Charity Begins at Home

So, more news of progress for the big day, which is in two weeks time.

No. I am not talking about a Royal Wedding, thankfully.  Just the charity event I am organising for the 14th May.  If you are new to this blog, you can find out what we are doing and why by clicking on this link and reading the post.

I still have no caterer. This is causing me mild levels of hysteria.  The only person I have found so far wants to make a guaranteed £200 from the day or will expect us to pay the difference.  This difference will have to come out of donations, so we are declining his offer.  I understand that people need to make a living, and there is nothing more disheartening than turning up to a gig and making no money, but £200 is a lot of money, and as I have no way of guaranteeing how many people will turn up, or indeed even if many people turn up, whether they will all want to eat this man’s fare, I am going to turn him down.

Jason is scamping all weekend.  The place where he scampers is full of catering units.  He is going to ask around for me, and I have a few other leads to follow next week when everyone is back at work, which is why I am only mildly hysterical about this.

The children and I spent most of the afternoon and evening yesterday making a prayer board, thus:

I am very happy with it.  It is however, rather large.  I got enthusiastic and did not think it through properly.  I now have transport problems.  I think I may have to rope my dad in to help me. He has a significantly larger car than me.  All will be well.

I varnished the board today. It is only made out of packing case cardboard reinforced with duct tape, and collaged to within an inch of its life.  It needed a bit more protection.

The idea is that we will supply postcards and pens and push pins, and for a donation, people can write messages and prayers on them and pin them to the board.  I think it is a cool idea.  It is not my idea. It is Keith at Zen Mischief’s.  Not only is it his cool idea, but he is donating 100 Tibetan prayer flags so that those people who don’t want to put what they are feeling into words, can donate and pin up a flag instead.  I think it will look indescribably beautiful when it is full of messages and flags.

Lovely.

Donations for prizes are still coming in.  A generous reader; Henriette Edlin who runs a company called Bella Mama in California, has donated a pregnancy skincare kit, all the way from the USA. Props Henri.

The ever delicious Home Office Mum, has been pulling her super PR strings for me over the last few days and I am eagerly awaiting the most needful book tidy from the aptly named Tidy Books company.

I covet this item:

It is very, very shiny, no?

UE has come up trumps.  He has sent me two, huge boxes of stuff from his company Salad.  Salad does not do anything whatsoever to do with eating green, leafy things, and very much lots to do with the world of Neuro Linguistic Programming and other life coaching type things.  I have card sets which help you find ‘instant happiness’, and a CD to match.  I have sets of NLP Coaching Cards and audio CDs that are entitled: ‘Uncovering your Highest Quality of Mind’.

Obviously I do not need these, ahem, having lived with him for ten years I am so spiritually enlightened I have to wear dark glasses to stop myself blinding myself, but I hear they are hugely popular with other people.

Tallulah has donated three, brand new, never been opened, Rainbow Magic Fairy books by the ever abundant Daisy Meadows. You have no idea how massive this sacrifice is to her.  I am impressed.

Not only that, but the children have wandered up and down our estate today, leafletting every house, and selling raffle tickets where they can.  Despite the fact it is a hot, bank holiday weekend and most people are away, they have sold over £20′s worth of tickets, which is amazing.

We have also hit every shop in Broughton Astley with posters advertising our walk.  The children were most impressed by the computer shop, where the owner has a teacup chihuahua puppy the size of my palm, which jumped all over them like a flea on steroids.

Payment enough for a day of charitable toil.

I now have many cakes to bake.  I am being aided in this by the wondrous Hairy Farmer Family, who has promised me some of her justly famous cup cakes.  I am hysterical with excitement about this. I have been the recipient of HFF cakes before, and they truly rock my world.  I say this as a woman who eats cake on a daily basis. I know of what I speak.

I was going to bake this evening, but in between all this philanthropic activity and Jason’s absence, and Oscar and Tallulah’s perpetual war against each other and me, I am knackered. I am off to sofa surf with Nancy Mitford’s Wigs on the Green.

Remember, if you want tickets for this raffle, I will post your prize to you if you win something, because I am kind.  Tickets are £1.00 each.  There is a list of other prizes here and here.  Please donate your ticket money to my Just Giving page and e-mail me either at katy@cheekymonkeymarketing.com, or drop a comment in the comments box and I will mail you.

To everyone who has already donated this way: Mrs Jones, Alienne, Libby, Sophie, Jo and Bev, I have your tickets. I have written them all out.  I will dig out the scanner in the next day or two and scan your tickets and mail you with them.

I also promise not to run off with your prizes, even if you win the ones I really want.

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