New Stuff For Mom

2008-11-09T10:43:00.000-08:00

I just stocked up on this liquid dish soap! I love the scent of lavender - actually I find it very calming and anything that smells like lavender usually finds it way into my home! First, it works....really, really well. It is totally 'green' and reasonably priced. Lastly, it smells fantastic! Find out more about the product line (and please tell me if any of the other products are your favorite too, since I haven't tried any of the others) and where to order at http://www.citra-solv.com/index.shtml. Happy dish washing!

2008-10-01T18:08:00.000-07:00

I just got home from an evening at my daughter,s preschool - two inspiring parents told us about how their family has made huge strides to be greener. How motivating, and how humbling at the same time! This thought provoking couple gave an overview on their solar panels that have spurred a fantastic family challenge that gets everyone excited to cut back on the energy they use every month and, quite frankly, I can see how it could be quite addicting. My mind is reeling with the long list of things I'd like to take on in my quest to evolve into a more environmentally friendly person. Remember, I JUST gave up water bottles and I still drive an SUV - however, my family can be proud of the little things we've done, and be invigorated in our quest to do more by simply hearing stories like that of Mr. and Mrs. B (I will withhold their real names so they are not bombarded with requests to speak at your children's school too!) who spearheaded this informal talk at the school tonight.
Wait until you hear about the electric lawn mower Mrs. B received from her family for mother's day - more on that after I rest my brain.

All purpose cleaning cloth

2008-09-22T14:09:00.000-07:00

oooh - I found another one! During my last trip to the grocery store, I fell prey to the Gleen cleaning cloth display, and for about $6.00, I brought home a piece of magic! Yes, with a little water, and wringing dry, my windows, fridge, oven front and other surfaces, came clean without any other agent. The company claims that, minus the wringing, I can clean my disgusting shower walls too. If you visit the company site; http://gleencloth.com/purchase/, you can even get a gift set and pass along this great find to your green friends and family (think stocking stuffer!)

In my opinion, you can ignore the instruction to roll the cloth back up and put it back into its original packaging. I've found that it dries quickly when hanging on a cabinet knob - and quite frankly, it stays put there just fine - ready for my next swipe whenever that may be. Enjoy!

Barefoot Books evolving mom

Cleaning Green - dishwasher tablet

2008-09-18T06:33:00.000-07:00

- - -

Imagine...a green dishwasher tablet...that actually WORKS! I thought I had tried them all; Seventh Generation, Sun & Earth, Planet*, etc. None of these produced the clean plate I was looking for (if I have to use a gallon of water to rinse the plate first, isn't that defeating my conservation efforts anyway??) So, low and behold, I found my ecological dishwasher tablet saviour in the grocery store - may I introduce you to ECOVER, a phosphate free tablet that really, really works! Visit http://www.ecover.com/ for more information on where to purchase the products - and click here to go directly to the coupons!

I can't wait to get my hands on some of their other products...

* A side note about Planet - I currently use their LIQUID dish soap (not for dishwasher) and am very happy with the foamy lather it creates, it works quite well too, just a different application.

See you soon! Barefoot Books Evolving Mom

Chinese Culture for your Child

2008-08-08T11:01:00.000-07:00

It is 08-08-08 and the Olympics begin in China today! People around the world will be learning about China's people, past and present. If you are looking for a fun way to celebrate China's rich and magical culture with your child, check out these beautiful titles from Barefoot Books.

Ranging in price from $13.99 to $19.99, these also make great gifts for teachers who will be talking with kids about China this fall.

Motherbridge of Love is a touching story about Chinese adoption - grab a tissue!!

Stories from the Silk Road is a collection of tales for your older children.

Little Leap Forward is Barefoot's first young fiction title - your advanced reader will be thrilled to see it is filled with gorgeous illustrations.

The Great Race is the story of the Chinese Zodiac and pairs well with the

Red Dragon Puppet from Folkmanis.

Stay tuned for more fun facts on China today...I'll be posting some interesting tidbits over the next week or two - little facts worth sharing with your kids.

Have fun travelling to China from the comfort of your home!

A site you'll love and a drain-pipe guest house?

2008-07-25T11:53:00.000-07:00

I stumbled across this site, greenUPGRADER as I was looking for a writing gig. I love their approachable philosophy on going green! Much like myself, these guys (and gal) get how intimidating it can be to go green over night. Instead, they offer up some tangible ideas, backed up with research, and some far fetched possibilities (see picture below.) You'll have to click over to greenUPGRADER to find out what this is really all about, but I'm thinking guest house for out-of-town guests...

Barefoot Books Summer Sale

2008-06-20T10:41:00.000-07:00

The Barefoot Summer Sale is happening now! Since a sale happens only twice a year, this is a great time to stock up on birthday gifts, holiday gifts, and well-loved titles for your personal library. A few of my favorites; Farmyard Jamboree, My Granny Went to Market, The Prince's Bedtime (see earlier post) and Portside Pirates - just to name a few.

Feel free to email me with any questions or just enjoy your time browsing at www.growingupbarefoot.com!

2008-05-22T16:54:00.000-07:00

Looking to Go Green Locally?

So, your intentions are good - you want to recycle, shop locally and find out where to recycle the most unimaginable household items - but where do you begin?

gengreen.org helps simplify your search. This nifty site saves time on research; if your city is listed, you'll find alternative transportation options, jobs and events that support your mission. If your city is not listed (yet) you can submit it for consideration.

Our family is finding that we only have time for little changes, things we can do here and there - hopefully this site of helpful resources will start you on your local green journey too!

Clear Skies on a Rainy Day?

2008-05-19T09:40:00.000-07:00

May I introduce you to this cute little thing? The Brelli is not only very stylish (this coming from a person who would usually rather get soaking wet than use an umbrella!), but also quite eco-friendly. Made of bamboo and bioplastic, it is totally biodegradable. Ranging from $28 to $38 depending on the size, this is nicely priced as a gift item for yourself or a friend. Oh, and even if you don't use umbrellas - think of it as an appropriate mud room decoration for your house. www.thebrelli.com

Kee-Ka Organic Gifts

2008-05-13T12:54:00.001-07:00

What is Kee-Ka?

As their site says, "Kee-Ka (a name inspired by the sweet babbling of infants) strives to deliver expressive, eco-chic apparel and gifts for the littlest and most significant people in your life."

Including bedding, clothing and accessories, these products are super soft and totally adorable. This will be an easy choice as the next baby gift I give - the monkey is my favorite, Kee-Ka offers a dozen other equally endearing options. Take note of the new line of organic socks when you visit Kee-Ka's site.

A New Family Vacation Idea

2008-05-12T15:00:00.000-07:00

G.A.P Adventures has go to be one of the neatest ideas around for a family looking to have a cultural experience together. I met this company at the Go Green Expo in NYC last month and since then I daydream about the places we can go on vacation when the kids are a bit older...should we explore Kenya, the Galapagos, Patagonia, Costa Rica...oh the list is long!

Gift of Yard Work

2008-05-11T17:01:00.000-07:00

Happy Mother's Day! So it may have been the best ever for me. My three children (4yrs, almost 3yrs and 9mos.) were surprisingly on their best behaviour. We started our day with a big breakfast which included my mom, my mom-in-law, my grandmother and of course my husband and kids. The day naturally evolved to yard work as it was beautiful here in NH. After getting the pool opened, we started raking....and the two older kids couldn't get enough!

We set them up with little, yet substantial, rakes we picked up from Lowe's for less than $4 (see image)!

Before long they were naked and rolling in the leaves. Of course they had long, tedious, baths before bed - but how they loved getting dirty! I'm not one to enjoy the process of my kids getting REALLY muddy, or in turn, cleaned up - but they were pretty productive raking the leaves and then putting them in the wagon to pull to the woods and then dump out.

Since I've spent some part of every year since 2003 pregnant (except this year, knock-on-wood!) I haven't wanted to do a touch of yard work, let alone laundry, since then! So what a surprise when the results of these years of pregnancy wanted to pitch in too. We must all be shedding those pregnancy blues and lethargic days - wanting to see great results in the fruits of our labor (ok, that was an extreme statement I suppose).

So tomorrow, while I try to type some emails to my Barefoot Books team members, I may be in pain from the blister on my thumbs and hands, but oh-boy-oh-boy will my yard look good to me as I glance out the window...and did I mention the joy when my kids all sleep in tomorrow morning from pure exhaustion from the physical exertion they didn't even know they were getting today since it was all lost in the fun? May everyone have a day -or two- like this in the weeks ahead. Oh sigh, who knows what tomorrow will bring, but today was great.

A Barefoot Life

2008-05-09T16:09:00.000-07:00

"They danced through the castle 'til quarter past four,When the King cried, "Enough! My feet are too sore!"

-from the Prince's Bedtime

This would be a good time to tell you about Barefoot Books, the business in which I get to enjoy brilliant children's books with my crew at home, bring them to my community and make a little bit of income doing so.

My Barefoot journey began just over two years ago and I could not be happier with this decision. This adventure has helped my toddlers learn to count, appreciate different people and cultures not to mention the trips to NY and France and the great people I talk to on a regular basis as a result. My Barefoot site, http://www.growingupbarefoot.com/, has made it possible to support different organizations (such as Jump Start) and schools both near and far, with fundraisers. So, from time-to-time you may hear about some of the interesting things we are doing as a company, info on my favorite titles, tidbits from the media (such as Oprah!) etc, etc.

You can rest assured that my perspective is one of parent, not business owner. My three children are the best critics of these thoughtful books and I will only present their favorites to you! Luckily for me and my hubby, our current favorite is also theirs...

The Prince's Bedtime gets them giggling and we LOVE to read it aloud. Here is a little blurb and a picture from this book by Joanne Oppenheim (yes, the president of Oppenheim Toy Portfolio Awards - which we parents and gift givers often refer to for great ideas!)

Barefoot will be a part of my thoughts and ideas here - as it has become a lifestyle for so many of us - my family included. I see color, imagination and awareness infiltrating my families life in dynamic and brilliant ways every time we open a Barefoot Book!

Cardboard Toys

2008-05-08T12:55:00.000-07:00

I realize that I am lagging in my knowledge of this interesting company - cardboardesignkids www.cardboardesign.com - but have been enlightened upon seeing the products in action. Eco-friendly and chemical free, you can choose from kid sized rocket-ships, chairs, playhouses, lemonade stands and more. (Think time-consuming decoration project for the lucky recipient(s) too!) This company even offers fun things for adults too like tables, chairs and storage options. Having seen this stuff in person, I was surprised by how sturdy it is. I especially like the flat-packed castle with the friendly price tag of $39. I think I'll add this to our wish list for my sons birthday in July; how fun to have his friends help him decorate with stickers and crayons and maybe even some washable paint. Ok, so I'm not very brave since I haven't included scissors, duct tape or glue...

About this blog

2008-05-07T17:13:00.000-07:00

I love to stumble across new things; new products, new ideas, new organizations...things that make me feel like I can evolve as a parent, as a person.

There have been a number of things in my life lately that have fit the bill - the Go Green Expo in NYC, great organizations I have partnered with via my business, and new discoveries through the eyes of my three children, to name a few.

I also like to have fun and admit to my own personal downfalls in all of these categories, so watch out for bad hair days and you'll get all the dirt on me too.

I don't mean for anything here to be JUST for moms, but for anyone who knows a mom, feels like a mom or likes to talk to someone who is a mom - blah, blah, blah - you get my point right?

More later...