Baby wearing Moms of the World Unite!  Down with Motrin.  Wearing your baby is not taxing or painful and all the wearing/carriers tell you that.  If it hurts take it off and adjust!  Don't be a stupid mama!

I am posting my letter to the President of Mcneil Consumer Healthcare which was one of the culprits responsible for the tasteless add.  You can no longer view the add on their website because Motrin took it down and took their whole website offline in the process.  Shows you how much they know about websites.  Yikes.  Anyway the one of the reasons the ad was taked down was because of on mom's conscious effort.  I'm trying to attach her video as well but may have to get Chad to do that later!.

Here is my letter:

I voted in my first presidential election in the scandal of 2000.  Imagine how I felt after watching the HBO special "Recount" realizing how much my vote counts.  Then in 2004 I voted primarially because Chad made me.  I was disillusioned and hurt by my first voting experience.  Now in 2008 I have been vindicated and I can say that I do feel that my vote does matter.  I don't believe it is just because the person I believe in and hoped for did win.  There are others I did vote for that did't win.  I believe my vote mattered because the person I voted for ran a trementous, positive, well-strategized campaigne in a way that no other politician has in history and in a way that no other Democratic nominee would have had they been the choosen 'one'.

Through the last 8 years I have watched movies like Independence Day and cried at President Bill Pullmans speech before they pound the crap out of the aliens.  Or thought of President Palmer/Allstate fro 24 and wished that he was our real president and that "little bush" was actually a funny cartoon on comedy central.  Then I shake the stars out of my eyes and reality sinks back in. GW Bush has crushed our hopes, dreams, prosperity, and liberty as Ameicans in ways thata I can hardly speak of with out getting worked into a tizzy.  But look now over the capital hill!

And you thought it would be Chad, right?

Nope I actually scored higher!!! Ha, I'm the bigger Nerd.  Oh wait, should I be proud of that?

So I got incredibly tired of seeing the Alicia so-&-so olypian story I had to post something else.  I'm waiting for our DnD podcast to begin.  That's right I said "our," whch means that I am participating in the Dungeons & Dragons podcast.  Which would also imply that I am currently playing DnD with Chad's gaming group.  I am a high elf which in this current edition is known as an Eladrin.  I am also a paladin which is like your DnD pastoral care/doctor type of person.

I feel the need to explaing myself as a woman, so as to not lose and girl/best friend points (which is the same as losing face with your friends type of thing).  Chad has been playing with this group for about 4.5 years every 2nd & 4th Saturday night.  We plan all our social activities around these game nights and for a year now we have been hosting these games.  Which means that I have been cooking for 10-15 guys who stay at my house until 3-4am.

I finally caved after lots of nudging from Chad and another friend who plays, and decided to create a character.  I have played in two games thus far.  I really enjoy it because it is a role playing game and I get to do things that are in my own personal character but which POWER and powers plural as well.  It's an excellent place to vent frustrations as well.

So what compelled me to volunteer to organize a garage sale that also happens to be our La Leche League group's BIGGEST fundraiser of the year . . .  I have no idea!  I've never planned my own garage sale let alone an important one for a whole group of people depending on what ever funds come from it.

Anyway, this week will be busy getting ready for it.  If you are in the chicagoland area please stop by!  It's in Mt. Prospect.  I know some of our friends liver there or are close enough to come by for it!

Also we will have three raffle items that I am selling tickets for.  the are $5 a piece or 6 for $20.  Again I know it seems pricey but it is a fund raiser and you may win!

The items are like totes or baskets that will have several things in them (donated by business or moms from our group).

They are themed for a Night out (could be guys/dad's night out or even a date night), Mom's Day Off, and Kiddo's Fun.  They include things like movie tickets, gift cards for restaurants, spa treatments, shopping gift cards, little gifts (like flowers I think), breakfast and and outing for the kids and some toys for the kids.  All in all each one is worth the donation!

This was a story Pastor Bonnie from the church we are starting to attend more shared on her e-newsletter.  She send's out a weekly blog-like sermonlette and this was so striking to me I wanted share it.  I do not know who to credit the story to. . .but it is poinangt.

A pastor was teaching a group of children, when a soap-maker in town attempted to
embarrass him. "How can you claim that your faith is good and valid when there
is so much suffering, evil and misery in the world? What good are all the books
you've written and the sermons you've preached?

Teaching children the stories of our faith is really important. But the loudest sermon
they'll ever hear is the way we live our lives. Are we using our faith to make
a difference in the world?

Annonymous   

How can this be?  Yes it is possible.  And I don't have to wash it every day.  I have been doing the no shamPOO routine since June 26th ish so not a full month yet.  Some of the experts say that the yucky hair phase lasted that long, however I have been rather happy the last two weeks.

There are days when I really like to have squeekier clean feeling hair so I will use my no poo shampoo stuff more than usuall.  But that is usally becuase I have been doing something muddy in the yard and feel the need to get really clean.  The only really big deal that I found my hair needs is some conditioning treatment because I have not been using gels or hairspray.  The first day after washing with baking soda (either with honey or cinnamin added to it for fun and yummie scents) I noticed that it is a little more fly away or frizzie.

So I had already purchased a conditioner bar from LUSH called Jungle.  I rub it on my ends, after I used my vinegar and water mixture, and a little over the top to get tangles out.  I leave it on while I finish my shower routine and then comb through and rinse.  Then it stays a little smoother.

Othewise by day two it is a smooth as if I curled it or styled it with a round brush.  Its fabulous!  I am totally a no Poo girl from this point on.  I have several LUSH shampoo bars left that make great hand soap!  So I am still being green by using everything and not having things with containers making more waste.  Go me!  Woo hoo!

Okay first the recap from the results of day two:  It had a lot more body and bounce.  It was curly but like I had hot rolled it.  NOt my regular tight more spiral curl.  I kept in in a pony tail cause it was really windy when we were walking around the Heritage Fest on our way to go see Spider Man & Hulk!

DAY THREE

Before going to the Heritage Fest I did take a shower however . . .

For hair care:  I brushed it out before hoping in (I've decided that brushing my hair thoroughly is going to help stimulate my scalp.  I'm sure some of you dare I say 'old' folks remember the brady bunch episode where Marsha is brushing her hair 100 time on each side???  There must be something too it).

Then rinsed with water and did a nice little massage with the warm water just before putting 3-4 table spoons of white vinegar on it.  I massaged that all in combed through all the hair added about 1 table spoon vinegar to the ends and let it sit on my hair while I washed all my other bits.

Rinsed with warm water to make sure all the vinegar was out then rinsed with coldwater.  No styling products.

DAY FOUR

Massage with warm water and White Vinegar Rinse.

Rinse with warm water and then again with cold.

No styling products.

RESULTS

The Regime

After combining what was left of a box of baking powder and 1/3 cup of cinnamin in a clean old yogurt carton (mixing well with a wisk of course) I used this mixture as my 'Poo for today.  And it looked quite literally like it!

I did some research online to find some suggestions for going without shampoo and how to begin this process and the first suggestion was to use baking soda.  I later discovered that I had mixed the wrong thing.  So I'm going to see what happens.  The purpose was to clean and stimulate the scalp which I felt the powder was doing.

You're supposed to leave it on for a minute.  I was talking to Chad about something so it end up staying on for longer (probably about 7 minutes).  Then you rub it in your scalp circularly really well.  The whole point being to get the blood flowing in your head.

Did that then rinsed it all out.  I combined the cinnamin because someone from LUSH told me that the cinnamin in one of their shampoo bars stimulates the scalp and makes your hair grow faster.  It's probably a load of hooey but it made everything smell really good and now Chad says my head smells like an oatmeal cookie.  So that has to be good right!?

Anyway, after that I rinse with 3-4 table spoons of white vinegar brushed everything through and rinsed it all out.  And once again no styling products afterward.

Chad says I'm his LUSH though.  Thanks for all your votes!  I am so grateful for all your support.  And trully the best part of entering the contest was really beginning to see and understand how much we do DO as a family to be greener and conscious of our decisious effecting the environment and the world (/people too) around us.

Besides if you do go to the lush site to see the grand prize winner . . . she looks like she'd fit the role of Elle from "Legally Blonde" and I guess that's the most polite way to put it!  At least the winnings go to a good cause.  Anyway thank you all again for taking time to vote online.

Now for my newest endeavor  . . . going No 'Poo.  What?  Yes, I said Poo.  As in no ShamPOO.  Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy my LUSH shampoo bars.  But Chad was looking into some stuff on line about Vinegar Hair Care.  Pretty much the idea is that we build up a whole lot of bad junk into and onto our hair causing it to be dull, and simply not soft and beautiful with our chemically shampoos.  Then we try to cover that all up with conditioners to make it shiney and soft.  Then we have to (at least us ladies in the house) use all kinds of styling products to make our hair do what we'd like it to.