Grab Bag Friday: Happy Halloween!!

I hope you have lots of fun and sugar waiting for you today!

If you missed last week's post about Trick or Treat for UNICEF, there's still time to make your UNICEF box for tonight's festivities!

The Poop has a funny post about what to do when your child won't put on their Halloween lederhosen. (Some of the comments are more hilarious than the post.)

Seven Impossible Things analyzes Edgar Allen Poe's weaker efforts. (There are more Halloween poems at the Poetry Friday Roundup.)

And this trick-or-treat video cracks me up every time:

Grab Bag Friday: Trick or Treat for UNICEF

It's almost Halloween! Can you believe it? And that means it's time for me to gush about one of my favorite Halloween traditions.

Over the past 58 years, Trick or Treat for UNICEF has raised over $140 million dollars for lifesaving nutrition, clean water, education, protection and emergency response for children all over the world.

Think about that.

Kids knocking on doors and asking for a little loose change along with their Halloween candy have raised $140 million. That's amazing.

Here's how you and your kids can get involved:

1. Go to the Trick or Treat for UNICEF site and order the little orange boxes, or make your own with their downloadable container wrapper.
2. Bring your box trick or treating and ask folks to donate their loose change.
   
3. Send the money to UNICEF.

Could it be any simpler?

It's a great way for kids to get involved in helping others. Halloween is such a fun night when they get to dress up and go around and ask for and receive this amazing wealth of candy. It gives them a real sense of pride and accomplishment to know that they are also responsible for bringing water or food or medicine to a kid who needs it.

This year, UNICEF is rolling out various online and mobile Trick or Treat for UNICEF programs. For instance, the program is now my "featured cause" on my Facebook page. I guess it's trick or treating for the new millennium?

Grab Bag Friday: Bits & Pieces

Just a few fine things for Friday:

Trick or Treat for UNICEF: The tradition of children collecting coins for UNICEF on Halloween began back in 1950 and is still going strong. You can pick up free UNICEF boxes at Hallmark stores or your local church, or you can make your own. Please visit UNICEF's website for instructions on how to send in the money, and great stories about the difference even a small amount can make.

This is a great way for kids to get involved in helping others...and to learn that helping others can be both fun and rewarding!

It's Official: The Robert Plant & Alison Krauss official site is now up. Sadly, it doesn't list tour dates yet. And you can apparently listen to the album on the site, but I couldn't get the streaming to work on my computer. Maybe you'll have better luck. If missed my initial response to the new album, Raising Sand, you can find it here.

Let it Snow! Tomorrow, I'll be posting a feature on artist Abigail Marble and her snowflake for Robert's Snow. Please check in for this special "Weekend Edition" of Please Come Flying. Abigail's art is filled with wonder and she was kind enough to answer some questions about inspiration, process, and her connection with Robert's Snow.

• You can still see the gallery showings of the snowflakes
• You can read this week's features by checking my sidebar to the right
• You can catch up on all the past features at Seven Impossible Things Before Breakfast