Mom and baby product reviews on The Mommy Insider

Shop & Product Review: Screen Printed Wallet from Greenheart

My husband was very proud of himself when he came home with a 100% recycled product from Home Depot today.  He's on the 'Green' bandwagon and now I have something else to tell him about.  Fair Trade.  Fair Trade supports sustainable community development by ensuring that the artisans making the products are paid fair living wages.
Greenheart is an eco-fair trade non-profit shop, carrying both fair trade and eco friendly products including handbags, wallets, lotion, and cookbooks.  Greenheart believes consumers have the power to affect positive World change by supporting sustainable and fair business practices in their purchasing choices.

What is Eco-Fair Trade? Greenheart follows the guiding principles of "Fair Trade".  "Eco" signifies that our products are made using the most sustainable materials and methods whenever possible. At Greenheart, we are both "Fair to producers, and good to the Earth".

The product and giveaway featured here is Greenheart's fair trade wallet measuring a practical 8.5" x 5" x 1".  The wallet has a three-side zip closure, four section accordion dividers, a zip coin pocket, and credit card slips and I found that there is plenty of left over room for my phone.

Want to know more about socially and environmentally friendly shopping?  Check out this handy guide available at Greenheart.

GIVEAWAY!
We are giving a red screen printed fair trade wallet away to one lucky subscriber!  Simply subscribe to our newsletter and then tell us what your favorite item at Greenheart is (besides the wallet) in the comments below.  Use the email address you used when subscribing, when leaving your comment.

Little Tikes Rated Green products

Little Tikes is known for making colorful, fun, and educational toys for kids.  Sebastian, now 9 years old, had a Little Tikes picnic table, toddler bed, an outdoor play house, and little climber with a slide.  Our house and yard could have been a Little Tikes advertisement!  

You can't go wrong with Little Tikes which recently came out with a line of Green toys including the Bamboo 3-D Memory Matching Game,  Bamboo Tangram Game, Travel Flash Card Assortment: Numbers, Toddler Words, Subtractions, and Card Games: Old Maid, Go Fish and Slap Jack.

Madelyn loves the Little Tikes Bamboo 3-D Memory Matching Game.  The wood tiles are easy to pickup and hold and the cute character pictures on the tiles are colorful and easy for little eyes to remember and recongnize.

Besides being fun and educational, toys in Little Tikes' new line of Green toys are made from real babmoo (a renewable, sustainable, natural material), soy based ink, 100% reclylced paper and come in cases made from a biodegradable material called CBR (Corn Based Resin).

Little Tikes Rated Green educational toys and games are available at the Little Tikes online store, here.

Giveaway: Enter to win a set of Little Tikes Rated Green products!

3 steps toward Green(er) parentingStep 1: Green school supplies

Teaching kids how to lessen their footprint on the environment is vital and can be done easily, affordably and with style!  Here are a few online stores, and a sampling of their products, that will get your kids started on their Green school supply collection.

• Forest Choice - Graphite #2 pencils and colored pencils
• Green Apple - Earth Friendly School Pack 2", Recycled Content Markers, Recycled Ballpoint Pen, and Maped Natural Rubber Eraser are a few products offered here.
• Fluerville - Re-Run™ Beta Binder and Re-Run™ Messenger.

A few tips that I particularly like from The Green Parent website article, Green Your School Supplies are:

1. Aim For A Waste-Free Lunch
2. Borrow or Rent Sports Equipment and Instruments.
3. Update and reuse last year’s backpack by adding or removing fabric patches or designs.

Gloria Campos with Daily Green Tips reminds us that if we can't afford to buy all green school supplies, that's okay. Buy what you can green on the supply list. You will still make a difference.

Are your kids using Green school supplies?  If so, what are they and where do you buy them?

Xeko: an eco-friendly game that's fun for kids and parents

Sebastian and I are hooked on two games right now.  One is Xeko: Mission China.  Mission China is the newest Xeko mission.  Xeko games are eco-conscious collectible, educational card games.  The object of this game is to build the strongest Xeko-system that balances resources and species. In order to become a Xeko Master, your child must learn how to balance the eco-system.  A player wins by running out of cards in her draw pile AND also must have the highest number of eco-points indicating that she knows how to balance the Xeko-system.  Conserving cards is important too though, so like I said the game is all about balance.  Sebastian and I were playing like pro's within a couple of hours and it is so much fun to play! 
Players must play a Species card on each turn or pass.  Species cards must be linked together whether it be to your own Species card already in the field or your oponent's species card.

Sebastian loves to go on the Xeko website to learn more about his Xeko species cards and play games.  Add more fun to the game with booster packs.  Booster packs come with 9 cards from a random selection of 150 cards. All Xeko collections are playable with one another, and players can mix and match to build custom decks. 

Your child will learn interesting facts about endangered animals and their habitats while playing Xeko! Visit the Xeko website for a store near you or buy at Amazon.com.

Shadow Sticks

Zosimos Botanicals Shadow Sticks are a must have for my make-up bag which I carry in my diaper bag.  I recently received several Shadow Sticks to try out and am really impressed.  Available in over 10 colors, Shadow Sticks make applying eye make-up simple and virtually fool proof.

The size of a jumbo crayon, Shadow Sticks last a long time, apply smoothly, and are smudge-free making them the perfect eye shadow solution for busy moms.  Best of all, Zosimos Botanicals handcrafts their natural make-up and skincare in a 100% wind-powered workshop and is a Green business.

Zosimos Botanicals also has a great selection of other mommy must-have's including soy candles, skincare, bug spray and perfumes.  Linda, owner of Zosimos Botanicals, is a mom herself and knows what is important to moms when choosing skincare products for the family.  I really appreciate her effort to keep her products free of synthetic preservatives and petroleum products.

Website: Zosimos Botanicals Shadow Sticks

Peter Rabbit joins the Green revolution.. and Madelyn in bed

These cute organic plush toys quickly became one of Madelyn's favorite 'carry everywhere' items.  It makes sense.. they are easy to hold, just grab an ear, arm or leg and they are super soft.  Little does she know though that Flopsy and Cotton-tail are made from organic cotton and are phthalate free and that is what makes them so special to me.

Kids Preferred recently introduced a new line of Peter Rabbit plush, organic toys.  Peter Rabbit™ Naturally Better toys are made from certified organic cotton, eco-friendly materials, are phthalate free, and produced in socially responsible factories which makes mommy happy, while the size ans softness makes Madelyn happy.

Peter Rabbit is 18" tall and his sisters, Flopsy, Mopsy, and Cotton-tail, are 13" tall making them the perfect size for snuggling. 

Peter Rabbit Naturally Better toys would make a great baby shower or birthday gift.

LEARN MORE WEBSITE: Kids Preferred

BUY HERE: Buy for $18.99 or less at Amazon

Healthy Child Healthy World: a book review

I got this book in early April and wanted to hold off on reviewing it here until all the Earth Day hype simmered down.  Why?  We shouldn't just hear about all the products and services that will help us lead  'greener' lives on and around Earth Day!  We need to adjust our lives to put forth the effort to lead safer, healthier lives everyday!

Healthy Child Healthy World is honestly one of the best books of this type that I've read in a very long time.  It is not just a book to read once and put on the bookshelf.  I refer to it regularly as a reference book when I have a question about a cleaning product, formula, toy, etc. 

As parents, we want to do anything and everything to make my children's lives safer and healthier.  But up until recently consumers weren't given easy access to the information and tools necessary to implement changes that will make a difference in our lives and those of our family.  Now with Healthy Child Healthy World, parents can have this much needed information within reach 24/7.

Healthy Child Healthy World teaches us how to move away from cleaning products containing harsh chemicals, ammonia, and bleach and instead use items you may already have such as hydrogen peroxide, borax, and tea tree oil.  These three things are great to use for getting rid of mold.

Two of my favorite  of th 10 chapters in this book are "A Clean Plate: Choose and Eating and Storing Healthier Food" and "Child's Play: Safer Toys, Gear and Clothing".  These chapters provide a wealth of information.

Endorsed by celebrities including Harvey Karp (The Happiest Baby on the Block - one of my favorite reads when Madelyn was an infant) Tobey Maguire, Sheryl Crow, Vanessa Williams, and Tom Hanks.

I highly recommend that all parents buy this book for themselves and for their parents and friends.  This book can make a huge impact on your life like it has already done for mine.

You can purchase Healthy Child Healthy World at a currently discounted rate here.