Forever Family Friday

I'm going back, today. I'm going back for Darren. Darren is the second child I ever blogged about in a Forever Family Friday post. You can read that post here :) I hope you will, because it has an earlier photo of Darren. I fell in love with that picture and didn't think it could get any better. Until I saw these...

Sometimes God just blows my mind. Look at this little bundle of JOY! I knew it! I knew this boy was really something special. His little clasped hands...

Another Mom is at Darren's orphanage, right now, meeting her son. I'm so excited for their family. From all her photos and visits it looks like this is a decent orphanage. You can read their family's story and see their visits with their son here on their blog! Christie (the Momma) posted on facebook this morning and said, "Darren is the last child with Down Syndrome waiting in this orphanage." What? How amazing is God? He's sent families for those babies. I can't think of a better way to declare God's glory to this staff than to completely clear the building of every child with Down Syndrome! You know what that means? It means, Darren needs a family!

If you weren't already completely won over by this sweet boy's smile, I have one more photo for you.

Look at all that cuteness! He's the last one waiting. I know that any day now his Mommy and Daddy are going to see his outstretched arms and run to get to him. Maybe you're that Mommy and Daddy. If you'd like more information on Darren, you can check out his Reece's Rainbow profile.

Will you pray for Darren and the family whose heart God is preparing to say, "Yes!" It's a huge step of faith to realize you have a child on the other side of the ocean. It requires complete and total trust in God to make this decision. Pray, pray, pray that hearts would be open to the voice of God and to following where he leads. Darren is waiting...

You can also go to Darren's profile and make a donation to his grant. It makes a difference. I hate to think Darren would be passed over because another child has a larger grant. Or that the financial mountain would be too intimidating for his family to even consider climbing. Darren is waiting...

Share Darren's picture and story with your friends and family. You can post a link back here or one to his Reece's Rainbow profile. Let's find Darren's family by shouting from the rooftops about how he needs a family. His family may not even know he exists, yet. Darren is waiting...

I'm so thankful that God is writing Darren's story. I can't wait to see how it turns out. He is faithful! Thank you for letting me share my heart and sweet little Darren with you.

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...Do Something!

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

All the Ways You Can Help!

I've been asked by a couple of people to do a post and put everything in order, as far as our fundraising. I'm going to list everything we have going, starting with the ones ending the soonest and working my way through.

The first one is an online Thirty-One Party. We will be receiving 20% of every order placed toward our adoption. You can use this link: Rhodes Family Thirty-One Party to place your order. (Click on the highlighted words, they're the link). This Party ends at 9:00 am tomorrow morning, so get your orders in, now :) We've extended this Thirty-One Party until October 20th!

Then, we have an online Scentsy Party! We're making 20% of every order placed here, too! My friend, Heather, helped set this up for us. I've never owned any Scentsy, but I'm going to place an order. I love when I walk in a friend's house and see their warmer lit up and I'm met with a delicious new scent. You have until October 20th to order your Scentsy! (Again, the highlighted words in the first sentence are the link).

Last, but not least, we're doing an online and catalog party with Celebrating Home! We earn 50% of every sale placed on this website: Click here! There are some great candles and Christmas items. It's not too early to be thinking about Christmas buying and if it is, no worries, you have until November 30th to place an order :)

You can see we have a lot going on as far as fundraising. I like to think there's something for everyone! You're always welcome to make a donation directly to our Reece's Rainbow Grant. Donations made through our grant on the right hand side are tax deductible. You will receive an email receipt 7-10 business days after you make a donation.

Thank you all for your continued support and prayers. Our dossier (packet of paperwork needed in the boys country) should have been submitted, today! That means we'll have travel dates, very soon! We are going to meet our boys and are so excited!

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

Buddy Walk 2011

We went to our first Buddy Walk, today! What a lot of fun. We live in a small town, so I was surprised that we even had a Buddy Walk here. Oh, for those who don't know, a Buddy Walk is a walk to raise awareness about Down Syndrome. I was excited to meet some local families raising children with down syndrome. I can't wait to be able to take our boys next year. We'll have a team in the walk and raise money for our local Down Syndrome Society.

This year, we set up a Reece's Rainbow table and shared information about Reece's Rainbow and the Christmas Warrior program. Everyone was so receptive and excited to learn more about Reece's Rainbow. I was invited to share on the stage about Reece's Rainbow and our adoption. I'm not a fan of public speaking, but somehow I seem to keep finding myself with a microphone in my hand. I was brief and then headed back to our table to answer questions.

We had lots of fun items to giveaway that Reece's Rainbow sent ahead of time for this event. Brochures, mugs, pens, notebooks, totes, etc. The biggest hit of the day for our crowd was the bumper sticker. It says, "Babies with Down Syndrome choose life, too!" What a great message and one that every person who loves someone with Down Syndrome agrees with.

My Mom, Rebecca, Julianna and her cousin Maddox all helped share Reece's Rainbow with our new friends. Here are some other fun photos from our day. Enjoy!

McGruff was Julie and Maddie's favorite at the walk!

Don't you love this boy's smile and you can see some of the great stuff we had to giveaway.

I hope your day was as fun as ours. The best part of my day was meeting some beautiful children blessed with that extra special chromosome. I'm so glad God led us here to be a part of this community of people who clearly love their children beyond measure. Every family really does deserve the blessing of a child with down syndrome...

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...Do Something!

Blessings,

Mandy

Forever Family Friday

I wrote this post once already. It wasn't worth reading. I asked some friends to pray for me. I can't seem to find the "right" words. I realized after sometime in prayer myself that I can't do the job of the Holy Spirit. I can share my heart and be a willing instrument that God uses, but I can't convict hearts. No matter how many times I look at this precious boy and feel overcome with emotion. Only God can change hearts.

I know this from our own adoption journey. God spoke to me about adopting a child with special needs long before he began to deal with Marty's heart. I shared with Marty and pleaded with him to feel the same way, but not until I took my hands off of the situation and allowed God and Marty time to work it out together, did anything happen. After some serious time in prayer and a sermon or two that spoke directly to Marty, he came to me and said, "Let's do it, because we can't do anything else." Since then we have both fallen in love with two boys on the other side of the ocean. It was our But God moment.

When I first wrote this post, I wanted to persuade you to "see" things my way. I wanted you to "feel" about this child the way that I do. I have realized, now, that I need to be praying for you to have a But God moment of your own. The moment where God changes your view of things to his view. He "sees" things so much clearer than I do, anyway. So, I'm going to share a little boy with you and pray that God will speak to your heart.

This is Tony. Tony is 12 years old and, yes, this picture is recent. Tony has down syndrome and no other medical conditions, aside from those caused by years of neglect and malnutrition. Please take a few minutes and read about Tony on his Reece's Rainbow profile. Now, pray and ask God to allow you to really "see" Tony the way he sees Tony. God knit Tony together. He created him with a purpose. Is God asking you to help Tony achieve his purpose?

I can't see it or feel it for anyone else. I can only be accountable with the things God has shown me. A large part of that accountability for me involves sharing Tony with you.

"Never walk away from someone who deserves help; your hand is God's hand for that person." Proverbs 3:27

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

I am a Promise!

I am a Promise

I am a Possibility

I am a Promise with a capital "P"

I am a great BIG bundle of Potentiality

I am learning to hear God's voice 

I am trying to make the right choice

I am a promise to be...anything God wants me to be

These precious little ones all need homes, NOW!

They make me think of this little song we learned in Sunday School growing up.

Each of us young and full of life and potential. I promise, each of these children is full of that same life and potential. It's just hidden, waiting for love to bring it into the light.

You can find each of these children on Reece's Rainbow.

Please, pray and if you never share any other post, share this one!

Their need is desperate and immediate.

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support!

Harvest Time

"Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers." Galatians 6:9-10

We know what the harvest is going to look like. 

We're just a little weary in the doing that is necessary to get to the harvest.

They will be worth the planting and the tending (the paperwork and fundraising).

Sometimes, I need the reminder of why we're doing all this work and I come to find their pictures.

The reward, the harvest, the treasure found...will be our sons.

Please, consider the opportunity we're giving you to do good and encourage our family.

Check out our (Mostly) Made with Love Giveaway and be a part of helping bring our treasures home.

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...

Blessings,

Mandy

(Mostly) Made with Love Giveaway!

We've decided to do another giveaway here on the blog! I love doing these giveaways, because they allow our friends and family to give and, hopefully, to receive something back! You already have our gratitude, but I love to be able to give something tangible back as a way to say, "Thank you!"

For this giveaway, I went to our friends and to some generous strangers to ask for help. Every prize has been donated and a lot of them have been hand-crafted with love. Lots of Etsy sellers were happy to get involved and offer something for our giveaway, once they learned about our boys. Our boys are hard to refuse :)

So, here's what we have to offer. We will draw one winner for each prize, so there is an even greater opportunity that if you give, you are going to receive a great prize. We know that's not why you give, but it does make the giving even more fun!

Prize #1

A $35 gift certificate to Kelly's Creative Designs!

Kelly was super generous to offer such a great prize! She's also giving our family 10% of any sales we send her way and free shipping to our friends. Simply use code: ADOPTION11 at checkout!

Here's a sample of her work:

Prize #2

A personalized birth/adoption announcement block from Elephant Tales!

These are super cute and can be created to match your color scheme. Here's my favorite:

Prize #3

In keeping with hand-crafted nursery decor V T Designs is offering any item of the winner's choice from her Etsy shop!

I love this one, but they're all super cute!

Prize #4

Hidden in My Heart is donating one of her amazing pieces of scripture art!

You should have a look around her store. The winner will receive an 8x10 print of their choosing!

I love the style of these prints!

Prize #5

Allison at Love Blooms Eternal makes these great pendants!

The winner can pick whichever pendant they would like! I'm going to have one made that says, "Mother" in the boys' native language! 

Here's a custom piece with a photo.

Prize #6

A candle of the winner's choice from Celebrating Home!

These smell great and look pretty, too! Anything you order from the link above, we'll receive 50% of the proceeds from!

Here's my favorite candle:

Baked Apple Pie!

Prize #7

2:12 Designs is run by a local Mom, who is super creative! She's donating a custom made invite/announcement to the winner, as well as 50% of any orders placed when you let her know you found 2:12 Designs here on our blog, until the giveaway ends.

Here's the adoption announcement she created recently!

(I can't wait to have her create our adoption announcements!)

Prize #8
5 brand new size medium Fuzzi Bunz Diapers from my friend, Rebecca.
If you're interested in ordering Fuzzi Bunz, you can contact Rebecca by emailing her at thinkbig@embarqmail.com!
Thanks, Rebecca :)

Prize #9
My friend, Daniell, wanted to get in on this giveaway, too!
She just started selling Thirty-One bags and she's donating a Thermal Tote and 20% of the profits from our catalog party. You can order here! No codes necessary.
I love this pattern!

Prize #10
Last, but not least my friend, Dana from Pampered and Posh is donating a super cute backpack!
There's more to come from Dana and if you're interested, you can read how we met here!
She's also decided to give our family 25% of any sales we send her way, just use the code RhodesAdoption in the notes when you check out.
I love this little monkey waving, "Hello!"

Please, show these businesses your support by taking the time to shop at their stores! They have all been more than generous and encouraging of our efforts to bring our boys home!

Okay, how to enter...

1. Make a donation of $10 or more using the chip-in! 

Every $10 gets you 3 entries into the giveaway!

2. Share on facebook, twitter, your blog, or other social media.

Earn one entry (per day) for each time that you share.

You will need to leave a comment here when you share, so I can get you entered.

3. Follow our blog. If you don't already, you can earn a free entry by following this blog.

4. Check out Meredith's Miracle and become a follower over there and you'll earn a free entry.

5. Make a purchase at any of the sites listed above and you'll earn 2 entries for every purchase!

Just come here and leave a comment saying what you purchased and from whom. I will verify your order and get you entered to win!

Nothing too difficult. Let's see, if we can raise the money we need to get our boys home.

Thank you to everyone who has given and who will give.
We appreciate you!

Please, continue to pray for us and our boys while we are apart from each other.

P.S. This is our 100th post here on the blog!
Thanks for reading!