Scrictly Speaking Celebration

An Evening of Celebration!

 

At the end of October, we were invited to CLC's annual fundraising event held at Thousand Oaks Country Club. And, I was asked to be the parent speaker for the evening.

 

When I was initially asked, I mistakenly thought a group of parents would be speaking. And, I thought the 5 minute speech required would fit with that assumption. It wasn't until a few days before the event we received the program. I opened it to realize I was the ONLY parent speaker. No pressure.

 

Here is the jist of what I said.

 

Conductive Learning Center is more than just a place or a school it is a community.

 

This is a Community of Reality

Amazing Moms!

We as parents recognize the disabilities of our children but we refuse to accept the limitations which traditional therapy's and education impose on them. Our son, Liam, was born prematurely and diagnosed at 12 months with CP, Cerebral Palsy. We spent three years in tradtional therapies and education. Our son improved but his motivation deteriorated after several years. His frustartion with his inability led to behavior issues and further lack of interest in therapies. CLC creates the oppurtunity for our children to acheive their highest potential. It's a place where hard work is expected and our children are seen as capable. Their struggle is acknowledged. It's a safe place for them to express the frustration they feel.

 

This is a Community of Acheivement

Older Students chatting it up!

Frustration is not allowed to fester, it blossoms into acheivement. For Liam the first several weeks were overwhelming as he was expected to participate and perform. But, the other kids and the comfort the conductors gave him enabled him to adjust and thrive. Within the first session, which was generously gifted by a scholarship, he was potty trained! Beyond this huge accomplishment he took his first independent steps in a walker. Over the next few weeks, we noticed his strength increasing. He was able to sit independently in a bath tub and feed himself with utensils. Perhaps the biggest change is in his attitude. We hear "I can do it myself." The wonderful thing is he can.

 

This is a Community of Hope

Wonderful admistrators and conductors.

Not only do the children recieve this gift, we all recieve this gift. From those who donate to make this oppurtunity possible, to the administration who keeps the paper trail, to the conductors who everyday encourage, to the families who see the results, all of us create this community. The future employers and neighbors of our children will be gifted with this reality of hopefullness.

 

Thank-you for being a part of this community and welcoming us to it!

 

It was a wonderful evening, the most successful in the school's history. We are so honored to be a part of it.

 

Here are a few pictures borrowed from the school website. If you'd like to see more follow the link to the  CLC FACEBOOK page.

 

The Super Duper Donors!

 

Where's Matt? And, where's one of Matt's first karate students?
She's the gal with the brown hair just in front of Matt. Her older brother is the sudent in the picture above.
It's a small world!

 

 

 



 

Christmas in July!

Our Little Gift

 

 

Just after the last yard sale we dicovered our family of three was growing into a family of four!

 

We are so thrilled by this little gift who is due to arrive March 21.

 

It has meant a whole new learning experience for Liam. First he learned the baby had a tail. He decided he was going to have a baby in his tummy too. And, his baby was a dinosaur with a long tail.

 

Next he learned the baby "swims" in there. So now he likes to tell everyone his brother is a swimmer.

He's just starting to understand the flips and kicks he feels. And, already asking the baby to "Wake up and play with me."

 

Now, we're learning the hard lesson of patience. Bed rest is required for the last trimester. Liam is starting to realize what it means to be a big brother. Mommy and Daddy are getting things ready and he is responsible for his own body and self. This means picking up after himself, cleaning himself up after meals, more independent eating and self entertainment. He's doing wonderfully, we see how much working on his goals at home and at CLC are helping him to mature.

 

Baby brother's presence in our lives is a gift already. We are learning to enjoy this time of we three and preparing ourselves for next adventure of the feirce foursome.

 



Catch-Up!!

The BIG News

Well it's been a few months, the fundraisers are over, school has started 2012 is alomst at an end. Since it is almost Christmas, I'll tell you about how we recieved our presents early this year.

First, the CARNIVAL!
Huge THANK-YOU to Lacey, Rachel and all the other people who made this possible. It was truly a magical night and we were able to raise the rest of the 2012-2013 tuition.

How can we say thank-you enough to everyone who planned, volunteered, donated, and enjoyed.

Our Amazing Carnival Coordinator!

The Clean Up Crew

Bible study group presting Liam with a donation.




Cousin Love!

 

 



So many memories!

Spoils!





Treasure

What do you treasure?

 

I like good deals, unique finds and exquisite food.

 

Most of all I treasure my family and the friends who I love like family. All life from those chirping crickets to the old man who walks our street looking for work is a treasure.

 

 

Here are a few finds from the yard sale. The bigger items, like the Asian themed table and chairs, are buried. Pictures of that will have come later.

Not kidding about the all ages toys. 

 

Toys from Baby-Big Kid

Brand new Miche bag and 2 perfect for fall covers.

There are around 100 titles, romantic comedy to action flicks.

The real treasure is life itself!



School Starts, Parents Party

It's here! Cooler weather, kids on buses and time for a little R&R for parents. Hey, you don't need to be a parent to enjoy you just need to be at the Front Room on Saturday for a good mix. That means people, music, cool scene, and over 21 please. Sorry this is such horrible quality picture.

Sept 15

Doors open at 7PM

$10 Cover

Front Room (inside the Break Room) on Plainfield.

Live Music, Food and Drink Specials benefiting Let's Move Liam!

Local business and musicians have donated to make this a great night. Come on out and let's enjoy doing something nice for Liam.

 

This event was concocted and coordinated by Emily Elliot.

THANK-YOU EMILY!



 

THANK-YOU!

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!

 

 

Liam had a cold so we missed the very first day but here he is at this "plinthe" getting ready to start the day. Each morning I find him crawling out of his bed in his P.J's and a soggy diaper saying "I'm ready to go to school!"

 

Liam, starting the morning with a hug from Ms. Liz.

Thank-you donors, friends and family who are making this possible!



Light up Leonard

Hurray!!

The Carnival has a location! 

2845 Leonard St NE, GR MI 49525

It's the Bushnell's fabulous backyard! 

Huge thank-you to Cindy and all her efforts for the special needs community. 

Flyers to pass out will be in next week. Let me know if you need any or if you have stuff to donate. Check out the event page on Facebook for an updated list of wanted items. 

Cotton candy, face painting, dancing lessons, cake walk, and so much more....

Let it RAIN...in $$$!

Here it comes!

We're enjoying the cooler the weather and the sprinkles.

It's preparing us for fall, school beginning and fundraisers!

And, oh boy is gonna be fun!

We have some fabulous friends and today a random stranger who have offered to run, host, and donate to Let'sMoveLiam! Along with coming up with idea's they've done it all without me!

THANK-YOU!

Here's what you have to look forward to:

August 16 at 6:30 at GIRBC

31 Party!

Come as couples or for a girls night out. Stock up for fall and school with organizational products and great lunch totes. There are fabulous purses too! Thank-you to Joanna Nagangast for donating her proceeds and to GIRBC for the space.

AND, our newest event...I just learned about it today and it's all set up! Thank-you Option 1 Credit Union employee, Emily Elliot and friends for coming up with the idea and getting it done!

September 15 from 7-11PM at the Front Room

PARTY!!

There will be a $10 cover. Emily has arranged for appetizers and drink specials. Live Musical Guest Kari Lynch. If you haven't heard of her yet, she's opening for Maranda Lambert and has been around the GR music scene for a couple years. In addition there are pool tables, darts, other games and hopefully lots of good friends to enjoy the evening with.

September 22 at 8 -it's done! (Weather Permitting)

YARD SALE

If you missed the last one, no worries, more donations have been pouring in and we'll be having another yard sale! If you'd like to donate just email or call or drop it on the porch. If you'd like to help run the sale, great! Otherwise come on out and see the new treasures...pictures to come!

September 29 at 6 TBD location

CARNIVAL!

Fun for all ages! Face painting, food, games, and just good old fashioned fun! Look for the location or if you want to host shoot me an email or leave a comment. Thank-you to Lacey Michael and team for all your hard work and great ideas!  

AND, our newest event...I just learned about it today and it's all set up! Thank-you Option 1 Credit Union employee, Emily Elliot and friends for coming up with the idea and getting it done!

Hopefully, that's something for everyone! If not we're still working on a bake sale for the fall!

Liam's last day of school saying goodbye to Norton. Norton may not be able to communicate and Liam has difficulty interacting physically but their friendship isn't about that. It's about being two little boys.



Progress

We've hit $5,000 in the LETSMOVELIAM fund!

A donation came in today from a friends parents who've heard about Liam and sent a check. AMAZING!

In case you're wondering what's the big deal about CLC. Here are some shots from Liam's progress report. Pictures speak louder than words. This is the hardest apperatus for Liam. He cried for the first week he was so uncomforatble. You can see in these pictures, he's now a pro. PERSEVERANCE.



Where Does Money Come From?

"I have MONEY." Liam what's money? "It's, um, um, um...THIS!"

THANK-YOU to Bissell and it's generous employees who 1) nominated us and 2) selected us for the golf outing 50/50 raffle. AND, who donated the winnings back to us! The total will cover just over a month of education! We need to raise around $20,000 and with this latest gift we are right over $5,000!

Where does the money come from? You! We've had donations from Hawai, and today from Alaska, all over the Grand Rapids area. People from grandma's to Liam's little friends bringing change. And now a corporate donation. This has been a truly amazing experience and we thank-you for being a part of it.

Upcoming Events!

Still time to host a Premeir Party we will recieve 20% of profits from any party book for LET'sMOVELIAM contact Jen Loveless for details!

August 16 is the 31 Party!

September look for the next back to school yard sale!

Bake Sale date TBD

Aloha!

We received a donation today from Hawaii! Thank-you!

What's the farthest you've traveled? Here's a fun fact: Liam was born in Indianna after I had traveled there for my sister's wedding! It was just a little bit of a surprise. When he was 18 months we traveled back to see the NICU staff and leave gifts for the new crop of babies. He's also been to ME, OH, PA, NJ, IL, and the UP (its really it's own country up there).

Travel is part of life when you're family's far away! We haven't done to much traveling as he's gotten older. Who wants to pack the pool? We're grateful to have friends who travel with kids to see us.

We had a visit tonight from the Athvale ladies and crew. Here's the only picture I took, to busy socializing. Just couldn't miss this moment. She wanted to know how his chair worked.

Coming Right Up

I can't help but think of fruit as jewels. Especially, when they have dew on them and they glitter in the early morning sunlight. Being the cool blueberry patch early Monday morning was, perhaps, the best way to recover from Saturday.

Liam picked and ate his fair share of the jewels. How could he resist? They were sweet, plump, and shimmering navy.

This is how I feel about the upcoming fundraiser, it's irresistible. Most of you know I'm not one to wear jewelry, I've been married for 6 years and still forget my rings! But, I love having the real deal. Stones, shells, and gold and silver that won't tarnish. I'm also not really a big risk taker. Anything, that looks good and is warrantied--people this has me written all over it! I've purchased from this company before so I feel comfortable recommending the products.

Best of all, ALL PROCEEDS BENEFIT LET'sMOVELIAM! Win-Win-Win!

Looking forward to seeing anyone who can make it! Please feel free to invite coworkers of friends if they're interested. Or if you'd just like to order and not attend, we can make that happen too!

Friday Night July 20 @ 6:30 at West Cannon Baptist Church

http://www.premierdesigns.com/jewelry.html

http://www.westcannon.org/

Prayer Moves Mountains, Prayer Moves GOD

My biggest fear was no one would show up. Matt's biggest fear was rain. We had nothing to be afraid of. Not because we can control our circumstances but because so many people were praying.

The garage sale was an overwhelming success! We raised a good deal towards our goal. But, what made it so successful was the unbelievable support of our community. The extra $20 here or $100 for the $1 purchase. And, all the neighbors of the Diamond block who donated, showed up and cleaned up. Friends from all areas of life came out in over 100' heat to just say, we're praying. What an amazing experience to watch God show up in the smiles of so many people.

Izzie bringing Liam some of her Artwork (she left with a princess dress)!

THANK YOU!

A special thanks to everyone who donated and to Matt's family and my 31family who tirelessly set up, sold, and cleaned up and watched Liam!


Just a little sale action. Note* everything in the picture is SOLD!

WATCH FOR OUR UPCOMING FUNDRAISERS!

JULY 20 at WCBC a PREMIER DESIGN PARTY

AUGUST 16 at GIRBC 31 PARTY


We're planning another yard sale in the fall, start saving your "treasures" if you'd like to participate! 

One more day of avoiding dehydration

On Sunday I will sit in the AC. But, tomorrow I will be out enjoying the company of friends and strangers all sent my way for some specific purpose. Maybe it's to help my son maybe it's so he can help them.

Whatever, thanks to all everyone for getting the word out and hopefully showing up tomorrow! Even if it's just for a lemonade. There really is comething for everyone! Who want the Drill Press and Table Saw coming in the morning? You could wear it with pink bobble brand new necklace from Old Navy.

Oh, and I had a fabulous slice of blueberry pie at Rose's today. All you allergy people will appreciate the nut, dairy, gf, and tasted good!

Rojo, Blanco, Azul

On the 4th we went swimming, picnicing and lounging. It was lovely. Very lovely.

Today we picked our first GREEN from the garden

Dear Lacey, My House needs you to visit so I am motivated to clean. Can't believe what a mess it has been. That's what happens with no central air, and 100+ degrees and garage sale donations all over. Still love the color of the kitchen. It's calming and my kitchen needs that!

Now back to Garage Sale Life here's the donations from tonight.

Size 8.5 Unlisted so cute!

Happy, Hot, Homebound

More donations are pouring in. THANK-YOU but I'm cut off  donations Friday at 6. If you'd like to make a donation please do it before then or call me. I just can't sort it all! We may make the decision to have another sale in the fall. So, if you really need to donate we'll get to you.

Here's last night and today's donations:

From last night: Kids clothing boys infant to 5 and girls infant to 16. Winter gear in great shape and adorable sweaters in 3T and 4T for boys. Girls includes a 7-8 leotard and slippers. Beautiful Winter Dress and Play Coat , Princess outfit, swim wear all 6-8. All the infant clothing is going in the free pile, it's older and some have light staining. Also, there's some big toys and action figures and lego people. They are all going in a Gallon ziplock bag for a $1.

Bath Tub Toys with Net!

Yes those are Bongo, silver heels size 7.5.

We also have 2 larger Computer Monitors and various kids and adult shoes.

From today, a box of fabulous books, including the Twilight Series. And, Rachel Ray cookbook, WW2 and aviation books just to name a few. In the box of knickknacks was a brand new Burt's Bee's lip set and a cigar kit still in the box. Haven't looked all the way to the bottom yet...more treasures to come!

Last one for tonight-Thank's Laurie!

Water? Lemonade? You decide.

Not sure how or when she did it, but Laurie made a create your own lemonade expereince for the sale. It's going to be hot so we really appreciate it!

If you can't find anything else you like, pick up a lemonade!

And, her kids made cards, isn't that cute!

One Man and a Truck

If you don't know Brian Anderson, you're missing out. He doesn't blog, tweet of FB consequently he'll probably never read this. But, his mom and sisters will pass it on. 

Anyway, he showed up last night, in his monster of a truck, with a round oak dining table and four chairs. It's well loved but sturdy. I think it's great as is but some crafty person I'm sure would have a vision for it.

He also brought a mini fridge, it goes nicely with the recliner, TV's and entertainment center of two posts ago. Stainless steel and the brand is GE. For the right price you might find a six pack included.

Last but not least the orange hued heavy glass with taper candle like bulbs wall sconces. They are something else. I'm still looking for the desiner's name. More info when I find it.

Anyway, big thanks to the Anderson's for their generosity and to Brian for defying all the stero types of his generation (that goes for his sister's too!).

Take a Break!

So, on our break from blogging we picked up lots of donations and we had a little fun. Next post back to the good stuff you can find at the sale.

Sharing an allergy friendly, flavor filled lunch. These two love to laugh!

(Please notice the life skills, self feeding, idependent mobility, social interaction, all in a stimulating environment.)









A day in the sun and water at Millenium Park! Last year Liam wasn't able to enjoy the water park. To stimulating and scary. This is his third trip this year and he asked to go. Also, he asked me to put him down so he could play. First time for that, next time we'll bring shoes so he can stand longer.

Still not quite at independent standing but getting there.

Craig's List Cronies

I took a little break from blogging. During the break I met 2 women who live in SE GR. They each donated over a van full to the sale. So the break was back breaking.

Thanks to an entreprenuer and a ebayer I give you the following items of interest:

TOYS! And, I mean toys, books, kids Christmas ornaments, Princess Pop tents, lots of it still in the box or original wrapping and in mint condition.  WEBKINZ about 2 dozen. Oh, and my favorite, a box of Rainbow Brite Dolls. I know I'm telling you my age.

Next there's the housewares stuff: Shelves, Light fixtures, Keyholders with cubbie's. I might need to shop my own sale. Christmas homey stuff: durable Winter Welcome Mats, and summery door wreaths. I forgot to mention African themed home decor and a beautiful Queen bed spread. Lots of nautical colored bed or floor pillows. If you want to redecorate we have about 20 boxes of wall paper border from kids to contemporary patterns. All still in original packaging and in matching sets. Enough to do a house or two.

Let's cover electornics: Games for Nintendo, more CD's some still in original packaging (everything from piano hymns to early Hip-Hop), DVD's. Oh and 2 TV's!

              (Just one box of DVD's)

(There's three of these cake pans, brand new)


And, if you need something to put the TV on how about a beautiful entertainment center, black wood with glass doors. Still need more, how about a midnight navy recliner to rest in while you watch the TV's.


Well that's it for the donations from the south end of town. Stay tuned for the downtown donations in the next post!

Just a word about the pictures: Our space is filling up, the pictures are what's on top. Sorry, I was to busy loading to snap. More later when the CL ads go up on Thursday. I'll link to them on the blog.