SafeKiddo Blog

I LOVE this and so does everyone else!!

Here is just one qoute out of at least 15 that I’ve heard from customers:

Lizi said–

“I gave this to my best friend for her baby shower in early October. It was the hit of the party! Since then, my best friend gave it to her sister who’s baby had a baby last month, and her sister bought another for her husband because she didn’t want to share her own! This is a product that you won’t know what you did before you had it!”

With sizes and colors for both women and men, the Peekaru Original™ is a perfect accessory to your favorite baby carrier. You’ll love the style, and your baby will love the comfort.

In addition…for those like me who feel good about helping the environment, you can do this just by choosing this product because:

It is made from 85% recycled high quality Polartec fleece, each Peekaru Original™ saves approximately 25 plastic bottles from reaching the landfill. In addition, Polartec fleece is Oeko-tex Standard 100 “for textile products of all types which pose no risk whatsoever to health.” Feel good knowing that while you are holding your baby close, you are also helping the environment.

Just when we thought we were safe…

MSG

Common Definition:

additive used in some Chinese and Japanese food, and properly labeled food products available in grocery stores.

Real (scientific) Definition:

white crystalline substance, a sodium salt of the amino acid glutamic acid. MSG is used to intensify the natural flavor of meats and vegetables. Originally produced from seaweed, MSG is now made principally from cereal gluten (like wheat, corn, and soybeans), from solutions evolved in the manufacture of beet sugar, and by microbiological fermentation of carbohydrates. The 2 main raw ingredients used in the commercial production of MSG are WHEAT GLUTEN and desugared beet-sugar molasses.

FYI:
MSG stimulates specific receptors located in taste buds which induce the taste known as umami, one of the five basic tastes (the word umami is a loanword from Japanese; it is also referred to as “savory” or “meaty”).

Interesting:

Glutamate itself is a widespread amino acid (WHICH ARE VITAL TO OUR HEALTH): it is found naturally in human bodies, and is found primarily in the bound form in protein-containing foods, such as mushrooms, seaweed, tomatoes, nuts, legumes, meats, and most dairy products.

VERY IMPORTANT….kind of scientific, but follow along:

The unbound form, or free form, of glutamate is very quickly absorbed in the gastrointestinal tract (unlike the bound form). This could spike blood plasma levels of glutamate. Glutamic acid (or bound form) is in a class of chemicals known as excitotoxins. These toxic compounds are known to interfere with brain chemistry and have been implicated in a variety of neurological diseases, such as brain cancers, MS, fibromyalgia, depression and hyperactivity (ADHD)–seems like a serious contradiction to me, an amino acid found naturally that can cause brain cancer amongst other neurological diseases???

Truth?

There are so many conflicting studies on the effects of MSG in humans, it is hard to know the real truth. However, it is CLEAR that there are quite a few people who have a distinct allergy to MSG, which can produce pretty scary effects that supposedly last for a brief time and then subside: These symptoms include, but are not limited to:

burning sensation in the back of the neck, forearms and chest
numbness in the back of the neck, radiating to the arms and back
tingling, warmth and weakness in the face, temples, upper back, neck and arms
facial pressure or tightness
chest pain
headache
nausea
rapid heartbeat
difficulty breathing
drowsiness
weakness

Personally Speaking:

The idea that MSG has so many aliases is new to me. I thoroughly read labels because it is important to me that my son and I eat healthy! I believe in the saying we are what we eat, even though it has become quite a cliche. I have always stayed clear of MSG, or so I thought. Now, I feel so much more aware of the sneaky ingredients that we assume are healthy. They’re even saying that manufacturers are starting to use ingredients like pea protein, which produces MSG in the manufacturing process.

Best bet…try to stick with whole foods when you can. For example, choose peas over pea protein!

NOW, if you’ve decided after reading this that you do not want you or your family ingesting this unnecessary additive, then here is what to avoid:

Most of us, before now, thought that as long as ingredients did not include the term MSG, or monosodium glutamate, we didn’t have to worry. TIMES HAVE CHANGED. Food manufacturers have become sneaky. Here is a REAL list of foods to avoid if you avoid MSG:

Ingredients ALWAYS contain MSG:

These ingredients OFTEN contain MSG or can create MSG during processing:

www.safekiddo.com for organic security blankets and organic swaddle blankets

Considering giving up conventionally grown produce for organic ones?

For the Conscious Mom:

Quit. Give them up, and go organic instead. When it comes to nourishment and our children’s health, it’s important to know the facts!

The Facts:

A not-for-profit environmental organization dedicated to improving public health and protecting the environment, EWG (Environmental Working Group), ranked 44 different fruits and veggies based on 43,000 tests collected by the US Department of Agriculture and the US Food and Drug Administration between 2000 and 2005.

Here is what they found…Note: 100 represents the highest pesticide load and 1 has the lowest.

Most Pesticides are applied at root level, thus infused into every cell of the plant as it grows, leaving every intruder harmed (THIS INCLUDES US AND OUR CHILDREN)!

Personally Speaking

I Buy Organic produce. I am NOT obsessive about it only because anything in obsession, in my opinion, is not healthy. When we are at my parents’ house, for example, I let my son eat their fruit, although it is not organic.

I DO believe that making changes to the amount of produce eaten daily will restore energy, renew and strengthen cells, and help heal our bodies. So then doesn’t it make sense to get the most nourishment we can from the produce we choose? The best fruits and veggies have been grown and harvested locally with no pesticides! Find your local farmer’s market, or natural food store!

We all know that once our kids reach a certain age, we can’t always control how much candy they manage to collect, but we can control the kind of Halloween we have at home! So, here’s a few eco-friendly, healthy ideas:

Trick or Treating Ideas:

Purchase a Halloween Limited Edition ChicoBag!
This limited edition reusable Green Halloween ChicoBag is eek-o-fabulous. Perfect for trick-or-treaters or for small shopping loads.

Like all ChicoBags, our Halloween version is compact and fits into your pocket or purse. This limited edition is designed by kids! The bag, designed by 12-year-old Estefania Vargas, features a happy skeleton watering his pumpkin field/ graveyard at night underneath a full moon. The pouch (inspired by artwork submitted by a 6-year-old) features a little ghost saying, “Keep our Earth Boo-tiful!” HOW CUTE IS THAT!?!

What’s even sweeter? A percentage of the sale of each bag will be contributed to Treeswing, the organization making Green Halloween (and other great initiatives) possible.

Holds up to 20lbs of treats and treasures. And remember - be sure to compost your children’s leftover candy.

Limited stock so get yours now! Find it here.

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DECORATING and Painting:

Check out this Pumpkin decorating kit!

This kit is great for kids of all ages! Allows little ones to participate without fear of sharp objects! Big kids will love it too because it’s so different from the carving norm!

It uses natural wooden eyes, ears, lips, and other facial features kids can decorate pumpkins with!  The pieces attach with wooden dowels and allow kids to make a unique pumpkin creation without having to use a knife. Don’t forget to use oragnic pumpkins!

Find it here.

Non-Toxic Halloween Paint– with these safe, non-toxic paints, your kids can have unlimited fun painting pumpkins or windows!

Squeeze tubes regulate the flow of paint, which goes on shiny and dries to a matte finish. No worries for moms - cleanup is easy! The nontoxic paints wash off super quickly with water and paper towels.

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List of “Healthier” Options:

Yummy Earth Organic Lollipops
Fruitabu Organic Smooshed Fruit Rolls
Fair Trade Gold Coins
Candy Tree Organic Cherry Laces

*If you’re looking for more ideas, go over to your closest coop, outpost, wholefoods, even trader joes! (DID I MENTION I LOVE TRADER JOES)
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FAMILY TIME IDEA:

Take your kids to the apple orchard, try to make it an organic farm. Anyway, when you get home, heat up some fresh organic apple cider and tell stories with your kids!

QUESTION: What’s your favorite kind of apple? I have a favorite, but I’ve asked people to try my fav, only to be disappointed by the terrible look on their face afterward! So, I want to know what people’s favorite apples are! PLEASE leave your comments…what is your favorite? What are your kids favorites, etc? I’m really curious, does anyone really like green sour apples?

The best shoe for a baby is a soft shoe and these moks are super soft! The dusty rose uppers are new leather and the inside sole and exterior sole are made from reclaimed leather. The mok has an elasticized top for comfy fit and makes it harder for baby to kick off. Then when you are holding baby, everyone will see the cute cutout on the bottom of the foot.

Available in sizes 0-24 months!

Find these Moks Here

This product is handmade in the USA by a fabulous eco-friendly artist who uses reclaimed and environmentally friendly materials!

Did you know that over the last decade pediatricians and podiatrists have learned that hard soled shoes are not suitable for infants as they learn to walk? Young children’s feet are soft and pliable,and pressure from the wrong type of shoe can be detrimental to the development of growing.

Pediatricians and podiatrists agree that barefoot is best, but not always practical. As the next best thing, soft soled baby shoes enable baby feet to grow naturally and to flex when they walk. A soft sole shoe also enables them to sense the ground beneath their feet and to grip with their toes as they learn to stand and walk.

Price: $24.00

Although it is one of Peter Gabriel’s best, I’m not thinking of the song here, I’m thinking of a fun, eco-friendly activity for you and your kiddo. Try creating a worm farm, or in Spanish, as my guy calls it, lombricero. It’s easy to do! By the way, this is not for the squirmish (is that the word I’m looking for?)

You may ask, why a worm farm?

4 Reasons:
Great for the earth
Less household waste
Makes GREAT, free fertilizer
REALLY fun for kids to make and care for!

A great deal of household waste is organic and doesn’t have to go to waste. It can kept and recycled by worms! Worms eat almost anything that was once living, including: food scraps, leaves, grass clippings, weeds, natural fiber cloth,manure (including dog and cat droppings)–I know, Yuck–, paper products and more! Worm castings (poop) is one of Mother Natures best natural fertilizers. Oh, and your worm farm won’t stink, as you think it may because of the rapid speed at which they eat.

Click Here for Worm Farm Directions.

Personally Speaking
My son and I had the best time making ours! We even dug up a few worms of our own to add (although I know I’m not sure if that was helpful or harmful) It feels really good and healthy to have a running worm farm. We recycle all that we can in there, more food than anything. I realized we eat avocados more than any other fruit or vegetable! We waste practically nothing between our dog and our worms.

Liza, a good friend and fellow mama, but to 2, aged 4 and 6 months, put her 6 month old in her Baby Carrier, and while he slept, she had her hands free!

Please help me come up with a better name for this category. Something catchy, but real, something that says little bitty tip…that inspires BIG results….

Those who post a name suggestion will get a 10% off coupon to SafeKiddo. The person whose category name I choose, will get a 20% coupon.

Maybe you need inspiration. Don’t turn the channel girls, Conscious Mom will start as soon as tomorrow!

It’s very late. Often when it’s late, I sit and think about myself as a mother. I think back on the day, and mostly I ponder what I could have done differently in certain frustrating situations. Tonight my thought was that I really need to focus on more quality time, which is the inspiration for this page. Story telling and reading aloud to our children is such a special gift for both us and our children. On so many levels, it is healthy.

This is purely speculation of course, but I think that maybe if storytelling was more prevalent, every group within society, and even across countries and cultures, would have a better way of communicating, and more importantly a better understanding of our connection and similarities such as, survival and endurance, family values, love and life. Stories really are a window to the world, which we can share with our children, guiding them into a life knowing, relating, and loving.

As I write this, I am thinking about all the silly entertaining stories I tell my son, which include characters like Elmo, Dora and Diego, Mickey Mouse, Kermit the Frog, Cookie Monster, and too many more to name, all surprising us at our house in Costa Rica. I think that although we both benefit as we snuggle up together and laugh and get excited about who could possibly come knock on our door next, joining our imaginary friend party, he may benefit far more in the long run if I tell him stories with more meaning about life. These could be memories of experiences as a child, of others experiences, or stories past down, folktales, legends, fairy tales, those that give a clear message, and paint a picture about real emotions, values, and morals.

One time I told him the story of the day I was over at my best friend’s house feeling nauseous. I was around 7 or 8 years old. The day most likely would have gone okay had her mom not have told me that I had to eat 3 more bites of my tuna fish, with crunchy celery, sandwich. I couldn’t get out of eating those bites, and out of respect for her, I did as I was told. But, indeed I was REALLY sick, and upon my last bite, ran to the bathroom. I’ll spare you the details of what happened next, but I didn’t spare my son those details, as I knew that was going to be the best part for him. I’m sure you can imagine what happened next.  My son thought this story was hysterical, and he asked to hear it multiple times after. There is something fascinating to a child that we were once children too, vulnerable and imperfect. Like them, we had to follow rules. Like them, we were learning about the world, and still are.

Okay, I think I’ve babbled on enough.  But one more thing, the other day I was doing some research on the benefits of story telling, and I came across a beautiful story about learning to be humble. I wanted to share it. It will be the first one added to this page. Oh, and PLEASE add your thoughts and stories. It’s my wish to gain as much insite on this subject as possible, and as many of your stories as possible as well!

Kittu the Fisherman, translated by P.R. Ramachander

In the town of Nagapattinam in Tamil Nadu there was a fisherman named Kittu. He was a very nice man who was satisfied with whatever he had. His wife Muniamma was not like that. Kittu daily used to go to the sea to catch fish. One day, when the sky was clear and the wind was gentle, he put his net in the water and he did not catch any fish. At last he got a big turtle. He was terribly disappointed and was about to throw it on the beach when  turtle spoke to him. “I am actually a Deva but I have been cursed by a sage to become a turtle. Please put me back in the sea.” Kittu immediately released the turtle in the water. Then the turtle told him, “ You know I am a deva; can I give you something?” Kittu replied, “Poor deva, already you are in trouble, for I do not want anything.”

When he went home without any fish, his wife Muniamma shouted at him. Then Kittu told her the story of the turtle deva. Muniamma became very angry and told him, “Go back to the sea and call the turtle. Ask from him a good house for us because we are living in a hut.” Kittu went back to the sea and sang, “Oh deva, who is a turtle, Please do come to the shore, for I want to ask you something.” As soon as he sang, the turtle came, and asked him, “Kittu, what do you want?” Then Kittu told the turtle, “I really do not want anything but my wife Muniamma wants to live in a good house. We are now living in a hut.” The turtle replied, “Go back to your wife. She is already in a good house.” Kittu went back and was surprised to see that their house was now very good.

Next day morning, even before the Sun rose, Muniamma woke up Kittu and told him, “This house is OK but I feel I should live in a Bungalow and I should become the mayor of this town. Go and ask your turtle.”  Kittu did not like this at all, but his wife started crying and howling. So he went to the sea. This time the sky was black and the wind was howling. Kittu sang, “Oh deva, who is a turtle, Please do come to the shore, For I want to ask you something.” The turtle deva came and asked Kittu, “Why have you come. Don’t you like your new house?” Kittu replied, “I am extremely happy but my wife is not. She wants to live in a Bungalow and she wants to be the mayor of this town.” Then the turtle replied, “Go back home. She is all ready the mayor of the town.”  Kittu went back and saw that his house was now very big. There were lots of servants in his house, and his wife had also a car. He was extremely happy.

A week passed this way. One day when poor Kittu was singing happily, his wife sent for him, “ I am getting bored of becoming a mayor. I have now only one car. I want to become the governor of this state. Go and ask your turtle for this.”  Kittu was sad while going to the sea. The sky was jet black, and there was storm outside. He went near the sea and again sang, “Oh deva, who is a turtle, Please do come to the shore, For I want to ask you something.” The turtle deva again came and asked Kittu, “Is your wife not happy being a mayor?” Kittu with a lot of sorrow told him, “Unfortunately, no. She wants to become governor of this state.” Then the turtle replied, “Go back home. Now it is Rajbhavan. Do not forget.” Kittu went back. Now his wife was governor and their house was surrounded by a very big garden and a swimming pool. They had ten cars. Kittu did not bother about all this and went to a small room and slept there.  Another one month passed like this.

One day while Kittu was sleeping soundly, his wife woke him up. And said, “I now want to become president of this country. I want hundred cars and want to have my own plane. Go and ask your turtle deva,” Kittu was very sad. Tears were flowing from his eyes. The sky outside was pitch dark, and there was a cyclone blowing outside. But he manage to go near the sea and sang, “Oh deva, who is a turtle, Please do come to the shore, For I want to ask you something.” The turtle came and asked, “Is your wife unhappy being governor? What does she want now? Then Kittu replied, “ I am really very, very happy. I do not want all these things. But she is not. She wants to be the president of this country.” The turtle deva laughed loud and said, “Ok, your wife is already the president. Go back to your house.” Poor Kittu went back. His home now was Rashtrapathi Bhavan. There were very large numbers of servants. They had a plane to wherever they wanted. But Kittu found the smallest room and slept there on the floor. Things passed on like this for one month. After dinner one night, Kittu was about to sleep when Muniamma sent a servant to relay a message, “I am bored of being the president. I now want to become a god. Go and ask your turtle deva.” Kittu was very, very sad and went all the way to the sea weeping. It was pitch dark outside, and there was a big storm. On the beach there was a Tsu Nami. In spite of all this Kittu went to the beach and sang, “Oh deva, who is a turtle, Please do come to the shore, For I want to ask you something.” The turtle deva came and asked Kittu, “Is there anything big than being a president? What does your wife want now?” Kittu replied, “ I am afraid that she wants to become God.” The turtle laughed loudly and said, “God lives also in a hut. Go back now to your old hut.” Kittu went back and just as the turtle said, they were very poorand lived in their hut once again.

Corbin Harney’s “Bear Story”, from PBS, Circle of Stories

The bear is something that was put here with us. That’s the reason why my people always say, when you meet a bear, if you start singing to him, and talking to him, he’ll sit down and listen to you. I have seen it done, and I met a bear-maybe from here, far as this car, and were walking up that trail toward me and I come up again’ him and then I didn’t know what to do, whether to run from him or what. And I thought, I better start singing a song to him. Then, he stood there for a while, then he stood up. Big bear. Stood up and then, I thought, by God, he’s going to attack me. And then I just started talking to him and singing to him. Then, he sit down. Then I sit down on the trail, and when I done that, I knew he was listening to what I had to say to him. And then after a while, he got up again, on all four feet and then he started going down the trail where he came up. And I stood there for about maybe five minutes. I didn’t know whether to turn around and go back up the hill where I came down. Then I decided I better go follow him a little ways. He went around a big boulder. That’s the way animals are. They’re scared of you. If you talk to ‘em, sing to ‘em, they’re your friends. Just like the trees here. The more you sing to them, the better they grow.

Comments: So I grew up in the northern woods of Wisconsin. My childhood was filled with the outdoors, tents, hammocks, bushing it, etc. We hung our food over high trees, and stayed indoors when a bear was spotted. Now though, as an adult, I find a need to balance teaching my son a healthy fear of danger, while at the same time a complete respect for mother earth and all her children. It is really neat to watch him carry an ant gently from inside our house, in a piece of kleenex, and set him down outside where he will be able to survive and find food. He is determined to be a rescuer, a pure loving human being, and I am so very proud! For me this is a perfect story to tell children, no matter what age. In a personal, natural way, it teaches love and respect for the earth and every life, even those that we are taught to fear.

Children’s Safety, Health, Happiness, and Future is what we are interested in at SafeKiddo. We want this blog spot to be a place of real experience, concerns, sharing, stories, survival, abundance, fears, excitement. Julie Henson, owner and mother, will manage and share her daily existence, with truth and in hopes to connect with as many of you as possible! Everyone needs an outlet, a place to speak up and exist among people with similar, and even opposite thoughts. It’s what makes the universe so fascinating.

Please come into SafeKiddo and share yourself, your thoughts, beliefs, stories, safety concerns, fears, love for your children, family, anything and and everything. Perspective is a necesity. Without hearing your stories, we are the only people on the planet. Share.