Good Deeds and Bad Deeds

I'm always on the lookout for worthy causes to support.  Especially those where I can get my children involved.  I've been meaning to participate in one of Craft Hope's projects for the longest time, but much like everything else in life, I've put it off.  I finally decided on one that I could pull off, along with the help of my kids, but sure enough they had such a huge response (probably due to the ease of the project), that we no longer were able to participate.  Bummer!  I vowed to tackle the next project, and thank goodness it was in my range of ability:  pillowcases.  Phew!  These pillowcases would be delivered to hospitals with terminally ill children via the ConKerr Cancer organization.  And because I refuse to go down by myself, I enlisted the help of my friends, playgroup (who for the record are also my friends -- I call them my "mommy friends", and they are some of the most incredible women I've ever met), and neighbors.

I became in touch with the contact person for Dell Children's Medical Center in Austin who was very excited and appreciative to accept our contributions.  Luke spent three days in this hospital with pneumonia two years ago, at which point I walked through the halls and visited the activity rooms where very sick children were playing.  It was never talked about and I never knew the severity of their illnesses, but I assure you it is one of the most heartbreaking scenes one can witness.  These are some of the testimonials written by those who have benefited from the pillowcases provided:

"I am a Pediatric Intensive Care Nurse at the Janet Weis Children's Hospital (Geisinger Medical Center) in Danville, Pa. We recently received some of your beautiful pillow cases to distribute to our sick ICU patients, and they are gorgeous. They are such a big hit and the kids love them. A very sick, 11 year old little girl who we will call "Lily" has been a patient on our unit for the past 3 months now, had such a hard time deciding on which pillow case she liked best. We have to sneak the pillow case away from her just so we can wash it!!!! The first pillow case we wore out from washing and now she has a second one. I want to thank you all for all your hard work and dedication. It may not seem like much.....making pillow cases, but this little kind gesture produces so much happiness. The smiles I see on the children's faces are priceless!"

"My 2 year old grandson has JMML leukemia He has been in Children's Hospital in New Orleans for 5 1/2 months of the last 7 months. He has received 2 pillowcases over his stay this time and I just wanted to say thank you. He loves the different colors and it brightens his days."

My first go-round was hosting a Girls' Night Out for the moms in our playgroup.  My "mommy friends" really came through and I might even attempt to sit Luke down at my machine to give sewing a try.  I really want for him to be active in donating his time and resources to worthy causes, and I plan to have him leave the house as a well-rounded kid.  Read:  this boy will know how to sew on a button, wash his own clothes (and well), cook a mean dinner, and so on.  I'm now taking applications for my future daughter-in-law.  Kidding.

The Craft Hope project is over, but this organization is ongoing, so please, please, please consider sewing, crocheting, or knitting pillowcases for these kids.  I will be hosting another night, complete with machines, materials, drinks, and desserts.  But please feel free to work on them on your own...the more the merrier!

Click here to find a ConKerr representative in your area.

Some photos from our Girls' Night Out...

Some of the completed pillowcases...

Something else we feel very strongly about over here is our love for animals. 

So when a juvenile one of these...

Screech Owl

dropped into our pool recently, we went into rescue mode.  Seriously, just ask the boys.  Steve scooped it out of the pool, and when we determined it was unable to fly we found ourselves on a mission.  (This is cracking me up.)  We called a local wildlife rescue center who asked us to bring in the owl, so I dubbed the boys Wildlife Rescue Heroes and we went to work finding an old box and towel.  Steve put on gloves and chased it around the yard (I'm still cracking up) before finagling it into the box.  We packed up the scared little guy and headed to Austin to complete our mission.  The boys were so excited and couldn't stop talking about the animals they might see at the rescue center.

Tempting...

We pulled up, filled out some paperwork, made a donation, and were sent on our way.

What?  No animals to see? 

So I asked if it was possible to see any before my children experienced major meltdowns.  We were directed towards a small crack in a fence where we took turns seeing a couple raccoons. 

Not enough. 

Then we saw a couple of turtles in a pond. 

Booooring! 

(Been there, done that.  Aunt Sus has a turtle.)

They were totally bummed so I offered to take them to Petsmart to see more creatures. 

Crisis averted.

Are you thinking, "Blah, blah, blah...Who does she think she is blabbing on about sewing for sick kids and saving screech owls?"

Well, here's something for you.  I made a last-minute decision to join some friends in Las Vegas for a weekend away from my husband and kids.  Steve had to take off work and miss a golf tournament, my Dad had to spend the night in order to wake up at the crack off dawn with my crazy kids, and I'm sure there were other people put out by my selfish request.  All so I could get an early flight to Sin City.  This behavior is so not me, but I am so glad I went.  We had a blast!  I ate too much, drank too much, gambled too much, and probably cursed too much (just because it seemed to fit).  It was so gluttonous but so. much. fun.  I'm a tad embarrassed what my in-laws will think if they read this, but in my defense (I say that a lot, don't I?) that's what everyone does there and you know what they say: 

When in Rome...

I didn't take my camera, but I stole these from my roomie's blog and from our playgroup's website...

Getting ready in our room...Lush!

A little Craps during the day.  Notice there's still a cocktail in hand.

Yep, we're dorks.

Can you say, "Tourist!"?

The flight home.

A big thanks goes to my roommate Arleen for doing my hair and makeup every day we were there.  (One of the stipulations if I agreed to go.) :)  I really enjoyed getting to know her better.  It's amazing the conversations you can have without two little ones clamoring for every bit of your attention.

Actually, I really did miss my family.

 Until a couple days after I got back, when I walked upstairs to find this in the boys bathroom...

I honestly wasn't sure whether to laugh, cry, scream, or gag. 

I think in the end I did all of the above.

Luke said Zach did it. 

Zack said Luke did it. 

They both said they "flushed the little ones". 

Great.

What did I do? 

I took a picture and said, "Just wait until your dad gets home." 

Not so much because Steve's the disciplinarian around here, but because I knew the boys could not properly clean it up themselves and there was NO WAY I was touching that stuff.  Ick.

After Steve got home and they started emptying the toilet, I was called up to take another picture...

It was jam-packed full of random toys.

Did you happen to notice Zach's toothbrush in the first one?  Double ick.

So there you have it.  We are not perfect.  We perform both good deeds and bad deeds. 

I don't think I would have it any other way. :)

xo,

Jess