The owners of The Tickle Trunk have been working on perfecting an elusive and incredibly designed product since their store first opened – a stainless steel popsicle mold.  I’ve spoken with owner Carolyn regularly for almost a year and not a conversation has gone by without her mentioning with so much excitement about these popsicle molds. Well I have one of these amazing trays in my freezer, as they have just arrived and are in-stock at the Tickle Trunk and they live up to every one of my expectations. This might be one of the last places you’ve been trying to source a BPA-free or plastic-free solution in your freezer. Since the hormone disruptor BPA first gained media attention 2 years ago, most parents have been wary of plastic materials being used for freezing or heating food/liquid. I’ve never made my own popsicles because the plastic alternatives on the market always turned me off. The Tickle Trunk has not only designed a product that will last a life time because the design and quality are amazing, but is a pioneer in the process of bringing safe products to the fingertips of parents looking for stainless steel alternatives.

The popsicle mold arrives with several pieces and includes: 6 large stainless steel popsicle molds, 1 metal tray to hold the molds, disposable wooden popsicle sticks, silicone parts to hold the stick in place and stainless steel discs.  The steel is high quality 18/8 grade making it dishwasher friendly and easy to clean.  The molds are free-floating so that you can remove or re-fill one at a time.  The silicone rings were designed with this material so that the popsicle stick glides into the mold easily and stays where it’s supposed to be placed. The discs that hold the stick and measure the size of your popsicle have a beautiful sun burst design that is kid friendly and very attractive for adults.

The minute this popsicle mold arrived in my home, I was so excited to try making my own popsicles for the first time with my kids. I’ve since researched nutritious recipes that you can use to improve the popsicle, but I’m pleased with how easy the process was. You can tell this product has been tested, re-tested, designed, and perfected by a mom. Small details like using the removable silicone rings to adjust to the different sized sticks a consumer would use – to the tray design that keeps the molds perfectly still while freezing. When the popsicle is frozen and ready to be removed from the mold, you simply warm it in your hand and it releases very smoothly ~ ready for that excited child or adult to enjoy. Talk about the w-o-w factor and there’s nothing else like it on the market.

Mommy Footprint is so excited to offer our first contest of the year!  The process will go a little differently from previous ones – we will track contest entries via our Fan page on Facebook.  The lucky winner will receive a stainless steel popsicle mold from The Tickle Trunk. Enter to win by becoming a Mommy Footprint Fan here: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Mommy-Footprint/261832505845, then click over to The Tickle Trunk site and tell me what your favorite Tickle Trunk product is on their site by posting on the Mommy Footprint fan page wall. If you don’t have a Facebook account and would like to enter, you can use our traditional method of entering a contest by using the referral form http://mommyfootprint.com/mommyfootprint-referral-form/  I thought it would be fun to try something new with this awesome contest.  I’m loving my popsicle mold and wish you all luck with winning. Contest is open to all residents in North America and will close on March 19th.  If you are currently a member of the Mommy Footprint fan page, simply post your favorite Tickle Trunk product to the fan page wall to be entered into the contest.

Thanks again to The Tickle Trunk for sticking with the journey of creating this safe product that is such an incredible investment for any home. Popsicle molds are currently available through The Tickle Trunk and Green Planet Parties.

For recipes for making popsicles a healthier treat – check out these articles:

Hello, Summer: All-natural popsicles from scratch

All Natural Watermelon Popsicles

32 Unique Homemade Popsicle Recipes & Ideas

I’m a huge fan of stainless steel dishware and it became a permanent staple when I learned all my Disney printed licensed plates were produced with polycarbonate plastic 2 years ago. I quickly decided that safety and quality needed to come first over designs with licensed friends that wanted to entertained thoughts of leaching chemicals into my children’s food.  When I saw the stainless steel dish set from Untangled Living I was so excited to review a product that was amazing quality and provided kids with a child-friendly design they would gravitate towards using. The butterfly and gecko designs beautifully etched into the cup, bowl, plate, and cutlery are awesome.  Check out both adorable designs – I always love it when a designer can take a practical item and give it a design that kids will also love without the heavy influence of commercialism.

I really recommend this for a unique baby shower or 1st birthday gift.  To really get your full value for the product – it should be started with little ones because the bowl and cup in the set are sized for very small hands and portions.  The plate and utensils are a great size for a toddler – 5 year old, but an older child will not get great use from it. The quality is wonderful because it’s 18/8 – 304 steel grade and is dishwasher friendly. I have since purchased this dishware for a gift since receiving mine to review and think the design, packaging, and set combination is good value and makes a special gift. These sets are available to purchase through the Untangled Living site or through various retail stores like our friends over at Nayla Natural Care.

With the beautiful spring weather on the West Coast slowing becoming a staple around here – my mind’s been drifting to upcoming baby showers with Spring being the magical season for celebrating new little bundles. I have a deep affection for great quality stainless steel solutions and will be featuring more products in upcoming articles and a contest will be announced shortly! Stay up to date with Mommy Footprint posts by joining our new fan page on Facebook or using the subscribe to updates option on the right sidebar of this article.

A shocking quote from a great new book I’ve been reading called Ecoholic Home really jolted me into shifting my cleaning agenda with my home’s carpet. “One researcher said you’d have to vacuum 25 times a week for several weeks to bring the level of contaminants below safety standards”. Yikes!  There’s a shocking statement for anyone that hasn’t started to pay close attention to the health of their carpet. What do I mean by carpet health? Maintaining a regular routine of proper carpet care and here are 3 great tips, mentioned in Super Natural Home, if you’re looking for natural and effective ways to start:

1) If you must buy a new carpet, choose one made of wool.  It’s naturally flame retardant, nontoxic, and non-allergenic, and it deters bacterial growth.

2) Vacuum with a well-sealed, high-quality high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) vacuum cleaner.

3) A good doormat will stop a lot of toxins right at the door. Or, take your shoes off when entering your house.

Thanks to Beth Greer for these tips. I totally agree with the tip regarding a great quality HEPA vacuum cleaner. My Dyson HEPA vacuum has already make a noticed improvement with the air quality in my home. I also learned that dirty shoes can drag in pesticides and unwanted chemicals into your home. A new found reason to have guests remove their shoes and put out door mats.

Air deodorizer are very toxic and should be removed from any cleaning routines (glade plug-ins, fabreeze, etc.), as they simply mask odour and off-gass phthalates into your home. Same goes for traditional carpet cleaners that you sprinkle, leave, then vacuum.  Skip the toxic route and grab your box of baking soda.  Even better <evil smile emerges>, give the box of baking soda to a young child and watch their delight in sprinkling this natural homemade carpet cleaner. Just like the antibacterial cloths that only need water to clean your windows, children can help out because it’s totally natural and safe. My sons love to help sprinkle the baking soda before I begin a deep vacuum of my carpeting. It’s a good idea to test the baking soda on darker carpets in a small test area first. My carpet is white so I’ve never worried about it.  Another tip before you vacuum is to replace toxic carpet spray for stains and go to the pantry to mix a paste of white vinegar and baking soda, work into the carpet with a brush or toothbrush, let paste dry and vacuum.  Two very easy methods to help remove odours, stains, and naturally reduce pollutants in your carpeting.  A huge bonus is you’re not yelling at your kids to get out of the room while you apply the cleaning cocktail or baking powder because it’s safe for them to be exposed to and even help clean with!

My last bit of research on improving the quality of your home’s carpet is the topic of hiring professional steam cleaners. There is nothing like a deep clean with steam that helps eliminate dust mites, allergens, dust, dirt, and chemical contaminants. BUT – with an extra big BUT…it is very difficult to find professional carpet cleaners that are truly non-toxic. I went with the company Citrus-O for many years, but they continually ask if you want the scotch guard extra (which is offering Teflon coating with the highly toxic chemicals PFOAs – a proven carcinogen). Also, I would always have a headache for days after Citrus-O left my house, dry mouth, and very irritated eyes. I haven’t the time to look over the material data sheets on their site, but my reaction says it all to me. If I find a company I can recommend, I’ll write a follow-up article. Over the last year, I’ve borrowed steam cleaners from friends that own them, and filled them with Dr. Bromers liquid soap (or you could use vinegar).  But if you want to hold companies marketing themselves as all-natural carpet cleaning accountable, ask them if they use either of these chemicals to ‘clean’ with: perchloroethylene (nickname is perc) or naphthalene. Suspected to be carcinogens, they are notorious dry cleaning additives known to cause dizziness, fatigue, nausea if inhaled (sound familiar to my symptoms?), kidney and liver damage. Next time you book your carpets to be cleaned, ask the company these questions and please post back to the comments of this article and share the results.

For more information on carpet health, you can read my recent review of the Dyson HEPA filter vacuum at: Dyson Asthma Certified Vacuum Cleaner

You may have noticed a fresh look for the Mommy Footprint site. Please check out our new, streamlined layout with a super charged focus on companies that are doing great things with children’s health and the environment. I’m thrilled to be hosting a Dyson banner at the top of Mommy Footprint to show my support of their amazing Asthma and Allergy Friendly certified products.

Like most parents, once my mind is fully wrapped around an issue regarding my kids health or happiness, I fully spring into action. Last month when my oldest child was ‘officially’ tagged with Asthma from the specialist, the wheels kicked into overdrive in my head.  Parents always question their abilities or things they’ve done when told their kids have a condition and I’m no different.  I’ve always known that I don’t vacuum or dust enough – even knowing many chemicals like phthalates travel within homes in dust.  It didn’t help having a weak in-house vacuum system because you wonder how much good you are actually achieving with poor suction and lots of carpet to get through.

The most common advice I’ve heard with helping a person suffering from asthma or allergies is to rip out all your carpet in your home. That theory, true or not, is not an option with my house having an entire upper floor with carpeting and my family room downstairs.  That option is simply too costly and when I replace my flooring, I want to source very green options (more costly) with material like cork. For me, the best option was to start researching a vacuum system with a HEPA filter. This type of vacuum is one of the few options I found in my research that is so effective for an allergy/asthma sufferer because the HEPA filter is amazing at removing air-born irritants and very small particles that other vacuum cleaners would not effectively trap. If you smell an odour when vacuuming – that is irritants coming back out of your machine. What brand did I choose to contact with my questions? Dyson. Dyson machines are actually certified asthma and allergy friendly by the Asthma Society of Canada and 10 allergy associations worldwide. The reason a Dyson vacuum is so effective because they use Root Cyclone technology and include a HEPA filter that remove the smallest particles of dust, mould, and bacteria.

Dyson Canada sent me a DC25 All Floors model to test in my home and even my children have remarked ‘we’ve never seen mom this excited before’. Funny how life changes and a quality, well-designed, powerful vacuum has made my life so much easier and very exciting to clean my home with. Not only is it super powerful, but it’s a pleasure to push and simple to use. I couldn’t believe the amount of dust that has come out of my carpets. I had vacuumed with my in-house vacuum system only days before using the DC25 and look at all of the dust it removed from my carpet! I took a picture because it was so shocking what we’ve been living with and this was only from 2 rooms!

I’ve included various links throughout this article for you to learn more from the Dyson site. My focus for this article was sourcing a product that will and is already helping provide a healthier environment for my child with asthma. Dyson machines are known to never lose suction, but the filters and strength of the machine offer so much more and the proof is in the canister for me. The lines left on my carpet from the superb suction from the machine looks like I’ve just had my carpets professionally cleaned. The industrial strength of the Dyson, balanced with this lightweight, beautiful design makes me want to use it more often and I know I’m improving my home with reducing chemicals and possible irritants for asthma, eczema, or allergies with my kids. When you purchase a Dyson vacuum online – the shipping is free so if you’re in the market for a new vacuum, click onto the Dyson Canada or US site and experience their amazing customer service.  The warranty is great too with 5 year parts and labor. Dyson, you really are the total package with cool looking design, easy manoeuvrability (click here to watch video of the Dyson ball), and great results!

I will be writing a few more articles in this series about how to effectively manage your carpet’s health to help improve the overall environment for your household. Along with a HEPA filter vacuum, there are many more natural tips that will help.

I recently had a wonderful phone call with ‘Mama Maven‘, otherwise known as Tanis Frame and like most green minded mamas – an instant connection formed. Tanis’ passion is to empower parents with knowledge and is hired to speak to schools or parent groups and share her quality knowledge with topics like healthy home, baby carrier info and diapering alternatives. She can also be contacted to speak in a smaller, more intimate setting with groups of friends – very cool for a group of ladies joining the new world of parenting.

During our phone call, she suggested additional tips for naturally removing contaminants and improving bedroom air quality and I’m happy I can share. My thanks to Tanis, who with a background in toxicology and children’s environmental health is an amazing resource for information and it’s always fun to learn tips that are inexpensive and easy to source.

Tips to Instantly Improve Household Air Quality

Fresh Air!   Could it be that simple? Inside our home is where many chemicals off-gassing resides, particularly formaldehyde and benzene. Released from furniture, carpets, cleaning products, along with phthalates and flame retardants in bedding and dust, these toxins tend to collect in our homes and the air we breathe.  So get outside and spend time outdoors and bring the fresh air in and open your windows and flush through fresh air. Enjoy the benefits of quick recirculation and refreshing of the air you’re breathing. An instant process to remove odours and think of it as nature’s air freshener. One of the quickest ways to create a toxic environment for children is to spray air fresheners and febreeze in the air. Read more on masking odours with chemicals here.

Bring in Plants! Not only do plants freshen the air we breathe, but also the planet and our indoor spaces. Tanis mentioned a study by Nasa about how plants remove assorted chemicals in different amounts. It is SO interesting!  The common philodendron, spider plant, devil’s ivy, and Boston fern naturally remove formaldehyde from the air.  Peace lilies, chrysanthemums, and gerbera daisies are said to filter out benzene and trichloroethylene.  Mama Maven’s personal favourite is the Snake Plant because it’s not only a top air purifier, it grow quickly, is inexpensive, and it’s very difficult to kill. (Big bonus for parents that don’t have time to manage finicky plants.) Another great plant is the Spider Plant because it hangs out of reach and the “babies” can be rooted in water and planted over the course of the year.

Added note from Suzanne… Certain plants recommended are considered poisonous houseplants so you need to keep up, away from pets and children (e.g. Snake Plant). Here is a list of Poisonous Houseplants from the Blog Houseplant Care Tips **

Added note from Suzanne… I read the Houseplant chapter of Adria Vasil’s latest Ecoholic book, called Ecoholic Home and she agrees with plants improving air purification and recommends “15 leafy creatures in a 2,000 square foot home should do the trick” for encouraging absorption of certain VOCs like formaldehyde and benzene. A great read if you are looking for extensive and quality research on greening and creating a healthier home.

Related Articles:

Tips To Immediately Reduce Toxins Your Bedroom

Polyester PJs and Flame Retardants

Are Cosmetics Killing Us?