Cards for James Card Drive (and first PRIZE)

I think the reason I love cardmaking so much is because I believe that a card has a lot of power. It can give hope, encouragement, a pat on the back, or simply a smile in an envelope. :) I'm a big fan of card drives, especially those for kids. So when my sweet friend Shane told me about her son's classmate that we could help by creating a card drive, I was more than happy to help. This is James... This is his story (taken from his Care Page -written from his parents) ... "We wish that we didn't have a story, but the truth is we do. A few days after Christmas James experienced belly pain which was thought to be constipation. After visiting the pediatrician for an exam, we were sent for an x-ray. The x-ray confirmed a mass of some sort. At that time we were sent to Children's Hospital for an ultrasound which showed a 13cm tumor on the left kidney. The probable diagnosis is a Wilm's tumor. James was originally scheduled for a left nephrectomy, however, the plan ended up changing due to a finding on the MRI. James has a small spot on his right kidney. This could be a "rest" which would be an insignificant finding -or it could be a bilateral wilms tumor. Since we don't know for sure, he is being treated as though he has bilateral wilms tumors. The standard treatment for this is 6 weeks of chemo then surgery. James is a sweet, fun loving 5 year old with a big heart!" I need YOUR help to make this card drive a success and put a smile on James' face. All you need to do is create a card (or cards) with an cheery, upbeat theme (please no get well soon cards) and send it to my friend Shane at:

CARDS FOR JAMES

c/o Shane Rieder

862 Gorham Drive

Cincinnati, OH 45245

*PLEASE INCLUDE A PIECE OF PAPER WITH YOUR NAME, ADDRESS, and EMAIL and the NUMBER OF CARDS YOU SENT because there will be drawings for PRIZES!!!! We are also collecting cards for his family:

Sister- Grace (3 years old)

Parents-Matt and Heather

I also wanted to share a few card ideas with you. Looking through his Care Page, I noticed lots of race cars. I'm sure he would like a car themed card... and I always like joke cards for kids. Here is the set I created... I think James will get a smile from these. :) Here's some close up shots and answers to the jokes... Where do you weigh a whale? At the weigh-whale station!

Why did the lion spit out the clown? Because he tasted funny!

Why do fish swim in salt water? Because the pepper makes them sneeze! Why wasn't the giraffe invited to the party? Because he was a pain in the neck!

Where do penguins keep their money? At the snow bank!

What is a snake's fav. subject? Hisssss-tory! Why did the elephant quit the circus? Because he was tired of working for peanuts!

What do you call a sleeping dinosaur? A dino-snore!

A peek at the inside of a couple of cards...

Okay, now onto the PRIZES. I am going to have lots of prizes for this card drive. Here is the first prize (donated by the sweet Jennifer who happens to be my new boss! yea!-more on that another day)

She donated her class videos from Hero Arts. Hero Hues Technique DVD...

and Technique Garden Video DVD...

Thanks for reading and I hope that you will join me in bringing smiles to the Overbeck family. I'll be back soon with more prizes! :)