Has today been tough? Let Obi change that for you.
Obi is a little baby Pygmy Hippo who ventured out with mum, Petre, for a swim in the big pool for the first time. The name Obi means heart in the Nigerian Igbo language, and he is certainly melting a few hearts here at Melbourne Zoo.
Hippos are known for growing into terrifying death machines. Before they grow into dangerous, jaw-chomping beasts, they look like adorable river puppies.
Babies love splashing in pools. We even have some factual evidence to prove our point.
There’s this baby elephant that loves splashing in his kiddie pool:
Image Credit: Giphy
Here is another elephant that can’t wait to join the fun:
Image Credit: Giphy
There’s this deer that doesn’t want to get out of the pool (but what kid willingly gets out?):
Image Credit: Giphy
There’s this baby that doesn’t back up my claim, but I included him anyway because he’s cute:
Image Credit: Giphy
And, of course, there’s this piglet that’s too small to get in the pool, but he’s love it if he could hop that hurdle:
Image Credit: Giphy
Watch this Pygmy Hippo experience the joys of swimming the first time:
In a few years, he’ll be a vicious beast of death so, much like your pre-teen child, soak up the cuteness before it becomes terrifying.
On a day out at sea, two Aussie fisherman became surprise heroes for a lost wombat.
Craig Wilson and his stepfather Bob Wilton were fishing in the central highlands of Tasmania last Friday afternoon, when they came across a wombat struggling to swim on the waters of Woods Lake.
“We were just fishing away,” Wilson says, “When we turned around to have a look, we thought it was a platypus to start with — then on closer observation it was a wombat.”
Image Credit: Craig Wilson
Wombats are not normally found swimming, which is why the duo was shocked when they discovered the animal.
Image Credit: Craig Wilson
It was initially a bit of a struggle to help the little guy, “We tried to get him in the landing net to start with, and he kept getting out of there, so we ended up putting him in the boat,” Mr Wilson said.
Image Credit: Craig Wilson
Wombats are meant to be aggressive or agitated, but they said this wombat seemed pretty calm, probably because he was happy to be out of the water.
Image Credit: Craig Wilson
“We drove back to shore and we left him on land…he seemed fine, he strolled away into the bush,” said Mr. Wilson.
It was just another day in the life of a fisherman..
For many grandparents, the holidays are the highlight of the year, as they finally get the opportunity to spend quality time with their children and grandchildren. Yet for those who are left alone and forgotten, it can be the saddest time.
A German supermarket chain, Edeka, has touched the hearts of millions with their Christmas commercial, which focuses on a lonely grandpa who goes to extreme measures to see his family over the holidays.
In the video, this grandpa is shown year after year as he sits all alone on Christmas at his dining room table with the meal he prepared for his absent family. Each year he hopes his children and grandchildren will visit him for the holidays, but he finds out this year will be just like the last. The old man’s daughter calls and leaves a message breaking the news that they wouldn’t make it home for Christmas.”I just wanted to call and let you know that we can’t make it for Christmas this year. We’ll try again next year. It’ll work out, I promise. Merry Christmas Daddy,” she says.
The old man decides to fake his death, and his children are visibly shocked and full of regret upon hearing the news.
Photo by EDEKA
The family finally returns home, but when they enter their father’s house, they’re stunned to see everything lit up and decorated for the holidays. The old man slowly walks out from the kitchen and says, “How else could I have brought you all together?”
Photo by EDEKA
Watch the entire video below to see the dramatic way this grandpa managed to get his family to come together for the holidays.
What would you do if you found out a loved one faked their own death just to bring everyone together? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below.
Chances are, you don’t pay close attention to this small New Jersey college’s basketball track record.
However, if you did, you would know that the Monmouth University Hawks have some of their best players sitting on the bench. Typically, benchwarmer is a position most athletes would rather not take part in. However, these guys have truly made a mediocre situation into something absolutely hilarious.
We’re fairly certain the team has cheerleaders who are actually cheering on the layers and the crowd, but they greatly pale in comparison to the guys sitting on the bench.
Athletes take their celebrations pretty seriously, and these guys are no exception.
Monmouth basketball has officially set the new standard of what the sidelines should look like. These guys have a better attitude about being on the bench than any other athletes in any other sport. They’ve brightened up the court and are truly in a league of their own when it comes to standing on the sidelines.
You know how cats are like these weird little fluffy balls of confusion? They do things a lot of the time just simply don’t make sense to the rest of us.
Take, for example, your cat’s reaction to water. They hate water. Felines despise it with every fiber of their existence. However, the often enjoy sleeping in the sink, the place where water goes to gather.
Image Credit: Giphy
Well, we have discovered another strange anomaly regarding cats and water.
Strangely enough, cats love ice. We think this has something to do with the fact that cats aren’t fond of liquid water, but when you freeze it and put it in a huge dish, these felines have no issue with the wet, foreign substance.
Image Credit: Giphy
If you want to try this at home with your own little furball, we suggest you fill a latex balloon with water. Freeze it overnight, and then place the frozen concoction in dish (so it doesn’t leak all over the floor). Then, simply pop the balloon, which at this stage will be more of a peel than a pop, and sit back and watch Fluffy go bonkers.
These cats really love licking this ball of water. Yeah, we know it’s really weird:
Baby Louie is like any adorable baby, except he’s constantly surrounded by chubby Pug puppies. His four-legged companions are the source of endless giggles, however, after a while, Louie struggles to keep up with all the affection.
In the video below, Louie sits in a comfy seat as Pug puppies Oreo and Bruce descend on him, and drown him in dog kisses. However, baby Louie can only handle so much love, and the two puppies wrestle each other as they compete for his attention.
Watch the entire video below to see the precious baby struggle to cope with all the Pug love.
Can you believe how excited those puppies were to give a baby kisses? Share with us in the comments below.
What’s in a name? Unfortunately, not much creativity in 2015…
There’s nothing more exciting for a family than to welcome a tiny, new member. You can’t help but want to talk about baby things when you’re with a parent-to-be, but let’s just say it can be a little difficult to have so many different opinions thrown your way…especially when it comes to picking a name.
Have you ever met a cutie pie with an unusual moniker and wondered what little Sonic is going to be like when he’s 35?! Baby naming is a pretty big deal, so it’s easy for people to judge celebrity offspring, name trends, and the ones that top the list each year.
Sophia and Jackson continue to reign supreme in 2015.
These celebrity-inspired names ranked #1 for the second year in a row by BabyCenter’s annual survey. Unsurprisingly, Emma, Olivia, and Ava were close behind for the girls (notice a trend here?), while Irish-origins Aiden and Liam were close behind for the boys.
The strangest trends of 2015? Instagram filters.
Yep, you heard that right. USA Today reports that names Instagram filter-inspired baby names like Lux (up 75%), Ludwig (up 42%) and Amaro (up 26%) for boys, and Valencia (up 26%) and Juno (up 30%) for girls have seriously spiked since 2014. Also, this year’s exciting space discoveries might have inspired out-of-this-world choices like Jupiter, Venus, and Sunny, which are also on the rise.
Here are the top 20 baby names of 2015, according to BabyCenter:
Girls
1. Sophia
2. Emma
3. Olivia
4. Ava
5. Mia
6. Isabella
7. Zoe
8. Lily
9. Emily
10. Madison
Boys
1. Jackson
2. Aiden
3. Liam
4. Lucas
5. Noah
6. Mason
7. Ethan
8. Caden
9. Logan
10. Jacob
Are you surprised by the names that topped this year’s list? Check out the video below to learn more and SHARE this video with your Facebook friends!
From disastrous dirty diapers to middle of the night wake-ups, every mother and father knows well that the best job in the world can sometimes be one of the most difficult. Being a parent is one of life’s most precious blessings, but it’s easy to get aggravated when your little one just won’t stop screaming for seemingly no reason.
Luckily for new parents and those on Grandma or Grandpa duty, a California-based pediatrician claims to have figured out the best way to comfort a crying cutie. Dr. Robert Hamilton of Pacific Ocean Pediatrics in Santa Monica has cared for thousands of newborns during his career, so you can imagine how many times a day his office is filled with their little screams.
Dr. Bob recently shared his secret weapon to turn those tiny frowns upside down, a method he’s dubbed “The Hold”. The funny thing is, it’s not much different from how we adults get in a happy mood. Dr. Bob says all you have to do to stop a baby from crying is shake their little booty!
Here’s his foolproof plan to stop the tears: Hold the baby at a 45 degree angle and lift them up and down, while gently rocking them back and forth. After about three months, Doc says babies become too heavy for “The Hold”, so unfortunately this won’t work on your nagging husband or stubborn toddler.
No one wants to be that person who holds a newborn and they start screaming bloody murder, so next time you’re lucky enough to be handed a bundle of joy, you’ll know exactly what to do…and it’s guaranteed to get you on any new parent’s good side!
What do you think of “The Hold”? Please SHARE this video with all of your friends on Facebook and let us know your thoughts in the comments!
This Pope, his holiness Pope Francis, might know how to drop a beat.
The Pope recently visited a mosque in a Muslim neighborhood of the Central African Republic’s capital that has been a flashpoint for violent clashes, according to CNN. He is continuing his message of religious tolerance on the final leg of his African tour, spitting messages of peace. At least, that’s how the internet likes to think of him.
The Pope has become a meme recently when he was photographed with a microphone in one hand and a badass look on his face. Some may even suggest it appears as it the pontiff was about to drop a beat.
This isn’t the first time the Pope’s general look has been associated with the rap game either. Check out what one Twitter user noticed earlier this year:
As tends to happen with any original thought that goes viral, the thought quickly went on to lack any originality. Twitter users flocked to the idea of inserting a rhyme and giving the Pope something to rap about. Fortunately, these Twitter users were funny and the meme is hilarious, so I thought I’d write about it to entertain you, my bored reader.
Here’s proof that our current Pope is better than Eminem:
We’ve seen a lot of street performers before, but these two are going to make your day.
A father and son street drummer duo play for many on the streets of Chicago.
The son in the video looks very young, but by his skill, it’s safe to assume he’s been practicing drums since he was born.
When the video starts, you may think that he is only playing background to his father. But you’ll be amazed when the little boy does a solo, and you see just how talented he really is.
Watching his tiny arms play the drum buckets so well will blow you away!
Imagine what he could do with real drums?
Watch the bucket drumming video that is going to win your heart:
Have you ever seen a little boy play the drums on buckets this well?
“To err is human; To forgive, divine.” – Alexander Pope
They say forgiveness can set you free and do a lot more for the one forgiving than the person who wronged them. However, if you’ve ever been hurt by someone’s words or actions, you know well that truly clearing the air is way easier said than done.
That’s exactly why a British law lecturer is making headlines worldwide for his response to a devastating situation. You may remember Paul Kohler’s tragic story. In August, 2014, four alcohol and drug-fueled Polish burglars mistakenly targeted the home of Kohler, his wife, and four daughters, looking to collect a debt. As soon as they arrived, the men began their violent rampage.
The four burglars savagely attacked Paul Kohler in his Wimbledon, South London home, asking “Where is the money?”.
Kohler was left with a fractured eye socket and jawbone, a broken nose and multiple bruises, according to the Daily News. His face was left unrecognizable and he later need reconstructive surgery.
The assailants also attacked Kohler’s wife, Samantha MacArthur, while their 25-year-old daughter Eloise hid upstairs, frantically calling police and fearing her parents were being murdered below.
If authorities hadn’t arrived in time, it’s likely Kohler wouldn’t have survived the freak attack.
The now 56-year-old father of four told The Mirror UK that although he nearly died, it wasn’t justice he wanted. “I wanted an apology that was meaningful, that could allow me to move on.” 16 months after being savagely beaten by four violent strangers, Kohler finally got what he was looking for.
With help from the Why Me?, a charity for victims who seek restorative justice, Kohler and his family met with one of the attackers, Mariusz Tomaszewski, at a jail last week. Tomaszewski has been sentenced to 19 years in jail for grievous bodily harm and failed burglary, but when he came face-to-face with the University of London professor, he said he was sorry for everything he had done.
Kohler was able to look his attacker in the eye, accept his apology, and shake his hand.
He told The Mirror “From the meeting I have learned that forgiving is more rewarding for the forgiver than the forgiven. I had gone to help myself and my family, but in doing so I think we helped him, too. I think any victim of crime should consider restorative justice.”
Learn more about Paul Kohler’s unbelievable story of tragedy and triumph in the video below.
Please SHARE on Facebook with anyone you know who could benefit from the power of forgiveness.
Life is a path well-traveled, which means you’re bound to find ruts others have left behind.
It’s easy to fall into one of these ruts. Whether it’s one you carved for yourself or one left behind by a fellow traveler on this path, you will find ruts all over the place.
Often, they sneak up on us and we don’t realize we’re in one until it’s almost too late. Another glass of wine and a new relationship to fill a hole in yourself won’t pull you out of the rut. However, the fact that you realized you’re in a rut means you still have a sense of passion burning inside you.
You still know what you need to accomplish and you still want to make something happen. Often, you just need a little help figuring out what that something is.
1. What do I want?
The first problem that comes with a rut is knowing where that rut leads. Have you lost sight of your goals or shifted them to the point where you can’t see where they lead? Are you working for short-term, unsatisfying goals?
Make a list of all the things you are actively working to accomplish at the moment, and if you find that list being too short, you might be in a rut. It’s time to do some soul-searching and figure out how you got here and where you need to go.
2. How attainable are my goals?
While being an astronaut is a very fun goal to pursue, it might be a little bit out of reach if you don’t have a graduate degree in astrophysics.
Assess where you are in life. What skills do you possess and what makes you a unique, special snowflake. Think outside the box and while you should never hinder yourself from dreaming too big, try to keep rationality on the table too.
3. What is getting in the way of what I want?
Once you’ve established what it is you’re looking to achieve (not a small feat, I assure you), it’s time to weed out what you don’t want. What trivialities are standing between you and those attainable goals?
Weeding vices and negativity out of your life is challenging, but attainable. You simply need to have clear enough goals that have small steps of success along the path.
4. Are there behavioral patterns I’ve fallen into?
One of the tricky things about falling into a rut is that there isn’t a clear reason why it’s happened. There are often some unsavory behavioral patterns associated with them, but those can be hard to pit out.
Anything from negative thinking to self-talk that tears you down can contribute to the rut. Identifying the negative patterns of behavior is tricky, but necessary.
5. What have I done or not done to get here?
Reflection is a theme here. If you want to make a change, you have to be willing to admit your flaws and love yourself enough to change and keep on truckin’. Pulling yourself away from the rut is possible, but it takes work and contemplation.
Image Credit: Giphy
What contributed to you achieving goals you wanted to complete, and failing to get where you’d like to be. This last one is a doozy, so don’t take it lightly. But, if you answer these questions honestly with yourself and for yourself, then you’ll find yourself in a much better place.
Most people are happy to pay good money for good food, but what about $250 for a steak with truffles?
There’s just something about eating out at expensive restaurants. Is it the atmosphere of the place or the the amazingly tasty food? Whatever it is, diners are prepared to pay big money for food, but there’s a fine line between expensive eating out and outrageously overpriced food.
The foods and drinks on this list are in the latter category, and you can look at parting with the best part of $1000 for dinner for two at these establishments.
So without further ado let’s dive down and see some of the most expensive foods and drinks the world has ever seen….
A Maryland dog-lover is a hero for pooches in their golden years.
Sher Polvinale and her team of volunteers work to make life comfortable for man’s best friend before they go to doggie heaven. Almost two-dozen dogs live at the House of a Heart Senior Pet Sanctuary in Gaithersburg, Maryland. The home spares no expense to care for the dogs needs, assuring they get not only the best love and attention, but also medical needs and vet visits.
The volunteers even said they make sure none of the dogs have to pass alone and they are all comforted through this time in their life. The house even has a staircase, dubbed the “stairway to heaven” where they hang up a picture of all the former residents, assuring none of the dogs are ever forgotten.
Image Credit: Giphy
And if that doesn’t break your heart, this bittersweet video from National Geographic will definitely hit you with all the feels…
Please SHARE this video with all of your animal-loving friends on Facebook.
Some photos on the internet are enough to melt your heart and even to move you to tears…
And that’s exactly what these amazingly touching images are all about, guaranteed to melt your heart strings, no matter how hard you think you are. These pictures really are amazing, and also very meaningful.
A camera lens is an amazing thing, if you consider that it can capture moments in life which are heartfelt and deep. It’s that split second decision by the person holding the camera that makes the images in this gallery that amazing, and we’re sure your heart will melt when you see them…
When it was time to cut her birthday cake, one little girl’s family gathered around the table for a surprise she never saw coming.
They waited anxiously, but not for a piece of cake. Instead, they waited to see the little girl’s reaction when she realizes her large birthday cake actually wasn’t a cake at all, but a balloon.
The size is too impressive to be a real cake, and it really looks too good to be true. But this little girl is totally unaware. She tries a few times to cut it, and when she finally digs deep enough, the cake pops and spews icing everywhere!
Her dad thought it was so funny, he jumped for joy!
Watch this hysterical video to put a big smile on your face today.
If you think your friends could use a good laugh…and possibly scare, SHARE this video with them on Facebook.
Lisa Sarber Aldrich, of Grand Rapids, MI, was in a better mood than the average party host when she picked up a cake from her local grocery store over the weekend. She had ordered a cake that said “Happy Birthday Mandy,” and while she certainly got what she had been looking for, the handwriting wasn’t exactly legible.
This is what the cake looked like when she picked it up from the baked good department:
Image Credit: NY Daily News
Aldrich must have been having a terrific weekend because rather than demanding it be fixed, she simply shrugged it off and went to pay for the cake. She later wrote on Facebook, “After looking, I nervously laughed and headed to check out — it didn’t really matter to me that it looked so bad — I thought people would think it was funny.”
However, Aldrich’s kindness went farther than expected. It turned out that the woman who had scrawled the icing on the cake was autistic. “Thank you for smiling and thanking her — even though she’s not supposed to write on cakes, you probably made her day,” the cashier had told Aldrich.
Aldrich went on to share the image on Facebook, which then was repeatedly shared over 105,000 times. While the customer could have thrown a fit and demanded a new cake, she made light of the situation and decided to simply roll with the punches.
After going viral, Aldrich said her intentions weren’t to gain internet fame. “I never asked for all this publicity, I just wanted people to consider being nice to each other.”
Image Credit: Giphy
We could all take a lesson from this kind woman. Patience and kindness go pretty far, and you never know when it’s going to uplift someone’s spirit.
Not only can Adele artistically weave her words in harmony with musical notes, she can weave your emotions into a bundle of pain.
Remember when the British singer/songwriter released “Someone Like You,” in 2011? We thought our hearts were being ripped out of our chests as we simultaneously rushed to call up our long lost lovers and tell that old friend it isn’t over.
Image Credit: Giphy
And then, we can’t forget “Set Fire To The Rain,” a song that not only failed to make sense of our emotions, it also failed to make sense of the physical properties of dihydrogen monoxide (aka water).
Image Credit: Know Your Meme
It comes as no surprise to any of us that when that glorious storm cloud we call Adele released her new single “Hello,” earlier this year, we rushed to both iTunes and the tissue box. Since the album has come out, the singer is closing in on $6 million in sales after the Black Friday rush, according to Digital Music News.
While Adele probably isn’t torn up about her heartbreak anymore ($6 million is a nice consolation prize for being dumped), we found some poor pooches who are connecting with Adele’s new single in unexpected ways. We don’t know if it was the poodle down the street, or the pain in Adele’s voice, but something is cutting deep with these dogs.
Watch how these emotional pups react to hearing the heartbreaking smash hit:
Fortunately, these cuddly canines have someone like you to console them.
And by console, I mean sit there and laugh while they moan in tune with the song. We’ve all been there though, and it usually ends with us crying to Adele over the steering wheel while we eat fried chicken and attempt to peer through the pouring rain (not that I’ve done that or anything).
Everyone in the military knows the hardest part about being a soldier is leaving the ones you love.
Karas Oglesby’s parents feared their little girl wouldn’t remember her dad’s face by the time he came home from his eight-month deployment to Kuwait. Fortunately, it turns out they had nothing to worry about.
The tiny 3-year-old interrupted a military homecoming ceremony after she spotted her father standing in the front row. Karas darted across the floor to embrace him, and her dad, 1st Lt. Daniel Oglesby, returned the hug before she raced back to her mother.
Gif Credit: Youtube- lugamedia
Oglesby said,
“I wasn’t worried about maintaining the integrity of the formation. The homecoming ceremony is all about our families who’ve had to sacrifice eight, almost nine, months without their loved ones. I was so happy to see my awesome little girl.”
He added, “That moment was about the family, so I figured I’d greet her, give her a kiss on the head, and then tell her I’d meet up with her momentarily after we were done with the presentation.”
Oglesby says his toddler’s impulsive run for a hug “was a pleasant surprise.”
Watch the heartwarming video below to put a smile on your face today!
If this video touched your heart, please SHARE it with your friends on Facebook!
Green and red are the standard when it comes to Christmas decorations, but this family decided to switch it up with more patriotic decor.
The holidays are about giving thanks for family and loved ones, but a family from Tallahassee, FL decided to take that a step further with a patriotic Christmas display. In the video, the house is rigged with an intricate light show that plays along to American themed songs to thank the American troops and veterans.
Instead of typical Christmas decorations, this house honors the ‘1.3 million American troops have made the ultimate sacrifice’ since 1775.
Photo by FreedomAutosport
If the lights and the music weren’t clear enough, the family also put a giant American flag on the top of their roof.
Photo by FreedomAutosport
Watch the entire video below to see this dazzling light show that honors our veterans.
Were you impressed by this intricate light show? Please SHARE on Facebook, and let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
