Epilogue

When we set out to collect kits, we wanted to honour our fourth child. On August 24 we welcomed Matthew into our family.  As of Matthew's birth, we collected a total of 42 kits  (41 that were gathered at our "shower" plus an extra kit that my aunt and cousin took directly to MCC). 

We Fabrizis are so touched by the generosity and love you all shared. Thank you for giving the wonderful gift of a newborn kit to 42 moms and babies and thank you for honouring our little man Matthew in such a beautiful way. 

May God's blessings be upon all those who have shared in this experience, from those who bought and sewed baby items,  to those who shipped and handled the kits along the way, to the parents and babies who will soon receive these clothes and blankets. 

Love

Jennifer, Richard, Grace, Benjamin, Sean and Matthew

Farewell, kits. Enjoy your new families.

Thursday morning the kids and I packed newborn kits into all of our reusable shopping bags.

 We loaded up the back of the van..

 ..and hit the road. Early in the afternoon we arrived with the kits at MCC Ontario (MCCO)'s Kitchener warehouse. 

We were warmly welcomed at the warehouse and after unloading the kits we were given a tour of the place. 

The kids and I found out that the newborn kits are bundled in bales of 48 kits (woo hoo, we almost made an entire bale!), then trucked to Manitoba where they are joined by donations from across Canada. Next, they are loaded into a container that is sent by train and then boat to their final destination.  At the warehouse, we saw the baler squash a large bundle of blankets together. We saw a number of AIDS caregiver kits and relief kits that were ready to be shipped out.  We saw hundreds of notebooks, pencils, and boxes of pencil crayons that will soon be assembled into school kits.  We saw a large quilt being tied by three men working around a huge quilt-tying frame.  It was such a great place. 

Thank you MCCO staff for the great visit.

Well, I have to admit that I'm a little sad to see the kits go. The playpen is empty. There are no more stacks of diapers, undershirts, and socks crowding the crib. I am happy to have the space back as our little man will be making his appearance in a little over two weeks.  But, there was an excitement and pastel-coloured flannel fullness that will be missed.  

I guess we Fabrizis have officially caught the kit-building bug!  If YOU have also caught the kit-building bug, you need not fear the pain of withdrawal! You have the links to all of the MCC kit lists and you can build any kit at any time and mail it or drop it off at any of their locations.  And if you have a kit-building party please invite me too!  The people at MCCO told me they are busily getting their school kits ready (these kits mostly stay in North America) so why not grab a couple sets while you're doing your back-to-school shopping?

One final note: after the kits were all built we had some extra items including a massive pile of onesies, leggings, and pyjamas (thanks to our awesome neighbours Richelle and Zee).  These extra pieces will be going to kids in Rwanda via Shelter Them.  I encourage you to go and see what they're all about.  

THANK YOU!!

Curious to see what a pile of 38 newborn kits looks like?

Our playpen runneth over! Thanks to everyone who lovingly shopped, crocheted, and sewed baby items. Thank to everyone who gave of their time, their efforts, their resources, and their support. Thanks to everyone who pricked their fingers on diaper pins but kept on going. Thanks to everyone who went from store to store to store looking for flat-fold diapers or flannel pajamas.

 I couldn't help but unwrap each and every kit so I could "ooh" and "aah" over each one. Here are just three examples of the beautiful kits that were collected:

 Here is a close-up of one and a half kits:

My friends, my family: you are amazing, generous, wonderful people. I am so deeply touched that so many of you willingly partnered with us in this effort to share our joy with new moms around the world. You are such a blessing to our family, and to many others who will never meet you but who will be touched by your generosity.

Lots of love,

Jen, Rich, Grace, Ben, and Sean xoxoxo

Countdown to the shower!

It is one week until the baby shower for MCC! If you are planning to attend, please let us know. Thanks!

Newborn kits in the news

Dear friends,
I thought you might be interested in reading about some of the families who have previously received newborn kits through MCC. 

https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/pages/MOM-to-Moms/372949578250
http://reliefweb.int/node/118080
http://forrysnic.blogspot.com/2010/03/mcc-kits-brighten-some-faces.html

The M.O.M to Moms group on facebook is really worth checking out. It was set up as a memorial to Michelle Omic who passed away suddenly while five months pregnant with her third child. Established by Michelle's grieving family, this organization has built and distributed an incredible number of kits and has posted several photos and videos of kits being distributed around the world.

First Kits!

I was thrilled to receive the first two completed newborn kits in the mail today from my beloved aunt Lorraine!  I'm having some camera difficulties, but I'll post a picture of these beautiful parcels as soon as I can.  Maybe it's the sweet smell of the baby soap, or the soft texture of the fabrics, or the gentle colours, but my heart feels all a-flutter when I hold these kits in my hands.

I have been posting some updates in the facebook group, but not as frequently on the blog. So, here in a nutshell are some of the things I wanted to let you all know:
1) We can use safety pins instead of diaper pins - they should be 2 inches / 5 cm long, but diaper pins are okay too.  (If you aren't familiar with pin intricacies, basically, diaper pins are the kind of safety pins that have plastic heads on them. Safety pins are purely steel.  Safety pins do come in different sizes, so be sure to get 2 inch / 5 cm pins.)
2) Because we can use safety pins, which are readily available (whereas diaper pins are not as easy to find), I will NOT be ordering a bulk package of pins. If you were relying on me for pins, and you think you'll have difficulty locating safety pins please let me know as soon as you can and I will get some for you. Don't forget to tell me how many kits you are making.
3) Diapers, if hand-sewn, should measure 27" by 27"  or 69 cm by 69 cm.  Flat diapers are basically squares of flannel or other diaper-specific material.  Kushies, Small Wonders, and Gerber all make flat diapers.  Kushies can be purchased at Sears, Small Wonders can be purchased at Zellers.  Gerber diapers are more readily available in the states, where you can find them at Target, Toys R Us and Walmart. I haven't looked at Walmart here yet,  so I'm not sure if they carry flat diapers or not.  Anyone know? 

Well, I just want to close by thanking all of you who have committed to make kits. I feel so honoured that you have chosen to be a part of this project alongside my family.  Please let me know how your kits are coming along. If you  have a picture of a kit you've made, I'd love to show it here!  

Peace to you,

Jen

AHA! The official answer about pins!

I received the following e-mail from the material resources co-ordinator at MCC Ontario: 

Hello Jennifer,

I received your email about having a baby shower for MCC.  What a fantastic idea!  I haven't had a chance to look at your blog yet, but I will do that.  

You were wondering about the diaper pins...we actually use steel diaper pins, not the baby ones with the plastic cover on the end.  We found that the steel ones were just as useful, and much less expensive.

Any other questions, feel free to email or call me.

Thanks, and good luck with your newborn kit collection!

My best,
Material Resources Coordinator
Mennonite Central Committee Ontario
*******
SO... it looks like plain old steel safety pins (2 inches / 5 cm long) are what they are looking for, though it doesn't explicity prevent you from buying diaper pins (i.e. plastic capped safety pins) so if you already have found diaper pins you may use them.  In the mean time, I will not be buying a bulk bag of diaper pins and will be looking for safety pins myself.  If you are still having any problems finding the pins, please let me know!

And, some good news to share... we already have ten people who have committed to building kits, for a minimum of 16 kits! Thank you all so much for your generosity! If you haven't already told me that you'll be participating, I'd love to know about it.   God bless you all!

Much love,

Jen and Rich

You'd love to join in but you're busy that day or you live too far away?

Fear not! You can still take part in the baby shower.  MCC has drop off locations across North America.  In Canada, there are locations in Alberta, BC, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Ontario, and Quebec.  In the USA you'll find locations in California, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico,  South Dakota, Texas, Virginia,  and Washington.  For exact locations, click here.If you live in the GTA you can bring them to Rich or Jen ahead of time, we might even be able to come and pick it up. Just let us know! 

If you really don't feel inclined to build a kit but want to participate, you can always make a monetary donation at the mcc.org website. 

Thanks everyone and thanks to all of you who have already pledged kits!

-Jen and Rich

Diaper Pins!

Wow! Diaper pins are not that easy to come by! I just had a lovely chat with the owner of a local cloth diapering store and she informed me that she can not even purchase them any longer for resale! But fear not my friends. There is an American distributor that sells 144 pins (enough for 36 newborn kits) for under $20.00. I'm still waiting to hear back from them regarding shipping costs, but if it's reasonable I will purchase 144 or 288 pins that I can then distribute to you fine people when you are ready to build your kit. 

Have you seen diaper pins for sale anywhere around here?

THANKS!

We're having a baby!

Welcome!

Baby number four is on the way. We want to celebrate our newest little person with a great big family-friendly baby shower and bbq with a twist: instead of presents for our baby, we're asking you to bring presents for MCC. Specifically, we're asking you to help us build a pile of newborn kits that MCC will in turn distribute to moms in clinics, hospitals, and refugee camps around the world. 

This blog will keep you posted on party details; kit contents; the best prices we come across for the various items; where to find those elusive diaper pins; and other ways you can get involved. We love MCC and the work that they are doing, and we hope that you will come to love them too! If you are looking for more ways to get involved in local compassion projects we'll be sharing ideas here too. If you are already involved in a compassion project and you're looking for others to join you, please let us know as we'd love to help you connect with our other readers.