Eco Memory Game

If you are not done with your Christmas shopping yet, this is a great choice for kids. The wooden Memory Game is made of eco-friendly materials, painted with water based paints, packaged in a box made of recycled materials and printed with soy bean ink. It also helps develop motor skills and memory. Tested to meet European and U.S. safety standards.

By Boikido

Congratulations to our First Winner - g-Diapers Eco-Giveaway

Congratulations Christy Hunt, you are the first winner of our gDiapers Eco-Giveaway!
Please e-mail your shipping address to EcoLogicalMom (at) ymail.com. You'll love your gPants 2-pack and a bag of gRefills (a US$60 value)! Please note that if we don't hear from you by December 25th, we'll select another winner.


Stay tuned for the biggest prize to be announced in January, a Sweet Bundle (a US$130 value) which includes 6 Little gPants + 4 Biodegradable gRefills. Winner will be announced on January 11, 2011.

gDiapers are breathable and combine the best features of cloth and disposable diapers. Plastic-free biodegradable gRefills keep babies dry and happy, so they’re less likely to get diaper rash.
EcoLogical Mom is a fantastic channel of unbiased information from multiple sources about raising kids with an Eco & Logical mindset. It reflects a journey to a healthy and meaningful lifestyle!

If you haven't signed up yet, it is very easy to participate:
Sign up for EcoLogical Mom bi-weekly e-Newsletter and "Like" gDiapers on Facebook 

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Yes, we are all about starting the Year in an environmentally conscious way. Over 18 billion disposable diapers are sold in the US every year, and over 90% of those end up in landfills, where it can take them up to 500 years to decompose!

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Winners will be selected randomly
"Sweet Bundle" and gPants provided by gDiapers.

 

Spotting Phthalates

Phthalates are very hard to be identified, but unfortunately are present in many toys and baby products. The Daily Green came up with 3 steps to help us identify products that have, or are likely to have, phthalates or other carcinogen compounds:

1. Read the ingredients. According to the organization Pollution in People, you can identify phthalates in some products by their chemical names, or abbreviations:
• DBP (di-n-butyl phthalate) and DEP (diethyl phthalate) are often found in personal care products, including nail polishes, deodorants, perfumes and cologne, aftershave lotions, shampoos, hair gels and hand lotions. (BzBP, see below, is also in some personal care products.)
• DEHP (di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate or Bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate) is used in PVC plastics, including some medical devices.
• BzBP (benzylbutyl phthalate) is used in some flooring, car products and personal care products.
• DMP (dimethyl phthalate) is used in insect repellent and some plastics (as well as rocket propellant).
2. Be wary of the term "fragrance," which is used to denote a combination of compounds, possibly including phthatates, which are a subject of recent concern because of studies showing they can mimic certain hormones.
3. Choose plastics with the recycling code 1, 2 or 5. Recycling codes 3 and 7 are more likely to contain bisphenol A or phthalates.

Source: The Daily Green 

A Colonial Christmas

Back at the Bergen County Historical Society for both their history open house and colonial concert. Was a colonial ghost making an appearance in the far bottom right corner? These mysterious lights showed up in all the photos I took in this room.

Right above the room, the temporary headquarters of George Washington, who stayed in the Steuben House while the army was encamped between Soldier Hill Road in Oradell and Van Saun Park in Paramus.

Back at the Black Horse tavern, soul-nourishing butternut squash soup with an herbed biscuit, $8, and hot mulled cider, $1.

Whimsical Dutch Santas in the gift shop.

A visit to the Dutch out kitchen is a must. Would it be wrong to want to live by candlelight alone?

Roasted brussels sprouts is quickly becoming one of my favorite vegetables of the season.

Notice the kitchen tools. Consider the labor that went into food harvesting and preparation. With no labor required on our own part in growing it, I think sometimes we take for granted the easy accessibility we have to food today, contributing in part, to food waste.

Not milk and cookies, but hay and apples. Why?

To attract the horses of Sinterklaas.

Mistletoe by the fireplace.

In the hustle and bustle that is inevitable this time of year, take time to savor your favorite traditions this holiday season. Merry Christmas!

'Chocolate cough remedy' in sight

Scientists are carrying out the ending stages of clinical trials of a drug that contains theobromine, an ingredient found in chocolate and cocoa.

The UK developers say the drug could be on the marketplace within two years.

Each year in Britain an estimated 7.5m people suffer from persistent cough - a cough lasting more than two weeks.

Fearless woman's brain reveals key to phobias

The case of a literally unafraid woman rendered so after brain damage has helped scientists prove that a part of the brain structure regulating emotions is the key to human and animal phobia.

The 44-year-old mother of three, referred to in the journal present Biology as SM, has a rare psychological impairment due to a genetic disease called lipoid proteinosis that left holes where her amygdala — the brain’s danger detector — would normally reside.

Drink Red Wine for Your Teeth!

Polyphenols in red wine can prevent cavities and plaque build-up, researchers say. They compounds block a molecule made by the bacteria streptococcus mutans, which are found in all our mouths, said researcher Hyun Koo, a microbiologist at University of Rochester Medical Center in New York. These bacteria break down sugar we eat and make sticky molecules called glucans, which let bacteria to cling to our teeth and damage their surfaces, Koo told MyHealthNewsDaily.  The polyphenols can block the ability of S. mutans to make glucans, letting the good bacteria in the mouth thrive, while disabling the bad bacteria from sticking to the teeth, Koo said.

Sources: MyHealthNewsDaily, msnbc