YoYummy

There's just something about a package in the mail.  The big truck pulls up, and the kids have to run to the window to see, "Is it for us?!  Are they coming to our house?!  Well, this particular day, it was our package, and as I unpacked the huge cooler full of yogurt, oh, they were in their bliss.  I mentioned that they would have to wait for me to take pictures, but when they found out that one of the flavors delivered was Cotton Candy, "Oh please mommy, just one!"  And so it was that two new YoYummy fans were born!

Over the next few days we tried all of the flavors, mixed berry, strawberry, strawberry banana, and the famous cotton candy.  We had YoYummy for snack, then the next day we had YoYummy for breakfast, and I packed YoYummy in lunches, in fact, I'm not sure there was a meal which YoYummy was not requested for the next few days- that huge sample that they sent us didn't last long!

The great thing about YoYummy is that it isn't your normal processed junk filled with chemicals.  Instead, it has 10 percent less sugar than the leading national brand kids’ yogurt. The sweetness comes from real fruits and berries, so I feel great about giving this product to my family. The ingredient list is free of high fructose corn syrup, artificial sweeteners, additives, and preservatives, which is a must in my house. In addition, they are made with made with Grade-A rBST-free Vermont milk, is a good source of calcium, and is rich in vitamin A and D.  Although I am disappointed that this delicious product isn't Organic, I am pleased with the rest of the ingredients.  I was also glad to know that the packaging is BPA free.  I will definitely be buying this product again!

Visit yoyummykids.com for new flavors, coloring pages, and coupons, and while you are there, don't forget to vote for the cow's name!  YoYummy is also on Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest.  

Thank you so much to Green Moms Meet for the opportunity to try this amazing product!

Disclaimer: I received this product for free from the sponsor of the Moms MeetSM program, May Media Group LLC, who received it directly from the manufacturer. As a Moms MeetsSM blogger, I agreed to use this product and post my opinion on my blog. My opinions do not necessarily reflect the opinions of May Media Group LLC or the manufacturer of the product.

It's Summer and Eco Kids

I said good-bye to my puppy this weekend.  Ana cries and cries when she thinks about how she misses him. He was the most gentle and loving lab I've ever known, and I'll never forget holding him in my hands the day he was born.  We used to give some of our puppies silly names before we sold them, and he was "Load" because he was the big guy of the litter.  When it was time to name him he was Fallon-  Fallon's Load of Rox.

It was fitting to spend the last day with him in the yard where he spent his 14 years.  The kids played and had fun, but they would stop to lovingly pet him and say a prayer for him. Yesterday when we stood and looked at his grave, the tears came, but standing there in the peaceful sunset it felt right to go on gardening and playing and doing all of the things that we did just a few days earlier when he was still with us.  Although there were tears, there were lots of smiles too- and popsicles.  Our old guy would have approved.


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Please join me for the Eco-Kids Linky!  I hope that you'll share some great family-friendly posts that are also friendly for the environment. Some ideas include:

•  Nature Activities
• Outdoor Activities
• Crafts made with re-purposed or recycled materials
• Sewing and DIY home projects
• Science Experiments
• Posts on environmental issues for kids or families
• Non-toxic living
• Homeopathic Remedies

Eco-Kids Tuesdays is co-hosted by Organic Aspirations and Like Mama~Like Daughter. This means that anything you link-up shows up on both blogs!
Feel free to link up several of your posts.

There are only a few rules:

Please follow both co-hostess' blogs, and visit some of the other posts and give them some encouragement!   Please stick to posts and photos not giveaways or items for sale.

By linking up, you are agreeing that Organic Aspirations or Like Mama~Like Daughter can feature your photos next week with a link back to your site.  

 Please link back to my site using this button:

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Gardening and Eco Kids

Last summer I shared each week of the CSA share that I received.  This year the share is no less promising- it's even more packed with goodness, but I have to share a picture of my own crop from this year.  My family has been living on lettuce from the farm mixed with this spicy mix that we harvested from our own garden!  

I transplanted about 50 tomato plants just last week, so I'm hoping for lots of great tomato products to can this year!

What are you hopeful for from your garden this year?  

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Please join me for the Eco-Kids Linky!  I hope that you'll share some great family-friendly posts that are also friendly for the environment. Some ideas include:

•  Nature Activities
• Outdoor Activities
• Crafts made with re-purposed or recycled materials
• Sewing and DIY home projects
• Science Experiments
• Posts on environmental issues for kids or families
• Non-toxic living
• Homeopathic Remedies

Eco-Kids Tuesdays is co-hosted by Organic Aspirations and Like Mama~Like Daughter. This means that anything you link-up shows up on both blogs!
Feel free to link up several of your posts.

There are only a few rules:

Please follow both co-hostess' blogs, and visit some of the other posts and give them some encouragement!   Please stick to posts and photos not giveaways or items for sale.

By linking up, you are agreeing that Organic Aspirations or Like Mama~Like Daughter can feature your photos next week with a link back to your site.  

 Please link back to my site using this button:

<a href="http://organicaspirations.blogspot.com
 /search/label/Eco%20Kids" target="_blank"><img
src="http://i1172.photobucket.com/albums/r577/Becki_Lewis/EcoKidsTuesdays.jpg" alt="Organic Aspirations" width="125" height="125" /></a>

It's June! and Eco Kids

So, May was a crazy month for me, but we had a great time anyway! Here's a little montage of what we've been up to.

 We had a great time at the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden Plant Sale (even though I think I killed some of my new plants!)

 They made necklaces from wood from the garden.

 My daughter loves Care Bears, so we've enjoyed hunting the flea market for vintage bears.  This one was 50 cents!

 I made some wall art!

 I love when it's still cool enough for pansies.

 This was her last day as a one year old!

 Retreat!

 They loved the parade...

 ...but the loud sirens made them want to cuddle with Mommy.

We fit in a little geocaching (but we didn't find the cache!)

 Addie's party had simple decorations a la Soule Mama.

I love iris.  They remind me of the beloved time spent on my uncle's farm in Tennessee.

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Please join me for the Eco-Kids Linky!  I hope that you'll share some great family-friendly posts that are also friendly for the environment. Some ideas include:

•  Nature Activities
• Outdoor Activities
• Crafts made with re-purposed or recycled materials
• Sewing and DIY home projects
• Science Experiments
• Posts on environmental issues for kids or families
• Non-toxic living
• Homeopathic Remedies

Eco-Kids Tuesdays is co-hosted by Organic Aspirations and Like Mama~Like Daughter. This means that anything you link-up shows up on both blogs!
Feel free to link up several of your posts.

There are only a few rules:

Please follow both co-hostess' blogs, and visit some of the other posts and give them some encouragement!   Please stick to posts and photos not giveaways or items for sale.

By linking up, you are agreeing that Organic Aspirations or Like Mama~Like Daughter can feature your photos next week with a link back to your site.  

 Please link back to my site using this button:

<a href="http://organicaspirations.blogspot.com
 /search/label/Eco%20Kids" target="_blank"><img
src="http://i1172.photobucket.com/albums/r577/Becki_Lewis/EcoKidsTuesdays.jpg" alt="Organic Aspirations" width="125" height="125" /></a>

An Update and Eco Kids

You may remember a while ago I had a featured guest post, Cancer and Its Hard Lessons, by Heather Von St. James relating her difficult story about being diagnosed with Mesothelioma just months after the birth of her daughter.  She now has an update video that I am pleased to share with you today!

Please be aware that asbestos is still a very high health risk in the United States.  We all know the serious problems of asbestos exposure, yet it is still used in items like brake pads and building materials.  Read more about this on the Safer Chemicals Healthy Families Website.

Before we move on to Eco Kids, I want to share a few of my favorites from last week with you:

Closing the Loop in Charitable Giving by Taylor Made Ranch


Calming Bedtime Spray Recipe by doTERRA


Screen Free Week by Seedlings Nursery School

If you were featured today, please share this button on your site!
 

<a href="http://organicaspirations.blogspot.com/search/label/Eco%20Kids" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1172.photobucket.com/albums/r577/Becki_Lewis/FeaturedonEcoKidsTuesdays.jpg" alt="Organic Aspirations" width="125" height="125" /></a>

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Please join me for the Eco-Kids Linky!  I hope that you'll share some great family-friendly posts that are also friendly for the environment. Some ideas include:

•  Nature Activities
• Outdoor Activities
• Crafts made with re-purposed or recycled materials
• Sewing and DIY home projects
• Science Experiments
• Posts on environmental issues for kids or families
• Non-toxic living
• Homeopathic Remedies

Eco-Kids Tuesdays is co-hosted by Organic Aspirations and Like Mama~Like Daughter. This means that anything you link-up shows up on both blogs!
Feel free to link up several of your posts.

There are only a few rules:

Please follow both co-hostess' blogs, and visit some of the other posts and give them some encouragement!   Please stick to posts and photos not giveaways or items for sale.

By linking up, you are agreeing that Organic Aspirations or Like Mama~Like Daughter can feature your photos next week with a link back to your site.  

 Please link back to my site using this button:

<a href="http://organicaspirations.blogspot.com
 /search/label/Eco%20Kids" target="_blank"><img
src="http://i1172.photobucket.com/albums/r577/Becki_Lewis/EcoKidsTuesdays.jpg" alt="Organic Aspirations" width="125" height="125" /></a>

A Plastic Free Kitchen

I've been readingPlastic-Free: How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and How You Can Tooby Beth Terry, and it has really inspired me to go plastic free in my kitchen.  There are lots of other areas where I would like to reduce my use of new plastics, but my utensils and other kitchen things I would really like to be plastic-free to reduce the chances of hot foods causing the different plastics to leech chemicals into our food.  I will continue to use the plastic items I have until I am able to replace them.

Right now I have lots of plastic:

• Serving spoons
• Kid's dishes
• Sippy cups
• Straws
• Airtight containers
• Measuring cups
• Measuring spoons
• Zipper bags
• Food Processor
• Saran Wrap
• Veggie Tray

Here are some of the products which I am slowly saving up to buy:

 I also want these sandwich bags from Life without Plastic.

I already use some Eco friendly ideas in the kitchen, including my DIY glass Popsicle molds.  (These are so easy- you can make your own too!) I've started re-using glass jars instead of airtight containers, and I have two stainless drink bottles which I take everywhere. I have some wooden dishes for my kids, but they wear out quickly, and they are not dishwasher safe.  I'm hoping that using more stainless steel will decrease my time in front of that dreaded sink!

Last week on Eco Kids there were lots of great posts, as usual.  Some of my favorites are listed below.

9 Real Food Switches You Can Make in No Time by Shalom Mama

Teach Kids to Love Fruits and Veggies: Buy in Season by Creative Christian Mama


Nature Walks with Kids by The Craft Train


Build Your Own Greenhouse by Dude, Sustainable!


DIY Waldorf for Poor People by Kate's Apartmentsteading

If you were featured today, please share this button on your site!
 

<a href="http://organicaspirations.blogspot.com/search/label/Eco%20Kids" target="_blank"><img src="http://i1172.photobucket.com/albums/r577/Becki_Lewis/FeaturedonEcoKidsTuesdays.jpg" alt="Organic Aspirations" width="125" height="125" /></a>

***********

Please join me for the Eco-Kids Linky!  I hope that you'll share some great family-friendly posts that are also friendly for the environment. Some ideas include:

•  Nature Activities
• Outdoor Activities
• Crafts made with re-purposed or recycled materials
• Sewing and DIY home projects
• Science Experiments
• Posts on environmental issues for kids or families
• Non-toxic living
• Homeopathic Remedies

Eco-Kids Tuesdays is co-hosted by Organic Aspirations and Like Mama~Like Daughter. This means that anything you link-up shows up on both blogs!
Feel free to link up several of your posts.

There are only a few rules:

Please follow both co-hostess' blogs, and visit some of the other posts and give them some encouragement!   Please stick to posts and photos not giveaways or items for sale.

By linking up, you are agreeing that Organic Aspirations or Like Mama~Like Daughter can feature your photos next week with a link back to your site.  

 Please link back to my site using this button:

<a href="http://organicaspirations.blogspot.com
 /search/label/Eco%20Kids" target="_blank"><img
src="http://i1172.photobucket.com/albums/r577/Becki_Lewis/EcoKidsTuesdays.jpg" alt="Organic Aspirations" width="125" height="125" /></a>