Big in Japan

One of the things I love about having an online business is the opportunity to make contacts with people in many other countries. So far, I have had the pleasure of doing business with many European countries, Australia, and more recently Japan. In fact, this past month I had a surge of orders from Japan for some of my EC-related items such as our Continuum Family baby gowns, diaper belts, and split crotch pants. I found out through one of my Japanese customers that she is going to be one of the main presenters at an upcoming EC conference entitled "Babies do not need diapers -Quest for the lost physical abilities of human body" on November 2nd at Tsuda College and she wanted to have some of my supplies available for people interested. How exciting is that?! I was also able to facilitate a connection between this customer and Christine Gross-Loh, author of The Diaper Free Baby, as they both live in Japan. I had the song "I'm Big in Japan" by Tom Waits running through my head all day after that... :)

Update: Here's a picture she sent me after the conference of her makeshift EC store:

FREE SHIP DAY Extended

Due to some technical difficulties and power outages in our area, our site was unreachable part of yesterday and much of the day today. So, we have decided to extend our FREE SHIP day until 11:59 p.m. PST tomorrow (Tuesday, October 14th). All orders placed up until that time will have the shipping charges refunded. Please note that this applies to orders shipping within North America only, but we will refund 50% of the shipping charges to international destinations.

We apologize for any inconvenience and thank you for your ongoing support and business!

Happy (Canadian) Thanksgiving -- October Specials

Thanksgiving is an especially celebratory time for us. Our second daughter, who just turned 3, was born at home on October 9, 2005, the day before Thanksgiving that year. Continuum Family online was launched a year later, on October 3, 2006. We are thankful for two beautiful, healthy girls (and have a boy on the way, due in January 2009!). We are thankful for the great success of Continuum Family. We are thankful for the opportunity to be able to work and be home with our children. I get a lot of fulfillment out of being able to provide families with information and products to support them in their natural parenting journey.

So, please celebrate with us this month! We will have a FREE SHIP day -- on Monday, October 13th -- all orders placed between 12:00 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. PST on that day will have the shipping charges refunded. Please note that this applies to orders shipping within North America only, but we will refund 50% of the shipping charges to international destinations.

Also, we have new shipments of both Beco Butterfly II and Pikkolo baby carriers arriving later this month. Both are available now for pre-order. For the rest of October, with the purchase of either of these carriers, you can receive a FREE basic pouch sling in any size from our Everyday collection. Just let us know in the notes at checkout which one you want. Please note that this offer is good for a basic sling (without padding or pocket) but you can upgrade to these features as well as upgrade to one of the Designer/Luxury or Organic fabrics for an extra charge. Also, sorry but this offer cannot be combined with the free ship day on Monday, October 13th.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

New Beco Butterfly II Model Released!

We are excited to announce the release of the Beco Baby Carrier Butterfly II! This new model has the same great features as the current Butterfly carrier, plus several brand new features resulting from Beco design efforts and customer feedback.

Main new features:

• Removeable infant insert is adjustable in size (recommended for infants 7-15 lbs)
• Removeable head rest (hood) -- design changed from a square to a more complex shape with flexible sides which attaches to the body with resin snaps in a faux pocket. Hood/shoulder straps also attach with snaps.
• Webbing part of the shoulder strap is the same length as the current Butterfly; fabric part is 2" longer
• New retail packaging, DVD and printed instructions
• Butterfly 2 is proudly produced exclusively in the USA

Fabrics available for the Fall 08 season are:

• Avery
• Carnival
• Espresso
• Jacob
• Metro Black
• River
• Sara
• Trinity

We will have our first shipment in mid-October - they are available for pre-order now!

Our Top 20 Products

Ever wonder what other people buy when they visit our site? Here's a list of our Top 20 Best-Selling Products:

1) "Shi Shi Nix" EC Baby Pants -- these trim yet absorbent pull-up trainers from Australia come in a variety of very cute prints
2) CF Bamboo or Hemp Prefold Diaper Belt -- our lightweight diaper belt is a quick and easy way to secure a prefold diaper
3) Little Beetle Learners - Organic Training Pants -- these sporty trainers provide full coverage in a side-snapping trainer that can also be easily pulled up/down
4) Eco Nix - Organic EC Baby Pants -- these are the luscious, organic version of the Shi Shi Nix - the optional groovy embroidered spiral makes them unique
5) Unbleached Indian Prefolds --a soft and absorbent cloth diapering staple
6) Gauze Diaper Doublers - these economical inserts can be used to boost absorbency of diapers, training pants, even regular underwear
7) T-Shirt Gown -- this ever-popular, economical baby gown fits young babies up to toddlers
8) Papoose Cloth Training Pants -- inexpensive, all-cotton training pant
9) CF Tiny Undies - Cotton Interlock/Jersey -- our tiny underwear is geared for babies from 6-24 months
10) Transparent Potty -- this cute potty has the added benefit of being able to easily see when your little one is finished
11) CF Fleece Prefold Diaper Belt -- the polar fleece version of our diaper belt
12) CF Potty Cozy - Polar Fleece Solids -- handy for keeping the potty warm at night or in the car
13) CF Split Crotch Pants - Bamboo or Hemp -- functional and cozy, these pants make pottying easier
14) YES! Maternity/Nursing Bra -- my all-time favorite nursing bra!
15) Baby Potty Bowl - Red or Blue -- very handy for infant and nighttime pottying
16) CF Trainer Cover - Merino Wool -- light and breathable protection over any cloth trainer or trim diaper
17) Snappi Diaper Fastener -- the easiest way to secure a prefold diaper (besides the diaper belt)
18) CF Side Snap Training Pants - Cotton -- released in May 2008, our non-waterproof bikini-style trainer is fast becoming a favorite
19) CF Tiny Undies - Organic Bamboo Jersey -- organic version of our baby/small toddler underwear
20) CF Side Snap Training Pants - Bamboo -- organic version with buttery bamboo terry outer and bamboo velour inner option

Continuum Family is Moving!

We are excited to be relocating to beautiful Victoria, British Columbia next week! To celebrate, we are offering 4 days of FREE US/Canada shipping on all orders placed between July 19-22 inclusive. No need to enter a coupon at checkout -- we will refund the shipping charges on all qualifying orders placed on those dates.

Please note that we will not be shipping between July 23-27 and our site may be offline for a couple of days between July 24-26. Order shipping will resume July 28.

For Victoria area residents, we will be offering free pick up or delivery, so as of July 28 you'll be able to save on shipping costs when ordering from us. If you're in the area you can also contact us to book an appointment to come and "try or see before you buy" on a number of our items, as well as get babywearing assistance for any of the carriers we sell.

Beco Butterfly: June 2008 Prints

Here's a preview of the two gorgeous new Beco Butterfly prints for June 2008.

On espresso straps, Jacob:



and, on black straps, Avery:



Pre-orders are available now in our store, for shipping in first week in July for these prints as well as more Abby, Allison, Carnival, Natalie, and Sara. Currently in stock in limited quantity are Emma, Espresso, Isabella, Martini, and Metro Black.