Help For The Holidays

My heart is heavy this morning because I have been sitting here thinking about how many people need help this time of year. Then I thought, well people need help whether it's holiday time or not. But I think this time of year makes it especially painful for those who are struggling. Whether it's financially, emotionally, physically, or all 3. I always want to help everyone who I hear about, but I can't help everyone by myself. God can.....He can help through people like YOU and me. So I'm writing this morning to encourage you to help someone this holiday season. If you are unsure of who to help or where to look, I can gladly point you in the direction of some people who really need help.

I am personally doing fundraisers for several people right now, so if you would like to contribute, please email me. Right now I am focusing on helping the homeless so they can have food, hats, blankets, coats, & toiletry items. I am also doing several specific fundraisers for some people who truly need our help. One is for a great guy in CA. who works full time, but has had a run of bad luck and is now living in his car. Another is for a sweet widow who has cancer and her insurance is not going to pay for all of her chemo treatments. Both of these great people would be especially grateful for any help that anyone could offer. I don't know them personally and they don't even know that I am doing this for them....and I don't care if they know. I don't do this for a "pat on the back", I do it because my heart is to help. I do it because I feel that I have been called to do more with this business other than just earn money for my family.

My goal is to sell 300 lipsticks per fundraiser...I'm trying to keep it simple because I know how easy is to get overwhelmed with what product to buy. I also know that most people who will read this probably can afford a $13 lipstick, but might not be able to afford to give several hundred dollars to a fundraiser. So if you would please pass this along to all of your friends & family, I would greatly appreciate it! I am offering a $50 gift certificate to the person who brings in the most orders.....bringing in 10 to be entered into the drawing. Once you have your 10, you will be entered and then whoever brings in the most after that, WINS!

I take debit & credit cards on my website, so it's super easy for you to order. Also.....I would highly suggest that you order one of the 3 Limited Edition Beauty That Counts Lipsticks! Not only will the profit go to help someone, BUT Mary Kay will donate $1 for every lipstick purchased to the MK Foundation for cancer research....how awesome is that?!?! They are appropriately named Give Dreams, Give Hope, and Give Joy.

If you would like to help give to any of these projects that I am currently working on, but you aren't interested in purchasing MK products, please email me. I'm happy to send you info. on how you can directly help these lovely people without purchasing products through me. After all, this is about helping people....however we can do that!

Small Business Saturday

Hello friends! I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with your family! We had a great time at my parents house and of course, ate too much. Ha! I made a ham, homemade macaroni & cheese, and mashed potatoes. My oldest made a homemade French chocolate mousse cake, and my 11 yr. old made homemade truffles! They were both YUMMO! We arrived and brought in all of our goodies and helped my parents with last minute preparing.....okay, I helped. Hubby and kids watched TV. Then we feasted, but not before we prayed and thanked God for all of our many blessings. We had so much food, it was UNREAL. Turkey, ham, GIANT turkey legs, stuffing, squash casserole, mac & cheese, mashed potatoes, sweet potato casserole (2 kinds!), beans, fried corn, broccoli slaw, and MORE! Seriously, I didn't know what we would do with it all. It was so nice to sit around with my family and just enjoy each other. No rushing, no agenda, just ENJOY each other. Love it!

So what did all of you do for Thanksgiving? I would love to hear your stories! Did you guys know that today is Small Business Saturday?! Did you know that I can supply you with A LOT of your Christmas gift needs?! Well, I can! I have gift sets for moms, dads, sisters, cousins, aunts, uncles, brothers, sisters, friends, co-workers, etc. If you have someone you need to buy a gift for, I can help you! I have gift sets starting at $12! I have GREAT stocking stuffers too.....and who else do you know that will gift wrap & ship/deliver your gifts for FREE?!! No one! So please support local today, support small business's who are truly trying to make a difference in this world.

I gift wrap & deliver for FREE.....support local & shop with me! www.marykay.com/summerwillard

All of my gift sets are custom, so you won't see what I can do on my website. It's just to give you and idea of what products I use. If you would like pictures of my custom work, please email me and I'm happy to send you some! Happy shopping friends! And know that you are helping to support a business that helps others!

Thankful

For the month of November, I have been posting on facebook everyday, something that I am thankful for. Honestly, I think we should take the time to be thankful everyday, ALL year long. It's so easy to get caught up in the day to day and not focus on being grateful. So I wanted to take the time to post here some of the things I have posted on facebook that I am grateful for. Feel free to comment here or email me with what YOU are grateful for!

- I am thankful for a husband who loves me no matter what and will ALWAYS stand by me. I am always his # 1 priority after the Lord and that is something to truly be thankful for!!

- I am SO grateful that my husband and I BOTH get to have our own business and work from home!!! The flexibility is amazing and there isn't that stress that you normally find with a job outside of the home. It is truly a gift from God and I don't ever want to take it for granted!! :)

- I am thankful for choices....that know matter what your circumstances are, we all have the choice to change them. With the Lord and being willing to choose wisely, we can overcome any situation that we choose! :)

- I am thankful for my 4 wonderful children. I start the day everyday in prayer, thanking God for all the many blessings that He has blessed me with and continues to bless me with. And my 4 kiddos I am truly, truly thankful for! I continue to be amazed at how awesome my children are, I am so very proud of all of them. It is a huge privilege and honor to be their mom!! :)

- I am thankful for our wonderful church Covenant Life Worship Center! Lead by such wonderful pastors who truly care and don't judge. They welcome you with open arms right away and truly want to KNOW you. It is such a refreshing experience and I am thankful for them every, single, day!!! :)

- I am thankful that the Lord has a plan for my life....that I don't have to wonder who I should be or what I should do. I just have to trust in Him and let Him lead me to do the things that He has for me.

- I am thankful for the positive influences in my life! For those of you who speak positive and stay positive.....thank you! It makes such a difference to surround yourself with people who ENCOURAGE and don't discourage with the words that come out of their mouth. :)

- I am thankful for Karen Hieb Bandel! She has been one of the best friends and mentors ever! She encourages me and gives me the best example of how to operate your business by the Golden Rule....I am truly blessed that the Lord brought her into my life! :)

- I am thankful for the Lord's promises!! He is so full of love, grace, and mercy for all of us....I am truly humbled by the goodness of the Lord. "For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29:11

- I am thankful for my wonderful friends! I have friends who are genuine and real....who truly care. That is something that is rare these days, so I don't take it for granted....very thankful!! :)

-I am thankful for Mary Kay Ash. She allowed the Lord to lead her in starting a company that would truly end up being a ministry to women everywhere! She worked hard and didn't give up, even when negative people around her told her not to start this company. And now, almost 50 years later, MK Cosmetics is a debt free, privately owned company that helps MILLIONS of people world wide! And I get to be a part of it.....so grateful!! :)

- I am thankful for God's word. It is the key to everything in life and any problem or issue can be solved with it. I am so very grateful for the word of the Lord! This morning I was reading Proverbs 3 and even though I have read it many times before, it was so encouraging! If you haven't ever read it or haven't read it in awhile, take a look a Proverbs 3 today. :)

I am thankful for the Lord's forgiveness, grace, mercy, and healing. I have made a lot of bad choices in my life, but the Lord always forgives and covers me in His grace & mercy. He always brings healing for whatever I need, whether it's physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual. AND....He teaches me to make GOOD choices so I don't end up where I was before!!

- I am so thankful for my flexible schedule....I don't know how else I would be able to stay at home with my kids and really be there for them. Or be able to move things around if I need to when something comes up.....all without sacrificing my paycheck! Love it!! :)

-I am thankful for those people who have integrity and common courtesy. It has become very rare in today's world for people to have integrity and courtesy is not so common anymore.....so I am more and more grateful for those people who have these qualities! It is very encouraging when you don't see it very often. :)

- I am thankful for my mom. She carried me in her womb for 9 months; She felt sick for months with nausea, then she watched her feet swell & her skin stretch & tear; she struggled to climb stairs, she got breathless quickly; she suffered many sleepless nights. Then went through excruciating pain to bring me into this world. She became my nurse, my chef, my maid, my chauffeur, my biggest fan, my teacher, & my best friend. She's struggled for me, cried over me, hoped for the best for me, & prayed for me. Thank you mom! I love you!

- I am thankful for God's surprises!! God has GREAT things in store for all of us and you never know when He will surprise you with something wonderful!!! :)

- I am thankful for Saturday mornings with my kiddos. No getting up early, and watching movies in your pajamas until noon....while eating Oreos. Simple, but oh so wonderful!!! :)

- I am so thankful for where God is taking our family. We are in a wonderful place and headed for things even more wonderful.....I am truly, truly grateful & humbled!!

- I am thankful for those people in this world who have taken the time to help me with so many things. God has really blessed me over the years with compassionate, kind, WILLING people who have truly made a difference in my life. So much so that I can't even name them all on here.....something to really be thankful for!!

- I am SO thankful that the inside of our house is going to be painted very soon!! I am so, so grateful for this!!!! :)

-I am grateful for this blog! I really feel like God is going to use this blog for wonderful things!!