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Jan
3
- Plant a small garden, even if it’s just in pots on the deck. I’ve slacked off on doing this and would really like to grow some of my own food.
- Be less wasteful. Be more careful about recycling. I’ve gotten a bit careless about it and I lose sleep over it. I want to have another garage sale, I want to give a new life to the toys and things my kids don’t use.
- Make my kitchen safer. I still have not completely “greened” up my cooking utensils and would like to gradually find better ways to cook food safely. It will result in some cheat sheet updates I’m sure.
Happy 2012! I had a little down time over the holidays to reflect on what I’ve done with SafeMama.com the past 4 years and I am always overwhelmed with lovely emails from readers thanking me for the content on this site. I have a lot of ideas and subjects I want to research this year and I will also plan on re-releasing some of the usual cheat sheets to add new products as I go. If there is a cheat sheet you think bears some fresh attention or one I haven’t tackled yet (or if you want to help with one) I am always open to your thoughts and ideas. Without you, this site wouldn’t keep chugging along. So new content is ahead. I have some new things I want to review and introduce you to as well as some fun giveaways too – just to keep things light around here.
I’m not one to make “New Years Resolutions” because they feel like false promises to myself that I create guilt when life doesn’t allow me to live up to them. Instead I try to make small improvements in my living through the year and then celebrate the successes I had when a new year starts. But it’s always nice to have a positive outlook on the months to come and to plan to make small adjustments.
For those of us trying to improve on a healthy lifestyle or a greener approach to living, this is the best time of year to make a list of things we’d like to do to take another step toward a less toxic world. For me, those items look a lot like:
I’m thankful and grateful for the progress we have made this year regarding issues like toxic chemicals and I love watching organizations and bloggers grow more interested in living a less toxic life. We’ve made waves. This year is time for a tsunami (not a real one) in changing the way the world views chemical safety and just protecting our planet in general.
What are your goals for 2012? What would you love to see covered here on SafeMama.com? Thank you all for being continued readers and supporters of me and my sponsors – who without, I could not keep SafeMama.com going.
Dec
25
Happy Holidays From SafeMama
Filed Under Website News | 2 Comments
Just wanted to take a moment to wish all of my readers a Happy Holiday season! I appreciate every single person who takes the time to read SafeMama.com, to write in questions or notes of thanks, and I truly appreciate the ongoing support of the network of people this site has become for me. Your readership is the best gift I’ve gotten all year.
To the people I consider colleagues – the community of people I am so lucky to be able to interact with on a daily basis: Thank you for a wonderful year that has taught me a lot and continues to enrich my knowledge.
Happy Holidays everyone and as my son would say “Feel Knees Nabby Dod”!
Aug
12
Green Blogger Soiree 2010
Filed Under Green Mama, Website News | 17 Comments
I was bestowed the honor of hosting a green event this year before BlogHer 2010* got underway, The Green Blogger Soiree. The 3 Green Angels encouraged me to hostess this fantastic event that allowed a cross section of our powerful green community to gather and connect in a quiet setting before the madness of BlogHer began. Set at the lovely Remi Rialto in New York, we gathered about 50 green voices and a bevy of fantastic sponsors and representatives to trade tips, network, get all green n’ geeky, and put faces to the names of people we have been blogging, talking and working with for years. It was a great group of inspiring women that I was fortunate to be in the presence of.
The 3 Green Angels Photo by Beth Terry, Fake Plastic Fish
Attendees Condo Blues, Green Talk, Mindful Momma, Green & Clean Mom, Crunchy Domestic Goddess, Fake Plastic Fish, and a nice waiter from the Rialto (they were fabulous)
Had to share this one because finally, The Soft Landing and SafeMama meet in person. I love her! Photo by Melissa Moog of Itsabelly
(L-R)Calley from The Eco Chic, Rhoost and Kelly from Diaper Shops and The Cloth Diaper Whisperer Photo by Melissa Moog of Itsabelly
Babies 411, The Social Studies Group, SafeMama, The Soft Landing. Photo by Sommer of Green & Clean Mom
There were so many more attendees and photos of the event so please check out the rest below (note the “cookie” river which I parked my butt next to for a good 15 minutes).
Created with Admarket’s flickrSLiDR.
We had some amazing prizes to give away, thanks to our sponsors, and the event went off without a hitch (aside from having to lug all the parting gift bags by hand from the neighboring hotel – those were heavy!) and everyone enjoyed participating and getting to know each other. It wouldn’t have been possible without our great sponsors of course so I’d like to take a moment to thank them and briefly introduce them all to you:
ThinkBaby: ThinkBaby creates BPA, PVC, Phthalate, Icky free baby gear like bottles and feeding gear. Not to mention they just released their fabulous new ThinkSport and ThinkBaby Sunscreen! A great company with a great line of products for kids and baby. They are also the creators of the ThinkSport stainless steel water bottle for kids and adults.
Earth Mama Angel Baby: Everyone knows that being pregnant means you want nothing but the best for your growing little angel. Earth Mama Angel baby provides skin care and new mama wellness products that are 100% natural and uses Certified Organic ingredients. You know you’re getting some of the safest and effective products available. From Mom and Baby skin care and breastfeeding aides to wellness and pregnancy teas as well as postpartum care for the new mommy. If you haven’t given their Happy Mama Body Wash a try, I recommend you do!
Firebelly Lawn Care: Firebelly offers safe and organic pest control and lawn care, is something we all struggle with. Effective and safe is what we strive for and is what Firebelly is all about. They hope to lead the way in changing the way we care for our lawns and our earth – without harmful and toxic pesticides and fertilizers. Their six step program aims to help you build your soil profile to make healthy grass and plants! A fabulous alternative to all that toxic junk.
Scotch Naturals / Hopscotch Kids: Oh how I love this line of products. I’m kind of a girly girl, so show m a bottle of nail polish and I’m happy. But what makes me happier is when that nail polish isn’t loaded with formaldehyde, toluene, phthalates and toxic ingredients. Better yet, this fun line is full of cute colors and are all totally safe and have fun colors designed for kids. They also provide a natural water based polish remover too. Perfect for those cute little girls in your life – and they have party packs!
Zoe B Organic: Zoe B was started by a green mom who cared for our planet and her family. Valerie Lecoeur designs a majority of her products and also sells trusted and tested brands like Natursutten, Kidishes and Eco Nuts. She is an innovative and trusted member of our green mom community and she’s preparing to introduce the world’s first biodegradable beach toys soon!
Swaddle Designs: Swaddle Designs offers a variety of swaddling blankets and soft accessories for baby. Swaddling is an important technique for new babies to help them feel secure and warm (without overheating them!). Swaddle Designs offers a range of soft and organic cotton blankets made with certified organic flannel. And these are soft, people. My son has already adopted it and claimed it as his own.
Orbit Baby: Ohhh Orbit Baby! How I adore thee! Orbit Baby is near and dear to my heart when I went hunting for baby gear that wasn’t doused in flame retardants and paid special attention to materials the way other companies don’t. Orbit Baby uses Oko Tek Certified fabrics and materials as well as organic and PVC free accessories. They are also implementing a recycling program for those that have outgrown their Orbit Baby. They generously offered one of their new G3 strollers as a giveaway prize to one of our lucky attendees! Love Orbit Baby!
Plum Organics: Plum Organics is a common item in our house. My kids love them and so do I! I seriously don’t know if my kids would ever eat spinach otherwise. Anyway, Plum Organics has a range of baby and toddler food that will satisfy any picky palette. Made with organic ingredients and unique flavor combination, these packets pack a punch of vitamins and minerals our growing babies need. Paired with the innovative Boon Spoon attachment these are on-the-go life savers. From baby food to training meals – delicious, healthy and wholesome is what its all about. And organic of course!
Beaba: Beaba creates a wide range of innovative baby products. You might know them best from the Beaba Babycook – the BPA Free steamer and baby food maker and accompanying accouterments like silicone freezer trays and dishware. They also create a range of toys, dishes, and gadgets like bottle warmers and potties! The best part is that they do it all in style and with really wel selected colors. I can always appreciate kid items with unique colors.
Seventh Generation: Seventh Generation, where the earth is their “baby”. In case you have been living under a rock, Seventh Generation is a pioneer in the earth friendly arena. Providing earth safe products like household cleaners that aren’t toxic for you your family, pets or the earth, as well as biodegradable diapers, wipes and household paper goods (love their paper towels for when you need to have a roll handy!). What we all love the most, perhaps, is their open policy on full ingredient disclosure.
Kinderville: Kinderville is a fabulous company that makes silicone food gear such as food storage jars, freezer trays, ice pop molds and dishware like cups and bowls. I’ve been lucky enough to check a few of their products out and I have to admit they are sturdy, colorful and fun to use. All their products are microwave and dishwasher safe and silicone is of course, BPA, PVC and Phthalate free. Kinderville is one of my top choices in dishware. Their ice pop molds are great! Kinderville has just released their newest product, divided plates!
Rhoost: I was recently introduced to Rhoost before the Soiree and now all of our attendees have the chance to check them out too. Rhoost creates stylish alternatives to childproofing tools including corner protectors and cabinet locks that don’t cramp your style. I have a review of these coming up next week. None of their products use adhesives so they don’t wreck your furniture. Safety, functionality and style… and of course BPA and PVC/Phthalate/Lead free.
The Social Studies Group: The Social Studies Group is a social media research company that has been carrying out primary and secondary research, as well as providing strategic marketing and business consulting services, for close to a decade-and-half. They have been involved with brand names that you would recognize in your kitchen cabinets, on television, etc. They offer social media research services that can add value and help pinpoint your mission as a brand. They can provide customized monitoring of your brand, your competitor, keywords and demographics. If your brands needs focus and a powerful edge against the competition, The Social Studies Group is where you should start.
Itsabelly Baby Planners: Need a baby planner? Planning for a baby can be a stressful time. There are so many questions and products to wade through that it can be immensely overwhelming. Itsabelly can help you wade through it all with their intense expertise in product safety. I recommend their services hand over fist. If you’d rather just take the first step, you can pick up a copy of their fantastic book Itsabelly’s Guide to Going Green With Baby do help you learn about greening your nursery and your baby’s new life ahead. It’s a great resource every new mother should have!
EcoStore USA: EcoStore USA, if you aren’t familiar with them yet, is a wonderful company that specializes in eco-friendly and safe cleaning products that actually WORK. I can’t say enough positive things about this company. Their passion for what they do is evident in their products and their attitude. They love their products, and you should too. I habitually use their dish soap and laundry detergent for my messy house. If you haven’t given EcoStore USA a try, I encourage it.
GreenSmart: I have to admit I was a little (ok a lot) jealous of the folks who won a GreenSmart backpack at the Green Soiree! I totally want one! GreenSmart creates eco-friendly bags (like backpacks, lunchbags, messenger bags and laptop sleeves) that are stylish, functional and of course made of eco-friendly materials like recycled PET bottles. Their NeoGreene is much more environmentally friendly than Neoprene by using 25% less petroleum, 25% less energy and completely eliminates the need to use toxin laden solvent adhesives to bind the fabrics to the Neogreene. I’m definitely on board with that!
Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families: The Safer Chemicals, Healthy Families coalition represents more than 11 million people including parents, health professionals, advocates for people with learning and developmental disabilities, reproductive health advocates, environmentalists and businesses from across the nation. This coalition is united by their intense concern over toxic chemicals in our products, our homes, our businesses and our world. We want chemical reform, stricter testing and chemical standards and we want better control over the toxic substances that are so carelessly used on a day to day basis. Join them in helping us make the changes this world and our families so desperately need.
Revolution Foods: When I got home I ran out to the store to use some Revolution Food coupons because the first thing my son did when I got home was eat the samples. Revolution Foods makes delicious organic lunch box snacks that you can feel better about sending to school with your kids. True I try to send fresh fruit and wholesome items in my sons lunch box but if you need a treat or yummy snack on the go, these are what I plan to reach for. (These would be awesome for party gift bags too). Whole grains, organic fruit, no HFCS and no artificial ickies makes this snack pass the mommy test.
Green Irene: Green Irene does so many wonderful things I don’t know where to start. They are an Eco-Consulting firm specializing in helping people green their homes and offices. Need a green contractor? Ask Green Irene. Need to find an Eco-Consultant? Ask Green Irene. Need a green makeover for your home or office? Ask Green Irene!!! And now that have expanded to cleaning products. They just launched a line of eco-friendly safe home and office cleaning products that work using plant-derived enzymes instead of toxic chemicals. They are passionate about their work and it shows.
Lunapads: Many of us have reviewed Lunapads before but if you are new to the whole “greening” your feminine care regime I encourage you to check out Lunapads. Lunapads, distributors of The Diva Cup, have a full line of reusable and stylish pads and panties. These washable cloth menstrual pads are the way forward to ditching disposable products forever. Not only better for the environment, but better for your health too. Have an eco-positive period!
Thank you to all who attended and to our sponsors for making it all possible and so eco-fabulous. I was truly thrilled to be the selected hostess and hope we can do it again soon.
*The Green Soiree was not in any way affiliated with BlogHer.
Jul
31
I’m Still Here I Swear!
Filed Under Website News | 6 Comments
Sorry for the silence around here lately. I’ve been really busy working on some back to school cheat sheets for you which has resulted in my needing to make a lot of phone calls and send a lot of emails so posting has been slow coming. I’m also busying readying myself for BlogHer in NYC! On top of my having to start packing and shopping and getting my husband prepared to watch the kids for 4 days (oh man) …. my wallet was stolen. So I had to spend time waiting in line at the DMV for a new license and getting my new cards shipped to me this week.
But! All is well now and I am really looking forward to hanging around at BlogHer and seeing/meeting everyone. I’ll be floating around with my lovely business partner Joelle from Moxie Design Studios (my day job) as well as hob knobbing at the various parties afterward. I’ll definitely be at A Green Affair on Saturday night (Its possible you’ll see my SafeMama logo on my back) and if you want to stop by and see me, Joelle and I are doing a quick book signing for The IT Girls Guide to Blogging with Moxie on Saturday Aug 7th at 4:15 – 5:00 on Floor 2 in the BlogHer Bookstore. So please come by and say hi, get your book signed or check out the bookstore and see what’s in there. Lots of great stuff in there I suspect.
I have some reviews to share with you this week and hopefully I can get the last few companies to get back to me about their products and I can share with you the cheat sheet I’ve been preparing. Leave a comment if you’ll be at BlogHer this year… I’d love to meet you!
Apr
2
What’s Up on SafeMama
Filed Under Suggestion Box, Website News | 1 Comment
Hey everyone! I just wanted to point out a few things and to also keep you updated on what’s going on here at SafeMama.com. We spin many plates at once here and I wanted to make sure everyone had an opportunity to check out the cool stuff we have going on.
MommyLikes.com
I announced our new review blog last month and it’s been going great… many prizes being handed out over there. Right now a GREAT giveaway is happening for a fabulous Bebe Au Lait Double Reversible Bib. These are great, I use one all the time and keep it with me in my diaper bag so I always have a clean bib when I’m out and about with the kids. Go on over and enter to win one for yourself. Ends April 6th! I also just posted two more giveaways: One is for a great long sleeved bib called the Learner’s Bib made by Baggino. I loved it and you will too. That ends on April 23rd. Also there’s a great giveaway for an Essential Baby Box by b.box which is a great diaper changing/bag item. That ends April 23rd too so get on over there to enter both these great giveaways.
Also if you are a business owner and would like to be featured on MommyLikes.com, please email us asap! Lining up giveaways for spring as we speak.
LovelyMama
LM has been slow going only because SafeMama and Mommy Likes have been so time consuming. But I have several reviews of product lines coming up and yes, Cheat Sheets. If you have a brand you’d like us to check out please submit it to us as soon as you can. We’ll be happy to look into your favorite natural brands and give you the good or bad news about the ingredients.
SafeMama.com
As you can see we’ve been busy here… many new cheat sheets (new skin care sheet, formula review, etc) have popped up and we have now put them all in one place (you can find a link to all the cheat sheets in the top navigation now). We have a new Sunscreen and Bug Repellent list coming out very soon too with several new brands to choose from.
We Love You
As always we are always open to hearing your comments and suggestions. Thank you for being continued readers and supporters of SafeMama.com! Have a great weekend everyone 
Mar
5
I’ve been doing some overhauling and surveying and listening to SafeMama readers lately. I also like doing reviews and giveaways of products that benefit our cause. But sometimes it can get in the way of the real information of what SafeMama is all about. So I went ahead and created a separate space to house reviews and giveaways for us! Introducing MommyLikes.com. Mommy Likes will be a space for eco-friendly (and safe) giveaways which we can expand to other areas of products – without cluttering up SafeMama with reviews an contests. I will still do reviews and giveaways here too, but only when the product really benefits our mission and our readers (cool stuff and relevant stuff). Mommy Likes is a place for you to hear about new products and try to win them! There is no limit on how many giveaways you can enter or win so go on and enjoy it!
Right now we have a great giveaway from MamaBears.com – You can win a silicone Kind Sign for your baby carrier or stroller! We also have a Boon Squirt giveaway going on and I will be posting a great Episencial Sweet Dreams Bubble Bath giveaway from SproutBaby.com this afternoon.
So please subscribe to Mommy Likes, Follow Mommy Likes on Twitter or grab our button… visit often for lots of great giveaways coming soon!
Feb
21
A Little SafeMama Reader Survey
Filed Under Website News | Comments Off
Here at SafeMama.com I am constantly trying to improve our site to best serve our readers. In order to do so, I could use a little information about who is reading! If you would be so kind as to take our little anonymous survey I would be so grateful!
Loading ... Loading ... Loading ... Loading ... Loading ... Loading ... Loading ...Thanks for your help!
Jan
5
Suggestion Box: Help SafeMama Help You
Filed Under Website News | 26 Comments
As I am gearing up for several product reviews, I am starting to think about what else our readers want to know about. I’ll continue to post any relevant information about toxics, product safety and news worthy items, and I have a few ideas for the coming months. However I want to hear from you. I’ll leave the comments open on this entry and I would love for our SafeMama readers to suggest anything you think would be a great help to new parents. I’ll take any suggestions you have for me and I’ll consider them all! I’ll do my best to take your ideas and publish what will benefit our readers. Thank you all!
Dec
26
Holiday Wishes from SafeMama.com
Filed Under Website News | 2 Comments
I hope everyone has had safe and wonderful holidays with your families this year! I want to take this time to thank our readers for your continued support of SafeMama.com and for understanding what we do is a labor of love. This website is close to my heart and I have such fun doing it. This year was crazy for us with myself and Statia both having new babies added to our families. Time has been scarce but well spent falling in love with our babies. Thank you for being patient with the lack of posting and for sticking with us while we get back on track.
My goal in 2010 is to get back on it with regular writing and I have many great things planned for the site including hopefully a redesign to make our content more accessible. I have a few new cheat sheets we’re working on and we are going to reinvent LovelySafeMama.com into something fun and independent. I’ll also be attending BlogHer ’10 in New York City in August so hopefully I get to meet some of you in person!
Thank you for reading and supporting SafeMama.com … we wish you and your families all the best in 2010! Happy New Year!
May
18
Congratulations to SafeMama Statia!
Filed Under Website News | 8 Comments
I’m happy to report that our own SafeMama Statia gave birth to an 8lb 12 oz baby this morning and both mom and baby are doing great. She sounds happy and baby is healthy! Congratulations Mama! We wish her all the best with her new bundle!
That means I’m next… eek!
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