Adorable Non-Chocolate (and eco-friendly) Easter Gift Ideas

With only a little over a month left before Easter, we've rounded up the best non-chocolate and eco-friendly gifts for your little bunnies. Not only are these gift ideas adorable but they can be used all year round and are sure to bring delighted squeals come Easter morning.

1. Felt or Wooden Play Pieces

Felt play pieces can be used as Easter decorations as well as for imaginative play. Bunnies, chickens, chicks, eggs, carrots, guinea pigs all make adorable gifts and can also be easily made for those creative types. There are many excellent patterns freely available (check out Pinterest) or you can purchase them from shops such as The Small Folk
There are also some gorgeous little wooden play sets and animals such as the rabbit & guinea pig set from Le Toy Van or the timeless Ostheimer animals

2. Wooden Celebration Circles

Wooden celebration rings are a beautiful tradition for all types of celebrations such as Easter, Birthdays and Christmas. Little wooden decorations and candles are added to make a magical centrepiece and add a sense of wonder to occasions. You can purchase them from The Creative Toy Shop, Village Toys and also Honeybee Toys

3. Easter Books

Books are a traditional gift and help create special memories. Easter books are easily found in bookshops and department stores. Seasonal and Waldorf inspired books are available from The Small Folk and Dragon Fly Toys

4. Wooden Eggs

Wooden eggs are a much nicer choice than plastic eggs and can be painted, used for egg hunts, used for imaginative play and also as decorations. Best of all, they can be kept for years and years making them a sustainable and economical choice. There are lots of options on eBay or they are usually found quite easily in department stores at this time of year. You can also get beautiful wooden egg cups for special breakfasts

5. Pyjamas

There's nothing better than snuggling up in a new pair of pyjamas and it makes for a lovely Easter tradition. Snugglebums have a great range of Easter themed pyjamas and they are also quite easily found in department stores.

So with these gift ideas in mind, making up a delightful Easter basket and egg hunt has never been more fun, meaningful, eco-friendly or healthy. Hop to it!

Activities For The One-Year-Old

We're being kind to the littles today with round up of fantastic activities that one-year-olds just love. Turning one is a huge milestone, the first year around the sun, and all young toddlers at this age go through a crazy amount of gross and fine motor development as well as language development. So here are some fun activities that they will not only love to do but will also help them develop essential skills :)

1. Posting Activities - Young toddlers are fascinated by posting items (putting an object into another) and this activity helps them understand object permanence (that an object is still there even though we can't see it), helps develop hand and eye coordination and works on those fine motor skills that are essential for daily life. Posting activities can be really cheap and easy to make and set up yourself or you can purchase wooden toys specifically for the skills, here are some ideas;

2. Water play - I've never met a toddler who didn't LOVE water play! Toddlers love to practice scooping and pouring so water play is more than just fun, its actually helping them develop essential life skills. Add cups, spoons, pots, pans, animal figurines, anything really, the possibilities are endless!

3. Play Silks - Young ones love playing peek-a-boo and playsilks are awesome for this as they are super light. They are also provide a beautiful tactile experience as toddlers love to swing them around and feel the beautiful, light, supple fabric. Use them for dress ups, place them in an old wipes container and let the toddlers pull them out (they are obsessed with this!) or use as playscapes for imaginative play. Play silks are a toy that will literally be used for years

4. Musical Instruments - What toddler doesn't love making noise? Banging and shaking, drumming and singing are so much fun and help develop the auditory senses as well as rhythm. A basket full of musical instruments keep them occupied for a long time!

5. Sensory play - All children learn through their senses so sensory play is compulsory for healthy child development. You do have to be careful what activities you use as toddlers are prone to mouth everything but some safe sensory play ideas include trays of lentils, rice, pasta, cereal, oats and cooked spaghetti. Add some cups, spoons, bowls for pouring and scooping and let them have it! Sand and mud pits are also excellent types of sensory play, as is finger painting (easily made at home with simple recipes that are non-toxic) and home-made playdough that doesn't contain toxic ingredients (the recipe on the back of cream of tartar jars is great). Please note: we definitely do not recommend the popular water beads or kinetic sand for under 3's as they can be very dangerous if swallowed.

Let your little one explore, get messy and have fun!

Four Essential Oil Blends You Need in Your First Aid Kit

Essential oils have been around for centuries and are an integral part of alternative medicine. They are a very safe and popular alternative to pharmaceuticals and I personally use them all the all the time with great success. In fact, my husband uses them more than me!

Now there is much talk about the best brands and purity but don’t get caught up in the hype. It is essential that you get 100% pure oils so do your research and you can easily find pure brands out there that suit your budget (The most popular brands include Plant Therapy, doTERRA and Young Living)

Many brands sell oils in blends which is fabulous or you can easily make them yourself, which is sometimes more cost effective. Here are the top …. Essential oil blends that you need in your first aid kit

Calming blend – This blend works beautifully on children that are anxious, tired or hyperactive, especially when used in a roller (with a carrier oil) and rolled down their spine (this way it works quickly on their nervous system). It is also great for diffusing at bedtimes to help sleep and can aid insomnia. My husband always comments on how well he sleeps when we diffuse this blend at night.

Ingredients – Lavender, Sweet Marjoram, Roman Chamomile, Ylang Ylang, Sandalwood and Vanilla (Just Lavender & Roman Chamomile also works a treat)

Digestion blend – This blends helps bloating, gas, nausea, reflux, indigestion, morning sickness, motion & travel sickness, diarrhoea and constipation. Best mixed with a carrier oil and rubbed onto the belly. This is also excellent for use on babies with colic but be sure to only use very small amounts and always with a carrier oil

Ingredients – Ginger, Peppermint, Caraway, Coriander, Anise, Tarragon & Fennel

Immunity blend – This blend is perfect for warding off nasty germs especially when out and about and is also useful for colds & flu and as an antiseptic cleaner. Many cleaning products can be made with this useful oil. Rub some on before heading to work, daycare or school and keep your family healthy.

Ingredients- Wild Orange, Clove, Cinnamon, Eucalyptus & Rosemary

Respiration blend – Personally this is my favourite blend and is absolutely essential for anyone trying to sleep with a stuffy or blocked nose! Used for coughs, congestion, asthma, pneumonia, allergies, bronchitis, sinusitis and influenza, this is a powerful blend that makes breathing a whole lot easier. Diffuse or rub onto soles of the feet

Ingredients – Laurel, Peppermint, Eucalyptus, Melaleuca (Tea Tree), Lemon, Ravensara & Cardamom

So there you are, if you can only afford to buy a few blends, these are the ones you may get the most use out of and are certainly used in my household all the time.

The budget guide to sustainable shopping for kids

For anyone who watched the acclaimed ABC series 'The War on Waste,' the staggering amount of textile waste us Australians throw out everyday was gobsmacking. Who knew that so much waste could be generated from clothing? Well, when you take a deeper look at the textile industry, waste is not the only dirty secret.

The textile industry accounts for 20% of the worlds water pollution, including 2.6% of that being entirely from cotton farming. Not only is it destroying waterways, but the use of pesticides and GMO's are destroying our environment and causing very serious health issues for us. Many of the garment manufacturers pay their workers extremely low wages (as low as $2 a day) and also work in disgusting hot, humid and unsafe factories (The Rana Plaza collapse in Bangladesh killed 1,134 workers in 2013). Worse still, these factories used toxic chemicals to spray our clothing, which not only are the garment workers exposed to on a daily basis, but our children who are wearing these clothes are also being exposed to these toxic chemicals.

Whilst all of this is absolutely horrible, what can we do about it? As a consumer, every dollar you spend is a kind of vote of what you value. When you spend money at a small business or a local farmer market you are saying that you value these businesses and their ethos. What are we saying when we buy from huge department stores?

But it is too easy to simply say we should stop buying cheap clothing from department stores and other fast fashion brands because the reality is, with the cost of living being so ridiculously high, the average Australian family can't afford to buy organic, fair trade clothing.

Or can they? Our guide is here to help so that you can feel happy and safe knowing that you and your family are not contributing to the insane amount of textile waste or pollution and are also standing up for workers rights across the globe.

Tip 1 - Buy Second Hand - You can buy quality, beautiful clothing from op shops, buy & sell groups, eBay and Gumtree for really affordable prices. Second hand definitely does not mean second best and you can buy high end label clothing very cheaply. Buying second hand means the demand for new clothing reduces and less clothing ends up in landfill

Tip 2 - Wait for your favourite ethical brands to go on sale - Most brands have a clearance sale at the end of each season, so it's a great idea to buy when they are sale and save a few dollars. Sign up for their emails or follow them on social media to find out when the sales are on. Many shops also offer layby or buy now and pay later deals which means you can split the cost out.

Tip 3 - Buy once and buy well - When you buy quality, well-made clothing, it lasts for years, so buying quality and unisex clothing means you pass them down child after child and not need to buy new clothing over and over again. Even swap with friends and family!

Tip 4 - Buy in bigger sizes - If you see a great bargain on clothing that is too big for your child just yet, grab it anyway and keep it for later. Buying in advance is a great way of accumulating affordable clothing

Tip 5 - Buy handmade clothing or make them yourself - Markets are filled with gorgeous handmade clothing these days and are usually well-prices and well-made. Handy with a sewing machine? Simply make them yourself! Making clothes is quite simple if you follow a pattern and is very rewarding. It also lessens the demand for new, cheap clothing.

So there you have it, a guide on sustainable shopping for kids without breaking the bank. What are your favourite ethical brands? We would love to know!

Raising Children Wisely: A Natural Mothers' Perspective

We are delighted to welcome Joanne Gibson from Heart Centred Health sharing her thoughts on raising children wisely. Joanne is a trained Reiki master and expert user of essential oils plus a mum of a beautiful daughter. You can find more advice on using essential oils in your home at Joanne's Facebook page here

Raising children wisely

This can mean very different things to different people. We all have those days where we do whatever we can just to get through, and it's a miracle everyone survived. Here's a few things that, on a good day, mean raising children wisely to me.

Raising children wisely to me means a pretty clean diet. Very low refined sugar, mostly organic and mostly wholefoods, such as fruit, vegetables, nuts, fish, meat and eggs. Food that has not been made into something else and put in a packet. If it is in a packet, it's better if the ingredient list is 3 items or less. If I don't know what an ingredient is I generally don't want to eat it.

It means managing wellness, illness and emotional health in a holistic way. My little girl, nearly 3, has not been to the doctor for an illness, other than a sticky eye I panicked about when she was a newborn. Part of this is luck, I know. Part of it though is good diet, getting out in nature a lot, breastfeeding til she was over 2 years old, partly because I used to be a nurse, and also using natural remedies including essential oils.

Even though I love them, sometimes I forget about using my oils. But wow am I grateful they're there when I really need them. My daughter had a viral illness yesterday with some vomiting. It feels really good to rub Digestzen on her tummy and feet, knowing it will help her symptoms and wellbeing. The On Guard protective blend was also my saviour to ensure I stayed well and was being diffused, applied topically and ingested by myself.

Raising children wisely also means going chemical free as much as possible. I have replaced my cleaning products, hair care, and personal care products with essential oil products or other no or low tox products. You can just start by replacing one item, it's that easy.

It also means radical self love and self care. Because if I don't look after me, I can't look after anyone else. For me this usually looks like making sure I get some exercise each day or a walk in nature, and regular treatments such as a massage. It's also little daily practices to nurture myself such as using my oils, a bath, reading, or some meditation or yoga stretches.

Self love is also loving myself when I'm not being the perfect parent. This week has been pretty spiritually intense for me and I've raised my voice, sworn, banished the television to under the house- where it might just stay, and screamed into a pillow when it all got too much! Then hated myself for all the above, except the TV part. Then realised I have to love and accept my feminine chaos. And that it may even be good for my daughter to see, so she knows she can love and accept her imperfections and not suppress her inner wild woman, as so many of us have been taught to do.

Needless to say I have been applying Clary Calm, the monthly blend and 'Oil of Vulnerability', liberally all week. It helps me ride the emotional waves a little easier, and I've also just learnt how to apply it on my reflexology points which has been amazing. I don't believe there's a woman on the planet who doesn't need this oil blend in her life.

Most of all though raising children wisely, to me, means following my intuition. It means tuning out to society and others opinions, and tuning in to my wisdom as a mother. It is, after all, what has helped every animal on the planet survive. The more I listen to the teachings of my Soul the more I learn to trust my instincts. Because knowledge is learnt but wisdom is remembered.

If you want to share some of your wisdom on raising children I would love to hear it.

From my heart to yours,
Jo xo

The Root Cause Is The Gut Cause: The Simple Truth To Health & Vitality

We are so excited to bring you the first blog collaboration with some of Australia's most amazing mothers and health professionals. In this blog, fitness and healthy lifestyle advocate Lucia Rivas shares with us her journey towards health after the arrival of her son and the simple truth to her health & vitality.

Like most mums, the moment I had my son my focus shifted on all things infant related: sleep, play, routine, feeding and of course my son’s health.  As soon as you have a child you realise it’s a whole new world of discovering how children develop, what is “normal” sleep? What is normal behaviour?  What are the signs and symptoms of illness and how do I keep my son fit and healthy?

Having had a big passion in all things related to health and fitness before having my son, I of course applied some of the things I already knew but I also opened up a pandora’s box of research, reading, talking to paediatric chiropractors, doctors, naturopaths, sleep experts, oral health coaches, lactation consultants…the list goes on and on. Basically I delved in it all! And being an engineer with a science background, I didn’t hold back!

I soon realised the more I learned the more I didn’t know! So I researched and consulted more and because I am a numbers and facts kind of person, I needed data, stats, so I began a big journey into listening to as many webinars, online health summits, research papers, online courses, books and one on one consults as much as possible.  I had never really noticed, until I had my son, is that we are living in a highly toxic environment and the current generation of children have many chronic conditions. It is not uncommon for children these days to have eczema, asthma, autoimmune illnesses,  food intolerances, ADHD, ADD, autism, bipolar, PANS and the list goes on.  According to this year’s heavy  metals summit, it’s projected that by 2025, 80% of our children are  going to have some sort of chronic illness. That’s 8 ion 10 kids!

This, of course, concerned me and made me want to look at ways I could mitigate our environment and my family’s  health. These findings also made me look at my own health more critically and one area of health that I have delved into a lot is genetics, epigenetics and gut health. Our genetic predisposition to disease, illnesses and intolerances and behaviour is heavily guided by our environment. Dr Elisa Song, holistic paediatrician, summed it up well; “our genes have not changed in the past decade. So there is a reason why our kids are getting sicker and adults are getting sicker because these same genetic SNPs (single nucleotide polymorphisms), they’ve always existed. So what has changed is our environment. It’s the epigenetic expression of our genes that’s changed. It’s the interaction of our environment with our genetic makeup. It’s said that our genes load the gun but it’s the environment that pulls the trigger”.
So it’s clear out environment is making our kids sick, however, this is hard to see when you or your child present with ear infections, rashes, food intolerances, behavioural issues etc. it’s very hard to know what caused this and where to  begin.

When my son was 11 months old he had recurrent ear infections. After many rounds of antibiotics, I realised I was not looking at the root cause and I was also not looking at the right answers. I consulted with a naturopath who suggested we look at his gut and do a stool sample test, for myself and for my son. While this was not a fun experience to be scooping bits of fecal matter and putting it into a specimen jar, the results were very interesting. My son showed missing gut bacteria and also a bacteria was present causing problems. We treated his gut naturally and he got better very quickly.

At the time I had also been looking into genetics and wanting to find out as much information as I could into genetic predispositions to know how to look after my sons health a bit more specifically. I had come across the MTHFR gene via Dr Ben Lynch’s website and I decided to get my son tested via MTHFR Australia. I knew this gene was one mentioned many times by other holistic practitioners and I knew this gene affected detoxification pathways in the body via methylation. I also now know that there are other genes but the MTHFR gene (methylene-tetrahydrofolate reductase) is responsible for the functioning of the enzyme responsible for converting folate in the diet into the usable form methyl folate which in turn helps vital detoxification pathways in the body. My son showed a homozygous mutation for this gene meaning he was genetically predisposed to have a 70% loss of function in his methylation pathways. I didn’t know what to do with this information. He presented with gut issues and also a genetic predisposition for detox impairment. I took my findings to a specialist doctor that had genetic knowledge. His first suggestion was to ensure  my sons gut health was better. Probiotics and a good cod liver oil to get enough vitamin A and D and support his detoxification pathways better.

So given this information – both genetics and gut health and knowing that our environment is full of toxins, how do I ensure health and vitality for my family?

I now know  “toxic load” in our environment is critical to reduce if we want to ensure good health for ourselves and our children. Our children are overloaded by toxicity and this in turn affects our biochemical and biomedical imbalances which translates to gut dysbiosis and leaky gut and, as Dr Song summarises so well “this leaky gut and gut dysbiosis is setting the stage for system, overall body oxidative stress and inflammation which is then triggering immune system imbalance, chronic infections, which in turn is causing stress to our mitochondria and cellular energy production”. Coupled with a genetic predisposition to not detox and you have a very good mix for chronic health issues for life!

Of course this has promoted me to do an immense amount of research. I have researched (and read the book) Dr William Walsh, 30 years of research into nutrient therapy and epigenetic cause of bipolar, autism, schizophrenia, depression etc. I have researched and completed Dr Ben Lynch’s courses on how to clean up “dirty genes” how to detox and eliminate sources of toxins in our environment. I  have read Dr Jay Davidsons “5 steps to healing health protocol” on all things detox related. I have looked at cellular Detox by Dr Pompa, listened to the Immune defence summit, the microbiome summit, the genes summit the heavy metals summit. I have consulted with MTHFR Australia, Holistic doctors, chiropractors…well you get the idea!

And what did I find??

Two things:
1.       Eliminate the source of toxin exposure: from foods, water, air and home. In my home we have ensured we only use natural products for cleaning, bathing, washing and what we put on our skin such as deodorants and make up. I have ensured we eat organic, removed as much processed as is humanly and realistically possible, I have also  ensured we upgrade our water filtration system for the whole house, changed our light bulbs and switched all electronic devices to flight mode at night to reduce constant EMF exposure (I also want to put a timer on our wifi!) I have even checked we don’t have a smart meter at our home! I have also tried to reduce and eliminate spraying of glyphosate in our yard. Seems excessive but the sources are literally everywhere!

2.       Work on the gut microbiome: this is a really big one and the title of my blog because the root treatment of disease is in the microbiome. Gut health drives our mood, our energy, our immune system and even our oral health. Having a poor gut microbiome exposes the person to have poor absorption of nutrients leaving a person deficient and thus the immune system suffers and that’s when a person will get sick. A poor microbiome affects our mood as there is a lot of nerve connections from the gut to the brain and when we can’t digest it affects our mood and our ability to send the right signals to the rest of the body.

The gut microbiome sets the basis of our health. Without the right colonisation of gut bacteria our entire body cannot function and pathogens take over. It really is that simple. Finding high nutrient foods that nourish the gut lining, feed the good gut bacteria and help sustain the microbiome is key because without a healthy microbiome, the entire body falls apart. So, yes, nutrition is key and supporting the microbiome is where it all begins. This includes eliminating foods that feed the wrong bacteria and in turn cause inflammation.

Of course there are many other health and lifestyle factors to consider such as sleep, stress and exercise. However the two above are complex in themselves yet simple to achieve if you make small changes over time. It’s been years of learning for me but having my son accelerated this learning curve and for the better!

You can find Lucia Rivas' fantastic blog here  or on Facebook and Instagram where she shares delicious recipes (some fantastic recipes for toddlers on here!), mind opening research articles and advice on achieving and maintaining a healthy lifestyle. 

Keeping Your Kids Naturally Safe In The Sun

Traditionally February is our hottest month here in Australia and with the heat comes extreme UV levels from the sun We are constantly bombarded with advertisements and news segments warning about the dangers of the sun and encouraging the use of sunscreen, however most of the popular sunscreens available contain toxic chemicals that do more harm than good.

The widely available traditional sunscreens you buy from the supermarket and chemists are usually sunscreens that contain a chemical barrier. Many contain the common ingredient Oxybenzone. This ingredient passes through the skin, enters the bloodstream and penetrates our muscle tissue, which is frightening as it is an endocrine disruptor, can reduce sperm count in men and may contribute to endometriosis in women. It is highly advised by the American Environmental Working Group (EWG) not t be used on children or pregnant women. Even more scary is that chemical sunscreens have also been shown to actually contribute to skin cancer! In fact, a study in the Journal of Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics reports that:

“Sunscreens protect against sunburn, but there is no evidence that they protect against basal cell carcinoma or melanoma. Problems lie in the behavior of individuals who use sunscreens to stay out longer in the sun than they otherwise would… Safety of sunscreens is a concern, and sunscreen companies have emotionally and inaccurately promoted the use of sunscreens.”

This may sounds crazy but think about it.. As skin cancer rates soar in Australia so has our sun safety awareness and everyday we are slopping crazy amounts of sunscreen all over us and our children, yet the cancer rates continue to climb. It just doesn’t make sense!

So what do we do instead?

Firstly, the sun is not our enemy. We get 90-94% of Vitamin D from the sun, which helps keep our bones strong and actually helps protect against cancer. A synthetic Vitamin D supplement can never replace the sun so we do need to get out there without sun protection on for 20 mins most days. Chemical sunscreens completely block the bodies ability to produce Vitamin D which is probably why so many Australians are Vitamin D deficient.

Secondly, one of the best natural ways to cover up is simply pop on a rash shirt and a hat. If you are off to the beach for the day or know that you or your children will be in the sun for hours, a rash shirt helps keep the UV rays off your skin. Staying our of the sun during the hottest part of the day (between 11am to 3pm) will also help avoid the really strong UV rays.

Thirdly, our diet plays a huge part in keeping our bodies healthy and fighting the free radicals that feed skin cancer. A diet high in antioxidants and nutrients is the most effective way of keeping skin damage to a minimum.

Lastly, there are many excellent mineral based sunscreens on the market that provide a mineral barrier between your skin and the sun and these are vastly safer than the chemical sunscreens. Alternatively, make one yourself! There are many great natural sunscreen recipes out there including this one . And remember, always do your research!

So keep safe this February but get out there and enjoy this beautiful country we live in!