In case you haven't heard...

Nie's back! 

{...and sweet as ever}

we hoped for Nie....

...and it was another HUGE success!

The Mesa Nie sale was enormous, and many of you came to support the cause. Thanks for all your heartfelt generosity.....this sale raised almost $5000 more dollars for the sweet Nielson family !  That brings it to a grand total of about $10,000 raised between the two sales !!

For now i hang up the fanny, satisfied from a job well done :]

**get involved, there is always something you can offer, even if it is just your time :)

get dirty for NIE.

We need Nie volunteers the 2nd Nie community garage sale Saturday the 25th!  If you are interested in being a part of this great cause , and don't mind looking like a dirty scumbag for two days {see above picture from after last Nie fundraiser }...leave me a comment.

Thanks friends :) 

what gives?

Cluttered garage?? It's not too late to donate to NIE!!!

There will be a follow up garage sale in Mesa to carry on the success of our Gilbert sale {contact me csdike@yahoo.com if you still have things you want to give}.  Don't be fooled, we had way more than just "junk"....Like the last one, there will be raffle items, baked goods, and tons of good stuff that people have generously given away for this specific event.

Be honest with yourself now, have you used it the last year??...i didn't think so.  Go fetch your neglected goods and help this fantastic cause. Even if you aren't a big "garage sale person" this fundraiser is still for you!


Mark you calendars!!...for OCT 25th from 7am to 1pm.


**find other ways to give here.

chew on this

Just because summer is almost over, doesn't mean I can't still look hot. No, not that kind of "hot"...the sweaty-faced-jeans-are-sticking-to-my-legs kind of hot.

today's lows:

-having nothing but donuts and sugar in my stomach since last thursday (when life got even crazier than usual).

-having the air conditioning in my house stop working.

-trying to clean up my explosion of a house after the fundraiser in a stuffy 89 degrees. 

-the 11 loads of laundry (not exaggerating) waiting to be folded heaped on my bed.

...yet its redeeming qualities:

-Elyott came home from school with DRY pants.


-Adam is making dinner without being asked (wait, what?)


-I am officially done cleaning up the garage sale stuff (thank you MISTI!) YEE HAW!!!!

Shop it like it's hot!

And it was hot!  Thankfully, deliriousness and the one inch thick layer of grime coated on my skin protected me from feeling just about everything except for pure elation at the turnout of this event!

I chose to do a garage sale because in this tough economy many find it hard to just hand out their money, even in the face of an amazing cause.  I wanted to find a completely justifiable way for anyone to feel they could spend money on things they want to buy/need.  There are so many people who needed a way to help but couldn't figure out how...now they could!  Also...I am a huge thrift store girl, so i can appreciate a good find :)

Set up was nuts!  We were literally up to our neck in mounds of stuff to organize, clean, spray paint, and price. Can i just say how much i LOVE LOVE LOVE all of my friends (old and brand new) that worked countless hours two nights straight (into the wee hours)to bust out this sale.

And oh the treasures we found! Some highlights: granny panties that could have fit two people, you already saw the doll that could have come alive and killed any one of us in our sleep (if we had gone to sleep) a box full of creepy porcelain masks that one woman purchased all together (she should have won a prize for being so brave, bless her heart)  a plethora of awesome Huxtable family sweaters, and various bags of children's clothes smelling of feces (which we threw away, no worries.)  We even ignored the child labor laws and put our babies to work :) No minute was spared, we were in the zz-zz-zone.

If you weren't there in the first hour you have no idea how much stuff we had for sale, and the amazing transformation that clubhouse made.  Here are some pictures of before and afters to get a small idea of what we were up against (keep in mind none of these show the stuff that completely wrapped around the entire clubhouse patio areas outside)...

I set out with a goal to raise a humble 5 hundred dollars, and in the end we raised a little over $5000!!!!!

Basically i love everyone who was a part of the this. Kara i love your perfectly stated post that i hope you don't mind me pasting here...

chaos into calm

willing hands to work

cast-offs into treasures

time (a lot of it) into money

money for nie

sleep deprived and happy i write to nie,

i don't know you, but i will forever be touched by your fervor in this life.

i've been blessed to be a part of this event in your honor.

as you know, there are so many rooting for you.

i am certainly one of them.

my service was a drop in the bucket, i know.

i am just happy to have been a part.

Look at all my beautiful friends/slaves (many not pictured) A GINORMOUS thanks to Jolleen (my saving grace and kindred spirit :) Bert (my sister from another mutha and huge help for weeks prior), Stephanie and Lisa (my actual, very pregnant and amazingly artistic sisters), Emily (joleen's actual sister/slave, and our eye candy in the wee hours of the night ;), Kara (for slaving away on her birthday weekend and being willing to wear the smallest shirt :), Kami (for being the sweetest at taking orders and not leaving me alone Thursday night) Summer (who wins the award for all her fabulous ideas, calm presence and inappropriately stylish worker shoes), Courtney (for some of the cutest donations, cutest two year old and for laughing at all my stupid wanna be jokes),  Debra (two words: cinnamon rolls, and more pregnant help...okay that's six words:) my neglected and very supportive husband Adam, and let us not forget good old "FANNY".

And thanks, of course, to all other various donators and helpers and those who helped spread the word: Courtney (CJane) and  Reachel Bagley (as always!) and Lynda Hammond (the Garage Sale Gal) . Also Liz (for dealing with counting money at checkout when none of us sleepless girls could speak english, let alone add or spell), Misti P, Misti T, the clarks, Rodney, Rachel (Earl Photography) , Lisa and her homemade/canned good amazingness, Vanessa (Sashay jewelry) , Gordon Biersch , Z Tejas , Philosophy, Summer (yoga), Emily Heap(hair cut), Lisa Ebner(haircut), Carabbas , Neds Krazy Subs , Anna (babysitter and thankless clothes folder!) 

aaaaaand our bakers: Kari, Ann, Lisa B's cinnamon roll recipe, Amy, and Michelle V. who baked on her birthday!! And to all others who baked, bought, and made anonymous donations that i couldn't keep track of! Am i forgetting anyone?? sorry if your not listed...(The music is staring to play on my boring drawn out acceptance speech, so i'll stop) 

***Also, keep checking our blog for info on the Mesa Garage sale that Jolleen Hansen will be hosting in a couple of weeks.  We can't stop....we are crazed women on a mission. We challenge Mesa to a raise off!   

AZ♥NIE! 

JUNK-oriffic

Are we all dying of suspense!!!!

How much money did we raise??????

Not so fast! Be patient, like this worlds scariest doll (just yearing to be purchased).  

Let me first give my family (and feet) a little TLC and post a few good pics.  

(FYI: I lost my battle to sleep for a couple hours, FINALLY! I literally fell asleep face down on the floor mid conversation :)

Soon enough my friends...real soon.

fresh paint (and why i'm called odd jobs)

As the Nie Sale draws near, i find myself in the most "oddjob" state that i've been since i was pregnant with Sheamus. My morning starts: I walk to the "junk" cupboard for the umteenth time to try and find some chocolate "fuel", thinking that maybe in the last 10 minutes a king size snickers bar will have miraculously appeared amidst the picked over contents of pocorn and jello pudding mix (only now what i want is that straight instantly gratifying chocolate injected into my veins). On the way i see the stack of frames i scored at the closing hour of an estate sale last saturday with Bert ( i can spruce those up for NIE i think...ill take 'em.... fill a box for $1! HOLLA).  So i think i'll go look at the spray paint i have, and into the laundry room i go, where i see the NIE sign i painted last week (you are starting to get a idea of what my house has been like lately...paint on the floor, flyers on the counter, spraypaint by my hamper, emails up the wazoo, etc.) So i go to take it (the large YELLOW wooden sign) to the garage, clearly a more sensible storage place.

I open the garage to greeted by bags, signs, boxes, and furniture staring at me practically begging me to spray them first. My thumbs quiver at the memory of the 15 spray cans lined up in the laundry room. The frames can wait, i think, until i find some inspired artwork to fill them with, right? I pull out a pair of old wooden chairs (that i began and abandoned sanding in a fit of "oddjob craze" months ago) and start to tediously scrape the remanants of flaking paint in the crevices that were no match for my sander. 


 It is 11:30am. I take turns with one hand pitching "screwy" and batting with "darlin'" (aka. playing baseball with Sheamus), simultaneously and precariously scraping flaky paint with an old steak knife in the other. I then pull out the white spray can and let loose. As the first coat dries, i spot the wicker chair beckoning me from a dark corner ("me next!")...

...about 8 cans of spray paint, 5 hours , my 2 now practically bloody thumbs (who will likely strangle me in my sleep if these chairs don't sell for a million dollars) 4 diet pepsis, and about 6 neighbors who see me braless later (remember this was a spontaneous morning task) i look up, discouraged to find about thirty more things that also need my "special attention". I spend a while chatting with a good friend who brought some items to donate, and realize only after i go inside, that not only was indecently clad in my pajamas and covered in paint chips, but have a black mustache clinging to the peach fuzz on my upper lip! Glorious.

What will tomorrow bring?? more spray cans i presume...and hopefully good news from CJane's blog. That's right, there is a reason for this madness...6 very specific reasons: Nie, Christian, Claire, Jane, Ollie and Giggs to be exact. After a long day of toxic fumes and way too much caffiene, my sweet husband runs to fetch a woozy me some "emergency" tacos from my fav mexican dive, kisses my thumbs, and resists his urge to tease me for the random impulsive sequence of my day. He tells me i look beautiful in my cutoff jeans shorts (what else?) and now sunburned forehead. 

I think of Nie and her Mr. Nielson and how much they are fighting to be home again doing such random things (and would probably give anything for merely sore thumbs), their kids doing their best to have hope while missing their sweet parents, and amazing CJANE for all her incredibly generous accounts of her experiences loving those same cute kids. I am then reminded that even though this event may yeild a mere drop in the bucket of funding, and though none of this will bring them home any sooner, people need a way to be involved, to love thy neighbor as so many of you have for this family. I only wish (rather fantasize) i could inspire one person like the Nielsons and Co. have inspired so many to act out of love for a stranger. Tonight i will pray for NIE, and tomorrow you can bet i will be in my garage, spraying away...

...but this time i'll put on a bra ;)

going once, going twice...

Angie and Matt Sloan of Sloan Photographers are hosting their own online auction of a few photo sessions (wedding, engagement, etc.) to benefit the Nielson Recovery fund. This could be an opportunity to score a smokin' deal on some fantastic artistry.  To bid visit here.

**We still need donations for the "h♥pe for NIE" (sale scheduled for Sept 27th) Don't be shy!! Email me: csdike@yahoo.com. Thanks to those who have already offered your stuff and helping hands. We have a few sweet things that have been donated to auction off too. So you should at least come to the NIE sale. Here are a few things up for grabs so far...

♥Earl photography family session

♥Earl photography child session

♥Yoga classes w/ Summer

...also don't forget all the deliciousness that will be there too!

(and hopefully more to come!!)

...Like Sheamus, I just may be "obsessed" (for lack of a better term). If i had an full outfit to support this fam you bet your booty i'd be wearing it now ;)

NIE Charity garage and bake sale!!!

updates.... **find details for H♥pe for Nie Charity yard sale round 2 here.  **read why I'm doing the sale here. **find results of 1st amazing Nie Sale here.

What is cool even in the AZ summer heat??....wearing your heart on your sleeve! 

Admit it: you like to help, and (perhaps even more) you like to buy stuff.  Why not do both! Donate to a good cause (and purge your dust ridden household items) for the: "h♥pe for Nie" Nielson charity garage sale!

who: anyone who likes to give things or buy stuff

what: baked goods, furniture, silent auctions, crafts/art, and nick knacks

where: Agritopia community center

when: 7 am to 1pm sat sept 27th

(I will be accepting donations of sell-able non "trash" items (*very important!) between now through Sept 25th to put up for sale in this community effort!!  I'll store it in my garage just for you!...good for your husband, bad for mine ;) 

why: because we♥Nie!

We will also be selling some of Stephanie's famous favorite baked good recipes (and some fresh cinnamon rolls!!).  If you are interested in donating/volunteering your stuff, creations, time, entertainment (??) or if you just have mad baking skills please email me at csdike@yahoo.com

Get involved....sept 27th!!!

Nie Yoga!

Last night I went to Stephanie Nielson's Yoga class now lovingly taught by, her best friend and Blissful Living Studios co-worker, Reachel. In her honor and in efforts to supplement her recovery fund, they are donating the proceeds of the class directly to her family.  I have never done yoga, but decided this cause was a good enough reason to try it out.  It is $15 per class (or $85 for the whole month) Mondays and Thursdays...and i most definitely recommend it!  

So even if you're broke, and especially if your just "cheap", we all need to relax, we all could use more exercise, and we all can give a little love for Nie. I will be going Thursday @7:00 pm if anyone would like to join :)

*(i posted the info for the class above. A bigger version of this, as well as more on her story, can also be found here)

♥making connections is oxygen for life...Live beautifully like nie!♥

Nie Nie

This weekend, my friend Summer introduced me to a tragic story that i can't help but pass along, for this family needs all the prayers they can get. Being valley residents, many of you "Arizonians" may have already heard of this sweet family... 

Stephanie Nielsen is an amazing, dedicated, faithful, passionate, creative, inspiring, adorable, funny, (amongst many things) mother of four (not to mention excellent blogger). She has built up an amazing online following that is no surprise what-so-ever (take a look).  Incredibly hands on with her children and such a loving wife who has an outstanding take on life, she is an inspiration to me in so many avenues (and i don't even know this person!) 

Last week her and her husband survived a horrible plane crash and suffered severe burns on the majority of their bodies. They both remain in a chemical induced coma, in serious condition, and will be for at least the next three months while they undergo multiple skin grafting procedures. There are links from her site to her sister's blog who posts updates on their condition and their 4 sweet kids. Her incredible family's exemplary attitude, under these circumstances, is a great lesson to me of having faith in God's plan for us.  Check out their story....you will be captivated.  

We all need reminders of living and loving life as Stephanie always seems to on her blog.  Life is fragile and always unexpected, but it is always in our power to strengthen our faith and live the most meaningful lives we can with the friends and family we love.

(At the top right of my page I've posted a link that was created for anyone to donate to this family to help sustain them in their time of recovery and rehabilitation, or if nothing else, just keep them in your prayers)