v4 issue 27: Retro Revival

This weeks issue is packed with retro style that is urban and hip. We think these products emphasize the beauty of yesterday's styles. Loaded with exclusive discounts!


Cover by Rae Mati









1 The adorably sophisticated presentation of the Bambini spa gift Valise makes it the ultimate newborn gift. Signature towels, washcloths, a wooden brush & comb set, and a cuddly teddy bear come tucked inside a vintage case definitely worth keeping!
Enter code: TTWBam for 10% off your total purchase

2 A vibrant flower print covers the panels of this funky flower play clothes cover. Quickly slips over heads and stays securely in place with ties on both sides. Keep them clean & swanky! My Retro Baby
Enter code: shopretro2 for 20% off orders over $100. Exp: 3/15/09

3 Vanilla, chocolate, and strawberry perch themselves on a banana yellow tee for a super sweet ice cream treat. Drizzled with chocolate and smiles, kids can't wait to dive into this retro shirt from heavytees.com

4 Knobs turn, faucets swivel, and everything opens in this pink retro kitchen from Ashley Taylor Home. This set easily satisfies a 21st century girl with its pink color, vintage style, and sturdy construction.
Enter code: tottrends to receive 20% off your order

5 Get-a-long little doggy and rustle up some bedding over at Stylish Kids Rooms. The sheets are covered with the colors of brown cattle and the bumper is plastered with cowboys from days gone by. Truly fabulous style with a retro flair.
Enter code: TTWMAG to receive 10% off orders over $99

6 Get all you'll need to deck out a crib in mod prints with the Geo Aqua crib bedding set. Made of a combination of 100% cotton and minky fabric, each set includes a bumper pad, fitted minky crib sheet, blanket, and tailored crib skirt. icribbedding.com
Enter code: TREND for 10% off your total order

7 Everybody mambo on over to the funkie baby for a be bop bib. A soak proof lining is stitched inside two layers of cotton fabric. Keeps droolers and messy eaters of 3 months to 3 years dry, dry, dry!

8 Reptillia stomps onto the scene of wildly good crib rock tees. Straight from Japan, this giant lizard is just one of the new tees from the LEGENDS line...the new monster rockin' collection from Crib Rock.


This weeks Mom tips:
Dried Fruit and Health Advantages

Part of the food pyramid says that we need to eat fruit on a daily basis. Much of our vitamin C comes from fruits and fruit juices. Dried varieties of fruits are both good and marginal for our bodies.

Certain fruits can be dried for prolonged storage. We buy fresh fruits from the grocery store and the farmer’s market as a part of a healthy diet. But, fresh doesn’t stay fresh for as long as we like. One way to save that fruit is to dry it.

The drying process can be as easy for you as sticking some fruit directly on the oven rack and letting it shrivel up. A piece of fruit is mostly water. The drying process concentrates the natural sugars and can feed our sweet tooth better than candy and other sweet foods. Also the vitamins and nutrients contained in the fruit are still present. Depending on the fruit, it contains folate, antioxidants, vitamin C, and vitamin A.

Dried fruit benefits our bodies with natural sugar instead of added sugar. Eating some fruit is much better than eating artificially flavored sweets. But, there is one drawback to dried varieties of fruit. Like everything else, dried fruit is eaten in moderation to avoid eating too much. While it is okay to eat a lot of real fruit, dried fruit contains more calories than regular fruit. Why is that, you may ask? Because more fruit fits in a serving, the calories add up. Be careful to eat the serving size of dried fruit to avoid ingesting too much sugar or calories. It only takes a couple of handfuls of raisins to get most of the daily allowance for vitamin C and A. As long as you don’t eat too much dried fruits on a daily basis they are good for your health. It is just like anything else. Eating all things in moderation keeps them as healthy additions to your diet. Besides, dried fruits are easy to transport anywhere for a simple snack.


Keeping Your Children Safe from Indoor Toxins
Children are rambunctious and as a parent you do everything in your power to protect them. You make sure they wear bicycle helmets, you tell them to wash their hands and to look both ways before crossing the street, but have you ever thought about protecting them from poor indoor air quality? While poor indoor air quality (IAQ) poses health risks it can be positively impacted.

Poor IAQ is caused by a build-up of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the indoor air. VOCs are emitted from the very materials used to furnish and maintain homes including furniture, bedding, paint and cleaning products. This build-up, along with poor ventilation, causes indoor air to be anywhere from two to five times more polluted than outside air. And, at elevated levels, VOCs pose short- and long-term health consequences. Short-term health effects include triggering asthma and allergy attacks, respiratory irritation, headaches and flu-like symptoms. Long-term issues include respiratory and neurological diseases and cancer.

Good IAQ is important for everyone, but especially for children. Children’s organs and respiratory, immune and neurological systems are still developing. And since they breathe at a faster rate than adults they breathe in a relatively greater volume of air, putting them at a higher risk for inhaling potentially harmful chemicals.

There is some good news. By knowing what causes poor IAQ, you can make the necessary changes to provide your family with good indoor air. One of the most significant ways to limit exposure to toxic air is through source control. Take the paint in a child’s room for example. As paint dries it releases VOCs into the air, causing indoor VOC levels to be as much as 1000 times higher than outdoor air. Additionally, VOC emissions can continue even six months after application.

Right now many paints are labeled VOC-free or Low-VOC which refers to the VOC content in the paint. This label does not give you any information about chemical emissions being released into the air where they are easily inhaled. Selecting a low-emitting paint is the best way to ensure that the fewest possible VOCs are being emitted into the air.

In addition, make sure low-emitting paints, and other products, are certified by a reputable third-party, independent source like GREENGUARD Environmental Institute. GREENGUARD Certification ensures products have been tested and emit the fewest possible chemicals. Many of these low-emitting, non-toxic products are in the marketplace now including personal computers, printers, mattresses, flooring, kitchen and bathroom counters, architectural paints, insulations, wall coverings and window treatments. A complete list can be found at greenguard.org

Other key tips to limiting your exposure to VOCs include:
•Using water-based cleaners that are odor-free and biodegradable; avoid ones that say danger, caution or flammable. Use non-fragranced cleaners and polishes you rub on rather than spray. Often cloths damp from water work well to control dust.

•Use microfiber dusting cloths and mops that can be easily replaced and washed. Avoid the rag mop and sponges that can easily become contaminated with bacteria and particles.

•Take off the plastic bags and air out dry-cleaned clothes before bringing them into the home.

•Avoid any products with long-lasting odors, even if they claim to have natural scents.

•Do not use any air cleaners that release or use ozone in the process - buy cleaners that meet California’s new rule on ozone and are verified by Underwriters Laboratories (UL) for ozone compliance.

•Use high efficiency (HEPA) vacuum cleaners only and vacuum all carpet frequently - at least every other day.

•Consider removing your shoes when entering the home from the outside.

So while you are busy protecting your children from bumps, bruises and illnesses, don’t forget about poor indoor air quality.

If you would like to read more about IAQ and its impact on children’s health visit:
Air Quality Sciences
www.greenguard.org
www.epa.gov
www.americanlung.org

Source: Mandi Joyner, Communications Manager, GREENGUARD Environmental Institute.