Great Green Gifts for Mother's Day

Mother's Day is almost here,                                     
and I got to thinking...
besides a poem from the kids,
what kinds of gifts would
spread a grin from ear to ear
for eco-moms far and near?

Here are more than a dozen ideas that may elicit a smile from your favorite eco-chic Mom:

• To keep mom looking fashionable in "greenware", try this beautiful bamboo pashmina.  It will help her make a smooth transition from season to season, and she'll be fashionably green as  well. http://www.worldofgreen.com/products/view/3231  

• Wet her whistle, while keeping it green, literally :)  These pretty green, upcycled glasses help to  "protect our Earth", and are a useful, beautiful gift for any eco-Mom.

 http://www.uncommongoods.com/product/protect-our-earth-glasses-set-of-4?catId=3

• Mind your manners...moms always teach us the importance of manners, and writing thank you notes is part of those life lessons.  Mom is sure to appreciate these cute, recycled note cards that feature whimsical birds.  http://www.posypaper.com/collections/boxed-cards/products/thank-you-notes-birds-and-flowers

• For the green seamstress in your life, surprise her with chic organic fabrics.  Organic fabrics this beautiful are hard to find.  With organic cloth, Mom will feel confident that nothing but the healthiest, best fabrics are near the skin of her loved ones.  http://www.treehugger.com/galleries/2010/11/green-gift-guide-the-diy-er.php?page=8

• For a traditional gift, perhaps some organic flowers for Mom?  The flowers in this bouquet are sustainablly grown, and are sure to make Mom beam from ear to ear.  http://www.organicbouquet.com/c_10/veriflora-certified/flowers-bouquets.html

• Maybe Mom likes to entertain?  How about a stunning recycled glass bottle platter for the cheese and crackers, or as a spoon rest?  The upcycled bottle will brighten up any kitchen for years to come.  http://www.gifts.com/search/product/Recycled-Bottle-Platter?ideaID=15630&prodID=388004

•  Does Mom like baubles and bangles?  How about some unique upcycled green bling? http://alacartegreen.blogspot.com/2011/02/green-bling.html  Artsy Fartsy jewlery is beautiful, and unique, and the "green bling" is often a conversation starter that sends a loud and clear message about the importance of recycling, reusing resources, and is the perfect example of upcycling.  http://www.artsyfartsyjewelry.com/index.html   

• Gorgeously green...help Mom keep her beauty routine green with Eco tools. These bamboo make-up brushes can be purchased on Amazon.com,  at Target and Walmart.  http://www.amazon.com/gp/customer-media/product-gallery/B001EM1BBK/ref=cm_ciu_pdp_images_1?ie=UTF8&index=1

• What better way to say, "Thanks for bee-ing there Mom," than the natural products from Burt's Bees?  Burt's Bees has lip, face, body, and hair products that are 99-100% natural.  http://www.burtsbees.com/c/commitment/   I love their tinted lip balm to keep my lips soft and kissable :)

• Is Mom a shop-a-holic?   Help green her sprees with some eco-chiq green shopping bags, lunch and snack totes, laptop cases, and more.  I recently purchased one of these bags through the school's green fundraiser (yeah!).  These bags are woven from polypropylene recycled from post consumer use, easy to wipe clean, and are really, really pretty and functional.  Most of the bags can hold up to 50 lbs, due to the  woven plastic fibers. 

http://www.mixedbagdesigns.com/Shop-By-Style-Retail/Grocery-Store-Bags_8/Pink-Paisley-Grocery-Store-Bag

• What about a gift that gives back naturally?  Purchase Mom a National Arbor Foundation membership, and she'll also receive 10 trees as a thank you.  The small trees will grow and continue to provide the gift of oxygen, and eventually shade.  http://alacartegreen.blogspot.com/2011/04/happy-arbor-day-2011.html 

• Sparkle for Mom?  How about some of the brilliant and sparkly recycled glass products from Auroraglass?  She'll love the light catchers, coaster, vases, and more.  http://www.auroraglass.org http://alacartegreen.blogspot.com/2010/07/g-is-for-glass.html

• How about a new green time piece for mom?  Help her keep time with a beautiful new green watch from SPROUT. The sporty watch's case and buckles are made of corn resin, which is a renewable resource, and the bamboo dial, and organic cotton are also eco-friendly.  http://peaceloveplanet.blogspot.com/2010/10/greener-times.html

• Maybe Mom will be entranced by the green gift that has tickled my fancy?  I love the upcycled GrowBottle Hydrogarden.  The re-purposed wine bottles come with organic seeds, clay pebbles, and a wool wick that makes themamazing hydroponic mini-gardens for culinary herbs.  I've been intrigued with hydroponics since my visit to The Land at Epcot as a young girl, and I'd love to try this unique upcycled mini-garden some day.  http://www.branchhome.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=835http:

Happy Mother's Day :)

Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms, grandmothers, and stepmoms!  And I guess we should include Mother Earth too, without Mother Earth, none of us would be here.  I wish you all a great day, peace, harmony, and love.  

I had a really nice Mother's Day doing what I like best with the people I like best :)  I got out in the veggie garden, and with the help of Rosebud, Tiger Lily, Sweet Pea, and Rhody, got the veggies in!  Today we did a little weeding, rock picking, and added to the lettuce, onions, carrots, broccoli, and snap peas that are already growing.  We planted 12 Tomatoes, 6 eggplant, 6 hot peppers (for Hubby), 6 green peppers, 6 zucchini, 3 yellow squash. Rosebud also planted a bunch of cucumber and green bean seeds for me. Can't wait for the yummy food to come. 

We also created a huge new bed of perennials that should liven things up as you drive into our driveway.  Rhody helped me dig out a bunch of weeds and prepare the bed with Hubby.  Rhody and I recycled some newspaper by laying it down to help kill the weeds underneath, then Hubby added some topsoil on top of the newspaper.  Sweet Pea brought me a much needed drink, and  I planted the perennials.  Helpful, strong Hubby brought a bunch of wheel barrels full of mulch to finish it all off.  Rosebud helped give the all the plants a nice long drink.  It looks really nice, and I got to spend my Mother's Day with my helpers and digging in the dirt, enjoying Mother Earth, and beautifying our yard.  I'm looking forward to watching them all bloom  :)