Photo credit: Hellogiggles.com

Being the mother to a teenager who starts high school next year, my biggest fear is bullying. She was bullied in elementary which prompted me to put her in private school for middle school but private school for high school is a bit out of my budget so she is headed to public school. Bullying is one of the biggest issues and as a parent, it is my responsibility to educate others and protect my children.  We have to remember that our children look to us for approval. They lead by example. So if we are giving them bad examples, they will lead the wrong way and think what is bad is actually good. I cannot stress enough how bad bullying is high school. I've witness it and still do when I'm taking my kids to school in the morning. If you have a chance to help a child out (or in adult in some cases) please do so. Every little bit counts. A while ago I saw the movie Bully with my children. I cried from beginning to end. The things that those children endured from day to day at school was horrific and completely unacceptable. I feel the pain of their parents. My daughter was only 9 years old when it all began. I started to notice a pattern in her that was out of the ordinary. She ate less, wasn't as upbeat, and stopped reading books. She was isolating herself. I asked her what was wrong and she told me. My heart broke. I will not repeat the things that were done or said to her because she is a lively 13 1/2 year old and I do not want her to relive those moments. I know you're wondering where this is coming from and I just want to say that it is coming from my heart. I usually post about deals but I think it's time to focus on our future generation. I'll occasionally post things about this or other topics. I will still post deals and ad previews and so on but I'm turning this into a universal blog and I welcome you all to come and talk. You never know who you might meet here. Back to the subject at hand-Bullying. I came across a trailer to a new movie coming out in theaters March 27th. I could not put into words how I felt after watching it. Take a look at the trailer below.

There is an organization that Stephen Amell donated to and it is one that is near and dear to my heart. I donate when I can and buy merchandise from them often. They are called Stand for the Silent. This was formed by 2 parents that lost their so in 2010 to suicide because he was being bullied and wanted to escape it. His name is Ty Smalley. His parents travel across the US to educate schools about the seriousness of bullying. These children need to know that they are somebody! Ty Smalley was only 11 years old when he took his life. Did you know that every 7 seconds, a child is bullied? EVERY 7 SECONDS! They have reached 1,021,000 Kids in 1,004 Schools! Aside from this you can download a PDF from A Girl like her to promote peace. It's called "The PEACEkeeper Kit". It is an educational tool for students, teachers and administrators to transform their schools and communities into PEACE ZONES through an enforceable commitment to redefine social behaviors and conflict resolution methods. Students will lead this revolutionary transformation through simple, step-by-step instructional and supportive materials, including a PEACE PLEDGE and PEACE CONTRACT, which emphasizes healing over punishment

To download the PEACEkeeper Kit, click here!

You can also start a chapter for Stand for the Silent. To get information please click here!