Meet Cupcake!

Cupcake is very cute and silly. She is a goofball, and she isn't afraid of embarrassing herself.

She likes to dance to N*sync or Backstreet Boys, while singing into a hairbrush at the top of her lungs.

Cupcake is would love to have a movie night with you. She loves scary movies. Her favorite is classic Psycho. She loves to eat popcorn too.

She is a very good friend who would love to be cuddled and take care of you if you let her.

Take care of her for me Angie!

Bethany

Meet Alex!

Alex is very outgoing and loves to meet new people. He loves to go new places and make new friends. He was so excited when I told him he was going on a trip to meet his new friend Danielle!

Alex loves baseball, he loves to play, but he isn't very good. He wouldn't like me saying that though.

He wouldn't tell you, be he is terrifed of worms. He likes to act like he is very brave, but once we were outside, and he saw a worm and freaked out. It was really cute.

He is a really good friend who deserves lots of hugs and cuddles. take good care of him for me Danielle!!

Bethany.

Gemma

Meet Gemma! Gemma is bubbly and talkative. She is very smart and wants to be a pharmacist when she grows up. Gemma likes doing crossword puzzles and taking long walks in the parks.

Laurel!

Meet Laurel! Laurel is very energetic and has a great sense of humor. Laurel is an excellent cook and she loves to collect recipes. She loves to ride her bike and one of her favorite things to do is go to the beach and look for beach glass. Laurel is very compassionate and is very good at comforting others.

You Are Not Alone Support Letter

For those of you that have not discovered this amazing resource yet, I want to tell you a little about it.

Andrea Roe is a pretty amazing woman. She FOUGHT her eating disorder and WON! How encouraging is that? That someone can fight "ED" and win?! Even if you personally don't struggle with an eating disorder, I think its pretty awesome to see someone overcome anything.

For those of you that do struggle with ED, she puts together a awesome support letter every month. It is filled with "personal recovery stories, inspirational sayings, special guest interviews with eating disorder experts, speakers and survivors, useful recovery and body image tips, inspiring poems and artwork, healing information, give-aways, and more."

I've personally found it to be a great source of support and encouragement. And it's FREE!!

Here is a link to this months support letter (Recovery Buddies is featured in it!), go check it out!
November 2009 Support Letter (PDF)

Like the letter and want to subscibe for it monthly? Go here!

You Are NOT Alone!

Keep fight guys!
Bethany

Group photo of the Recovery Buddies Team!

I totally forgot to put this up!

But here you go... in case anyone wanted to see one... Group photo of the Recovery Buddies Team!

RUN! HIDE! BE AFRAID!

That's right.

I'm baaacckkk!!!

Bethany is HOME!!!! :)

Aren't you excited? It's about time I'm home. I've been away 10 months. Did anyone miss me?

So I'm REALLY excited to get things up and going again. YAY! Sorry for the hiatus. But it was necessary. Things might be a little slower than I'd like still though, because as I'm sure you all know, Allison is in treatment. And Allie is a busy college student.

Allison is currently at Well of GRACE Ministries, I just graduated that program and let me tell you she is gonna do great. She and I got to spend some awesome time together there and it was really hard to leave her behind, but I know she is gonna do great. Keep her in your thoughts, and I'm SURE she'd love mail ;).

Allie is a busy college student again. She is still knitting when she can find time. But that is hard for her to do, I know.

But I'm HOME!! Hopefully I'll get things picking up again soon.

As of right now, as you may have noticed, the donation button is down. I'm working on getting a few things rearranged and I'll have it back soon hopefully. Part of why things have been so slow is lack of funds :(.

Also, I need knitters!! Anyone here knit? know anyone that does? Think you'd like to be a part of this? Email me! We would love for you to help.

I've got some fun things up my sleeves that I'll be posting soon I am sure. :). Keep watching the blog!

I think that is all I have for right now. I just wanted to let you all know that I'm BACK!! YAY!

Love you all,
Bethany

Some news type stuff.

I just have a couple news items on the agenda to discuss.

1. The one year anniversary for recovery buddies passed a couple weeks ago(Aug 22nd). So in honor of that we would like to send a notebook around to interested parties for people to write it, tell their recovery stories, give words of wisdom, and of hope. There will be some rules for this notebook. So if you are interested watch for a blog post about it in the next week or so- or shoot us an email with " recovery notebook" as the subject.

2. We now require consent form for minors to receive buddies. The consent form actually just gives you(minors) permission to give us(the team) your contact form. All minors who haven't received buddies yet will have to submit a signed form. If you need one, and have not been emailed one yet please email us.

3. Due to mailing issues, if you are sending a box of donation buddies, we strongly recommend that you add a tracking number so Allie can confirm delivery. If you want information on how to send us donation buddies, feel free to email us.

Karl

Meet Karl! Karl is very generous and great at giving advice. He loves playing checkers and is pretty good at it, too. Karl hates square dancing but secretly thinks dancing to polka music is kinda cool. He is a very good cook and makes a mean green bean casserole.

Mary

Say hello to Mary! Mary is smart and sophisticated. She loves children and is good at telling stories. Mary is very helpful and loyal and is great at encouraging and comforting others. She likes to dance and wants to be a hula-hoop champion!

Valencia

Meet Valencia! Valencia is a hard worker and very determined. She has a great sense of humor and is very compassionate. Val's favorite color is purple and she loves to garden. She also loves traveling and really wants to see Niagra Falls.

We are turning ONE!!

Can you believe it? This project is turning a year old on August 14th. I know I can hardly believe it!

I know for the rest of the team and I, this is a big moment. The past year has been filled with so many memories for us. As a team we have been thinking back over the last year, thinking of all the milestones that we crossed. Did you know that just in our first year we have send out over 100 buddies? How awesome is that! That is a lot of stitches, yarn, stuffing, sewing, and LOVE. If nothing else I hope this past year has given some of you some hope, love, and a few more steps down the road of recovery. Every stitch that we knit or crochet. Every Buddie that we stuff with love and sew up with hope, is for all of you reading this. We love you guys.

So we want YOU to help us celebrate!!

For those of you that have received buddies: We are looking for Artwork of you and your Buddie to feature on the blog the week of/or day August 14th. So photos, stories, poems, etc.

Some Ideas:

Photos/Drawings:
A photo of you and your Buddie.
A photo of you and your Buddie in your favorite place and/or doing a fun activity together.
Or just your Buddie in a fun place
Not OK with your photo being on the blog? What about a drawing of you and your Buddie doing something together?

Written Word:
A short story about you and your Buddie.
What do you like to do together?
Has your Buddie taught you anything new?
What is does your Buddie mean to you?

We want you guys to be as creative with this as you would like, and have fun with this. After all this project is for you guys and gals.

Deadline: August 12 by 12pm EST (US)

So what about those of you that are reading this saying "well that's great but I don't have my Buddie yet! And I still want to be a part of the celebration!"
What about telling us a story about what you and your Buddie will do?
Or we are always wanting to hear from people what this project means to them.

For everyone: We hope to still be sending out buddies come August 2010. If you can, consider making a Birthday Contribution to the project to keep us going for another year. We are, as always completely funded by your support.

Thanks everyone for an awesome year! Can't wait to start seeing your artwork!

Bethany
Founder and President
Recovery Buddies Project

Benedetta!

Meet Benedetta. Benedetta is very optimistic and is a real fighter. She is very bright and wants to go into the medical field when she grows up. She writes in her diary every day without fail and she likes to use different colors to write in. Sparkly gel pens make her the happiest. Benedetta is a very good listener. She's also very good at being helpful, and if you're extra nice to her, she'll even make your bed for you!

Sebastian

Meet Sebastian. Sebastian is very brave and adventurous. His favorite animal is a cow for a reason even he does not know. Sebastian likes creamsicles and lemonade (but not together). He likes to draw with sidewalk chalk and play four square. Watch out, though, because he's pretty competitive!

Emilie

Meet Emilie! Emilie has a strong will and loves to help others. Her favorite season of the year is fall because she likes to go apple picking. However, in the summer she absolutely loves being outside and drinking strawberry lemonade. Emilie likes jazz music and is a pretty good dancer. She also thinks polka dots are pretty cool.

Julie

Meet Julie! Julie has an incredible memory and is sharp as a tack. She has a contagious smile and a slightly quirky sense of humor. Julie likes playing with dominoes and is very competitive with board games.

Angela!!

Meet Angela. Angela is very determined and enthusiastic. She likes to travel and has a great imagination. She really wants to ride in a helicopter one day. Angela likes to help others learn and is very encouraging when others get frustrated.

Terri

Say hello to Terri. Terri is humble yet very outgoing. She can brighten anyone's day and is great at making people laugh. Terri can be a bit hard on herself and sometimes needs to be reminded that she is loved just the way she is. Her favorite thing ever is hot chocolate with loads of marshmallows. Terri hopes to travel all around the world one day...lucky for her, she's getting her start by going all the way over to the UK!

Martha!

Meet Martha! Martha is a real neat freak and is always on her feet. She needs to be reminded that it's okay to sit and relax sometimes! Martha loves having parties and doing things with her friends. She still colors on the children's menus at restaurants and is a champion at hopscotch.

Meet Monica

Say hello to Monica! Monica is super persistent and determined and is a real go-getter. She has lots of patience and is a very good listener. Monica loves to paint and do all sorts of artsy craftsy things. She also thinks it would be really cool to go parasailing or sky diving.

Chiara

Say hello to Chiara (pronounced key-ara)! Chiara loves to sing and play piano. She is awesome at tennis and is a pretty good dancer, too. Chiara has a great sense of humor and is always making everyone laugh. She is a very loyal friend and is a great listener.

Zachariah

Meet Zachariah. Zachariah is very smart and wants to be a doctor when he grows up. He is a very good speaker but he enjoys listening to people as well. Zachariah likes to listen to Salsa music and he likes to watch VeggieTales. He is a real kid at heart!

Clare!

Meet Clare. Clare is energetic and rather giggly. She likes to do outdoorsy things but she also likes watching TV and movies. Her favorite movie, as you can see, is Wall-e. Clare really likes to help people and is also a very good leader.

Meet Gianna!

This is Gianna. Gianna loves Italian food and is a die-hard soccer fan. She absolutely loves babies and she wants to be a pediatric doctor when she grows up. Gianna likes to ski and her favorite color is magenta. Gianna is one of the lucky few who actually win more games of Solitaire than they lose, and she is quite proud of that! Her favorite word is juxtaposition because it's fun to say and she is a very loyal friend!

Katharine

Say hello to Katharine! Katharine is very kind and generous and loves to help people. She likes to play Bingo and she absolutely loves spinny chairs--they could keep her occupied for hours. Katharine also loves to tell jokes and make people laugh.

Christina

Meet Christina. Christina is brave and determined. Her favorite sport is archery. She absolutely hates square dancing but really does love waltzing. Her favorite season is Spring and she loves rolling down big grassy hills! She is so excited to be part of the family at Ophelia's Place!

Here it is!!

Here it is! the first Recovery Buddies Project Bag.

Lime green and Pink. Bag is hand-knit, 100% acrylic. It is machine washable and dryable.

All proceceds will be used support the running of the Recovery Buddies Project.

click HERE!!

Meet Bernadette

Say hello to Bernadette! Bernadette has a great sense of humor and likes to tell stories. She is great at helping to take care of people when they get sick. Bernadette's favorite animal is the flamingo and desperately wants one for a pet. Bernadette is a very kind and patient soul and she gives the best hugs!

Meet Francesca

Say hello to Francesca! Francesca is a real firecracker! She is very enthusiastic and loves to try and cheer people up. Francesca loves animals and it seems as thought they love her, too! She loves to jump rope and play hopskotch. However she has a tendency to be a little klutzy...so keep her away from the china cabinet!

Asella

Meet Asella! Asella is very joyful and peaceful, and her joy is just absolutely contagious! She doesn't like being the center of attention but is very good at giving advice. Asella likes jazz music and has always wanted to play the saxaphone.

Meet Colette!

Colette is very determined and is a natural leader. She always wants to do the right thing, but she often learns her lessons the hard way. Colette loves games like Scrabble and Boggle. She likes to talk on the phone a little too much, so be careful about lending her your phone...she might run up the bill!

Just a question...

I want to take a poll. How many of you would bid on a bag like the one pictured if we put a few up for sale say on ebay? All proceeds going toward shipping and keeping this going.

and what colors would you like?

I just want to see how much interest there would be, if any, before i start to knit a few :)

Bethany

Hope Ann

Meet Hope Ann. Hope Ann is very friendly and hospitable. She loves having guests over and is very accommodating. She is very brave and will stand up for what she believes at all costs. Hope Ann is very crafty and creative. She is accustomed to having a bedtime story before she goes to sleep every night, her favorite being Good Night, Moon.

Meet Roy!

Roy loves travelling, (you can see his huge luggage behind him in the picture) especially because it gives him time to read comics. He can be somewhat of a nerd and is sometimes made fun of because of that, (not to mention the spotty limbs!) but really that is what makes him special. (They are made of felt!) He is particularly cuddly and LOVES to be hugged, so Donna, hug him often!

Marguerite!

Meet Marguerite. Marguerite is spunky and determined and loves to travel every chance she gets. Her favorite place she has been to is France. Marguerite is passionate about helping others and loves to help people learn. She has a certain fondness for strawberry Jell-o and has a very eclectic music taste.

Ivan

Meet Ivan. Ivan likes to travel and especially likes the mountains. He tends to be kind of quiet and likes his alone time, but he will never hesitate to help others in need. Ivan likes sheep and gives any sheep he sees a name. He often appears serious to others but he has a great sense of humor and is great at cheering others up.

Tabitha

Say hello to Tabitha. Tabitha is committed to doing good for others and helping the poor. Her favorite place to eat out is Panera. She can't get enough of the Fuji Apple Chicken salad...mmm! Tabitha loves to sit out in the sunshine and read a good book. She tends to get cold a lot, so keep her warm!

Veronica

Meet Veronica. Veronica is very practical and organized. She is a natural leader. Veronica loves to paint and thinks it would be really cool to be in the circus, except she's afraid of lions and elephants. Always a loving and loyal companion, Veronica is there for her friends through thick and thin and is a great listener!

Adelaide

Meet Adelaide. Adelaide is humble and good natured. She likes to take long walks by the beach and taking long, hot showers. (Make sure you take yours first, or she might use up all the hot water!) She likes to tap dance and has been thinking about taking swing dance lessons. Adelaide spends lots of time deep in thought, always pondering the "big" questions of life.

Maria

This is Maria. Maria likes to play dress-up and drink pink lemonade. She is very brave and will stand up for herself at all costs. She is very cheerful, even while doing mundane tasks such as household chores. She is very caring and forgiving and always wants the best for everyone. Maria is ecstatic to join the family at Ophelia's Place and encourage the girls in the IOP program!

Angela

Meet Angela. Angela is bright and energetic. She wants to be a teacher when she grows up. She is very clever and determined and will find a way to get things done no matter what obstacles come her way! She likes to try and do things in new and different ways. Angela loves to color. She thinks protein bars are the greatest and will tolerate vanilla Ensures...just don't try and make her drink a strawberry one--she will put up quite a nasty fight!

Meet Matthias

Matthias is very brave. He likes to paint and play the violin and he wants to do a triathlon one day. Matthias loves jelly donuts. He gets distracted rather easily, but when you need him to listen, he is all ears.

Maxie!

This is Maxie. Maxie is very loving and incredibly selfless. She will go above and beyond the call of duty for her friends and is always willing to help out strangers. She loves to sing and has an uncanny ability to get others to join her in doing so. Maxie can be a bit of a mama's girl sometimes, but she knows how to stand up for herself and use her voice. She can't wait to meet Tiffany!

Bernard

Say hello to Bernard! Bernard loves to ski and travel. He is a very good host when there are visitors and makes the best hot chocolate ever! Sometimes Bernard likes to talk with a British accent just for fun, and he even occasionally does so in his sleep! He is very friendly and outspoken and loves to put a smile on others' faces! He can't wait to give Katie a hug!

WEEEEEEEEEEEE!

I like saying WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!

But anyway some of you Recovery Buddies is taking is slow right now. And we were officially on a break for the past couple weeks. And we are tentatively off of the said break, as I is caught up in my English class.

I sent 5 international buddies this week, go me. And have I think, 4 more ready to go.

As many of you Bethany is away at treatment, and I meant to post this ages ago. But she loves getting mail and little boxes of love, so if you would like to send her something here is her address:
Bethany Mills C/O
Well of GRACE Ministries
1672 Roberts Dr
St. Joseph, MI 49085

A little side note about sending her mail and packages, I do not have the list of things that are not allowed to be sent, however I just follow common sense when sending her things and suggest you do the same. Also all mail and packages must have a return address with a name, or else it won't be given to her.

Oh and in case you missed the post, there is a new team member. WEEEEEEEEEE! I <3>

Meet Gerard

Gerard is an avid gardener, with a particular affinity for petunias (mostly because he thinks it's fun to say). He loves to listen to others and help them through their struggles, and he is very understanding. Gerard also likes to give big hugs and tell jokes. He has a great desire to travel to Italy one day, but is very excited to travel to Canada to be with Courtney! Love him well!

Isidore

Say hello to Isidore, aka. Izzy! Izzy is a computer pro and can fix just about any computer problem. He likes to read children's books, and his favorite is Harold and the Purple Crayon. He is very curious and loves to learn. Izzy is also a very good listener and loves to make people smile. He is absolutely stoked to join Rosalee at Ophelia's Place!

Rosalee!

Meet Rosalee! Rosalee is playful and occasionally a bit mischievous. She loves to dance but sings slightly off-key. Her favorite food is peanut butter and banana sandwich. She also has a passion for helping people in need. She may appear soft-spoken at first, but she is not afraid to rise to the occasion to stand up for what is right! She is so excited to join the family of Ophelia's Place!

Hello! I'm new!

Hey all, I'm Allison. I'm 22, I hail from Central New York, and I am the newest buddie maker! I have been battling an ED for 6-7 years now and I am diving into recovery head first! It's been a long road but I finally have hope that I can overcome this and live life without my eating disorder. I have been in college since fall of 2004 and still have no degree. I have changed my major three times, soon to be four. I'm currently taking time off from school to take care of myself and have no idea what I want to do with myself or what major I'm going to pick up when I return. I enjoy reading, playing piano, singing, listening to music, being with friends, meeting new people, and, of course, knitting. I hate snow. And my favorite color is pink. I am a little bit obsessed with it....

PostSecret Saturdays

"Your anorexia is changing you into a person I don't know. I miss you- the old you"

Post Secret

"I now believe that I am unique, sexy, worthy of love, and beautiful without my eating disorder"

Good for you, whoever you are.

New business of 2009

There is some new business of 2009.

A) The donations thing is taken down for the time being. So you can't donate until further notice.

B) Happy New Year

C) To those making donation buddies, those need to be sent to Allie, until further notice. Email us if you need the address.

D) If you want to send thank-you notes, but aren't sure who to send them to, Send them to Allie and she will get to them to the person who needs them.

Love,
Me

Happy 2009!

Just wanted to post a quick blog and tell everyone Happy New Year!

There is a lot going on right now with the team and the holidays so we took a small break. We are coming back though. Promise :-). I personally am getting ready to send off 10 buddies. We have still been knitting. At least I have.

Happy New Year everyone! May it be a happy and HEALTHY year for us all.

Bethany