Bloggin’ Mamas is sponsoring this giveaway in support of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, AdoptUSKids, and the Ad Council. November is National Adoption Month and they are encouraging prospective parents to adopt older youth from foster care.

The theme for National Adoption Month is, “We Never Outgrow the Need for Family.” That’s because older children and youth still have many big milestones in their life they need a family for.

There are 415,000 children in the U.S. foster care system and 108,000 are waiting to be adopted. AdoptUSKids’ maintains a national photo listing service for children waiting to be adopted. Since the project launched in 2002, more than 25,000 children who were once photo listed on adoptuskids.org have been adopted and nearly 38,000 families have registered to adopt through the website.  Nevertheless, older youth are disproportionately represented – approximately 41 percent of children and youth photo listed on adoptuskids.org are between 15 and 18 years old, but only 17 percent of those adopted have been in this age group.

Older youth and teens have lower adoption rates than younger children, and they often wait longer to be adopted. But no matter their age, all kids need a supportive, loving home and the teenage years are a critical period for growth.

Visit adoptuskids.org or to call 1-888-200-4005(English) or 1-877-236-7831 (Spanish) to receive the latest information about the foster care system and the adoption process. You can also visit the campaign’s communities on Facebook and Twitter.

And Now for the Giveaway!

One Win­ner will Win a $100 Ama­zon Giftcard!

Give­away begins Novem­ber 21st, 2015 at 6pm EST and ends November 30th, 2015 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 Give­away Tools wid­get below for full terms & conditions.

Dis­clo­sure: Blog­gin’ Mamas is host­ing this give­away and coor­di­nat­ing prize ful­fill­ment. Ele­ment Asso­ciates, The Ad Coun­cil and the AdoptUSKids are in no way respon­si­ble for the give­away, and only pro­vided the above con­tent to be dis­trib­uted in the form of a PSA. 

The post National Adoption Month Awareness Giveaway- Ends 11-30-15 appeared first on Bloggin' Mamas.

Bloggin’ Mamas is sponsoring this giveaway in support of the Ad Council and the AARP  & helping to raise awareness of the Caregiver Assistance campaign. November is National Family Caregivers month, and the Random Acts of Kindness initiative aims to recognize and support the 40 million unpaid caregivers in the U.S. Many caregivers are boomer women, often sandwiched between the needs of their parents and their own kids.

A popular misconception is that caregivers are paid medical professionals, providing full-time care to someone in need of daily help, when in reality, most caregivers are family members or friends who are also working and managing their own families at the same time.  For many, the caregiving role starts with simple things like scheduling a doctor’s visit or helping with daily errands, but gradually expands over time, until it becomes a major commitment in their lives.

This month, they kicked off a program designed to encourage all Americans to perform an unexpected ‘Random Act of Kindness’ for a caregiver.  By starting this nationwide movement, they’ll raise awareness of caregiving and caregivers while at the same time reaching caregivers directly—helping to alleviate some of their daily stresses and reward them for their ongoing support.

Info & Resources

• Learn more about Random Acts of Kindness for Caregivers
• The ask is simple—identify someone in your life or in your community who is serving as a caregiver and do something nice for them. It doesn’t have to be complicated or expensive, just a small gesture that makes a caregiver’s life a little easier.
• In addition to the giveaway below, the AARP is also asking that participants share their story with them. If you submit a 150 word or less summary of how you made a caregiver feel special and photo, you’ll be entered to win a cash prize from their $10,000 pot. There are weekly winners, and their contest runs through March 15, 2016.

Watch This Video! 

Almost three in ten people who are caring for someone say their life has changed with caregiving, oftentimes for the negative. More than one in five say their weight, their exercise, or their social life has/have suffered.  Emotionally, one in five say they are generally unhappier and one in three say they feel sad or depressed.  That’s why AARP created a community where caregivers can connect with experts and other caregivers and can find information and tools to take even better care of the person who once took care of them.

And Now for the Giveaway!

One Win­ner will Win a $100 Ama­zon Giftcard!

Give­away begins Novem­ber 21st, 2015 at 6pm EST and ends December 5th, 2015 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 Give­away Tools wid­get below for full terms & conditions.

Dis­clo­sure: Blog­gin’ Mamas is host­ing this give­away and coor­di­nat­ing prize ful­fill­ment. Ele­ment Asso­ciates, The Ad Coun­cil and the AARP are in no way respon­si­ble for the give­away, and only pro­vided the above con­tent to be dis­trib­uted in the form of a PSA. 

The post Random Acts of Kindness for Caregivers Giveaway- Ends 12-5-15 appeared first on Bloggin' Mamas.

Blog­gin’ Mamas is spon­sor­ing this give­away in sup­port of the Ad Coun­cil and the American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association cam­paign acknowledging the recent World Stroke Day on October 29th. We are helping to raise awareness about Stroke knowledge, prevention, and what to do in an emergency.

SPOT A Stroke

Did you know that stroke is the fifth leading cause of death and the leading preventable case of disability in the US? Each year, about 800,000 Americans suffer a new or recurrent stroke. Furthermore, someone in the world has a stroke every 2 seconds.

• 1 in 6 people will have a stroke in their lifetime.
• 1 in 3 Americans cannot name at least one sign of stroke.
• 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 or clot-busting device.
• Someone in the world has a stroke every 2 seconds.
• In the U.S. stroke is the No. 5 cause of death overall, killing nearly 130,000 people a year.
• Stroke is the No. 1 preventable cause of long-term disability.

How to spot a stroke F.A.S.T. (the warning signs):

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. www.StrokeAssociation.org/warningsigns

Here’s Paul George’s Story

More Resources & Info

• Click HERE to watch more videos
•  Check out the F.A.S.T. Song – The ASA has created a simple song to help people remember the stroke warning signs. They have the F.A.S.T. song in several musical styles on Youtube. If you’re really brave, sing it, or record a lip sync version, then share it using the #singFAST hashtag.
• Download the mobile app – There’s an app for that and at least one person is glad she had it!

And Now for the Giveaway!

One Win­ner will Win a $100 Ama­zon Giftcard!

Give­away begins November 4th, 2015 at 5pm EST and ends November 18th, 2015 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 Give­away Tools wid­get below for full terms & conditions.

Dis­clo­sure: Blog­gin’ Mamas is host­ing this give­away and coor­di­nat­ing prize ful­fill­ment. Ele­ment Asso­ciates, The Ad Coun­cil and the American Heart Association/ American Stroke Association are in no way respon­si­ble for the give­away, and only pro­vided the above con­tent to be dis­trib­uted in the form of a PSA. 

The post SPOT A Stroke Awareness Giveaway- Ends 11-18-15- $100 Amazon GC appeared first on Bloggin' Mamas.

Donate stuff. Create jobs.

There’s never a bad time to clear the clutter out of your home or garage or to do a wardrobe purge.  When you donate your stuff to Goodwill, the revenue from the sale of your donations helps fund job training and placement opportunities for people with disabilities and disadvantages directly in your community. That’s cleaning with a purpose.

Goodwill in currently running the “Donate Stuff. Create Jobs” campaign. Thanks to the programs and support services made possible by donations of clothes and household items, more than 261,000 people earned jobs in 2013 – that’s one person finding a job every 27 seconds of every business day. So you’re literally donating your stuff AND helping to create jobs.

Check out this quick PSA:

You can even calculate how much your donation helps your local community by using Goodwill’s Donation Impact Calculator. 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 someone facing challenges to finding employment.

Bloggin’ Mamas is supporting the Ad Council in spreading the word about Goodwill®, by sponsoring this $100 Amazon Giftcard Giveaway. It runs 5/19/15 12:01am EST through 6/2/15 at 11:59pm EST, and is open to US residents 18+.

ENTER BELOW!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Disclosure: Giveaway sponsored by Bloggin’ Mamas. If you have any questions or would like to run your own giveaway with Bloggin’ Mamas, please email info@blogginmamas.com

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Ever know someone who had a stroke? Strokes are actually pretty common. Did you know that stroke is the fourth leading cause of death and the leading preventable cause of disability in the US? Each year, about 795,000 Americans suffer a new or recurrent stroke—that’s about one stroke every 40 seconds.

May is American Stroke Month, so Bloggin’ Mamas is working with the 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.

According to the University Hospital of New Jersey, stroke risk increases with age. For each decade after age 55, the risk of stroke doubles. Each year, 28 percent of people who suffer a stroke are under age 65. Many of you have parents and grandparents at risk, and you yourself might be at risk.

Here are some resources for you to check out:

• Download the F.A.S.T. app for your smartphone at www.StrokeAssociation.org/warningsigns.

• Checkout the PSA  http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=wH7k5CFp4hI

The post Signs of a Stroke – American Stroke Month Awareness appeared first on Bloggin' Mamas.