#NoMomLeftBehind This Mother's Day

I am SOOO excited, both personally and professionally, to share with you all first about our new Mother's Day campaign with the 30/30 Project, #NoMomLeftBehind. We are partnering with an incredible organization called Hope Through Health to build a new maternity ward in Togo, West Africa!

I'm particularly passionate about this campaign because I have so much to celebrate in my life this Mother's Day, as both a daughter and a mother, and am committed to giving back. 

As many of you know, my mom was given five years to live when she was diagnosed as HIV positive in 1990. In large part due to the incredible healthcare that she has received here in Washington State, she is still with us today. Not only do I get to celebrate still having my mom here, I am expecting our second little baby this May. My first labor and delivery was complicated, scary and unpredictable and I'm grateful that I had the incredible care at Swedish Hospital that kept Myles and I healthy. I look forward to an even better experience in just five short weeks (eek!).

Community Health Workers with Hope Through Health in Togo, West Africa 

Sadly, 1 in 46 women die in childbirth in Togo (compared to 1 in 1800 here in the US). I so strongly believe that these women deserve the same type of access that my mom and I have had. Will you join me in building this maternity ward? We are trying to raise $30,000 through this campaign and every dollar counts. Please check out our #NoMomLeftBehind website and share this campaign with your friends. Thank you so much for supporting the 30/30 Project! 

Mother's Day Gift Ideas: Locally Made

Still looking for the perfect Mother's Day gift? Here are a few suggestions on local shopping in Seattle. A great way to love your mom and support local artists and small business owners, many of which are moms too!

The Ballard Art Walk is this Saturday. That gives you a lot of great options.
While your in Ballard, check out Velouria, which features beautiful clothing, all made by independent designers including many from the Northwest and other beautifully designed gifts like the journal above. Lucca Great Finds is the perfect place to pick up a beautiful card among other things.

The U-District Farmers Market is also on Saturday. The perfect place to grab some locally made wine and cheese or how about kombucha, smoked salmon, kim-chee, truffles or honey for the foodie mom.

Melrose Market is great for flowers and gifts and meats and cheeses to make your mom a great meal.

Paper Delights in Wallingford is fun to browse through for the perfect card.

There's always the Seattle staple gift, Glassybaby. Pick out one with meaning like "gratitude"(above). Check out their Mother's Day suggestions. Not only is this an ever-growing small business started by a mom, they give 10% to great charities.

Nube Green on Capitol Hill is filled with wonderful finds, all sustainably made by artists all over the U.S.  I think the "Call Your Mother" pillow (above) is hilarious. 

Mother's Day Gift Ideas: Fair Trade

This year for Mother's Day share the love by purchasing fair trade and supporting artisans around the world who are making wonderful things. You can give the all the moms in your life a beautiful gift and explain that it's purchase is supporting a better life for women, some mothers just like them, all around the world. 

Scarf- Made by women (and some men too!) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia for Karama Gifts. I visited their workspace and met the artisans who make these scarves and let me tell you, a lot of hard work goes in to the process. From spinning fibers to yarn and dying it to working it together thread by thread on giant looms, these are beautifully crafted. ON SALE TODAY! (MAY 1st) 

Sandals- Made in Uganda, the mission of Sseko Designs is to not only create fashionable sandals and accessories but to provide income for women to go on to attend university. 

Bracelet- This Mother of Pearl and Silver bracelet is made in Zanzibar . I been to their studio and watched as this lively group of women turned large pieces of shell into delicate jewelry-all while laughing and chatting with each other. 

Purse- Made in Guatemala by Uxibal. Their goal is to improve the lives of local women by teaching and employing them to make fashionable leather goods. I love their boots too! 

Pitcher- This beautiful silver pitcher would make a lovely gift filled with spring flowers. Made by a collective in India who mainly employs stay at home moms! Sold by Ten Thousand Villages online and perhaps at a store near you. 

Throw Pillow- Made in Vietnam and sold by Ten Thousand Villages. 

Picture Frame- Add in a #tbt worthy photo of you and your mom from back in the day and you've got a priceless treasure. Made in the Philippines, by an organization created to support marginalized women and youth. 

Body Butter- This lavender body butter is handmade in Malawi and sold by Karama Gifts, a non-profit who sells products made by artisans from all across Africa. 

Necklace- If you're more of a last minute gift giver and don't have time to wait for something to be shipped, look for this beautiful necklace at Anthropologie! It's made by artists in Kenya. You'll find other fairly traded goodies on their shelves too! 

PS. Check back next week and we will be featuring locally made products from the Seattle area and other small businesses across the U.S. 

Want more ideas?  Check out our new Pinterest board "Fair Trade & Locally Made" 

Lovely Lilacs

Every spring I look forward to lilacs. One of my favorite things about our house is the giant lilac bush, that's really more of a lilac tree, in our backyard. I wake up to it every morning out my bedroom window. It smells wonderful. I like to put little bunches of it in to mason jars and fill my house with them and gift them to friends and often times moms as it conveniently times it's blooming right around Mother's Day!

DIY Mother's Day Gifts

Last week we featured some great Mother's Day gifts that you can buy, here are a few DIY gifts ideas from around the web for you crafty types!

My favorite: Fingerprint Necklace

Doily Wreath

Homemade Body Scrub

Painted Whiskey Bottles

Scrabble Coasters

Pretty Little Flower Pillow

Etched Glass (seems way easier than I thought!)

Clay Jewelry Dish

Tub Teas!

Mother's Day Gift Ideas

When I was a kid my mom always asked us to work in her garden as her gift for Mother's Day. Every year all of us would wake up on Sunday, head to church, then home to spend the day as a family weeding, mowing, and planting flowers and vegetables. 

These days I usually go for a more traditional gift but since I'm now living back in Seattle maybe I'll have to resurrect the old tradition this year! Here are some Mother's Day gift ideas from around the web and in Seattle:

Laura Mercier Almond Coconut Milk Honey Bath and Souffle Body Creme  - this is my mom's favorite.

Schoolhouse Electric candle set - classy but modern 

A hand chosen collection of beautifully bound hardcover classic books.

Bella Balls - beautiful handblown glass balls in different colors and meaningful decals made in our own Tacoma, WA. 

Modern Trellis Planters with herbs or succulents for her garden/patio. 

If you feel like going all out, can't go wrong with a gorgeous Kate Spade Bangle Watch.

Teavana tea of the month club

Massages/facials are always a favorite as well! Caruh Aveda Salon here in Seattle offers a great monthly deal on their massages and facials, $60 a month for one or the other.


(first image via)