Time to Clear & Contribute #DonateStuffCreateJobs and #ShopGoodwill

This is a social good post for Goodwill and the Ad Council as part of Bloggin' Mamas. BB has received no compensation for sharing the following info y opinions son totally Babushka's.

HolaHolaHola Beautifuls!

When BB was Bb and looking for "vintage and cool" clothing during her highschool/college years, the first place she'd go to was Goodwill stores. Not only were the prices reasonable back then, but the selection was always abundant. When Babushka became a single madre, she once again began visiting her local Goodwills and could always find something you needed.  Now come to find out they also help gente find much needed employment tambien!

"Over the past several years, most of us have had a family member, friend, acquaintance struggle in this economy. Either they have lost a job or struggled to find employment. And if not someone you know personally, really, all you have to do is turn on the TV or pull up social media to see the struggle. It's real.

Goodwill’s career centers, training programs and staffing operations give people the resources, skills and confidence that changes thousands of lives each year.So how can you help to be a part of this growth and effort in your own community? It’s easy! Donate to Goodwill = create jobs!"



It’s beginning to feel like primavera, so BB's ready to get organized and start Spring Cleaning. Quee?? JU SO FONII!!! Si, Babushka is actually cleaning, porque how else can she clear pa' nuevo? Besides, what better twofer than feeling good porque you're helping your community? Con Donating to Goodwill BB is doing eso mismo!

"Thanks to the programs and support services made possible by donations of clothes and household items, Goodwill helped place more than 312,000 people in jobs in the United States and Canada in 2015 – that’s one person finding a job every 23 seconds of every business day.

 If you are not sure where your local Goodwill is, you can use the Goodwill Locator App available for Android and iOS devices and at http://www.goodwill.org/ (click “Explore Our Map” on the homepage). Simply input the items you’re donating to calculate the number of hours of career counseling, on-the-job training, résumé preparation, financial planning classes, and other services you’ve helped provide people facing challenges finding employment. When jobs thrive, communities thrive.

Last year, nearly 2 million people engaged in face-to-face Goodwill services to advance in their careers. More than 35 million people accessed education, training, mentoring and online learning tools offered by Goodwill virtually to strengthen their skills and gain industry-recognized credentials.

Goodwill sells donated goods at more than 3,200 stores across the U.S. and Canada, and channels more than 85 percent of sales revenue from donated goods to provide job preparation and placement, education assistance, and other support services for people who are unemployed or underemployed. Employment is more than a paycheck. It’s a resounding victory for that person, their families and their community.

We have done our part! Now it is time for you to do yours! Tag us on your social media with a photo of your Goodwill donations using #DonateStuffCreateJobs."

Goodwill’s social channels :

Twitter: https://twitter.com/GoodwillIntl

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GoodwillIntl/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/goodwillintl/

BB2U

Let's Keep America Beautiful and #BeRecycled $100 Amazon GC #Giveaway with @BlogginMamas and Ad Council

This giveaway  is sponsored by Bloggin' Mamas

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!

Earthday was a couple of days ago and it's a wonderful opportunity to focus on the strides being made to save our planet, but we all know mucho mas is needed.  This is our home, and like our actual dwellings, if we leave the cleaning to pile up too much it becomes almost overwhelming!

 So every little bit helps and recycling is an easy way for us to do our part.

Blog­gin’ Mamas would like to sup­port the Ad Coun­cil and Keep Amer­ica Beau­ti­ful, the national non­profit orga­ni­za­tion, which recently launched the newest phase of the “I Want to Be Recy­cled” pub­lic ser­vice adver­tis­ing cam­paign. The PSA cam­paign aims to raise aware­ness and inspire indi­vid­u­als to recy­cle more with the lat­est series of ads focused on recy­cling in the bathroom. Bloggin' Mamas is sponsoring a $100 Amazon giftcard as a prize for a giveaway designed to spread the word of the campaign.

Per­sonal care prod­ucts like sham­poo and lotion bot­tles, toi­let paper rolls, and tooth­paste and soap boxes are sig­nif­i­cantly less likely to be recy­cled than kitchen prod­ucts. New research com­mis­sioned by the Ad Coun­cil found that 47% of peo­ple are not recy­cling mate­ri­als in the bathroom.

Accord­ing to a recent study con­ducted for the Ad Coun­cil, 52% of Amer­i­cans don’t know which items can be recy­cled in the bath­room. And only 10% of Amer­i­cans have a recy­cling bin in their bath­room, com­pared to the 45% who have them in the kitchen.

That’s why the “I Want To Be Recycled” campaign has partnered with Vevo’s Do It YourSelfie with Tess & Eva, who recreate the looks from today’s hottest music videos. These two glam experts, known for their DIY hair, makeup and design tips, created a new PSA this Earth Day reminding Americans that those bathroom products deserve to be recycled too!

Check out a quick video they made on how to recycle old clothes into a new bath mat:




Whether it’s hairspray, leave-in conditioner or dry shampoo, many of your favorite beauty products and packaging can take on another life through recycling. For example, your shampoo bottle could be recycled into a hairbrush, or you might find a great new dress made from the recycled plastic of your favorite bottle of lotion.Click here to learn more about what your personal care products can become when properly recycled.

And Now the Giveaway!

Prize(s): 1 win­ner will receive one (1) $100 Ama­zon Gift­card. We encour­age the win­ner to use the gift­card to pur­chase items to encourage recycling.

Num­ber of Win­ners: 1

Give­away Starts: 4/24/15 at 12:01am EST

Give­away Ends: 5/8/15 at 11:59pm EST

Eli­gi­ble: United States Res­i­dents ages 18+.

Enter via the rafflecopter form below!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

BB's so happy to be part of this great campaign! 

Here's to our Home and keeping Her Clean!!

Buena Suerte on the Giveaway My Beautifuls, and

BB2U

Disclosure: I was not compensated for this post. All opinions expressed are my own. If you have any questions or would like to run your own giveaway with Bloggin' Mamas, please email info@blogginmamas.com

#BlogginMamas #Charity Pre- #MothersDay @CarnivalCruise Brunch w/ @EFPClean & #BloggerOpps

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!!

As VP of Bloggin' Mamas , BB's gone to many events and helped many people, but this next one has to be one of my proudest. With the help of  Ecos and +Carnival we will be sharing a brunch that celebrates Motherhood. Earth Friendly products that keep us healthy and a giving fund for those that sadly are not so healthy; these are perfect partners for this special event. It's all about caring, and doesn't that just describe Madres Perfectly? If interested in joining, please write to info@blogginmamas.com .

And to continue on that caring thread- 

"Blog­gin’ Mamas would like to sup­port the Ad Coun­cil and Keep Amer­ica Beau­ti­ful, the national non­profit orga­ni­za­tion, which recently launched the newest phase of the “I Want to Be Recy­cled” pub­lic ser­vice adver­tis­ing cam­paign. The PSA cam­paign aims to raise aware­ness and inspire indi­vid­u­als to recy­cle more with the lat­est series of ads focused on recy­cling in the bathroom."

If you'd like to help in this campaign, go to: http://blogginmamas.com/archives/12112

Next- Besides it being the law, it's the right thing to do for our children.

"Blog­gin’ Mamas would like to sup­port the Ad Coun­cil and The U.S. Depart­ment of Transportation’s National High­way Traf­fic Safety Admin­is­tra­tion (NHTSA)  with pro­mot­ing the Seat Belt Safety cam­paign, which asks par­ents of chil­dren ages 8–14 to make sure their kids are con­sis­tently and prop­erly wear­ing their seat belt every time they get in the car."

Sign Ups for this campaign- http://blogginmamas.com/archives/12104

So you see My Beautifuls, this post is all about the giving.  

Oh, one more Bloggin' Mamas opportunity to give.

The complete set of Little House on the Prairie- including the book that started it all.

http://bohemianbabushka.bbabushka.com/2015/03/little-house-on-prairie-is-back-prize.html

Here's hoping you join us in these opportunities, because

there's GUSTO in the GIVING.

BB2U

p.s.  Special shoutout y Gracias to Shirley Tong de Expedia Cruiseships Center 

for helping put the Cruise Brunch together.

For the Children. @AdoptUsKids @BlogginMamas @AdCouncil #FosterCare

BB's sharing this on behalf of a Bloggin' Mamas Social Good Campaign. Bloggin' Mamas and Element Associates are donating a toy to a child in foster care for every blog post sharing this information, up to 25.

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!

In a season where gifts are in everyone's mind, how about the gift of time and action? 

Do you have space in your home & heart for just one more??

Today, 402,000 children are in the foster care system in the United States. Nearly 102,000 children (under 18 years of age) waiting for adoption.

During this holiday season, there’s an extra push to help them find homes. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, AdoptUSKids and the Ad Council recently unveiled a new series of public service advertisements (PSAs) designed to continue to encourage the adoption of children from foster care with an emphasis on the importance of keeping siblings together.

Check out this PSA video from the Ad Council:

Since the launch of the campaign in 2004, more than 22,000 children who were once photo-listed on the AdoptUSKids website are now with their adoptive families and over 35,000 families have registered to adopt through AdoptUSKids.

Many times, there are siblings also listed. Approximately 23% of children and youth actively photolisted on the AdoptUSKids website and waiting for placement in adoptive homes were registered with one or more siblings. Sibling relationships are often the longest-lasting relationships for children in foster care.

For more information about adoption, or about becoming an adoptive parent to a child from foster care, please visit www.AdoptUSKids.org or visit the campaign’s communities on Facebook and Twitter.

BB was not compensated for this post. Babushka's donating this space towards sharing this message. Bloggin' Mamas and Element Associates will be donating a toy to a foster child in exchange for my post, in support of AdoptUSKids.

Hoping this begins a week of precious memories for All,

BB2U 

HSF- Hispanic Scholarship Fund #HSFChat #HablaconHSF

Disclaimer: This is part of a sponsored collaboration with Latina Mom Bloggers. 
 All opinions are 100% Babushka.

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!

There she is, my eldest, Babushkas Bebe. In 2008 she received her BA, and we were so proud of her!!  By this time her son had already been born and she had gone back to school to finish her degree. As a single mother, BB had sacrificed to make sure The Trio had their college covered- wish I had known about the Hispanic Scholarship Fund back in the day!!



The Hispanic Scholarship Fund, besides helping with scholarships, helps parents navigate the confusing take of college applications and guides with resources and valuable information needed before,during,and after graduation. HSF.net  for more detailed information.

Founded in 1975, but who knew?? Bueno Beautifuls, now YOU know.

BB for one will go and see what's available for My Little One who's finishing her 2nd year of college.  For sure HSF will know more about it than Babushka and any help in our children's future is always welcomed, correcto??  They look for us for guidance; it's nice to know there's a place parents can go for guidance too. A great place to start is @HSFnews  "Getting Ready for College" tips #HSFchat  Also, http://hsf.net/en/resources/parents/

OJO Beautifuls. Although the official scholarship season runs from Jan 1 - Mar 30, take advantage of school recess and begin the application process. Create a profile on HSF.net, que eso Santi Clo can't put into your stocking.

BB2U

P.S. Hispanic Scholarship Fund on Feibu 

en Tweety: @HSFNews

National Brush Day- #Natlbrushday #2min2x A PSA w/a #Giveaway $100Amazon GC

Sponsored

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!!

After having no one show up for candy last night 

BB & Sweetie sacrificed themselves and ate up all the caramelo. 

Quee?? Throw it away??  JUSOFONII!!!  

Needless to say, this campaign is ingenious and with perfecto timing. 

 Go ahead and enter- Babushka's going to brush her teeth again.

" Bloggin' Mamas is supporting the Ad Council and The Partnership for Healthy Mouths, Healthy Lives (a coalition of more than 35 leading dental health organizations) by sharing the word about “National Brush Day.”

National Brush Day is observed on November 1^st, the day after Halloween, to reinforce the importance of children’s oral health and to promote good tooth-brushing habits recommended by dental experts.

More than 51 million school hours are lost each year due to dental related illness, resulting in parents losing 25 million work hours annually. Cavities and oral infections can cause severe pain and can increase a child’s risk for dental issues and poor health throughout their lives.

3 in 4 parents report that their kids sometimes or frequently forget to brush their teeth, according to a national survey just released by the Ad Council. In an effort to help parents better understand why ignoring dental health can have serious consequences, and educate families about good dental health habits, the Ad Council and The Partnership for Healthy Mouths, Healthy Lives created new Public Service Ads (PSAs) for their Kids’ Healthy Mouths campaign. The new PSAs are humorous depictions of life lessons which make the point that while parenting can be tricky at times, getting kids to brush for two minutes, twice a day can be easier than most other things parents will try to teach their children.

Visit 2min2x.org (which is available in English and Spanish, and includes a mobile version), where parents and children can watch entertaining videos—all 2 minutes in length—while brushing their teeth.

Resources

o Here are some new PSA videos: http://2min2x.org/campaign-materials/;

• Dressing Lesson: http://youtu.be/LdJkCGzSMyY
;
• Manners Lesson: http://youtu.be/QmOuAKCSOwQ
;
• Bike Lesson: http://youtu.be/WP-hhieRKG0
;
• Cooking Lesson: http://youtu.be/SxNkXbDq58k
;

o Fun 2-minute videos that will keep your kids brushing for 2 whole minutes:
http://2min2x.org/watch-brush/;

o Take the 2min2x Text Challenge with your kids!
75% of kids forget to brush their teeth. Take the brushing challenge to make sure your kids are always in the healthy 25%. You’ll get 2 texts per day for 5 days, plus occasional tips and fun facts afterward. Sign up to see if YOUR family can beat the challenge. (http://2min2x.org/sms.asp;)

o Make brushing fun with the free Toothsavers App: http://2min2x.org/toothsavers/;

o Promote or enter the Zooppa.com video contest for a chance to win $20,000: In addition to the new PSAs, the campaign will be kicking off its first video contest called #BrushRules leveraging Zooppa.com, the world’s leading crowd sourced marketing platform for producing creative content. Parenting is hard to do. Getting your kids to brush their teeth for two minutes, twice a day is one aspect that’s easier and can make a big impact on a child’s life.

The Giveaway

Give­away begins November 1st, 2014 at 12:01 am and ends November 1st, 2014 at 11:59 pm EST. Open to US res­i­dents age 18 and older. Win­ner will be selected by Random.org and be noti­fied by email. See Raf­fle­copter wid­get below for full terms & conditions."

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Buena Suerte & Buena Brushing Beautifuls!!

BB2U

Dis­clo­sure: I am sharing this post on behalf of Bloggin' Mamas. Blog­gin’ Mamas is host­ing this give­away and coor­di­nat­ing prize ful­fill­ment. Ele­ment Asso­ciates, The Ad Coun­cil and the The Partnership for Healthy Mouths, Healthy Lives are in no way respon­si­ble for the give­away, and only pro­vided the above con­tent to be dis­trib­uted in the form of a PSA.

May is #StrokeMonth- and by the time you finish reading this, someone's had one.

A Public Service Announcement on behalf of Bloggin' Mamas ,the Ad Council and the

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!!!

May I help you???

It seems like the month of May has so many highlights and importance in Babushka's life. Of course there's Mother's Day, it's also National Mental Health Awareness Month and we all know how that's touched BB's life. It's also American Stroke Month and that too has significance.

Less than a year ago mi querida MIL had a stroke. Luckily she was a nurse, on duty when she had the stroke and they recognized the signs immediately. Thanks to that and being of good German stock, she is doing well. But would we have been able to help someone- even ourselves if we had witnessed a stroke? The above mentioned bullet points are pretty scary- especially the fact that "Stroke is the No. 1 preventable cause of disability".

Facts about Strokes:

• Someone in the U.S. has a stroke about once every 40 seconds.

• Stroke is the No. 4 cause of death overall, killing more than 129,000 people a year. 

Stroke is the No. 3 cause of death for women and No. 5 cause of death for men.

• Stroke is the No. 1 preventable cause of disability.
• About 795,000 people have a stroke every year.
• An estimated 6.8 million Americans 20 and older have had a stroke.

"The American Heart Association/American Stroke Association and the Ad Council to raise awareness about F.A.S.T—an acronym used to recognize a stroke and what to do in a stroke emergency. 

F.A.S.T. stands for:

• F - Face Drooping - Does one side of the face droop or is it numb? Ask the person to smile. 

• A - Arm Weakness - Is one arm weak or numb? Ask the person to raise both arms. Does one arm drift downward? 

• S - Speech Difficulty - Is speech slurred? Are they unable to speak, or are they hard to understand? Ask the person to repeat a simple sentence like: “The sky is blue.” Is the sentence repeated correctly? 

• T- Time to call 9-1-1 - If the person shows any of these symptoms, even if the symptoms go away, call 9-1-1 and get them to the hospital immediately.

When you recognize a stroke and immediately call 9-1-1, the person has a greater chance of getting to an appropriate hospital quickly and being assessed for treatment options like a clot-busting drug and other medical devices. But many people do not know the warning signs of a stroke – information that may save a life."

Stroke Warning Sign Knowledge and Treatment:

• One in three Americans can’t recall any stroke warning signs.

• According to a survey, Hispanic women are less likely than others to know most of the warning signs of a stroke – 25% did not know any, compared to 18% for whites and 19% for African Americans.

• In a study of patients who had experienced a stroke, someone other than the patient made the decision to seek treatment in 66% of the cases, or every two in three.

So there you have it My Beautifuls- the importance of May.  

And the importance of recognizing the signs of a stroke.

May you never have to use it.

BB2U

#7DaysofSpringCleaning with Goodwill and the Bloggin' Mamas

This post has not been monetarily compensated. 

Consider this a PSA by the Ad Council and the Bloggin Mamas Collective, with insights a la BB.

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!!!

It’s time for Spring; Primavera, time for all things new! Of course our first impulse is to go out shopping, but this year, before we get that new Spring wardrobe, let’s do some Spring cleaning. Quee?? JU SO FONII !!! Ok si, BB suggest cleaning?? Bueno, are living spaces can only take so much, and besides, we get to help out our community too!  So vieron? A Babushka Twofer!! And to make it a tad better, Goodwill has come up with a fun and insightful little quiz called:

What’s Your Clothing Personality??

Really inspired now? 
 It’s not hard to declutter when you’re focused and have a plan. 
 Here’s a suggestion on how just 7 days can make that fresh start easier.

#7DaysofSpringCleaning Details:

Day 1) Clear your closet clutter (gotta be able to open it first)

Day 2) Time to tackle la cocina/kitchen

Day 3) Spread holiday cheer (holiday decorations, center pieces, Halloween)

Day 4) Downsize your tech toys (used laptops)

Day 5) Clean out your office supplies

Day 6) Provide quality entertainment (unused movies, video games)

Day 7) Downsize your bookshelf

Then, calcula your donaciones impact. https://donate.goodwill.org/ y feel better about your efforts. Tambien, you can go to http://www.goodwill.org/locator/ which shows how your donation helps your communidad. ESO!!! Ahora you can go and get yourself that new outfit to welcome Spring.

; )

Oh, and if you were wondering what Babushka's Clothing Personality was...

This has been part of the Donate Stuff. Create Jobs. It’s the tagline of Ad Council’s campaign with Goodwill®, which reminds people that their donations support people who are seeking to earn jobs and build careers. To see how the process works, just watch “How We Do It” PSA.

BB2U

Enroll America - PSA- Take Care People!

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!!

How cutisimo was that video verdad?  You know what's not so cutisimo and also verdad?

1 in 6 Americans don't have insurance-
1 in 5 African Americans are uninsured as are 1 in 4 Hispanics.
  More than 1/2 of the uninsured could find insurance for under $100 a month.

For those under the age of 35 it can even be under $50 a month!

BB's working con el Ad Council and Get Covered America 

to raise awareness about the Health Insurance Marketplace and the financial assistance available.

Many of you may be unaware of your health plan options or the March 31st deadline to enroll in subsidized healthcare.

Vayan and visit http://www.getcoveredamerica.org to learn more.

Also, I will be participating in a Twitter Chat Tuesday March 11th from 1p-2p EST via 

#TakeCareChat 

You can join in to learn more about Get Covered America and your options under the ACA.
In case you miss that one, there will another one on March 18th from 1p-2p EST as well. 



Disclosure: 

Babushka is a Tweety Chat Consultant for Bloggin’ Mamas who is working with Element Associates, Get Covered America and the Ad Council for this campaign and will receive compensation.

See ya at the Tweety Chat My Beautifuls!!

BB2U

Fooey to Food Poisoning- TheFood Safe Families Campaign

HolaHolaHola My Beautifuls!!!

As BB was packing her snack bag, it reminded me of the days I used to pack lunch for the trio. One of my biggest concerns was maintaining the food fresh without spoilage. Quee? JU SO FONII!!!  Y'all know Babushka doesn't give the items in her snack bag time to spoil before they're eaten, however the trio weren't as thorough. Nowadays, thanks to the wonderful age of internet and the USDA, it's easier to protect children from eating spoiled food.

"The Food Safe Families Campaign (a partnership on behalf of the Ad Council, USDA, FDA and CDC) is helping parents protect their families from foodborne illness. Food poisoning is not simply an upset stomach; it is a serious public health threat in America. In fact, the CDC estimates that about 1 in 6 Americans (about 48 million people) could suffer from foodborne illness this year. The result is approximately 128,000 hospitalizations and sadly, an estimated 3,000 deaths!"

Now, death by chocolate BB can handle, but muerta because of spoiled food? Nada de eso- no way Jose! Check out the Snapguide on How to Pack a Safe & Satisfying School Lunch.

http://www.foodsafety.gov/blog/school_lunch.html

 BB's newly learned favorite is tip #2.

Tip #2: Frozen juice boxes can also be used as freezer packs. Freeze juice boxes overnight and use as freezer packs. By lunchtime, the juice should be thawed and ready to drink!

Buenisimo right??

Here are some more great tips and information that you can find on the FoodSafety.gov site.

4 Simple Steps to Food Safety 

And there you have it My Beautifuls!  The way to keep your food safe so life can be fun.

Of course in Babuska's mundo no food is safe (from comiendo) around BB and that makes life fun.

;  )

With dark chocolate on my chin and espresso on my breath, 

Babushka Besos a todos.  Cuidensen.

P.S. "Visit FoodSafety.gov to learn about best food safety practices, utilize “Ask Karen,” an online database with nearly 1,500 answers to specific questions related to preventing foodborne illnesses, in both English and Spanish, or to call the USDA Meat & Poultry Hotline at 1-888-MPHotline."

This is a social good campaign via

http://blogginmamas.com/