Green Treehouse

Congratulations, you’re expecting a baby soon! If you’re a new mom (or know one) who needs everything, and I mean everything, for baby, but money is tight right now, read on.

You’re going to love these 7 tips for gearing up for baby without busting your bank account or your stress level. The icing on the cake? They include eco-friendly ideas, too.

1. Ditch sposies. Or keep use to a minimum. New parents can save a ton of money by using cloth diapers instead of disposables. Don’t worry, cloth diapers today have come a long way from the old school “fold and pin” style–some even look like and feel like disposable diapers.

2. Buy the essentials, wait to buy the optional goods. You may have your heart set on that yummy Banana Fish Bubble Gum Diaper Stacker, but your baby isn’t going to love you any less if you can’t afford to buy it before she’s born. Instead, hold off until you have the essentials, like Under the Nile Organic Onesies and T-shirts (which by the way, trust me, you can never have enough onesies!) and then splurge!

3. Skip the huge expensive baby shower cake. Instead enjoy a smaller cake (and fewer calories!) and encourage friends and family to create a longer lasting “diaper cake” that baby will get to appreciate.

4. Buy a car seat with an extra base. Save a little cash by buying one car seat and an extra base, instead of two car seats.

5. Accept hand-me-downs and troll the Internet for deals. Shop online when possible. You’ll save $$ and gas costs.

6. Buy one high-efficiency laundry detergent for family and baby. Look for sensitive, baby safe laundry detergent that works for both baby and the rest of the family. You’ll save money on “specialty” detergent. Be sure to look for an eco-friendly brand!

7. Get your hands on a quality stroller. Save gas money and get exercise (hey, what mom doesn’t look forward to shedding old pregnancy weight?) by walking with baby whenever possible! A stroller can even help you save gym membership costs!

November 10, 2008: Johnson & Johnson-Mercy Consumer Pharmaceuticals Co. has announced a recall of approximately 12,000 units of Mylicon gas-relief dye-free drops, sold in 1-ounce plastic bottles and distributed to stores and pharmacies after Oct. 5. The recall involves lots SMF007 and SMF008. The lots are recalled because some bottles could include pieces of metal.

Mylicon drops are a popular product used to relieve gas in infants.

For more information about the recall, click here.

Besides taking up landfill space, did you know that many mattresses (e.g., foam mattresses) impact the environment because they are made from non-renewable fossil fuels?

Did you know that some studies suggest that petroleum-based foam mattresses pose health risks, especially overtime as foam breaks down and releases toxic formaldehyde gas?

Sealy has responded to these health and environmental concerns by introducing a Soybean Foam-Core Crib Mattress. Parents looking to buy an affordable, eco-friendly crib mattress will definitely want to check out Sealy’s Soybean Crib Mattress.

What’s to love about a Soybean-based mattress? How about peace of mind? Sealy’s Soybean Foam-Core Mattress is made in the USA from soybeans grown in the USA. So say “bye-bye” to dangerous petroleum-based foam, and say “hello” to renewable-based soy. Sealy’s mattress is also hypoallergenic and features a cover that prevents allergens from clinging to the mattress. And, the icing on the eco-friendly cake is the price. Sealy’s soybean-based crib mattress is reasonably priced, making it easier for parents to give their babies the gift of a healthy night’s rest—plus, of course, a healthier Earth.

Stuck for a baby name? Well, here’s one Green Treehouse Blog Post you don’t want to miss!

Whether you’re looking for a modern beauty or timeless classic, here are 21 Best of the Best ‘Green’ Baby Names for 2008 — names that reflect the current green movement, environmentalism, and inspire appreciation for nature.

1. Jane (think Jane Goodall)
2. Mackay (think Whole Foods, John Mackay)
3. Henry (think Henry David Thoreau)
4. Rachel (think Silent Spring author)
5. John (think Sierra Club, John Muir)
6. Julia (think Julia “Butterfly” Hill)
7. Clay (think Earth, not Idol)
8. Margaret (think Margaret Mead)
9. Rosalie (think Rosalie Edge)
10. Terra (think Earth)
11. Willow
12. Rain
13. Coral
14. Spruce
15. Linden (think tree, not Second Life)
16. Sierra
17. Autumn
18. Sommer
19. Shale (think rock)
20. Mica (think rock)
21. Julian (think Alps)

Have a favorite green name? Leave a comment and tell us.

What causes Autism? That’s what parents, doctors, and researchers want to know. Thanks to a new study we may be closer to answers. Researchers at Cornell University have found that “children growing up in the rainiest or snowiest areas of the country seem to have a higher risk for autism than children living in drier climates.”

The latest thinking is that precipitation increases exposure to mercury and other dangerous neurotoxins through deposition in the environment. It’s suspected that this exposure to outdoor and indoor neurotoxins triggers a genetic predisposition to Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD). Recent studies have also shown increases in mercury levels in Americans in recent years, which support this latest reports’ findings.

To read more about this study published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, click here.

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If you’re celebrating Halloween with a newborn, enjoy snapping photos of your baby in costume–if you think Anne Geddes photos are cute, wait until you see Halloween pics of your own baby! To everyone else, may your holiday be safe and filled with happy memories!

My preschooler and I have completely different worries when it comes to public toilets.

He worries about automatic flushers (which by the way, covering a sensor with a paper towel or post-it-note can help). I worry about germs, unlike my preschooler: “Germs, what germs? I can’t see them, mom.”

Here’s a classy, eco-friendly and purse (or diaper bag) compatible compromise:

Green Treehouse moms and dads, it’s your turn. What have you done to help your preschooler overcome public bathroom anxieties?

Please share your tips and advice here! We’d love to hear from you–and our reader parents and caregivers will surely appreciate your ideas. I know I will.

If you’re a brand new parent or an expectant mama, it’s probably hard to imagine right now that someday you’ll find yourself packing away baby gear. But, that bittersweet day will come. I know. Just weeks after my third child was born, I was already packing away her tiniest onesies and last week I gave away her exersaucer to another family. Why can’t they stay tiny for longer?

When the time comes to move baby gear out of your house, go green! Recycle that gear at one of these…

3 Eco-Smart Baby Gear Sites:

1. BabyEarth. Eco-friendly baby retailer, BabyEarth, offers the BabyEarthRENEW program that is a hassle-free baby gear recycling program.

2. Hand-Me-Downs. “A new classifieds site for moms where you can buy, sell, give away or donate your new or ‘gently used’ baby gear.”

3. Freecycle. This site is “all about reuse and keeping good stuff out of landfills,” and offers listings by regions.

Related Posts
5 Ways Moms Can Save the Planet
BabyEarthRENEW

You already know your baby is an angel (okay, at least when she’s sleeping!), but with Oeuf’s absolutely gorgeous, hand knit Angel Wing Sweater you’ll finally have the proof!

What could be cuter than your little one wearing this adorable “angel wings” sweater, made of 100% eco-friendly, soft alpaca wool, in Grandma’s holiday photo?

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Related Products
Bobo Heart Dress, by Oeuf
Organic Leggies, by Baberoo

October 21, 2008: The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (”CPSC”) has announced a major recall of drop side cribs, manufactured by Delta Enterprise Corp. The recall involves over a million drop side cribs, with date codes ranging from 1995 through December 2005 and one crib model (4624) made in 2007. It also involves Delta drop side cribs manufactured prior to 2006, but sold through 2007, that use “Crib Trigger Lock with Spring Peg” drop side hardware design.

The recall involves all Delta cribs manufactured in Taiwan or Indonesia, with the “Crib Trigger Lock with Safety Peg” drop side hardware design. These model numbers and country of origin can be located on the mattress support board label: 4320, 4340, 4500, 4520, 4530, 4532, 4540, 4542, 4550, 4551, 4580, 4600, 4620, 4624 (production dates 01/06 thru 11/07), 4640, 4660, 4720, 4735, 4742, 4750 (production dates 01/95 thru 12/00), 4760, 4770, 4780, 4790, 4820, 4840, 4850, 4860, 4880, 4890, 4892, 4900, 4910, 4920, 4925-2, 4925-6, 4930, 4940, 4943, 4944, 4947, 4948, 4949, 4950, 4958, 4963, 4968, 4969, 4980.

The recall involves all Delta drop side cribs manufactured prior to 2006 that use “Crib Trigger Lock with Spring Peg” drop side hardware design. The recalled model numbers and country of origin include: 4340, 4343, 4520, 4600, 4620, 4624, 4625, 4629, 4660, 4665, 4720, 4750, 4751, 4850, 4855, 4857, 4880, 4920, 4925-2, 4925-2B, 4925-6, 4980, and 8605. The model number, country of origin and manufacture dates are located on top of the mattress support board. The recalled cribs have Delta’s name and address on the mattress support boards and Delta’s logo on the teether rail.

Missing safety pegs are one issue. According to CPSC, “Failure to use or install safety pegs can cause an entrapment and suffocation risk to infants and toddlers.” Specifically, “When the safety pegs in the base of each leg of the crib are missing from the lower track, the crib locks can disengage and detach if lowered below the peg hole, creating a hazardous gap. This gap can lead to the entrapment and suffocation of an infant or toddler.”

Spring pegs are another safety issue. According to CPSC, “The crib’s drop side can detach when the spring peg is not engaged, which can cause an entrapment and suffocation risk to infants and toddlers.”

Consumers are advised to immediately discontinue use of cribs involved in the recall until they contact Delta and receive a free kit to fix the safety issues. To read more about the Delta drop side crib recalls, click here and here.

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Green Treehouse Editor’s Note: Given the extensive span of this recall (back to 1995), parents and caregivers planning to use a secondhand or previously used crib (e.g. purchased at a garage sale or online, such as at Craigslist) should be sure to investigate whether the crib has been recalled before putting it into use.