It is that time of year again!! The time of year, to count your blessings, be generous and celebrate Ryan and Karissa's birthday!!!! Some of you may remember our quest last year and some of you may be new to our birthday project. Let me refresh your memories.... Last year, Ryan read about a little girl, named Alex Scott. Alex had cancer but created a legacy during her battle. She vowed to raise money to give to doctors so they could find a cure to help other sick kids. The Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation is named in Alex's memory. Ryan was touched by this story and wanted to learn more. Together, Ryan and his mom visited the Alex's Lemonade Stand's website. http://www.alexslemonade.org/ On the website, there were suggestions about how other kids could help Alex raise money to find a cure. Ryan then convinced his little sister, Karissa, to help him. They decided that their winter birthday celebrations were the perfect way to honor Alex. They sent out invites to all their friends and held a traditional birthday party with a little bit of a twist....they asked their friends NOT to buy birthday gifts. Instead, they asked their friends to donate to Alex's Foundation. The generosity was amazing!!! This gave Ryan and Karissa more incentive to help Alex's cause. Since then, they have held a Lemonade Stand in their front lawn and have begun preparing for this years birthday celebrations. Let's be real! As a mom, I'm thrilled at the thought of not having one more Barbie or Matchbox clutter the toy box....but I'm even more thrilled by my kids' selflessness by giving up those potential gifts up for a greater cause. This is not only about celebrating the "wonderfully lucky" lives of Ryan and Karissa Jones! This is about wishing all kids a happy birthday for many, many years! A cure is there to be found and together we will find it!!! Karissa's 5th Birthday is (3 weeks away) on November 18th Ryan's 8th Birthday is December 21st Please visit their website at http://www.firstgiving.com/RyanKarissa and give a little or a lot to help fund pediatric cancer research! And forward this to your friends and family, so that this birthday celebration can be a bigger success than last years. In the words of Alex Scott... "When life gives you lemons, make LEMONADE!"