I volunteered to make 15 floral head wreaths for my son’s preschool class. They have an adorable “May Day” celebration–with May Pole dancing, flowers, singing, the whole bit–but it’s always a little strange to me that it happens in late May instead of right on May 1. (Scheduling issues? Unpredictable early spring weather? The mystery remains.)

I love wearing circlets of flowers on my head, always have, always will. And there’s nothing like a bunch of two and three year olds so attired to make every adult within a mile pause and say, “Awwwwww.” But let’s just say that I forgot how long it took to make even one of these!

I put the kids to bed, arranged all my buckets of flowers (some from my garden and some from the ever amazing Stray Cat Flower Farm), made a neat stack of floral tape, and started watching the Lord of the Rings–the extended editions– while I designed head wreaths. Let’s just say the first movie was long over and I was deep in the War of the Ring before I finished.

The kids were gorgeous. Mama was a little sleep deprived.

I will be not be shipping orders between July 6-10. Any orders placed during this time will ship on Monday, July 13. We are going to have a little company holiday, because my parents are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary(!) and all the kids and grandkids have been summoned to embark on a grand family vacation together. Hurrah!

It sounds lovely until you remember that I will have two small, easily overstimulated whirlwinds in tow. Wish me luck. :)

After some deliberation, my sons decided to have a Star Wars Cantina Tea Party for their joint birthday celebration. Though I suppose 2-year-old Finn didn’t have too much to do with it, since any party that involves cake is a good party as far as he’s concerned.

We asked everyone to bring a favorite stuffed animal or doll to be an “alien” in the cantina. Then we made doll-sized tables and chairs using Anna Wulick’s patterns for cardboard doll furniture. (Click the “cardboard doll furniture” link from that page to download the instructions.)

Thank you, Anna! Crafters should check out her awesome blog and her February appearance on Martha Stewart! (We know Anna, can you tell?)

Of course, making 12 cardboard chairs–one for each of the kids to paint and take home–sounds easy if you plan to do it over the course of a few months. And then your weekends are eaten up by your small, wildly energetic boys, equally bouncy husband, business, rehearsals and—-opps. I left all the chair-making for the week before the party, and then one of the boys was home sick. One of our friends came over the night before the party and helped us finish up the chairs and decorate. Connor *loved* the $4 Star Wars tablecloth more than Mom’s entire cardboard toy-sized cantina. Of course. Laugh. So that’s what I’ve been doing instead of growing the business the last month.

I have been known to go a little overboard when planning out snacks for the kids at Connor’s preschool. The little brooms made out of string cheese and pretzel sticks last Halloween may have been a little over the top. After all, preschoolers just want to eat these things, not admire them. Right?

Connor’s 5th birthday was on Saturday, and here’s what I sent for snack time on Monday:

I need a lighter chocolate icing so that the face stands out better. Not to mention better chocolate flaking skills. Still, these little cuties invaded the kitchen and caused a ruckus. Think flour everywhere. Connor helped assemble these, although he was across the counter making Ankylosaurus cupcakes (which bore a strange resemblance to hedgehogs which had had a really unfortunate encounter with a brick wall).

Connor has a little sign up in his room. It’s this amazingly happy clown cupcake with a caption that reads, “Life is better with a sugar buzz on.” Enough said.

Now I revert to my usual whole foods obsessive cooking self. At least until the joint birthday party for both sons, which is less than two weeks away. I still have 12 doll-sized chairs to make. And tea sandwiches for twelve. And scones. And cakes. I should not be planning events. That’s what generates these huge to do lists and starts off those dangerous thoughts like, “Wouldn’t chocolate ganache mice at each place setting be adorable?”

Across the street from my house is a great city park with woods, hilly terrain, and some seriously huge rocks. I bring the kids out here for an explore as often as possible.

Over the weekend, I took my not-quite-2-year-old Finn in his stroller and climbed up the to the tower–a 2-story lookout over Lake Champlain that looks like a forlorn remnant of some lonely castle. While we were watching the turkey vultures catch the updrafts, three mountain bikers came along and then took off down one of the little trails that leads deeper into the park.

It has obviously been too long since I was child-free and found time to run on this path, because when Finn pointed after them and said “Bike! That way!” I thought, “Gee, how bad can it be?” and went off down the cute little path instead of the main path that I usually take when I’m wielding my trusty Mountain Buggy stroller. (The stroller comes out a lot–it’s the only way Finn will nap, alas.)

Down the winding path, around the bend, and into Extreme Strollering! The true sport of all hiking moms! Jagged rocks, clawing tree roots, intense slopes–this really did have it all. I have done crazier things with my stroller–the first set of tricycle tires was worn down to the wires–but this path definitely hit our top 10 list of wild stroller rides.

Finn started to complain about the time he was ready to tip out of the seat.

We brought Finn’s big brother Connor back with us the next day and did it all over again. Alex took the pictures.

Think we’re ready for the X Games? Though I think my real specialty is Toddler Lifting–Finn is well over 30 pounds and he’s not even two yet. It’s like having a personal trainer who only yells, “Up, down! Up, down!”

Looking for an easy way to dye eggs this weekend? I came across a fun article on how to make your own dyes! If you like to cook, you’ll probably have everything you need around the house. Except maybe the beets…

If you already own those little squirt bottles of food dye–my mother’s set lasted my entire childhood!–you can always use those with a little vinegar and hot water. Not as earth-friendly a dye, but I’m a big proponent of using what you’ve got around already.

Now I’m off to brave the wilds of preschool in search of one son. Happy weekend to all!

The Environmental Working Group recently released a new report with the sensational title of “Toxic Tub”–which is typical of EWG, which values publicity in a big way. The bottom line is one we’ve heard before–US labeling and testing laws allow suspected carcinogens and known harmful substances to be put into body care products for people of all ages, and there’s no way to tell from the label.

My favorite source for checking up on body care products is Skin Deep, the Environmental Working Group’s cosmetic safety database. It’s a good first stop for assessing the safety of your favorite products. But even this resource must be read carefully–listing “fragrance” as an ingredient will raise a product’s score (higher scores are bad), even when the fragrance in question is an essential oil with no known risks. The database is trying to be even-handed and fair, but, as always, reading and questioning doesn’t stop just because a resource or company seems to be eco-friendly and well-intentioned… sigh.

For those of you who aren’t lucky enough to have an organic chemist to pester, my two favorite eco-friendly and safe lines for kids are the ever fabulous Earth Mama Angel Baby, which I feature in several of our luscious baby gift boxes, and California Baby, which is easier to find in stores–at least in this neck of the woods–and also offers sunblock. (If you are having trouble finding natural body care products, look in the nearest natural grocery store–or even in the natural-food section of a large chain grocery store. Whole Foods even has its own “Premium Body Care” program which carefully selects the safest products.)

Being prone to rashes myself, I am always very careful about skin care products, and since my sons were born I’ve noticed a number of EMAB and California Baby products making their way over to the adult bathroom in the house. We have tried a number of “natural” product lines over the years, but we keep coming back to these two. California Baby even has a shampoo for swimmers–an absolute essential for my water-obsessed and blond kids. Though, come to think of it, they might like having green hair…

There was something of an uproar this past week when my older son’s lovey, a tiger cat called Soft Kitty, went missing. My son has not one but two spares (see, we were trying to prevent this sort of disaster!), but neither is as dilapidated and adored as the original.

Muted panic ensued. I spent a wind-swept morning retracing our steps over the last few days, which included a scramble along the bottom of some cliffs in the park (in case Kitty was throw over the edge by someone less than kind). With clenched stomach, I smiled bravely and went by every possible store and entity with a lost and found. No tiger.

By this point, I was racking my brain for possible Kitty locations, including some rather far-fetched ones. Maybe Kitty was packed in with a baby gift?! (Though really, it’s usually my toddler that sneaks into the Green Baby Gift Box office, and he’s more interested in knocking over shipping boxes.)

Just when I was resigning myself to a Kitty-less existence, Connor yelled, “Hey Mom! Kitty’s back!” And there Kitty was, wrapped in his arms. All attempts to ascertain *where* Kitty had been hiding were fruitless. Connor’s story is that Kitty was taken away by Calico (his imaginary friend, a rather mischievous horse) and then returned when Calico realized that “Kitty had been away too long.” And I thought the faeries were only interested in human babies…

I searched the house thoroughly, including under the sofa cushions. Multiple times. Really. So where was Kitty?? I’m too relieved to care…

While my parenting style would definitely fall into the realm known as Natural Parenting, I wish there were a better catch-all term for parents who think about such things as toxic-free environments, imaginative play, breastfeeding, co-sleeping, environmental stewardship, and organic and local foods.

Now I’ve never seen a good definition of “natural” parenting, since it covers such a broad range of issues, from what you diaper your kid with—or whether you use diapers at all–to your opinions on tv viewing and whether boys should wear pink. So I hunted around some related websites to see if the collective mind had come up with something useful.

Example 1 (found on more than one website): “Natural Parenting is about exploring gentle, instinctive and attachment parenting methods by avoiding common products and customs designed to separate us from our offspring and choosing more organic, instinctive and attached parenting techniques such as breastfeeding, babywearing, cosleeping, homeschooling and elimination communication.”

This definition doesn’t insist that you do all of these things to be a “natural” or “instinctive” parent, but it’s still rather ominous given that nearly all of those examples are things which take an incredible amount of time and commitment from parents, not to mention a sufficient income to allow at least one parent to be at home full time. And this is the quote that can be found on the website of the gentle and discerning folks at Mothering magazine. The more judgmental sites say things like this:

Example 2: “Natural Parenting includes: full time parenting, little or no separation between parent/child in the early years, breastfeeding, baby wearing, co-sleeping, avoidance of mother substitutes, extended breastfeeding, child-led weaning, homebirth, informed decisions regarding vaccinations, no infant circumcision, nonpunitive forms of discipline, healthy living, natural healing, homeschooling, child-led learning.” (Natural Parenting webring)

I’m still trying to think of one person I know who would meet all those criteria, or would even consider all of them to be a good idea. Not to mention one parent who decided to be uninformed about vaccinations. Actually, my favorite on that list is “avoidance of mother substitutes”–I can’t help laughing when people condemn loveys and blankies as some sort of sinister parent replacement. These people have obviously never met my 4-year-old, who upon opening the baby gift containing his lovey-to-be at around 5 months old, grabbed the tiger inside, stuffed its ears into his mouth, and refused to let go of it for the next hour. (And before anyone asks, he was happy, breastfeeding, sleeping with company, and cared for entirely by his parents, so no obvious “need” existed.)

Now picking apart definitions of natural parenting could go for forever, but what really riles me about the term is the implication that my friends who don’t fall into this category are Unnatural. Unnatural, depraved, selfish, clueless—just hopelessly uninformed and mainstream, right? Why not call ‘em bourgeois and have done with it? Because their kids are obviously raised on violent video games and Doritos and wouldn’t know who Gandalf was if they hadn’t made that movie…

I’m so weary of these smug labels that elevate some parents into the “right” category and exclude everyone else. We all know that, fair or not, Bad Mother is one of the worst accusations you can throw at a woman (sorry, men, but you are not quite condemned to the same degree).

Parenting is not a competition. In my experience, everyone is doing the best they can with a wildly challenging job in an ever-changing environment, whether or not we work, or know what a CSA farm is, or carefully ensure that the kids only drink organic, local milk.

End of Rant. :) By the way, if you don’t know natural parenting from clearly inferior unnatural parenting but still need a baby gift for a “green” friend, check out the rest of the Green Baby Gift Box website for hassle-free green gifting. We promise not to demand your credentials before allowing a purchase.

Last year, in one spectacular leap, the metro area around Burlington, Vermont went from having zero “natural parenting” stores to two in the space of the month. Of course, this was about three years too late to save me from fruitless trips to the local kiddie stores, including blank stares when I asked about non-toxic crib finishes. (I once had a well-groomed sales lady at an Ethan Allen insist that there was no such thing as a child-safe, non-toxic finish. Gack.)

So imagine my delight when suddenly there was not only a helpful, local place to scout out natural products, but two! First to open was the friendly, sunlit space at BeBop Baby Shop. (Check out their adorable organic wash mitts in two of our baby gift boxes! End plug.)

Shortly thereafter, Sprout, a mainstay in Brattleboro, opened a second store on Burlington’s Church Street Marketplace. Well, Church Street is the pedestrian mecca of this corner of the world, a true delight to people-watchers, foodies, and shoppers alike. The arrival of an amazing child’s bathroom and separate nursing lounge, all wrapped up with natural products galore, was like Christmas in August. And now it’s gone!!

Can I say again how awesome the bathroom was? A real toddler-sized toilet, lots of space, a great diaper-changing counter, a child-sized sink—oh, and adult sized versions in the room, too, so you could pee in tandem. I would have taken a camera, except that’s exactly where my sense of humor would give my mother a heart attack. (You put photos of MY grandson using a TOILET on the internet?!! And you used a word like “pee” in a written document?!?!)

So now I feel guilty for using Sprout as the Bathroom Mecca of the Farmers Market Saturday while only rarely buying anything. But despite my preschooler’s romance with the Plan City garage in the play area, I can’t exactly teach my kids to expect toys all the time. And the rest of the store was filled with items I have from Baby #1. So there’s not much to do besides wonder why all baby gear looks better designed and infinitely cooler once your first child turns one.

And, of course, one of the problems with running a eco-conscious household is that you are cautious about consumerism and don’t make a large number of impulse purchases…which doesn’t exactly help support green businesses. Bother. Sprout, I bid you a fond farewell.

Now will someone make up a potty trainer’s Google map for Burlington, VT and send it to me? Please?