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Do You Know How Easy it is to Give Back to Kids in Need this Year with #BagitForward?

#BagitForward - Elmer's 1st Day App

Pay it forward with the #BagitForward campaign

I’m not a teacher. And my little girl isn’t in school yet. But my mom was a teacher when I was a little girl, and I remember how much of a struggle it was for her to keep up with the expenses. And how unfair is that? You go into an occupation that’s all about helping others, knowing that you won’t make a huge income. But then to find out that you’ll also have to shell out a bunch of your own money each year to help out your students who’s parents can’t afford them, or the extra things that you need for projects that the school doesn’t supply. {Are you a teacher? Learn more about how Elmers supports teachers with their Teachers Club.} That’s why I am a huge fan of the Bag it Forward campaign – a super easy way to give back. Keep reading to learn a little more….

elmers first day app

Bag it Forward with Elmers 1st Day App

The 1st Day App is available to be downloaded on Android and Apple smartphones using the posted QR codes located on the big in-store displays at Walmart, or by visiting www.the1stDay.com. It’s quick and easy to download. So – why should you take a minute to do even do it? Lemme tell ya …

For every photo uploaded, Elmers will donate one product to the Kids in Need Foundation {KINF} – up to 200,000 products. Awesome.

So what is it, exactly? It’s a super sweet app for parents and teachers, where you can easily store all of your favorite school year memories. Yes, you can use an app like Instagram for pics. A site like Facebook to share stories. But this is a fun app that lets you combine it all – teachers can look back at their fave memories from each year’s classes. And parents can capture those  sweet photos of walking their kids to their first day of school, along with class pics, report cards, and funny stories. Fun, right? And it’s fun that gives back too. So now the question becomes – why would you NOT get this app? {Want more info? Check out this great video here – Elmer’s – The Official Sponsor of the 1st Day of School.}

school supply lists for back to school

Walmart School Supply lists make back to school shopping simple

Watch for these in your own local Walmart – they’re a big display filled with all of the local school supply lists. Because heck, admit it moms – we’re not always on top of everything, am I right? So to help keep you from letting back to school shopping wait until the very last minute, you can just grab one of these next time you’re already shopping – instead of waiting for the school list to come in the mail. Love that. Because while I don’t have kids of my own in school, I do have a couple of live-in nephews that I shop for, so this was amazingly helpful for me this past week! {Want to see my Top 10 Back to School Must Haves?}

elmers glue products for back to school

Walmart has quality school supplies for back to school

So – my goal while I was shopping was to stock up on a few of my own basics that I need all the time at the SUPER low prices Walmart has this time of year, and then to find a bunch of really fun and affordable goodies to make a donation for one of the kid’s teachers when school starts. I absolutely LOVED that there were super cheap basics – but there were also super sweet deals on “fun” type stuff, like fun stickers to decorate binders, fun pen and pencil sets, post-it’s, and more. Very cool selection this year. So I had a blast shopping for this project – and definitely filled up my cart! {Want to see my huge selection of goodies? See the whole shopping trip on Google+.} And check out Elmers.com for cool special offers to save even more.

crayons and colors for school supplies

Back to School is easier with Walmart

Another super sweet set of deals is on “colors” – crayons, markers, and colored pencils, and watercolor’s are all .25 to .50 cents each. It’s been awhile since I shopped for this stuff, and I was just blown away by what great deals there were on this stuff. So cool. But – as I stock up on notebooks and pens for myself, crayons for Abby, and supplies for this #BagitForward donation, and think about what a great deal I’m getting…. It just drives it home even more how sad it is that some familes can’t afford to get those same types of supplies for their kiddos. It just makes me even more glad that even on our tight budget, I have the ability to at least do this small part to help out with a donation basket for our local fave teacher. {Want cool ideas on how to use all of these great Elmers products? Check out this site filled with tips for busy parents.}

#bagitforward donation to pay it forward

Paying it forward makes me smile

I hope that this post and info inspires you to pick up some extra supplies next time your shopping too. Seriously – at .15 cents to a couple bucks for bigger supplies, anyone can pick up a few extras to pay it forward to someone who needs it. Whether you share them with a local agency that helps low-income families, your fave school or teacher, or even a kiddo in your life who would appreciate a few extra things to make the school year a little easier – I can guarantee you that your gift is appreciated, and that it’s one of the most meaningful ways you can spend a few bucks.

Learn More:

Want to get involved? Of course you do – my readers rock! First – read more stories and find more info about this campaign by following the #BagitForward hashtag on Twitter. Then make sure to connect with Elmers on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube.

{Disclaimer: I am a member of the Collective Bias™ Social Fabric® Community.  This shop has been compensated as part of a social shopper insights study for Collective Bias™ and and Elmer’s.  #BagItForward #CBias #SocialFabric.}

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Has a Nurse Ever Saved the Day for You?

“You know you’re a nurse if… you triage the laundry when at home: This pile needs immediate attention, the pile can wait, this pile, with a little stain stick will be OK until you get back to it.” – Donna Wilk Cardillo… If you’ve ever spent any time at all in a hospital, you know that the quality of the nurses who attend to you can truly a difference in your experience. I mean, doctors are great, but honestly – whether it’s at your doctor’s office for a basic check-up, a hospital emergency room, or an in-patient stay at the hospital – you spend a heck of a lot more time with your nurses than you ever do with your doctor. Which is why I want to give a little shout out to an amazing nurse that made a difference in my life, and give you all a chance to recognize a great nurse who’s made a difference in your life too…

maternity pic

“When you’re a nurse you know that every day you will touch a life or a life will touch yours.” – Author Unknown

I’d originally planned to use this article to finally tell you all the story of Abby’s birth. Until recently, that was THE scariest day I’d ever faced in my entire life. But then last week I endured scariest thing I’ve ever been through, ever – My Toddler Had a Seizure: What I Learned Might Help You Too – And while things have recovered and calmed down amazingly well, the whole situation is still so vivid in my mind. And, it reminded me of what a difference the right set of medical professionals can make, especially nurses… I hate to have to say bad things about anyone, but I would be lying if I said that I felt ok about the way that the Emergency Room staff treated us during our ordeal… Abby had already suffered through two very mini seizures at home before we got to the ER. They were only around 5 seconds each, but they were horrible. So when the full one hit after being in the ER for an hour – I thought we would get some help. I was wrong…

“When you’re a nurse you know that every day you will touch a life or a life will touch yours.” – Author Unknown

Abby’s full seizure hit in the middle of a blood draw, for testing. The Phlebotomist continued taking blood, although we were yelling that Abby was seizing. Mike tried to hold Abby’s arms steady, so she wouldn’t fall off of the big hospital bed – since no one had pulled the safety rails up. I held her feet, then let go to run and open up our curtains, and shout for help. I came back to hold Abby… And looked back to see a whole counter of ER staff looking at us, not taking action. After I screamed for someone to help us – finally, a couple people wandered in, then finally started helping – grabbing an oxygen mask for Abby, hooking her up to monitors, and making sure she was breathing and safe. I understand that in the ER a seizure is probably an everyday type occurance. But for us, this was the scariest thing that had ever happened in either of our lives.

“A nurse will always give us hope, an angel with a stethoscope.” – Terri Guillemets

After getting Abby stabilized, we were moved upstairs, and admitted to Pediatrics for the night. There, we were welcomed into an atmosphere that was a complete 180 from the ER… The nurses were so amazingly compassionate, caring, and involved. When we arrived to our family room there, Abby still didn’t really know who we were. She was hooked up to lots of wires and monitors, very scared, and extremely confused. The nurses who got us settled in asked us if she had any type of favorite “lovey” at home – a doll, blanket, toy, anything – that made her feel secure and calm. Mike told the nurses that we didn’t have anything particular, Abby just loved all of her 27 baby dolls she’d carry around the house…. We were just joking. But within 5 minutes the nurses had returned with a baby doll for Abby to hold and cuddle, as she settled into her strange new surroundings at the hospital. The care and consideration that they showed to us then, and over the course of the next day as we monitored Abby, was more appreciated than I can ever say. We KNEW that those ladies cared for us, and were truly invested in Abby’s recovery. The doctor was amazing too – but since 90% of our day was attended to by the nurses, they were the ones who made the biggest impact on us.

“Nurses – one of the few blessings of being ill.” – Sara Moss-Wolfe

Did you know: the healthcare field is experiencing a severe shortage of nurses; there is currently a nationwide vacancy of over 100,000 positions, and that number is expected to grow to 800,000 by the year 2020? It’s amazing to me that a job that makes such a dramatic impact on the lives of so many people could be going unfulfilled. The positive side to this? The career outlook is excellent for the nursing field. And nursing is a highly regarded profession: a 2011 Gallup Poll announced that the public voted nurses number one for “honesty and ethical standards of various professions” for the eighth consecutive year. Nurses offer patients comfort, care and skill that is desperately needed in patient care. The time is now to encourage and celebrate this important role in our healthcare system. If you know an amazingly wonderful nurse too, then you’ll definitely want to make sure to enter them into the Amazing Nurses Contest, from J&J…

Nominate an Amazing Nurse

If there’s a special nurse that has made a difference in your life that you’d like to honor, visit the Amazing Nurses Contest site  before June 29, 2012, to share their story, and give them the chance to be recognized for their amazing compassion and skill. The form is pretty simple to complete – it took me less than 3 minutes to totally fill in the info to nominate the amazing nurse we had during our stay at the hospital with Abby. {By the way, she had totally recovered. They are hoping that what she had was called a Febrile Seizure – meaning it wasn’t too dangerous, but it’s very common in kids under 5, and odds are high it will happen again.} *A few details: The winning Amazing Nurse and his/her guest will attend the 2012 CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute show in Los Angeles, courtesy of CNN. He or she will also be honored in a video profile which will be screened before the live audience at the show, and featured on the Nursing Notes by Johnson & Johnson Facebook page. (*Eligible Nominees for the Amazing Nurses contest must be a Registered Nurse (RN), Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) or Advanced Practice Nurse (APN) who currently administers direct patient care.)*

Share your favorite story of a nurse who’s made a difference in your life – I love reading your comments…

{I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Johnson & Johnson and received a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate.}

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When Mothers Need a Little Help…

newborn baby and momma

“Of all the rights of women, the greatest is to be a mother.” – Lin Yutang

I remember this moment perfectly. This is in the tiny visiting room, in our hospitals NICU wing… It was only the second time that I was able to hold Abby, and it was the first time that I was able to bring her into the visiting room, so that my family and friends could finally see her too. She was born almost 3 weeks early – totally unexpected. She was my first, and only, baby. And her delivery was terribly traumatic – the NICU team was brought into the room during delivery, and had to whisk her away before I could even hold her. I knew that she’d been in distress, but wasn’t sure what was going on – I was just focused on pushing. But she came out white as a sheet, not making a sound… I watched the worried faces of the people in my now over-crowded room as they rushed her out… When the doctor came back to talk to me, he said we would know in the morning whether or not baby Abby was going to make it. It was the most emotionally exhausting day I’d ever been through.

baby and giraffe

“Making the decision to have a child – It’s momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”– Elizabeth Stone

Thankfully, by the next day, Abby was improving. By that evening, we knew that she was going to be ok. Slowly they were able to take all of the tubes, and IV’s, and monitors off of her – so that I could finally hold this sweet baby girl I’d been waiting so long to meet. But I remember that first day, waiting. Going between my hospital room where people came to poke me and ask questions or talk to me about Abby, and the NICU where people would poke Abby and do tests and give me updates. It was incredibly stressful, feeling so helpless…. And I really remember how the small acts of kindness from friends, family, and even strangers truly made a difference in my life. One girlfriend learned that I had packed a last minute diaper bag, and had forgotten so many things. She brought me a bag of my favorite snacks, plus hair bands, lip gloss, and toothpaste. Love her. One of the nurses walked with me down to the garden, to give me a place to try to relax and get centered. And, remembering those things that helped me when I needed it is is part of why I am now a huge supporter of a wonderful program from Johnson’s Baby. It’s called Johnson’s Baby Cares, and here is how it works:

  • Care Kits: Johnson’s Baby is putting together Care Kits, filled with baby essentials like lotions, washes, shampoos, diaper creams, etc. These will be distributed to families in need immediately after a disaster. Imagine how scary it must be to go through any type of natural disaster anyway – but how frightening it would be dealing with the aftermath while caring for a new baby?
  • Donations: Provide funding that enables Save the Children programming, such as Child Friendly Spaces, which supplies moms and children with safe areas to recover, play and experience the joy of being together as a family following a disaster.

What an amazing thing for a company to do. All moms know and trust Johnson’s Baby products, but learning that they are using their power and profits to give back to communities in need makes me appreciate them so much more. When you’re going through a crisis, having someone step in to offer you a little help, and tell you that they care, can make all the difference in the world.

“There is no way to be a perfect mother, and a million ways to be a good one.” – Jill Churchill

Ok, am I the only one crying here? That video really moves me – it reminds me of my favorite piece of advice that I received while I was in the hospital with Abby. One of the nurses sat with me for awhile, next to Abby in the NICU. I was feeling so overwhelmed, and unsure of myself as a new mom. She said to remember that as a mother, to always “Do your best, and forget the rest.” As long as you know that are you are doing the very best that you can do, and always striving to learn and grow along with your new baby – then you’re doing good enough. Her words have stuck with me all this time.

“God could not be everywhere, so he created mothers.” – Jewish Proverb

If you’d like to help support Johnson’s Baby Cares, and the Save the Children organization, visit them on Facebook to learn more. If you remember a time that the help from someone else was a blessing in your life as a mother, this is a great way to honor that memory, and help give back to another mom out there who needs a little bit of help from you…

{Disclosure: I wrote this review while participating in a campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Johnson & Johnson and received a promotional item to thank me for my participation.}

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Learn the Secret to Shopping Like a Superhero

Be a shopping superhero – Use your superpowers of finding the lowest deals on the coolest local sites and services to help you be a real hero for local non-profits – when you by the amazing daily deals on Sharing Spree, a portion of every purchase – {usually 10-20%} – goes to a local charity, helping people right in your own community. Sharing Spree has made non-profit donations so far totally $311,665. Now how super is that, right?

daily deal savings for moms

“Whoever said money can’t buy happiness simply didn’t know where to go shopping.” – Bo Derek

How does Sharing Spree Work? It’s easy peasy, and you’ll love it! Just follow a few simple steps to set you your free account, browse the seriously awesome deals in your area, and get cool stuff at discounts of up to 90% off.

  1. Get set up. Head over to Sharing Spree today, and fill out a few questions to set up your account. This takes about 2 minutes, seriously.
  2. Get a daily update. Watch for a new email, once a day Monday through Friday, with the newest “Spree” that you can purchase in your own area. Or, if you’re like me and don’t like to wait, just visit the site yourself each morning to see what’s new. {This is a great idea, since the best sprees go fast!}
  3. Shop and Save. You get deals of up to 90% off on local shops, restaurants, spas, and more great places that you love. And the charities you help to support when you shop LOVE the donations that your purchases make!
  4. Get free stuff. I mean, 90% off is pretty dang awesome. But free is even better, am I right? So, when you share your favorite deals with your best girlfriends, you’re rewarded with free credits in your account – meaning you can get things like a spa day for free. Love this.

Ready to get started? Of course you are – how could you pass this up! Head over to the Sharing Spree site today, and start shopping like a superhero today!

What deal will YOU find today?

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Celebrating Life’s Wild Moments!

Glad Black Bag wants to help moms celebrate life’s “Wild Moments” – Because, when you have a life with kids in it, you know that good times can often end up with BIG messes too. Have you ever beaten yourself up over a broken glass or a spill on your dining room chair? Life is full of those oops moments – which is why Glad Black Bag has teamed up with the Picker Sisters – best friends and interior designers Tracy Hutson and Tanya McQueen – to celebrate and cleanup those wild moments, and then find ways to reuse discarded items.

trash to treasure with the Picker Sisters

“Don’t blow it – good planets are hard to find.” – Quoted, Time

I can’t believe that I hadn’t heard of this show before! The only time that I watch watch TV usually is when I join the Mister for one of his shows. Some of my favorites that he watches are shows like Storage Wars or American Pickers, so when I heard about this, I went right out and ordered  Picker Sisters: Season 1 – I’ve always been such a big lover of the “trash to treasure” idea. I love “junk-crafting” – finding ways to reuse things and make them cool again. {Get inspired by some of my favorite clever ideas on my Junk Crafts board on Pinterest!} Read what the sisters say about it –

“We live by the saying, ‘one person’s trash is another’s treasure.’ In fact, on our television show, we travel across the country to find reclaimed trash to turn it into treasure for our store,” said Picker Sister, Tracy Hutson. “However, you don’t have to travel far beyond your home to find items worth transforming into beautiful pieces.”

I’ll be sharing a post tomorrow filled with a bunch of their best tips, to help you take your own trash and junk pieces and turn them into treasures! I’ll share some of my favorite ideas and tricks too. {If you have any cool ideas to share – leave me some comments here, and maybe I’ll feature YOUR great ideas tomorrow too!}

Glad bag art auction

“We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.” – Native American Proverb

Glad Black Bag is partnering with Keep America Beautiful’s Great American Cleanups across the country – they’ll be collecting trash items, and providing them as materials to mosaic artist Jason Mecier, who will combine them with trash collected from celebrities like Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network), Raphael Sbarge (Once Upon A Time) and Nathan Kress (iCarly) – and then turning them into one-of-a-kind treasures!  Four pieces of art will be auctioned off during the Glad Black Bag art auction on eBay – {you can bid on them here from April 16-26th, 2012!!} – with proceeds benefiting Keep America Beautiful’s Great America Cleanup events. How cool is that??

“The activist is not the man who says the river is dirty. The activist is the man who cleans up the river.” – Ross Perot

No matter what WILD moments life throws your way – you’ll be prepared for any messy clean-ups when you stock up on Glad Black Bags. They’re the bags with that cool diamond print texture – you know, that stretch with your trash, to prevent rips or tears, and keep that trash that you CAN’T turn into treasures secured safely for disposal. Because there’s nothing worse than cleaning up a mess TWICE! {Seriously, the Glad Black Bags are my very fave around this house.}

  1. Connect with the Picker Sisters, Tanya and Tracy on Lifetime.com.
  2. For additional information on GLAD Trash, visit, www.glad.com.
  3. See the other amazing trash to treasure collections on Ebay.com.

{Disclaimer: I wrote this review while participating in a blog tour campaign by Mom Central Consulting on behalf of Glad Black Bag and received a Glad Black Bag product and a promotional item to thank me for taking the time to participate. I was also asked to “pin” one (1) Glad Black Bag Art Auction photo on Pinterest.}

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Celebrating Mothers Across the World – #CleverHaiti

mother's day giving back gifts

This Mother’s Day, I’m working with Clever Girls in support of Macy’s Heart of Haiti to shine a light on the “trade, not aid” program, which provides sustainable income to Haitian artisans struggling to rebuild their lives and support their families after the 2010 earthquake.

“Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth.” – Muhammad Ali

When I was a little girl, we lived for awhile in severe poverty. But, I never knew it. Part of this is because I lived in a low income neighborhood, and went to a very poor school – so the other families and homes around me looked just like mine. The other part is due to the amazingly hard work of my mother – My father had lost his job due to health problems, she had no vehicle, and 4 children under age 6, with no income. She never let those obstacles stop her, and was constantly striving to make a better life for us. Not having enough back then makes me so much more appreciative of what I have in life today. And becoming a mother myself makes me realize even more how amazing my mother’s efforts were.

mothers day

“If you have much, give of your wealth; if you have little, give of your heart.” – Arabic Proverb

In Haiti, the women have very little. When I think of the poverty that I faced as a child – that lifestyle would seem wealthy to many in Haiti. We take so much for granted sometimes, and it can be difficult for us to even imagine the struggles that other mothers go through in different areas of the world. But one way that we can help is by supporting their own efforts to make better lives for their children, much as people helped support my mother so many years ago. {That’s her and I together, last Mother’s Day.} One simple way to help is to learn about Heart of Haiti. Read more…

What is Macy’s Heart of Haiti? Heart of Haiti is a “Trade, Not Aid” initiative launched by artist and social entrepreneur, Willa Shalit, The Clinton Bush Haiti Fund and Macy’s. Already, Heart of Haiti has led to employment of 750 artists in Haiti, providing financial benefits for an estimated 8,500 people in the country.

Each item is a one-of-a-kind design and handmade by a Haitian master artisan from raw materials such as recycled oil drums, wrought iron, papier-mâché and stone. The collection features more than 40 home decor items including quilts, metalwork, ceramics, jewelry and paintings and is made almost entirely from recycled and sustainable items such as old cement bags, cardboard, oil drums and local gommier wood. The quality is stunning {visit your local Macy’s to see it in person} and each piece is as unique as the mother who made it – making it a wonderful one-of-a-kind gift.

pregnancy photo with baby blocks

“The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it.” – William James

When I became a mother, it was like a whole new place grew inside my heart. If was filled with so many extreme feelings I’d never felt – I’d felt love, but not this amazingly complete. I’d felt fear, but never as strong as the fear of something happening to my little girl. And, I suddenly had so much empathy for other mothers around the world – reading a story of something bad happening to a child, one that I have never met, brings tears to my eyes. So, as we’re all getting ready to celebrate Mother’s Day this May 8th, why not do something to help celebrate these mothers too, who are working to build a better life for their children? I’m giving my mother one of these amazing handmade necklaces – to let her know how much I appreciate what she’s done for me, and to show her that her compassion for others was handed down to me too. Not only has her wonderful example in my life made me want to be the best mother possible – but it also drives me to want to help ALL mothers provide for their children. I know how important that is. I’d love to have you join me, and purchase one of these for the special mother – or moms! – in your own life.

Heart of Haiti products are available online at Macy’s.com.

{Disclaimer: Thank you to Macy’s Heart of Haiti for sponsoring my participation in this “Share Your Heart” promotion. I was selected for this sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective. All opinions expressed here are my own.}

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Child Hunger Ends Here: Join Me in Giving Back

new face of child hunger in America

The New Face of Child Hunger in America

You’ve heard the stories – People who used to make regular donations to their local food banks are now lining up to receive donations. Middle class families who were able to just get by are now are being squeezed by a parent’s job loss, and finding themselves unable to stay above water. It’s called food insecurity, and it means not being sure where your next meal will come from. It can be really surprising to realize that child hunger is not just something that affects the very poor – it’s reaching out into middle class communities, and hitting families who have never faced this problem before, and are unsure of how to get help.

More than 1 in 5 kids in America do not know where their next meal is coming from

Does that statistic shock you? More than 1 in 5… Think of how many children go to school with your own kids – and how many of them might be dealing with this in their own homes? Hunger exists in every community and every county, all across the country. In a nation where people throw away tons of food every day, children with hungry tummies just seems inexcusable. But there are many things that YOU can do, right now and today, to help.

Child Hunger Ends Here

ConAgra Foods, the maker family favorites like Chef Boyardee products, Marie Callender’s meals,  Snack Packs, Healthy Choice, and more – is on a mission to End Child Hunger – and you can help!

Child Hunger Ends Here is ConAgra Food’s community built to raise awareness and fight child hunger in America. For every code that is entered on behalf of CHEH, ConAgra Foods donates 1 meal to Feeding America. Users will be able to enter their code directly into widget in exchange for a free download of the “Here’s Hope” song – sung by Jewel, Jay Sean & Owl City. Once the song download is complete, users can share (via Tweet or Facebook) the content with their friends.

Join Me in Helping to End Child Hunger Today!

I’d love to hear your thoughts on this – Have you ever had to deal with child hunger in your own life? When I was a little girl, we went through a really rough few years when my dad lost his job, my mother was raising 4 children under age 6, and we had very little income. We made it through due to a combination of my parent’s hard work and determination – and some amazing help from people in our community. I plan to enter all of my codes in support of CHEH – And I really hope that you’ll join me and do so too! If you enter your codes, leave me a comment with how many you added – so I can see how many meals we’re able to donate by working together!!

{Disclosure: Disclosure: Compensation was provided by ConAgra Foods via Glam Media. The opinions expressed herein are those of the author and are not indicative of the opinions or positions of ConAgra Foods.}

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