Wednesday, October 29, 2014

"Tied With Love"

Next Friday we are hosting a Thrivent Sponsered, Blanket Tying extravaganza at our church we're calling, "Tied With Love".  We're hoping for a night of fun, fellowship and lots of blanket making!

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans provided the Blanket Brigade with some grant money to use towards this event.  We'd love to see you there!  Mallory is quite excited for this good excuse to stay up past her bedtime. ;)

Here are the details:

Tied With Love
For Friends of ALL Ages!
Friday, November 7th
Open House from 6:30-9:00
Luther Hall in the basement of St. Paul Lutheran Church
100 South School Street, Mt. Prospect, IL 60056

Will will have fleece available for cutting and tying but you can absolutely bring your own if you have it and are looking for a time to put your blanket(s) together!

Please bring scissors (Fiskars really seem to work best) if you have them marked with your last name.  If you have extras you can bring to share, that would be great too.

We will be providing some snacks and drinks.
An RSVP isn't completely necessary, but if you know you're going to be able to make it I'd love it if you'd contact me and let me know so I have some sort of idea of how many people to expect.  I can be reached at blanketbrigade2013@gmail.com.

And, no!  You don't have to be a member of St. Paul to come.  The more, the merrier!
Hope to see you on the 7th!

We filled two carts with fleece.  We are VERY thankful for the nice ladies at the cutting counter at Jo-Ann Fabrics in Arlington Heights who now know Mallory by name.

She's pretty excited about "her" event.

Little Brother "helped" too.

Friday, October 24, 2014

On Friday we took a break from "Blanket Brigading" to celebrate finding out that Mallory's newest sibling is healthy and a...........

BOY!

Wednesday, October 22, 2014

A HUGE Donation!

Remember my friend Diana and her faculty and staff friends from Station Middle School in Barrington? You can read about them here.

On Friday evening Diana called me with some exciting news.  Last week was Colonial Week at Station.  The 7th grade boys and girls were scheduled to do some very "gender specific" projects.  Boys were to work with wood, and the girls were going to weave.  After meeting Mallory, the teachers involved thought it would be a better idea to have them work on a project that would be put to good use instead.

The girls were shown parts of our blog, fleece was purchased, and the girls set to work.  And BOY, did they work!  They wanted to present their blankets to Mallory today during their lunch hour.  OF COURSE we were happy to be there.  I told Mallory they made a LOT of blankets but I didn't tell her JUST how many.

Imagine the look on her face when she was told they made NINETY-FIVE blankets. 95!  That's a lot of warm Lurie's patients this winter!  Thanks, Station, for warming our hearts today.

Mallory thanking the 7th grade girls.

A stage full of blankets!

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

"I Want To Make a Blanket. What Do I Do?"

Thank you to ALL of you who have shown interest in this year's brigade.  I wanted to write a quick post outlining the "rules" (for lack of a better word!) for those of you who are new to our project!

Here's what you need to do:

Make a no-sew fleece blanket
-1.5 yards in size (Some people made 2 yard blankets last year.  Either is fine!)
-If you've never made one before, please refer to the "Blanket Tutorial" tab on our home page.

Take a picture of you/your kids with the finished blanket and send it to me so we can add it to the blog. 

Check back often at the Our Progress - 2014 tab to see pictures of all the proud, smiling, blanket making faces and their beautiful, colorful blankets.  (Mallory and I both LOVE this part!)



This next part is VERY important to Lurie's:
To prevent transmission of household allergens and other contaminants
-please launder and THOROUGHLY dry the finished blanket (fleece retains quite a bit of moisture.  They often feel dry when they're warm right out of the dryer even when they're not quite dry).
-place in a clean trash bag tied at the top.
-if you have more than one blanket, it is completely fine to place multiple, clean blankets in the same bag.

Contact Me at blanketbrigade2013@gmail.com to schedule a drop-off/pick up
or
Check out the "Where Do I Donate?" tab on our home page

Thanks again for your participation, love, and support!

Monday, October 20, 2014

A Note From Mallory

Hi Everybody!
Blanket Brigade has begun!
One of my favorite parts about last year was getting blankets from friends in different states.  This year I think we can get blankets from more states than last year!  Last year we delivered blankets from THIRTEEN different states.  Will you help me?  Every time we get a blanket from a new state, I will get to cover that state with a white heart because our blankets are made with love.
Thank you to everyone who helps!
Love,
Mallory

PS - Contact my mommy to find out how to get the blanket to us!


One heart for Illinois!

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Our First Blankets of 2014!

Over the summer my friend Diana called me up asking if we were going to be doing the Blanket Brigade again as the staff at her school, Station Middle School in Barrington, IL, was looking to do a fall service project.  At that point I was fairly certain we were going to do it, but this was the contact I needed to say, "Yup. We're doing this!"  I contacted Lurie Children's Hospital that same afternoon to schedule our drop off date.

A couple of weeks ago Mallory and I were invited to share our story at their staff meeting the same day they were scheduled to make their blankets.  I had no idea what to expect from a room of middle school teachers, but I think Mallory's excitement was a bit infectious!  As the principal asked, "What do you say, Guys?  Should we do this?" a round of applause followed and this incredible bunch got to work.

Within the hour, they completed 25 blankets!  It's amazing what happens when people work together, isn't it?  Needless to say, this event was a fantastic way for Mallory and I to get excited about this years collection.

Diana & her friends were ORGANIZED.  They had two blanket making stations at each table in the school's library each with two pieces of pre-cut fabric and two pairs of Fiskars scissors.

Pretty sure the PE teachers thought it was a competition to finish first. (They did!)  I got a kick out of that!

As they worked, Mallory went around schmoozing the crowd, sharing stories of last year and helping tie knots.

She made quite a few new friends that afternoon.

Tallying the finished blankets and getting high fives!
Many thanks to Diana and the staff at Station Middle School!  We are so happy to have gotten the opportunity to work with you!


Monday, October 13, 2014

Blanket Brigade 2013 Recap Video

Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU, Kelly Zea for using your talents to bless us with this amazing gift!  Mallory has watched it at least two dozen times already! xoxoxo

Round Two!

Welcome!  Or perhaps we can say, "Welcome Back!"

Last year was SUCH a huge success and brought so much joy to so many people that we are VERY excited to announce Round Two of the Blanket Brigade!

In 2013 we started collecting blankets the week of Thanksgiving and delivered on December 30th.  This year we are doing things a little bit differently and starting Round Two during a time of year that isn't QUITE as busy for most people.  We'll be collecting blankets from now until the Sunday before Thanksgiving, November 23rd.  Our drop-off date at Lurie Children's Hospital is scheduled for Monday, November 24th.

You can view the story behind the Blanket Brigade or find a Blanket Tutorial (which includes how to care for the blankets) by clicking the links on the right side of the home page of our blog.

THANK YOU!  We can't wait to see what 2014 brings to the Blanket Brigade!