EXCITEMENT!!

Yes, I am sure you are all expecting the usual "cute kids dressed up in costumes post". After all, it is October 31st, right? Well, I have those cute pics of a pirate, a 50s waitress and a sweet little dog, but those will have to wait.



The excitement in this house tonight is because Reece's Rainbow 2009 Angel Tree is up and running. Since Reece's Rainbow's beginning 3 years ago, more than 225 angels with Down syndrome and other special needs have found their forever families through this amazing ministry. And it IS a ministry! No profit is being made (they are a 501c3 charity). Therefore, the annual Angel Tree which runs from November 1- December 31 is extremely important.



Let's all agree that international adoption is crazy expensive. CRAZY! Usually, at least $15K and many times creeping up there around $25K. This is the numero uno reason that families cannot commit to bring orphaned children home. There are families willing and waiting but don't have the funds or access to those funds to put toward an adoption. The Angel Tree's purpose is to raise as many funds as possible for each of these children to offset some of the costs associated with adoption.



Ruslana was granted $5,350 through generous donations to Reece's Rainbow. Some of this money came from one large individual donation specifically for Ruslana, but some of these funds also came through the Angel Tree project. $5,350 is HUGE! And any amount towards the fees of adopting a specific orphan could literally give a family the nudge they need to commit.



There are many faces I see on this year's tree that I am praying about joining our family (8, 10, 14 maybe!:). Yes, Mom, I just said that. I can't help it. Ruslana may be the last....but she may also just be the spark that kindles the flame (along with baby boy, of course).

The ornament you will receive with a $35 donation. There will be a photo of your sponsored child on the reverse side. Our ornaments graced their own special tree last Christmas and was one of the most treasured places in our home.

Join me this year in sponsoring and angel (or 5:) from Reece's Rainbow's Angel Tree. There are 166 orphans with Down syndrome from around the world who are in need of grant donations.

DISCLAIMER: ONLY CLICK ON THIS LINK IF YOU ARE PREPARED TO HANDLE SOME OF THE MOST PRECIOUS FACES ON GOD'S BEAUTIFUL EARTH!! I MEAN IT!!


NOW GO!!

In Him,
E

Love Notes

First, where have I been? I know, I know, it's been a week since I posted last. Thank you for all your concerns!:) Let me just say- I have gone from my house in GA to Knoxville, TN to Nashville, TN and back again- all in 2 days. Just a quick trip to finish one adoption document. And guess what? ALL OF OUR PAPERWORK IS NOW IN RUSLANA'S COUNTRY!!! WOOOHOOO!! Talk about a HUGE load lifted. Now, I can breathe just a little bit. Well...maybe not.

We have been so incredibly overwhelmed lately that we haven't had many moments to just sit and enjoy each other, so we are making time for that. We also now have to think about traveling in the next 4 or 5 weeks and getting ourselves and the kiddos ready. I can't believe we are finally at this point.

And the real reason for this post....LOVE NOTES- they are something each of us (kids included) share with each other. Such a simple yet deep way to communicate our feelings for one another. You will often find windows or mirrors "painted", construction paper notes, pictures and post-its hanging around our home. And don't be surprised if you find a sweet note stuck somewhere unexpected- under a pillow, in a sleeping bag, in a car or in a briefcase. Try it. It's a very simple way to tell those closest to you how much they mean to you. And I will say from experience, you will make someone's day!!

This one even was tri-folded with pictures and a note on the reverse side.

And yes, each of these signs are currently hanging in our home....even the "Mother's Day" one.:)

Oh, and I must say that I am a very blessed woman. My hubby knows my heart- just look at what I found last week in our bathroom.:) Good thing I'm not a "high maintenance" babe!

In Him,

E

Defeated

Defeat is what I'm feeling. For every step we take forward in our adoption journey to Ruslana, I feel like we take 2 back. She should be home already, and she's not. PRAYING we can submit the last few documents this Friday.

I'll share more later...right now I'm just too tired.
In Him,
E

And the winners are....

So you want to know? Sorry it has taken me until now.:) Life and kids took priority today.

And in this order-

YAY!! Thanks to so many of you, we have $934 more to go towards Ruslana's adoption!! WOOHOO!! Thank you, thank you, thank you!!

First place and the winner of the bundle of goodies (iPOD Touch, digital camera and Black Jack) is Holly at Purpose Driven Family!! Holly is a sweet, sweet blog buddy of mine who has such a passion for orphans- especially those who are HIV positive. What makes this "win" even better is that Holly is filling both Mom and Dad roles right now as her husband is serving in Iraq. Thank you, Holly!! I love you!

Second place and winner of 2 gorgeous items from Shaping Lives Pottery is Christine Vitale. Christine, I will be emailing you with the address listed on your Paypal account. If this is the wrong address, email me at nogreatergiftmom@yahoo.com.

And third place and winner of the purple Kodak digital camera is Susan Israel. Susan, I will also be emailing you at the address listed on your Paypal account. Let me know if this is wrong- nogreatergiftmom@yahoo.com.

Congratulations to each of you and THANK YOU!!!

In Him,

E

ONLY 2 1/2 HOURS LEFT!!

ONLY 2 1/2 HOURS LEFT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE "FIGHTING FOR LIFE" GIVEAWAY!! DEADLINE IS 8PM EST. CLICK HERE TO VIEW AWESOME PRIZES (iPOD, digital cameras, pottery and MORE)!!

In Him,
E

ONLY 26 HOURS LEFT!!

Join Us!
Grab This Button

Just a quick reminder that in 26 hours we will close the "Fighting for Life" Giveaway!! If you have emailed me about snail mailing a donation, I responded when I received that donation. If you have indeed mailed the donation and haven't received an email from me, let me know to look out for it so your name isn't left out of the drawing.:)

And to add a little twist to the fun, if you post about the giveaway on your blog or somewhere else in the next 26 hours, I will enter your name one time. BUT YOU MUST let me know you have done so. I will not be searching blogs tonight or tomorrow.


For more information about the giveaway and to view the amazing prizes (yes, the above iPOD is just ONE of those prizes!), click here! THANK YOU for supporting us and helping us get that much closer to bringing our angel home!! You have helped us raise over $500 already!! You guys ROCK!!

In Him,
E

**Oh, and sorry the "Fighting for Life" button above is so big- I'm not sure what I've done!;/

Update

A HUGE THANK YOU goes out to each of you who continue to keep our family in your thoughts and prayers. I have a few updates to share-

1. Shaping Lives Pottery pendant sale was a tremendous success!! 53 pendants were ordered- amazing!! In addition to the pendants, there were also orders for coasters, crosses and name signs. Thank you for supporting us and our girl, and for making her feel like her talent is truly a gift.

2. Fighting for Life giveaway is still going strong. We have raised right around $400 (not all is posted in the "chip in"). If you wish to enter, remember the deadline is this Saturday, October 17th, at 8:00 EST. Also, if you'd rather your donation be tax deductible, just click on the picture of Ruslana in my right sidebar. You will be directed to our family sponsorship page on the Reece's Rainbow site. If you do this, let me know so I can enter your name into the drawing.

3. Our paperwork is in the hands of our facilitators!!! Well, most of it. We are still waiting on those darn backgrounds and one apostilled mortgage letter from another state. We received that letter a couple weeks ago, but it cannot be apostilled in our state since the notary is out of state. Joy. As soon as we receive them both, we are heading back down to Atlanta to have everything apostilled and stopping by FedEx on the way home to overnight the entire rest of our paperwork. I cannot wait for that moment...it's been a long time coming.

4. And I'm sure you all want to hear the latest about our girl. As far as we know she has NOT been transferred- praise God!! Our facilitators are trying to stay on top of things and do all they can to prevent her transfer. Prayerfully, them having our paperwork in their hands proves to the directors that we are serious and will be there VERY soon!

I dreamed last night that I received new pictures of her smiling and playing. She had such joy on her face. Oh how I can't wait to hold that girl!!

I'll try to keep you posted as events unfold. I continue to be reminded of God's goodness and faithfulness. It's truly amazing where we are now and what we've been through to get to this point. I usually don't share all the little details on this blog (and there are so many of them)...if you only knew.

I pray each of you have a blessed day! Off to swim to town (yes, it's raining...again).
In Him,
E

This is why

This is my friend Boston who adopted a beautiful angel a couple of months ago from Eastern Europe. Just in case anyone is wondering why in the world we are going through all of this to save Ruslana....this is why.




And I'm SO happy to say that sweet Misha has a committed family!!! YAY God!
In Him,
E

BFF

Our youngest daughter was writing in her notebook while sitting outside today (the weather was GORGEOUS!!). Nothing unusual- she loves drawing and writing. I looked at the page she had just finished. She had written "BFF" all over it. I didn't even know she knew what this meant. I asked her if I was her "BFF". She told me "no". I was crushed. I thought my place as her best friend had been taken. That is until she said,"Moms are much more loved than BFFs". My heart soared. And that's when she flipped the page and began writing "I Love Mom!".

Oh, how I love that girl!!

In Him,

E

Don't Forget!

REMINDER!! The deadline to order pendants (buy 2 get one free!) from Shaping Lives Pottery is tonight (Saturday, October 10th) at midnight. You may view details here. Proceeds from the sales of all pendants go toward our adoption fund and our Fighting for Life campaign.

I am so excited to say that 16 orders of multiple pendants have been placed since Thursday- truly amazing!! Please know that all pendants already ordered have been made and are now drying and waiting for glazing. If you have not heard from either myself or our daughter, look for an email later today. Things have been a little crazy the past few days, and I promise you'll hear from us today.

In Him,

E

It's in PARIS!!

Our paperwork that is. We're coming, sweet girl. We're coming.
In Him,
E

Our sweet, sweet gift

Many of you know that we had a "surprise adoption" of an angel boy blessed with Down Syndrome 7 weeks ago. Yes, this past Monday our sweet boy was 7 weeks- I just can't believe it!!

Emotionally and financially we were not ready for 2 adoptions at once- one domestic and one international- but God has taken care of every single detail. I want to share with you a few reasons (in the form of pictures) why we have agreed to walk this walk with Him.

We laugh because he has lots of hair on the back 1/2 of his head. For some reason, all the hair in the front fell out when nothing else did. It doesn't look quite as silly as our youngest daughter's when she was his age and had a mohawk.

Oh, how blessed we are!

In Him,

E

AAAHHHH- the race is on..

Can't you just hear the music? We got word today that Ruslana may be held in the baby house until we get there. We were instructed (really, commanded in a very nice tone) to send all paperwork (minus our backgrounds because they still aren't back:( ) overnight. NOW!! So, first thing tomorrow morning sweet hubby is heading down to Atlanta to have some last documents apostilled before FedExing them overnight to R's country.

AAAHHH!!!! Can you believe it? Keep on praying, people- God is moving! Now the need is even more urgent for our "Fighting for Life" giveaway (click or see below). If you feel lead, please help us spread the word.

And, in the midst of all this craziness, our middle daughter (the super silly one) is having foot surgery tomorrow. Please, pray for her. Surgery is at 12:45.
In Him,
E

Fighting for Life

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Fighting for Life...that's what this is and so that's what we'll call it. The call to save lives. The call to rescue and love the fatherless- to bring them into families who accept them and cherish them forever.

A couple of years ago I came across a Bible verse that screamed at my heart. It has been the verse I try to live by ever since. You'll notice it at the top of my blog-

Once our eyes are opened we can't pretend we don't know what to do. God, who weighs our hearts and keeps our souls, knows that we know, and holds us responsible to act. Proverbs 24:12

And now our eyes are open. We are being held responsible. How can we just turn the other cheek?

As most of you know, Ruslana is being transferred. There is nothing we can do to change that-it is out of our control. I wish I could just call over to the orphanage director and ask her to wait, but I can't. What we CAN do is raise awareness. We can band together to try to save her. #1- We can pray. Call out to our Father. Again and again and again I say "His plan is perfect". We may not be able to bring her home. He may not allow us. But we WILL make a difference through Christ. He has called us to that and so we follow.

We have saved money for Ruslana's adoption. We have so many friends, family and complete strangers who have invested in Ruslana's life through financial gifts. We hosted 2 yard sales with huge amounts of donations from those in our community which raised a combined total of around $3,500. We don't know what our future holds, but we need to be prepared. Maybe it's to spend a little extra time in R's country working to bring her home. Maybe it's to lead us to a different child...a child God has intended for us. NO- we are NOT planning that ourselves! Please, know that. Right now our focus is on Ruslana and getting her home.

In order to be financially prepared for the unknowns in the very near future, several things will be going on on my blog over the next week and a 1/2.

1. We will be hosting a giveaway in hopes that we are able to raise additional funds for our journey. This giveaway will end Saturday, October 17th. Again, we feel the responsibility to be prepared. The giveaway will include several things.

For each $10 donation, you will be entered into a drawing once. If you are willing to donate $25, you will be entered 3 times. So, $10= 1 entry. $20= 2 entries. $25= 3 entries. That will continue for as many entries as you like.:) Just click on the "Chip In" in my sidebar to enter.

First prize is a technology bundle. Yes, the winner will win not one, not two, but ALL THREE items listed below.

32GB iPOD Touch

Samsung BlackJack in red wine

And the Kodak EasyShare V1003

Second prize is 2 stunning items from Shaping Lives Pottery (our beautiful red head's pottery). The items up for grabs are both a personalized initial pendant and a cross in your choice of colors.

And third prize will receive another Kodak EasyShare V1003 in purple.

2. The most amazing red (orange) head we know is hosting a sale. For those of you who may not have heard, our oldest began Shaping Lives Pottery several months ago. She wanted to help support and raise awareness to the orphan crisis in our world-specifically to those children with special needs. She began Shaping Lives as her way to use her gifts to help bring Ruslana home. With each piece she sells she gives 1/2 to our adoption fund.

One day soon we will not have a "Bringing Ruslana Home" fund. When that day comes, we pray that God will give her the wisdom how to use the proceeds from her pottery sales to benefit orphans. Maybe she'll continue to support a committed family in the process of adopting a special little one. Maybe she'll contribute her earnings to a specific child waiting for his forever family.

Until this Saturday only (10/10/09), Shaping Lives Pottery is hosting a sale. For every 2 personalized pendants you order, you will receive one free. Each pendant is $10 and you may choose any letter and color you wish. Send me an email to place an order- nogreatergiftmom@yahoo.com.

3. Grab our fundraiser button- "Fighting for Life". It was a beautiful gift from my friend Lu. Pick it up in the right sidebar.

Spread the word. Post the link on your blog, Facebook, anywhere you hang out. Send out an email to your friends, Bible study buddies, church families. I know so, so many of you continue to pray for our family and our girl, and we thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We have received so many heart warming notes of encouragement. I can only imagine how many people are praying for our girl.

If you feel inclined, host another "24 Hours of Prayer for Ruslana"!! And let me know when you do. The power we felt during those 24 hours last week was overwhelming. God IS working!!

I know all of this is alot to process. I wanted to include everything in one post so the word can begin spreading. Thank you again for the outpouring of love you have shown us. WE LOVE YOU GUYS!!

In Him,

E

I LOVE my kiddos!!

We took a few moments last Wednesday to get a some pics of the kids. The girls got ready. We went outside. Then some friends showed up. As soon as they left, we went back outside with a few minutes to spare before church. I only love a few. We'll do it again soon.

Here is one of my favorites of my middle daughter with our angel boy. Can you

tell he's loved?

And one of his many silly faces!

His eyes are turning a beautiful blue! And a hint of red in his hair maybe?

My "brown eyed girl"! My only one. The others all have green or blues.


Okay, it is incredibly hard for me to get any serious pictures of my middle daughter. This is her personality. It may bother some Moms to only have silly pictures of their kids, but I love it! This is who she is, and I wouldn't have it any other way.:)

And our striking red (or orange as we call it)...

With green eyes...

And later that evening all tuckered out. His shirt says "Mummy Loves Me" and OH how I do!!

STAY TUNED FOR SOME VERY EXCITING NEWS!! I HOPE TO BE ABLE TO POST TONIGHT!!!

In Him,

E

Tidbit of news

First, I must say- YOU GUYS ROCK!! As I said in my last post, I am overwhelmed with gratitude at the love and support we have seen over the past few days. Your comments, emails, prayers, Bible verses have all carried us. "Thank you" is not enough.

Forgive me if you are looking for a sad post. The day has been a roller coaster of emotions- from crying at the alter at church this morning to laughing with my kiddos this afternoon. Right now I am feeling peace. And I'm smiling. I may wake up in the morning a totally different me, but for now it's peace.

News- we are pressing forward. The reality is that Ruslana will be transferred this week. Not in 2 weeks like we thought- THIS week. The institution has her paperwork and the bus is coming for her. Our prayer now is that the bus will break down!!:) Our dossier paperwork should have been finished already. We were lacking a couple of documents a couple of weeks ago, all which came in record time (remember our USCIS approval?!). I went to have one final background clearance approved only to find that it wasn't detailed enough for Ruslana's country. This caused us to have to head back to our local sheriff's department (AGAIN!) to have prints retaken. Actually, they didn't even have to reprint us. They just printed out our old prints- duh, prints don't change- and sent us on our way. These certain background checks typically take 14 days to process. Of course, I sent Ruslana's story along with the prints, and we're praying we get results this week. And this put us behind, but I'm sure God had a reason for it. (Right, God?! Don't you want to let me in on your little plan?)

And that's probably the hardest part for me. Not knowing what His plan is for my life. No, I suppose it's not even that. It's just as I stand in this moment, I don't understand. But that is the beauty of God, isn't it? I will never understand because He is perfect. His plan is perfect. Not I- Oh, I am far from it, dear friends. And even as we walk through this valley with enormous uncertainty of our future and Ruslana's future, I stand in awe of God. I guarantee that in a year from now I will look back at these days and see it so clearly. And we'll be happy.

So, we are pressing forward and completing our dossier. When that final piece of paper is here and everything is apostilled, we'll see what God says.

In Him,

E

Humbled

This is just a quick post to let each and every one of you know how humbled we are by your prayers and words of encouragement. Wow! We feel your love and God surrounding us during one of the hardest times in our lives. God is using Ruslana to touch the hearts of so many across the country. To bring to light the plight of orphans. To show the world that people with Down syndrome are truly amazing.

All I can tell you at this moment is that we need continued prayers. I hope to be able to share more in the next few days, but right now that's all I have.

Several months ago I met a wise, wise woman who has become a true treasure- a gift to me from God, I'm sure. We met through a friend of hers whom is part of a yahoo homeschool group I belong to. That lead her to Reece's Rainbow and her newest daughter. It turns out that she only lives about 30 minutes from me. She sent me an email Friday that I feel like I should share (A- I hope you don't mind:)-

"LOTS of people are praying, so we can be absolutely SURE that whatever answer God delivers will be His Will. Sometimes His Will isn't the one we want, and sometimes it is...but either way, we know it's always right. We'll just pray for absolute clarity of GOD'S VISION. He knows what is best for Ruslana, and we will have to rest in it, no matter what the answer is. We will continue to lift her up for God to deliver, and then we will REST in whatever HE does. I'm with you all the way in this...no matter what happens, we will just resolve to PRAISE HIM. I think victory lives in praise. LIFTING YOUR FAMILY UP!!!!!!!!!!!!"

When I spoke with her today we spoke of praise and praising Him even in the midst of pain- ESPECIALLY in the midst of pain. Not just "praying" but PRAISING!! And tonight I am praising for I know His plan is perfect.
In Him,
E

24 Hours of Prayer for Ruslana

Our angel. We found out today that she will absolutely be transferred to the mental institution in 2 weeks. They cannot hold her any longer. We can't be there by then. Please, for those of you who don't know the process, don't think this is by our choice. I can't handle negative comments right now. We want nothing more than to be holding our girl in our arms right now.

We hope to know more in the next day or so. We may or may not be able to adopt her from the institution. I don't understand and can't wrap my little mind around the "may not". I can't see the reason behind it. I wish and hope some day that I am able to share more specifics about our angel's situation. And she's not the only one affected....ALL orphans need us!

I'm angry tonight. SO ANGRY!! How have we overcome so much only to be faced with this heartbreaking situation??!! I KNOW THIS IS NOT GOD and the feelings we have been feeling today aren't either.

Beginning tomorrow at noon Eastern time, I am asking for prayers for our girl. Oh, how about 24 hours of prayer? From noon tomorrow (Friday, October 2nd) to noon Saturday (October 3rd). Please, paste her face everywhere you can. Send an email to everyone you can. Post something on Facebook. I don't care how we do it- we have to get hundreds....no, thousands praying!! 24 HOURS OF PRAYER FOR RUSLANA.

Pray while in the car, while washing dishes, during devotion, while mowing the grass. PRAY!! God CAN move mountains!!

And pray that the next photo you see of her sweet face will be of her's next to mine.

In Him,

E

News

The news is not good. Please be praying. I'll update tonight.
In Him,
E

USCIS APPROVED!!

And I have it in my hand!!
In Him,
E