Free Mozart Music Downloads for Babies and Toddlers

Image by SantaRosa OLD SKOOL

The good people over at Munchkin.com have generously put together free Mozart Musical Soup downloads for all of us.

You can either download the entire albums (Wombsong Collection and Mozart for Toddlers) or you can choose individual songs.  They also have the songs broken out by: Wake Up, Play Time and Sleepy Time.

No sign up is required, simply visit the Munchkin website and click on the links to download!

Thanksgiving MUST: Sweet Potato Casserole

Image from Flickr by NatalieMaynor

My family may hunt me down for sharing this with you: Our Highly Classified Sweet Potato Casserole Recipe.  You have to trust me, this is the recipe of all recipes.  Every time I serve this, I get begged for this top-secret recipe.  This is the dish that can turn sweet potato haters into lovers.  Not joking.  And now, I will share it with you.  Shhhhh.

Highly Classified Sweet Potato Casserole

• 4 sweet potatoes which, once cooked (I use the microwave set to potatoes to get the job done quickly) should equal approximately 3 cups mashed sweet potatoes
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup melted butter
• 1 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1/2 cup milk

Mix the above together and pour into a lightly greased 9×13 pan.  Now, onto the topping . . .

Topping:

• 1 cup brown sugar (doesn’t need to be packed down)
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/2 cup butter chilled, cut into pieces
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Take brown sugar, flour and butter and pulse in food processor until the butter pieces are pea-sized.  Mixture should be crumbly.  Don’t mix too long or you will end up with a dough-like topping.  Mix together with pecans and spread over the top of casserole.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45-50 minutes or until browned and bubbly.

YUM!  This is a staple at my family’s Thanksgiving table.  My husband actually requests this at other times of the year as well.

Enjoy!

Perfect Breakfast

Image from Flickr by megan.chromik

I recently got back from a trip where I stayed in a hotel where breakfast was prohibitively expensive.  We had no coffee maker in the room and I forgot the breakfast bars (Luna bars) that I normally travel with for this exact predicament.

Therefore, the best option within walking distance (no car) was the local Starbucks.  Curses!  You might remember how I feel about buying coffee shop coffee.   And I wasn’t in the mood for pastries for breakfast either.  That was when I discovered these little yogurt parfaits with granola.  I am addicted.  Immediately upon arriving home, I set about figuring out how to recreate this breakfast wonder at home.  After a couple of attempts, I have it down:

Yogurt/Granola parfait:

• 1/2 cup of plain yogurt (if you want to get fancy, you can use a Greek strained yogurt like Fage)
• 1/4 cup granola of your choice
• small handful of dried cranberries or fresh fruit
• teaspoon or so of honey

Stir it up and enjoy.  So delicious!

So there.  I have recreated something that cost me $4 a pop for under a $1 per serving at home.  Nothing beats that and a cup of your own fresh-brewed coffee.

Save money – make your own baby food!

I don’t think most moms realize how easy it is to make your own baby food.

Think of the money saved!  Plus, you control the ingredients and know exactly what your little bundle o’ joy is eating.

Want to start with green peas?  No problem.  Cook peas as normal.  Put them in the blender – add a little of the cooking water, breastmilk or formula.  Blend until smooth.  Buy little containers or use ice cube trays to store and freeze.  When you are ready to use, thaw and serve or briefly warm in the microwave.

Done!

Apples, carrots, spinach – any other fruit or vegetables your baby likes – exact same process!  I bought a butternut squash and peeled, cubed and roasted it and then pureed it with a little water.  I had more then 10 servings that I could freeze.

Trust me, you will be amazed how easy this is – and you will save those last minute trips to the store as you are about to use up your very last jar of baby food.  And to top it all off, the baby food tastes SO much better!

Here is a wonderful online resource for making baby food:

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/

The Mother List is Going Gluten Free!

Image by Whatsername?

About 4 weeks ago, I started thinking more about my family’s diet.  How well are we eating?  What is my 2 year old learning about food?

One of the first steps this family has taken is going Gluten Free.  As a side note: I was and always have been a HEAVY gluten eater.  The thought of cutting out my pastas and breads made me quake in my boots.

However, after lots of research and realizing we needed some dietary changes, we dove in.  Many people have a gluten intolerance and don’t even know it.  And even more important to me: some studies link gluten to ADHD and autism – we’ll look at that more in depth later.  But seriously, can it hurt to introduce less grains and more veggies and colorful foods into your diet?

I happen to have a great friend that is a naturopathic doctor – Courtney Jackson, N.D., of Summit Natural Health in Colorado.  I went to her for the skinny on Gluten and Gluten Intolerances:

GLUTEN INTOLERANCES AND YOUR HEALTH

Gluten is a sticky protein found in wheat, rye, kamut, spelt, and barley that makes bread and baked goods springy.  A gluten intolerance is common in our country (1/133 Americans) and can be the cause of numerous health concerns.  Most people can connect digestive problems like bloating, diarrhea, and constipation to a food intolerance However, a gluten intolerance will commonly cause weight gain, headaches, moodiness, acne, difficulty conceiving, joint pain, and increased susceptibility to illness in adults.  In children, a gluten intolerance can cause increased irritability, attention deficit, and failure to thrive.

Things to know about a food intolerance:

1.  A food intolerance is the result of an abnormal reaction of the immune system and symptoms may not appear FOR HOURS TO DAYS after ingesting the food.

2.  A food intolerance differs from a food allergy, which is a specific response of the immune system that produces an IgE antibody.  Wheat happens to be one of the most common causes of food allergies.

3. In some people, gluten intolerance may be so severe as to cause an autoimmune response that destroys the small intestine called Celiac disease.  Even without true Celiac disease, people can still react negatively to gluten.

Blood tests are available to help you discover if you are intolerant to gluten.  Or, you can take all gluten out of your diet for 4 weeks and see if your symptoms resolve and your sense of well-being improves.  There are many gluten-free grains available to enjoy, including rice, corn, oatmeal, potato, quinoa, and amaranth so those who are gluten-intolerant do not have to feel deprived.

Benefits of getting off your food intolerance include increased energy, improved mood, weight loss, improved skin, and healthy bowel function.

Summit Natural Health uses naturopathic medicine to help people discover and treat food intolerances.  They provide a comprehensive evaluation to our patients that places a food intolerance in the context of their total health history.  Removing a food intolerance and supporting the body with whole foods and appropriate nutritional supplements can significantly improve well-being.

Mommy Meditations – Meditate Postpartum

A friend of mine pointed me in the direction of Mommy Meditations: Life After Birth, a CD developed for new moms that encourages them to meditate and refocus on their own well-being.

The creator of Mommy Meditations is Dr. Kerri Parks, an ObGyn and a mother to four children.  Dr. Parks had battled postpartum after losing her husband in a car accident just days before having her 4th child.  With a combination of medical help and meditative practices, she was able to overcome her depression and is now trying to help other women with Mommy Meditations.

Personally, I think this is a fabulous idea.  It is so hard for new moms to recenter themselves after birth.  Life simply does not stop.  Setting aside the time to listen to something like this CD is probably one of the best things I could have done to help in my own recovery.  So many moms don’t allow themselves the time to relax, even when baby is finally napping.  There is just always something to do!

I plan on buying this for my next pregnancy in an effort to get myself to slow down and have some moments of clarity!  Wouldn’t that be nice?

You can check it out on the Mommy Meditations website and read more about Dr. Parks’ story.

Thanks Lindsay!

Mother’s Day Giveaway – Win an ECOSYSTEM Set!

Aren’t they just pretty?

Lately, when I have been asked by my husband what I want for Mother’s Day, I have been thinking the same thing over and over: I need to be more organized.

No more taking notes on the nearest scrap of paper while my son is yanking on my pant leg.  Only to lose those vital scraps of paper in 2 minutes flat.  No more jotting down important appointments on the backs of receipts, only to get quickly swept into the trash.  One word: Please.

That is why I was pretty psyched about my new little set of ecosystem books.  They come in 4 types – Artist (blank), Author (lined), Architect (grid), and Advisor (calendar).   You can also choose the color and size.  They current colors they offer are Kiwi, Clementine, Lagoon, Watermelon, and Onyx.  Soon to be added: Grape.  In addition, all ecosystem books are made from 100-percent post-consumer recycled paper using low-impact processes that are environmentally savvy and responsible

But here is what really sold me – each notebook has a unique ID, which you enter on the ecosystem website when you receive your book.  If, per chance, like any mom out there, you get forgetful and lose your book, the finder can go to the website and enter in the code.  A lost and found system!  If only every stuffed animal had that feature!

And here is the fun news – for Mother’s Day, ecosystem is going to give one very lucky reader a set of books!  The set includes the large watermelon 12-month weekly planner, a medium clementine author (lined) and a small kiwi artist (blank).

Here’s how to enter: Just leave a comment below by midnight, May 13th.  If you would like extra entries, each of the following will count as one entry: Like us on Facebook, subscribe to our emails, or tweet this giveaway!

In the meantime, check out the other ecosystem notebooks and like their awesome Facebook page. 

Happy Mother’s Day!

All-Natural Body Care Using Grape Seed

If you area looking for some great natural body care products, you have to check out SEED Power Body Care, a grape seed enriched body care

I love the story behind them: A husband and wife decide they want to detoxify their lives while in the process of trying to get pregnant.  After being disappointed with the natural body care products available, they decided to launch their own brand that was reasonably priced and widely available.

Why base the line on grape seed?  Each tiny little grape seed is naturally rich in Vitamin E, a potent mix of antioxidants, and beneficial essential fatty acids, all known for healthy skin benefits.

In addition to an entire unscented line (for those of you with sensitive skin or that just want to avoid fragrance), the have an ultra-cool product: their grape seed enriched conditioning hair shampoo bar.  Not only does this remove the need for a big plastic bottle, but it is easily transportable and lasts a long time.   Hello travel shampoo.  No ounce restrictions and no worrying the bottle will leak.

Good news! Get $1.00 off any SEED item purchased now until 6/15 here.  Plus if you join the SEED mailing list between now and Mother’s Day you will be automatically entered for a chance to win the entire SEED collection for you and your mom (or anyone else you choose) packaged in a limited edition wooden SEED box!

Greening the Laundry Room

I’ve tried a lot of different green detergents after waving goodbye to Tide, All, and the rest of the mainstream detergents years ago.  After some research, I realized that laundry detergents contain some seriously harsh chemicals I decided my family did not need on their skin all day long.

I’m always looking for something new and recently tried Vaska.

Here is why I like them – from their website:

“Vaska is among a select number of companies that have earned recognition by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Design for the Environment Program (DfE). As a DfE partner, we have voluntarily committed to developing products that break down quickly to non-polluting compounds and help protect aquatic life in both fresh and salt water. In 2008, Vaska was awarded “champion” status – the highest level of recognition under the EPA’s Safer Detergents Stewardship Initiative.”

This stuff is so good that South San Francisco’s Royal Laundry, which serves more than 100 Bay Area hotels, including the Ritz-Carlton, recently switched to Vaska.

And, I won’t mind my son running around in his freshly laundered clothes!  And don’t you just love the the packaging that is 50 percent post-consumer material?

You can use the Vaska store finder to find it near you, or purchase on their site and get free shipping with Alice.com.

Go All-Natural With Your Toothpaste (Giveaway)

After tackling your deodorant and your nail polishes, we are moving on to your toothpaste.  That’s right, I know you love me.

We are right in the middle of the great toothpaste debate in our household.  The question?  Whether or not to use toothpaste while brushing our 2 year old’s teeth.  There is a lot of conflicting research out there on toothpaste for children.  Not only does traditional toothpaste contain a ton of chemicals I usually stay far away from, but they also have some potentially poisonous ingredients.

Enter Dr. Sharp’s fluoride free toothpaste: the only eco-friendly toothpaste developed by a dentist.  Why fluoride free you ask? Well, to put it lightly, this toothpaste does not require an FDA warning label since fluoride has some potential health risks for you and me.  And, they make a fantastic strawberry cream flavored kid’s toothpaste that my son loves!  We can now brush his teeth and not worry about the toothpaste!

Now, your and my dentist may have an issue with fluoride free, so I asked Dr. Sharp for his thoughts on the issue and he pointed out that there is already fluoride in the water and the ingestion of it from the water is already assisting in preventing the tooth decay and therefore do not need the excess in the toothpaste.  Works for me!

Not only do I totally dig the packaging, but this stuff is great.  It is naturally sweetened with stevia, vegan, has sustainable packaging that is printed with soy ink, contains certified organic botanicals, and the adult versions (green tea and fresh mint) even whiten teeth.

Now for the great news!  Dr. Sharp is giving one of you a full family set of the toothpaste (an almost $50 value)!

The set contains:

1 Fresh Mint Whitening Toothpaste

1 Green Tea Whitening Toothpaste

1 Strawberry Cream Kids Toothpaste

1 Fresh Mint Mouthwash

Just leave a comment before midnight, May 6th, to be entered!

Check out the rest of Dr. Sharp’s amazing line of green dental products here.  And, for the Month of May, to celebrate Mother’s Day, they will be running a special on one fresh mint mouthwash and one fresh mint toothpaste for $20.00!