Jogging for Jonah - we need your help!

Hi Friends. Jogging for Jonah is quickly approaching, so I just wanted to make sure those of you who aren't on Facebook know about it. It will be May 4th at Tanglewood in Clemmons. There will be a 5K and a 1 Mile Fun Run. Walkers are welcome at both, but we ask if you are walking and pushing a stroller in the 5K, you try to stay to the right so runners can pass. 

We are desperately needing business sponsors, volunteers, and donations for our raffle and race prizes. You can also just make a straight up donation if you're not local but would like to help. All proceeds go to DebRA.

Even more than the money, I just want us to get the word out about EB and have tons of people come out and have a great time, celebrating God's goodness in Jonah's life and fighting for a cure. If we all do a little, we can make a huge impact.

I don't think I've shared this here on the blog, but this conversation happened a few weeks ago.

Me: Jonah, you think you might get married someday?

Jonah: BUT I can't get married with bandages on.

Me: Why not, Buddy?

Jonah: But I don't want to have bandages when I'm a grown up.

Me: Well, baby, you might always have to wear bandages.

Jonah: (tearing up) But I don't want to have bandages anymore.

Me: Well, I don't know Buddy. But let's just start praying now that you won't have to have them when you're older. Maybe God will heal you.

Jonah: (sadly) Okay, Mom.

I hope and pray that my sweet boy can grow up and get married (if he wants to) without his bandages. Although I know an ultimate healing will come in Heaven, I hope and pray he can know a life without boo boos and pain here on Earth. He was born at a good time, and there are huge strides in research happening. I pray things move quickly and Jonah will see a cure in his lifetime!

Okay, I'd love to have you there or would love your support if you're not local. It means so much to us how y'all have wrapped your arms around us since the very beginning. We appreciate you. 

I'm going to give you a list of direct links here to make it easy.

To register: 

https://secure.commonground.convio.com/debra/2013joggingforjonah/

To volunteer: 

http://www.joggingforjonah.com/how-can-i-help.html

To buy a t-shirt (if you are registering to walk/run, a t-shirt is included in your registration fee):

http://debraofamerica.bigcartel.com/product/jogging-for-jonah-t-shirt

To be a business sponsor: 

https://secure.commonground.convio.com/debra/2013jfjsponsor/

To create your own fundraising page: 

https://secure.commonground.convio.com/debra/joggingforjonahpfp2013/campaign.html

To make a monetary donation, you can use my fundraising page:

https://secure.commonground.convio.com/debra/joggingforjonahpfp2013/project.html?personalFundraisingProjectId=a0qA0000002HnLGIA0

To donate a raffle or race prize:

Email my friend, Jenn, at j4jraffle (at) gmail (dot) com.

To see all of this info in one place, visit http://joggingforjonah.com.

Thank you all so much!

Patrice William's Interview about EB from deric roger cook on Vimeo.

JOGGING FOR JONAH TOTAL

Y'all wanna guess how much money was raised for DebRA by all the folks who sponsored/participated in Jogging for Jonah?

Come on. Take a gander.

$15,200 and counting...

Not too shabby for a first year event, huh?

Please consider joining us next year. We'd love to double (or even triple) that amount!

Patrice William's Interview about EB from deric roger cook on Vimeo.

Thanks to Jenn Lewis Photography for the beautiful photos. You can see the full album HERE. And thank you to Deric Cook Photography and The Mission Advocates for the video.

Please don't miss out on another fundraising opportunity coming up this weekend. You can purchase Mary Kay through my friend, Nicole, and 40% will go to DebRA. Read more about the fundraiser HERE and join the Facebook page (for fun prizes and giveaways) HERE.

amazed (and still mad)

Last night I had raised $60 on my fundraising page for Jogging for Jonah to fund research for a cure. Tonight I have $1,350.

You guys are so amazing. I would cry if I wasn't still so fired up. :)

Love you all so much. Seriously. You just don't know what you mean to me.

Fundraiser for DebRA tomorrow!

WINSTON SALEM PEEPS: 

Tomorrow (Thursday) from 11am to 8 pm, a local restaurant, Blue Smoke BBQ, is donating 10% of their sales to DebRA! They're located at 1527 S MLK Jr Drive, about a mile from WSSU. The offer is valid for dine-in and take-out. You can find their menu in the photos on their Facebook page. They have barbecue, chicken, burgers, salads etc.

Matt, Jonah, and I hope to be there for dinner around 6:30. Would love it if you could join us! Please, please, tell your friends and post about it on your Facebook pages. 10% is a lot if we can get a good turn-out!

Hope to see you!

Giveaway has ended... Kindle Fire Giveaway for Anton!

The giveaway has ended. Congratulations Tony D. we will be contacting you by email.


We were able to raise $1145!!! Thank you so much to everyone who donated and spread the word about the giveaway!  
-------------------



Reposting about the Kindle Fire Giveaway being held to raise money for Anton's adoption. Remember, an entry is only $5.00 or you can share it on FB, your blog or Twitter (make sure you leave a comment if you do any of those so you will be entered). You have until the 18th (FRIDAY) to enter!

We are giving-away a KINDLE FIRE!

Participate in this fun ‘givaway’ for a Kindle Fire and help bring Anton home!!  

Don’t need a Kindle for yourself?  Participate anyway, and consider this as a wonderful Christmas gift for a loved one!!  Think about how far a $5.00 donation can go… one less Starbuck’s coffee, one less happy meal,  that is it!!!!

WHAT IS A KINDLE FIRE?
Coming November 15, 2011.

Details (from Amazon):
Full color 7'' multi-touch display, with wi-fi

18 million movies, TV shows, songs, magazines, and books Thousands of popular apps and games Ultra-fast web browsing - Amazon Silk Free cloud storage for all your Amazon content Vibrant color touchscreen with extra-wide viewing angle Fast, powerful dual-core processor A video demo!

(For more product information, click HERE!)

HOW TO ENTER:
- Use THIS BUTTON to make your donation to enter (or click this link).

- For every $5.00 you donate, your name will be entered. ($20 = 4 chances)

- All proceeds to Anton's adoption fund!

- Tweet about the giveaway (make sure you leave a comment letting us know you did this)

-Share the giveaway on FB (make sure you leave a comment to let us know you did this)

-Post a blog about the giveaway (make sure you leave a comment to let us know you did this)

- The winner will be chosen by Random.org.  The winner will be contacted through their PayPal email address. If the winner does not respond within THREE days, a new winner will be chosen.

- You may submit entries until November 18, 2011.

- You must be a United States resident to be eligible for the Kindle Fire.

Don’t Miss Out On This Opportunity!  Spread the Word- FACEBOOK IT! TWEET IT! BLOG IT!
Or any other way you can spread the word for Anton!!! Thank you so much for your help!

Remember, you have until November 18th!

great fundraising opportunities for Baby A

Two quick things -

There are lots of bags of Starbucks coffee up for bid right now on Hope for Anton. Four different postings of two bags each. All of the proceeds will go to Baby A's adoption fund! Please please help me spread the word by sharing this with all your coffee loving / Starbucks addicted friends. Click HERE for the auction.

Secondly, the Thirty One fundraiser is still going on over there too. Several of you tried to order but could not put in your shipping address in at the end. Happy to say that Thirty One has resolved their web site issues, and all is well now. Please try again. I'm so sorry for the inconvenience. (Sad face.) All items are 15% off for August ONLY and Janel is donating her full 25% commission to Baby A's adoption fund. Click HERE for the Thirty One fundraiser.

Please share both of these opportunities with friends and family. They still have over $10,000 to raise and hope to be able to travel for the first time in September or October. How awesome would it be if he could be home by Christmas!

Thank you so much for all your love, prayers, and support!

IMPORTANT

You guys are so amazing. The fact that your donations raised about $4,000 in just a few days to bring John and Carson home just blows my mind.


There's big news. Karrie and Donnie's dossier was submitted in Eastern Europe today. They could get their appointment and have to travel in one to four weeks. Because the boys are separated and in two different regions, they have to pay for two adoptions. AND they have to stay longer in the country. That means more expenses over a longer period time and more time that Donnie is out of work.


They still have so much to raise - 
facilitator fees - $18,000
plane tickets for the four of them - $7,000
medical checks for the boys before they can leave the country - $300
passports for the boys - $2,000
the boys' visas - $808
housing while there (8 weeks) - $4,480
food while there - $1,680
in country travel (the boys are 400 miles apart) - $3,000


With the $12,500 they've already raised for this part of the process (they've already had to spend thousands on the stuff that came before this), they still have around $25,000 to raise before they can travel. And that's not including the money that would be helpful to raise for Donnie's lost wages while they're gone. All of that to say, it's a lot. The fact that there are two boys and they are so far apart and in different regions makes the process much more expensive.


They are running out of time to raise the money. The boys know they are coming. They are waiting.

They need better care. Many of the wounds they have could be prevented. From the looks of their photos, I'd say they're most likely anemic. And they may have infections too. So much of it could be prevented and fixed if they could just make it home.

There is no reason the boys should be suffering these huge, deep wounds. With the right bandaging materials and daily care, they will have a life they've never known. One filled with the love of friends and family, the hugs of parents and siblings, the safety and warmth of a real home, and some of the best medical care in the world.

I know $25,000 to $35,000 sounds like an overwhelming amount. But just think if we all shared this story everywhere we could think of (you can direct them to this post if you don't have the time to write one up yourself) and donated anything we could, just think how quickly we could raise this money?

My God is so Big, so Strong and so Mighty, there's NOTHING my GOD cannot do!

I know there are critical people out there (I got a snide comment from one just this week) that think, "Well, if they're going to make it so expensive to adopt the kids they don't even want, why don't we just say no? When is enough enough? Take care of your own kids." 

I didn't respond (trust me, it was better that I didn't), but my thought was, "Well, I guess we say no when we've determined that when Jesus commanded us to take care of the orphans, he only meant the well ones, the convenient ones, and/or the American ones... or maybe when we decide that that command doesn't apply to us at all." The Cannells have stepped up to do an amazing thing. Families like them step up every day to do the same kind of amazing things. What if we took "bear one another's burdens" to heart and did all we could, as a community, to bring these sweet boys home?

What a testimony. What a story we'll have to tell, Friends.  

A couple practical thoughts on raising funds quickly - collect change from your coworkers, ask to hold a special collection at church, get a dollar from everyone you know, post about it on Facebook and/or your blog and ask everyone to give $5, email all your friends and family and ask them to donate (give them a direct link), ask for donations to the Cannell boys instead of gifts for upcoming birthday/graduation gifts, participate in the Cannell's puzzle fundraiser, give your leftover PayPal balance if you have a PayPal account, host a meal for friends/church family and ask them to bring donations, offer your skills/services (photography, organizing, sewing, whatever) for donations instead of payment (if you can afford that)... the list can go on.

Now, please, I know many of you have already donated all that you can. Please know how much I appreciate that and I'm not trying to guilt you into donating more. But if you have felt this tugging at your heart and haven't yet donated, now would be the time to do so. And if you have already donated, we just ask that you please spread, spread, spread the word... anywhere you can think of. (I just emailed a short version of their story and a link to this post to everyone in my contact list. Yep. Sure did.)

You can donate HERE or HERE. Of if you'd feel more comfortable writing a check, you can send one made out to Donnie Cannell to our PO box (right sidebar) and I'll be sure to forward it on to them.

May God bless you as you bless those in great need. Thank you, Friends. I love you all (even you, Snarky Comment Guy).

Peace and love.

serwa chic - 30% to anton

My friend Jen is offering 30% of all sales from today and tomorrow to Anton's Adoption Fund. She sells amazing cloth diapers, long sleeved bibs, nursing covers etc. For more details see this post over on Hope for Anton. If you've thought about trying out cloth diapers, now is a great time to buy!

rochester, ny area peeps

ATTENTION: ROCHESTER, NY AREA folks!

There is a great photo package up for bid on Hope for Anton the next couple of days! Great photographer, wonderful pricing, awesome deal. If you are in the area, please go bid HERE. And I'm not sure how many readers I have in that area, so if you know people who live there, will you please pass the word along?

ALL PROCEEDS GO TO ANTON'S ADOPTION FUND!

Luna B Tee Fundraiser for Anton

REPOSTING HERE WHAT'S UP ON HOPE FOR ANTON TODAY! SO EXCITING!!!


The WONDERFUL folks at Luna B. Tee are running an amazing deal for Anton for the next two weeks. From today through April 18th, you can use the discount code "eb10" for 10% off ANYTHING on their site AND 20% of all sales go to Anton's Adoption Fund. Pretty amazing huh?


They sent Jonah this adorable shirt...

AND this one...

And that's just a taste of the adorableness that is Luna B.

Here's the skinny.

Running: today through April 18th

Percent of Sales: 20%

Where: Click HERE

Instructions: Make sure you use the discount code "eb10" when checking out. That will give you 10% off and will track sales and count toward Anton's Fundraiser.

They have TONS of shirt options. Birthday, Holiday, Parent, Grandparent, Sibling, School, Theme, Sports, shirts for dogs, shirts for dolls... etc and so on and so forth. I'm not doing them justice.

and. AND. AAAAAND.

They have shirts for different causes, like MS, Cancer etc. And this one, that's particularly close to my heart.

EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEK! It will be available in this blue/brown combo and a pink/brown combo for girls/ladies. You can get it in kids' or adult sizes! (Sorry, I'm finding it hard to control myself.) To go directly to the EB shirt, click HERE.

If you want to purchase a Bunny shirt for Easter, make sure you do so by April 7th. That is the deadline for Easter orders. 

And remember, eb10 gets you 10% off and gets 20% for Anton's fund so don't forget birthdays, holidays, Mother's day, first day of school etc. THIS IS SO EXCITING.

Okay, I'm done now. Happy Shopping!

feeling human again

Just wanted to blog really quickly, while I eat my lunch (that's right, I'm eating again), and let you know that we're okay. I started feeling some better yesterday and although my throat is still a little sore, it's NOTHING compared to how it was. I'm feeling human again! :) I gargled warm salt water... and also peroxide. Not at the same time because THAT would be crazy.


Jonah is doing well but continues to cough a lot. He only threw up a little mucus this morning (hope you're not eating too) instead of his entire breakfast, so we'll take it. He's napping peacefully now.

Matt's parents are coming for a visit tonight, so Jonah will be super pumped about having his Granny and GrannyDaddy here to play with tomorrow.


A few cute photos of Jonah that I snapped this morning so you know he still exists.

I had a crazy dream the other night. And it was before I got sick, so I know I can't blame on all the drugs I've been taking. I dreamed that aliens were taking over and had just told us they were about to blow up the world from their huge spaceship. (Matt watches "V" and unfortunately I'm usually in the room when he does.) I was in the house where I grew up, but I was an adult. We all went outside. I handed Jonah to my dad. I looked at my parents, Matt, and who(m?)ever else was out there, and I said, in a very bold voice, "I call dibs on Gabe. Let's do this." No fear at all. Pure courage and excitement. It was pretty badass if I do say so myself. 


I guess that's what Jesus will do for you. 


My idea for "Jesus makes you Badass" t-shirts might not go over too well. Unfortunate.


Oh yeah, there's a couple new posts up over on Hope for Anton. One is a Gold Canyon (candles, bath and body etc) Fundraiser with 25% going to Anton, and the other is CJ, the maker of these cards, offering to donate 50% of all proceeds from her Etsy shop for the foreseeable future! Bidding on the Bow Holder and Clips ends at exactly 9:00 EST tonight. Make sure you are a follower (or whatever) over there so you can keep up. We have some GREAT stuff happening and more to come!


Hope you all have a happy and blessed weekend. Love those around you well, even the ones you don't feel like loving. They need it the most.

photo session with Amber Herlocker Photography

There is a photo session with Amber Herlocker Photography up for bid on Hope for Anton. Session must take place within a 30 mile radius of Charlotte, NC. Check out the details AND BID here. (Amber is also the one I took the photography workshop from back in January.)

up for bid

Really cute hand made Easter bunny and adorable bunny hat up for auction today on the Hope for Anton site. All proceeds go to Anton's adoption fund. Click HERE to check them out.

Willow House Fundraiser

Willow House (beautiful home goods) fundraiser is up on Hope for Anton. 20% of all sales go to his adoption fund! Click HERE to check it out.

cute photos and great news

One day last week, Jonah and I met up with our friends, The Smittys at the park. I don't remember what day it was, but it was BEAUTIFUL. They were sick, Jonah was sick, but we all just needed to get outside. Jonah had just started his steroids, so he was kind of hard to please, but it was still nice to get out of the house.


Did I mention the day was beautiful?

And I think we're all long overdue for an Anton update. Several pieces of good news - the non-profit in Anton's country that is advocating for him has convinced the hospital, for now, to keep him there. I truly believe that is a direct answer to prayers. For now, they can advocate for Sweet Anton there, and we can advocate for him at the feet of Jesus. It's a pretty huge honor, don't you think? 

We have raised over $2,000 through the Chip In button on Hope for Anton, but the total on his Reece's Rainbow page (which includes the Chip In donations) is OVER $10,000. We are doing this! Do you realize his Reece's Rainbow page went up on February 8th? We (and many others around the world) have raised over $10,000 in 15 days!!! Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your donations, your fundraisers, and for advocating for him. We have Thirty One, Tastefully Simple, Pampered Chef, and Avon Fundraisers going on, all to benefit Anton! And a new opportunity will be up first thing in the morning. Please take a look if you haven't. Also, I don't see us stopping any time soon, so please keep sending your ideas and suggestions. If we finish raising Anton's money, we'll just keep going for all the other equally deserving  kiddos out there. 

And in HUGE news, JONAH'S EB AUCTION STARTS TOMORROW NIGHT AT 8PM EST. 

Please check it out, bid, and help us raise money for DebRA. One of these days, EB will just be a distant memory. I can't wait!