A Cold Treat on a Warm Day (Icy Delights Fundraiser)

Saturday was the perfect day for an Icy Delights fundraiser! The sun was shining, there was a cool breeze, and the temperature got up to 66 degrees! We had been looking forward to this fundraiser for a few weeks. It all started when the owner of Icy Delights, Bill, wrote a post on the business's Facebook page saying that he wanted to start the season off by giving. He wanted to help a family in need, and he reached out to the Facebook community to help him find one. One of the awesome moms that I babysit for, Margo, saw the post and contacted Bill to tell him Jaxsen's story. He was so impressed with how Margo spoke so fondly of Jax and our family that he immediately decided to choose us to help. He contacted me and told me that he would help our family with Jaxsen's medical bills by donating 100% of the proceeds from his opening day to us! He also offered to give away a free month's worth of snowballs to one lucky person who shared his status updates about the fundraiser. We were blown away by his generosity! We quickly started counting down the days until the fundraiser.

The morning of the fundraiser, Nick and I made the mistake of telling Jax that we were going to get ice cream and snowballs later that day. He immediately started crying because he didn't want to wait for his ice cream! He wanted it then and there. We told him that we would only go and get some if he was a good boy. Our bribery worked for a little bit, but he was still the mischievous little troublemaker that he always is! After he woke up from his morning nap, two of his young cousins, Makayla and Jordyn, came over to the house with their Mom-mom (Nick's Aunt Gail). They were excited to get some ice cream too! We quickly packed everything and everyone in the car and headed over to Icy Delights.

When we pulled up to the snowball stand, we were surprised to see such a long line of people waiting to get their treats and support Jaxsen. We were promptly greeted by Bill, who told us that they had been getting great business all day! He showed us a table that he had set up in front of the stand that had a poster with Jaxsen's pictures and story on it and a bucket for donations. We talked for a while longer, but Jaxsen was getting impatient so we excused ourselves so we could get him a cup of chocolate ice cream. Nick and I got our snowballs and then met up with the rest of the family in the grassy area next to the stand. Aunt Gail laid a blanket down on the grass so the kids could sit down and eat their ice creams. Aunt Angie and Ms. Yvette drove up just as Jax finished up his cup of ice cream, so they got him another bowl when they ordered their snowballs.

After the kids were finished with their treats, they decided to run around for a little bit as the adults socialized. There was a tree in the grassy area next to the stand that Jaxsen, Makayla, and Jordyn decided to explore. As they were hiding in the low branches, one of the kids looked down and saw a strange, fuzzy, black creature! It looked like a giant caterpillar to us, but the kids were convinced it was a spider. They took turns peaking through the branches to catch a glimpse of the creature and then running away and squealing in delight. We let the kids run around for about 30 minutes before telling them that it was time to head home. 

The entire time that we were at Icy Delights, there was a long line. We were happy to see a few familiar faces while we were there, and it was humbling to see so many unfamiliar ones. All of the employees who volunteered to work at Icy Delights for the fundraiser were extremely nice and personable. Bill was great also, and obviously a very generous man. We are so grateful that we had the chance to meet him and his employees, and be on the receiving end of his graciousness. We can't wait to go back to the Icy Delights in Dundalk for more icy cold treats throughout the summer!