There comes a time in each of our lives where we have to reach out to others. For some, those times may be fleeting. For others, those times may be long and much more difficult. I was reminded recently by an acquaintance who had reached out to us that he, too, not long ago had been in a place where he had a dream and people reached out to help him fulfill it. The people who helped him had nothing to gain by doing so. What they saw was simply a human being who had a desire to do something good; a human being who had a passion and needed help. They were compelled to provide support. He succeeded, by the way. In a world where people have become so private, so hell-bent on doing everything themselves and not accepting help from anyone else, it becomes much more difficult to ask and accept it when it's needed and/or offered. Still, when a person has a dream, a passion, a desire so deep that they cannot let anything stand in their way, pride must be set aside.
I got gas today, paid, filled up a giant fountain Diet Coke and wandered back out to my air conditioned van. Suddenly, it struck me like a ton of bricks. Every single day I live in absolute luxury. Driving a car, period, much less one with AC, picking up an ice cold Diet Coke whenever my heart desires, running through the drive-through when the day has gotten too busy and the kids are hungry, calling up the doctor on Sunday morning and getting Marissa seen and treated within hours, coming home to my air conditioned home, sleeping on a bed, with clean sheets, taking a shower in the morning, putting on clean clothes, I could go on for days..........My kids, my sweet, lonely kids, know nothing of luxury. They know nothing of comfort or air conditioning, of having their own toys or clothes, of having food whenever they want it.
We are at a critical point in our adoption process and I've been trying to come up with novel fundraising ideas. I've been wishing that I had fabulous things to give away or sell or heck, if I could just win the lottery (of course I would have to actually buy a ticket). Then, I thought, how about a challenge instead. Why does everyone have to GET something to GIVE something? Why do we not just do nice things anymore because it's the right thing to do? Call it a Random Act of Kindness, Paying it Forward, Philanthropy, Goodwill, Karma, Mitzvah, whatever you wish; I want to know if people are willing to do it.
So, here it is:
1. Pick a luxury that you can give up for 1 day - that's it - 1 day. Do you stop at Starbucks, indulge in a nice glass of wine after work, stop at the bakery for a favorite pastry? Can you give it up for 1 day?
2. Ask some friends, coworkers, your hairstylist, butcher, postman, and anyone else who'll listen to do the same.
3. Collect the funds from the 1-day "loss of luxury" for yourself and your "team."
4. Donate it!! You can donate to our kids - that's my preference, of course! ;) We have several means of doing so, even a tax-deductible means that is managed by a non-profit 3rd party. If you don't want to donate to our kids, that's okay; you can pick an organization that means a lot to you and donate to that as well.
5. Leave me a comment here or on Facebook and let me know how many people (including yourself) you convinced to do it.
There is no catch, there are no hidden rules. Any amount counts - if you're addicted to Burger King's 49 cent ice cream cones, then 49 cents it is. What I really want to know is if there are still good, unselfish people out there who, when presented with the opportunity, want to help total strangers just because it's the right thing to do.
Today was one of those perfect summer days! Hot, but not unbearable; sunny, breezy. We ran some errands this morning and then had a picnic lunch in the back yard. Daddy came home from work this afternoon and we played outside in the water. Esen had a blast on his slip 'n slide and his 
I LOVE this belly - scars and all! We haven't seen this naked belly in 18 long months. We are so grateful that last Friday's surgery was successful and the new port was placed. Theoretically, it should last a few years! You can see it bulging a little off on her left side at the lower part of her rib cage. It's a non-traditional spot, but because of the placement of her shunt tubing which runs behind her left ear, across her chest and down her right side to her second distal shunt valve (the bulge under the scar on her right side), it was pretty much the best spot. We're hoping the giant white square starts to repigment now that there's not a dressing on it 24/7. Oddly enough, there's hair growing around her old Hickman entrance site, poor girl. There's just one steri-strip left to fall off up at the tunnel site and then she'll be completely bandage and suture free! She "helped" the steri-strips off the port entrance site yesterday - naughty girl. 
Happy Birthday to my amazing, strong, resilient, brave, spunky, beautiful daughter who has taught me more than anyone else in my life ever could!! Unfortunately today began with a trip to the hospital to come up with a plan for her perforated Hickman. This line has been causing us grief for months now and it finally gave up yesterday. They are going to 'attempt' to replace it (and I'm pushing for a port) on Friday. Usually, they would just pull it and put a new line in a new vein, but frankly, she doesn't have any left, so they're going to do their best to "save" this vein. Fingers crossed that it works! She is just finishing her antibiotics from her latest bout of pneumonia so again it is a less than ideal time for undergo anesthesia, but we don't have much of a choice. Surgery number 32...here we come!
