Green Options

Recently Nestle invited several high profile bloggers to their headquarters in Glendale, California. From their site:

Nestlé understands the importance of listening directly to parents. That’s why on September 30 and October 1, we’ve invited 20 Mom and Dad bloggers to our U.S. headquarters to learn firsthand the things that are important to them and their families, and to share a little about us and our brands. Check out what they are saying by following the conversation below from Twitter. Visit this page daily from September 23 through October 7, to learn more about them, their families, their busy lives, and to hear about their experiences at Nestlé. Check out their blogs, too

What’s interesting is that they picked a group of bloggers who would clearly support their mission, and they forgot about the others.

The others include women who believe that Nestle has a history of undermining breastfeeding in many countries. I’m not familiar with the controversy because breastfeeding was never a discussion in my home. For one child it worked for a good long time, and for another child medical reasons kept us from breastfeeding.

I can’t even say the words. I can’t begin to type or tell you the discomfort I have talking to my daughter about puberty.

Why? Uh, because I’m human. If there’s one thing you should know about me, it’s that I’m fallible. I’ve talked to her. I’ve given her the facts of life, intercourse, menstruation, puberty, hair, smells… I literally cannot write in complete sentences. Every conversation is punctuated with blushing, and I refer her to Granny. “Please, ask your Granny.”

Today the email came. You know the one. It’s from the Science Teacher and it outlines the Fourth Grade Sex Ed Cirriculum. I showed it to my husband, and he just laughed, “talk to your daughter.”

Recently I was given a Thumbelina doll and DVD to review.

The DVD is lovely, it’s a great story, a classic even. Thumbelina is a fairy that lives in harmony with nature. If you have a little girl, you already know that they love faeries, and glitter, and shiny things. Some folks hate Barbie, I think she’s the ultimate feminist. She’s had almost 100 jobs, and done them all with grace.

Thumbelina is the classic tale of even the tiniest person making a difference. In this DVD Thumbelina lives in the forest, in harmony with nature. Thumbelina is instrumental in keeping the Twillerbees’ home from being demolished.

Who doesn’t love a story that kids can apply to the headlines? Overdevelopment is a very real issue in our world and if our kids have a heightened awareness of it, perhaps they will opt against it in twenty years when they have the checkbooks.

It’s a great story, much along the lines of Hoot, only it’s a magical fantasy. The Thumbelina doll that I was given to review opens up into a flower when you press a button. It’s very simple and reminds of the Barbie’s I used to play with. I love that the doll is packaged in matte recycled cardboard, but I’m sure that Thumbelina’s curviness and a short dress will not delight some. The movie is far less seductive than the doll, but still if you are wildly protective of your daughter’s modesty this is not the toy for you.

In the wake of Janet Fraser’s tragic homebirth a broohaha is erupting. How safe is your homebirth? What is a home birth and who should have one? Yes, the woman who coined the term “Birthrape” to describe an emergency episiotomy has lost her child during a home birth.

Let me be very clear here, that a baby died is a horrendous tragedy. Not learning from this would be even worse.

My friend, and fellow Mom Blogger, Amber Watson Tardiff wrote a compelling piece that asks the question everyone sidesteps, is homebirthing a crime? Amber notes:

You may have even seen quotes from Janet calling c-sections and episiotomies “birthrape” and insisting that “survivors are angry and we are starting to talk about it.”

What you may not know is Janet’s baby suffered cardiac arrest during her cherished unassisted water birth and died on March 27th at her home in Australia.

Apparently the possibility of “birthrape” was much more important to Janet than the safety of her child.

Typically I’m here as a Mommy Blogger. It’s a title that makes some cringe, but I embrace it. I have kids, I’m raising them, it’s the most important job I’ll ever have, therefore I’m a Mommy Blogger. Today I’m here to talk about my mom.

I woke up to this email