For a Great Cause

It's funny how this blogging thing works...you become connected to perfect strangers, and there is an amazing bond between people who just like to talk to cyberspace and hope someone is listening (or, reading, I guess).

From one lovely blog, I found out about a woman named Stephanie Nielson who has another darling blog called the NieNie dialogues (how clever is she? her nickname is the last 3 letters of her 1st name and the 1st 3 letters of her last name). She and her husband have four beautiful children, and Nie would write about their sweet little life in Utah.

Last week, Nie and her husband, Christian, were in a terrible small-plane crash. The pilot was killed, but gracefully, Nie and Christian survived. They both suffered terrible 3rd-degree burns and are doing OK, but are going through the struggle of their lives.

Nie's blogger sister, Jane, has been keeping the rest of the blogging community abreast of the situation with daily updates. Through her wonderful sisterly love and kindness, Jane and her husband have taken in three of Nie's kids (the fourth is staying with another sister, I gather). The whole story has really touched me, even though (as I said above) these people are perfect strangers.

All this to say that today is officially (in the blog world) NieNie day. Design Mom came up with the idea to host a silent auction—a lovely way to help raise money for the long and difficult recovery the Nielsons will be going through. I'm amazed at the kindness that spread...165+ blogs are also hosting auctions! Everything from signed BYU football gear (the whole family are big BYU fans) to a signed Maroon5 guitar, to beautiful jewelry, edible goodies, art, and photography packages...

If you feel so inclined, head over to Design Mom, find something you might like to have, and maybe make a bid. I've got my eye on a few things, myself. You'll be getting something fabulous AND helping a perfect stranger who lights up the blogging world, and has touched a lot of other people with her story. It's totally random, yes, but that's how this blog thing works, and I have to say, I love it.