I’ve mentioned my kids attend a magical preschool, where play and imagination is the main focus. I’ve also learned that when you combine creative parents into the mix ~ magical things happen. A few weeks ago, the children from my twins’ class were taken into the nearby woods for a forest walk. I’m so happy I stayed to help that day because I watched an amazing adventure unfold! We started out along our regular trail and started to notice ‘fairy dust’ sparkling on the forest floor. Leading from the forest trail were little pathways of glitter that the teacher’s pointed out must have been left by fairies. Well upon further investigation the children (and parents) noticed fairy doors with accessories leaned up against the bottoms of trees and the effect was amazing. The doors with ladders, door knobs, windows, & fairy jewels melted into the forest and were beautifully earthy and playful – just like the gnomes and fairies that dance and play (we decided) within the trees.

This wonderful bonus in addition to walking through the forest on a glorious sunny day was so imaginative and I appreciated the effort from one very creative parent in our class. One of the moms had crafted the fairy doors herself and come to the forest the day before the forest walk and built little walkways to the doors with sticks, crafted ladders, propped up paper umbrellas so the fairies could sip their drinks without getting their wings wet from the rain, and more! Her older children had helped her ~ what a great eco-activity for children!  And don’t think this is only for preschoolers. After my older sons had finished school for the day, I took them to the forest that they had walked through for so many years attending the same preschool and they were SO excited by seeing the fairy doors. “I can’t believe they are real!  Look – here is the proof!” … my boys kept saying to each other. We told them to be gentle because if they forced a fairy door to open, it would vanish into air – but knocking was okay.

I have the eternal love for fairies inside me and hope to pass that to my girls (my boys obviously have it already) and I hope to decorate the nearby forest by my house with some fairy doors of my own this summer. Sharing the magic with a simple fairy door adds to the beauty of any forest and imagine the glee a child would experience by finding one unexpectedly?  I also thought this would be amazing for a fairy themed birthday party. You could do an eye-spy version at the party and leave goodie bag items at each tree stump ‘from the fairies’ like wooden wands to decorate, hand made fairy furniture, and more!

If you’ve been thinking of creating a fairy garden – you only need to look at these two sites.  The site called The Magic Onions will have your heart on-fire for any fairy fans. Check out her Fairy Garden and numerous articles on making fairy furniture.  She is amazing!!  I’ve also purchased from and been a long time fan of The Enchanted Cupboard. Her wooden fairy dolls and sets are magical and the perfect addition to any fairy garden or child’s playroom.

From Rosie ~ our wonderful preschool mom, to The Magic Onion and her dedication to sharing the magic of creating fairy themed items from nature, to award winning artist Beccijo – I only need to peek inside your worlds and become inspired – thanks for sharing ladies!

Related Articles:

The Fairy Ring ~ Etsy Wooden Fairy Dolls

Eye Spy Eco Activity or Kid’s Birthday Party Idea

Children Learning Through Play

Riding bicycles hasn’t come easily for any of my children. Tricycles seem to be a waste of time with teaching my kids to pedal and even I would start feeling frustrated. It’s really only after seeing a ‘run bike’ that you understand that tricycles are designed in a way that makes pedalling very difficult. It’s tough watching your child feel unsafe with the tippy motion on a 2 wheeler with training wheels, and I always wished my kids could find confidence and embrace the great past time of bike riding without fear. Once you see a run bike in action, traditional bikes geared for younger children will seem quite primitive.

What is a run bike?  They are two wheeled bikes that don’t have pedals and they are made by a range of companies using metal frames or wood.  This is a great gift for a two year old since the only requirement is the child can walk and is coordinated enough to hold onto the handles and ‘walk’ the bike.  As the child’s confidence grows, they learn to lift their feet and coast, while balanced on two wheels. The result of this is voila – they are actually balancing a bike and the fear of balancing without training wheels or an extra wheel on the bike is removed.  Don’t rule these bikes out for older children (ages 4 – 6) that are very timid or fearful on traditional two wheeler bikes.  These bikes give children confidence because they’ll always feel their feet on the ground – my first son has never felt confident on a bike and I wish run bikes were around when he was younger because he’s discovering the joy of feeling balanced on a bike now at 7 years old.

I needed to write this article today, because we had a milestone in my household this week. With having 4 kids very close in age, it’s always been tough to balance all of the needs and ages so certain activities like taking them all on a bike ride myself was impossible.  Well – not anymore!  I can put my oldest boy (7 years old) on his regular bike, my next son (6 years old) on a run bike and my twin daughters (3 years old) on their pink run bikes and everyone is okay.  I’m not running back and forth checking on everyone like a mad woman because they are all balanced and walking/running/riding at their own pace and speed.  We could never do this with tricycles or bikes with tippy training wheels. Kids really have the confidence to feel safe and learn to just stand up and abandon the bike if they are going to wipe out or crash. Watching my tentative little girls become what we now call ‘red baron’ on these bikes is amazing.  They have been the best investment to date as far as bikes or outdoor products for my younger kids.  When I purchased my bikes from Monkey Business Kids Boutique, they were nice enough to offer me a discount since I was purchasing them in bulk.  If you are in the market to purchase a run bike, I’d recommend you canvas your friends and try to get a group discount from a local store.  They are approx. $115 and up, but also remember the re-sale value is probably quite high because little kids will outgrow them (although don’t tell my 7 year old that rides his younger siblings bikes with absolute glee!). The fun factor is huge with these bikes.

I write this article ecstatic that my girls get the freedom to enjoy their bikes, but wished I had known about them earlier for my boys. They missed out on many years of enjoying bike riding, but it just means we’ve got lots of biking journeys to make up for and discover this year. I can’t wait!  If you want to view videos of kids riding run bikes, click on this link from runbikes.com – there are some great videos that parents have uploaded via YouTube.

These pictures are of the Norco models that my children ride and love.

I was struck by cupid’s bow a few months ago when I first saw the dolls at Gingermelon’s Shop. The faces – especially the eyes on these dolls grabbed hold of my heart immediately. The detail in the eyes, lips and face, puts them in a league of their own. Check out Valentina, a sold doll from Shelly’s site that is on it’s way to making one little girl very happy this Valentine’s Day.

Isn’t she exquisite?  Each of these little lovlies from Gingermelon is a handcrafted doll and the dress, shoes, and undies are designed and created with obvious devotion from doll maker Shelly.  The process of embroidering the doll’s face is true art and most importantly, the doll’s body is made from unbleached muslin. This fact if so important because it’s not made from the usual material of choice ~ PVC plastic. The clothing is designed with linen/cotton blend and the shoes are hand-woven and hand-dyed felt – there is no scrimping on quality with these dolls. The hair is made from organic cotton, silk bamboo, or Alpaca blend, and is so soft and silky to touch.

I find it so interesting when talking to doll makers that at the end of the journey of making these dolls, they love to watch the personality unfold and come to life through their creations.  After a doll is completed, names and clothing selections seem to call and Shelly really listens. The clothing on the dolls is just lovely and the best part for me is that it’s removable and by request can be purchased separately. It is very hard to find a doll where you can purchase quality vintage clothing for dolls and it really lengthens the number of years the child will play and love their doll. My Sophia was truly amazed that her Gingermelon doll “Hannah” has underwear that slide up and down and shoes that come off. It’s wonderful to know that these options exist outside of having to go the Barbie route in order to enjoy the play of dressing up dolls.

My 3 year old Sophia loves her doll so much and I’ve removed the shoes so that they don’t go missing and disappear. These dolls aren’t for young children because there is a button on the shoes and they can’t be ‘loved roughly’ although my little cutie just can’t help herself.  The Valentina doll I teased you with is sold but the good news is you can find more on the Gingermelon shop that are gorgeous and available to purchase. Use the ‘contact Gingermelon’ option to chat with Shelly to create the perfect Valentine or special gift for your little sweetie this year.

I was just typing ‘A Very Good Year’ into the subject of this post, but not every discovery uncovered at Mommy Footprint had a feel-good vibe. It’s been a full year of asking questions and getting answers that can sometimes be confusing and scary, but it’s all about parenting with our eyes wide open. The articles that did cause me to lose sleep at night were always about canvassing for my children’s health. An understanding that actually causes me to have small breathing attacks in dollar stores where I can only smell plastic and over thinking everything I buy to the point of being ridiculous at times. Once you gain the understanding that anything that is truly harmful to the environment because it’s toxic or can’t be recycled is actually toxic to human health – you’ll have an awakening that is hard to ignore when you head out to shop, plan events, or bring products into your home.

For those that have read and supported Mommy Footprint over the last year, I’d like to thank you for your comments and support with the topics I discuss and write about. For Mommy Footprint newbies, I thought I’d link to a few articles I’m especially proud of from 2009 and I hope you gain some insight to the type of material I’m passionate writing about. I have a line-up of stories for 2010 that are so exciting and will really interest parents on a path to remove toxins from their lives.  Stay tuned and Happy New Year!

Such a scary title, but the fact remains that women especially are putting hundreds of chemicals on their face everyday. Read and learn how more about the price of beauty.
Are Cosmetics Killing Us?

An article I’ve had to re-read of late. Get outside and enjoy nature with your children….it is so healthy for them and you! Nothing like a big dose of mother nature to help you feel re-connected with your children and family.
Resources to Get Parents and Children Outside Enjoying Nature

Are you a mommy to boys? Doesn’t matter the age of your sons – this is a must read documentary. I know business owners that started a new career after watching this video. It’s well worth the 40 minutes and you will learn a lot about the human health of boys.
Part I
Part II

Want to have an epiphany of sorts? Wrap your mind around the fact that most toys produced at the big box stores are toxic for the environment and human health. It’s a big buzz kill for parents that love their toxic toys.
What You Don’t Know About Plastic Toys Made From PVC

Have women in your life you care about? Forward them this link because they might be putting chlorine bleached tampons or sanitary napkins in the last place you really want this chemical.
Dioxins – The Last Place You Want Them

Sorry BPA, you are sooo 2008/09! Move over because there is a more dangerous offender in town – PVC. Find out here where it lurks in your everyday life.
PVC Items In Your Every-Day Life

Cleaner is not always better. Have we gotten to this point in our society that we have removed our ability to fight super bugs because of our addiction to antibacterial products?
Antibacterial Products Heading back-to-school

It’s that time of year – winter weather has arrived and if your child has a skin condition, they are probably feeling a flare-up of some kind. Here is an all-natural cocktail of sorts that has kept my Isabella’s eczema at bay for several years.
All-natural Tips For Managing Childhood Eczema

Google or learn about flame retardants and as a parent you will be concerned. A toxin that is highly carcinogenic – you would want to keep this chemical away from children! Well think about the fact that if your child is sleeping in polyester fabric, they are brushing up against flame retardants all night. This chemical is woven into the fibres of polyester, which made me sick because a lot of my kid’s PJs are made from this material. Always go 100% cotton for sleepwear.
Polyester PJs and Flame Retardants

One of the harder decisions for parents this year was if they should vaccinate for H1N1. Why a tough decision? Parents just don’t trust what they are told by doctors or the government and most people I know really struggled with the question.
H1N1 – What WIll You Do?

Shocking to learn that a big name like Target was selling onesie sleepers and the tagless label within the sleeper contained three times the legal limit for lead content. The reaction caused chemical burn-type marks on many children.
Skin Reaction To Tagless Labels

Have little girls and are looking to remove plastic products that eventually always get rubbed or mouthed like dolls or plastic food? I found two mamas that are blazing a trail with hand crafted magic that put the Christmas spirit back into my heart this year.
Plastic Alternatives For Girly Fun Christmas Morning

I personally vow to my readers that I will only write about products or companies that I support and believe in.  I do product reviews throughout the year, but I try to balance this with helpful information that I learn along the way about synthetic chemicals that affect your family’s health. See you in 2010!

Suzanne & Family

My Christmas shopping woes have ended for my girls, as I’ve struggled this year with finding safe and fun (!!) gifts for under the tree Christmas morning. They love dolls so much, but we already have a few plastic ones that I’ve been looking to replace because I don’t want them snuggling with PVC. Well…bring on the Christmas cheer because I’ve not only found handcrafted cloth dolls that are beyond adorable (and affordable), but also felt food that ‘had me at hello’ when I saw the apple slices.  Think I’m exaggerating? Read on and check out the doll pictures and food pictures – I’ve never seen anything like either online or locally…

If you are also looking for cloth alternatives to plastic with dolls before Christmas, keep a close eye on Secelie’s shop this week. She’s posting 14 new dolls next week and like all other custom doll makers, is not accepting custom orders until the New Year.  With the price point and next to nothing shipping cost, her site is amazing!  It’s called Heart Felts and each little cutie is hand-made. My twins are always ‘coded’ by color because one loves blue and the other loves pink.  It works for us so when I saw some of the funky hair selections form Secelie, I knew I found the right place. Here is a picture of what will be under the tree Christmas morning for my girls. Thanks Secelie!

I’ve also been on a quest to purchase enough felt food that my girls can pretend grocery shop, play kitchen, play restaurant, without breaking my bank account. I want to replace all the plastic food they’ve inherited from my sons. Well as I mentioned above, once I saw the apple slices from MudPie Kids – my quest was over. Especially when you see her well-priced listing called ‘Everything but the kitchen sink’ …what a deal!  The detail is more realistic than you’ll ever find with wooden or plastic pretend food.  Look at the fruit selection!

So cute!  And the bananas actually peel! I purchased everything on this plate, plus

2 pancakes w/ syrup
4 apple slices
2 strawberries
4 carrots

And wait until you see the hot-dog buns with ketchup and mustard.  I just love it!

2 hotdog w/ bun ketchup, and mustard 
2 fried eggs
2 drumsticks
1 watermelon
4 orange slices
2 bananas

A very reasonable listing and items that are guaranteed to get lots of use.  I also feel great about supporting two ladies that are making incredible, safe, and quality items from the US.  I love dolls and felt food from Europe but there’s something to be said about trying to shop as locally as possible this year.  Thanks for making this year so easy with your creativity!

Okay I’m going to stop now, but check out this popcorn!  And when you check out her site, look at the whole chicken dinner, cherry pie, eggs, and sushi!