Down...time to shop.

There is no denying it. When I am down or stressed, I self medicate with shopping. So bad, I know.
I am trying to channel it this time to buying frames to finally hang up so art in this house. It is kind of working!
Luckily Mamanista posted the Gaiam coupons so when I get sick of buying frames, I can have fun here! Check them out, they have some fabulous super soft organic sheets!

$20 off purchases of $100 or more at Gaiam. Use promotion code AFVLN2. Expires 2.28.09.

Save 10% off your entire order at Gaiam. Enter promotion code AFLOVE2 during checkout. Expires 2.28.09.

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Our Visit

I thought lasts weeks wait would be hard, but this one is even worse.
We went to the neurologist's office EARLY this morning. Poor Eve, I woke her up and she kept crying, "sleep, sleep". Poor baby.
Not a morning girl.
I left early because you never know with rush hour if your going to be sitting for an hour in traffic or get their an hour early.
We were the latter.
Which was good.
The Doctor was happy to see us early. We were his first patient. After a really nice talk and examine the Doctor ruled it down to two things. Either a seizure or Long QT Syndrome (her EKG came back borderline from the ER). Because we were early they were able to fit us in for an EEG. She looked like a little robot with 40 some wires coming from her head.
Then she got all wrapped up so she looked more like a mummy.
It was pretty cute.
Afterwards we visited Daddy at work, ate suckers, played with stickers, got McDonald's, and now she's getting her beauty sleep.
So this week we get a physical with her regular pediatrician. Then Monday we have to do an MRI, which she will have to be sedated for. Then Wednesday we'll head to the cardiologists office for a more extensive EKG and other tests. And I have to imagine waiting for answers after all of that is going to be the hardest.

Gimme more Monday

Right now I'm waiting at the neurologists office with my daughter. Send good thought my way- And I'll send some yours as you enter some great giveaways this week!


Can you imagine giving your kids apple sauce in the car? Me neither, until now. FrugalFreebies is giving away Smashies- Organic Squeezy Apple Sauce. These might be less messy than the Fruitabu Splooshers.

I know there are 100 no wait 1000 other good giveaways going on right now, because yes, it is that time again...
Sorry, I couldn't get my act together to participate this time around, but have fun, and let me know of any great green giveaways going on!

A change in plans

I usually am not long winded when I type my blog posts- I'm a believer in short and sweet! I also try to keep my posts relatively clear of our personal lives- they are usually pretty boring. But as I sit down to type this blog post I have a feeling I am going to break these two "rules".
Yesterday morning started out as a typical morning. Cade couldn't wait to get his sister up, so the minute he heard her in her room he ran in to get her. They both came to the bar for breakfast and I poured their cereal and milk into their bowls. Then Genevieve went face first into her bowl and slumped down to the hard cement floor from the high bar stool. No cries, just stillness, laying on the floor. I screamed for my husband in the shower, who somehow actually heard me. We called Grandpa, who rushed over to watch Cade (they live next door) and we rushed to the hospital.
She slowly came to, but wanted to keep closing her eyes. The car ride was just awful for me, I was driving, it was rush hour, and I was only concentrating on my daughter.
Thankfully NO ONE was at the ER. We were in as soon as we got there. Poor girl had a heart and lung monitor, EKG, CT scan, an IV, countless viles of blood taken, had to pee in a cup (thank god she is potty trained otherwise they would have had to do a catheter), and a hundred other tests, for over 5 hours, and all the while she never cried or complained, but was more interested in watching exactly how they did everything-what a little Doctor.
They found she had a seizure. Then we started to put two and two together-this wasn't the first, just the first we've witnessed. We've had times where we've gone in her room and she is just laying on her bed white and lethargic. I've brought her in to the pediatrician, but was told this is how her body deals with stress and illness. Come to figure out she probably had a seizure, alone in her room, and I was seeing the aftermath as she comes to.
We are going to see a pediatric neurologist on Monday. I don't think I'll sleep till then. I know there are parents out there who deal with a whole lot more than this, but when it is your child, it literally feels like the end of the world-especially in this interim without any real answers.
All this is my way of saying, blog posts may be a little scattered this week. I'm supposed to being doing a Welch's Aqua Juice giveaway, but I'll probably just direct you to some other blogs that are doing it. And hopefully after Monday we will start to get some answers and some solutions so I can again type with two hands, because I won't let Eve out of my reach until, at the least, then.

Change

What does today mean to you?

Gimme more Monday

Monday comes so fast! Hope you had a great weekend- we did, it is FINALLY warming up around here!

WishingPenny is giving away a great Dr. Bronners Magic Soap set. I know I've talked about how great these products are! Win some here!

EcoStore USA is a great store that sells cleaning, body, and other products with NO NASTY CHEMICALS. Simple-Reviews is giving away a $25 gift certificate!

DesignHerMom is giving away Earth Best's Organic Baby Food. This stuff is great when you don't have time to make your own! She also has a link on her site to 5 other blogs giving it away as well!

The Cool Mom is now not only cool, but GREEN as well! You can enter to win a Baby Care Set from The Eco Store at her site, CoolMomGuide.

Have you entered GreenMomFinds huge 2009 green giveaway? Wow is all I can say!

Sale!

I used to stalk to Target toy clearance after Christmas and pounce when they went down past 50% off. I still watch it for a few things. Legos are big in the house and it is the only way to get them cheap. However this year I am trying to avoid the "bought for a bargain" toys that my kids really don't want and instead am investing in high quality, well made, safe toys that they are excited about too.
However if your looking for a deal, and you want safe, well made toys, check out the sale at Land of Nod. Enjoy!

Whip it up Wednesday

I seriously feel like I have been cleaning non-stop since our Christmas illness's! I need a break. Today I got an e-mail from Kiwi Mom's Meet with this great foot scrub recipe. I am totally trying it tonight, because my feet are so dry and more than anything I need a relaxing night!

Brown Sugar Foot Scrub
1 part olive oil
2 parts brown sugar
a dollop of honey
a few fresh mint leaves and grate ginger

My hands are super dry too and I can wait to rub it on them as well!

2010- I mean April 22, 2009

This Earth day I am totally going for a test drive-How un-green of me... But, the new Honda Insight comes out and it is set to rival, and possibly beat, the Prius.
My father in-law drives a Prius and while it is fun, and I get talked to about it at every stop, I really kind of hate the HUGE computer screen in the middle of the dash board. Plus his iPod plug in doesn't work and he doesn't seem to want to get it fixed...
The new Insight is thought to cost right around $20,000 (which is much less than a Prius), be smaller than the Prius, yet have more cargo and just as much passenger room, and it turns the fine art of saving gas into a video game that coaches you about your driving styles with the Ecological Drive Assist System. (No more racing at the stop lights kids...)
Wired has a great article on the soon to be released Insight.
The best thing about the re-introduction of the Insight is that it will hopefully drive competition up and the price tag DOWN!

Gimme more Monday

Sorry for the short list!


KatyDidandKid has a great Toy Helicopter up for grabs! What fun!

Remember my ranting and raving about Green Party Goods? You can win some of their reusable party hats from KatyDidandKid too!

Need some nice organic sheets! You can win some from GreenYourDecor!

Ever heard of Good For The Kids. If not, it is one of those great on-line stores where you can be confident that what you are buying is safe for you children. No lead, BPA, etc. MudPiesAndMaryJanes is giving away a $40 gift card! Win and have fun shopping!

I SO want to re-paint my walls. (We just went all white after building so I could take time and get some inspiration! Well- it is FLOWING!) Win 2 gallons and a gallon of primer of SAFE paint at GreenYourDecor!

Questions answered!

While I am not a scientist by any means, I do know how to do pretty effective research.
I had two questions thrown at me and I have been up searching for the answers since they were sent to me.
One was wondering whether or not vinegar is effective enough to kill salmonella.
There was an article in the Chicago Sun-Times where scientists soaked raw chicken in a solution of 1 cup water to 4 tbls vinegar for 15 minutes. It killed any trace of salmonella on the chicken.
This to me is pretty much proof that it will kill. However, when you go to clean your counter tops you have to actually CLEAN them. I think people forget that you don't actually need a disinfectant or an anti-bacterial soap to kill germs and bacteria. Scrubbing with soap and water is just as effective. Using anti-bacterial and disinfectants every time creates "super-germs".
Using vinegar is great thing to spray on, let sit 10 minutes, then scrub off, AFTER you have first washed your counter top with soap and hot water.

The other questioned I was asked was weather or not it was safe to put the Borax spray I posted yesterday on toys without rinsing it off. I have been trying to figure this one out all morning. I even have my husband working on it.
Here is what I have found:
Borax, sodium tetraborate decahydrate, is not acutely toxic. Its LD (median lethal dose) score is tested at 2.66 g/kg in rats. This does not mean that it is safe, merely that a significant dose of the chemical is needed to cause severe symptoms or death.
So here is my thought (and remember I'm not a scientist, just a mom)
I used the spray on my kids toys, door handles, etc. I sprayed it on and wiped it off. I soaked some toys in the tub and DID rinse them and then let them air dry. I have to assume that it is deluded enough to not be harmful, but I still take sensible pre-cautions. I even do with my lemon juice cleaner. I know it would be FINE if my kids drank some, however I don't want them even thinking they can!
I have contacted a maker of Borax and when I hear back from them, I will let you know!
Thanks for your questions and keep them coming!

100 companies to NOT support in 09

I found an interesting article the other day naming the top 100 companies an environmentalist should NOT support. You can read it HERE.
I was pretty surprised by some of the companies that made the list- Macy's, for forcing customers to take the plastic bag NO MATTER WHAT and Costco for building on a protected wetland.
So here is my list of stores I am supporting, and hopefully will stop this year...
(See how many you go to and why they are so bad!)

Exxon: Exxon’s most recent shareholder meeting uncovered the company’s unwillingness to become environmentally friendly. Exxon is estimated to produce more than twice the pollution of countries such as Norway.-Are there any gas companies that are "good"?

Xcel Energy: Xcel has 7 coal-burning power plants that as a whole release more carbon dioxide than any other source in Colorado. They’re in the process of building another one that would add over 100 pounds of mercury into the environment every year for at least 50 years, along with 6 million tons of carbon dioxide and other pollutants.-I used to have to use Xcel when I lived in St. Paul. I know have a different company but they aren't the greatest either. See how green your electric company is here.

Home Depot: Home Depot is criticized for carrying almost no non-toxic, poison-free lawn and garden products.-My husband and I shopped here every weekend while building our "green" house, opps.

Disney: Disney has announced plans to create incredibly wasteful disposable rental DVDs that are designed to “self-destruct” after 48 hours.-I have kids, what kid doesn't love Disney. This will be a hard one to break.

Canon USA: Canon is another shipping offender, sending at least one customer a chip smaller than a dime in an over sized box full of packaging.-I'm a photographer and I can attest to the crazy packaging a tiny memory card comes in. POINTLESS and WASTEFUL.

Mattel: Mattel has lobbied against legislation to prevent toxic toys.-My daughter has a deep love for Polly Pockets! (We haven't hit Barbie yet and I'm hoping we don't!)

Costco: Costco constructed a store on top of wetlands that were previously used to hold and filter storm water, as well as provide a transportation corridor for 100 species of animals.-Costco does have some green initiatives, and I don't think I can stop shopping here.

Estée Lauder: In 2004, Estée Lauder was cited as a responsible party in lawsuits involving hazardous waste in landfills.-Estée Lauder is the parent company of my favorite cosmetic and hair product company, Aveda.

Google: This company that pledges to not be evil consumed more power in 2006 than American televisions.-We are all guilty of this one!

Nintendo: Last year, Nintendo got a score of zero out of ten from Greenpeace because of its policies and practices on chemicals and takeback of products.-I love my Wii...

Wells Fargo: Wells Fargo has been called out for its bankrolling of environmentally irresponsible projects such as a mountaintop removal for coal extraction.-My car loan is through Wells Fargo, but I'm in the process of refinancing in through my credit union.


All right, your turn...can you give up any on the list?

Whip it up Wednesday: The flu

We have been fighting the flu around here. (The doctor told me it wasn't the flu, but a nasty stomach virus) Whatever it was it has been horrible! I had my mother in-law telling me I needed to use bleach to "really disinfect" everything. I have even seen TV commericals telling me how much bleach to add to the bathtub when disinfecting toys...Seriously I almost caved...
Fortunately I found a cleaner that works. I know it does because we had the birthday party here and NO ONE has gotten sick! Plus all the ingredients have been proven to kill germs and bacteria.

Disinfectant-for spray bottle
2 teaspoons Borax (remember borax is toxic to children, just not the environment)
4 Tablespoons Vinegar
3 cups water
(For even stronger cleaner mix 1/4 teaspoon liquid castile soap)

Spray on toys, wipe off.

Double or triple for bathtub/sink soak.

Green deal!

Granola bars are my go to snack with the kids, especially when we are in the car. They are "less" messy and just as loved as the sticky, but oh so good Fruitabu's! Good organic granola bars are somewhat hard to find. And the ones I can find, usually are NOT a hit with my kids...until I was able to sample Bear Fruit Bars. YUM. And, here is where the deal comes in-shipping is always free from the site and if you enter "GOGREEN" at checkout the Apple Flavored bars are 25% off. Double yum. You've got till January 10th to try them! (Thanks GreenDaily)

You are two!

Happy Birthday doll-
My little girl who loves Jaba the Hut more than anything.
Refuses to say "yes" but says "Na" instead.
LOVES pistachios!
Can handle a 100lb dog like he was a rag doll.
Is such a girlie girl tomboy.
Has a smile that melts our hearts.
Happy birthday, we can't wait to see what this year brings!


The holiday's are officially over as we wrap up with my baby's second birthday! We kept it simple. A few bio-degradable balloons, we re-used the fabric flags from Cade's party, ice cream in edible bowls, and just a nice relaxing evening to wind down from all the holiday chaos. (And let me tell you about chaos these last few weeks!...) As promised, I'll get back to normal this week in the blogging world!