Category Archives: Parenting

Ergobaby 360 Back in Stock Tomorrow, Monday 6/16/14

Posted on June 15, 2014 | Leave a comment

Hi friends! Just a quick note that the Ergobaby 360 carrier is back in stock tomorrow, Monday 6/16/14. They sold out in less than a day when they launched in the spring, and then sold out in less than a day again when they restocked. So if you are interested, I would purchase from their website bright and early tomorrow.

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Why the ergobaby 360 carrier?

After owning a dozen different baby carriers, it is the most comfortable for me and for Baby Bird. I like the comfortable waist band, it is super fast to get baby in and out, and it is great having an ergonomic option for baby facing forward.

Don’t just take my word for it! Read the guest post by Gill Andrews.

Need more convincing? Watch our video review to see the Ergo 360 in action:

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links. Affiliate links track that I was the one that referred you and I may receive a commission. Your price does not increase.

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Posted in Contests, Giveaways and Promotions, Parenting

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Green Kid Crafts – Free Trial or 40% Off a Subscription

Posted on June 12, 2014 | Leave a comment

I first heard about Green Kid Crafts last winter, when Little Bird and I visited Paint the Walls.  Green Kid Crafts is a San Diego based company that makes hands-on and eco-friendly Discovery Boxes, Creativity Kits, and STEM Science Kits (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). The subscription delivers a monthly box, perfect for kids ages 3-10 years-old.

green kid crafts

We recently received a free sample box. We thought it was great! Our box contained three different activity kits around one theme (ours was botany and of course our Little Bird was happy to have another excuse to get out into the garden.) Since we really liked Green Kid Crafts, I have signed up as an affiliate –and just in time to forward some special offers.

FREE TRIAL FLASH SALE: JUNE 16 – JUNE 19

For the first time ever Green Kid Crafts is offering a free trial! Enjoy a free sample-size project from one of their most popular Discovery Boxes! You just pay shipping. You will be automatically enrolled in a Green Kid Crafts monthly subscription*, and may cancel at anytime. For a limited time only and while supplies last. Go here to get your free trial:http://www.greenkidcrafts.com/free-trial/

Your free trial includes the Soap Making Kit which includes:

– All the materials to make your own soap
– Supplies for kids to get creative with colors, glitter, embedded treasures, and different mold shapes, including a silicone mold
– Bonus 20-page Kitchen Science digital Green Kid Magazine, filled with fun project ideas and experiments.

*Note: This is a sample kit. This Soap Making Kit is one of 3 projects from the award-winning Kitchen Science Discovery Box. 

FATHER’S DAY SALE — IT DOESN’T HAPPEN OFTEN 40% OFF SALE: UNTIL JUNE 15TH 

If you’ve been considering joining Green Kid Crafts, try now! Thanks to Father’s Day, you can get 40% off a new Green Kid Crafts subscription! Use code “HEARTDAD” at checkout to receive 40% off a new subscription. This coupon is valid through June 15, 2014. Green Kid Crafts costs $19.95 per month and ships for free. With this coupon, you’ll get your first month for $11.97 – a heck of a deal! Green Kid Crafts is a monthly subscription service that provides all the hands-on materials needed to inspire creative and educational fun. With themes like Music, Ocean, Mad Scientist, Nocturnal Animals and much more, these Discovery Boxes deliver everything needed for unique activities that parents and kids can enjoy together. The box is designed for kids ages 3-10. Green Kid Crafts is a subscription service, but you can cancel at anytime. 

Visit here to sign up to receive a different themed Discovery Box! Each Discovery Box contains at least 3 activity kits with everything needed to complete fun, creative, and science-oriented projects. 

Disclaimer: We received a box for free, but made our own opinions. Links are affiliate links, meaning we will get credit for sales. Thanks for your support!

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Posted in Contests, Giveaways and Promotions, Green Parenting, Parenting

Summertime Fun at Suzie’s Farm

Posted on June 9, 2014 | 6 comments

We had so much fun picking strawberries at Suzie’s Farm this spring. So when the opportunity came up for more kid-friendly activities and lunch at the farm, I cleared out my schedule. The little Birds and I joined a small group of bloggers and were treated to a tour and hanging out with Melissa, the director of education at Suzie’s Farm. “Doctor Carrot,” as she is known there, told us all about their summer camps.

sunflowers at suzie's farm

Ever wonder who the “Suzie” in Suzie’s Farm is? A sweet doggie! Melissa and Abby of Suzie’s Farm told us all about the dog that adopted the founding farmers as they led Little Bird and her new friends in acting like dogs and other animals on the farm. We sang a song about plants, took a tour of the garden and picked leaves for an art project.

stealing strawberriesAs the tour was ending, the unmistakable fragrance of strawberries filled the air. Abby told us we could each pick three, and only three, strawberries to eat on the spot. Little Bird and I had no problem finding sweet, beautiful red strawberries. In fact, we kept finding them. I figured she must have meant three strawberries each per person, not per child, right? Soon we fell behind the tour, unable to stop! I felt a bit like Charlie and his grandpa in the Chocolate Factory as we stole a few more sun-warmed strawberries.

chickens at suzie's farm

After the tour we were treated to lunch by the young and talented chefs of Salt & Cleaver. For a sausage restaurant (“sausage” is in their url), they prepared a surprisingly plant based and delicious meal. Highlights for me included Padron peppers with a beet and goat cheese sauce, finished with orange zest; a zucchini based “mac and cheese’ (no noodles but plenty of cheese); and a watermelon and feta salad with house made pickles. The restaurant is in Hillcrest and looks like a fun night out. Next mamas’ night out??

Full disclosure, Little Bird and I were treated (and treated well) to lunch, three strawberries and the tour. (Baby Bird stuck to milk.) Regardless of the delicious bribery, I fully recommend exploring past the CSA. You can experience Suzie’s Farms in one of the following ways:

  • Tour the farm, picking your own veggies as you go. Every Tuesday and Saturday, $10/person and $10/bag of organic veggies.
  • Check their calendar for special events, including a party for picking peppers and tomatoes in August (I’ve got your tomato sauce covered here and here and preserving peak tomatoes here and here.)
  • Week long summer camps start June 16th, with options for grades K-5 and grades 5-8. Cost is $285/week with sibling discounts for multiple children. Activities range from learning about farm animals, farm tools, cooking, making art, and survival skills to running a farmer’s market. Can I sign up?
  • My top pick: Coming up in September, the Autumnal Equinox Dinner is a fancy pants, multi-course, wine and dine alfresco affair, catered this year by Whisknladle. Yummmmmm. Tip: tickets sold out last year in July, so buy early!


Click on any of the images below to see more of our day.

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Posted in Crafts for Kids, Green Parenting, Parenting

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More Ways to Stock Up On Food Before Baby Comes

Posted on May 7, 2014 | Leave a comment

Hopefully you saw my recent post on The Best Meals to Freeze Before Baby Arrives. I had so many ideas that I wrote up a follow-up post for the Ergobaby Blog. Please hop over there to read up on my favorite way to nest: with food! My article on Stocking Up On Food Before Birth is now live.

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Click on the image above to read about:

  • Easy high energy snacks
  • Making double to freeze
  • Freezing meals ready to cook
  • What ingredients to stock up on
  • and more!

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Posted in Birth, Food, Healthy Recipes, How To, Parenting, Pregnancy

Strawberry Picking and Green Strawberry Pickles

Posted on May 4, 2014 | 8 comments

Strawberry Picking

Last weekend we celebrated Papa Bird’s birthday with a fun family day at Suzie’s Farm. They held their annual “Strawberry Jam” last Saturday and we all had so much fun, picking strawberries and eating yummy food. Little Bird loved apple picking as a tot and felt right at home with the plants and chickens.

strawberry picking

We started off picking organic strawberries. Every plant was filled with the most perfectly beautiful, sweet and flavorful berries. (At home, Little Bird tends to pick all of our strawberries while they are still green and small.) I did get some temporary hives from stinging nettles, but they went away.

strawberry picking

Next I sampled strawberry chutney, drank a strawberry and basil kombucha, and made green strawberry pickles with Austin from the San Diego Fermenter’s Club. Little Bird loves them. They are mild, slightly crunchy and have a hint of strawberry flavor. You can find the recipe for Green Strawberry Pickles here.

green strawberry pickles

Green Strawberry Pickles Recipe

After all that hard work, I was ready for a grass fed burger made with strawberry jam, and a beet and quinoa salad from Green Truck. The cold and windy weather discouraged our plans for eating ice cream from our friends’ Calexico Creamery, but we took home a pint of (what else?) Fresa and a pint of Mexican Cocoa. Little Bird and I hid out from the wind in a teepee and she gathered twigs and sticks to build a play fire.

organic strawberry jam

Check back tomorrow and I will share the best recipe for strawberry jam! It has hardly any sugar in it and no pectin. The only other ingredient is a lemon…

–> Update: Strawberry Jam now posted HERE.

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Posted in Family Adventures, Food, Green Parenting, Healthy Recipes, How To, Our Family, Parenting, Preserving and Canning, Recipes for the Whole Family, Recipes from the Garden, Recipes to Make with the Kids, Seasonal Recipes, Urban Homesteading

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