Where do the beautiful illustrations on the website come from? They were painted by watercolor artist Katie Flindall of Moonhouse Art.

I love Katie’s vibrant and magical watercolors! So I literally jumped up and down when Katie agreed to work on illustrations for our logo and website. I wanted the enchanted world of Katie’s paintings to rub off on the site, since it reminds me of that perfect mix of contentment, wonder and expectation you feel when you hold a sleeping baby.

Katie is an artist and dancer who lives in Waterbury, Vermont–just a few towns over from our offices. So for those of you who are similarly enchanted with her paintings, go browse her website for a dose of inspiration. And buy yourself something lovely. :)

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?

Buried in the dark depths of the Green Baby Gift Box site is this nifty little statement I wrote about our “green philosophy”–though, since no one reads webpages in full anymore, I’m guessing that only my mother’s cousin’s daughters have read the thing. So indulge me in a little reprise of what’s important to us over here. (Warning: excessively earnest prose ahead.)

Why Go Green?

As the old Kermit the Frog song says, it’s not easy being green. Sure, I’d have an easier time finding great baby items, clothing designs, and toys and could buy them for far less if I didn’t insist on everything being environmentally-conscious. So why do I do it?

• Because I believe that blind consumption of natural resources has gone too far.
• Because I want our children to inherit a more thoughtful and just world.
• Because I know that human creativity can do far better in addressing our current environment problems.
• Because I believe that companies should be responsible to their employees, their planet, and their community over the long-term.
• Because I believe in the beauty and meaning of handmade items.
• Because I believe in acting out my beliefs with my lifestyle and purchases.

Whew! What a mouthful!

If you are new to shopping “green” and have any questions, feel free to leave a comment here or drop me a line. And stay tuned for some great sites for parents interesting in going green…

As a preview on that front, I recently discovered Green Mommy Guide, a fun site packed full of readable info for newly “green” moms. Check out the weekly prize drawing…

I introduced a new baby gift box today featuring a beautiful silk blanket from Sarah’s Silks. Sarah’s Silks makes wonderful dress-up toys–my sons love their “silkies,” colorful silk squares that have been everything from scabbards to capes. Now when I open the door wearing a bright green head scarf and (rather short) cape, no one says “Ahhhh! A Pirate!” and pretends to cringe, but hey, I have fun anyway.

It’s pouring away outside (a common state of affairs in Vermont this summer), but I’m still smiling over this gorgeous pile of rainbow-hued baby blankets. They are so soft, I wish they made an adult size–not to mention that full-sized cape I could really use the next time somebody hands me a light saber.

Anyway, I’ve had several requests for a slightly smaller baby gift box, so I’ve created Over the Rainbow, which includes this lovely silk blanket, one of Haba’s great wooden clutch toys, and (as always!) one of our favorite board books. The blankets are sewn by work-at-home mothers in Sonoma County, California. The silk itself is produced in China. The kind folks out at Sarah’s Silks are believers in Fair Trade and personally visit the women who hand sew their play silks from their homes in a village near Shanghai.

Did I mention this silk blanket is machine-washable? Though I never let anything into the gift boxes here that isn’t. “Dry clean only” is not something that belongs in a house with a baby! Anyone else have to check their pants at thigh-level for remains of toddler breakfast before going out to business meetings?