We did it! We finally had the lemonade stand. We let the kids plan it, make it and set it up. We just sat way back up by the house and let them run it. It was the first money they earned by themselves. The kids came up with a mascot (stuffed puppet) who wore glasses and Etienne and Chloe wanted to dress up. I think Americans want some of what used to be, the days where neighbors would sit out on the porch at night and visit with each other and it was safe for kids to run around. So many people who came by saw the stand and would be smiling so hard it was more like a laugh. Multiple times instead of the 25 cents they would give the kids each a dollar or even a five dollar bill and before they drove away the kids would be running up the hill yelling at the top of their lungs waving the loots saying Daddy Mommy look at how much Money they gave us!! They made enough that I am considering having them do this every weekend to help pay for our oil heat this winter. Juuuust kidding! I thought of some of you readers who have been coming to the site for a long time and how much fun it would be to have you come by and make the kids day. They sat out their for four hours and it was so nice to see how happy it made other people. One older lady with a British accent said "I had to circle the car back around, it is just so pretty to see their little faces all smiling like that." I do not know how to write it so that you can hear the accent so just use your imagination. Eti stood at the edge of the road waving his sign and saying to his siblings over and over "Just smile and wave boys, just smile and wave." At one point no cars came down our street for almost 45 mins and that is forever to little impatient Eti. He was discouraged to the point of pouting..dejected, head down, sign all limp at his side. So Steve took him aside and talked to him, and then together they kneeled in the yard and prayed that if God wanted cars to come that God would have a car come and that if no cars came Eti would know that God did not want them there at that time and to be happy anyway..they were still in the middle of the prayer when a car pulled up and the pastors wife from a large church in our area who does not know us came and gave more money than anyone else in the day! I think again and again that the Lord delights in building the faith of the little ones. 
Most people my Dad's age have stories to tell about their first pet, their first car, and almost always they have memories of their first chucks..so as not to deprive her of her own piece of childhood I picked up a pair on sale for ten dollars. 
Too cool to smile diva...er a, I mean Coco with Aunt Janet | 
