Eco-friendly Toy Week Continues! Swaddle Babies

This contest has ended. Thanks to all that entered!

I remember very vividly sitting in the chair waiting for the ultrasound tech to tell me if I was having a boy or a girl. When she said, "it's a girl!" I burst into tears. I always knew I'd have a little girl and made my mom save all of my baby clothes, dolls, barbies and other girly toys. When I heard those words I instantly pictured my daughter and I playing with our dolls and having tea parties... a dream come true. For E's first birthday I bought her several dolls in hopes she was ready to play mommy. I just couldn't wait and was ready for the fun to begin! She loved feeding her babies and took them everywhere with her. She was such a good little mommy.

Then I found Healthy Toys.org and my bubble was kind of burst. Healthy Toys is a project from the Ecology Center that tests random toys for lead, cadmium, bromine, chlorine, arsenic and mercury. When I saw that my daughter's first doll contained high levels of chlorine or PVC and low trace amounts of bromine I was a bit upset and let down. I knew what I had to do, but I felt really guilty taking her babies away. Ella was still putting everything in her mouth, especially the baby's hands which were part of the high levels of PVC, so I had no other choice. I then vowed to never buy a plastic baby again... which isn't an easy thing to do.

The first fabric doll I bought Ella she wanted nothing to do with. It was a really cute doll and E had been without her plastic babies for a couple of months, so I thought she'd be thrilled. But no, the baby is now lost somewhere in the house. So I gave up on the idea that she would love dolls for the moment and focused on learning toys.

Then I came across Swaddle Babies. Priscilla Rose, the amazing creator, hand stitches every baby for your customized order. Priscilla is a stay at home mom who was inspired to make her daughter a Waldorf style doll that was the perfect size for small hands. After seeing her creation, many of her friends started asking for her to make them dolls and then Swaddle Babies was born.

All Swaddle Babies are crafted with organic cotton knit, organic wool or viscose made from bamboo fiber (your choice), and a variety of natural and organic handspun yarns. Here's how it works... you first pick out of 4 skin tones for your baby. Then you choose sleepy or smiley eyes, straight or loopy hair, the color of hair that you want your baby to have (8 choices), and which blanket you want it swaddled in. You have the option to get velour or minky. After you create your baby you get to name him or her and it will be embroidered on the tag. I had my fingers crossed when Priscilla was making our baby that Ella would love it like she did her first babies. And...Ella got her baby Ella and was so excited!
The first thing she wanted to do was rock baby Ella because she was sleepy.
Then baby Ella needed kisses before going "night night."Now every night, baby Ella reads with us, rocks with us and then Ella puts her to sleep in her bassinet. Or some nights, baby Ella needs to sleep in Ella's bed because she's scared. Gotta love 2 yr. olds. :) Baby Ella is beautifully handcrafted with lots of love and time put into her. She is also a perfect size for infants-preschoolers and super soft for cuddling. I love that you get to decide every detail of your baby and choose your child's favorite colors. Being part of the process of her creation has made her even more special.


You can get free shipping for purchases made in Sept if you enter the code BIRTHDAY in the "Message to Swaddle Babies" box during checkout.
The Giveaway: 1 lucky winner will receive their very own Swaddle Babies custom made doll

The Rules: You have until 11:59 p.m. EST September 13, 2009 to enter. The winner will be chosen by random.org and announced after they respond to the winning email. The winner has 48 hours to respond to the winning email, or a new winner will be chosen. You must leave your email address! This contest is open to the US

How to Enter: Visit Swaddle Babies and tell me how your baby would look if you won. Click on "Comments" to leave your post. Make sure to leave your email address!! I cannot contact the winner without it!

EXTRA Entries: You must complete the "How To Enter" before making any extra entries. Make sure you leave a comment for each extra entry and tell me which one.
2. Become a fan of Mkokopelli on FB, Mkokopelli on Twitter or Follow my blog
3. Subscribe to my blog by email (on the right sidebar)
4. Blog, Tweet or send a message on FB and leave a link here (3 extra entries)
5. Enter another giveaway I have going on and tell me which one or leave a comment on a non-giveaway post
6. Follow Swaddle Babies on Twitter or Facebook
7. Tell me what people are saying about Swaddle Babies on their review page
8. Add my Best Eco-friendly Toy Week Button to your Blog or FB page (5 additional entries) email me if you need the code
Good luck to everyone and Thank You Priscilla for making Ella such a beautiful baby!