This post is brought to you by Marie Callender’s. All opinions are my own.

What does “home” mean to you? For most of us, the quick answer is “home is where my family lives.” While that’s true, if you think about it, there are dozens of other things that mean “home” to us after being away. It could be your favorite pair of fuzzy slippers that you put on when you get out of bed, or the way your dog greets you when you walk in the door. Little signals that say “this is my home sweet home.” For me, this photo captures everything that is “home” to me:

When you’re living far from home in a strange place, those little things become more important than you could ever imagine. They’re like anchors. I remember when I first went to Japan. I was only going for a month to visit my then-boyfriend, so I didn’t take much. I even left behind my favorite teddy bear that I’d had since I was two! When I decided to stay and get married, my mom shipped me a huge box of stuff from my room. The first thing I grabbed was that bear. The way my son still grabs his stuffed puppy when he sleeps, it reminds me of how I felt when I opened that box and saw Mr. Bear sitting on top. I still have that bear!

Over the two years that I was in Japan, I looked forward to packages filled with comforts from home more than anything else. I couldn’t have my grandmother’s pie shipped over, or hold my cats that I had to leave behind with my mom (I didn’t want to put them through quarantine), but the packages contained other little things that, to me, meant “home.”

Share Your Comforts & Give a Little Home Sweet Home to the Troops

This fall, Marie Callendar’s is once again teaming up with the USO to help bring a little bit of home sweet home to our troops overseas through USO Operation Celebration™. The Comforts from Home Project was such a huge success last year and I’m thrilled they’re bringing it back. It’s easy to get involved. Just purchase specially-marked packages and follow the directions to enter your code. One code equals one donation.

To kick things off and really get everyone excited, Marie’s has issued a fun Facebook photo challenge: capture what home means to you and submit it on Facebook using the #Comfortsfromhome hashtag. For every photo submitted, Scripps Network will donate $1 to the USO (up to $10K). PLUS (and this is a big plus), your photo may be featured on one of these shows:

• Kitchen Crashers on DIYNetwork & HGTV – Airing 11/9 and 11/14
• American Heroes on Travel Channel – Airing 11/9
• Guy’s Grocery Games on Food Network & Cooking Channel — Airing 12/15  at 9PM EST

Marie Callendar’s makes it easy and delicious to give back to all the men and women who give up so much to keep us safe. Visit ComfortsFromHome to see which of their many products are participating. I particularly love the Chicken Pot Pies. The crust is so flaky and delicious! Plus, Marie’s has just the right ratio of chicken, veggies and gravy. As a picky eater, I cannot tell you how important this is to me! All of Marie’s dinners taste like someone really put special care into the recipes. They taste like home.

Remember, submit your photo that shows your own comforts from home to help support our troops! It really is such an easy way to say “thank you” for all that they do.

What reminds you of home sweet home when you’re traveling? What little comforts would you miss most if you were away for a while? 

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Marie Callender’s. The opinions and text are all mine.