Eco-Friendly Mama: Safe product recommendations with a focus on organic and Made in USA!

Review of Portrait Puzzles

03 Feb 2015 Leave a comment

Review of a jigsaw puzzle made by Portrait Puzzles in La Crosse, WI. My niece has been cropped out per her Father’s request. I don’t share many photos of my children with y’all either, but in this case I really wanted to share this company & what they have to offer. A question came up in our group page about US made jigsaw puzzles, and someone suggested Portrait Puzzles, and also commented that they were made in WI. I was so pleasantly surprised when I went to check them out & discovered the company is located 1 hour from me in beautiful SW Wisconsin! I contacted them to see if they’d be interested in sending me a puzzle to highlight on this page & they agreed. All I had to do was pick out a photo, making sure it was high resolution, and decide how many pieces I wanted. They offer puzzles from 12 piece postcard puzzles to 1008 pieces for the serious puzzle lover!

My 4 year old LOVES puzzles, and is just graduating from board puzzles to jigsaws. I wanted something challenging that he wasn’t going to master immediately. So the owner helped me decide on 48 pieces. It came in a nice box with the photo on the outside of the box as well. The puzzle is definitely challenging, especially with all the leaves in the border. And we put this together sitting on a rug on our floor, so it’s not perfectly flat. It would look even smoother had we sat at the table. But I’m so impressed with the quality of it, and know our family is going to get so much enjoyment out of this for a long time! They are made from: ‘Our photo puzzles are made from a sturdy paperboard/cardboard material, similar to the highest quality puzzles you will find in stores. Your custom jigsaw puzzle is made to be handled, and the puzzles can be put together many times. Pieces are approximately 1/16 thick, made from gray pressed paperboard.” These would make excellent gifts for a puzzle enthusiast of any age! I really hope you’ll keep these in mind & support a small US business by purchasing from Portrait Puzzles! I know we’ll be adding more of their puzzles in the future!
Website: http://www.portraitpuzzles.com/

Swiggydiggydoo Subscription Box Service Review

23 Jan 2015 Leave a comment

by ecofriendlymamausa in Eco-friendly living, Reviews Tags: eco-conscious box subscription for kids

Review of a subscription box service: Swiggydiggydoo.com, based out of PA. I’m so thankful Lauren found me & sent me this initial message: “Hi! I own a new subscription box for babies and toddlers that features 3-5 eco-conscious, organic and modern products, plus a custom designed, limited edition shirt each month.” I love her motto: “ clever & fun & responsibly done”. She had just sent out her 1s…t ever box in Dec when she sent me that message, and asked if I’d be interested in a Jan box, which of course I was. Her Dec box had featured all made in USA items (except the t-shirt which is made in Honduras, but printed in the US). She let me know she wasn’t 100% committed to US made, but would definitely be featuring many items made here. And indeed, just like Dec, the Jan box was all made here, except the t-shirt again. A box for 1 month is $39.95, which I feel is a good deal for all it contained, and the fact that it includes shipping which is never cheap. The deadline to subscribe to next month’s box is the 25th.

You choose the gender & age the box is for, up to 4 for a shirt size. You can buy 1 box, or get a full year subscription & be guaranteed a box monthly. I’ve never participated in anything like this, I know there are several such services out there, conscious box being a popular one. I have to say, it was really fun to get our box & be completely surprised by what was in it. It was very fun for the kids, and fun for me as well. I will definitely be getting a box in my daughter’s B-day month, and probably Christmas as well. I’ll be keeping an eye on what she features every month, but from chatting with Lauren, reading her website/Fb pages, and based on what has been in the 1st two boxes, I know she has high standards. You get a little sheet in your box that tells you who made each item, and why she feels it was worthy of being included. For example: ‘stuffed animal by itsy bitsy baby cakes. We love this etsy shop for its cute designs and use of oeko-tex standard 100 wool felt.”

A lot of thought goes into the packaging of each box. She selects the smallest possible box to fit the items for the month, so she doesn’t have to use any fill. She uses a local box supplier that sells recycled or previously used (and inspected) boxes. Her shipping labels, box tape and paper for the insert are all green or made from recycled products. The tape is made in the USA. The labels aren’t, but they are bpa-free and the only ones she could find that were. These are all important details to her, and to me too!

Our family is thoroughly enjoying several of the items in the box! I love that the shirt is long-sleeved making it appropriate for the season, and it’s super adorable. The crocheted headband/crown is super, super cute! Unfortunately my 18m old won’t leave it on, I keep trying & have hopes she’ll get used to it because it’s just adorable. The 4 piece puzzle challenged my almost 4 year old for quite a while, he now has it figured out, but I was super happy to learn of Topozoo as a new vendor to add to my made in USA list! The felt beaver we received has been lugged around the house by my Daughter for a couple days now since receiving the box, it’s very cute! I have quite a few nursing/teething necklaces already so will pass this one on to a new Mama friend of mine who I’m sure will enjoy it! And we have another vapor rub on hand should we need it.

Please, head on over & ‘like’ her Facebook page to stay on top of all the happenings, and visit her website. I’d love to know if you get a box, and what your thoughts are! If you do order, please put me, Jess, as referral. I will receive a thank you, she just likes to know where the traffic is coming from.

FB: https://www.facebook.com/swiggydiggydoo?fref=ts
Website: http://www.swiggydiggydoo.com/

We love our Anchor Hocking mugs!

19 Jan 2015 6 Comments

by ecofriendlymamausa in Eco-friendly living Tags: made in USA glass mugs

We added a few more Anchor Hocking mugs to our collection, and as you can see, use them for all beverages not just coffee. We started with 6 of the larger mugs on the left about 6 months ago. I really, really like them! My Husband has a tendency to take them to his shop & leave a few out there, takes them on the go as travel mugs even so has broke a couple & usually a couple are missing. So I ordered 4 of the Rio mugs on the right, a bit smaller, but still a nice size for a cup of coffee, or juice, or water. They were $2.89 each on Amazon, a price I can definitely live with! My plates & bowls are holding up really well so far, and hopefully soon we’ll be getting a dishwasher & I expect them to do even better in there vs getting clinked around in a sink full of dishes. VERY happy with my Anchorware, proudly made in Ohio, completely free of lead, cadmium and other heavy metals, and very affordable!

Amazon Affiliate Links (a small percentage of your purchase comes back to me if you follow the links below):

Rio Coffee Mugs (on right): http://amzn.to/1yMAaDR

Cafe Mug (on left): http://amzn.to/1GwtkWI

A very good read for all parents– The five words that changed everything.

08 Jan 2015 1 Comment

by ecofriendlymamausa in Eco-friendly living

The Manager in My Home & the Five Words that Changed Everything

I was so glad I read this article the other day. I’m a very laid back Mama, but lately had been really frustrated by my 2 kiddos wanting to help me do dishes every day. I found myself saying things like “can’t I just do the dishes alone while you 2 play”? It took forever to get them done, they’d get water everywhere, I just wanted the darn dishes done. After reading this article I looked at the situation differently, and switched up our routine. Our sink is in an island, so I switched how we were approaching it & now they both cozy up to the sink on side-by-side chairs on one side, with me on the opposite side. Long story short, I looked at myself, and my frustration & thought “is this the Mom I really want to be?”. Of course I want to encourage them helping with any chores they can, it’s never too early to start. We’ve had similar issues over dinner prep. My Son, who will be turning 4 soon, has ALWAYS wanted to be in the kitchen with me. And some nights I’ve found myself saying the same: “I just want to get dinner ready by myself”. But you know what? At 4, he’s actually able to really, truly help with some things. He peels garlic, tears lettuce, cuts soft things like cucumbers with a butter knife. The other night, he made cucumber salad just about entirely by himself. And he really enjoys it, and even thanks me for letting him help. And he boasts to Dada with pride about the contributions he made. Establishing a love of being in the kitchen is certainly something I want to instill in my Son, so I try really, really hard to get over my desire to just get it done. So what if it takes twice as long? That’s secondary. This article really, really is a wonderful read, and I’m so glad it was shared with me. I hope you’ll take a couple minutes to read it & look at the situations in your family routine that are causing you stress in a new light.

The Manager in My Home & the Five Words that Changed Everything

If my blog were an exhibit at the Louvre….

03 Jan 2015 Leave a comment

by ecofriendlymamausa in Uncategorized

I really enjoyed my year end report from WordPress: “The Louvre Museum has 8.5 million visitors per year. Your blog was viewed about 170,000 times in 2014. If it were an exhibit at the Louvre Museum, it would take about 7 days for that many people to see it.” My Safe Toy List, Greenwashers List, and Buying Club note were my 3 most viewed resources. I had visitors from 156 countries visit my site, with most from the US of course, with Canada & the U.K rounding out the top 3. They go on to list quite a few more stats, but those are the ones I valued the most.

Be the Change You Wish to See in 2015

31 Dec 2014 2 Comments

by ecofriendlymamausa in Eco-friendly living

One of my favorite quotes of all time!

How do I know I’m being the change I wish to see? I took my Son to see some Holiday Rotary Lights an hour away last week, it was well worth it, we had a GREAT time. On the way home he said “Mom, I’m thirsty” and I realized I forgot to grab our water bottle which we NEVER leave home without, at least not for longer trips like this, I’m so good about remembering it usually. We were with my Mom & Sister & needed to stop for gas anyway so I said “Ok, we’ll have to buy some water I guess” as we were still 45 min from home on the return trip, and he was really thirsty. My Son: “what, we have to buy water”? He looked at me very puzzled & said “Mom, but what will it come in?”. He honestly was perplexed & had no idea what to expect! And it dawned on me: In his almost 4 years of life, he’d never once had bottled water, not ONCE. He didn’t know what to expect at all. I felt both great that we’d made it that long, and sad that I’d forgotten our bottle this time, as what if I could’ve made it a few more years, or indefinitely?! Anyway, we had a nice talk about how avoiding plastic is a very good thing, as well as how much they charge for water & how important it is to make sure we never leave home without it again. This is just one small example of the ways I see my Son, who is growing up SO FAST, being a little mini-me, and it makes me very, very proud. We know that our children look up to us, and learn so much from us even when not outright teaching them lessons! So please, be the change YOU wish to see in the world this year!

Our favorite Made in USA toys/vendors

20 Oct 2014 3 Comments

by ecofriendlymamausa in Eco-friendly living, Resources, Reviews

In no particular order:

Roys Toys Building Logs—Lincoln Logs that are actually made in the US! I got them from Pure Play Kids but have even seen them at Wal-Mart (although I know many of you boycott them, just saying, they’re pretty widely available).

The Puzzle People—we own 5 of their puzzles & other than books, they’re some of our most used & cherished items by far! They take a looooong time to get your order to you, so seriously order NOW for this Holiday season, you won’t be disappointed! https://www.facebook.com/397517646930548/photos/a.568349859847325.144572.397517646930548/718713404810969/?type=3&theater

Smiling Tree Toys—We own a lot of their items & cherish them all. I feel they’re quite affordable, and they are exactly the small Mom/Pop type business I had in mind to support when launching this page. They are also a vendor for the upcoming Nov Buying Club. We have: the regular & deluxe building block sets, smiling moon balancer, camera, memory tiles, lacing/tracing puzzle, penguin bowling game, shape sorter, ornaments, I’m giving my niece the xylophone for her upcoming B-day, I’m sure I’m forgetting some items. Everything is amazing quality & they are a favorite of mine for sure! https://www.facebook.com/397517646930548/photos/a.568349859847325.144572.397517646930548/636647163017594/?type=3&theater

Pure Play Kids—Absolutely love Pure Play as well! We have numerous things from them, and I love their shop by age function which helps narrow things down. I even have a 15% off coupon for them, good the remainder of the year! https://www.facebook.com/397517646930548/photos/a.568349859847325.144572.397517646930548/1015990168416623/?type=3&theater

Maple Landmark Town Train Set—just absolutely love this, it’s much, much cheaper on Amazon then directly through them unfortunately. https://www.facebook.com/397517646930548/photos/a.430947503587562.117422.397517646930548/848011088547866/?type=3&theater

Elves & Angels- dollhouse & adding castle this Christmas. Dolls from Wildflower Innocence. https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.868582543157387.1073741838.397517646930548&type=3

Wooden kitchen—One of our most used items as well, my Son LOVES his kitchen. Ours is on loan from a local family, if I was in the market for one I’d get it from Elves & Angels. I’ve accessorized it with this & that: unused fondue pots, stainless steel & wooden items I’ve picked up at garage sales, and we have a few things from Green Toys for it: the sandwich & pizza shop and the pot & pan set. Wooden eggs from Pure Play. https://www.facebook.com/397517646930548/photos/a.430947503587562.117422.397517646930548/586659754683002/?type=1&theater

Beka art easel—my Mom has purchased this for my Son for Christmas this year, I CAN’T WAIT to get it! We love art supplies from Wee Can Too, Eco-Kids (available from the Buying Club), and Filana crayons.

Books—I pick up books whenever I see them at garage sales & thrift stores. ENDLESS entertainment for very cheap. I very, very rarely buy new books. Hard to find made in US, but I couldn’t leave them off this list!

Stuffington Bear Factory Review

17 Oct 2014 Leave a comment

by ecofriendlymamausa in Reviews Tags: organic cotton stuffed animals made in usa, organic cotton teddy bear made in USA, stuffed animals made in USA

Review of Stuffington Bear Factory, located in Arizona. Several months ago someone asked about made in the USA stuffed animals. I didn’t know of any great companies off the top of my head so reposted the question and am SO thrilled that someone commented: “check out Stuffington Bear Factory”. What a gem! They have been making teddy bears & stuffed animals in the USA since 1959. The cotton is US grown, the bear are handmade from start to finish! From their website: “Every animal wearing the Stuffington Bear Factory brand is made in our USA manufacturing facility in Phoenix, Arizona. We also use American-made materials in the production of our animals, whenever possible. It’s a fact we’re proud of because it’s a big deal to our economy and our country.”

They offer a very nice selection of teddies, stuffed animals, dia de los muertos dolls, even dog toys. Here’s the description of the polar bear they so generously sent my family: “This snowy-soft organic polar bear is made with 100% organic velour fleece material and 100% organic cotton stuffing. Standing at 12′, it’s the perfect size to cuddle and love, and fits into most clothing.” The bear came with an adoption certificate which is a fun idea for older kids that older kids. And yes, they also offer organic & non-organic teddy & stuffed animal clothing, the sundresses are just adorable, you have to check them out for yourself!

You do have a choice of options when choosing an organic bear: 100% Polyester fill, 100% recycled Polyester Fiberfill, or 100% certified organic cotton (+$15). I know some will browse the website and feel the prices are expensive. But please keep in mind all that goes into making one of these adorable stuffed animals. The prices are a TRUE reflection of what it costs to make something like this by hand, in the US, with US grown materials. I, and I know many of you, are willing to pay to show our support for this great company. They’ve been in business a long time, so it makes me happy to know that many do value what they have to offer! T

Again, I’m so thrilled to have learned about this company and that they were so kind as to send my family one of their precious handmade , organic items. They do have a FB page but the most recent post is from 2010, so I guess don’t go over & ‘like’ that. But DO go check out their website & as Holiday shopping is upon us (in many families), please consider adding a stuffed animal of teddy from Stuffington Bear Factory to your family!

Website: http://www.stuffingtonbear.com/

Organic cotton nursing necklaces & teether

16 Oct 2014 Leave a comment

by ecofriendlymamausa in Reviews

Organic Cotton Nursing/teething necklace & teether, handmade in WA by page co-admin Jolene. Jolene came up with these great designs for teething and/or babes easily distracted when nursing. Having something hanging down to focus attention on & grasp while nursing can help keep an older babe centered. My Baby Girl is now 15 months & is a tweaker (Mamas of older nurslings have probably experienced… this, my Son did it too). So, having this hanging down while she’s nursing & literally putting it in her hand for her helps keep her hand that is exploring occupied. Also, she hates getting put in her car seat, so I always grab this when headed out the door then either dangle it in front of her while loading her up in the car, or take it off entirely to give her to play with. I’ve received many compliments on it while wearing it out! I love it, it’s something different than the other nursing necklaces I have which are gemstones, and I feel very good about it being organic! Jolene pre-washes the fabric in Eco-Nuts & recommends hand washing, but tossing them in your washer on a gentle cycle seems like it would be OK

One Mama on our page bought one of these as part of the 1st offering for the August Buying Club, for her ~8 year old daughter who has autism & likes to mouth things. That Mama has since written us to let us know how much her daughter is enjoying it & that even the daughter’s therapist has commented on & written in his notes how great it was working for this girl. The length she requested it at is the exact length of these adult necklaces Jolene is making, but on the 8 year old it hangs down quite a bit farther, thus she is able to play with & mouth it while she’s wearing it!

The fabric is GOTS certified organic cotton, made in India. Jolene definitely did her research & organic cotton made in the USA is very tough to find, and also extremely expensive. We discussed what would be better: non-organic but made in USA, or organic made abroad & I think most of you would agree that organic is preferable, especially for a product specifically designed to be mouthed & chewed on by a child. She will continue to search for a made in the USA option. The beads are unfinished (raw) wood & made in the USA. Necklaces like the one pictured will be $17 & she’s still finalizing the price she will offer the smaller teething rings and the other style of necklace at (will have a wooden ring in the center for additional grasping/mouthing). So, stay tuned as I’ll be finalizing ALL details of the upcoming November Buying Club very soon, and adding what Jolene has to offer to the already great line-up!

Thanks for sending me these Jolene!!
Here is her FB page for these necklaces & other offerings: https://www.facebook.com/hnsboutique?fref=ts See More

Accepting help from a stranger

02 Oct 2014 3 Comments

by ecofriendlymamausa in Eco-friendly living, Resources

Try it sometime, it’s really not that bad. You’ll probably be glad you did, as I was this morning….

After months of saving, researching, acclimating, my Husband was finally ready to install our bamboo flooring. I decided it’d be best to leave the house for 24 hours to let him tackle it without the kiddos & I in the house, and to not have to listen to the banging & staple gun going off. So, I packed up the kids & headed 1/2 hour away to a local hotel with a great indoor waterpark perfectly suited to my kids ages (1 & 3 1/2). I knew it’d be a bit rough with both of them running in separate directions, keeping them both happy in the same area, common concerns with 2 kids. But I’m used to juggling them, and armloads of stuff at the same time. It went OK, we had some rough times when Baby Girl wanted to do this & Big Brother wanted to do that.

This morning it was time to go check out the continental breakfast. They had a pretty deluxe version, make your own waffles, pancakes, scrambled eggs even! I walked in to a room full of childless adults with my 2 kids in tow & got lots of looks. I went & grabbed the only open table & went to get a high chair & booster seat for the kids. And an elderly lady approached & said “please, let me help you”. “No, I got it, thanks” I said with a smile, and accomplished the task at hand of arranging seating for us. With that done, it was on to getting some food. My Son wanted a waffle, which we had to wait to make as someone else was making one at the time. So I got a banana for Sissy, put her in the high chair & proceeded to pursue the waffle-making. Well, Sissy didn’t want to be in her chair eating her banana, she wanted to be checking out all the fun making the waffle, so she started to fuss. The same elderly lady approached me again “I’m done eating, my Husband is reading the paper, I miss my Grandkids terribly, I would love to help you while you get your family’s breakfast in order”. And I gave in. She walked around the room with my Little Lady while I made some scrambled eggs & a waffle, got some oatmeal for Baby Girl & got us all situated & we ate. She did not leave my sight, and all were happy in the end.

I just wanted to share this as we all really can use some help sometimes. Yes, I’m used to doing things on my own & CAN do it, but I have nothing to prove, and nothing to lose by accepting a hand from a kind, caring stranger who is offering. I know I’ll be offering help to a Mama who is trying to juggle too much sometime in my future, when my kiddos are grown & I’m sitting by myself reading a newspaper, I hope that Mama will accept my offer 🙂

And the floor, OH MY, it is sooooo beautiful. We got home today as he was nailing the very last board into place, and it is just gorgeous! I’m so proud of him for being able to do this for us, and so proud of the hard work & effort we both put forth to save up the money for it! After much research we went with Cali Bamboo, for anyone interested!