Many of us with chronic illness or disability have undergone or were born with physical scars or abnormalities of some kind. Hopefully we have learned not to obsess over this, but to accept and embrace our looks. I have a very large scar on my chest due to major surgery. At first I considered having cosmetic surgery to cover it up, but now I look at it as a badge of honor because without it, I may not be alive today.

Now I’d rather obsess over fashion than my physical appearance. One of my vices is buying shoes. Yes, they have to be comfortable, but there’s no problem finding gorgeous shoes like flats from Kate Spade. Although I’d only wear them a few times a year, Michael Kors boots would do me a world of good too. They’d have me strutting!

Simply put, buying shoes and feeling good about how I dress is a lot cheaper than getting cosmetic surgery. It’s taken time to accept the way my body has changed, but all women’s bodies change as we age. Focus on being positive, building up self-esteem, finding new interests and cultivating personal relationships. And, If looking good includes buying new shoes, go for it. And don’t forget to shop safely online.

This is a sponsored post. Please see my Disclosure Policy for more information.

I just joined a group to help us prepare for Christmas. We are going to share idea on how to have a stress free holiday season. Last year Christmas was very rushed and things were done at the last minute. I ended up getting very sick because of feeling so uneasy. For the first time in years I didn’t have a home made Christmas Eve dinner and I didn’t send out Christmas cards.

Cards are very important to me because I only have my mother and aunt living close by. Finding just the right photo holiday cards tops off my Christmas to do list. At 123print.com there are so many bright and cheery cards to chose from. I was able to find both religious and Santa cards, my favorites. It’s easy to upload your photo and find what you want by category as well as folded or flat cards.

I’ll be sharing this with the group so we can get one of our to do items checked off the list and feel the stress release too.

This is a sponsored post. Please see my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Back to school time is when parents often need to buy new eyeglasses for their children. This can be costly since children lose their glasses or even break them. My friend’s daughter wears glasses and she has to be sure to have a second pair on hand at all times. With her daughter being in school, she wants her to fit in and not be teased by other children, so the style of her eyeglasses is very important.

Children don’t want to look the same or wear glasses that look cheap. They want fashionable eyeglasses. And it just gets worse as they get older. I can’t blame them. When my older daughter had to wear glasses in high school, they became a fashion statement for her. Even at her age she lost them, sat on them and even feel asleep with them on. We went through a few pairs a year. We finally took the money out of her allowance to teach her a lesson.

ZenniOptical glasses start at only $8. At this price you can purchase a few pairs for your child! You do need a prescription and you can take your child to try on some glasses in an optical store to see what looks good before your purchase. So make back to school fun for your child and less expensive for you.

With chronic illness comes a multitude of symptoms. One of them is sensitive eyes. Using daily contact lenses from Bausch and Lomb can allow you to wear contacts and can help ease the pain too.

SofLens by Bausch and Lomb are disposable lenses which means that you use a new pair every day. They contain something like artificial tears that help to moisten your eyes the entire time you wear them. They are shaped to feel comfortable in your eyes.

Of course there’s the convenience of using disposable contact lenses. Forget about having to clean them. No worries about losing them and fumbling around trying to find them on the floor. They are easier to pack  and carry along with you because there’s no hard case. And if you have allergies there’s no build up of allergens on your lenses.

You’ll save money too because you don’t need to buy solution to clean your lenses and buying them is costs the same as purchasing two week lenses.

Your vision can even improve by using disposable contact lenses. “High Definition™ Optics” used in SofLens lessens the appearance of blurriness and haziness even if you’ve had your eyes corrected. You can get a free trial of SofLens as well as a $30 rebate on your fitting fee. There’s no time like now to give them a try.

This is a sponsored post. Please see my Disclosure Policy for more information.

*CONTEST ENDED. WINNERS ANNOUNCED.*

Sunsweet Growers has introduced a new product - Sunsweet Antioxidant Blend. It includes dried cherries, plums, wild blueberries and cranberries. This is a very healthy snack and it is tasty too. It is naturally sweet and can be easily in recipes too.

Eating food high in antioxidants can help prevent infection and slow the aging process. The fruits in this blend are four of the highest scoring oxygen-free radical fighting fruits on the Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC) chart.

Sunsweet Antioxidant Blend comes in a 5 oz resealable bag. They can be purchased in the produce section of major stores in the US for the suggested retail price of $3.99. Each serving is only 130 calories and has no fat, cholesterol, or sodium. It does contain 4% Potassium and Fiber. (This is daily values based on a 2,000 calorie diet.) It’s always nice to have a healthy snack that is handy especially for those of us that have a chronic illness. I like being able to reach my hand into the bag and enjoy.

Giveaway: Ten readers will win a V.I.P. coupon for any Sunsweet product up to $5.5o and a Reusable Tote bag.

The Rules:
1. Contest starts now and ends Monday, August 3rd at midnight EST.
2. Open to people in the US.
3. Winner will be chosen by Random.org.
4. Winner has 2 days to claim prize.
5. Have fun and tell your friends.

How To Enter:
For One Entry For Each Below: (please leave a separate comment for each entry)

Mandatory to be entered into contest - Visit Sunsweet website and leave a comment about what product you like and why.

For Extra Entries:
1. Sign up for this blog’s RSS feed. (Only for new followers)
2. Leave a comment on a post on my other blog, Connie’s View. Let me know the post please.
3. Fave my blog on Technorati.
4. Write a blog post linking to this post.
5. Follow my blog on Facebook - use the Networked Blogs widget on my sidebar - Leave your Facebook name please.
6. Follow me on Twitter. (Only for new followers) Leave your Twitter ID please.
7. Visit Earn $ Blogging page and leave a comment about something you learned from that page.
8. Tweet this and leave your Twitter ID please:

10 will Win A Sunsweet VIP Coupon and Tote @ConnieFoggles. Eat Healthy! http://tinyurl.com/m6gefs PL RT

This review and giveaway sponsored by Sunsweet Growers.

I met craftyGAgal on Twitter and learned about how she succeeds in business through chronic pain. We connected on Facebook too. The more I’ve learned about her and her drive to make and sell crafts and to blog, the more I wanted to share her positive attitude and her beautiful work with my readers.

craftyGAgal’s real name is Meredith Crosby. She is 31 years old, married and has twin boys who are 7 years old. When she was a young girl, she was involved in a boating accident and injured her back. Her condition worsened after her pregnancy due to carrying twins and the weight gain that went along with it. She also has scoliosis and has had to endure a spinal fusion and a costoplasty- where they removed several centimeters of five of her ribs to remove a hump that was in her back due to the scoliosis. The ribs are then left broken to heal back together. She had two titanium rods put into my back, 13 screws and lots of other hardware. These were both very painful operations.

Meredith describes her condition as, “Constant never ending Pain, numbness in limbs and sometimes lips, unable to do anything for long periods of time, depression, anxiety, loss of social life…” But she has a loving and supportive husband and her children love her unconditionally. She is part of the Invisible Illness group because she doesn’t look disabled and has friends and even some family members who don’t understand her situation and her chronic pain.

After being told that she could not work, she began crafting for fun and to keep her mind busy and occupied. She makes stained glass, beaded and gemstone jewelry and crochets baby items and hats. She has a store on Etsy - craftyGAgal, where she takes custom orders and lists new items every day.

*Important* If you shop at her Etsy store between now and the end of the day on July 6th, put in a code “MyChronicLife” to the “Note to Seller” area you will get a 10% discount.

Get to know her and her bubbly personality on Twitter and on Facebook, where she’s also known as Southern Handmade Gifts. She’ll have you laughing, I promise! And if you think that isn’t enough, visit her blog, craftyGAgal’s Southern Handmade Gifts.

This is an ongoing effort to spotlight people with chronic illness, health issues and disabilities who are making a contribution in some way despite their pain, sickness, etc.