SHOW AND TELL: the HaBO edition

Welcome to our weekly expedition into the land of Show and Tell. Y'all know Show and Tell is wasted on the elementary schoolers. Join us weekly to show off an item, tell a story, and get the attention of the class. In other words, this is Show and Tell 2.0.

My favorite Romance book web site, Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, has a categories of posts called HaBO or Help a Bitch Out. Welcome to the ALI HaBO edition of Show and Tell.
See that incredibly cool baby blanket above...it was made by a dear member of our ALI community, Ms. BattyNurse herself. She makes the world's cutest baby blanket. I mean, I don't even have a baby girl in my life and I still bought that one. It called my name and begged me to buy it and bring it home, so I did. My hubby had the sheer nerve to suggest I give it to one of my nieces and I flat out refused. IT IS MINE! Ms. BattyNurse is raising money to pay for her FET which is scheduled for January. Go visit her Etsy shop, Batty Nurse Creations, and buy something really cute. BTW, she has been talking about taking custom orders for blankets so ask if you are looking for something special.

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Also, other opportunities for fun and helping people out abound right now. Kym of I'm a Smart One has issued a challenge to all of us in the ALI community. Kym says

As a blogoversary gift, help me continue to help parenthood efforts by helping Parenthood for Me. Many of you know that fellow ALI blogger Erica and her husband A.J. have been working hard to get their non-profit grant program off of the ground. For those who don't know, Erica and A.J. struggled with infertility and spent thousands of dollars in unsuccessful ART procedures. After much soul-searching, they shifted gears and pursued adoption. In 2008, they adopted a son, who is now the light of their lives.

Now, Erica and A.J. are dedicated to helping others find parenthood. Through Parenthood for Me (PFM), couples and individuals can apply for grants to help assist with some of the costly expenses involved with infertility treatments and adoption such as travel fees, attorney fees, medications not covered by insurance, and homestudy fees. They began accepting applications for grants on January 2nd, and the first grants will be awarded in June 2010.

As you can imagine, a rather large endowment must be built. So far, PFM has raised several thousand dollars. In April, Erica and A.J. are hosting the first Annual Family-Building Dinner and Silent Auction in Rochester, New York on April 10. This is the largest fundraiser to date and will really give PFM the wings it needs to fly. The cost is $100 per ticket, with over 50% of the price going directly to the endowment. Sponsors can also donate for various levels of recognition, from $3,000 Gold Sponsorship to donation of an item valued at $100 for the silent auction.

I would like for us, the ALI blogging community, to pull together and raise at least enough money for a $250 Table Sponsorship. A sign representing "us" would be placed on one of the tables at the dinner. What a powerful idea it is for us to be there in spirit, knowing that our efforts would go towards accomplishing someone, possibly one of us, achieve parenthood.

My goal is that by my blogversary of January 26, we'll have raised $250 (or more!) for an ALI Blogger table. To donate using either PayPal or a credit card, click the button below:

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Now for fun, sign up for two fun events is going on right now...Sock It To Me and the 2010 Book Challenge. Check them both out and sign up. You know you want to!

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To see what everyone else in class is bringing to SHOW AND TELL, take a trip to visit the Miss Mel, Goddess of the Infertility Blogosphere.