Eco Vessel

Many of you know that I do my very best to avoid anything plastic (including BPA-free) when there are glass or stainless steel alternatives. And I'm always on the lookout for new options in fun colors and great designs. And one such company worth sharing is Eco Vessel.

Eco Vessel has some amazing stainless steel bottles for both children and adults in many sizes, colors and unique varieties.

Some of my favorite features are the insulated bottles and the filtering water bottle. Most stainless sippy cups are single walled which is perfect for water, but when you've got a toddler attached to her milk, like I do, insulated is better.

As for the filtered bottles, they're great in my town where we have well water. We filter our water at home, but when on the go, bottles that filter water is a great luxury! And Eco Vessel's other Vacuum Sealed bottles also feature a removable mesh strainer basket so you can brew your own tea right in the insulated bottle. What ever will they think of next?!

All bottles and accessories are available to purchase at ecovessel.com where prices start at $12.95 for a sippy cup.

SodaStream

Whether your New Year's resolution is to be healthier, cut costs, or get a bit greener, I think I've discovered a product that will help. I know it's made many positive changes in my family! It's SodaStream.

SodaStream is a countertop appliance (the size of a coffee maker) that has enabled my family and me to make soda and sparkling water at home with just our tap water! It doesn't use any batteries or electricity...just a reusable CO₂ carbonator bottle (provided by SodaStream).

When you first receive your SodaStream, you simply screw in the carbonating bottle and fill the water bottle up to the line with your tap water. Then you attach the bottle to the machine (different methods depending on the machine you purchase) and then push the button (the more you push it the more your water will carbonate). Voilà! You have sparkling water! And there's no clean up required!

To turn your sparkling water into soda using your home soda maker you use one of the 25 different soda flavors available...just add a capful of the mix. And with SodaStream's mixes your soda will contain 2/3 less sugar, calories, carbs and sodium than regular store-bought soda. And there are diet flavors available as well that are of course sugar-free, and contain less sodium than store-bought diet flavors...and they contain no aspartame.

There are a few different models to choose from when purchasing a SodaStream. My family has the Penguin (we named him Petey). He is the most expensive of the models but he was chosen because of his great style (he has a permanent spot on the kitchen counter so I wanted something I didn't mind looking at) and because the Penguin uses all glass bottles.

My family is not a big soda-drinking one. It's not something we keep regularly stocked in the refrigerator and my children know it's a treat when they drink it (about once a month with store-bought soda but a bit more frequently since Petey joined the family). But we are huge sparkling water drinkers. And with cans of sparkling water costing a pretty penny, I appreciate that the cost of seltzer with SodaStream starts at just 17¢ per liter; soda starts at just 42¢ per liter. And if you're an energy drink purchaser, you'll want to know that you can make your own with SodaStream's Energy Drink mix for about 25¢ per serving.

In recent months, SodaStream products have appeared in Time Magazine, Food and Wine, Popular Science, The Wall Street Journal, and countless newspaper articles. I have a feeling SodaStream will soon be a recognizable counter-top appliance in the majority of homes. Especially those of families looking to raise healthy children, cut down on costs and unnecessary packaging.

Visit sodastreamusa.com to learn more and to see the various machines available. Prices start at $89.95 for the Fountain Jet and go up to $199.95 for the Penguin (there are two other options inbetween those models). And all starter kits are currently on sale so it's a great time to give SodaStream a try! And with coupon code AC you'll save an additional $10.00!

And post a comment if you have SodaStream or purchase one...I'll want to hear your thoughts and am sure other readers would as well!

Kids Konserve

My husband and I purchased a gas grill a couple of weeks ago and have been grilling daily...black bean burgers, corn, potatoes, vegetables, and peaches! For most meals we're eating outside I'm simply carrying our heavy stoneware plates and everyday serving ware outside. A few times when I didn't want to make a couple heavy trips, we've used paper plates. As a result, I started searching for a lightweight but eco-friendly alternative and discovered Kids Konserve!

Kids Konserve's Party Paks are made from 100% recycled plastic yogurt containers! They are available in sets of 12 or 25 and come in wonderfully reusable cotton bags (two or three bags depending on the size pack you purchase). The plates, tumblers, forks, spoons and knives are reusable, making them the perfect lightweight and eco-friendly picnic set (great for birthday parties too)!

There are a few other great products available at Kids Konserve as well, like the lunch set shown here. Or you can purchase each piece individually. From my experience, you can never have too many small snack-size stainless steel containers on hand!

Everything seen here and more is available to purchase at kidskonserve.com where Ugga Mugga readers will receive 10% off their purchases through September (perfect for back-to-school shopping) when using coupon code Ugga!

Lunchbots

The one plastic product I hear people say time and time again they just can't give up is the Tupperware Sandwich Keeper. They love the perfect sandwich-size and flat shape which is easy to carry to work or school. Well, for those of you who agree, you now have no excuse not to ditch the plastic (for food purposes...they're still good for storing crayons in your diaper bag or small craft items such as googly eyes or foam stickers). Lunchbots is the answer!

Lunchbots are manufactured from high-quality, food grade Type 304 stainless steel which is easy to clean, durable, and sanitary. And they come in two perfect sizes and shapes: the Uno and the Duo.

The Uno features one single opening which couldn't be more perfect for sandwiches if it tried. The Duo has two compartments in the one container which accommodates two sides for a packed lunch or snacks. Together, you or your child will be well-equipped for a meal out of the house. A fashionable meal out of the house...do you see those colors? I love them!

Both the Uno and the Duo retail for $14.99 and are available at lunchbots.com. Ugga Mugga readers are eligible for FREE SHIPPING...just enter use coupon code FREESHIP09. And if you have a minute, please take a look at their Why Avoid Plastic section...there is a lot of great information there!

Life Without Plastic

Life Without Plastic is chalk full of all of the best alternatives to plastic products. Some of my favorites are for children, as I'm sure you'd expect. Their plastic-alternatives include stainless steel, enamel-coated stainless, and Japanese wooden lacquerware.

Please note that all of these options should not go in the microwave (which has never been a hang up for me), and that only the plain stainless can go in the dishwasher, which is certainly something I consider when purchasing everyday dishes. Although the color bowls sure are cute!

One thing to consider as you children grow and have play dates is their friends coming over for snacks or lunch. Although my children have always used (and have never broken) glass tumblers and stoneware plates and bowls, it's always nice to have stainless options available for children not necessarily used to using breakable things. It's not the child's fault, they simply don't know that a dropped cup at your house would break...it doesn't at home. So I have a few stainless products on hand for visitors.

There are many wonderful products on the site for all areas of your life. So if you visit lifewithoutplastic.com for children's ware, be sure to stay awhile to de-plasticize other areas of your life as well!

To-Go Ware

Next time you're packing for a picnic or your child's school lunch, why not reach for an eco-friendly, cost-efficient, reusable and safe stainless steel container? To-Go Ware offers various sizes of stainless packaging to keep your food safe and free of any lingering scents or tastes that leach into plastic containers.

There are single pieces that are perfect for taking your child's must have Os in your diaper bag and there are meal sets for a complete lunch on the go...or to take home your leftovers when out to eat. But the best part is that your To-Go Ware can be cleaned simply in your dishwasher!

Available at to-goware.com. Prices start at $4.95.

Plastic-Alternative Sippy Cups - Part 1 of 3

There is a lot of news about plastic products containing Bisphenol A, phthalates and DEHA being harmful. And let’s face it, that’s just about every plastic sippy cup on the market today! So I’ve been researching alternatives for my toddler daughter since she’s not able to drink from glass tumblers like her big brother. Below, please find my three-part post on the best alternatives I’ve discovered thus far:

Klean Kanteen

The Klean Kanteen sippy cup is made of a lightweight stainless steel and has a small neck for children to easily grasp and uses an Avent no-leak sippy spout (made of non-leaching #5 polypropylene). And once your child graduates to using a regular cup, you can take the sippy adaptor off and get a flat cap or sport spout. Built NY makes an insulated Neoprene sleeve to help regulate temperatures (and provides a loop to attach to strollers).

This is my cup of choice for my daughter. She doesn’t really like handles on cups and loves holding the small neck of this one. And I love it because it’s really easy to clean! Not to mention, if the spout gets damaged, Avent spouts are easy to come by.

This is part 1 of 3 - Plastic-Alternative Sippy Cups - please see my archives for the complete post.

Plastic-Alternative Sippy Cups - Part 2 of 3

The Safe Sippy

The Safe Sippy cup is a lightweight stainless steel cup with a silicone sleeve to help maintain a beverage’s temperature. These come in the green shown as well as blue and pink. They feature a leak-proof spout and little handles that can be removed. My daughter has one of these and there are a few drawbacks to this cup:

• The sleeve is easily stained and doesn't really wash clean. Any tomato stains my daughter has put on the cup have eventually faded away, but it takes a while and in the meantime, you have a really dingy cup.
• The sleeve has to be removed to fully clean this cup and it's a pain to get back on.
• The top of the cup has tiny crevasses that are difficult to clean even with the smallest bottle brush.
  

With that said, this cup is easy to grasp, the sleeve helps protect the cup from dings and also keeps my daughter's milk cooler longer. It also looks great!

Visit frecklefaceboutique.com to purchase.

This is part 2 or 3 - Plastic-Alternative Sippy Cups - please see my archives for the complete post.