Shop With a Smile This Season.

This morning I googled shopping trends for the 2016 Holiday Season. They (whoever they are) are predicting that it's a 50/50 spread this year between online shopping and in store shopping.

Choosing to shop online, you spare yourself the long lines, the elbows thrown by determined shoppers to get the last fluffy throw at 47% off, and driving in the snow -if we ever get any.

(Check out these videos from CNN if you've never encountered the shopping madness on Black Friday)

The chaos out there is real folks.

Online though, you'll see product reviews, other suggested products, and price comparison between brands. All at your fingertips!

If you haven't discovered the ease of online shopping, let me enlighten you to the ideal experience.

My platform of choice is smile.amazon.com. I sit down in my PJs, log into my free account, and begin browsing a gajillion different searchable products from my couch. When I'm ready, I click in my cart to checkout, I toss in my credit card number and away I go. My packages will arrive timely at my doorstep. Life is good :)

And, when logged into my AmazonSmile account, I gave .5% of my spending to First Choice Pregnancy Resource Center.

Here's the math for that!

For my husband's birthday, which conveniently lands on Thanksgiving, I buy him a $169.99 St. Croix musky rod. We are fishing junkies (me being a fanatic for St. Croix) and Amazon is willing to give back to First Choice 85 cents. Score!

I spend $79.99 on my youngest brother for a Circuit Scribe Kit (best gift for the circuit loving kid/adult in your home) for Christmas, hoping to fuel his creativity, Amazon will give back 40 cents to First Choice.

Next, mom needs a LifeProof for her new iPhone 6s. She's finally transitioned to a functional product, but she's terrified of wrecking it. $50.99 later, her Christmas gift is bought, and 26 cents goes towards funding educational materials for new parents.

Seeing that the average household spent $882 on gifts in 2015, First Choice could see over $4 from each household when using AmazonSmile to shop. It doesn't seem like much, but it does add up.

Every dollar counts when you're rallying for impact in your community.

Have I convinced you to take the leap to online shopping this year?

If so, here's how your register for AmazonSmile:

1. Head to smile.amazon.com to set up your free account.

2. When prompted to set up your charity, choose First Choice Pregnancy Resource Center Inc..

3. Start your shopping! *Be sure to check that the item is AmazonSmile eligible.

Keep in mind AmazonSmile cannot be accessed through the Amazon app for smart phones. You must access via browser on you mobile device or computer.

But, you can shop AmazonSmile 365 days a year, giving back your local PRC.

We know the holidays aren't all about gifts, but for those that have a tradition of giving, consider spreading the impact of your dollar by shopping online! Interested in purchasing items for First Choice? Here's the link to our needs list, keeping you up to date on how to provide for our ministry.

Happy giving and gifting, and we outstretch our blessings to you as the Holidays draw near!