And the Winner is...

Mitochondrial Disease Awareness! 

Thank you to everyone who participated in my giveaway or even read my blogposts for the past couple of weeks!  Mitochondrial Disease is still so very unknown to most people, and I am thankful for the opportunity to share it with you and to help generate awareness and raise money for research and a cure!

Between cookie sales and donations, we raised over $120 for the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation.  Plus, there were nearly 300 page visits to my 5 blog posts about Mito, so LOTs of people learned about Mitochondrial Disease.  Thank you!!!

I just made up these cookies last night for a Mito Disease bake sale today!  Thank you Molly!

Oh, but what you really want to know is who won the giveaway... so without further ado...

Congratulations to Melody Malone James!  

You are our winner.  Please private message me your address and I will get your prize in the mail to you with in one week.  (I need to go bake the cookies... ;^)

Thank you!
Sarah

F.R.O.G.

Fully Rely On God

For the last couple of weeks, I have talked about my friend Tricia and her fight against Mitochondrial Disease.  (You can read all about it in these posts:  Cookies for a Cause & Energy for Life Walkathon.)



Today, instead of telling you about all of the very difficult things that Tricia fights every day, I am going to share with you the places where she finds her strength and her energy for life when her mitochondria aren't providing it.

Tricia "Fully Relies On God," everyday, in a thousand ways.  This is difficult to do, even in the best of circumstances, but Tricia's faith shines through her suffering and is a testimony to everyone she meets.

Personally, my life has been greatly impacted by the profound faith of this child and her family.  Most recently, I joined a group of fellow cookie bakers to try and exercise daily and make more healthy food choices.  (Like not eating cookies five meals a day. ;^)  And I have been overwhelmed with gratitude to God that he is teaching me these lessons the easy way... Sweet Tricia hasn't eaten anything by mouth in YEARS, and is currently so sick that she is on complete rest and has not had any nutrition for DAYS.  Also, Saturday was the annual Energy for Life walkathon, and Tricia was not able to participate, because she is sick and in the hospital.  So, I have spent most of the 13 miles I have walked in the last 10 days, praying for Tricia, her mom Wendy, a cure for mito, wisdom for doctors, my new friends and acquaintances that are also suffering with mito, and praising Him for my health and my family.

"Rejoice in hope,

be patient in tribulation,

be constant in prayer."

Romans 12:12

The FROG is the mascot for Team Tricia her Energy for Life Walkathon team.

Team Tricia from 2011 Energy for Life Walk-a-thon
(Reader R and I are in the front row, next to Tricia!)

In addition to her faith, Tricia is also blessed to have an amazing family and MANY friends who love and care for her.  This week, Team Tricia, participated in the Energy for Life Walkathon.  Walking, laughing, hugging, raising money and awareness to support and encourage this sweet young lady who has been sick with Mito for more than three years.

However, Tricia was not with them.  As I mentioned, she is in the hospital, again, sick with complications from her Mito.  Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers.



Tricia looks like a happy, healthy teenager.  Yet, she suffers from autonomic neuropathy, chronic nerve pain, chronic fatigue, breathing difficulties, delayed gastric emptying, GI motility issues, acid reflux, hypercalciuria, visual impairments, and kidney stones, and oh yeah, and she hasn't eaten by mouth in  years.

Please consider helping to support the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation by sponsoring me for the "Energy for Life" Walk-a-thon.  Every gift helps.

If you are unable to make a donation at this time, please just take one more minute to visit Tricia's Walkathon page and leave her an encouraging message!  THANK YOU!

Thank you,
Sarah

P.S. - Don't Forget...
In honor of Mitochondrial Disease Awareness week,
I am doing a GIVEAWAY!!!

The GIVEAWAY is now closed. 

The winner will be announced tomorrow!  

Thank you so much for your participation! 

The frogs and the ribbon cookie cutters are from
 Karen's Cookies!  (I love that place!)

A Dozen Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Cookies

(6 Ribbons and
6 Mighty Mitos)

AND 

4 Cookie Cutters 

(2 different frogs,
1 medium awareness ribbon,
& 1 handmade "Mighty Mito")

Check out all the details on my "Mighty Mito" blogpost, and make sure to enter by Sunday!

www.umdf.org

The Mighty Mito & A GIVEAWAY!!!

Do you know what a Mitochondria is?  

(Other than a really long word that is hard to fit on a cookie?)

Yes... I know that I spelled Mitochondrial wrong...  but this is the only photo I had. Ugh.

You may remember from Fifth Grade science that the mitochondria is the "powerhouse" of the cell.

But even if you know what a mitochondria is, and maybe what it does, you are probably not familiar with what happens when the mitochondria doesn't do what it is supposed to do.

Mitochondrial disease occurs when there is a defect in the body’s ‘powerhouses’. The mitochondria fail to produce enough energy. That results in organ systems failing. Imagine a major city with half of its power plants shut down. The same thing happens in the affected person’s body. The brain may be impaired.  They may lose vision or hearing. The heart may be weakened, and they may have eating and digestive issues. The symptoms range from mild to severe for each affected person. (UMDF.org)

My friend Tricia is a freshman in high school, and she has Mitochondrial Disease.  If you don't read any of my other posts, please take a few minutes to watch this video that she made about her journey and please consider helping to support the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation by sponsoring me for the "Energy for Life" Walk-a-thon.  Every gift helps.  Thank you!

A couple of weeks ago,  I was trying so hard to make cookies for a fundraiser for Mitochondrial Disease.  I worked and worked on cute cookies.  Finally, it was time to make the "Special Extra" cookie that I like to add to each order.  I had cut five cookies, in hopes that I would have one good one... I was trying to cookie the UMDF logo.

A gift basket of cookies for my friend Tricia
to give friends and doctors

First  of all, I had a terrible time getting my Mitos to be close enough, but not running into each other when they settled.  I piped and scraped and piped and scraped, over and over again.  Once I was finally happy with how they were looking, I started working on the words.  Well, it turns out "Mitochondrial" is a REALLY LONG word to try to squeeze on a cookie.  I used my Wilton #1 tip and only got as far as the H.  I practiced on wax paper and still couldn't make it fit.  So I schlepped myself and my three young daughters half-way across town to buy a PME 0 and 00 tip.  Unfortunately, those sweet little tips kept clogging, so I researched online how to keep them from clogging... and schlepped out again, this time to Target to buy new in the package, never worn panty hose to try to strain the icing.  So I went home and strained my icing. Still clogged.  Thinned my icing, again and finally, it squeaked through those itty-bitty tips without clogging.  HOWEVER, once I started writing on  my cookie... it flooded all over the place instead of sitting still!  UGH!  Then, I finally got the BRILLIANT idea to just write the words on my cookie with a food color marker.  My problems were solved.  Beautiful cookies!  Whew!

I gave one to my friend with MITO Disease and took one to the fundraiser and displayed it proudly on a little easel. ;^)

All is well that ends well.... well until today, when I was editing my photos for my post about the cookies and I realized I spelled "mitochondrial" WRONG on one of the cookies.  Was it the one I gave my sweet friend or the one I displayed for the world to see?  You guess...  Oh well. ;^P

All that said, in the big picture, I am incredibly blessed and thankful to have three healthy girls, an amazing (and patient) husband, and get to bake my cookies and eat them too.

Tricia's Awesome Basketball Cake!

Which reminds me, I have mentioned that my young  friend Tricia, who has Mitochondrial Disease, receives all of her nutrition through a feeding tube. She hasn't eaten real food for years.

But that doesn't stop this amazing young lady from baking for others. Just a couple of weeks ago, she took a plate of cookies that she baked to the Ronald McDonald House at Children's Mercy Hospital.  And she loves to bake cakes too.  Here is a cool basketball cake that she made for her dad's birthday last year!




So here is the news you have been waiting for... In honor of Mitochondrial Disease Awareness week, I am doing a GIVEAWAY!!!

I will be using the Rafflecopter App below to giveaway:

The frogs and the ribbon cookie cutters are from
 Karen's Cookies!  (I love that place!)

A Dozen Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Cookies
(6 Ribbons and 6 Mighty Mitos)

AND 

4 Cookie Cutters
(2 different frogs, 1 medium awareness ribbon, &
1 handmade "Mighty Mito")

My "Mighty Mito" Shaped Cookies

For these Mitochondrial Disease Awareness cookies, I created this fun "Mighty Mito" shaped cookie cutter.  Afterwards, I started to wonder what other shaped cookies I might be able to make with my cutter.  I thought of several ideas, but I would love to hear what you think!   So, just leave me a comment, using the Rafflecopter app and let me know and you will be entered into my giveaway!

There are also several other ways to earn points for a chance to win...  including learning more about Mitochondrial Disease and spreading the word.

Some of the links are being silly though, so if you having trouble with getting there through Rafflecopter try using these links:

• Visit the UMDF at umdf.org.
• Watch Tricia's Video.
• Write Tricia an encouraging note on her walkathon page.

Thanks for participating and have fun!

The GIVEAWAY is now closed. 

The winner will be announced tomorrow!  

Thank you so much for your participation! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
The Giveaway ends at Midnight on Sunday, September 23 and due to mailing costs is only open to residents of the United States.

Thank you!

Sarah

Energy for Life

This morning in Kansas City hundreds of people are gathering to honor loved ones who suffer from a terrible disease called Mitochondrial Disease.  This morning is the Energy for Life Walkathon to support the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation.  

Every 30 minutes a child is born with a mitochondrial disease. Each year, there is an increase in the number of adults who are being diagnosed with mitochondrial disease.

- Research tells us that between 1,000 and 4,000 children are born with a mitochondrial disease each year.

- Research also indicates that 1 in every 200 healthy people may carry the mutation that could develop into

a mitochondrial disease in their lifetime.

- Because mitochondrial disease is complex and not easy to diagnose, most patients suffer symptoms for

months or years before they are accurately diagnosed with a mitochondrial disease.

- The severity of symptoms and how the disease manifests itself varies. One affected individual may have difficulty breathing or suffer from digestive problems, while another may not be able to walk, talk, or see.

If you would like to learn more, please visit the UMDF website or check out these simple  Mito Disease FAQs .

I chose flowers to help support UMDF awareness, because just like flowers, people need energy to live and grow.

Team Tricia from 2011 Energy for Life Walk-a-thon
(Reader R and I are in the front row, next to Tricia!)

My friend Tricia is a freshman in high school, and she has Mitochondrial Disease.  If you don't read any of my other posts, please take a few minutes to watch this video that she made about her journey.

This morning, Team Tricia, is at the Energy for Life Walkathon.  Walking, laughing, hugging, raising money and awareness to support and encourage this sweet young lady who has been sick with Mito for more than three years.

However, Tricia is not with them.  She is in the hospital, again, sick with complications from her Mito.  Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers.



Tricia looks like a happy, healthy teenager.  Yet, she suffers from autonomic neuropathy, chronic nerve pain, chronic fatigue, breathing difficulties, delayed gastric emptying, GI motility issues, acid reflux, hypercalciuria, visual impairments, and kidney stones, and oh yeah, and she hasn't eaten by mouth in  years.


Please consider helping to support the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation by sponsoring me for the upcoming "Energy for Life" Walk-a-thon.  Every gift helps.

If you are unable to make a donation at this time, please just take one more minute to visit Tricia's Walkathon page and leave her an encouraging message!  THANK YOU!

Thank you,
Sarah

P.S. - Please be on the look out for additional Mito Disease Awareness posts this coming week.  One of them will have a GIVEAWAY that you won't want to miss! 

Yippee! I Won!

Well, it was more of providence at work than any sort of actual talent...  OK, it was ALL providence and NO talent... BUT, I am still SUPER EXCITED that I WON!  Yesterday, I got this package in the mail... from my cookie friend, Anita, over at Sweet Hope Cookies.

You see, there are these cute critter cookie cutters that are all the rage in the cookie world right now.  When I entered Anita's contest, I really HOPED that I would win, and now, I have my very own set!!!  


The Froggie is my very favorite!   And, if you think the cutters and the critters are cute, you should see the cookies Anita made to match them!   She is AMAZING!!

The long and the short of it is, the odds were good.  And, well, my name got chosen out of the mixer!

So, why is this providentially super cool?  Because, Anita has a passion for ALS Awareness.  She lost her "handsome, loving, funny, and brilliant brother" named Randy to the disease. Anita now bakes all of her cookies to raise funds to help fight this debilitating disease.

UMDF Awareness Ribbon
HOPE.  ENERGY.  LIFE.

And, as many of you know, I have been working for the last week or so, on cookies for Mitochondrial Disease Awareness.  Well, I also learned this week that ALS and Mitochondrial Disease are linked (along with Alzheimer's Dementia, Parkinson's disease, Huntington Disease, mental retardation, deafness and blindness, diabetes, obesity, cardiovascular disease and stroke, and there is increasing interest in the possibility that mitochondrial dysfunction might play a role in the etiology of autism.).  "Over 50 million people in the US suffer from these chronic degenerative disorders.  While it cannot yet be said that mitochondrial defects cause these problems, it is clear that mitochondria are involved because their function is measurably disturbed." UMDF.org

The exciting piece is...

"It is clear that research into mitochondrial disease offers hope to the millions who are afflicted with these other common conditions and diseases." UMDF.org (emphasis added)

So supporting UMDF offers HOPE to millions...  and not just the individuals personally afflicted by the diseases, but those that love them, that care for them, and that keep working for a CURE.

So, in closing I offer you this striking thought...

The last few days, I have found myself checking the mail box a couple of times a day with the HOPE that my box from Anita would arrive.  Curious K had HOPE that she would get to keep the froggie critter. (See P.S. below.)  But there are MILLIONS of people and caregivers and friends, who HOPE every minute of every day for a CURE.

If you would like to learn more about Mitochondrial Disease, please visit UMDF.org.

If you would like to read about my sweet friend Tricia, who has Mitochondrial Disease, please see my earlier post, and make sure that you take a minute to watch the amazing video that she put together.

If you would like to support the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation, please consider pledging to support Team Tricia for the Energy For Life Walk-a-thon.  Any pledge of support, would be greatly appreciated.

Thank You,
Sarah

P.S. -  As as special, added bonus feature... you get a funny story, and a picture of my three beautiful daughters!  (I know, just exactly what you were HOPING for..)

So, when I got the cookie cutters, shown above in the mail from Anita, I was so excited  that I snapped a pic.  Of course the Frog was my favorite. Then, I went about my work.  When I walked by the cookie cutters about 30 minutes later, they looked like this....



It was during "quiet time" so my girls were supposed to be in bed... However, when I questioned Curious K. about it, this was the look that I got.  (Notice, the hands behind her back.)

After she backed down the hall to her bedroom, we had a pretty serious talk about taking thing that don't belong to you...

Fortunately, I am a forgiving Momma, ("because Jesus always forgives me"), and when it was all said and done, I still let her and her sisters split up the cute little critters.  (I still, however, kept the cookie cutters and my Froggie! ;^)  At least until she has learned her lesson, then, I might just give it to her... ;^)

The girls played happily with them for an hour before dinner and the older two went to bed with their critters in hand tonight. ;^)

"Thank you Mrs. Anita!"

Cookies for a Cause - Mitochondrial Disease

Every 30 minutes, a child will be born who will develop mitochondrial disease by the age of 10. 

Mitochondrial disease occurs when there is a defect in the body’s ‘powerhouses’. The mitochondria fail to produce enough energy. That results in organ systems failing. Imagine a major city with half of its power plants shut down. The same thing happens in the affected person’s body. The brain may be impaired.  They may lose vision or hearing. The heart may be weakened, and they may have eating and digestive issues. The symptoms range from mild to severe for each affected person. (UMDF.org)

Mitochondrial Disease Awareness Week is September 16-23.  Between now and then I will be sharing information about Mitochondrial Disease.  Please take a few minutes to read it... 

So far, my cookies have raised more than $100 for the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation! Thank you!

This past week, I baked cookies to raise money support the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation, but I really baked cookies to show my love for an amazing young lady, named Tricia, and her mother, Wendy.

Over the next few posts, I will be sharing her story, telling you about Mitochondrial Disease, giving you an opportunity to help, and maybe even sneaking in a give-away! ;^) Oh yeah, and talking about cookies too!

I will be featuring each of these cookies and a few fun extras over the next few weeks on my blog.

Tricia and her younger brother Andrew
 with my oldest two, Reader R and Curious K,
after a performance of the Wizard of OZ.

My friend Tricia is a freshman in high school, and she has Mitochondrial Disease.  If you don't read any of my other posts, please take a few minutes to watch this video that she made about her journey.

Tricia looks like a happy, healthy teenager.  Yet, she suffers from autonomic neuropathy, chronic nerve pain, chronic fatigue, breathing difficulties, delayed gastric emptying, GI motility issues, acid reflux, hypercalciuria, visual impairments, and kidney stones, and oh yeah, and she hasn't eaten by mouth in  years.

Please consider helping to support the United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation by sponsoring me for the upcoming "Energy for Life" Walk-a-thon.  Every gift helps.

Thank you!
Sarah

www.umdf.org