Have Child, Will Travel: For Globe-Trotting Babies & Their Parents: baby boutiques

San Francisco is certainly a city that is proud of its tree-hugging roots, its international influences and its particular brand of "urban grunge". The result: SF kids are environmentally conscious, chemical-free and undeniably trendy.
Here are Momaboard's pics for the Top 5 boutiques for kids at SF's cutting edge best, in alphabetical order:

1. Aldea Ninos: I am in love with this store. The children's location opened only 2 month ago, separating itself from Aldea Home just up the street, and thank goodness for all that space and attention. Aldea means "small village" and you could pack one with all the quirky, creative and useful goodies at this store. Johanna the proprietor travels around the world to find the best of the best and you can tell. We love the Organic/Bamboo clothing and the urban, great-for-compact spaces and undeniably ergonomic collection of furniture: high chairs, strollers, gliders and kid's seating options. Oh, and bub can hang out in the little play area while you shop.**Heart Heart Heart**

2. Kids Only: For those of you who think the Haight is still for hippy revolutionaries, think again. It is now one of San Francisco's most mainstream neighborhoods and of course, a popular tourist destination. Therefore it's supremely convenient that Kids Only, a mecca for all things urban kid, is right on main Haight street. The owners, Bruce and Marie stock the store with uniquely SF and interesting things. We loved the book collection and the Che Guevara onesies, in addition to the wide range of toys, puzzles, organic baby stuff, and accessories (shoes!). Definitely a worthwhile stop, if at least for a SF tie-dye souvenir tee.

3. Lili Merveille: In keeping with Hayes Valley's reputation as one of SF's chicest fashion districts, enter Lili Merveille, where the best of Paris resides in San Francisco. If you kid has taste, he/she will be like Carrie Broadshaw at a Manolo sample sale at this store. Clothes, jewelry and accents all emanate a romanticism that will drive even non-parent francophiles to the tills.

Mention you saw them on Momaboard.com and take 15% off your purchase at Lili Merveille!

4. Small Frys: This one-stop-shop on Noe has everything from your essentials (Baby bjorns) to your luxury items (another blanket, anyone?), but without the overwhelming factor of Babies-R-Us. They also carry bottles and feeding equipment, so if you've lost a pacifier or bottle, Small Frys can come to your rescue. I'll bet the friendly staff here can get you through the entire list of items you will need for your first baby without any fuss or fear because that's how varied their inventory is. We love Small Frys!

Take 10% off your entire order when you mention Momaboard.com at Small Frys!

5. Sprout: Located on chic shopping Union Street, Sprout is an all-organic and natural baby products store. The store was founded because Suzanne the owner was learning a lot about the organic industry and started to become concerned about all the products we use every day that people didn't know the problems with. She was especially concerned because she was thinking of starting a family and didn't know where to find all the organic products she was looking for. After a lot of research, Sprout opened in April 2009 and Suzanne was pregnant with her little daughter 2 weeks later!

We love the yoga clothes, the unique collection of gifts, and the kiddies play area at the back, which they rent out as well as host classes in.

There you have it - I will probably never step into a Babies-R-Us again, with these fabulous options at my doorstep.

Other posts in the San Francisco series:

San Francisco,United States: Noe Valley's 24th Street Gems

San Francisco,United States: 5 Reasons Hayes Valley is the Best Kid's Neighborhood