There are only a few days left in October. Which means you better be getting your Halloween costume together, this ridiculously long election cycle is almost over thank heaven, and we're almost out of time in this year's DonorsChoose Blogger Challenge.

So far we've raised nearly $600 and helped more than 250 students. Nice!!! That's pretty much the entire student body of my small-town elementary school! (Seriously, if you think 250 kids aren't a lot of kids, well, you haven't hosted a birthday party for a dozen 10-year-olds lately.)

My point is: We can, and should, feel great about that. I'm incredibly proud. And grateful. And humbled.

But since there's a few days left, and I've still got MANY, MANY prizes to give away, let's have a last-minute push and see if we can get that total up. I know we can do it.

And don't forget! After you donate to a project on our Giving Page, when DonorsChoose sends you an email receipt of your donation, forward that receipt to me at susie at maclife dot com. That's how I know you donated, and when I email you back to tell you how awesome you are, that's how you'll know you're entered in the contest. I'm having the drawing this weekend, so ALL ENTRIES MUST BE RECEIVED BY SATURDAY NOVEMBER 1 AT 11:59PM PACIFIC TIME.

So far everyone who's entered is going to win a prize, and our prizes are quite excellent, thanks to the kind generosity of Microsoft, Isis Covers, Booq, Axio, Aspyr, JoeSoft, Maximo, Incipio, Targus, Speck Products, and Scosche. I'm even tossing in a $25 iTunes gift card that I'm buying with my own hard-earned cash (yes, after I've donated to the Challenge...twice!), plus Guitar Hero III for the Mac, which I also actually bought myself. It's a prize-a-palooza!

Please, please, please help the children. Schools are strapped right now, and dedicated teachers go out of their way on a daily basis to help our children learn any way that they can — but they need our support. And so I'll leave you with my heartfelt thanks and a glimpse at some of the worthy projects on our Giving Page that need funding...from you.

* Legos for a class of gifted sixth graders who want to learn about architecture by building BIG projects. (Come on, Legos! Legos rule! Who didn't wish they could play with Legos in school? With your help, these kids can!!!)

* A MacBook for Pennsylvania high-schoolers to learn about digital video. And we all know how much Macs rock for creative projects, don't we now?

* Hands-on math activities for a New Orleans school that was closed for two years after Hurricane Katrina. Make math fun for kids—the future of our economy depends on it!

* Books for a grade school in Galveston that was affected by Hurricane Ike. (Did you see what happened to Galveston? Some new books would really lift those kids' spirits, I would think.)

* An iPod for a classroom in Alaska, because the kids love learning to music, but their CDs are all scratched and unusable. (As mine would be if they were stacked up in a classroom all day. The iPod? Can be hidden in the teacher's desk drawer, of course.)

* Children's books for a classroom in Maryland that's getting kids excited about reading by having "reading races." (Ready, set, READ!!!)

And we've got more, so head over to our Giving Page right now. 

(Confused? Read more about the Blogger Challenge, peruse our Prize List, check out the FAQ, and behold the top 10 reasons to give TODAY. Thank you and good night.)