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Your Mama Likes Green Things Everyday!

By Andi on March 17th, 2009

Yes, it’s St. Patty’s Day today.  And while my usual annual indulgence involves copious amounts of green beer complete with wicked green hangovers, this year is a little lot different.

This year, I’m doing something green in a little different way.  Over the past few weeks, I’ve been testing the uber-cute Green to Grow bottles, and I’m gonna tell ya all about ‘em.

When I first bought bottles, during my pregnancy, I had no experience what-so-evah with what or why to buy.  I took the recommendations of friends and purchased the Born Free.  I am nursing the babe, but I knew from the start that I was not going to be all La Leche League about it.  I wanted baby-daddy, her grandparents, and of course random babysitters to be able to feed her.  And the whole nipple-confusion thing?  I’m convinced it’s total BS.  Peaches spent 3 nights/4 days in the NICU for jaundice when she was 4 days old and was bottle-fed exclusively for that time, and STILL returned to the breast with only mild interruption.  End: rant.  So anyway.

Green to GrowWe’ve been happily using the Born Free’s until recently, when I lost the last cap I had for them, thus rendering their portability useless.  I like to pump and bring a bottle with me when we go out to the beach or are away for long periods -  I never know where I’ll be when she needs to eat so I like to be prepared when popping out the boob is somewhat weird or uncomfortable.  So not having a cap was clearly an issue.

I started surfing the web, looking at safe and cute bottles, wanting to try something different.  I settled on the Green To Grow for a couple reasons:

  • Their packaging alone is so cute.  And as you may have learned, I’m a sucker for good design.  Also, it’s 100% recycled – score!
  • They are safe for my baby:  BPA, PVC, and Phthalate-free.  The nipples are medical-grade silicone.  All those chemicals that we aren’t sure what they do to us?  If I can avoid them, I’m gonna.
  • They have a wide-neck option that is similar to the Born Free, and makes Peaches have to use a latch more similar to how she nurses.
  • They have fewer ‘parts’ than the BF so are easier to wash.
  • They have a cap.   That isn’t lost.  Yet.

I ordered the wide-neck 10-ounce bottle and some ‘intermediate’ nipples since Peaches is also using the Born Free Level 2 nipple, and I thought it would be similar.  And overall, it is.  I like the bottle; the design, the colors, the safety. . . but there are definitely a few things I’m not crazy about.

  • The nipples are not labeled as to what ‘flow’ they are.   This causes a major issue because I wanted to save the slow-flow in case the faster one was too fast.  But they got mixed up (I think) and they don’t have a label for me to tell which is which.
  • The nipples are also a little harder and Peaches has a difficult time latching on right away, while milk dribbles all down her chin and neck until she gets it.
  • There is no ‘anti-colic’ mechanism.  She’s past needing it, but somehow that weird valve in the Born Free makes me feel like she’s getting a little less gas.   That mechanism, though, is a pain in the ass to wash so this could go either way.

As she gets older, she doesn’t need the special anti-colic valve, so a bottle really does become just a bottle.  And the Green to Grow are a very cute, safe option – no more, no less.

[rating: 3.5/5]

Free Stuff Alert Contest Has Ended – Congratulations Elizabeth!

Alicia at TheSoftLanding.com, home of all things green and safe for baby, has generously offered two Green to Grow bottles and a package of nipples (size of your choice) to a lucky reader.

Required for entry: Visit TheSoftLanding.com and let us know your favorite GREEN product.  This can be the color green or green in the environmentally-friendly sense.

Then, you can earn up to 3 additional entries by doing the following:

1.  Subscribe to YourMama’s feed or email.  Comment to let us know.
2.  Paste our badge on your site, profile (Facebook, MySpace, etc) or blog. Just cut/paste the code below into your page, then comment to let us know where it’s posted (leave your link!).
Your Mama Reviews

3. Tweet about this giveaway.  Comment again and include your twitter username so we can verify.

COMMENTS THAT DO NOT FOLLOW THE ENTRY RULES WILL BE DELETED. The winner will be chosen using a random-number generator. Contest runs through Tuesday, March 24 at noon EST. Please make sure you leave a valid email address. Offer limited to US and Canadian residents.

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About the author:  One day, Andi hopes to teach the men in her life that they, too, can pick things up and put them away after they’ve used them. Read more from this author.

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Category: Safety
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