I knew the Leukemia 5K walk for their cousin, Brayden, would be far more memorable and meaningful to the kids if they figured out how to raise their $20 entrance fee/donation on their own.  After much brainstorming (and a little steering from mom), they settled on selling cupcakes (made from cake mix and frosting Princess got for Christmas in her “cake pop” kit) , fresh squeezed orange juice (using oranges from our tree), and lemons (picked from our lemon bush).

I was in charge of getting the word out about the sale (via text & facebook) and the kids were in charge of everything else.

Thanks to the generosity of friends, neighbors and strangers, their little cupcake/fresh squeezed OJ/lemon stand raised $95.21. When Pumpkin saw how close they were to $100, she exclaimed “Mom! I have $5! Can I donate it?”  Not to be outdone, Princess donated $8 she had been saving too, taking their grand total to $108.21.  By the time we go to the race, a few more friends and family had donated to the cause (even though the cupcakes sold out) and they were able to register with a ziploc bag full of dollars and change that added up to $148.21 (the event director took their word for it).

It’s been 13 days, since the 5K Leukemia Walk for Brayden but you can still make a donation! Visit www.RenownedEvents.com/payments. Simply enter Brayden in the comment section where it says Event Title. A portion of the donation also goes to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. To read more of Brayden’s Story, visit www.RenownedCares.org.

Back in 2009, my little nephew Brayden was diagnosed with Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia.  In the last two years, Brayden has been hospitalized 25 times outside of his regular chemo treatments. He has been pricked and prodded as he’s raged his battle against this terrible disease and he’s faced it all with the courage of a lion.  The kids and I were thrilled to deck ourselves out in orange and attend a 5k walk hosted by Renowned Events Care Foundation to help raise money for Brayden, his family and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society.

We were even more thrilled to see Brayden at the event feeling healthy enough to run around the track a few times with us too.  Since he doesn’t get out very much, it was like Big Brother was meeting an awesome new cousin for the very first time.  And you can’t talk about facing a terribly hard situation with courage without talking about Brayden’s totally awesome (and single) mom, Chantel.  She’s a total rockstar.

Pumpkin and her cousin might have been some of the last people on the track, but they were determined to finish their 5K walk(and run) for Brayden.

(my family is awesome)

It’s been 12 days, since the 5K Leukemia Walk for Brayden but you can still make a donation! Visit www.RenownedEvents.com/payments. Simply enter Brayden in the comment section where it says Event Title. A portion of the donation also goes to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society. To read more of Brayden’s Story, visit www.RenownedCares.org.

On the long drive from California to Utah, I finished one scarf for The Love Scarf Project and started another.

Pattern: Ruffle Scarf by Caron

Yarn: from my stash, missing label.

If you would like to crochet/knit a scarf or cap for The Love Scarf Project, you can find the details here.  The delivery to City of Hope (here in California) will take place on February 14th.  After getting the chance to help with last year’s delivery of scarves and caps, I can’t put into words how much they mean to the patients in the bone marrow transplant ward, especially on Valentines Day.  If you have the time and resources to make one beautiful scarf out of some beautiful yarn (something you would love to wear yourself) that is what really makes the patients tear up from an overwhelming sense of love and caring.  From my experience with the patients, it is truly the quality (not the quantity) that makes the difference in this project.

I’ve always wondered what to do with my running medals. After reading about Medals of Courage, my Disneyland Half Marathon medal is on it’s way to Loma Linda Children’s Hospital.  It’s such an easy thing that could mean a lot to a little one battling cancer.  I ran faster in that half marathon than I ever thought I could so I hope the medal can remind a sick child that “anything is possible” at the time they need it most.  Find out more about Medals of Courage started by Candace Ransom, HERE. Donations are being accepted until November 20th.

I am often overwhelmed by the amount of good people are doing in this world. Just the other night, I met a group of dedicated volunteers from The Joyful Foundation located here in Orange Country.  The Joyful Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that provides quality, hand-made blankets to individuals in their time of illness or hardship.  Together, with a few more women gathered from my church, we learned about the organization that has donated 40,000 blankets since 2005, then worked at our sewing machines to make 14 more blankets.  It’s hard not to look at our efforts as just a tiny drop in a huge bucket of need and hardship, but if you believe in their mission statement, “a life can be changed one small act of kindness at a time”, just one blanket makes all the difference to the person that receives it.

The Joyful Foundation is a 100% volunteer organization with 100% of donations going straight to making blankets for those in need.

Donate HERE.

If you are in the Orange County area, here’s how you can get involved from home, at their facility or with a group.  Even kids ages 8+ can help by making dog toys from fleece scraps.

As has become the tradition in our family, guests were asked to bring donations in lieu of traditional party gifts.  When Pumpkin found a flyer for Operation Blankets of Love on our doorstep a few weeks before the party, we knew it was the perfect charity work with for her Dog & Cat party.  Operation Blankets of Love provides comfort to homeless animals in shelters, rescue groups, foster homes & sanctuaries, making them more adoptable. Along with our party evite, we included a link to this video from the organization so the kids could see how important their donations would be.  We were overwhelmed by the generosity of our party guests (the representative from Operation Blankets of Love was too).  If you live in So Cal and have old blankets & towels, this organization can put them to great use.  They also accept other new & gently used pet items.  Find more information HERE.

Find more Gingham Dog & Calico Cat Birthday Party posts HERE.

Today I gathered together some thrifted fancy dresses and some fancy fabrics that have been sitting in my stash for years & shipped them off to Jane, an amazing Kenyan woman who has literally sewn her way out of poverty.  Not only is she a sister sewist, she is a refashioner! She struggles though, to find the raw materials (old wedding and bridesmaid dresses) to keep her sewing business thriving.  You can read more about Jane HERE. If you want to help Jane by sending old bridesmaid dresses, click HERE.

Armed with a few fabric markers, the girls had a great time making turning their plain black TOMS shoes into one-of-kind wearable art.

As letter-obsessed kindergartener, Pumpkin loved the idea of having the entire alphabet on each shoe.  And Princess, my “peace and love” girl, knew exactly how to make her shoes her own.

If you haven’t checked out the new & improved Tiny Toms shoes, be prepared to fall in love. The only thing that makes me feel a little better about buying a pair of $30 kids shoes is knowing that for every pair purchased (adult or kids), TOMS gives a new pair of shoes to a child in need.

**Disclaimer: These two pairs of TOMS shoes were provided free of charge to my girls after attending a TOMS shoes media event but This Mama has always loved TOMS and their efforts as a company to make the world a better place.  To date, they have given away over one million shoes to kids in need and has inspired countless other companies to find ways to incorporate giving into what they do.

While some people want to shield their children from the tragedies of the world, I feel it is so important to let them know what is happening (in an age appropriate way), teach compassion, then empower them to make difference.

When we heard the heartbreaking news of the destruction in Japan, the girls immediately remembered the Hot Chocolate for Haiti stand & started wracking their brains for something they could sell that started with the letter “J”.  Jelly, Jell-o, Juice! Juice!  Princess decided she wanted to call it “Hope Juice”.  In just two hours, with the generous support of friends, neighbors and strangers driving, biking and walking down the street, we made $102.15 to donate to the American Red Cross.

To find charities providing relief in Japan click HERE