Lemon:Aid - kids helping kids

Blood:Water Mission is a grassroots organization that empowers communities 

to work together against the HIV/AIDS and water crises in Africa. 

Their core purpose is to to build community through creative social action. 

One of the ways they accomplish this is through their Lemon:Aid stands. Talk about creative social action! Check out the one minute video to learn more about this campaign.

What an amazing way for kids to help kids huh?! 

My nine year old friend Maggie has been participating in the Lemon:Aid campaign this summer 

and she was kind enough to answer a few questions for me.

 

How did you learn about Blood:Water Mission?

I heard about Blood:Water Mission on the Christian radio station we listen to.

What inspired you to get involved?

I always love to have lemonade stands during the summer 

so this was a good way to do what I like while helping others.

What will the money you are raising be used for?

The money I have raised ($250 so far) will be used to dig wells in 7 different African countries.  People there don't have good clean drinking water and get very sick and sometimes die. 

We want to help them get clean water and live.

Why is it important for people in the US to be involved in caring for people in other parts of the world?

One lady asked me why I wasn't raising money for clean water in America 

and I thought that was a silly question. 

We have all the clean water we want, but many Africans don't. 

My mom says we who are blessed should want to help those who aren't. 

I have pictures of some of the kids in villages who have new wells 

because of Blood:Water Mission. 

They look so happy.

Have you been able to share with patrons of your lemon:aid stand?

We tell every person who stops why we were giving away lemonade and most of them want to help. Everyone gave a donation! 

I also made a poster that explains the mission. That was fun!

What has been your favorite part about this project?

My favorite parts of this project were working with my Dad to build the stand 

and counting the money when the day was done. 

I was very surprised to see how much money we had raised! 

I want to have one more stand and am excited to put the money in an envelope 

and send it to Blood:Water Mission.

Maggie and I at one of her Lemon:Aid stands. Notice the matching haircuts:-)

July Martini

This dude's brother came home from Ethiopia!

Family of FOUR.

While the boys were at VBS, Meadow and I had a few donut dates. Yes I said a FEW.

Fun times over iced tea.

Missing the boys.

Speaking to some teenagers about orphan care.

They packaged over 5,000 meals for orphans in Haiti!

We had one of the meals for dinner.

It is a mix of TVP, rice, dried veggies and vitamins/minerals. 

 

 

 

 

Meadow tipping back the spoon.

Moses was a little less into it but here's what it looks like when cooked.

Moses and his lizard.

Only if your Papa is a film maker...

One day this will be a reality.

Rockin the mullet.

Way too handsome to pass as a girl.

My turn.

My nephew turned two! No cuter red head around!

I decided to add a little girly-ness to the kids room...

and this is what happened while I did it.

And lots of swimming in July. These fish, I mean kids, LOVE it.

And that, my friends, was July!

weekend reading

I really like to read. I'm sort of an information junkie but as our kids get older, more mobile and take fewer naps, reading an entire book has become a bit of a challenge. Therefore, I've become a bit of a blog junkie...

I have to be careful how often I use the phrase "So I read on this blog today" when William comes home from work. If I use it to many times what he hears is "So I read on this blog today blah, blah, blah, blah. Did you know blah, blah, blah, blah? Blah! I never thought about blah."

I don't get to post here as often as I would like or in any way computable to the things that are heavy on my heart. But luckily, their are lots of other bloggers who post some great stuff.

Instead of just reading it and keeping it to myself or sharing it on my FB wall, I'm going to start a "weekend reading" series. My plan is to post these early Saturday morning. Sometimes I will, I'm sure sometimes I won't but my prayer is that you find the links encouraging for the task God has ahead of you.

Enjoy!

First, this post from the Gospel Coalition. I think the title says it all "Do I have What It Takes to Raise an African Child?". For those of us who doubt (don't we all?) it is an encouraging word.

The Christian Alliance for Orphans released a White Paper on understanding orphan statistics so that "Christian orphan advocates can both accurately understand and carefully present orphan-related statistics.  Failure to do so undermines the strength of our advocacy and can misguide the actions that organizations, churches and individuals take on behalf of orphans.   Meanwhile, an accurate grasp and communication of the true nature of the need provides a strong foundation for an effective, well-focused response." If you want to advocate for the "orphan" you need to understand what that means.

Third, this post from echos of mercy was just what I needed to hear Friday morning.

“We need to stop asking for guidance and start asking for the Guide.”

[tim keller]

And who doesn't love Kristen Howerton. Really?

DIY Louisville:For the Fatherless Spotlight

It's always fun to share our story, the plight of orphans and widows and 

talk about the amazing women who make the beads for our jewelry. 

Today For the Fatherless is spotlighted on D.I.Y. Louisville and 

we are sharing with the local Louisvillians! 

Check it out. 

Maybe you'll fall in love with some earrings...

Empowered to Connect - Nashville

I know many of you are playing the waiting game just as we are. I know the need you have to feel like you are doing something, anything to connect with your child while you wait. 

SO, I want to share an AMAZING opportunity coming in September to do something productive for your child! The Empowered to Connect (ETC) conference will be at Brentwood Baptist Church In Nashville on September 14th and 15th.


ETC is an initiative started by Dr. Karyn Purvis and Michael and Amy Monroe to provide practical tools and resources for adoptive and foster families. I've had the privilege of hearing Dr. Purvis and Amy speak and the passion they have for equipping families and the church is absolutely from the Lord and absolutely priceless.

Thanks to Focus on the Family, with the coupon code FOCUS, you'll receive 50% off the conference fee making it just $30 per couple! UPDATE: The FOCUS code is no longer valid:-( The regular price for the conference is still a GREAT deal!

Who else is going? Comment if you'll be there - we'd love to connect with you in Nashville!