Link-worthy

moondancesoaps.com

6013 Old Horseman Trl.
Raleigh, NC 27613
877-762-7728
 info@moondancesoaps.com

Nice soaps are a relatively cheap way to indulge on a daily basis even when the budget gets tight.

While I still just talking about starting Active Family Services, my husband surprised me with a gift of handmade soaps from Moondance. He had come across an article online about this successful mom-owned business, and it struck him as a success story that would inspire us to move forward with our own dream.

We have loved every soap we have ordered!

dooce.com

This blog, written by a mom in Utah, captures the transition to motherhood, sleep deprivation, and a struggle with post partum depression very honestly. Peter found it for me now that I am long past all that, but I hope some of you enjoy reading Heather Armstrong’s posts on parenthood earlier in your journeys.

This website was recommended on a list I was on, and when I checked it out I was WOW-ed. Even my inlaws were WOW-ed and they are some of the most discriminating consumers I know (in a good way!).

A Toy Garden is filled with lots of thoughtfully chosen options. If you are looking to start avoiding plastic toys from China that seem to be meriting recall after recall these days this site is worth checking out. Or if you are like me and just prefer toys that challenge the kids in your life to use their imagination, and want to give gifts that are unlikely to be duplicates and are sure to spark conversation this might be a perfect resource. It also allows you to create a wishlist which might be a great way to help extended family choose a perfect gift.

I just ordered fundanas for my neices - they are bandanas with games on them that challenge kids go outside and hunt for seasonable objects, and use found objects like pebbles or acorns to mark your progress. It would have been a fun thing to have in my pocket back in my outdoor leadership days!

This is the website for Mothering Magazine which labels itself as “the birthplace of natural family lifestyle.” Despite the arrogance of that assertion I have found their forums to be kind of online home where I can turn for information on parenting in a style that is gentle on my children and the earth. If you are interested in natural family living or attachment parenting, and looking for a place where you can be encouraged, challenged and inspired this is worth checking out.

Jardinains is not good for adults. Jardinains is not good for kids, but man-oh-man is it fun.

Sometimes on a lazy Sunday afternoon the kids pull up a bench to watch and we bounce garden gnomes up and down and listen to them say “ouch!” When we introduced our 5 year old niece she loved it! When we introduced our twenty something siblings they loved it! When we play in front of our one year old daughter she giggles and shouts and then asks for “more games” when we turn it off.

As a bonus they have a Café Press store where you can buy Jardinain apparel. Good times!

Starfall was recommended to me as tool for preschoolers to practice letters and mouse control at the same time. It is a cool site! I appreciate its simplicity, and my almost four year old son has given it his stamp of approval.

I just discovered this site today, and it has impressed me so far. Even just a short time of browsing reveals that its creators have been thoughtful in creating a warm community.

It looks like it began as a mom owned business, and has recently been sold to a larger corporation who plans to keep the existing format and spirit.

If you are looking for an online community it looks like one worth checking out.