Give Back with Win & Give, Betty Crocker and an XO Laptop {Giveaway}

{This giveaway is now closed. Congratulations, Phoenix!}

From a very young age, children are taught to share: share toys, share crayons, share swings... life is all about sharing.

Along with concepts such as washing their hands or looking both ways before crossing the street, we hope that the idea of sharing will sink in. After all, we do what we can to help our kids grow into kind, caring, giving human beings. What more could a mom really ask for?

So, when given the opportunity to demonstrate and encourage our children to see the joy in charitable acts, there's no reason to pass it up. Now through May that is made even easier due to the partnership between Betty Crocker Fruit Flavored Snacks and parenting expert Dr. Michele Borba to make giving back easy though the Win & Give campaign.

Through a partnership with One Laptop Per Child, Dr. Michele Borba and Betty Crocker are helping this great organization in their mission to provide all children in developing countries with XO Laptop Computers.

"Research shows that providing children with opportunities and experiences to feel the joy and impact of giving to others helps them grow into kind, empathetic and respectful adults," said Dr. Borba.

"As part of my work with Betty Crocker Fruit Flavored Snacks, I recently traveled to Rwanda and saw the incredible impact laptops have on kids in Africa. The smiles and excitement I saw on the children's faces was amazing. They are so appreciative for the gifts that kids in the U.S. have given them. The 'Win & Give' campaign truly makes a difference and it's so easy for kids in the U.S. to get involved."

Of course all moms want their children to have a giving heart, but between work, school and after-school activities, it can be hard for families to find the time to give back. Dr. Borba recommends five ways families can incorporate giving into their everyday lives:

• Tap into kids' passions. For instance, an animal lover may get excited about helping at a local animal shelter. Encourage children to become involved in causes they care about. Let them lead the charge and follow up with support.

• When watching the news, take the time to explain hot button issues and how people have been affected by local disasters, like hurricanes or tornadoes. Kids are compassionate and may proactively want to help by donating clothes or writing letters to those affected (especially when they know they can make a difference). Take that moment to mobilize compassion - "What can we do?" is a great question that empowers children to lead the way.

• Be on the lookout for local opportunities to help. There are often ways families can help through local food or clothes drives. Parents and kids should do the activity together so they can experience and witness the impact of giving as a family. Kids will see the joy their parents get from giving back and it will help them catch the spirit of giving.

• Leverage holidays to talk to kids about giving back. For example, talk about giving around the winter holidays or discuss the troops around 4th of July and Memorial Day. Don’t forget to put the talk into action. Become a home that encourages giving, the more active kids are in experiencing giving, the more likely they are to develop empathy.

• Find easy ways to help others around the world through opportunities such as helping to give laptops to kids in Africa through the Betty Crocker Fruit Flavored Snacks 'Win & Give' campaign.

As an easy way for moms and kids to give to others (and show that it can be fun), these rugged laptops are not only unique and child-friendly, but they are designed for tough conditions in remote areas.

Built with sturdy plastic exteriors, 1 GB of memory and 4 GB of Flash storage, the XO was collaboratively designed by experts to combine technology with learning. By taking into account extreme environmental conditions, the need for easy repair, and local language support, the end result is durable, functional, energy-efficient, responsive, and fun.

By providing laptops for as many children as possible, they will be able to use them at school or take them home and use the wireless broadband capabilities to access the internet for continued learning. About the size of a textbook and lighter than a lunchbox, the XO laptop can be configured in multiple ways (e.g. standard laptop, e-book, reading, and gaming), is extremely easy to use, highly durable, and doesn't even have a hard drive to crash.

What an amazing thing to provide to children across the world to help them succeed - I love this program!

As well as this great cause, Betty Crocker is making things even better by giving kids in the U.S. an opportunity to instantly win an XO laptop from specially-marked packages of Betty Crocker Fruit Flavored Snacks as well. Each of those packages contains a code that consumers can enter at WinOneGiveOne.com to see if they’ve won an XO laptop. For every child that wins in the U.S., another will be donated to a child in Africa!

To find out more about the Win & Give program and how these laptops positively impact the lives of the children, visit Win One, Give One today. The website also allows parents and kids to see the powerful impact laptops have on kids in Rwanda with videos from the students who received the laptops and their teachers.

Additionally, Dr. Borba shares her experience participating in the laptop donation, as well as her tips to help parents instill giving in their kids. This campaign truly shows the entire family that even the smallest of acts can make a big difference and that giving to others can be fun.

Do you give back? Thanks to the generosity of Betty Crocker, one person who does will be able to bring the experience of this program home to their children, because...

One lucky winner will win an XO Laptop (ARV $199) and Betty Crocker Fruit Flavored Snacks!

To enter to win: Leave a comment on this post telling me how you give back and/or encourage it in your children.

Extra Entries (available after the mandatory entry above is completed; please leave a separate comment for each entry in order for them to be counted).

1 Extra Entry (per giveaway entered) - Enter any (or all) of the giveaways running on Thanks, Mail Carrier for the duration of this giveaway.
1 Extra Entry if you follow me on Twitter and tweet about this giveaway by copying and pasting the tweet below and leaving me the link. Tweet daily for an extra entry every day!

Give back! WIN an XO Laptop (ARV $200) and support Win One, Give One - a great cause! http://bit.ly/HAiroq @thxmailcarrier #giveaway #win

1 Extra Entry (per follow method) if you follow me with Google Friend Connect, subscribe to my RSS feed, subscribe to Thanks, Mail Carrier by email, become a fan on Facebook or add Thanks, Mail Carrier to your blogroll.
2 Extra Entries if you put my cute button up on your blog. Please leave an address where it can be found.
3 Extra Entries if you blog about this giveaway linking back to this post. Please leave an address where it can be found.

Giveaway will end on April 30th at 11:59pm CST. By entering this sweepstakes, you are agreeing to these official rules. No purchase necessary, void where prohibited by law. Do me the favor of leaving an email address or making absolutely sure it is visible in your profile, I have to have a way to contact the winner. The winner will be chosen by random.org and announced here as well as emailed and will have 48 hours to contact me or respond to notification or a new winner will be chosen. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning. This giveaway is open to U.S. residents only and must be 18 years of age or older.

A big thank you to Betty Crocker for providing an XO laptop for one lucky giveaway winner. The opinions shared are my own and honest and if you really need to see more, click here to see how I roll.