Thursday, July 27, 2006

What's at Stake

I'd had 3 book orders, so I was going to donate the sales to the Walk. Unfortunately, for some unknown reason, my card was denied, so I'd gone into my Paypal account to see exactly what I had to work with in there and what the friggin' problem was. I still don't know why Paypal denied the transaction, but I did discover that another order had come in that Paypal never told me about. (Bunghole Paypal!) So I just transferred it all to my bank account and I'll make the donation for all 4 from there when it shows up in that account. Redtape and technology eh? Anyway, I'll be adding $32 and 4 new names to the scrolling box in a few days. That'll bring me up to $1900. That other $100 to the $2,000 is already guaranteed, so it's just about time to raise my goal. I'm upping it to $3000, the total of the team goal. I want to be sure Team Nova raises at least that much, because we've made that much of a commitment.

We meet the reporter tomorrow. I'm really not the slightest bit nervous about meeting her and talking, answering questions, whatever. This is the part I'm excited about, this is the part that's important to me. Putting a face (or 2) to congenital heart defects. Statistics are easy to ignore, until they're wearing a sweet little smile and a pair of baby blues. I want the world to look into those eyes and understand that thousands of lives are at stake here.

I don't know how I earned this honor, but I am committed to it, with or without a newspaper story - this is just an extraordinary bit of luck, and I try very hard not to look a gift horse in the mouth.

Of course, I have no idea what to wear...

We did some more school shopping tonight, and I was not so lucky as last time. Four pairs of shoes, a backpack and some school supplies... Grand total, way more than I spent on Kassi and Bren's whole wardrobe. Ah well, they can't go barefoot. I had to get Bren's shoes tonight, since he goes to school in the morning, already. But Kassi's and Kory's went on layaway. Gotta get them while they're hot. Wait another 2 weeks and all that'll be left is flip flops and fashion disasters. The older 2 don't go back until the end of August, so they will live without them for another week or 2.

We've learned the benefit of using the self-checkout lanes at Walmart, and of course, that's what we did tonight. Unfortunately, we forgot that Terra was holding a lollipop and proceeded to walk out with it. You'll all be happy to know that I took it back in and paid for it, thereby teaching the children a lesson about the importance of honesty, and avoiding the woes of having a 3 year old with a $0.47 shoplifting charge on her rap sheet. I mean, as a minor, I'm sure her criminal records would expunged, or at the very least sealed, when she reaches adulthood, but I wouldn't want to take such a chance with youngest daughter's future for the sake of saving a few steps back into Walmart Shopper Hell... Right?

2 comments:

  1. You're a better Mom than I am, E. I stole a bag of coffee through the self-checkout thing at Wal-Mart, and mine was much more deliberate than "Jonas was holding it and I forgot." But I will say that I tried my damndest to find a sku for it, searched their user-unfriendly database for it, even set the damn thing off to the side of the conveyer belt with the intention of leaving it. But the lady who was next in line, being a kind soul, ran after me and tossed it in the cart yelling "You forgot something, Miss!"

    Frustrated, tired of being in the Super Hell, as you call it, and with a very much "screw it all" attitude, I just took the damn coffee with me.

    Yes, I am the reason for your high grocery bills. :)

    On a more serious front, I'll be thinking of you today as you have your interview, and dying to hear how it went. I know that you'll do great and give those two beautiful babies a stronger voice than anyone else in the world possibly could.

    Yes, you deserve this. You deserve it because, while most parents would be sitting around in a cloud of depression and self-pity (which would be completely acceptable after the loss of two children) you are out there trying, and succeeding, to make a different reality for all the other heart babies in the world.

    You deserve this because you are a compassionate, honest, wonderful person and you give of yourself until there's nothing left to give, and then you give some more. It's about damn time the world gave something back to you.

    Love you E.

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  2. Good move on the lollipop. This way, chances are she won't attempt to lift a sparkly purple Aziza eyeshadow from Walgreens at age thirteen, like yours truly did.

    Hey! I'm so excited to have received your books today! It was a real high point, and I thank you very much! Can't wait to sit down and enjoy.

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