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NPN's biggest fundraiser of the year, which allows us to continue to bring programming, events and school-choice help to Chicago parents, opens for bidding on Wednesday, March 8th! Open to the public, our Online Auction is bigger and better than ever, with more than 200 items up for bid. Once you've had a chance to see our $65,000+ in goodies for Chicago families, make sure to place bids asap! We know how crazy life can get—set your max bid and rest easy. You can stop back in and visit your items or check your email notifications to make sure you are still in the lead. Bidding closes at 10pm CST on Sunday, March 12. This is the perfect opportunity to buy things you already know you want or need—like summer camps, kids classes, museum memberships, restaurant gift cards, birthday parties, theater tickets, sports tickets, jewelry—and help NPN, a 501(c)3 non-profit that depends on your bids to keep its lights on! Did we mention floor tickets to see Beyonce’s Renaissance Tour in Chicago? How to bid: Go to biddingforgood.com/npnparents. If you are new to Bidding For Good online auctions, click the Register to Bid button in the top center of the homepage. Enter the necessary contact information and click Submit. If you already have a Bidding For Good account, type in your username and password and click Sign In. Click the View All Items button to peruse more than 400 amazing items or click on individual categories to shop item by interest. Select the item(s) on which you’d like to bid. Enter your current bid, maximum bid and/or straight bid. (For more information about these types of bids, see below.) Make sure to click the Confirm Bid button to ensure your bid is properly processed. Track your bids by clicking the My Items button. To update your account or credit card information, click the My Account button. Check your email for updates when there is activity on your items. Frequently asked questions: Do I need to enter credit card information into the system in order to bid? Yes. Your bid is considered your commitment to purchase the item at that price. If you win the item, the credit card used will be charged for the item you purchased. What is a “Maximum Bid”? Your maximum bid is the highest price you are willing to spend on an item via proxy bidding scenario. You can always increase your maximum bid if you’d like or if you’ve been outbid. What is a “Straight Bid”? A straight bid allows you to bid higher than the minimum increment immediately, instead of having to wait until the bidding is increased to that level. Enter the amount you would like to bid on an item, and check the "Straight Bid" option. The bid will be placed immediately at the amount entered. Do all items “close” at the same time? No. Every item’s closing time will continue to extend in 5-minute increments as long as there is continued bidding. Individual items will automatically close when there is a 5-minute extension period with no new bids or after 60 minutes past the original close time. Is there a “Buy It Now” option? Yes, on three items. For the NPN Online Auction, you have the option to purchase raffle tickets to win three floor tickets to see BEYONCÉ - RENAISSANCE WORLD TOUR. You can also purchase raffle tickets for the 50/50 auction and you can Fund a Family by purchasing an NPN membership for a family in need. Those all operate as a “Buy It Now” option. Will I be notified via email if I am outbid? Yes. Bidders are automatically opted in to receive bid alerts when they are outbid. Happy bidding! Thank you for supporting the NPN community. Please contact Amy at amy@npnparents.org if you have any questions or need any help.

NPN's Second Chance Auction offers great items that Chicago parents want and love, at an even greater discount! Visit biddingforgood.com/npnparents to bid! With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens March 14 at 5am and closes at 10pm on March 16. Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Want to donate an item, gift certificate, or experience? Donate here. Thank you to our sponsors

NPN's Second Chance Auction offers great items that Chicago parents want and love, at an even greater discount! Visit biddingforgood.com/npnparents to bid! With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens March 15 at 5am and closes at 10pm on March 16. Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Want to donate an item, gift certificate, or experience? Donate here. Thank you to our sponsors

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great items that Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else! Peep some of the items at biddingforgood.com/npnparents. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding closes at 10pm on March 12. Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Want to donate an item, gift certificate, or experience? Donate here. Thank you to our sponsors

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great items that Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else! Peep some of the items at biddingforgood.com/npnparents. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens March 8 at 5am and closes at 10pm on March 12. Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Want to donate an item, gift certificate, or experience? Donate here. Thank you to our sponsors

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great items that Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else! Peep some of the items at biddingforgood.com/npnparents. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens March 8 at 5am and closes at 10pm on March 12. Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Want to donate an item, gift certificate, or experience? Donate here. Thank you to our sponsors

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great items that Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else! Peep some of the items at biddingforgood.com/npnparents. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens March 8 at 5am and closes at 10pm on March 12. Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Want to donate an item, gift certificate, or experience? Donate here. Thank you to our sponsors

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great items that Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else! Peep some of the items at biddingforgood.com/npnparents. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens March 8 at 5am and closes at 10pm on March 12. Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Want to donate an item, gift certificate, or experience? Donate here. Thank you to our sponsors

It was an early Sunday morning in March 2012. I did not get much sleep the night before, because I was 4 months pregnant with our second child, and our first child, Luke, had just received a diagnosis of autism and epilepsy. To say that I was stressed would be an understatement. Related: Your Child Received a Diagnosis, Now What? After speaking to my nursing pediatrician, it was recommended that I join a few community groups for support and resources. It was in this search that I found out about a resource fair that was created for parents just like me - parents that were overwhelmed, stressed, and on the hunt for resources and community. I was determined to provide my children with the best options available and realized that attending this fair might help me do just that. Overwhelmed with loneliness, desperation, and fear of our new normal we went to our first NPN Developmental Differences Resource Fair (DDRF) that morning. If I close my eyes right now, I can remember the moment I walked into my first NPN Developmental Differences Resources Fair. I can remember looking around and seeing so many resources and so many families, like mine, all in one room. Instantly, my stress levels decreased and I breathed a sigh of relief as the feeling of hope, which had escaped me for several months, came flooding back. I was able to connect with so many resources at once! The biggest takeaway was the connections with the other families I met; just knowing I was not alone gave me so much encouragement. The following year, I returned for my second DDRF. This time I was more confident, I knew exactly which resources I needed, and I was prepared with questions to ask. My biggest takeaway that second year at DDRF was that there is literally a resource for everything. Education, extra-curricular activities, therapies, government benefits, financial planning, whatever it is - there is a resource for it. I just had no idea where to look to find all of the information that I needed and had been too exhausted as a new mom to seek out the resources on my own. Related: Raising a Black Autistic Boy in America Fast forward to today and my son is now 12 years old and thriving! I have to say that being an advocate for my son and utilizing the resources that I found at NPN’s DDRF have made all the difference. I am proud to report that we have been able to change the trajectory of our son’s progress for the better. One of the best decisions I ever made was to pull my exhausted, desperate, hopeless, and stressed self out of bed that morning in March 2012, and take the first steps towards building our community and support network.

If you’re a working parent of a school-age child, summers mean sun, sand, short sleeves... and a scramble to fill your kid’s days with childcare. Chicago camps to the rescue! With as many camp options as there are types of kids, you’re sure to find one that caters to your child’s interests and keeps them entertained all summer. How to find all your camp options? Our 2023 Summer Camp Directory will launch for members on January 25, 2023. NPN members can snag exclusive discounts to day camps and sleep-away camps by visiting the directory from January 25th to January 31st. Check back here for the link on January 25th, or navigate to the 2023 Summer Camp Directory from the homepage. Not a member of NPN? Join here. The summer camp directory will open to the public, sans discounts, on February 1st.

Many worthy causes are vying for your donations and many organizations tug on your heartstrings, so you may be wondering - why donate to NPN? After all, as a member of NPN, you likely understand that there is a level of privilege here. Topics on our discussion forum include luxurious vacations, elite universities, private jets, and more. But NPN means a lot to many families around the city and we are continuously working towards our mission to connect a diverse community of families by providing the support and resources they need to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Did you know that with the help of the Chicago Park District/Special Olympics, Illinois Action for Children, and Carlson Community Services, NPN has distributed more free memberships in one year than ever before? Sixty-five and counting. Or that we help provide free and discounted membership renewals to parents who couldn't join without one? Or that all of our developmental differences resources are free to anyone, anywhere. We truly strive to be here for every new or experienced parent in Chicago who is researching schools, navigating developmental differences, and looking for parent-to-parent advice. NPN makes life more manageable for parents in Chicago, and every parent who comes to NPN comes with a need. They need a school, a diagnosis, advice, or a friend. One parent might come to NPN and quickly find school information or summer childcare and smoothly move on to tackling the next parenting hurdle. Another parent might come to NPN and find ongoing emotional support in parenting their special needs child, along with expert help in finding special services and therapies. NPN is here to help parents find whatever they need, and NPN is here for you. You are the reason we do what we do, and your membership makes this work both meaningful and possible. However, membership fees don’t cover all of NPN’s expenses. Can you give a little bit more to keep NPN going? Your donation truly matters to NPN. Our financial outlook is challenging. Despite gaining dozens of new members every year, NPN's membership has been declining slowly every year for several years, following the trend of membership organizations in general. We attribute this to families moving out of the city and an increase in parenting resources overall, but we also want to do better. I will explain more about that below. At this moment, a slowly declining membership, an abrupt and extended loss of in-person events during the pandemic, and the continued economic uncertainty faced by our advertisers and sponsors creates the most challenging financial future that NPN has ever confronted in our 42 year history. With that in mind, you may have noticed that NPN has turned to focusing on what we do best: helping parents research schools, navigate developmental differences, and find parent-to-parent advice. This coming year we will partner with local education and special needs experts, add new programming for parents of teens, create hybrid school fairs and developmental differences resource fairs, and elevate parent-to-parent advice. At the same time, we are intentionally working to make NPN more inclusive and relevant to every parent in Chicago, regardless of culture, background, gender, gender identity, race, ethnic origin, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, financial means, age, or ability. We want every parent in Chicago to feel welcome and supported here. As an NPN member, you are savvy, smart, and doing your best for your family. You also want to do the best you can when you give. Please consider what you could do for NPN and the parents who come here for information and support. Even five dollars a month goes a long way right now, while Meta is matching all recurring donations made by 12/31/22 via Facebook. Please consider setting up a recurring donation today by clicking here. The NPN staff team, board of directors, your fellow city parents and I are truly grateful for your support.

How can we make sure that we're doing what's best for our kids? Are we making ourselves and our children crazy and anxious from all our worry? Our parents had different pressures than we do today. Do you feel parenting has changed from family-focused and instinctual to expert-driven and child-centric, with stresses from society constantly telling us we must do more? How do we as parents cope with that pressure? Let's discuss! Sign up for this event and we’ll send you an excerpt from Lenore Skenazy's book, Free Range Kids. Read the excerpt or the entire book over the next few weeks and then, on October 19th at 7:00pm we'll get together over Zoom and discuss with Lenore. (If you don't have time to read the chapter or the book, come anyway!) The ultimate goal? That we feel more confident as parents and our kids feel confident and happy too. Spend an hour with us in hopes that we’ll all leave more calm about our parenting choices, more trusting of ourselves as parents, and more unified as a parenting community. Registration is required. You will receive the Zoom link via email immediately after registering, and again in a reminder email shortly before the event. If you would like to foster Free Range Kids, you can join the movement at Letgrow.org. We are happy to be partnering with Brooklyn's Park Slope Parents for this event! Lenore Skenazy: Ever since her column “Why I Let My 9-Year-Old Ride the Subway Alone” created a firestorm, Lenore has been declaring that our kids are smarter and safer than our culture gives them credit for. For this, she was labeled “America’s Worst Mom.” Nice. She turned around and started the Free-Range Kids movement, lecturing around the world and hosting the reality show, “World’s Worst Mom.” Now Lenore is President of LetGrow, the nonprofit making it easy, normal, and legal to give kids back some independence. The second edition of her classic volume Free-Range Kids is out! She recently spoke to Dax Shepard about parenting on his "Armchair Expert" podcast, here. Have questions? Email Amy at amy@npnparents.org.

Come discuss the book Parent Nation with author Dana Suskind, MD, award-winning Chicago-based journalist Heidi Stevens and NPN's executive director, Amy Johnson. World-class pediatric surgeon, social scientist, and best-selling author of Thirty Million Words, Dr. Dana Suskind returns with a revelatory new look at the neuroscience of early childhood development—and how it can guide us toward a future in which every child has the opportunity to fulfill their potential. PARENT NATION offers a powerful blueprint for a society that helps all families meet the developmental needs of their children. Weaving together the latest science on the developing brain with stories of families from all walks of life, Dr. Suskind shows that the status quo—scores of parents left to shoulder the enormous responsibility of early childhood care and education on their own—is not only unsustainable, but deeply detrimental to children, families, and society. Buy the book and join us for a thought-provoking and inspiring conversation. Everyone is welcome, even if you haven''t read the book yet! RSVP required. Zoom link will be sent to you via email, immediately after registering.

If you got outbid last week in our Online Auction, you have another chance to win! NPN's annual Second Chance Auction offers even better deals on items Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens May 18 at 5am and closes at 10pm on May 19. Preview link for items at www.biddingforgood.com/npnparents Questions? Email Amy Johnson at director@npnparents.org. Thank you to our sponsors: Major sponsor: Children's Learning Place Special thanks sponsor: A&H Childproofers Friend of NPN sponsor: Bright Smiles Pediatric Dentistry

If you got outbid last week in our Online Auction, you have another chance to win! NPN's annual Second Chance Auction offers even better deals on items Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens May 18 at 5am and closes at 10pm on May 19. Preview link for items at www.biddingforgood.com/npnparents Questions? Email Amy Johnson at director@npnparents.org. Thank you to our sponsors: Major sponsor: Children's Learning Place Special thanks sponsor: A&H Childproofers Friend of NPN sponsor: Bright Smiles Pediatric Dentistry

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great deals on items Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens May 11 at 5am and closes at 10pm on May 15. Preview link for items at www.biddingforgood.com/npnparents Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Thank you to our sponsors: Major sponsor: Children's Learning Place Special thanks sponsor: A&H Childproofers Friend of NPN sponsor: Bright Smiles Pediatric Dentistry

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great deals on items Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens May 11 at 5am and closes at 10pm on May 15. Preview link for items at www.biddingforgood.com/npnparents Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Thank you to our sponsors: Major sponsor: Children's Learning Place Special thanks sponsor: A&H Childproofers Friend of NPN sponsor: Bright Smiles Pediatric Dentistry

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great deals on items Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens May 11 at 5am and closes at 10pm on May 15. Preview link for items at www.biddingforgood.com/npnparents Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Thank you to our sponsors: Major sponsor: Children's Learning Place Special thanks sponsor: A&H Childproofers Friend of NPN sponsor: Bright Smiles Pediatric Dentistry

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great deals on items Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens May 11 at 5am and closes at 10pm on May 15. Preview link for items at www.biddingforgood.com/npnparents Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Thank you to our sponsors: Major sponsor: Children's Learning Place Special thanks sponsor: A&H Childproofers Friend of NPN sponsor: Bright Smiles Pediatric Dentistry

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great deals on items Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, activities, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens May 11 at 5am and closes at 10pm on May 15. Preview link for items at www.biddingforgood.com/npnparents Questions? Email Amy Johnson at amy@npnparents.org. Thank you to our sponsors: Major sponsor: Children's Learning Place Special thanks sponsor: A&H Childproofers Friend of NPN sponsor: Bright Smiles Pediatric Dentistry

NPN's annual Online Auction offers great deals on items Chicago parents want and love, including kids' classes, restaurant gift certificates, massages and access to cool experiences you can't find anywhere else. With the proceeds from our auction, NPN, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, will be able to continue to provide support and resources designed to solve the challenges of parenting in Chicago. Bidding opens May 5 at 5am and closes at 10pm on May 9. Preview link for items at www.biddingforgood.com/npnparents Questions? Email Melanie Schlachter at auction@npnparents.org. Thank you to our sponsors: Presenting sponsor: Soccer Pods Major sponsor: Children's Learning Place