Friday, November 20, 2009

be the difference

Ever feel like you want to help, you just don't know how?

Or wonder what you could do to really make a difference?


I want you to meet a few families that are working incredibly hard to bring their children home.

Children with special needs. Children that are orphans. Children that really need a mommy and a daddy.


Meet Desiree.

She and I have been online friends for a few years now. In the past, she sewed beautiful outfits to raise funds. She just recently started "Bands of Love" in an effort to bring sweet Rachel home.

In a very short time, they need to have a large portion of their adoption fees due. But they just don't have it.

Yet.

Blogging tutorial


Desiree is selling adorable handmade floral headbands for $8 each, in the sweetest patterns. These would make a darling stocking stuffer for any little girl on your Christmas list! And in the process you'll be helping another little girl come home to her forever family.


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Mandi and I met awhile back, and became closer when she and her husband Matt accepted a referral for a little guy through WACAP. Unfortunately, right after they stepped forward for their son, WACAP had to pull the grant they had been promised due to lack of funding.

Then Matt lost his job.

They've endured so much in trying to bring this sweet boy home. But they've held fast to their faith that Drew is meant to be their son.




In an effort to help bring Drew home, Tracy from JunkPosse has offered to donate 30% of any China purchase made in her store to Matt and Mandi. Read more details about that here.

I have one of Tracy's necklaces and I love it :)


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And then there's my friend Cynthia. We were DTC together waaaay back in early 2005. We met up with her and her husband Adam right after Isabelle came home. They also came and visited shortly after Sophie came home. Cynthia truly has a heart of gold, I love this woman.

And they have just accepted the referral of an absolutely darling little almost-7 year old they have named Asher.

Man, I just love that name ;)



They need to raise several thousand dollars in the next month in order to be able to continue on their journey to bring Asher home.

They have, among other things to help raise support, set up a giveaway (a Wii!) Be sure to check it out and get entered for the drawing on December 16th!


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Please consider making a $5 or $10 (or more!) donation to one or all of these families. And know that however you help, in a big or small way, you are making a difference in the life of a child.


For Rachel.



For Drew.



For Asher.



Be the difference.


An old man was walking down the beach just before dawn. In the distance he saw a young man picking up stranded starfish and throwing them back into the sea. As the old man approached the young man, he asked, "Why do you spend so much energy doing what seems to be a waste of time?"

The young man explained that the stranded starfish would die if left in the morning sun. "But there must be thousands of beaches and millions of starfish," exclaimed the old man. "How can your efforts make any difference?"

The young man looked down at the small starfish in his hand and as he threw it to safety in the sea, he said,

"It made all the difference to that one."



P.S. Speaking of Starfish, another way to make a difference, and it won't even cost you a dime, is to visit Amy's blog, and leave a comment. $1 will be donated to the Starfish Foster Home for every comment left!

mini-makeover: the master

It's been too long since I've let you guys in on what we've done around here. No, nothing spectacular, but not bad for just some good old elbow grease and a couple cans o' paint.

Here is Chris taking down our lovely, how'dyouguess, floral window valance.

I was sad to see it go.

Not.


Also, notice the off-white floral wallpaper, with a faint striped pattern. Lovely.

We did manage to pull all that down. Eventually. It took two days. After the first 15 minutes, on the first day, the 'we' became 'me'. Yes, my helpers abandoned ship.

All that was left was lonely ol' me, and a whole lotta chunks missing from the drywall.



See that big tub of spackle? I went through about 327 of those, filling in the holes in the walls.



Did I mention that I had to peel the wallpaper off the walls in teeny. tiny. pieces?

Over a matter of days?

And then all the spackling?

And then all the sanding?

Thankfully, since we finished, the nightmares have subsided.



Now our room is a cozy pale blue. It's called Vintage Map.

With a name like Vintage Map, it's gotta be good.



I like it. Chris likes it.

We're settled now.

Out of 5 bedrooms, a kitchen, dining room, three bathrooms and two living rooms, we've only got one measly little bathroom left to tackle.



Still trying to scrape together the momentum to get started peeling wallpaper.

And patching drywall.



For today, I think I'll just enjoy my cozy pale blue room.


Thursday, November 19, 2009

more. little ones.

**updated!**

Wow. I was so blessed by the response to my post about the little ones from An Orphan's Wish.

I am thrilled to share that Zac and Lexi have both been fully sponsored! To those of you who stepped up to sponsor these kiddos, "thank you!"


I'd like to introduce you to a few more little ones from An Orphan's Wish.

Here's Janie.

She has spina bifida, scoliosis and unilateral clubfoot.

And a smile that lights up the room.

She needs two sponsors. only ONE sponsor!


From An Orphan's Wish:

Janie is now in her bracing stage of treatment. She has the brace off in the mornings when she is very active. She wears AFO’s during this time, as her feet need support due to her spina bifida. Her brace is then worn throughout the afternoon and night, only coming off for her bath in the evening. At first she really needed a lot of encouragement to move around with this strange new contraption on her feet, but settled into it and now has no problem. She is a little giggler, happy to be around the other children and in the midst of any action.



This is Joey.

He has spina bifida and bilateral clubfoot. And loves to get into stuff.

Joey needs two sponsors.


From An Orphan's Wish:

Joey has quite a personality and loves to play and joke around with the other children. He follows instruction well, feeds himself and plays with the other children, also taking an interest in the smaller children in the clubfoot unit. His treatment has gone well, starting with his first cast on the 3rd August. Because he is older, his casting took a bit longer, but he is now in the fulltime bracing stage. Nothing seems to slow him down though, he is a very active little boy.



Last week, I introduced Cassie. Sweet Cassie has a very small kneecap in the wrong place on one leg and no kneecap at all on the other leg.

And thankfully, she now has one sponsor (yay!)

But she needs one more sponsor... Cassie is now fully sponsored!!


From An Orphan's Wish:

We have seen the most remarkable change in this little girl. Everyone talks about it and we are all encouraged as we’ve watched her progress. She arrived a very “shut down” little girl, who have never been heard to speak. She must have had led a very isolated life without much stimulation. After just a couple of days we began to see the changes and it hasn’t stopped. She speaks, joins in games with the others, plays well, follows instruction and is a totally different child.
We have not started her treatment yet, as we wanted to give her time to settle and do some catching up.


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Would you consider sponsoring one of these kiddos? The cost is $35/month and will help Janie, Joey, or Cassie complete the treatment they need. As a clubfoot child sponsor, you will receive monthly reports and pictures to follow along as your sponsored child receives the life-changing opportunity to have their feet corrected!

The length of sponsorship is as long as the child remains in treatment at An Orphan's Wish. Typically the children stay in the unit for a total of 6 to 9 months before they are moved into foster care. So sponsorship is not a unending commitment. And you'll be awed at the changes in your sponsored child in such a short time.

It's truly an opportunity to give a gift to a child that will change their life. Just look at my Shepherd's before and after pictures (on my left sidebar) to see the incredible difference serial casting can make!

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To sponsor a child, click here.
Type $35 in the amount and click "ongoing gift"
Then choose "clubfoot child" to designate which specific fund
Add the child's name you'd like to sponsor in the "special note" section at the bottom of the page.


Then you'll be hearing from me monthly, with an update and pictures of your sponsored child! As the Clubfoot Coordinator for An Orphan's Wish, email me at aowclubfoot@gmail.com if you have any questions... I am more than happy to help.


P.S. If you decide to sponsor one of these kiddos, I will email you the code so you can display their button on your blog :)

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

restored

In sharp contrast to how I spent Monday evening, I spent Tuesday evening getting my hair 'done'. Ahhhhh, two solid hours of peace and quiet... no kiddos yanking on my shirt, or asking to be fed, or whining about some iniquity within the familial structure.

And a People magazine firmly in my grip. I never get to read People unless I'm at the salon or the doctor's office. And we all know how I feel about the doctor.

When I was getting ready to leave for the salon, the kiddos pelted me with questions.

After all, it is quite rare that I spend any time at all away from them.

"Where are you going?" ~ curious daughter #1

"I'm going to get my hair cut."

"Cut? Didn't you just get your hair cut?" ~ curious daughter #1, again

(It's been 8 weeks, but to them it probably seems like yesterday since being away from them is quite the "occasion")


"Yes. Cut and colored."

"Colored?" ~ all, in unison

"Yes, colored. I have them add some blonde to my hair."

"I didn't know you got your hair colored!" ~ very wise son #1

"Blonde? I thought your hair was blonde and you had some brown added!" ~ very very wise son #2

Indeed, last night was very, very good for the soul.

today is the day!

What are you doing here?

You need to be at the My Adoption Website fundraiser sale or auction!

ALL to benefit the kiddos at An Orphan's Wish :)

P.S. Remember, if you win an item, or even place a bid on an auction item, you'll be entered to win a Baby Be Blessed Doll!

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

rhymes with tap.

Warning: this post is intended for female readers only. Mature female readers.

So, all you young male readers should stop reading now.

Hallooooo??

Good, all clear. I'll carry on...



November 16th had been circled on my calendar for weeks.

In preparation for the big day, I showered.

I washed my pits. Twice.

Shaved my legs.

Slathered on lotion.

And deodorant. Twice.



Where was I going?

What was the big deal and the need for a double dose of deodorant? A big date? Meeting some big wig?

Alas, neither.

It was my most-dreaded appointment. Of the medical persuasion. And I really don't want to talk about it.

Just know it required nudity on my part. And that, lemmetellya, ain't pretty.

For some reason, those visits never really bothered me when I was pregnant... I mean there was a baby in there. It was an exciting time.

But with an old, floppy, and very empty womb, there just isn't much to get excited about. In fact, there's much more to sweat about. And it all was sitting there with me on the table as I waited for the doctor to come in.

One thought occurred to me, as I waited for the dreaded knock on the exam room door. Maybe I should consider getting as gussied up for my husband as I do for my doctor.

Naaaaahhh. He wouldn't know what do with himself.

Monday, November 16, 2009

bigger. and better.

You knew it was coming.

A gentle reminder to join the fun from this post. And this post.

I mean, after all, I'm just giving away five $25 Amazon gift cards... who doesn't want a piece of that?

I do, that's who. Unfortunately, I think I might be slightly biased to my own ideas, so I'm not including myself in the drawing. I guess I'm just honest that way.

The upshot of all this fun craziness is that we have a constantly morphing, super-duper shopping list, created by you, me and Bobby McGee. Bobby, not really, but I think you know what I mean.

So, without further ado, I present our ever-growing shopping list for Christmas 2009...

Toddler (1.5 - 3 years) ideas:

Elementary (4 - 7 years) ideas:
Youth (8 - 12 years) ideas:
Young Adult (13 - 20 years) ideas:
Adult (hopefully self-explanatory) ideas:
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Here is our Mr. Linky, making his appearance again, so you guys can keep on adding to the chaos craziness list, at your leisure. I'll compose a weekly update of all your great ideas, so if you don't see your idea listed now, no worries, you will soon.

I'll choose a winner in each category sometime in early December... you know, when you really should be done Christmas shopping.

So until then, keep the ideas coming!



P.S. Don't forget that when you shop at Amazon.com to go through the Love Without Boundaries Amazon icon at the bottom of their homepage, or through this link at New Day Foster Home. That way LWB or New Day Foster Home receives a small portion of the proceeds of your purchase!

Sunday, November 15, 2009

Sunday snapshot: Sophie

Miss Sophie Lu.

She is 5 going on 25.



Sophie came home at 27 months old. Even then, she seemed 'grown up'.

Wise beyond her years.

She still is.



She loves to ask questions. And one question just leads to another. Her curiosity is insatiable.

As you might imagine, she absolutely adores school. Hanging out at the house is just so boring. And anytime anyone is headed out, she's ready to go. No questions asked.



On the outside she's a very laid-back, easy going, compliant child.

But underneath she's a bit of a wild child. We see glimpses of this at night... when she gets tired, she gets crazy. Super silly, super giggly, and into all sorts of trouble.

That's when we know it's bedtime.



She's crazy about her stuffed animals, especially Hello Kitty.

But she loves her real animals the best. Seamus always gets a high-pitched, "Shay-meee!!!" when she sees him, as she covers him with hugs and kisses.

She loves to read books and is just beginning to recognize some sight words. She'll spend hours at the table working on her 'workbooks' and coloring pictures.



Sophie is thoughtful, gentle and loving. She is wonderful with her little brothers, especially Jude. They are big buddies and she pairs off with him sometimes, instead of Isabelle.

She loves to be 'in charge'. I'll crown her the boss when I have to take a shower, and she makes sure everyone knows she is in. charge.

Which really doesn't mean anything, except that she's the one that comes and tells me who is misbehaving. But that's good enough for her.

She looks out for her sister Isabelle at school. And she likes to relay the news of Isabelle getting in trouble at school or being naughty on the playground.

Some might call her a tattle-tale. Or nosy. And possibly even bossy.

I might even have to agree.



Just like her mama.


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I'd love to hear about your little ones.

To join in on Sunday snapshot... just grab the button and let me know where to find you and your post!


Ni Hao Y'all




Saturday, November 14, 2009

don't forget

Today is the last day to get your donation photos and descriptions in... all proceeds to benefit An Orphan's Wish! Just email pictures of the items you'd like to donate, along with a description to Jennifer at myadoptionwebsite@yahoo.com.

To everyone who has already donated, thank you so much!


If you have no idea what I'm talking about, visit this post to get all the details.

And one more detail I definitely don't want you to forget...


Someone who donates or bids is going to win an adorable personalized Baby Be Blessed Doll.

See you at the sale on November 18th!

Lilypie Third Birthday tickers Lilypie Fourth Birthday tickers Lilypie 4th Birthday Ticker Lilypie Kids Birthday tickers Lilypie Kids birthday Ticker