Truly thankful: 5 tips to teach kids real gratitude

As we head into the holiday season, TODAY Parents is focusing on putting more gratitude in our kids' attitude. Here to help is Positive Parenting Solutions founder Amy McCready, who will join us each week in November to offer strategies for raising grateful, unspoiled kids.

Isn’t it ironic that the season of gratitude leads right into our children's chants of: “What am I going to GET this year?”

Is anyone else about to throw down their credit cards and hide in a closet until it’s all over? Of course, we have to admit the newest Super-Bling Unicorn Palace is pretty drool-worthy (if you’re 5) — but deep down we know that this is a time of year to be grateful, not constantly demand more, more, MORE! 

Believe it or not, there's a way to cut through the distractions and foster a spirit of gratitude — during the holidays and all year round. Follow these tips, and your kids might actually start counting their blessings instead of just the items on their wish lists.

1. Make do with less

When kids (and grownups) come to expect star treatment — such as getting chauffeured around town, being constantly entertained and fed their favorites in every lunchbox — they take it for granted. The cure? Pick something to “do without” for a week, or a month. For instance, try eliminating take-out or restaurant meals, shutting off non-essential screens for a week or biking instead of driving to destinations less than two miles away. These inconveniences might not always be comfortable, but they’ll help the whole family appreciate how good they have it.

2. Develop a silver-lining mindset.

Let’s face it: most of our troubles are first-world ones. (“Oh no! My jeggings are in the wash so I’ll have to wear skinny jeans instead!”) Our kids need to know that even when they face difficulties, they still have it pretty good. Next time your child complains, turn her grumble into gratitude by modeling how to find the silver linings in difficult situations. If you have to wait in a long line at the grocery store, say “At least we were able to get everything we needed for the week and won’t have to do this again for a while.” If the game is rained out, say “At least we have a nice warm house to come home to.” Don’t kill the lesson by being preachy, but instead recognize that virtually every setback has some kind of silver lining to be grateful for. Your job is to simply help your kids find it.

3. Schedule service.

We all intend to stock the community food pantry, teach underprivileged kids to read and play board games with our nursing-home neighbors, but regular life quickly takes over. If, however, we want our kids to get a better grasp on just how privileged they really are, we need to make family service a priority. Establish a family goal for one or two service events per month throughout the year — not just at the holidays. Brainstorm with the kids about how and where you’ll offer your time and talents. Not only will the people we serve benefit, but our kids will put their own blessings in perspective and find joy from things that don’t require batteries.

4. Give thanks — out loud.

If we expect our kids to take on an attitude of gratitude, we need to step it up ourselves. That means generously handing out sincere thanks, to everyone from the grocery bagger to the neighbor who let you know your ivy has crept into her yard. Take your appreciation to the next level by calling out specifics, such as, “I really appreciate how careful you were with the produce you bagged for me!” Make a habit of showing random acts of gratitude to those who serve you, expressing verbal thankfulness for positive events in your life and thanking your family members for their thoughtful acts — or even just for hanging up their towels. When your kids see how gratitude works and how nice it is to hear, they’ll be more likely to follow suit.

5. Be routinely grateful.

Research consistently shows that people who are grateful are happiest. Bring this truth to your dinner table, bedtime routine or another time of day by creating a simple gratitude ritual with your kids. Take time to say out loud three things you’re thankful for. Or, make a gratitude jar and fill it with notes about who and what you appreciate. For older kids, encourage them to take smart phone photos throughout the week of things they’re grateful for and share them at Sunday dinner. We live in a culture of plenty, which makes it all the more important to make gratitude a consistent part of our daily routine.

A little gratitude will go a long way this holiday season toward creating contentedness and jollier family gatherings. Foster this spirit in your kids and they will be happier for it. Maybe one day they’ll even thank you.

More Than 400,000 Lose Power on Thanksgiving

Thanks to a dangerous mix of snow and rain on the East Coast

More than 400,000 people along the East Coast lost power on the busiest cooking day of the year, thanks to a dangerous mix of snow and rain that downed power lines across the region.

New Hampshire was hit the hardest with more than 195,000 without power on Thanksgiving morning. More than 100,000 Maine residents and 55,000 New York residents were also left in the dark.

Almost 5,000 flights were delayed and 700 flights canceledWednesday, as winter weather snarled air travel up and down the east coast. The roads weren’t much better — New Jersey Governor Chris Christie declared a state of emergency because of the condition on the roads, and Connecticut police recorded 125 accidents in just one day.

So if you’ve made it to the dinner table, the lights are on and and your food is hot, those are three things to be thankful for.

Rural Pilots Won’t Be Happy About the FAA’s New Drone Rules

A DJ1 Phantom Quadcopter Drone in flight.  Paul Mayall/AP

The FAA is preparing to release its first set of rules governing how everyone from hobbyists to movie producers to ranchers can use drones. That’s good news, in the sense that some regulation is probably better than none—what we have now—when it comes to flying machines.

Unfortunately, while some of the proposed rules would do a lot to keep us safe, they could also significantly hamper some really good uses for drones in more rural areas. Part of the problem is that the FAA rules assign drone pilots into just two categories: Hobbyists who are flying drones in their backyard, and “commercial” pilots who are making money.

“We have to get away from these mindsets that there’s a difference between buying a DJI Phantom [a popular $1,000 drone] as a private citizen or for looking at crops,” says Ella Atkins, an associate professor for aerospace engineering at the University of Michigan. Instead of dividing folks into hobbyists and commercial, Atkins believes it’s more important to “think about where they’re flying,” especially whether it’s an urban or rural area. Under these rules, “we’re not able to distinguish Times Square from a farm, and that’s a problem.”

The new proposed rules, expected before the end of the year according to the Wall Street Journal, will apply to drones under 55 pounds, limit flights to daytime hours, under 400 feet, and within the pilot’s line of sight. They would also require all drone operators to acquire a pilot’s license from the FAA. Not a special, drone-focused license, but the kind you need to actually get in a plane and fly it.

That’s not totally unreasonable. Part of getting a pilot’s license is learning all about different classes of airspace, where it is acceptable and unacceptable to fly, how to communicate with air traffic control and other aircraft, and what to do in an emergency. For a drone pilot operating in, say, Manhattan, knowing what areas to avoid is really important and having a dedicated course and certification process makes a lot of sense.

In more rural areas, however, there simply aren’t that many things to fly into. Apart from town centers and highways, most of the middle of the country is filled up with wide open spaces. That makes the onerous process of getting a license—including dozens of hours of work with an expensive flight instructor, a medical examination, and lots of classroom time—seem less necessary when the only things you might hit are cows and stalks of corn.

The 400-foot ceiling and line of sight requirements are also impractical for many possible drone uses in rural areas. For example, electric utilities routinely use helicopters to inspect their long-haul high-voltage power lines, to check they’re in working order and make sure trees haven’t grown too close to them. Farmers could use the unmanned aircraft to inspect crops, and ranchers could keep an eye on their herds, over thousands of acres. This is the kind of work drones are perfect for, but only if they can fly over long distances and far above the 200-foot towers.

One reason pilots don’t fly their planes at very low altitudes is because the closer you are to the ground, the less time you have to find a safe spot to land if something goes wrong. Flying at a higher altitude buys you time, and that’s true whether you’re operating a drone from afar or are seated in the cockpit.

Let’s note that these are early days in the rule-making process, and the FAA is known for being deliberate, if also exceptionally slow. The regulations as reported by the Journal will likely go through many more iterations before they’re finalized. But rulemakers should consider that flying over a remote nature preserve to track the migration of animals is very different from flying over the Brooklyn Bridge to track the daily movement of commuters.

The key, Atkins says, is not just translating rules for manned aviation to unmanned flight. We need rules that focus specifically on the needs of drone pilots, both in rural and urban areas. “We want regulations that help the farmer” and “help everybody remain safe,” Atkins says. The proposed rules don’t really deliver, especially since it’s likely that many will simply continue to ignore some of the more pernicious aspects. If regulation is a good thing, considerate regulation is even better.

Drone pilot wanted: Starting salary $100,000

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Drone jobs are in high demand.

Big companies, such as Amazon and Facebook, are looking for pilots who fly drones and engineers with experience in building the unmanned aircraft. And they are willing to pay top dollar for the right stuff.

Federal regulations currently prohibit the use of drones for commercial purposes. But all that will change soon, with the Federal Aviation Administration expected to soften rules next year to allow certain light-weight drones to make commercial flights up to 400 feet.

Enter drone industry jobs.

As many as 100,000 new jobs will be created in the first 10 years after unmanned aircraft are cleared for takeoff in U.S. airspace, according to a 2013 report from the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International.

Large employers are already paying up for drone pilots -- about $50 an hour, or over $100,000 a year -- according to Al Palmer, director of the center for Unmanned Aircraft Systems at the University of North Dakota.

Related: Amazon is hiring drone pilots

The university is gearing up to meet the hot demand and Palmer expects the drone industry to grow exponentially as companies discover new uses for drones.

And the tech companies are excited at the prospect.

Facebook is bulking up its drone team. Amazon has said it wants to use drones to deliver small packages over short distances. And Google acquired Titan Aerospace, which makes high-altitude, solar-powered drones.

Why Google bought a drone company

At the University of North Dakota, most of the first 61 drone pilots who graduated have gone to work at major drone manufactures, such as Northrup Grumman, Lockheed Martin, General Atomics and Boeing.

Palmer expects drones to be used in agriculture, public safety, oil and gas exploration, and even in the film industry, among others.

Related: Facebook is kicking its drone business into high gear

University donors are getting excited too. The University of North Dakota, which started its bachelor's degree course in unmanned aircraft systems in 2008, recently received a $25 million endowment (it's largest ever) to build a new drone research and training facility.

New supersonic jet will get you from LA to NYC in 2.5 hours

An artist's rendering of thePhoto: Lockheed Martin

New Yorkers in the near future could one day eat Thanksgiving in Los Angeles and then fly back home before their turkey digests.

A supersonic passenger jet dubbed the N+2 has been designed by US global aerospace engineers at Lockheed Martin and is intended to make commercial flights from NY to LA in just 2.5 hours, the Daily Mail reports.

The lightning-quick aircraft would hold 80 people and be equipped with tri-jet configuration to prevent sonic boom — meaning one engine will be on the top of the plane and two more will be underneath each wing.

“To achieve revolutionary reductions in supersonic transportation airport noise, a totally new kind of propulsion system is being developed,” said NASA N+2 program manager, Michael Buonanno.

“We are also exploring new techniques for low noise jet exhaust, integrated fan noise suppression, airframe noise suppression and computer customized airport noise abatement.”

Another plane that could kick passengers’ heads back someday is the Aerion AS2 buisness jet — which would travel at 1,217 mph, according to the Daily Mail.

Airbus teamed up with US-baseda aerospace firm Aerion to shell out more than $100 million for that aircraft. It is expected to debut in 2019.

This humongous Lego Christmas tree in Sydney is a crowd stopper

Just when you thought Christmas couldn't get any better, along comes a Lego Christmas tree.

The 10-metre tall tree is stopping pedestrians and office workers in their tracks in Pitt Street Mall, Sydney. The tree took five people, 1,200 hours and half a million bricks to make it the tallest Lego tree in the Southern Hemisphere. It also has baubles the size of basketballs and features a unique Aussie touch by incorporating a koala and Santa with a surfboard.

SEE ALSO: 15-Year-Old Lego Genius Animates Movie Scenes in Brick Form

If the Lego feature alone doesn't get you excited (coal for you), how about lights that turn on in time with Christmas carols? Or a time-lapse of the making of the legendary Lego tree?

The impressive tree was built by Australian Lego Certified Professional, Ryan McNaught, also known as 'The Brickman'. McNaught is a LEGO extraordinaire who recently built a 70,000 brick Melbourne Cricket Stadium and has also created a model of the Sydney Opera House. There are only 13 Lego Certified Professionals in the world, and McNaught is the only one in the Southern Hemisphere.

"I'm incredibly proud to be bringing this impressive Lego Christmas tree to life for Australian fans," McNaught said in a statement. "It's my biggest build to date." He also revealed that within the tree there are secret touches on closer inspection, as is common with big Lego models.

On Thursday night, the tree will have its official launch accompanied by 400 singers from Sydney Philharmonic Choir. It is pretty clear, Christmas just outdid itself.

Is this UK's worst Christmas tree? Residents hit out at town's 'twig'

Villagers are furious after the poorly looking pine was planted and decorated with a solitary string of fairy lights

Is this Britain’s most miserable Christmas tree?

Villagers are furious after the poorly looking pine was planted and decorated with a solitary string of fairy lights.

Now residents have vowed to spruce up the council Christmas tree to save their embarrassment.

Ian Gauld, 57, said: “At the moment the tree’s pathetic and got to be the worst anywhere in the UK.

"It’s absolutely rubbish. It’s just a waste of time. Unless someone points it out you don’t even notice it. It’s hiding behind the lamppost.”

Cavendish

Sad: The unimpressive Micklehurst Christmas tree dubbed Britain's worst

Student Alex Bradley, 19, added: “It’s terrible isn’t it? It’s a lot smaller than last year.

"It’s that small I thought somebody would nick it, but it’s not even worth nicking. It’s like a twig.”

Irene Platt, 65, said: “At the moment it looks a bit sad but if it’s not vandalised then next year it might grow another foot.

"The council should have planted that one and put another one up for this year. I haven’t seen it lit but I doubt it will make much difference.”

Cleaner Jessie Rebbitt, 33, added: “We have a lot of pride in the area so to get something like this is appalling. How’s that for a ‘merry Christmas’?”

The tree made its low key appearance in Micklehurst, Greater Manchester.

Cavendish

Looking the part: The tree in Mottram after the locals came out and decorated it themselves

A spokesman for Tameside Council said: “The recently planted ‘living’ Christmas trees at Micklehurst and Mottram are sustainable and therefore designed to provide a tree for the many years to come for the local community.

“As is widely accepted local authorities up and down the country are facing huge cuts to their budgets so are continually under pressure to find more innovative ways of working.

“By providing living trees as a one-off cost the trees can be re-used year-on-year without the additional costs attached to erecting and taking down a new tree every Christmas.

“Because they are recently planted they are small, but will obviously grow into Christmas trees the whole community can enjoy.”

Good News! 5 Things to Be Grateful For This Thanksgiving

It's been a dismal month, but you can give thanks for these tidbits of good news

 

 

 

This November has been a serious bummer. The midterm elections were a depressing snoozefest. The sexual assault allegations against Bill Cosby have made‘America’s Dad‘ seem more like a creepy uncle. Protestshave erupted across the country after a grand jury decided not to indict Darren Wilson for the death of Michael Brown. American aid worker Peter Kassig was beheaded by ISIS. We lost Mike Nichols.

 

 

With all that bad news, it’s hard to find anything to be grateful for this Thanksgiving. But you better come up with something quick, because sooner or later somebody is going to ask, “so what are you grateful for?” with a schmaltzy smirk. So here are five pieces of good news to celebrate as you make small talk with your aunt’s new weirdo boyfriend.

1) The baby panda triplets in China have stayed alive for100 days: The “miracle” panda cubs were born in August, and they’ve all survived longer than zookeepers anticipated. Now they’rereportedly healthy enough that visitors can see them. Who to tell:Your niece (but leave out the fact that they’re in China.)

2) The human race has issues, but we landed a probe on a comet this month: On Nov. 13, the European Space Agency’s Philae lander touched down on a comet after a 10-year, 4-billion mile journey. Since comets are made of space’s most primitive materials, scientists hope that the probe will collect valuable information that could help explain the origins of our solar system. Who to tell: Your grandparents who watched the Moon Landing (don’t mention the Virgin Galactic crash.)

Surgeons remove three inch parasitic worm from 11-year-old boy's brain after discovering it had been moving around in his skull

 This is the worm-like creature which turned out to be a three inch parasite that had been living and moving around in the brain of an 11-year-old boy.

Liang Liao had been repeatedly complaining of headaches and started to suffer seizures and was taken to the Xinhua Hospital in Shanghai, eastern China.

After being admitted, surgeons started tests and carried out x-rays.

It was then that they discovered the live parasite, which measured 8cm, moving around inside the boy's skull and they immediately operated to remove it.

His father Liang Chao said that his son had always been buying snacks from street traders and rarely ate home cooked meals.

He added that he suspects that it was the street food, which was contaminated and caused the infection.

 The 42-year-old said: 'I don't know why he ate that disgusting stuff, he once told me he had eaten grilled snake of all things.

'And I doubt that many of the other things they claimed to be serving him really what they seem to be.

'He is only 11, he wouldn't have known the difference.'

Doctors eventually identified the parasite as a sparganosis, which can occur in humans who consume infected meat from frogs, snakes or other small mammals that have not been properly cooked.

In some cases humans can be infected through eating raw pork.

+2

The boy was taken to the Xinhua Hospital in Shanghai, eastern China, pictured, where they discovered the parasite after he complained of headaches and suffered seizures 

The parasite enters the body through the digestive tract and targets the brain and sometimes the eye.

It can often lead to extensive brain damage or even death if it isn't caught early enough.

The infection usually only infects dogs and cats, although very occasionally humans can be affected.

The case comes just days after a man in Britain became the first person in the UK to be infected by the parasite.

Surgeons at the Addenbroke's Hospital in Cambridge removed the worm and warned had if it been a more aggressive species, it could have laid eggs, which then feed off the brain as they grow.

The worm which originates in the Far East, is extremely rare, with just 300 cases recorded worldwide since 1953.

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8 Lucrative Jobs You Don’t Need a Degree for

 

Society has conditioned us to believe that professional success is directly proportionate to the number of degrees, certificates, and diplomas we receive. Graduating high school is a reasonable starting point for most people, but a high school diploma alone isn’t usually enough to make you a millionaire. If your goal is to make something of yourself and land that six-figure salary, society tells you that you need some sort of tertiary education. However, is society right?

Even in the wake of society’s high-educational standards, bachelor degrees are a dime a dozen. Most undergraduate degrees aren’t much more than a piece of paper sufficient enough to (maybe) win you an interview. If you have your sights set on success and six-figures, look beyond the undergraduate studies and go to graduate school. However, even then, you run the risk of not being able to get a job right away and you end up being stuck with a ton of student loan debt. Have the rules of success changed that much?

The truth is that the basic rules of success haven’t changed at all. In fact, there are eight degree-not-required jobs that come with enormous earning potential and prove that you can be a success with a little hard work and without a four-year education, assuming that you can be the best in your field, of course. Don’t get me wrong, I highly appreciate people who have an opportunity to go to a university. But if you can’t afford to study, it’s doesn’t mean that you are an uneducated person who doesn’t deserve a well-paid job. Here are 8 wonderful yet lucrative jobs you don’t need a degree for.

1. Nanny

Being responsible for other people’s children can be a difficult task and is not for the faint of heart, but for a potential $180,000 a year the problem can be easily overlooked for some people. And while $180,000 a year isn’t an average nanny’s salary, an average nanny can make a fabulous living at her craft, plus perks. However, this job takes endurance, dedication, patience and the desire to care for other people’s kids. So if you love kids, why not choose it as your career path? You can even work on a live-in basis, if needed.

5 Ways Your Thank You Note Could Lose You the Job

You might think that going through the motions and sending a generic thank you note is better than sending nothing, but you’d be wrong

  

This post is in partnership with The Muse. Thearticle below was originally published on The Muse.

Let’s be honest: When it comes to applying for jobs, the “it can’t hurt” benchmark is often the deciding factor over whether or not to do something. Sending a cover letter? It can’t hurt. Finding your interviewer on LinkedIn? It can’t hurt. Sending a thank you note? It can’t hurt.

Or can it?  

Actually, yes, it absolutely can. Here are just a few scenarios in which sending a thank you note might hurt your chances of landing the job.

1. It’s Full of Typos

If you’re really serious about a job, you probably had your resumeand cover letter reviewed by a couple other people before you hit submit. But, even the most careful job seeker can make mistakes during the high that comes after a successful interview. Don’t blow your carefully crafted image, and double check to make sure that your thank you note is typo-free. (Here are a few tips for editing your own work.)

2. It’s a Week Late

Another good impression killer is sending your note in late. Thank you notes are the most effective when you send them ASAP or at least within 48 hours of your interview. If you want to leave the impression that you’re only mildly interested in the position, then go ahead and take your time. If not, then send it immediately. As the saying goes, actions speak louder than words.

3. It’s Generic

You might think that going through the motions and sending a generic thank you note is better than sending nothing, but you’d be wrong. Hiring managers get excited when they find exceptional candidates who are really excited about the job. And sending a boring thank you note that could have been addressed to anyone? That’s an easy way to shatter your image.

Oh, and don’t think you can just write one spectacular thank you note and send it to all the different people you interacted with during the interview. Many companies request that thank you notes get forwarded to HR so they can be attached to a candidate’s file. Having the same five notes on file probably won’t help you land the job, so take the time to actually personalize some aspects of your message. It’s worth it.

(For a truly exceptional thank you note, check out communication expert Alexandra Franzen’s method.)

4. It’s Just a Way to Talk About Yourself More

Did you forget to mention that one time you did something that was extremely relevant to the job you’re interviewing for now? Think the thank you note is the right place to share this relevant experience? It might be okay to mention it briefly, but it’s definitely a mistake for you to transform your thank you note into a take two of your interview. Thank you notes shouldn’t be long, so you don’t really have a lot of space to, you know, thank your interviewer—let alone share another story. If you must do it, make it brief.

5. It’s Inappropriate

You don’t have the job yet, so don’t get too chummy in your note. No matter how sure you are that you nailed the interview, your best bet is to remain professional throughout the process. (That means no nicknames, no sarcasm, and definitely no cursing.)

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I’ve gone on and on about the various ways sending a thank you note can hurt your chances of getting the job offer, but naturally the biggest thank you note blunder would be to not send one. So, please send a thank you note after your interview—just make it great.