As winter sets in, we thought we’d offer three easy ways to pack a little more nutritional punch into some of our kids’ favorite winter comfort foods. Your kids will likely not notice them, or say they taste even better!

Add flax seed meal to instant oatmeal, banana bread, cookies. Flax seed meal is full of fiber, antioxidants, and Omege-3 fatty acids, and B vitamins, and it gives foods a nutty flavor. Try adding a teaspoon to oatmeal, or mixing a tablespoon into banana (or pumpkin) bread or cookie batter.

Add quinoa to instant soups. Think of it like adding rice to soup, only a lot more nutritious! Quinoa is a seed which is high in protein and essential amino acids which can add a nutty, crunchy flavor to soup. It’s filling and is great for long lasting energy. Cook it separately (it takes 10 to 15 minutes to cook) and a quarter to half a cup to kids’ soup bowls.

Add nutritional yeast to popcorn. Nutritional yeast is full of B vitamins and protein, and gives foods a cheesy, nutty flavor. If you pop your popcorn in oil, simply sprinkle some nutritional yeast on the popcorn (to taste) and shake. If you’re air popping, spray or drizzle olive oil over the popcorn, sprinkle on some nutritional yeast, and shake (you may want to transfer it all into a covered container and shake). If you’re popping in the microwave, use a low salt brand and sprinkle it on after it’s popped.

We’ve written before about the importance of pretend play in children’s development.

But as the importance of creative and pretend play gets more recognition and attention, the time devoted to it seems to be declining.  The National Institutes of Health reports:

In the last 2 decades, children have lost an average of 8 hours of free play per week. As media screens draw kids indoors, hours of sitting raise the risk for obesity and related diseases. When it comes to video games and other media, parents should monitor content, especially violent content, and limit the amount of time children sit.

So how do you carve out time and attention for pretend play?  Here are a few ways to integrate it into your day:

- Designated time each day.  Experiment with setting some time aside – even 10 minutes – in which your kids can engage in pretend play with you or siblings or friends.  Put together a quick box of toys to use – some stuffed animals or dolls, some dress up clothes – and pull it out at pretend play time.

- In the car.  If you log some miles in the car with kids each day, tuck into a bag a few stuffed toys or magnet books or any other toys which  might get your kids playing and chatting away.

- Making dinner.  While you make dinner, set your child up at the counter with some of her own cooking tools – a bowl, mixing spoon and measuring cups might do it.  He or she can cook a pretend dinner alongside you!

- Routines like dressing, brushing teeth or pottying.  Try bringing a stuffed friend along for your child to dress, brush teeth, and even potty (a mug makes a good potty for a doll!).  Bringing these stuffed friends to doctor and dentist appointments can also help reduce anxiety!

- Story time.  Any book can be a springboard for some pretend play.  Try acting out some of the story in a book and see where the kid-directed plot takes you!

If you live in the Southeastern U.S., as we do, you probably know that it’s monarch butterfly season.  And there’s a bit more time to participate in a few wonderful citizen scientist projects aimed at understanding and preserving this fascinating species.

You can purchase monarch butterfly tagging kits which allow you to tag a butterfly and help scientists answer questions such as:  Where are monarch’s migration paths?  How do migration paths change year to year?  How does weather impact monarch migration?  Participants catch monarchs and put a tiny sticker on the strongest part of the butterfly’s wing.  Then, when the monarchs are found, information about their location is entered into a database which tracks their paths.

If you’ve seen a monarch recently (tagged or not) you can also enter this information on a tracking map maintained by Journey North.

How miraculous is the monarch migration?  Monarch Watch explains:

In all the world, no butterflies migrate like the Monarchs of North America. They travel much farther than all other tropical butterflies, up to three thousand miles. They are the only butterflies to make such a long, two way migration every year. Amazingly, they fly in masses to the same winter roosts, often to the exact same trees. Their migration is more the type we expect from birds or whales. However, unlike birds and whales, individuals only make the round-trip once. It is their children’s grandchildren that return south the following fall.

Live in an area where it’s too late to tag monarchs or record sightings?  Plan to create a monarch way station next year, and give these wonderful creatures a place to stop on their long journey!

Teachers are always in need of extra supplies at the beginning of the school year.  Here are a few ideas for eco-friendly donations that will help your child’s class get a little greener.

Scratch paper.  If you or someone you know works in an office which generates paper used only on one side, bring it in to be used as scratch paper or as art supplies.

Green wipes and tissues – A container of wipes made with eco-friendly and healthier materials, or tissues made from recycled paper, will definitely come in handy during the school year.

Homemade, naturally dyed play dough – For younger classrooms, whip up a batch of play dough using vegetable or fruit juice for dyes, to replace the artificially dyed kind.

Green school and art supplies.  More green art and school supplies seem to be coming on the market all the time, such as the cedar pencils to the right which are made from wood scraps.  Green paints, crayons, and modeling clay are other supplies you can green with a donation.

Books about green topics – Buy or borrow from the library (even better!) books at your child’s grade level on green topics such as recycling, plants and animals, or climate change for your child’s classroom library.

“Adopt” an animal or an acre of rainforest for the class – Particularly if you know that your child’s class will be studying a species or a particular habitat (rainforest, desert, oceans), sponsor an animal or habitat “adoption.”  Several organizations run such programs, such as the The World Wildlife Fund, Oceana, and The Nature Conservancy.

Recycling help – If your child’s school doesn’t have a recycling program, offer to set up a simple recycling program in your child’s classroom.  A box for recycled paper is a great start!

In the remaining weeks of summer millions of visitors will be exploring the National Parks – a great way to introduce kids to the rich natural, historical, and cultural heritage of our country.

Here are a few tools to make it even more fun for your kids.  Most are free or inexpensive!

Junior Ranger Program.  When you visit a park, be sure to ask for a Junior Ranger activity booklet.  This booklet will guide your child through several educational activities, and upon completion kids can earn a special Junior Ranger badge.  For older kids this can take some time, but when they’re “sworn in” to protect the national parks, it’ll all be worth it!  Can’t get to a park soon?  Check out the Web Ranger Program, which also allows kids to earn badges for completing activities online.

National Parks Passport.  Modeled after a real passport, the National Parks Passport allows kids (and adults!) to stamp their passport book when they visit a new park or monument.  A companion kids’ guide is also available.  You’ll be surprised at how exciting and even addictive this can be!

National Parks Adventure Guide.   The National Parks Foundation has created a free downloadable booklet of activities for kids called Parks for Play, as well as an activity map.

Ranger-led activities.  Ranger talks and guided walks are always enlightening, and some are geared specifically for kids.  Some parks offer campfire programs in the evenings, too.  Check at the park visitor center or online to see what’s available during your visit.

Mysteries in Our National Parks book series.  Older children may enjoy these adventure chapter books, which take place in some of the major national parks.

Your last chance to win!  This is week 4 of  our Pretend Play Contest!  Dandelion, Earth-Friendly Goods is giving away a set of Pretend Play each week all month!  Our Pretend Play line is designed as “grow-with-me” toys.  As your child’s interests and abilities progress, the Pretend Play characters will become part of their world of imagination and fun!

We’re just as concerned as you about toxins in toys and teethers. Our babies’ toys spent countless hours being “loved” and mouthed, and we make these little friends durable enough to withstand all that attention – without the toxic materials. Our Pretend Play line is woven from brightly colored pesticide-free bamboo rayon thread and stuffed with natural corn-fiber filling.  They are cute, durable and machine washable!

Our 4 Pretend Play characters for this week’s contest are all about the family.  The Mom, Dad, Grandma, Grandpa, Sister & Brother, a $78 value will offer hours of entertainment for your little one. To win, tell us in the comments below what you’d name them, if you win them.

Next week we are bringing in the whole family!

To enter, please tell us what you do to ensure your buying safe, toxin-free, all-natural products for your family.

Check out all of our products at:  www.dandelionforbaby.com

This is week 3 of our 4 week Pretend Play Contest! Dandelion, Earth-Friendly Goods is giving away a set of Pretend Play each week all month!  Our Pretend Play line is designed as “grow-with-me” toys.  As your child’s interests and abilities progress, the Pretend Play characters will become part of their world of imagination and fun!

We’re just as concerned as you about toxins in toys and teethers. Our babies’ toys spent countless hours being “loved” and mouthed, and we make these little friends durable enough to withstand all that attention – without the toxic materials. Our Pretend Play line is woven from brightly colored pesticide-free bamboo rayon thread and stuffed with natural corn-fiber filling.  They are cute, durable and machine washable!

Our 3 Pretend Play characters for this week’s contest are royally precious.  The King, Queen, and Wizard set, a $45 value will offer hours of entertainment for your little one. To win, tell us in the comments below what you’d name them, if you win them.

Next week we are bringing in the whole family!

To enter, please tell us what you do to ensure your buying safe, toxin-free, all-natural products for your family.

Check out all of our products at:  www.dandelionforbaby.com

This is week 2 of our 4 week Pretend Play Contest!  Dandelion, Earth-Friendly Goods is giving away a set of Pretend Play each week all month!  Our Pretend Play line is a designed as “grow-with-me” toys.  As your child’s interests and abilities progress, the Pretend Play characters will become part of their world of imagination and fun!

We’re just as concerned as you about toxins in toys and teethers. Our babies’ toys spent countless hours being “loved” and mouthed, and we make these little friends durable enough to withstand all that attention – without the toxic materials. Our Pretend Play line is woven from brightly colored pesticide-free bamboo rayon thread and stuffed with natural corn-fiber filling.  They are cute, durable and machine washable!

We are giving away 3 Pretend Play characters in this week’s contest:  the Police Man, Fireman, and Construction worker set, a $39 value. To win, tell us in the comments below what you’d name them, if you win them.

Come back next week to win Royalty!

To enter, please tell us what you do to ensure your buying safe, toxin-free, all-natural products for your family.

Check out all of our products at:  www.dandelionforbaby.com

What better way to introduce our newest line of handcrafted interactive toys than with a contest?  Dandelion, Earth-Friendly Goods is giving away a set of Pretend Play each week all month!  Our Pretend Play line is a designed as “grow-with-me” toys.  As your child’s interests and abilities progress, the Pretend Play characters will become part of their world of imagination and fun!

We’re just as concerned as you about toxins in toys and teethers. Our babies’ toys spent countless hours being “loved” and mouthed, and we make these little friends durable enough to withstand all that attention – without the toxic materials. Our Pretend Play line is woven from brightly colored pesticide-free bamboo rayon thread and stuffed with natural corn-fiber filling.  They are cute, durable and machine washable!

This week’s contest is for the Mermaid and Pirate set, a $26 value. To win, tell us in the comments below what you’d name them, if you win them.

Come back next week to win a set of our rescue heroes!

To enter, please tell us what you do to ensure your buying safe, toxin-free, all-natural products for your family.

Check out all of our products at:  www.dandelionforbaby.com

Our new line of pretend play toys has gotten us thinking about the power of pretend play in our kids’ development.

For a primer on the relationship between pretend play and development, we turned to the wonderful book, Einstein Didn’t Use Flash Cards.

In it, the authors argue that “play is to early childhood what gas is to a car,” and offer the following axiom “PLAY = LEARNING.”  So, why is play, and particularly pretend play, so important?

Pretend play, they explain:

• Develops kids’ problem solving skills, particularly problems for which there isn’t a single answer.

• Is associated with more advanced language development.  Pretend play is also practice for storytelling, which in turn is preparation for literacy.

• Serves as a platform for other symbolic thinking, “even beyond he domain of language – in math, physics, literature, economics, art.”

• Develops children’s self control and reduces impulsivity – a difference which is visible in scans of the frontal lobe of the brain.

• Allows kids to transform objects in their minds, what the authors call “creative thinking at its best.”

• Creates emotional comfort and relieves stress by giving kids control over an interaction.  Kids often use re-enactments of difficult emotional events in order to work through them.

• Allows kids to take on different perspectives than their own (by using puppets or becoming “teacher” while playing school, for example) and take on the challenge of solving problems between kids.

• Helps kids separate thought and action.  Picking up a car and using it as a telephone requires the child to recognize the function of something she sees and then override it.

• Develops self-regulation.  Kids exert control over their emotional states, and even talk themselves through a problem – much like adults do!

• Often stretches kids just beyond what they’re capable of doing – the “zone of proximal development” in which learning is at its most powerful.

When we (finally!) lay our little ones down to sleep the last thing we usually think about is chemical exposure.

But conventional mattresses, according to Planet Home author Alexandra Zissou, are “veritable clouds of questionable chemicals.”  One solution is an organic crib mattress.  But since they’re more expensive than conventional ones, it makes sense to understand the issue and the options.

So, why buy an organic mattress?

Conventional crib mattresses contain a host of chemicals.  Conventional mattresses contain flame retardants which are potentially carcinogenic, can cause thyroid disruption, and are reproductive toxins and endocrine disruptors.  Many also contain vinyl and phthalates.  While flame retardant chemicals have undoubtedly saved lives, they also contribute to the high “body burden” children carry of potentially harmful chemicals.

Babies much more of their day sleeping than adults.  Newborns typically spend 16 or 17 hours sleeping, and older babies also spend far more hours asleep than adults.  So your child has more exposure to his or her mattress than we do to ours.

Babies spend more time on the floor, where chemicals collect.  Chemicals which off-gas from mattresses into the air collect in dust on the floor, where babies spend much more of their time.  And since babies engage in lots of “hand to mouth” behavior, their risk is higher.

A link to SIDS?  Some research from New Zealand has raised the question of a connection between conventional mattresses and SIDS risk.  Most sources say that the jury is still out on this question, but if you’d like to read more, Healthy Children has a summary of the issue with plenty of references.

How can you afford an organic mattress?  Are there other ways to minimize the risks without spending a lot more money?  Here are a few ideas:

• Ask your friends and family to contribute toward the purchase of an organic mattress in lieu of other presents.
• Forgo some of the less necessary purchases to save for an organic mattress.
• Wrap your mattress in a tested mattress wrapping product.  BabeSafe, a New Zealand company, offers mattress wraps which have been shown to block chemical exposure.
• More sleep on you.  Babies love few things more than a nap on a warm grown-up, so use slings/carriers or an organic nursing pillow for naps.  Just be sure to follow safe co-sleeping guidelines.
• Co-sleeping on a safe mattress.  A larger expense, but one that might benefit more family members, would be to purchase a safer mattress for you and co-sleep safely with your baby.  Unfortunately, we don’t know of any mattress wrapping product for adult size mattresses.
• Check out this Healthy Child post for some other budget friendly solutions.

If and when you do decide to buy an organic mattress, see Healthy Child’s guide to choosing a mattress and avoiding the “greenwashing” claims of some manufacturers.

Want to give party favor bags at your kids’ birthday celebrations, but want to avoid all the disposable plastic stuff?

Here are a few ideas for homemade, re-purposed, and planet friendly favors that might take more time to assemble but won’t break the bank.

• Seed packets, with or without recycled milk jug flower pots.

• Homemade play dough in bright colors (gluten free if kids are allergic!)

• Melted crayons made from collected crayon bits

• Homemade stickers

• Felted barrettes

• Superhero capes!

• Hanging birdseed feeders

• Homemade bubble bath

• A small plant.  Kids can decorate the pot with paint or by gluing on buttons or other found items.

• Eco-friendly chocolate or other treats

And here are some great ideas for favor bags and other containers!

Disposable diapers are the third largest source of landfill waste.  They take hundreds of years to decompose, and the average household will use 6,000-9,000 diapers in a child’s first three years of life.

But not everyone wants to use cloth diapers or a diaper-free method.  Those are all the choices, right?

Maybe not!  We found a cloth diaper service in Massachusetts which offers a compostable diaper option to its clients.  We asked Mother Herb Diaper Service owner and founder Angela Gregory to explain how this trend setting service works.

How does your compostable diaper service work?

Our compostable diaper service provides the convenience of a disposable diaper without negative environmental impacts. Our service is set-up to create ease for diapering. When you sign up as a client, you can place an order for biodegradable diapers, wipes, and bags and we’ll deliver them right to your home on a weekly or monthly basis. Each week we come to collect the dirty biodegradable diapers and bring them to a commercial composting facility to be professionally processed.

The composting facility is able to turn these plant-based diapers into nutrient rich soil in just three months! Conventional disposables, and even biodegradable diapers, thrown into a landfill will take over 250 years to decompose, and continue to leach petroleum, plastic and pathogens into our soils and waterways. We have yet to see the first disposable diaper decompose. One can imagine with a ton of diapers generated per child how quickly a landfill might cap.

You run a cloth diaper service.  What made you want to offer a compostable diaper service as well?

Mother Herb diaper service is mainly a cloth diapering service. We loan and launder premium quality organic diapers and utilize a baby and earth-friendly washing process. We’re happy to see diapers re-used, but understand that the demands of the modern family may lead some to need to supplement with disposables, or use them solely. After seeing this trend with our clients over the course of a few years, we recognized that to best service our diverse range of clients, we needed to find a way to provide an earth-friendly alternative that aligned with our vision. A compostable project was launched this winter where we tested the diapers, not only for their integrity, quality, and ease of use for clients, but also to run them through the compostable processing to ensure they were in fact breaking down. We are so excited to be able to offer this alternative today!

Can people compost their own diapers at home?

I think the question about composting your own diapers at home is a common one. It’s highly discouraged, as it is unsafe. Reaching the high temperatures required to kill harmful bacteria and pathogens found in human waste is difficult and inconsistent when using common home composting techniques. To ensure that the soil produced when our products are composted is 100% safe, we only offer our diapers and wipes as part of our inclusive service whereby the products are composted in our regulated industrial composting facility, using Federal PFRP standardards for pathogen removal. Your municipal compost is only meant to handle organic matter like kitchen scraps, lawn trimmings, and cardboard. Your diapers contain bio-solids, so these products would be unfit in the municipal stream as well.

We’re so excited to share our Re-Play line of tableware with you!

We know you’ll love Re-Play’s  utensils, divided plates, spill-proof cups, and bowls.  They’re made from recycled milk jugs, right here in the U.S.

The colorful forks and spoons, and the divided plate’s deep walls are perfect for little ones learning to feed themselves.  And the spill-proof cups have one piece, easy clean silicone valves to keep your child’s travels leak-free!

All of Re-Play’s products are:

• Made of FDA-approved recycled plastic
• Dishwasher safe
• Perfect size for toddlers
• Tested for safety
• BPA, PVC and phthalate free
• Affordable
• Manufactured, assembled, and tested in the USA!

How does Re-Play turn milk jugs into tableware for your toddler?

We use curbside collected HDPE plastic. The recycled plastic is sanitized using a patented, proprietary process that cleans the plastic and removes anything that was absorbed by the plastic. Our recycled plastic is FDA approved food grade material.

Re-Play’s packaging is also made from recycled paperboard. The minimal package design does not use plastic blisters, twist ties, or any other extra restraints that can create more waste.

Want to check out Re-Play products?  Order online or find a store carrying them.

Find Re-Play on Facebook and Twitter, too!

We were dismayed to see this recent report, Hidden Hazards in the Nursery, authored by The Washington Toxics Coalition and Safer States.

The report details the results of testing of foam in a number of commonly purchased baby products.  The authors purchased 20 common baby products at major retailers and had them tested at Duke University.  The results: 17 tested positive for toxic flame retardants, some of which had been phased out of children’s pajamas in the 1970′s because of their potentially harmful effects.

The report found flame retardants in bassinet pads, nursing pillows, changing pads, and car seats.  The most commonly found flame retardant was chlorinated Tris (TDCPP), found in 80% of the products.  The report states that “California recently classified chlorinated Tris as a carcinogen, and evidence links the chemical to neurotoxicity as well as hormone disruption.” The full list of tested products is here (pdf).

The Coalition notes that there are safe means of achieving flame resistance without the use of Tris or other chemicals known to pose health risks.   The Eddie Bauer Pop-up Booster Seat, Balboa Nursing Pillow, and First Years Co-Sleeper all tested negative for Tris, and the report states that several other companies are known not to use it (Boppy, Orbit Baby, and Baby Bjorn).

The Washington Toxics Coalition offers some tips for lowering your family’s exposure to Tris.  And you might consider joining the Safe Chemicals, Healthy Families campaign.