Fundraising For SMA

Hey Everyone,

I hope to have the video of Skylar's memorial up soon, but it will probably be in the next post so I hope you can wait to see it...

In the meantime, I wanted to update you on the Brushes of Hope fundraiser we did to "paint away SMA" at Sips N Strokes. The place was packed out (around 80 people) - mostly with people I had never met before. At the beginning, I was able to say a few things about SMA and Skylar with only a brief moment where I got choked up (despite it being only a week and a half after we lost her). Wendy LaVoy, the artist behind all the great paintings, came to our location to teach the class, which was very special. She even offered to sign people's artwork and t-shirts that people purchased that night, in addition to selling her famous window paintings with a portion of the proceeds being donated to FSMA.
 

We were able to raise a lot of awareness (they posted the event on their facebook page) and also money to be donated to the GA Chapter of FSMA. The Sips N Strokes staff at Sandy Springs have been amazing and we're so grateful for their support - THANK YOU! We hope to do another one in a few months for those of you who wanted to come but were unable to make it! Below you can see me and a good friend from high school who came out to paint with her mom. The painting of the night was titled "Funky Owl" which I chose because Skylar's room had an owl theme - and it was just a super cute painting that I thought most people would enjoy.

Even though everyone paints the same picture, it's really fun to see how they turn out differently! It's a really cool way to learn different techniques while painting and walking home with something you can hang on your wall. Sips N Strokes also hosts parties and events - they have kids nights too if you're bored and looking for something to do!

As far as updates go with Kyle and I - we're very excited to take a 2nd honeymoon and have decided to go to Greece! It's somewhere we've both wanted to go, but never thought we would have the chance so soon. Family and friends have been extremely generous in donating money to us specifically for our vacation and we're so thankful. If you have any recommendations for places to stay in the islands of Greece, feel free to leave a comment! I'll keep you updated and will certainly post pictures!

My birthday was bittersweet. I obviously missed Skylar, but was able to get out to celebrate with family and friends enjoying great food and fun times. Over labor day weekend, Kyle and I drove to NC to celebrate my birthday together. Kyle and I stayed with a wonderful family (old friends of Kyle) who made us feel so at home in their mountain house. Then we spent one night in Asheville before heading back to ATL. We enjoyed local festivals, amazing restaurants, great hiking and fun times together.

Kyle is back into work and I am getting ready to launch my new company for photography, graphic design and consulting. The company is Skylight Creative Group and is partly named in honor of Skylar :) Also, I love using natural light or "skylight" for my photography when I can and the creative group part came from offering a group of creative services. I just created a facebook fan page for it and I'm working on the website (www.skylightcreativegroup.com). With completing administrative stuff and editing pictures from a newborn photo shoot, I certainly have plenty of work to keep me busy!

If you're in the Atlanta area, mark your calendars for Sept. 22 when the Hope & Light Foundation will be having their Dine Out Night partnering with local restaurants to raise money for SMA research. You can check out their website (www.hopeandlight.org under events) for restaurants involved and details, but if you visit a participating restaurant that evening, a portion of all profit made will go to the Hope & Light Foundation!!! We'll be heading over to the VA Highlands area to join them and hope to see you there too! Thank you Hope & Light for featuring Skylar on your website - that was such a sweet surprise when I checked out your website for the Dine Out Night info :)

Check back in a week or so for the memorial video - thanks for keeping up with the Jones'

Peace.