In the Kitchen: Peter Rabbit Organics

I'm not sure how I made it to my third child without having experienced the absolutely simplest way to feed them -- but now that I know about these great baby food pouches, there is no turning back!

Whether you are traveling or just tired of washing baby spoons, this is the perfect solution! The twist off cap reveals a spout that the baby (over 6 months of age) can actually suck on and quickly get their entire meal - literally within a minute! It's like a smoothie on the go...and for us mommies, it is AMAZING!

The cap is recyclable, the entire pouch is bpa-free and takes less resources to make than traditional glass jars. Since they are flat, they take up less space in landfills and are smaller to transport. But the truly wholesome goodness lies within the variety of fruit and veggie flavors, all organic (USDA certified), that make these must-have meals and snacks.

We allowed our little one to choose from their wide variety of combinations (shown in photo) and he selected the Mango, Banana, and Orange pouch. I was a little hesitant coming from the school of thought that oranges can be harsh on a baby's organs, causing a huge glucose spike, but I was really reassured after looking into this and seeing that only a small amount of orange is used - negating any negatives and simply boosting nutrients! Our baby happily gulped down EVERY flavor, despite being a picky eater. I can confidently say that this is the best way to go if you can't make your own baby food from scratch!

Shop Peter Rabbit Organics

Home: Reusable Shopper Totes by Petunia Pickle Bottom

Okay, so let's face it...some of us need a little more encouragement to go green with our shopping habits. What better way to promote going green than with convenience and fabulously stylish patterns?

Petunia Pickle Bottom, maker of the famously popular diaper bags (FYI they now have organic diaper bags...stay tuned for a review as soon as we can get our hands on one to test out IRL conditions), has created a line of shopper totes perfect for everything from groceries to clothing to household supplies! What makes these reusable bags different than the myriad of others out there??


They're gorgeous! In traditional Petunia-style, carrying one of these totes feels more like you're walking the runway rather than the bread aisle! We tested their new pattern, Frolicking in Fez, and it's fabulous...as you can see!

One of the biggest problems many of us face with reusable bags is that we simply forget to bring them. Well, this is one tote you can't forget because it is convenient! It folds up to the size of a thin clutch (see photo below), securely fastens with an elastic latch, and easily fits inside your diaper bag or purse!

How many times have you just taken your keys and wallet to the store, perhaps a grocery list, placed them in the bag or basket and had to go digging to find them at checkout? Problem solved! These shopper totes include a generously sized outer pocket that will hold all your essentials right within easy reach!


No more crying over spilled milk! These shopper totes are water resistant - we tested and it seems to be actually waterproof, holding liquid spills on the surface until it rolls off, but we'll go with the term resistant just in case you want to use it as a life raft and it ends up being wet!

Made from 100% BPA-free Polypropylene (#5 plastic) - though we'd love to see Petunia Pickle Bottom go greener by utilizing post-consumer recycled PP, helping to create a market for all those food containers we turn in for recycling!

Oh and by the way, these totes are recyclable in your city recycling program since you can recycle PP curbside just about everywhere within the US!

They're bigger than most others! You can tell in the photo below where I'm holding the tote and my hand looks so teeny tiny at the top of the photo, what you cannot see is that inside the tote are 4 boxes of cereal -- and there's still room for more! Approx. dimensions are: 16" x 15.5" x 3.5"

Last but not least, I know you are wondering, what is the price on these oh-so-wonderful-can't-live-without-one shopper totes? $12 .... yes, only $12 US!

SHOP PETUNIA PICKLE BOTTOM

Gifts: Make Your Own Chewing Gum Kit from Glee Gum

From the makers of my favorite chewing gum, Glee Gum, comes an awesome gift set just in time for the holidays!

Why is this the perfect gift?

1. It's useful!
2. It's creative!
3. It's healthier!
4. It creates an opportunity for a fun memory!

The "Make Your Own Chewing Gum" Kit from Glee Gum ($13) is perfect for any age, except for those with braces (I can attest to the fact that it is incredibly difficult to get any type of gum off of metal dental work). Gum base refills are available for $6 and you receive double the amount of gum base, meaning your future batches will yield twice as much chewing gum! YUM!

It's useful - you will be creating a product that will happily be consumed!

It's creative - you may choose to use the cherry or cinnamon included or create your own flavor...peppermint and vanilla extracts sound delicious to me!

It's healthier - you know exactly what goes into this chewing gum and how much of it there is! If you've been to the store lately and looked at the back of ANY pack of gum (glee gum brand excluded), you will see a warning label for an ingredient called phenylalanine; this is an artificial sweetener that is a known neurotoxin. It makes your brain think something tastes good by stimulating the cells in the brain until they literally burst and die from the excitement. It's a tragic ingredient, and in rare instances, can kill people - hence the required warning label on the back of products containing it. The great thing about Glee Gum is that they do not use this ingredient or any other dangerous toxins...nope, what you see in the photo above is what their gum is made of: Corn Syrup, Sugar, Gum Base (tree sap based), Cinnamon.

It's a memory waiting to happen - buying a kit not only gives the giftee something to consume, but an activity to do and with that, tons of fun can be had!

SHOP GLEE GUM

Food: Organic Fruit Snacks by Tasty Baby

Tasty Fruit snacks taste like candy...

As a newly converted Tasty Baby mom, I was really excited to get my hands on their recently launched fruit snack products! Tasty Baby brand features completely organic ingredients and has been known for their reduced packaging, which ends up being environmentally friendly since it produces less waste.

Vegan. Gluten-free. No artifical colors. No preservatives. No artifical flavors. 100% daily vitamin C in one serving. No high fructose corn syrup. It sounds like a dream come true for snacktime! But...a closer look at the sugar content reveals why they are just so tasty...

13 grams of sugar in one pouch of their "sport" fruit snacks & the package only contained 11 little chews. 10 grams of sugar in one pouch of "superfruit" snacks & the package contained only 13 little chews. Now these do contain fruit juice so there is natural fructose sugar to  be counted in the snacks, but topping the ingredient list is "organic cane sugar" - not fruit juice. Needless to say, these little pouches packed a power punch of hyperactivity for about an hour after consumption, but didn't fill up their little tummies or even satisfy them temporarily - it just gave the children more energy with which to beg for more snacks with!

I'm not crazy about their plastic-coated foil packaging either. Not only did our treats get really gummy from the heat, but it seems really wasteful for a company I've considered to have fairly eco-friendly packaging in the past. Each box contains 5 plastic-coated pouches of fruit snacks, inside each pouch is only an average of 12 dime-sized snacks. It'd be nice if Tasty rethought their wasteful packaging and offered resealable large pouches, afterall, these little fruit snacks will be gone as soon as you sit them out - just put them directly on your child's plate, in with their sandwich, in a little reusable cloth pocket bag...there are so many better options.

As far as fruit snacks go, you won't find another brand so committed to organic ingredients as Tasty Baby, but I'd like to see them use 100% fruit juice or at least the majority of sugar to be from the fruit. I'd also like to see a little bit of fat or protein added so that the sugar took a bit longer to absorb into their systems, studies have shown that ingesting large amounts of sugar without fat or protein cause an insulin spike -- and with diabetes on the rise, it seems like a wise idea to slow the absorption or reduce the sugar in all snacks, especially those created for toddlers and young children.

With that said, we all found the snacks incredibly delicious and to be honest, they tasted like candy (not just the flavor, but the texture as well)! The sports snacks are like gumdrops frosted in sugar, while the superfruit snacks are delightfully jelly-like and smooth in texture. While I would not buy these for my children for snack time, due to the aforementioned reasons, I definitely would buy these for treats - as in every now and then at a movie, they would definitely get Tasty Baby fruit snacks instead of candy and it would still be a tasty treat for them!

Tasty Baby Fruit Snacks Website

Tasty Baby: Organic Brown Rice Cereal

Tasty Cereal. Tasty Packaging. Tasty Baby. Eco-friendly baby foods...ahh, at last, my love has come along!

As the mother of three, I am forever looking for foods that are not only healthy for my children, but that they enjoy eating as well! When I came across Tasty Baby brand foods recently, my interest was peaked -- organic, wholesome baby foods packaged responsibly in non-toxic wrapping -- could it be my dream come true? Excitedly, I placed my order for an entire case via Amazon grocery (and with the subscribe & save option on Amazon, it makes these cereals less expensive than conventional baby food cereals).

Tonight was his first bite of solid food, and as you can see from his photo, he is already a Tasty fan! Not only did he readily open his mouth to try this tasty cereal, it was much easier for me to make! It mixed without clumping, like so many other brands do, and the easy open/close zipper pouch (bpa-free to boot) made preparation super simple! I expect it to remain fresher longer than boxed brands as well, because of the stay fresh pouch it comes in! I must admit...I've become a Tasty mama tonight!

Coming soon...New! Tasty Baby Fruit Snacks review! Stay tuned...

Tasty Baby Website