I’ve been getting a ton of emails about how to keep safe this Fourth, including the dangers of fireworks to the environment, green grilling and other fun stuff. Here are some articles from around the web about Independence Day. Have a great weekend!

The Daily Green offers 8 Fun Alternatives to Fireworks - You CAN celebrate without them! Great ideas for families with young children.

Speaking of fireworks, droughts and dry weather across the US has caused many fireworks shows to be canceled this year.

Check this list to see if your Fourth of July hamburgers contain contaminated beef. While you’re thinking about your menu, here are some green grilling tips. If you’re a vegetarian, find an incredible amount of veggie-based recipes from my new go-to, Eden Foods.

Spend some time making Fourth of July crafts! Give the kids some fun things to make for their day off.

For this weekend, and every weekend, keeping your kids safe from the sun and elements isn’t just about being environmentally friendly - it’s about keeping little ones healthy and happy as we celebrate our country’s birthday.

I’ve written about the Environmental Working Group a few times, and can’t stress enough the importance of their work testing and rating products you use on a daily basis. Will you be surprised to find the sunblock you use, with a high SPF and waterproof promise, didn’t make EWG’s cut? I wasn’t, although I’ll be making a switch this week! EWG has tested 952 name-brand sunscreens, only 15% of which has made their cut for UVA and UVB effectiveness, SPF stability and safe ingredients, among other criteria. You can read about their testing methodology and criteria, and search for your sunscreen. For kids, California Baby, Blue Lizard, and TruKids make the grade, while most of the supermarket brands, especially No-Ad and, would you believe, Neutrogena (!) should be tossed.

If you’re water bound, combining smart sunscreen with smart bathing suits makes a huge difference in your kid’s sun safety. The sunwear product Coolibar makes comfortable and fun UPF 50+ swimwear for the entire family. Find rash guard short and long-sleeved shirts and swimwear, chlorine-resistant sunhats for infants, eyewear and more. They also happen to be having a HUGE sale, so there’s plenty of time to stock up for the rest of the summer! They are also a recommended by the Skin Cancer Foundation.

Target and other big superstores also carry many products to help make the summer sun more friendly to you and your kids.  Have a safe and fabulous Fourth!

Let’s start with the basics - your picnic table! Here are some tips to reducing waste and the overall amount of junk that will end up in a landfill.

Tablecloths - Instead of plastic tablecloths, how about using one that can be washed and used over and over again? No worries about sustainable fabrics…the fact that you’ll be reusing instead of throwing it away makes a big difference over time. I’ve found some great, washable tablecloths at Target, which are reasonably priced (so you won’t feel bad when they’re stained beyond use from all that BBQ sauce!)

Tableware - There’s a wide variety of tableware made from sustainable materials out there. The most popular is probably Preserve Tableware, made from 100% recycled plastic. Preserve products are also dishwasher safe, can be used over and over and is recyclable under #5 plastic. The plates, utensils and cups come in a bold array of colors, and can be found at Target, Whole Foods, Crate and Barrel, and other health-related stores. Bagasse is a line of sugarcane plates that are fully compostable. For a full range of biodegradable tableware, check out the Biodegradable Store, for compostable hot and cold cups, cutlery, food containers, and more!

For cleaning up faces and tables, Seventh Generation offers 100% recycled paper towels and napkins.  Also consider cloth napkins and rags to clean up.  Instead of buying large amounts of disposable serving dishes, ask your guests to bring bowls and dishes from home.  With a little imagination, your Fourth of July table can be eco and BBQ friendly!

Like many holidays, going green is possible with a bit of imagination, perseverance, and dare I say it, a little more money out of your pocket. Fourth of July, however, is proving to be especially tricky to write about. Most people will be outside for most, if not the entire, day, firing up over 60 million grills that will release enough energy to power over 20,000 homes for ONE YEAR! Since you’re already eating outside, you’ll be sure to use paper or plastic plates, utensils, and cups. Most likely, you’ll be drinking water, soda and other refreshments from disposable cans or bottles. Unless you’re living with strict vegetarians, there will be a precarious amount of meat being cooked. And the fireworks! Don’t even get me started…

For kids, Fourth of July is a great day to be outside. Thinking about insect repellant and sunscreen also raises questions of chemicals and outdoor safety. Not meaning to send parents in a panic, there are safe alternatives this summer to keep your kids safe from the sun and biting pests.

This week, I’ll cover a wide range of going green or sustainable ways to help make your Fourth a little greener, and give you ideas for the rest of your summer BBQs and outdoor activities. I’ve also found some cool green Fourth of July events across the country.

What will you be doing this Independence Day?

We’re getting ready for Passover this week, which isn’t as easy as it may seem. We’re cleaning, donating, separating, trying to bring in this important holiday as fresh as possible. Passover, which this year falls from Saturday, April 19th through Sunday, April 27th, is the ultimate celebration of Spring. Getting ready for Passover means literally upending your house, and having a green Passover is a great way to welcome Spring into your home. Here are some general tips to greening your home, and holiday -

• Cleaning with eco-products, such as Mrs. Meyers, Seventh Generation, or homemade concoctions to clean and disinfect, especially your kitchen (the idea being to remove every last crumb from every last surface before Passover begins)
• Buying meat and produce from local sources, such as farmer’s markets - and organic, whenever possible
• Using regular dishes instead of disposable ones during the seders, to cut down on waste
• Get creative with leftovers! Passover dinners can easily turn into great lunches the next afternoon

If you’re looking for more inspiration, The Jew and the Carrot provides a wealth of information regarding food (for Passover and in general) and sustainability. For Passover, find sustainable seder menus, a kosher organic wine list, and many other resources. PETA also has a wonderful article called “Celebrate a Compassionate Passover” with many vegetarian recipes and resources, and why going veggie benefits the earth and animals.  Happy Passover!

Nothing says love like cards from kids - my grandmother used to frame her favorite cards from her grandchildren, and I’m already following in her footsteps. My girls love to make pictures and give them out as birthday cards, thank yous, or just to say ‘I love you’. How thrilled was I when I found Stubby Pencil Studio’s eco-friendly stationery and art supplies for kids! Check out these adorable Valentine’s Day ‘color ‘n kids’ 12 pack of cards - perfect for sending to family and BFFs!

Stubby Pencil Studio’s cards and envelopes are both made from 100% post-consumer recycled card stock, and right now are the only eco-stationery line exclusively for kids. Pair them with a set of soy crayons or other eco-friendly supplies and you have yourself a true green Valentine’s that you can keep forever. No need for recycling - a card from the heart is a true gift!

It’s no surprise how smart the chocolate industry is - we love chocolate, we always love chocolate, and Valentine’s Day is not an excuse to be eating chocolate. Except for tradition, that is. That being said, there is always a big push for our favorite indulgence this time of year. Here’s something chocolaty you can without all the calories (ok, some of the calories). Sustainable Harvest International, a non-profit agency that helps plant trees in Central and South America, as well as provides long-term assistance to communities for sustainable practices, wants to help keep the organic chocolate industry to thrive. They estimate that over 150,000 cacao trees have been planted over the past two years, providing much needed additional income to the families that harvest the trees, as well as providing shelter for wildlife and reforest hard hit areas.

Their latest newsletter, fittingly named ‘For the Love of Chocolate,’ talks about the wonders of the cacao tree and the benefits of planting new cacao forests. For a $40 donation, an acre of cacao trees will be planted in a select community, along with providing the tools and training to help plant and harvest the trees. In return, you get a special Valentine-themed gift card and a sinfully organic jar of Robin’s Chocolate Sauce. Just the name alone and I’m almost up for an ice-cream sundae…

If you (yes YOU) can’t get enough of chocolate, please try to make your chocolate of choice natural, organic, and free trade. Here is a list of chocolate companies that strive to make quality, sustainable chocolaty goodness. You can find most of these brands in local markets, so feel free to test them all out!

Dagoba Organic Chocolate - ‘chocolate alchemy’ at it’s best!
Sweet Earth Organic Chocolates - check out their Valentine gifts, including chocolate hearts!
Green and Black’s - rich, Fair Trade Certified chocolate products.
Rapunzel - the ‘world’s first’ 100% organic chocolate bar.
Newman’s Own Organics - fair labor-practiced from Central and South America.
Endangered Species Chocolate - 10% of profits help support endangered animals. Shop with a ‘green heart’ this V-day!
Divvies - if you have kids with allergies, give them some good, old-fashioned Valentine cupcakes that are dairy, egg, and peanut and treenut free!

Growing up, the Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shevat always struck a chord with me. Maybe it was the treehugger in me, or maybe the holiday is what made me this way, but I have always had a thing for gardening and giving back to reforesting and nature organizations. When I was 13, I made it all the way to Israel and hand-planted trees for my grandparents. It was a momentous trip that will always connect my love for nature. Monday night and Tuesday marks the Jewish holiday of Tu B’Shevat, or the New Year of the Trees, the Jewish Arbor Day, OR, according to my kids, the Birthday of the Trees. For two weeks at school, they’ve been planting seeds, making green “tree” cupcakes, and overall studying nature and literally hugging trees to help give back to the Earth for what it gives to us.

Originally, Tu B’Shevat marked the ‘fiscal year’ of trees, the date used for tax purposes for farmers. Now, it takes a more immediate, even urgent feel. Planting trees brings more food to the hungry; more shade for the overheated; better air quality. It might sounds like a strange holiday to celebrate in the middle of winter - in the US. In Israel, however, the rainy season has brought the trees to bloom, and to celebrate, we eat fruit and grains from the “Seven Species” of Israel - wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and honey. We eat a meal to taste all these foods, and to really get ‘back to nature’. It’s a very easy holiday to share with children - nature still holds a big fascination, and to get hands-on through planting and eating brings the idea of Earth cycles, well, full circle.

So, even if you’re not Jewish, eat some fruit on Tuesday and think about the tree or plant it came from. Here’s a website with coloring pages and Tu B’Shevat activities. And if you’re feeling particularly charitable, here’s a list of organizations where you can ‘plant’ trees, in honor or memory of someone. I often plant trees in honor of births, or to mark special events in my families lives. No matter if you’re planting for someone else or yourself - the earth is the real benefactor!

Jewish National Fund - planting trees in Israel since 1901!
Eco-Libris - love to read? Donate $1 for every book you read (or your kids - a great incentive!), Eco-Libris will help plant a tree in a tree-needy country. They’ll even send you a sticker for your book!
The Fruit Tree Planting Foundation - aiming to plant 18 billion fruit trees worldwide - three for each person in the world!
Trees for the Future - helps teach communities how to plant trees and rebuild their environment.
American Forests - helping to replant wildfire sticken areas.

If you’re like me, you’re almost done with Chanukah, stuffed full of latkes and applesauce (I’m a sour cream woman myself), strung out from one too many dreidel games, and about to sit back, relax, and let the millionth holiday commercial on CNN come and go without even a peek. If you’re not like me, you’re still on a countdown of shopping, organizing, finalizing, and wrapping. And herein lies the problem for many of us. I’ve written about what a waste wrapping paper is…all that paper, made to look pretty and then BAM! Instant trash, especially with kids, who will shred wrapping paper until every last glittery piece is ready to be landfilled.

What an amazing find with these box sets from treeo design, resuable boxes that are more like attention-grabbing accents for gifts - and will gladly be used again to make someone else’s face light up. Made from either recycled or FSC certified paper (meaning, no new trees were used to produce them), and using vegetable dyes for printing, the boxes have a funky, totally carryable shape and design to match any gift giver (or recipient)! The boxes come in either a set of three - large, medium, and small - or, a four pack of small boxes for stocking stuffers or ‘good things come in small packages’ gifts. Treeo is a mom/sister/friend-run company out of upstate New York, which gives me the feeling that a lot of heart and personality went into these designs. Guaranteed you’ll find a box set that fits your gift-giving style!

I just so happen to have the pleasure of giving away a treeo box set (3-pack) to one lucky winner this week! Just tell me which design is your favorite, leave a comment here, and you might win it…The giveaway is, as always, open until Thursday night at midnight, PST. Have fun choosing, and good luck!

PS - They make good, old-fashioned recycled wrapping paper too!

This contest is now closed!  Happy Holidays, and look for more giveaways in the New Year!

Since I took the Handmade Pledge, I’ve been trying to find a way to effectively get the word out about craft fairs and crafter’s galore across the country to mobilize you to get out there and buy better gifts. I fit the first puzzle piece from my friend Kelli over at Tangled and True, when she announced Tangled and True’s handmade fair, a selection of ten very special handmade companies offering very special holiday discounts. My personal favorites, blabla handknitted dolls, backpacks, and pillows, and Quilt Baby bibs and burp cloths, join other wonderful designers such as Sarah Jane illustrated prints and intricate, totally girly, indie clothier willarie.

The biggest piece of the ‘keeping up with handmade’ puzzle is the Indie Craft Fair Guide, which is exactly what it says - THE guide to craft fairs nationwide. Listed by date, with many sponsors lining the columns, you’ll find handmade GALORE, from clothing to crafts, stationary to stuffed animals. This is a big weekend, people, so get out there and get crafty!

December 7th:

Boston, MA - Design Nearby Prints Charming
Portland, OR - motokitty, 5 Parties, 10 Artists

December 8th and 9th:

Portland, OR - The Rebel Rabbit Craft Fair
Milwaukee, WI - ARTvsCRAFT
New York, NY - BUST Magazine’s Holiday Craftactular
Des Moines, IA - Craft Saturday!
Sacramento, CA - SellOut BuyOut
Chicago, IL - Handmade Market
Chicago, IL - Renegade Market
Brooklyn, NY - 3rd Ward Handmade Holiday Craft Fair & Open House
Brooklyn, NY - Artists & Fleas Market
Pittsburgh, PA - I Made It For the Holidays
Boston, MA - SOWA Holiday Market
Boston, MA - Bazaar Bizarre
Biddeford, ME - Blissful Revolution Arts & Crafts Bazaar
Pass Christian, MS - Handmade Invasion
Sarasota, FL - Atomic Holiday Bazaar