Sustainable & Creative Living
Now that summer is officially here, fresh fruits and vegetables are plentiful. I love having a huge selection of all my favorites available whenever I’m in the mood for their deliciousness. There are lots of them and they taste great! My all-time favorite fruit is strawberries. There are so many different ways to prepare them. [Read more…]
The right potty chair or seat can be the key to a smooth potty training experience. And I’m here to tell you that not all potty training chairs and seats are created equal. If your little one is potty training or close to starting, check out this Guide to the Best Potty Training Chairs and Seats. [Read more…]
Now that summer is here, it’s time for outdoor activities like swimming, picnics, and vacation fun. Unfortunately, summer activities can be rough on our hair. To keep your locks from damage, be sure to use a deep conditioner every week. This DIY Coconut Rosemary Hot Oil Hair Treatment is an excellent way to keep your hair healthy and looking good. [Read more…]
Plastic shopping bags are a huge threat to our environment. Their impact is widespread- from the energy it takes to produce the plastic to the pollution they cause on land and sea. Yet they’re still one of the most used single-use convenience plastics. If these are items you’d like to eliminate (or cut back on), here are 22 Ways to Avoid Plastic Shopping Bags. [Read more…]
If you’ve read some of my other posts, you know I’m pro-cloth diapers. They’re eco-friendly and healthier for your baby’s delicate skin. I love all the adorable patterns and prints and I feel good about doing something to reduce my footprint. Cloth diapering can be quite a commitment but doable if you’ve got all the right information. Much like using standard disposable diapers, you still need all the accessories like wipes, diaper rash creams, and changing pads. But, besides the obvious, here’s a list of the Best Cloth Diapering Accessories you may not have thought of. [Read more…]
As a mom of a toddler, I’m always running around the house, running out the door, or running around the yard. Gone are the days when I could sit around, relax, and binge watch my favorite Netflix original. Because I’m perpetually in hurry to get places, I sometimes forget to grab a snack. I like to eat things that I can pop in my mouth that aren’t salty and starchy—you know all the things a toddler loves. [Read more…]
If you’re trying to adopt natural and more eco-friendly cleaning habits, one of the easiest places to start is with laundry practices. There are many different alternatives to harsh detergents if you want to go green in the laundry department.
Natural laundry practices are especially important because clothing actually touches our bodies, as opposed to the surfaces in our homes. Of course, we’d only want non-toxic substances touching our skin. [Read more…]
Depending on how familiar you are with cloth diapering, you might be thinking, “What exactly is a prefold diaper?” Simply put, it’s a 3 panel, rectangular piece of fabric that contains multiple layers of either cotton, bamboo, hemp, or flannel— traditionally with an extra layer in the middle for extra absorbency. They’re folded and fastened to baby inside of a waterproof diaper cover.
Before I even got pregnant with my son I knew I wanted to use cloth diapers. My mom used them with me and my sisters, and because there are significant age gaps between us, I still remember diaper laundry, safety pins, and plastic pants all around the house. Let me assure you that this sometimes referred to as “old fashion” way of diapering has come along way in recent years. [Read more…]
Lately, I’ve taken my DIY laundry techniques up a notch. After all, if I’m giving up harsh chemicals that touch the surfaces in my home, it seems only natural to give up harsh chemicals for clothing—items that actually touch my body.
One of the last remaining DIY laundry methods I’ve put into action is stain removal solutions. Removing perspiration stains can be especially daunting. As with any clothing stain, the best chance of removal occurs when [Read more…]
I first learned about sensory development when my son turned about 14 months old. This was right around the time when he started walking and getting into everything he wasn’t supposed to. His curiosity to touch, feel, and taste everything in sight prompted me to do a little research on this particular stage of his development. This is when I noticed the phrase “sensory play” became a common idea among mom bloggers, educators, and psychology blogs. It’s a phrase I think I’ve always heard but never really bothered to understand.
My 2-and-half-year-old son has gone through stages of loving bath time and hating bath time and now loving it again. When he was an infant, bath time was new to him and he was still discovering the whole water and bubble situation. Now, he knows bathtime signifies the end of play time which ultimately leads to bedtime. So sometimes getting him to the bath is tough. Sometimes it takes bribing and trickery. Other times it takes throwing him over my shoulder and hauling him upstairs. Either way, I was tired of the begging and pleading so I got a little inventive in my trickery and got him to remember how much fun bath time can be. [Read more…]
I’m back at it again with hand and footprint cards this Mother’s Day. The last few cards I’ve made were with J’s footprint because I couldn’t quite get him to be still enough to use his handprint. He was always squirming around or fighting to get out of my arms and play with the paint. Somehow the feet were just quicker and easier to capture. [Read more…]
As a fairly new parent, I worry incessantly about my 2-year-old getting hurt, sick, bullied, abducted, or drowning. Sometimes I forget about how dangerous my own house can be. Chemicals, hot stoves, pools, ponds, electrical outlets, and heavy furniture are just a few of the looming dangers lurking in plain sight. As my son gets older and becomes more curious, I fear less about bumps and bruises, and more about ingesting chemicals or wandering to the pond behind our home. This is why I baby proof everything! [Read more…]
