Hint: There is no wrong answer here! You ARE enough and we can all make changes in our lives to be a little more green. About a week ago I received a book from a friend and fellow blogger, Leah Segedie. The book, Green Enough, will be available on Amazon starting March 20th. You can preorder it now! To shop my Amazon Affiliate Link: http://amzn.to/2HOCmAG Green Enough is available in hardcover and on Kindle. ...before you start rolling your eyes, I need to confess something. I am NOT the super "eco chic" that many of my followers once considered me to be. Way back in the days when I first started this blog it went by a different name, The Eco Chic. A few years ago I was struggling with identifying with that title any longer because I felt like I was more than just someone who wanted to write about eco-friendly living. I also realized that there was so much more to being a green influencer/blogger than recycling, cloth diapers and menstrual cups. Several years ago, the ... [ Read More ]
Finding Beauty After the Storm
This post is sponsored by prAna. "If you truly love nature, you'll find beauty everywhere." - Vincent VanGogh ...you can even find beauty following a hurricane. It's been over a week since Hurricane Irma left her mark on my beautiful State and my spirit, but in the devastation I found beauty all around me. As we watch the oceans for the devastation that Marie may bring to the islands, I'm looking very hard to find the rainbow that will happen following that storm. It's not easy... My spirit is still shattered from the stress that Irma brought to us. The hardest decision that we faced was if we should stay or if we should leave. That decision changed daily as Irma inched her way closer to our home. Many of our friends and neighbors stayed and weathered the eye of the storm; I'm sure we would have been fine had we stayed. We came back to very little damage (thankfully)....but what if the storm would have been a little bit closer? There are so many "what if's" and it's hard ... [ Read More ]
EcoCentric Mom Box July/August Review
If you’ve been visiting The Eco Chic for a while, I hope you’ve signed up for ecocentric mom boxes by now. I’ve been revealing my mom boxes for over a year now and each one if so much fun to receive. If you’ve signed up, leave a comment below and tell me what you are liking most about the mystery subscription box service full of eco-friendly goodies for mom and baby. The July/August box was great as always and of course I devoured the apple chips by YogaVive upon opening the box. I’m a sucker for eco-friendly, healthy snacks and I loved the chocolate apple chips. The only other food related items in this months box were from Natural Suburban Everyday Herbal, including a Summer Herb Garden Savory seasoning pack and an herbal tea blend. I haven’t cooked with the herbs yet but I hear they make an amazing veggie quiche. The “Need a Little Sunshine” tea was very uplifting and sweet. This months box was full of health, beauty and well-being related items. There are a few samples ... [ Read More ]
Winter Has Hope #DolphinTale2
Did you know that Dolphin Tale 2 the movie is coming out September 12th? I had the honor to be invited to a press junket this weekend in Tampa. I'm still waiting for someone to wake me up and tell me it was all a dream. We started the weekend with a family trip to the Clearwater Marine Aquarium for a behind the scenes tour of the facility. During the tour, David Yates (CEO of the aquarium) sat down with us to tell us the story of Winter, Hope, and the Dolphin Tale movies. We also got to talk with one of the senior dolphin trainers, Abby Stone. Both of these individuals shared with us why Winter and Hope are inspirational to so many people and how the aquarium continues to work in the local community to protect the wildlife. David started by sharing with us that the aquarium has actually been around since the early 70's in it's current location. Did you know that the aquarium use to be a waste water treatment facility? The primary mission of the aquarium has always been ... [ Read More ]
EcoCentric Mom “Mom & Baby” Box Review May/June
Do you subscribe to any monthly (or bimonthly) subscription boxes? As part of their blog ambassadors, ecocentric mom sends me a box every-other-month so that I can tempt you all into subscribing. I don't think there has ever been a box I wasn't happy with. This month I received the "Mom & Baby" box again and I am pleased with the goodies hidden inside.For only $24 you will get a very similar box if you subscribe today! If you're going on vacation this summer with your baby, this box if full of goodies to keep them entertained. AllieLou Baby Organic Teething Ring: Made from natural maple wood with no chemicals added and hand polished to seal and prevent splintering. The fabric ears are 100% GOTS certified organic flannel. ($8.50 per ring) Plus a coupon code for 10% off your next order from AllieLou. ~Just for Mom~ Licious Organics Raw Honey Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookie: Um, I just opened this cookie while writing this post and I am ready for another. It's ... [ Read More ]
EcoCentric Mom “Mom & Baby” Box Review March/April
It's time for another sneak peek into the ecocentric mom subscription box! Yesterday the mail carrier delivered the (affiliate link) "Mom & Baby" box for March and April full of more wonderful goodies! I have a few friends and family who have new babies so this will give me a few more things to spoil their babies with. Take a look at all that stuff you get for only $24 (there's a few things hidden too). Here are just a few of my favorite items from this month's box: 2 Degrees Cherry Almond Food Bar: Look real quick because it's all gone! I gobbled that bar up in about 2 minutes today (it was easier than looking for lunch) and it was so good that I want 2 (or 200) more! Plus it's gluten free, GMO free, vegan, Kosher and all natural. The ecocontric mom box comes with hidden coupons too, so don't throw away anything until you know if you're going to want more! www.TwoDegreesFood.com/BOGO50 (through 5/31/14) Duck & Goose, Here Comes the Easter Bunny book: I think ... [ Read More ]
Homemade Chicken Nuggets by Weelicious Lunches (Review & Giveaway)
What's in a chicken nugget? I don't even want to look at the ingredients of processed nuggets to see if there is anything that I can pronounce but I doubt there are many natural ingredients listed. In an effort to find a healthier alternative I found Weelicious Lunches. Easy, healthy, and fun lunch ideas for every age! Once kids walk out the door for school, all bets are off. Will your son toss the nutritious food you've included and jump right to the treats? Will your daughter trade her sandwich for her best friend's prepackaged meal? Determined to improve what kids eat both at school and on the go, weelicious.com founder Catherine McCord offers innovative solutions for quick, delicious, easy-to-make, kid-friendly lunch box meals that little ones and their older siblings won't be tempted to swap. Filled with lots of great menu planning ideas; tips, tricks, and reusable product suggestions to make lunch fun; inspiring color photographs, advice on dealing with food allergies and ... [ Read More ]
My Date With a 2013 Chevy Malibu Eco
A few weeks ago we had the privileged of borrowing a brand new 2013 Chevy Malibu Eco for a week. If you follow The Eco Chic on Instagram you got a sneak peek inside the Malibu and the adventures we went on. The Malibu got to tag along as I drove the kids to school, karate, the library, the grocery store and all the other fun places we visit each week. I've personally never had a brand spanking new car of my own (all of mine have been about 1-2 yrs old upon purchase) so being spoiled with a fully loaded brand new (only 400 miles when I got it) car was a real treat. Anyone else like that "new car" smell? I'm currently driving a 2005 Honda Accord so I was completely impressed with all the technological advances in the Malibu. Keyless entry wasn't anything new but the push-to-start was a nice surprise. As a parent I think my favorite feature is the rear vision camera so that I could see everything that my mirrors might miss - like small toys, bikes, or children. It was ... [ Read More ]
Balboa Sling Review & Guest Post
I'd like to introduce a fellow blogger to you, Christine from Thoughts of Fluff blog. Christine is a guest blogger today and wanted to share her thought on the Balboa Sling. If you are looking for a carrier you might enjoy this one. Enjoy ~Calley I was given the opportunity to try out the Balboa Sling for review, and happily picked out an adorable print called Lime Poppy. Admittedly, it was difficult to pick out just one print from all these cute prints! I was planning on using a sling with Squiggle who, obviously, is yet to come... but the Balboa Baby Sling has a weight range of 8lbs - 35lbs, so it held Bobble since he is only 30 lbs. More product usage and safety information can be found HERE, then select the Care & Safety Tab on the far right.) I had never used a sling carrier before, so I did a lot of reading up on it via the literature provided with the sling, and studied the web page a bunch too. Here's a close-up of the sturdy ring part of the sling ... [ Read More ]
Reinvention – Sewing With Rescued Materials (Review)
I have flipped through the pages of Maya Donenfeld's book, Reinvention, the past few months dreaming about which projects I'm going to make first. Reinvention is an instructional book that uses rescued fabrics like linen, burlap, wool, and denim. The materials are beautiful and when they are rescued by Maya they are even more beautiful. The 28 projects in this book bring you back to simpler times and truly speak to the sustainable crafter. They are simple enough that even the novice seamstress can complete them (like ME). Unfortunately I was saving a few projects for this week and I got sick (inner ear infection) and have been going to bed instead of crafting. No worries though, I'll catch up over the weekend for you and bring you the rest of my Upcycled Crafting Challenge next week. Some of the projects in Maya's book that I'm truly inspired to create myself include: Portfolio - a laptop or iPad case. Maya made this with rescued linen but I'm going to attempt it with ... [ Read More ]