Hodge Podge

As Kelly would say this is gonna be a hodge podge post! :)

First some things to do with Carleigh's birthday...

Thanks to everyone who has responded to my event on FB for Carleigh's birthday saying that they would remember her in some way on the 28th. It's much appreciated! And for those family and friends who want to join us on the 26th for a small party it is gonna be at our house at 1pm. Anyone who wants to join us is welcome! We'll have some food and cake and then go to the cemetery for a balloon release. We hope that you will join us if you are able!

Speaking of cake, the cake is ordered and I can't wait to see it. I even ordered something today from The Midnight Orange to go on top of it. When I saw it I just had to buy it!

And speaking of The Midnight Orange, I also bought something to give away for Carleigh's birthday. :) I'm looking into a few more things to also give away. Of course, you can be sure I'll also have something from My Forever Child.

On the day of Carleigh's birthday, which is the 28th, I don't have to work since I work the weekend so I also had Anthony take the day off. We're gonna go do something together for the day. We're either gonna go to the Newport Aquarium or to the Creation Museum. We haven't decided which one yet. But also on that day before we head off to do whatever we choose to do we'll drop off 2 memory boxes to the hospital where I work. Franchesca is making up the actual memory boxes for me. I know I liked Carleigh's star memory box she made for me so it just seemed right. So far I've bought a disposable camera and a small lavender candle to go in each. Any recommendations on what else to put in there? Was there something you got in a memory box that was helpful? Was there something you wished you would've got? You'd think I would know but we didn't receive a memory box from the hospital because I knew that I would get one made later. They did offer one though.

I just wanted to share a little something that was shared with me recently. I received a message from a lady named Phyllis who used to be a friend of mine on Cafemom around the time when Carleigh was still with me. She said that she shared about me with her daughter. Through our journey she also found out about NILMDTS and she talked about it with her friend who was a photographer. From their conversation, the friend decided to volunteer for NILMDTS. Then Phyllis' daughter's friend Lacy had a son, Kolton, with anencephaly on November 23, 2010. Phyllis' friend is the photographer who ended up taking their NILMDTS photos. Phyllis thought that I would like to know that telling my story on CM ultimately helped Lacy because otherwise, there would not have been a NILMDTS photographer for her. Just a wow moment for me and proof that Carleigh's story did make an impact. And I'm so glad that Lacy was able to have NILMDTS photographer because those photos are a priceless treasure! Thank you, Phyllis, for sharing this with me especially as we draw closer to Carleigh's 2nd birthday. I just love hearing things like this.

If you've been around these parts for a while you may know that I'm a big supporter of Sufficient Grace Ministries. Kelly, who founded the ministry, even graced me with the honor of being a board member. But being that I live a couple hours away from the rest of the SGM crew it kinda limits what I can do with the ministry. One thing I can do for them is fundraisers. If you aren't aware, Sufficient Grace Ministries offers their products and services for free to all bereaved parents. Because of this, the ministry holds fundraisers so that they can keep offering these services for free and not have to charge parents for them. I know many families out there who have been on the receiving end of this ministry, including myself.

Recently I have taken part in a couple of online auctions and was inspired by them to hold my own online auction to benefit Sufficient Grace Ministries. Right now I am gathering items to auction off and have a good number of items so far. I am also looking for individuals and/or businesses/shops to donate items if they are willing. It could be something little or something big. Anything is appreciated!! If you are interested in helping out please send me an email at caring4carleigh@yahoo.com. I plan on holding the auction some time in the beginning of April. A definite date(s) has not been set yet but I will announce it as soon as it is. Thank you to those who have already helped out!!