What an amazing time to be a kid who eats lunch! When I started my search for a PVC-free, lead-free lunchbag two years ago, it was slim pickings. Now, you can find so many wonderful and functional lunchbags to fit the style and personality of your kids. Because lunch should be as fun as school, right? Many schools don’t allow metal lunchboxes, because they’re difficult to store in the fridge, but I threw one in for bigger kids. Here are my favs for this back-to-school season:

For the Animal Lover - I flipped over these BUILT Munchlers lunch bags, and I think if I didn’t already have too many lunch-carrying options I would buy every one of them. They’re made from soft-sided polypropylene, tested safe for food, lead free, and easy for small hands to open themselves. The coolest part, aside from carrying around fab animals, is that the bag folds out to a placemat! That means clean lunch space and the bag stores flat when your kids finally put them down! They also come in a wearable lunch pack option.

For the Futurist - Fleurville has come a long way since their original Mothership bags, and their Lunch Pak is a proven hit with the preschool set. The PVC-free bag can be worn as a backpack or carried, and is completely insulated with a wipeable interior. It comes in a totally mod design (they could have named it a Lunch “Pod”) with great colors for both boys and girls. I’m hoping they’ll eventually make this bag as part of their Re-Run line and save some plastic bottles from landfills in the future!

For the Whimsical Set - I wrote about Mimi the Sardine bags for my very first teensygreen post, and I still hail these bags as our go-to lunch/snack/art supply/all around bag. Mimi the Sardine bags are made from 100 percent lead free, PVC-free, and meets the Oeko-Tex 100 Standard for safe textiles. They’re so fun to carry around, I mean, your kids will look so adorable carrying these to school!

For Kids Who Love Opening Boxes (and Well Coordinated Lunches) - Bento boxes are all the rage, but many of them (AKA cheap ones) have lids that always open and spill. My younger daughter loves her Laptop Lunch Bento system for many reasons. One, she eats like a bird, and having the ability to put a bunch of different foods together without plastic baggies makes both of us happy. Second, she gets to open all those little boxes herself - like food presents! Laptop Lunch wil save you a lot on plastic wraps and bags, and you can buy extra boxes in great colors. You also get their lunch menu cookbook, with awesome photos of lunch ideas that will make you instantly hungry!

For Older Kids - I first saw the tiffin lunch system while watching Anthony Bourdain eat his way through India. Men called “dabbawalas” or literally, “one who carries a box,” collect these stainless steel lunch boxes from suburban homes, deliver them miles away to their respective lunch recipients, and return the tiffins to their homes. Apparently they have amazing delivery accuracy (wish I could say the same for some places near my house)! These tiffins have made their way here, and I think they’re super sleek and old-fashioned all at the same time. Tiffins come in various sizes, from two to four tiers, can be insulated, and are sealed for no spillage. I think these would be great for older kids who are past the swinging-lunchbag phase, and who can manipulate the tiffin opening, which can be tricky.

Don’t think I’ve forgotten about the boys! If you have a little boy just starting school and could use a little extra support during their first weeks, I love the idea of putting something small and comforting in their backpack. I thought these handmade cars and trucks from Etsy shop Clickity Clack fits great in backpacks, or waiting for kids in the car to play with after a long school day. ClickityClack uses scrap wood from other projects to make these smaller cars and trucks, and they have a ton of other beautiful wooden toys to choose from!

If your boys still love their “loveys”, Molly’s Knitted Teddy Bears can easily fit right in! Totally huggable and adorable, who wouldn’t want to go to school with these guys?

Of course, girls can love them too!

At the beginning of a new school year, at least for the last couple of years (my girls are only three and five years old, of course), I’ve had two rituals to help comfort my kids as they go through a re-separation. One is to buy a new, handmade doll, and the other is to put something in their backpack that they can look at or hold when they need some reassurance. Tonight, my younger daughter was very upset when she realized her big sister is off to a big kindergarten classroom without her. So this year, I thought I’d have sister dolls made for my girls, who will be in separate schools for the first time.

Etsy has been THE go-to place for me to buy beautiful, fun handcrafted dolls. This back-to-school, I found these adorable dolls from Two Stars. Hand sewn and embroidered by Wendy KayP, and made with linen and cotton, these smiley dolls remind me so much of little girls! And as Wendy explains, the dolls have been tested by her two stars, her twin daughters, to withstand all the tea parties, danceathons, stroller races, and in my case, backpack adventures, they can handle.

Do you have back-to-school rituals for your kids? I’d love to hear how you incorporate comfort into your kid’s newest school endeavours!

I don’t know where you live, but here in Florida we’re on a ONE WEEK countdown to kindergarten. One week gives me not too much time to get ready for school supplies, earlier wake-ups, new teacher, classroom, and the hundreds of other tiny details to make the first day of school as stress free (and tear free) as possible. So for the next couple of weeks, I’ll be covering a lot of Back to School stuff, from the littlest kids to the ones you’re getting ready to send to college and beyond.

One important part of back to school gear is, of course, the backpack. For the past two years we’ve had to buy new packs, after the old ones seem to fall apart at the end of the year and are unrecyclable. I’m also not a big fan of character backpacks, so it was a pleasure to find Ecogear/Ecotech bags. For this giveaway, Ecogear/Ecotech has every kid covered, with organic fabrics and PVC-free materials for their unique, roomy and totally rugged bags for tots to teens and beyond. They’ve even patented a new material, called Ecoweave, which is clean to recycle and toxin-free. My husband has even belted the Snow Leopard around his waist when he’s on his scooter! Ecogear/Ecotech has a ton of new products coming out in coming months, so keep checking back about your favorites!

We’re going to have two winners this week! One winner will have their choice of either a Snow Leopard, Movhave Tui or Bighorn big kid pack from the Ecotech line. For the younger set, one winner can choose their favorite color of the Panda backpack from Ecogear. Please leave a comment at this post with your preference of backpack and what other bags you think would look good stuffed with books, sports gear or anything else your kid lug around with them!

This giveaway will be open for one week, until Monday, August 18th at midnight PST. Good luck!

This contest is now closed! Thanks for entering! 

In case you didn’t know, August is National Breastfeeding Awareness Month! Whether you’re a new or not-as-new mom, breastfeeding has probably been a source of pleasure, pain, stress, euphoria, wonder and worry for you and your baby. Breastfeeding is consistently praised as being a nourishing and healthful way to begin your baby’s life. Even if you’ve never nursed, celebrating this awesome, natural part of life is worth sharing with everyone. Here are some ways to show your spirit this month.

La Leche League International is holding various activities across the country to celebrate World Breastfeeding Week! Check the calendar for fundraisers, nurse-ins, picnics and other get togethers with breastfeeding moms.

World Breastfeeding Week may be officially over, but the WBW site is chock full of wonderful photography, news and articles to support and celebrate nursing from around the globe!

KIWI Magazine has launched its newest blog, The Boob Chronicles, one mother’s struggle, physically and emotionally, with life nursing a two year old. Just starting this week, TBC looks like it’s going to be an honest, in-your-face throes of the highs and lows of breastfeeding.

Mommies With Style has a wonderful array of breastfeeding articles this week, as well as awesome deals on nursing supplies, slings and other supporting accessories! Scroll down on the homepage for more information.

Check out these other amazing breastfeeding blogs - Motherwear; The Lactivist; Mama Knows Breast; and Breastfeeding 1-2-3. If you have a breastfeeding blog you love, please share with a comment! Happy nursing!

Hi all! I’m still out of town, but wanted to tell you that my very first original post for the new site 5 Minutes for Going Green is up! I don’t want to give too much away, but if you have a child who

A) has a birthday

B) likes gifts

C) gets too many presents you wish you could exchange, or

D) all of the above

than this post if perfect for you! Don’t forget to check back daily at 5MFGG for tips, tricks, rants and raves about living eco. Hope everyone is having a wonderful summer, and I’ll be back soon with Back-to-School eco-faves, giveaways, and more!

I don’t subscribe to many magazines (I’m pretty reformed, but our magazine bin is always full to capacity). But as much as I read on-line, green or otherwise, I do like to keep things on hand for browsing or reference that I don’t need to turn on my computer for. KIWI is one of them. KIWI Magazine is a bi-monthly, family-centered publication with a focus on natural and organic lifestyles, but like the fruit, is sweet and many shades of green. KIWI focuses on every aspect of eco-wellness, from health to food to clothing and the fun stuff. KIWI shares the desire held by all parents to create a safe, happy environment for our children that promotes growth and well-being.

The on-line KIWI experience is just as rewarding and brings the magazine even more to life. There’s an awesome recipes page, articles on everything from safe pregnancy to endangered species, a great blog and podcast and KIWI kids funpages to print out and keep your little ones busy all summer. There are also a bunch of newsletters for KIWI in your inbox, with coupons, green tips, and the new cooking club for kids newsletter (there’s no link, but a neat little box where you can enter your email address).

This week, one lucky winner will get a year subscription to KIWI! The rules are the same, as always. Please leave a comment here with an answer to this question - what’s your favorite aspect of KIWI Magazine? You have until next Monday, July 28th at midnight, PST to enter! Good luck!

This contest is now closed! Thanks to everyone for entering! 

I make an effort to stay as far away from my computer as much as possible on the weekends, but that doesn’t mean you don’t have to stop reading about green. I thought I’d try to pass along some valuable articles each Friday for you to click through. You can check out more links of favorite articles around the web each Sunday at 5 Minutes For Going Green!

FDA lifts salmonella warning for tomatoes, and admit they don’t even know if the tomatoes were the culprit. Farmers lose hundreds of millions of dollars from destroyed crops: CNN

Walking the walk: America’s 10 Most Walkable Cities: Daily Green

Happy Birthday Eco-Libris! Help them celebrate the more than 50,000 books balanced and over 65,000 newly planted trees all over the world!

High has prices have increased the use of public transportation to its highest rates in 50 years. Are you taking the bus or train yet?: Sustainablog

Need to replace the plastic turtle sandbox? The Green Guide’s guide to buying safe, sustainable backyard playground equipment is invaluable for upgrading your outdoor space.

Between going to the beach, pool, and general hot and sweatiness of summer, I find myself doing more laundry than usual (blame it on the towels). As I’ve been using a great laundry detergent lately, I dropped everything (pun intended, wait for it) when I found dropps laundry detergent.

dropps is eco in many ways. First, they come in presized packs, so say goodbye to bulky plastic detergent bottles to recycle. This is great for college kids or city dwellers (or, moms and dads) who don’t want to lug around hefty bottles of detergent. Then, these little power packs of detergent completely dissolve in the water (like those Listerine mouthwash strips that disappear when they hit your tongue). dropps detergent claims to be 6x concentrated detergent, is biodegradable, phosphate-free, high efficiency washer compatible, chlorine-free, npe-free and safe for septic tanks. It comes in scented or unscented for those with more sensitive skin.

For a cool spin on dropps (the jokes are just so easy), check out their spin cycle blog, where their resident Stain Guru gives you tips on getting out everything from mustard and ketchup to watermelon (which is the leading cause of stains for my three year old!) They also post monthly listings of eco-events across the country, and keep you informed of dropps news as it unfolds. (I couldn’t help myself!)

Two caveats if you try dropps - keep them away from kids, since they look like candy in their pretty pouches (which you’ll do anyway since you’re all responsible adults), and be forewarned that they are more expensive than even brands at Whole Foods. The jury’s out on this one at my house. We’re in the testing phase at our house, and it’s tough to forsee buying a 60 load supply for $24 (eek!). However, you can find dropps cheaper at walmart.com, target.com, and amazon. What do you think?

Do you give your kids vitamins? I’ve always flip-flopped about them. My girls are both petite but not underweight for their size. They’re also very healthy (thank goodness) and eat fairly balanced (based on the day and what I’m cooking, sometimes). My kids are fascinated, however, with the multivitamin kid’s section at Whole Foods, and they always insist we try something - that and the fact that I think a little extra boost can only help them. The problem is, many of the vitamins I’ve found are still high in sugar, or are low in taste, and are the same gummy-crunchy-goopy non-goodness you’re looking for. What to do?

I was sent a sample of EveryKid by New Chapter, a whole-food based multivitamin that is gluten free, 100% vegetarian, organic, and with no refined sugar and no artificial colors or flavors. It’s actually very low in sugar, with no aluminum dyes. (There are soy and yeast ingredients, for those with allergies.) The fun part is for the kids (of course)! EveryKid is like healthy Fun-Dip - it’s a crystalline , but you don’t mix it into water (you can if you want). Kids pour it directly on their tongue. My daughter tried the “Awesome Apple” flavor and was a bit confused at first. Then she declared, “It’s sour, but sweet at the same time. Yummy! When can I have another one?” Enough said!

EveryKid is recommended for kids four and up, so my three year old can’t get in on the fun just yet. We’ll be trying the “Brilliant Berries” flavor next, and there’s a grape flavor found exclusively at Whole Foods. Would love to hear what you think about vitamins in general - I feel like it’s always a hot topic, especially for kids.