Sharing the Joy of Sponsorship | World Vision Child Ambassadors

Please take two minutes to watch this video...I feel the same way as each of these people about my sponsorship of Majlinda and Boikokobetso!

Maybe a resolution for 2011 can be to sponsor a child? I promise, you will love it and it will change your life- for the absolute best.

what are YOU doing?

Today is National Philantropy Day!

I've seen lots of posts about this on twitter, so I thought it would be appropriate to discuss. According to their website (linked above), 2010 is a very special year, as not only does it mark the 50th anniversary of the Association of Fundraising Professionals, the chief sponsor of NPD, but it’s also the 25th anniversary of this special day.

In the United States alone, there are more than 1 million charitable organizations, and Americans give more than $300 billion annually to charitable causes (Giving USA Foundation). In Canada, more than 88,000 charities provide countless services to millions of Canadians, who in turn contribute more than $10 billion annually to those organizations (Canada Revenue Agency). In Latin America and Asia, with governments no longer able to provide enough funding for social services, charitable sectors are growing rapidly and creating programs to meet the needs of their countries’ citizens. The quality of life for all people—everything from education, healthcare, the environment and the arts, to name only a few—would be far less if not for these organizations.

(italicized paragraphs come from their site)

I talk about them enough, so I'm sure you know of two of my favorite organizations-

Scarlet Threads

A a compassionate boutique, specializing in unique products designed and produced by talented seamstresses in rural Asia.

World Vision

a Christian relief, development and advocacy organization dedicated to working with children, families and communities to overcome poverty and injustice.

It has only been recently that I've become involved with Scarlet Threads, but I just love their mission and beauty, and I'd love you to check out their site (linked above, and on the side of my blog) for more information. They have gorgeous fairtrade aprons and other gifts that are perfect for any occasion. They just came out with their new products, and see the Aubergine apron? That was my name suggestion! Time for another giveaway, perhaps?

As you know, I sponsor two little girls through World Vision. Majlinda is seven and lives in Albania and Boikokobetso is three and lives in South Africa. I've been sponsoring Boikokobetso for just over a year, but it's hard to believe some days that Majlinda has been in my life for more than three years! I just love having them both in my life, and I think about them often, sending love and prayers their way. I have a picture of them both on my desk at work too. Unfortunately, I cannot post their pictures on my blog, as WV works hard to protect their privacy, and I respect that, but trust me when I say how adorable they are!

What are your favorite charities and what are you involved with? Are you passing along the message of philantropy today?

feeling like poo

Ughhh. I'm a sick Lexi. When I am sick, I get a bit whiny (ask Steve!), and I am a bit of a baby about it too. I don't mean to be, but I am. I stayed home today, as I was up all night, not feeling well. I'm a bit better now, though my head still hurts, a lot. I actually slept from 8am until almost 2pm and am still exhausted, but if I sleep more, I'll never fall asleep tonight. I hate that too, that is the worst, when you can't fall asleep at night. I have trouble sleeping enough as it is, so I don't want to make it worse.

This isn't good, as I have a lot going on this week. Last night I was supposed to go the the info session for the teaching fellows program that I mentioned, but I didn't go. I just didn't feel like metroing all the way to Hyattsville and then finding their library. There will be others, I will go to another one. I have dinner plans tomorrow night with some of my favorite girls and then an old friend from home is in DC on business, so I am supposed to see her later in the week. I haven't seen her in years, so it will be nice to catch up. Oh, and I decided not to go to Iowa this weekend for the pirate wedding. I'll be there for Thanksgiving, which will be fine, but this weekend, I really just need a quiet weekend to myself. I have several things to do, so I'll be busy.

This past weekend I went to the used book sale at the Arlington Library that I'm sure I've mentioned before. We went Sunday afternoon, and on Sunday, everything is half-price. I bought 19 books for a whopping $25. I found two great quilting books and several Christmas-y books about holiday recipes, crafts, etc, so those will be nice. I also found a few children's books and two different copies of A Christmas Carol by Dickens, which is something I collect, along with 'Twas The Night Before Christmas. They are both on my favorites list and of course, supporting the library is fun. Funny though, when I was packing up my books, I had brought along a canvas tote bag from my library at home in NH. The girl ringing me up saw it, and asked if I was from NH...I said yes, and turned out, she is from a town about five towns away! Small world, this city sure is.

I bought a super cute pair of shoe from Target too. I will have to post a picture, but I am waiting, because I may have ordered a pair of boots from there too, so I will post them all at once. I am really hard on shoes. I don't know why, but I end up destroying them, so I find myself often needing shoes. It's an actual legitimate need too; not just me saying how much I need a puppy (which I do too!) My mother even notices and tells me to go shoe shopping, haha.

I need to do some quilting over the weekend too. I have several quilt tops that are finished, but I need to finish them! I've still been finding some great fabrics from etsy and have been reading many quilting blogs for ideas. Several people post patterns and tutorials, which is nice, since most of the time, I don't know what I am doing :) When I finish some things, I will post pictures, though right now, I don't have too much to show for myself. I did organize my fabric last weekend, and I found a great basket in my closet that is perfect for scraps, so that was an excellent thing.

Oh yes, and I have a new World Vision baby! She's a two-year old from South Africa called Boikokobetso and she's just the sweetest thing you've ever seen. I know a bit about South Africa and their educational system. They have 11 national languages (!!!), so I wondered which one she speaks. I wrote to WV and they responded and said that she speaks Northern Sotho, so I will need to find some books written in N.S. to send to her! She lives with her single mother, three sisters and one brother. I don't know the ages of her siblings, I hope to find out. I'm excited to get to know my new family member! Does anyone have any insight about South Africa that they could share?

How was your weekend? What did you do? Are you doing anything for Halloween? Want to bring over some ginger ale and rye toast for me?