My packet came in!

Well I finally got my sponsorship packet in and I am filling out the card as I type. I am so excited to hear from her and I hope that her eyes light up when she receives my letter to her. Ive already went out and bought some bandaids and cute notepads so I can send some to her. I know this is a short post but I am busy busy with work.

sponsored kids need to feel loved

I wanted to write a little post about writing to your sponsored children. I know that the very first day I picked and sponsored my little girl from the Philippines I wrote her an email. Once that email gets to the center where she lives it will be translated and she will receive it. She will then be able to write or draw me back.

It doesn't take long to write an email or a letter. Everyone should be able to spare 10-15 mins once or twice a month. These letters will let your sponsored child know that you really are thinking about them and that you do care. This can form lasting bonds and you and they will be able to share personal things and prayers for each other.

Something else to remember is that you can sent small "gifts" to your sponsored children. I am planning on sending pretty band-aids, coloring pages, and some stickers to my little girl once I receive her information packet. I am also going to let my daughter color pictures for her.(I might have to join her in the coloring)

Just remember that when they are in that situation is is easy for them to feel like they are worthless and that no one cares. By writing you are correcting that thought process and you give them a little sunshine on the days the letters arrive.

crochet for charity

I thought I should add that in addition to small ads on the right side of my blog to generate profit to assist with sponsoring I am also making crochet items and selling them. my first item is a crochet beanie in hot pink, I am asking 6$ shipped for this item and will use all profit to sponsor a new child.I am also interested in taking requests. If anyone has anything they want me to try my hand at I am willing to do so.

Isn't he a cute model? :-P

A sunday thought

Today we had to go visit my fiance's parents. They live about 38 miles from the house. The whole way there I was thinking about how much gas that is going to cost us as we have been trying to live frugally for a while now. We put 20$ of gas in the car and took off. As I was driving I couldn't help but think of all the ways we could be saving money to sponsor our next child. To go out to eat this past weekend I spent 35$ on 5 people eating. I couldn't believe it when I got the bill, we only got pizza and cheese fries. So I thought about it and have disided the next time we want to eat out we are going to make a pizza and make cheese fries at home and have a picnic. I have been noticing more and more the ways I can cut money costs to save for my next sponsor. I don't need to buy cokes for the family, that's a bunch of wasted calories anyways. Why not make some tea? a box of tea makes roughly 30 gallons and costs less than a 12 pack of store brand soda. Just by not buying cokes every week I am saving around 20$ a month. Theres almost half of a month of sponsoring. Ill be doing more thinking, planning, and adjusting to see just how much I can cut off our budget and will let everyone know what I have come up with sometime this week.

In the mean time why not go read about compassion international at www.compassion.com

In the next few days I'll be posting more information about the organization as well as some frequently asked questions.

Perspective

To shed a little light on the girl I am sponsoring in the Philippines I thought I would show you all some figures. My sponsored childs family consists of 6 children and their mother. They are living on roughly 78$ a month. Now you may be thinking "well since they are from another country cost of living will be different, right?" This is only partially true. With their 78$ a month they pay for electricity. The cost to light their one roomed home is roughly 20$. There goes nearly a fourth of what they made all month. Now say someones clothes are too worn to wear. To buy a new no name brand shirt costs a little under 4$. They need some toiletries right? soap is 1$. might want a little hygiene added in too right? toothbrush and toothpaste 3$ (now remember this is 7 people sharing all of this). There goes 28$ in a month. that leaves 50$ a MONTH for things they need, food, water, schooling, transportation, anything they could need in a month. Thats 30-31 days living on what most people can make in one day.

Could you do it? Probably not. Now if that 78$ can be made in one day by us, why not spend half of that one day on sponsoring a child for a month? You would be improving their quality of life tenfold. and what are you really missing out on? That's 7 trips to starbucks. That's one night of eating out. That's 2 hardcover novels (sometimes even just one!)

It may seem like a lot to you right now, but think about what that is to them. If you think you can spare the 38$ a month then click on the image on the right side of the blog and sponsor a child. You can pick a child based on age, gender, location, and even birthday.

Nuggets of Knowledge

For this post I am going to talk a little bit about compassion international. They provide child development in 26 different countries. Their idea of care is not to just put food on the table and clothes on their back. This idea of care involves more than just nutrition and health, they have included religion and are committed solely to the children. Now with the mention of religion I want it to be known that they do not force the children to take on the Christian faith; they merely present it as an option. Also, this teaching is based on their country. They are not forcing American beliefs onto these children. Everything that is taught and shown to the children is culturally relevant based on their location. Children that are not and do not want to be Christians are not shunned; they are cared for just like all the other children. They give the option, but they nor their families are ever scolded for not converting and that is something I feel great about.

Also a point to remember is that when you sponsor a child through compassion YOU are their ONLY sponsor. You are not sharing this child with others, and you are not giving money to their community. Your sponsorship benefits the child and their family directly. I know when I started looking into sponsorships I saw many of the well known sites discussing how the funds were delivered to the community and were used to provide life improving facilities. While yes, these would help the child slightly, they do not directly impact their quality of life. An example: if you provide 20 dollars individually and so do 10 other people that is 200$. Now say this money is used to buy livestock for the community. The livestock will help everyone in the longrun with food, but right now the children see nothing of your money. They are still hungry now and they still do not get the medical attention they need. With compassion you are sponsoring one single child. That child will know you love and care about them because they will see it every day. 

I will continue writing about compassion as well as including any correspondence that I receive so you all can learn as I do.

A late start for a new change

I would like to start out by saying thank you for stopping by and I hope you find this blog an inspiration to start you own personal changes. I am a fan of reading blogs and through one that I commonly frequent I found information about an amazing opportunity, Compassion International. Through reading about the bloggers on the trip to the Philippines I have found the courage to start sponsoring myself. I have a little girl that I am sponsoring from the philippines and I hope to make a huge impact in her life.

I also have made it a goal of mine to sponsor 10 children by the end of this year. I know it is possible and I know that many people who do sponsor do so with many children.

If you are unfamiliar with compassion I encourage you to visit their website at www.compassion.com 

You will find all the information that you could ever want. I am in the process of recieving my first childs packet and it should be here within the next week and a half. I will be updating the blog often to give you information about compassion as well as information about my communications between my sponsored child and our family.

Pray that I will find the opportunity to sponsor all the children I want. If I do make it to 10 children my next goal is to visit my first sponsored child. I know this can be done, I have faith.