Help Raise Money for Akron Children's Hospital During the Race Across America with Ohio CycleWorks & FedEx SenseAware

We love watching bike races and love attending the Twilight Criterium in Athens, Georgia when we can. Even watching bike races on TV is exhilarating to me, especially the Race Across America (RAAM), which is known as the "World's Toughest Bicycle Race"! It's actually going on right now and you should check it out. They began on June 16th in Oceanside, California and will end on the 25th in Annapolis, Maryland. We watched it last year and my husband and I were absolutely amazed at the strength and persistence of the cyclists. I cannot imagine how much training and dedication it takes to train for something like that.

This year the Ohio CycleWorks bike team is participating in this year's RAAM and is sponsored by FedEx Custom Critical. A member of the Ohio CycleWorks bike team, Scott Garchar, has worked with FedEx Custom Critical for over a decade now and the team is participating in the 2012 Race Across America to help raise money for the Akron Children's Hospital! Along their journey, they are showcasing SenseAware, which is powered by FedEx.

What is SenseAware and FedEx Custom Critical?
FedEx Custom Critical specializes in the transport of high-value, time-critical freight. For these items they often use devices like SenseAware for customers who ship items requiring temperature-control and special, secure handling of the products. SenseAware is especially important to the Akron Children's Hospital because it can help safely deliver critical packages that can save the lives of the very children the Ohio CycleWorks team is riding to support!
SenseAware's amazing technology allows real-time date to be seen online, including location, temperature, barmetric pressure, humidity and even light sensitivity!

As a Mama of a son who has Neurofibromatosis, we spend a great deal of time at our children's hospital, so you can imagine just how many patients use the Akron Children's Hospital's pediatric services each year (over 600,000)! It is ranked as a Best Children's Hospital overall and has earned special rankings for its services and specialties.


Tracking The Team With SenseAware
I was able to try out SenseAware on the Ohio CycleWorks bike team since they are traveling with the device. Here's what was reported for today:

Friday, June 22, 2012

The SenseAware(SM) application provides near real-time data about the team’s journey. Here is a snapshot of today’s statistics as the team rides on past Cincinnati, OH. 

 Location: Belpre, OH
   Temperature: 92.4º F
   Humidity: 56%
 Barometric Pressure: 989 mBar
'

Earlier this week the temperature was in the eighties, which I thought was hot. With humidity over 50% and temperatures over 90º F, I cannot even imagine how tough the ride was today. I'm sure today was slower than other days as heat and humidity can definitely effect energy rates. Let's hope for a cooler day tomorrow! Click here to keep up with the team and all of the day's statistics from the SenseAware device.

For more information about the Ohio CycleWorks Charities or to donate to their cause, visit their website at http://ohiocycleworkscharities.org/.

I received compensation from FedEx for covering the use of SenseAware® technology during the 2012 Race Across America. My ideas and opinions relayed in this blog post and any related Twitter discussions are the my own and are not provided by FedEx or its affiliates and subsidiaries.

Johnson's Baby Partnering with Save the Children to Support Mamas & Babies #MomCentral

For Mother's Day this year, our family went down to my mother-in-law's house for a cookout! We didn't do anything fancy, but the day in itself was just special, spending it with family and not a care in the world. The kids played together outdoors while we cooked and then we just enjoyed each other's company! The boys helped me back little gift baskets for their Grandma and Aunt, so we handed those out. I think the boys were just as excited to give them presents as they were to receive them. Our family has supported us through thick and thin and, without them, there were times I know we could not have gotten by. This is why I try to give back in small ways and to let them know how much we truly appreciate them.

As a Mama, it is not only important to give back to others, but to teach our children to do the same. We are here to set an example and, as their providers and educators, we must show them that giving is in most cases, more important and gratifying than receiving. This is why we have volunteered at places around our county as well as donate to Goodwill. We will continue to do so as they get older and, hopefully, they will one day impart this wisdom to their own children.

Big brother helping little brother!

 Johnson's Baby Cares
One of our favorite brands Johnson's Baby has a new charitable platform called Johnson's Baby Cares that I think is an amazing cause worth sharing and supporting. They are partnering with Save the Children, an organization focused on improving the health of Mamas and babies worldwide. Johnson's Baby Cares is donating Baby "Care Kits" stocked with all kinds of necessary baby items, including lotions, washes, shampoos, diaper creams and more to Save the Children.

Plus, Johnson's offered to donate an additional $50,000 to Save the Children when THIS video hit 500,000 views on their Happy Mother's Day, Mom-- You're Doing OK" video! Guess what? It is currently at over 4 million views! So, thanks for everyone who has done their part to make this amazing gift possible.

How can you help?

You can click "Donate" from the Johnson's Baby Cares Facebook! Also, Each time you purchase a Johhnson's Baby product between April 15th and June 10th, 2012 and redeem a $.50 coupon at retail stores, $.25 will be donated to Save the Children!!! Throughout 2012, Johnson's Baby will offer additional ways consumers can help support Save the Children, so be sure to "Like" their Facebook page to keep up with all the current campaigns and promotions!

I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Johnson & Johnson and received a promotional item to thank me for my participation.