And my February Giveaway Winner is...

Lucky #28 ! Sarah-Paige Copeland a.k.a. the candidreviewer who helped spread the word that ecojot isn't just about helping Mama Earth but directly advocating for children's arts and literacy in developing countries now too via blog post... Thank you Sarah :)

And thank you to everyone who participated! I wish I could send you all prizes for taking part in my special Feb GIVING is LOVE giveaway... Was so touched on how you all help share the ecojot giving news... THANK YOU AGAIN!

For a bonus chance to win not just ecojot stationery, but adorable pink mitts, visit DesignerJots' blog before February 28th... Quick you've got three days!

And for something green and inspiring... The other day I received photos and testimonials from the organizers of the 5th Annual Teens Turning Green National Summit. ecojot proudly provided notebooks to all the attendees to jot down all the awesome green ideas being exchanged and discussed! After all it's all about working together and encouraging others to be green, right?

Lastly, I stumbled on this photo today, and like the shot of my nephew as a super cute cupid, I couldn't not share it... How cool is that?

Lots of random from me today ;) Thanks for visiting and taking part! Remember to enter DesignerJots' WIN MITTS + ECOJOT giveaway (only 3 days left!)

xo,

ej

Thankful for poutine, pie, and most of all young people who are making the world a better place.

How was your weekend? Mine was filled with lots of food. Sunday was a full turkey dinner with many sides. And then on (Canadian) Thanksgiving Monday, a twist on the Canadian part. Jamie made a pumpkin pie and I had poutine.... That's right... Pie + Poutine = Canadian Thanksgiving, at least for Jamie, Simon and I. Ok, we had zucchini-blue cheese quiche too... Yeah can you say clogged arteries for Thanksgiving? Lol 0;D

For those of you who don't know what poutine is... It's my favourite 100% French Canadian delicacy... French fries topped with brown gravy and fresh cheese curds. It originated from Quebec, and I was very happy to discover that my local grocery store sells cheese curds!

I don't have any pics, as we rather gluttonous and so we didn't take any, but there's a shot of our more traditional Thanksgiving dinner. I love that I am fortunate enough to celebrate two Thanksgivings again this year... Canadian and American :) I'll be in Connecticut again this year with my family!

So I have no way of seamlessly segueing in to this, so I will just dive right into it... My brother G told me about this awesome story on BBC yesterday, that I can't not share... "The 'youngest'headmaster in the world..."

"Around the world millions of children are not getting a proper education because their families are too poor to afford to send them to school. In India, one schoolboy is trying to change that. In the first report in the BBC's Hunger to Learn series, Damian Grammaticas meets Babar Ali, whose remarkable education project is transforming the lives of hundreds of poor children.

At 16 years old, Babar Ali must be the youngest headmaster in the world. He's a teenager who is in charge of teaching hundreds of students in his family's backyard, where he runs classes for poor children from his village. "

There are a couple videos, and the full article here. The story is just so inspiring! It reminds us where there is a will, there is a way.

And it makes me so excited about the ways in which together with ecojot, we are working towards encouraging education and helping others all the time... And as I said in a project we're doing in 2010! So be sure to stay tuned ;)

Meanwhile, check out some photos I received from Lisa, the Development and Program Director of Teens Turning Green, one of the many awesome causes ecojot supports...

"Students are working diligently on projects greening their schools and planning some terrific events and more students are joining us weekly." - Lisa

I am thankful there are young people out there close to home and abroad, who have a desire to make a difference! Kudos.

xo,

ej

A How to Friday Plus Green Dorms and Green-Lemonade

D'Angelo was kind enough to send me a "How To Make Paper Bangles..." via email Thank you D'Angelo :)

The paper pens and pencils look pretty straight forward, here's what you'll need to make the bangles...

Assorted Used Paper, such as
-old poems/snippets of stories, journals
-colourful flyers
-old wrapping paper
--other roughly 2-D material. Emily pressed a WEED ;D

Some HARD, Flexible paper
-maybe from packaging (cereal boxes)
-Your old, awe-inspiring poster paper
-Toilet Paper rolls

Liquid GLUE & Water. Just approximate a mixture; you don't need that much glue.

HOT GLUE GUN to glue ends of paper together, OR LIQUID GLUE and a CLOTHESPIN

A DISH to put that glue in, and a BRUSH/old Toothbrush/Finger to brush the glue on.

What you need to do:
1. Cut out a strip of the hard paper, proably about 4 cm wide, depending on how wide you want your bangle. Wrap it around your hand it see if it will slide off/fit nicely.
2. Now, if you have a glue gun, glue the TWO ENDS TOGETHER
3. Decorate the bangle with wet-glued pieces of paper. It looks more elegant if you cover the front and back, all areas.
4. Let dry.
5. If you don't have a glue gun, use liquid glue to glue to ends together, and clamp with clothespin to let dry.
6. Wear it!!

I agree with D'Angelo, "Handmade is way better than machine made!! :)"

Speaking of making things greener... Have you heard of "Teens Turning Green?" Ecojot is sponsoring them this fall as they kick off their Project Green Dorm initiative. More information to come soon, but in the meantime check out their website for some great ideas on how to become greener at any age really ;)

And finally speaking of green... How about some "Green-Lemonade?" I got a pleasant surprise this morning when I received an email from Rhaya, co-founder of Green-Lemonade.com letting me know that yours truly was featured as a "Friday Fave" today! How cool is that?
Well as I happen to actually be on a detox this week... It's been quite the week to say the least since I've never done one before. I am realizing that I do want to stick to eating healthier even after the detox is done (on Sunday... YAY!!!!) So I am so happy to have discovered Green-Lemonade.com... Thank you Rhaya!

That's it for now... Happy Friday and Bon Weekend!

xo,
ej