Natural chestnut decor and chestnut crafts

The second day of Autumn and it was beautiful - sunny and warm. Took the kids for a walk and ended up stopping under every chestnut tree we saw.

It started with who could find the shiniest chestnut - then the biggest, then the smallest. Then it was the ones still in their spiky shells that had to be stomped on and opened. The gem of the bunch was heart-shaped. Needless to say, the kids came away with armloads.

An hour later and they had sorted all the chestnuts into different glass vases for a great display in the living room - also perfect for the Thanksgiving table.

A great idea to keep the kids occupied before and after Thanksgiving dinner is chestnut crafts. We're going to set them up with toothpicks, moss and other bits to make little chestnut people, caterpillars, flies and anything else they can think of.

Never imagined the chestnuts we gathered would be the source of natural eco chic decor at its finest and some great natural kids crafts - we were just enjoying a sunny Autumn day!

For more eco-friendly crafts and green decor ideas, visit eco boutique Lavish & Lime. If you have any thoughts or ideas about chestnut crafts and decor or Autumn activities in general, please leave a comment below. We'd love to hear from you!

Today's Parent Picks from Lavish & Lime

Open up this month's issue of Canada's #1 parenting magazine Today's Parent and guess what you'll find on page 28? Four Lavish & Lime products recommended as top fun and eco-friendly ways to bring food to school. We couldn't be more thrilled!

Today's Parent is a great resource - both online and offline - for families of all ages and at all stages. Here are the four products they recommend you use for bringing lunch to school - as they appear in the 'your family Downtime' column.

1. Reduce, Reuse Rewrap! Forget cling wrap; send a sandwich that leaves a smaller footprint. Reusable sandwich wrap, $10, lavishandlime.com.

2. Double Duty This sleek lunch pail is conveniently divided into separate, no-leak compartments. Goodbyn lunch box. $29.50, lavishandlime.com.

3. Green Eats Warmer than metal, earth-friendlier than plastic, this is cutlery kids can feel good about. Bamboo utensil set, $13, lavishandlime.com.

4. Back to Glass Classic glass bottle with an edgy silicone wrap for durability. Glass water bottle, $26, lavishandlime.com.

For these and more waste-free lunch gear ideas, visit eco boutique Lavish & Lime. If you have any thoughts or ideas about packing eco-friendly lunches, please leave a comment below. We'd love to hear from you!

Reduce School Angst with Lunch Box Love Notes

We kicked off the 'school' portion of our Live Back to School Facebook Forum last month with a question for our teacher about the best way to handle separation anxiety - for us and for the kids.

What ensued was a bit of a discussion among our Facebook fans that included the following suggestions.

"For mommy a nice Irish coffee. For the kids I tucked little love notes in fun places like pencil case, lunch bag, pockets on backpackjs and coats." Julia G.

"Reassuring my girls I love them every minute." Karen C.

"We used the book The Kissing Hand and talked with our son about how he would feel more comfortable - like having a picture of mom and dad in his pencil case and getting a special treat in his lunch." Dara B.S.

"Little notes in the lunch box for the first few days of all-day school in Grade 1 definitely worked for us!" L & L

"Here they start all day schooling in Kindergarten so love notes area must! It's hard for such little ones. My kids also have a long commute." Julia G.

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The common sense theme from Moms in the know seems to be little acts of reassurance, love reminders, if you like, to help reduce school separation angst. So we found some great lunch box notes from alphamom.com for you to download and print - on recycled paper of course! Or if your wee one worships Dora like ours does, print these adorable Dora lunch box notes. Alternatively, simply make your own paper hearts with a message, etc. We're pretty certain whatever you do, it will help make your day and theirs that much better.

If you're looking for ways to pack a safe non-toxic and waste-free lunch, visit eco boutique Lavish & Lime for the latest in eco lunch gear. If you have any thoughts about reducing school angst or ideas about what to pack in a lunch box, please leave a comment below. We'd love to hear from you!

Celebrate Grandparents Day September 12th

Believe it or not, there is more to September than Back to School. There's National Grandparents Day on Sunday, September 12th. For those of you with roots in the UK, the official day there is October 3rd - and we've got a few green suggestions for celebrating it.

"Nobody can do for little children what grandparents do. Grandparents sort of sprinkle stardust over the lives of little children."
Alex Haley

As with many holidays, Grandparent's Day began in the U.S. It was first proclaimed in 1978 by President Jimmy Carter at the instigation of a housewife from West Virginia, Marian McQuade. It was designated an official day by our own House of Commons in 1995.

According to the National Grandparents Day website, the aim of National Grandparents Day is:

• To honour grandparents
• To give grandparents an opportunity to show love for their children's children
• To help children become aware of the strength, information and guidance older people can offer.

Celebrate Grandparents Day with a memorable green gift like an organic viola garden-in-a-bag the grandkids can personalize with colouring and a message. Then grandma or grandpa can grow some flowers on a windowsill indoors at any time of year - everything they need to do so is in the bag! If you're thinking of taking flowers, pick up a recyclable plastic vase. It's unbreakable, folds flat for storage and is ideal for nursing homes or hospitals. Alternatively, ask the kids to make their own family tree picture. It's fun for them to do and certain to become a treasured gift.

For more greener gift ideas, visit online eco boutique Lavish & Lime. If you have any thoughts or ideas about Grandparents Day, please leave a comment below. We'd love to hear from you!