Question by danceforever21: I need some advice on eco-friendly parenting?
This is our first pregnancy and we are trying to be a “green” household. I’ve found some baby bottle companies that I would love to purchase from (Green to Grow, thinkbaby, and BornFree) but I live in a somewhat rural area so I don’t have access to a lot retailers. I’ve considered ordering online but we are on a tight budget so I don’t want to have to pay extra for shipping in handling. Do you know of any brands that are reasonably priced and are available at stores like Target, Wal-Mart, or Babies R Us? I know some bigger brands like Huggies and Johnsons offer a Naturals line but just how “natural” are they? Since I’m new at this I’m not really sure what to look for other than BPA free bottles. I’m looking for bottles, baby wipes, shampoos, lotions, really any natural baby product. Any suggestions, insight, or advice would be greatly appreciated!
Also, I know there’s a good chance that I will receive many products that are not natural as gifts at my baby shower. I will be extremely grateful for any and all gifts that I receive but is there any way that I can go about requesting only natural products without seeming ungrateful or snobby? I know natural baby products can be a bit costlier and I don’t want to be inconsiderate of guests’ limited budgets. And since we live in a more rural area I’m concerned that some extended family will view my requests as “better than thou” since a lot of them probably didn’t grow up in eco-friendly households. Please help! Thank you!
I am planning on breastfeeding but I will be needing bottles for the milk that I pump. I will be needing to go back to work and when I do my mom will be watching the baby so I’ll need plenty of bottles for pre-pumped breast milk.
Best answer:
Answer by a chick
Take what you get and use the money you saved to buy those items. An even bigger way to be eco friendly would be to nurse (rather than worry about bottles and all that formula packaging) if you’re able. Reusing other people’s gently used baby items is another good way.
Know better? Leave your own answer in the comments!
breastfeed – no bottles needed
Most every bottle out there, or at least most that I’ve seen, all say BPA free.
use cloth diapers and cloth wipes – cloth wipes are the best thing. I never thought I would say that, but they work loads better than disposables. I have 50, and I keep them folded in a huggies container, with a squirt bottle of water next to them. I have a 7 month old daughter, and haven’t bought wipes since December! I never thought I would love cloth diapers either. but they hold explosions far better then any disposable diaper out there. They’re also loads better for baby’s bottom
I wouldn’t trust huggies to have all natural anything. Method, California baby, Burts Bees, etc. most places have these brands. the best place to go looking is your local health food store.
as far as gifts go – register for whatever you would like. and realize it’s not the end of the world if someone gives you a bottle of Johnson and Johnson soap. Accept it with thanks – and save it. It all comes in handy
If you’re on a limited budget then I would suggest checking the websites to the places that you want to order from and see if they have free shipping on a certain amount. If so, then save your money and order when you can take advantage of the free shipping offers. Some website’s will give you a discount if you order a certain amount. I know nikkisdiapers dot com did when I ordered my daughter’s cloth diapers. And it was free shipping over $75.00. Sign up for the website’s email and they will sometimes send you discounts and special offers. Better yet, call the number listed on the website and ask if they have any special offers for new mothers. Some may waive the shipping fee’s or give you a small discount to win your business.
I would also suggest registering with any website if that’s an option. Then when you send out your baby shower invitations you could put the websites that you are registered at. If you have close family members that ask you what you want then by all means, tell them. If you think the item is to pricey then just suggest a small gift card or small cash contribution to put toward the purchase of things that you actually want. I know I would much rather buy or contribute to something that someone wants or needs then buy a misc. item that they won’t get any use out of.
As far as green products, the greenest thing you can do is breastfeed and cloth diaper. I didn’t breastfeed for personal reasons but I did cloth diaper and I loved it. I saved up and bought the All in one’s when it came to cloth diapering and they worked great. They we’re pricey though, around $20.00 per diaper. You can cloth diaper for much cheaper though. I also bought cloth wet wipes. I made my own solution and would spray on the cloth wipe before I wiped my daughter. It was cheap to make,smelled great, and lasted forever. You can google cloth diaper solution recipe and find all kinds of ways to make it yourself.
I use Burt Bee’s bath products because they are made with natural ingredients. Some of them I don’t care for the smell but other of there products I love. Check your local health food stores and they will usually carry organic or all natural baby products. There are so many organic and natural products on the market these days. You shouldn’t have any problems finding them. Babiesrus dot com should be a huge help as well.
Glass bottles are the best to store milk in anyway, so you might look for those. They are reusable indefinitely and can be sterilized easily.
Hygeia makes a reusable, recyclable (and excellent) electric breastpump. It is the only retail pump with a guarantee as well as a warranty. Or rent a (better) hospital grade pump only for the time it is needed (2 weeks before returning to work and while at work). Do not start pumping before about 6 weeks unless it is necessary. Remember, you will use the milk you pump at work the next day, so you may not need as many bottles as you think.
Should breastfeeding not work out (and there is no reason it shouldn’t, if you are willing to be educated and work at it) do *not* fall for the “organic baby formula” hype.
Go to the Environmental Working Group website for information on the safest baby cosmetics (I’m sure you’re looking for safety as well as “natural”).
Make your own baby food.
Use cloth diapers.
All the things I’ve mentioned are available on line. You just need to look for them. Try the Mothering (magazine) website for many more ideas.
- If you want to be eco friendly, then look into glass bottles, which can be recycled easily.
As far as baby products like shampoos, wipes, and lotions… be guided by your baby. My granddaughter had a massively bad reaction to a “green” shampoo.
You can buy BornFree at Target.So many companies are now offering a lot of eco-friendly products these days.Yay!!
I also know that you can buy some at Toys are Us.
With wipes you need to look for pure,dye and scent free.Or make your own.Use soft cloths and mix a spray into a spray bottle(very easy and cheap,and better for baby’s booty)With lotions,no parabens at all.
Burt’s bee is a great product line and I use all there stuff!!!You can buy that anywhere,but the best stuff is at the whole food stores,like Whole Foods,Trader Joe’s,Wegmans,Harris Teeter type stores.Any health food store.
Use cloth diapers and I would start a garden so that you can make your own baby food fresh.This is what I did:)Cloth diapers you do not need to order on line(though they may be of a better brand)you can still find those at target and second hand shops too.So don’t be discouraged!
On your registry,add alot of eco stuff you want.If you get something else,take it with a smile and later return it and get what you want.You can also ask people to get you gift cards for amazon.This way you can order stuff you want.I did this too.If you order over a certain amount,then you do not pay for shipping.When buying,you can look at the used stuff on line too.I found some great stuff that was used slightly for half the price from other sellers like you and me.Mom’s like us sell on Amazon too.Under used some of the stuff was still in the original packaging.
Childrens consignment shops are awesome!!!!! I do not know what I would do without mine!
Yes that eco stuff can be pricy,but a lot of times you can find it second hand.I do a lot of second hand buying.I am a stay at home Mom so every penny counts.I also get to sell some of my girls old stuff and buy new without spending a dime(its like a trade in type thing)
Oh and if you do diaper,go with seventh generation.During potty training,some times when we will be out for a long time,I will put a pull up on my 2 year old daughter and they are seventh generation.Awesome product line you may want to look into.A lot of store sell these products as well.
Also for cheap,you can subscribe to kiwi magazine which is eco friendly.They have so much info that you are looking into.I love them.I started asking my doctors office if I could have some of their old ones..haha.
You are on the right track for a better life for your baby,good luck and congrats on your pregnancy!(I am ttc#3 and I am jealous of you…:)
The most eco-friendly ways I can think of…
breastfeed, cloth diapers, cloth wipes, hang them to dry instead of using the dryer, use homemade cleaning products (using vinegar, baking soda, tea tree oil etc…).
Breastfeeding – obviously there is NO need for formula, you could only need a few bottles and cheaper manual breast pump for the odd days out without baby. We used BornFree bottles with our son. We only had about 3 little ones and I was given them by my cousin. But you can purchase them at Babies R Us.
Cloth diapers – obviously since they are cloth and you aren’t throwing them away you will produce less waste and it’s MUCH BETTER for baby and the environment. Disposables have so many awful chemicals in them, they take much more water, electricity and wood pulp to make and take FOREVER to decompose in a land fill.
Cloth wipes – I just bought a pack of 24 face cloths from Costco and marked them so we know they are for baby’s bum. OR if you are handy you can make your own from two little squares of flannel sown together. Wipes are also loaded with Chemicals. Even the Huggies and Pampers “Natural” line. Here in Canada, there was a show that tested the ‘all naturalness’ of products labelled at ‘all natural’ and the Huggies Natural Care wipes actually had a chemical in them that is on Canada’s worse toxins list. Can’t remember which one it was. But it made me grateful I use cloth!
Hanging cloth out to dry – I you choose cloth and have space to dry them outside, you’ll save yourself the dryer cost. ALSO – hanging them in the sun is the BEST way to get rid of stains in cloth diapers! Makes them super white!
Homemade cleaning products – I’m new to this part. After viewing that show I talked about earlier, I started looking up alternative methods of cleaning. Esp with a baby around, using bleach and other harmful chemicals is scary! But, I found you can use simple ingredients to make cleaning products that work well. Look up some ‘recipes’ for those. They use cheap ingredients and I’m thinking would help save a lot of money.
Use an eco-friendly detergent with NO additives – I’ve reccently made the switch to Nellie’s All Natural Washing Soda. Basically because it was good for cloth diapers but found that it’s great for the environment and your health. Lots of laundry detergents have added chemicals and carcinogens (chemicals KNOWN to cause cancer) in them that you wear right NEXT to your skin! And again by hanging them to dry you’ll get a natural fabric softener. If you need to use the dryer, invest in some dryer balls to help with softness. Fabric softeners are deadly! But there are eco and skin friendly ones out there!
Invest in a great stroller! Walk places! We invested in a Chariot. Very expensive but it can also be a bike trailer, jogger, stroller etc etc… In the summer we walk/bike to the store. Because I don’t have a huge trunk to load up with un-needed stuff we spend less and get exercise and our car’s gas bill goes way down!!
I wouldn’t request all natural products, because just because a product is labelled “all natural” doesn’t mean it is!
Research what types of things you would like for gifts, specific stroller, cloth diapers (if you choose)… and then say you would either like a donation towards a specific item or if they would like to purchase a couple cloth diapers for you that would be welcome.
For my baby shower invite my friend mentioned we were saving for a jogger and if they didn’t know what to get a donation towards that would be very appreciated!
Good Luck!
Here is an adorable set for your baby– its organic cotton.. I came across it the other day and when reading your post it reminded me about the site– http://bellamevents.theaspenshops.com/product/fresh-produce-sweet-pea-fivepiece-organic.html
for some products you may like diapers.com. That is where my sisters order from for their babies.. here is the link to the go green baby section- http://www.diapers.com/cat=Green-Baby-51
For your invitations you can put a separate request card stating mommy and daddy to be are “going green” for their new addition. Please ensure items are eco-friendly for our little guy… then mention the places you are registered at. Just register at places that are eco-friendly.
Congrats and enjoy whats to come.