Random Act of Kindness

A few weeks ago a young mother bustled her way into the chapel on a Sunday morning. She had three kids in tow (I believe all are under the age of 3). She worked throughout the hour-long service to keep her kids hushed and in their seats. This was no easy task as these kids were bursting with energy and very excited about the big open space just behind their row of chairs.

Some people tried to help her by chasing her kids down the hall and picking up dropped toys. Others scoffed and made comments like "She needs to hush them up!"

At one point her toddler ran out of the chapel. She had the baby on her lap and as she was going to set him on the floor to run after the other one. Just as she was doing this the baby regurgitated what appeared to be the last three meals he had eaten (it was A LOT).

She was flustered, and everyone else was at a loss of what to do for her.

She left.

Two weeks went by and there was no sign of the mother and her three children. But last Sunday the mother returned with three children in tow yet again. There just happened to be an emptly row in front of us. Everyone sitting on the row, me, my uncle, my sister and my niece, braced ourselves.

But then something happened...

My grandmother who was sitting on the lefside of me immediately pulled out a bag. This bag contained books and toys, and she quickly began doling out these things to the children. The mother watched out of the corner of her eye and smiled.

I know my grandmother, and I know that she had gathered these things together and brought them with her every week in case the mother returned.

The rest of us were sincerely touched and we all began pitching in. Picking up toys, occupying the children, chasing them around, even holding them on our laps.

Sure, they weren't angels. But it definitely helped.

Isn't that an awesome lady?

Green Tips: #1

Being "green" isn't always easy. After all, you may not want to drive a funny looking car, buy used clothes or take two-minute showers. But there are ways to be green without sacrificing much at all.

I am beginning a new series of blogs that will give you small tips on how to be green and fabulous at the same time :)

Tip #1: Ask your cashier at each store you visit to put as much stuff in one bag as possible.

Have you ever noticed how cashiers at Wal-Mart love to put only one or two things in every bag? Then, you end up having to load fifty bags into your car and then unload them when you get home. This green tip will make your life a bit easier and Mother Nature a lot happier.

I do this every time I go grocery shopping. I know that I'm not making a huge difference in the environment, but I figure if I go grocery shopping every 1.5 weeks I probably use about ten bags each time. So that's about 347 grocery bags each year instead of the 1,200 bags that statistics say each U.S. resident uses each year.

If you're still not convinced, here are a few facts from Envirosax about the impact that plastic bags have on the environment:

1) 380 billion plastic bags are used in the U.S. every year.

2) It takes an estimated 12 billion barrells of oil to make that many bags.

3) Even when they photo-degrade in landfills, the plastic from single-use bags never goes away, and toxic particles can enter the food chain when they are ingested by unsuspecting animals.

Don't forget that many stores now sell reusable bags for really cheap. I must admit that while I have bought two of these bags I always forget to bring them with me to the store. That's something I must work on ;)

And I don't know about other stores, but you can also recycle your used bags at Wal-Mart. There's a box by the shopping carts in the front. It's usually cluttered and blocked by the greeter and all his stuff, but it's there.
Side note: True story--My sister, B, went to our local grocery store and as she was checking out the following conversation took place:
Cashier: I put as much as I could in each bag because I know that's how you like it.
B stares at the girl with a very confused look on her face
Cashier seems puzzled: That is you isn't it?
B: I have four sisters so you might be getting me confused with one of them.
Cashier: Well, the girl looks exactly like you.
B: Come to think of it I know that's my sister Kaley. She's always trying to be "green" (fingers making the quotation marks as she rolls her eyes).

Peace!

Japan is Calling

Read here >>>> Tsunami Aid and Relief: How You Can Help

It’s early Friday morning. You crawl out of your warm comfortable bed and turn on the news. An 8.9 earthquake has struck off the coast of Japan. Oh, no! 8.9, 8.9 is that bad? The news anchor states, “This is one of the top five earthquakes to strike since 1900.” Oh gosh! That’s horrible! Those poor people! I wish there was something I could do. You go to the bathroom, turn on the shower and continue on with your day.

Stop. What if this was you…your country? What if your brother lived there, your cousin, your aunt, your friend? What would you do then?

After a devastating natural disaster, it can be overwhelming trying to figure out what you can do to led your support. But I'm here to tell you there are many MANY ways you can help from afar. Here’s a list to name just a few:

1)     International Medical Corp. focuses on healthcare after a natural disaster. To donate to the Corps you may visit their website or text “med” to 80888 to give $10.

2)     Children are sometimes the most overlooked after a natural disaster as they are trying to cope with all the changes. Save the Children is a nonprofit organization that focuses on getting children back into their normal routine. To donate to the Children’s Emergency Fund visit their website.

3)     Action Against Hunger is an organization that works year-round to provide food to people in need. They are working in Japan to provide those affected with food while they rummage through the rubble and try to get their lives back on track. If you would like to donate please visit their website and click the “Donate Now” button.

4)     Donate $10 to World Vision, an international humanitarian group, by texting “4japan” to 20222.

5)     Donate $10 to Red Cross by texting “redcross” to 90999.

6)     Donate $10 to Salvation Army by texting “japan” to 80888.

7)     Donate to AmeriCares, by visiting their website and clicking the “Donate Now” button.

8)     Are you unsure of which organization to donate to? Global Giving is a nonprofit organization that works for many causes and allows donors to select which cause they would like to donate to. They have established a Japan Earthquake and Tsunami Relief Fund. You can donate to it by visiting their website and they will disburse money to various on-site organizations as needed.

9)     Don’t forget about the animals. The Humane Society of the United States has been working since the 1900s to set up shelters and rescue animals after natural disasters. To donate to their cause please visit their website.

10)  Are you looking for a missing person? Do you know of any survivors? You can use Google’s person finder to look for someone, or you can post updates about people who have survived the quake. This helpful tool will keep people worry-free as they search for their loved ones.

Are you still a little apprehensive to give your money away to so-called “charities?” Check out Charity Navigator to find statistics and evaluations on all nonprofit organizations. I recommend finding a charity that you would like to donate to, then check out their profile on Charity Navigator. If you feel good about it then just go with it.

In the meantime, here are some tips from Charity Navigator about donating:

1)     Avoid newly formed charities. Only give to charities that are well-established and are working directly with Japan.

2)     Don’t send supplies, send money. Although you would rather send something that you believe will be used for a good cause, it just isn’t practical. You have to trust that the charities are using your money in an admirable way.

3)     Think before you text. There will be lots of messages out there asking you to donate through simple texting, but you have to make sure the organization is legitimate first.

4)     Avoid giving into telemarketers. Most nonprofits will not call you, they will ask you to call them.

5)     Be careful of email solicitations. Again most nonprofits will not contact you, they ask you to contact them.

“If ye have not charity, ye are nothing, for charity never faileth.

Wherefore, cleave unto charity, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail—”

Moroni 7:46.

All pictures are from CNN's Live blog.

Just a Thought

I was talking to my Mom once about all the things I have been able to accomplish in my life. I feel extremely blessed to be mentally, physically and spiritually capable of setting goals and achieving those goals.

However, many of things that I have experienced I feel were due to pure luck, a small gift from God. I was explaining to her that I had a premonition of each of these gifts. I knew I would go to school in Hawaii, I knew I would marry the person I did, etc.

Her reply: Kaley, these are not gifts nor premonitions. You are a determined person. You saw something you wanted and you worked hard to get it.

Hmmmm...

My message to you:

Dream big and work hard.

Never settle for less because you can do it!

I Know, I Know

I haven't blogged in almost three weeks! How did I get to this point?

Well, let me tell you how. A few blogs ago I talked about how I needed to take on a second job. It happened...times two. I now have a second and third job.

First, I acquired an interview with a major local publishing company for a writing position. Here's the scenario: I walk into the interview and I'm a little intimidated to see not one, not two, not three but four people awaiting at the conference table. Nerves are setting in but I remind myself that it's not like I haven't done this before...try being interviewed by five supervisors during a power outage by candelight. Now that was intimidating and a little spooky. But I got the job, and I got this one too. They hired me on the spot and I'm now an official writer (not just one of those desperate bloggers ;).


This is Roco. He had a facelift when he was just a pup
because his wrinkles were blocking his sight. You can
kind of tell by his consistent surprised look.



Second, the place where I hold a full-time job requires many employees to go out of time for weeks, sometimes months, at a time. Applying my dog-sitting idea, I tossed out a line and people have been biting since. I recently kept Roco, a Shar Pei mix, for two weeks and made a whopping $120.00. That's $10/night folks...I don't mean to brag but I've got to have the cheapest prices in town! And I currently have a bid in to keep four bullmastiffs for a week. Let's see that's four dogs, an average of 450 lbs. all over my couches, 64 claws scratching my wood floors and 6,382,769 hairs all over everything. At $40/night, for seven days that comes out to be $280. Yeah, I'm going to have to mull this over.

So you see forget my hands being full, my life has been pretty full. Not to mention the peewee basketball team I'm coaching, my two callings at church, the photography class I'm taking, the political campaign I'm volunteering for and all the other little things life throws at me.

But believe me I'm not complaining. This is a very exciting time in my life right now. I have a very awesome and extremely supportive husband, a loving family, my good health and three great jobs. What more could a 25-year-old girl want?...Maybe just a little compassion from my followers?