We had our second garage sale fundraiser over the weekend, and it was a great success! We could not have done it on a colder weekend, and there were snow flurries both days. In spite of that, we had steady traffic and raised over $1,200!! It was a lot of fun, too. We got to talk to about a dozen people who have either adopted, are in the process or who are involved in orphan care. We even talked to a few people who are praying about pursuing adoption! So exciting!! A great big THANK YOU to all those who helped in a variety of ways!
Last week, we received a draft copy of our home study report, too!! We sent it back with a few minor changes and should get the final copy very soon. Thank you for persevering in prayer with us!! We are now one step closer!!!
I have been making progress on the quilt, as well. Here's a recent pic of the quilt blocks that I have finished, and I have another 4 blocks started.
We are still selling the pottery jewelry - I have 5 pieces from the new batch left (see the Facebook album HERE), and I should have more pieces in a few weeks. See the post "Jewelry, anyone?" for further details. Josh's parents and sister-in-law have also donated some items for us to sell to raise funds - solid wood cross clocks, handmade scented wax tarts and soaps and a couple of Longaberger and Thirty-one items. See pictures of the available items HERE.
We are so blessed to be a part of the Church, and we have seen the gospel in action all around us throughout this process. Our brothers and sisters in Christ have sacrificed time, goods and money to be a part of God's work in this world and in our family. We are so humbled to see God's hand in this every single day!!! Let us continue in this state of grace as we press on to a state of glory!!
"Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality." (Romans 12:9-13 ESV)
The necklaces are in, and they are beautiful!! We are selling handmade pottery necklaces by Rebekah Blocher. Rebekah has a heart for adoption and is using her talents to help families fundraise for adoption expenses. LOVE IT! She carves a Bible verse reference on the back of the pieces. Each piece also comes inside of a small bag that was handmade in China by Scarlet Threads, a fair trade boutique that helps seamstresses in rural China and Uganda to provide for their families in a safe, dignified manner.
We are selling each piece for $24 (plus $2 s&h, if required to be mailed to you). HALF of that money goes directly toward our adoption expenses! The pieces are gorgeous and would make fantastic gifts - thinking ahead to Valentines Day, Mother's Day, graduation, etc. If you want to know what Scripture reference is on the back of a specific piece, or just to get a closer look - CLICK HERE to see the Facebook album with individual shots of the pieces remaining (I have a feeling I'll be ordering more very soon!).
I am starting to make some progress on the quilt, and I just wanted to share a few pictures with you! I finished up two of the blocks last night. I think it's going to turn out so cute!!
Thank you again to everyone who sponsored blocks! All 20 blocks were sponsored in less than 72 hours, thanks to the outpouring of your generous hearts! We have finished up our home study meetings, too. We hope to have our completed home study report back in the next month, and we're preparing to start on our immigration paperwork. Meanwhile, we are still selling books online, coffee through our Just Love link and organizing our next garage sale fundraiser! The garage sale will be MARCH 1 & 2 - SAVE THE DATE! Let me know if you have anything sitting around collecting dust that you'd like to donate.
We are also getting ready to receive our first shipment of jewelry that we are selling as a fundraiser. The jewelry is handmade pottery by Rebekah Blocher. CLICK HERE if you want a sneak peak of what some of her jewelry looks like! It's really beautiful and would make great gifts! I will surely keep you posted as soon as that is available - should be later this week!
In the middle of December, I was doing our finances and feeling a bit down as I looked at the balance in our adoption bank account. I knew our next payment would be coming up in January, and we just didn't have it...yet. I felt a little doubt creeping in. What if we didn't have the money when it came due? Would we have to put the adoption on hold? Worry was ready and waiting to consume my thoughts. But praise the Lord for the Spirit's sweet assurance, who called to mind the countless times that God has provided for our family. Josh and I have been through this before...the numbers just not working. We went through almost two years of making two house payments on one income. I'm a CPA, and I can tell you - the numbers were impossible. Impossible, ha! Luke 1:37 reminds us, "For nothing will be impossible with God." The truth of this verse is so real to me. God has proved it in my life time and time again. So, I told that doubt where it could go. ;)
That afternoon when I opened the mail, I found a check that I was not expecting this month. And wouldn't you know, it put us over what we needed to make our next payment! There was an error in our home escrow estimate, so we got a very large refund and an escrow payment for the coming year that is almost $100 less than we've been paying! I danced my little jig up the driveway, and I just shook my head - blown away again at how He perfectly provides for us. But you know how God is - just when you think He's blessed you, He just keeps pouring His grace out. A dear sweet neighbor of ours was moving that week, and I filled her in on our adoption. She asked if we would like some donations for our next garage sale fundraiser. And by "some" donations, I mean a TON of furniture, tools, etc. She just kept saying how thrilled she was that her garage sale hadn't gone so well, because it was God's plan for her to pass these things on to us. Again, blown away.
Just before Christmas, we started collecting used books to sell online for fundraising purposes. Our church family from Ohio was a tremendous blessing in their donations!! I am still getting them all listed online, and I'll be listing more as we receive them. If you have any books to donate, let me know! If you are interested in checking out our online bookstore, click here. Please pass it along to any of your friends and family that may be interested. We've priced everything very competitively - going for quantity here!
$30,000 is a pretty "impossible" number for our one-income family, but we have been able to pay for every cost that has arisen - just in time. God truly provides where He guides! Our brothers and sisters in Christ have been abundantly generous - we have felt bathed in prayer, received over $800 worth of goods donated for our first garage sale (and lots more since that we are storing for our next sale), 10 boxes of books donated and over $700 from cash donations and Just Love coffee sales. A huge THANK YOU to all of you who have supported us along the way! We have enough to make our next payment now, but we will still have about $18,000 in remaining costs to come up with. We can start applying for adoption grants once our home study is complete; we are supposed to have our final home study meeting next week - so it won't be long! We'll keep you posted on that. In the meantime, we're fundraising away!
Our newest fundraiser is a "Sponsor-a-Block." My Mom and I are going to be making a quilt for our daughter. My Mom has graciously donated the fabric, and we are asking for 20 people who would be willing to sponsor a block of the quilt for $25. We will be putting all sponsor's names on the quilt label. You can contribute via PayPal through the ChipIn widget on the sidebar, or you can send a check in the mail. If you want to pass along our ChipIn page, send friends to this link. Below I have put a picture of the quilt pattern we're doing and the fabrics we're using. I can't wait to see it come together!!
Please keep praying for our little girl! We also ask that you pray that God's hand will be upon our paperwork and our fundraising - we are confident that He will continue to multiply our loaves and fishes for His glory! We are praying regularly that He will bless you all.
"And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work." - 2 Corinthians 9:8 ESV
In the wake of the brutal and
evil attack in Newtown, CT, the internet swirls with opinions about gun
control, school safety, mental health, and the sovereignty of God. As a parent
of a kindergartener at a public school, I have been imagining the events as if
they happened to me and to my little Sydney. I was at Sydney’s school when the
massacre took place. I see these precious children’s faces several times a
week, and I just love them. My stomach churns, my gut aches, my spirit groans.
Can we just stop and mourn with these families? I understand there are
important topics that must be addressed and should be discussed, but can we not
hurt and weep with these parents first? I am reminded of Jesus’ response when
he arrived at Lazarus’ grave in John 11. He knew He was to raise Lazarus from
the dead, but He was still deeply moved with those mourning and He wept. Those
of us who are Christians understand that these children have hope in Christ,
but we still weep at the temporary sting of death. Psalm 34:18 is an
encouragement to us, “The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the
crushed in spirit.” I have not parented a child for 6 years and then lost him,
but I know the Lord has comforted my broken heart when I have been crushed, and
He gives His children unfailing hope, unconditional peace and miraculous
comfort. Please join me in continuing to pray for these families, as well as
cherishing and honoring the children in our own lives. May we love and cherish
all children from conception to the grave.
John Piper once wrote, “How we
deal with children is a signal of our fellowship with God. Something is deeply
amiss in the soul that does not descend (or is it really ascend?) to love and hold a child.” Our family devotions
this month have been Advent-themed, and we have been talking about a different
name of Jesus every night. We wrote them out on stars and have been putting one
up each night above a manger cutout. I think about Immanuel, God with us, our
greatest example. How did Jesus respond to children, and is our attitude
towards them in line with his? Christ humbled Himself and came as an infant, He
took children in His arms and blessed them (Mark 10:14-16), He healed a little
girl (Matt. 15:28), cast a demon out of a little boy (Matt. 17:18), raised a
little girl from the dead (Mark 5:41-42), and accepted a boy’s ordinary gift of
loaves and fishes, then feeding a multitude with them (John 6:9-10). It’s clear
in Scripture that Jesus loved children and children loved Him. The Bible
encourages us to become like children (Matt. 18:3-4), and each day as I watch
my children – I am humbled by this. They are so innocent, so energetic, so
magical in their thinking. They are strong, they are full of life, they are
curious. They trust unwaveringly, they forgive easily, they laugh and cry
often. They enjoy their Creator and all that He has made for them. They find
joy in the smallest of things and have eyes widened with wonder at the
mysteries that surround them. All the while, they are acutely aware of their
great neediness. My children know that they mess up A LOT. They know that they
need someone to care for them. They are eager to learn, because they realize
they don’t have all the answers. They feel the pain of others in a way I have
forgotten. Is it any wonder we are called to be like these?
This morning, I was re-reading a
blog entry called “10 Resolutions for Mental Health” that John Piper wrote to
honor a teacher of his, and I think it is generally good advice for all of us.
If you have time, please read it. So many of the resolutions encourage us to
become like children once again. Mommies, put down your dishtowels today and
stare at your children. Daddies, hide the remote control and wrestle with your
kids. And if you don’t have children of your own, God has still placed children
in your life for you to minister to and to learn from. Jesus never married or
had children, but oh how he loved the little ones! Let us fiercely love the
children in our lives, and let us fight for those who are unwanted and unloved.
May we have a deeper appreciation and a greater love for our Savior this year,
as we celebrate His first coming in the form of a child. Our family wishes you a very Merry CHRISTmas!
Last week, Josh and I had our
individual interviews for our home study. These are the interviews for which we
wrote our autobiographies. Forcing myself to sit down and walk through my past
was so beneficial. I was reminded of all the people God has used in my life, as
well as many of the lessons He has taught me along the way. The process made me
so thankful for my upbringing. My parents aren’t perfect, but both of them have
pointed me to Jesus and encouraged me in my faith. For that, I am eternally
grateful. (So, thanks Mom & Dad!) Now, Josh and I are beginning our
adoption education courses! I’m really excited for this part! Once we complete
those items, we’ll meet with our social worker again.
On the fundraising front, there
are a few things to mention. First off, we just want to say thank you to all of
you who have supported us through your prayers, your encouragement and your
giving. We are continually blessed by you all! Secondly, I have begun to
collect gently used books to sell online as a fundraiser. So, if you have any
collecting dust on your shelves or would be willing to do a mini book drive for
us, it would be greatly appreciated! We are going to be having another garage
sale fundraiser in a couple months, so if you have anything – we’ve already got
a good pile going in our basement! We’re hoping to do an adoption t-shirt fundraiser in the near future too. I’ll keep you posted on that. Another new fundraiser we’ve begun is through a wonderful Christian company called Just Love Coffee. A portion of the
proceeds from every purchase made through the Just Love link on our blog (see the sidebar) will
go directly toward our adoption costs! Please share the link with your friends too. The coffee is really good, and the
company is truly the kind we want to support. Check out this video to learn more about how they do business!
If you are like me, you spent a
fair amount of time this month thinking about gratitude and giving. One thing
our family did this year was to make a “thankfulness tree.” Each night at
dinner we wrote things that we were thankful for on a leaf that was added to
the tree. It was such a good exercise for us all. Our leaves are covered with
quite a variety of things – everything from bacon to the grace of God!
God has
been hammering away at me this month; He’s so good to do so. Over the weekend,
Josh, my sister Patti and I went to downtown Atlanta with some folks from our
church to minister to the homeless community. There was a station handing out
clothes, a prayer station, a medical station, a foot care station, a call home
station, music, s’mores and chili. The three of us were on trash duty, which
ended up being a lot of fun. We got to mingle and talk with people the whole
time. I kept thinking about Grace, a homeless woman that I got to know when I worked in Cleveland. One thing I learned from her was that a lot of people who are homeless just want to feel human. They want to be looked at in the eyes, called by name and talked to. I was so humbled when the man singing asked “Who here has something to thank God for
today?” and I watched almost everyone put their hands up. That's a moment I hope to recall when I feel like complaining. I’d like to
challenge us all to do more than just write a check to charity this Christmas
season. Let’s get our hands dirty. Let’s form relationships. Let’s give of our
time, talents and treasures without concern for recognition and without
worrying about how others may spend our gifts. Let’s be true followers of Jesus,
imitating Him and living out His gospel. He chose a humble beginning in a dirty manger, and He spent much
of His time on earth among the poor. We have so much to learn from His example
and from the poor themselves. Sure, we can give ourselves a gold star for an annual good deed performed; but if we are truly following Christ, caring for the least of these will become a lifestyle pattern - part of our DNA, if you will. That cuts me right to the heart. Being the bookworm I am, I have to plug a book
here too. One of my favorite books (co-written by a man who was homeless) is Same Kind of
Different as Me written by Denver Moore and
Ron Hall. You just HAVE to read it; that’s all there is to it.
Every year around this time, I’m
especially reminded to take an inventory of my affections and priorities. I
just pray that I will focus on what is lasting and eternal and continually
throw off the hindrance of “stuff.” This month, I am being schooled by my six
year old. One night, I watched Sydney bring her piggy bank
downstairs and empty all of its contents into our adoption change jar. For her
birthday party this month, she asked people to bring canned goods for MUST
ministries rather than gifts. She was so excited when that food filled our
whole trunk and we drove it down there. Then, I took her to Target a couple
weeks ago with $10 she had received from a family member for her birthday, and
she gave $5 of it to her brother to spend. I don’t know about you, but she’s
putting me to shame lately. It makes me feel a little better that she is still trying
to come to grips with the fact that she will no longer have her own sink when
her sister arrives! ;) Most days, she is still her bossy little self who struggles with self-control, but I am so grateful to see the work Jesus has begun in her little heart. Aren’t you
thankful that God is not finished with us yet? I know I am.
God is so faithful! Our first fundraiser was amazing! Thank you to all those who donated goods for the garage sale and treats for the bake sale. We raised $817 total in just two days! Not only that, but I was so encouraged by all the folks I met and was able to talk with this weekend. I met over a dozen families that had adopted children, were in the process of adopting or were adopted themselves. Talk about confirmation from the Lord - wow! Several families didn't even want to buy anything; they just came by to donate after seeing our sign, because they believe in adoption. The event was so successful that we plan to host another sale in a few months. We still have lots of nice items to sell, and we'll offer families a great opportunity to unload some things after the Christmas season! Let me know if you live out-of-town and would be willing to host a benefit garage sale or bake sale on our behalf - I can give you lots of tips and would be happy to help however I can!
We also had our first home interview with our social worker last week. She is so sweet! Isn't the bond between Christian brothers and sisters amazing?!? She was family before she walked through our door. ;) Our interview mostly covered the topics of our marriage and our children, and we also did a safety walkthrough of our home. Our next interviews will be done individually with our social worker, and they will be based off our autobiographies which we are busy writing. I've answered about half the questions so far, and mine is over 11 pages typed. I hope she likes to read! ;) What a fruitful exercise that has been for me, though. It has given me opportunity to recount the blessings I've received from God, as well as praise Him for the trials which have come through His hands that have shaped my character and prepared me for the work He is calling me to.
During our home interview, our social worker seemed a little surprised and very excited about our "experience" in terms of dealing with ill children. It seems clear that God has prepared us to adopt a child with medical special needs. From the time our first child Sydney was born, we have experienced many an illness with our children. Sydney was born with jaundice, which is fairly common and of which I was already familiar. Sure, I didn't like taking my baby to get pricked in the heal daily or have her wrapped in blue lights all day - but this was no big deal. She also had a very a large hematoma on her head, due to a very traumatic delivery. It was amazing to watch that heal as quickly as it did - praise God, our marvelous Creator! At 3 weeks old, Sydney was admitted to a children's hospital for a high fever. She was vomiting, inconsolable, would not nurse and had a temperature of almost 104 degrees. We were at the hospital for a full week, undergoing countless tests (including an excrutiating spinal tap) and praying over our very sick baby. After the doctors determined that it was a stomach virus and she began to improve, we were sent home. A week or so later, our baby was clearly having trouble breathing. She seemed stuffy and began wheezing. We took her to our pediatrician, and she tested positive for RSV. Her oxygen level was concerning, but our amazing pediatrician agreed to keep her out of the hospital as long as we were willing to bring her in once or twice a day to see her. The next six weeks were filled with breathing treatments on the nebulizer every 4-6 hours and trying to get her to eat enough. It was survival mode for these new parents. Sydney pulled through, and our hearts were filled with thankfulness. Since then, poor Syd has been to almost every kind of specialist you can imagine. Our poor baby has had such a rough start - heart murmur, allergy to dairy and soy, pneumonia twice, scarlet fever, roseola, strep throat twice, sleep apnea (and resulting behavior issues), surgery to remove her very enlarged tonsils and adenoids, severe seasonal allergies and related allergy shots, etc. I have to tell you, it's been quite the ride!
Our son Brody has not had as many medical issues, though he has also had some. He was born with a tongue tie and had trouble nursing, so he had a frenectomy when he was a few days old. Again, amazing to see how God designed our bodies to heal so quickly. He was also born with hip dysplasia, so we made many trips to the pediatric orthopedic doc. Brody soon became one of those babies who never seemed to stop screaming - clearly he was in immense pain...especially shortly after nursing. I could not drive anywhere, because the car seat especially aggravated his condition. He could not lay flat to sleep at night. We soon determined that he had GERD and a sensitivity to dairy. Brody also has a significant astigmatism in both of his eyes, requiring him to start wearing glasses at age 2. He's all the cuter for it, in my opinion! ;)
There has been nothing smooth or easy about having children for Josh and I, though I know other families have experienced trials much more severe with their little ones. We understand what it is like to have sick children and what it is like to lose a baby; but we have also been so utterly blessed to have a supportive, loving family and church families to surround us with prayer and practical help over the years. Grandparents flying to wherever we lived, church family praying and bringing us meals, and wonderful, amazing medical professionals - some of who also showered us with prayer. And, oh, what a blessing these little ones have been to us! My kids crack me up everyday, and they cause me to praise God. They are greatly responsible for these blistered knees, and God uses them to teach me often. On this side of the struggles, we can clearly see God's goodness in preparing us for His purpose and plan for our lives. In our weakness, He has been our strength and our joy. We have prayed and continue to pray for our idols to be crushed and for our lives to display His glory. Following Jesus is so much more than sitting in a pew on Sunday. We desire for our lives to be an anthem of worship to our God. God has used our trials to clear the stage of our hearts - our hearts have been stirred, rocked and broken. I'm embedding a video below about this very thing from one of my favorite musicians, Jimmy Needham. It's worth your time, trust me.
"Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us." (Romans 5:1-5 ESV)
We may not always understand our struggles, but if you are in Christ, you can have confidence that He will use them for His glory and for your good (Romans 8:28)! And we have the promise of His strength in the midst of the trials - read Philippians 4:13 and understand the context of this verse. We can ENDURE all things through Christ who gives us strength!
