A Promise Made is a Debt unpaid.

[Guest guest]

Dear RSS Family,

I am going to write about something today that might offend you.

The topic is money and how to save it. Please know that I am not

intentionally trying to pick on anyone's choices or lifestyle. I am

merely pointing out some options that you all may have not heard of

or tried before. My motivation is simple. THe more people we get

on board with the Magic Foundation as members, the greater pay off

we all will have in the long run - especially for our precious

children. As has said in the past, the more members we

have, the more funding we are likely to get from the major

pharmaceuticals who help our kids. This would lead to research

which someday will help prevent RSS. Call me a dreamer, but if they

can find the cause of Progeria (the aging disease that affects so

few people in our country), why not find the cause of RSS which

affects thousands?

A few months ago when my fund raising efforts were done, I was

talking to Salem on the phone. We were both lamenting the

fact that membership in Magic is no where near the level it is here

on the list serve. I told her, that as I am a consumate tightwad

(thrifty, frugal, penny watcher and pincher) getting information

(medical, educational and emotional) for free is just to good to

pass up. She agreed, and then we started talking about how hard it

is to raise a family when there are so many lay offs and down sizing

not to mention, primary care givers giving up jobs and benefits to

stay at home and care for their sick children. Speaking of sick

children, we all know how expensive it is to care for our RSS kids.

Some of us get government help. Other's can't. I've often joked

with my husband that by the time Connor reaches college years, we

will have already financed an Ivy League education with his medical

exspenses. I'm sure many of you are in the same boat. But, beleive

it or not, we have still managed to save money every month even

though I am a stay at home mom now. It can be done. asked

me to write an article about how to save money painlessly so that

the option of Magic membership would not seem oo daunting to our

list serve families.

With the next few tips that I have collected over the past few

months I hope to educate you all on some alternatives to spending

which can create savings in your checkbook and thus income for the

30.00 membership fee or whatever you may fancy. Everybody repeat

after me, " Saving money is not a bad thing. "

Knowledge is power - let us proceed.

1. Purchase 10 articles of clothing at thrift shops and yard sales

this year instead of paying department store prices. I'm really not

bragging but many of you commented on how nice I dressed Connor and

myself at convention. Please let me inform you, every article on my

back (including underwear) was purchased at Goodwill or a thrift

shop. It's not uncommon to find Liz Claiborne and Ralph at

these places. You're saving huge amounts of money buying second

hand.

2. Hang four loads of laundry per week instead of using your

dryer. Your dryer is the hugest energy sucker of wattage in your

home. Cutting back will show up in savings on your monthly bill.

3. Wash your own car this month and save the $ 15.00 - $20.00

charge per wash for the car wash. That's a savings of 30.00 -40.00

dollars in one month.

4. Mow your own lawn. Not only will you save money, you'll burn

calories!!!!

5. Once a month, make a pizza from scratch and buy the soda on

sale. The average family of 5 spends $25-40.00 on this meal. I can

get the soda for .69 cents a liter and make the pizza (meat included

for 5.00. Total savings $22.00.

6. Drop down your cable to broadcast stations only. We went from a

47.00 a month bill to 13.00. The savings were invested in some

reader rabbit software to help the children learn to read. Yes, I

miss HGTV, but I have found that the public library has a ton of

home interiors how to books which I can check out for free.

Speaking of the Library...

7. Start using the Library five times more than you have. Books,

best sellers, how to, crafts, history, videos, books on tape, free

internet access, children's literacy programs. Etc. Etc.Etc.

Folk's the public library is a stay at home mother's salvation for

entertainment value for the kids!

8. Buy the generic lable of food rather than the name brand. THere

is no difference between Del Monte canned veggies and the store

brand except .25 a can in price. Same goes for coffee, flour, eggs,

cereal, etc. Yes, I know, choosy mother's choose Jiff. But, if you

buy generic on 80% of your groceries and leave 20% for those special

items you simply can't do without your savings will be substantial.

9. Learn the receipe for a lattee and make your own at home. Need

help? 1 can of sweetened condensed milk. Instant coffee to taste.

Heat, the milk, beat in a blender add coffee and them smooth with

milk. Viola. Lattee for .49 cents rather than $5.00 . Do this for

one week and you can mail in your saving to Magic for your

membership before school starts.

10. This last tip will involve a mind over matter reorganization in

your thought process. In anthropology, we call it a paradigm shift.

Understand Time and the importance of patience. Today's new release

at the movie theater will eventually be on video. Total savings for

the family 22.00. Same goes with best sellers. Our culture has

programmed us to want everything right away. Instant gratification

sells. Folks, buck the system!!!!! Wait. Everything goes on

sale. Everything goes off the market. Everything, and I mean

everything ends up in a yard sale!!!!! Time is your friend when

saving money. Exercise patience and you will reap the benefits.

Money is a trick subject with many emotional strings attatched. My

greatest hope is that anyone today reading these points can feel

empowered to be a member of Magic and reap those benefits as well.

My membership has helped me educate the care team who works on

Connor. How many of you have had to contradict Dr.'s with the

latest research from the Journal of Endocrinolgy because you've read

the article and they haven't? Thank Magic for that. Thank Magic

for gathering the information and organizing it so that you can get

it to your doctor. Thank Magic for that Handy Dandy brochure which

could save your child's life in an emergency room when some idiot

Dr. wants to send you child home in a full blown Hypo-g drop in

their blood sugar. Thank Magic for creating a community of caring

individuals who help each other out in every aspect of life. Thank

Magic for the convention where we can gather and the people staring

at your child look just like him, and then they smile because they

have found a friend.

Hope is a powerful motivator. I can't put a price tag on it. But I

know that in July, I left the Magic convention with buckets of hope

to report back home with and to live on for the rest of the year.

If we all work together, joining Magic and continuing to help each

other on this list serve, no one will be able to put a price tag on

our collective achievements. But, we will have living proof in our

children and our friends.

Sincerely,

Kearns

Mom to Graham 7, Cameron 4, Connor IUGR, RSS, Periactin, Zantac,

Prevacid ST, PT, NT, Ciphosis.