Health and fitness are near and dear to me. I used to be a health fanatic and had a body to die for. At this point my body is in need of some work and based on the level of participation during GNO, I am not alone. For those of you that missed the discussion, here are a few highlights.

Motivation
Busy Moms inevitably place the needs of others before their own and have a to-do list a mile long. The first question raised last night was where does the motivation come from? Initially, I answered: it came from other women in the Modern Mom Challenge, but that is not exactly right. I get inspiration from the women and from within. I think about staying healthy and setting a positive example for my son. I think about my fat pants which became the only pants that fit (tightly) and my refusal to buy larger sizes. I think about how good I feel with the endorphin high after exercising and all of these things motivate me.

Incentive
One GNO participant @PsychMamma gives herself points for exercise and healthy eating. She is rewarding herself with an iPod for the points earned. @RedLotusMama purchased a new pair of jeans after losing weight. For each milestone that you reach, give yourself an incentive for a job well done. This will help get you off that couch! (photo by butterflywings)

Time
Moms are notorious for having packed schedules and the question was asked – how do you find the time to exercise? Everyone has twenty minutes. While your child is sleeping or right after you put your child down for the night. I use the Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred, a complete cardio and strength workout that is challenging and done in 20 minutes.

Exercise
Be creative! Try dancing! Belly dance, Zumba, and my personal favorite; dance hall reggae are all available on YouTube. Find a group of instructional videos on YouTube, have fun and get the exercise in. If you have cable, OnDemand usually includes Exercise TV, a great variety of exercises available at the touch of a button. Use what you have in the home – if you have stairs climb them for 20 minutes. Take a walk, put your child in the stroller and enjoy the scenery in the great outdoors. You don’t have to have a gym membership to get results. And finally, if you want really efficient workouts consider interval training. Walk for 5 minutes and run for 1, gradually increase the running time and decrease the walking, soon you will only run. In my experience you get the most bang for your buck when you control the intensity.

I encourage all of you to join the Modern Mom Challenge, I believe that having the support of a great group of women really does help when trying to meet your goals.

Tips:
Be sure to check with your doctor before starting any exercise regime.
Drink water, at least 8 glasses a day. Many times thirst is mistaken for hunger. When you are in the mood to snack have a glass of water and wait 20 minutes. If you are still hungry, eat.

Debra at 9 to 5 to 9
Shannon at Shanno Sez So
Michelle at Wanderlust and Lipstick
Jyl at Mommy Gossip
EcoMom at You Can’t Diaper Their Faces

9 to 5 to 9 tells how her little boy crashed into a Christmas tree at the grocery store. And how when he realized it was a giving tree and that there was a little boy named Rigo who needed warm clothes and a few toys, she couldn’t say no to helping out that little boy.
Here’s what she said:

I’m quite good at telling the guys “no.” I even have an international string of “no” in several languages that I break out when they can’t grasp the concept in basic English, and they’ve heard it a lot since September.

But there was no way I could say “no” to that. Not when Big Guy had just given me a glimpse of a heart of gold buried beneath alternating layers of Sam Zell and Hanibal Lector.

After getting those gifts for Rigo, Deb was the grateful one:

Merry Christmas, Rigo.

And thank you, Big Guy, for giving me a glimpse of your light.

Shannon Sez So was worried she missed the challenge. But since we are moms with crazy schedules our deadline changed about 3 times, so if you told us your RAK we are thrilled to have it! She commented:

I wanted to let you know that I did give an elderly woman a ride to the Metro so she wouldn’t have to wait in the cold for a bus. Does that count?

And I’ve said before. Ain’t it the small things that make the season bright? Thanks Shannon.

Wanderlust and Lipstick has been hosting a fabulous Passports with Purpose the whole month of December. What is it? Well, it’s awesome for one thing. It’s also a fundraiser. With the proceeds going to Heifer International. And there’s all these great items! Amazing travel deals and travel books, even a travel related scrapbook supply basket. But here’s the twist. It’s a virtual raffle! For only $10 you get the chance to ‘win’ hundreds of dollars of great stuff!

Michelle says:

I am a sucker for Christmas. I love the lights, the presents, the trees and the celebration in general. But, as I shop for gifts for my friends and family, I can’t help thinking of the deeper meaning of this season of goodwill: of this urge to reach out and help others.

The Raffle fundraiser for Heifer International is going on until the end of December! You can still qualify! There were so many items, I lost count at 40+!

Our very own Jyl at Mommy Gossip made some cookies, and not just any cookies. These are Reindeer Cookies people! (She’s very proud). She and her kids gave away the cookies and some candy canes to neighbors this year. And this video of hers is great. It’s worth the few minutes of watching it I promise! If nothing else watch long enough to see her little boy sitting up on the counter helping with the M&Ms! Precious.

You Can’t Diaper Their Faces says All I really want for Christmas is…. nothing. But she then points out…

Okay… I want world peace and an end to famine, war, discrimination, pain, suffering and the other usual fodder of beauty pagent contestants.

She goes on to say:

Beauty pagent jokes aside, what I want, what I really, really want (are you listening, Spice Girls?) is a better world for my children. That’s kind of hard to stuff in a stocking or put in a bag under the tree. But when I sit and think about what I want… that’s it. A safer, cleaner, healthier, more intelligent world.

Ecomom has come up with an innovative way to give back this year. She hosted a contest and each day right up until Christmas Day, she picked a winner and donated $$ to Christmas Future! This organization lets the ‘winner’ choose the place the money will be sent to and both the donor and the recipient get to see where the money is going. I love this method of kindness. Using Random Generator probably to create a random act of kindness!

What a great time of year, to look back and think about the good things you did for others. We truly believe women make a difference. Moms. Daughters. Grandmothers.

In the coming year we want you all to help us Mom It Forward.
Help us change the world, one mom at a time.

Renee at Cutie Booty Cakes
Connie at My Chronic Life
Rhonda at Mother to Mother
Heather at I am Feathermaye

Cutie Booty Cakes makes a few suggestions for good deeds and give backs. She shares the partnership between Fererro Chocolates and
www.sharesomethingsweet.com The chocolate company partnered with Share Our Strength a leading hunger relief organization. And when you use the share something sweet site to send a simple ecard they donate $1 to help feed the hungry. Now that’s sweet! And so is Renee and her son!

My Chronic Life says she broke the rules for the Happiness Headlines Challenge. But I’m afraid I have to disagree. Instead she points out what some other good doers in her online community did for her. I think she got it just right.

The power of the blogging community is strong. Sure there’s some drama every now and then. Just stay clear of it. I’ve learned my lesson about that. But please don’t let feeling like you don’t know enough about blogging prevent you from starting. Join Twitter, GNO and other groups. Get to know people and watch those acts of kindness, random or not come your way.

Mother 2 Mother is shipping packages to troops in Iraq and Rhonda is still taking donations up until Jan 1st. She says the guys have submitted a list:

Their list includes hard candy, homemade cookies, chips, envelopes & writing paper, pens, deodorant, tooth brushes, tooth paste, food powder, lotion, sun screen, chap stick, batteries (AA, AAA & D), gum, sports and/or automotive magazines less than 2 months old, disposal razors, white socks, cheese & peanut butter crackers, ramen/cup o noodles.

It’s a great way to help and some items won’t cost you a thing, just donate some old magazines or pantry items! Contact Rhonda for details.

I AM Feathermaye had to get a little bit creative to Mom It Forward this holiday season. See. She found herself with an extra tree and all the trimmings when her husband came home with a new tree! Heather thought and thought about how to find a family in need of a great tree with all the ornaments to boot? She called some churches, got no answer, and then…

Yesterday, I got over myself. I made one call to the local elementary school’s main office, who quickly transferred me to the guidance counselors’ office, who was thrilled to hear from me! It turns out that the guidance counselors are working with social workers to match donors with families in need, of which there are many.

In less than 24 hours my little tree and bags and boxes of decorations were promised to a single mother with two elementary-aged kiddos who otherwise might not have a Christmas tree. I was so touched, imagining this family, because it was just a short twelve years ago that Jonathan and I were not so different from them. And if not for the generosity of others, we might have had some sad holidays of our own.

She asked herself:

Is it wrong of me to feel good for being able to do this? Not in an I’m-so-cool kind of way, but in an I-made-a-difference moment, for sure. Because sometimes we’re not sure if we are making a difference, you know?

And, as far as I’m concerned, making even a little difference makes all the difference in the world.

What do you say? Mom It Forward women, is it worth it? The small things that help make a difference?

We hope you are enjoying your holiday– whether you celebrate Christmas or some other winter holiday! Seems like such a perfect time to find ways to Mom It Forward! Check out the Random acts these women created, from the simple to the heartwarming.

LindaS at Short Pump Preppy
PantryGirl at Now What?
Kristen at The Sassy Mom
Duong at A Cup of Tea

Short Pump Preppy came up with possibly the most creative random act of kindness. Early in December I asked Linda if I could have a great Santa hat on my twitter avatar like she had… and in only a few minutes (and a little snark) she created my masterpiece! She said she was stuck home a lot this month after her daughter’s surgery, so this was something she could do for the Twitter world! Check out her handywork!

PantryGirl wrote a really amazing article about how the small and simple kind acts are the kinds of things she wants her child to grow up seeing and learning. Her simple act? In NYC she hailed a cab for an elderly lady while she herself was ‘hoofing’ 23 blocks!

She wrote:

How many times have I been uplifted by a simple smile from a stranger or watching someone on the bus give to a stranger a tissue to dry their eyes or blow their nose. That’s the world I want my child to see and live in. It’s a world of kindness and compassion. It’s a world where we’re not insulated and self serving. In a city where we can be total strangers to people sharing a wall with us, you can forget how important it is to be a part of the biggest society out there, humankind.

The Sassy Mom took on the RAK challenge and baked up some cookies and delivered them to an elderly neighbor. Keeping with the simple theme here it reminds me that the joys of the season are not always things.

Kristen wrote:

My kids had so much fun and it made a HUGE difference to our neighbor.

A Cup of Tea shows us that while it’s a good idea to keep your little acts of kindness a secret, you can still be genuine in your giving attitude whether folks know about it or not. She uses her husband’s example of 17 year’s worth of random giving!
Duong created two giving moments in one shopping trip.

First. She surprised 10 lucky people behind her at a local tollbooth and paid all of their fares! Wouldn’t you have liked to see their faces when they found out!?

Second. She was at Trader Joes and had decided to purchase a gift card which she would then somehow secretly hand to the cashier or something for the person behind her… but it turned out to be a busy day at Trader Joes and she gave up being very secretive, maybe the next time she thought. But just as she was leaving the store she found the perfect couple to Mom It Forward on! She handed this elderly couple the gift card and explained that she was giving it to them, they were shocked, and I think Duong got the bigger blessing…what do you think? I got teary reading this one!

Their eyes both lit up with amazement and responded with such gratitude! The woman’s eyes looked like it was starting tear up. I’m a sensitive person; therefore, before they could see my glossy eyes turn teary, I wished them a Merry Christmas and headed to my car.

My heart was so overjoyed and all though I may have made their day-it ‘Made My Day’ all the more! Why? Because I’ve learned that it is always more blessed to give then to receive!

Brandy at Not Your Average Soccer Mom
Noreen at Crispy Dragon
Carissa at Good and Crazy
Janine at @twincident

Not Your Average Soccer Mom has made savings into a game.

For pennies Brandy has been able to gather some goodies and then figured out a great way to give back on items she got for nearly free! She took 10 baskets packed with these items to a local home for the elderly, where her own grandmother had lived.

Many of these people don’t have family in town or family that can be bothered to visit. So we thought it would be a good idea to share some of what we have with these ladies.

You would be surprised how a little bag of soap or candy can brighten someones day. The fact that someone thought of them means the world to them.

And to me.

Crispy Dragon cracked me up. It would totally be my luck. To attempt a RAK and then have to come home and write up a post entitled: RAK Fail. That’s what Noreen did.

Well, it wasn’t too great, but I went and bought a McDonalds meal and gift card for a forlorn looking young woman I saw on a street corner holding a sign. By the time I bought the stuff and went back she was gone!

It’s the thought that counts right???

Good and Crazy asked: Do You RA(w)K? Carissa thinks you all do.

Photo generously allowed by Jill Stafford @ JillAllyn

Imagine the difference you make with all the small things you do each day. For your family, your neighbors, your friends and your world.
YOU are more important than you realize.

Twincident commented on the GNO–Cares page. Janine has the right idea. Keep it simple and think about the people no one thinks about.

My special RAK project has been to return and/or collect shopping carts left out in the parking lots as I shop. Some poor guy is always stuck collecting them out in the cold and every one I can bring back is one less for him to have to do…I hope .
Great idea and loving the RAKs.

Mom It Forward will be bringing you three more days of Happiness Headlines. Have you signed up for the newsletter? That box at the top? Don’t miss any of the exciting plans and changes coming up in ’09. Come on. Mom It Forward with us!

We challenged our #GNO community to spread holiday cheer, to Mom It Forward if you will. And now it’s time! Time to share with you the ways in which many of you shifted the mood of the news by creating Happiness Headlines this season. We’d like to share with you the funny, the uplifting, the creative, and the kind acts GNO Gals have submitted this month. These women have shown what random acts of kindness look like. Welcome:

• Mara at Mother of All Trips.
• Jen at Mommy Instincts.
• Melissa at Consumer Queen.
• Jenna at Stop Drop and blog.

Advent Wreath photo courtesy of Mara at The mother of All Trips.

Mara inspires us with her holiday tradition using an advent wreath. She writes this on her blog The Mother of All Trips.

Advent is the season of waiting and hope, like the end of a pregnancy. I’ve found that focusing on Advent (rather than just Christmas) helps us see what is really special and important about this time of year. Each year the children and I gather dried flowers, branches, leaves, berries, and seed pods and make a wreath. The wreath goes in the middle of the dining room table and every night we light a candle – one the first week, two the second, and so on until the week of Christmas when all of the candles are lit.

On Christmas Eve, I take wreath apart and use it to decorate our nativity set, placing the crèche right in the middle of the dried roses and hydrangeas and holly. Last year the children checked to make sure Jesus was there before they went in to see their presents on Christmas morning.

Mommy Instincts reminds us that the small things in life are what really count. And sprinkles on sugar cookies are one of those things!

I have been little miss Suzy Homemaker this week. Between making my homemade Christmas gifts, making a random apple pie or peach cobbler, and today, making sugar cookies for my young-at-heart husband, who loves to decorate them, I have decided I am going to make up a second batch of cookies and take them over to the Salvation Army guy who rings the bell at the grocery store by my house. They always stand there, in the cold, ringing the bell and saying Happy Holidays or Merry Christmas, and I wonder how many people really respond to them. I mean, I always do, but how many people just walk on by without a second glance.

Consumer Queen shares her two pay it forward plans. She encourages others to join her, spreading the holiday cheer a little further. First she helped out PetsandPeople.com, and then she supported the Oklahoma Baptist Girls Home.



Stop Drop and Blog got herself Elfed! Just look at all the goodies and goodness some secret elf shared with her and her family.

And, so, there you have it. We’ve been elfed. I simply can’t stop grinning about it. I’ve heard rumors that things like this happen but we’ve never been on the receiving end of such a beautiful gesture. (Honestly? I’m getting weepy right now.) The fact that someone took the time to provide a little something for my boys and for FireDad and I (because, let’s face it, we’re going to eat that candy!) is just so touching.

I’m heading out to do some shopping for the family whom we will be elfing this year. I say this year because it is something I’d like to see our family take on every year. We haven’t finalized, just yet, whom we will be surprising with a bag of goodies but we’re excited at the simple idea of making some family smile.

Thanks to today’s featured GNO Gals—and everyone that participated in the Happiness Headlines Challenge we have 4 more days of fabulous RAKs to share, we’ve been enjoying them, and now we are happy to share them!

As Co-founders (Jyl [left] and Carissa [right]) of MommyGossip—GNO, our goal is to change the world one mom at a time. We started out simple with a girl’s night out on twitter (#gno). What could be better than a little fun with your fav online friends, right? But what started as mere socializing has grown into something much more significant. Because of you and the shape you are giving to this amazing community, we are making a difference one fundraiser, one random act of kindness, and one service project at a time!

Moms—You!—are the ones making a difference. You shine in your success, you create magic for your families, and then you go out and make a difference in your communities. Now, we’d like to give back to you.

If you haven’t heard the good news, #GNO won one of the HP Magic Giveaways. One big GIANT thanks goes out to Sugar Jones from Living in Theory for hosting this contest and spreading the magic to us. She is magical herself. You can tell she is one of the moms we are talking about. A woman making a difference—in her life, in her community, and in our world.

(Plus! Did you see her announcement video…? She rocks and she’s got a voice and a laugh that tells it all!)

As I write this I’m watching my kids sled on the frozen hill behind my house. And I think how lucky I am to have such amazing kids and live in a country where I have so much, and to be part of a world where there is beauty and goodness there for the taking… And I think about others who might be dealing with kids who are sick. Who might have financial problems. And I think maybe there’s a magic here, something that we can give back.
Carissa

We’d like MommyGossip—GNO to be that magical force in women’s lives. And, now that we get to take a turn with the HP Magic wand, we have a super secret plan to spread the HP magic to four amazing women. Stay tuned… it’s gonna be good!

Mommy Gossip—GNO parties follow a theme. We choose one or two items to discuss in case we ever run into a the proverbial lull in the conversation (yah! right!). Participate in Topic Talk by posting about Tuesday’s Twitter Theme on your blog.

How Do I Participate?

Get in on the gossip each week by signing up using Mr. Linky, which will be posted the day after the event. Include your name and your blog URL. Make sure to leave a little gossip for us by way of a comment and click on the other participants to see their Topic Talk. We are not assigning a specific day for this fun feature. Feel free to post about the topic any time before the next GNO.

Note: This is not intended to replace Wordful Wednesday, Wordless Wednesday, Thursday Thirteen, or PhotoStory Friday, but rather to compliment them. Feel free to use your Topic Talk as its own post or in conjunction with one of the other carnivals. Before you do, grab our button, put it in your post or on your sidebar, and show your true gossiping colors to the world!