Thankful for a little sister, Teddi, who is thankful for towels. :)
Just gotta share some sweetness that my mom posted on her blog today. To read the sweetness in it's entirity, and for even more cute pictures, visit her at oneblessednest.blogspot.com. Be careful though, this is a call to action! ;)
(A montage of snippets from her post...)
A conversation between my mom and Teddi, age 5 (and 1/2):
Teddi: "I love my towel, 'cause God gave me a family."
Me: (Sounding slightly puzzled) "What does your towel have to do with your family?"
Teddi: "It's soft."
Me: (Sadly putting two and two together) "You didn't have soft towels before you had a family?"
Teddi: "No, just little (towels) . . . and we had to share . . . and I got cold (as she "shivered") . . . and we didn't have jammies . . . we had to sleep in our clothes."
Me: (With a lump the size of Texas in my throat) "I'm so happy you have a family, and soft towels, and jammies."
Teddi has soft towels now, but so very many don't.
Millions.
Millions of orphans have no idea what it feels like to be bathed in a warm bath. They have no idea what it feels like to be wrapped up in the love of a soft towel, or dressed in their very own pajamas.
Millions.
As Christians we are called, no, we are commanded to care for the widows and orphans...
"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." James 1:27
If it is our passion to live Jesus' way of life -- then it is our responsibility to look after orphans. Period.
It's overwhelming, but we must do something. We are not all called to adopt, but we are called to care in some way for the orphans of this world.(Read the post for some good ideas!)
~~~
Want to care for orphans and share Teddi's love of towels with some kiddos in your life? Visit this friend's blog to find out how you can do both with these awesome gifts!
At the beginning of the year we set a goal to raise enough money to build a well in Africa through charity:water. Well, Saturday we got to fill our jar a little more- we had a second yard sale! It took four truck loads of stuff from seven different families but we got it all down to Pleasanton, TX! We worked from 4 a.m. setting things up to be ready by our 8 a.m. start time to 4 p.m. loading the unsold items back into the truck. So much work but oh so rewarding!! From the start we felt so prepared, we picked a good day - the day after payday (last time we had it on a holiday weekend which we were told was a bad idea), we put an add in the paper and on Craigslist, we made signs, and I took a whole day off to get things ready. And no matter what we did God was there to prove to us that no matter how much planning we did, we were not in control of this, He was and He was going to take care of everything...
Yeah, we picked a good day- so good that everyone one else picked that day to do stuff to. Our sister Kathy, was testing that morning. Our Rodriguez family was campaigning. Our Winder family was helping with a Fall Festival. Half of our Pleasanton family was having their own garage sale across town. So much for many hands making light work... but we went on. We put our add in the paper on time and had all the permits bought, except when we got the paper it didn't say what day the sale was actually on (meaning people were driving by on Friday when we had nothing) or what town it was in, but we went on... The night before we found out that our plan to start selling at 7 a.m. to catch all the early birds was spoiled by a rule saying that we couldn't start till 8 a.m. (the sun didn't even want to come out till 8... our first shoppers had to borrow flashlights to shop with) but we went on... when we started to unload our trucks we lost a set of keys in the dark and the doors were locked... found them in the backyard after some frantic searching. Finally the sun came out and some help showed up and the people started slowly come in. Then more, then more, then MORE!!!! We put out three signs, and my Grandpa later came out and asked where I had put those signs because we have never had a turn out like this... we even had a line to check out at one point! And caused a small traffic jam in the road in front of the house!! Even as we were packing up we had people coming by. Even after we were all packed up and had made the final count, two teenage girls were knocking on our door asking if we sold the biggest item leftover, which we glady unloaded from the truck to sell to them!!! Like we said, no matter what we planned God was there laughing and saying "Let's do this my way."
We still left Pleasanton with two truckloads of stuff to pass on- two bags of clothing and a box of shoes to the Agape Ministry donation baskets at Journey, three or four big boxes of stuff for Goodwill, a box of items for Mom to consign at the thrift store on base, and three boxes of stuff to pass on to the Youth Ministry at Journey who will be having a garage sale next month! Perfect timing, eh? We were so blessed with all the donations that came in and blessed to be able to pass on some goods to others. And SO SO SO blessed with a grand total of...
are you ready for this?
$778.00!!!!!
Whoa! Is our God big or what??? He sure showed us. He showed us and blessed us and still amazes us at how awesome He is. :)
Thanks everyone for all your help, your items, and your prayers! We truly could not have done this with out you!
Frankie made us shirts with a homemade screen printer!
Last Saturday was the Children's Hunger Fund Banquet in San Antonio! It was so much fun to see everyone that we have been blessed to meet through this blog- CHF staff from California, staff here in the Southwest office, new friends, and even an old friend from high school! The venue looked great and the food looked delicious! We say that it looked delicious because we were so nervous that we could hardly eat a thing. And we were nervous because a few months ago Fred Martin, Communications Director of CHF, called to ask if we would accept the nomination for the Widow's Mite Award! This award is given each year to a young person or persons who do a lot with a little, like the widow in Mark 12:41-43. What an honor!
If you were there to hear our speech, we were actually speechless... we fumbled with note cards, and tried to look out at people with lights in our eyes, and nervously recited some of what we had written a few hours ago. And half way through it hit me- the last time we were in the same room as David Robinson, he was on stage being recognized and congratulated on behalf of Oak Hills Church for being inducted to the NBA hall of fame, and were we just beginning to learn about CHF. This time we were on stage right before he was (actually David Robinson couldn't make it but he was still being recognized as a Children's Champion Award Recipient and accepted via video) along with a group of other really incredible people doing the work of God and showing his love so beautifully. And it wasn't us- it was God that did that, He is the only one that could do something so big from something so little, and all I could say was "I don't know why we are here". Because in my mind we are just Taylor and Frankie, we live in Houston, we enjoy spending time with family, we like to take pictures and blog, and we just aren't people that can do big things. (And this is also why we stick to blogging, because when we lose our words we can always come back to it later. ;)
So even though we felt really good about Saturday night, and we made people laugh, (and we were told that we did an awesome job!), we would like to share with you what we really had prepared to say in acceptance of the Widow's Mite Award!
*roll introduction video...
*cue Chris Sue (thanks for the great intro, new friend!)
*walk toward beacon, Charif Martin :)
*take place behind podium, facing 650 people...
We would like to thank Children's Hunger Fund for the great work they do for children in need around the world, and their wonderful staff- they make it so easy and so much fun to serve! We also want to say how great it is to see so many people here supporting CHF. Our families are also here and we want to thank them for supporting us through all of our adventures and for teaching us how important it is to love others. We want to also thank Oak Hills Church for sharing their vision with us of loving our neighbors.
We first heard about CHF at the Oak Hills Church Bigger than You service. We saw the video and we were moved but we weren't really sure what we could do. We decided that if CHF was giving these boxes to families in need we were going to see if they really worked. We switched our food budget for theirs and began to eat from the Food Pak. We started to blog about our experience and the need really became real to us. We knew that the need was big and we had to do more.
Tonight, we want to encourage you to do something. If you feel moved to try what we did then go for it! If you want to do something else then find something that your are passionate about and that you can share with your family and do it. Don't be afraid to do something. Set a goal, make a plan, put it to action, fill your heart with dedication, and God will take it from there. God will make it big. No matter how small it may seem to you, it will change someone else's life and yours! To God be the Glory! Thank you!
After comparing pre-speech notes and reflecting on our actual speech, we really didn't stray too far from what we had planned to say. And we share this with you because we don't just want to encourage the people in that room, but we want to encourage you readers, too. You come here and read about what we are doing, and it would bless us so much to know that what we do moves you to do something too. We can't do great things on our own, but with God we can do so much!
We were in the company of truly incredible people that night...
~David Robinson, founder of the Carver Academy. He has a big heart for children and is a great role model and example of how to love God and to show love in your community.
~Michael and Carol Hart, founders of Zoe International, and our new heroes. These are two of the most beautiful people we have ever met. They spoke with such passion for their ministry and love for God.
~Carlos Pimentel, Executive VP of Esperanza International. Carlos also did a great job sharing his dedication to helping others. We were honored to be recognized with him.
~Donnie Laurence, First VP of Investment Officer of Nebens/Laurence Wealth Management Group. He and his wife are great supporters of CHF as he promotes them throughout his organization.
Great people were recognized, but God was the one who was really honored that night. Here are a few pictures from the evening.
Amy was there!
Frankie's special guests, Chita and Juan!
Frankie's mom, Olga and sister, Kathy
Kathy, and Frankie's step-mom, Rose and dad, Gilbert
Taylor's dad, Bryan and mom, Tina
Jesse Reyes, of CHF Southwest. He took care of us that night, told us when we were going on, and showed us around. He was a big help and also goes to Journey Fellowship! Thanks, Jesse!
Mike Richards, Regional Director of CHF Southwest
Charleen! Of CHF Southwest
Francis Chan!!! (host of the evening)
Antonio Giuliano
Don't know why but I like this photo!
That's better... Fred Martin (CHF Headquarters.), Dave Philips (CHF President and Founder!)
The whole group!
And the award!
(View all honorees introduction videos at chfus.org to learn more! You'll be inspired, no doubt!)
Back in Houston after a wonderful weekend of friends and family... for a few days anyway! I feel like we are in our car more then in our apartment this month. First a parade, then a camping/girls night, CHF Banquet, and this weekend is our second yard sale for water, then the 5K walk for ALS. All in San Antonio or around there - kind of makes you wonder what in the world are we doing in Houston. We have been wondering and praying about the same thing...
But today we must focus on today and not worry about tomorrow. And today we need food! So we came up with a list last night and I will be headed to the store on my way home. Here is our list:
Bread - 2 loafs
Eggs
Some fresh Fruit
Tomatoes
Corn
Ground Beef
Pork Chops
Pasta
Pasta Sauce
Beans
Peanut Butter
Jelly
Snacks
We don't normally buy meat, let alone two different types, but we think we might be able to fit it in. :)
We have so much to post this week! Like I said earlier we are having a Yard Sale this weekend to raise more money for out water well in Africa though charity:water. This is our second since the first went so well- we raised over $500! Saturday's sale will be in Pleasonton, TX and we are starting to become overwhelmed with items! We have been pricing things for awhile and we are still looking for more! In fact I am taking the whole day off on Friday and we are going to be driving around San Antonio, Devine, and Pleasenton collecting items from family and friends. We are even working on a few projects at home to start selling this weekend.
Next weekend is the ALS walk and if you want to help with that, the post is below this one! There is a link on how to give. We even talked about offering ad space here on Taylor Frankie to anyone who makes a donation to that cause. So if you have a product, business, or blog and have a picture, logo, or ad let us know. And we will be posting a little more on that in the next few days.
We will also be posting about the banquet this past weekend, because if you follow us on twitter you know something that we haven't announced here on the blog yet! ;) That will also be coming in the next few days.
So hold on tight because we are about to hit warp speed!!!
We made it to the ALS benefit a few weeks ago, but we had misplaced the photos during the game of musical laptops we've been playing at home. So here's our exciting update!!
Everyone really came together on this one! It was held in a new venue, but that didn't matter a bit! We still filled the space with people and had a blast! Someone from the ALS Association came out to speak and there was food, music, live auctions, 5 tables of silent auctions items, carnival games, a bake sale, and two separate raffles! After the night was over we raised a grand total of $7,635.00!!! Woohoo!!! Here's some pictures from the night:
1 of the game baskets we donated to the silent auction
the crowd!
the carnival!
Taylor the clown!
Sisters!
Family fun!
Bernice, Chita, and MeMe dancin the night away!
Chita's son, Xavier and his wife, Mel
Frankie and Chita's daughter, Tina
Tina and Taylor hanging out at the Silent Auction
Our mini-carnival turned out really great, too! We had about ten games and raised almost $80! Even though we only had about 10 kids, we had a lot of fun, and every penny counts! This was a great first run and we look forward to more carnival fun in the future!
And our efforts aren't through yet. Our second event of the year is a 5K walk put on by the ALS South West Chapter. We are setting our sights high again- mine and Taylor's personal goal is to raise $1000. We have set up a site and are trying to get 50 people to donate in the order that they come. (Ex. 1st person would donate $1, 2nd would donate $2, 3rd would donate $3, etc.) We realized that we could not donate an amount as $1, but our great friend Ann Ray fixed that problem by claiming spots 1 through 9! Thanks Ann!!! We took spot number 10. So we are waiting for number 11 now...
If you want to help us reach our goal just go here. All proceeds go to the ALS Association. All support is very appreciated!!! And if you want to join the team as a walker or a virtual walker there is still time for that too! :)
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