Matthew's Puzzle and a mom putting it all together

What If You Could Fly Print Giveaway

June 9, 2009 By Maryann

WE HAVE A WINNER – DAWN

Dawn said… 27 @ June 27, 2009 5:43 PM: I visited Alissandra’s portfolio.

What if? That is a really big question. A question that all parents ponder from time to time and parents of special needs kids think about a lot. I know I do. What if I had waited one more month to try to get pregnant? What if I had decided to have a cesarean section, would Matthew have been breathing when he was born? What if he didn’t have Autism? What if we hadn’t found DAN! What if? What if? What if?

But there are other What if’s to consider. Much happier and more interesting What if’s. What if I could fly? What if we could live in the clouds? What if Matthew could bring stories to life? What if Nico could make friends with the monsters under his bed? And what if Larry could move things with his mind? What if flowers bloomed with YOUR every step? Alissandra of Heartsleeve Studio, in my native Baltimore, has thought of all of these and has put ink to paper (so to speak) and made beautiful prints of her work and her imagination.

I immediately fell in love with Alissandra’s work. Of course I’m a bit partial because she is from Baltimore, but I know you will cherish her art too. Her What If series really spoke to me on so many levels, but I think it really resonated with the part of me that wants to open Matthew’s world to the imaginable. Everything you read about Autism talks about how autistic children are literal and they have trouble with pretend play and imagination. How perfect are Alissandra’s prints that they illustrate exactly what we hope our children can dream up in their own minds. It is like a model for them; a diagram, a roadmap to imagination.

Alissandra told me that her inspiration for the What if series comes from her belief that a little hope and a good imagination will take a child farther than most anything else and she wanted to support the pursuit of playful dreams and ideas, visually. How cool is that? And she is a pretty cool chick herself. She has an unreasonable fondness for sprinkles, an unlikely distaste for revolving doors, an unconventional habit of writing in all lowercase or uppercase letters, and an unfortunate inability to leave coherent voicemails. You can tell she is a passionate person, and thank goodness she can draw!

Alissandra sent me the What If…You could fly print. It really is special. The bright red sneakers of the carefree youngster draw you in and you wish you were right there in the sky with the child, soaring and spiraling over the fields. How many talking points can you imagine could come from this one single print? Dozens, I’m sure.

BUY IT!

Alissandra has decided to offer a 15% discount from now until the end of June on anything in her Etsy shop. Simply enter the code “thanksmatthew15” in the message to the seller section. She will then send you a revised invoice less the 15% – so you won’t see the price change immediately.

WIN IT!

Alissandra also sent me another What If…You could fly print for me to giveaway to one lucky Matthew’s Puzzle reader. To win this great print, simply visit Heartsleeve Studio and take a look around at her other items, then come back to Matthew’s Puzzle and leave me a comment telling me what items you love. Make sure you leave your email address or that your email address is publicly viewable from your blog. This is a mandatory entry and must be done before you can do any of the additional entries below. Also, any entries of comments such as “enter me” or “I want to win” will be disqualified.

Extra Entries!

Do any or all of the following to acquire additional entries. Please leave a comment for each of the items you do.

1. Follow Matthew’s Puzzle Publicly

2. Tweet about this contest

3. Digg this contest

4. Add this to your Technorati favorites (you can use the button at the top of this page)

5. Visit Alissandra’s portfolio at http://heart-sleevestudio.com

6. Check out http://Heart-Sleevestudio.blogspot.com

7. Follow Alissandra on Twitter at Twitter.com/alissandra

This contest will end at 11:59 PM EDT June 30, 2009. Contest is open to US residents, 18 years and older. I will use Random.org random number generator to choose the winner.

Zukay Giveaway

June 8, 2009 By Maryann

WE HAVE A WINNER – HEAVENTREES

heaventrees said… 64 @ June 24, 2009 8:09 PM: I would love to try Zukay’s Garlic Dill Relish. I bet it would be great on a burger or in potato salad. I also found out that Zukay products are available at Whole Foods in my city.

I found a really great product recently. Not only is it really tasty (which is the most important, because if it doesn’t taste good, it doesn’t matter how good it is for you, you won’t eat it), but it is also beneficial to your health. The company is Zukay and they make naturally fermented salad dressings, relishes and salsas.

So what exactly is so great about fermented foods? Well, they are naturally full of probiotics. And Zukay is also made with no sugar, except in their ketchup where they use organic cane sugar. They buy locally produced vegetables and use NO Preservatives!

And Probiotics:
1. Increase Digestive Health
2. Increase Immune System Functionality
3. Decrease Allergies and Asthma Severity
4. Decrease Negative Digestive Effects of Antibiotics

I learned the importance of probiotics when I started researching the Defeat Autism Now! (DAN!) protocol. I found out how good gut flora (PRO-biotics) can help heal the gut and help control yeast. When Matthew started taking probiotics he also stopped biting others. We didn’t see the connection until we had to take him off the probiotics to run a test and the biting resumed. But once he was back on the probiotics he again stopped biting. That was the Aha moment for us. Then I heard Julie Matthews speak at the DAN! conference in San Diego. She is a nutritionist and DAN! practitioner and she was raving about homemade sauerkraut. At the time I thought there was no way I would try making my own sauerkraut but by the time the lecture was over I realized the enormous benefits of naturally occurring fermentation. Well, I have made sauerkraut once, but now I can get that same benefit in salad dressing and salsas.

I got a chance to try the Zukay line of salad dressings. My current favorite is the Carrot Ginger! Oh So Good! My boys favor the Cucumber Mint. Matthew likes to dip his carrots in it and says that he is a bunny. I don’t care what he calls himself as long as he eats his veggies.

Zukay salad dressings are thinner than most commercial dressings, but the flavor is fantastic. They offer sampler packs for all of their products, and they are available in many health food stores. They even suggest taking their salsa and pureeing it into a “ketchup” to add flavor and live probiotics to your summer cookouts! Now doesn’t that sound good?

BUY IT!
Go to Zukay and order your live salad dressings, relishes and salsas for a fast delivery. You could have them for your Father’s Day Cookout!

WIN IT!
Zukay has offered a 6 pack of their products to one lucky Matthew’s Puzzle winner! You can have your choice of either a 6 pack of their salad dressings or a 6 pack of their relishes and salsas. It is your choice. Simply head over to Zukay, check out the flavors of dressings, relishes and salsa (and maybe find a store near you!) then come back to Matthew’s Puzzle and leave a message telling me which product is your favorite (excluding the one’s I have mentioned in this post). Remember to leave an email address or your blog address with an easy to find email address.

EXTRA ENTRIES!
Leave a message for each and every item you do below:
1. Publicly Follow Matthew’s Puzzle
2. Blog about this contest
3. Tweet about this contest
4. Digg this contest
5. Add Matthew’s Puzzle to Your Technorati Favorites
6. Grab Matthew’s Puzzle’s Button and/or Add us to your blog roll

This contest ends June 30, 2009 at 11:59 PM EDT. I will use Random.org random number generator to pick the winner. You must leave a pertinent first entry to qualify, no “count me in” or “I’d love to win” type posts. They will be excluded from winning. Open to US residents, 18 years and older.