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I’d like to share why we choose to sell natural and smart toys and products, and not battery-operated or plastic toys at Summer For Kids
Children's Imagination
* Toys without batteries invite open-ended play - the type of play that fosters creativity and keeps the child interested in the toy for many years.
* Open-ended toys inspire a child to imagine the countless possibilities for that toy, and all the while the child is focusing on just that toy. Their thoughts are not jumping from one toy to the next as often occurs when the toys think for the child.
* Natural toys allow for 'downtime'. It is difficult for a child to switch gears from a very active toy to resting, whereas simple toys allow for a natural progression to rejuvenating activities such as reading books, daydreaming, or napping.
Children's Mental Health
* Toys with battery-generated special effects can over-stimulate children. The combination of blinking lights, loud sounds or music, and automated movement can be too much information for a small child to process
* The environment is completely different in a room with natural toys than in a room with battery-operated plastic toys
* Adults and children are drawn to nature and to products created from natural materials.
Children's Physical Health
* Studies have shown that certain plastics may negatively affect health. Our customers know that Summer For Kids doesn’t carry any products made with PVC, BPA and PHTHALATES . CHECnet.org states that, "phthalates are added to PVC (polyvinyl chloride) to make it soft and flexible. Phthalates have been linked to cancer, kidney and liver damage, harm to developing reproductive organs, and premature breast development in baby girls. Inhaling these chemicals can also worsen asthma in children. Phthalates are not bonded to the plastic, but can migrate, or leach out."
* Pesticides and fertilizers are used on conventionally grown (non-organic) cotton, and chemicals are often used in the production process. These harmful chemicals not only impact those who buy conventionally-grown cotton, but those within miles of where they are used, as they drift in the wind, fall back to the ground in rain and snow, and leach into groundwater.
* Due to children's small size and their propensity to "mouth" or cuddle everything, plastic and non-organic products, with the risks shown above, could pose serious health threats to children.
Environmental Health
* Wooden, bamboo toys and toys made out of recycled materials are durable so they last longer than their plastic counterparts and therefore there is less waste. When the time does come to retire your toys, wood and bamboo are recyclable, replenish able resources so you can rest assured that their disposal will be gentle to our Earth.
* Children are drawn to natural toys and have more respect for them so they tend to care for them better than other toys. This also leads to less waste.
* Bamboo is a giant natural grass that can grow to over 100 feet. Once cut, bamboo grows back completely in only three years. Thus, bamboo has economical and ecological values to the world, particularly as it is used instead of certain woods.
* The chemicals used in non-organic cotton farming harm not only the land, but also flora and fauna for miles around.
Here are some of the Manufactures we carry
Sprig Toys, Green Toys, Plan Toys, Lauri Toys, Beka, Maple Landmark
Summer For Kids is here to help! Summer For Kids has It ALL!
shop with us this holiday season for organic, safe and fun products and make a difference in children's lives in Santa Barbara at the same time! It doesn't get any better than this!
Here are some ideas from us....
What’s so bad about normal fabrics? Why switch to Eco Friendly Textiles?
Regular Cotton uses a lot of pesticides and herbicides which poison the ocean, near by streams and the land in general. The crops are sprayed from above affecting near by streams, farm houses and people. In contrast organic cotton uses beneficial bugs and manure in place of the chemicals. Organic Cotton also uses crop rotation methods, hand-weeding and cover crops as methods to ensure good crops. To use a field as organic the field must be free of chemical for 3 years. The cotton is processed according to acceptable standards. Other textiles like polyester are made from petroleum which is not sustainable to produce or to manufacture into fabric. The resulting process if left unchecked can be extremely detrimental to the planet and produces an excess amount of greenhouse gases. Such fabrics also poison people, your skin is your biggest organ and takes in everything that you put on it.
Making the switch to healthier, chemical free fabrics is great start in protecting you health as well as the environment.
In the US alone 80 million pounds of chemicals are used each year on conventional crops. Cotton uses approximately 25% of the world's insecticides and more than 10% of the pesticides (including herbicides, insecticides, and defoliants.).The Environmental Protection Agency considers seven of the top 15 pesticides used on cotton in 2000 in the United States as "possible," "likely," "probable," or "known" human carcinogens (acephate, dichloropropene, diuron, fluometuron, pendimethalin, tribufos, and trifluralin). (EPA) It takes roughly one-third of a pound of chemicals (pesticides and fertilizers) to grow enough cotton for just one T-shirt.
Eating food and wearing clothes grown without unnecessary chemicals is both good for you and the environment.
So every organic garment purchased helps to reduce to amount of chemicals polluting our earth and our food.
Each T-shirt made with 100% organic cotton saves 1/3 a pound of synthetic fertilizers and farm chemicals from entering the ecosystems.
What does Sustainable mean ?
The dictionary defines sustainability as "the attempt to provide the best outcomes for both human and natural environments both now and in the indefinite future." In basic terms It means that ever effort is made from the fiber to finished product to ensure the least harmful and most natural materials are used. Also using the least energy possible to produce and distribute the clothing. Starting at the fiber, using natural, easily renewable fibers like bamboo help lessen the amount of land and energy used. Using organic cotton instead of regular cotton prevents chemicals from getting into the surrounding natural and human environments. The milling process of turning the organic fiber into a sustainable clothing item is also important. Natural color organic cotton and hemp is best because little processing is needed to make the finished fabric. Using the least harmful kind or even natural dyes. Local is best, when items are made locally it is using less energy in transport. It is also great to shop local for from a community sustainability perspective. Shipping is the final rung on the sustainable clothing ladder. Shipping less equals less energy and less environment damage. All of these things add up to what it takes to make organic, sustainable clothing. When a company pays attention to what it takes out of the world to make its product it makes all of our futures brighter and more secure.
What’s so Great about Bamboo Fabric?
Bamboo fabric is not only pretty and Eco-friendly but it also has some amazing traits. Bamboo Is a tropical grass & grows faster then any plant on earth. It regenerates naturally without replanting, eliminating the need for re-forestation. Bamboo can yield 20 times more timber than trees on the same square footage of land and grows without the need for pesticides and chemical fertilizers. It produces a high quality and quantity of oxygen, 30% more than trees. It will mitigate water pollution with harmful pesticides and an array of other harmful content through high nitrogen consumption.
There are two ways to process bamboo to produce the plant into a fabric: mechanically or chemically. The mechanical way is by crushing the woody pieces of the bamboo plant and then use natural enzymes to crush the bamboo walls into a slushy mass so that the natural fibers can be mechanically combed out and spun into yarn. This is essentially the equivalent eco-friendly manufacturing process used to create linen fabric from flax or hemp.
Made in China?
Yes! Bamboo clothes are made in many countries, including China. Manufacturing in China is not a black and white issue. Careful consideration is done before manufacturing takes place in China. Our suppliers' factories are clean, do not hire children, and honor regular working hours. Also, China grows 90% of the world's hemp. Without access to this incredible plant, we could not promote and use it for its myriad uses: cloth, paper, oil, biofuel, food and list goes on...
1. Bamboo is anti-bacterial! The fabric keeps the natural anti-bacterial and anti-fungal properties of natural growing bamboo. It also stops bacterial metabolism, which means that it doesn't cause allergic skin reactions.
2. Bamboo is sustainable! Bamboo grows quickly and needs no pesticides or herbicides.
3. Bamboo is Deodorising! Bamboos antibacterial properties keep it from absorbing and retaining body and environmental odors.
4. Bamboo fabric is breathable and keeps you dry. Another amazing property of bamboo when made into fabric is that keeps you dry and doesn't stick to you on hot summer days. It has this ability because the yarn has a cross section filled with many micro gaps and micro-holes allowing air to flow freely, wicking away moisture from the skin. Bamboo is 60% more hygroscopic (absorbing water) than cotton, this means that bamboo is that much more comfortable to wear.
5. Bamboo Fabric keeps you at an even temperature. The micro-holes also give bamboo a porous nature which insulated for temperature regulation. Cool in the summer, warm in the winter.
6. Bamboo is Healthy to Wear! The charcoal particles can absorb far infrared energy from the environment and then take that energy and help aide cell activation. This trait promotes circulation and keeps you healthy.
7. No static electricity buildup for Bamboo. Bamboo has 12 times the anti-static effect of cotton.
This is why we love Bamboo!
Soybean Fabric
Soy Protein Fiber has a number of great properties for the wearer and the environment. Soy is a renewable resource and the Soy Protein Fiber (SPF) is made using the by product of the soybean industry.
1. Soy Protein Fiber has antibacterial and UV radiation prevention properties.
2. SPF has great moisture absorption so you always feel dry and fresh.
3. Soy Fiber promotes the micro circulation of the blood capillaries and also contains many amino acids necessary to the human body. By touching the skin the fabric activates the collagen in the skin.
4. Soy Protein Fiber has a beautiful silky look and a nice cashmere feel.
Nature can only dilute and disperse so much chemical until it will begin to affect us all. We will all begin to notice these chemicals in our food and water supplies eventually. Buying Organic Clothing is one way that you can be gentle on the earth and yourself.
WEAR ORGANIC
organic baby
The Danger of Lead in Lunchboxes and Bibs
Childhood lead exposure has a profound effect on developing brains. Small exposures can lead to brain damage, lowered IQ, attention deficit, and behavioral problems.
Lead has a profound ability to damage children’s intellectual and behavioral development. Children who have been exposed to higher levels of lead score lower on IQ tests than children with less exposure, they are also more impulsive and have shorter attention spans.
Since the summer of 2004, CEH ( Center of environmental health )has purchased and tested over 200 children's soft vinyl lunchboxes and found that many of them contained high levels of lead. Lead was usually found in the lining of the lunchboxes where it could come into contact with food. In addition to being a known carcinogen and reproductive toxin, lead is a neurotoxin that can cause health effects such as behavioral problems and hearing problems in children that are exposed to low levels.
Summer For Kids carries only Lunchboxes safe for our children made by Milkdot and Thermos.
Buy Bibs that are not made of vinyl. We recommend that you purchase bibs made from organically grown cotton and bamboo whenever possible. Tell your friends to do the same! If you need a bib with a waterproof layer, look for bibs that are advertised as PVC-free or vinyl-free. Nobody should have to worry about lead poisoning when a baby puts a bib into her or his mouth.
As always, Summer For Kids cares about safety of our children! Please come in and check out our selection of safe bibs and lunch boxes
Please keep your children safe!
SPF is a measure of a sunscreen's ability to prevent UVB from damaging the skin.
Here's how it works:
Minutes to burn without sunscreen x SPF number = maximum sun exposure time
For example, if you burn after 20 minutes of sun exposure, an SPF of 15 will allow you to be in the sun for up to 300 minutes without burning.
Another way to look at it is in terms of percentages: SPF 15 blocks approximately 93 percent of all incoming UVB rays. SPF 30 blocks 97 percent; and SPF 50 blocks 99 percent.
No sunscreen can block all UV rays
UVB rays cause sunburns
UVA rays penetrate skin more deeply, has more long-term damaging effects on the skin, like premature aging, wrinkling, sagging and they are being seen as a cause of skin cancer. UVA penetrates glass.
Who should use sunscreen?
*Anyone over the age of six months should use a sunscreen daily.
*Children under the age of six months should not be exposed to the sun. Their skin is not yet protected by melanin. So when you take your infant outside, take special care!
What to use?
· Look for The Skin Cancer Foundation's Seal of Recommendation, which guarantees that a sunscreen product meets the highest standards for safety and effectiveness.
· Until FDA strengthens and finalizes sunscreen safety standards first drafted 31 years ago, consumers can't be confident that products on store shelves are safe and effective. Please see
How To Use
*Apply sunscreen at least 20 minutes before you are exposed to the sun to allow optimum absorption of your sunscreen
*No sunscreen, regardless of strength, should be expected to stay effective longer than two hours without reapplication. Reapply!
*To maintain the SPF, reapply sunscreen every two hours and right after swimming!
*Make sure you're wearing enough sunscreen. As a rule of thumb, use 3 tablespoons to cover your entire body.
Try to avoid intense midday sun from 11 am and 3 pm when the sun is at its strongest during the summer months or when on holiday in tropical countries.
Drink lots of water. Skin needs special protection in the sun not only from UV rays but from drying up too, because dry skin is more vulnerable to the sun.
BE SAFE!
http://www.skincancer.org/
http://www.ewg.com/
Hi Friends,
We at Summer for Kids know that it has been a rough and stressful year on everyone. Between the economy and fires, our local community has been hit hard. We’d like to just say thank you for your continued support through these hard times and remind yourself of all the positive things in your life when the times are feeling rough.
Child abuse cases are on the rise, in part because of the stress parents are incurring in this economy. Not only is the number of cases rising, but the severity as well. Please don’t let your children be a part of this statistic!
Though their footprints may be small, their dreams are big and every day that their parents are happy, and optimistic, so are they. Remember in these stressful times that you are raising little ones that get their outlook on life from you. So try to remember the most important things in life: THEM. And when the going gets tough, reach out to your friends, family, and neighbors and get through it as a team. Your children are counting on you.
Please don’t let this sad story become their reality:
http://www.cbsne
ws.com/stories/2009/05/20/business/childofrecession/main5029133.shtml
If you need help please do reach out to CALM 805.965.2376 http://www.calm4kids.org/
or contact Summer For Kids and we will try to give you more resources.
Child abuse has long been recognized as the greatest threat to a child’s healthy development. Physical,
sexual and verbal abuse, as well as neglect, can result in serious problems in social, emotional, and intellectual development, and has been linked to a wide range of problems in mental health,
substance abuse, school success, and criminal involvement.
Please do Not abuse and do Not let others
abuse our Children!
Summer Dreaming
BENEFITS FOR BABY:
A mother's milk has just the right amount of fat, sugar, water, and protein that is needed for baby's growth and development. Breast milk has agents called antibodies (proteins made by certain white blood cells in response to a foreign substance (antigen). Antibodies neutralize or destroy antigens) in it to help protect infants from bacteria and viruses and to help them fight off infection and disease.
Therefore Breastfed babies have fewer illnesses. About 80% of the cells in breast milk are macrophages, cells that kill bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Breastfed babies are protected in varying degrees from a number of illnesses including, pneumonia, botulism, bronchitis, staphylococcal infections, influenza, ear infections, and German measles. Furthermore, mothers produce antibodies to whatever disease is present in their environment, making their milk custom-designed to fight diseases their babies are exposed to as well.
Formula does not provide any of the disease-protective factors present in human milk. Infants artificially fed infants are generally sicker and sick more often. They are three to four times more likely to have an ear infection or diarrhea and ten times more likely to be admitted to a hospital for bacterial infections.
Breastfeeding reduces or even eliminates food allergies & eczema.
Human milk straight from the breast is always sterile. Breast Milk is the most complete form of nutrition for infants. Breast milk is free!
Babies find it easier to digest breast milk than they do formula. Human milk is the perfect food for a sick infant. When a formula fed baby gets a gastrointestinal ailment they are usually put on an artificial electrolyte solution because formula is too hard for them to digest. Breast milk, however, is easily digested, and soothing to the intestines, so there is no need for artificial and expensive electrolyte solutions. If a baby gets a respiratory illness, formula may cause even more mucus. In contrast, breast milk contains antibodies to these ailments, as well as being highly digestible and not contributing to excess mucous formation.
Breastfeeding satisfies baby's emotional needs and increases bonding between mother and baby. All babies need to be held. There is no more comforting feeling for an infant of any age than being held close and cuddled while breastfeeding. In fact, studies have shown that premature babies are more likely to die if they are not held or stroked. Breastfeeding stimulates the release of the hormone oxytocin in the mother's body. It is now well established that oxytocin, as well as stimulating uterine contractions and milk ejection, promotes the development of maternal behavior and also bonding between mother and offspring.
Breastfed infants grow exactly the way they should. They tend to gain less unnecessary weight and to be leaner. This may result in being less overweight later in life. Premature babies do better when breast-fed.
Breastfed babies are slightly higher in IQ tests, especially babies who were born pre-maturely.
Failure to breastfeed is also one of the risk factors believed to contribute to
Breast milk provides natural pain relief for baby
Breast milk actually contains chemicals that suppress pain (endorphins). Aside from this, the comfort a baby derives from being held close and suckling is remarkable. Many a bruise or scrape has been soothed away almost instantly by a few moments of nursing. If you choose to have your child vaccinated, it is a good idea to nurse immediately after he/she receives a vaccination. This soothes the hurt, as well as enhancing the vaccine's effectiveness.
BENEFITS FOR MOM:
Nursing uses up extra calories, making it easier to lose the pounds of pregnancy. It also helps the uterus to get back to its original size and lessens any bleeding a woman may have after giving birth.
Breastfeeding, especially exclusive breastfeeding (no supplementing with formula), delays the return of normal ovulation and menstrual cycles. (However, you should still talk with your doctor or nurse about birth control choices.)
Breastfeeding lowers the risk of breast and ovarian cancers, and possibly the risk of hip fractures and osteoporosis after menopause.
A mother can give her baby immediate satisfaction by providing her breast milk when her baby is hungry.
Breastfeeding requires a mother to take some quiet relaxed time for herself and her baby.
Breastfeeding helps a mother to bond with her baby. Physical contact is important to newborns and helps them feel more secure, warm and comforted.
Mothers who artificially feed are at greater risk of excessive bleeding after birth, ovarian cancer and premenopausal
breast cancer. Not breastfeeding increases mother's risk of developing endometrial cancer. A World Health Organization study has shown that the longer a woman breastfeeds, the less likely she is to get endometrial cancer.
