Linjit has Landed in the Philippines

Linjit has landed in the Philippines to complete her documentary "Gwapa". We are so proud of her Linjit for helping raise awareness of cleft affected children around the world and their barriers to treatment. Send your prayers out to Linjit and the team. If all goes well and their success continues they will find themselves at Sundance Film festival. We sit and wait for status updates on the children undergoing their cleft repairs and pray that all goes well.

The Tooth Fairy is a Fraud Okay!!!

The Tooth Fairy and competitive kids do not mix...nope not one bit. One 2nd grader yahoo looses a tooth and the other second grader will work and work and work until their tooth comes out. Next thing you know I have HooHaa coming to me with a large molar telling me he would like 20 dollars for it since it is so big. I tell him no - 1 dollar like the others. He askes for ten dollars, I hold firm at one dollar. Next he tries for five dollars and I say no one dollar is my final offer. He then tells me no thank you he would rather keep it for himself and negotiate with the tooth fairy on his own. Guess who will be doing all of my barting next trip to China?

Blues Clues rise Again

Looks like it's going to be a blue new year. Yesterday I sent in Canoley to take a shower. When she was done, I went into the bathroom to make sure all of the towels were picked up and noticed shades of blue finger prints all around me slightly reminiscent of blues clues. 
Blue tub, blue walls, blue cabinet, blue door. I was completely stumped what could be so blue. Then I remembered seeing Canoleys hand...it too was blue. Thinking at the time it was ink from a marker, I had ignored it.

I called and asked Canoley what was blue and why was it everywhere in the bath room. She looked blankly at me and said her usual..."don't know."

I walked back into the bathroom and opened the cabinet to get the cleaning wipes and noticed an unwrapped blue toilet bowel tablet placed nicely on the shelf. I had found the clue to my blue and discovered that Miss Canoley learned the hard way that blue toilet bowel cleaning tabs do NOT make very nice bath fizzies.

Au Revoir 2011 don't let the door hit ya in the butt

Tonight is a very good night. Yes a very good night indeed. 2011 kicked my butt, and I have lived to tell or not tell as the case may be with the lack of posting to this blog.

In a nutshell 2011 will be the year of:
Thyroid Cancer Cleft Surgery
Four kids 2 different schools
Commuting for the first time in 11 years
Going back to work for someone else
Juggling two jobs
Paying off taxes - yuck!
Old car issues
Old house issues Starting the process of moving
Ending the process of moving
Finishing my graduate program at Stanford University- FINALLY after many years!!!

Needless to say, I survived and more importantly, those around me survived. I am looking very forward to 2012. Something about the sound of it. Or maybe it is as simple as I think even numbers. Regardless I'm happy to start the new year and as always the promise of change it brings.

Cleft Affected Children - A documentary and how you can help

Gwapa, meaning beautiful in Visayan, is the fitting title of this vibrant, real-life story that follow two Filipino families and their struggle for a healthy future. Every year, 4,000 - 5,000 Filipino children are born with cleft lip, cleft palate, or both. Cleft lip and palate are two the most common and curable of birth defects. Sadly, most clefts go unrepaired in developing countries. Just one surgery can change a child's life forever. Gwapa (Beautiful) is Thirsty Girl Films' first feature length documentary dedicated bringing awareness to the high number of children born with cleft deformities in the Philippines and the great need for free reconstructive surgeries among the Filipino islands. This stunning and remarkable film will draw you into a powerful tale of strength, love, determination, and hope.

http://www.indiegogo.com/Gwapa-Film

Wise Words for Trying Times

Moshe ben Maimon (1135-1204) was a Jewish rabbi, physician and philosopher. He is most commonly known by his Greek name, Moses Maimonides (or more formally Rabbi Moses ben Maimonides), and subsequently many Jewish works refer to him by the acronym of his title and name, RaMBaM or Rambam.

According to Rambam, there are eight levels of charity, each greater than the next.

[1] The greatest level, above which there is no greater, is to support a fellow Jew by endowing him with a gift or loan, or entering into a partnership with him, or finding employment for him, in order to strengthen his hand until he need no longer be dependent upon others.

[2] A lesser level of charity is to give to the poor without knowing to whom one gives, and without the recipient knowing from whom he received. For this is performing a mitzvah solely for the sake of Heaven. This is like the “anonymous fund” that was in the Holy Temple [in Jerusalem]. There the righteous gave in secret, and the good poor profited in secret. Giving to a charity fund is similar to this mode of charity, though one should not contribute to a charity fund unless one knows that the person appointed over the fund is trustworthy and wise and a proper administrator, like Rabbi Hananya ben Teradyon.

[3] A lesser level of charity is when one knows to whom one gives, but the recipient does not know his benefactor. The greatest sages used to walk about in secret and put coins in the doors of the poor. It is worthy and truly good to do this if those who are responsible for distributing charity are not trustworthy.

[4] A lesser level of charity is when one does not know to whom one gives, but the poor person does know his benefactor. The greatest sages used to tie coins into their robes and throw them behind their backs, and the poor would come up and pick the coins out of their robes so that they would not be ashamed.

[5] A lesser level of charity is when one gives to the poor person directly into his hand, but gives before being asked.

[6] A lesser level of charity is when one gives to the poor person after being asked.

[7] A lesser level of charity is when one gives inadequately, but gives gladly and with a smile.

[8] A lesser level of charity is when one gives unwillingly.