happy arbor day

i heard on npr today that it's officially arbor day, but just did a moment of research + turns out yesterday was arbor day in some states (http://www.arbor-day.net/arbor-day-state-dates.htm) . must have been a rerun. regardless, it seemed like a nice reminder to pay homage to (+even plant!) our lovely tree speesees, which absorb carbon dioxide + help to keep our planet cool (a single mature tree can absorb carbon dioxide at a rate of 48 lbs./year + release enough oxygen back into the atmosphere to support 2 human beings). now that's something to celebrate!

speesees storytime

once upon a time, there was planet, + on that planet lived millions + millions of speesees...animal speesees, plant speesees, human speesees, big + small speesees. inspired by the range + idiosyncrasy of our contributing organisms, we at speesees want to share fun facts + history tidbits of our featured speesees, for you + your little one(s) to enjoy:::

livie and luca

one of my favorite "splurge" items for my toddler is shoes. while i try to get most of his necessities re-used and re-cycled, i always splurge on brand-spanking new shoes. why? mostly because his little feeties will be in them everyday and i want him to be comfortable and steady on his feet. ok...the real reason is because i find toddler shoes overwhelmingly adorable and i can't help myself. i haven't bought myself a new pair of shoes in over 5 years, but this little guy has a bucket full of them! i know lots of parents think shoes are a waste of money because kids outgrow them so fast, but that has not been my experience. in fact, my little guy's feet aren't growing fast enough to get into the new shoes he has waiting on him...but enough about that.

my current favorites are from a great bay area company called livie and luca. i just adore this company! if you haven't seen their designs running around your local playground yet, you must check them out. from their website, "livie and luca shoes are made from the softest leather, allowing the feet to breathe. they also have a super flexible and lightweight sole, which helps with stability and coordination as they navigate the playground." their baby and toddler shoes run from american size 3.5 to size 10 and generally fit pre-walkers to preschool aged children.

at my house we love the hoots design...and since anything owl themed is all the rage in the fashion world these days, your tyke will be super-styling. i also find them educational, as it is very fun to practice the sign language for owl every time you put the shoes on! but if owls aren't your cup-of-tea, don't fret! they have designs for budding chef's, mini businessmen, and zany zoologists....but the soccer designs are sure to have your little fan screaming "SCOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORE!"

and if their fresh and funky designs weren't enough, they are also a company with a conscience! visit their site for all the ways they are treading lightly. a few of my favorites are: reusable cloth bags are used to package online orders, non-toxic glue is used in the production of the shoes and each month, 10% of the profits from their online sales go to a unique charity.

please do check out livie and luca....a smile is sure to follow!

*amy

from recipes to bedding

greetings speesees friends! thanks for joining me on this little blog-land adventure. i have lots to share with you...parent to parent and friend to friend! it's not going to be advice really, because every parent has enough of that (most of it unsolicited i might add!). instead, my goal is to share with you the people, places and products that make me smile. from recipes and art projects to books and bedding, hopefully these little tips will start you on a journey of exploration that leads you to a big, cheery smile of your own. being a parent is hard work...so let's have some fun, shall we??? *amy

*introducing speesees supermom*

our very own supermom, amy edwards, is the proud mama of superspeesees bowie + partner to superdad dusty. never a dull moment in the lives of the edwards, our supermom finds herself scouring the internet at the wee hours of night in search for the latest + greatest in sustainable bowie products. always determined to find the highest quality, sweetest aesthetic + smallest carbon footprint items, we bring our supermom's late-night research to the forefront of the speesees blog...stay tuned.

*new* compostable biobag::

did you know plastic bags + other plastic garbage thrown into the ocean kill as many as 1,000,000 sea creatures every year? remember the 'happy feet' penguin with the plastic 6-pack holder around his neck? not nice.

for some time, our manufacturers have bagged speesees in plastic bags to keep it clean from factory dust. we have saved/reused them + grappled with the fact that we are using plastic at all as a sustainable business, never mind in a large quantity. we are proud to announce that beginning this may, each speesees will come enclosed in its own compostable/biodegradable bag made of corn. you can probably chew them, but i wouldn't try.

in the meantime, if you do receive a classic speesees garment in a plastic bag, here is list of what you can do to reuse::

*use as an envelope for a crafty snail mail letter
*organize toiletries/travel kit
*separate/store jewelry or office supplies
*kitty/doggy duty: bring them on walks to collect/dispose of pet waste
*suitcase shoe holders: big plastic bags can house a shoe or 2 when packing
*if you come up with any useful tricks, please let us know!

also, for the record, all clean bags labeled #2 (HDPE) or #4 (LLDPE) are recyclable, including::

*grocery bags
*retail bags (remove hard plastic or string handles)
*plastic newspaper bags
*dry cleaning bags (remove paper & hangers)
*mattress bags

***

neck-pillow friend

speesees keeps us busy & i experience upper shoulder/neck tension pretty regularly (i do. boo.). i recently discovered that my friend makes the most divine neck pillow. the firm support of his beans & soothing scent of the lavender lull me right to sleep>>>he also makes a relaxing addition to shavasina at the end of yoga practice. *rdp

theo's friend

my cat theo playfully greeted his mellow friend this weekend. although not too quick to respond, the friend seemed to be enjoying theo's company immensely.

GO...CCO!

we recently purchased a gocco (japanese screenprinting) kit + erika has since been busy being our in-house marketing materials artist. she is quite a talent! right now we are gocco-ing envelopes + folders, but pretty soon we will probably be gocco-ing everything we can get our hands on...watch out. something may land in your retail packages...

prancer

mocha prancing at highland ranch::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

jidai master

08 speesees baby