I Have Hope...and I'm not afraid to use it.

The Invisible Children campaign is an organization that I have supported and admired for some time now. Their website link does not ever leave the recommendations section of this page because it’s an issue that is always important.  If you have never checked out their site, go to the right hand side of this blog under “Be Someone’s Reason” for the link.

Today it seems that the Facebook world has lit up with people posting the Kony 2012 film and spreading the message to as many of their friends and family as possible. I can think of no better way to utilize a social networking site and it inspired me to sit down and watch the film too.

Watch the film here (it’s worth your time):

Here’s what you need to know –

Your voice matters.

These “invisible” children need us to be their voice and hope.

Recognize the problem…spread their story…make it known…make it important…make Kony’s name/face/history so recognizable that the problem cannot be ignored and he has nowhere left to hide.

It is so easy to brush off problems that aren’t directly affecting us…to say that someone else will take care of it eventually. But this is a problem that can only be solved by utilizing power in numbers.

Let’s make this issue THE issue of 2012 and bring more than just hope to those children and families who are suffering.

Read more about Kony 2012 and get involved here: http://s3.amazonaws.com/kony2012/kony_5.html

Make purchases to support the cause here: http://invisiblechildrenstore.myshopify.com/

Love,

Elyse

30 Hour Famine

Since I have never participated in a Famine event before I thought it would be best to periodically jot things down throughout the experience.

The Famine began officially at midnight of the 29^th and went until 6am of the 31^st. I was allowed to have liquids only during this time.

Monday

7:30am: I’m not hungry yet which is strange since I’m typically ready to eat a small city by the time I sit down to work.

10:30am: Hungry but not bad. I had a combo of orange juice and milk (which always grosses my husband out) that seemed to help around breakfast time.

2:00pm: I’m pretty hungry now. Coffee and Crystal Lite are not very filling. This is a good experience…a lesson in reality and appreciation.

3:30pm: It’s the end of my work day and I’m tired with a slight headache but still truckin’…

Tuesday

7:30am: Much to my surprise, I’m not hungry yet. It was a long evening of being hungry but God blessed me with a full night of sound sleep. I weighed in when this started just to see if there would be much impact and I am 4.5 pounds lighter this morning. I cannot imagine a child losing that much weight in a day because they don’t have food.

This was definitely a learning experience for me. One that I think I need to make a tradition if possible. I appreciated getting just a tiny glimpse into what people around the world are dealing with every day. I feel blessed to have been part of an event that seeks to end this issue.

Thank you again to everyone who donated.

Every $30 raised helps feed and care for a child for a month and together we raised $330!

Love,

Elyse

God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice...

“God blesses those who hunger and thirst for justice, for they will be satisfied.”
- Matthew 5:6 -

It’s been a little while since I have posted but for a good reason…I’ve been working on an idea that I am more than a little excited about.
It’s a new year and what do we all think about when we start a new year? Resolutions? Changes? Hopes? Goals? Typically, I don’t tend to make New Year’s resolutions. 1. I don’t often keep them. 2. I don’t like the idea that I’m resolving to change just because a year has ended.

So while I won’t be resolving to quit drinking coffee (that’s just crazy) or going to the gym more (yeah right), I will be working on a fundraising project that I stumbled into a couple of months ago.

A random day in November found me perusing some of my favorite charity and fundraising sites to see what kind of unique items they were offering and what new opportunities they were presenting.

One of my favorites? World Vision. World Vision is an organization that helps people and their communities recover from disaster, address current issues and promote growth.  

Ironically, it was during a lunch break that I came across their 30 Hour Famine website. As I made my way through the site I encountered a multitude of staggering facts about hunger and the devastating impact it’s having on people around the world. You can imagine that reading a fact like, “A child dies from hunger-related causes every 8 to 12 seconds” caused me to look at the lunch I was eating that afternoon a bit differently. It’s truly devastating to reflect upon how many lives are lost due to a lack of food.

So after some additional research and correspondence with the organization, I arranged to have my first 30 Hour Famine event. The event will take place 1/30/12 - 1/31/12. I will fast for 30 hours and others will have the opportunity to sponsor my involvement in the event with a donation. Every $30 raised will help feed and care for a child for a month.

I’m really excited to have this opportunity to gain perspective, increase awareness and raise money for this cause.

If you’d like to make a donation towards this cause and event you can visit my personal page here: http://support.worldvision.org/goto/EBaker

Or the team page here: http://support.worldvision.org/goto/TeamBaker

If you’re interested in participating in the actual 30 Hour Famine event as part of my team, you can do so by clicking on the “Join ELYSE’s Team” Link at http://support.worldvision.org/goto/EBaker .

It's time to start a new annual tradition... a new way to bring in the new year... a 30 Hour Famine.

Love,

Elyse

11 minutes…

It takes me 11 minutes to walk Jax, 10 minutes to shower, 9 minutes to run a mile, 8 minutes to decide on dinner, 7 minutes to get out of bed, 6 minutes to make my husband breakfast, 5 minutes to talk myself out of a purchase, 4 minutes to write an email, 3 minutes to make the perfect cup of coffee, 2 minutes to argue that I'm right and just 1 minute to realize that I'm wrong.

I try to take time out of each day to listen to new music and read articles and blogs online. I find that most days that I’m guided to a song or a story that I needed to encounter to put things into perspective (my favorite word).

Recently I read the tragic and overwhelming story of Olivianna after listening to a JJ Heller song that seemed too sincere not to be inspired by real life sorrow. I have waited some time to write about it…mostly because my eyes were swollen after reading the story that I couldn’t focus enough on the computer to write. Instead I jotted a few quick notes down after reading and decided a new day and fresh eyes would do this post better justice.  

At 23 weeks pregnant, Olivianna’s parents received the devastating news that their baby girl had a fetal defect called a Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (CDH). The news only got worse once they realized that no surgery or assistance could be given to their daughter and that ultimately she would likely be born only to die moments later. Olivianna’s parents spent the remainder of the days before her arrival on a roller coaster ride of grief, prayer, sorrow and hope.

Olivianna Grace only graced the world for 11 minutes.

Her parents were able to love on her as much as they could during that time and cherished every moment they had with that baby girl. I can’t imagine the devastation that followed from seeing such a sweet face fade away.

I often find that stories like these bring thoughts and revelations that I had never considered before… this story did not inspire any new ideas but rather reinforced one that is easy to neglect:

Life is precious, time is a gift and we should embrace every moment of it.

Live, Love and Learn with Faith.

As we rapidly approach Thanksgiving, I cannot think of a better story to really remind us to be thankful for the blessings in our lives.

I’m not going to share every detail of Olivianna’s story with you…I’ll let you decide if you want to read more. If you have a tendency to cry while watching Hallmark commercials or reading greeting cards…you’ll probably want to grab some tissues first.

Read about this beautiful little girl and her parents struggle and journey through faith and sorrow here:

http://www.groverstyleblog.com/olivianna/

Or start from the very beginning of the journey here: http://www.groverstyleblog.com/the-begining-of-the-story/

The song that led me to the story: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFh2RloTtpY

Love,

Elyse

October: Pink is the new Orange...

It’s October…one of my favorite months for so many reasons… cooler weather, the husband’s birthday, Halloween movies/candy and the month when the NFL dons hot pink for a cause.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and I’m willing to bet that you’d be hard pressed to find someone who hasn’t been affected by this disease whether personal or through someone that they know/love.

Unfortunately, I was not in Phoenix for the annual Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure this year. This is sad because I didn’t raise any money for a cause that I love to support and because I really could have used the exercise! Luckily, there are a multitude of creative ways that one can support and donate to this cause outside of marathons and races.

Interested in doing some innovative fundraising for the cause?
Check out the National Breast Cancer Foundation, Inc for plenty of ideas:

http://fundraising.nbcf.org/how-you-can-help/

Are you a survivor with a flair for writing and some words of wisdom you’d like to share? Head over to www.CancerForward.org  to share your story, insight or encouragement with others.

Perhaps you are a big fan of shopping online and items that are pink? (You’re not alone)
Well then the options are endless…many retailers and designers come up with items in honor of Breast Cancer awareness month where the proceeds go towards cancer research/support.

Here are some of my favorites so far:

http://www.shop.puma.com/WPS-Liga-Gym-Sack/pna069656,en_US,pd.html  - a cute tote and 100% of proceeds goes to charity.

http://www.savethetatas.com/men/jugs-mens-tee-gray/ - okay some men aren’t comfortable rocking pink so sport this funny t-shirt instead.

http://shop.avon.com/shop/product.aspx?pf_id=41092 – they call it “pink power”. I think I’ll call it “pale pink polish with purpose” and 100% of proceeds go to charity.

http://www.nflshop.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11987361&cp=3821290.3821291&view=all&pageType=family&parentPage=family – Arizona Cardinals + Raising $ for Breast Cancer Awareness = Greatness.

Oh and as if you needed more reasons to love the Cardinal’s Larry Fitzgerald: Fitzgerald will be donating $10,000 for every touchdown and $1,000 for every reception he has in October. The donations will go to organizations working to end breast cancer and to support breast cancer survivors. So cheer him on as he donates money towards an amazing cause and earns my Fantasy Football Team more points…it’s a win-win.

And for those who have said that October has gotten too “pink” and commercialized… there’s simply no such thing as “too much” when you’re helping others. So whether you click on a donation link or buy something pink…let’s keep raising money for breast cancer awareness research and support.

Be full of reason.
Choose to reason.

Walk Away...

“They always say time changes things, but you actually have to change them yourself.” -Andy Warhol -

Well Andy was right… and here is a great opportunity to help change someone else’s life. My lovely sister Courtney and her family are participating in the Walk to Defeat ALS in October. They are walking in honor of their friend, Gary, who was recently diagnosed with ALS.

Don’t know what ALS is? I didn’t know too much about it either. Read more about it here:  http://www.alsa.org/about-als/

Luckily, I have not personally known anyone who has been diagnosed with this disease but it doesn’t make the cause any less important.

Here are the best parts:

1) Your donation goes towards a cause that will make a difference in the lives of those dealing with ALS.

2) You don’t have to do any of the walking to raise the money…Courtney does. Bonus!

3) You’re not waiting until someone you love is affected by this disease to help…you’re impacting lives today.

Support Courtney’s walk here: http://web.alsa.org/site/TR?px=3110909&pg=personal&fr_id=7439

For more information about ALS and a totally inspirational story head here: http://www.bruceedwardsfoundation.org/about_bruce_edwards.htm

P.S. Christmas is coming up…need a rad gift that gives to those you love as well as ALS? Head here: http://store.muzeconnects.com/Hope_is_a_Good_Thing_Charity_T_shirt_for_ALS_p/m.3127.098.htm

Be full of reason.
Choose to reason.

Full of Question...

It seems that regardless of circumstance we all look back at what we have done, forward to what we will do and ultimately whether any of it is right.

I often find myself truly frustrated when I can't figure out the answers that I'm searching for and I'm being too stubborn to really listen for them.

Luckily, I stumbled into some words of wisdom in a letter from the book Letters to a Young Poet by Rainer Maria Rilke:

"Have patience with everything unresolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves, as if they were locked rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Don't search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. And the point is to live everything. Live the question now. Perhaps then, some day far in the future, you will gradually without even noticing it, live your way into the answer."

Leave it to a simple letter to turn a girl Full of Question back to Full of Reason.

Be full of reason.
Choose to reason.