I was so moved when I saw this video on Tara Whitney’s Blog yesterday. My oldest son Ryan and I watched the video together and decided that we wanted to start up our own campaign!

Our goal is raise $5000 by Christmas!! This is what $5000 can do!

Ryan had a great idea of making cards that Zander and Jayden can take to school to hand out. Ryan said he will deliver them door to door in our neighborhood too! I am going to email every one of my family members and ask them to donate instead of giving presents to the kids for birthdays and for Christmas (we have 3 fall birthdays!) I am going to donate $40 from each and every photo shoot I have from now until Christmas. I am going to raffle a photo shoot.  Jayden wants to bake cookies and sell them with a bottle of water for $20!

What I am asking of my blog readers is that you donate any amount you can!! $20 will give 1 person clean drinking water for 20 years!! No amount is too small!

Click here to donate

Click here to start your own campaign

Is there anything better then making a batch of chocolate chip cookies!! The smell of my home while they are baking is enough to make me want to bake them every day! Yesterday while Gabbi napped Ryan and I whipped some up. This is the best chocolate chip cookie recipe in the world (well we think so anyways)

Oatmeal Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup coconut oil
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup whole grain flour such as whole wheat or spelt
1/2 tsp of baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup rolled oats
3/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 cup chopped dark chocolate or chocolate chips

In a bowl mix together butter, oil and sugar. Add egg and beat until is smooth and pale yellow. In a separate bowl combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Add to butter/sugar mixture. Add in oatmeal, coconut and chocolate and stir just to combine. Drop onto baking sheet in 1 inch balls and cook at 350 for about 10 minutes.

Make sure you use the coconut oil and the shredded coconut, that is what makes this recipe!

And a quick note to let you all know that one of my favorite bloggers has a cook book coming out!!! So excited

I would like to introduce a new member of our family. Gracie is a 10 week old Golden Retriever puppy. She is such a doll!! And I am such a sucker for animals.

She is so calm (well compared to our other golden is is what I would call manic)

She is also super playful. She has a bad little habit of puppy biting, but she is starting to realize that it is unacceptable. Whenever she bites us I hold her mouth closed, look her straight in the eyes and say “NO BITE!!!”. She is not biting nearly as much now. She is a fast learner. Her previous family already taught her how to sit. And she sleeps through the night in her crate!

got her ears pierced yesterday!! She has been asking for a while now and she must have caught me in a weak moment while at the mall yesterday She was so awesome!! She picked out her own earrings, sat up in the chair, held very still, didn’t even flinch when the girls pierced them and then grabbed the mirror and announced to everyone how “petty” she thought she looked!! I agree!!