Lemonade Stand

We have a dear family friend whose son, Will, has been diagnosed with Sanfilippo Syndrome. In my very elementary understanding, children with Sanfilippo have an enzyme deficiency that causes their body to store harmful substances. These substances build up in the body and cause progressive damage and eventually death. There is no known cure for the disease. Life expectancy for kids with Sanfilippo is 10-20 years. Will is 6 years old.

JD, Piper, and I have talked about Will at length this summer. A few weeks ago, we stopped by a yard sale his family was hosting to raise money for Sanfilippo research. The kids decided that afternoon that they wanted to do something to help. Since they are both a little too young to mow yards or babysit (except for Kai), there weren't too many options. They finally decided to open a lemonade (or kool-aid) stand and set it up every few days in front of the house. Now, I must explain that we live on a cul-de-sac and get very few cars pass our house. It is also 95 degrees in Alabama so I don't let them stay out for more than a couple of hours at a time. So far, they have raised more than $18 for Miracle for Will. At 25 cents a pop, that's a lot of selling. I'm really proud of them.

So on to the funny part of this story. The other day Piper was sitting outside in the scorching sun at the lemonade stand. She sat and sat and not one car stopped. I felt so bad for her that I wanted to call my neighbors and beg them buy a drink (but I didn't!) From the window, I saw Piper grab her sign and start to walk down the driveway towards the house. I thought she was sun burned, frustrated and giving up. When she got inside, she huffed up to me and asked me to look at the new sign I had made for her (sidenote: Piper and JD had previously made a beautiful handmade sign that Kai had just torn up.) Take a close look at the sign I made:

Twenty-five dollars! Uh-oh. Mommy made a mistake. No wonder no one bought a cup of the dang Kool-aid. I wouldn't spend $25 on a glass of wine from the Last Supper.

I know, you guys thought I was perfect and here I go bursting your bubble (again.)