Give Thanks and Give Back

This week, most of us will be meeting with family and/or friends to...

                                                                                                      gather
                                                            fellowship
                                                                                              prepare

        give thanks
                                                                     play 
                          talk
                                            worship
                                             pray
                                                         shop
                                                                     celebrate
               cook
                   decorate
                               eat
                                                                           enjoy
                             be together...


and often, a little squabbling and nitpicking will take place too, as tends to happen whenever large family gatherings take place.  And perhaps, if you are lucky, you will get to spend some time in your creative space - be it your fully stocked art studio, or your spare bedroom-turned craft room, or your corner of the kitchen with a craft closet - and be able to do what your heart loves to do...MAKE.

Where-ever you will be, and with whomever you will be, I want to remind all of us to take the time to remember just how much we have to be thankful for.  As I tackled the project of cleaning and re-organizing (for what seems like the 100th time) my craft room this week, I was overwhelmed with thoughts about how MUCH STUFF I have, particularly because of a couple of other projects I had running through my mind.  I wanted to share them with you, because I think that during this time when we "Give Thanks," and before we all run out and buy a bunch of stuff for all the people on our Christmas lists, maybe we can "Give Back" a little too.  So...with that said, here are a couple ways we can use our crafts - or our craft rooms! - to "Give Back" this season!

Handmade Book, image from Melody Nunez; www.melodynunez.com

Melody's Art Journaling Program

I "met" Melody online just a couple weeks ago, when I actually won a handmade journal she was offering as a giveaway on her blog.  It was while perusing her lovely blog that I found out about her awesome art journaling program that she does.  Every year, she collects art supplies and/or financial donations/gift cards so that she can get enough supplies to go into her aunt's classroom and teach art journaling to about 40 underprivileged public school children.  These children face a lot of challenges in their lives, and art journaling  is an incredible gift that she is providing them - an outlet, a way of expressing themselves, an awesome boost to their self-esteem.  While the "official" deadline has already passed, she has assured me that she is always in need of supplies, and the children are SO appreciative of the supplies!  Click on the link above to go to her site, where you can find out more about the program, watch a short video - where you will see some of the kids' artwork and how proud they are to show it off - and find out how to send donated materials.


St. Mary's Elementary - Joplin, Missouri

(Taken from Simply Handmade - Holidays, 2011)
"On May 22, 2011, a tornado swept across Joplin, Missouri, leaving a catastrophic wake of destruction.  Schools, businesses, and homes were destroyed and many were killed.  St. Mary's Elementary School, which housed pre-school through 5th grade, was demolished and is in desperate need of supplies and cash donations.  Several CHA members, including Niki Sivils and Kristi Parker Van Doren, have been coordinating craft supply drives.  Any monetary or product donation would be greatly appreciated.  The school has a wish list of products including school supplies, adhesives, plastic bags, pom-poms, yarn, crayons, markers, paint, paper and more."  Click on the link above to see the list and the address to which donations can be sent.

I know that as I'm cleaning and re-organizing - I'll also be DE-STASHING - (because, really?  Why do I need 12 pairs of scissors and 30 glue sticks?) ...and making piles of supplies to send off to some kiddos who will certainly appreciate them more than my dusty shelves and I do!  Won't you join me?

Quality children's toys and clothing in danger!!

Last year, we all read the news stories in horror as week after week, new children's toys were discovered to have dangerous levels of lead in them. As a parent of 3 young children, I was appropriately concerned, and I have started looking more closely at labels when I purchase toys - those made in China are low on my wish list! In response to the outrage, our Congress took action - too much action! In August, they passed the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act, which is set to go into effect on February 10, 2009.

In essence, this law will mandate lead and phthalate testing of all products sold in the U.S. for children under the age of 12 - clothing, toys, etc. Both manufacturers and retailers will be held responsible for ensuring this is done. For the large manufacturers and retailers, this won't be a big problem.

But imagine the stay at home mom who makes unique baby gifts and sells them on etsy.com to help support her family. Or the small family-owned business who specializes in handmade, wooden toys. Or the three moms who went into business together making a unique line of boutique-style children's clothing. Can they afford the $4000 testing per item to comply with this new law? Were any of these businesses the ones who violated the public's trust in the first place? Has there ever been a problem with lead or other safety issues with any of these types of businesses? No!

And yet, these will be the very businesses who are put OUT of business by this new law.

Additionally - think about the thrift stores who sell children's clothing, furniture, and toys. They will be required to prove the products have been tested or forced to turn the donations away - can you imagine the HUGE increase in valuable products being sent to our landfills? And what about the already struggling families who rely on these thrift stores to be able to purchase low-cost clothing for their children?

Clearly our legislators did not take any of this into account when they enacted this law. Clearly they need to hear from US about how this is going to affect all of us.

Go here to find out who YOUR legislators are and contact them IMMEDIATELY to let them know that you want this law amended before it takes effect!!!

Here is another post on the issue.

Bloggers unite for an incredible cause!!

I am so overwhelmed this morning, reading blog after blog of incredible women who have come together today in the great "blog-0-sphere" to help another blogging mom. Stephanie, aka "Nie," and her husband Christian, were in a horrible small airplane crash a couple weeks ago, and are both in serious condition in the hospital. Their family has rallied around them to care for their children, and you can find updates on her sister Jane's blog, C Jane Run. I've only been reading Nie Nie's blog for a short time, but here's an example of what I love about her - The bell is ringing...again. What a completely awesome way to celebrate the beginning of the school year!

But today, something really incredible is happening. It started small, but it has mushroomed into something HUGE. There is an online, silent auction taking place. On many blogs. With incredible products. And all of the proceeds are going to a fund set up to help pay medical bills and household expenses for Stephanie and Christian during what the doctors say will be many months of recovery.

If you would like to take part, or just get a glimpse into what's going on, here are some of the participating blogs:

Design Mom - she's the one coordinating the overall effort
Oh Judy
Tangled and True
A Room Somewhere
Vermillion Rules - this one's very cool - she'll make a quilt out of your baby's outgrown clothes!!

Those are just a few - there are literally probably a 100 different sites, if not more, holding auctions in honor of Nie Nie and her husband, in addition to many online stores offering to donate proceeds to the fund. Go to Design Mom for the complete list.