Today my daughter won a free entry to a local race for next Saturday so I'm set to run (with her in a stroller) my first race.  I am no where near where I want to be in terms of time (I am at 10:30 min/mile without a stroller) but who can turn down a free race entry?  I'm a bit nervous and excited.  I've seen those moms with strollers and some of them are really fast. I guess I just need to be more realistic and just enjoy race day.  I actually need to run with the stroller at least once before race day.


Sometimes we just need to seize the opportunity in life (even when it's a bit scary).  

I am very proud of my kids' elementary school teachers.  They are making a concerted effort to encourage all of the kids to reuse their school supplies for the next academic year (this includes the backpacks, pencils, pencil cases, etc.). Usually the peer pressure from other students at the beginning of the school year is so great.  Hopefully, most students and parents will use common sense and use their school supplies that are still in good condition.  When I was in college, I had a friend that used her backpack from elementary school and never replaced it (at the time, I thought that she was extremely frugal but now I realized that a lot of these school supplies are made to last a long time and it's OKAY to reuse them).  I throw my kids' backpacks in the washer and wash it in a delicate cycle and it's as good as new.  Please keep this in mind as you begin planning for the upcoming summer months.  Also, with older kids, you can convince them that the money that they saved from purchasing new school supplies can contribute to vacation, activities, camps, etc.

With the warmer weather, I have gotten into a cleaning and rearranging mode.  I've decided to organize my files (perhaps it was because we just successfully filed our tax returns recently).  There are some many things to keep track of: utility bills, credit care bills, momentos, kids' school related paperwork, etc.  To help keep me organized, I use the Rebinders (3 ring binders made from durable, corrugated cardboard).  It's no nonsense and simple design is functional and eco-friendly.  Consider using their office products and better yet, contact your office manager (supply manager) at work to have them stock up on these supplies (they offer wholesale discounts).


For more information about their products, please visit www.rebinder.com.

The art of making jewelry can be traced back to over 5,000 B.C.  Ancient ancestors have figured out creative ways to utilize natural resources such as leaves, nuts and vines to string beautiful ornaments.  Jewelry making is so engrained into our civilization and society, children often learn how to string Cheerios before they are able to speak in complete sentences.  Like many others, I enjoy wearing various jewelry and am very impressed with how jewelry making is able to sustain societies throughout the world.  


Philip and Katy Leakey have developed their Zulugrass jewelry as a direct result of providing work for the Maasai women of Kenya.  Zulugrass is available in a wide range of colors and styles.  I love their simplistic and faltering styles. Wearing their jewelry makes a statement and supports such an important cause,... empowering women with fair trade opportunities.


For more information about their products, please visit www.leakeycollection.com.

It's Earth Day.  To celebrate Earth Day, we're planning to have a board game night tonight (no television or other electronic distractions).  It's been a hectic week so far, planting our garden, doing spring cleaning, trying to fit in some exercise so I can stay relatively healthy, etc.  

Please visit the following website to find out more about great Earth Day events:  www.earthday.org.

The following are some simple tips on how to start living an eco-friendly life (today's a great day to start).

Donate all of your old clothing/items to a charity (Goodwill, Salvation Army, local churches or local libraries).
Give a living plant or a pack of seeds as a gift for an upcoming holiday (instead of buying some plastic gimmicky gift item, consider giving a plant to someone you love).
Donate time (with every leading busy lives, the one thing people appreciate the most is the gift of time, so help a friend out and babysit for free or volunteer, the dividends are endless).
Encourage face time (instead of depending on electronics, texting, cellphone, skyping, etc., schedule some in person face time, you will enjoy hearing their voices in person).

I have always been a beauty fanatic.  As a teenager, I spent endless hours roaming department stores and sampling various cosmetics.  I enjoyed trying new cosmetics and body lotion.  However, I was always wary of the synthetic ingredients used on most traditional cosmetics and bodycare products.  As the eco-friendly trend continues to transform the cosmetics industry in the US marketplace, it is always exciting to learn and try new products.  I have recently tried Shea Terra Organic Rose Water Ester-C Facial Mist.  This 99.5% natural mist can be used throughout the day to refreshen your face.  I love the fact that it contains a vitamin C derivative.  As you may know, most cosmetic products that contain vitamin C can literally cost upwards of $100.  However, this generous 4 oz bottle is only $17.


Shea Terra Organics source their products from Africa.  By purchasing African ingredients at fair trade prices, they have helped numerous African villages maintain a stable source of income.  Equally impressive, Shea Terra Organics founder, Tammie Umbel, who fulfilled her lifelong dream of helping African villages, is able to juggle managing a great organic bodycare company while she lives on an organic farm in Virginia raising 12 children with her husband.


For more information about their products, please visit www.sheaterraorganics.com

Here is a photo of our first strawberry of the season.  Strawberry plants are very resilient.  They can grow and bear fruit from a hanging planter or if you decide to just plant it straight on the ground.  It requires warm weather and plenty of sunlight.  You may have heard of the overabundant amount of strawberries that farmers all over the US have harvested this season.  (Record sale prices are posted all over the supermarkets).  This is a great opportunity to learn how to make your own jars of strawberry preserves.

I have gotten my oil paintings in an exhibit show.  I am very excited about it.  Here is one of my oil paintings that is on display.  I love playing with the oil textures and colors.  As with every aspect in my life, I've researched what would be the most eco-friendly approach to painting and found that there isn't really a lot of eco-friendly options right now.  I've contacted a number of art supply companies to encourage them to produce recycled canvases and more eco-friendly art supplies.


I encourage you to do the same with any company in which you are a customer, because my many years of marketing have taught me that yes, indeed, companies pay attention to their customers and review their customer service reports with a lot of scrutiny (at least the best companies do).  


If you are interested in purchasing any of my oil paintings, please enter your contact information under the  contact us section of this website.  50% of my proceeds are donated to environmental causes.

Now that summer is right around the corner, I've been researching what are the best sun protection for my family.  I've found an organic spf 30+ sunscreen from little twig.  The sunscreen lotion is water resistant, PABA & paraben free.  The best part (as far as my kids are concerned) is that the product is non greasy and absorbs quickly (my kids dislike sunscreen that leaves white streaks on their faces, what picky kids).  I confess that I've been using it religiously on myself as well (what's good for the baby must be good for the mommy, too, right?)


Little Twig (in addition to having about the best and cutest company name and logo I've ever come across) offers a number of bath and bodycare products as well.  Each month the company donates 15% of their proceeds to a charitable organization that benefits children and the environment.  To support recycling efforts, the Little Twig will offer you a generous 30% discount from any new product purchase when you send them your empty containers.  If you know of a charitable organization that aligns with the above, please contact Little Twig and suggest that they make a donation towards that charity.

For more information about their products, please visit: www.littletwig.com.