Co-Op America

Co-Op America, soon to be Green America, just sent a fundraising email to me.  Did you get it?

A group of especially generous Co-op America members has stepped forward to underwrite a Matching Challenge Fund to power our work together in 2009—a matching fund that will DOUBLE your gift to Co-op America.

Working together, we can transform our society into a place where all people have enough, where all communities are safe and vibrant, and where the health of the Earth is restored for all generations to come.

Co-Op America is one of my favorite resources for all things green.  It’s where I found my rad new cell phone company, CREDO!  So, check ‘em out!

One of my favorite things… rediscovered!

I’ve had a few Usborne shows over the last couple of weeks, so I’ve been pulling out all our books and looking at them. Some are a little tattered – but so well loved!  But last night Lillian pulled the Alphabet Book out of her closet and asked for it to be her bedtime story!  I had been wondering where that book was!  It’s so great.  Lillian is doing well with all her letters, but this book makes it so easy for her to recognize which letter is being emphasized on each page as that letter is in red print and the entire alphabet is at the bottom of each page!

Lillian is also starting to recognize a few printed words.  We’ve been practicing with the easel.  I will write a word and she will try and read it.  So far she has all our names and: the, cat, and, zoo.  I’m so proud.

I heard a friend say the other day that she made signs for everything in her house to label them as “television”, “refrigerator”, etc. and this really helped her daughter begin to recognized letters and words.  I want to try this soon, too!

Need a last minute gift?

Unexpected guests? Friends you skipped on your holiday list? I’ve found the ultimate last minute gift – and you don’t even have to leave your house!

Just use this link to go to Amazon and purchase a gift certificate. You can give this gift in 4 easy ways:
1) E-mail a personalized gift card for immediate delivery.
2) Print a personalized gift card on your own printer. (Remember to have your credit card handy when you’re ready to print).
3) Mail a personalized gift card (shipping is free, of course). Please allow 5-7 business days for delivery.
4) Add a $25, $50, or $100 Gift Card – or a box of them! – to your other purchases in your Amazon.com shopping cart.

Your friends and family will find an amazing array of merchandise to choose from at Amazon. Did you know that Amazon has everything from books and cd’s to diapers and Plan Toys (our new favorite) to auto parts and food???

Happy giving!

A Call to Help our Favorite Little Ballerina

I’ll make this short and sweet:

Ballet class is expensive.
Lillian won’t be talked into any other activities.
Therefore, instead of a holiday gift, won’t you help us pay the $650 a year that we pay the Longmont Dance Theatre?

Hens in Longmont!?!?

Some fellow mamas in Longmont got together last night to discuss urban hens. Here’s the Times Call story: http://www.timescall.com/news_story.asp?ID=13119

Reusablebags.com Co-Op

Many have asked about my Klean Kanteen bottles that Clayton uses as sippy cups. I got them at reusablebags.com (12 oz bottles and the sport lids) and I contacted them about a co-op just for us! They carry a variety of bottles, bags, etc. See the details below!

How to get 15% off your entire order at ReusableBags.com:
1. Visit www.reusablebags.com
2. Add desired items to cart
3. Proceed through check-out
4. Redeem your special code: Enter the following code in the Gift Certificates/Discount Coupons section: 4a5ed6 (note that it is case sensitive).
5. Complete check out process (discount will be shown before confirming the order).

Special offer is valid from 12-19-09 to 1-2-09. One use per customer.

ReusableBags.com offers a wide selection of safe and reusable bottles for kids and parents, as well as lead free lunch bags and reusable shopping bags.

Why shop at ReusableBags.com?
We donate 1% of all sales to the environment
We support fair trade practices
Winner of Co-Op America 2007 People’s Choice Award
Most orders ship within 24 hrs
No sales tax (except IL)
Member BBBonline and 100% satisfaction guarantee
Thousands of product reviews & customer testimonials
Questions: contact ReusableBags.com at service@reusablebags.com or 888.707.3873

Enjoy!

Join the MAU group on PulseWire

Join the Mothers Acting Up group here: http://beta.pulsewire.net/groups/1953

RMPJC on the Gaza Strip

A Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center press conference on the situation in the Gaza Strip.

Visit YouTube for parts 2 and 3.

“Safeguarding the rights of others is the most noble and beautiful end of a human being.”

To take Action on the Gaza crisis, the following are the RMPJC’s reccommendations:
The situation continues to deteriorate-people are eating grass and animal feed to survive. People are burning their furniture for fuel. It’s criminal. We cannot be silent.

More info at www.freegaza.org.
http://electronicintifada.net/
http://www.palestinechronicle.com
http://www.imemc.org
http://www.un.org/apps/news

1) Contact Your Political Representatives: Contact your congressional representatives (http://capwiz.com/fconl/directory/leadership_list.tt ) and demand that the US government pressure Israel to stop starving Gazans, end the siege, and respect basic Palestinian rights.

Congressional Swithchboard in DC: 202-224-3121

LOCAL NUMBERS:
Senator Ken Salazar Phone: 303-455-7600 Fax: 303-455-8851
Senator Wayne Allard Phone: 303-220-7414 Fax: 303-220-8126
Rep. Mark Udall Phone: 303-650-7820 Fax: 303-650-7827
Diana DeGette Phone: 303-844-4988 Fax: 303-844-4996
Rep. Ed Perlmutter Phone: 303-274-7944 Fax: 303-274-6455
Rep. Tom Tancredo Phone: 720-283-9772 Fax: 720-283-9776
Rep. John Salazar Phone: 719-543-8200 Fax: 719-543-8204
Rep, Marilyn Musgrave 970-663-3536 Fax: 970-663-5270
Rep. Doug Lamborn 719-520-0055 Fax: 719-520-0840

http://www.house.gov/writerep/ www.senate.gov Tell this directly to the U.S. Mission to the UN:
Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad Phone: (212) 415-4053

2) Organize a Protest: Organize public protests and educational events calling for an end of Israel’s abuse of Palestinian rights in Gaza.

3) Boycott the Occupier, Not the Occupied: Take action for long-term change and join the growing international Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) Movement. Organize a BDS campaign in your community, in response to the call by over 170 Palestinian civil society organizations, until Israel ends its occupation and colonization of all Arab lands, dismantles the Wall, recognizes the rights of Palestinian citizens of Israel, and implements the right of return for Palestinian refugees as stipulated in UN resolution 194. More info: http://www.endtheoccupation.org/article.php?id=1764

4) Join the RMPJC Middle East Collective by calling 303-444-6981×2. We meet regularly and take action against the Israeli occupation.

Women for Women International 2009 Trips

Announcing Metta Journeys 2009 trips to Rwanda
to Benefit Women for Women International

Two opportunities May 16-23 or May 28-June 4, 2009

As a strong Women for Women International supporter, I would like to extend a special invitation to visit our program in Rwanda through a partnership with Metta Journeys.  During the trip, you will have the opportunity to witness Women for Women International’s programs in the field – and see how you are helping to make a difference in the lives of women survivors of war around the world.

To learn more or join one of the two trips, please contact Kim Werth at Kim@mettajourneys.com or +1 888 886 2425, ext 2.

Metta Journeys’ trip provides the opportunity to experience the Women for Women International program firsthand:

• Meet your sponsored sister
• Attend classes with program participants
• Join a graduation celebration
• Visit program graduates at their businesses
• Meet business and civic leaders

Women have played an instrumental part in rebuilding and bringing peace to their country since the 1994 genocide. You will have an inspiring opportunity meet these women rebuilding Rwanda – meeting with program graduates at their businesses and with business and civic leaders. Your visit will touch and enrich the lives of others through a direct connection with the work of Women for Women International.

The week in Rwanda also includes time to reflect while visiting culturally important sites like the Kigali Memorial Centre and a trip to the Virunga Volcano Region, where you will spend a day on a guided trek to see Rwanda’s endangered mountain gorillas.

Visit our site for more information including pricing, itineraries and reservation details.

Many supporters have told me how much meeting their sponsored sister in person would mean to them. This is a life-altering opportunity and, if your circumstances allow it, I hope you will consider this journey of a lifetime.

Sincerely,

Trish Tobin
Women for Women International

P.S. Learn more about the Women for Women program in Rwanda.

Gifts to support Palestinians

Gifts to Support a Cause
by RMPJC

Selection of Items:

Rocky Mountain Peace and Justice Center. www.rmpjc.org Calendars, embroidery, books and videos

Assorted olive wood items from the occupied territories (bowls, candlesticks, pencil
holders, camels, angels, etc.). 303-494-2338

American Educational Trust. Embroidery, greeting cards, olive oil & soap,
poetry, and solidarity items. http://www.middleeastbooks.com/pact/index.html

2009 Calendars: http://www.resistanceart.com/calendars.htm

Olive Oil:
Oliv You & Me: 2043 Broadway, Boulder. http://olivym.com/
Online- http://www.palestineoliveoil.org/faq/palestine.html
http://www.palestineonlinestore.com/oliveoil/index.html
http://www.holylandoliveoil.com/; http://www.zaytoun.org/
http://mountainhighimports.com/products; http://www.brooklynpeace.org/ip/oliveoil.html

Music: Marcel Khalife. http://www.marcelkhalife.com/

Books: (Recommended Bookstore is Left Hand Books)
A Life in Pencil, poems by Ghada Kanafani; purchase from RMPJC: 303-444-6981

Flawed Landscape: Poems 1987-2008, by Sharif S. Elmusa
http://imeu.net/news/article0014455.shtml

Witness in Palestine: A Jewish American Woman in the Occupied Territories, by Anna Balzer. http://www.annainthemiddleeast.com/

An Israeli in Palestine, by Jeff Halper. http://www.icahd.org/eng/

Let It Be Morning, by Sayed Kashua

Moghrabi’s Olives, by Deborah Rohan Schlueter
Check the book list on the Americans for Middle East Understanding site:
http://www.ameu.org/books.asp

American Educational Trust (publisher of Washington
Report on Middle East Affairs). http://www.middleeastbooks.com/

Organizations to make donations to:

See the Washington Report Web site for a more extensive list of charitable organizations that accept and need donations. http://www.wrmea.com/charorganizations/index.htm

Addameer-Prisoners’ Rights and Support Group. Supports Palestinian political prisoners through visits, aid, advocacy and the media. www.addameer.org

Al-Rowwad Center. An independent Center for artistic, cultural, and theatre training for children in Aida Camp http://alrowwad.virtualactivism.net/donate.htm

Arab Resource Center for Popular Arts (AL-JANA). A non-profit organization, in a Beirut camp to help refugee children retain Palestinian culture, history, and folklore, all of which help to build young refugees’ sense of identity, meaning, and self-esteem. http://www.al-jana.org/friends.htm
Gaza Community Mental Health Program (GCMHP). Provides urgently needed mental care for residents of the Gaza Strip. www.gcmhp.net
The Jerusalem Fund. Provides grants for humanitarian and cultural projects in Lebanon, Palestine and Jordan, and educational projects in the U.S. www.thejerusalemfund.org

Kinder USA. Supports relief and development programs in the West Bank, Gaza, Lebanon and Jordan. www.kinderusa.org

Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders. Global organization that provides emergency medical relief across the Arab and Muslim world, including the victims of the recent war in Lebanon. www.doctorswithoutborders.org

Middle East Children’s Alliance. Promotes peace and justice in the Middle East, focusing on Palestine, Israel, Lebanon and Iraq through educating North Americans about U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East and supporting relief and development projects in the region. www.mecaforpeace.org

Palestine Children’s Welfare Fund. Supports educational and health programs for Palestinian children living in West Bank and Gaza Strip refugee camps. www.pcwf.org

Rachel Corrie Foundation for Peace and Justice. The Corrie family foundation promotes educational programs in the U.S. and economic, environmental and social justice in Rafah, where Rachel Corrie was killed. www.rachelcorriefoundation.org

US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation. The US Campaign aims to change U.S. policies that sustain Israel’s 41-year occupation of the Palestinian West Bank, Gaza Strip and East Jerusalem, and that deny equal rights for all. http://www.endtheoccupation.org/