Coast 2 Coast Mom

The Coast-to-Coast Adventures of Flat Harrison - Got Milk?

If you've been following our coast to coast roadtrip the last couple of weeks, then you know we picked up an additional passenger on our way home from BlogHer '11 in San Diego. A life-sized celebrity cut-out of Harrison Ford from the Got Milk campaign, we dubbed him "Flat Harrison," (#flatharrison) and drove him back to New York City in the Ford Flex for my friend SelfishMom. We had a blast with an extra guest along for the return trip!

The top three questions we were asked along the way:

3. WHY do you have a Harrison Ford cut-out?

2. What is your friend going to do with him once you get him to NYC?

1. May I get a photo with him?? (Seriously - at least one person now has a pic with Flat Harrison as her new Facebook profile photo!)

Here's a montage of #FlatHarrison's travels as we made our way from the west coast to the east coast. . .

Ford Warriors in Pink supporting Komen Race for the Cure for the 17th Year

2011 marks the 17th year that Ford has been supporting Komen Race for the Cure through the Warriors in Pink program. To date, Ford has dedicated more than $110 million to help promote breast cancer awareness, increase early breast cancer detection and help find a cure. The Warriors in Pink program is one way they raise funds, partially through the branded line of apparel (for women, men and even tots!) and accessories (scarves, ties, hats and mugs, etc.), for which - get this - 100% of the net proceeds for each item goes to Susan G. Komen for the Cure! I love it!!

I checked out the newest line of Warriors in Pink store items last week and have a few of the items that caught my eye:

 

Talking Water Safety with Olympian Swimmer Aaron Peirsol and Auro-Dri

Yesterday the Kiddo and I were invited by Auro-Dri swimmers' ear solution, to spend the day poolside atop the Empire Hotel in NYC with five-time Gold Medalist swimmer Aaron Peirsol. They didn't need to ask twice. ;-) We were ever so grateful for the opportunity to cool off poolside during the sweltering 95 degree heat wave, and also to swim and chat with such an accomplished athlete as Aaron, who still holds the world record for the backstroke. The Kiddo was excited to meet the world record holder in the backstroke and took to him like glue.

 

Support Go Red For Women during National CPR Week

National CPR Week begins today June 1-7, and it's a great time to review, learn or get certified in CPR in support of women's heart health and the Go Red for Women campaign. I recently learned that four out of five out-of-hospital cardiac arrests happen at home - which means that the life you could save with CPR is most likely that of someone you know or love. However, seven out of 10 Americans either do not know how to administer CPR or their training has significantly lapsed.

That means 70% of Americans may be left standing idly by when a friend, neighbor or loved one needs them most. Anyone can and should learn the life saving skill - who wants to be a bystander in their loved one's time of need? In support of National CPR Week, Go Red for Women is asking everyone to watch this one-minute Official Hands-Only CPR instructional video to learn how to save a life with CPR. Watch it, and pass it along to five of your loved ones. They just may pick up on enough CPR training to save your life one day.

  

Visit GoRedForWomen.org for more information and ways to support the women's heart health initiative.

Ford Teen Safe Driving Skills For Life Experience

A couple of weeks ago I had the opportunity to experience Ford Motor Company Fund's Driving Skills for Life program for teens. The award winning program is a joint effort with the Governors Highway Safety Association and gives teens the opportunity to practice safe driving skills beyond what they learn in typical drivers education classes. They get the opportunity to safely - and in a controlled environment - test their hazard recognition, vehicle handling, speed and space management, and driver distraction skills. These four areas contribute to more than 60% of all teen crashes.

There may not be a better way to highlight May as National Youth Traffic Safety Month than sharing my experience with Ford's Driving Skills for Life program (a part of Ford's philanthropic efforts), which tackles the issue of teen driver safety by helping teens to make better, safer decisions behind the wheel. I spoke with Ford executives about their successes in reducing teen driving accidents in Illinois and in specific communities around the country who've previously experienced the tragic loss of teen lives. The numbers they discussed at the event were staggering:

5 Things You Can Do in the Car With Your Child to Raise A Safe Driver

I recently attended a Ford Teen Safe Driving event in NYC, where I learned how much of an impact parents have on their children's driving skills. Moreso than any other people, teens report that their driving role models are their parents, and that they learn their driving habits based on their experience in the car with their parents. In fact, Ford shared that in a recent survey:

• 95% of parents reported being safe drivers, yet 82% of teens surveyed said they have seen their parents be careless when driving and engage in risky driving behavior;
• 51% of parents admit their teens and tweens have asked them to slow down, stop talking or texting by hand, or practice other safe driving behaviors;
• More than 75% of tweens say they'll rely heavily on their parents' advice when they start to drive.

All of those hours spent in the car carpooling, running errands and roadtripping to relatives homes have given our children prime examples of what we consider to be acceptable driving habits. So it's important us to reassess our own driving habits even when the kids are still in carseats in the backseat. As I listened to the panel of Ford safety executives share stories and research on teen driving safety records, I came to the realization that I have to change my own driving habits (which I of course thought were pretty stellar ;-) ).

Support World Fair Trade Day at Breakfast May 14th

This weekend brings a unique opportunity to educate the world class citizens of your home. Fair Trade USA has designated May 14th their annual "Wake up the World" to World Fair Trade Day and invites everyone to support the world's farmers and farm workers by consciously incorporating Fair Trade Certified products into breakfast for a day. It's easier than you think.

Brew yourself a cup of Fair Trade Certified Starbucks coffee. Have a Fair Trade Certified Dole banana. Make these chai spice pancakes or these orange chocolate chip muffins. Make your own Fair Trade brunch.

You likely have one of the 9,500 products in your home that have passed the 200-point certification and are just not be aware of it. As a daily tea drinker, it warmed my heart that so many of the teas in my cabinet are on the Fair Trade Certified tea list: Republic of Tea, Art of Tea, Bigelow, Honest Tea, ErendipiTea, Stash, and Tea Forte for instance. Bananas and pineapple from Dole Food Company are Fair Trade Certified, as well as bananas from Sam's Club. Trader Joe's organic raw honey is certified, and you'd be surprised how many companies have made the decision to use Fair Trade Certified cocoa in their products. . .

 . . . Ben & Jerry's anyone? (Or am I the only one who's had ice cream for breakfast? On occasion. It's not like I'm eating a big bowl of Cluster Fluff every morning. . . although that would be a fun way to celebrate and have a fair trade discussion with your kids tomorrow. . .:-D) But seriously, next year I just may subject myself to a Fair Trade Certified chocolate tasting to share with everyone. The things I do for my friends ;-)

So it may not be morning where you are, but consider this your Fair Trade wake up call! Check your counters and cupboards to find something to help consciously celebrate World Fair Trade Day in your household on Saturday, May 14th.

Toyota 100 Cars for Good Submission Deadline Monday

We were watching NBC's Chuck the other night when C2CDad and I looked at each other and laughed at the tongue-in-cheek product placement of the new Toyota Sienna during a stake out. It reminded me that there's less than a week left to enter Toyota's "100 Cars for Good," where 100 nonprofits in the US will receive a Toyota vehicle as voted by the public.

I come into contact with so many deserving nonprofits throughout my day-to-day life and I don't always have more time or money to offer them, so I'm happy to share the news that Toyota's giving away 100 vehicles over the course of 100 days to qualifying non-profit organizations (they must be a registered 501c(3)). Interested groups can submit an application until March 21, 2011, and then beginning May 9th, Toyota will profile five of the qualifying organizations on the Toyota Facebook page for people to vote for the one they think is the most deserving. Selected organizations will be eligible to "win" everything from a Toyota Prius to a Tacoma, Tundra, Highlander Hybrid, Sienna, or Sienna Mobility.

Wear Red on Friday and Capture My Flag for Heart Health

February is all about hearts and Diet Coke is reminding women not to forget about their own. In support of the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute's effort to celebrate American Heart Month with The Heart Truth campaign, Diet Coke is helping to send an important message to women about the risks of heart disease, the leading cause of death for American women.

Diet Coke's Capture The Flag campaign places heart flags both in the real world and online. When you find one in your real life (check in using Facebook Places) or find one online on popular websites, you can trigger donations to heart health programs. You can also plant your own flag online (like I have here on this site - over to the right) and if someone clicks on it, Diet Coke will donate $.10 to this important cause. So go click on mine!

. . .and please note that this Friday, February 4th is National Wear Red Day - to show that "Heart Disease Doesn't Care What You Wear-It's the #1 Killer of Women," - so please wear red in support of combatting heart disease. 

Design Your Own T-Shirt for Komen For The Cure

In another nod to help find a cure for breast cancer, Hanes recently launched their Design and Buy program that allows you to design your own t-shirt with messages to support the cause. They even offer some t-shirts designed by Melina Kanakaredes of CSI:NY available for purchase, or simply to inspire your own creations. Hanes is donating 10% of the proceeds from all of the custom designed t-shirts to Komen for the Cure.

While you're on their site, be sure to check out the cute Hanes Pink Collection with all of their Passionately Pink for the Cure products. This year Hanes is supporting Komen for the Cure with a $500,000 donation, and I find it endearing when a company supports the same causes that I do.

Special thanks to Hanes for sending me a sample t-shirt and to my sister for modeling it! She reports that it's comfy (as you'd expect from Hanes ;-) ) and fits "rather well."