Thank You!

A HUGE thank you to our friends and neighbors for their generous support of our Harvey Relief Lemonade Stand!!  In just two hours, the kids raised $155 from lemonade, blueberry bars (with fresh blueberries mixed into the jam), and chocolate chip bars--our lemonade-stand staples.  So many people made donations above and beyond our prices!  It really was very touching.  The money will go to the Houston Food Bank and Houston SPCA.  (They started with just the pets, but we decided we needed to help people, too!  As a family, we've also given to Global Giving, the Texas SPCA, and the #underpantsfairies.)

It was a lovely day.  Bright with a cool breeze, our Texas flag flapping to attract attention.  So many friends came by, and not just neighbors on the street.  Though, pretty much all of them stopped by, too.  Even the kids' 1st/2nd-grade looping teacher came!  It was like a party.  (Only much easier to host!)

And it was a bit bittersweet--not because of Texas, though that is heartbreaking--but because the kiddos outgrew their wooden lemonade stand from our neighbor.  They're just too tall.  I realized that we probably don't have too many lemonade stands left in our future--I'm not sure I see 13-year-olds hosting them next summer.  So this might have been our last.

But it was the best one ever.

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(My tips for hosting a lemonade stand.)

Summer Fun: Making Lemonade

We always have lemonade stand on our summer to-do list and usually we get to it.  This year, we arranged to host the stand with our friends Miss B and her daughter J.  Daughter J volunteers for the local cat rescue and so we decided to donate all proceeds to that charity.  We chose a date, made brownies and rice krispie treats, secured supplies (including a new jug with an infuser, which handle broke within the hour, but the store took it back for a full refund), and announced in on FB, only to wake up that morning to one of the rainiest days forecasted.

Still we watched and waited and the sun cleared late afternoon.  We rushed to set up the official stand (a gift from our neighbor Miss K, when her kids outgrew it), mixed up the lemonade--a pitcher of regular and a pitcher infused with defrosting raspberries--and, for two hours, we sold lemonade and treats.  Lots of our friends came by, alerted via FB, and supported the cat cause.  The kids had a great time . . . and raised $100!

We've hosted several lemonade stands now and will probably have another one this summer.  So I don't forget, here are some tips:


Beforehand

• lemonade supplies--we used powdered mix with added fresh lemon slices and, this time, raspberries.  One year, we sold Zinger Punch--Sprite and a few Red Zinger teabags.   The grown-ups liked it.
• pitchers--glass is risky. 
• treats, if selling--brownies, cookies, rice krispie treats--in closed containers, because there will be flies
• cups, napkins, paper towels
• garbage bags
• ice (morning of)
• donation jar
• singles or change, depending on your price points (we usually do $1 for everything--it is charity after all--and then we don't need coins or a price list.  Most people give more anyway.)
• posters, esp if you are donating the proceeds (otherwise, passersby seem to recognize a lemonade stand without much of a sign.)
• folding chairs for the grown ups (set way back--though, I'm usually talking to the parents of our customers)

For the sale:

• Bud really likes our special lemonade-stand gimmick:  a sugar rim!  We dip the lips of the cup in a little bit of lemonade and then into sugar.  Extra-good!  It's something special we can offer our customers.  (You'll need a dish of lemonade and a dish of sugar.)  He happily told everyone about it--and enjoyed making them.
• The trick is that kids either overwhelm a customer or get distracted doing something else.  Remind them beforehand to greet each person and take his or her order with all their good manners.  And then I just sit back and let them handle it. (Well, I don't know how far back I get.  I usually chat with anybody.)
• This year, in addition to posting it on FB, we tagged a number of friends in the area by name as soon as we opened--and all of the available ones stopped by, going out of their ways to come see us!  This was a special treat for us.  In fact, the majority of our customers were friends, not random strangers or even neighbors (boo on our two immediate neighbors who didn't come over, though they saw us clearly.)

Afterwards:

• Clean up (wipe down that lemonade stand!)
• Disperse the leftovers.
• Take out garbage and recycling.
• Count the money and make the donation.
• Post photos of the fun we had!

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Our Standard Lemonade Stand Recipes

Chocolate Chunk Oat Bars

1 cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
1 cup packed light brown sugar
½ cup butter, softened
1 egg
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ cups uncooked old-fashioned oats
1 cup semisweet chocolate chunks or chips, divided

Preheat the oven to 375F. Lightly grease a 9” square baking pan.

Combine the flour, baking soda, and salt in a small bowl. Beat the sugar and butter in a large bowl with an electric mixer until creamy. Add the egg, water, and vanilla; beat until well blended.

Stir in the flour mixture and oats; mix well. Stir in ½ cup chocolate chunks. Spread the dough in the pan with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle wit the remaining ½ cup chocolate chunks.

Bake for about 30 minutes or just until the center feels firm. Transfer the pan to a wire rack to cool completely.

Sesame Street Yummy Cookies: Baking with Kids


Oatmeal Jam Bars

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking oats
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ cup butter
1-10 oz. jar of preserve

In a mixing bowl, combine flour, oats, brown sugar, and baking soda.  Cut in butter til mixture resembles coarse crumbs.  Reserve ½ cup of the flour mixture.  Press remaining flour mixture into the bottom of an ungreased 9 x 9 x 2 inch baking pan.  Spread with desired filling.  Sprinkle with reserved flour mixture.

Bake in 350°F oven for 30 to 35 minutes or til the top is golden.  Cool in the pan on a wire rack.  Cut into bars.

Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook

Reading For a Good Cause

The kiddos have rushed off to read tonight with more enthusiasm than they usually generate, and that's saying quite a lot because they love to read (and are frequently caught sneaking books in the dark . . . and sometimes in the morning before wake-up, though not since the time change!)  Today at our Unitarian Universalist (UU) church, they heard about a fundraiser to assist a little UU girl in the Phillippines who has to pay to attend school.  For three years now, the children of our congregation have helped raise money to pay for her school fees, supplies, uniform, and other expenses.  They also exchange letters with cultural information, aspects of being UU, and just friendly kid stuff.

So Sis and Bud are very excited to be participating in this fundraiser, especially via one of their favorite activities.  If you'd like to support them with either a one-time donation or a pledge-per-hour that they read between now and April 21 (they read between 30-60 minutes a day, give or take), please let me know.

Thanks!  And good luck, kiddos!