One of the little perks of having this blog is having products sent to us for review.  We get all kinds of products sent, in hopes that we will review them, but we don’t review just any product.  It has to be something we believe in and consider to be a great product.  We were recently sent a line of natural skin care for breastfeeding moms, which is great!  Since I am no longer a nursing mom (children nearing ages 4 and 6), I sent the product to a breast feeding mom friend to test and review.  Of the products tested, the Nipple Nurture Cleansing Pads by Mother's Intuition were the fav.  They were described as “light and cool” and “magic little pads of heaven” which I thought was certainly blog-worthy!  Plus they're all natural, which is always a bonus.  Kate, our tester, thought they were especially great for moms like herself who have to do a lot of pumping for their little one.  So, if you’re a breast-feeding mom who would love to feel fresh and cool after breast feeding or pumping (who wouldn’t?!) give these a try.

Nipple Nurture by Mother’s Intuition can be purchased through Amazon.

I’ve come across this great company at several events where mally bibs has exhibited in the past.  They are always super busy and for good reason!  Parade organics baby clothing are not only 100% organic, but they come in the sweetest designs that baby is sure to be comfy in.  Why organic?  Organic cottons are produced in a way that is not as harsh on our environment, plus they are softer and more huggable on baby than any other cotton.  They also last longer than non-organicly processed cotton.  It’s a triple-win really!  Parade Organics is well known for their cheeky little playful collection, and have recently added a great new pure collection as well.

Parade Organics can be purchased online or at many of mally bibs boutiques across Canada including Agnes Jean in Squamish, BC and Tadpole Children’s Shoppe in Waterloo, ON.    

I remember buying plastic baby bottles for my son and my mom told me I should go with glass instead of plastic.  It was what she had always used.  I remember replying, “Glass? Nobody uses glass anymore…that was a few decades ago. Things have changed!”  Well, I guess it’s true that what goes around comes around.  Glass is back!  With recent concern over leaching chemicals in plastic baby bottles, Babylife is reintroducing glass baby bottles with a whole new modern twist.  I say SMART company!  The wee-go bottle bottle is covered with a modern sleeve that is free of plastics and is absolutely 100% non-toxic and dishwasher safe.  The sleeve is designed for easy gripping and also prevents breakage.  

I normally blog about items that are readily available in stores, but when I saw this product I just couldn’t resist.  In fact, I predict it will be the next baby must-have!  Check their website often to see when they’re available in stores.  They will be available for purchase on October 31st and will retail for $18.   

It’s the perfect way for baby to get a good night sleep during the milder months, while being environmentally friendly at the same time.  The new Köhlr Baby organic hemp sleepsack is made of a 55% hemp, 45% certified organic cotton blend.  Hemp has many health and environmental benefits including the facts that it’s pesticide-free, non-allergenic, has anti-bacterial properties, and it dries quickly.  Being that hemp is the strongest of natural fibers, it won't wear out, yet it gets softer wash after wash!  Besides the health and environmental benefits of these sleep sacks, they are designed for comfortable and safe infant sleeping.  The corduroy texture is soft on baby's skin and each hemp sleepsack includes a little sheep appliqué design to help sooth baby to sleep as they play with the different textures. 

Available in 3 sizes, fitting ages 2-28 months, Köhlr Baby’s great line of products can be purchased online at www.kohlrbaby.com.

So many parents today are making every effort to go green.  We try to eat organic foods, drive fuel efficient vehicles, use compact fluorescent light bulbs and recycle, but have you thought about the paint on your walls?  In particular the walls in your baby’s nursery, where they are spending most of their time breathing in the air around them?  If you are the eco-conscious type and have not yet thought of this, you may want to consider Serena & Lily paints.  It’s a new collection of environmentally friendly wall colors from the design team behind the popular bedding company.  Their paints boast low V.O.C.'s, so they’re completely safe for your little one’s nursery.  Another nice feature is the scrubbable finish, so when your little sleeper becomes a little scribbler, their eco-walls won’t suffer.

Available in 15 shades, Serena & Lily paints are available for purchase online at serenaandlily.com.  Other Serena & Lily products can be found at some of mally bibs stylish retailers including Merry Go Round in Bellevue, WA and Nestings Kids in Toronto, ON.

Based on the zen concept of living in the moment, The Original Buddha Board is the perfect way to let your child develop their artistic skills while they paint with water.  That’s right, I said paint with water.  The non-toxic surface of the board darkens when touched with water and then the image slowly evaporates and disappears within minutes creating a new blank canvas for the next work of art.  No need to worry about paint spills with this innovative product!  Of course, I also love the fact that it’s also environmentally friendly and will last for years with proper care.  It's even great for adults to use as a form of relaxation when the opportunity arises.  

The Buddha Board shown here also comes with bamboo brush and a Japanese style water holder for $29.95 USD.  I plan on purchasing The Buddha Board online next time I have some gift buying to do for my own children!      

86% of US plastic water bottles end-up in the landfill, which then take 1000 years to break down.  Fleurville has taken steps to do something about this environmental problem, and even managed to create something with a great simplistic modern design in doing so.  The Re-Run™ Stroller Bag is made from a fabric which is made out of recycled plastic water bottles.  The outside of the bag uses 100% Re-Run™ while the interior uses a 50% Re-Run™ blend.  Each bag keeps approximately 8 (eight) 600ml plastic bottles out of landfill!

The Re-Run™ Stroller Bag is great for those who like to travel light, bringing only the necessities.  It weighs just 12 ounces empty and is equipped with fleece-lined electronics/sunglasses pocket and ‘ear-bud pass-thru’ badge and 5 interior pockets keep your necessities protected.  Fleurville products can be purchased online or found at many of mally bibs hip retailers including Yo Mama Maternity Boutique in Edmonton, AB and Baby Ant in Tarzana, CA.

When I first heard of gDiapers, I was baffled as to why no one had thought of the idea sooner.  For the last 40 years, there have only been two types of diapers to choose for your baby, cloth or disposable.  Now gDiapers offers another option, flushable.  Click here for a lesson on how gDiapers work.  This idea puts waste where it belongs, in the toilet and NOT in the landfill!

gDiapers have no elemental chlorine, no perfumes, no smell, no garbage and no guilt! In fact, flushables are so gentle on the Earth you can even garden compost the wet ones in one compost cycle, approximately 50 – 150 days.

Not only does the ‘g’ in gDiapers stand for Green, it also stands for groovy.  These diapers will keep your baby in style while helping our environment!

Still not convinced that you should switch from the convenience of disposable diapers to this earth-friendly option?  These facts might change your mind:

• 50 million disposable diapers go into landfill every day in the US, where they take up to 500 years to biodegrade.  Diapers are the 3rd largest contributor to landfills. The average child uses an average of 5,000 diapers before being toilet-trained.

• Also, those same 50 million disposable diapers are made of plastic, which has significant environmental impacts, both because of the petroleum required to produce it, as well as the fact that plastic doesn’t break down.

gDiapers can be purchased online at gdiapers.com or through a number of retail outlets.

Our own leather appliqué art cards were simply inspired by our scrap leather.  When cutting out our leather bibs, we create piles of leather scraps which can’t be used for much.  The left over pieces are too small to sell, yet too big to discard.  One day, while pondering what to do with our leather scraps, we received an email question from a customer who was buying our bibs online.  She wanted to know if we could add a greeting card to go with her purchase.  It was that moment that I thought of using the scraps to create cards, which are now available in every bib design!  Even more exciting, we found customers buying our greeting cards to frame as décor pieces! 

Of course we thought it was a wonderful idea!  Perfect for the nursery, children’s rooms, or kids bathrooms, our art cards are a great way to create inexpensive yet modern wall décor.  Pictured above is our frog, mod dots blue, and whale cards in the Ribba frame from IKEA.  Visit ikea.com for product information and store locations.  Thanks to Revival Arts Studio for the photography.    

Parents today worry about the chemicals that our wee ones are exposed to, especially when it’s something that’s applied directly to their skin.  Fortunately, there are options that are 100% chemical free!  Dimpleskins Naturals has formulated a completely natural diaper salve to relieve baby’s skin from rashes at every diaper change.  Ingredients such as coconut oil, pure beeswax, organic jojoba oil, and other ingredients of natural goodness make up the perfect blend to safely sooth baby’s bum.

This fabulous company is another mompreneur success story as well!  Jennifer Casey began cooking up her all-natural baby skin care products in 2001 and has steadily increased her success since then.

Dimpleskins are available in a number of other great baby skincare products, which can be found at several of mally bibs down to earth retailers, including Favourite in North Vancouver, BC and Honeybunch online store in Toronto ON.