Eleven pipers piping...

This week I'm spending my time cleaning, cooking, and basically doing whatever I can to support everyone here as we work through a rough family time (although I just burned my quiche, so that particular cooking experience didn't go as planned). Hoping you all are having a wonderful week so far and enjoying the weather in your area. Here it's cold and snowy - but I love it. So spend the rest of today and the week embracing the winter! Drink some hot cider and cuddle up in a warm blanket watching a fire (or the yule log somewhere). Here are a couple fun things to entertain you and make the rest of your week a little more fun:

Possibly the best husband ever.

11 Wonderful Winter Weather Terms

Why Root Beer is Called That

Causes Worth Supporting: Your Local Foodbank

 

Supporting your local foodbank is a HUGE deal. My family tries to help our local Cleveland Foodbank as much as we can because we know how huge a problem hunger and poverty is in our area. As of 2010, 22% of children in America live below the poverty line (just over $22,000/year for a family of four!). There are estimated to be 16 million kids that live without access to sufficient and nutritious food on a regular basis - 49 million people in total. Hunger is a massive problem in our country. To give you some perspective on that kind of a number, the population of New York City is 8.337 million people. That means twice the population of NYC entirely in children go hungry here in one of the most affluent countries on the planet. The populations of New York City, Dallas, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Orlando, Seattle, and ALL of Hawaii still only add up to just over 20 million people - still less than half of all the people fighting hunger in the United States. 

You can help your community with this fight by looking up your local foodbank and then deciding to donate a generous gift of however much you can afford, or simply donate some groceries to their headquarters! Volunteers are always appreciated at these organizations and in many cases gravely needed. Call today and find out how you can best help and serve your community. Living your life without helping those in need, you don't even realize how much your missing out on. Volunteering and becoming involved with your area is an incredibly rewarding experience which will give you memories that you'll treasure for the rest of your life.

This holiday season, and throughout the year, remember as you sit down to enjoy your dinner or your deliciously warm breakfast how many go without what you are so easily enjoying. Make a promise to yourself to help others this year. You'll be happy you did - and so will the people you help.

If you're in the Cleveland area, you can learn more about our Foodbank and how to support them here. If you live elsewhere, scoot on over to Google and discover how you can get involved!

Have a blessed and warm Tuesday, everyone!

Mentality Monday #2

So yesterday was Monday, I realize. I have trouble with keeping my days straight lately. That being said, here's you're Mentality Monday quote! Have a wonderful and heartfelt week, everyone!

Enjoy your weekend

Before I write my regular post that I'd planned for today, I want to write a short something in honor of Nelson Mandela, the human rights activist who left us yesterday afternoon. I had originally considered waiting a week or two to write something about him, but I don't think that waiting will make any difference. I simply want to write that we should all take a moment to appreciate the massive contributions that he made in all aspects of human rights. The sacrifices he made, the neverending amount of grace and compassion that he showed to every person including those responsible for keeping him imprisoned for almost 30 years. His was an example we should all aspire to. Mandela proved that we can make a difference, if we choose to ignore all those who say it won't matter.

Shopping for Good

Happy Thursday, all! Today and each of Thursdays until Christmas (three in total), I'll post a selection of ways that you can make your Christmas shopping list do some good. Today I'm focusing on local business ideas, and since I have two homes there will be businesses mentioned for both locales: Gainesville, Florida & Cleveland, Ohio!

Something to get you over the hump.

Look! It's a happy panda!

Good news! You've made it through two whole days of the week and after today, you only have two left! To help you get through the rest of the week, here's a few things to entertain, inform, and generally brighten your day.

13 Facts That Will Make Your Day Better

The Difference Between Green & Black Olives

How to Be Happy

10 Fake Twitter Feeds to Be Thankful For

11 Things You Might Not Know About Reindeer

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