Tatyanna Wright's Haute Mama

Eco Baby Nursery

I get asked a lot about greening a babies room. It's something I really cared about when it came time to prepare for our new baby. Greening my babies nursery was hugely important for several reasons. I didn't want her to inhale off gases from toxic substances like formaldehyde, or sleep on a mattress that could potentially harm her. Nor did I want her new skin to absorb toxins from her sheets and so I'm using organic cotton bedding and she sleeps on a natural latex mattress. Our nursery, shown below, consists of a Seed Organic Cradle, Shinwa Organics organic bamboo mosquito net, and our rug is made from recycled plastic bottles. The ABC quilt was hand made in Hawaii and a gift from my mother. An old Eames Egg chair compliments our esthetic and is definitely a chair we will use in another room when we're done using it as a nursing rocker. 

There are so many inexpensive ways you can green your babies environment, especially since the price of organic items has come down considerably. Here are some options to think about: Costco sells an organic baby mattress for $129. Target sells a line of organic baby basics starting at $16.99. Amazon.com is a great place to buy discounted organic baby and childrens bedding. They're off season- meaning you're buying last winters colours. Your baby and child won't know pastels aren't rocking it for the bedroom this winter!

To learn more about how I greened my babies nursery, you can see me on tonight's episode of Platinum Babies at 9:30EST on WE TV.

 

Say No To Toxins Tomorrow!

Tomorrow, November 18th is the Say No To Toxins crawl to action rally. Join hundreds of New York City parents and their babies, including myself and consumer advocate Erin Brockovich as we take part in New York’s “Crawl to Action” event at Madison Square Park to kick-off the national initiative called the Million Baby Crawl to encourage Congress to overhaul our nation’s toxic chemical policy.

The goal of the campaign is to raise support for the Kid-Safe Chemicals Act, being presented to Congress in December, which would require that industrial chemicals be safe for infants and children and new chemicals be safety tested before they are put into products; it will also require chemical manufacturers to test and prove that the untested chemicals already on the market are safe in order for them to remain in commerce and that this information is publicly available.

The New York “Crawl to Action” rally will also have:
•    Appearances by Erin Brockovich, Bobbi Chase Wilding, Clean New York Organizing Director, local dignitaries and politicians
•    Free family-friendly entertainment by Gustafer Yellowgold
•    Photo opportunities for guests and babies
•    Full size Seventh Generation product giveaways

Million Baby Crawl: Erin Brockovich Interview

Did you know dangerous chemicals are still in many of the household products we use every day? Mounting scientific evidence points to widespread exposure to chemicals that can cause serious and adverse impacts on human health, particularly for children. Since 1976, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has required safety testing on only 200 of the more than 80,000 chemicals on the market. That’s a pretty shocking figure. Stronger chemical laws need to be in place. Seventh Generation, Safer Chemicals/Healthy Families and Erin Brockovich have teamed up to help spread environmental awareness by taking action and creating the Million Baby Crawl Say No To Toxins campaign and event.
        
Erin Brockovich kindly took time from her busy schedule to speak with Haute Mama and help explain more about the Million Baby Crawl and how you can be involved.
HM:  How/why did you become involved with Seventh Generation and co launch the Million Baby Crawl?
EB: Seventh Generation identified me as the spokesperson for the Million Baby Crawl campaign because we share similar beliefs. I am a strong believer that one voice can make a difference and I also believe that that companies can affect change. Seventh Generation is finding success while also making products that are safe for families and the environment and now, through the Million Baby Crawl, the company is working to change our nation’s laws to make tighter restrictions on toxic chemicals.
 
HM: Your message is to stand up and make a difference – what are your hopes with the Million Baby Crawl?
EB: My hope for the Million Baby Crawl is to:
•    Increase awareness among parents about chemicals and the harm that they can do
•    Inspire individuals to get involved
•    See if one voice can turn into two and then 100 and then 1,000 and eventually a strong enough group that can carry a message to Congress that there needs to be changes and that we are in dire need of stronger chemical laws. A collective body of voices can affect that change.

HM: Creating environmental awareness is something that many people still find difficult. Do you have simple suggestions or can you recommend a good place to start? EB: You’re right, creating environmental awareness is a difficult idea for people to wrap their minds around. We come out thinking that we can save the world and we quickly get defeated and give up because that’s too lofty a goal. What we can do is change our self. It begins with you, that’s the first simple step and it takes the overwhelming and the scare out of it. Your family will take notice and they’ll start making small changes (you might even see your husband making changes!). Our kids learn from us, and then it snowballs. I would definitely say that the first step is changing yourself.

HM: There are perceptions that living green can be expensive. What would be your top five ways to live a greener more environmentally aware life without having to go out and completely green proof your home?
•    Reuse shopping bags or bring your own to the supermarket
•    Purchase eco-friendly products when your traditional products need to be replaced (i.e.- cleaning products, dish soap, napkins etc)
•    Recycle!
•    Bring your own takeaway containers when you go out to eat
•    Unplug any electronics in your home that are not in use
 
HM: What are ways to be involved in The Million Baby Crawl?
EB: Here are some simple ways to be involved:
•    Create a “crawler” on millionbabycrawl.com These “crawlers” will be virtual signatures that will be presented in Washington DC in January as a symbol that parents want tougher chemical laws.
•    Visit saferchemicals.org to learn how to email your local Congresspeople and urge them to support the new legislation.
•    Share your knowledge with a friend and ask them to do the same. I’m a firm believer that one voice becomes two voices, becomes ten voices, becomes 100, then 1,000 then one million. One voice can make a difference.

HM: Information helps consumers make informed decisions. What is the ultimate goal of the campaign?
EB: The ultimate goal is to remove hazardous chemicals from all products, so that warning labels will not be needed. Mothers hold the purchasing power and right now, they can choose not to purchase products that contain labels with “Danger,” “Warning,” or “Harmful.” The next step is to purchase safe products. Seventh Generation lists all of their ingredients on their labels and they even say why those ingredients are in their products.
 
Haute Mama thanks Seventh Generation and Erin Brockovich for their time. For more information on nation wide events taking place on November 18th visit: millionbabycrawl.com
 

Million Baby Crawl Movement

Next Wednesday November 18th Seventh Generation is hosting the Million Baby Crawl, a movement to: Say No To Toxins! If you're in New York City, head to Madison Square Park for the Million Baby Crawl event. Seventh Generation is the nations leading brand of non-toxic and environmentally-safe household and personal care products. They recently teamed up with advocate Erin Brockovich and Safer Chemicals/Healthy Families to help raise awareness about toxins in everyday household items and to encourage parents to ask Congress to pass new stronger regulations that will protect the health of all Americans. Its an event I will be attending and I hope you will to. For those of you who love Seventh Gen. or have never used their products they will be giving away full sized product. If you can't make it in person, show your support by going online and creating a crawler at millionbabycrawl.com 

The crawl to action event will also take place on the same day in Boston, Denver, Minneapolis, Portland and Seattle. And look out for Haute Mama's interview with Erin Brockovich later this week about her involvement with this fantastic movement.

 

Prenatal Acupuncture

I discovered prenatal acupuncture during the final weeks of my first pregnancy. I was becoming increasingly anxious and decided to try to speed things up naturally by looking into prenatal acupuncture. My son, now five was born five days after his due date. I wasn’t sure how much of the treatment contributed to my body going into labour but one thing I was definitely sure of was acupuncture's ability to keep my body healthy and energy levels up so I could continue to look after my new baby.  Acupuncture truly helped keep me well.
Five years on, and with my second pregnancy I decided to seek prenatal acupuncture on a regular basis. This time I experienced more benefits. Regular acupuncture during pregnancy set the foundation for a healthy pregnancy and baby. I had a shorter and easier birth experience – it was all natural and I healed so much faster.  I received acupuncture once a week during the last month of pregnancy and had a significantly shorter labour than my previous birth.
Here, I asked my acupuncturist, Sarah Gamble, to share the benefits of acupuncture with you.  Sarah has been practicing Internal Medicine since 1992.

A common misconception about Acupuncture is that it is only used to treat pain. I use Chinese Medicine (acupuncture, Chinese herbs, Moxibustion, cupping, and electrical stimulation) to treat the entire scope of Women's health. This includes natal issues from conception to delivery, as well as infertility. During pregnancy Acupuncture provides remarkable drug-free relief from: Allergies and colds. Morning sickness, migraines and sciatica. Patients get treatments anywhere from once a month to once a week. I listen to pulses, do Acupuncture, customize Chinese herbal formulas, and provide hands on support (Bowen Technique, Reiki, Shiatsu,  &  Craniosacral).

During weeks 37-40 Acupuncture benefits the preparation of labor by:
    . Aiding the position of the baby which is key to having a smooth labor
    . Softening the cervix which allows the baby's movements to progress uninhibited           
    . Calm the mother and help her adjust to the rapid hormonal changes
   
During Labor itself I practice Acupuncture in the delivery room or at home, alongside doctors/midwives. I have done this privately and in Lutheran hospital as part of an NIH funded research grant. Acupuncture during labor is effective for: Preventing prolonged labor. Aid cervical dilation and increase the efficiency of contractions by increasing or decreasing their intensity. Calm the mother and help her to conserve her energy for the contractions and have a drug free labor.
All of these factors contribute to avoiding a prolonged labor. They allow the mother to have the strength, energy, and spirit to deliver with ease. This is why Acupuncture can reduce the cesarean birth rate.

If you are interested in contacting Sarah, please email her.
You can watch Sarah in action next month in an episode of WETV’s Platinum Babies airing Friday Nov. 13th at 9pm.

 

Biodegradable Potato Bib

Visiting Stone Barns last weekend, a favourite farm we regularly go to, I always find something new and interesting. This time it was a bib! 
In addition to being a working farm with livestock, plants and the fantastic Blue Hill restaurant, Stone Barns also has a wonderful store. Amongst the cookbooks, eco-friendly toys, home wares, clothing and other ecologically inspired fabulosity I found a bib derived from potatoes.
Called the Spud Bib - These pretty protectors are made with biodegradable plastic from potato starch which completely breaks down in 1 to 2 years, (petroleum-based products take a century). The ink is water based, and they come in four colours with different animals. The bibs are produced by French design duo Cocoboheme who create unique sustainable products. Contrary to being biodegradable, they are not disposable, the bibs last about 2 years before they start to naturally deteriorate, which is probably around the same time you’ll stop using bibs. How perfectly designed!  

Next time I’m at Stone Barns I’m definitely going to pick up a couple of these cute, functional and environmentally friendly baby bibs for my soon to be eating little darling.
Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture is located in upstate New York.
For a list of online retailers check Cocoboheme.com 

Green Diapers

I love it when I find that perfect something I’ve been searching for - in this case its diapers. Hard to believe one could care so much about diapers, but I do!  Knowing that over 92% of all single-use disposable diapers end up in a landfill, and it is estimated to take about 250-500 years to decompose -  Quite shocking figures - I am so excited about Nature Babycare diapers.

I can’t say enough fantastic things about them. Firstly, Nature Babycare make fabulous affordable products, from breast pads, flushable wipes, and decomposable diaper bags to bath and body lotion. It’s the diapers I really love, they have everything an eco-conscience parent could want as well as offering stellar performance, they absorb just as fine as regular diapers. They fit well and haven’t caused any nappy rash.

Nature Babycare products are made with natural, sustainable-based materials, based on wood pulp and corn-based film. Wherever possible, they only use biodegradable, renewable material from natural resources. The cellulose created from wood pulp in Nature Babycare diapers is totally chlorine-free in accordance with the Swedish Society for Nature Conservation. Their wood pulp is harvested in Scandinavian forests and is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. The corn maize used for Nature Babycare diapers is grown where genetically modified crops are banned in fields that have been dedicated to non-food supply use for over a decade.

Nature Babycare diapers are compostable. The rate of degrading depends on the soil, temperature, humidity, sunlight exposure, times turned etc. But anywhere from 50 - 150 days onwards. While Nature Babycare has received testimonials from consumers who have successfully decomposed their diapers in their yard, industry experts advise that soiled diapers should NOT be composted in one’s backyard compost pile due to fecal matter requiring a certain temperature to properly break down bacteria. Check in your local area to see if commercial composters are available to take your soiled diapers. Click here (greenlivingtips.com) to learn more about composting.

I love Nature Baby diapers and wipes, and I buy mine from Green Depot,  Nature Baby provides a list of worldwide retailers on their site. Even tried and true cloth users have turned to Nature Babycare as an eco-friendly option. Try them today!

Finns Finds Online Boutique

There’s nothing wrong with dressing your baby girl in blue or putting your baby boy in a purple onesie – I did! That’s exactly how FinnsFinds.com creator Jennyka Gilmore feels having had enough of teddy bear emblazoned outfits: “I gravitated towards the simpler styles, and more sophisticated color palettes. I think I owe that to my mom, who’s from Norway and dressed my sister and I in things she would want to wear.  Yet they still had an aspect of fun to them”. With a philosophy like that you can bet there are some very special finds at this wonderful online boutique.

FinnsFinds.com is filled with a fabulous selection of harder to get overseas labels like Imps & Elfs from Holland and Pure Baby from Australia. There’s a great eco element as well with brands that give back to their community like Bebe Ravi that offers an irresistible and timeless collection of striking hand made knits woven by women in Kenya, where work is not easy to find to support their families.  Bebe Ravi also provides food, shelter, medical care and education to an orphanage founded by its CEO.

FinnsFinds offers more than clothes, the Mossy Creek Rattle for example is beautifully handcrafted and so smooth. Your baby can pleasantly gnaw on it as mine has begun to do thanks to the non-toxic oil finish. The rattles are made in Arkansas from local hardwoods, and dried in an energy-conserving solar kiln. They are simply gorgeous and make a fabulous gift.

A good selection of Eva & Oli children’s wear and accessories are also available. I love their pouchette (shown below) an on the go clutch perfect for keeping keys, cell phone and wallet in. I use it all the time, its particularly useful for my iphone that has a loose headset that would otherwise get lost in the oversized tote I use as a diaper bag.

At FinnsFinds you’ll discover everything from babies and children’s (up to 6yrs) clothes to hand crafted keepsakes and organic baby towels. Perfect for the mother looking for simple yet elegant and most importantly durable items of great quality, at an affordable price.

Many thanks to Jennyka for providing both rattle and pouchette.

 

Eco Holiday at Rainmaker

Last week I introduced Alessandra Gutierrez creator of Lala’s Pequenos gorgeous noonie. There’s more to Alessandra than mere, albeit fabulous, papoose designer. Her family owns 1500 acres of Costa Rican rain forest known as Rainmaker Mountain.  Their mission is to create ecological awareness and preserve the area home to millions of animals and plant life the best they can. The family created the Rainmaker Project to help sustain the rich biodiversity.  As Alessandra puts it: “The animals are depending on us for their ability to live in peace, in their natural habitat”. They have opened up 3% of the property for visitors wanting to learn the importance of rain forest preservation.

Rainmaker is a great place to take children. Alessandra’s two boys have virtually grown up there. “They love to explore the land and learn about the amazing animals – particularly the frogs! They love to jump in the waterfalls and pretend to be Indiana Jones. They have a deep respect for nature”. Alessandra’s children have been fortunate to learn the importance of cherishing the rainforest ecosystem first hand:  “They are very concerned about the direction our planet is heading in and they see first account changes that are taking place. The amount of rainfall that we get at Rainmaker is growing and that is causing major landslides that we did not have before. The towns that border Rainmaker are flooding and people are loosing their homes. It’s so important to be aware of these changes and to know that living concisely starts at home”.

Visiting Rainmaker with young children isn’t a problem. There is a visitor ranch with plenty of clean bathroom facilities and a kitchen. Depending on the type of tour, juice and fruit are available in the morning, as is plenty of water. You are welcome to bring any snack along as they know that little ones need snacks and drinks.

Tours are conducted around 8am as the rains come around 1pm.  During the tour there are plenty of resting opportunities and guides pace the tour depending on the types of visitors. The tours typically last about three hours and have an opportunity to have a typical Costa Rican lunch at the end. They are now offering private tours where you can have lunch inside of Rainmaker Mountain next to the waterfalls! You cannot bring your stroller.

You can visit Rainmaker any time of the year. The drier times are from November to May and the rainy season starts in May through end of October. Bring your camera, insect repellant, towel, swimsuit, good walking shoes and a change of clothes.

Please send all questions or to make a reservation email rainmakerusa@hotmail.com You can read about Rainmaker in most guidebooks or visit rainmakercostarica.org It is located 22 km from the Manuel Antonio national park on the pacific side.

As the economy has really hurt the tourism industry in Costa Rica, Rainmaker is constantly trying to keep up with the expenses that it incurs to maintain it. Proceeds from the items sold from the Lala’s Pequenos line go to support the Rainmaker Project.
If you would like to donate to Rainmaker please email rainmakerusa@hotmail.com or at ann@rainmakercostarica.org They are currently offering a “Sponsor Rainmaker for a Month” campaign. For the donation of $3500, families or companies will be able to offset their carbon pollution footprint for the month. We will post the sponsor on the front page of our website for the whole month and plant a tree in their name. 

Lala's Noonie

Take the age-old practice of swaddling into the 21st century with a noonie. A what? A noonie - a practical papoose created by Alessandra Gutierrez. Her noonie gets its name from when her eldest son was little and wanted to go to sleep. He would say: “I want to go to noonie” Gutierrez tells me. She thought the name was perfect for her designs since this is a cozy pouch babies love to sleep in.

Gutierrez created the cone shaped noonie for a friend’s baby shower. The idea took off and Gutierrez found herself creating her Lala’s Pequenos line of noonies. The cone shape allows the baby to naturally go into the swaddle position and the hood gives mom a little privacy when she’s nursing. Babies especially love to get in it after a bath- just with a diaper on. And it makes a really lovely gift.
Noonies are for newborns that weigh up to about 13 pounds. That’s about 1-3 months depending on your baby. Noonie is essentially a swaddling papoose and therefore cannot be used in your car seat, as it does not accommodate safety straps.

Noonies are available in organic fiber grown and certified organic to GOTS (Global Organic Textile Standards). The fabrics are produced in India and is fair trade certified, and the fabric is produced in a Fair Trade certified facility.
Alessandra’s passion for the environment doesn’t end with organic baby products. She is dedicated to helping preserve a special rain forest close to her heart – the Rainmaker Project.
Proceeds from the items sold from the Lala’s Pequenos line go to support the Rainmaker Project. More on Rainmaker in Haute Mama’s next blog post.
To purchase a noonie, visit: lalaspequenos.com