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.

It’s been a long day for my boys, Grandma, and myself because like many families in the ‘burbs’ of Vancouver today, we woke up very early to catch a glimpse and show our support for the 2010 Olympic Torch relay. The flame has been winding it’s way throughout communities in Vancouver, BC, and will make it’s way to light the olympic cauldron Friday, Feb 12th. It’s so interesting to see the excitement, passion, and huge Canadian pride that is standing on every curb and lining streets to cheer on the Olympic volunteers and the proud torch bearers. The Olympic spirit is alive in this city and the torch is fuelling the Olympic message and what you take away after seeing it is different for everyone.

Although the moment passed quickly of the young man running past us carrying the torch, I’ve felt extra purpose in my day and motivates me to up my game with challenging my children to become more active and participate in sporting activities that Canada is known for. I got to have precious 1-1 time with my 6 year old son later in the morning going ice skating with his Kindergarten class. Feeling the cool air as we skated around the ice rink with Angelo in my arms was amazing. These are the changes I can make in my own life – choices and past-times that are important to heritage. I realized that things you practise and enjoy as children stays with you your entire life. I haven’t been on skates in years and it felt wonderful to be enjoying the ice with my child. Such exhilaration mixed with a sense of peace and nature.

Amazing what these Olympic games are doing with the spirit in our city – people are electrified and can’t wait for opening ceremonies tomorrow. I didn’t plan on writing about the games at all, but I’ve been so consumed with thinking of the thousands of people that happily lined the street today in the pouring rain without a second thought to weather, time of day, or the process of patiently waiting to catch sight of a flame. It’s such a powerful symbol that has different meaning and message for everyone. All the ‘ney sayers’ seem to have quieted down and it’s time to showcase our beautiful province of BC – I can’t wait to see the Olympic stories and how they unfold.

What has the 2010 Olympics meant to you and your family? Please post and share.

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 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

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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.