I got a Goat for Christmas

My blog is called The Goat because my Mother opened a coffeehouse named "The Dancing Goat Coffeehouse" but the customers just called it "The Goat." I worked there alongside my sisters and I loved it. It was open just a few years but it was a lot of fun. I love that I have titled my blog The Goat, because it just continues that same theme of enjoying the people who walk in the door and giving them great service (or at least some fun reading material!)

This book is just beautiful! The illustrations are gorgeous! The book is called "The Goat Lady" by Jane Bregoli. I highly recommend it for any of the people in your lives. It's a childrens book, but I really liked it. It was also the perfect tangible product to give with the gift below.

This year for Christmas (I had Christmas Nov 30th when I went to Michigan) my Mother gave us girls each a goat. It was a gift from Heifer International who gives the animals to families to help them better their lives.

This is just a section of the card that came with the gift. It says...

Heifer International is a non profit organization working to end hunger and poverty while caring for the earth. Heifer provides animals and training to help impoverished families become more self-reliant. Since 1944, Heifer has helped 8.5 million families in more than 125 countries. Each recipient agrees to "pass on the gift" of one or more of their animals to another family in need, creating an ever widening circle of hope.

Goats Are Great for Families

The gift of a dairy goat represents a lasting, meaningful way for you to help a little boy or girl on the other side of the world.

Goats can thrive in extreme climates and on poor, dry land by eating grass and leaves. The gift of a dairy goat can supply a family with up to several quarts of nutritious milk a day - a ton of milk a year. Extra milk can be sold or used to make cheese, butter or yogurt. Families learn to use goat manure to fertilize gardens.

And because goats often have two or three kids a year, Heifer partners can lift themselves out of poverty by starting small dairies that earn money for food, health care and education.

The nieces, or as my Mother would call them, her grandchildren, were given chickens. A few chicks for the little ones.

Chicks: A Good Choice

A flock of chicks can help families from Cameroon to the Caribbean add nourishing, life-sustaining eggs to their inadequate diets.

The protein in just one egg is a nutritious gift for a hungry child. Protein-packed eggs from even a single chicken can make a life-saving difference.

Heifer helps many hungry families with a starter flock of 10 to 50 chicks. A good hen can lay up to 200 eggs a year - plenty to eat, share or sell.

Because chickens require little space and can thrive on readily available food scraps, families can make money from the birds without spending much. And chickens help control insects and fertilize gardens.

If you should happen to be looking for a gift for that person who has everything - consider giving a Goat! or a chicken or a flock of geese or even a trio of rabbits.

Thanks Mom! It's a great gift.

Kristin