Redeem the Monday! Make your Mondays, and other people's Mondays, matter. How? Well there just so happens to be an organization dedicated to this very thing - redeeming the Monday for others and yourself. And making Mondays matter start with YOU. Check into how it can start with you by clicking here . Most of time when casting stones is mentioned it is in a violent manner but today let's all cast a stone and see how many ripples we can make - for good.

I did NOT make up this scripture. It's right there - in the book that some say is belittling and degrading to women. Throughout the Holy Bible the value of woman is elevated and defended. Dig into the history and the actual context of the passages that seem a little blurry and you will quickly discover the affection and purpose God has for women.  The Lord tasks the women with proclaiming the word he speaks - trust me, this is HUGE. God is commissioning women to be his mouthpiece.  The complaints about God's view on women extend to the Apostle Paul's attitude toward women. And just as God is misunderstood, so is Paul. After all, he credits learning about God and relationship with God to women. In fact, contrary to popular misunderstanding Paul was actually a champion of women. So today #SheSunday really is all about the she's. The place of honor they hold in the sight of God and the importance they add to the function of this world. 

Do you underestimate the power of the smile? I think we all do. I think we neglect to consider its influence in societies and crossing cultural barriers. Everyone recognizes a smile. Also, there have been some really interesting studies out there about successful people and their frequency of smiling. Forbes published a really interesting article about the power of the smile, read it here.  Today's #SaturdaySmile Focus: Did you know (I didn't) that a child is born every three minutes with a cleft lip or cleft palate?  Not only does this take away the child's real smile but it has serious medical implications.  Today consider honoring #SaturdaySmile by bringing back the smile of a child. Go to smiletrain.org and join in the efforts to bring the smile back to those who have lost it.  Today's #SaturdaySmile Quote:

A few years ago a garment factory in Bangladesh blew up. It was overcrowded, had almost no ventilation, and its *employees* were working with any breaks at all - meal, bathroom, etc - with only 2 days off (maybe) a month. They got paid pennies per hour, keeping them well below the minimum wage considered acceptable for Bangladesh and keeping them out of reach of the acceptable income a family needs to have shelter, food, and education. I was already tuned in to the problem of these modern day sweatshops and the trafficking it encourages as well as the poverty level it keeps people at. But this garment factory tragedy really bothered me. That same week I was in Kohl's shopping and I walked out of there not buying anything because I had looked at every label to see where the clothing item was made - Bangladesh was the clear winner. I felt sick. What a freaking conundrum. But let's start at the beginning - at least for most clothing - cotton. Cotton is the world’s o

Today's #ThriftyThursday topic is how to be thrifty - or frugal - in everyday life. Frugality gets a bad rap but that's because, like all things, of the extremists. All things in moderation people. Extremism is never healthy. Anyway. I found a great article in Reader's Digest about effortless ways to become more frugal. I confess, the word effortless is what caught my attention. If it takes too much work, time, energy I'm at a place in my life where I'm not all that interested. I mean - these days I'm buying some of my veggies for recipes already chopped (which isn't thrifty in terms of money but is saving my sanity - pros and cons people. *grin*). So effortless is really appealing to me. Here's the article, I highly recommend reading it.  One of my favorite tips in the article is "take care of your stuff." My hub and I excel at this. Another one was use smaller plates (read the article to see why) which is something I've been mul

Why is Peter Pan always flying?  He neverlands! (This joke never gets old.) Two windmills are on a date and one asks the other, "So what kind of music do you like?"  The other replies, "I'm a big metal fan!" Everyone asks where's Waldo…  Nobody asks how's Waldo. What's the difference between a crocodile and an alligator?  One you'll see in a while and the other you'll see later! Why are ghosts banned from the liquor store?  Because they would steal all the boos! What's the difference between people from Dubai and people from Abu Dhabi?  People from Dubai don't like the Flintstones and people from Abu Dhabi Doo! Who invented the round table?  Sir Cumference! What's the difference between a well dressed man on a unicycle and a poorly dressed man on a bike?  Attire! What's Whitney Houston's favorite type of coordination?  HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAND EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEYEEEEEEEEE Wh

Collaboration is another word for teamwork. I love sitting around a table listening to people brainstorm and give input and become energized about the project they are working on. I love watching how individual strengths work together to fill in any gaps. For inspiration, h ere are 8 TED talks on the importance of collaboration.  Find a way to celebrate teamwork today! 

I've been known to be annoyingly cheerful - on purpose - on Mondays, using the following as my mantra... I switch it up just a bit to say "This Monday is a day that God has made, let's rejoice and be glad in it!" It's a way to remind myself, first of all, that this day called Monday is just as valuable as any other day and then it's a way to be a gentle reminder to others about the value of this day called Monday. What are some ways we can rejoice about this day?

So here's the deal. Today's #SheSunday is somewhat for the he's and she's but I really have the she's in mind. And I don't want to hear any comments about how women are just being whiners and aren't in such a bad place after all. The research - the stats - the numbers - don't lie.  I'm tired of being told I can be a strong woman and then when I chose to use my voice I get shut down. I'm over it. I'm fed up. I'm sick of the double standards and hypocrisy.  Part of the problem is standing up for myself. I keep getting sent the message that I shouldn't or don't have permission to. It's not true but it's the prevalent message. And sometimes I forget it isn't true and I sit down. So today, for #SheSunday - and for the he's - let's talk about standing up for ourselves despite the messages we might be getting to sit down.  There's a lot of content out there discussing today's topi

The smile is fascinating! It isn't just an upturned mouth on our faces - it has psychological, physical, emotional, and relationship benefits.  Our smiles have magic in them - magic for ourselves and for others.  So today put those benefits to work for yourself and share them with others!  And get this, there are NINETEEN styles of smiles! NINETEEN!   But this article that explains them all says only 6 are for happiness. Read up on the different styles, I am fascinated by them!  Today's #SaturdaySmile Focus: Did you know (I didn't) that a child is born every three minutes with a cleft lip or cleft palate?  Not only does this take away the child's real smile but it has serious medical implications.  Today consider honoring #SaturdaySmile by bringing back the smile of a child.  Go to operationsmile.org and see how you can bring a smile to someone.  Today's #SaturdaySmile Quote:

Coffee. It's more a verb than a noun these days. In fact, the other day I had coffee with a friend...we both had tea drinks! But we still referred to it as "having coffee."  Coffee: a brief history, how it gets to your cup (and what do those labels mean?) The facts say that 125 million people worldwide depend on coffee for their livelihood - and no wonder! Here's the top 10 countries in the world that consume the most coffee ....nope the United States doesn't land in the top 10, but doesn't it feel like our nation drinks truckloads of coffee each day?! Anyway, it's safe to say the world loves its coffee. But I think we might all love it a little more if we knew that 125 million people working to bring us the coffee were getting fair treatment, fair wages, fair working environment. At least I know the coffee I drink tastes better when I know that everyone involved in making sure I get that cup of coffee was treated with dignity and equalit

Today's #ThriftyThursday topic is grocery shopping. Did you hear the loud groan that accompanied those two words? I hate grocery shopping. And I really hate putting them away once I get home. But that's neither here nor there when it comes to thriftiness.  For years I've seen different tips and hints and whatever else's about how to save money on groceries. Of course there are coupons and there was that ridiculous couponing craze a few years back that made people look and act insane. Regardless, I've not been successful at any of these tips, hints, methods, etc. Mostly because it usually requires a lot of driving around to several different stores and getting in and out of your car a lot. Who has time for this? Even people who work from home or don't have another job outside the home - how in the world do you have time to drive to and fro? Plus, the cost of gasoline driving all over the place - uh hello? Anyway, I'm not very good at the whole thin

What's the difference between bird flu and swine flu?  If you have bird flu, you need tweetment. If you have swine flu, you need oink-ment. What did the fisherman say to the card magician?  Pick a cod, any cod! What's stucco?  What happens when you step in bubblegummo. She was only a whiskey-maker, but he loved her still. A rubber band pistol was confiscated from algebra class because it was a weapon of math disruption. What's the Internet's favorite animal?  The lynx. In 1957, several cities were vying to host the 1964 Winter Olympics. Candidates had been eliminated to the point where the only two left were Singapore and Nevers, France. The French venue had an obvious advantage for the games, but the Singaporeans were eager to host the games in their country, so they developed a snow-making machine. Because of technical glitches, the machine produced snow only part of the time. The rest of the time it produced steam, and you can't ski on s

For #TeamworkTuesday let's discuss what makes a poor team. We build good teams by knowing what not to do. A team that behaves as a bunch of individuals out for themselves is not a team. And that kind of "team" becomes a drain on the project, the department, and eventually on the organization. What contributes to poor team dynamics? Bad attitudes, being unwilling to cooperate, lack of communication, and conflict between members.   These dynamics can quickly become exhausting for those who are invested in solutions, progress, and the mission of the business. So today take some time to consider the team you are currently a part of. And take time to consider your role in that team. Are you "just a job" or a "team player?" If you discover, or already know, that you aren't energizing your team but are in fact a drain on it,  here are some things to consider about how to turn things around and be a good team player.

It seems that one of the best ways to ensure that Mondays matter is to pass out the message that people matter. The more people believe they matter the more they will do to make their days and other people's days matter. So today #MakeMondayMatter by letting everyone you meet know they matter!

Today's #SheSunday is all about the kick ass women musicians that are out there. The first woman I thought of was Lindsey Stirling who does stuff on the violin that I am positive the creator of the instrument never considered being done! In case you haven't heard her then check out some of her music on her YouTube channel. Scanning through the lists of women musicians worldwide I realized something - a lot of them don't come from America. They are in countries all over the globe. And this led me to realize how limited my exposure to music really has been. Anyway. So today, let's celebrate kick ass women who play kick ass music. Here are some sites to get to know some of them better: Kickass Music Women - an online magazine dedicated to the women who play A playlist of inspirational “kick-ass women” Listen, badass women are not a new thing - but they are a newly talked about thing. Back in 1967 the divine Aretha Franklin sang a song that was aimed t

Why smile? Well, for obvious reasons it feels better to smile than it does to not. Have you noticed that? A day without much smiling tends to leave me feeling rather blue by the time I go to bed. But if I've engaged my smiling muscles throughout the day I feel way better. But there are some other reasons to smile - some may be surprising to you.                                                         Today's #SaturdaySmile Focus: Mercy Ships rock.  They do a wide variety of medical services - seriously they are an awesome organization.  They include among their services cleft lip and palate repair  which is my chosen focus for this saturday smile.  You can contribute to making someone's smile shine through Mercy Ships by clicking here.   Today's #SaturdaySmile Quote:

   Let's talk chocolate today! Chocolate is a popular sweet in the world. Americans consume approximately 11 pounds per person each year of it. And that's nothing compared to what Europeans consume. The average Brit, Swiss or German will each eat around 24 pounds of chocolate a year! So needless to say chocolate is in demand.  But that high demand comes at a price we either are unaware of or refuse to think about. The majority of chocolate products found on shelves around the world are because of forced child labor.  Well. Now that chocolate tastes pretty bitter right now, doesn't it? (By the way, I hope it does taste bitter and you have to spit it out.)  Listen, I'm not here to be a killjoy but I am here to ask you to think outside of the little world you have created for yourself (which we all do) and help aid others in getting the benefits you enjoy - like good health, education, fair wages, etc.  It's easy to shrug, throw