Update on our cancer fighting mama friend & Go Fund Me!

Just a little update here on our friend going through Hell and back. She is almost done with Chemo and things are looking up... Counts are finally going in the right direction! After a bad lung infection, an implant removal, and some strong antibiotics we are one step closer  to getting rid of this cruel cancer... I want to thank you all SO SO much for those of you that donated to the Go Fund Me. It is still open and if you would like to donate you are more than welcome as funds are still VERY tight due to her not being allowed to work. People like you helping out make this world a better place!!

OH! And I almost forgot... a few weeks back our friends had a Cancer benefit for one of HER friends... and they raised money at Evolution Tattoo... so of COURSE I had to go in and get a tattoo for my girl. I had her pick out what she thought I should get... and the agreement was brass knuckles with "Fight Like a Girl" in the banner... I love it :) She loves it :)

Help Me Help Her! Cancer Fighting Mama...

Around here, we're kinda getting sick of Cancer... (no pun intended) I mean, Im really just over it... A very good friend of mine has been kicking breast cancers butt, yet the hits just keep coming. After chemo, radiation & a double mastectomy - we thought we were in the clear... then it came back... back to chemo and radiation and now blood transfusions, too. She is EXHAUSTED. This woman is literally my hero... no matter how stressed, tired, sick, and in pain she is - you would never know it. She takes care of her three kids with her super hero cape flapping in the wind behind her. Super low blood counts and begging to go back to work... *Or like the photo - walking in the Mother Day Breast Cancer Walk* But, lately - she has been talking about relaxing on a mini trip... and ya know what? When a mom that doesn't ask for help asks for help - you drop what you're doing and you find a way to help... So that's why I am here... I want to raise as much as I can so our friend Kat and I can give her a break. Maybe a night or two in a local fancy hotel with a massage and pedicure... maybe a short week on the beach in between treatments if you guys are feeling really helpful! If there is anyone in the world that deserves it - its this mama, I promise you. If everyone would donate just a couple dollars we could give her such an amazing trip that she has more than earned. Doctors orders are to rest and relax - and this seems like the perfect way to be sure she does that. Anything left over will be given to her and her family to use towards her medical bills. I appreciate you taking the time to read this and thanks in advance for your selflessness and generosity. 


  

We need your help!

Alright guys... I need your help. A VERY good friend of mine is in a crappy situation when her roommate left and stuck her with all the bills. She is overdrafted, struggling, and has a kid... she works her BUTT off and deserves some help (even though she would NEVER ask for it) For every $1 donation I get to paypal... I will match it up to $50... I would love to be able to go there tomorrow with at least $100 to help her out a little... And for every $1 that you donate, I will give one "entry" in to win a custom adult blanket. So $1 = 1 entry... $5 = 5 entries. PLEASE PLEASE help, just $1 makes a big difference... you can "send payment" via the personal option to rockerbyebaby@gmail.com and comment here telling me you sent funds. Please share this.

Movember - Join team RockerByeDaddy!!

MOVEMBER!! Join team RockerByeDaddy to help us raise money for mens cancer... my husband is on day 5 of growing a disgusting mustache... and we would love your support!

The best part about this - is he literally is like a 12 year old when it comes to growing facial hair... so never EVER has a mustache even been considered... let alone attempted... so he really could use some support... He is sacrificing his pretty little baby butt smooth face to raise money for testicular/prostate/colon, etc. Cancer... focused towards mens health.  Even if you just donate $1 its appreciated. Follow this link - http://us.movember.com/mospace/1612546/ and under the photo, choose DONATE TO MY TEAM... and spare anything you can. If we get over $150 raised Ill give everyone a 10% off coupon... if we get over $500 raised - Ill do a 20% off coupon. Ready set GO! TELL YOUR FRIENDS! Oh, and after you donate... PLEASE join the team!! We would love to have you a part of RockerByeDaddy and for you to help us raise money and spread the word. <3

Give a little... get a little...

Hey everyone!
Im here today to ask for a little help... A good friend of my hubby's, Tommy - is headed out on one of the most SELFLESS trips I have ever known anyone to take... in January, he is going "the garbage dumps and leper colonies of Hyderabad, India"

From Tommy:
"it's pretty simple, really: my friends and i will pour out our hearts to the lepers and children living in the garbage dumps of hyderabad, india. we are friends with a church right in the middle of a garbage dump and we love to do things like: throw feasts for the village, give blankets to the widows, play games with the kids, sing songs to everyone, pray with people, and meet the needs of beautiful people who are shamefully tossed aside like trash as a result of a cultural caste system that doesn't value them as humans. we will hug widows whose own sons won't even touch them, people who have not been hugged in like 20 years. we honor and value them. You and I might believe some different things, maybe we don't, but one thing that I really value is that when Jesus said to love the least of people, I take it seriously. Now, not everyone is able to just drop what they're doing and do stuff like this because of families, jobs, etc. but I've been placed in the unique position to. Maybe you're not sure about this "Jesus business" but you feel your heart strings tugged when you hear about this. Together, we can live out this vision."

Its people like Tommy that make this world a better place... doing selfless acts to help the people around him... to no benefit of himself. No matter how much he raises, he is taking this trip... either with the help of us, or out of his own pocket... but I know we can put a huge dent into the outrageous cost of his ticket to India.

Now, we have raised money for people before and had pretty huge turn outs - so I know we can make a difference for Tommy too... So with Halloween right around the corner - Ill make you a deal... Anyone that donates $5 will get entered into a giveaway to win a pack of Halloween Booger Bashers...  Donate $10 and be entered to win a Halloween Pacifier Clip & Halloween Booger Bashers... And if you donate $20 - you will be entered in to win a special one of a kind (unisex) Halloween Cotton/Minky blanket.

Here is how you do it...
Go to this website... Choose either the $20 option... or below it you can enter your own amount... it says over $20 but you can do less than that as well... so enter in either $5 or $10 in that box... then Check out with Paypal... (you can either use your paypal account for that, or just enter in your credit card info) Then check your email... you will have a receipt that is titled:

Then just forward it to me at rockerbyebaby@me.com with your name... 

I will then total up all the entries/donations... and on Monday we will pick a winner... so PLEASE give what you can... and PLEASE share and tell your friends... I know we can make a difference... 

HAPPY EARTH DAY!!!

HAPPY EARTH DAY!! 10% of all sales that come in from NOW until SUNDAY go to GREENGRANTS.... (Shop at the etsy store OR the website, either one qualifies :)

"In a way, we are in the business of hope. Global Greengrants Fund is one of only a few sources of support to grassroots groups around the world. Less than 2 percent of U.S. giving goes to international causes and only a fraction of that goes to support grassroots environmental groups." THanks Kyle (Barley & Birch) For pointing me to this amazing organization. If anyone wants to help about their 10% of a purchase, please donate at the link below. Every little bit helps :)

http://www.greengrants.org/about.giving.html

  

Swinger Sunday - Sometimes being GREEN sucks!

I was so excited to be asked to guest blog for Amber! Well, until I had to think about what to write, that is. RockerByeBaby is all cool and edgy and Amber has cool and edgy friends that do cool things.

I’m just a treehugging law school geek! I have no kids and nothing fun to write about!

But then I just asked myself “What is something you wanted to blog about but can’t on your blog?” And then it hit me: I wanted to write about why being ethical and green really sucks sometimes. So, what follows is the bitter rantings of a pretty square business owner. (: Sort of punky and rockery right?

So--- sometimes being ethical and green all the time sucks!

I own a business that really hangs its hat on being the greenest brand out there. We source organic US-grown cotton to make garments made in the US that are then dyed naturally and printed with waterbased inks. I, personally, have collaborated on some technology that makes our garments easily the most eco-friendly out there. We have our garments sewn by co-ops owned by refugees that are supporting their large families on their work with us. We never cut a single corner on greenness or social responsibility.

Yes, this all sounds great and I sleep easier at night and I love looking people in the eye when I truthfully tell them our supply chain and all that.

BUT what these standards do to my stress levels SUCKS. And sometimes I just want to VENT about it

Jodie, our designer, is a genius. She makes cool stuff. And so she sends me a design I love and I am like “YES!” and then send it to our printer and we can’t get the colors right because of the ec-friendly inks we use. So that is scrapped. Or Jodie and I will want to create a certain product but the co-op that does our work doesn’t have the machinery to handle it. So its scrapped, too. And we want to dye shirts but crunched up bugs and plants can only dye so many colors. So lots of color ideas are scrapped.

Our costs are super high because we are 100% USA made. We donate way over 30% of our profits. We basically donate whatever we have in our bank account. I do this because I feel obligated. I have a business that has a bank account, so I should be helping these people. We grow so so slowly because our margin is small and that margin goes to other people. I’ve never taken a cent from the business personally.

So we go to trade shows and these brands that put the “Organic” sticker on their booth have one garment made from like “organic bamboo” (which is very rare and therefore likely isn’t even organic and bamboo is like... as ecofriendly and polyester, oh, but I digress) and they are dyed in a shade of blue I know uses heavy metals and they are printed with white (which ALWAYS is done using plastic or a toxic wax) and they are acting like they are saving the planet. And I ask where they are made and they smile and say “China  and India of course!” THEN because they have the organic stockers and are super cute and have low prices buyers flock to them. And THEN most buyers look at our pieces, that due to legitimate eco- and socio-constraints are more plain and expensive and the buyers think “Pfft.... no way.”

That SUCKS, right?

So on the weekends, as I chat with friends that are also in the kids industry, I realize how different our lifestyles are. They make blankets and clothing abroad for about $4 each, and wholesale for $40 and retail for $80. They are making draws from their business of over 100k a year and are very well dressed and groomed. They spend their day chatting and designing and paying a large staff and getting massages and going to expensive lunches. I spend my day in dirty jeans with a 8 year old t-shirt getting calls from our sewers that all their kids have the flu and they won’t be in all week and our stuff will be a few weeks late. And then calling retailers to explain. And dealing with sales smaller than similar brands due to our high pricepoint. And dealing with our school in Haiti that has barebones structural support and cash reserves to continue due to the additional people being fed by the rice and beans it stocks. And stressing about the slow progress of our new website because we have no money in our bank account (see previous sentence.) And stressing about how we will pay for our Fall catolog to be printed if I need to send our school in El Salvador a check. And figuring out how to pay Jodie her weight in gold (her worth, basically.) And digging out cans and bottles from public garbage cans to take home and recycle because, well, why did someone throw them in there in the first place?

Being green and ethical SUCKS! It makes me work my ass off all day long just to keep the business moving and grooving and for what? So some kids in Haiti can go to school? So some kids in Texas won’t have to drink water with pesticides? Oh. Uh. Actually, YES.  So I calm down and buckle down and keep doing it.

But sometimes I just need to VENT! So thank you for listening.

Hi guys - its me... i know I mention pretty much, well, all the time... how much i love Kyle... she always amazes me... and this right here... this post is exactly why i wanted to start the Swinger Sunday... a chance for people to vent... spill it all here... get it all off their chest... Kyle asked me if this was too "bitchy" haha... I read it, and said nope, not bitchy at all... thats Kyle. Always working her ass off... Never getting a break... and I now see... not even taking any profits for her hard work. Giving SO much more than she gets... This girl deserves a medal. She is easily the most self-less person i know... every time I think im having a bad day, kyle and I rant on gmail... we usually have a 10 minute "bitch" fest where we freak out about what ridicules thing is going on in the stores... take a deep breath, and move on... But every time, i leave feeling better having had talked to her. Kyle, your amazing. I love you girlie!

Swinger Sunday - "A Walk of Faith"

This week - welcome an old friend, Jessie to the "mic"... Jessie has been through a whole heck of alot... and im so proud of her for having the courage to share her pregnancy story with you... as I remember hearing all about it with lil Ben. Such a strong mama for going at it again... and such a pretty little girl her strength has brought her this time around :)
Tonight I decided to continue to claim and accept a part of what makes me who I am - a survivor of preeclampsia and HELLP syndrome. I decided to do a walk to support awareness and raise money towards finding a cure and/or preventing the condition. Although I can say that in the past I have blamed myself in some sort of odd way for being a victim to this disorder or feeling inadequately made by my creator, I now know that it was never my fault and that God made me perfectly and that why this has happened to me now twice in my life is all but a bigger plan that I will someday know more about when I am laid at rest. What I know beyond all else is that my life has been incredibly blessed with two beautiful children and that my heart is at its happiest with the love I have for them. This walk I am doing, I feel, will sort of be a part of a healing process for me as well. I have sort of felt compelled to do this as well since the birth of my new two-week old daughter knowing that someday she will possibly face this condition as well as it can be hereditary. Last year I turned down doing this walk as it was too hard for me I feel emotionally to face up to the facts of what happened with the birth of my son and the emotional turbulence and shock of knowing my condition so I feel like I have made strides to do the walk this year and hope that I will continue on my journey of closure or peace.
For those of you who have never heard of preeclampsia and HELLP syndrome (I never did either until it happened to me) is that Preeclampsia is a disorder that occurs only during pregnancy and the postpartum period and affects both the mother and the unborn baby. Affecting at least 5-8% of all pregnancies, it is a rapidly progressive condition characterized by high blood pressure and the presence of protein in the urine. Swelling, sudden weight gain, headaches and changes in vision are important symptoms; however, some women with rapidly advancing disease report few symptoms.


Typically, preeclampsia occurs after 20 weeks gestation (in the late 2nd or 3rd trimesters or middle to late pregnancy), though it can occur earlier. Proper prenatal care is essential to diagnose and manage preeclampsia. Preeclampsia, Pregnancy Induced Hypertension (PIH) and toxemia are closely related conditions. HELLP Syndrome and eclampsia are other manifestations of the same syndrome. It is important to note that research shows that more women die from preeclampsia than eclampsia and one is not necessarily more serious than the other.


Globally, preeclampsia and other hypertensive disorders of pregnancy are a leading cause of maternal and infant illness and death. By conservative estimates, these disorders are responsible for 76,000 maternal and 500,000 infant deaths each year.


I developed pre-e and HELLP with my son suddenly in 2008 at 35 weeks into my pregnancy. I had a rare case of pre-e with non-typical signs of the disorder. I became very sick after my delivery as my liver was affected. I had to be on magnesium sulfate for a few days after giving birth to prevent me from having seizures. My son did well with only needing some breathing help the first day and a half. He is a normal, beautiful, average young 21 month old currently and is such a joy to raise.


I developed pre-e and HELLP with my daughter recently the last week of February, again in my 35th week of pregnancy. Thanfully, doctors caught it in its early stages and I was able to deliver (as delivery of the baby is the only cure for the condition) a beautiful, glowing baby girl who did fantastic after delivery not even needing breathing help. I was able to avoid being on drugs after delivery and had a much shorter stay in the hospital than my first birthing experience. My daughter is doing wonderful at home and is just a doll - can't wait to see what sugar and spice she brings to us!

I am touched that Amber donated to my cause and has me as her blogger guest this Sunday. She is an amazing woman with a big heart for people. If you would like to donate to my walk on May 8th around Lake Phalen in St. Paul, Minnesota, please visit the following website: http://www.promisewalk.org/pfpw/participantpage.asp?fundid=68&uid=188&fkroledescid=5&nnaffundid=12
Thank you for your encouragement. :)
Me again guys! If you have a few bucks to spare PLEASE donate to Jessie's walk :) Her goal is $100 and she is only $65 away! YAYYY Jessie! If you want to donate less than $15 just put choose OTHER in the donation box and you can enter in your own dollar amount. Every $1 helps and is much appreciated. And Ill make you a deal... for every $1 you donate to Jessies cause, Ill match it in a gift certificate to RockerByeBaby up to $20 per person... Give Jessie $15... Get a $15 GC for the shop. Cool!? COOL!

Wordless/Full Wednesday - Wish Upon a Hero...

Thanks again to EVERYONE who helped out with the big donation to these families in need. Dunno what Im talking about? Take a second to read up here... its totally worth it. Want the short story? lol I went on WishUponAHero.com picked two pregnant mama's that need MAJOR help... and pooled together all the finest ladies to contribute... And after everyones help - this is what we came up with... two GIANT boxes full of diapers - detergent - soaps - wipes - clothes - blankets - prefolds - toys and so much more... They are going to be SO happy and thrilled to get this goodie box.

Thanks to all the shops below for committing to help me out with this...
it really means the world to me :)
Baby Boo Felt
Brooke Van Gory
Rockin Green
Glamasaurus
Monkey Snuggles Mama
Heathens Hearth
SaraSophia
Tracy
Concertina
FentonSlee
Brookiellen
NanceAttack
RockyTheZombie
EllisFan14
Elaine's Semi-Homemade Life

P.s. if you think we are still waiting on your items, please let me know!! I want to ship asap :)

One More Thing... Be kind for under $1.00

So - I had a thought while I was talking to a friend :) Obviously not everyone can do big donations... and sometimes even $5 is just too much to spare... I know this, Ive been there. And some of you readers are in that spot right now... scraping change together for ramen... Spaghetti Spaghetti Peanut Better Spaghetti... I remember. But I also know that many of you in that spot still want to help out... Karma right? Do good things? Good things happen? Well, I had an idea of how you can help for the price of a stamp.

There are TONS of people on Wish Upon A Hero just asking for cards... to feel needed and wanted and loved...
So do this and get the kids involved... Pull out some random construction paper... glue... crayons... whatever randomness you can find... and make some holiday cards. Write a sweet little note... a message... a quote... a poem... anything inspiring... and send it off... It will make someones day... you & your family get to do something nice... and no one breaks the bank :) Everyone wins...

Some random wishers I found:
http://wishuponahero.com/wishes/?id=464083
http://wishuponahero.com/wishes/?id=463861
http://wishuponahero.com/wishes/?id=464053
http://wishuponahero.com/wishes/?id=464023
http://wishuponahero.com/wishes/?id=463957
http://wishuponahero.com/wishes/?id=463945
http://wishuponahero.com/wishes/?id=463885
http://wishuponahero.com/wishes/?id=463867

Just search "Cards" in the wish search to find more :)
Im gunna do this with the boys this weekend... I think it will be alot of fun... and another life lesson taught on sharing :)

Love you all :)
Amber

p.s. Please let me know if you do it! I would love some photos to put up on the blog of everyone making their christmas cards!

FAVORITES Friday: Lime Green & Black

This is my favorite part about blogging... I actually find myself looking forward to doing it... yay! And, it seems like people appreciate the feature on a popular blog as well... so I guess its a win win!



#1) CABfayre: Ummm..... can we say awesome? I dont even know what else to say... seriously... skulls... lime green... black... a little bling... chains... CHAINS!? im in love...

#2) Divokc: @StuffByXtine was part one of decision for the Lime & Black theme this week... so no doubt we had to get her in here! And look what I found! Super duper cute little lime & black argyle halloween magnets!! Free shipping on all Halloween items! Get them quick!

#3) DanzingZebra: Everyone remember the VooDoo Jack giveaway we did way back when? Well they are still EASILY one of my favorites... I STILL have this soap and it gets used all the time... its lasted forever, great stuff... and still makes my diamond all sparkly :)

#4) ANORIGINALJEWELRY: This really might be my new favorite etsy item... I get SO overwhelmed when I look for jewelry on etsy so I usually just DONT. There is too much and its all the same. But this little skull jumped right out at me and screamed... *HEY! YOU LOVE ME* and it was right ;)

#5) RockyTheZombie: My girl Rocky was part 2 in the lime black decision... and her green is a little dark, but she more than deserves a spot in the favorites list today :) If I had to could... I would say I have like...... 8 Rocky shirts for the boys? And i have 4 paintings up in the play room... yeah... i'm probably her biggest fan... I think in 5 years all her shirts will be screen printed and she will be a million year... it could happen. Her stuff is THAT great.

#6) StrawberryCremeKat: While fumbling through Rockys shop... I ran across another store that featured this SUPER rad necklace... I just had to add it in. I LOVE the squishy fake grapes... makes me think of my great grandma... but in a really cool, high fashion, pinup-y kinda way, lol

#7) AForestFrolic: Im a big fan... she has the CUTEST stuff... the best photos... an amazing blog... really, im just blown away by her talents with PAPER! Can you believe the little details? She is the perfect shop to go to when you wannt get some retail therapy... you can buy a ton of things... spend like $10 and find a great use for all of it!

#8) Wonky Rocket: How cute is this shop... well, besides just plain friggen adorable... I think, we need to get them to do a review & giveaway here at the blog... what do you think?Maybe we should all send them a message that says, PLEASE DO A REVIEW/GIVEAWAY @ THE ROCKERBYEBABY BLOG! :)

#9) Stoopidgerl: I heart her... were twitter buds... and facebook buds... and shes having a baby! So everyone go buy something from her shop so she can come buy a ton of stuff from me for the new baby ;) But really, how friggen cool is this skull necklace... she has one in turquoise too and I was just blown away by her creativity... Did you also see how rad her photos are?? Shes like the perfect etsyier... great stuff... great photos... and look at that... almost 2,500 sales... why? Because shes a rock star.



One more important favorite I wanted to mention... www.MiracleDiapers.org

I would LOVE it if some of my many MAMA readers could help out... old diapers... new diapers... money... whatever you can share. They will greatly appreciate it... Ill make a deal with you... If you DONATE 1 Diaper OR $5 to their paypal... I will send you a set of two booger bashers for free. Just Leave a comment here with proof of your donation.

"Past and Future
Miracle Diapers was founded in Oregon in January of 2005 to fill a need. There were many families who wanted to cloth diaper their children for health, economical, and environmental reasons but could not due to financial restrictions. Due to the overwhelming response, Miracle Diapers decided to to open two more chapters by the end of that year. Now, under new management, Miracle Diapers is now in our fourth year of service and looks forward to expanding even further.

Our goal is to someday have representatives all over the United States. Through this we hope to not only be able to serve thousands of families in need, but to be able to educate the public on today’s cloth diapers and therefore helping cloth become more mainstream."

"For Monetary ($) donations, please click here!,"
I just send them $5 its really easy and takes just a few seconds....

Another way to donate... Buy from Rockin Green Soap! "For every purchase of a 90/180 load bag, will donate $5 dollars to Miracle Diapers. "


"If you would like to donate , and you do not live in the area of one of our local drop off locations listed below, please send packages to:
Miracle Diapers Headquarters
23945 Franz Rd., Ste E, #126
Katy, TX 77493

Sending a package?

Donations: Please include a list of the items you are donating, your name, address, and an email address in your package as well as a note stating that it is a donation."