I jumped on the green bandwagon in the early 1990s after watching a celebrity-studded Earth Day special on television. I was an impressionable teen living in the not-so-eco-minded Nevada high desert. I was looking for something, and I found it in taking Navy showers, eschewing paper towels, and sorting out recyclables. That last effort was somewhat diminished by the fact that no recycling facilities existed at the time. Me, in greener times, c…

Just a few weeks ago our cupboard was brimming with paperclips, post-its and postage stamps.  Every time I opened it a flurry of papers spewed out, making our kitchen’s organization center an utter mess.  It was imperative to get things in working order soon, but I didn’t want to shell out big bucks in the process. Happily, my first (and only) shopping stop was the local thrift store.  The shelves were heaped with all sorts of gizmos…

I must have heard this toy organization tip a hundred times. We even wrote about it in our book, The Eco-nomical Baby Guide. To keep toys fresh and interesting for your child, simply box up a nice selection of games, books, and dolls and forget about it for a month or two. When the box reappears, your child will delight in all the “new” stuff, and you’ll rotate out some other playthings. Not really Audrey’s room. She was asleep while I p…

There have been a few eco-friendly toys we’ve invested in over the years that have turned out to be duds. Just so you don’t make the same mistake this holiday season, we’ll share our failed purchases. (Let me add that my kids have a much longer list of green toys they have loved. Check out Monday’s post for details.) Melissa and Doug is a company that makes beautiful, quality products out of sustainable materials. When…

My daughter (now age 5) loves books. She can spend hours paging through them. We typically have at least 40 books checked out of the library for her. During the preschool years, here were some of her very favorites: Mary Engelbreit’s Nursery Tales. We own this one.  Hours of amusement! Mary Engelbreit’s Mother Goose. We own this one, too. Audrey can’t get enough of naughty David’s antics. No, David! David Goes to School Dav…

Sometimes an eco-friendly solution arrives in an unlikely place. I searched high and low for new baby doll clothes to give my daughter for her fifth birthday, but I just couldn’t bring myself to pay $10 or $15 for cheap little garments encased in several layers of non-recyclable plastic. The woman at the secondhand shop insisted I check out the “Senior Store” in my neighborhood—a little shop selling handicrafts made by the residents of the seni…

Do you need a wipes warmer in order to be the best parent you can possibly be? Will your youngster grow up sickly and deprived without a vibrating bouncy seat that teaches him the colors of the rainbow and how to count to ten in five languages? In our book, The Eco-nomical Baby Guide, we answer these pressing questions and give some commonsense ideas for reducing the amount of baby gear piling up in the nursery. As I was looking over the “Nurse…

We’re always on the hunt for green companies providing quality baby products—and were excited to stumble on My Little Pakora.  The company’s eco-friendly values and South Asian roots were especially appealing to us.  Read our interview with the company’s founder, Sonia Gupta, to find out more! GBG: What inspired you to start Little Pakora and what is your company’s mission? Sonia: My daughter inspired me..after her birth in 2006 I realize…

Our last Natural Pod giveaway was so successful that we’re doing another one!  Last time we oohed and awed over the wooden play kitchen, gnome family kit, and wooden cups and plates–and our lucky reader won the natural stacking rings. Natural Pod also sells organic clothing.  Here’s what they have to say about it: Natural Pod has a great range of unique organic clothing for babies, toddlers and children up to 8 years. We have w…

Rebecca likes to cruelly taunt me about the use of my blender for making homemade baby food. Honestly, I could care less. I proudly stand behind my little Osterizer and its amazing ability to whip up heaps of sweet potatoes, baby spinach, and pureed pears. (By the way, Rebecca and I are playing up the blender drama just for show. Our nearly twenty year friendship hasn’t been damaged by this small appliance duel.) Due to limited storage in my…