Hairy Tofu Lemur

Hairy, the tofu lemur, is at the top of Daughter's Wish List for December. When she told me she wanted a lemur stuffed toy made from tofu, I was a little skeptical. I mean, tofu is the geek's favorite food. He eats it plain, the same way he eats white rice. (The man is the opposite of a gourmet, whatever that is.) He likes his food bland and easy to eat - almost pre-digested - so tofu really fits the bill. I think it tastes like library paste without the afterbite, but that's just me. Anyhow, I was all for making stuffed toys or anything else out of tofu if it means I don't have to eat it. I just wasn't sure if it was possible to do it. After intense investigation, I can assure you that it is and they do.

It all started when Daughter discovered that one of her favorite toys was being recalled because it was covered in lead paint. She was NOT amused. Not only did she throw it away, but she also threw away every little figure and doll from that particular company. Then she had me help her find the site where the toy recalls are listed and she went through every one of them back to the year G.I. Joe signed up for the draft. There were a couple of other toys on the list that hit the bottom of the wastebasket after that and I thought that was the end of it.

However, bright and early the next day, Daughter was at the computer, trying to find safe toys to put on her Wish List for December. (She starts early.) After a half hour with no success, she asked me to help her. I did a few searches and came up with three companies I thought looked okay and gave her their urls. That's when Hairy, the tofu lemur showed up. Hairy and Xeko: Mission Indonesia are at the top of Daughter's Wish List so I was forced to learn more about them.

First of all, Hairy isn't actually made from tofu. He's made from the by-product of tofu production. I would guess that would be soybean husks, but don't quote me on that. Whatever it is, it's spun into a kind of silk or fiber and then made into fabric and they make stuffed lemurs out of it. I think this is such a cool recycling method, don't you?

Thinking that maybe someone could do the same thing with cacao (chocolate) bean husks, I looked it up and found out that someone discovered that a solvent made from them can prevent tooth decay. So maybe someone can figure out how to make fiber from them and produce teething rings that prevent those little baby teeth from decaying? Yeah, maybe I'm taking this thing too far, but it sounds like such a good idea. But back to Hairy tofu lemurs, the toy recalls, my daughter's angst and the launch of a new blog.

Daughter was going to post the safe toy companies on her blog, but decided that she'd rather have me start a new blog with a list on it. That way, we (that would be the mominative case of we, which means Mom is doing it and a kid is getting some of the credit) could find more companies and become affiliates of the companies and make money for presents. So that's what we have done.

The blog is called How to Find Safe Toys. Catchy title, eh? Bet you can't guess which one of us thought that up. Anyhow, tofu-like title notwithstanding, once I decided to do this, I put quite a bit of effort into making sure that the companies I've listed are ethical, trustworthy, have good products and have good customer service. If I wouldn't shop there, it's not going on my list.

So if your kid wants Hairy or one of the Xeko games you'll be able to find it there (at Taraluna). What makes it very possible that my little girl is going to get Hairy this December is that all the Xeko products are made of recyclable paper and printed with soy based ink. Best of all, 4% of their profits go to Conservation International to support the habitats each "mission" takes place in. I'd much rather support companies that respect the environment and have a positive impact on the world than buy another chunk of plastic that was molded in a factory overseas by underage exploited workers and then painted with toxic paint to fuel yet another recall.

I've looked at every product that every company on my list sells and if I had the money and the room, I'd buy any one of them. I like the soft, cuddly dolls and critters made from organic cotton. I like the brightly painted, but unleaded wooden toys from Germany and the European Union. I really like the fact that so many of the toys are unique and not found in big-box stores. I'm not much of a shopper, but I do have several people on my gift list who have small children and it's so nice to find gifts that I'm proud to give them, instead of something I picked up at Wally World along with half of the ten other people who were buying the kid a present.

Enough of the sales spiel. After this post, I'll go back to my policy of not blogging for bucks, although I have nothing against other bloggers doing that. They have to pay their bills and buy their kids toys too. At the very least, you can check the latest recall list at How to Find Safe Toys where it's updated everyday. Just look at the bottom right sidebar. There's also a list of non-toy child-related recalls. I hope this gives my readers a few more alternatives to bookmark for holiday shopping. Just tell them Hairy sent you.

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