I want to take BB out and give back to the world. Not just money but service. I think that’s an important part of learning to be a global citizen. Understanding that not having the latest gaming system is the least of most of the worlds problems. I want BB to see the world outside of the small area we live in. 4 days ago

at the community garden today for a few hours this morning. We pulled weeds, laid down newspapers in the walkways, and then covered them in mulch.

I found a snake wrapped around a weed. Tiny snake.

The best past was the kids.
Kid 1: “Mom!! I found a worm! ... MOMMM I found an even bigger worm MOMMMM!”
Kid 2: “Let me see!!!”
Mom: “Wow that’s the biggest worm we’ve found today!” 4 days ago

...had 5 outings now with my Little Brother (Big Brothers and Big Sisters program), and things are going really well. Our 3rd outing was to see a movie. He is eleven years old and it was the first time he had been to a movie theater. We saw The Croods in 3D. We both had a lot of fun on this outing, and I also took him to his first Mexican restaurant and to get ice cream afterwards. Our 4th outing was back at the laser tag place we were at on our 2nd outing. He had a lot of fun on that trip, and when I asked him what he would like to do next, he asked if going back there would be a possibility. On our 4th outing, we also went to the mall and walked around for a while and we ate at the mall’s food court. Our fifth outing was back to the movie theater to see Jurassic Park in 3D. We both had a lot of fun on this trip, as well, and we got pizza for dinner. I haven’t scheduled my 6th outing with him yet (we try to have an outing twice a month, no average), but we are going to go bowling.

All in all, the volunteering is going well with the Big Brothers and Big Sisters program, but I have let going to the homeless shelter slip a bit. I started volunteering there in September of 2010, and since then I have been there “most” Fridays (except for the 5 weeks I spent in Haiti volunteering in 2011). I haven’t been to the homeless shelter now in about a month. I really miss being there because I’ve made several good friends there with both the staff and some of the men who live there. I need to make an effort to get back to the shelter soon and recommit myself to this. I really feel like I do a lot of good there, but I also get a lot out of being there myself. 2 weeks ago