(ARA) - Making a charitable donation during the holidays isn't just an act of kindness, often it's also an act of faith. As you mail your donation check or drop some bills and loose change into that collection bucket outside the grocery store, it's only natural to wonder just where the money is going, who it's helping, and if it's really helping anyone at all.

Wouldn't it feel good this holiday season to know your contributions are really making a difference? Knowing who your donation benefits can help make the act of giving even more enriching for you and the recipient of your generosity. Fortunately, there are ways to do good that you can also feel good about, knowing the real effects of your efforts. Here are two ideas for holiday giving that you can know will make a difference:

Donate your time

Everyone is busy during the holidays, but if you want to be confident your charitable giving is really making a difference, donating your time to a worthy cause is a good option. Not only will you enjoy the spiritual nourishment of actively helping others, you'll be able to see the actual results of your contribution. The options are virtually endless and you can find a way to give that fits your schedule and personal preferences.

Are you handy around the house? Contribute your time to an organization that builds or repairs homes for those in need. Perhaps you're a good cook or a deft server? Volunteer to prepare or serve meals at your local soup kitchen. Do you get along well with kids? Contact churches or homeless shelters in your area and volunteer for their child care programs.

No matter how you choose to do it, donating your time costs you nothing more than a few hours, but can deliver the reward of seeing firsthand just who your contribution is helping.

Finance a micro loan

Money is often what people in need require most. Yet if you believe the old adage "Give a man a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime" you may feel hesitant to just hand over cash without knowing your donation will help the recipient build a better future for themselves. Funding a microfinance loan for a small business owner in a developing country is a great way to ensure your donation not only helps someone immediately, but helps create a better future as well.

Organizations like World Vision provide micro loans - ranging from $25 to $5,000 - to small businesses in Mexico, the Philippines, Kenya and Rwanda. Through the organization's website, www.worldvisionmicro.org, you can fund a loan - entirely or partially. What's more, you can select the entrepreneur you would like to help and designate exactly how much to loan that person. The website provides details on business owners, why each needs a loan, and how they will use the loan. After you've made a loan, you'll get reports on how your chosen entrepreneur has spent the money, how his or her business is faring and how the entrepreneur is re-investing profits.

Your loan is recorded as a tax-deductible monetary donation. When borrowers repay their loans, their funds go back into World Vision's local community bank and the money is loaned out again to help other entrepreneurs in the same community. The repayment rate for World Vision loans is nearly 99 percent. Microfinance loans foster small-scale entrepreneurship and foster long-term solutions to poverty by helping individuals and communities transition from poverty to independence. Log on to www.worldvisionmicro.org to learn more.

When you make a charitable donation during the holidays - or any time of year - your heart is in the right place. You'll feel even better about your contribution if you know for sure you money is ending up in the right.

(Attn: Dads – Here’s What Mom Really Wants!)

1. Take all of the kids out grocery shopping and leave Mom with a quiet, empty house for an hour or so. 
Let Mom know that it’s her time to spend however she’d like while the rest of the family is out stocking up on the weekly necessities.  You can really make it a mom-treat by putting all of the groceries away too as a part of the deal!  It may be hard for Mom to refrain from jumping in, so suggest she go relax in another room until the grocery duties are done!

2. Help the kids make a “Mom & Me” Book to share with Mom.
My younger daughter made this sweet little keepsake for me all on her own recently, chock-full of all of the things she loves about us as a mommy-daughter duo, and it is a hand-drawn memento that I will absolutely cherish always!  The home-made equivalent of a Mommy-Oscar!

3. Plan a sweet and simple date night… at home, after the kids are tucked in.
It can be as effortless as a glass of wine on the porch and quiet grown-up conversation with just the two of you or her favorite chick-flick, minus any eye-rolling, head shaking, or other not-so-subtle Dad protests.  Even if “An Officer and a Gentleman” for the 15th time since you’ve met doesn’t quite “lift you up where you belong” (O.K., maybe you need to be a girl to recognize that theme song), she’ll be swept off her feet that you are making it all about her for a night!

4.  Surprise-clean one of the places where Mom spends a large majority of her time – her mom-mobile.
The key here is to do so while holding your tongue from making any criticisms of the kid-garbage littered throughout (and, yes, a mom’s arms and mind really are too full of other stuff to bring a little in every time she gets out of the car!), or the coffee-to-go stains on the console (not to mention the few misguided coffee-drops that somehow found their way onto the fabric-covered ceiling – Life happens!), or the 501 DVDs that you find everywhere but in the now-empty case where they are meant to be stored, or the piles of toys, books, and tote bags that haven’t quite found their way back into the house yet.  Inquiries as to how the car arrived at that “How have you not lost a kid in here?”-state in the first place is a conversation best saved for another time!
Just imagine Mom’s delight when she enters her home-away-from-home on wheels and encounters the unexpected smell of something a little fresher than the eau-de-mashed french fries and sour milk that she’s grown so accustomed to!

5. Treat mom like the VIP she truly is by helping out with the household chores, without being asked.
Tell mom “I love you!” with an unrequested, already-folded basket of laundry!  (Better yet - an empty, already-put-away laundry basket!)  It’s a simple surprise that’s guaranteed to make Mom smile, and maybe even bring a grateful tear to her eye.  Yes, it is THAT big of a deal for her to not have to ask for the help, and instead, receive it unexpectedly!

6. Speaking of gratitude, nothing says thank you like a simple “Thank-you!” (Just like Mom taught us!)
Few things in life are sweeter than a simple, heart-felt acknowledgement of your efforts.  Let Mom know how much you all appreciate everything she does each day for everyone else.  And, the best part is, it doesn’t cost a thing, while the value to Mom will be more precious than gold!

For a fun, free, easy way to say, “Thanks Mom, you’re doing a great job,” please join us in thanking 10,000 moms by Mother’s Day!  Visit http://www.sendamomasmile.com/ to send all of the moms you know and love a well deserved mom-smile and a chance to win a $100 Gift Certificate (redeemable at all of a mom’s favorite stores)!

About the Author: Lynn Ely is the mother of two young daughters and inspires moms to evolve with MomEvolve, her creative coaching services and products company that helps busy moms move from overwhelm to making more time available for fun, family, and feeling fabulous about themselves!  Through uniquely integrated Life-, Career-, and Purposeful Entrepreneur Coaching, MomEvolve facilitates moms feeling great about honoring themselves as a priority in their lives, so they can reconnect, reprioritize, and replenish.

This is a great craft to do with the kids or surprise them with these candy filled bunnies and chickens in their Easter baskets. You will simply need a plastic bag, some felt, pom pom balls, ribbon, & of course your glue gun. Unique gifts and crafts do not have to be hard, time consuming, or expensive. You will love this Easter idea.

Plastic eggs make great Easter Bunnies. She's So Crafty shows you how to make quick and easy bunnies for Easter baskets, egg hunts, or prizes.

April Fool's Day is almost upon us, and what better way to warm up our laughter than with a few funny quotes? Chances are, you're going to pull a few pranks (and be the center of one or two) when April 1st rolls around. Let these funny quotes get your humorous side ready for this day of great fun.


1. "April 1.  This is the day upon which we are reminded of what we are on the other three hundred and sixty-four." ~ Mark Twain


2. "It is the ability to take a joke, not make one, that proves you have a sense of humor." ~ Max Eastman


3. "Isn't it appropriate that the month of the tax begins with April Fool's Day and ends with cries of "May Day!"?" ~ Author Unknown


4. "Here cometh April again, and as far as I can see the world hath more fools in it than ever." ~ Charles Lamb


5. "I am so clever that sometimes I don't understand a single word of what I am saying." ~ Oscar Wilde

6. "Love is like a booger. You keep picking at it until you get it, then wonder what to do with it." ~ Author Unknown


7. "You grow up the day you have your first real laugh -- at yourself." ~ Ethel Barrymore


8. "You can say any foolish thing to a dog, and the dog will give you this look that says, "My God, you're right! I never would've thought of that!" ~ Dave Barry


9. "The full area of ignorance is not mapped. We are at present only exploring the fringes." ~ JD Bernal


10. "Show me a sane man and I will cure him for you." ~ Carl Gustav Jung


11. "A word to the wise ain't necessary -- it's the stupid ones that need the advice" ~ Bill Cosby


12. Everything is funny as long as it is happening to somebody else. ~ Will Rogers


13. "I sometimes wonder if the manufacturers of foolproof items keep a fool or two on their payroll to test things." ~ Alan Coren



14. "A sense of humor is the only divine quality of man." ~ Arthur Schopenhauer

While the phrase "April fool" started out as a way to ridicule those who refused to change with the times (back in the 1500's) it's now a way to share our humorous side with family, friends and colleagues. This year, make a promise to yourself to play at least one April Fool's joke and to be a good sport when you're the butt of one. After all, the ability to laugh at one's self is a sure sign that you're not really a fool, regardless of what day or month it is. Get yourself in the laughing mood with the above 14 funny quotes.

About the Author:For more funny quotes, check out the popular funny quotes section of Famous-Quotes-And-Quotations.com, a website that specializes in 'Top 10' lists of quotations in dozens of categories.

"Live music." That common saying may contain some truth, but these
days the word "live" is having less and less to do with music. For many
people, a dj is their form of live music. Despite what dj's would like
to have you believe, musicians make excellent entertainment.

In the first place, people enjoy human performance. Many musicians
like great athletes are multi-talented. They will croon on the tenor
saxophone right to your soul, then turn around and chunk out a funky
rhythm on a Fender Stratocaster. Can a dj play a turntable behind his
head or with his teeth? Professional musicians love to sing and groove
on just about any style of music from a Frank Sinatra to Outkast. They
especially enjoy playing when the audience is responding to their
performance.

In the second place, musicians are students of the arts. Musicians
do not merely "push buttons." They've had years of practice in their
homes, and they do their thing on stage. Unlike dj's musicians do not
try to sing over or add other loud or strange noises to program music.
Once a song starts it flows to the end and in the unfortunate event of
a power shortage musicians can continue to entertain acoustically until
power is restored. Even non-professional musicians usually understand
"the show must go on" concept.

Lastly, one of the most attractive features of bands as
entertainment is the affinity between them and their audience. Watching
a great drummer is never boring because they're constantly
moving...feeling. An animated solo violinist playing an old wooden
Stradivarius violin has a much greater chance of reaching into your
soul and stirring your emotions than a dj with an array of magnetic
speakers and digital amplifiers no matter how great his system sounds.
It's an apple trying to be an orange. It's the difference between human
blood and electricity.

Contrary to popular opinion, bands can be affordable. Just like with
a dj, finding a band well in advance and securing them with a low down
payment, the price can be negotiated to avoid costly or inadequate
entertainment. Bands will even throw in a free cocktail hour or an
extra half hour at the end to secure a date! Many bands are now
offering "dj time." This is when the musician hat comes off and the dj
hat is put on to play the Techno, House, Hip-Hop, etc...Genres of
today. People who have small parties should appreciate these
characteristics of bands. However, many people who have large parties
opt to have bands because they love the musician personality. In many
ways, musicians are the ideal entertainers.

Candido Bretto
PartyBands.com

Partybands.com is home to over 200+ bands from all around the USA.

(ARA) - Everyone knows the standard Valentine's Day gifts: flowers and chocolates. But if you really want to express what's in your heart, think a little harder about what you're going to give.

While those tried-and-true gifts are certainly nice, think of them as an accompaniment to the main event - a gift that reflects the personality of the recipient, and which shows that you put thought and creativity into your gift.

Before you set out on a shopping trip, take a moment to think about your gift recipient's favorite things, whether it's a charitable cause, an author or a hobby. If you can, try to plan an afternoon with your loved one and, over lunch or an excursion, see if you can pick up some ideas. Make mental notes, write them down when you have a moment, and then hit the shops. But if you aren't able to connect for some time together, consider using these ideas and adapting them to your fit your Valentine.

Put a spin on the standards
The easiest thing in the world is to get a bundle of red roses with baby's breath and a pre-made chocolate sampler - you can even pick those up at gas stations. Make the sentiment say more by putting a little extra thought into it. You could consult traditional Victorian flower meanings (for example, asters are symbols of love, freesia indicates trust) or choose a bouquet done in your Valentine's favorite color. If your sweetheart is a chocoholic, check your area for artisanal chocolatiers. A small sampler of chocolates and candies made with the finest ingredients will be more flavorful and memorable than your standard assortment.

Give the gift that gives back
Valentine's Day is the time of year when the feelings of your heart are given the most attention - why not let that lead you to think of heart health? According to the American Heart Association (AHA), heart disease kills one person every minute, and it is the No. 1 killer of women of all ages. To raise awareness of the risks of heart disease and also to raise critical funds for the AHA, Yankee Candle Company has continued its annual "Light a Candle for Your Heart" program which coincides with the AHA's Heart Health month and "Go Red" movement each year.

"By giving selected red Yankee candles to your loved one this Valentine's Day, you not only are giving America's best loved candle, you also will be giving a gift which directly benefits heart research," says Yankee Candle's Rick Ruffolo. "A dollar is donated to the AHA with every purchase." You also can include a card to tell the recipient that they can raise more money for the AHA on Facebook. "Become a fan of the company and send virtual candle gifts to all of your friends - for each candle you send, we will donate to the American Heart Association," Ruffolo adds.

Make it an experience
Going out to dinner is a Valentine's Day tradition - that much is clear to anyone who tries to get a reservation at a nice restaurant on Feb.14. To avoid the crush of diners and the often inflated menu prices, opt for something a little different. If you're spending time with your sweetheart, try something that requires you to work together - maybe try out a climbing wall at a local gym - or something that will make you want to cuddle up together, like ice skating or sledding. If your Valentine is more platonic, opt for going to see a movie - or plan a game night at home. No matter what you do, spending time together is a gift that always warms the heart.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

(ARA) - Finding gifts for a confident man isn't always easy, especially since he already projects such strong characteristics. But by giving him a stylish gift this Valentine's Day that works with, or even enhances, his confident personality, you can't go wrong.

Here are some suggestions to make this Valentine's Day something perfect:

* Give him a fragrance that reflects his style and turn up the heat on romance. The right fragrance will not only accentuate his confidence it will keep you both warm over the winter months. The Usher VIP fragrance is constructed around a rich suede note, a combination of fresh clean bergamot, tangerine and kumquat and allows a man to radiate the confidence of a gentleman at ease in his own skin. Usher VIP fragrance is also found in a shower gel, after shave soother and deodorant.

"I consider fragrance to be one of the most important tools of engagement for seduction. With Usher VIP I created a gentlemen's scent, which would also appeal to women," Usher says. "Women tell me they love the scent of a man and I wanted to create that sense of confidence and style that women desire."

* Of course, style is very important for confident men, and you can always find him the best winter outdoor wear that not only keeps him warm, but also allows him to still be sexy. Consider cashmere scarves, leather gloves or even a hat that you know will bring out that special look in his eyes when he tilts it just slightly on his head.

* Plan a fun date for the two of you that he will enjoy. If he's into a sports team, think about getting tickets to a big home game, and include a meal or dessert as part of the bargain. Maybe find some front row tickets to a concert for the music lover. Or plan a hike with a romantic picnic included. Surf and turf dinners are also a popular favorite, whether you cook them yourself or take him out to a fancy restaurant.

This Valentine's Day, you can't strike out by giving him a strong gift to match his personality. Look for Usher VIP fragrance at department stores nationwide.

Courtesy of ARAcontent

3 cups all purpose flour
2 tablespoons Baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup of Suger
3 Eggs Beaten
1 cup of Milk
*optional Pineapple or bananas
vegetable oil
Powdered Sugar

Combine first four ingredients; stir well.
Add eggs, milk & optional fruit; stir until smooth.

Heat 3" of oil to 375 degrees, carefully drop batter by heaping tablespoonfuls into hot oil.

Cook 5 to 6 at a time, cooking one minute on each side.
Drain well on paper towels and sprinkle with powder suger.
Hint: Sift powdered sugar over the top

Twas the night before Christmas, He lived all alone,

In a one bedroom house made of Plaster and Stone,

I had come down the chimney with presents to give,

To see who in this dwelling did live.

I looked all around, a strange sight to see,

No Tinsel, No Presents, Not even a Tree.

No stockings on the mantle, Just boots filled with sand,

On the wall hung pictures of far distant lands.

Medals and Badges, Awards of Every Kind,

A sobering thought, came alive in my mind.
,
This house was different, it was Dark, it was Dreary,

I had found the Home of a Soldier, I could see that most clearly.

The Soldier lay sleeping, Silent, Alone.

Curled up on the floor in this one bedroom home.

His face was so gentle, room in such disorder,

Not at all how I pictured a United States Soldier.

Was this the Hero of whom I'd just read?

Curled up on a poncho, The floor for a bed?

The I realized the other families that I saw this night,

Owed their lives to these Soldiers who were willing to fight.

In the morning round the world, the children would play,

Grownups would celebrate a Bright Christmas Day.

But they all enjoyed Freedom each month of the year,

Because of the Soldiers, Like the one lying here.

I couldn't help but wonder, How many lay alone,

On a cold Christmas Eve, In lands far from home.

The very thought brought a tear to my eye,

I dropped to my knees and I started to cry;

The Soldier awakened, I heard his rough voice,

"Santa don't cry, This Life is My Choice;

I fight for Freedom, I don't ask for more,

My Life is My God, My Country, My Corps."

The Soldier rolled over and drifted to sleep,

But I couldn't control it and I continued to weep.

I kept watch for hours, so silent and still,

As both of us shivered from the Cold Night's Chill.

I didn't want to leave him on that cold dark night,

This Guardian of Honor, so willing to fight.

Then, the Soldier rolled over, with a voice soft and pure,

He Whispered. "Carry on Santa, it's Christmas Day, All is Secure."

One Look at my watch, I knew he was right.

"MERRY CHRISTMAS My Friend, MAY GOD BLESS YOU THIS NIGHT."