4th Shipment for Ordinary Grace

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If you are new to the Kidspired Creations community, then check out the work we do for Ordinary Grace.  You can also check out our 1st shipment, 2nd shipment and 3rd shipment to learn about each of the cancer warriors and their siblings.
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I have just mailed the 4th shipment of grace boxes for Lauren to fill with lots of goodies for FOUR cancer warriors and SIX of their siblings.  FOUR families with a total of TEN children whose lives are affected by this terrible disease.  Please lift these children and their families up in prayer as they make these extremely difficult journeys.

Being 9 months pregnant with Baby #3, I asked for some help in painting all 10 of these boxes.  I want to thank Jess R. for taking time out of her busy mommy schedule to help me finish these grace boxes!  Also, a HUGE thank you to our donors Jessica D., who covers the shipping costs involved with sending the boxes to Lauren in Tennessee, and to Jana W., who covers the cost of each of the boxes that are personalized for each child.  Your time and donations are a huge blessing to me, Lauren, and each cancer warrior and their families!  THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR CONTINUED PRAYERS FOR EACH OF THESE FAMILIES!!!  KEEP 'EM COMING!

  

Cancer Warrior Mia, age 6

Siblings: Charlie (5) and Genevieve (18 months)

Mia is battling Medulloblastoma, a form of brain cancer

Cancer Warrior Elizabeth, age 5

Siblings: Bryce (9) and Kate (7)

Elizabeth is battling Lymphoma.

Cancer Warrior Shelby, age 7

Siblings: Zoey (7) and Harlee (5). 

Shelby is battling a rare form of cancer called LCH.

Cancer Warrior Caden, age 4

Caden is battling ALL (Leukemia).

(You must have a Caring Bridge profile in order to access Caden and Elizabeth's Caring Bridge links.)

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Update from Lauren, founder of Ordinary Grace via Ordinary Grace's Facebook Page on Grace kids who we have sent grace boxes to:

March 13, 2012
"I am heart broken to share the news that our Grace kid, Ava Nichols, has lost her fight with brain cancer at the age of six. I had the honor of meeting Ava the year before last and it is a memory I will never forget. Ava had an adorable smile and contagious laugh that captured the hearts of all who met her. Ava was diagnosed with Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma (DIPG) in March of 2010 and fought long and hard for almost two years. Suffering a stroke last year, Ava faced many set backs but she never gave up. Please keep the Nichols family in your thoughts and prayers during this extremely difficult time."


April 5, 2012
"Urgent prayers needed for our Grace kid, Collin Henry: 'Super scary is what the last few minutes have been, his heart rate is over 200, fever is too high for the thermometer to read, shaking violently and screaming about his tummy hurting, kid is really wigging me out...I had to put a nurse on guard to keep Lacey and Patrick out so they wouldn't freak out if they saw him....kid totally wigged me out there! They did some labs, a stomach xray and gave some more morphine.'"  (Message from his family.)

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3rd Shipment for Ordinary Grace

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If you have not yet read about Ordinary Grace in my earlier post, I encourage you to check it out and then come back and finish reading this one.  You can also check out the 1st Shipment and the 2nd Shipment for Ordinary Grace...  Enjoy!
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I just completed the 3rd shipment for boxes for Ordinary Grace.  This time, 9 boxes were shipped out for pediatric cancer patients and their siblings; 9 kids too many whose lives are affected by cancer. Hopefully these grace packages will bring smiles to 9 precious and beautiful faces.  Let's lift these families up in prayer as they face many ups and downs this holiday season!

 These Grace Packages will be sent to the following cancer warriors and their siblings
(Please visit the websites of those with links for updates):

Lilly, 2

Cancer Warrior

Wes, 5

Cancer Warrior

Ebin, 6 months

Sibling of Cancer Warrior Wes

Ariel, 5

Cancer Warrior

PJ, 10, & Isabel, 7

Siblings of Cancer Warrior Ariel

Collin, 5, & Patrick, 7

Brothers and Cancer Warriors

Lacey, 10

Sister of Cancer Warriors Collin and Patrick

 

 

 

My "interns" bringing shipping boxes up from my art studio.

2nd Shipment for Ordinary Grace

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If you have not yet read about Ordinary Grace in my earlier post, I encourage you to check it out and then come back and finish reading this one.  You can also check out my 1st Shipment for Ordinary Grace.  Enjoy!
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PRAYER REQUEST FROM ORDINARY GRACE 5/24:

Our Grace kid, Ava Nichols, that we posted about previously has been transferred to the PICU due to a recent stroke and two long lasting seizures this morning.  Please, again, keep Ava and her family in your prayers.

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I have finished the 2nd order for seven more Grace boxes for Ordinary Grace.  Before I show you pictures, I want to first thank two ladies who are donating to help me cover the cost of buying and shipping these boxes.  Jana W. has volunteered to cover the cost of all the boxes that I have purchased for the Grace kids!  THANKS, JANA!!!  Jessica D. has offered to cover the shipping costs to get these boxes from New Iberia, Louisiana to Nashville, TN!  THANKS, JESSICA!  These ladies are truly awesome and have HUGE HEARTS!  Thank you so much!!!

Kidspired's Creations:

  

Kate, 7

Cancer Warrior who has recently relapsed

 Olivia, 9

 Sister of Cancer Warrior, Kate

Will, 5

Brother of Cancer Warrior, Kate

Trevor, 8

Cancer Warrior who was just recently diagnosed with Leukemia

 

Ethan, 12

Brother of Cancer Warrior, Trevor

 

Jack, turning 4 this month!

Cancer Warrior battling Stage 4 Neuroblastoma

Braden, 1

Brother of Cancer Warrior, Jack

 

Please lift these cancer warriors up in prayer as they battle this illness.  Also, please pray for their siblings who have to witness their brother or sister in pain.  Some are too young to understand, but it may be even harder for those siblings who do understand.  Pray for dear little Ava who is having a rough time right now and is being cared for by nurses in doctors in the PICU.  Thank you for your prayers!

1st Shipment for Ordinary Grace

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If you have not yet read about Ordinary Grace in my earlier post, I encourage you to check it out and then come back and finish reading this one.
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I have finished my first order of boxes for Lauren's "Grace Packages" that she will be shipping to pediatric cancer patients and their siblings across the world!  Though only 16 years old, she is truly making a difference in the lives of these fighters and their families through her organization, "Ordinary Grace."  Lauren, a huge advocate for childhood cancer, has recently flown all the way to Missouri just to participate in a 5K for Braden's Hope, a foundation that raises money and awareness for childhood cancer.  This girl truly amazes me!

Kyra, age 3

Sister of a Cancer Warrior

Lena, age 4

Cancer Warrior

Ava, age5

Cancer Warrior

Luke, age 5

Brother of a Cancer Warrior

Shelly, age 6

Cancer Warrior

Hayden, age 12

Brother of a Cancer Warrior

Kaylee, age 14

Sister of a Cancer Warrior

Labels on the inside of each of the boxes.

I want to give a HUGE shout-out to my friend Jessica D. and her family.  I got this message from her the other day after I posted about Ordinary Grace:

Yesterday at lunch I was walking back to the office and found some cash on the ground. I couldn't find anyone around to ask if it was theirs or if they saw whose it might be. And it wasn't like there was a lost and found to give it to. So I put it in my desk and said I would think about someone/place to donate it to. It was only $7 so thankfully nobody lost a lot of money. As I was leaving for the day, I said a prayer for God to tell me who to give the money to plus additional amount from me. And right after that I checked my Facebook and saw your message....

She has since decided to cover the entire cost of shipping for these 7 boxes!  What an incredible blessing!  If you would like to help out in some way, please e-mail me at kidspiredcreations@gmail.com, message me on Facebook, OR better yet, contact Lauren at lauren@ordinarygrace.org.  I only help out by providing boxes and sending them to Lauren.  She is the one who fills them and sends them to cancer warriors around the world.  Any little bit helps!!!

EXTRA "Ordinary Grace"

After becoming inspired by different small businesses such as UCreate and Little Bird Vintage Designs who are reaching out to help raise money for Japan through creative measures, I prayed for a way to make my painting "purposeful."

The next day, I received this e-mail:

"Hi there! My name is Lauren, I am sixteen and I run an organization for kids with pediatric cancer, "Ordinary Grace." I send 'Grace' packages and baskets to children fighting cancer all over the world. I pay for everything out of pocket and enjoy every second of it! For non-local kids, I send a Grace package with a blanket, a painted canvas with a gold ribbon (childhood cancer symbol) and their name, an essential bag for their parents, and a small decorative box (like the one pictured) for the child and their sibling(s).

I put items like play jewelry, silly bandz, beanie hats, play dough, coloring books, crayons, stuffed animals, etc. in the boxes. I have been looking for a unique box to include from now on in my packages. I came across yours and it is absolutely perfect. I wanted to see if you would be willing to donate a few or possibly give me a discount? I would like to start using these, or ones similar to it, in every package...would it be possible to purchase a large quantity?

Thanks for any help!

Blessings,

Lauren"

God is truly amazing!  He answers prayers in perfect timing!  It is by His grace that I have met this angel of angels who is truly making a difference in the world by putting a smile on the faces of kids and their family members who are trying to fight this nasty battle.

So I immediately make a trip to Michael's and right outside is a huge display of BOXES on SALE for $1.50 each!  Normally, these photo boxes cost me closer to $5!!!  God is so good!

Kidspired Creations will be personalizing the boxes for Ordinary Grace's "grace packages" to be sent to pediatric cancer patients all over the world!  If you are interested in helping me purchase and ship boxes to Lauren so she can fill them, please contact me at kidspiredcreations@gmail.com for details!

While I found these boxes on sale, they will not always be so cheap and shipping is ridiculously expensive these days... so every little bit helps!

MORE IMPORTANTLY, if you would like to donate to Ordinary Grace, please visit the donations page for ways that you can help.  You can either donate money or items to go into the box.  Lauren has also posted a free printable coloring page that your kids could color and send to her to include in her grace packages!

And lastly, the best thing you can do is PRAY!  Pray for the kids that they beat cancer so they can live normal, happy lives; pray for the parents, siblings, family and friends whose hearts are aching for their little ones; pray for the doctors that they do everything they can to help these precious children; pray for Lauren and "Ordinary Grace" that her grace packages deliver instant smiles and make the long hospital stays a little more tolerable!  Your prayers will go far!

Meet Lauren:

'Ordinary Grace' on the News

Learn more about 'Ordinary Grace':

Please "LIKE" Ordinary Grace on Facebook for updates on kids and deliveries!