Safe suds

As I just flipped through a baby's first objects book with my daughter, we arrived to the tugboat, which she pointed at inquisitively wanting to hear what it was. I said "Bote" in spanish and thought to myself, we need a "bote" in her bathtub. Then I thought the dreaded thought that I always think...where am I going to find one that isn't toxic. I just went onto Uncommon Goods website to search for something unrelated and came across this little beauty. BPA, PVC and Phtalate-free and made from recycled plastic milk jugs. Toot-toot. uncommongoods.com

Add iron the old-fashioned way

I recently found out that my daughter's iron levels are leaving a little to be desired, so I've been pushing the eggs, spinach and beans, but another natural way to add iron to your little one's (as well as your) diet is to cook in cast iron cookwear. I just purchased this dutch oven with glass lid (I got the 10.25" size). Don't be tempted by pretty, colorful enamel-coated cast-iron wear, since your food will not absorb any iron through the coating. Also worth noting is that Lodge cast iron cookwear is made here in the old U.S. of A. Details at www.lodgemfg.com. Also available through Amazon (Obsessed Moms also gets a small percentage if you purchase one through this link:)Lodge Dutch Ovens with Glass Lid

Teething relief bling

Several friends have decked their little one out in one of these amber teething necklaces. I've always admired them, but it only recently occurred to me, after 4 sleepless teething nights, to get one for my daughter. I got this lemon-colored, clear necklace, but they come in colors from black to orange to yellow. Check out the selection on Etsy.

BPA-free pumping

When my daughter was born one year ago (her birthday was this past Monday), I didn't know much about breast pumps and didn't even think to research to see if there was a "Green" one. A friend had given me her old one, but after a very expensive meeting with a lactation consultant, she made it very clear that with each child you MUST get a brand new pump, not necessarily for hygienic reasons, but because the pumps are only single use and they slowly burn out, sometimes unbeknownst to the user.
So, I bought a Medela, which has worked well for me, but according to this article Medela bottles, even though marketed as BPA-free were found to have low to high levels of BPA in them. Luckily, I read this early on and always immediately transfered my milk into glass bottles, but it was very disheartening news to read. Enter the Hygeia pump. All of it's parts that come into contact with breast milk are BPA/DEHP Free and it even has an innovative feature that allows you to record you baby's cries, laughs or whatever other sounds help your milk let down. Kinda makes me want to have another...
hygeiababy.com

Green garbage

Even though they're not designed specifically as a baby product, Perf's Go Green Biodegradable bags work great in the diaper bin, as well as in the kitchen and for recycling. We've tried several brands of biodegradable bags and these take the prize. They're thick enough that they don't rip or leak and they have handles to make it easy to remove them and tie them up. They are made from recycled plastics and break down within 2 years of exposure to the elements (but just as a reminder, just because things are biodegradable, doesn't mean they go away if they're stuck in the middle of a landfill pile and not exposed to sun and rain to break them down, so if you don't need to make trash, don't:)
We use the 30 gallon Garden & Leaf bags in our Simple Human garbage can, recycling can and Diaper Bin. They also offer 13 gallon tall kitchen bags, Kitty Litter bags and Doggy Duty bags. Three giggles, meows and woofs for biodegradable...
More info at perfgogreen.com. Available at grocery stores or at Amazon.com

Bamboo is the new black

I don't write about clothes all that often since they usually don't fall into the "innovative" category, but I felt that I had to share Kicky Pants with you all. We have a few pair of pajamas and rompers for my daughter and they are just the softest and most lightweight things around. They're 95% Bamboo and 5% lycra for a little stretch. I've noticed that a lot of other manufacturers of Bamboo clothing include a small percentage of Polyester, which to me, is unacceptable. If you're interested, take a look at this article about polyester and you'll see why.
I will warn that the colors do fade a bit and that you need to lay them flat to dry instead of throwing in the dryer, but they are well worth the effort. They also have cute maternity T-shirts and regular T-shirts as well. Check them out at kickypants.com.

Car Troubles?

When we first moved down to Miami from NYC, my daughter was completely freaked out by being trapped in a car seat, instead of strapped to mama, bouncing happily along. I, of course, looked for every distraction I could find, but also read that having toys hanging from the car seat was unsafe, and I, luckily, stumbled across this gizmo in my research.
The Auto Mobile by Kicky Pants is genius, simple and safe. It velcros around your back seat handles to create a hanging (safe) place to tether a toy or two to occupy baby. Be careful, not to hang anything heavy that would injure baby in an accident, and try to keep them to the side of their face. It works with either forward or rear-facing seats too. Like I said, genius.
Available through whateverybabyneeds.com (which also has an amazing selection of organic, and affordable clothing)

Safe (Sleeping) Travels

Now that our daughter is nearing her first birthday, we're finally looking at doing some traveling. Since she sleeps on an organic mattress in her crib, we'd also like her to have one in her travel bed (pack 'n play). Her Arms Reach mini co-sleeper had an organic mattress so we plan to get one for our travels as well. This article is a great resource for where to look for one. Another interesting option is the new Go Crib, a lightweight, inflatable portable crib that is made of PVC, Phtlalate and lead-free non-toxic materials. It also has the bonus feature of packing up into a backpack and fitting in the overhead compartment of a plane. That would help any parent sleep well.

Wonderful Wool

When our daughter was born I bought several wood puddle pads for her co-sleeper and, later, Stokke crib. Luckily, we haven't needed them too many times, but there were a few nights of diaper rash, where we let her sleep without diapers that they came in very handy. We now have the oval pad under her organic mattress in her Stokke (oval) crib and we use one of the smaller ones we got for the co-sleeper in the middle of our bed, under the sheets.
Lots of manufacturers make natural pads...we got ours from Pure-Rest, but the wool mattresses and pads from Sheperds Dream are just dreamy.
http://www.purerest.com
http://www.shepherdsdream.ca

Family sleeping is on a roll

The Humanity Family Sleeper by Humanity Organics is a great tool to have in your co-sleeping arsenal. Our daughter sleeps in her crib for most of the night, but inevitably moves into our bed in the early morning. Usually she's in between my husband and myself, but if one of us gets out of the bed, we put the sleeper roll down on that side of the bed to safeguard and allow the other one to continue sleeping without worrying about her rolling off. When my husband goes out of town I sleep with the roll on his side and sometimes I put her between the myself and the roll on my side.
It has a large pad for mama and baby to sleep and breastfeed. Soft organic cotton to absorb leaks so no sleeping on wet sheets. Easy to use. No belts, straps or buckles. Pad stays in place.
Bonus is that the body pillow is detachable in case you become a mom-to-be again. The pillow now has an all natural Kapok fill.
Can also be used in a toddler's bed to prevent them from rolling out. As I said before, now we're on a roll.
humanityorganics.com/