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Good morning! ☀️ (Or good afternoon if you’re reading this after your third cup of coffee!)

I’m Lakshmi, mom of two energetic boys and the brains and heart behind Pickup Sports, based here in the ATL suburbs. If you haven’t heard of us, we’re the app that’s making pickup games as easy as, well, picking up your phone! 📱

Why am I in your inbox? Simple! I know you're juggling a million things, and keeping the kiddos active is just one ball in the air. So, I thought, “Why not make life a teeny bit easier?” Hence, this newsletter – your weekly dose of local happenings, parenting hacks, and ways to keep those little feet moving!

In Today’s Buzz:

• How to help Hurricane Helene victims

• Georgia colleges make it to the top

• Easing into fall

• After-school program at Wilson Creek Elementary

• Insta-Safety for Teens

Let’s get into it!

— Lakshmi

How To Help Those Effected by Hurricane Helene

Aside from some downed trees and a power outage, we got pretty lucky here in our area, but watching the devastation in Asheville, NC and other areas this weekend has been heart wrenching. If you can spare to help, here are three amazing organizations that are on the ground in areas effected by Hurricane Helene.

MANNA Food Bank - directly benefiting those in Asheville

American Red Cross - Volunteers are providing medical assistance at shelters and donating blood and supplies.

Diaper Bank of North Carolina - accepts any hygiene products

🎓 Georgia's Got Brains!

Looks like our state’s hitting the books hard! Eleven Georgia colleges just made the top 100 in the U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 rankings. Emory’s sitting pretty at #24, Georgia Tech’s not far behind at #33, and UGA’s holding strong at #46.

2025 Best Colleges rankings released Tuesday by U.S. News & World Report.

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🍁 Fall into Fun

Wilson Creek Elementary after-school program

We've kicked off a super cool after-school program for 2nd to 5th graders. It's all about trying new sports, making friends, and having a blast – without the pressure. We give every child a development assessment report and recommendations for improvement. The kids are loving it (and parents are loving the extra time)!

Want to bring the fun to your school? Drop me a line at [email protected] and we’d love to see if we can bring this program to your school!

👪 Parent's Corner: Insta-Safety for Teens

As parents we’re perpetually worried about the dangers of social media. Meta recently announced new Instagram measures for teen accounts. Here’s the update:

• Under 16? Automatic switch to a safer experience

• Private profiles by default (no creepy stalkers, thank you!) Limited messaging

• Parental controls for screen time and chats

• Age checks using IDs and facial analysis (no, your 12-year-old can't pretend to be 25 anymore)

It's like Instagram grew up and got responsible. Let’s wait and watch to see if this actually works!

THANK YOU!

Phew! We've reached the end, and if you're still reading, congratulations! You deserve a trophy (or at least a nap).

If you found this newsletter helpful, why not share it with that neighbor or a friend who's always asking what's happening around town?

Got ideas, feedback, or just want to tell us your favorite dad joke? We're all ears! Drop us a line anytime.