Sunday, November 30, 2008

today...

first "real" snow.
only around an inch... but enough to play in for a bit.
 

 

just before church this morning...
 
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Water for Christmas Fundraiser

What: Water for Christmas fundraiser
When: December 14, 2008 from 4:00-7:00 pm
Where: Geneva Country Club
3100 Bidwell Rd
Muscatine, Iowa 52761
Why: Read the following and you’ll understand why…

“The lack of clean water is the leading cause of death in underdeveloped countries...killing more people than even war and violence.
4500 children die every day from water related illnesses.
And almost within the reach of these children, just below the surface, is the solution—fresh water waiting to be tapped into by the relatively inexpensive and permanent solution of a well.
A well costs just $5000 and will provide clean water to a whole village.
Americans spend 450 billion dollars each year at Christmas. At the same time, experts believe it would cost one third of that to drill enough wells to give the whole world almost immediate access to clean water.”

So join us for appetizers, warm drinks and great music provided by Andrew Landers Project as we band together to make a difference in the lives of those less fortunate.

There will be a silent auction and other opportunities to donate to this amazing cause.
100% of all donations go directly to drilling fresh water wells in Africa…yes 100%!
Check out http://www.water4christmas.com/ for more information.
RSVP to Cassie Burback at burback@machlink.com or leave me a comment here! (we want to make sure there is enough food to go around!)

Saturday, November 29, 2008

Friday, November 28, 2008

last ones.

my favorite shot of brody in a long time.
 

proof that emily and jody were there... they seem to avoid the camera when i get it out.
 
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a couple more...

i didn't really have any time to take any good photos...
oh well.
 

 

 

 
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hotel photos...

 

 

 

 
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Thursday, November 27, 2008

on being thankful

as i sit alone in a hotel room,
that minutes ago was full of 11 kids and 6 adults,
my heart swells.
i could not imagine
my life being any different,
my friends any more spectacular,
my family any more wonderful.
thankful does not begin
to describe
the love i have for these people,
for where i am,
for where i've been,
and for where i'm going.
i am honored to share my life
with these.
i am humbled to call them my own.
i am thankful.
yes.
i am thankful.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

so. cool.

These adorable coasters were made by Tara Bitterman of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is a stay at home Mom to two young girls... and she had caught the water bug.
She designed these for Water for Christmas.
 

Just like the bracelets, ornaments, and necklaces, you can order them over on Etsy (in the side bar), and just like everything else, all the money goes back to water4christmas.
 

ordinary people,
acting.
it's incredible.
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10,000

As of this afternoon,
we, collectively, have raised
$10,000.
That funds two wells.
It looks like last $10 friday
brought in around $2,000.
I say,
because this friday is black friday,
that we should double it.
No more playing around.
Fight consumerism with compassion.
Give.
Donate.
Save a life.
Water for Christmas.

Happy Thanksgiving!

 
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Water for Christmas *NEW* Limited Edition Necklace

Give thanks.
In honor of the holiday, we are listing 12 limited edition Water for Christmas necklaces.
 

They feature a stained glass water drop, on a silver plated (not nickel) 24 inch chain.
Stunning.
You can find them on Etsy in the sidebar for $35.
Once they're gone, they're gone.
 
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Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Serious cuteness

 

Water for Christmas t-shirts! Seriously.
Go, buy one, or three.
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Monday, November 24, 2008

Well.

As in, water hit.
Last Tuesday, we had raised enough money for one well.
That is a village.
Families.
Generations, who will have life.
Water is life.

And now we need to keep drilling.
Keep donating.
Continue to give life.
Water for Christmas.
It's so simple.

Sunday, November 23, 2008

feelings...

i'm feeling blessed by my burdens
and burdened by my blessings
complicated and confused,
twisted and undone
i'm feeling rejected and adored
in love and ignored,
whole and broken,
all at the same time.

Thursday, November 20, 2008

Because it's $10 Friday...

Isaiah came upstairs tonight, at 10pm. He said he had finished his poem, that wasn't really a poem, about a place.
He was supposed to draw a picture, and then talk about the place, or thing, or whatever, so people would know what or where or who it was.
Below is the picture...
 

And this is what it says, again, completely unedited, just the straight talk of a ten year old boy...

I am a continent.
People give to people who live here.
You can too.
You can make a difference, because distance does not decide who's your brother and who is not.
You can give five dollars and that would be enough to give one person fresh water for five years.
So can't you see?
You can make a difference!
Every 90 seconds someone dies of something dumb like not having enough food or water.
So, if you give, you can save millions of lives.
I want you to think about how many seconds are in a day, and just see how many people die in ME every day.
Isn't that a lot?
And think of an average kid in ME, what they eat and drink in a day, and how much you eat and drink, can you see the difference?
I am not asking you to give one hundred dollars in a donation.
I'm asking if you could give just one dollar for a donation, because one dollar is enough fresh water for one person in ME, for one year.
So once again, you can make a difference.
So, give, give, give to ME....
AFRICA.
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Tonight...

When I got home from picking Isaiah up from basketball practice, this is what I found.
 

 
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Crazy hair day

Not really much to say about crazy hair day...
 

Except maybe that Hannah looks like a Who from Who-ville.
 

Or that Isaiah's face looks crazy long when he doesn't have hair.
 

Or that Micah's eyes look good no matter what his hair looks like.
 
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Auction!

This beautiful painting was created by local art teacher, while she was dancing for water, over on the dancing blog!
I love how these two art forms are coming together.
You can go bid on the painting, it will be open for bids until Friday evening.
Find it here.
 

AND, if you want to watch how the painting was created, make sure you go to the WFC site, and donate first!
Bidding starts at $50.
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Tuesday, November 18, 2008

SOLD OUT!

Well, the ornaments have been a huge hit! We sold out completely, and are currently out of glass! My Mom has to order more glass, from out of state, and it won't be here until after Thanksgiving! However, we will have more then. Please keep checking back!

Ornament PreOrder on Etsy

Because you guys are so awesome, we are taking a preorder for 80 more ornaments!
You can purchase them on etsy, and we will ship them out when they are complete... it may be after Thanksgiving. :)

Monday, November 17, 2008

New WFC Ornaments!

**The first round of 40 ornaments is completely SOLD OUT! Keep checking back, we will have more up as they are made! Good job people!**

My Mom has been working hard!
She designed these beautiful stained glass Christmas ornaments for Water for Christmas!
 

Just like the bracelets, and special edition pieces, 100% of the proceeds goes directly into Water For Christmas.
 

They are available over on the ETSY site, you can get there from the sidebar. :)
Happy shopping.
 
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