Over the last few years I’ve seen the trend of school budget cuts for everything from art, music, and physical education. Schools are being shut down while prisons are being built in Pennsylvania and other urban cities around the country.

How Do Schools Survive Budget Cuts?

The school districts that remain struggle year after year with over-crowding, lack of parent engagement, and Ritalin overload. At the beginning of every school year parents are spending more and more money for school supplies. The things school used to supply in years past are now being passed on to parents despite paying high property taxes.

Sometimes public schools feel like private schools because the price tag keeps getting bigger and bigger due to budget cuts. There has definitely been a shift in priorities so I’m partnering with True Blue Schools to help you cope with these costs. It’s still important to contribute but it doesn’t have to put such a strain on your budget, especially when you can get help.

How  Can You Give Without Breaking the Budget?

How can your school benefit from the power of many small (less than $10) monthly contributions?

The answer is as simple and as close as your natural gas bill. TrueBlue Schools program helps schools raise money in a simple, yet effective way.

TrueBlue Schools Win, So Can Your Child’s School

Some schools have earned $5,000 in a matter of months, $10,000 in a year and more than $40,000 over the life of the program.

Your school could earn just as much or more when parent and friends switch natural gas providers. Get more details below. You can also enter to win a prize pack it includes there are many ways to enter to win.

Background on TrueBlue Schools 

TrueBlue  Schools is a fast and easy way to help your  school raise money just by using Georgia Natural Gas. When you become a GNG  Customer, sign up for TrueBlue Schools and we donate $5/month to the school of your choice. Plus, you get  a discount on your bill (it’s a win for your school and a win  for you!) The $5 is not added to your bill, TrueBlue Schools is no cost to you.

Signing up is easy:

Customers switching from another provider:

· Visit http://trueblueschools.com

· Select a school to donations once your new gas service begins.

· Enter some basic information, and use our secure online website to switch your service to Georgia Natural Gas.

· Don’t forget to provide promotion code TRUEBLUE to receive up to a 15¢ per therm discount on your gas service, in addition a monthly $5 donation to your school.

· Remember, you can always call 1.866.ONLYGNG to sign up by phone, too.

If ALREADY a Georgia Natural Gas customer:

· Visit TrueBlueSchools.com

· Select your school to receive donations.

· Enter some basic information and you’re done.

TrueBlue Schools has donated almost $2M to-­‐date. Spread the word!

Enter the Fall Family Giveaway

Enter to win a Fall Family Pack brought to you by Georgia Natural Gas. You have multiple ways to win but don’t forget to sign up for TrueBlue Schools to get money donated to your kid’s school too!

The pack includes:

1  Fall Family Giveaway including 1 insulated picnic tote, 1 stadium blanket,  2 chip  clips, 2 lip balms,  2 mini first aid kits,  2 hand sanitizers,  2 insulated lunch boxes, 2 cell phone anti-­‐slip pads, 2 Chap Sticks, 1 kitchen apple timer, and $50 in Target Gift Cards

Five ways to enter the Fall Family Giveaway (readers can enter five times for five chances  to win):

• Leave a comment: “What would your school do with $10,000?”
• Share  post on Facebook
• Share  post to Pinterest
• Tweet “I’m entering to win the Georgia Natural Gas #TrueBlueSchools Family Prize Pack from @richsinglemomma, you should, too! [LINK to this post]”
• Tweet “#TrueBlueSchools is an easy way to donate $5/month to your local  school [LINK to this post]”

Disclosure: TrueBlue Schools sponsored this post.

Last year I discovered The Soul Man on TV Land with Cedric the Entertainer. I enjoy his comedy and acting so I had to check out the show.

Last night I was able to attend the premier screening of the 2nd Season premier with one of the show’s stars Wesley Johnson. He plays Cedric’s younger brother Stamps.

We watched the first episode of the show and I have to say it was very funny, like laugh out loud funny. There are a few changes from last season. The daughter is off to boarding school, Stamps moves in, there was no church scenes and the father played a shorter role. These changes are a part of the reason  the show is still on. Budget cuts sometimes have to happen to keep the show alive.

In all the show is expected to be funnier according to Wesley. He did a Q & A and photo session after the screening. I admire his ability to remain  in the business for so long. He started in 21 Jump Street when he was eight years old and has been in a couple of long running series.

I definitely recommend checking out the show on TV Land Wednesdays at 11pm est or simply record the show or watch online the next day.

Last weekend I went to the closing of my neighborhood Kangazoom. It was a children’s play place that Tameka Raymond owned. You remember Tameka don’t you? She was married to pop star Usher? Her son, his stepson died in a jet ski accident last year. We can only imagine what it’s like to lose a child. To remember all the wonderful things about her so she started a foundation called Kile’s World last March.

Closing Kangazoom was hard but she wants to focus on the foundation and she is starting a new clothing line.

This summer she is offering an Arts summer camp called Kile’s Camp. It will feature dance, chorus, acting, and fine arts. The kids, ages 10-17, will choose a major and a minor to focus on for two weeks. At the end of the camp there will be a big production.

The camp is $150 and will be held at the Cobb Energy Center here in Metro Atlanta. The dates are July 8-19, 2013.

One of the best things you can do as a solo mom is get out and have fun. I don’t mean the clubbing, get down and dirty drunk, kind of fun but clean fun that energizes you. There is a big difference.

I had that kind of fun this weekend at a Masquerade Ball sponsored by my church’s social committee. It was not the standard stale and boring banquet you see in typical churches. Nope it was a party with a band, costumes, and lots of dancing!

My life is blessed because it is filled with supportive people from my church as well as family. I can be me and feel 100% accepted. Isn’t that what we all want deep down?

If you can find a place or group of people like that then you have an awesome head start. It kills the isolation that is very present in the single mom life. It also puts a dent in your depression.

I used to think I couldn’t go to parties if I didn’t have a date so I wouldn’t go. Not any more. I go because I want the fellowship and fun. So far I’ve had no regrets, plus I get to meet and dance with all the single guys there.

Here are a few pictures from the event. While you are looking through them why not find a party or other social event to attend. You really need it.

The dragons were alive at the Ringling Bros circus and the show was pretty good. The kids and I got our tickets and stood in line to get my bag checked and enter Philips Arena. While we waited it was windy and cold but that didn’t stop the animal rights protesters standing in front of the arena with their bullhorns and signs. The circus program vendor had his own state of the art mic greeting the circus-goers in a louder voice.

We got inside and walked past all the souvenirs and food items. I stopped to get the kids lemonade before we found our seats. Fortunately, we ate before we got there (a momma’s preplanning works wonders for the wallet) so I didn’t bother to get any food, including popcorn.

We were there for the pre-show where the kids could go down and meet the clowns, jump in the jumping play castle, and even see an elephant up close and personal. My kids are older so it wasn’t very fascinating for them so we sat and waited.

The show finally started and I must say I like the new theme of Strength, Courage, Wisdom, and Heart. The costumes were great and the little person was one of my favorites. The kept us waiting to see the dragon but in the meantime we got see the acrobats and trapeze artists. Had fun watching the clowns and the pony, dog and cat shows in three rings.

There was much more to see. Overall we weren’t disappointed. I think my favorite part of the event was the half-time wave and dance party. My son was embarrassed that I was up having fun and dancing. But what else was there to do but have fun.

Overall I give the circus a B- and the half-time fun an A. But judge for yourself when you go.

The High Museum will be open Christmas Eve and hosting arts and crafts for the kids. If you live in the city or plan to visit stop by.

Here are more details:

FREE Admission on Dec. 24:
This Christmas Eve, the High Museum of Art would like to give a gift to you and your family – free admission! Visitors can enjoy fun family activities along with the world’s best art, including our current exhibitions Fast Forward: Modern Moments 1913 >> 2013 and Hard Truths: The Art of Thornton Dial.

Holidays at the High:
Monday, Dec. 24 and Wednesday, Dec. 26 through Monday, Dec. 31 from 1 to 4 p.m. Bring your family to the High for art-making experiences that are fun for everyone! For these events, the High will open on Mondays with special hours on Dec. 24 and Dec. 31.

Visit www.high.org for more information.

The kids and I went to check out Stone Mountain’s Snow Mountain here in Atlanta this weekend. It is part of the Stone Mountain Christmas that runs from November 10, 2012 to January 1, 2013. I heard about it last year and thought it would be cool to check it out but we didn’t make it. I got invited to go this year and am so glad I went. I haven’t had that much fun in a long time.

We got in and took a family picture in front of the Christmas scene then moved on to find Snow Mountain. We didn’t know what to expect as we walked through the village that was all decked out in Christmas lights. We saw signs for the shows for the little kids to The Polar Express Experience. I’ll get to that later.

Fun on Snow Mountain 6x’s

Then we spotted the entrance to Snow Mountain. We could not start the fun just yet because they didn’t allow extras like scarves, purses, video camera, etc. We had to turn around and put our stuff in the lockers. Fortunately it was only a dollar to store our things. Now we could ride. And boy did we ride. Six times in fact. Three times on the solo slide and three times on the family/group slide.

I was one tired lady after all that. When you are at the top of the slide they run through the rules like; hold the grey handles, don’t get out, stay in your lane, and if you lose something they will get it for you. Glad I remembered that last part because the second time we went down the family slide I lost my cell phone. I took it to take all the lovely pictures you see here.

Lost and Found Cell Phone, Whewwww!!!

I noticed it was missing when I wanted to take a picture of the kid’s Snow Zone. The phone was gone so we headed back up the hill to get ask if they found it. They sent up to the top of mountain to get it…I was really tired. We got there and they said they had it at the bottom of hill and we needed to go back down…GRRRRRR!!!! Fortunately they let us go to the front of the line and ride back down. So that made the third time on the family slide for us. I got my phone back once they verified it was mine and we were on our way to other adventures.

Funnel Cakes and Forever Christmas Show

We stopped for a Funnel Cake and something to drink after the Snow Mountain Adventure. I convinced my son to taste the cake that he looked at with his nose scrunched up. He tasted it and loved it. I think he is pretty much won over, LOL!

We checked the schedule and made our way to the Forever Christmas show. It was basically a Christmas music review. The website describes it this way:

“Come enjoy the sounds of the season, from Doo-Wop to current Pop! “Yule” love remembering the songs from yesterday and making new memories for today!”

It was better than I expected and the singers were really good. There was a surprise for the little kids in the show. My kids are older so they weren’t impressed, in fact my daughter didn’t like it at all. I suspect it’s just her personality though. But little kids will really like that part.

The Polar Express 4-D Experience

The next thing we did was go see The Polar Express Experience. It was a 4-D show that “engaged your senses”. Here is how the website describes it:

“When a doubting young boy takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole, he embarks on a journey of self-discovery that shows him that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe.

THE POLAR EXPRESS 4-D EXPERIENCE is a 20-minute show based on the inspiring and beloved Caldecott Medal children’s book by Chris Van Allsburg.”

It was a fun experience though it seemed too short. It felt like we were a part of the excitement in the movie.

Christmas Parade and Friends

After the show we waited around for the Christmas parade. We ran into Amy from Atlanta with Kid and The Q Family Adventures, along with her husband and kids. We chatted with them for a bit until the parade started. Her husband Ron had his video camera all ready to capture the show, but it went by too fast for him to get anything, LOL! He has a video creation and production company if you ever need a great videographer.

Cookie Decorating for the Little (or not so little) Artists

My daughter wanted to decorate a cookie so we headed to Memorial Hall so she could express her artistic talents. My son declined because his growling stomach made it hard to have a good attitude. So he sat and waited although he was very grumpy :-p.

We ran into Raisa Lefe (Macaroni Kid Sandy Springs-Dunwoody) and her family on the way to eat dinner. It was fun watching her little boys talk about everything they did at the park that day. They are too cute.

Plenty of Exercise, Plenty of Fun at Stone Mountain

It was a fun afternoon and I definitely got my exercise. The steep hills of Stone Mountain are not to be taken lightly but the park is beautiful throughout the year. We left before the laser light show and fireworks but I’m sure it was great.

I hope you enjoyed reading about our snow day at Stone Mountain park. If you live in Atlanta go check it out before January 2. If you plan to visit Atlanta during the Holidays I hope you check it out as well.

Check out the rest of the pictures on Facebook and like the RichSingleMomma page while you are there.