You can follow Jaime on her blog or on Twitter.

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For Christmas, I received two copies of “Green Clean: The Environmentally Sound Guide to Cleaning Your Home.” (I gave one of the copies to a friend, since I missed the return deadline by a few days.) I had high hopes for this book. My mom has owned a copy for years, and has been making her own cleaning products since I was in college. I used to think she was a little weird for making her own cleaning products. I mean, it’s SO much easier to just buy stuff at the store.

Then my husband and I bought a house. I started realizing just how many chemicals were in our household products, and it made me sick. At times, I was literally sick. (Like the time I poured a bottle of bleach in our shower to try and clean it? Yeah. Had to open the windows for a few hours in the middle of winter to let that one air out. We’ve since figured out that a little bit of vinegar goes a long way – and is less harmful to our health.) My husband, in the past several years, has developed an allergy that we’ve tracked down to certain soaps. We started looking into alternatives for soaps, which led to alternatives for cleaning products.

I digress. Back to the book. I was really excited about this book, and it has different alternatives for making your own cleaning products, including laundry soap. The “recipe” for laundry detergent is:
1 part borax
1 part washing soda

That’s all there is to it. I had bought bars of washing soda in New York last summer, and I finally had the chance to use them. (Turns out, Ace Hardware sells the bars I was looking for in my town. Go figure.) I used a grater to grate the washing soda (we had it in bars, not the powder form), and then added borax to a container. I shook the container to mix it all, and I was done! To make things easier, and to reuse the measuring cup from our old bottle of detergent, I cleaned the cup and threw it into the container with the new laundry powder.

The best part about the laundry soap is that I don’t have to worry about touching it. I know what’s in there and I don’t have to stress out about it being on my hand after pouring it into the washer, or the cat getting into it (because she’s curious.) It’s natural. Our clothes are clean, and nobody has had an allergic reaction to the new soap. It also cost very little ($1 for a bar of washing soda, $4.29 for a box of borax on < a href="http://alice.com"> alice.comand we can make our own detergent when we run out. No more trips to Target on the other side of town to buy it.

We’re about three months into using our homemade laundry soap, and I am always wondering why we didn’t think of it sooner.

Be sure to get more great ideas and advice from Michelle by following her on twitter (@doudoubebe), on her blog, and/or her fabulous website.

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In the early years, I was always excited to get a birthday party invite for the kids: it meant a nice afternoon of playing and cake. For me and for them because back then their friends were exclusively the children of my friends. But as they’ve gone out into the world and acquired their own little circle of friends (humph!), brightly coloured envelopes come home in their backpacks and cheerful emails arrive with RSVP by dates that I will never actually meet.

One of the more difficult aspects of this has been selecting appropriate gifts for kids that I don’t know well whose parents I know even less (if at all). Until you’ve faced it, it seems like a minor thing, but the things we give our kids have says a lot about our values. With my friends, I know pretty well if a craft set will be well-appreciated or relegated to the back cupboard because it’s too messy (or too potentially toxic or too ‘feminine’ for their boy… the pitfalls are many).

I know well how frustrating it is to have gifts that contradict the values that I want to teach my kids – but that the kids inevitably love more than life itself. Recognizing too that our low-plastic, creative play focus isn’t what every family sees as ideal, I’m also trying to use these opportunities to teach the kids about kindness and generosity in the wider world. It’s not easy to balance, but it’s a big lesson so we keep at it.
It doesn’t help at all that asking a 5 or 6 year old what their little friend likes rarely elicits useful information. I once trekked out to the toy store to buy a Spider-Man doll that Isabelle was quite sure her friend really wanted for his birthday – only to find out that the way she knew he liked it was that he had brought the one he already had to show and tell. Sigh.

Nonetheless, with a few years of school under our belts now, birthday season has become much less stressful. Here are a few tips I’ve picked up:

• Set a general budget based on the number of parties you’re likely to attend in the school year and stick to it
• Have your children participate in the selection, wrapping and card-writing for the gift
• Have one or two back-up gifts in case you find yourself remembering at the last moment that you have a party, at noon that day (not that this has ever happened to me, of course!)
• For older kids, gift certificates can be a good option; for younger kids, the idea of a gift certificate is too abstract. Also, the gift preparation that’s so important to your kids largely gets lost with a gift card
• Classic toys will appeal to most parents and kids
• If in doubt, be conservative: if it occurs to you that someone might object, then chances are someone will. If you go for it anyway, be sure to have a gift receipt.
• If you find a cool neutral gift on sale, buy a couple of the same one to keep on hand (but remember that without the gift receipt, if it’s not a really cool universal gift, some of them may end up in the broom closet)

Take heart too – birthday parties are for the kids and they are supposed to be fun. Even if one or two (or even all) of the gifts you thoughtfully purchase and present are never really used, it really is the thought that counts.

HH BRIEF:

Just because they’re going back to school, that doesn’t mean you should skip the sun protection! It is just as important to protect your little one’s skin from outdoor playtime during and after school as it is for a day at the pool. And protecting their little bodies from harsh chemicals is always a must. Organic sun protection from Soleo Organics (sold by Nature’s Basin) is the answer.

A little of this sunscreen goes a long way! It goes on quick & easy, and doesn’t leave that sticky feeling most do.

The folks at Nature’s Basin get it – selling all the body care products us moms need, with a commitment to quality, organic products.

SAVES:

Using organic skincare products, like sunscreen, save both the environment and our bodies. (See why organic skincare is important for you and for baby.)

FROM THE COMPANY:

Nature’s Basin is also committed to building a company based on supporting mothers that want to be responsible caretakers of our earth, loving care givers for their families and honoring their own core essence of their inner and outer beauty. Based on our own personal experience, we strongly believe that mothers play an important role in building a responsible world while fulfilling their parental obligations. Nature’s Basin is committed to building a company that supports these mothers to have a career while fulfilling their environmental and parental obligations.

Nature’s Basin is run by mothers who are environmentally and health conscious individuals who wanted to offer the finest natural, organic and mineral based beauty products with an exceptional customer service and a hassle-free online shopping experience. We offer free shipping and free returns with full refunds.

GOT MORE TIME?

Read more about Nature’s Basin here

Get coupon codes & promotions here

Ask the Aesthetician

Join Nature’s Basin on Facebook and Twitter

Hurried Homemaker was not compensated for this review. We were provided with product for review, but this in no way affects our opinion of this product/company.

HH BRIEF:

I am a HUGE fan of babysoy (as you may already know)! So, when they told me about their new Oh Soy collection, I had to check it out! And I’m glad I did … BabySoy did it again! This collection is an adorable set of illustrated bodysuits, playsuits and shirt. The Oh Soy collection also has pants and knotted hats that go with just about anything. There are even matching reversible burpies and blankets. These folks know what a mom needs!

As always, the clothes are the softest I’ve ever felt. Given the choice between other pants and her new babysoy Oh Soy brown pants, the baby chooses the babysoy. She really knows how to pick the best of the best.

Not only is the reversible hoodie an award-winner (iParenting Media Award), but now their kimono bodysuit has been deemed award-worthy (PTPA Media Award) as well!

SAVES:

Buying clothing for your tot (newborn – 4t) from babysoy saves the environment and money. Not only is their clothing some of the most environmentally-friendly you’ll find, but it is so reasonably priced you’ll wonder why they aren’t sold in stores everywhere!

FROM THE COMPANY:

Babysoy is the 1st company in the world to use soybean protein fiber to create a soft and natural newborn wardrobe. The eco-friendly fiber uses leftover non-gmo soybean pulp from tofu and/or soymilk production as raw material for the fiber. Babysoy’s layette line promotes a green environment by reducing and recycling while bundling babies in the softest eco clothing and accessories. Each piece is designed by co-founder Amy Liang and tested with her daughter for comfort, style, and ease to dress.

GOT MORE TIME?

Read more about babysoy on their website.

Join babysoy on Facebook.

See how babysoy cares here.

See their awards here or here.

Hurried Homemaker was not compensated for this post. We were provided with items of clothing for a fair/honest review. This in no way affects our opinion of this product/company.