Happy Birthday

Yeeeeeees.  If you are a friend on FB I'm sure you are by now aware that this past week was I had my birthday.  I don't say that with any disdain for the day and I certainly do not dread the annual event.  In fact, I LOVE my birthday and all that it entails!  Who doesn't like a day to get spoiled and pampered and loved?!?  I certainly do!  I only...occasionally...get a tad bit embarrassed by all the attention.  ME?!?  I know, it must shock you.  But somewhere deep down inside is the shy little girl that used to cling to my mother's leg and look at the floor with any mention of my name.  I try my darndest to keep her at bay, but she still appears on occasion in the form of butterflies in my tummy, sweaty palms, or a beet red face.

But instead of celebrating myself right now (because really, that would be just a little weird) I want to celebrate a few ministries that inspire me to be more than myself...to be the hands and feet of Jesus.

Ordinary Hero

My love for this ministry is no secret.  Through teaming up with them for fundraising our precious Cocoa's adoption, I learned more about the heart behind this ministry.  Kelly Putty founded this organization, which started out by helping within their own community, seeking to make a difference in the lives of those less fortunate.  It quickly opened their eyes to needs of children around the globe.  Ordinary Hero is now involved in seasonal mission trips to Ethiopia, South Africa, and Haiti.  They put on community outreaches including Project Backpack, a Halloween event, Christmas Stocking Stuffers, and Mother's Day celebrations with Rescue Mission.  They help countless adoptive families fundraise to bring their children home.  And that just touches on the many ways they touch others' lives.  Our family was so blessed by Ordinary Hero and we will forever be grateful for their assistance in fundraising.

Steadfast Love

Again, anyone who knows me probably knows about Steadfast Love.  Our dear friends Ian and Brittany Bentley are the family behind the name, sacrificing the comforts of an American life to touch lives of the least of these in Ethiopia.  They have given it all away, in the world's eyes, to pour into the lives of orphans, street children, and women escaping a life of prostitution.  Working with Women At Risk, FashionABLE, and No Ordinary Love Ministries Children's Home, they have already made a difference for countless families in less than a year that they have lived in Addis.  Their stories about these women and children touch my heart in a way I cannot describe, due in part, I'm sure, the the hold the country of Ethiopia has on my heart.

One Child Campaign

Founded by Caleb and Becca David, this ministry facilitates short term mission trips and connects individuals with families and ministries around the world.  They partner with Steadfast Love, No Ordinary Love Ministries, Children's Hope Chest, Embracing Ethiopia, FashionABLE, Noonday Collections, and Bring Love In....just to give you a glimpse into the many ways they are impacting lives around Ethiopia and beyond.  Through child sponsorship, orphan advocacy, and mission trips I believe they are reaching their goal of breathing hope into the orphan crisis.

147 Million Orphans

This foundation was created to impact the lives of children in a positive way.  The founders, Suzanne Mayernick and Gwen Oatsvall, met during their first adoptions 9 years ago and since then have accepted the call to speak up for orphans everywhere.  With projects in Ethiopia, Haiti, Uganda, and Honduras they are helping provide food, water, and medicine to those who need it.  They are showing the love of Christ and impacting many lives by providing medical clinics, water wells, and storage facilities housing food!  On top of that, the 147 Million Orphans Store aids adoptive families in their fundraising.

LACC

Latin America Child Care has been helping children since 1963.  LACC is involved in over 300 projects, affecting over 100,000 children in 31 countries, including Mexico, Honduras, Dominican Republic, Costa Rica, Venezuela, and Columbia....just to name a few.  Our good friends Randy and Lynne Forsyth (and their daughter Jenny) have joined the mission field and will be moving to Panama shortly (for the last several months they have been living and training in Costa Rica).  There they will be working along side the local pastors and administrators to develop future schools for the program.  They will also be assisting in the construction of a regional training center for the teachers and administrators, located in Panama City, a convenient and cost effective location for them to receive their required credential updates.  

Obviously there are many, many more ministries out there doing amazing things for God's kingdom.  I have barely scraped the surface.  These are just a few that are close to my heart.

I have many people tell me they don't feel called to adopt, but want to help in someway.  Supporting an adoptive family with prayer or financial aid is a HUGE part of that (and being a recipient of such support, I can personally tell you how appreciated it is and can take such an enormous load of stress off of you).  But as you can see, there are many organizations reaching out beyond adoption and making a difference both in our communities and globally.  I hope this can be used as a tool to get you involved in one way or another.  Educate yourself and ask God how you can make an influence and begin changing the world.  Many people are out there doing it one person at a time.  You can be part of that!  Let me know what you decide =)

Fall is Time to be FashionABLE!

I can't deny it anymore.  Despite the afternoon warmth on my cheeks and the sun shining through my windows, you can feel fall in the air with the frosty mornings and breezy evenings.  My house almost stays cool enough to turn the heater on for good.  Once again, summer swept through Washington far too quickly.  I feel disappointed.  Unfortunately, all efforts to convince my husband of a sunny vacation have been in vain.  So far.  (I'm not giving up easily.)

Regardless of what our vacation plans may be (or lack there of), I am making all efforts to embrace fall and all the wonderful things that come with it...

First being, our very first year of preschool for our Lil' Man!  I am a firm believer in at-home preschool (Although I'm not judging!  I don't know your circumstances...this is just what is in the best interest of our family.) so I am focusing on structured activities with my little guy.  It takes some effort on all our parts, but he seems to enjoy it more each day.

So excited to take a pic with his backpack for going no where.  =)
Cocoa couldn't resist sneaking in a pic as well =)

Second is the fall decor.  Aside from Christmas, fall just might be my favorite season of home decor!  The colors are so beautiful and I love the natural elements to design around -- pumpkins, squash, leaves, twigs.  Not to mention burlap.  I love burlap.  =)  {I just can't wait to get working on this year's fall wreath.}

Third is the start of festivities -- Halloween, harvest parties, pumpkin patches....and before you know it we've got Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years (not to mention both of my kids' birthday parties thrown in between now and then).  It's just a celebratory time of year!

Last but not least is the fall fashion.  I know this will come as a HUGE shock to ya'll!  ;)  I am known to wear boots and scarves all year long, but once fall hits it starts to become a necessity more than just a fashion statement (or at least in Seattle it does).  But as much as I dread the cooler weather, I really do look forward to leg warmers, cozy sweaters, fingerless gloves, leather jackets, pea coats, and beanies (not to mention Pumpkin Spice Lattes!  Can I get an "AMEN"!!!)!  So needless to say I've been browsing Pinterest and all my favorite online shops for inspiration for my 2012 fall style.  Out of all the color palettes, layers, and texture combinations swirling around in this chaotic head of mine...the fall staples jumping out at me MOST this season are the scarves from FashionABLE's new fall line.  Seriously ya'll....so good I can't HELP but share it with you!

Saba Infinity {Great for guys AND girls!}

Feleku in Navy/Orchid

Abeba in Marigold {Can't WAIT!!}

{And you can check out the rest of their collection HERE.}

For those of you who haven't heard of FashionABLE, it is a company that is very near and dear to our hearts.  They partner with "Women at Risk" in Ethiopia to get women off the streets, out of prostitution, and give them a sustainable business making scarves.  I encourage you to read more about their mission and commitment to these women HERE.

I'm sure if you are a regular around here you know our hearts for Ethiopia and see why this is so close to our hearts.  But if that weren't enough, our dear friends Ian and Brittany Bentley live in Ethiopia and work with FashionABLE and have developed close relationships with these brave women.  They have shared just a smidgen with us on what an impact this business is for these women, and it is truly a beautiful thing, and something I want to support.

So check them out!  It is seriously worth your time.  With each purchase you are giving these women the ability to choose a new life.  I don't know about you, but that speaks volumes to me.                    

Don't Forget Your Kleenex!!!

Just saw in Kristi's blog this amazing video posted by Ordinary Hero.  It was amazing to put some REAL stories and REAL faces who are benefiting from their help.  Once again, I am just blown away - I feel so honored to be partnering with such an incredible organization.  Please take a moment to watch the video...but don't forget your Kleenex!  Maybe it was just me in my emotional state...but I cried the whole way through! =)

Real Life Among Us~ Ordinary Hero from Kelly Putty on Vimeo.

Story Time!!! ...Plus ANOTHER New Recipe! =)

Isn't every day a story time over at my blog?? =)

But really...Monkey is loving his books lately.  So much, in fact, that he has gotten bored of the books in our house.  Since funds are strictly going to the adoption lately, we thought we would head over to the library.  I LOVE how fun it is for Monks.  He gets SO excited picking out book after book after book....and especially excited when he sees one he recognizes (from a previous trip)!

This is just ONE of the ways I catch Monkey enjoying his books lately...it just warms my heart!

This particular book is his CARS book.  Ever since his major sickness (the one when we had to purchase a nebulizer to get his breathing under control) and we watched this movie 7 times that week (no joke!) he has been mildly obsessed with CARS!

His other famous reading position is leaning against one of the couches or chairs in the living room, flipping through pages.  It must be perfect eye level for him...because its where he plays with his cars, his choo choo train, everything! =)

This child really melts my heart!

Later that night for dinner, I tried a new recipe from my WIPHAN cookbook (which I am LOVING by the way...nothing better than a bunch of moms YOU love and respect sharing THEIR favorite recipes and then a bunch of moms THEY love and respect shairng THEIR favorite recipes....AMAZING cookbook!!!  Head over there now to pick one up for yourself!!!  ...And don't forget that the proceeds are going to a GREAT cause!!  WIPHAN stands for WIdows and orPHANs....their whole mission is to "equip widows and orphans for a productive future life, offering hope to the hopeless through the love of Jesus Christ".  This is an AMAZING ministry in Zambia doing great things - please support them!). 

ANYWAY....the recipe was called Balsamic Chicken!  I was very unsure how all the intense flavors were going to come together into one dish, but it was amazingly delicious!!  The hardest part was figuring out what to pair it with, but being low on groceries we just made white rice.  After tasting the chicken now, I would suggest pairing it with some roasted red potatoes, or something like that...but REGARDLESS.....it was SOOO unbelievably good.  I had that look of nervousness as Hubs took his first bite, but his oooing and awwwing made it ALL worth the uncertainty!  {insert pat on my back for trying something new} =P

YUMMM!!!!!

Just to let you know, I've got something exciting for you to look forward to on my blog in the next little bit!  I will be featuring my first GUEST BLOGGER!!!!  I am so excited!  This is an amazing friend of mine from way back when (I kinda feel like I'm old enough to say that now, lol!) and she is going to be doing an anthropologie-inspired tutorial for you!  *I* am so excited to see this for myself and share it with all of YOU!  So stay tuned, you won't want to miss this.

Till next time!!!

James 1:27

James 1:27 in The Message reads this, "Real religion, the kind that passes muster before God the Father, is this: Reach out to the homeless and loveless in their plight, and guard against corruption from the godless world."

But I still prefer the version from my Bible, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and fautless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

The pastor at our church has been preaching on James for the last month or so...really good, really heart-opening stuff.  His sermon on this verse Sunday left me in tears (big surprise) and I just had to share the basics of it (because there was SO MUCH MORE than what I am touching on)...I hope it does you justice Pastor Bob! 

I've always loved James 1:27, especially since beginning the journey of adoption, but the way PB (as we SCC folks know him) broke it down really gave me a new look at it.

First we need to put the emphasis on GOD the FATHER!  "Religion that GOD THE FATHER accepts as pure and faultless..."  HE is the one who determines whether our religion is acceptable or not.  HE is the one who sees our hearts, hears our prayers, EVALUATES whether we are actually DOING and not just saying.  Its not whether WE think we have done well, or even other's opinions of our relationship with Christ...only God knows the inner workings of our heart.  Only HE is pure and faultless, so therefore only He can determine whether our religion is pure and fautless.

True religion is PURE.  What does "pure" mean anyway?  (Taken from Webster's Online Dictionary.)
Unmixed with any other matter.
Free from dust, dirt, or taint.
SPOTLESS, STAINLESS
Being thus and no other: SHEER
Free from what viatates, weakens, or pollutes.

True religion is FAULTLESS - unstained, unsoiled.

Think about gold being purified in the fire....it's not easy!  In fact, its IMPOSSIBLE....without God's grace!  Who can do this apart from HIM?!?!

True religion looks after orphans.  Think about what it means to "...look after..." orphans.  What does that mean for us as Christians?  Who are the orphans of the present day?  I think the obvious are abandoned children - here in the United States, in your own backyard, across the world in a 3rd world country...  But then there are children that are neglected or starving.  Kids who's parents are in jail or rehab.  UNBORN CHILDREN abandoned and unwanted by their parents.  We need to look after them too!  How?  Adoption is probably the obvious one you expect from me.  Child sponsorships, foster care, water projects (like Christmas Water...started by a group in my church), adopt/build a third world orphanage, sponsor adoptive families, start adoption grant funds in your church to help families pursuing adoption, PRO-LIFE MINISTRY (in a practical and loving way).  There are practical ways to apply this to our lives.  Look around at the need!

IF ONLY 7% of the Christians today adopted....there would be NO MORE orphans in the world!  Check out this break down.

God our FATHER wants us to care for the FATHERLESS...doesn't that just show the heart of our God???

True religion cares for widows in their distress.  Think of what it would feel like to be in their shoes.  You just lost your spouse - your lover, your best friend, your partner, your companion.  You are lonely.  YOU are left to deal with the funeral, the mourning, comforting your children.  Then you are left with the financial burden...not only the cost of the funeral and burial, but then you alone are responsible to care for your family.  After years of relying on your partner you have to figure it out for yourself, while carrying on with daily life.  You want to keep things as normal as possible for your children, but you are HURTING!  Your car breaks down - your husband used to fix it.  Now you need to bring it to a shop.  Who can you rely on?  Parent-teacher meeting are coming up and your kid's having a hard time in school.  You used to be a stay-at-home-mom and now you have to go back to work...how will you manage?  And THIS is just an example here in the United States (and of my worst fear).  Imagine a 3rd world country.  (Read this post...there is paragraph in there about a woman sitting in her hut....)

What kind of widows do we look after?  1 Timothy 5:3-4 (The Message) says, "Take care of widows who are destitute.  If a widow has family members, let them learn that religion begins at their own doorstep and that they should pay back with gratitude some of what they have received.  This pleases God immensely."

How will we recognize widows who are in need?  1 Timothy 5:6 (The Message) says, "You can tell a legitimate widow by the way she has put all her hope in God, praying to him constnatnly for the needs of others as well as her own."  1 Timothy 5:9 says, "...They must be over sixty, married only once, and have a reputation for helping out with children, strangers, tired Christians, the hurt and troubled."

What would it look like if we poured love into these women so that they could blossom and pour love into their families and others around them.  What kind of impact would that have on our world?  (When you check out that link above please be sure to browse around Andrea's blog...such an amazing woman with a heart for God and his people.)

I've told you before about WIPHAN (WIdows + orPHANs = WIPHAN).  I think its an amazing ministry...and imagine if we applied it HERE as well...with the widows in our own backyard! 

True religion keeps one from being polluted by the world....or as PB calls it, a "spiritual environmentalist"!  =P  If we fully intend to LIVE OUT this passage, we have to guard our HEARTS from the pollution of our ungodly world.  Yes, we are sinful by nature...and there is only one cure: the precious blood of Jesus! 

In PB's conclusion he said this, "When it comes to the social concern for the fatherless, widows, and for moral purity, GOD IS SERIOUS.  Care for orphans and widows is commanded."  As Christians we are called to be MORALLY DISTINCT from the world - and Jesus set the example for us Himself.  Follow HIS lead.

Thank you, PB, for your sermon on Sunday and for stirring our hearts.  We long to have a heart like Jesus.

Caring For The Orphans

I have always had a heart for the orphans of the world, so it didn’t come as a big surprise to most when we announced our decision to adopt. When we first met with our social worker she asked about what brought us to the decision and if we had any experience with adoption in our immediate or extended families. We named a few family members who had adopted, and a couple friends…and it surprised me how many people in my life had experience with adoption!  LOL, I thought this was going to be new for our family.  I felt like I was treading in unfamiliar waters.  I guess it's because we didn't talk about it a lot, but I find it comforting that it was never a big deal. 

I know we aren't all called to adopt, but we are called to care for the orphans...

"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress

and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."

James 1:27

One of the ways in which our family has decided to fulfill that calling is with tithing.  The tithe from our first paycheck goes to the church, and the second goes to support ministries for orphans (and widows).  I wanted to share with you a few that I love...

Wiphan

This ministry is in Zambia, Africa.  The purpose is to educate and equip widows and orphans there with biblical principles and skills training.  Zambia is an area that has been majorly impacted by the AIDS epidemic, and Wiphan is helping turn "hopelessness into hopefulness in Jesus Christ".

You can help support this amazing ministry by sponsoring a child, making a donation, or purchasing some of their shirts and accessories.  I fell in love with these:

You can purchase one for yourself here!

AGCI

Yes, All God's Children International is our adoption agency.  But they are so much more than that.  They provide support for widows and orphans around the world.  In Ethiopia alone they have their own orphanage, Hannah's Hope, that provides a home for infants, toddlers, and even teenagers while they wait for their forever families.  They also work with other ophanages in Ethiopia as well as provide a daycare for widows and mothers in Ethioia who are working to provide for their family.  Without this daycare, many of these woman would need to give up their children for adoption due to the extreme poverty in the area.

There are two beautiful sisters right now, ages 9 & 14 who are waiting for a home.  AGCI has asked for help to find a forever family for these sweet girls before they are out of the system due to their age.  You can find out more about these girls on my friend's blog here.  These girls deserve a family just like every child out there...could it be you???  If you need more information, please contact me.

AGCI offers mission trips...I know our caseworker is in Taiwan right now opening a Hannah's Hope there.  You can also ask AGCI to come speak at your church to share with the congregation how they can be a voice for the orphans.  You can also support AGCI by sponsoring one of their Hannah's Hope around the world or by purchasing shits or totes from them.  To find out more, please click here.

To watch some of their videos and learn more click here.

Adoption Fundraisers

Even though we are fundraising ourselves, we put some of othe money to help other families who are trying to adopt as well.  Every child deserves a home...

Here are a few I love...

I recently won one of these hair bows on Sharon's giveaway and I LOVE it!!!  The picture doesn't do it justice, its just too cute!  I think this is a must for every Ethiopian Princess!  Especially since the money goes to bring home her daughter Lily.  Please check out her site today at http://texastoethiopia.blogspot.com/.

A sweet local friend of mine is selling some amazing shirts to bring home their cuties from Ethiopia.  I love the thought of there being one less orphan in the world...because the only way you can help is one at a time.  You can purchase one here at http://waiting4selah.blogspot.com/search/label/T%20shirt%20Fundraiser.
****I was just informed they have discontinued selling their shirts, but check out their blog anyway - GREAT family and GREAT friends!****

The much-talked-about JunkPosse designs some pretty incredible jewelry to help support another adoptive family.  She will happily customize one especialy for you - talk about an amazing Mother's Day Gift!!!  (One day left guys...)  Visit JunkPosse's Etsy site here.

Of course you can always feel free to check out our fundraiser as well!  =)  http://bringourangelhome.blogspot.com/