Caught up in the Crazy of the Holidays
At this time of year it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the parties, the late night shopping and the (spiked?) eggnog. It can bring what is supposed to be a happy joyful time crashing down into the stress-zone. And if you haven’t started your shopping yet…
It’s easy to get caught up in the crazy. Maybe we should just take a collective breath. Are you with me mama?
Keep it Simple
Bringing the focus back to the spirit of the holidays means one thing. Simplify, simplify. It is a time to show our appreciation to those we love.
But do we really need to buy gifts? Maybe, for some of us. But who has the time, energy or money to get a gift for everyone? As much as it would be nice to do so, we’d probably have to start our shopping this year for Christmas next year.
These days, I’m all about keeping things simple. And living in the city like we do, it’s easy to accumulate stuff that we don’t have the space for.
My son doesn’t need any more toys
My son doesn’t need any more toys. What he does need is time. Time spend with us and other family members. And, time spent creating memories that will last.
I’ve always loved the Vancouver International Children’s Festival for this reason.
So why am I telling you this? And why am I talking about a festival that only takes place in the summer? It’s not even winter (officially) yet.
It’s Good for the Mama Soul
Well for one thing when our family has visited the festival we’ve come away with cool ideas to make our time at home a little more fun the whole year round. I am not the most creative type but I know that time spent pretending and dancing and crafting and cutting various things out of coloured paper is healthy for the mama soul.
You can’t help but feel inspired when you attend this festival and its fun to see the creative muscles being flexed in our kids. And as I mentioned earlier, giving the gift of an experience is a wonderful way to bond with our loved ones. And if that gift can excite and educate the minds of our children it’s a win for everyone.
Giving the Gift of Experience
This Christmas I’m focusing on giving the gift of experience but I also want to reach out to those beyond my family. There are kids less fortunate than mine who deserve to be inspired and have fun too.
It is with this in mind that I’m going to tell you about a new initiative that Modern Mama Vancouver West is taking on.
I am excited to announce that Modern Mama Vancouver West is teaming up with Chimp.net to raise funds as a community to donate to the Vancouver International Children’s Festival. Called a Giving Group, it’s a collective savings plan with a monetary goal. When we reach our goal we decide as a group how to spend the funds.
Quite simply, it is a way to give to what we care about with simple intention and with confidence.
Giving to those who are less fortunate is a nice way to end the holiday season, don’t you think? And with only 14 days left until the end of the year, we’ve got some giving to do.
Chimp is a registered Foundation with the CRA and will issue your tax receipt immediately. You can track donations in real time and watch as we reach our goal!
How We Can Use Our Donation
There are a few ways we could use our donation. We could purchase festival passes for families who can’t otherwise afford them. We could donate directly to The Vancouver International Children’s Festival for them to use as they need it. Or, we could direct the donation to tickets sales to keep the festival affordable for everyone.
Ultimately, the decision on how to spend the money is up to the group. Once we reach our goal we can brainstorm ideas. And we need time to raise the money. The festival runs May 27th to June 1st 2014, so there are still quite a few months to really make a difference for the kids and their families this summer.
Educating our Children Through the Arts
Educating our children through the arts is such a fantastic way for them to build confidence in themselves, explore their own creativity and above all have fun doing it! And because the festival isn’t just for kids, (did you know that over 40% of people who attend are adults?) it’s fun for everyone.
Join our Giving Group
Keeping the focus on giving this Christmas and all year round is a wonderful way to celebrate with those we love. And isn’t the Vancouver International Children’s Festival a wonderful cause? Not only is the festival fun for all, they are a non-profit charitable group that needs our help to keep doing what they do best.
And of course, by supporting our Giving Group, kids who are less fortunate than our own can have the opportunity to go to the festival too.
You can donate as little as $5 and all donations up to $100 will be matched by Chimp (to a total of $500).
Our goal: $500
To start with I’ve set a goal of $500. It doesn’t sound like a lot but Chimp will match it, bringing it up to $1000. Now we could do something amazing for families with that!
This December, give 100%
Whether you give to a friend, a family member, your community, or charities, giving is powerful. It connects us with the world around us. It empowers us, and inspires others.
Giving feels good. Giving 100% feels even better.
This December, you can make your charitable giving count even more because all fees on Chimp are covered by HootSuite until December 31st.
That means all your giving goes to VIGF and any other of the 85 000 Charities you would want to support this season. On Twitter you can follow #GiveOn to see who else is making a difference by giving to their charity of choice with Chimp.net.
And here’s a link to a video that tells you why people like you are giving to the cause of their choice through Chimp.net.
Won’t you join Modern Mama Vancouver West’s giving group?
This post was brought to you by Chimp.net. I was compensated for writing this post but as always, the opinions are my own. And I am part of the giving group and will be donating to VICF.
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