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5 Super Easy Ways to Create a Safer Prenatal Environment for Your Baby

Friday, May 10th, 2013 1:43 PM by Leave a Comment
pregnant maia with elle

This post will soon appear on my blog on The Huffington Post. I'm 8-months pregnant with my second child, and all the clichés about how different the prenatal period is the second time around have been spot on. For instance, I barely remember which week of pregnancy I'm in, I've not yet taken any baby clothes/blankets out of storage (let alone buy something new for the little guy), and I have no idea where the ultrasound pictures have ended up (with the exception of the one that had to be fished out of the garbage after 3-year-old Felix crumpled it up and said he wanted to throw his baby

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Filed Under: Pregnancy & Childbirth, Products

Indoor Gardening for City Kids

Monday, April 29th, 2013 11:34 PM by Leave a Comment
Fe indoor garden

A version of this post appears on our blog on The Huffington Post. Last weekend, my parents came to visit, and my dad brought an indoor vegetable garden for Felix. It was such an incredible surprise for all of us, and again, I was reminded that my son has the world's best grandparents. We live in a small New York City apartment, and I have long felt sad that Felix, who loves gardening for hours with my mom when we visit my parents, would be denied the chance to have a garden of his own. I am not surprised that my very industrious father found a way to make this possible! Now, Felix's

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Filed Under: Activities for Kids

10 Ways to Get Your Kids Off Junk Food and Demanding Vegetables

Saturday, February 23rd, 2013 5:14 PM by Leave a Comment
Suze_headshot

A version of this post appears on our blog on The Huffington Post. --By Suzanne ("Nana"), Certified Holistic Health Coach Many of my clients are moms, and they often ask me about encouraging their kids to eat more healthfully—and in particular about the challenge of getting little ones to eat vegetables! As a mother and now a grandmother, I have lived this challenge myself. Children have different needs and taste preferences just like adults do, so it’s important to respect these while still not allowing them to only eat processed, sugar-laden foods (this is especially tempting

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Filed Under: Greens, Kids, Recipes & Healthy Eating

3 Reasons to Wear Your Baby That No One Ever Talks About

Thursday, February 14th, 2013 3:34 PM by 2 Comments
Babywearing-illustration-by-GG-WEB-2

This post originally appeared in our blog on The Huffington Post. If you're a parent in 2013, you probably own a baby carrier or two. We've got a Moby, an Ergo, a BabyHawk and a BBslen, all of which were well-used during Felix's infancy and toddlerhood. (OK, I lied -- I could never get the hang of the BB Slen, even though I desperately wanted to be one of those Brooklyn moms who effortlessly took that long piece of fabric and whipped it into a nice snug seat on my hip, from which my 4-year-old would dangle contentedly). Skipping the stroller is more than just a passing

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Filed Under: Attachment Parenting, Babywearing, Toxins

How to Avoid Phthalates (Even Though You Can’t Avoid Phthalates)

Monday, January 14th, 2013 7:50 PM by Leave a Comment
teethers.felix

I recently wrote this article for my Huffington Post blog. If you’re like me, you’re already failing at most of your New Year’s resolutions (I’m still not making my bed every day, and I haven’t been to a yoga class yet in January). One goal that I am tackling in earnest? Banishing phthalates from my home once and for all.  I’ve always advised readers to avoid these chemicals, and this year it moved to the top of my resolution list. Unfortunately, ridding my house of phthalates is proving to be much, much more difficult than I’d hoped. What Are Phthalates? For several years

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Filed Under: Phthalates, Toxins

What’s New at Gimme the Good Stuff

Tuesday, January 8th, 2013 3:23 PM by Leave a Comment

So sorry for the long delay, friends! I haven't blogged here in way too long, in part because of holiday insanity (including a long break from preschool for Felix), but also because we have been super busy with a bunch of other exciting projects. A few of these include: 1. I am now blogging on the Huffington Post! You can find me at http://www.huffingtonpost.com/maia-james. Look for a new entry this week on easy ways to banish phthalates for good (one of my New Year's resolutions). 2. Gimme the Good Stuff is getting a face lift! We are hoping to launch our gorgeous new website in

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Filed Under: Updates

Pangea Adding Synthetic Preservatives to Some Products

Saturday, November 3rd, 2012 6:59 PM by 4 Comments
pangea-body-lotion.jpg

Pangea has long been one of my favorite skincare lines, and it was one of the first we carried in our online store. Recently, we learned that Pangea is intending to change the formula of some of their products. Notably, they are adding a couple of preservatives to some (but not all) of their products. This is too bad for several reasons--not the least of which is that some of the affected products are among our best sellers! However, our primary commitment is always to customer safety, so we are not going to be carrying the products listed below moving forward. Wah. The good news? Gimme the

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Filed Under: Lotion, Skin & Haircare, Sneaky Stuff

What’s Wrong with Sodium Lauryl & Sodium Laureth Sulfate?

Tuesday, October 9th, 2012 3:19 PM by Leave a Comment
Fe-in-bath

This is Gimme the Good Stuff's simple primer on sodium lauryl sulfate and its nefarious cousin, sodium laureth sulfate.  Sodium lauryl sulfate, or SLS, is a surfactant (for simplicity’s sake, think of a surfactant as something that creates bubbles in dish soap, toothpaste, shampoo, shower gel, etc.). There is conflicting evidence, but SLS is probably not a carcinogen. SLS sometimes appears on labels as “coconut-derived surfactant.” Sodium laureth sulfate, or SLES, is another widely-used surfactant (also coconut-based), and is probably carcinogenic, as it is usually contaminated

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Filed Under: SLES & SLS, Toxins, What's Wrong With...

Aromatherapy for Back-to-School Blues

Saturday, September 29th, 2012 11:59 PM by Leave a Comment
EOV_Valerie

Felix recently started preschool and while I am mostly excited about this transition, it has not been without some stress and a certain sense of loss. I can't believe his first three years are really over (and that I’ve spent the bulk of them waiting for bedtime...waiting for the weekend...waiting for him to be old enough to go to school!).  Because I know that many moms are going through the same range of emotions this time of year, I turned to aromatherapy expert Valerie Bennis for her stress relief tips. Here’s what Valerie had to say: Whether your little boy has just begun

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Filed Under: Aromatherapy, Health & Homeopathy

Our Mattress Safety Review & Shopping Guide Is Here at Last!

Tuesday, September 18th, 2012 6:54 PM by 1 Comment
savvy_rest_mattress

Whew! Mattresses were by far the most confusing, most challenging research project we've ever taken on. Our brand new Mattress Safety Review & Shopping Guide (for both adult and crib mattresses) represents a major trip out of our comfort zone, into a land of polybrominated diphenyl ethers, confusing certifications (many of which are meaningless), and numbingly boring material safety data sheets. We looked into dozens of mattresses that claimed to be natural, and we annoyed manufacturers by asking questions like, "are the oils used to make your latex foam cold pressed or chemically

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Filed Under: Home Products & Furniture, Mattresses

What’s Wrong With Dreft?

Sunday, September 9th, 2012 4:58 PM by Leave a Comment
dreft

This blog entry is part of our “What’s Wrong With” series, each installment of which profiles a different product and gives you the bottom line on its safety. Think of these as cheat sheets for our more comprehensive Safety Reviews (which we publish less frequently). Any laundry detergent you use will leave a residue on clothing and linens, which is then inhaled and absorbed (via skin) by the people who come in contact with it. Many of you probably use a different detergent for your baby's clothes, and you probably assume this detergent is a special formulation. This is very rarely

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Filed Under: Home Products & Furniture, Laundry Products, Sneaky Stuff, What's Wrong With...

What Maia Uses

Friday, August 31st, 2012 10:55 PM by 2 Comments
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One of the most frequent questions asked by readers and by clients is, "What products are actually in your bathroom?" Here's what I'm using at the moment: Shampoo: John Masters Organics Lavender Rosemary Shampoo.   Conditioner: My husband's totally toxic Biolage detangler. I'm just being honest here. It smells really good, but once this bottle is gone he's promised we are switching to only Good Stuff.     Body Soap: Tandi's Naturals Patchouli Citrus Soap--I've always hated patchouli, but I weirdly can't get enough of the smell of this soap. We cycle through

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Filed Under: Lotion, Makeup & Lip Balms, Shampoo & Conditioner, Skin & Haircare