Trip Info: Part 2

Hello again!

More trip details are included in this post.  This is the exciting part.  If you haven’t caught up on recent posts, you should check out THIS ONE and of course THIS OTHER ONE.  They both have important (and fun!) news.

So, here we get into some of the nitty-gritty...

The Jewett family is going to be driving across the US from Washington to get to the dog class in Xenia, Ohio.  This means they’ll be driving with four kids (yes, all of them are coming along), three adults, and one dog on the way back.  The drive is 5,126 miles round trip.

WHEW!  It’s going to be really really fun.  It’s going to be crazy.  It’s going to be tiring, and it’s going to be messy.  All these things are certainties.  Yes, there will probably also be some bickering and a lot of questions like, “Are we there yet?” and, “Can I have my snack?”  And you better believe we’ll mapping our rest stops according to Starbucks locations (kind of joking, kind of not).

But, even with all the “hard” parts, there will also be some visits with family, and special sight-seeing and miscellaneous stops along the way.  It's not going to be a straight drive-all-the-way-through kind of trip.

So, if you haven’t guessed already, we’re going to be fundraising to help pay for the trip.  Expenses to drive with everyone isn’t cheap, but seriously, who doesn’t love a nice summer road trip?

The Homewood Suites hotel in Xenia has already been booked for the two week dog class, and it’s a pretty nice place...

• 2 bedrooms with kitchenettes
• full breakfast each morning
• dinner four nights a week
• same hotel that most of the 4 Paws families will stay (BONUS!)
• (obviously) allows service animals

If you want to make donations towards our accommodations, you can contact Homewood Suites and speak with Steven Brown (4Paws Sales Manager) or Brian Wipprecht (General Manager).

Also, Ann Jewett (sometimes referred to as Corey’s Mom, or Grandma Ann) is coming on the trip as well.  She will be flying in--she's scheduled to arrive the weekend before the dog class starts.

So basically, we’re all excited to be a part of this adventure, and we can’t wait for Rosalie to finally meet her dog the first day.  Please be praying for all the details of the trip... from safe travels, to no car troubles, to inexpensive gas prices, and of course, good attitudes the whole way!

Thanks so much for checking in with the progress of this journey--we’re so thankful for you!

Trip Info: Part 1

Hi again!

Ha, I bet you’re reading this post thinking something like this, “Oh, I thought she wasn’t serious about posting something soon, guess she showed ME!”  Well, if you’re not, that’s fine too.  It’s not like I’m the best mind-reader.

By the way, if you missed our awesome update from a few days ago, you should catch up with your homework and check out THIS POST.  Okay, you’ve read up on everything?  Awesome-sauce.  I think you’re ready for the next step... it’s pretty epic--hold on!

So, not only is this whole adventure becoming a reality for the Jewett family, but it’s also becoming a reality to me personally.  Because--

WAIT FOR IT...

I get to go with them!

Hooray!  I get to road trip along with two adults, four kids, and a new dog back and forth across the country in the summertime.  If you think I’m being sarcastic about being excited, then you haven’t seen my iPhone full of pictures and videos of Rosalie, Kaylin, Holden, and Malachi... they take up about 90% of my picture storage.  In other words, I’m pretty crazy about them.  Oh yeah, and I kind of like Shawna.  And Corey’s good too.

It’s going to be a fun trip, and honestly, I can’t wait!  Basically I’ll be doing whatever needs to be done... whether it’s kid activities, driving for a stretch or two (or eight), unloading the van at hotels, telling bedtime stories, going to the grocery store, etc.

Okay, that’s all the epic news you can handle at this moment, but I promise there will be more to come... so check back with the blog soon--more trip details to follow!  And don’t forget to pass this info on to all your friends, acquaintances, and people you’ve barely met--the more support we have, the better!

Thanks for stopping by... until next time!

P.S. By the way, I’d love to hear helpful tips about traveling with kids... mostly because I haven’t been on this long of a car trip with a family for 13 years. :D

Long Awaited Update

Hello again everyone!

Yes, it’s been a while since the last blog post--but believe us, we haven’t forgotten about any of you!  In fact, we really wanted to extend a ginormous THANK YOU to everyone for their support of our journey in getting Rosalie her service dog.  If we could come to your house and hug each one of you individually, we would.  But then you might think we’re crazy, so we’ll go with a virtual hug instead:

Seriously, though, we have been feeling super blessed by all of you and your constant encouragement and support.  We have begun to really see this adventure become a reality, especially since Christmastime.  Sometime in January, the real-ness of our family getting a dog for Rosalie sank in just a little bit deeper for all of us.  It’s like we’ve turned a corner--and part of it has to do with a countdown we’ve begun!

We’re bubbling with excitement over this countdown.  The frantic running around to get all the details started and finished has begun.  The planning is beginning--this is the beginning of the end!

We know some of you have been waiting patiently to hear when we are getting Rosalie’s dog... maybe you already know...

The date that we are officially showing up for our dog class is August 5th, 2013.

This is reality.  

We have 115 more days until we get Rosalie’s dog.  

Only 115!  That’s amazing.  Oh my goodness, are you getting excited?  Because we sure the heck are!

Before we wrap up this post, we just wanted to re-thank all of you AGAIN for your support... it doesn’t go unnoticed.  Also, we’ll be updating the blog soon--so check back for more news.  Oh, and if you think we missed anyone in this update, please pass on the information to anyone that you think might be interested--the more people we get the word out to about Rosalie and her dog, the better!

Thanks again--you are truly the best ever.

ALMOST DONE! (no lie.)

Hi everyone!

It's been a while since the last update went out, so we want to rectify that by giving you some exciting news.

We have a new total.

We are very close to finishing the fundraising required ($13,000) to get a traveling date for Rosalie to a service dog.

We will be done fundraising for the dog once we have a little more money raised.

We can and hope to be done fundraising within the next few weeks (dare we even wish for the end of July?).

So, please pass this news on to your friends and family.  Pass this news on to anyone who hasn't donated yet, neighbors, grocery store clerks, exercise buddies, whomever you come across.

We are ALMOST DONE.

Here's our latest...

Can you believe it?

We are $1,249.28 away from being DONE!

If everyone on our Facebook group donated just $1.62 we would be DONE.  Or, if 50 people donated $25.00 we would be finished.  That's it.

So please, the sooner the better.  Don't put it off.  Donate today.  Share this news today.  Get the word out.  This is important.  No money, no traveling date.  No traveling date, no dog.

Help us out just a little bit more!

Follow the links on the top or side of this post, and donate in honor of Rosalie Jewett.

We need one more push!

Thanks for checking in, and be sure to share and pass this on :D  Every bit counts!

Finding a Furry Friend for Rosalie

Hi all!  It's been a while since our last update, but that doesn't mean we don't need your help, because we STILL DO!


In case you hadn't heard, the Jewett's only get to check their fundraising balance twice a month (on the 1st and the 15th every month), and we are coming up on July 1st, and anxiously wondering how close we are to the goal of $13,000!


So, if you haven't already donated to help Rosalie get a service dog, then please do so (follow the links on the side or top of the blog post, and make sure you mention "In honor of Rosalie Jewett" in the subject line).  And if you have already donated [THANK YOU SO MUCH!], please do us a favor and share this story with a friend, or five.  We still haven't reached the goal!


We said that we'd let you know when Rosalie's story was published in the Kent Reporter, and although we're not as prompt as we wanted to be in letting you know, you can still see the article here... it's pretty cool:

http://www.kentreporter.com/news/159085485.html

We had a picture and blurb on the FRONT PAGE of the paper (w00t w00t!) and we're super happy about the exposure.  As we've said before, the more the merrier!  And just in case you were wondering, there's a typo in the amount actually needed to train a service dog--the article says $27,000 is required by 4 Paws for Ability, but really it's $22,000, which is STILL a ton of money!


So make sure you share the post or the link with your friends... and keep telling everyone about Rosalie!


Thanks everyone!

HUGE Success!

Hello again!

Whew... what a weekend!  We think that the event was a GINORMOUS SUCCESS!  I'm thinking that everyone involved with the Fundraising Extravaganza (whether it was Garage Sale, Car Wash, Bake Sale, Hot Dogs, or Italian Sodas) is probably just as wiped out as I am... and if not, then you need to tell me what energy supplement you're taking! :D

First of all, before we reveal the grand total raised for the weekend and the current running total, we want to THANK all of you who helped, donated items, donated time, or just came and shopped.  We really really REALLY appreciate the support, and we couldn't have done it without you.

[Photo Credit HERE]

There are a few people who deserve a special 'mention' because they put in a lot of extra time, so be sure to thank them along with us for all their hard work:

• Megan Charvet for heading up the Garage Sale
• Eric and Rachel Anderson for heading up the Car Wash
• Susan Phillips for heading up the Bake Sale
• Peter Larsen for heading up the Hot Dogs and Italian Sodas

We know that they had lots of help too, but these guys organized and planned so much of the event to make it a lot smoother and less stressful for the Jewett family--thank you again!

In case you missed both days of the event, we have to tell you the truth and admit that you missed an AMAZING couple of days!  There were lots of shoppers getting great deals, and happy faces all around, whether they had just come from the Car Wash or Hot Dog stand, or even if they left the Garage Sale or Bake Sale with a bag of goodies.  So many people came to shop but ended up donating more than what needed to be paid for--WE SALUTE YOU!  The donations really added up, and we're not gonna lie, we love the kind of people that just DONATE!

One highlight of from Saturday was when a couple brought their RV to the Car Wash for a Round #2 of the Fundraiser (they'd already had their other car washed and done some shopping).  The car washers did an extraordinary (and dangerous) job:

Yikes!  This was by FAR the biggest vehicle we washed... and probably the most interesting.  But there were other interesting tidbits going on around the sale... like temporarily selling out all the Hot Dogs... or getting a surprise donation of an electric guitar (a nice one too!) to sell... or the customer who bought ALL of the mocha brownies from the Bake Sale (ALL of them)!

YUP, we had a good time... but...

Fine!  Okay, okay, I know what you've been waiting for... You want to know what the total was for the TWO DAY event... you already read the other blog post, and you're anxious about how close we're getting to being done.  Well, the TOTAL monies raised from the FUNDRAISER are...



Drumroll please...





Keep drumming...




HERE! >>>>>

HOLY GUACAMOLE!  Isn't that A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!  Shawna's dream goal was around $6,000 for the event, and she really didn't want to plan another big event, so this total is an absolute BLESSING!  And now, we have the current TOTAL for all donations made before/ after the fundraiser so far...

We're so close to the goal of $13,000 to get Rosalie a service dog!  We're really hopeful that with your help and a little more work, we'll be done with the fundraising soon (like end of July hopefully) so the Jewett family can get their travel date sooner and start utilizing their dog for Rosalie when she really needs it! Keep praying for a speedy finish to the fundraising...

Thanks again to everyone who helped!

Until next time... stay classy!

Full Swing! and TOTAL $$ Raised!

Here we go!  It's the second day of the Fundraising Extravaganza for 4 Paws For Rosalie, and we're super excited about the results and the day to come.  (If you read to the bottom, you'll also see how much we've raised so far!)

Yesterday we had a HUGE turnout to the event, and all parts of the fundraiser were busy pretty much the whole time.  At the cash out stand for the Garage Sale, there was almost always a line of people waiting to check out, and for the most part, once they heard about where the money was going to, they were willing to donate a few more dollars to the cause!  But don't worry, if you weren't able to come to the sale yesterday, there's STILL tons of great treasure to look through... you seriously don't want to miss it!  I overheard one person saying that it was like looking through a small thrift store (which is true), but that the prices were better (which is also true!).  I mean, c'mon, clothes for 25 cents unless otherwise marked!  How can you get a better deal?

And the Bake Sale... don't even get me started... well, you already have--there are SO MANY great things baked up, that it's made ME pull out my wallet more than once.  I won't divulge how many Bake Sale items I digested, but let's just say that I was quite jealous of a friend who snagged a $12 Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie before me.  Very jealous indeed.  Again, still tons of goodies to go around.  One of my favorites were the Rice Crispies... they were actually on sale at the check out table in the Garage Sale area, and more than a few people decided to go for the add-on.  All for a good cause!

Thankfully yesterday's weather cooperated for the Car Wash, and today promises to be great too!  The workers were sending cars away squeaky clean and shiny, mine had to wait till today for that TLC, but I know that no matter who is in charge over there I'll get stellar service.

One last part of the event was super tempting to just about everyone... the Hot Dogs smelled amazing, and Italian Sodas came with sprinkles!  How can you resist?  More people were seen with one or the other than not.  What a blessing!

Everyone's excited about what's to come today, but before we head over there, we have an update for you on the total money raised at yesterday's part of the event!

From all parts of the Fundraising Extravaganza (Garage Sale, Car Wash, Bake Sale, Hot Dogs, and Italian Sodas) we raised...

$4,367.90!

Wow, can you believe it?  That's so amazing!  We started out with a little over a thousand in donations before the event, and we filled in the Goal Thermometer yesterday according to the totals we were getting from Shawna's count-up.  But $4,367.90 from the event ALONE?!  What a HUGE blessing!  We want to see that thermometer blow past the top total, and we can only do it with YOUR HELP!

Come down to Trinity Baptist Church in Renton and check us out!

We have only high hopes for today, so come out and support 4 Paws For Rosalie!