Saturday, August 18, 2012

Over 800 Families Blessed!

Reece's Rainbow is celebrating six years of advocating for international special needs adoption.  Over 800 orphans with special needs have come home with this ministry's help. 

Grab a tissue, watch the video, share it with someone else, and then head over to Reece's Rainbow to see how you can help save lives.

Monday, August 13, 2012

Four that Still Wait

We have been busy busy around here.  My daughter and I were part of VBS at our church two weeks ago; she as a participant and I as the Games Coordinator.  It was lots of fun, but amazingly exhausting.  By the end of the week there were over 100 tired little faces still having a blast but showing small signs of wear.  Our daughter referred to it as a party that happened every day.  I came home and napped nearly every day!  We have been visiting with family from out of town this past week.  Two cousins for my daughter and son to romp around with, and the parents getting to swap stories and compare notes on raising up the next generation. :)   All good stuff.  But I fear I have been neglecting the blog updates.

Last week we wrapped up the Facebook auction that Ruth had started for Gemma, Kimberly and Alexandra.  It was highly succesful.  Gemma's account now reads $235.00!  Kimberly and Alexandra, while they don't have families yet, both earned more for their accounts as well.  They read $100.10 and $5113.10 respectively.  Aren't they adorable? 

UPDATE: Alexandra has a family coming for her!  You can view their blog at http://www.fryefamilyfive.com/
Kimberly
Alexandra




















The auction went so well, more people have stepped forward with more items to donate for the next round of bidding.  Really amazing.  As people have been paying for the items that closed last week, many have included a few extra dollars for "making it a nice round number" or for "shipping" or "just because."  In the end a Thank you! through Facebook doesn't quite seem to cut it.

We had another joyous moment on Saturday....we received our finalized home study in the mail.  So a copy got turned around and mailed right back out to USCIS for approval to immigrate Gemma into the United States.  We need their approval to send in the dossier that goes to Gemma's country to get her country's approval of us.  Their approval will come in the form of a letter stating that we can travel to meet her!!  We also sent out a request for another FBI background check on Paul and I to be include in the dossier as well.  Both of these things can take awhile; several months, if I have heard accurate estimates.  So still quite a bit of waiting.   

Tonight I want to close with the pictures of two children still waiting in Gemma's orphanage for their forever families.

UPDATE: Payton has a FAMILY coming for him.  Their journey to adoption can be found at http://www.gracesfault.blogspot.com/.

UPDATE:  Penny and Payton's files have been sent back to their home country!  They can still be adopted, but their information is no longer on Reece's Rainbow, so the only way their families will see it to through blog posts and sharing via whatever means you find most convenient!

'Payton' is 8 years old.  He weighs 17 pounds!  'Payton' has spent his life in a crib.  He has cerebral palsy and has had surgery to correct cataracts with the funds from the Pleven Medical Fund.  He enjoys attention and shows an interest in what is going on around him.  There are additional pictures and a video of him available. Please contact Shelley Bedford at shele337@gmail.com if you think you might be his family!

Payton, recently


Payton, as a younger child

UPDATE: Penny has a family! You can follow their story at http://www.zingermama.blogspot.com/

'Penny' is 11 years old.  She weighs 21 lbs!  She also has spent her life in the crib and she has cerebral palsy.  She has been neglected and forgotten but still smiles for the camera!  There are additional pictures and a video of her if you contact Shelley Bedford at shele337@gmail.com with interest in making her your little one.



You needn't have even started your home study to commit to either of these children!  Simply contact Shelley if you even just want to talk about the possibility of being the ones blessed to parent them!  More information is available at Reece's Rainbow on how to get started with international adoption.  

So many parents who already have stepped out to empty the Pleven orphanage are advocating for Payton and Penny.  Please read Lydia's advocacy post.  She is offering a giveaway to those who share the urgency of Payton and Penny's situation with others.