Shopping with purpose

The Christmas season is quickly approaching! Thankfully we have cut out most gifts for adults at our family Christmas gatherings. The fellowship and meals shared together are the blessings, trying to figure out what to get when we really don't have any "needs" takes away from the joy of the season and only causes stress. However, when I must shop, it always gives me great joy when I know my purchase is going to a greater cause. 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!!!!

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!

Dubois Family

Cute shirts to raise funds for their adoption!

Though I Was Born an Orphan

Though I Was Born an Orphan
Though I was born an orphan,
Abandoned and alone,
Enslaved and bound in darkness,
Without a hope or home,
The God of grace and mercy
From his eternal throne
Ordained to be my Father
And claim me as His own.

That I might be adopted
The Father sent his Son
To live in full obedience
And die for what I’ve done.
Now through his resurrection,
Through faith, with him I’m one.
A member of his household,
I am an heir, a son.

To soothe my fear and worry
The Spirit from on high
Was sent to be a witness
That “Father!” I might cry.
O How I love this Father!
I’m never left alone.
He’s come to dwell within me
Until he calls me home.

Since I have this adoption,
I cannot close my home
To widows and to orphans,
Abandoned and alone.
Lord, fill me with compassion
To love the fatherless,
That I might show the nations
How great my Father is!


Songwriters
Eric Schumacher & David L. Ward
Copyright
© 2009 ReformedPraise.org

Angel Tree Time!!!

HERE is the information on Reece's Rainbow's Angel Tree! This weekend my kids will each get to choose the child that they will sponsor and commit to pray for as they wait for their family to find them! The ornament they receive they give to their teachers as their Christmas gift. Who needs another bag or coffee mug....give a gift that will help find a home and the love of family for a child who desperately needs one! These donations stay with each child to help eleviate some of the financial burdens associated with adoption. I'm sure you all know who MY donation will go to..

My precious SAUL!!!! Let's get that sweet boy some $$$ to help his family when they find him!

Click HERE to view all the precious angel's who need families and donations! Hang your ornament where you will remember to pray for them daily and check back often to celebrate those who have found there families! Five have already received the greatest gift of all...a FAMILY and by next Christmas they will be orphans no more!

Matching Mondays!

Niesha, Tiesha & Qynesha "Peaches"

Sisters!  They have each other but they need the love of a mom and dad and a place to call home!  Every child deserves a family!

William, Josiah & Isiah

BROTHERS!!!  Instant fun when you add these 3 to your quiet home!  I know their family is out there!!!! Could it be you???

10 Years Baby!

Wow! Where has the time gone? I can not believe we've been married 10 years! I think we found one way to avoid the 7 year itch, because time has flown by! It seems like only yesterday I was anxiously waiting for the musicians to stop playing EVERY verse of the bridesmaid's song (there was some confusion and it was VERY uncomfortable...I think everyone thought I was a run away bride and they were just stalling :-) Eventually the music ended and I was able to finally meet my man at the end of the aisle. We had no idea at that time what the Lord had in store for our family. What a journey it has been! When I meet people for the first time I like to tell them I'm 34, married for 10 years, have 7 children ranging in age from 15-1 from 5 different fathers......always opens the door for me to share about adoption :-)

Cole and I were able to get away for a long weekend for our 10th anniversary (thanks mom and dad). We went to the White Barn Inn in Maine and had wonderful weather, food, and fun! It's not often that we have many quiet moments together unless it's after the kids are in bed and by then I'm pretty close to passing out myself. It was nice to drive around and enjoy some romantic meals together while having conversations that weren't interrupted by the kids. However, after enjoying a few days of quiet and relaxation, we were both ready to return to our big, loud and crazy family! We missed their hugs, kisses and laughter!

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.

1 Corinthians 13:4-8

We thank You, O God, for the love You have implanted in our hearts.

May it always inspire us to be kind in our words, considerate of feelings, and concerned for each other's needs and wishes.

Help us to be understanding and forgiving of human weaknesses and failings.

Increase our faith and trust in You and may Your prudence guide our life and love.

Bless our marriage, O God, with peace and happiness, and make our Love fruitful for Your glory and our joy both here and in eternity.

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Orphan Sunday~

Orphan Sunday from Christian Alliance for Orphans on Vimeo.

We're All In This Together

Hillsong sharing their heart!

My Baby Boy is 1

Notice my stitches in my finger :-)

It's hard to believe my sweet baby boy is one! He is such a joy! No matter how bad my day might be, one smile from him makes it all better! He is sitting so well now and is on the verge of crawling. He's trying, but he's traveling backwards instead of forward. He loves being tickled and has the funniest little laugh! He loves grabbing hair and earrings and he eats pretty much anything you put before him! He loves playing with his block and anything he can bang together and bite on.

We invited family and a few friends over for a soup lunch for Eli's birthday. Cole had to leave early that morning to take SK to Auburn for a track meet. About 8:30 I finished preparing the soups and had them in their crock pots and I began cleaning up the kitchen. While trying to save a little room in the garbage can by putting a smaller can inside a larger one I managed to slice my finger open on the lid. Blood splatters all over the place (thankfully the soups were on the other side of the kitchen) and the kids went crazy. Jon Cole immediately took charge and began cleaning up my mess. I then had to call my mom to see if she could pick up the chicken fingers and cake on their way in and thankfully Cole's mom was able to come stay with the kids while I ran to the ER. It was interesting trying to get dressed, brush my teeth, wash my face, etc. while holding my sliced finger that kept bleeding since it was cut on the inside of my pointer knuckle. I drove to the ER and thankfully it was not crowded. I kept mentioning that I had a LOT of people coming to my house at 11 for my sons 1st birthday party:-) They were very nice and moved as quickly as possible. I made it back home about 10:30.... 30 minutes to spare. I had not planned on wearing a ball cap to his party and I had planned on doing a little more cleaning, but at that point I was just happy to be there and thankful that the soup was ready and for all the people that came to celebrate Eli's special day! I will always remember getting my first stitches at Eli's 1st birthday party! As you can see, he REALLY enjoyed his cake! Looking forward to many more celebrations with you sweet boy! Mama loves you sooooo much!

I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;
your works are wonderful,
I know that full well.

Psalm 139:14

Happy Birthday Zoe!

  

We celebrated Zoe's 11th birthday with friends from school at the ice rink! This year Zoe transferred to Trinity with the rest of her brothers and sisters!  It's so nice having them all together and knowing that she is not only being taught academically, but more importantly, spiritually!  I spent a lot of time in prayer trying to determine if that would be the best fit for her.  Trinity is not very diverse in make up, but we are quickly helping to change that :-)  I was fearful of how Zoe might be treated and if she was academically prepared for a college prep curriculum after only attending school for 3 1/2 years.  Once again the Lord has been merciful to us and she is right where she needs to be!  The other students, teachers and staff have all welcomed her with open arms!  This is joy to my soul!  It was such a blessing to hear the other moms talk about the things their children say about Zoe.  What stood out most is that none of their comments had anything to do with skin color, it involved her personality, her smile, her kick ball abilities :-)  etc.  I know that 4th grade can be a tough grade socially and I am rejoicing in the class that she has joined and their loving and embracing hearts and how they have all ministered to us and been a blessing to our family.  

Thank you Lord for the gift you have given me, our family and our community, in Zoe!  It has been both amazing and a joy to watch her grow and mature in so many ways.  I wish I could claim some responsibility for it, but you alone Lord receive ALL glory!  Thank you for taking us down a road that we never planned and for not allowing our fears of all the unknowns to prevent us from missing out on all the joy that we have been given in this precious child of yours!  Thank you for allowing me to be her mom!  I continue to be greatly blessed!

Happy Birthday Mom aka Nanna

Dear Lord, today I turn to you to give you thanks for my mother. With your own gift of life, she bore me in her womb and gave me life. She tenderly, patiently cared for me and taught me to walk and talk. No one delighted in my successes more; no one could comfort me better in my failures. I am so grateful for how she mothered me and mentored me, and even disciplined me. I am thankful for the blessing she is now to my children.

Please bless her, Lord, and comfort her. Help her loving heart to continue to love and give of herself to others. Strengthen her when she is down and give her hope when she is discouraged.

Most of all, Lord, on my mothers birthday, give my mother the graces she most needs and desires today. I ask you this, in the name of Jesus, our Lord and Savior forever and ever.

Miracle In Franklin

Beach Bums

The 6 youngest kiddos and I decided to take a last minute trip to the beach with my parents. We had a wonderful time together and I am thankful for the wonderful memories and for these images to always help me remember. Oh, how I love photos!!! These are some of my favorites, but the rest are all here.

What's for dinner? Rice and beans!

This month we have joined Amy in her pay it forward challenge. We are eating beans and rice for dinner Sunday through Thursday (taking Friday and Saturday nights off) and the money we save we will be donating to help pay for someone else's adoption. You can read about it HERE. It's been pretty nice not having to come up with a meal plan :-)

When I first mentioned this to the kids I was met with some resistance.... "I have to have meat", "I can't eat just beans and rice", etc. Those comments confirmed that we needed to do this. We are so spoiled and have every need and pretty much most wants met. This has been a great way for our family to focus on the needs of others. What feels like a sacrifice to them would be a blessing to billions all over the world.

I would challenge you to listen to the sermons titled Faith Loves, Faith Acts, and Faith Sacrifices by David Platt. They can be downloaded for free from itunes under "Brookhill Audio". (when you finish those, start working your way through his radical series) I warn you ahead of time they they will challenge you and hopefully change you and I look forward to seeing the fruit of this faithful preaching for God's glory!

Another sweet bloggy friend, and fellow Alabamian wrote a beautiful post that mirrors my thoughts that I haven't found time to put into words so I leave you with her post to ponder!

Matching Mondays

John (7) & Joseph (6)

Elizah

A special family has been praying for this cutie, so lets join them and praying for his family to find him soon!

Jazmine

Orphan Sunday

Orphan Sunday from Christian Alliance for Orphans on Vimeo.