Labor Day is a good time to ponder on the sad fact of joblessness in this country. Now, I know what you’re thinking…”great, more depressing thoughts on the state of our economy” and you’d be right, it isn’t exactly uplifting, but and this is a big but, it’s such an important issue, we feel compelled to speak our minds…..lucky you…..lol!
At this time, we are in a jobless recoverywhere most of the gains are going to the wealthy. Between 2008 and 2009, average Wall Street bonuses went up by 17 percent. During that same time, personal bankruptcies rose by 32 percent or 1.4 million. And despite the financial crisis, the number of millionaires in the United States rose by 16 percent in 2009, while 24 percent of American workers say that they have postponed their planned retirement age in the past year. These are some sad facts about out disappearing middle class and a disappearing middle class affects you and me!
Here’s the choices we have, we can focus on securing the portfolios of wealthy Wall Street executives, or we can invest in creating jobs, the real driver of our economy. If we don’t begin putting people back to work, our economic future will remain uncertain.Working men and women are the backbone of our economy, and when one occupation or employment sector is weakened, all of us feel the effects. The recession took its toll on virtually all of our industries, and workers do not have the luxury of government bailouts.
We have written before about bringing manufacturing jobs back to this country and we still believe it’s a great way to make a much needed change. We can all play a role in creating jobs. We can check product labels and buy goods that are made in America or made locally. We need to fight the trend of outsourcing the jobs that can be done right here at home, by the American worker, who, in our opinion is more important than the bottom line………..
That’s a baby purple cabbage growing. The photo was taken about a month ago, we harvested it yesterday, it’s sweet and sooo moist.
Did you know cabbages are moist? When I cut into it, you could see the moisture oozing out. I don’t know about you, but when I buy a cabbage in the store (even an organic one) it’s not super juicy. There’s nothing like homegrown!
I sometimes wonder if Russ and I are crazy trying to grow a business and a big garden at the same time (the work…the work) but when I am starting to tear my hair out, I get up from my desk and step outside into our garden and stop wondering. Just being in the garden revives my souls and oftentimes my outlook on life.
I am lucky enough to have some acreage and also work from home, so that does allow me some advantages, but I believe a small garden or even a container garden (for those in the city) will do wonders for your soul. There are so many crops that are easy to grow! Check this out -The 10 easiest vegetables to grow at home.
I am a huge proponent of growing from seed, it’s economical and very satisfying. If that interests you, then take a look at Gardening 101, it’s a great site, full of wonderful ideas.
So my thought is that even if you live and work in a busy city, have lunch in the park or anywhere else that isn’t “plugged in” . Then when you get home, enjoy some fresh veggies from your beautiful veggie container garden…..you can’t go wrong and your soul will sing!!!!
We were pondering a question the other day, “What’s the purpose of toys….really?” What value do they have beyond the obvious one of sheer joy for the sake of play? Do they educate, stimulate, manipulate?
We think they can do all of the above and it differs with age, gender, culture and tons of other variables.
Children first orient themselves to the world through their parents and are greatly influenced by their parents world view. Soon enough though, they begin to orient themselves through play and the toys they play with have a profound influence on them.
Here at IBC, we don’t believe in helping children become adult consumers and we don’t believe in advertising directly to kids. Here’s a great video clip that exemplifies how we feel about the commercialization of children -
Children are pretty much a blank slate when they arrive and it’s up to us as parents, grandparents, community and yes, even we toy makers, that we be honest and genuine enough to fill those blank slates with love, respect and lots of creativity, instead of putting profit first!
The long and short of it is that toys are often a filter of the world for our kids and can have a powerful effect on them. Let’s give them something that makes both them and the world a better place.
Let’s face it, right now people need jobs! The current unemployment rate according to google.com is 9.3%. and there’s reason to believe that the figure is actually higher.
So…….Let’s bring back manufacturing to the U.S., and what better place to start than the toy industry! 98% of toys sold in the U.S. are made in China. And right now, China has it’s own bubbles that are bursting. They have exploited their workers for many years now and have kept the value of their currency artificially low.
That all seems to be changing now, which goes to show that there is nothing like a billion pissed off workers to change a governments mind. Some American companies are starting to bring their manufacturing back home. Toy maker Wham-O has recently brought 50% of their Frisbee manufacturing back to the US along with other toys. Thank you Wham-O!
This Chinese bubble is both good and bad news, as many companies are starting to look for cheap labor (women and children included) in other places such as Vietnam, Russia and Romania.
The question is – what can we do? Well, it’s a process and part of the process is our intent. So, let’s all raise our voices and tell someone else, tell your congressman, tell your milkman and even tell your mother – Dude….bring back our jobs!!
If you are a toy manufacturer, wholesaler, or retailer, you can educate your customers. Buying American made is a good thing and helps us all in the long run. When we buy more American made products, manufacturing will return, jobs will return and a sense of well being will return. It’s voting with our pocketbooks that works.
We need to look toward a more sustainable future and not just down the rabbit hole.
We said goodbye to a dear friend last week. Striker, a chestnut quarter horse gelding, has been a member of our family for 29 years. That’s a long time! He started getting a growth in his leg a couple of years back.
Never limping or in pain, the vet said at the time, to just let it be. After all, he was 27 at the time and had been put out to pasture for the last 10 years. Technically, he belongs to my (Kim) parents, they quit riding about 10 years ago, so he had quite the leisurely life. Living in North Idaho – land of grass, he enjoyed many fine years munching away!
About a week ago, the cancer opened up and began to cause discomfort. My folks knew what needed to be done!
Having done lots of hospice work, I honor the process of death. So on his final day I grabbed the camera and documented the occasion, and an occasion it was! Loaded up with flowers in his mane, carrots, apples and whatever treat he loved, we spent the morning honoring this fine friend. Here is a pic of our daughter Becca with him. She grew up with him, so it was a special day for her as well.
Okay….I know that’s not a chicken, but it is our adorable new granddaughter and I couldn’t resist putting her pic in this post, cause I just know that one day she’s gonna love our chickens!
Have you ever kept chickens? We acquired our first flock last summer and fell in love with them. First of all, they are a riot! When we kept finding ourselves just sitting around and watching the chickens we decided to call it chicken TV. Seriously, they are that entertaining!
There is really nothing cuter than new chicks (except for that granddaughter of course). They really aren’t that hard to keep, they make great pets and are a great project for kids to learn about responsibility and Nature.
There’s all kinds of websites devoted to that darling of human existence…the chicken. Some of our favorites are Backyard Chickens and My Pet Chicken.
In regards to issues of sustainability, well, chickens are awesome. They are basically pigs with feathers, so they will eat all your scraps, take care of the weeds in the yard and eat the mosquitoes that drive you crazy. And their poop (once composted) is great for your garden. Less waste and fresh eggs too!
I mean, check this out…..…..…that’s entertainment! They follow us around like a pack of dogs. I think you could safely call them spoiled chickens…lol!
Oh yes, the best part of all? Farm Fresh Eggs…..
Yep, those are our eggs…..pretty aren’t they, and believe me, you’ve never tasted better!
First off, this post isn’t going to be about WHY you should recycle. We’re going to assume here, that you, our reader, has great intelligence and already understands the importance of recycling and most especially, the importance of teaching our kids the lifelong habit of recycling.
We feel that the very first thing one can do to get kids into recycling, is to instill in them a love of the natural world….as humans, we naturally want to protect and care for the things that we love – and Mother Earth is a great place to start!
So, our #1solution is……Go outside, be outside!!! If you are lucky enough to live in the country, you probably spend quite a bit of time outdoors anyway, but if you live in a city, find a park! Most citys provide parks and other recreational outdoors areas for families. Find yours and use it often!
Take the time with your kids to observe the natural world, help them to really see what’s all around them. In this day and age, life is fast and busy. Take the time to slow down for an hour or two and watch bugs, birds, and clouds with your kids, help them fall in love with nature (it’ll be great for your blood pressure….lol) and feel the joy that the natural world can bring. Check out the flurry of activity that surrounds us at all times, but often goes unnoticed.
Get a book on the flora and fauna in your area and develop your own fascination with the natural world. Invest in a magnifying lens, they are inexpensive and sooo much fun!! We use ours all the time. Kids love to learn new things and seeing them up close makes it all the more real for them.
Enthusiasm is contagious! Even hanging out in your own yard can be fascinating! The NRDC has a great web page with lots of links on this subject (but save that computer time for a rainy day)!
Fall in love with nature yourself and your childs’ lifelong habit of caring for the earth by whatever means are necessary will naturally follow…… HAVE FUN!!!
I came across this video on You Tube that was made by a woman named Megan for her Gender and Language course in College, so first of all, thank you Megan!
We understand that some of you will view this video as an extreme example, but we still offer it to you as food for thought……
Of course there is the biology of gender. Oftentimes girls do tend to like household toys and boys do tend toward tools, etc…. BUT, it is most certainly exacerbated by culture. When you think about it, the truly frightening part of the video and todays’ culture, are attitudes toward physical appearance. Here are some statistics from a site called Love Your Body Day -
As many as 10 million women and girls suffer from anorexia and/or bulimia, in the United States alone.
Approximately one million men and boys suffer from anorexia and/or bulimia, in the United States alone.
An additional 25 million people in the U.S. struggle with binge eating disorder.
Eighty-six percent of people with eating disorders report the onset of the illness by the time they reach the age of 20 (by no means is an eating disorder “less severe” when the eating-disordered person is above the age of 20).
An estimated 85-95% of people with anorexia nervosa and bulimia and 65% of people with binge eating disorders are female.
A shocking 81% of 10-year-olds are afraid of being fat.
Young women that have anorexia are 12 times more likely to die than other women their age.
We certainly understand the differences in gender, but when people are stereotyped, they are then forced into a box that they might not fit into.
It boils down to the question, how much control do you want the media to have over your childs’ self image? In other posts we’ll be talking about how much violence a child is exposed to within the toy industry. Thanks for letting us share our thoughts with you!
To the toy industry – it needs to be about about the children first, not just what sells…….
Both Russell and I are artists (at least in our own minds…hehehe) and there has always been a big emphasis on art in our home. We have always felt that art was important to our childrens’ development, but why? Aside from the obvious whys -
What other research as been done? So, I decided to put a little time looking into the why’s and here’s a bit of what I found……
Art is actually considered by some researchers as a fundamental biological need, a need that defines our existence and the human condition ( see-Dissanayake, 1992). When you think back to all the art found on cave walls, this makes sense.
I am going to quote here from an article I found at Education.com:
“Art should be valued “for art’s sake” because it is considered an important means for self-expression—spontaneity, imagination, play, experimentation, and lack of inhibition are desirable components of making artworks—and for freedom of expression.
Art is also valued as an emotional mode for communicating unconscious things otherwise unsayable (Feldman, 1996) and for enhancing “healthy” personalities. Art also enhances childrens’ cognitive processes, involving children in problem solving, thinking, and using symbol systems to record their thoughts, ideas, and feelings. In many ways, art offers a form of spiritual awareness as well, revealing itself through the heart and intuition (Barthes, 1972) and embodied or somatic ways of learning.”
Wow! I like that, in fact, I couldn’t have said it better myself, guess that’s why I didn’t ! Someone with alot of education said that…lol!
I’d love to hear any other ideas you’ve got about the importance of art in a childs’ life!
You might have noticed in our first post that we call ourselves an ethical company. Just what does that mean anyway?
Okay, so here’s the Wiki definition -Ethics (also known as moral philosophy) is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and bad, noble and ignoble, right and wrong, justice and virtue.
Hmm……. so how does that apply to us? First of all it’s a very subjective question, after all, everyone has different ideas about right and wrong or good and bad, right? Here’s a few of our ideas of an ethical toy business and what we try our best to ascribe to -
1. It’s all about the children not the bottom line
2. Promote non-violence
3. Promote healthy values
4. Don’t advertise directly to children (they get enough already)
5. Teach children respect for Mother Earth
6. Teach children to explore the world through their joy and imagination
7. Think globally and acting locally
Whew…….sounds like alot doesn’t it? It is, but it’s just the beginning and it is so worth the effort! At IBC we truly want to contribute to the world by helping to nurture kids and the environment, not create more consumers.
It’s one of the many reasons our toys are 100% recyclable and inside each toy are socially responsible messages such as “Please Recycle”, “Respect All Creatures Great and Small”, “Honesty”, “Courage”….and more. Another way that we keep the circle going is by having our toys assembled by people with special needs, it’s a way to give back to our community.
What are your ideas of an ethical toy company? We’d love to know………
Labor Day is a good time to ponder on the sad fact of joblessness in this country. Now, I know what you’re thinking…”great, more depressing thoughts on the state of our economy” and you’d be right, it isn’t exactly uplifting, but and this is a big but, it’s such an important issue, we feel compelled to speak our minds…..lucky you…..lol!
That’s a baby purple cabbage growing. The photo was taken about a month ago, we harvested it yesterday, it’s sweet and sooo moist.
Let’s face it, right now people need jobs! The current unemployment rate according to 
We love you Striker!
Okay….I know that’s not a chicken, but it is our adorable new granddaughter and I couldn’t resist putting her pic in this post, cause I just know that one day she’s gonna love our chickens!
…..
…that’s entertainment! They follow us around like a pack of dogs. I think you could safely call them spoiled chickens…lol!
and already understands the 
