Help Me Help Nana

New Year's Eve Giveaway

2012-12-10T15:18:00.000-05:00

New Year's Eve Giveaway!

Win a $100 gift card to Amazon.com

Want to ring in the new year a hundred dollars richer?

For every $10 you donate to Nana's adoption fund, you will earn one entry into the giveaway.

Once you've donated, please email me or comment below with the amount you gave. You'll be entered into the drawing immediately.

Drawing is on December 31st

Put My Ph.D. to Work for You

2012-11-26T22:45:00.001-05:00

‘Tis the Season ...

... for final papers and exams!

Need a little help?

Well, I’ve decided to put my Ph.D. in English to work for you by offering my editing services.

Most of you already know me, so you already know what my qualifications are. For those of you who are not as familiar, let me provide a quick summary of my qualifications.

I have a BA in English from Saint Anselm College (Magna Cum Laude), and an MA and Ph.D. in English from the University of New Hampshire. I have just under 10 years of experience teaching English at the college level. I have assisted just under a dozen professors from a number of academic disciplines (English, Economics, Business Administration, Philosophy, and Education) with various book-length projects: from scholarly monographs to educational textbooks. I’ve also been published in a number of academic texts.

I’m offering a few services, each based on your individual needs and your donation to Nana’s account. With each service, I’ve offered some donation suggestions for you. The details are listed below. Please note that these are just suggested donation amounts; I'm willing, if necessary, to work for less, and you are free (encouraged!) to donate more if you want!

Basic Proofreading .......................... Suggested Donation: $2 per page*
I will do a thorough read-through and correction of all grammatical mistakes. The focus will be on writing mechanics: punctuation, spelling, word choice, and grammar.

Editing and Proofreading .......................... Suggested Donation: $4 per page*
This one is more in depth. I will assess and offer feedback on larger structural and content issues like paragraph organization, transitions, argumentation, writing style, use of evidence, etc. I will also proofread your document for any issues with mechanics.

Custom Editing and Proofreading ................ Suggested Donation: Negotiable
This will be a package designed just for you and your individual needs.

If you would like to learn more, or you want to get started, either comment below or email me at bookworm1800@yahoo.com

I look forward to working with you!

*Pages should be formatted in a standard style: one-inch margins and 12 Times New Roman font (Arial is also okay). I would hope that, since this is for charity, no one would try to crowd more words on one page for a bargain, but I wanted to mention this anyway.

December Thirty-One Gifts

2012-11-04T22:32:00.002-05:00

~ December Thirty-One Gifts Fundraiser ~

Let's do this again!

I'm very excited about this fundraiser because I know it's something that you guys will LOVE!

You will get to help Nana and yourself AND OTHERS at the same time!

How? By buying gifts for your family, friends, coworkers, and everyone else on your Christmas shopping list!
My friend Michelle Ouellette has amazingly and generously offered to give all her profits for this online party to Nana this Christmas season.

But that’s not all!

Not only will your purchase help Nana, but it will also help military families in need.
For every medium utility tote purchased, a thermal toe will be donated to Operation Homefront (read more about how this works at Michelle’s FB page.

And there’s one more thing!

As a hostess for this party, if I reach $2000 in sales, I get hostess benefits: $400 in free gifts. I will donate these gifts to a local women’s shelter and crisis pregnancy center (like Care Net).

So, to recap, with your purchase[s] you will simultaneously:
--> Get great gifts for your loved ones, coworkers, and just about anyone on your shopping list
--> Give money to the adoption fund of a little girl who desperately needs your help
--> Help military families in need
--> Help local NH women and children

I think I just simplified your Christmas shopping season for you!

If you are interested in taking advantage of this,
you can go to Michelle’s website at www.mythirtyone.com/MichelleMO, click on My Parties, and then find "Christmas Giving for Nana."

Remember, she will be donating her entire commission from the sales of this party to help Nana (25% of total party sales)!

You can also visit the event page I've made for this on Facebook.

Thank you in advance! Every little bit helps, and if you can't make a purchase at this time, would you consider praying not only for the success of this fundraiser, but that Nana finds a loving family for Christmas!

Kick-Off Event

2012-11-01T13:22:00.002-04:00

Okay, this is the event that will kick everything off.

It’s something I like to call “Thanksgiving-Themed Humiliation!”

And it goes like this ...

If I am able to raise $250.00 by November 15th, I will do the following:

I will get my hair and makeup done ....

put on very nice clothes ....

fill two pie pans with large amounts of pie filling and cool whip ...

hand each to Amelia and Adalynn ...

sit at my kitchen table ...

and let the girls “pie” me in the face.

While Nick records it.

I will then post this embarrassing video to my Facebook wall and my blog for all the world to see!

Oh, the humanity!!!

This has been a popular fundraiser amongst some of the adopting families. I couldn't really figure out why at first, but then I realized that everyone loves watching a good pie in the face video!

If this particular form of humiliation doesn't motivate you to donate to Nana, you could be the biggest donator and choose something else for me to do -- from a list of options, that is. If you have your own idea, I’m willing to hear it, but know that I won’t do anything too inappropriate. For example, other ideas would be to dye my hair a weird color or wear my underwear on the outside of my clothes and go shopping -- all recorded for your amusement, of course.

I’ll be planning other fundraising events, but I thought this would be a fun way to kick things off. Hope to post my pie in the face video soon!!

Nana's online donation button is in the right side bar of this blog.

You can click there to donate via credit card or PayPal!

If you would like to mail a check, please do so to the following address:

Reece's Rainbow

PO Box 4024

Gaithersburg, MD 20885

Write "Nana25C-Angel Tree" in the memo line!

All donations ARE tax deductible.

Also, if you donate at least $35, you will get a beautiful Christmas tree ornament!

********************

On a more serious note, many people have said they do not believe that their donation makes a difference. Please know that ANY donation amount absolutely, positively makes a difference. One dollar or one-hundred dollars: each and every single dollar matters. So, please, even if all you can donate is a few dollars, if you feel led to donate it, do. Each donation no matter how large or small is tax deductible, so you will receive the tax benefit from your donation.

To put the donation amount thing into perspective...

If 1000 people donated $1.00, the goal would be met.

If 200 people donated $5.00, the goal would be met.

If 100 people donated $10.00, the goal would be met.

If just 50 people donated $20.00, the goal would be met.

If just 40 people donated $25.00, the goal would be met.

If just 29 people donated $35.00, the goal would be met (and each of those people would get her RR ornament!)

You see what I’m getting at? It does not take that much to reach this precious and very important goal for Nana. And each and every single donation -- big or small -- is so important!

Please consider helping my sweet angel. Time is running out for her!

2012-10-31T13:20:00.000-04:00

Back to Work!

After taking a long break (too long) from fundraising, I am now ready to recommit myself to Nana!

This will be the year that she is adopted!

I've sealed my commitment by signing up to be her official Angel Tree Warrior and am ready to begin the work of reaching my goal of raising $1000 for her adoption.

As I begin this work, I humbly request that you all pray for her and for me as I work to help her.

And, please,

Stay tuned for upcoming events!

Stuck in the Pregnancy Vortex

2012-01-27T19:29:00.000-05:00

Hello All!

Sorry for the internet silence over here. I'm currently in the third trimester of what has been a somewhat difficult pregnancy. This is why there have not been any new fundraisers lately.

I probably won't have the chance to resume fundraising until the baby is born and my life returns to some semblance of "normal."

In the meantime, if anyone has any ideas for fundraising -- anything at all -- please send them to me! I've been brainstorming many ideas, but I haven't really settled on anything specific yet.

I have something really "big" in mind if she's not adopted by the summer, but I wanted to do a few smaller events in the interim.

Here's what I've been thinking:

-selling candy (the kind that schools usually sell)

-making and selling customized lollipops

-holding a bake sale (kind of hard, though, since it's difficult to find a venue around here)

Anyone have any other ideas? Has anyone ever held a successful fundraiser and would like to tell me how s/he did it?

If you don't have any ideas, you can always help out by saying a few prayers for Nana.

Prayer definitely works better than money!

If you're Catholic, please consider bringing your petitions for Nana to an hour of adoration at a Eucharistic chapel or remember her during your rosary intentions.

As always, thank you for following this blog and for caring about Nana!

Winner of the $50 Amazon Card

2011-12-26T10:36:00.000-05:00

So sorry for not posting on Friday, but the winner of the giveaway was a friend from church, so I was able to notify him in person.

He also wanted to remain anonymous, and he only took half of the prize.

As such, I decided to draw another name for the other half.

And ... the winner of the $25 gift card is

Dana Jakubczak Ewer

Thank you, everyone, for donating to this fundraiser.

We raised $100 for Nana! Thank you God!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you All!

Please continue to monitor this blog for new giveaways and other fundraising events. We won't stop until Nana is adopted!

Christmas Giveaway

2011-11-16T23:49:00.004-05:00

*The deadline for the giveaway has been extended to Friday, Dec. 23, as a number of people want to enter with cash donations and won't be able to get them to me until then*

I hope this is okay with everyone!

Need help with your Christmas Shopping this Year?

Would $50 help?

Then check out my

New Christmas Giveaway!

I'm raffling off two $25 gift cards to Amazon.com

This is another great giveaway, as anyone can enter.

I can easily mail this prize to anyone -- location is not an issue!

Included with your prize will be a small Christmas treat (if you have kids, let me know; the treat will be specially chosen for them)!

Entry Details

One Entry = $3

Five Entries = $10

TWENTY Entries! = $20

Donations can be made through PayPal. If you prefer sending a check or money order, please let me know, and I can send you my address. I will also, of course, accept cash from people in person.

After you donate, please leave a comment letting me know your email address and how many entries you purchased or earned by sharing the link to this giveaway.

The winner will be announced on this blog by noon (EST) on Friday, December 23rd.

Angel Tree

2011-11-01T11:51:00.005-04:00

Reece's Rainbow's

Angel Tree 2011

This is a wonderful way to help children during the Christmas season.

The Angel Tree page, which can be found here http://static.reecesrainbow.org/angeltreekids/,

lists the children who need the most help.
Nana is listed!

By donating just $35, you will get a beautiful Reece's Rainbow Christmas tree ornament.

This is a great idea for Christmas gifts,

both to give and to receive!

What better way to honor the birthday of the King of kings than to take care of one of his children?

"And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.'"

-Matthew 25:40

Winner of Fall Gift Basket

2011-09-23T11:47:00.000-04:00

First, Allow Me To Send Out

A Very Heartfelt "Thank You!" to Everyone Who Entered this Giveaway!

Because of your generosity, we were able to raise $50 for Nana's adoption fund. (Not bad at all, considering everything in the gift basket was donated to me for free!)

I was very excited when I discovered that the winner of the basket is my super awesome grandmother:

Margaret Femino (aka, "Mammy")

Congratulations!

Of course, you are all winners because of your willingness to help this little girl.

I hope everyone keeps checking this site for new drawings and other events.

If you ever want to donate something for me to raffle off, please let me know!

Anticipating Autumn

2011-08-01T17:00:00.000-04:00

~ Are You Looking Forward to Autumn Yet? ~

Well, if you're not getting excited about the prospect of colorful, crisp leaves

cool, breezy weather

pumpkins, caramel apples

or any of the other wonderful aspects of this amazing season ...

Let me invite you to start getting excited about it!

In celebration of my favorite season of the year, I've put together a new giveaway.

This time, you will have the chance to win

An Autumn Gift Basket

NOTE: This is not the actual basket. It's merely meant to help you visualize the prize!

The festive basket will include the following gifts:

- a $25 gift card to Amazon.com

- fall-scented candles

- caramel apples

- a beautiful fall-themed home decoration

- and a few other surprise treats!

Entry Details:

One Entry = $3

Five Entries = $10

After donating your entry fee, please share a link to this blog on your Facebook page or blog; doing so will earn you another entry for free!

The giveaway winner will be announced on this blog on September 23rd,

which also happens to be The First Day of Fall!

DVDs for Nana - Price Reduction & New Arrivals!

2011-07-15T15:04:00.014-04:00

DVDs For Nana

A month or two ago, I asked if people were interested in purchasing a few DVD sets to help Nana. A few responded, and we sold $40 worth of silly tv series!

Well, I am re-posting this offer with reduced prices! (And you probably thought the prices couldn't get any lower?!)

As a reminder, every cent I earn from these sales goes to Nana's adoption fund. As such, should you feel generous, I would not be averse to accepting more than the asking price :)

Your Choices:

CSI, Season 1 - 9

Price for all 9 seasons = $90 (retail for all seasons $259.98)

Prices for individual seasons:

Season 1 = $9 (retail $22.99)

Season 2 = $9 (retail $22.99)

Season 3 (case is damaged; dvds are perfect) = $9 (retail $29.99)

Season 4 (case is damaged; dvds are perfect) = $9 (retail $29.99)

Season 5 (case is damaged; dvds are perfect) = $9 (retail $29.99)

Season 6 = $10 (retail $29.99)

Season 7 = $13 (retail $49.98)

Season 8 = $13 (retail $49.98)

Season 9 = $13 (retail $49.98)

The Office, Season 5

~~Price = $10 (retail $59.98)~~ Sold!

Sex and the City, Seasons 1 - 6 (only the first part of Season 6, as they sold the last season in two parts)

Price for all 6 seasons = $45 (retail for all seasons $179.98)

~~(Note: the cases for the DVDs were constructed very poorly, so the covers have fallen off. However, the DVDs themselves are in perfect condition.)~~

~~Price for individual seasons = $7 each (retail $29.98)~~ Sold!

~~Dexter~~~~, Seasons 1 - 3~~

~~Price for all three seasons~~ ~~= $30 (retail $115.98)~~

~~Prices for individual seasons:~~

~~Season 1 = $10 (retail $39.98)~~

~~Season 2 = $10 (retail $39.98)~~

~~Season 3 = $13 (retail $42.99)~~ Sold!

~~Two and a Half Men~~~~, Seasons 1 - 4~~

~~Price for all four seasons~~ ~~= $35 (retail $165.99)~~

~~Prices for individual seasons:~~

~~Season 1 = $10 (retail $44.98)~~

~~Season 2 = $10 (retail $44.98)~~

~~Season 3 = $10 (retail $44.98)~~

~~Season 4 = $10 (retail $44.98)~~ Sold!

The Apprentice, Season 1

Price = $5 (retail $59.98)

Roseanne, Season 7

Price = $8 (retail $39.97)

Origins: Fourteen Billion Years of Cosmic Evolution, by NOVA

Price = $8 ($29.95)

POSSIBLE FREEBIE!

Laugh Out Loud!

5-disc set of early stand up comedy by Jerry Seinfeld, Ray Romano, Jim Carrey, and others.

Price = $5 or thrown in for free when you buy 1 or more dvd seasons (retail $19.99).

Various Movies:

Price = $3 for one, $25 for ten, $40 for twenty

~~13 Ghosts~~Sold!

~~28 Weeks Later~~Sold!

A Man Apart

Benji Christmas Special (brand new, still in shrink wrap)

The Brothers Grimm

CRUNCH! Fat Burning Dance Party (exercise dvd)

Dane Cook: Vicious Circle

~~Ellen DeGeneres: The Beginning~~Sold!

Family Guy: Something, Something Dark Side

Fat-to-Firm for Dummies (exercise dvd)

~~Final Destination I~~Sold!

Final Destination II

~~The Graduate~~Sold!

Grosse Pointe Blank

Halloween - Rob Zombie version (brand new, still in shrink wrap)Sold!

~~The Haunting~~

High Fidelity

~~Jeepers Creepers II~~Sold!

JFK

~~Marley & Me~~Sold!

Men of Honor

~~Pandorum~~Sold!

Police Academy 5

Ronin

Starship Troopers

S.W.A.T.

If you would like to purchase one (or two or three):

Please leave a comment beneath the blog post below indicated your interest.

Include your email address so that I can get back to you about DVD availability, payment options, and shipping details.

There are a few ways you could pay for these DVDs:

Paypal (use any of the donate buttons on the site; there's one below), Check, Money Order, or Cash (if in person)

Winner of Spa Gift Certificate

2011-07-15T14:19:00.001-04:00

Thank you

to everyone who entered this giveaway.

Because of your generosity, we were able to raise $175 for Nana!

Even though there was only one material winner, you have all accomplished something truly great by providing hope and assistance to both this little girl and the lucky people who will someday be her parents.

Without further ado, the winner of the Not So Plain Jane's Spa massage gift certificate is:

Cesar and Emily Ruiz

Congratulations, Ruiz family! Please let me know by what means you would like to receive your gift certificate (though, I'm guessing you'll simply want me to give it to you at Mass on Sunday!).

To everyone else:

Thank you, again, for your generosity!

Please continue to monitor this blog and its corresponding Facebook page for more opportunities to win prizes and/or participate in fun events.

I have a number of things planned over the next few months!

Buy Books, Help Nana

2011-06-25T12:13:00.002-04:00

Below, I've listed a few book recommendations: some of my all-time favorites and a few recently purchased texts. To read my summaries of each, just hold your cursor over each selection. And, as always, if you click over to Amazon from this blog and purchase something, Nana gets a percentage of whatever you spend on your merchandise.

Amazon.com Widgets

5 Easy Ways to Help Nana

2011-05-17T15:04:00.003-04:00

# 1. Go to her page on Reece's Rainbow and donate directly to her adoption fund: http://reecesrainbow.org/nana-25c

# 2. Enter one of my fundraising raffles or events. Right now, I am giving away a gift certificate to Not So Plain Jane's Salon and Spa in Manchester, NH for a 60-minute customized massage.

# 3. Go to my Facebook page for this blog and "Like" it! Encourage others to do the same. Getting the word out will bring us one step closer to helping Nana get adopted.

# 4. This blog is also part of the Amazon.com Associates program. To the right and at the bottom of this blog, there are links that read, "GetBooksAndHelpNana"; click on one if you are planning to purchase something from Amazon. If you go to the site via this blog, we will earn up to 15% of your purchase! Thus, you will get great products at great prices from Amazon.com, while simultaneously donating to a wonderful cause!

# 5. See all the annoying ads on this page? Well, they're there for a reason. Checking out these sponsors earns this site a little money; all that money goes to Nana! This is a free way to help this cause.

Win a Gift Certificate to Not So Plain Jane's Spa!

2011-05-15T01:20:00.008-04:00

Not So Plain Jane's Spa and Salon in Manchester, NH is one of my favorite indulgences.

Their 60-minute customized spa massage is, by far, one of my most coveted treats.

Here's your chance to win a gift certificate to the spa for a 60-minute massage treatment (a $65 value). Not only that, but you get to help a beautiful little girl be united with her adoptive family (whoever they may be).

ENTRY DETAILS

~~One~~ Two Entries = $5.00

~~Three~~ SIX! Entries = $10.00

---> If you donate and share this blog on your Facebook page,

you will receive an EXTRA ENTRY for free <---

Simply post a comment below indicating that you have done so, and you will be given an extra entry.

The Giveaway Closes at NOON on July 15th, 2011

The giveaway winner will be drawn using a random number generating website.

The giveaway winner will be announced on this blog by the evening of July 15th.

All money collected for this giveaway will be donated to Reece's Rainbow for Nana's adoption fund.

If you are not interested in the giveaway, but would like to donate directly to Nana's adoption fund, please go to her page on the Reece's Rainbow site.

If you cannot afford to donate money at this time, please offer a prayer for Nana

Share her story, or this blog, on your Facebook page (or via any other social media outlet).

*If you don't have a PayPal account but would like to donate via check or money order, please email me at bookworm1800@yahoo.com. If you know me personally, just give me a call or Facebook me!*

Be a Prayer Warrior

2011-05-15T00:26:00.000-04:00

My husband and I are both "Prayer Warriors" for children who are waiting for families at Reese's Rainbow.
Nana is the child for whom I pray every day. If you can't adopt and you can't donate money, please consider becoming a prayer warrior.
Never underestimate the power of prayer! As Jesus said, "whatever you ask the Father in my name, he will give it to you" (John 15:16).

Be a Prayer Warrior