Product of the Month - December

Thought I would start a Product of the month to link in with our featured products on the web site.

December is the Paper Potter. This ingenius little garden tool can make small seedling pots out of newspaper in a matter of minutes. Its a great gift for Grandad and will keep them amused Christmas afternoon before falling asleep in the chair. Any newspaper can be used however the tabloids are more colourful! Its been a popular line in the shop this year. Just fold strips of newspaper round the wooden former and then push into the little cup. Hey Presto - you have a little pot.

Its Time for a Break!

Wow, its been so busy for the past 6 weeks that I haven't been able to do anything other than pack orders - it seems like 24/7. My husband Paul and my friend Claire have been a great help with the orders and now its time for a break. Our last posting date for Christmas delivery is tomorrow so its now slowing down and not so manic.

Thanks to all Green Eyed Frog customers and I hope you visit again in the New Year.

Rachel
xx

Bad Back

I have been suffering from a bad back and its been agony. Probably caused by the car accident I had a couple of weeks ago. It seems to have got worse after the birth of each of my three children and the youngest was a big baby.

Green Eyed Frog has been handed over to Paul, my husband, who I'm sure is managing fine... until I can sit at the computer for longer than 20 minutes. I wonder what I will find in the stock room when I get back on my feet!

Rachel

School Holidays - Kids activities that don't cost the earth.

Its only the second day of the School Holidays and what bliss. No more getting up at 7am to get breakfast, sort out drinks bottles, make sure the book bag has the right book in it and of course drive to the school and try to find a parking space. Its been quite peaceful in the Green Eyed Frog house in the early mornings. I have been getting up at a leisurely 8am hung washing out and doing over an hours work before the children even appear at 10am. I just get too tired in the evenings trying to fit all the household chores in, ironing for the cottage and catching up on voluntary work.

I have some ideas of things I'm going to do with the children that won't cost a fortune, are educational and hopefully they will enjoy!

Nature Trails
Take the children on walking trips in the town or country. We will be exploring the footpaths in our village. Now that my youngest is three he can hopefully walk for long enough before getting bored or tired. A list of things we will be taking:

• Binoculars - for looking at the local wildlife and identifying birds. My eldest son thought he saw an Eagle in the garden the other week!
• Usbourne spotters guides
  Very handy little books on wildflowers, wild birds and insects
• Digital Camera
  For taking photos of the bugs and creatures we may see
• Notebook and Pencils
  For drawing the insects and flowers and writing notes about them
• Blanket
  For mummy to sit on
• Water bottles

This all sounds very nice doesn't it but we have yet to go on our nature trail as its been raining too much. I'll let you know how it goes.

Rain, Rain go Away

Its been raining for so many weeks now and the flooding keeps getting worse. I wonder just how much of this can be attributed to climate change and global warming. Fortunately, in Suffolk we have been OK. Green Eyed Frog and family live on a high plateau which has been earmarked for a windfarm closeby so I know that the only flooding we are likely to get is localised on the roads as the water runs off the fields. I feel so sorry for the people who have lost their homes and possessions, I just hope that the water will soon subside and people can get back to normal and start repairing the damage.

Our cottage in Mundesley, North Norfolk, is close to a Beck and small stream. When it rains the water follows a path down the side of the house into the ditch at the bottom of the garden. Our holiday makers are having a very wet but enjoyable break at least they can still hook up to the internet and read the blogs!

A break between the rain at the beach in Mundesley!

Green Eyed Frog in Sunday Mirror

A few weeks ago the Sunday Mirror asked for some photos of our organic cotton string bags. We queued up for our copy of the newspaper the following Sunday but no bags were mentioned. Today we have had a growing number of orders for bags and have since found out that Green Eyed Frog were in todays Sunday Mirror. If anyone out there has a copy of the Sunday supplement with the 'bag' page please can you send it to me or scan and email across.

The first copy I receive will get a FREE string bag! (remember to include your contact details).

Eco Pre-School Awarded nearly £300,000

Fantastic News, we heard today that the local Pre-School I am involved with has been successful in £300,000 of funding to build a new, bespoke Eco building on the grounds of the Primary School. We are all over the moon and looking forward to being in our new building soon. Its taken over ten years to get this far. I'm looking forward to seeing the grass roof grow and attract wildlife, for the hemp walls to take shape and for our solar generated hot water and electricity.

I'm also hoping that I will be able to use the facilities for after school care for the children so that I can then get the opportunity to go on some of the 'green' Trade Fairs and conferences and maybe do some more training.

Working from Home and Being a Mum

My 3 year old son has been suffering badly from chicken pox all week so we have been confined to the house. There has been no swimming, no PlayBus and no Pre-School, even the garden has been out of bounds because its been so wet. Consequently, boredom has set in because mummy spends too much time on the computer sending emails, preparing orders and doing voluntary work trying to "make a difference" to the environment.

During a brief lapse of concentration after making lunch, I forgot to lock the fridge door! If you have normal, well behaved children this wouldn't be a problem however while I was busy trying to concentrate on working out 17.5% of 100 in a spreadsheet that wouldn't add up my darling child was raiding the fridge. He ran into the office, a huge grin on his face and yoghurt all over his hands and face. Forgetting the spreadsheet and instantly jumping up, I ran into the living room (maybe this has happened before) to discover pink Thomas Tank Engine yoghurt had been carefully spooned out of 8 pots and smeared all over the sofa and cushions. The cover is now in the wash and I hope it dries before mother-in-law comes over tomorrow to babysit!

Its not easy being a mum and working from home!

I later had to collect the children from school accompanied by a small child with a spotty face and pink yoghurt all over him. Fortunately it looked just like calamine lotion so not too many strange looks...

Eco Party Bags

Don't you get fed up with all the plastic tat that your children bring home from parties? I started using recycled brown paper bags a few years ago and get the children to decorate and write their names on them. I've just found some fantastic party bags for Green Eyed Frog which are made from jute and of course will last for ever. They are a lovely, longlasting gift to take away from a party.

Ideas for filling your eco party bags:

• The cake - of course


• Organic fruit bar


• Box of raisons


• Organic, fairtrade chocolate treat


• Recycled pencil or pen


• Rubber eraser

Beware - some children however, don't take too kindly to finding organic fruit bars and raisons in their party bags and some may start to cry if they don't have an unhealthy sweet or two so you may have to slip a few of these in just to avoid the tears!

Ditch the Plastic - Use your own Shopping Bags

Some supermarkets are encouraging customers to use cloth bags for shopping. At Green Eyed Frog we have a selection of Eco Shopping bags which will help you gain extra points if you shop at Tesco but are really handy to keep in the car, handbag or coat pocket. You can try the organic, fair trade cotton coloured string bags made in India using natural pigments or the jute every day shopper. I use the recycling bags with bamboo handles. You can fit two or three of these in the trolley and are easy to transport into the car. I also use them to take my orders to the Post Office - it just makes life easier.

Help prevent marine pollution. Turtles are mistaking upturned plastic bags for their favourite food, jellyfish, with deadly results. By reducing the amount of plastic bags you can help the environment - Say No to Plastic!

New Eco Pre-School Nursery

As Chair of the local Pre-School in Stonham Aspal I have been helping to plan for a new Eco building for the children and staff, to be located on the grounds of the Primary school nearby. Committees have been working on this project for over 15 years and now with an Eco twist we hope to win the hearts and pockets of funders.

The Pre-School has been running for over 25 years in temporary accomodation at the local village hall. A new building will be safer for the children and provide facilities for those with special educational needs. It will be a true sustainable Eco building with rain water harvesting, grass roof, solar panels for water heating and electricity and a biomass heating system.

We are all hoping that this will be the last time that committees will need to go through this time consuming and lengthy project and hope that next year children will be playing in their purpose built contemporary eco haven. Our award winning architects Ralf and Meredith at StudioMGM have been very patient and even more patient as it has taken nearly two years to get to the planning stage but we hope that there is now light at the end of the tunnel.

Get Rid of Flies the Eco Way

I saw my first fly in the house today and its only the beginning of April. This warm weather is starting to wake up the summer insects. We have also seen butterflies and bumblebees in the garden.

Orders for Red Top Fly Traps have started to increase and I am already on my second shipment from the supplier this year. The Red Top Fly Catcher is an Eco friendly way to get rid of flies without the use of pesticides and chemicals sprayed around the house. The trap sits outside in the garden and catches female flies thus reducing the fly population in and around your house. If you haven't already tried one of these take a look at the Fly Trap on Green Eyed Frog.

Wash Clothes the Eco Way

I hope your washing is now hanging on the line in this lovely Spring sunny weather we are enjoying? If you haven't already been converted to Eco washing powder then why not give it a go? I have used Ecover, ClearSpring amongst others but have now discovered an ingenius natural product called soap nuts.

Soap Nuts are THE eco washing detergent grown on trees for use in washing machines and dish washers. Environmentally friendly, sustainably produced, bio-degradable and compostable. Harvested from the Soapnut tree, the nuts contain the active natural washing ingredient saponin. Similar to soap, when the shells of the soapnut come in to contact with water, the saponin is released and suds are produced.

If you fancy giving them a try Green Eyed Frog sell a cotton gift set containing 250g of soap nuts plus a small cotton bag to use in the washing machine.

Mummy, I Prefer Shop Pizza!

"Mummy, is it shop pizza?" the children ask when I tell them we have pizza for dinner.

"No, its mummy's pizza" I reply.

"Oh no, why do we have to have your pizza, we like shop pizza" they say.

Mummy now gets annoyed and says in a high pitched voice "mummy's pizza is good for you and much nicer because its made from organic wholemeal flour, organic cheese & mushrooms and vegetables from the garden - and I have just spent AN HOUR IN THE KITCHEN MAKING IT"

"Mummy, is it shop pizza?" the three year old pipes in.

Mummy puts the food on the table and says eat it or go without...

What do you do when they say this, its so frustrating? Good food with organic ingredients made with love is far better than a frozen shrink wrapped wilted thing from the supermarket but they are not convinced and think I'm a horrible mummy for making them eat such nasty food!
If you would like my recipe for pizza just ask...

Spring is in the Air

I love this time of year, you know that winter is now over as the daffodils start blooming and everything comes alive in the garden. We have been busy with the vegetable plot and released some of the worms from the wormery to hopefully make even better soil for next year. We have still got leeks in the garden and yesterday had the last of the carrots from last year. I baked a lovely spinach flan using our own spinach from the garden and local free range eggs from the farm. I think its going to be leek and potato pie for dinner today!

Green Eyed Frog has some new additions in the form of fair trade flower seeds from South Africa. We are looking forward to planting these later on in the year. We have also put together a lovely gift for Spring - the Paper Potter Gift Set which includes a packet of seeds, jute bag and the popular wooden paper potter. You can then make your own seedling pots from newspaper and plant the seeds in the greenhouse or windowsill before going outside.

Observer Ethical Awards 2007

Vote now for your best on-line retailer for 2007 in the Observer Ethical Awards 2007 sponsored by Ecover http://observer.guardian.co.uk/ethicalawards

There are many other categories and the voting screen will take you through the list.

I would love you to vote for Green Eyed Frog but you can vote for any on-line ethical retailer or local store.

Deadline is 2nd March 2007 so get voting now and support us all.

Snowy Suffolk

I woke up this morning to find a light frost, had a shower and then looked out of the window and there was an inch of snow. I didn't think my shower was that long I should get one of those timers...

Schools are closed so the children are happy and our WEETU course has been cancelled so I'm not going to the Post Office today to dispatch orders.

As a child I remember 6ft snow drifts and my Dad getting the tractor out to make a path to the road (we lived on a farm). Even in the bad weather we still managed to get to school unless it was really icey and cold when the diesel froze in the school bus. There was a very steep hill into the village which caused major problems with the old school bus so we were all very happy children when we heard that it just couldn't reach the top!

These days, due to climate change and mans impact on the environment it rarely snows and just an inch of snow results in school closures. It does seem sad that society today has changed so much since I was a child. Although health & safety is important it can take the enjoyment of life away, the risk. We wrap our children up in cotton wool and then expect them to survive in the real world when they leave school.

Must go children calling, said I would bake biscuits...

Carbon OffSetting...

Carbon OffSetting seem to be the buzz words at the moment however I find it very hard to accept the reasoning behind it. So you can still take your foreign long haul holidays each year to Florida adding to the pollution and conjestion in the sky but ease your conscience by planting a few trees? Surely the answer would be NOT to travel to distant countries in the first place and take your holidays in our own lovely country thus creating jobs in tourism in the UK and boosting the economy. This is a far 'greener' option or am I missing the point...

For a UK only holiday in our beautiful county of Norfolk with clean beaches, good food & pubs check out our own Royal Cottage in Mundesley

Eco & Green - Valentine Gifts

Its not long now until the 14th of February and of course the huge mountain of cards coming through the door. Ahhh. those were the days... Have you thought about making your own card out of recycled paper or opt for an eco gift like the recycled jewellery and cuff links from Green Eyed Frog.

There are lots of gifts that don't cost the earth, are kind to the environment and your pocket so why not check out the latest romantic offerings from Green Eyed Frog.

Full Circle WEETU Training Program

I've just started a certified (Open College Network) business course just for women, the first in Suffolk, run by WEETU (Womens Employment and Training Unit) and funded by the European Development Agency (EEDA). Its going really well and is designed for women who want to start up in business especially those who have families. I've met a really great bunch of women on the course and we are learning so much by talking to each other and sharing experiences.

The course is fully funded and includes childcare expenses for under 5's which is ideal for me. If you are a woman and thinking of setting up your own business I would recommend finding out if this program is in your area.

Next week we start the marketing session so I'm hoping to pick up some handy hints for Green Eyed Frog and Royal Cottage.

New Greener Year Resolution

In the Green Eyed Frog household we all try to be a little bit greener each year. This year we have decided to grow more veg and fruit in the garden, make more jams & pickle and do more batch baking/cooking for the freezer.

Personally I am really going to try and buy all my clothes secondhand. I used to get quite a lot from ebay but prefer to see what I'm buying so now that my youngest child is at pre-school a couple of mornings a week I can take the opportunity to do a bit of retail therapy. Should really be working on these precious mornings but rewards are just as good!

Did you know that the Sue Ryder Shops do loyalty cards with discounts and money off so thats my first stop. There are some really first class charity shops round here with good quality clothes with a far better choice than the high street stores. So why not give it a go...

Green Eyed Frog January Sale

Check out our January Sale which starts today 1st January and ends 31st. Lots of bargains on bedlinen plus gifts for all the family.