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Multicultural Gifts and Greetings

Just in time for holiday shopping, I’ve discovered Dollslikeme.com,a website which has many dolls, but much more, including hard-to-find ethnic Santas, puzzles, and accessories such as a tea set with images of an Asian ballerina on the “china” (also available with other ethnicity shown). The tea set was rather pricey, but the site also includes more modestly priced items, such as a 14-inch doll that comes with a diary for $30. You can buy gift tags with Santas of different ethnicities. The site carries a line of greeting cards featuring photos of Asian children—for example, as a Christmas elf. The … Continue reading →

Environmentally Friendly Gifts

Christmas and holiday gift giving is getting both harder and easier to do each year. I remember having to stretch my dollars to buy gifts for people that I hardly new: the person I see at the office coffee machine in the morning, kids of acquaintances, and a bevy of college friends. These days, things are a bit easier in the sense that most of us have agreed to stop the present giving madness. We are toning down the excess, which is always a good thing. Instead, we chose things for our immediate family, parents and very close friends. It … Continue reading →

Making Eco-Friendly Christmas Decorations

This cute paper snowman project is an ideal gift to give to a “green” friend. The foundation of the snowman features recycled envelopes while his appendages are made from all-natural products you can find in your own backyard. In addition to being environmentally friendly, he’s kid friendly as well. Take a look: RECYCLED SNOWMAN Materials: Used, white envelopes (large or small) Scrap construction paper Recycled cotton balls from medicine bottles Small twigs Pencil Compass Scissors Ruler Markers White glue Masking tape Directions: To make the head, cut a rectangle about 1-inch by 4-inch from the white envelope. Cut two more … Continue reading →

Special Delivery: Green Options for Packing Gifts

Forget the traditional and Earth un-friendly styrofoam for packaging delicate gifts. Instead, check out these innovative and Earth friendly ideas. Have you read Sherry’s post about shopping for holiday gifts? I have to confess that I am way behind in my shopping. What makes it worse is that I’ll be shipping some of the gifts myself. Other gifts that will be given in person will still need to be carefully packaged so that they survive long drives home. But, I have never been a fan of styrofoam. It fills up the oceans and the landfills, and has a half life … Continue reading →

Fashionable Eco-Friendly Holiday Gift Ideas

I provided some green gift ideas in a previous blog, but if you are a savvy shopper you know I didn’t even scratch the surface. There are so many environmentally friendly gift options out there… and you don’t have to be a self-professed tree hugger to appreciate them. Take a look: Denim. Levi’s has an entire eco collection. The popular denim designer has 100 percent organic cotton jeans for men and women. The Levi’s eco collection offers several styles—for ladies the most popular is the Eco Midrise Boot 553 Jean ($78) and for men the most desired pair is the … Continue reading →

Plants As Gifts

Have you been invited to attend Thanksgiving dinner at a friend’s home? Or, will you be dining at a family member’s house? Either way, by the very nature of it’s name “Thanksgiving,” one would almost seemed obligated to bring a hostess gift as a token of appreciation for the meal. If your Thanksgiving feast is not a potluck, then you may consider bringing a plant or nice flower arrangement as a gift. If you do give a plant as a holiday gift, you want to try to match the plant with the environment of the recipient’s home. For example, if … Continue reading →

Go Green to Avoid Seeing Red

Are you seeing red after calculating the amount of money you’ve shelled out this holiday season? Christmas is still a week away and some parents are already dealing with a mountain of debt accrued since Black Friday. As devoted moms and dads we feel obligated to make all of our children’s holiday wishes come true:  Big tree featuring gorgeous ornaments, life-sized animated decorations, elaborately wrapped gifts and miles of twinkling lights that would blind a buzzard. Unfortunately, all that holiday bling can put a real dent in your household budget.  One way to reduce the sting of big bills racked … Continue reading →

Thoughtful Gift Giving

Finding just the right gift for your child to celebrate a milestone can be hard, when you are trying to support them alone, it can seem almost impossible. In today’s society everyone wants the latest expensive gadget, a new cell phone, a laptop, the latest video game console. Those things are all nice, and we would love to give them to our children but sometimes you want to give something meaningful and you need to do it without breaking the bank. Birthdays and Christmas’s all seem to run together. Ask your child what their favorite present from two years ago … Continue reading →

Throwing a Green Birthday Party – Part 2

Yesterday, I was talking about making your child’s birthday party green. Even if it is months away, it’s never too soon to start planning. Here are some more tips for a green birthday party: Decorations The one good thing about our son’s birthday party at this bowling alley this year is it was in the party room, so most of the decorations have been used time and time again by the bowling alley. Consider recycling decorations from year to year or at least look for those made of recycled material. Just Say No to Goody Bags Oh, this one seems … Continue reading →

Green Coffee

If you are like many people, you were drinking coffee this morning. You may have made it at home or driven through Starbucks to get it. Either way, as you enjoyed your hot beverage on this cold day (as it is in most of America), you may not have thought about the environmental and social issues behind that coffee. It is estimated that Americans drink 400 million cups of coffee each day. The only thing in higher worldwide demand than coffee is petroleum. It keeps us going on long days and some studies have shown that it may prevent heart … Continue reading →