25 Days of Giving at Tropical Smoothie Cafe

Tropical Smoothie Café has an awesome promotion going that started on December 1. The 25 days of giving social campaign features a new non-profit, celebrity or volunteer who has helped make a difference in their community each day to help raise awareness and donations for a number of charities. This is a great effort to help people figure out ways to get involved with their community.


Today, they are featuring an awesome charity located right here in Arkansas.  The Thea Foundation is a local charity headquartered in the historic Argenta Arts District in downtown North Little Rock. The foundation was created by Paul and Linda Leopoulos in 2001 after realizing that their daughter's sudden involvement in visual art, dance, drama and creative writing made all the difference in the drastic transformation of Thea's grades. They learned a few short days after Thea's death in a car accident that her grades had went from C's and D's to having an A in Trig. Based on this conclusion, their programs – Scholarships, Thea’s Art Closet, Arkansas A+ Schools and many more – have been designed to inspire youth across Arkansas gain confidence and learn via creative expression. Visit the Thea Foundation website to find out how you can get involved by volunteering or donating.

Tropical Smoothie Café is also working with the #GivingTuesday organization and are featuring some of the many charities they support.  

In addition, they are collecting $.25 donations in-store all December long for Camp Sunshine,  a retreat for children with life-threatening illnesses and their families. . Tropical Smoothie Cafe has been helping Camp Sunshine raise money for nine years with a million dollars raised this year alone! Visit the Camp Sunshine website for more information on how to donate or volunteer.

Tropical Smoothie Cafe has several locations here in Arkansas. Some locations include Benton, Bryant, Little Rock, Pine Bluff and Jacksonville. Visit their website for more locations. Stop by a location close to you today for lunch and join them in their tradition of giving by donating to Camp Sunshine.

It's the season of giving! Volunteering with and donating to local charities in your neighborhood is the greatest way to give back!

 

 

  

Columbus' Replica Ships Field Trip Opportunity

The Columbus Foundation is bringing the Nina and Pinta back to Arkansas beginning in October with a stop in Little Rock. They also have dates scheduled for Fort Smith and Memphis, TN. The Nina is the most historically accurate Columbus replica ship ever built!

My husband and I took our kids the last time the ships were in Little Rock in November 2011. The guys in charge do a great job educating the kids, adults too, during the tours. Awesome way to step back in history and experience what life might have been like on the expeditions.

This would be an awesome field trip for homeschool groups!

Check their website for exact dates, times and more info @ http://www.thenina.com

Ziplining Fun

We finally got to redeem our family zip line pass the last week in June. It sure seems like it has been a rainy summer here in Arkansas. We have had to keep putting things off for a later date because of the weather, but have managed to get some fun in.

 

We zipped at Adventureworks in Hot Springs, which is about a 30 minute drive. They just opened earlier in the year and still have construction going on, but it was still a great experience with lots of zips. Twelve total. The staff were all very friendly and safety minded. We had to go through a tutorial before going to the first zip. During the zips, they were very interactive, patient and made sure we all had a great time. We zipped with a group of nine total, which included 4 kids, two of which were mine. I think they had to have more patience with some of the adults, me included, rather than the kiddos. My little man had absolutely no problem stepping off any of the platforms at any time. The little lady was a bit more cautious, but they were both going off backwards near the end of the trip.

I never went off the platform backwards, but had a great time! The zips are designed so that they start you out slow and gradually get higher and longer. Not going to lie, I was shaking in my shoes for the first half. It took every ounce of "want to" that I had to step off those platforms.

 The scariest part of the adventure for me was walking across the sky bridge. I don't really like things that sway from side to side that are suspended mid air. I was harnessed but, I still didn't feel safe on that thing!

I would definitely do it again, though! In fact, I can't wait to schedule another tour.  Little man wants to zip for his birthday next year- sounds good to me! It was a great family outing! I quickly realized mid way in that the only thing I had to fear was fear itself. So awesome that we experienced this "first" together as a family. It taught us a whole lot about trust, encouragement, faith in each other, team work and was a great bonding experience as a family!

 

Meeting A Few Duggars

Just a normal Saturday for us with a totally random run in with a few of Madison's favorite reality stars. We stopped by our local McDonalds and ran into Jessa and Jinger Duggar and Ben Seewald. They were so sweet and kind enough to take a picture with the kids.

Thank you Jessa, Jinger and Ben for making her day! You left her speechless but with the biggest smile!