Unravel 2018 Wrap Up

WOW, you guys!  That was a crazy insane month fundraising for Unravel Pediatric Cancer!  I usually do one super long post on Facebook thanking everyone and I blog post but I figured I would just roll them together this year.

First, I want to say how thankful and humble I am for all the people who came out of the woodwork to help me on this project!  I need to thank Matt from Highflier Productions for making a video for me to spread the word and Tasha from Tasha Chizuru Designs for all the graphics for all the events.  I also appreciate all the media we received from The Elk Grove Citizen article, Good Day Sacramento came out to us twice (Boys Bakery/The Kitchen Table and Journey to the Dumpling/Flatland), and Studio 40 Live.

Next and really mostly, I have to thank the businesses that partnered up with me.  Each and every single one of them went above and beyond.  I asked so much from them and not one of them blinked. Not only did I ask them to donate money, give me their space, but I also asked for special items to be made.  It was a HUGE ask and each one of them were more gracious and wonderful than you could believe.  If you want to make a list of places you support, all of these guys should be on your list!

The Big Boba Theory!  They made us a signature drink, they advertised our event, and they told me to do whatever I needed to do when it came to decorating.  They also rounded up their donation to the cause.  They had so much passion and kicked my month off on the perfect food.

Boy's Bakery!  First off, Joe is so busy and so talented.  He is high sought after and needed absolutely no help from me to sell all his buns so the fact that he agreed to collaborate was purely the goodness in his heart.  He created a special Candy Corn bun for us AND he went on TV with me twice which makes him nervous.  He also donated ALL of his proceeds in addition to the insane amount of time it took him to bake.

The Kitchen Table East Sac!  Susan not only donated a portion of her proceeds from the ENTIRE day to us (and rounded up) but she opened early so we could have the news come out to film.  She helped me decorate.  She went above and beyond sharing on social media to bring in more people.

Flatland Brewing Company!  These guys bought edible drink glitter and brewed me a special beer.  Can you even believe that?!  They let me bring all my girliness and frills to their brewery.  They also more than DOUBLED the amount that they were originally going to donate. Plus I hear that they are still cleaning up glitter there.

Journey to the Dumpling!  These guys opened at 6am so we could go on the news when they don't normally open until 11am.  They made not one but TWO exclusive Unravel colored dumplings that were served one day only AND they trained their wait staff to explain the dumplings and let people know about the fundraiser.  They continued to collect donations once I left and gave them to me after.  The owners and wait staff also donated cash to us.

Old Town Pizza and Taphouse!  They reserved me an entire room.  They let me in early and set up all sorts of decorations including an entire table for kids to craft.  They extended the donation period by one hour and rounded up their donation.

Huge thank you to Maven Mindy for donating her proceeds on Sept 22.  Borderlands Bakery for the donation from their pop up as well!  Also to The Mix Baking Co for donating a cake to auction off!

I need to thank all my friends and family that showed up and supported me!  I constantly needed reassuring during this process and they had to deal with my whining, crying, and over exhausted rambling.  Thank you to my online community of bloggers, influencers, and all people who shared events!  Thank you to everyone who came out and supported us!

Here are the totals:
The cash, check, PayPal, and Venmo donations were rounded up to $1535 and will be matched 200% coming to a total of $4605.
The proceeds from our partners came out to $1600.
Our GRAND TOTAL is $6205!

Thank you so much to everyone!  Also, if you want to donate to Unravel you can do you HERE.  It doesn't have to be Childhood Cancer Awareness Month to help the kids.






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Fluttering for Unravel Cancer Year 5

For the last 4 years, my family and I have been Fluttering with Unravel Pediatric Cancer for Childhood Cancer Awareness.  For 4 years, we drove from house to house every single day of Sept to spread awareness to single families in hopes that they would spread awareness to their friends.  For 4 years, we've had a small event called Fluttering the Community which slowly grew but still only reached less than 100 people.  This year is the year we reformat.  Over the last 2.5 years, I have grown my social media to try reach local people (follow me on Instagram please!)  This year is the year we combine these two passions.

This year, we've decided to do FIVE Fluttering the Community events to celebrate year FIVE!  Come to one, come to all, just please come!  At each event, our partners will be donating a portion of the proceeds of their sales to Unravel.  Our family will be doing what we call a "pop-up" at each place.  We will come for a couple hours, bring some decorations, hang out, and collect any cash donations.

CASH DONATIONS WILL BE MATCHED 200% THIS YEAR!  Sorry I had to shout.  I'm so excited that my husband's employee matching program has increased the amount that they match!  If I donate $1, they will donate $2 making the total $3!  If you have change laying around, please bring it on over and let's make a HUGE impact on finding a cure to cancer!

Are you ready to find out the event dates and times?!

Part 1 -
Sept 8
The Big Boba Theory Elk Grove
~ Pop-up from 1-3pm.
~ The Big Boba Theory will be donating 50% of the proceeds for ALL drinks purchased that day to Unravel Pediatric Cancer.  They will also have a special drink designed for Elayna from Team Elayna.

Elayna Sandeen forever 9

Part 2 -
Sept 15
Boy's Bakery at The Kitchen Table in East Sac
~ Pop-up from 11am-1pm.
~ Boy's Bakery will be donating a portion of the proceeds from all items sold that day to Unravel.  He WILL SELL OUT so get there early please.  He's also making a specialty flavor for the event.  He will only be there until 12pm.
~ The Kitchen Table will also be donating a portion of the proceeds of their sales from the whole day to Unravel!

Part 3 -
Sept 22
Flatland Brewing Elk Grove
~ Pop-up 12pm-2pm.
~ Flatland brewed us a special beer inspired by Unravel's logo of "knowledge is like glitter, it sticks to you."  It is called Not All That Glitters... and is an easy drinking Pilsner with a touch of blood orange juice and edible glitter.  Flatland will be donating $1/beer until they run out of the beer.
~ I'm currently looking for a truck to serve lunch, hopefully that happens.

Jennifer Lynn Kranz forever 6

Part 4 -
Sept 26
Journey to the Dumpling Elk Grove
~ Pop-up 11am-1pm.
~ Journey to the Dumpling will be donating proceeds from 11am-3pm for everyone who comes in with the flier or shows it on their phone.

Part 5 -
Sept 29
Old Town Pizza and Taphouse Elk Grove
~ End of the month PIZZA party from 12pm-2pm!  Old Town Pizza will donate a portion of the proceeds from everyone who shows the flier.


I hope to see you all at one of these events!  I think it will be a fantastic time!  If you cannot attend and would like to donate online (online donations will not be matched), please do so at this link: https://fundraise-2-unravel.everydayhero.com/us/newell-family




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SuperWy Ice Cream: A Special Flavor for a Spectacular Boy

I had the pleasure of meeting Michelle Young last week.  Our kids go to Light Saber Class together and I ran into her at a filming for a commercial (more on that later.)  She is a super warm person and I really enjoyed talking to her.  After a while, she told me about her sweet son Wyatt who is terminally ill.

Wyatt is a super sweet little boy who was born with down syndrome and Autism.  He spent his first years in an orphanage in Bulgaria dealing with his illnesses and having surgeries all on his own.  Michelle Young saw a picture of Wyatt on Facebook posted by someone advocating for him to be adopted.  It was love at first sight.  The Young Family adopted darling Wyatt and made him part of their family.  Wyatt continued to have health issues and spends a lot of time in Sutter Hospital.

This year, the amazing staff at Sutter made it possible for Wyatt to spend his birthday (Jan 2) at home.  Michelle wanted to do something special for Wyatt so she called our local Leatherby's Family Creamery and asked if they had space where Wyatt could have a little bit of space away from other people to keep him away from germs.  When the family came to Leatherby's, they met the owner Matt and he gave Michelle his card telling her that he would be happy to deliver ice cream to Wyatt any time he was in the hospital.

Michelle formed a relationship with Leatherby's and last week they were able to host a special ice cream social for the patients for the first time ever!  They also surprised The Young Family by releasing a SuperWy ice cream flavor early.  Michelle had been working with Leatherby's to release an ice cream in honor of Wyatt but didn't expect it to come out yet.

SuperWy Banana Cream Pie is the name of the flavor Leatherby's created for Wyatt.  It is a banana ice cream with vanilla wafers and marshmallow cream.  It is absolutely delicious!  It is only available at the Elk Grove location for a limited time.  You can order it by the scoop at the counter or in one of the awesome sundaes that Leatherby's has on the menu.

How can you help Wyatt and The Young Family?  Go to Leatherby's and order the ice cream!  Post it to social media so more people know about the SuperWy ice cream.  Request that they make more of the ice cream and sell it in all the stores.  Michelle just wants people to know about her son.  She wants families to know that even if your situation is dire, if you keep a positive spirit you can make the very best of your days.  She truly believes that staying positive and creating a positive environment for all of her children has helped Wyatt to hold on longer.

Please send SuperWy your thoughts or prayers.  If you get the ice cream, please tag Leatherby's and tag me and I will share them on Facebook.  Let's show this Elk Grove family our love and support!

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New Mommy Care Kit and #howsmama

Having a new baby is probably one of the most exciting things in the world!  New babies are so sweet and cuddly and they just smell so good.  In all the excitement, I think it's really easy to overlook the new mommy.  Today, I wanted to show you the little kit that I bring when I go to meet baby for the first time.  

(This post is NOT sponsored but I am using affiliate links and will get a small cut if you decide to purchase using the links.  Most of these items can be found at your local grocery store but I'm adding links for anyone who prefers online shopping.  Thank you for any support you give to my blog!)  

Being a new mom is absolutely exhausting!  I don't remember most of it because it was just a blur of constant exhaustion and hunger, especially when I was nursing!  I think the most important (obviously) thing to bring Mommy is snacks!  Here are the items that I like to bring:

1. Fruit and nut bars.  These are semi healthy and have good fats in them to hold Mommy over while she's nursing or rocking the baby without access to hot food.  These bars Fruit & Nut Bars by NutriGrain are a nice choice.  Mommy can get them with one hand while feeding baby at the same time or she can throw them in her diaper bag and have a snack while in the car between all those newborn appointments.

2. Nuts.  Healthy fats are not only a great way for a new mommy to stay full, but they can also help her body to create rich milk to help baby regain that usual one pound loss after being born.  My favorite (it's a local company so I'm biased) is Blue Diamond Lightly Salted Almonds.  I usually like a lot of flavors on my almonds BUT if Mommy is nursing, the baby might not like any wasabi or habanero that might get passed into the milk.  I think lightly salted is the perfect choice since there's a little flavor but not overly salty to make Mommy even more thirsty.

3. Trail Mix.  Again with the natural fats and fruit adds a nice sweetness without being an unhealthy treat.  I love the Second Nature ones since they are all natural.  But you could even get ones with chocolate chips or little chocolate candies for a treat.  I love snacks that require no refrigeration and are very portable!  Mommy can even leave this bag in the nursery and have a handful in the middle of the night if she needs a little boost of energy.

4. Oatmeal cookies with flax.  These filling little treats are great for a nursing mom!  Oatmeal and flax seeds are two ingredients that boost milk production.  If I have time, I will make lactation cookies for my mommy friends but my life gets really hectic and I love that these Kashi Oatmeal Raisin Flax Cookies are an alternative.

5. A yummy snack.  I know that everything else has all these nutritional reasons behind it but I like to add a nice yummy (usually crunchy and savory) snack too.  I mean, who doesn't just like a crunchy snack while watching TV?  I like Pretzel Crisps because they are flavorful and crunchy without too much guilt.  And they are good for dipping too if you are so inclined.

6.  A little something for baby.  Obviously you came to see baby and baby items are just so darn cute. I added these cute little football leg warmers to my kit for baby.  Stuffed animals, an outfit, little mittens, or burp clothes are all great little gifts too.

Optional items:
~ For nursing moms I like to give Medela Nursing Pads (they are the only brand that works for me) and Lansinoh cream.
~ A cute water bottle or insulated cup would be nice as new mommies get so thirsty.
~ Dinner or lunch.  I cannot stress how amazing pizza is because you can eat it with one hand and not worry about getting it all over baby!
~ A homemade gift certificate for free babysitting by you!

While you're there, don't forget to ask these questions (supplied from Also Known As Mama):
1. I know baby's great, but how's mama?
2. How are you REALLY doing?
3. Are you feeling overwhelmed?
4. Do you need any help?
5. Have you touched bases with your doctor/midwife since the baby was born?

I was so overwhelmed and depressed after having my oldest son.  My "friends" took my overwhelmed and hopeless comments to mean I was ungrateful or didn't want a child.  I had no idea that I was suffering from Postpartum Depression!  I thought it was the baby blues mixed with being tired.  I was so sad all the time.  I felt helpless and trapped.  I felt like I was failing as a mother.  I cried constantly.  I never want my friends to think that they have to suffer through this alone.  Ask you friends if they need help and REALLY mean it.  You could LITERALLY be saving someone's life.

If you are reading this and you feel like you have no one to turn to, you're wrong.  You have me.  Email me and I will help you through.  It's not all magic and sunshine like people make you believe but that's ok!  Just hang on and seek help!

Help spread the awareness!  You can print out this sign on Also Known As Mama's post and share your story or share a tip about helping a new mom or just share a picture of yourself holding the sign on Instagram so that your new mommy friends know that you care how they are doing.  It's the tiny little gestures that mean a lot when someone is low.  Go be a beacon of light in someone's day!


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Dressember 2016

One day while browsing Instagram, I stumbled across a post about Dressember.  I had never heard about it before so I read up on it.  Dressember is fundraiser where women commit to wear a dress (men wear bow ties or fancy dress clothes) every day for the month of December to raise money to end human trafficking.  I let it go for a few days but it kept coming back into my mind.  Then I watched the TEDx video from founder of Dressember, Blythe Hill (posted on Dressember.org) and it solidified that I NEEDED to do Dressember.

In the TED Talk, Blythe talks about sexual abuse and how she felt afterwards.  How she felt like maybe she didn't matter because of what happened to her.  She applied this to the 35 MILLION people who are being held in slavery today, women and children being sold like they are products.  My heart breaks for them.  Not just because it's horrifically sad but because I remember that feeling of hurt, anger, insecurity, pain, worthlessness, depression, loss, and so many other awful emotions.  Then living with all this emotional damage for years, probably decades even after the physical part is over.  Powerless.

I have advocated for so many people, different causes, but never have I fundraised for something so close to my heart.  Dressember is a little terrifying.  Wearing a dress accentuates your femininity which is something I pushed a side for a long time.  But I'm in a place where I have a tiny bit of influence and I NEED to use that for good.  And talk about things that are hard to talk about.  And speak for people who don't have a voice.

Over the next month, I will be wearing a dress everyday.  I will post on social media and I will update here once a week with my dress photos.  And hopefully I can help get people out of human trafficking and on the way to healing.  If you'd like to make a donation, you can do so on my page  here: https://support.dressemberfoundation.org/fundraiser/851125

Fluttering the Community Year 3

If you've been a follower of mine for a while, you'd know that I've been raising money for Unravel Pediatric Cancer for three years now.  You might also know that I'm one of the Unravel Glitter Squad Champions this year which basically means I'm one of the fundraisers for the nonprofit.  I don't take that honor lightly.

For the past 2 years, my family and I have done a small community event to spread awareness for Unravel.  It started as a bake sale and lemonade stand and the following year it escalated a bit.  This year, with my new amazing title, I decided to blow all the other years out of the water.  I had a vision.  I wanted a couple bounce houses and princesses walking around because I know Jennifer Lynn Kranz loved princesses.  We made that come true and with the help of my amazing community,  we did so much more!  We were able to raise $500 from this fundraiser and we used my husband's employee matching program so we ended with a $1000 donation to Unravel Pediatric Cancer!

Our event took place at The Porch at Light of the Valley.  We had some amazing volunteer princesses taking photos and playing with the kids.  The local cos-players in our community really stepped up for us!  We had six Power Rangers and Link from Legend of Zelda.  We had a balloon twister who made amazing hats and animals.  We had several local bakers donate treats Hot Mama's Cake, Jill from Our Kitchen Table, and Rooftop Macarons.  We had donated coffee from Rescate Coffee, water from Raley's, and lemonade from Trader Joe's.  The beautiful paper crafts made by my amazing friend and party planner Carin from Simply Grand were made with paper donated from Paper Temptress.  We had two donated bounce houses from Rosita's Fiesta Rentals and Gordo's Jumpers.  We had horse painting donated by Nicole's Mobile Pet Grooming.  The Meltdown Ice Cream Truck came out to visit us and donated proceeds.  We had some face painting from Kidvocates who are 8, 9, and 10 years old!

My amazing friend Tiffany of Tiffany Elizabeth Photography donated her time to take photos of this event.  If you are in the Sacramento area, please check her out!

And here are some snapshots from other people:

Together, we can Unravel Cancer.

We're Fluttering Again! (Year 3)

It's September and that means it's Childhood Cancer Awareness Month.  For the third year, our family is embarking on the Fluttering journey.  Each night in September, we go to a house and put 12 dragonflies and a sign on the lawn as a fundraiser for Unravel Pediatric Cancer.  My kids thoroughly enjoy Fluttering!  It's a fun and beautiful way to raise money for a very worthy cause.  It also allows me to teach my kids how to give back and have empathy for others even if we are not in that situation.

We fundraise because Childhood Cancer is severely underfunded.  ALL childhood cancers (brain, blood, etc...) combined receive less that 4% of the government allotted funding for cancer.  Relay for Life only gives $.01 of every dollar earned to pediatric cancer.  Pediatric Cancer is the #1 disease killer of children in the US.  I have too many friends who have children who have cancer.  I know too many people whose lives have been touched by cancer.  We NEED to find some sort of cure.  There are scientists and doctors with ideas that just lack funding.  It breaks my heart.

If you'd like to donate, please do so at : http://give.unravelcancer.org/newellfamily.  If you are local to us (Sacramento, CA area), please check out our SUPER FUN Fluttering the Community 3 Event!  

Update On Caring for the Cox Family Blog Hop

Hi friends!  I hope that you are doing well!  We are ok.  We are fighting off a little cold in our house which is hard when all the kids are home ALL the time!  We'll make it through though.  The weather is GORGEOUS in California right now so I can't wait to get better and go outside to play!

I wanted to give you some updates on the Caring for the Cox Family Blog Hop:


First off, my sweet friend Kim from Scrap Happy Deals saw my post and decided to MATCH my gift certificate post for this hop!  Isn't she the BEST EVER??  If you donate (ANY AMOUNT) to the Cox Family Go Fund Me Page and leave a comment on my original post, then you will be entered to win a $20 gift certificate to Scrap Happy Deals where they have all the latest CHA release, an exclusive line of Dori style notebooks, and so much more!  I shop at this store at least once a month!  If you end up shopping here, please tell Kim I sent you!

Speaking of the Cox Family GoFundMe Page, this blog hop has raised around $500 for the Cox Family!  That is AMAZING!  However, the page is still $4535 away from reaching goal so if your heart tells you it's the right thing and you have a few dollars to spare, please consider donating to this amazing family!

ALSO, REMINDERS: The blog hop is still open!  All you need to do to win is leave comments on the blog hop.  There are over $150 in prizes to be won!  Also, if you want to make a card for the Cox Family there is a LINK-UP HERE so they can see your card online OR if you want to win a $30 gift certificate to Hero Arts please check out Amy's post for details.

Huge thank you to all the sponsors of our hop (CAS-ual Fridays Stamps. Lawn Fawn, SugarPea Designs,) all the designers who participated, and each blog reader for making this a successful event!  The outpouring of love is wonderful!!  

Caring for the Cox Family Blog Hop (and Giveaway)

Hi friends!  I hope you're doing well.  I have a very special post for you today.  I am joining with my new friend Karen Kelly to put on a blog hop for our dear friend Ann Cox and her family.  Please join us!  We have AMAZING sponsors, some awesome of our awesome bloggers are offering up giveaways on their blog, and there's going to be a whole lot of beautiful creations too.  I'm the FIRST stop on this hop so I have all the info for you!  

Ann Cox is a fellow card maker and a teacher.  She and her husband Kevin have been together for 20 years and have a little 2 year old boy named Liam.  Kevin is the primary caretaker for Liam while Ann teaches.  Recently, Kevin had to have triple bypass heart surgery and he's having trouble with his kidney (he donated the other to his father.)  This amazing family needs a little help to get through this hard time.  They have had to put Liam in childcare and they have medical expenses piling up.  The amazing Karen Kelly has set up a page to help raise funds for the family.  Please check out their GoFundMe page: https://www.gofundme.com/g81dn0.  

We have AMAZING sponsors for this hop!  Check out these awesome prizes!

CAS-ual Fridays Stamps $50 gift certificate 

Lawn Fawn Stamps $50 gift certificate 

SugarPea Designs $50 gift certificate 

To enter to win the prizes, please complete the hop and leave comments on each stop.  Bonus entries will be given to those who donate to the GoFundMe page (not required to win.)  Winners will be drawn on Feb 11 and posted right here.  

If you would like to show your support for the Cox Family by making a card and posting it to your blog, there will be a linkup at our last stop CAS-ual Fridays.

Here is my card for this hop.  I wanted to send the family something that would cheer them up so of course I'm sending a card that looks EXACTLY like my daughter.  (I know, I'm weird.)  The stamps are from Mama Elephant and the patterned paper is Doodlebug.  

I'm also offering an additional giveaway.  My friend Kim just opened up a new scrapbook store, Scrap Happy Deals.  I have purchased a $10 gift certificate for this blog hop.  If you make a donation to the Cox Family's GoFundMe page and would like to win, please leave me an additional comment letting me know!  ETA: Kim from Scrap Happy Deals read my post and has decided to match my purchase for this gift certificate!  That means if you donate and leave a comment here you will be entered to win a $20 gift certificate to Scrap Happy Deals!  Thank you Kim!!

Your next stop on this hop is the AMAZING Karen Kelly!   

Here is the full hop list, I've updated with all the permalinks that I could.  If you get lost along the blog hop, please come back here for reference.  

Ashley N Newell

Karen Kelly 

Tenia Nelson

Amy Tsuruta

JoLynn Plato

Rae Barthel

Susan Raihala

Lawn Fawn

Kim Hall

Sankari Wegman

Lisa Lara

Angie Tieman

Lynnette Kaufman

Heather Pulvirenti

CAS-ual Fridays

New Title, New Honor

Hi friends!  I hope you are doing well!  We are pretty darn good around here.  Today is the first day of the boys's off track time.  They will be off for five weeks and at this point you should probably cross your fingers that we'll make it through.  I say this in jest.  I love having my boys at home but there is a WHOLE lot of bickering that happens.  

Truth time, last month I was really struggling with who I am versus who I used to be.  I used to be a crafter and a blogger.  That has faded away a lot for me.  There have been a lot of reasons for this but mostly it was having three kids has been really hard for me.  I struggle with having three people in three different life stages who need me for pretty much everything.  Honestly, it's been in the last couple months that I feel like it's finally starting to get more manageable.  I felt like my whole identity was mom and I felt like I wasn't even a very good one since it's just so hard for me and I am always forgetting someone's permission slip and sometimes we have pizza for dinner because I just can't manage anything else that day.

One day, I got an email that shifted how I feel about myself quite a bit.  I had been selected to be on the Unravel Pediatric Cancer Glitter Squad for 2016.  This is not something I applied for or even knew about.  I was selected because the people at Unravel saw the work I put into fundraising for them last year and picked me.  I was floored.  I cried.  A big part of the tears was that someone saw ME.  I mean, they really really saw my heart and gave me the honor of joining them to make this year great for Unravel.

I realized that I'm something else now.  I'm a volunteer.  I'm following a passion to make this world a better place for our children.  And while I hope to get back into crafting and blogging, this new title -Glitter Squad Member- might be the the highest honor I've been given next to the title Mom.  

Thank you for letting me share my happy news with you all!  Have a great week!  

Movember

Hi friends!  I hope you are well!  We are doing pretty good.  Gearing up for life to get busy around here.

Have you guys heard of Movember?  It's a campaign to spread awareness about Men's Health.  During the month of November, men are encouraged to grow out their moustaches to "let their face be a billboard for men's health."  They focus on 4 areas: Prostate Cancer, Testicular Cancer, Mental Health, and Physical Inactivity.  Participants are asked to grow out their moustaches and collect donations on their fundraising page which will go to charities helping me with the focus areas I listed.    My husband Dustin decided to join in this year.  His goal is to raise $400 to help these charities.  He has not raised any money yet but hopefully, he will be able to.  If you'd like to donate, you can check out HIS PAGE.

Also, let me tell you, it's so nice for our family to be fundraising without me having to spearhead that campaign.  ;)  I gotta teach my boys that health for men is just as important as breast cancer awareness and the Red Dress Campaign.

Have a wonderful weekend, friends!

Eat Cake!

Hi friends!  I hope that you are doing well!  We are ok.  Just going about life.  I cannot believe it's November!  Can you?  

Today, I wanted to share this fun filler card I made with you!  I bought a Pebbles paper pack from Michael's, it feels thinner than a regular collection pack but whatever.  It's the Birthday Wishes collection.  I really like the colors in this one!  I always appreciate when people use black on their cards and layouts because I don't really do it a lot so here's my attempt.  This is a 3x4 pocket filler card.  I cut all of the elements out of the patterned papers then I added some sequins and a glittery enamel heart to the cherry on the cupcake for some added pizazz.  

Another thing I wanted to blog about today is a link that my husband shared with me.  It's an article about this little girl who got diagnosed with cancer just after turning 3.  She used her Make a Wish to have a cartoon made to help other kids with pediatric cancer when they were scared.  Part of her wish is for the video to spread to raise awareness about pediatric cancer.  You can find the article and the ADORABLE video HERE.  Please share it!  It is so important!

Have a wonderful day, friends!  

Fluttering 2015 Wrap-Up

This September, our family once again took part in Fluttering for Unravel to honor Jennifer Lynn Kranz who passed away from brain cancer at the age of 6.  Jennifer is my friend Libby's daughter.  Libby co-founded Unravel Pediatric Cancer to help other children who have cancer because she promised her late daughter that she would go forward and help other children.  Watching from afar as my friend lost her daughter was one of the most heartbreaking experiences of my life.  Then watching my friend turn her loss into something so meaningful was so inspiring.  I'm just glad I could DO something.



Fundraising is extremely hard.  You get these people who are unsupportive or just plain mean and it wears on your heart.  It feels like for every one person that tries to knock you down, you need the support of ten people to break even.  I know it doesn't make sense but those negatives just knock you on your bum.  Though, we've had extreme highs.  We've had people donate large amounts of money that have knocked our socks off and we've had little kids drop a penny into our jar.

As of right now, our Fluttering page is at $1620.  It will be left open throughout October.  I'm hoping we will get over the $2000 mark this year.  I'm hoping that we will find a cure to cancer in our lifetime.  I'm hoping I can stop reading stories about children spending their lives in hospital beds and children dying.  I'm hoping that my small contribution can help.

Thank you for taking the time to read!   

Fluttering the Community (Year 2)

Hi friends!  I hope you are doing well!  We are ok.  The boys brought a cold home from school and we are dealing with that now.  It's not a bad one, thank goodness!  Hopefully, this gives us "credit" against anything worse.  LOL!  Wouldn't it be nice if it worked that way??

Today, I wanted to share pictures from our Fluttering the Community event.  That's the name of the now annual event that our family hosts for Unravel Pediatric Cancer.  Last year, we did a small bake sale.  I'm sharing in case anyone is trying to come up with ideas on how to raise money and awareness for a charity in their community.

We had a friend who did face painting.  We had a Cards for Colten and Friends table where kids could make a card for local children battling cancer.  We had a dragonfly craft that the kids could take with them to "Flutter" their home.  And just for fun, we had a table with coloring books, a water table filled with bubble solution and some homemade bubble wands, and a small bounce house (the church allowed us to use theirs.)  We got coffee, cookies, and lemonade donated from both local businesses and from friends.

Now, I'm not going to lie to you.  This event didn't go that well.  We had really low turn out and a small amount of donations, smaller than our tiny thrown together bake sale last year.  But we are going to keep it going.  Maybe next year, we will have TONS of people, who knows?  If you'd like to help us reach our fundraising goal, please donate here:  http://fluttering.org/newellfamily

Just Jewelry Fundraiser for Unravel

Hi all!  I hope you are all well!  We are ok.  I've been dealing with a stomach bug for most the week and I think Avery has it.  Hopefully, we will be better really soon.  We are stalled on our Fluttering because we just aren't able to be in the car for a very long time right now.  We hope to get back at it soon!

I wanted to tell you all know that I'm donating all my proceeds for my Just Jewelry by Ashley website to Unravel Pediatric Cancer this month via our Fluttering Page.  This would be a GREAT time to buy some holiday gifts and to support an AMAZING cause!  All the items on the site are under $40 and they are adding new items everyday!

The Just Jewelry boutique is FABULOUS!  There is so much stuff that goes beyond jewelry!  They have leggings, shirts, purses, glasses, phone cases, gloves, headbands, coats, and so much more!  You should DEFINITELY check it out!

And I wanted to let you know the reason we NEED to donate.  We need to do better by our children!  Seven children die of cancer every single day.  Every THREE minutes, a parent is told that their child has cancer.  As my friend Libby (founder of Unravel) always says "Don't be sorry, be active."    

You can donate directly to our Fluttering campaign on this site: http://fluttering.org/newellfamily.  Or you can shop here: http://www.justjewelry.com/ashleynewell/Shopping.aspx.  Or say a prayer.  Or spread the word.  But now that you KNOW better, do better.
  

Fluttering 2014 Layout and We Need Your Help!

Hi friends!  I hope you are doing well!  We are pretty good!  We kicked off our month long Fluttering project yesterday.  If you haven't heard of Fluttering, you can read my blog post HERE.  In a nutshell, we have committed to moving 12 dragonflies from house to house for the whole month of September to spread awareness for Childhood Cancer Awareness Month and to raise money for Unravel Pediatric Cancer.

Today, I'm sharing the Project Life pages I made to document last year's Fluttering.  I used Becky Higgins page protectors, Heidi Swapp Project Life cards, tons of Heidi Swapp embellishments, American Crafts Thickers, and a bunch of embellishments I had in my stash.  This is the first layout I've done in mostly black and white and it has a really cool effect.

Our family needs your help!  We set a goal of $1000 to raise in the month of September for our Flutter Campaign.  If you have it in your budget, please consider donating to our page.  All the money goes towards the fight against pediatric cancer which is EXTREMELY underfunded.  The statistics are heartbreaking.  Seven children die everyday in the US from cancer yet pediatric cancer gets under 4% of the allotted federal funding for cancer.  Our children deserve better!  Please help if you can.