How These Dolls With "Transplanted" Limbs Are Teaching Kids the Importance of Organ Donation

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The lack of organ donors is a worldwide problem, particularly when it comes to donations that could help save a child's life.

An organization in Japan – which has the lowest rate of transplants in the industrialized world, with only two percent of those on a wait list going on to receive an organ donation – is working to raise awareness with the help of discarded stuffed animals.

The company is called Second Life Toys, and it collects discarded plush dolls, some of which are "donors" that are no longer played with while others are broken, frequently missing a limb. The toy company then takes parts from donor dolls and stitches them onto the others.

These transplanted toys are meant to represent the lives saved through organ transplants and help kids understand the importance of donating. Another aspect of the unique process – in which someone's precious toy lives on in another – is that the children who receive one of the saved dolls are tasked with writing a thank-you letter to the donor.

"Using toys as a motif, this project expands the notion of organ transplants by making it an enhancement rather than a compensation," said Misa Ganse, director of Japanese nonprofit Green Ribbon Committee, in the organization's promotional video. "It makes the topic approachable to everyone."

Take a look at a selection of some of the toys who, thanks to selfless donors, have gotten a second life.

Photograph and content source: http://www.popsugar.com/moms/Second-Life-Toys-Raise-Awareness-Organ-Transplants-41455991#photo-41455991

Pregnant Blake Lively flaunts her growing baby bump in figure-hugging blue gown at the BFG premiere in Cannes

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She rarely puts a fashion foot wrong and always makes an effort for the red carpet. But Blake Lively surpassed herself when she stepped out at the Cannes Film Festival on Saturday afternoon, where she dazzled at the annual event's latest A-list gathering.

The actress - who is expecting her second child with actor husband Ryan Reynolds, 39 - flaunted her growing baby at the Palais des Festivals' BFG premiere. 

Read more online: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-3590600/Blake-Lively-flaunts-growing-baby-bump-figure-hugging-blue-gown-BFG-premiere-Cannes.html

Read All About It! 50 All-Time Favorite Children's Books

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Touching on everything from friendship to the anticipation of the changing seasons to the miracles of life and death, Charlotte's Web has been a reader favorite since E.B. White first wrote it in 1952.

Check out the entire selection of all-time favourite books: http://www.popsugar.com/moms/All-Time-Best-Children-Books-27027265#photo-27027285

Spend Less, Eat Better!

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We are not alone. At the University of Guelph, assistant professor Kate Parizeau was part of a research team that conducted an audit of residential food waste in the summer of 2014. They cracked open green bins to uncover the rotten truth about how much food is being tossed: The average family generated 4.5 kg of food waste every week. Of that, roughly 2.3 kg were avoidable, while another 0.5 kg were considered to be possibly avoidable. “We were picking up green bins that had been outside for between one and seven days and some of the food still looked pretty edible,” she says.

What’s equally shocking is the cost. According to research by Ralph Martin, the Loblaw Chair in Sustainable Food Production at the University of Guelph, that 4.5 kg of food is equal to about $28 every week or $1,465 a year. Given the average Canadian family of four spends roughly $140 a week on food that means about 20% of our grocery bills end up in the bin. It’s as much as many families spend annually on gas. “People are buying too much and not portioning well,” says Parizeau. “It adds up.”

Read more online on GREAT tips to spend less and eat better: http://www.moneysense.ca/spend/shopping/how-to-save-money-on-groceries/

Blogger DIY Challenge: Hack the Changing Table!

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Parents asked a group of crafty bloggers to make over a diapering station with just $50 and basic supplies from their home. Get inspired by their thrifty transformations. An Organized Art Cart Stagg saved on supplies by priming and painting the assembled table with paint leftover from another project. Once dry, she added casters ($40 for four) and added brass handles ($1.50) and stick-on hooks ($4) for added functionality. She created a washi-tape ($3) design on the shelves for graphic punch.

Total spent: $48.50

Photograph and content source: http://www.parents.com/fun/arts-crafts/blogger-diy-challenge-hack-the-changing-table/#page=7

Fearless Fashion Makes for a Perfect Mothers Day Gift

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Underlining the company’s steadfast commitment to women’s empowerment, Atelier Swarovski has developed a charity bracelet to support the UN Women’s Safe Cities Global Initiative. The initiative launched late in 2015 to promote financial support and awareness of the cause, and multiple events have been hosted globally to shed light on the initiative and bring together fashion’s elite for support surrounding International Women’s Day.

The specially designed bracelet, from which 30% of the sales are donated to the UN Women’s Safe Cities campaign, features a pastel colored Pointiage® set Moselle bead strung on a delicate matching silk cord. The Moselle style is from the Atelier Swarovski core collection sold in retail stores, taking its inspiration from the aesthetic connections flowing between water and crystal. 

Nadja Swarovski, Member of the Swarovski Executive Board, shares “We are extremely proud to support UN Women and are committed to help create a world where women feel empowered. In support of their tireless campaign to improve women’s health and wellbeing we have created a selection of bracelets to raise awareness of this important fight.”

Photograph and content source: http://www.swarovskigroup.com/S/news/UN-Women-bracelet.en.html

Trending: Styles inspired by the kids

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Why should the little ones get all the cute clothes? Now the rest of the world is playing copycat. Overalls, Athleisure wear, chic, washable, metallic temporary tattoos, effortless  jumpsuits and rompers are back!

Photograph and content source: http://www.parents.com

Is Your Child in the Obesity Danger Zone?

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Roughly 1 in 3 kids in America is overweight or obese, but millions more “borderline” kids are on the cusp of a weight problem and need our help just as much. Doctors and proactive parents share their advice about how to fight fat without shaking a child’s self-confidence. 

Read more online at http://www.parents.com/kids/eating-disorders/childhood-obesity/is-your-child-in-the-obesity-danger-zone/

"Charlie Dreams Big"

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Charlie Moldavon may only be 41 weeks old, but he's already dreaming big. On his Instagram account, Charlie Dreams Big, you can find photo documentation of little C's growth in which his natural position is incorporated into an amazing digital sketch drawing every week.

Charlie's parents, Amanda and Dave, told us they wanted to think of a special way to share Charlie's growth with friends and family: "We were racking our brains to come up with a concept . . . When nothing was working, Dave opened up a photo in Adobe Illustrator and began to play around with different ideas and ended up with Charlie's week one picture."

Photograph and content source: http://www.popsugar.com/moms/Charlie-Dreams-Big-Baby-Documentation-Instagram-Account-40475169#photo-40475169

Happy International Women's Day!

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International Women's Day has marked the plight and achievements of women for more than a century – but is now looking ahead another 15 years to the world's gender equality goals. Themed this year around "Planet 50-50 by 2030", the United Nations-backed event will be celebrating women's rights in more than 40 countries.

It will look at how to ensure the 2030 Agenda - which positions women's empowerment as at the centre of global sustainability plans - can be concretely achieved over the coming years. Yet the idea itself dates back more than 100 years, and has had various reasons for becoming the established celebration that it is today.

Read more online: http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/international-womens-day-2016-what-when-is-it-why-was-it-set-up-a6917341.html

Let's Make a Real Difference for an Entire Generation of Young Children

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Young Minds Matter is a new series designed to lead the conversation with children about mental and emotional health, so youngsters feel loved, valued and understood. Launched with Her Royal Highness, The Duchess of Cambridge, as guest editor, Huffington Post will discuss problems, causes and most importantly solutions to the stigma surrounding the UK's mental health crisis among children.

The mental health of our children must be seen as every bit as important as their physical health. For too long we have been embarrassed to admit when our children need emotional or psychiatric help, worried that the stigma associated with these problems would be detrimental to their futures. Research published today by the Huffington Post indicates that around a third of parents still worry that they will look like a bad mother or father if their child has a mental health problem. Parenting is hard enough without letting prejudices stop us from asking for the help we need for ourselves and our children.

Great article, please read more online http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/her-royal-highness-the-duchess-of-cambridge/lets-make-a-real-difference-for-young-children_b_9246336.html

Happy Chinese New Year!

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Monday marks the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year, China’s biggest and most ceremonious holiday. Here’s what you ought to know about the holiday:

1. It’s about family. Unlike the New Year celebration per the Gregorian calendar, Chinese New Year is not a time for drunken revelry and sequined hats. On Sunday night — Chinese New Year’s Eve — the streets of Hong Kong were quiet as locals gathered in their houses for “reunion dinners” with family members who’ve returned home.

2. The world’s greatest annual migration of people. Fortune recently called it “the greatest travel nightmare of 2016.” In China, Hong Kong and other countries with a significant Chinese population, the New Year is celebrated as a public holiday — schools and offices close during this time — and so a massive number of people take advantage of the opportunity to travel — either heading home to be with loved ones or going on holiday. 

3. You’ll be seeing red. To the Chinese, red represents good fortune, and so around the New Year the color can be seen everywhere in Chinese cities: red lanterns hang in doorways; red paper cutouts adorn windows. And a staple of the holiday: red envelopes, called hongbao in Mandarin, or lai see in Cantonese, are filled with cash and given by married people to children, unmarried relatives and friends, and employees. The sum is typically an even number, and it shouldn’t contain the number four, which is considered unlucky because it sounds like the Chinese word for death.

4. We’re entering the Year of the Monkey. The Chinese calendar assigns each new year an animal per a rotating zodiac of 12: rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. Last year was the Year of the Goat; this year is the Year of the Monkey. People born in the Year of the Monkey are characterized as intelligent, witty, curious and playful. The years 1920, 1932, 1944, 1956, 1968, 1980, 1992 and 2004 were also assigned as the Year of the Monkey.

5. It’s now celebrated around the world. China has seen a significant diaspora, and cities that have received a large number of Chinese immigrants over the years are now holding their own celebrations for the New Year. In New York City, for instance, all public schools are closed on Monday to commemorate the holiday. The Lunar New Year festivities are also observed by Vietnamese and Koreans, as well as Tibetans, whose first day of celebration falls on Tuesday.

Photograph source: Shutter stock; Content source: http://time.com/4211680/chinese-new-year-lunar-monkey/

100 Baby Names You've Never Heard of but Are Going to Want to Use

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Every baby is special and unique, but the list of the country's most popular names — Sophia, Emma, Jackson, and Aiden, to name a few — reveal that many babies are crawling around sporting the same name. We looked further into the United States Social Security Administration's (long) list of popular baby names and picked out the most unique of the bunch for you to consider for your one-of-a-kind baby.

Read through for 100 unusual baby names you've never heard of, but are definitely going to want to put to use!

Read more online: http://www.popsugar.com/moms/Unique-Baby-Names-39682579

Why Every Woman Needs to See These Unretouched Photos of Postpartum Bodies

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Once a woman has a baby, she's not just a mother — she's also been inducted into a new club, a secret society of sorts, of fellow women whose bodies have been forever changed by the birth of their child. For some, they develop a newfound appreciation: they can finally look past the stretch marks, flabby skin, and sagging breasts to realize they don't need flat abs to feel beautiful. They certainly have their off moments, but they finally stop idolizing the body types that they so often compared themselves to in their younger days.

That new club — and all its members, in their many shapes and sizes — is what photographer Liliana Taboas has been documenting for her "Divine Mothering" project. Aimed at showing the beauty in the unretouched postpartum body, Taboas has made it her mission to help those struggling with body image issues, "humanize women's bodies . . . and celebrate the changes women's bodies go through over time, through pregnancy and breastfeeding," she said on her blog.

But Taboas doesn't want to only reach this exclusive club of moms with her empowering photography. She knows "not all women are mothers" and hopes to "serve all women" with her work. To that end, any woman who wants to love her own body should keep reading and find inspiration in this curation of "Divine Mothering" shots, hand-picked by Taboas herself.

Photograph and content source: http://www.popsugar.com/moms/Unretouched-Postpartum-Bodies-Photo-Series-38141112#photo-38141112

Valentine's Day Crafts Your Kiddo Can Make

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Arts and crafts with toddlers can get a bit messy — but it's always lots of fun, especially when there's some kind of theme present. Valentine's Day is a perfect occasion to create pink and red heart-shaped projects with your little one, so break out the construction paper, glitter, paint, and glue, and get creative with these Valentine's Day crafts for tots.

Photograph and content source: http://www.popsugar.com

Start the New Year Right with these Superfoods!

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Here, you'll find a short list of foods that you really ought to incorporate into your diet—because, frankly, their health benefits are through the roof. But rather than leaving it up to you to figure out what to do with them (sprinkle them on your cereal? push them around on your plate?), we've combined these wonder foods into nine dishes that taste great—as in snack-in-front-of-the-TV great, favorite-weeknight-supper great. Because we're not your mother. We don't care if you put your elbows on the table. But we do know that eating well is one of the nicest things you can do for yourself, and if you can recruit your taste buds to be your ally, you may just discover that it's fun to be good. 

Read more: http://www.oprah.com/food/Superfoods-Ingredients-and-Recipes-for-a-Healthy-Diet#ixzz3wVecr5Nm

Awesome Hand Made Rag Dolls. You will Fall in LOVE!

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Our #1 Toy pick for holiday gifting...drum roll...Hand Made Rag Dolls.

1. AntonAnton Things

Leticia is an artist and doll maker living in Madrid. The simple body shapes and embroidered features on her dolls make them a perfect canvas for whimsical embellishment. Browse through Leticia’s shop on Etsy and pick up a doll for someone special (or for yourself because you’re special, too, you know!).

2. Humble Toys

Humble Toys is a handmade doll business by Anwen Sutherland, an Ontario-based artist. Like Alia Grace, Anwen combines all sorts of different media in her dolls (I love how dolls are like little canvases to be decorated). Follow Humble Toys on Facebook to see the process unfold, and purchase a doll in Anwen’s shop on Etsy.

3. Alia Grace

Alia Grace Diaz is a doll maker living in Philadelphia. She combines all different media in her work – sewing, knitting, drawing, and beading – and enjoys making fashionable clothing for each of her dolls, too. Check out Alia Grace on Instagram and buy a doll in her shop on Etsy.

Photograph and content source: http://whileshenaps.com/2015/09/awesome-handmade-toys-rag-dolls.html