Labels: Life's Little Lifesavers

In mid-July, I'm going to be hosting a Home Interiors party for my friend Laura, a Home Interiors consultant. Laura gave me 30 postcard invitations that I'll be using to send to my friends.

The postcard had space to include the date, time, place and RSVP information for the event. Usually, when I receive these types of invitations in the mail, they're all individually filled out with pen.

However, I saved a whole bunch of time by making labels in Word. I used 1 inch by 2-5/8 inch address labels. I was able to include the following information on the label:

__________
When: Wednesday, July 19th at 6:30P
Where: (My Address)
Please (RSVP: My Phone Number)
Hostess: Maria Gracia
Home Interiors Consultant: Laura
*** Appetizers, drinks and dessert will be served.***
Feel free to bring a friend!
__________

The font size was small, but readable. The label fit perfectly without hiding any of the other information on the postcard.

Typing up this information once, printing out a sheet of 30 labels, and sticking the labels on the postcards, took me about 10 minutes or so. Writing all that information out by hand would have likely taken 45 minutes or more. Plus, I didn't end up with writer's cramp!

Goal Set, Goal Met, Goal Exceeded!

When I first mentioned my involvement in my town's Relay For Life event, my initial goal was $500. I would have been thrilled to meet that goal.

However, as of today, with the help of so many readers of both Get Organized Now! and Give To Get Marketing, I have been able to raise $1365, and the donations are still coming in.

I'm only one person on my 15 person team, so by the time August rolls around, I know we'll collectively have a donation that we'll be very proud to give to the American Cancer Society.

I am more than touched by the immense kindness proven by so many of you. Thank you from the bottom of my heart!

By the way, for those of you who have been involved in the Relay For Life in previous years, any ideas you can share for decorating our campsite would be most appreciated. Our theme this year is "Once Upon a Cure" and the campsite is to be decorated in a fairy tale theme.

We don't want to spend money to decorate the site. We prefer making decorations ourselves. One thought was getting neighborhood children to color pictures of fairy tale characters and attaching them to our tents. I would welcome any frugral thoughts you have for making our campsite festive for this very important event.

P.S. If you haven't contributed yet, and you're interested to do so, you can read more on the following link:

http://getorganizednow.typepad.com/get_organized_now_weblog/2006/06/help_fight_canc.html

Keeping Pedalling

I wish you could have seen our daughter Amanda's eyes when she first noticed the big box with the photo of the shiny tricycle. She was so excited, and even more so when her daddy put it together for her.

She boarded immediately and rang her little bell with glee!

Each day, Joe and I showed her how to get her legs moving so that she could get the bike to move forward. We held her feet on the peddles and pushed them around and around with our hands. We moved the bike forward and helped Amanda steer with the extension bar. And of course, we spent a lot of time coaching her and trying to keep her motivated.

"Keep pedalling! Keep pedalling! You're doing great!" These words must have come out of our mouths a hundred times or more.

A few days later, she saw some of the neighborhood kids riding their bikes. We could tell she was even more enticed to do it herself without our help.

Without fail, every day since we've purchased the bike, she's been on it. Even on rainy days, she's practiced in the garage.

It was two weeks ago when we purchased the bike from Target.

What a delight it was for us to walk behind her just two days ago as she peddled herself all the way around the block-- without any assistance at all!

The same goes when you're trying to learn just about anything. You need someone to teach you how to do it (whether it's someone in person, or a book, course, etc.), and you need to practice it over and over to excel at it. This applies whether you're trying to master a new language, play a new sport, or organize your kitchen.

Most things worth doing well don't just come naturally. You have to work at them, and continuously improve along your journey.

You also have to be motivated. In the case of the tricycle, my daughter was self-motivated. In the case of putting her toys away, it usually involves rewards (bribes) or consequences--both equally motivating in many cases.

Perhaps if you wanted to learn how to sew, you'd tell yourself that after each hour of practice, you'd earn yourself a reward--such as 15 minutes of talking on the phone to your friend or a half hour of simply relaxing in your yard.

Or, you can give yourself a consequence such as if you don't spend the time cleaning your garage, you won't watch television that night.

One thing is for sure though. If you're determined to do what it takes to reach your goal or complete your project, you can succeed with knowledge, patience and practice.

And someone behind you (such as a spouse or a friend) telling you how great you are doesn't hurt either!

New Neighbors Just Moved In

We had our home built in a newer area in town a little over 3 years ago. When we first moved in, there were only a handful of other homes that were built. Since we've been here, almost every lot has been purchased, tons of homes have been built, and you'd never even know this land was empty just a short time ago.

We just met our newest neighbors (our backyard neighbors) this past weekend.

We always like to welcome our neighbors within a radius of several homes with a little something. These new neighbors received a box of biscotti, a 4-pack of Frappucino and a set of spoons for their 5 month old daughter.

These little gifts are always well received and we feel good knowing that we did something to make them feel welcome and comfortable in their new neighborhood--the way we were treated when we first moved in.

You can do this in your own neighborhood if you have new residents moving in occasionally.

This concept can also be applied to new co-workers, new members of the gym you belong to, new members of your church or a new business that just moved into town.

You don't have to spend much, or anything at all if you are crafty or you can bake. But you'll likely feel good going that extra mile.

Help Fight Cancer: You Can Make a Difference

I'm the president of a local club in town called the Watertown Newcomers and Neighbors Club. We welcome women, both new and established, to our area and enjoy various events and social activities each month. We're dedicated to assisting local charities by donating food, clothing and funds. We always feel great making a difference in our community.

A few months ago, I was considering ways the club could reach out even further in our charitable efforts. A week later, I received a letter from a former member of our club asking if the Newcomers and Neighbors Club would consider putting a team together for an event called the Relay For Life. The funds raised would help support cancer research, education, advocacy and patient service programs.

I knew immediately that this would be an event that would help us meet our charitable goals.

In light of this, we just coordinated a team to walk in the Watertown Relay For Life event being held on August 11th and 12th in Watertown, WI. My good friend, Lona, and I are the co-captains of the team.

Relay For Life is a family-oriented event where team members take turns walking or running on a track for 18 hours. Cancer survivors, their families and the public are invited to take part in this rewarding team relay event.

Joe, my husband, and I both have family members and friends who have had to battle with cancer. We'll both be walking in the relay. We see it as an amazing opportunity to remember friends and family members who have lost their battle to cancer, to honor cancer survivors and to encourage those who are fighting cancer.

I have set a personal fundraising goal of $500, and I really need your help to meet this challenge. But my challenge is nothing compared to the challenges faced by so many cancer patients. I feel blessed to be part of such an important cause.

I hope you will support our efforts by making a small donation. If you can donate $10, great! If you could donate $1, that's great too! This is a flat donation and not a per mile donation.

Your donation is tax-deductible. Please make your check or money order out to the American Cancer Society and mail it to me:

Maria Gracia
611 Arlington Way
Watertown WI 53094

Or, if you prefer, simply send it to my Pay Pal account: getorgnow@charter.net

I usually do not feel comfortable asking people for money but this fundraiser is such an important reason to do so. Thanks so much.