Back to School - Waste Free Lunch Gear Which Is Safe For Your Kids

It's now the time of year when many parents start shopping for Back to School gear. So much waste is produced every year in Ontario's schools. Why not help to reduce waste this year by buying litter-less lunch gear? Investing in reusable lunch gear might be a bit of an investment upfront but it will payout over the lifetime of the product and you are also investing into our environment. Look out for these features when buying your reusable lunch products:

Washable materials: Juicy fruits, sandwiches and leaky drinks can really leave a mess. Look for reusable products that are washable in either the dishwasher or in the laundry.

Safe materials: Make sure that the products you choose are made of safe materials as they come in contact with your food.

Here is some great REUSABLE lunch gear:


Kids Konserve Nesting Trio

The Kids Konserve leak-proof Nesting Trio is the perfect solution for packing yogurt, fruit salad, applesauce, pasta, salad, hummus, apples and peanut butter, bagels and more! Use them to store your leftovers in the fridge. Since they nest perfectly inside one another they will take up very little space in your cupboard.

·  Made of 18/8 food-grade stainless steel

·  Lids are made of recyclable non-toxic LDPE #4 plastic.

·  Free of BPA, phthalates, PVC and lead!

See more waste free lunch containers in our store!

Klean Kanteen Reusable Water Bottles

No matter how many times you refill it, no matter what you put into it, your Klean Kanteen will keep your drinks fresh, crisp and clean tasting. All caps are BPA-free.

·  Made of 18/8, food-grade stainless steel, no liner needed

·  No BPA, phthalates, lead, or other toxins

See more Reusable Water Bottles in our store!

Keep Leaf Reusable Sandwich Bags

These baggies are a chic and functional alternative to disposable plastic baggies and wraps. Made of a 100% cotton exterior with water-resistant nylon liner, they are easy to use, reusable and washable. The secure Velcro closure makes them ideal for sandwiches, dry snacks, travel and storage. The baggies can be washed by hand or in the dishwasher or laundry.

See more Reusable Sandwich Bags in our store!

Keepin' Fresh Kids Stainless Steel Bento 15oz

The stainless steel bento is specially designed with an leak-proof lid and insulating sleeve, making it a versatile, safe and eco-friendly food storage solution. Great for storing sandwiches, pasta, salads and more! The BPA free protective sleeve reduces temperature transfer to protect little hands and keep your food warm, or cold, longer. It also helps to keep contents fresher by minimizing temperature changes.

Freezer safe

BPA-, phthalate-, PVC- and lead FREE!

Here are some more ideas on how you can prevent pollution in and around school:

• Bike, walk or carpool to school
• Use less toxic glues, markers or paints
• Buy unbleached, recycled paper
• Use both sides of paper

Share your ideas on how to prevent waste and pollution in school with us!

Thinking About Cloth Diapers?

You are thinking about using cloth diapers? Great! You’re in the right place. We’ll help you to understand all you need to know about cloth diapering. It’s easy and Mother Earth will thank you.

Cloth diapers have come a long way. Times of leaky, bulky cloth diapers which were held together by safety pins are gone and have been replaced by new high tech performing materials and fabrics. Many parents are still worried about cleaning messy cloth diapers, but modern cloth diapers make clean up an easy task.

Today’s cloth diapers come in a huge variety of fun prints and beautiful colours with either Velcro or snap closures for easy fastening, and elastics in the back and leg openings to keep in the poop. They are waterproof and breathable and most importantly they keep your baby’s bum healthy.

New designs like the All-In-One make cloth diapering as easy as using disposable diapers. At Ava’s Appletree we know that understanding the many options of cloth diapering can be overwhelming to a new mom and dad. Let us help shed some light into the many choices available to you.

Once you are into your routine you will be surprised how easy it is to cloth diaper your baby.

Read more in our Cloth-Diaper-Guide

Family Fun at Killbear Provincial Park

Fishing For Tadpoles

We decided in January to book a campsite at the very popular Campground in Killbear Provincial Park. We reserved a site in "Beaver Dam" close to the beautiful sandy beach. After stuffing our car up to the roof (you always have to prepared for everything), we were excited to finally leave the city on a Thursday and drive up north with our two children Ava (3) and Ewan (1) to explore the beautiful nature in Killbear Provincial Park. We were a little anxious about how our children would handle 4 days away from home, sleeping in a tent, as it was our first family camping trip, but once arrived we had no doubt that we would have an amazing time there.

Sandy Beaches

The afternoon sun was warm, little birds were singing around us and woodpeckers were working diligently in the trees. Before we had unloaded the car our kids found their way to the beach and it was just a matter of a few minutes until they stripped off their clothing and splashed in the water. It was heaven to see the joy in their faces.  

Ava's Caterpillar Farm

There was so much to discover, we played on the beach, cooled off in the water or explored the wildlife right at our campsite. There were many big and colorful caterpillars, some blue, yellow or green. Ava decided to keep and care for a few of them in her lunchbox; it was her little caterpillar farm.





We found tadpoles in puddles along the shores and a water snake hiding under leaves. Frogs were sunbathing in waterholes and in the evenings a young deer visited our campsite twice not being disturbed by us at all.

On one afternoon we took the "Lookout Trail" which is a short 30-minutes hike with our kids. Our daughter excitedly jumped from rock to rock, climbed down little paths and through the forest, listening to the animal sounds around us. Once we reached the end of the trail we were treated to a spectacular view of the Bay from the Lookout point which sits on top of a huge rock. We had lunch in the shade of the trees before we walked home on a scenic path along the shore of Georgian Bay. 
Watching the sunset was an enjoyment for the whole family.

Sadly we had to leave Killbear Provincial Park on Sunday already. We all enjoyed our break from the city. Besides having lots of fun, the children had the possibility to see and learn so much about Ontario's wildlife and its' beauty.
We are excited to visit Killarney in August for another great adventure.

Exploring

Killbear Provincial Park:
Killbear Provincial Park is located on the eastern shore of Georgian Bay, about 3 hours north of Toronto. The park contains a wide variety of geographic formations from the bold granite rocks of the Canadian Shield to the sandy beaches of Kilcoursie Bay. The park contains a diverse ecological system of forests and wetlands.

Killbear Provincial Park is a natural environment park.  These parks protect the landscapes and special features of the natural region in which they are located, while providing ample opportunities for activities such as swimming and camping.

Whether you want to relax on a beach, hike in the woodlands, swim in the clear waters of Georgian Bay, paddle a canoe or kayak, explore the island waterways surrounding the park or take part in one of our educational programs Killbear has something to offer all outdoor enthusiasts.

About the campground:

Seven campgrounds offer 881 campsites, 236 with electricity, all near the water. Each site has a picnic table and fireplace. Vault toilets and drinking water taps are convenient to all sites, and there are comfort stations with hot showers and flush toilets (the facilities are very clean). Each campground has its own character, from the sandy, protective beaches of Kilcoursie and Beaver Dams to the pine and rocky settings of Harold Point, Granite Saddle and Georgian campgrounds.

source: http://www.friendsofkillbear.com/   http://www.ontarioparks.com/english/killb.htm

If you plan to reserve a campsite remember to book ahead of time as these campsites are very popular.

http://www.ontarioparks.com/english/reservations.html

Easter Egg crafting

When it comes to crafts, my children love three things: stickers, lots of glue and watercolors. How about your kids? I bet they would have loved our craft afternoon too. Ava found some pretty stickers and colorful craft paper at our local craft store which we planned to use for our special Easter eggs. Take a look at her beautiful eggs below, every single one crafted with lots of love and lots of glue.

First we had to blow out the eggs! You need to make a little hole into the top and the bottom of the egg with a needle or egg puncher, then carefully holding the egg, blow into the top hole pushing the yolk and egg white out through the bottom.

We inserted a kebab stick through the two holes of the empty egg shells to have a better grip on them and started decorating our eggs.

Ava loves these flower and butterfly stickers on her egg.

Another one got painted with lots of glitter glue.

And some others were painted beautifully with watercolor.

We rolled the eggs with glue on it in colored paper.

And let them dry.

 

Of course we had to put stickers on to the painted eggs as well.

Aren't they lovely?!

Need an idea for dinner? How about scrambled eggs?