Wonderful Story - $19K on toy shopping spree for charity

Texans WR Andre Johnson drops $19K on toy shopping spree for charity

Here's an NFL story designed to warm your heart and terrify your wallet. Texans wide receiver Andre Johnson, one of the league's unquestioned good guys, on Tuesday performed what's becoming an annual ritual for him: a Toys "R" Us shopping spree for at-risk youth in Houston.

Johnson's Foundation, the Andre Johnson Charitable Foundation, funded the spree, in which 12 children selected by Child Protective Services had 80 seconds to fill up their carts with as many toys as they could. And oh, could they fill those carts.

"You hear a minute and twenty seconds, and you don't think that's a long time, but you'd be surprised by what these kids can put into their buckets," Johnson said afterward. You can see his gargantuan receipt in the photo at right.

The children, ranging in ages from 8 to 16, have all suffered parental abuse in some form and now live with extended family members. But each child made sure to purchase toys for siblings and other relatives as well.

Johnson's foundation performs several works throughout the year for children in both Houston and Johnson's Miami hometown. But he told the team's website that it's the Toys "R" Us event that he enjoys the most.

"I think it's probably the best one because you get to see the kids really enjoy it," he said. "That's what this season is about. It's something I look forward to. The kids are happy, they get what they want for Christmas, and that's all that matters."



After the spree, Johnson also joined the Houston Police Department's Blue Santa program to surprise 800 students at Houston's Bastian Elementary School with Christmas presents.

Johnson stressed that he had traveled the path many of these kids were on, and he hoped they could learn from his example: "I grew up in a single-parent home and I was fortunate to achieve my goals," he said. "So, whatever goals you have, just keep them out in front of you, don't let anybody distract you away from them, because there will be distractions that try to detour you away from your goals. That's the biggest thing."


Andre Johnson. (Via @DTGoteraKHOU)
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/nfl-shutdown-corner/texans-wr-andre-johnson-drops-19k-toy-shopping-205258442--nfl.html

Summer Fruit

Green Tip


Summer Fruit: Organic or Conventional?

We all know that organic food is generally safer to consume, but many can't afford it. You can save money if you know what's important to buy organic and what may not be worth the extra expense. Fruits with edible skins have more of a tendency to attract insects, fungi and rot and are often treated with more pesticides, which can penetrate their permeable skin. For those, it's important to buy organic. But fruits with peels or rinds tend to be naturally hearty and clean. Here are some suggestions:

Buy Organic

Peaches and Nectarines

Strawberries and Blueberries

Cherries

Imported Grapes

Apples 

Buy Conventional

Melons

Avocados

Pineapples

Mangoes

Kiwi

Worrying

"Worrying does not empty tomorrow of its troubles...it empties today of its strength."

So hard to not worry about things, but have been thinking about it after my sister-in-law posted that she has been worrying about everything, and now she is worrying about her worrying.  Will continue working on living in the present.

Quotation of the Day


No kind action ever stops with itself. One kind action leads to another. Good example is followed. A single act of kindness throws out roots in all directions, and the roots spring up and make new trees. The greatest work that kindness does to others is that it makes them kind themselves. ~ Amelia Earhart

Girl Scouts of Northern California Gear Up to Host Centennial Event

Girl Scouts of Northern California Gear Up to Host Centennial Event

Start of the 2011 Girls Scout Year

Goal for 2011 Girl Scout year:

1) Stay on top of things.....LOL...always my goal.

2) Blog after meetings and events.

3) Post more pictures.

4) Scrapbook the events.

Pony Express Encampment (150 year anniversary)

Pony Express 150 Year Anniversary - June 11-13 - Cordelia
The year is 1860. You wish to be employed as a Pony Express rider but they are not hiring females. (How Rude!) To prove to the firm that you can do it, you propose a contest to locate the fastest riders. Come join Pony Express Encampment 2010 at the Cordelia Outdoor Center, 4550 Cordelia Road, in Cordelia June 11-13 to be a part of the Pony Express action!


Alexis and I spent our first weekend camping with the Girl Scouts. We arrived at 6:00pm on Friday night, after a week of worrying about the weather which was supposed to be from 91 to 94 degrees. Oh my!!! The girls received a backpack filled with a t-shirt, a horseshoe case with a pony to make, a map of the stations for the next day. Let the fun begin...praying I make it.



Set up camp amongst the other 40 or so tents. Sun setting, very nice.....then the mosquitoes came out!!!! We sang songs and watched skits....lights out at 10:30p.....LOL Yeah right, girls ranged from Brownies to Cadettes.....I think it was about midnight, and then they awoke at 5:30am with breakfast not until 8:00am!!!!

Started off with breakfast. We brought our mess kits and Alexis was thrilled to wash the dishes and hang the clean dishes in the meshbag on the line hanging from the trees. So many activities planned for the day. We had three girls with us, Alexis, Jamison & Imani we were joined into a group of 8 other girls. They were all troopers in the heat.

Stations:
Knots (learned the square knot & one other)

Map & Compass (learned directions on a compass and how to follow a map)

Tent Set Up (learned to set up and take down a tent all by themselves)

Lunch break for hot dogs, chips, bananas.

Bandanna/Backpack coloring (they received cute back packs with two horses on them which they all personalized with the colors...neat watching their artistic thoughts flow, some make night scenes and other were daytime, and of course Alexis made half sun/half moon); they also received a Bandanna which the learned different ways of using them, how the Pony Express riders would have used them. Alexis came back from the break with her little dog tied into her bandanna with a long stick attached...instant Hobo bag.

Tracking & Trail Signs: They learned to mark a tree with an onion so they would not be lost in the forest; and how to mark a trail with sticks and stones to show someone how to find them.

Snack (made a trail mix and learned about what the Pony Express ate and drank....sip of water and beef jerky).

Emergency Shelter: Learned to tie ropes to the trees and use a covering over it to make a shelter. The girl that was showing them this was really fun. After the girls make the shelter, she had them get inside, then she dumped a bucket of water on the shelter....amazing, they did it right, no one was wet (although they would have liked to get wet at this point). Hot hot

First Aid: Prepared their own first aid kits and learned how to make care of minor injuries like scratches, bug bites (lots of those!!) and bloody noses, which helped later because two out of three of our girls got them (Alexis & Imani). They learned to do an arm carry in case some broke a leg and also arm splints. We also learned about poison ivy and how help someone out if they fell into it and spiders too.

Post Card/Beaded Key-Chain: Letters to the troops and then we make a cowboy hat beaded key chain. Also, one the girls with the camp-name "Firefly" taught them about the Pony Express and what the when went through.

Leave No Trace: Learned about the environment and helping to save it when we are out in the wilderness and respecting the land.

Chili, corn chips, and salad for dinner. Then we had a campfire that night and the girls performed songs & skits. Great weekend of learning and now we will figure out what skills they learned to match up with their "Try-Its". They also received a fun patch for their vests. Alexis bridged to Brownies from Daisies last month, so this will be her first addition to her uniform.

Great first camping trip.......would have been fantastic minus the MOSQUITOES!!!