There are concrete blessings for kids who learn to count their blessings, the Wall Street Journal recently reported. In one study, high school students with high levels of gratitude reported having stronger marks, less depression and envy, and a more positive outlook than less grateful teens.
But gratitude is like a muscle – it needs regular exercise. You have to use it regularly if you want to see the benefits.
Canada Day is a great opportunity to nurture gratitude in our teens and younger children. As we prepare to celebrate with parades, fireworks and barbecues, we can also explore with our kids the many reasons why it’s great to live in Canada.
Here are five suggestions for building gratitude muscle this Canada Day:
1) Compare notes: Spend some time with a friend, acquaintance or neighbour who has immigrated to Canada. Encourage your kids to ask questions about life elsewhere. How is life different for kids here?
2) Dollar a day: Brainstorm over a meal about how living on a dollar a day would look. What would have to come off the dinner table to make the budget? What else would have had to go that day?
3) Watch the news: Have each family member recall a news story that makes them feel grateful to live in Canada. Share stories making the news, such as the war in Syria, or child slavery.
4) Pick a kids’ issue: Look together at a web site exploring a challenge affecting young people, like www.nochildforsale.ca or www.child-soldiers.org.
5) Start a tradition: Make an online donation to an organization helping children overseas, as a symbol of your family’s gratitude for life in Canada.
If you’ve cared for kids during summer break, you know how those ten weeks can stretch out! But summer is also a wonderful time to learn with your kids, in ways that might not normally have time for. Best of all: they can help someone (or something!) in need, and feel really great about it.
Earlier this year, a letter sent by a child to the LEGO toy company went viral. Seven-year-old Charlotte complained about the lack of opportunities for the LEGO girls available at her local toy store. She noticed that the girl figures only visit the beach and the shops, while LEGO boys have interesting jobs and even save lives. LEGO wrote back, adding to the story’s viral appeal and confirming for Charlotte that her questions were worthy of a response.
Diane’s Lingerie invited me and a group of notable Vancouver women to become a work of art. To honour the beautiful shapes and sizes of women they assist every day, Diane’s asked 25 women to paint their naked bodies and create art. The concept would be rolled into the new look and feel of the brand and exhibited at a gallery be creating an art exhibition and silently auctioned, with proceeds going to support the 
What I realized as I wrapped myself in the snuggly robe provided by Diane’s Lingere was that society’s current ideals should never sway our sense of whether or not we are beautiful. Different shapes have been idealized over time, and every body tells a story. A curve here, a scar there, a bellybutton that implants so clearly onto the canvas it reminds us of our origins. We are a community and I am so grateful to have been a part of such a groundbreaking campaign. No wonder there are so many shapes and sizes of lingere! In the end I began to value my body and its curvaceous shape. I am a phenomenal woman. And Diane’s really does fit them all. 
There have been many times over the years when I’ve wanted Elsa’s powers. Wouldn’t it be incredible if you could build a whole mansion with the flick of a hand like Disney’s Frozen star? Or maybe master a project that’s a tad less extensive – like tiling a floor, using a jigsaw or hanging a light fixture. There are thousands of people across the country who need housing, live in poverty and feel isolated. The power of community and charity can not only transform not only the individuals in need, but also empower the people who want to help others. There are problem-solving women across Canada who can help while working as a team and developing construction skills in the process. The women build with 
What family doesn’t want simple, decent and affordable housing? As an ambassador and fan of Procter & Gamble, I have been asked to represent UrbanMommies and put together a team of women in the Vancouver area to build a home! The program is part of a three year partnership totalling $900,000, that will see P&G support Habitat’s family home builds throughout the county, on behalf of its Household Needs brands such as Tide, Swiffer and Mr. Clean. This year there are builds happening in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal and approximately 350 new builds are expected across Canada in 2014.
Habitat for Humanity is a special charity, and I love that one hundred percent of all administrative and fundraising costs are paid for by the operation of nine ReStores in the lower mainland. It’s great when not a dime is wasted.
Silken is best known for her amazing comeback from a serious leg injury to win the bronze medal for Canada in the 1992 Barcelona Olympics for single sculls rowing. In her 2014 memoir Unsinkable, she revealed that she has battled with restrictive eating and an eating disorder throughout her years as an Olympian.
UM: How do you combat all of the mainstream media that encourages kids to diet?
UM: How did you feel when you took the Oath to never diet again?
I remember as a little girl being excited for ‘The Nature of Things’ to come onto the TV. As the host, David Suzuki has been an environmental visionary for many years. The David Suzuki foundation began in 1990 with a mission ‘to protect the diversity of nature and our quality of life, now and for the future’.
MATCH International is a grant-making agency that raises Canadian dollars (non-government) that are put directly in the hands of the communities who are fighting against female injustice. Is invests in social innovation by providing agency of change to those who need it most. MATCH believes that the ability for social change comes from within the community itself. They believe that it is the people who live within these communities who are most capable of identifying what needs to be changed in order to create gender equality, and creative ways to do it. So to them, and to me, it makes sense that they directly support the people and the projects that are most affected by the struggle.