I don't know if it was the long weekend (my daughter had Friday and Monday off from school) or the dreary weather, but about 4 p.m. on Sunday my usually "happy just to hang out" daughter uttered those words every mom dreads, "I'm bored." 

Normally I would say what most moms do which is, "that's not my problem...find something to do."  Instead, I found myself thinking the same thing.  I was bored.  We'd shopped and eaten out, worked out and read books, watched a movie, played on the computer, and my personal favorite...cleaned house (ugh!).  And while I had a million other things I could do, nothing seemed interesting or rewarding.

I agonized over those two simple words all day yesterday at work.  And when I walked into the house last night, I was brimming full of ideas to help stem our boredom.  My husband and daughter looked at me like I had two heads.  "Why are you coming up with all these crazy ideas?" they asked.  When I reminded my daughter of her complaint, my husband chimed in and said, "I bet she won't be bored tomorrow when she goes back to school."  My daughter heartily agreed. UGH!

I wasn't ready to give up, but I did realize that now was not the time to tackle this topic.  So imagine my delight when I checked my email this a.m. and found a note from my daughter's new favorite store, Aeropostale.  They have joined together with a great organization called, DoSomething.org to create a Teens for Jeans program.  Basically, if you bring in any gently worn pair of jeans before February 22, Aeropostale will donate them to a homeless teen and give the donor a coupon worth 25% off a new pair. What a great concept!  I can't wait to tell my daughter who is outgrowing clothes faster than I can replace them!

The program is clearly targeted toward teens, which got me thinking.  What kind of volunteer programs target tweens?  I got my first clue that something may be amiss when I entered,"Tween Volunteer Opportunities," and Google asked me if I meant, "Teen Volunteer Opportunities."  No, I didn't mean that.  What I discovered is very few organizations serving the tween population specifically.  There are a few websites with info on how to get your tween to volunteer.  But no real volunteer organizations designed to get tweens active in their communities. 

Now I'm not ready to start a tween volunteer organization just yet, but I am curious what other moms of tweens are doing to teach their kids the importance of giving back.  If you have any thoughts or suggestions, share them here or email me at lisa@janenation.com.