Over the years Eden has spent a lot of time admitted to the hospital and has been the benefactor of many gifts from thoughtful people who donated things or time to help brighten the spirits of the patients. I had been trying to think of something I could do with Eden as a way to give back. In order to make it meaningful and still fun for her, I knew I needed to find something she liked. I was at a craft fair with friends and came across a booth with adorable necklaces and I realized it was the perfect idea for us. Through some research online, I was able to find a place where I could buy some adorable necklaces in bulk.
The plan was to buy several, hopefully sell enough at a small profit to make our money back, and then donate the rest to the hospital. It was a huge success and so much fun. I feel like through this experience I was able to help Eden learn several good lessons.
1. The importance of buying, selling, earning money, and paying tithing
2. and more importantly, doing service and giving back to help others in a way that she could completely relate to.
When the necklaces started coming in she was so excited, and of course, chose out an Elsa one for herself. :)
A bunch of friends from church came over to check out the necklaces and make some purchases for Christmas presents. Eden had fun spreading them all out so they could see their options.
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| Bentley wanted to make sure I took his picture too. |
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| This box of goodness was also the perfect entertainment for Olivia when I needed free hands |
On December 6th, we joined Kally at a craft fair in Los Lunas to sell some more necklaces. Eden was excited to get them all out and displayed. She was a very cute little saleslady and would try to convince the little girls to choose the Elsa ones.
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| She was also very interested in all of Kally's cute crocheted flowers and hats. |
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| She was more than happy to be the model for the Elsa hat (which I ended up buying and giving her for Christmas). |
We ended up selling close to 30 necklaces at the craft fair which was amazing!
Then today, with I think almost 50 necklaces, we headed out to Presbyterian Hospital to give them away to patients. Because of patient confidentiality, I wasn't able to get any pictures, but it was such an amazing experience. We walked through the PICU, the general pediatric unit, the cancer unit, and then even went to the oncology lunch potluck and visited with patients there and gave out necklaces and wished them a Merry Christmas. Each child reacted differently, but they all were very grateful and their families were so grateful. Because Eden is still young, I'm not sure how much of an impact it had on her, but I know it was so incredibly touching for me and I could see the light in those girls' eyes (and their mom's eyes) when we brought a little happiness into the room. It was wonderful and I look forward to doing more like this again in the future.
2 comments:
I was so impressed with both Lisa and Eden getting out of their comfort zones. To be frank, I was a little unsure about the plan. Not the hospital part, but the selling part. I was very wrong and totally impressed by my wife and oldest daughter. Well done!
You guys are amazing! This brought tears to my eyes. What a wonderful and beautiful thing to do. And Eden looks fabulous!
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