~* HUNGER & HOPE *~

Today, I join others to help fight hunger in our world. I know for myself, I would feed my child before I fed myself if I only had a $1 to my name. In the past, I have give my dinner left overs to a homeless person as I was walking back to my car. Many think that children in the US do not go hungry, but they do.With the economy the way it is, I am sure that this number has soared into new heights.

Here are some facts from the Unite for Hunger website:

• Right now, more than 500 million people are living in "absolute poverty" and more than 15 million children die of hunger every year.

• World Health Organization estimates that one-third of the population is underfed and another third is starving.

• Even in the United States, 46 percent of African-American children and 49 percent of Latino children are considered chronically hungry.

I hope you will all join me in the fight against hunger. One way you can help is my visiting Heifer International website, read how you can help or organize an event. There are many ways to help: volunteer, organize an event or donate money.

~* EARTH DAY 2009 *~

HAPPY EARTH DAY!!!




Do you ReCycle, ReDuce, ReUse, and ReStore? I have been doing this for years! I often buy clothes at Consignment stores or Hospice shops, either to wear or to sell on eBay. I have been making Found Object art for years. I have held garage sales to get rid of things. I recycle my paper, plastic, glass and cans & have even picked up others recycling to take in. I am learning how to make Compost for my flowers and hope to plant a garden soon. What are you doing to make a Difference??






Today, I am watching my friends daughter and we will go for a walk where we will be looking for trash to make a collage, looking for a pine cone to make a bird feeder and plant some seeds for flowers. I am really looking forward to today! And I firmly believe that everyday should be EARTH DAY!!

~* ART FRIENDS *~

My Dearest Art Friends,

It is with a heavy heart that I write this post. I usually try to keep my blog very upbeat, however today there is an Artist Family in need. JoAnnA Pierotti the owner of Moss Hill Studios is a wonderful soul. I had the pleasure of meeting JoAnnA and taking her class last year at the ZNE ConvenZioNE. Today, I have learned that JoAnnA's husband Ron is in dire need of surgery for a Brain Tumor. If he doesn't get the surgery, they only give him a month to live. If you know JoAnnA, you know that she is a survivor! She had Cancer and has lived through the passing of her beloved mother. I do not think she can take much more. I am asking all of my readers to please donate at least $1.00, as they do not have any health insurance at the moment, because he was recently laid off. If you can donate more wonderful, but please as your good deed today, I am asking just $1.00. I know we are all suffering from the economic stress, but I hope that we can all band together and we can really make a difference. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this post and opening your hearts. Please keep JoAnnA & Ron Pierotti in your prayers!

~* SWAGBUCKS *~

Swagbucks gives you "Swagbucks" which come at random when you search. They usually show up in the first five searches. If you haven't gotten one after 20 searches then try again later. I have found that you generally only win twice a day so I search once in the morning until I get a Swagbuck and then once again in the evening. You can get different denominations of Swagbucks. I almost always have gotten a 1 or 2, but I have gotten as high as a 20 before. On average I get 3 Swagbucks a day, which means that (without referrals) you can earn 90 Swagbucks a month if you use it twice a day. This can earn you $10 a month to Amazon. Each referral gets you up to 100 swagbucks. You earn when they earn via searches (up to 100). That means that if your referral continues to use the program you can earn $10 in Amazon gift certificates for each one. There really is no catch to this.

You just need to use it as your primary SEARCH engine, instead of google. Use their search engine - every single time you use a search engine.

Some creative ways to use the SwagBucks search and win feature:

When kids are doing homework. They are programmed to go to Google. Tell them they must use SwagBucks now -put the shortcut on your desktop and on bookmarks. Retrain them to search with SwagBucks when they are doing homework or reports. It can be used on multiple computers. Depending on how old they are, you can even bribe them with a gift card when you get enough points! (Works for GREAT teenagers.)

If you are married or have another significant other in the home and uses your computer, also explain how this works and train them to use SwagBucks. Once the gift cards start rolling in, they will understand. Use the same bribery technique as above.

Remember to use it yourself. Whether you are searching for coupons, a recipe, blog material, celebrity gossip, shopping codes, or a news story, use SwagBucks. Make it part of your routine.

Click here to get started with SwagBucks and start earning today!

~* COUPONING BANDWAGON *~

Yep, I have hopped on the bandwagon! The Couponing Bandwagon!! With the way the economy has become, people are forced to find creative ways to make and save money. I have been a single mom most of my daughters life. We have missed out on things, because eating and having utilities was way more important. In the beginning of the year, I started reading a few different blogs about Couponing. What is Couponing you ask? Couponing is when you cut coupons to save money on your own Groceries or use the coupons to sell on the internet. (Disclaimer: you are not actually selling the coupons, but the time it took to accumulate and post them) The first month that I did couponing, I bought $250 worth of groceries for a little over $100!! I was super excited! The next month I bought $250 worth of groceries for $124!! I look at the store ads and match the coupons with what is on sale that my daughter and I enjoy. Sometimes the ads will have coupons too. Target has online coupons, I match these with the Manufacturer coupons for more savings. People ask me when do I have the time to cut the coupons. It is usually during the evening when we are watching our favorite shows or the DVR that we will sit and cut the coupons too. Yes, I have my daughter helping me, as I feel that it is showing her a good way to save money and she is benefiting from the savings. Where do I get the coupons you ask? Here is what About.com has to say. Personally, I get them from 2 sources: the Internet and Starbucks on Sundays.




At the end of the evening about an hour before they close, I will stop by (I have 3 in my immediate area) and ask them for their papers. They happily give them to me as this is one less step they have to do for closing that evening, which is throw the papers away! Yes, I take all of the papers not just the coupons. Originally, I thought I would just chuck the papers in the recycle bin after I am done clipping the coupons, but I have decided to tie and stack them in my garage. Why? Well, when there is a big enough pile (probably 4 weeks worth), I will take them in to the recycle center for CASH! Just like the Plastic, Glass and Cans we save for money. This money will go towards the Hawaii trip that I am planning on taking my daughter on this summer for her birthday!

~* HAPPY EASTER *~