Last week I shared with you the newest Champions for Kids project that my family and I were participating in. Being a huge fan of reading and books, I was excited that the September SIMPLE Service project was all about collecting books for kids in need! As part of the project, I hosted a Nickelodeon Big Help Book Drive.
I have always felt really lucky that I had two parents who made sure I fell in love with books and reading practically from birth. Some of my earliest memories are of being read to, or of flipping through books on my own. I had a pretty expansive library even as a toddler, and as I got older I was encouraged to pick out new books at book fairs and through those monthly fliers from Scholastic that were sent home from school. I’m confident that the foundation in literacy that my parents built for me directly influenced my decision to make English one of my college majors.
What I didn’t know at the time was that wasn’t the case for every child. 61% of low-income families have no books for children in their homes, and more than 80% of the preschool and after-school programs serving at-risk children have no books at all. If you remember from the Champions For Kids Bag It Forward project I participated in last month, the teacher who received my donations said they sent books home with the kids at night so they would have things to read.
There are books available at Walmart that are based on Nickelodeon TV shows, like these SpongeBob ones. A lot of them come in these six packs, which are a great savings!
When I attended BlissDom ’12 in Nashville last year, it was my first time ever attending a blogging conference. I was both excited and nervous: I wasn’t sure what to expect, I wasn’t going as part of a group, and I wasn’t even sure I considered myself and my blog “worthy” of attending. I was still working to find my voice and direction, trying to figure out what this thing called “SEO” was, and attempting to navigate all the intricacies of the blogging world. All while looking at the other bloggers around me saying “Wow, I will never be that big/good/well-known”.
A photo I took inside the Gaylord Opryland Hotel. This was before my photography classes; imagine how much better my images would be after attending BlissDom ’13!
If I was already nervous, walking into the massive Opryland Hotel didn’t immediately quell those nerves. After walking for what seemed like miles, I arrived at the registration desk where I checked in and then went to find a seat to listen to the opening ceremony. The key note speaker was Jon Acuff, author of Quitter: Closing the Gap Between Your Day Job and Your Dream Job. His entire talk was good, but he said one thing that immediately resonated with me. He said “Never compare your beginning to someone else’s middle.” Continue reading »
Have you ever wished that the photos you take were just a little more professional looking? Or maybe you are really interested in web design, but between work, your family, and other obligations, you just don’t have the time to attend a class? If so, you’re going to love Lynda.com!
Lynda.com provides over 1400 online classes and 81000+ tutorials that will help you master new personal and professional skills. You can learn how to use a number of different software programs, like Photoshop and Dreamweaver. Watch tutorials on building your brand, using Google+ for your business, and create online surveys. Not quite sure what all the Twitter fuss is about? There is a Twitter Essential Training available. And if you just want to get the most out of your iPhone, there are courses for that, too! Continue reading »
Growing up, I was really never into boxing. I have two younger brothers; I saw all the fighting I needed, live and for free. All of my brothers friends, though, would call them up and say “hey, there’s a fight tonight, want to come over and watch?”. I thought maybe it was just one of those guy things I’d never understand.
When I was in college, however, people would hang out in the main lobbies where the big TVs were housed. It was here that I was introduced to the sport of mixed martial arts fighting. To me, this was different than just beating each other in the face (though there’s some of that) and I really enjoyed it. I even ended up taking a semester of karate. Continue reading »