When it comes to kindness, is it really the thought that counts? Or is it the action?

I vote ACTION!

I completely dropped the ball recently. My good friend Scott is moving to LA and it'll be a long drive from Seattle. I had every plans of making him a California themed CD with songs that all contained the word California in it.

When I texted him today, he said he was leaving on Wednesday. Which does not give me anytime to get it done and sent in a timely fashion. Which is a bummer. So while though was there - the action was not.

It's a well learned lesson and I'll just mail the CD that he can play while driving around in California. That kind of works.

But really, isn't it way more than the thought? The thought just implies you thought about it...but never followed through. Maybe I'm being harsh on myself, but I'm a follow-through kind of gal. 

Maybe that's why when my friend Justin in Japan emailed me with a request for a care package, I hopped up, headed out to the store and got him the goods in a timely fashion. Follow through!

The next time you encounter kindness that you can give - ask yourself if you can give it and if it's enough to just have the thought or to have action behind the thought. I'm pretty sure it'll be action behind the thought!

I did a little Google search this morning to bring you some fun kindness stories found on the world wide web.

Do some clicking around and get happy! It's a great motivator to start your day with kindness on your brain.

Random Acts of Kindness as reported by readers of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

Do you knit? You might like this story from KII-TV South Texas about a group of knitters knitting for kindness. 

Kindness happens overseas too from this story in The Daily Aztec in San Diego Although my only objection with the reporter is that acts of kindness are NOT an inconvenience. Or they shouldn't be!

Kindness can reap a larger award! I really like this story about Josephine Jones who found and mailed a lost portfolio. She declined any reimbursement but was offered a donation to the place where she works - Hospice of the Valley. The grateful recipient of the lost portfolio said: One random act of kindness deserves another.

Last night I hung out with my friends Laura and Linds. The theme of the evening was to help Linds pick out an outfit for an upcoming wedding she's attending. I happen to have an incredibly large closet.  And I love acting as a stylist. And a lot of dresses. And scarves/wraps/cardigans. So of course, my closet was perfect to raid for a potential (or two or three) outfits.

Not only did we find Linds three awesome outfits to wear but we had a super fun time doing it. Both said I was generous with letting them borrow outfits (Laura needed a dress as well) and I kind of brushed that comment aside. But it got me thinking later, I do like to be generous in the areas that I can be generous.

I think the very root of kindness is being generous toward others whether it's with money, physical items or your time or presence.  I think it also stems from an idea of being needed. Being needed is a huge thing for me - it is what makes people want to do things for you - because they feel needed. And what a great feeling it can be to feel needed. I think if we approach kindness as a way of giving kindness because kindness is always ALWAYS needed, we could set huge wheels in motion for change.

And yes, I did just come up that theory all based on a girly evening of trying on lots of outfits and laughing the entire time doing so.

I've been MIA for awhile and I apologize for that. It's because I've been occupied with two things. 1) Work - my day-to-day job. 2) The Olympics! (Isn't the Olympics amazing? Are you like me and keep the kleenex at the ready?)

I had some very special visitors to my office today - Emma and Lilah! It was so fun to have them there. The ever kind Emma brought some super yummy cookies for my coworkers and I (which we have enjoyed immensely) and it was fun to meet Lilah for the very first time. 

Perhaps I'm lucky because I work in the baby world but I loved how everyone in my group was so kind toward Lilah offering up little treats to play with, saying hello, giving smiles and high fives. Working with fun and kind people is a true gift. And I feel every so blessed.

Well, it feels like a confession, but maybe it's just "a fuller picture" of the truth.

What I'm getting at is that there are kind things I do often for my friends and family (and, yes, strangers, too!) that I don't blog about.  In that same vein, there are birthdays---important ones!----that totally catch me off guard and thank you cards I often forget to write.

My fascination with kindness is actually often fed by my lack of kindness in very basic ways.

Part in parcel with this confession is the commitment to use myself as a guinea pig.  What I hope this site to be is an inspiration and a resource of how to live your same, normal, busy life, but more kindly.  It's not about becoming Ghandi or Mother Teresa, it's about being conscious that a small kind action here and there, or even the same one over and over---whatever works for you, you go---does make a difference.  It does count.

So, I'm going to try to share more of my successes and my failures with you.  Please feel free to share your advice and thoughts with me.  (Hopefully you'll still accompany me on this kindness journey, although you will find out how truly far I have to go!)