Februay Martini (aka re-cap in photos)

I'm bringing back the martini. 

Enjoy!

 

Where Hope is Found {GIVEAWAY}

Today's post comes from Shelly Roberts. Shelly is not only a voice for the Fatherless and advocate for adoptive families, but her deep passion lies in encouraging the hearts of adoptive moms. Shelly doesn’t just want to see children placed in forever families -- she wants to see those families thrive. As an adoptive mom herself, Shelly is well acquainted with their needs. You can learn more about Shelly and her ministry at Reaching Hearts.

The adoption and fostering journey can be really complicated. Anyone with even a small bit of experience realizes that they are NOT in control. Ouch! You trek along on the paper marathon. You

hand over all your privacy. You open yourself up to critics of every kind. If your family is going to travel this journey well, then you must know where hope is found.

There will be days that paperwork causes delays. There will be people {who you once considered friends} that just don’t understand you anymore. There will likely be court decisions you don’t always agree with. What then?

Where do you go when there is nothing left in your mommy-love- tank, or your bank account, or your patience reserve? Some of you have been there. You’ve grown down right tired, weary, and depleted. Understandably so!

There’s good news, friends! Really GOOD news!

You don’t have to do this alone! There is someone that is so well acquainted with every single detail you’re facing. He knows every burden of your heart. He knows each piece of trauma your child has faced. He knows every detail of your situation. And even MORE than that - He cares desperately for you!

This world doesn’t offer what you most need. But the Father does - and He provides it in abundance.

Take a few moments and go to Him. Let the truth of His word teach you. Be reminded of all He has done for you. Let Him fill you. Let Him comfort you. Let Him carry you.

Psalm 25:5

Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my Savior, and my hope is in you all day long.

He’s waiting for you, friend. You don’t have to get your act together before meeting with Him. Come to Him just as you are - with all your inadequacies. He wants to meet you there - right in the mess.

He is our true Hope.

 

Special invite to adoptive/fostering mommas: There’s a special event being planned just for you. Come gather with other moms walking a similar journey this fall in IL at the Reaching Hearts With Hope retreat. 

Registration opens March 15th, is only $199 and includes everything for the weekend - including your lodging! Space is limited so mark March 15th on your calendar. It is sure to be a great weekend.

While you're waiting for the retreat, one lucky winner will be receiving a copy of Shelly's devotional "31 Nuggets of Hope".  

I just finished the book this week and it is just that - nuggets of hope we all need on this hard, beautiful, sanctifying road of mothering kids form hard places. 

To enter to win all you have to do is "Like" the 31 Nuggets of Hope Facebook page, come back here and let us know you did so. You can also share one area of your parenting that needs the Source of Hope. We're all in this together mamas! I'll announce the winner Saturday morning in the weekend reading post:-) 

Chrome Buffalo <------ awesome fundraising organization

Chrome Buffalo is an amazing online crowdfunding platform utilizing the concept of individual Drives or campaigns. T-shirts are one of the most popular adoption fundraisers and, for a number of reasons, having someone else design, purchase up-front and ship out your shirts sounds like a pretty rad deal to me.

Not only that, their designs are pretty sweet.

 

And they release a new set of designs each quarter just in case your fundraising goes on and on and on...Check out exactly how it works here.

the moments He shows me it's worth it

This is hard y'all. Trying and straining and reaching for the life Jesus wants us to live. Caring for orphans is messy work. It's exhausting.

I'm thankful for the moments when He shows me it's worth it. The mess. The exhaustion. It's all SO worth it.

I don't post about this often but William and I lead the orphan care ministry at our church. It's a blessing-beyond-words to be a part of a church where "orphan care is not just a program on the side but a part of our church DNA." <----- Our pastor said that. See what I mean? blessing. beyond. words.

Our big event of the year is an orphan care and adoption seminar we host alongside our local partner, the Orphan Care Alliance. It's hard work. I stay up late to get everything done. I sit at my computer and work when my kids are awake and I feel guilty. I drag them to meetings and promise ice cream if they will just be still and quiet for 45 minutes. But it is worth it:

Over 80 people learning about orphan care and adoption last month!

One goal of our ministry is to financially equip families within our church who are stepping out in faith to adopt. Last week I had the absolute privilege of working with Lifesong for Orphans to help one family get a matching grant. I didn't really do anything, other than field a few emails. (during the day while my kids were awake.) I was not expecting this family to be blessed as much as they were. I knew our partners were generous but I put God in a box - in my head I had a "max" of what He would do. He blew me, and my friends the Shores, away with a $7,300 matching grant!

I cried tears of joy and awe all morning. It was such a beautiful thing to see this family who is doing what most people don't understand - adopting a sibling set of three - being blessed by a God who is saying to them through His people "Yes. You are doing my will. And I will bless you for your obedience."

And then there's our sweet M. He is the one who costs me the most sleep. He is the hardest. A couple weeks ago we were visiting friends and he picked up their "thankful basket." My friend explained their family writes down things they are thankful for and puts them in the basket.

She asked if he wanted to draw something he is thankful for and he said yes. When he started drawing a person I got a little nervous. Who was it? Someone from his past? Was it me? I am so unworthy of his gratitude. My inner thoughts went on and on. My friend asked. "Who is that?" His answer? "Jesus. I'm thankful for Jesus."

It is worth it. Sleepless nights. Tantrums. Uncomfortable conversations. ALL. SO. WORTH. IT. for this little boy to be thankful for Jesus. (And spiders:-)

Praying I never forget. Knowing I will. Trusting Him to remind me.

I have a t-shirt additction and I hope you do too.

Because we have some awesome new shirts available for pre-order! 

Pre-orders will run until March 4th and will ship out the week of March 18th. 

Please share on Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest!

Waiting for Glory: Month Two

Glory raked in some big bucks this month! Our Beard for Glory campaign wrapped up last week at a total of about $4,600, we've received about $1,700 toward our $3,000 matching grant from the Orphan Care Alliance and today we got a $2,000 check in the mail from Families Outreach. Not a bad month!

Unfortunately, not much progress has been made on the process side of things... I did get Wallace homestudy number seven in the mail today so that is something. Next week it along with our fifth (six?) dossier will begin the long journey to the DRC. Goodbye paper chase, goodbye.

Since there's not much to report this month I decided to interview the kids and let them tell you what they are most excited about teaching Glory and doing with her when she gets home. Here are their unedited answers.

T: "How to walk. That is all."

Moses: "She can see my new bunk beds. I can carry her to the car. Glory will stay healthy when she gets home. I will teach her how to stand up, jump and clap. I will teach her my ninja moves." (He then demonstrated said ninja moves.)

M: "I am excited because I can rock-a-bye her. I can hold her. I can watch movies with her and show her where the jaguars are." (Note to self: Inquire about location of the jaguars.)

Meadow: "I am thankful I will rock-a-bye she. I will help her pee. I will play with she. Are we getting two kids?" NO. "Oh, I will hold she."

 And there you have it. This girl has a lot to look forward to.

Summit 9. Go there.

Are you going to Summit 9? You should. 

Quick explanation: Summit is the national conference of The Christian Alliance for Orphans’ and has become the national hub for what Christianity Today recently called, “the burgeoning Christian orphan care movement.”

The schedule includes heavy hitters like David Platt and Randy Alcorn and  has several workshop tracks including Art, Advocacy and Orphans, Building Church Orphan Ministries, Engaging Effectively for Orphans Worldwide, Loving Children with Special Needs, Strengthening the Family and much more!

I'm drooling over the Engaging Effectively for Orphans Worldwide myself.

Ok, so go register. The price is affordable, the experience is unforgettable and everyone knows someone in Nashville whose couch you can crash on.

Will we see you there?

a question you're probably thinking but are afraid to ask

Do I have what it takes to raise an African child?

I've been asked this before in a retrospective kinda way, as in "how do you...?"

Trillia Newbell answered this question with 

amazing grace and wisdom on The Gospel Coalition blog a while back. 

See what she has to say about it here. 

It's an excellent read for anyone considering transracial adoption!

Have you asked yourself this question? 

What other questions have you asked yourself 

when your thoughts drift towards being a transracial family?

weekend reading

"When we consider the complexities of issues that surround the global orphan crisis, we are confronted with the fact that truly visiting orphans in their distress (James 1:27) requires more of us than we can imagine. The mandate to care for orphans over the long haul requires that we give of ourselves in ways that are at war with our culture’s pursuit of earth-bound treasures. It’s impossible to care for the orphan without living self-sacrificially.

As a result, if we are not actively locating our identity in or being defined by the grand story of redemption, our efforts to care for the orphan will likely be superficial, perfunctory, and short-lived." - Dan Cruver, Together for Adoption.

 Read the full post here.

Waiting for Glory,

Beard for Glory RESULTS

Drum roll please.....

Beard - 404

No Beard - 531

Wow. 

Just wow. 

We are blown away by how big of a hit and how much fun this was!

We are so grateful

to everyone who voted and helped spread the word!  

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!

Seriously. This is a huge step closer to getting Glory home.

And, I'll get to see this handsome face until August 1, 2014:-).

Double Your Vote.

Thanks to a generous matching grant from the Orphan Care Alliance and Lifesong for Orphans all votes made between now and midnight on Valentine's Day WILL BE DOUBLED.

You MUST ENTER THE CODE 3548 in the "Note to Seller" section when checking out or we won't get any of the money. Semi-complicated but worth it!

Here's the link to vote.

Please continue to share and remember to include the code - 3548.

Thanks! 

(Side note - All donations made via that little button on the right are automatically matched - no code necessary:-)

Beard for Glory - Four Days Left to Vote!

Ok people, we're in the homestretch. Only four days left to vote and share.

Current count:

Beard - 222

No Beard - 233

Here's the video again. Please share it!

The more people who see it the quicker we can get our girl home!

Beard for Glory - Adoption Fundraiser from William H. Wallace II on Vimeo.

Weekend Reading

I'm emerging from slacker mode. Here you go... thank me later.

I came across this great blog - written by a foster mom, with several young kiddos, who also runs a foster care ministry. YES. PLEASE. I promise you will be encouraged by her family.

Did you see this uh-mazing ultimate list of adoption fundraisers? Check it out. There are sure to be some new ideas among these gems. (And we might be included in the "Other Creative Ideas" section:-)

This post on special needs parenting made me let out a sigh of relief. More to come on why, but this is a necessary read for anyone with a kiddo who has special needs and anyone with friends who are parenting kids with special needs. 

I'm leaving you with a quote from Gillian's above linked post...

If you are struggling with your child who has special needs, I give you permission to say it outloud.

I give you permission to ask for help.

I give you permission to realize and own the fact that Jesus is with you in your pain. He knows how much you love and cherish your child, and he also knows that this path can be difficult.

When I open up about my struggles something amazing happens.

I cry “uncle,” and God whispers “peace.” “Gillian, what took you so long to give this to me?”
I call for help, and Jesus stands up on my behalf. “I’m here. I’m helping.”
I confess weakness, and He claims strength. “Oh, child, finally, you are starting to get it.”

But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. 2 Corinthians 12:9

Mama's Bag of Tricks

Do you have a Mama Bag? What is a Mama Bag? Glad you asked.

It's a NON- diaper bag bag that is kept exclusively for when you are going out without the kids. (You do go out without them every now and then, right?)  

No kid paraphernalia is allowed in the bag. No diapers. No wipes. No crayons. No cars. No power figures. None of it.

It might sound silly but when I leave the house with my Mama Bag (that William got in Uganda a couple years ago - I picked a good one.) I feel like an actual adult. With a brain. Who talks about intelligent things and doesn't use the word "potty" or respond "Would you like to try that again?" seven thousand times a day. I feel like a normal human being.

I first got the idea of a Mama Bag several years ago from Amanda Blake Soule's book "Handmade Home". Before you get all impressed, I have never made anything from that book. Ever.

But I do love my Ugandan made Mama Bag and it's transformative powers.

Are you in need of a Mama Bag? Check out our shop and pick one for yourself. And then keep that kid stuff out and plan yourself a ladies night.

Here are a few of my favorites...

Use coupon code "mamabag" for FREE shipping while supplies last.

Beard for Glory Update: It's a Tie!

The current count is:

Beard - 204
No Beard - 204

It's about to get competitive up in here.

NINE DAYS left to vote!  

Vote. Share. Bring Glory Home.

talking to former orphans about orphans

We have tried to raise kids who love orphans.

Actually, first, we have tried to raise kids who love Jesus and out of the overflow of their love for Jesus, we pray and have hope they love those He loves. We are still figuring all of this out.

How much we are still figuring it out becomes even more apparent when you have two former orphans living in your house. The words you use are now descriptive of your own family and aren't thrown around with the same amount of ease.

Since we have been in the process of adopting from the beginning of time, or at least the beginning of when Moses was able to talk, our kids are not strangers to the fact that some kids "don't have mommies and papa's." That is the way we have always described orphans to our kids. The orphans we sponsor, the orphans in our partner orphanage, the orphans we have tried to adopt: they "don't have mommies and papa's."

Recently I came face-to-face with how lacking our definition is. I overheard T and Moses talking in their room about "daddy". This caught my ear because we refer to William as "Papa" so I knew they were talking about T's father.

I was still trying to make out exactly what they were discussing when T came running into the room and announced "Miss Lindsy, I don't have a daddy." as if he was telling me he didn't have any clean underwear.

It was in that moment I realized our definition was empty and thoughtless. 

I can't share the details of T's birth parents, mostly because they are not mine to share, but what we were all taught in 5th grade sex-ed is: he does have a daddy. Somewhere, some man is his daddy.

I don't know him, his name or anything about him.

What I do know is something went tragically wrong in his life for him to walk away from this sweet boy. Painfully wrong. Sinfully wrong. Broken. Wrong.

Oh how I fumbled through my response to T that evening. As I tripped over my own words explaining to a four year old the way babies are made without really telling him how babies are made I was kicking myself - Why didn't I have a script for this?! Why didn't I have the forethought to expect this question and prepare for it?!

Thankfully, God is gracious and has allowed us to do a few things well in our parenting. As I was explaining a man and a woman made him, T interrupted me and said "But I thought God made me?"

Ah! Yes! God made you!

I fumbled again but it didn't matter, he was off and playing.

God used T to teach me two things that day:

One, orphans do have mommies and papa's. The tragedy of this broken world has disrupted God's design and they are not cared for by the two people who came together to make them, but they exist. Even if they have passed, even if they made horrendously selfish decisions, even if they are unknown; they deserve to be acknowledged and honored for the life they gave that child. 

I have to be honest, when we started our adoption journey four years ago, I wasn't thinking about those two people. Subconsciously, I think part of the appeal of international adoption was I would not have to think about those people. Or so I thought.

When I think of how unprepared I was four years ago, I'm thankful this journey has taken so long. I'm thankful for people like Carissa Woodwyk and Amy Monroe for sharing their stories so I can lead our kids as they explore their own stories. Because their stories include those two people.

The second thing God taught me through T that day is this: God made him. And them. And us. 

I knew this obviously, but it took a four year old to remind me. My job as his surrogate mother, and as the mother to all of our kids, is to remind them of this. Constantly.

I can't pretend to know the pain our kids from hard places feel and will continue to feel all of their lives. But I can point all of our kids to the One who heals. The One who made them and loves them. He is with them. Constantly.

weekend reading (where have you been?)

I've been seriously slacking when it comes to posting "weekend reading" on Saturdays...

I'm digging my way out of slacker mode but, in the mean time, check out the trailer for Faultless: The American Orphan, a full-length documentary, developed by Unthinkable and the Christian Alliance for Orphans for the purpose of inspiring and equipping Christ’s followers to more deeply love and care for orphans for the glory of God.


 

Created for Care in pictures

My roomies and I left dark and early last Friday morning. 

I thought we could beat the ice storm heading our way but...

This was our view for about 4 (or 5?) hours.

All the ways our trip parallels the adoption journey?
Let's not even go there.

 But then we get to here. And here is SO. GOOD.

The sunrise from our room.

Me and my roomies.

Dear sister with a heart that beats to the same rhythm as mine.

There will be more. There is so much more than these pictures. 

But for now I'm still processing all God does 

in those short days and nights away at Created for Care.