Day 243: Donated Schools Supplies For Lashes

Awhile back, I saw that a local massage and lash place was accepting donations of school supplies. In return your name would be entered into winning a free set of eyelash extensions. Today, I was able to drop off the supplies I bought. They are still accepting donations and are located in the mini mall near Olive Garden and Costco. 

                                   

When I dropped off my donation, the employees were all very very nice. One woman in particular was so very grateful and even told me twice, "how nice of you." I am glad they are running this drive and I am glad they appreciate the donation. Now, they plan to take their compiled supplies to several local schools nearby. 

                                                 

God bless,

Kailee

Day 242: Bought Lemonade For Childhood Cancer

I was at the mall today, which means I had to get a pretzel (they smell too good). While there I was able to donate a dollar to support childhood cancer. You can learn more about Alex's Lemonade Stand and how they are helping fight childhood cancer by clicking here. 

Day 241: Wrote A Letter To A Stranger

Today I was creating a bucket list and was looking for ideas on Pinterest. While browsing, I came across the idea, "Send a letter to a stranger and have them respond." The thought intrigued me and I decided that I wanted to try that. No matter if they respond or not, at most I will be able to make a stranger smile because of my random letter. I pulled out the phonebook, opened it to a random page and threw my finger on a random name. My finger landed on Bill & Sherry Lynch. Well, it was settled, the Lynch's would be the recipient of my random letter. 

                                 

I wrote them a simple note, which will hopefully bring a smile to their face. In addition, I added a little something extra. I stamped it and it is on its way to its new owner. This truly was a random act of kindness and I have to admit these are the kind that bring the most joy to me. I don't know the outcome, but I expect the best and hope that just maybe they'll pay it forward. 

                                             

God bless,

Kailee

Day 240: A Life Jacket For Paris

In 2005 we lost a little angel due to a preventable accident. My boss at the salon and a family friend of ours lost her 2 year old niece, Paris, in a drowning accident. In august following the incident, Paris' family created The Paris White Foundation. Their goal is to "educate and inform people about how serious drowning and near drownings can be." This foundation is working to collect life jackets for areas near water in Washington. This will allow those who have forgotten a life jacket an opportunity to stay safe and still have fun on the water.

Knowing the summer season is coming to an end, my dad and I ran to Sports Authority and picked out an infant's life jacket. Drowning is the 2nd leading cause among children 1-15 and a life jacket can simply save one more life. They are on sale now, so if anyone is feeling really nice they can also buy a life jacket to donate! You can learn more about Paris and The Paris White Foundation at pariswhite.com. In addition to creating their own foundation, Paris' family also works with Safe Kids USA.

God bless & stay safe,

Kailee

Day 239: Duck Races For Rotary

Every year, the rotary holds a Duck Race to raise money for local projects. Volunteers sell rubber ducks for $5 each. On the set date, the ducks are released and the race is on. The first rubber duck to pass the finish line is the grand prize winner. The grand prize is just that too...GRAND. If you are the lucky duck, you are awarded a 2013 Toyota Camry! You are not 1st place ducky?  Have no fear because there are still 55 incredible prizes to be won. For example, a $250 mall gift card (I will accept that!). My fingers will be crossed on October 5!

                                       

For as long as I can remember, the Duck Race has always been a fun and popular event. It wasn't until this year that I realized what the event was for and how to buy a duck. A co-worker of mine was selling them at work today and I became very intrigued. You can buy ducks at several locations including Toyota of Tri-Cities and Ranch and Home. For a full list of places, click here. The event takes place on October 5 at noon! Go buy your duck today and test your luck! 

God bless,

Kailee

Day 238: Donated To The Dogs

We have all seen those sad animal commercials with Sarah McLachlin! They are depressing and pull on your heart strings, but they do that so we can help the sweet and neglected pets on this earth. Well I figured today would be a great day to donate to ASPCA. Why you may ask? It wasn't because those commercials finally broke me down. But instead, it was the fact that it is National Dog Day and I have two lovely Labrador retrievers in my backyard whom I love. In honor of them and all the other cuddly puppies, I decided to donate my extra change to help save a life! Do it for the dogs! 

God bless,

Kailee

Day 237: Bought A Birthday Drink

Everyone deserves a free drink on their birthday! 

Day 236: Crashed A Wedding (Registry)

It is wedding season and I love that! A family friend of mine, who I have known since birth, actually tied the know today. A big congratulations to Craig and Becca and I am so sorry I couldn't make it! A few days ago, my mom and I ran to the store to pick out a wedding gift. We walked up to the registry and printed out the list of scanned items. Standing there, the thought occurred to me that it would be so fun to item a wedding gift for a complete stranger and send it to them on their wedding day. I know I would sure appreciate it. Unfortunately, you need a last name, wedding ID # or email address to print out a list. Instead, I chose a few gifts from Craig and Becca's list for my family to deliver to them from me.

                                   

After researching it a little more, most stores will deliver the wedding gifts for you. So, if for some reason you are able to access a random person's registry the store can assure that it gets into the right hands. I wasn't thinking too hard at the time, but I should have gone with Smith or Johnson. I am sure there are plenty of people with that name saying I do. Maybe next time I will try it. If you are feeling in the loving mood, I encourage you to do the same! Heck, you could make someone's big day that much better!

                                 

God bless,

Kailee

Day 235: Picked Up A Cane

At the baseball game tonight, an elderly gentleman was trying to get up out of his seat and dropped his cane. Without giving it up thought, I reached over and handed it back to him. He thanked me and flashed a big smile as he went on his way. It wasn't until after the fact, that I had even considered it a true act of kindness. Someone from a row or so back said, "Wow. That was nice of you." Thank you, but really? Shouldn't it just the courteous thing to do? I think so and it again makes me reiterate that an act of kindness, even small, can have great impact on someone. 

Day 234: Forklift For A Cure

Fair day 2! Tonight at the rodeo, it was Tough Enough To Wear Pink. This meant everyone was in pink, the horses had pink ribbons and there was...oh yeah a pink forklift. That's right a pink forklift. This night, plastered in pink, was all for breast cancer awareness. So, they had places to donate to Susan G. Komen For A Cure, including a place at the pink forklift. If you'd like to take a picture on the forklift, they asked for a small donation. This is where I was able to donate. 

The story behind the forklift is pretty cool, actually. Clark, the creator of the pink forklift, is based out of Kentucky. They are the highest donating company to Susan G. in the state of Kentucky. To continue their support, they created 6 pink forklifts to date. The Columbia Basin area was very lucky to snag 1 of the 6 as soon as they came out. By purchasing a pink forklift, Clark donated $1500 to Susan G. Komen. Now, the pink forklift will travel from place to place, hoping to raise more money to find a cure. 

God bless, 

Kailee

Day 233: Elephant Ears!

It's fair week and that means one thing..fair food. Although it is so disgustingly bad for you, it taste so good you have to indulge a little. My down fall are elephant ears, so doughy and sweet. And the great thing about elephant ears and a lot of the other food vendors put there, is they are actually organizations working to raise money for something! 

I bought an elephant ear this evening and the booth was ran by local rotary clubs. All proceeds raised from selling elephant ears will be used to support local projects. So, although the fair food may have a bad rep, there is a little good hidden in there somewhere. You just have to look. 

Day 232: Surprised A Friend

I believe we all have heard, "The best things in life are free." In my opinion, this statement is true. The greatest moments in my life have all been laughs, smiles and moments shared with friends and family. One of my favorite things to do is surprise people. I love to see the look on their faces when they first realize what is going on. I have even gone as far as traveling across the country to surprise friends (twice). Today, I was able to surprise a friend, in a much smaller way, but still a surprise.

                                       

After work this afternoon, I picked up slurpees at 7-11 and ran it to a friend who was also working. They were very happy to see me and pleased by their sweet treat. It is those unexpected moments that add excitement to relationships and life. I highly encourage you to be spontaneous and surprise someone today. Their reaction may just surprise you! 

Day 231: #oShoot Overshoot Day

While browsing the Twitterverse, I ran across the a campaign run by World Wildlife Foundation. The campaign is called Overshoot Day, which refers to the fact that we, as a world, have already used Earth's natural resources for the year. At least according to our ecological means. The point of the campaign is to spread awareness by hash tagging #oShoot, create more of a sustainability, learn more about the epidemic at worldwildlife.org/pages/overshoot-day. 

For me, it is simple. Get on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, etc. and spread the word! Retweet the WWF tweet like I did, or create your own message. If at least one person reduces their personal emissions, then that is more resources for the rest of the year.

Via https://www.thunderclap.it/projects/3535-oshoot-we-did-it-again?wwftw12

"By 2050, the global population is expected to reach 9 billion—increasing pressure not only on Earth’s natural resources, like water, timber and salmon, but also on many of the world’s most environmentally sensitive regions. We all depend on a healthy planet to sustain life."

God bless,

Kailee

Day 230: Be Honest

Sometimes, it's just best to be honest. It may hurt, but it's for the best. 

Day 229: Cowboys VS. Chron's

This evening at the game, I had the opportunity to meet two cowboys with quite the story. They are riding their horses from Gardiner, MT to Bellingham, WA to raise both awareness and money for Crohn's Disease. One of the two has been diagnosed with Crohn's in addition to 6 other relatives. They had stopped in Tri-Cities to see family and catch a few baseball games. After talking to the two boys, I knew I wanted to help them and support their incredible mission. I was able to donate to their cause and you can too! You can follow their journey and read a lot more about them by clicking here.

                                          

                                          

God bless,

Kailee

Day 228: Bought Tokens At Chuck E. Cheese

As a child, there was one place that always seemed so magical and so much fun. (Well other than Disneyland.) It's good old Chuck E. Cheese! The place of fun and games and PRIZES! There is only one problem. To get cool prizes, you need tickets, to get tickets you need tokens and to get tokens you need money. No money= no prizes. 

So, I start thinking. How cool would it have been to score some extra tokens as a kid and take home some more prizes? Well, it never happened to me, but for one lucky child today it did. I went to Chuck E. Cheese on my way to work and bought $3 worth of tokens. I explained what I was doing to the cashier and told her to hang on to the tokens, until the next kid approached her. She just smiled and said, "Wow. That's nice of you!" And I was on my way. I don't know who got them or what cool prizes they got, but I'm sure it made one (or several) children smile. :) 

Day 227: Fix An Awkward Situation

Sometimes we are put into an awkward situation. If given the opportunity, I think we need to help the situation. In my situation, I tried to go out of my way to make everyone feel comfortable. 

Day 226: Shared $25

This morning, I was going through my email and found one from DoSomething.org. Their new campaign is called, "25,000 Women." Their mission with this campaign is to have people sign up to donate $25 to a women in need. The kicker? The $25 donation doesn't actually come out of your pocket. DoSomething was awarded enough money thanks to Kiva.org to help 25,000 women across the world. How does it work? Click here to be taken to the website. Then fill out the information and "donate $25." On the attached page are even bios of all the women receiving the money. 

Since this is free, simple and life changing, there is really no reason for you not to take part in this one! Go ahead. Go click, type and change the world.

God bless,

Kailee

Day 225: Left Quarters at the Car Wash

This afternoon, I went to wash my car at one of those places that requires you to pay with quarters. I brought a ton of quarters, just to be safe! Luckily, I had enough. In fact, I had extra so I left the extras for someone else to use! Remember its the simple things! 

Day 224: Stay Strong

One of my favorite quotes is, "be kind; everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle." Most of the time that battle is much harder than anyone can know. And most of the time that person can easily covers up with a smile. Today, I simply wanted to remind everyone that if you know of a struggle someone is facing, encourage them to keep fighting. If you are going through hardships, find someone you can confide in and talk to them. I know there will always be someone who is willing to listen.

A friend of mine is going through a pretty rough patch in her life. Although, I have never been in her position to feel what she is feeling, I know I can encourage her to stay strong and lean on those who truly love her in this time of need. Send a little encouraging note, flowers, or something else to just love on them as much as possible. 

Stay strong & god bless,

Kailee

Day 223: She's A Fighter

This weekend a few Dust Devils friends and I traveled to Hillsboro to watch our team play. Unfortunately, we had to withstand a down pour and a loss last night, but today things seemed to be looking up. Before heading to the afternoon game today, Austin and I ran to Dick's Sporting Goods. This was my first trip to the massive sports store and it did nothing less than highly impress. While browsing about the many racks of clothes, I found a shirt that I really liked. It is the shirt seen below, a pink v-neck Under Armour that read, "She's a fighter" on the back.

After further inspection, I found that Under Armor created a line to help raise money for several organizations fighting breast cancer. I loved the shirt and loved the fact that by buying it I would be helping to fight breast cancer. The Under Armour collection is known as Power In Pink and offers an array of different clothing items, shoes and hats. You can learn more and shop the collection by clicking here. According to the shirt's tag, Under Armour has pledged to donate at least $500,000 to  the different organizations. 

Day 222: Eating Cookies For A Cause

Yum! Well today's act was quite tasty and helpful! If anyone has ever been to BJ's I am sure you have heard or tried their pazookie. However, for those of you who haven't tried it, 1) I highly suggest it and 2) it is a half baked cookie served with a scoop of ice cream on top! It is so delicious! Anyway, for every pazookie sold, a donations will be given to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation through the Cookies 4 Kids program! 

God bless,

Kailee

Day 221: Donated To Save The Children

This afternoon, my mom and I did a little back to school shopping! We had to stop at one of our favorite stores, TJ Maxx. While we were checking out, we noticed pieces of paper around the registers with an array of different names on them. After looking a little harder, the piece of paper represented someone who donated to Save the Children. It was a $1 minimum donation, so I pulled out a George Washington and handed it to the sales associate. I was able to write my name on a piece of paper and they hung it up on the wall!

Now that I am home, I did a little research to see what I was donating to! Save the Children is an independent organization striving to make positive change in the lives of children in need and living in the United States. Under their "What we do" section, they show that they focus on; child protection, child survival, education, emergency response, health and nutrition, and HIV and AIDS. You can learn more about this organization by clicking here. Save The Children has also spread their work to other countries like Africa and Asia. 

If you, too, find yourself browsing about at TJ Maxx or Marshall's, 

please consider donating just one $1 to a child in need! 

God bless,

Kailee

Day 220: Miracle Treat Day

It is one of my favorite days! A day to eat ice cream and support a children's hospital!

As many of you know, I have a very special place in my heart for Children's Miracle Network. CMN and Dairy Queen are in partnership and each year they run 'Miracle Treat Day.' On this day, DQ will sell millions of blizzards and $1 of each of those blizzards will be donated to CMN. Last year, DQ raised over 6 million dollars!

Naturally, my family and I went to Dairy Queen after dinner. We each bought a scrumptious blizzard. I tried the S'mores blizzard (and I was a fan)! The Dairy Queen we visited was hoping to raise $5000 and they were about 60% there at 6:30PM. I hope they were able to reach their goal. Needless to say, however, I am sure that the money raised nationwide is substantial. In addition, everyone who took part thoroughly enjoyed their dessert!

I can't wait for next year! 

God bless,

Kailee

(Even Lacy loves blizzards!)

Day 219: Donated To Wildlife Conservation

This afternoon, I got to check something off my bucket list! In my 21 years of life, I have been blessed to take part in some incredible experiences. I have been on safaris, aquariums and wildlife reservations, but I have never been to an official zoo. Well, today was the day that would change! 

Austin and I made a trip to the Woodland Zoo in Seattle. What we didn't know was that when a ticket for admission is purchased, 25 cents is donated to wildlife conservation. Once your ticket is purchased, each person receives a plastic silver coin that says, "vote". Standing tall and alone in front of the main gate was a stand called, "Quarters for Conservation." Your "quarter" or silver coin could then be used to vote for which biome you'd like to preserve. There were many choices like the tropical rainforest or the arctic. (I think I voted for the savannah. )

 Overall, I had an incredible time on my first zoo visit! I loved the animals and can't wait to go back! 

God bless,

Kailee

Day 218: Gave Away My Foul Ball

This afternoon, I was very fortunate to attend the first ever NW League All Star Game in Everett. Before the actual game, there was a home run derby (which our player won, woo!) and an autograph signing. As the teams warmed up for the home run derby, tons of people gathered in the outfield just waiting for a ball to come there way! Many of the people waiting were young boys and older men. Then, out of the blue, I got a ball from one of our players. Cool right? Yes! But, no matter how cool it was that I got a ball, it was just a ball. A ball that any of those young kids would have paid to have. As I held the ball in my hand, I realized what I had to do. I asked a boy next to us if he wanted it and without hesitation I got the reaction I had anticipated. He was very grateful and I was leaving with one less thing to sit in my room. Overall, just being at the game was enough for me and an incredible experience. Can't wait for next year! 

Day 217: Bought A Freckled Lemonade

Last week, I received an email from Red Robin (yum!) about not only getting $3.00 off my purchase of a freckled lemonade, but also about their partnership with Alex's Lemonade Stand- fighting childhood cancer. For every freckled lemonade bought, Red Robin will donate 5 cents to Alex's Lemonade Stand. Now, 5 cents doesn't seem like too much, but while enjoying my meal there were at least 10 freckled lemonades ordered around us.

Naturally, after seeing the email about lemonade and Red Robin, it had been on my mind and sounding tasty! This afternoon when my mom asked if I'd like to go to lunch, it took only a minute to say yes. Both my brother and I ordered freckled lemonade (there's 10 cents right there). It is to my knowledge that this partnership will last, so next time you are eating at Red Robin, order yourself a refreshing strawberry lemonade. However, if you happen to visit before the 15th of August, you will get your lemonade for a mere 99 cents! Lemonade and helping fight childhood cancer...there's nothing better. 

God bless,

Kailee

Day 215: Be True To You

Tomorrow is the Miss Yakima County pageant and my beautiful, Carissa Bond, will pass on her title. Her platform is "Be True To You." She works to empower young adults to feel good about themselves and feel beautiful in their own skin. I quickly wanted to share this video to help, as she strives to make this world a better place!

Day 216: School Supplies

This afternoon, I had the opportunity to see Paige Kuhn, Miss Apple Valley, pass on her crown. She has done a remarkable job with her platform; providing school supplies for those in need. I wanted to give her some supplies to donate, so I took a little trip to Walmart. Walmart has some great deals on school supplies right now. Whether you need supplies or you are looking to donate, I would highly suggest visiting Walmart. I bought everything seen below for under $5. There are many places looking for school supplies, like elementary schools and/or Salvation Army. School is just around the corner, can you give a helping hand?

                                

God bless,

Kailee

Day 214: Friends For Life

This afternoon, I was able to spend a little time with a very special gentleman at the baseball game. His name is Warren and he was throwing out the first pitch. He is a very happy young man who down right loves baseball. Now Warren has special needs, but had more joy and passion than anyone I know. Despite the rain, this young man was able to make my entire night better. Oh, and I wish I could describe the look on his face when he threw the ball all the way to the pitcher. You would have thought he just struck a batter out at the World Series.

An experience like this is nothing new for our past Miss Tri-Cities Outstanding Teen, Tayler Plunkett. With her platform, she has been able to make a difference and make some amazing friends with special needs. I was hoping to get this on here before she gave up her title two weeks ago, but I figured now is a fitting time. She will be competing for Miss Sun Valley's Outstanding Teen this weekend. Best of luck Tayler! Let's take a look at Tayler's platform.

What is the title of your platform?
TP: My platform is Friends For Life; Providing Support for Children and Teen with Disabilities. 

How can one get involved with your platform?
TP: I would LOVE if you spent time with someone with a disability. My platform is all about teaching children and teens to reach out to people with disabilities, so they can be fully integrated into society and participate in all that life has to offer. 

Why did you choose your platform?
TP: I chose my platform because one of my best friends has Cerebral Palsy and I have seen her be hurt time after time by people who don't treat her right because she has a disability. She entered high school without any friends because no one was willing to reach out to her. Her school didn't have a Buddy Club established. [For those of you who are not aware, Buddy Club is a high school program creating friendships between teens and teens with disabilities.]

God bless you Tayler and God bless what you do!

God bless,

Kailee

Day 213: Helped Move

This is more of a thank you than a random act of kindness, but I am still going to put it out there. Bright and early this morning my mom, Austin and I drove up to Cheney to move into my new apartment. When we pulled in, Demie (roommate) and her parents were also pulling in. We both decided to move early in the morning because we both had to make it home for work. Overall, I say we made great time. Our apartment that we were moving out of was on the third floor and our new apartment just so happened to be on the third floor in a different area. For us to move into our new apartment, we needed to be completely out of our old apartment. Meaning everything had to be packed up and moved! Knowing we didn't have too much time we got to work and there was no stopping until we were all done.

                           

In the end we were able to get all that we needed done and were back on the road in no time. It was definitley a team effort and I am so grateful for everyone who helped. It didn't matter if it was my stuff or Demie's stuff, we all were hauling stuff up and down. Thank you again so much to my mom, Austin and Demie's parents for taking off work, waking up early and breaking a sweat. We literally could not have done it without you. 

                                       

God bless,

Kailee