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10 things that made us smile this week

10 things that made us smile this week

From dedicated dads to delightful donkeys, here are some reasons to smile.

We can all use more reasons to smile, and thankfully there is no shortage of them. Here we've gathered ten snippets of delight, joy, and hope to help you sail into the weekend with a happy heart.

Enjoy.


Good dog becomes VERY concerned when his owner jumps into the lake.

Don't worry, hooman, I come save you! The way the doggo went around to get into the water instead of jumping in leads me to believe maybe it was even a little scared to go in. But doggone it, there was a life to save! Sweet puppers.

Yikes on bikes, this kiddo is a great little actor.

First of all, fun costume. Second of all, the kid is ALL IN. Terrifyingly good.

Love this dad teaching his daughter a tricky skateboarding move.

Three cheers for awesome dads.

Speaking of skating, how often do we see a news anchor reporting WHILE skateboarding?

You just know this guy has been waiting for the opportunity to show off his skating skills his whole broadcast news career. Congratulations, dude!

Librarians are superheroes and this "Tough Topics" guide proves it.

Some people don't want to go up to a librarian and ask where to find a book about [fill in somewhat embarrassing/stigmatized/uncomfortable topic here]. This "Tough Topics" guide uses the Dewey decimal system, so it's actually universal to all libraries.

This donkey adores this human and it's so dang cute.

I love you. I love you. I loooovvvveee yoooouuuu. (Could live without kissing a donkey's nostril, but that's just me.)

This flower carpet in Belgium is absolutely stunning.

Every other summer, volunteers create an elaborate flower carpet in the center square of Brussels. 500,000 Dahlias and Begonias went into this carpet, which was made in 2018. Absolutely stunning.

Miles Bonham is a wickedly talented 5-year-old.

It's the zoom-in on the sippy cup that really drives the point home here. This kid is incredible. Read more about Miles and his musical talents here.

Kind kiddo gives his coat to a classmate who he noticed didn't have one.

Click the right arrow to see the sweet message from the kid's teacher. What a stand-up little guy!

The Rock is every parent with a kid in the backseat singing a neverending song.

Hilarious. We parents have alllll been there. But this patience is impressive, and the encouragement he gives his daughter despite having endured the same song over and over and over and over is just so sweet. Read more about The Rock singing along with his kiddos here.

Hope that brightened up your week! Tune in again next weekend for more reasons to smile.

True

Larissa Gummy was first introduced to the work of the Peace Corps in high school. All it took was seeing a few photos shared by her ninth-grade teacher, a returned Peace Corps Volunteer, to know that one day, she would follow in those footsteps.

This inspiration eventually led Larissa away from her home in Minnesota to Rwanda in East Africa, to give back to her family’s country of origin and pursue her passion for international development. Though her decision confused her parents at first, they’re now proud and excited to see what their daughter has accomplished through her volunteer work.

And just what was that work? Well, it changed from day to day, but it all had to do with health.

Mostly, Larissa worked for Rwanda’s First 1,000 Days Health project, which aims to improve the conditions that affect the mortality rate of kids within the first 1,000 days of being born (or almost three years old). These conditions include hygiene, nutrition, and prevention of childhood diseases like malaria and acute respiratory infections (ARI). Addressing malnutrition was a particular focus, as it continues to cause stunted growth in 33% of Rwandan children under the age of five.

In partnership with the local health center, Larissa helped with vaccination education, led nutrition classes, offered prenatal care to expecting mothers, and helped support health education in surrounding communities. Needless to say—she stayed busy with a variety of tasks.

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There's nothing like the bond between twins.

If you've ever spent a significant amount of time with twins, you know that no other relationship compares.

My husband has twin brothers, and one of those brothers had twin daughters (busting the twins-skip-a-generation myth), so our family is quite familiar with the twin bond. Over and over, we've watched with amusement as one adult twin will move across the country for one reason or another, with the other twin eventually, but inevitably, following them. Twins redefine the word "inseparable," which makes sense since they've literally been together since before they were even born.

Nowhere is that bond more apparent than in a video of twin babies at the end of their first day of separation ever.

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Dog runs away to go to Metallica concert across the street

Maybe all of those kids' movies that feature personified animals getting into very human-like mischief when their owners are away are based on true events. Sure, people have put GoPros on their pets and haven't captured any wild parties and secret conversations in a discernible language coming from their four-legged pet, but what if dogs understand more than we think and enjoy very human pleasures? Maybe some part of them is tuned into things they like that aren't expected from human's best friend.

A German Shepherd named Storm has certainly proven she's been paying close attention to what humans do. In fact, she even joined the audience of a concert without her owners knowing.

In Inglewood, California, Storm decided to take her furry self on a date since clearly, her owners missed the memo on Metallica being in town. She heard the band start playing and decided to sneak away to get a better listen.

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Family

Wife says husband's last name is so awful she can't give it to her kids. Is she right?

"I totally get we can’t shield kids from everything, and I understand the whole family ties thing, but c’mon."

A wife pleads with her husband to change their child's name.

Even though it’s 2023 and schools are much more concerned with protecting children from bullying than in the past, parents still have to be aware that kids will be kids, and having a child with a funny name is bound to cause them trouble.

A mother on Reddit is concerned that her future children will have the unfortunate last name of “Butt,” so she asked people on the namenerds forum to help her convince her husband to name their child something different.

(Note: We’re assuming that the person who wrote the post is a woman because their husband is interested in perpetuating the family name, and if it were a same-sex relationship, a husband probably wouldn’t automatically make that assumption.)

"My husband’s last name is Butt. Can someone please help me illuminate to him why this last name is less than ideal,” she asked the forum. “I totally get we can’t shield kids from everything and I understand the whole family ties thing, but c'mon. Am I being unreasonable by suggesting our future kid either take my name, a hybrid, or a new one altogether?"

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Identity

People are sharing how they discovered their sexual orientation and every journey is unique

"I first realized that I liked men at the tender age of 12 while watching 'The Mummy' with Brendan Fraser for the first time."

Everyone's journey of self-discovery is different.

Discovering one's sexual orientation is a deeply personal journey that unfolds differently for everyone. Some people have a defining moment when they know what they’ll be into for the rest of their lives, and others go through life without much questioning.

Some people go for more of a trial-and-error approach where they come to an understanding over numerous experiences, while others view their sexuality as fluid and would rather live without any label.

What’s important to remember is that there's no "right" timeline or method for this self-discovery. What matters most is allowing oneself the time, space and love to grow and evolve organically. Everyone deserves the freedom to find their truth at their own pace.

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Democracy

How would a homeless person spend free cash? The answer may surprise you.

Fifty people experiencing homelessness were given $5,400 and told to spend it however they wanted. Here's what they did with the money.

Canva

A study revealed what a homeless person actually spends their money on.

In 2018, 50 individuals in Vancouver who had become homeless in the past two years were selected to receive a lump sum equivalent to around $5,498 USD to do with whatever they wanted. No questions asked.

In addition to the cash, they received a year of coaching and workshops that could help with developing life skills, goal setting, self-affirmation and brainstorming strategies to gain more stability.

The gesture was part of a peer-reviewed PNAS study, which also included the research team separately surveying 1,100 people, asking them to guess how the recipients would spend their money.

The general prediction was that these individuals, if experiencing homelessness, would spend 81 percent more on “temptation goods” like alcohol, drugs or tobacco than if they were not.

A follow-up survey proved that prediction wrong.

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Joy

Woman uses ‘malicious compliance’ to get around employer’s rule against pink hair

She wears terrible wigs on purpose, and they each have their own names.

Malicious compliance gets woman around work rule against pink hair.

Work dress codes aren't always practical, especially when you want to have a little room for self-expression. Most dress codes include things like no open-toed shoes, no spaghetti straps or no facial piercings, but some employers have a policy against unnatural hair colors.

One TikTok user, @emuhleeebee, whose first name is Emily, recently started a new job that does not allow for her brightly colored pink hair. Since she interviewed with her pink hair on full display and still got the job, she didn't realize until after she started that the company dress code called for natural hair colors.

If you thought, easy enough, she'll just dye her hair brown or some other natural color that would cover her pink hair, you'd be wrong. Emily decided to participate in what she calls "malicious compliance," meaning she will comply with the company policy but in the most obnoxious way possible.

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