Dolly Parton Imagination Library

Elise loves books and we are so glad since we believe an early love of reading is essential to success later on. We were excited when Elise brought home an application for the Dolly Parton Imagination Library from preschool not too long ago. From their website: "The Dolly Parton Imagination Library is a unique early years book gifting programme that mails a brand new, age-appropriate book to enrolled children every month from birth until five years of age, creating a home library of up to 60 books and instilling a love of books and reading from an early age. Any community in the USA, Canada or UK may replicate the Imagination Library and sponsor the regular gifting of books to every child under five in their community. At present, over 1300 communities sponsor Dolly’s Imagination Library for over 650,000 children."

Our community just started a program and invited participants to join. Elise will receive a free book in the mail monthly until she turns 5. Right now she enjoys the books, but if she is anything like her Mom, I know that she will really enjoy opening the mailbox to special mail just for her as she gets older. A kickoff was held this weekend, complete with crafts, cupcakes, and choo-choos, she had a ball!

You can see if your area participates here and enroll your child here.

Cookies for a Cause

I am not normally a cookie baker. I usually only bake decorated cookies at Christmas. Until now...

About a month ago, Amanda at i am baker, was going to give away 2 dozen cookies each to 5 deserving families or individuals--maybe someone going through a tough time, or someone who was far from home, or who just needed a pick me up. She opened up the giveaway and was shocked when she received over 150 nominations for folks who could benefit from a little cookie love. She read through all of the nominations and realized that picking 5 was just not going to be an option. She turned to her blog followers and asked us to help. She matched us up with a nominee and we all baked cookies and shipped them out at the first of this month. Everybody who was nominated received cookies. That kind of pitching in to help people you will probably never meet is just a small part of what I love about my fellow bloggers.

My nominee is Nathan, a young boy in TN who is battling leukemia and has just had his 3rd bone marrow transplant. His options are running out. I cannot even begin to imagine what that family has been through and what they continue to go through. And I don't for even one second think that cookies can fix it, but if a box of cookies, made with love, can bring a smile to someone's face and for just a brief moment provide an escape from the real world, then I am happy to help.

The person who nominated Nathan mentioned that he loved Hot Wheels, so I came up with a dozen iced race car cookies, a dozen M&M cookies (because what child doesn't love M&M's!) and some marshmallow pops. I also tucked a few Hot Wheels in there to help him pass the time while he is hospitalized.

Today is International Pay It Forward Day. Go do something nice for someone you don't know! And if you are a praying person, please lift little Nathan and his family up when you pray.

Invest in Kindness

Some six months ago, I told you in this post about Reed Sandridge and his yearlong experiment to give $10 a day to a complete stranger, all while unemployed. His blog, "Year of Giving," chronicles the challenge that he set forth for himself, in honor of his mother. Reed's experiment concluded in mid-December with a celebration that included as many of his recipients as he could round up.

I can remember being so happy for Reed when he shared in late summer that he had landed a job, just shortly before I landed a job of my own. So, I guess that's it, right? With employment secured, there is no need to practice this act of selfless giving any longer--mission accomplished.

Read on at Everyday Christian.

Worth Repeating...

October is Ministry Appreciation Month and as a pastor's wife, I would be extremely remiss if I didn't let you in on life on the other side and the myriad of reasons you should show your pastor, his family (and any other ministry staff in your church) some love.

I want to preface all of this by saying that I have been on the other side of the pulpit, so to speak, sitting in the same pews that you occupy, totally oblivious as to what my pastor REALLY did for the kingdom and his congregation....so, this is all said in love....let's put on our steel toed boots and get through it together...

Join me at Everyday Christian to find out 5 Things Your Pastor Wishes You Knew.

(Originally posted on October 15, 2009)

Elephant Ears & Cream Horns

Today...I had to get up way too early for a Saturday AM (6:00!), I walked way too much, I froze for the majority of all of the walking around and I ate way too much yummy food. But, the Apple Festival only comes once a year and it isn't everyday that you get to buy something this impressive for dessert. So, today was a good day!

Would You Be Mine? Could You Be Mine?

Last winter saw a decent amount of snow here in the foothills of NC. We had bread. We had milk. What we did not have was a snow shovel or a plow. But our neighbor, Sam, did.

Click here to read more.

Teachers Need School Supplies, Too!

It seems like we were just heralding the arrival of summer and suddenly its time for back-to-school shopping, with some areas of the country already in session. As you pick out backpacks, pencils, and cool binders with bells and whistles (anybody remember the Trapper Keeper--the must have binder of the early 80's?), don't forget to pick up a few extra supplies for your child's teacher.

Supplies for the teacher, you ask? Isn't that what my tax dollars cover?

Click here to find out more...

Are Your Kids Bored Yet?

The refrigerator opening and closing repeatedly, the constant hum of the air conditioner, arguments over whose scoop of ice cream is bigger, the banging of the screen door for the millionth time, countless neighborhood children running through the house, chants of "I'm bored!"...Ahhhh, the sounds of summer. I can't do anything about the majority of those issues, but we can work to cure the boredom, and if you are willing to be creative and think outside of the box, we can do it for little to no cost!

Click here to find out how!

Have a Frosty for a Good Cause!

We have made many a late night run to Wendy's for a sweet treat--the Rev likes a Cookie Dough Twisted Frosty, while I prefer the Oreo Twisted Frosty--and when you live in a town that pretty much closes up shop at 10pm, Wendy's is about your only option to satisfy a midnight sweet tooth! This weekend we can enjoy a sweet treat and help some pretty great kids out at the same time!

Wendy's will host its 4th Annual Father's Day Frosty Weekend this week. For every frosty sold on Saturday, June 19th and Sunday, June 20th participating Wendy's restaurants around the country will donate 50 cents to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption. The foundation works on behalf of the over 123,000 children in the U.S. foster care system who are awaiting adoption. For more information about all of the programs funded by the foundation, click here.

I'll be taking the Rev out and treating him to a frosty--and giving thanks for him, for the mother who birthed him but could not raise him, and for the parents who made him into the man he is today (even if he does leave all of his stuff laying around!).

Giving When It Seems Impossible

I have been unemployed since last August and I have to admit that my first thought upon learning of the elimination of my job was not how could I give more to others. How we were going to survive, how long unemployment benefits might last, whether we would have to go on a beanie weenie and Ramen noodle diet, maybe--giving MORE? I am ashamed to say that thought never crossed my mind.

Not so with Reed Sandridge, author of "Year of Giving", a blog that is chronicling his yearlong experiment in giving to others, expecting nothing in return. Click here to read more.

Very Big Shake? I Wish!

Yep, its that time of year. Its Vacation Bible School week, which is totally exhausting--but we are almost halfway done! I'll be MIA until the end of the week and then I'll be back to a normal blogging schedule AND I'll have an announcement about my first GIVEAWAY ever! Stay tuned!

P.S. If you are exhausted from your own VBS experience this week, are dreading your turn, or aren't sure if VBS is for you, I've got a great reminder about how important VBS is over at Everyday Christian.

Stamp Out Hunger

Visit me at Everyday Christian to find out how you can Stamp Out Hunger this Saturday, May 8, 2010!

April Food Day 2010

Today is April Fool's Day, so be careful, you might get pranked! But more importantly, it is April Food Day, a day set aside by bloggers all over to fight hunger.

While we are down to one income around here and have been for a while now, we are fortunate enough to have food on our table each day and we never go to bed with hunger pangs. Sadly, this is not the case for many, and not just many in foreign countries, but for many of our own American neighbors, family, and friends. The economy, loss of jobs, and lack of benefits leave many of our local food banks depleted. Summer will be here before you know it and many students who are able to eat breakfast and lunch at school, will be left to fend for themselves. In our area, food backpacks that are sent home with children over the weekend and are meant to feed that child, often end up feeding the entire family. Since 2006, there has been a 46% increase in the number of families in need of assistance for their basic food needs. An astonishing 1 in 8 Americans rely on a food bank for their groceries.

Please make a donation to Feeding America, or your local food bank, and count yourself as one of the lucky ones if you’re not going to bed hungry every night. Every dollar you donate to Feeding America helps provide 9 pounds of food and grocery products to men, women, and children facing hunger in our country. Feeding America has set up a special URL for April Food Day so they can see how much we’ve donated. If you choose to donate online, you can do so here.

Outback Steakhouse & Operation Homefront

If you love a good steak and you love your country, be sure to make it to Outback Steakhouse for dinner this month. A portion of proceeds from all meals ordered from their Red, White and Bloomin' Menu will go to Operation Homefront, which provides assistance to troops, their families, and wounded warriors when they return home. This year's goal is 1 million dollars.

Red, White & Bloomin' Menu

Don't miss out on this opportunity to give back to those who give so much to us!

Edited to add: All active and veteran military will receive a FREE Bloomin' Onion during the month of March, as well.

Pretty Is as Pretty Does

That title is one of my favorite MeeMawisms. and truer words were never spoken--we can't all be supermodels or handsome athletes, but we can all do things that will make us beautiful in someone else's eyes.

This week you get your shot. Random Acts of Kindness week begins today and I am challenging you each to do at least one nice something for someone, for no real reason at all, just because. Pick up the tab for the car behind you in the drive thru or for the person behind you at Starbucks. Offer to babysit for new parents, shovel snow for an elderly neighbor, or set a goal to smile at every person you encounter for an entire day.

No one wants your cold or flu, but kindness is contagious and most people don't mind catching it at all!

Relay for Life

Yesterday was Relay for Life in our county and this was my second year helping out. This was also our third scheduled date for Relay this year. The first two dates were flooded out, but yesterday was bright and clear.

If you are not familiar with Relay for Life, it is an event held in each county to raise funds for cancer research. Our county has several teams who hold their own fundraisers and a luminary sale to raise funds as well. This year we sold almost 6,000 luminaries--up from 5,400 last year--raising almost $60,000 towards research.

Our job yesterday was to place sand and candles in each luminary, and arrange them in alphabetical order on a path. One side of the path is for honor luminaries, the other for memorial luminaries. It is back breaking, labor intensive work and you have never stooped, bent over and squatted so much. It took about 6 hours to complete that process and another hour to light all of the luminaries at dark.

During the day, you are so focused on the task at hand that you don't really think about each individual that a luminary represents. But as you travel the path lighting candles, often stopping to let a family light the candles of their loved ones, you can't help but be aware that each bag represents a battle--some won, some lost, some still being fought. It is truly touching and I would encourage anyone to find a way to get involved in your area.

In a mini-rant and as a side note--to the lady strolling through the college campus who stopped me from lighting luminaries to ask if I could light her cigarette--you are so NOT cool!

Well, We're Movin' On Up...

Somewhere old George Jefferson is doing a jig for us here in the small town. About a month ago, a Biscuitville opened here. This week, our WalMart Super Center opened (we previously just had a plain old WalMart), complete with a Dunkin Donuts inside! In the near future, we are getting a Dollar Tree. That's right, we are taking it from the outhouse to the penthouse!! Photos of the big event 'cause I know you are just dying to see them...

(Photo: Lil' Miss Wilkes and Marathon Mama in the Old WalMart counting down the days)

(Photo: L to R - The new sign, JC Penney taking advantage of opening day traffic, packed parking lot at 8am!)

( Photo: Old WalMart - R.I.P.)

(Photo: Breakfast of Champions, purchased at the new Dunkin' Donuts!)

( Photo: Marathon Mama and I scored free bread on the way out!)

Aaaahhh, the excitement of a small town! LOL! Have a great day!