Be GREEN and Help Others!

"Never believe that a few caring people can't change the world. For, indeed, that's all who ever have." -Margaret Mead

The Arc of Carroll County advocates for, and works to provide support to,people with developmental disabilities and their families in Carroll County. The Arc provides services to its clients including community living, transportation, recreation and leisure, and employment services.

In the course of my 13 years (gosh, that sounds like a long time) working for the state's vocational rehab program as a physical therapist, I've worked with many, many individuals with developmental disabilities. And, while, as a whole, they have to overcome more challenges in life, they are still people who want to be loved and accepted, have purpose, and make a contribution to society.

The Arc of Carroll County is located just around the corner from our house. In the last few years, they've been recycling Christmas cards and making them into new, homemade cards that they sell at area businesses at the holidays. This year they expanded their line of wares to include gift tags as well. I've seen their work and it is exceptional. For the last few years, we've donated our Christmas cards, after the holiday decorations come down, to be used for this purpose.

I've just learned that they are expanding their program to include a variety of greeting cards that they can eventually sell year round. How wonderful! For this purpose, they are asking for donations of all types of cards- anniversary, birthday, thank you, baby, etc.

I know I'll be saving all the cards I might otherwise recycle for the Arc (except certain special ones I tuck away to visit in years ahead). And, anyone who'd like to donate their used cards can save them and pass them to me. I'm only too happy to run them all over when I have a stack to donate.

The Mom Song

This song is for anyone who is a mom or has a mom... definitely good for a belly laugh!

Christmas Cards

I LOVE Christmas cards! I don't care if they're not eco-friendly. And, I love them for more than the fact that I love getting any mail that's not a bill or general junk mail.

I love finding a picture of the kids to experiment with on all the different Christmas card backgrounds online (OK, sometimes, I hate this when I can't find a picture that works). I really liked our card this year.

I love getting a yearly greeting from college friends that I've otherwise lost touch with and hearing from my mom's friend from work (who still misses her like I do) and getting hellos from family that lives far away and friends who live close. I especially love getting the picture cards to see how everyone's children/families/dogs have grown over the year.

We hang the folding-style cards on our laundry room door and they become part of our Christmas decorations. The picture cards get displayed on the same kitchen cabinets every year. Everyone who comes over takes a peek at them.

Now that the holidays are over, I'll tuck away the picture cards to look at in years to come and remember how little all the kids were. I'll take the other cards to The ARC in Carroll County. The people with developmental delays who attend The ARC recycle old cards by cutting them up and making new Christmas cards and Christmas tags to be sold in area businesses next year. They do beautiful work. And, it makes me feel good because I know my cards will be getting a new life (instead of just tossed in the recycle bin)!

Our Celebrity

This fall, I organized a donation drive for Casey's elementary school PTA. We dubbed it Willie's (short for William Winchester Elementary) Kids Helping Kids. Families from the school donated receiving blankets and newborn t-shirts and onesies for the hospital's Family Birthplace Center and toys, games, puzzles, books, and crafts for the kids admitted to the pediatric unit. Casey was my big helper as far as counting and sorting the donations. And, her BFF, Isabel, helped the two of us deliver the boxes of goodies to the hospital.

Casey was tickled pink because they took the girls' picture (I opted out) for the local paper and it was finally printed this week. She was so excited! For some reason, she'd recently been dreaming of being in the paper and, I guess, she wished on the right star. One of her reasons for wanting to be in the paper was so her name would come up when she "googled" it. Unfortunately, although the paper is also online, we googled her name and got no hits. Oh well. Next, she'd like to be on TV. Not sure how to make that happen just yet, but the girl dreams big!

Artist Emma

I know I am super behind in posting to the blog. Forgive me! We've had a lot going on. I'll soon catch up with pictures of the blizzard and Christmas.

But, Emma was very proud of this drawing she made of me and asked me to scan it to the computer with our new (wonderful) scanner and I couldn't refuse her.

Note that it is a picture of me. Per the artist, a smell is going up my nose and the earrings I'm wearing our mini- me's (at first I thought they were supposed to be my dangly snowmen earrings, but she enlightened me)! Also, at the top, it is supposed to say "From Emma, To Mom", but she doesn't know how to spell "from" or "to" yet.