baby. This bottle will be available January 2009.
In poking around, I saw on The Soft Landing blog that Momo is also coming out with a silicone baby bottle in October, so just a few short weeks. And Nuby is coming out with a silicone bottle in January 2009 as well.
Check back and I will post when these are available and where to buy.
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2 comments September 22, 2008
Which Sassy products are BPA-free?
Sassy recently cleared up which of their products were BPA-free and which were not. Previously they had claimed certain products did not contain BPA and turns out some of them did. So which ones really are safe?
Unfortunately, Sassy does not have a great list on their website like other companies do. Hopefully they will step it up and add this soon. However, The Soft Landing has created a list of safe, BPA-free Sassy products and posted it here.
Sassy products can be found at most discount retail stores or shop online for the best selection.
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Add comment September 22, 2008
