Dressed for HOPE

I LOVE wearing adoption shirts.  Anything to advocate for the orphan!  We're getting ready to make some new ones ourselves, but you MUST check out Kim's new fundraiser for their adoption!  You seriously cannot pass this one up!  Check out her blog HERE and I'd like to tell you not to enter so I can win, but hey.....  it's for the greatest cause I can think of!  Creating bigger families through adoption!  Bringing orphans home to forever families!  So buy as many entries as you can afford!

If you win, you get ALL of this!

AND THIS!!!!

Incredible!!!  Even if I don't win this sweet giveaway I can't wait to see who does!  Congratulations Kim on the coolest fundraiser I've seen to date!  You rock girlfriend!  

† Shopping With a Purpose

The Christmas season is upon us! I don't know about you, but I have yet to dive into my shopping! I dread it for so many reasons. We no longer buy gifts for the adults in our family and only buy for children (our own and nieces and nephews). This year I want to do something different, when I shop and buy something (if I don't make it myself) I want it to be something with a deeper meaning and purpose than just something I grabbed at the last minute from the shelf at the department store. Below are some links and photos of items that would make great gifts but also support wonderful charities or families adopting so .... shop without guilt!!!! Know that money you spend not only buys a gift for your loved one, but provides funds for others to bring their loved ones home to forever families. :) Shop till you drop!!! I dare ya! :o) (and just a little heads up.... soon to come, we're making our own little boutique shop with goodies for the same purpose! Future gift giving ideas will be found at Pish Posh Tots too!!!)

Sugar Plum Orphans

Need hair bows, look no farther! So cute and so unique and for a great cause!

Beads For Life The beaders and tailors are primarily impoverished women who are hardworking, intelligent, and strong in their desire to improve their lives. They make gorgeous handcrafted paper beads from recycled paper and turn them into necklaces, bracelets, and earrings. Because the beaders use recycled, colorful paper, the beads help prevent environmental degradation. What was trash becomes beauty, money, food, and hope.

Light Gives Heat

Last year I gave these SUUBI beads as end of the year teacher gifts and for Christmas! They are very cool and go with so many things and support the women of Uganda! There are also other items for sell here.

Small Wish

This talented mom has the cutest baby slings I have ever seen and they are affordable! Stock up even if you don't need on enow because they make great baby gifts and help fund their adoption!!

JUNKPOSSE

This talented adoptive mom and grandma makes beautiful jewelry and You can keep up with her on her blog as well!

Sseko Designs

These are the cutest shoes ever!!! You buy one pair and then purchase straps is additional patterns! Go and read about the wonderful things they are doing in Uganda and support them by SHOPPING!!

What a WIN-WIN

Bacon Bit Knits

Hand knit in Alaska and 100% goes towards their domestic adoption fund. If you are aware of a mother looking to place her baby for adoption this family's profile can be seen here!

It's Poppy Dip

Here you will find some of the cutest and most affordable outfits for your little girls! Sallee is the blessed mom of 5--3 bio and 2 adopted from Ethiopia! She is sewing these beautiful clothes to raise money for their 3rd adoption! SHOP! SHOP! SHOP!!! These are photos of my girls enjoying their Poppy Dip outfits!

James 1:27

Need cute Christmas cards, birth announcements? This creative mama is using her gifts and talents to raise funds for their adoption. All you have to do is pick out what you like, insert your photos and info and them have them printed! SOOOOO Cute!

GOBENA COFFEE

who doesn't like coffee..... even if you don't buy it knowing that 100% of proceeds are reinvested into the lives of orphaned children!

147 Million Orphans

Here you can find cute hats, shirts sweats, bags, jewelry....and each purchase tells you how many orphans in Uganda will be fed with each purchase! Knowing that makes shopping fun!! Adopting families can also sell their shirts as fundraisers for their individual adoption!

This family is beading their way back to China for a little sister because their son has convinced them that is where she is!

JUSTLOVE If you love coffee you can buy free trade coffee here and part of the proceeds help build a school for older children in Ethiopia. If you are an adopting family you can also sell their coffee as a fundraiser!

Ethiopia's Calling

This family is selling some really cool shirts, bracelets ,etc to raise funds for their African adoption!

† Where Does the Time Go?!

I apologize for the absence! Sometimes life just gets too hectic for us and blogging can tend to take a back seat. I encourage everyone to continue with the 40 days of prayer. The list can be found on the orphansunday.org website. I know we've all been praying everyday for God's children, we don't need a list, but it's got some pretty good topics to share your heart with God about.

Now.... onto our latest share! We've recently received a couple of donations that were very surprising but greatly appreciated! We said it was our dream to become a non-profit and I think the Lord is leading our steps in that direction without us even knowing it. It's such a blessing and very exciting to know that we will be able to help a family bring their child home. We don't know who that is right now, or when that is..... but God does. And we wait for his guidance with our organization and all the red tape.
We'd also like to encourage you to check back in the next day or so as we're going to be posting links to some awesome stuff! You'll be able to do your Christmas shopping from the blog!!! Something for everyone, and the best part of all..... the proceeds will help families and orphans all over funding their adoption expenses. God is good. We give Him all the praise, glory and honor for our many blessings.

† Can You Help?

Please visit this sweet family's blog and if you feel led to give, please donate to help this mama get to her sweet baby boy. His name is Keshawn and he is such a cutie. I found their link through another bloggy friend and discovered they will be traveling to pick up Keshawn in just a few short weeks but still need a bit of funding for travel expenses. They need $2,500 to cover their travel to Ethiopia on the 28th. If you are unable to 'chip-in' financially through the fundraiser link on their blog at least take the time to stop and pray for their family. Pray for the funding to come, for travel mercies and for a safe journey home with their beautiful son. Thank you!!!

Please visit their blog:

Nations Around Our Table

Romans 12: 8

If it is encouraging, let him encourage;

if it is contributing to the needs of others,

let him give generously;

if it is leadership, let him govern diligently;

if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.

† Orphan Sunday • Day 9

Was an incredible day. Joy, Melinda and I have worked so hard to bring this day together with our open house and sharing with the community what we had planned.

We started our day at First Assembly where we were invited to speak. The message given by Pastor Randy was awesome. I was so impressed that we made such an impact on his heart and his church that he shared a message devoted to God's heart for the orphan and widow. It was a perfect morning spent with family and friends.
We were just a bit nervous to say the least but people told us we did a great job and thanked us for coming. It really means a lot that Pastor Randy invited us to speak at First Assembly.

My son Tyler loved this slide from the overhead presentation during the sermon.

Pastor Randy Cowart at the open house. My son loves taking pics when people least expect it. :)

Once we left the church we headed to the Open House to set up and decorate. There was a LOT to do. We had lots of help (our boys are big boys), the kids helped move tables and chairs, Joy's mother had made cookies for us and helped decorate, my mom was there to help and let us use her 'yearly' employee use of the center for our event. We didn't have to pay for a space this way and really appreciated it more than she knows. My daughter helped set up displays and Cindy (our friend) was kind enough to do some babysitting duty while we worked. Everything could not have been done without the help of these people. :)
When you entered our event the first thing you saw was the guest book and a poster with our pictures and the proclamation from the mayor. Since we've only been working together for about a month this is us... we will be building a scrapbook soon from our times spent together and our advocating activities! :)
We collected information from various agencies and sponsorship advocates over the last month. We had a whole row of tables dedicated to adoption agencies for international adoption and sponsorship through World Vision and Life Connection Mission (our trip to Haiti) and had pictures and items from our trip displayed.

We had a row dedicated to domestic services and foster care/foster adoption where a specialist from Family Services set up. We enjoyed having Becky with us.
We had a 'coffee house' with a lending library where visitors could sit, enjoy coffee and cookies and check out books that we have collected through our own research and reading. My favorite area was the Christmas area where you could shop from the Christmas Tree of Hope, share in our donation jar or make purchases through World Vision for children around the world. Unfortunately my photographer son forgot to get a pic of that side of the room! lol :) I didn't want to worry about pictures yesterday so some of the things I wanted got missed, but we still have great shots from our event.
We worked really hard and enjoyed spending the day together with our families and a few friends. We missed Melinda and are keeping her and her family in our thoughts and prayers. I'm sure she'll be able to join us soon.

Joy & Jia

Being our only 'officially' adopted sweetheart Miss Jia was the star of the show! The kids all enjoyed playing with her and so did a few of us adults!!! She's precious to say the least! My kids even said they discovered their new 'favorite 3 year old'. She just makes you happy! Her momma would tell you how incredible she is and what an impact she has had on their lives. But I can tell you she's made an impact on so many more people that her little heart realizes. We ♥ u Jia!

Tyler & Jia
And look.... my daughter who favors little boys fell in love with Jia yesterday. Maybe a little sister isn't out of the question. ;)

Then, before our day came to an end we had a pleasant surprise. Ron & Beth Tucker showed up with little Lucy Lu!!! We totally forgot she mentioned wanting to come and meet us and see the open house. Her and her husband drove about 2 hours to come to our Open House. Beth and Joy met through the internet while researching the special needs they had in common with Jia and Lucy. It was so nice to meet them and visit for a while. Lucy is totally adorable too and we loved watching all the kids playing together. When God tells us to become like little children it's so true. Something we need to remember as our kids remind us it doesn't matter where you come from, how old or young you are, or what color your skin is.... we're all God's children. He loves us all the same and the least we can do is to love one another.

Joy, Jia, Jory, Beth & Lucy Lu
Beth and Lucy Lu - We ♥ You!

We had no idea what to expect for our open house but we know God has a plan for us. If only one person was introduced to adoption that will make a difference yesterday and provide hope for God's children then our work was well worth it. We hope everyone else that had an Orphan Sunday event had a terrific day and maybe we all played a part in changing the life of orphans around the world. Thank you to everyone that made our event possible and promoted it for us!

What did you do yesterday? Share your Orphan Sunday event or link in the comments section please!! We'd love to see!

• Day 9 of Prayer •
Today, pray that God would break the heart of your city’s pastors with the plight of orphans. Ask that He would convict them to lead their churches to pray, go, and love in Jesus’ name.

† Orphan Sunday

Mark your calendars!!!! November 8th is Orphan Sunday and JHAM will be hosting an open house to share information with our community and surrounding area to raise awareness of the orphan crisis!

We will have presentations from various organizations, informational packets from adoption agencies, speakers that range from agency reps to seasoned adoptive parents. We will even have profiles of waiting children that are available for adoption! You never know when a little face in a photo will steal your heart away! :o)

Date: November 8, 2009
Time: 2:00 - 4:00 p.m.
Location: Grundy County Senior Center
Trenton, Missouri

Please come, share your foster/adoptive experience with others, or if you are interested in adoption pick up some information and contact numbers for those who can get your started on your journey to a new family with one of God's children. We look forward to meeting you!

† Employee Benefits

Some of you may be aware already, others may be searching...reading that vast, seamingly endless wealth of knowledge on the world wide web only to become even more confused and overwhelmed... there are benefits available through some employers to help pay for the cost of adoption.

I have been researching several sites, going to actual verified employer sites looking to see if they provide their employees with adoption grants. So many I've researched have not, my own husbands included I'm afraid. Being self-employed as I am, I guess I provide adoption funding but it's something I'm working for.... It's called a paycheck. :)

Then I found this resource EMPLOYER ADOPTION BENEFITS Click on the link and see if you can find your employer listed. Remember, just because they are not listed doesn't mean they don't provide benefits. Check with your personnel office to make sure. I'd also recommend if your employer does not provide adoption benefits that we try to make a difference and make a change with our companies.

You see, while the cost of adoption can be a daunting and overwhelming part of the process it should never be a deciding factor in your choice to go ahead or not. There are so many avenues for financing and we truly believe that if God has led you to this important decision in your life, He has tugged at your heart and you are stepping out in faith to follow His command, that He will see you through it. He will provide.

But it also doesn't hurt to do your part to make it a success either! :) The hardest thing for me to understand and it's downright disappointing is that employers like McDonald's, Domino's Pizza, Coca-Cola, Pepsi, even the "Book of the Month Club, Inc." provides not only leave but actual financial support in the way of grants to it's employees...... yet my husband's employer, the great State of Missouri does not. Our own state agencies, some that even advocate for adoption and foster care and support those adopting through the foster system as licensed foster/adoptive parents does not support it's own employees by assisting with adoption. Creating forever families for orphans. Does that seem a bit confusing or disappointing to anyone else?

Remember this list was developed by the site it links to and your employer may not be listed, or some of the benefits listed may have changed. It's definitely something worth investigating! Watch for more funding/fundraiser resources in the future!

Advocating...
Renea

† What Now?

† 147 Million

Most people will tell you when they begin their journey to adopt that they don't have the money, but God will provide. Which in every situation I have heard about or read about there's not one single family that has complained that they couldn't do it. That God didn't help them.

There are 147 Million orphans in the world. You may not be able to save them all, but you can save one. If you don't feel led to save one (or perhaps two!) on your own.... you can save dozens, hundreds even! By supporting those that choose to adopt in other ways. Today is one of those opportunities.

147 Million Orphans is a site designed by two mothers with 13 children who are bringing orphans home and giving them a family and feeding those left behind waiting for families. They are running a special for the next 48 hours before they launch a new 'web store' selling t-shirts, bags and more to raise funds for adoption expenses. Check them out, buy a great tee and support the children. I bought two! :) LOVE the designs! Plus, it would make a great gift for someone and Christmas time is a'comin! Blessings today.

Advocating....
Renea