Giving & Getting

Well I am still out here at the lake house sitting.  This is the second week of a two week stint.  And I have to say it is peaceful as can be here.  Quiet too.  No cars or loud sounds unless you count Dear Hubby snoring at night.  I am so blessed to have these chances to help someone else feel comfort that their home and animals are safe while they are away.  It is an enjoyable way to get away too for those 'staycations' that I am growing quite fond of.

But at the same time I am not home where I can play with my own pets that I so miss.  Dear Hubby has been going by every evening after work to see them.  And Granny M is at home too.  Still not the same for me.  So tonight I get to pop home for a hour and play with them for a bit. 

Anywhos.....I thought today I would share some savings and ways to help others too.  What did I find today?  Well there is free pumpkin carving stencils on the BHG website.  I love the way they look.  But do not forget to get a fresh pumpkin to make my homemade vanilla pumpkin soup.  It is so fab.

And on Twitter and Facebook Krups is giving away a KRUPS milk frother.  So great for those lattes   My fall favorite is a Chai Pecan that I make up myself.  What flavors do you adore.  Years ago my home burned down.  It was a total loss.  My friend showed up with an expresso machine first thing as he knew of my love of coffee.  Also the church gave me a coffee maker right off the bat too.  You know how much that kept me up and going during a hard time. 

Also you can help raise money to help end domestic violence with just a click of a button.  Become a fan of Mary Kay on facebook and Mary Kay Inc. will donate $1 to the Mary Kay Foundation to help end domestic violence.  They are doing this for every new Facebook fan during the month of October up to $1 million.  Now that is a worthy click if I say so myself. 

Oh and this should have been top of my list because I felt it was just perfect.  Today I was watching America's Next Top Model.  Yeah, light but still.  I noticed that the girls there were not at all perfect.  Many way too thin.  Acne on their faces after so many times with the makeup for shots.  Plus size models and those who had odd shapes in chins, noses and the such.  It was there I saw again that it is the differences that make us beautiful.  We are all different in some way.  Many ways we can not see too.  Like I am a plus plus size woman.  But you do not see the disability I have of mental illness from the outside.  And that is sometimes hard for me to know.  Others can see it when someone has a physical difficulty like my father-in-law who has only one leg. 

The thing is how do we teach our children to embrace these differences?  Princess Emma about knocks Grandpa W down when she tackles his one leg in an all body hug.  He has managed to stay upright so far.  But she does not worry about his difference.  As she is not worried that when she did her first Fun Run at school she was the chunky one.  And that she started off the race as the very last either.  But she gave it her all and gained a spot even.  Never stopped running either when some others did. 

So I am thrilled that I am going to get to share Robert Kroupa's book 'Just Like You' with her and the grandbabes.  It is a great tale that helps kiddos understand about being happy with their differences as well as help the kiddos around them celebrate too.  This book was released this month and has amazing art by first time illustrator, Hannah E. Harrison, to show the story off.  You will rally with Boris and Henry who are shunned and bullied by the other characters because they are different.  Til they are able to help in their own special ways when disaster hits Piney Forest.  This book is part of the Just Like You Foundation where 100% of the profits of the sale of this book will go to charity.  The best part is you can pick the charity you wish to support from your purchase of the book.  Pretty cool, huh?  Yeah I thought so too.  I thank the Just Like You Foundation for sharing with me too.  It is really nice to know that I can have a way to explain my own disability to my grandbabes so they can understand and still just see their Nonnie.