Mommin' It Up!

December 4, 2007

One Laptop Per Child

Sunday, Andy and I were watching 60 Minutes and heard the story of Nicholas Negroponte, a professor at MIT. Two years ago he founded a non-profit organization called “One Laptop Per Child,” through which he recruited a bunch of techies to design a low-cost computer for children in need.

This laptop is sturdy, meant to stand up to the harshest conditions (like being owned by a child), and small. It runs on a Linux operating system and has a built-in wireless connector, among other super-cool features. It costs $200.

For children in countries like Pakistan who don’t have schools to attend, Negroponte calls his laptop “school in a box.”

This laptop isn’t for sale in the United States, but from now until the end of the year, they have a program called “Give 1, Get 1,” where the general public can go online and, for $399, donate a computer to a child in need, and they will then send a computer to the donor as well. Since the fair market value of the computer is $199, $200 of the contribution is tax-deductible.

I was so intruiged by this story, and I spent some time yesterday searching the internet for various stories about this mission and this computer. Like everything, it has some naysayers, but most of what I read was very positive.

I had been thinking about getting a door-buster $400 laptop after Christmas, but now I think I may do this instead.

Did anyone else see this piece on 60 Minutes? Have you heard of this program before? I’d love to hear your thoughts about it… please leave a comment on this post!

December 3, 2007December 3, 2007

Aw, shucks!!

Emily and I have been truly honored to receive some blog awards from our blogging buddies lately, but we have been remiss in not recognizing them! So I’m gong to take the time to say a big THANK YOU and pass these awards along to other deserving bloggers!

First up is the “Out of this World” award which we received from Deb at Mom of 3 Girls. We think she is pretty Out of this World Herself! This post is a great example of the kind of fun you’ll find at her blog.

We’d like to pass this along to Crystal at Money Saving Mom. She has helped me personally save A LOT of MOOLAH, and I’ll be posting more about that later this week! Thanks Crystal and Congrats!

Next is the “You Rock the Crib” award. This award was invented by the amazing Nap Warden and awarded to us by my favorite stalkee, Jill at the Diaper Diaries. Jill is a big nerd, yet for some reason I want to be JUST LIKE HER. It’s weird. ANYHOO – we want to pass this along to Amy the Crunchy Domestic Goddess. And not just because I won this sweet Mommy Blogger t-shirt from her in the Fall Y’all Bloggy Giveaway (get your own at her Cafe Press store!), but because she is an activist mama who gets up and does stuff to make a difference! Check out her Holiday Toy Guide if you’re sick of buying poisonous China-made stuff for your kids.

We also received the “Nice Matters” award for the second (sniff! sob!) time! This time it came from Summer of Our Family Village. Thanks Summer! Check out Summer’s links, she is a busy blogger mama! We’d like to pass this along to the incredible Dizzi Lizzi, who is not only nice, and funny, and veeerrry good with Photoshop, but also a fellow Buckeye! Woot Woot!

Next is the “You Make Me Smile” award, given to us by that Super Action Hero, Busy Dad! Thanks BD and back atcha! I’ve gotta give this award to the Fabulous Mrs. Fussypants. There is always something cracking me up on her blog, such as her tagline “We can’t both look good! It’s either me or the house!” Ahhh, Fussy, I think we were separated at birth!

Hang in there Troopers, we are almost to the end! Our final award is the prestigious Egel Nest Blog Award of Eggsellence! It was given to us by Mr. Bradley Egel himsef! Thanks Bradley! We are truly honored. This award is designed to help bring traffic to new, outstanding blogs, and we are passing it along to Julie aka Calm Mama at The Calm Before the Stork. Julie became a first-time mom last Monday, November 26th when baby Jonah appeared a couple of weeks early!! She began blogging early in her pregnancy and her blog is a great, fresh, fun persepective on being a frist-time prego, and now a first-time mom. Due to the fact that she just popped a kid out a week ago, she hasn’t been doing too much blogging this week but will be employing some fabulous guest bloggers (including perhaps, yours truly!) In the meantime, check out her archives. You’ll be glad you did! Congrats Julie and take good care of yourself and that little man!

Shew! I am now giving myself the “you’re done with this post award”. And if you made it all the way through…you get it too!

November 30, 2007

Why Emily Doesn’t Live her Life to Please Me is Beyooond Me!

The following is an open letter to my cousin and co-blogger, Emily.

Dear Cousin,

For the LIFE OF ME, I cannot figure out WHY you and that bearded cradle-robber you married don’t want to know the sex of your unborn child. I mean, SERIOUSLY. This is 2007! (Isn’t it? I don’t know, I haven’t had a lot of sleep lately, the details are a bit fuzzy…)

Anyhoo, I KNOW the ultrasound was yesterday and I KNOW you didn’t find out, but cousin, I beseech you, call that ultrasound tech and tell her you changed your mind and you want to know! And if you and Andy can’t do it for yourselves, DO IT FOR ME!

I mean, you owe me, cousin. Think about it. Remember when you were supposed to be my roommate at Asbury College but you totally left me hanging and went to this craphole instead? And I was a roommate-less loser and had to room with the colon-cleanser-abusing exercise addict whose microwave veggie burgers constantly stunk up our room? It was horrible! You owe me, cousin! And what about the time I got you an interview at that place we used to work together? Then you got the job and we had so much fun! Of course it turned out to be the worst place to work ever, but HEY – it got you started and you’ve been movin’ on up the envelope-stuffing corporate ladder ever since! If it weren’t for me you might be bagging at the IGA! THINK ABOUT THAT!

I suffered through your first pregnancy not knowing what gender baby you were gonna pop out, and I just don’t know if I can stand the suspense this time. I might DIE. Seriously. Do you want that on your head?

Just find out and whisper it in my ear! It’ll be our little secret! Plleeeeeeaaasseeeeee!

Love,
Pashoo

P.S. Told you I was feeling snarky.
P.P.S. We kicked NaBloPoMo’s butt! Yay us!