Confessions from the Pouch

Back to School Must Haves | Giveaway

Posted on August 07, 2015 by Amanda Holliday | 5 Comments

Head back to school with everything you need to start the year off on the right foot. Little Green Pouch are perfect for smoothies, yogurt, and applesauce. Add a frozen pouch to your kiddo’s lunch in the morning and, like magic, it will be perfectly defrosted by lunch.

To celebrate back to school season, we're giving away a Little Green Pouch Starter Kit along with an adorable backpack and a Target gift card to pick up those last minute must-haves. Enter below for your chance to win. 

ENTER IN 6 WAYS FOR 6 CHANCES TO WIN

Sign in below to get started via...

1. Pinterest: Follow Little Green Pouch on Pinterest

2. Email: Join our mailing list to stay in touch and get the latest promos, contests and recipes from Little Green Pouch

3. Facebook: Visit Little Green Pouch on Facebook

4. Tweet: Tweet about the giveaway

5. Instagram: Follow Little Green Pouch on Instagram

6. Bonus Entry: Share this contest on social media

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Posted in Back to School, Giveaway, Kids, Summer

Summer Bingo - Fun Summer Activity Ideas

Posted on June 15, 2015 by Amanda Holliday | 0 Comments

Ahhh, summer vacation. We have a love-hate relationship with you. We love family vacations, longer days, and a slower schedule. But some days we find ourselves struggling with ways to fill our days. Thank you to all the teachers out there whose endless creativity and patience keep our children engaged, active and happy all school year. 

Enter Summer Bingo. Here's how it works:

1. Create a simple Bingo board (or download ours).
2. Fill each square with activities you and your kids will enjoy.
3. Fill a jar or envelope with "bingo balls" (pieces of paper with B1, etc. written on them). Those can be found in our template, too. 
4. When you have a day with nothing planned, let one of your kids pull a number from the jar and whichever square is selected, that's what you are doing.

Activity Ideas:

• Go see a movie
• Picnic at the park
• Run through the sprinklers (unless you live in California)
• Go to the zoo
• Take a hike
• Camp in the backyard
• Put on a play
• Build a fort

Here's a list of 200 free summer activities to get the ideas flowing.

Posted in Activities for Kids, Kids, Summer

Summer Skin Care Tips

Posted on May 08, 2015 by Amanda Holliday | 0 Comments

Did you know skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in the United States? Risks associated with overexposure include cancer, premature aging, cataracts, and immune system suppression impacting the skin’s natural defenses. But before you wear a turtleneck and stay inside all Summer, the EPA reminds us that “unprotected exposure to UV radiation is the most preventable risk factor for skin cancer.” So take these steps to protect yourself and your family and enjoy Summer fun in the sun. 

Lather Up

This may sound obvious—if you're going to the park or the beach, put sunscreen on. But what we sometimes forget is that we need to wear SPF all the time. When selecting a sunscreen, choose one with SPF 15 or higher (we just go straight for SPF 30+). And look for those free of potentially toxic ingredients like PABA, oxybenzone, nanoparticles, parabens, phthalates, and dyes. We love the options from California Baby and Honest Company. 

Cover Up

Add an extra layer of protection (literally) to your outdoor activities with clothing that has SPF built right in. These items generally block up to 97% of the sun's rays. 

Protect Your Peepers

UV rays are dangerous for your eyes, and your kids' eyes, too. Adults and kids 6 months and older should wear sunglasses when out in the sun. Plus, is there anything cuter than kids in sunglasses? The National Eye Institute recommends choosing glasses that block 99-100 percent of both UVA and UVB rays. 

Put a Lid on It

UV rays are dangerous for your eyes, and your kids' eyes, too. Adults and kids 6 months and older should wear sunglasses when out in the sun. Plus, is there anything cuter than kids in sunglasses? The National Eye Institute recommends choosing glasses that block 99-100 percent of both UVA and UVB rays. 

Keep Your Cool

Heat rash is a common summer skin-care problem for babies. It shows up as tiny red bumps on the face, neck, armpits, and upper torso, and can make for a fussy baby. The bumps are caused by clogged sweat-gland pores that trap perspiration and are pretty itchy and uncomfortable. To prevent heat rash, keep your baby from getting too hot by reducing the time he or she spends hanging out in a wrap or carrier (your body heat plus the lack of ventilation isn’t a great combo) and dress your little one in loose-fitting, lightweight clothes.

That Bites

An inevitable part of enjoying time outdoors during the summer months is dealing with flying insects. You want to keep those pesky buggers away, but there have been many concerns raised in recent years about one of the most common chemicals used in bug sprays: DEET. Most bug sprays are loaded with the chemical DEET, but DEET has been linked in some research to a few cases of neurological symptoms. And in high concentrations, it can be toxic, especially to children. Look for natural alternatives to DEET like citronella, lemongrass, and cedar. 

Posted in Skin Care, Summer

11 Other Uses for Little Green Pouches

Posted on May 08, 2015 by Amanda Holliday | 13 Comments

Our pouches are made to last, but if you love your LGPs as much as we do, they will eventually need to be replaced. Or maybe you started with the Really Little Green Pouches, and your little one outgrew them and is now happily sucking down 7 oz. from the original Little Green Pouch. We've always said that Little Green Pouches aren't just for babies. Here are 11 ways to use Little Green Pouches other than purees, yogurt, applesauce, and smoothies.

No-Mess Frosting Piping Bag

Make this healthier frosting recipe and add frosting to Little Green Pouches for easy, mess-free cookie and cupcake decorating. 

Arts and Crafts

Fill your pouches with just the right amount of paint to reduce waste (and spills), and let your little ones have fun finger painting. Or, use them to make your own refillable paint brush. Bonus: seal them up, and keep your paint from drying out. You can also make some fun projects with extra caps you have laying around. 

DIY Piping Bag for Frosting Cookies & Cupcakes

Let the kids get involved in decorating Christmas cookies, birthday cupcakes and more without the mess of paper plates, spoons, and knives. Plus, you can mix colors right in your pouches—just add food coloring to white frosting and knead right in the pouch. This is also a great way to avoid those sibling arguments over sharing frosting—give each kid their own set of frosting pouches. Warning: this is not a mess-free cookie decorating option—any time you combine frosting and kids, it will still be messy :) . 

Homemade Toothpaste

Do you make your own toothpaste? Want to? We like the recipe from Wellness Mama because it's squeezable (you know we love anything that's squeezable). Fill your Really Little Green Pouches with this DIY toothpaste for a travel friendly, healthy tooth scrubber! 

Pack Peanut Butter For Your Next Hike or Camping Trip

Have you ever tried to take peanut butter camping? What a mess! Between the jar taking up precious cooler space, needing a knife, and not having any way to properly wash said knife, I wind up smelling peanut butter the entire trip and finding it on everything. The alternative is to bring along single serving peanut butter pouches, which are expensive and wasteful. Our alternative? Fill up a Little Green Pouch with bulk nut butter (or better yet, make your own). And happily squeeze peanut butter on apples, crackers, sandwiches, or right into your mouth. 

Homemade Ice Packs

Someone in your house fall down and go boom? Save your frozen peas for our Turkey and Spring Vegetable Puree or Pea, Edamame and Pear Puree. Keep a few pouches in the freezer filled with water for those unexpected bumps and bruises, or to keep snacks cool on the road. 

Snack Storage

Protect your pretzels and goldfish from turning to dust next time you head to the park or pack snacks for the plane. Perfectly portioned, and so much better for the environment than Ziploc bags. 

Mini First aid Kit

Keep first aid supplies handy by creating multiple mini kits. Keep one in the car, your diaper bag, and purse, and never find yourself searching for a band-aid again. 

Salad Dressing

Do you bring salads to work for lunch? Use your Really Little Green Pouches to store your dressing, and say goodbye to soggy salads at lunch. 

Breast Milk Storage

Panicked because you just found yourself out of breast milk storage bags?  We've been there. And while waiting for our Amazon Prime package to arrive, Little Green Pouches work great!

Homemade Diaper Rash Cream Container

Commercial diaper cream can be made of ingredients that can irritate a baby’s delicate skin. This easy recipe is free of irritants and is great for soothing and softening skin. Just make and store in a Little Green Pouch. Squeeze out to apply as needed for a mess-free application. 

What other ways can you think of to use your reusable food pouches?

Posted in DIY, Little Green Pouch, New Uses for Old THings, Really Little Green Pouch

Printable Meal Planner and Shopping List

Posted on May 02, 2015 by Amanda Holliday | 2 Comments

Download our handy-dandy meal planner and shopping list to make planning family meals easier. 

Posted in grocery shopping, Meal planning