Anamalz: Must Have Eco Toys

When my son was little, I was a huge fan of Holtztiger--cute wooden non toxic animals from Germany.  I'm still a fan and I've saved them for my son to hopefully pass down to his children.  Back then, Anamalz didn't exist, or he'd have a box of those to pass down as well.  If you have kids, you have to see these adorable little animals.

Anamalz are non toxic wooden toys made from sustainable maple.  These are super cute and I think will appeal to children for a little longer because they are posable and more interesting to older kids.  The soft velvety fabric is great for little ones who might be teething.  Each animal is hand panted with nontoxic water based paint.  They come in four categories--Farm, Wild, Australian and Prehistoric.  The dinosaurs are so cute!  Anamalz has an interactive website for kids with anamalz--they can enter their password and enjoy animations, play games, and get environmental preservation tips.  Find them HERE.

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Toys for Budding Eco Engineers

Would Santa like to leave toys that not only green but so fun the educational value escapes the child?  You bet!  Check out these fabulous blocks from Citiblocs.  They come in different colors (I like the warm colors for this time of year) and are open ended fun leading to hours of quiet--that's right, quiet--fun.  My six year old loves to play with these and I'm amazed at how calming and creative they are.  The blocks are made from certified renewable pine and they are completely free of any toxins, so if they end up in any mouths, kids or canine, they should be okay.

The more technical oriented and older children will love science based kits from Thames and Kosmos. I'm especially intrigued by their Alternative Energy and Environmental Science projects.  Check out this Renewable Energy Science Kit focused on wind energy.  This is so cool, think of how toys like this could potentially have an impact on the future.  I also like this Remote Control Machines kit which is so much more interesting than a plain RC car.  Shaping young minds to create eco friendly transportation and renewable energy is very exciting and I think these would also be fabulous in the classroom.

For stockings, Think-A-Lot makes a holiday edition of their clever Think-ets, an open ended story telling game featuring little trinkets.  There are numerous ways to play this game and their size makes them wonderful for travel.  Not for little ones due to choking hazard, older kids get a kick out of using their imagination in tandem with being able to touch the little objects such as a Christmas tree, a snowman and a polar bear among others.  My six year old loves to scatter them on the table and make up stories using the pieces for the story line.  Think-ets encourage creativity, logic and reason along with good old fashioned fun.

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Fabulous New App for Kids: Ansel and Clair's Adventures in Africa

If you have an Ipad and kids, you are going to want to know about this cool new app by Cognitive Kids.  If you don't, seriously, consider getting a refurb, it's worth every penny and then some.  And then consider Ansel and Clair for your very first app.

Ansel, a very cute little alien travel photographer from the planet Virtoos, takes his robot buddy Clair on an African adventure that will educate while it entertains.  This is why I got an Ipad--for apps like this.  But they are few and far between, I hope Cognitive Kids makes a habit out of this!

It's ideal for the modern eco kid and wonderful for parents who don't want their kids to play mind-rot games only.   You know, it's like junk food.  A peice of candy won't kill them from time to time, but as a main diet, you want your kids eating vitamin rich food.  This is the organic apples and almond butter of Ipad apps.  It's portable, there's no waste or clutter, and it combines learning with FUN. Watch a preview HERE.

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Earth Day in the Classroom

 If you're a teacher or a mama, it's especially fun to make a big deal about Earth Day.   Here are three things I think would be wonderful to have year round in the classroom, but are particularly educational for Earth Day.

RESPECT THE EARTH FLASHCARDS:  For the budding environmentalist.  These cute large retro looking flash cards are perfect for Earth Day.  They depict various animals doing earth friendly activities like going the the Farmers' Market, unplugging chargers and recycling.  They are sweet while stressing the importance of taking responsibility.

GREEN TOYS TRUCK AND RACE CAR:  I think this would be great for pre-school and kindergarten.  It's rounded edges and non toxic materials make it safe for little ones.  Green Toys is an innovative company that uses recycled milk containers to make their toys.  As cute as they look, they are durable and can take some serious play. 

THIS TREE COUNTS:  This book is way more than a counting book, though it does offer some of that.  It helps to instill reverence for nature and deep appreciation for one of the earth's most magnificent and vital adornments: trees.  Together a class plants trees and learns that they are necessary for cleaning the air, and providing shelter for humans and other creatures.  The artwork is lovely and this was a book my son wanted me to read over and over.

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Eco Mama's Holiday Gift Guide

 

The best gift, in my opinion, is your time.  Shared experiences make for memories that last and that's the stuff that gives life meaning.  So the first thing I would recommend is kind of obvious, and that's spending time with the people you love.  Special moments happen all the time, even when you might not even notice until you hear someone say, "remember when we..."  A trip to France or a trip to your local coffee shop can end up being a bonding time and something that stays nestled happily in your mind forever.

I'm also completely in favor of handing someone a beautiful wrapped present during the holidays.  Whether it's a three dollar box of their favorite tea or something expensive, I think anything that shows someone you know them is particularly wonderful.  Here are a few random fun things for a variety of people on your list.

Citi Blocs come in cool colors (blues and greens) or hot colors and are a wonderful open ended building toy for everyone to enjoy.  Each block is 4 1/2 inches long by 1 inch wide by 1/4 inch thick and they are non toxic.  Comes with 100 blocks cut from Radiata Pine wood harvested from certified renewable forests in New Zealand.  They're modern, pleasing to the eye and touch and foster creativity.

I'm a big fan of anti-fatigue mats, especially in the kitchen.  Imprint has just come out with a larger size comfort mat so you can find the right size for your space and customize for your needs.  Treat yourself to an early Christmas present for all the time you'll be spending in the kitchen baking cookies (it makes a huge difference) or gift to someone you love.  The mats are non toxic, eco friendly, and make doing dishes no big deal.  Different colors, patterns, and sizes are available.  They feel especially luxurious under bare feet and would also be wonderful in the bathroom, studio, garage, laundry room, or anywhere else a lot of standing takes place.

For kids, this Natural History Museum Jellyfish Lampquarium is pretty interesting.  The "jellyfish" float around in a soothing motion while the light changes.  It makes for a fun project and maintainance free pet and doubles as a nightlight.



For the Gardener:  Gardenopoly.  Just like the traditional Monopoly, but with a charming garden theme.  Property is transformed into different plants, cute little clay pots and greenhouses replace houses and hotels, and instead of the shoe, race car, dog, etc., you get to play with a garden gnome, ladybug and wheelbarrow amongst other things. The backs of the deed cards contain fun plant-trivia.  Really cute game printed on recycled paper with soy ink.

MIESSENCE Perfume Sampler is a great way to gift fragrance because it is certified organic, non-toxic and comes with a variety of fragrances in cute little 1x1 ml. vials.  It's small enough to fit nicely in a stocking and wonderful enough to go wrapped under the tree.  These high quality botanicals come in scents like Calm, Wild, Free, Brave, and Love. Use coupon code ely020 for 20% off through the end of December.


For the Cook, Kyocera Ceramic Knives.  If you have never used a ceramic knife, you are in for a huge treat.  If you have, then you know how awesome they are.  Kyocera is the only ceramic knife I've ever used and boy do I use it.  They also make a sharpener specific to ceramic knives, that would be wonderful for the person that already has ceramic knives.  This Kyocera five inch knife comes in a lovely black box which makes a great presentation. The two together would be a fabulous gift-combo. 
 


Look at these cool Kidz Place Mats from MODERN TWIST.  They have them for both kids and adults, but I think the kid place mats would be fun for anyone.  They are made of silicone and can be colored on (with any erasable marker) and used over and over again saving paper and trees.  The texture is butter soft and the designs are fabulous.  I love this old school fairy tale made modern into the Hide And Seek mat. 


Eco friendly Unckle Skunkle's Destruct 3 is a build 'em up, knock 'em down game of strategy and destruction.  Made of renewable rubberwood, the game is good looking and I think would really appeal to boys.  Uncle Skunkle has several green toys to choose from and is an environmentally an socially responsible company that gives back. 



Image Credit: Josephwashere

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KidsCraft Recycled Rocket ✮ GIVEAWAY ✮

Who doesn't love rockets?  KidsCraft Playhouses has made it possible and very convenient for your child to have one of their very own.  This Space Imagination Shuttle  was a smashing hit at my son's birthday party.  It is big enough to fit five pre-school age kids (though it's designed to fit up to three comfortably) and withstood a lot of rough housing and excitement.  The kids lit up when they walked through the door and saw it--the scale is quite big and dramatic.  This sort of takes the concept that kids would rather play with the box than the toy inside to a new level.

They come with recycled star crayons so the kids can decorate the rocket and they are made of 100% recycled materials and are completely recyclable when you are through with it.  We are going to carefully repackage it and keep it in the attic for future use.  But not until my son has had enough time to enjoy it.  You can put blankets and pillows and books and whatnot in there for a fun little haven.

KidsCraft Playhouses also make a cottage playhouse.  I think both would be wonderful in the classroom or for a special occasion.  If you are hosting a birthday party or event, consider one of these to liven up the festivities.  Or if you have a big space or are okay with one of these spending a little time in the living room, check out KidsCraft Playhouses HERE.  Proceeds from this Space Imagination Shuttle as well as all KidsCraft products go toward children's causes throughout the US.

                                        ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ GIVAWAY ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮ ✮

Win Your choice of the Space Shuttle or Cottage Playhouse by doing the following.  Each thing you do counts as an entry, just be sure to leave an individual comment for each.  These are super cool and totally worth the effort.  Good Luck!

1.  Visit KIDSCRAFT and tell me one interesting thing about this company.

2.  Tweet or blog about this giveaway (one entry for each).

3.  Follow KidsCraft on FACEBOOK. 

4.  Follow KidsCraft on TWITTER. 

5.  Follow this blog by going into your blogger dashboard and adding me to your public reading list.

Update:  This giveaway is now closed, Averie You are the winner!

True Random Number Generatorwinner:7Powered by RANDOM.ORG

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Green Gift Guide: Educo Master Carpenter Workbench

Kids love to take stuff apart and put it back together again. Educo's Master CarpenterWorkbench would make an awesome green gift for your budding engineer. It's completely non-toxic and old-school adorable. Both high quality and good looking, there's no plastic, it's all wood, and even comes with extras like a tool belt.

I think this would make for something dramatic that Santa Claus might leave by the tree. It comes in a box unassembled and is easy to put together. There are a lot of plastic tool sets out there, but this is worlds apart. My four year old son thinks it's the bees knees. Wood feels good in your hands and there's no scary chemicals to worry about that can harm your children. Good for us, good for the earth and guaranteed to keep them busy while you get dinner ready. You can find it HERE.

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Green Gift Guide: GREEN TOYS Recycling Truck

How cool is this recycling truck? Even cooler when you realize it's made out of recycled milk jugs! Green Toys is a eco conscious toy company offering safe, earth friendly toys that are sourced and made completely in California (keeps the carbon footprint down). Even the boxes are minimalist and made of recycled materials and are stress-free--you know that packaging that makes you want to throw the thing across the room? This is easy, a kid can open it.

The back of the truck opens, it's very sturdy and it's just a good looking design. My son is way into recycling (kids so get it) and this truck makes it even more fascinating. I think it would make for an excellent gift. You can find it HERE.

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