Donny and Marie Named Hosts of NBC Special America's Favorite Mom

Stop the presses!  Just found out that my favorite 70's brother and sister duo have just been named hosts of NBC's upcoming America's Favorite Mom special, sponsored by Teleflora and Redbook Magazine.  You might recall that we blogged about this competition a few months back - family members and friends can nominate their favorite moms and America votes on who they think should win the coveted title.  As soon as word got out about this competition, my own parents whipped into action down in Boynton Beach and while it took them 2 months to figure out how to upload a photo, little old me, Beth F. from Scarsdale, NY was nominated on the site.  Now here's the bad news...

I think I've only received about 10 votes - all of them from my parents.  So it looks like I'll never get my moment in the sun crooning with Donny and Marie.  Oh, what a thrill it would have been to have chimed in on "I'm a Little Bit Country."  

Guess there's always next year. Now back to details on the special - the contest is still not over, visit www.americasfavoritemom.com right now to cast your vote (that's right Beth F. from Scarsdale, NY is among the thousands of candidates).  Then on May 11, tune in to NBC to watch who wins.  They're also presenting awards to moms in all different categories so if you haven't been nominated yet, tell your family to get their butts in gear.

For more information on the television special and the America's Favorite Mom Contest, click here.

Love Our Children USA

Over the last few years, I have had the honor to be a part of a wonderful organization, Love Our Children USA, the non-profit leader dedicated to strengthening families by breaking the cycle of violence against children.  The organization's founder, Ross Ellis has become a dear friend of mine and while she was never able to have children of her own, she has the biggest heart I have ever known.  She works tirelessly to protect children from issues like cyberbullying to child abuse, to suicide prevention to offering positive parenting resources to those in need of advice or support.

Yesterday, Ross spearheaded a wonderful event called National Love Our Children Day.  Held at Spotlight Live on Broadway in NYC, the event attracted several personalities, including host Cameron Mathison (All My Children & former Dancing with the Stars alum), the Today Show's Meredith Vieira, Tru TV's Ashleigh Banfield, actor Frank Grillo, Menudo, The Dey and many more!  

The event featured a slew of wonderful activities for kids - from a Kea & Joby kids fashion show - Cameron's wife Vanessa is the creator of this adorable fashion line; to karaoke with celebrities - it was a riot watching Meredith, Ashleigh and Frank sing "Dancing Queen," there was fun comedy improv for kids, a performance by Menudo that got all the girls on their feet (and some moms too), face painting and tons of karaoke with kids.  To catch a clip of Meredith crooning "Achy Breaky Heart," visit MomLogic.

In fact, my own daughter even had the chance to get her moment on stage when she and her friend Samantha sang "Fabulous" for the crowd.  And, the performance even appeared on the Jumbotron in Times Square!

For those who couldn't attend the event, there's also an online auction going on right now until April 14 at CharityFolks.com.  If you want the chance to bid on the chance for a dance lesson with Cameron Mathison, tickets to the season finale of "Dancing with the Stars," producer tickets to "American Idol" and much much more, then visit Charity Folks today and start bidding!  To find out more about Love Our Children USA and the incredible work they are doing to honor, protect and respect children and families nationwide, then click here - there's a great original song on the site from the new group Naturally Seven so pay a visit and if you can, make a donation to this incredible charity.