Lasso The Moon

Teaching Kids about Money and Giving

It's almost here! Are you ready?  This year is almost over, and a new one is waiting just around the corner!  I think this might be my favorite time of year.  I love the hustle and excitement of Christmas, but I REALLY love coming down from the height of the season to the clean slate of the New Year.  Like landing on fresh powder.

Our holidays were wonderful, and I'm overflowing with thankfulness.

Since we are homeschooling this year, we were able to take a full three weeks off and really soak in the restfulness.  Well, sort of.  We went to 14 parties in 30 days...but in between, we had some REST.  At least we weren't trying to fit in spelling lists and geography!

During our time off, the big kids each made some crafts so they could raise money for Christmas.  Half of their earnings were for gift-buying, and the other half was marked to give away to a charity of their choice.

Emma (10) made these  sets of hair ties:

We gave them cute names like Build a Snowman and Midnight, and added them to my esty shop, since I was running a virtual pop-up shop there anyway.  We also advertised on Instagram and Facebook.

Here's what Ethan (8) made:

Mini wreaths made from felted wool clothing scraps.  Each one was about 5 inches across.  In addition to facebook and IG, Ethan showed Emma how to hustle.  He sold most of his to people he came into contact with--not an ounce of fear in that kid!

When it was all said and done, it was amazing how close their sales totals were.  Emma ended up selling 21 sets of hair ties, while Ethan sold 19 wreaths.  We also had a couple people donate extra money to their charitable giving.  Both kids were so excited! Especially when they got orders online--that felt really official.

Today, we added up everything, decided to go with World Vision, and chose which gifts they wanted to give (rabbits and ducks).

They raised exactly $94.

 

Adding up the totals from our #kidmade handicraft sale this year. They earned a combined total of $94 to donate to #worldvision. You should have seen them pore over that catalog! They chose rabbits and ducks. And get this: 2 rabbits + 8 ducks cost exactly $94! #ChristmasMiracle #thankful

A photo posted by Anna (@lasso_the_moon) on Dec 12, 2014 at 2:28pm PST

 

I went back and forth between the pages of the catalog, trying to do the math in my head. As it turns out, the price of 8 ducks and 2 rabbits comes to exactly $94.  I felt like I was in one of those stories were the family prays for the last $14 for the rent, and a stranger walks up and hands them exactly what they needed in cash...you know those stories, right?  Our friends, family, and even complete strangers came together to help my kids earn exactly what they needed to give exactly what they'd hoped they could give.  This kind of thing is a huge boost in faith in the midst of the daily gettin-stuff-done, ya know?

I love doing this kind of thing with my kids.  It pulls them out of themselves in this potentially selfish time of year, and helps them focus on someone else.  I'm sure they don't really understand the good that they might be doing by donating these animals to families in need--I'm not sure I even understand it fully--but the sheer act of working for the benefit of someone else was exciting and rewarding to them.  And $94 is totally worth getting excited over!

Another benefit of doing a little business with the kids, is that they were constantly doing math in their heads.  Ethan's ornaments were worth more than Emma's hair ties, especially since she had to pay back part of her sale price for supplies. (Ethan did too, just not as much since we had most of the supplies on hand.)  We also learned the value of expanding your target customer.  The wreaths were more expensive, but they were also appealing to a wider range of people.  The hair ties were cute, affordable, and had great packaging, but didn't work as a gift for someone without longish hair.  Or boys.  On the other hand, they made really easy stocking stuffers, so people bought in multiples.  Believe me, all of these factors are running through their heads as they consider doing this again next time.

And there will be a next time! We are going to open up the shop again really soon, and incorporate business, money management, and charitable giving into our regular homeschool routine.  We are planning to open back up on January 10, with a new line for the Valentine's, wedding, baby shower season, so stay tuned!

::

So how about you?  How was your Christmas season? Are you worn out or ready to charge the gates into the New Year?  Have you ever given to a cause like Compassion, World Vision, or Heifer International? Today is a good day to start!

 

 

Homemade Chicken Dumplings

This is not a cooking post.

It's a fund-raising post!

It's been a while since I brought it up, but we have an on-going goal of $500 that we are striving to raise for Breast Cancer research.  And every once in a  while, I add a little something to the shop to help it along. (So far, we have $331 toward the goal!)

These little chicken dumpling pincushions are on a mission. 

They are $20 each, and the full sale price will go directly to our Susan G Komen fund.

I know each of us knows someone who has been affected by breast cancer.  For me, it was my grandmother and a close friend--just to name a couple of many.

I don't know about you, but I think the pink ribbon motif is a little tired.  I like to come up with new reminders to be praying and supporting our friends who are facing this diagnosis.  And since chickens also have breasts, I thought these little gals would be just the thing.

Wouldn't they make the loveliest gift for Mother's Day? Or Easter? Or a birthday!

You can pick up one of your own here.

Christmas Ornament Fund Raising Project 2012

The kids and I have been busy making these ornaments for the Christmas tree.

We started with my collection of scraps from old projects.

We picked out the brightest, cheeriest colors, and the kids cut them into even smaller scraps.

Which we (I) stuck to these plain glass ornaments.

We are selling these little baubles for $5 each or 5 for $20.  I'm not putting them on Etsy this time, because I want every dime to go to our cause.  After Christmas, the kids are going to count up what they have made, divide it into two, and each pick what they want to donate through World Vision.

(If you've never been to their website, it's worth a look!)

Right now Emma is leaning toward buying chickens, and Ethan wants to help someone who doesn't have a house.  (This is something that has been on Ethan's heart for months.)

If you would like to purchase an ornament or several, please sent me a quick email, and we'll figure it all out.  [email protected]  I can ship quantities of 5 or more, and it should cost around $6 per 5.

Buy yourself a pretty new ornament that will also help someone in need. 

 

Pictures from Haiti

 You've asked for them, and they are finally here. 

Pictures from our youth group's trip to Haiti. 

Our team did 3 days of Vacation Bible School for over 100 children from Cap Haitian and the surrounding area.

They broke up into three groups: teaching, games, and crafts.

Emma saw this and asked, "Are those kids in Haiti?"

"Yep, " I said.

"They don't look hopeless."

"No they look just like you.  They are like you."

"But why are they so happy?  Is it because Daddy is there?"

"Maybe, but I think it's mostly because God put something inside of all our hearts that lets us be glad, just because we're alive."

My husband elicits expressions like these from girls everywhere.  He's very cute.

 

See what I mean!

As Donnie was showing me these pictures, he pointed some of them out, "She's an orphan.  He's an orphan."  I said, "Stop pointing them out unless you are willing to go back and bring them home to me."  But truly, I wanted him to point them out.  Orphans should have real faces to us, so that we can continually be praying that they'd find loving homes, families, and salvation through Jesus.  I need to see their faces, even though it hurts.

****************

So, do you want to see how the dollies went over?

Initially, we thought the dolls would have to be distributed anonymously--to an outside church or orphanage.  But since you helped make more than 150 dolls(!!!!!) there were enough for everyone, and then some left over!  So on the last day of VBS, the team laid out all the dollies on two long benches.

And a few at a time, the children came in and picked out their own.  To keep.

Certainly these little ones have never had the chance to pick from such an amazing assortment of anything.  Let alone a special lovey to take home and keep.

They chose very carefully.

Look at the way the little girl in pink is admiring her new baby doll.  Holding her on her hip, just like a good mommy:

The boys liked them, too...in their own way!

These two were made for each other!

This little girl was so excited, the team took three pictures of her, not one in focus.  She was running, jumping, beaming.

Look at how many children got to take home their own dolls!  Dolls made with love, just for them.  Dolls covered in prayer for the children who would hold them.  I don't have words to express how happy and grateful this makes me to all who participated.

Their sign says, "Merci Anna" but I can't take credit.  The Lord laid this idea on my heart, and the Lord made it successful.  He's the one who made you aware of it, too. So to me it says "Merci to all of you."  Thank you so much for joining me in making these little ones so happy!  I never dreamed that I'd be able to see these baby dolls in the arms of actual children.  It wouldn't have happened without your help--we wouldn't have had enough to go around!  And to those of you who weren't able to contribute this time, look at those faces!! I can't help but do this again.  You'll have another chance to join us.

Here are a couple posts you might have missed about the baby doll drive:

Can You Make One Rag Doll?

Tips for Finishing Your Dollies

How to pray for the child who will hold your doll

Packing the Baby Dolls for Haiti

168

Oops! I was away for a little longer than I anticipated, but for good reason!

I have been sewing, collecting dolls, sewing, stuffing dolls into bags, sewing, and collecting more dolls.  Here are some highlights:

Laura V. and Jeani M. made 24 dollies to send to Haiti with our group.

My brother Ben (15) made this handsome guy:

These 3 were made by Rose M.

Some more from my sister Abby:

A handsome fella made by my brother Jon (17):

Some cuties from someone I've never met, but who had been praying for a way to use her time and materials to serve the Lord:

A couple more hand-stitched darlings:

And these from Leisa B. (Emma {7} helped with some of the faces!)

I cannot begin to express how amazed I am at the turnout.  We did this in ONE MONTH! (Lord, you are so good!!) We got dolls from as far away as Michigan.  I had new friends in my home making dolls with me. There were dolls made by a 94-year-old woman (and a new friend of mine!) and a 4-year-old boy (my neighbor, CJ). 

In total, we took in 168 dolls!

I'm keeping that one in the center.

Then we loaded them into some space bags.

And squished them together until they looked like this.

And incredibly, they all fit into this huge duffel!

The team left for the trip today, and I feel like a part of me left with them.

I cannot express the gratitude I feel for your help.

Except to say Thank You.

Someday you'll know the impact your simple gift and the prayers you prayed had on the little ones who will get these dollies.

Until then, keep them in your prayers a bit longer.

And, thank you again!

 

 

Craft Wednesday - Light

After our first class on the color wheel, I finally decided on the theme of our art class series.   As we proceed through the classes, our lessons and projects will loosely follow the order in which God created the universe.

So, for our second class, we learned a couple things about light.

During our play-doh warm up time, we remembered the color wheel from last time.  And because light contains all the colors, we made our own color wheels out of play-doh.

Start with two balls of play-doh in each primary color:

Break one of the balls in half and place each one on the sides of the larger ball of the same color.

Now comes the fun part.  Talk about which colors mix to make new colors.  And with each pair of small play-doh balls, start to mix them together to see what results.

Keep mixing until a uniform color is formed.

Like magic!  Take a minute or two and play around with the new colors.  Make something different out of all of the colors of the wheel.

The kids in art class LOVED this part of the lesson.

How fun to mix play-doh colors and not get in trouble for it!

After the warm up time was over, we set out to make kaleidoscopes with a project I found on the bkids blog. (That's a great source for artsy ideas!)

We used circles cut from self-laminating sheets. They are very stiff on one side and sticky on the other.

Our artists cut shapes from three different colors of tissue paper.  Magenta, Blue, and Yellow.  They stuck some of each color to their flimsy, sticky circle, and then had a grown-up cover the shapes with the "lid" piece of the laminating sheet.  Make sure to leave plenty of blank space so the circles will stick together. 

Depending on time and attention-span, your artist can make two or three circles to form the kaleidoscope.  We made two each in our class. Make sure each circle has all three colors represented.

Cut a small hole in the center of each circle.  We folded them slightly and cut with scissors.  (Be careful!)  Place a brad in the center, connecting your layers together.

As you hold up your kaleidoscope to the light, turn the circles to form new shapes and colors.  As they overlap, you'll notice the came colors you formed while mixing play-doh!

A great way to study light through art.

(More details can be found on the bkids blog.)

Next week is Air and Water!

********

Dolly update:

These 3 cuties just arrived from an anonymous crafter in Arkansas:

And 10 more came in from Denton:

That brings our total to:

115!

 

 

 linked to: THD

Time to ship those baby dolls. Today!

There are only three days until those baby dolls need to be in. THREE!  That means, if you are out of town, today is the day they need to go in the mail.  Ship them priority, and they should be here exactly on time.

I got these in today from some local sewists. 

From Karen H.

Love that tiny button detail on the boys!

And these from my sister, Abby:

She gave each one a completely different hair bow.  I love them all, but I think that curly ribbon is my fave.

Also today, my friend Jill brought her three nieces over so I could help them finish the dolls that they were HAND sewing.

Hand. Sewn.

Dory made this one:

They told me that they had never sewn before.  This was their first sewing project ever.  When I looked at the work that had gone into them, I could not believe that they'd never sewn before.  A dolly is by no means your typical beginner project.

Summer made this one:

I want to clarify--I did not teach these girls to sew. The dolls were almost finished when I met them.  Are you as impressed as I am!?  Amazing!

Elizabeth made this one:

And how gracious to offer up your first sewing project to a child in need.  In Haiti.  I am moved by their generosity.  By the generosity of ALL who have donated time, money, sewing skills, and prayers to this project.

Are you ready for today's total?

101!!!!!

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Now, if you have finished dollies that you have not sent it, get to the post office today!

Send your babydolls to:

Baby Dolls for Haiti

c/o Faith Bible Church

1437 W. Pleasant Run Rd.

DeSoto, TX 75115

Four days

With 4 days left before the baby dolls get packed up, I received two large shipments of them.

These 9 are from Morine and Marguerite, right here in Dallas.  I don't know these ladies personally, but they heard about our mission and wanted to join in.  Such generosity!

The boys are too cute!  I love all the custom details.

And this huge pile of baby dolls came from my friend Jennifer in Denton, TX.

Thirteen girls and one lucky boy!

The girls have pompom bows and ribbon anklets. Where do they come up with all these adorable ideas!

If you are keeping count, our numbers increased by TWENTY-THREE dolls today.  That's the power of teamwork!  And this brings our new total to 81!!!

Eighty-one sets of arms that will have a hand-made baby doll to hug.

Eighty-one little hearts that have been personally covered in prayer.

Eighty-one brothers and sisters who we'll probably never meet, but who I love anyway.  They are our neighbors, but they live in a wildly different world than we do.  I hope that making these dolls will help us think and pray for them a little more often.

 

 

Five Days Left of the Dolly Drive for Haiti

I just got a package of beautiful baby dolls from Michigan, made by Laurie C., and I couldn't wait to show you.  Each one is different from the others and full of details.

I love the bow on this one.  I'm going to have to make some for my own baby dolls.

This one has a kerchief. And the happiest face imaginable.

This dolly is a different, more complicated pattern.  It makes her seem like the big sister of the group.

They are ready for hugging!

Since we only have 5 days until the end of the drive, it's time to talk seriously about some things.  Today is Monday.  The end of the drive is Saturday. If you are mailing your baby dolls, then your deadline is really only 2 days away.  It's time to start finishing some baby dolls. 

I say this because I know that some of you aspired to make quite a few dollies, but your workspace still looks like this:

Or even this:

Now, I love an assembly line as much as anyone, maybe more.  It's how I make almost everything.  But there is a time to work on things one-at-a-time, and time that is today.  Regardless of how many you intended to make, a pile of baby doll arms is not going to be fun for any Haitian child.  Pick up one of your dolls and finish it completely today.  Because one finished dolly is going to make a huge difference in a child's life.  Much more than 20 piles of unfinished dolly parts.

I know that the finishing touches of these dolls take the most time, and that can be frustrating when you want to finish a whole bunch.  But while you are hand-stitching those faces, or adding those flowers to their hair, consider this.  Take that time to really think about the life of the child who will get your dolly.  Pray specifically for her.  You don't know her name, but God does.  Maybe this is the first prayer anyone has ever said for her.

Pray for her safety. 

Pray that she is allowed to reach adulthood. 

Pray that she finds a loving family. 

Pray that she doesn't go to bed with an empty tummy tonight. 

Pray that she knows real love.

Pray that she finds Jesus. 

Pray that she would know the love of Jesus, and become a light in Haiti. 

Pray that she would become a leader, and lead others like her to the Truth. 

And keep praying for her after you send me her baby doll.  There is a reason I asked you to make these dollies.  It would have been much more simple to run to the dollar store and grab a bunch of toys to stick in a box. 

But we aren't just sending toys. 

We are making a connection between two worlds.

And the time you spend in prayer over the children who will hold your dollies are worth every minute.  More than we'll know in this lifetime.  Imagine what it might be like in Heaven someday.  Seeing someone you've never met walk up to you and say, "I know you. You prayed for me when I was a child.  And now we have eternity to get to know each other." 

That's why I asked you to make these dolls. 

So spend a few extra minutes today finishing a baby doll or two.

And send them to:

Baby Dolls for Haiti

c/o Faith Bible Church

1437 W. Pleasant Run Rd.

De Soto, TX 75115

The deadline is July 28th, so if you are mailing them, you'll need to get them in the mail by the 25th to get here on time.

Craft Wednesday - Color Wheel

I started an art class for the neighborhood kids and some other friends on Wednesday mornings.

Every class I've ever taught starts by making a color wheel.  This one is made using magazine pages, so it's very kid-friendly.

Preparation:

Take a large piece of white craft paper, and trace a circle with a dinner plate.  Divide the circle into 6 equal sized wedges, either by eye-balling or folding.  Trace all the lines with a black marker.  Using colored markers, draw a line or squiggle in each wedge that shows which color to use: Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, and Violet. 

Flip through magazines and junk mail to find pictures that are mostly one color.  Recycling and giving you permission to get rid of some of those magazines that are cluttering your side table!

Separate the colored paper pieces into piles (or baggies if you are outside!) and let your child fill each wedge with the right color.  Tell her to try and cover every bit of white paper, and she might just take all day to finish it.

Depending on your little one's age, he might need some help.  One of our friends kept putting the glue on the wrong side, and then couldn't figure out why it didn't look right in the end.  No big deal, though.  Just cover them with more pieces!

I love doing projects with lots of kids, because each one works differently.  It's fun to see all the various personalities and how they approach their own work.  Try not to hurry them if time allows, and try not to give too much instruction.  They have ways of figuring things out for themselves that might surprise you.

Don't forget to take a picture of the finished product!

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If you are following the baby doll drive for Haiti, we just got these two darlings, made by Kathryn S.

I kinda want to keep them.  I love the collars!

That brings our current total to 34!

Keep sewing and sending them in!  Details here.

 

 

linked to THD