Green

The fabulous bloggers over at Cool Mom Picks have been working their magic on Halloween, finding the best goodies and coolest finds. Like these all natural plant based body and face face paints used to adorn this cutie pie above and perfect for a homemade Halloween costume. Read more »

Starting this weekend, most events taking place for kids in NYC invite you to come in costume. So, get your Princesses and Spidermen ready and check out these fall festivals:

NYC Apple Day 2008 - the LES turns the "Big Apple" green with NYC Apple Day and  Go Green Lower East Side. Be transported back in time with the old-fashioned apple cider press, a live honey beehive plus some modern faves like Read more »

The Reason For a Flower by Ruth Heller is one of my favorite children’s books. It teaches us that “the reason for a flower is to manufacture seeds.” My last post was Wildflowers Everywhere, well those beautiful spring flowers have produced many interesting fruit. Fruit is the part of the plant that holds the seeds. Within all of these fruit are seeds you can collect.

Playing with seeds is fun! Collect a number of different fruit and seeds and have your children sort them, count them, draw them, contrast and compare their shapes and colors. Some of the seeds can be put in soil and they will germinate or grow right away. Some might need to be planted outside and go through one winter before they germinate. It’s fun to walk up to a tree and see what surprises are in store for you. But we are not the only ones who need and value fruit and seeds. Our city’s wildlife: seed eating birds, squirrels, chipmunks and other rodents depend upon the fruit and their seeds that our trees produce. Here are some fruit to look for in midsummer. Read more »

For many, Long Island conjures up images of beaches, malls and traffic and not much else.  But, Long Island is filled with hidden gems that have nothing to do with shopping or the sea (unfortunately traffic is always possible). Once a farming community, you can still find a lot of family farms throughout the Island and these days many have added pick-your-own fields, petting zoos, gourmet fresh markets, garden centers and kid activities. Each farm maintains its personal flavor, here are a few that are really worth the drive.

If you are looking to sink your hands into the soil or spend a day gorging on fruit, head to one of Long Islands many pick-your-own farms Read more »

The best way to get Green in NYC is probably to actually plant something green. There are great gardening classes available for New York City kids and this weekend there's also a NYC Grows festival to help you learn about urban gardening, how you can add more green to your life and a whole lot of fun stuff for kids. Find out about that and terrific gardening classes for kids below. Read more »

It's one thing to eat badly when its just you but as soon as you are charged with feeding a little, one the stakes are risen. However, buying all organic food isn't always possible or even the best choice, and in this day and age where we sometimes have too many choices the whole thing can feel really overwhelming.

The book that broke it all down for me is Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma: A Natural History of Four Meals, it??™s a fascinating read and has made an indelible impact on how our family shops and eats every day. But, since we know that reading books is not always possible, we have put together this little cheat sheet for you. Read more »

It is easy being green, or at least greener, with these three innovative websites. ECHOage,?  Zwaggle, Green Dimes can help your family think outside the box when it comes to birthday parties, swapping and junk mail, plus, they are all free. Haven't heard of them??  Read on to get the skinny. Read more »

Earth Day is a big deal. It's a time to take stock of our environmental impact and reconsider the choices we are making. Befitting the importance of Earth Day, we have a big deal giveaway, in fact it's actually THREE giveaways! The grand prize is A YEAR OF FREE LAUNDRY from new eco-detergent dropps. First, Second and Third prize winners will all receive a set of the new must-have Munchlers lunch packs from Built NY. And we even have runner up prizes of Fruitabu organic fruit snacks. Read on to find out more about these recommended products and your chance to win. Read more »

Earth Day and NYC Public School Spring Break are in alignment this year. Coincidence? ...Yeah, probably. (shrug). So, school's out but the fun, hands-on learning is just beginning. You don't have to go to a fancy resort to have an eco-vacation. With the Mommy Poppins Do-It-Yourself Spring Break Eco Camp kids can learn, do, make and play their way to a greener, smarter world right here in New York City.

We've organized a week jam -packed with the best of Earth Week's eco-friendly fun for NYC kids of all ages. It's almost completely free, will keep you busy all week, and registration is super-easy (just ask yourself if you still have spots available!) Read more »

Every few months I get to a point where I feel overwhelmingly bored of all the books my daughter chooses to read and need to find some exciting new ones to lure her away from the endless re-readings of her favorites. The Beeman, one of Barefoot Books' new Spring titles is our most recent savior.

The Beeman teaches about the process of harvesting honey through the story of a boy whose grandpa keeps honeybees and while it's still a bit out of reach for my two year old, she happily listens along and asks for more. The book ends with some solid in-depth science information and a recipe for apple honey muffins. Read more »