I am super excited to tell you about a collaboration between two of my favorite companies, TOMS and FEED. These two companies with a similar mission have teamed together to create a shoe with a truly inspiring impact.

Introducing the FEED 12 Classic:

The limited edition FEED 12 Classic not only gives a brand new pair of shoes to a child in need for every pair purchased, but also goes a step further by covering the cost of 12 school lunches. This is a purchase you can truly feel good about, something cool for you — did I tell you the women’s shoes are metallic & burlap?! <- super stylish and something amazing for someone else too. That’s money well spent for sure.

Available at TOMS online starting April 1st.
Selections are limited, so mark your calendars and do something good with your feet.

Available in Womens ($58)
or Toddlers ($34)
{I really love the mini FEED 12′s!!!

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Splendid and inspiring, Forest and trees are essential to the health of our planet.

This has been the topic of our studies the past two weeks in honor of World Environment Day (June 5) and the Forest Fiesta Blog Hop, my beautiful friend Rashmie is hosting.

Not only have we been studying and creating wonderful art projects, but I’ve also been teaching them the true importance of the forest.

Forests do so much for us — they protect our waters, improve the quality of our air, shelter us from the sun and wind, sequester carbon, provide a habitat for wildlife, and generate employment for thousands of people.

That’s a pretty tall order for something that never moves from where its planted, but did you also know without trees and plants human life on earth wold have never been possible? They are the key to life. The secret ingredient that makes our planet, the one planet inhabitable by living things. It took them thousands and thousands of years to create enough oxygen for other life to exist. They are a gift from God and it is our duty to protect them.

Here are a few ways you can teach your family to protect the forests and keep our world safe for generations to come

1. Eat Less Meat

This may seem like a strange way to preserve forests, but the #1 cause of deforestation is making room for agriculture – grazing animals in particular. Sad, but true. To help save the forests, try instituting a Meatless Meal one night a week or even more if your family is willing. You’ll save trees and $ in your family budget

2. Give Up Paper Products

Paper cups, paper plates, paper napkins, daily newspapers, even your favorite brand of toilet paper. All of these non-essential items are costing trees their lives. You can learn to get by without them and when you must use them, try to by products made from recycled materials. (Hehe, I realised after reading this later it seems as if I am saying toilet paper is non-essential. No, I am certainly not saying that! Just suggesting you try one made with recycled paper)

3. Recycle

Did you know you have to recycle 500 magazines to save just 1 tree? Even if your town doesn’t have a recycle service, most schools have paper collection bins. This is a great way to recycle and make some extra cash for your schools.

4. Buy FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified

Products bearing the FSC logo guarantee the wood came from a certified well-managed forest.

5. Reclaim, Repurpose & Reuse

Wood is one of our most valuable resources and if well treated can me used and reused over and over again. When you can reuse wood in your home improvement projects, choose bamboo or cork for new building materials, or give new life to something old by buying used and making it new again.

Practice these tips and know that your family is doing something to make a difference.

Now, for a few glimpses of one of our projects this week. I’ll be sharing some of the resources, lessons and books we used in another post.

It was important for me to choose a project where the kids could see themselves in the forest and visualize how they could interact with it.

We chose felt, a popular medium in our house and something we had plenty of on hand already. I let the kids guide me on what pieces they wanted to incorporate into their forest. Whenever building with felt, I try to use as many basic pieces as I can and let the kids construct the final outcome and how an object will look.

I love all the intricate details they came up with and how they envisioned us living amongst the animals and canoeing together (note to self for future family vacation)

This is where we left off yesterday … but we still have one more special thing we want to share with you. It’s kind of high-tech even for me, hopefully I will figure out how to make it happen so I can post it here later.


Now on to the hop, please take a few moments to see what these other amazing parents are doing with their kids for the Forest Fiesta.

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We spend a lot of time teaching our children the difference between right and wrong and how to take care of a home but there’s one area I believe we could all focus a little more attention on.

How to care for the planet.

Teaching kids to appreciate the Earth & all it does for us from a very young age is the most generous gift you can give their generation. Knowledge is power and if they are equipped with the tools to lead a more sustainable life than that of their parents or their parents’ parents, then the future will be nothing but bright.

Earth Day is a great time to start teaching kids the wonders of the world, but I hope you won’t stop there. Incorporate these tips in to your family time all year long.

Here’s a few fun ways to help you get started:

1. See New Lands

No matter what country you live in or how urban your lot, there are thousands of places you can take your child to experience the glory that is nature. Do some research, let the kids get involved and plan a trip to a natural area near you.

It just so happens, this is National Park Week (April 16-24). Plan a trip to your nearest National Park and enjoy free admission and all it has to offer.

Geocaching or Boatnical Gardens are great options as well.

2. Make something beautiful

via

Do something a little bit different this year and concoct some seed bombs using native flowers from your area. Make a day of driving around and tossing them in to empty lots or places you think could use a little pick me up. Guerilla Gardening is just the kind of thing to help you bond with older kids and fun enough to score high with the littles too.

3. Have a picnic for the planet!

Picnic for the planet is an initiative started by the Nature Conservatory to celebrate the planet we live on, the food it provides us with and the people who live here. What a wonderful idea! Hit the farmers market, score some of the freshest locally grown grub and suround yourself with friends and loved ones. Doing good and giving back is what it’s all about.

There are meetups scheduled in 457 around the world!! Choose one to join or create your own. Pick any day of Earth Week since I know folks are having scheduling conflicts around Easter.

Share pictures of your event on Facebook, Twitter (#picnic11) or Flickr (tag picnic11) My family will be attending this event if you care to join us.

* Please make sure to recycle your waste and choose your utensils/paper products carefully

4. Grow Something

The best thing you can do for you family, your yard, your stomach and your pocketbook is to plant a few things to perk up your family meal plans. Love eggplant, but hate how much it costs? Grow your own!! Wish you could add fresh herbs to your meals but aren’t willing to pay the steep price tags, herbs grow great in windowsills!! and are easily cared for by kids.

5. Clean in, Clean Out

No matter where you end up spending your Earth Day, practice a little game I like to call “Leave it better than you found it”. We do this a lot indoors, but the same rules apply for outdoor spaces as well.

I’d love to give you more ideas but I am having some issues with WordPress, please be patient I have no idea how long my site will be unable to update. Miss you guys

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