Author: mkokopelli

mkokopelli https://mkokopelli.wordpress.com With a BA in Creative Writing, I have always had a passion for telling a story. When I graduated from UNCW, the job market was scarce so I pursued my other love, photography. I managed a photography studio for 3 years before starting my own company, M&M Photography. As luck would have it, one of my clients worked for the Charlotte Observer and asked me to join her team in launching their new mom website, MomsCharlotte.com. During this time, I had a baby and after learning some disturbing things about big name baby shampoo, I started researching children’s products and eventually family products. I began a blog, Mkokopelli, as a side project to document all of the things I was learning and to share my knowledge with other concerned parents. Mkokopelli led me down many exciting roads as I got to work with amazing companies and organizations. I began freelancing for several big named eco-friendly businesses including Inhabitots, Stonyfield, Franklin Goose, Earth Mama Angel Baby, The Baby Grocery Store, Juice Beauty, rocklovepeace, and Sacred Pregnancy. After having my second child, I decided to focus my talents on social media content as well as video editing. My current clients are a multi-billion dollar real estate company based out of Dallas, TX and a NC therapist who specializes in Transformative Insight Imagery. When not writing, I enjoy hiking, traveling, photo journalism, poetry, reading, nature, politics, activism, and painting.

Q&A With Yael from Green Tree Yoga

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Some of you might be wondering why you should get your children involved in Yoga while there are so many other things to do. There are a lot of misconceptions about Yoga, so I decided to have a Q & A session with Yael Calhoun, co-founder and executive director of Green Tree Yoga to answer some of your questions.

Is Yoga a religion? No. Yoga is an art and a science that has been practiced for thousands of years. Yoga, which means yoking or union uses the breath to join the body and the mind. That’s why we talk about the breath while we do the poses and why we move with the breath. It helps us to relax into our pose, to deepen our stretch and to connect with our mind and body.

How is Kid Yoga different from Adult Yoga? Yoga for kids is both very different and very much the same as yoga for adults. It is different in that yoga for kids needs to be highly interactive and much faster paced. The instructor needs to be chatting with and eliciting comments from the kids all the time to keep them engaged. While kids love this, adults would find it annoying and distracting. Kids’ and adult yoga are very much the same in intention — that is to say, the intention of yoga is to find calmness and clarity. Kids need this as much as adults. The benefits of yoga are the same for any population — relaxation, healing, strengthening, and concentration for the mind and the body.

What should kids be able to take away from doing Yoga? Kids should take away a sense of fun, a sense of calm, and a sense of being energized. Yoga does all of that. Kids should take away a new tool to deal with stress and to add to their exercise program.
What results should parents expect? Parents should expect kids to connect with yoga. Kids will say, even after one class, I really like yoga. They may not be able to articulate the reasons, and many adults can’t either, and that is fine. The important thing is that they feel better after doing some yoga, and they want to do more. It’s fun, it’s healthy, and it can become habit forming!
Why is Kid Yoga beneficial? Yoga for kids is beneficial for the same reasons yoga for adults is — it’s a powerful healing tool. But, as Dr. Timothy McCall says in his wonderful book, Yoga as Medicine, yoga is slow medicine. That is to say, it feels good right away, and the benefits build over time.
How often should kids do Yoga? As often as they can! But once a week would be enough for the kids to feel the benefits of yoga. The important thing is to introduce them to the tool.
What if my kids go to a class and do not like it? Just as with any teacher, there are many different styles and personalities. I have yet to meet a kid who doesn’t like yoga. So I would say, try another teacher — another setting, another group. There are some fun dvds and books on yoga for kids, sometimes that can be a nice complement to a weekly practice.

How could I help get yoga into my school? Given that yoga is not a religion, it’s a science for using the breath to connect the mind and the body, many schools are open to introducing both their students and staff to the benefits of yoga. If you do yoga, offer to do some 5 minute yoga breaks in the classrooms. It’s a great way to improve the academic settings. (go to www.greentreeyoga.org for some ideas on this). If you have some yoga moms or dads in your school (and you can put a notice in your school newsletter), it may be possible to start an afterschool yoga program, either for small fee to pay the teacher or with no fee because someone volunteers. I have found the best way to set it up is as a 6-8 week program for which kids sign up (even if they dont’ pay). You need to get it on the parents’ calendar, and then the kids attend. You may be able to get yoga mats donated, but you can do a lot of yoga without mats, just using beach towels for the sitting poses.

Please let me know if you have any other questions and Yael will be happy to answer them! I hope this gave you some insight of why this has been an important week for me! Now, stay tuned for the Green Tree Giveaway!

Nimli winner

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Congrats to Lauren for winning the Nimli Azuri Cashmere Pashmina Shawl! Don’t worry if you didn’t win, you can still get 20% off by entering SUMMER09 at the checkout.

Lauren said… CommentsCounter=CommentsCounter+1; document.write(CommentsCounter) 151

I entered the organic moby wrap giveaway!

July 30, 2009 9:05 AM

Kids Yoga Giveaway 5- Wai Lana Little Yogis Gift Set

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This Contest has ended! Thanks to all that entered!
So this week you’ve had the chance to win Angel Bear Yoga Pose Cards, Crunchy Granola Baby Yoga pants, a Yoga mat with DVD from YogaAccessories.com, a Yoga Baby shirt from Simply Chickie… now it’s time to win some super fun stuff from Wai Lana.

Wai Lana is a company who has been around for years. She has her own Yoga TV show that is braodcasted internationally on PBS. Her voice is mesmerizing and totally gets you in the mood for peacefulness. Wai Lana created a Little Yogis line, and she thought of everything. You can find kid sized yoga balls, yoga mats, books, CD’s, DVD’s, Coloring Books with fun Yoga activities and much more! Wai Lana sent me the whole line to review and I was in awe. Ella of course was right there when I opened the package and begged to play with the Yoga ball.
This isn’t just your ordinary Yoga ball. It’s Eco-friendly made from phthalate-free PVC. Which was the first plus in my book! I love how the ball has the Little Yogi characters doing ball exercises. Ella has loved looking at the ball and then trying a new pose. The kit also comes with a poster that has 20 fun exercises plus 4 games. You can get the Eco-Ball Kit at Wai Lana for only $19.96! The ball is recommended for children ages 3+, but you know I had to let E try.
This is E doing the Frog pose. You lie on the ball with your feet on the floor. You hug the ball with your arms and knees and can just rest or bounce up and down.
This had to be E’s favorite. It is the Wheelbarrow pose. You lie over the ball with your hands on the floor. Then walk your hands forward until your hips and thighs are on the ball, feet pointing straight back.
This is her second favorite. It is the Table pose. You sit on the ball and walk forward until your head and back rest on the ball. Then bend your knees and lift your body so your body makes a table.

You can see the Little Yogis Mat in the above pictures, which is also Eco-friendly. It is free of phthalates, phenols, dioxins, and furans. You can purchase the mat separately or purchase as a kit. The kit comes with a Little Yogis DVD, Eco-mat, Cartoon poster plus a cool bag to carry or store your mat, which is on sale for only $34.26. Ella has loved watching the Little Yogis DVD. If you click on the link, a preview of the video should pop up. If it doesn’t work with your browser, click on any Little Yogis DVD’s and catch a glimpse. Wai Lana uses cartoons and actual kids to help your child get the pose. She is very calm and patient while explaining the poses and there are tons of fun songs!

Little Yogis has 3 lines of Yoga fun. There is the regular Little Yogis, Daydream and Fun Songs. The Daydream collection is to help your child get ready for nap time or bed. The Fun Songs is for creative play with songs incorporated.

Are you ready to see what’s in store for the giveaway?? Check out this awesome kit put together, with a $81 value!
The Giveaway: One winner will receive: A Little Yogis Daydream CD, DVD, Game Cards set and Coloring Book and a Little Yogis Fun Songs Activity Book, Fun Songs Book with CD, a Coloring Book and Game Cards Set.

The Rules: You have until 11:59 p.m. EST September 5, 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 Wai Lana and tell me something else you’d like to have. 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. Tell me what time Wai Lana’s TV Show comes on in your town
7. Subscribe to Wai Lana’s Newsletter

*For 5 additional entries, grab my Best Eco-friendly Toy Week button and post on your blog to start promoting for the 24th! Make sure you leave a link! There will be some amazing giveaways!!

Good luck to everyone and have a great Yoga Weekend!!

Wai Lana Little Yogis Poses- Part 1

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This is going to be a long one… so I’m going to start off by showing you some awesome Wai Lana Little Yogis Poses.

This is from the Little Yogis Asana Poster.

This is from the Little Yogis Fun Exercise Book.





Ella doing the Yoga Dance while watching the Little Yogis DVD.

Anyone in Miami this weekend?

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If so, don’t miss the Miami Living Green Expo August 15 & 16! Atlantis Natural will be there, so stop by and say hi! You will learn about great Eco-friendly products, services, education and entertainment. The event is only $10, FREE for children under 12 and seniors over 60.

If you’re not in Miami, you can still check out Atlantis Natural’s amazing online store!

Organic Peanut Butter Cookies

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Proteins are important in everyone’s diet. It’s especially important when exercising! I wanted to share a organic peanut butter cookie recipe that is extra yummy and healthy!

1/2 cup of organic peanut butter (I love the Harris Teeter Naturals brand)
1/2 cup of organic butter
1/2 cup of organic cane sugar
1/2 cup of organic brown sugar
1 cage free organic egg
1 1/2 cup of organic whole wheat flour
3/4 tsp organic baking soda
1/4 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp organic baking powder

Pre-heat oven to 375. Melt butter then cream together butter, peanut butter and sugars. Sift together dry ingredients. Add egg then slowly add dry mix. Mix well! Roll dough into small balls and press down with a salad fork. Bake on an ungreased baking sheet for 10-12 minutes. Then enjoy.

Kids Yoga Giveaway 4- Organic Yoga Baby Tee from Simply Chickie

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 This contest has ended! Thanks to all that entered!

Yoga was intended to help bring clarity and calmness to your life. In a busy go-go world where we often don’t slow down, it’s important to have an outlet to let go of everything and reconnect with yourself. Once you’ve gotten into practicing yoga and feeling the benefits, you often have the drive to improve other areas of your life.

I try to improve our lifestyle in any way I know how. After learning that over 11% of ALL pesticides and 25% of ALL insecticides in the world are used each year for cotton production, I wanted to switch our clothes to a natural non-treated fabric. 20,000 deaths occur each year from pesticide poisoning, where as organic cotton farming uses no pesticides, fertilizers or insecticides. So basically by supporting organic cotton growing, you are helping save lives. I found a great company, Simply Chickie that carries 100% organic cotton hand-made tees, onesies and hats that are affordable and super cute!

Simply Chickie owner, Gwen, creates her own designs on papers she has collected from her worldly travels. She then cuts the designs and paints whatever might augment the picture. The original art is then computer graphically arranged and printed out on your product. She has over 25 designs to choose from and two great Yoga tees! Check out Ella in her Simply Chickie wear:
My favorite feature of the shirt is the Downward Dog pose on the butt!
This was E’s first pose that she learned and her favorite by far. For a more advanced pose, have your child extend their arms without their head touching the ground. Have them go up on their tip toes and back down. You can really feel the burn if you do this in repetitive sets of 10!

You can get the Yoga Baby tee in either 2, 4, or 6T or in a onesie.

The discount: Enter mkokopelli20 at the checkout and get 10% off your purchase!

The Giveaway: Simply Chickie is giving away 1 Yoga Baby tee in any size

The Rules: You have until 11:59 p.m. EST September 4, 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 and Canada.

How to Enter: Visit Simply Chickie and tell me your favorite design and what size tee you would need. 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. Go to Simply Chickie and vote which new saying should go on a tee (click the link)
7. Follow Simple Chickie on Twitter and Tweet about her company (click on the link to get to her page)

Kids Yoga Week Giveaway 3- Yoga Mat and DVD from YogaAccessories.com

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This Giveaway has ended. Thanks to all that entered! 


When Ella began doing Yoga, we didn’t have any Yoga gear. I taught her the few poses I remembered and she loved them. I didn’t want to invest in something I wasn’t sure she was going to like. So we started off with the “A Pose a Day- Play Deck” Yoga cards so see how she would do. After 2 weeks of hearing her beg every night to “Do Yoga!” I decided it was time to do some research on Kids Yoga products.

I found YogaAccessories.com and they carry everything! I figured a mat would be the first thing we needed, so I started looking around. I found out that adult sized mats are usually 72″, which are a bit long for kids. You can find shorter mats at YogaAccessories.com that are only 60″ and are thick enough for kids wear and tear.
YogaAccessories.com carries the Short Yoga Mats in 5 different vibrant colors. It is a non-skid mat, so you don’t have to worry about your child falling when doing a complex pose. When Ella was just using the carpet, she had issues balancing. Since she’s been practicing on the mat, she’s had the confidence to try harder things.

After doing all of the Play Deck poses, I was curious as to what DVD’s are out there for kids. I started doing Yoga with Ella to help get her to relax for bed. So when I came across, Yoga Kids “Silly to Calm” at YogaAccessories.com I had to try it! It is a 40 minute DVD with fun Yoga poses and exercises for kids ages 3-6. Ella had fun doing it, so the age is really up to your child’s attention span. Here are 2 quick video’s of Ella watching/participating.

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She has had a blast doing the Freeze game! We’ve had some friends over to “play yoga” as a group and they’ve all enjoyed participating to the DVD. There are 3 volumes of the Yoga Kids DVD’s and I’m anxious to try out the other 2! YogaAccessories.com carries a variety of Kid Yoga products at a great price! You can get the mat for only $11.49 and the DVD for only $13.48. Plus YogaAccessories.com will price match any company!

The Discount: You can get 10% off your purchase at YogaAccessories.com on any purchase over $25 by entering MKOBLG10 until 10-31-09

The Giveaway: YogaAccessories.com is giving away 1 orange short Yoga mat and 1 Yoga Kids “Silly to Calm” DVD

Rules: You have until 11:59 p.m. EST September 3, 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 YogaAccessories.com and tell me something else you’d like to have. 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. Sign up for the YogaAccessories.com Newsletter
7. Tell me one other Kid Yoga gear YogaAccessories.com carries that I haven’t mentioned (note: run a search on their site)

Chewy Granola Bars & Yummy Granola

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Healthy snacks are just as important as eating a healthy meal. Yoga is about balance- not only with your body, but with every day situations. A balanced diet is very important to help your child grow and keeping them healthy. If your child wants to eat a sugary snack, make it a healthy- all natural treat. Here is a recipe for Chewy Granola Bars– without the added processed sugar you find in the ones at the store.

1 1/3 rolled oats
1/2 cup oat bran
1 1/2 cup brown-rice cereal
1 cup organic raisins (any dried fruit will work)
1/2 cup of brown-rice syrup or organic maple syrup
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract
1 teaspoon of sea salt

Lightly butter a 8 inch square pan. Mix oats, bran, rice cereal, and fruit in a bowl. Over medium heat, combine syrup, vanilla extract and salt. Cook until it boils and starts to thicken- about 4 minutes. Pour over the oats and stir with a lightly buttered spatula. Spoon the mixture into the buttered pan and top with wax paper or foil. After the granola has cooled, cut into bars and place in an air tight container.

Breakfast Granola

8 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon Honey
1/2 cup of nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans chopped)
1/2 cup of each- raisins, cranberries and other dried fruit

Preheat oven to 325F. Combine oats, oil, vanilla and honey. Spread in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake 30 minutes., turning and stirring every 10 min. Add nuts after first 10 min. Remove from oven and cool. Stir in dried fruit. Store in an airtight container.

I love to cut up a banana, spread with peanut butter, then dip the banana in the granola. It’s YUMMY! You can also serve the granola with milk.

Kids Yoga Week Giveaway 2- Crunchy Granola Baby Yoga Pants

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This contest has ended. Thanks to all that entered!
You want to make sure that you and your child are dressed comfortably before starting your Yoga exercises together. Jeans won’t allow you to stretch properly and a lot of the exercises have you both twisting and turning around. You both need to be able to move freely, so your clothes need to be comfortable and breathable. Yoga pants are ideal and a tighter fitting tee shirt or tank top will work.

Crunchy Granola Baby carries a variety of Yoga pants from infant-4T, with over 8 colors to choose from! Crunchy Granola Baby carries a variety of Eco-friendly and organic products for babies and toddlers. They even have a baby registry! The Positively Organic Yoga Pants are made with 100% ribbed organic cotton with a drawstring waist easy for dressing. They are light weight and super soft. I love the vibrant colors. They do run a little big, so if your child is in between sizes, go with the smaller size. E just moved up to a 3T and the pants were baggy and covered her toes when I didn’t have them pulled up or rolled. If you do have Yoga pants that are too big, roll them up so your child won’t trip over them or slip in mid-pose. This is the Half Moon Pose. For more advanced balancers, have your child reach down to their toes while their leg is fully extended. This pose strengthens the legs, lengthens the spine and opens the chest.

The Discount: Head over to Crunchy Granola Baby and get 15% off by entering ellachelle15 at the checkout until October 31st!

The Giveaway: Crunchy Granola Baby is giving away 1 pair of Positively Organic Yoga Pants in any size and color you’d like!

Rules: You have until 11:59 p.m. EST September 2, 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 Crunchy Granola Baby and tell me something else you’d like to have. 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. Sign up for Crunchy Granola Baby’s Newsletter
7. Tell me something you learned at Crunchy Granola Baby’s Blog