Most Affordable All-Natural Shampoo on the Market

Hugo Naturals Shampoo and Conditioner - 100% Natural

It's nearly impossible to find 100% natural shampoos in the U.S. Almost all shampoos sold at drug stores, grocery stores, department stores AND health food store contain toxic, cancer-causing ingredients. What a shocker, you say. Well, not really. Large companies sink a ton of money into cheap, lab-created ingredients that are then marketed to us as must-have, silken-producing, body-enhancing products we cannot possibly live without. What we can live without, however, are the chemicals required to produce said results. Last year, the always-amazing Environmental Working Group (ewg.org) created a list ranking almost all shampoos sold in the U.S. according to toxicity levels. Most of the "safest shampoos" on the list (with a toxicity score of ZERO), however, can only be found online by small companies who carry big price tags. After scouring the "zero" toxicity subgroup of 119 shampoos I found only one all-natural shampoo that stood out for being both affordable and readily available (at health food stores, drugstores, local groceries AND at amazon.com): Hugo Naturals Vanilla and Sweet Orange Volumizing Shampoo.

I've now been using Hugo Naturals Vanilla and Sweet Orange Volumizing Shampoo (which sells for about $8 a bottle) for over a year and I have found that it leaves my (naturally curly) hair very supple, full bodied and sweet smelling. My kids love when I use it on them because they think it smells like cake! Hard to beat a shampoo that is less than $10, smells like cake, and has zero cancer-causing ingredients.

• To buy Hugo Naturals Vanilla and Sweet Orange Shampoo online go to: Amazon.com
• To learn more about all Hugo Naturals products go to: HugoNaturals.com

All-Natural Halloween Treats that Kids Actually Like

Halloween Pistachio Packs by Wonderful

If you love Halloween (like me) but want to avoid feeding the neighborhood genetically modified candy filled with artificial colors, fake flavors, and high-fructose corn syrup then don't fret.  There are tons of affordable, all-natural, last-minute options within easy reach at your local grocery or health food store.

The following 15 all-natural Halloween goodies are guaranteed to delight all kids:

• Snyder’s of Hanover Halloween Pretzel Snack Sacks
• Homegrown Organic Bunny Fruit Snacks – Halloween Pack
• EnviroKidz Organic Peanut Choco Drizzle Crispy Rice Bars (Gluten Free)
• Endangered Species Dark Chocolate Halloween Treats
• Sunspire Dark Chocolate Earth Balls
• Let's Do...Organic Gummi Bear Packs
• YummyEarth Organic Gummy Bear Packs 
• YummyEarth Organic Lollipops
• YummyEarth Organic Candy Drops
• Wonderful Pistachios Halloween Bags (Pictured Above)
• Raisin Boxes
• Individual Packs of Train Mix
• Fruit Leather
• Boxes of Halloween Stickers
• Halloween Pencils

All-Natural Affordable Goody Bags

Affordable All-Natural Party Bags

Last year I blogged about the super cool reusable 100% cotton Waste-Free Goody Bags my daughter's 10 party guests designed and took home for her 6th birthday. (She is still using hers as a lunch bag.) This year, for her 7th birthday, I wanted to go with an eco-friendly goody bag again (of course) but since we were now having 25 guests I wanted to go with a more affordable route. Once again, I refused to fill the bags with plastic toys or high-fructose corn syrup soaked candies. I asked my 7-year-old if she could think of any healthier, more planet friendly options and what you see pictured is exactly what she came up with (on her own):

* Pencils
* Pads of Paper
* Organic lollipops
* Organic gummy bears
* All-Natural Pretzels
* Box of stickers

I bought a stack of old-fashion brown paper lunch bags ($1 for 50) and filled them with our all-natural booty. Total cost for 25 all-natural  and 100% recyclable goody bags: $19 (Less than $1 per bag.)

Next year I hope to do a no-packaging, waste-free take-home gift. We'll probably bake the goodies ourselves and wrap them in reusable containers of some sort. We'll see. I have 11 more months to figure it out.

Make Your Own Waste-Free Yogurt Push Pops

My kids love frozen yogurt tubes - but I hate the excess sugar and plastic waste. For years I dreamt of being able to make our own less sweetened, organic version that I could somehow freeze and transport to school in a reusable yet not messy container. Well, after years of searching I finally found the solution: It's the Norpro Silicone Ice Pop Maker. It's a 4-piece colorful silicon set that be can used to freeze any drink or yogurt concoction.

My personal favorite is a Grape Yogurt Push-Up.

How to make it:

• In a mixing cup, stir together: 1 cup lowfat, organic yogurt (the runny type is best), 3 tablespoons organic grape and 2 table spoons maple syrup or raw agave. (Add more or less as desired)
• Pour into each silicon tube and pop the cap on.
• Place all 4 pops into a cup or bowl to keep upright and freeze.  

Pack for school the next day and your yogurt tube will still be cold and semi-frozen by recess...the perfect time for a protein break!

Click here to learn more about or purchase the Norpro Silicone Ice Pop Sets are available on Amazon.com