Happy New Year?

Wow! Where did this year go? Does it feel like it flew by to you? I'm betting that it didn't seem so quick for our girl, Meredith. Another year of waiting to be chosen. Another year with no one to call her own. I'm packing up our Christmas decorations, but I can't put Meredith's ornament in a box. I'm searching for the perfect place to hang her picture, so we remember to pray everyday for her family to come. Maybe you'll join me in making praying for Meredith's forever family to find her part of your New Year's Resolution.

We often resolve to do great big things and fail miserably by January 15th. Here's something we can succeed at. We can join together and pray and share Meredith with everyone we meet, so that her family will be found this year. Will you join our family?

Thank you to everyone who gave to help Meredith reach her angel tree goal. It has been and continues to be a privilege to advocate for this sweet girl. Continuing to believe for Meredith's Miracle in 2012!

Blessings,
Mandy

I am overwhelmed with gratitude this morning. My friend, Julia helped carry the load of raising Meredith's Angel Tree funds. I hesitated to commit to being her Christmas Warrior because I knew we'd be in the middle of travelling to meet our boys. God knows, I love this little girl. I committed and intended to focus the last three weeks in December on Meredith, raising the $1,000 needed for her Angel Tree goal. Thanks to Julia the goal has been met!

You can read the celebration post on Julia's blog. There you will find some other babies who have not met their goal, yet. Please, consider donating to one of them. Help us find their families by sharing their faces and their stories with your friends and family. I'm thankful to Julia for answering God's call to help the orphans and for making my burden lighter this Christmas season. Now, we can focus on finding Meredith's family. Donations are still encouraged and will go a long way toward helping her forever family bring her home. I cannot wait to write the post that says Meredith's family has found her!

Still praying for Meredith's Christmas Miracle and thankful God allowed me to be a small part of it.

Blessings,
Mandy

Simply Amazed

My friend, Julia (I'm claiming her as my friend) has a giveaway going on for The Passed Over Babes on her blog. She chose 13 children from the Angel Tree who have been listed the longest with no families still. Meredith is one of them. Her giveaway is amazing and there are lots of prizes to be won.

Then, this morning I read that in addition to the prizes on Julia's blog, my other friend, Patti is going to join in the fun with over $1000 in additional prizes. You can read about that in the post called Noticed. Since Julia started the giveaway 33 people have participated and that means 33 people that may never have seen Meredith before have seen her precious face now. Julia and Patti together will reach thousands of people and I'm so grateful they have hearts broken for the orphans.

Everyone of the 13 babies on that list NEED a family. More than they need anything else in this world, they need Mama's and Papa's. Please, get involved and share the giveaway. The more people who go there the better chance we have of their families finding them.

Please, continue to pray for Meredith's safety and for her family to find her a fall in love. She's waited far too long for them to come.

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

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

We've stalled.

It's time to rally the troops! Meredith's grant on Reece's Rainbow grew to $435 during the first week of the Angel Tree and now, we're stalled. You can donate through the chip in on the right hand side of the blog and for any donation over $10, I'll send you a brand new Veggie Tales DVD.

If you donate $35 or more Reece's Rainbow will also send you an ornament with Meredith's picture on it for your Christmas tree. If you use the chipin you'll receive the ornament and a DVD. Let's see if we can push Meredith over the $500 mark, today! Please, share with your friends and let's see if we can find Meredith's Mom and Dad.

Check out this link to read more about Meredith and the requirements to adopt her.

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

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

Veggie Tales DVDs

These are going to go quickly, because they're a great gift! We did a similar "gift" with donation on our family blog and these moved fast, so make your donation, now, if you want one. Here's what I have...

A donation of $8 or more through the chipin and I will send you one of these brand new Veggie Tales movies! It's a double-feature, so 2 great Veggie Tales movies for an $8 donation toward Meredith's grant! Use the chipin, please, so I will be able to contact you regarding shipping. Of course, it's all tax-deductible and if you donate $35, I'll send you the movie and Reece's Rainbow will send you the pretty ornament with Meredith's picture on it.

Don't forget all of this is in an effort to raise Meredith's grant and find her forever family. Meredith needs a family. Look at her sweet face and ask God if she's yours, then share her picture with everyone you know and ask if she is theirs. Together we can find Meredith's family. She's so worth it!

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

Winners!

So, I finally found a free 30 minutes to organize and draw winners. Thanks for being patient with me. Each winner has been notified and I'll list them below. Thanks for helping make a difference in Meredith's life. Don't forget to make your Angel Tree Donation of $35 or more for  your ornament. Mine came, yesterday, and it's so sweet. I love having a picture of Meredith to hang on our tree. I doubt we'll be packing it up after the Christmas season.

Here are the winners.

Prize #1 Blanket: Becca
Prize #2 Nursery Photo: Theresa
Prize #3 Giftcards: Andrea
Prize #4 Candle: Rebecca

Blessings,
Mandy

I Promise to Announce Winners, tomorrow!

I know you're all waiting on me to get it together. There's a lot going on here. I want to post a photo of my ornament that came, today and announce winners of our giveaway. First, I have to get organized and draw winners. Thanks for being patient with me. I promise it will be before lunch time, tomorrow.

Don't forget to get your ornament by donating $35 or more to Meredith's grant. You can use the donation box on the right hand side of the blog and it's tax-deductible.

Blessings,
Mandy

Orphan Sunday

I hope you will take a minute or so and watch the video. Today is Orphan Sunday. The one Sunday out of the year when you may hear orphans mentioned in your Sunday morning service. The need is so great. Often I think people look away because they feel the problem is too big. I have good news, you don't have to make a difference in the lives of millions of children, but can you start with just one?

One child is not too many. One child to pray for, one child to support, one child to advocate for, one child to adopt. We set the lonely in families, because God set us into His family.

Let's talk about each way you can help. Choose one and watch how BIG God grows your heart for the orphans. The easiest place to start is in prayer. There's no commitment and it can be done in the quiet of your own home. Scroll through the faces of children on Reece's Rainbow and just take a few minutes to pray for the orphans you find there. Prayer changes things.

Orphan Care or sponsoring a child can happen in a couple of ways. Our family has sponsored a beautiful little boy, Miguel, in El Salvador, for the past 4 years. We sponsor Miguel through an organization called Compassion. You can sponsor a child through Compassion for around $40 a month and that provides food, clothes and an opportunity for education.We write letters to Miguel and he writes to us about the things he's learning and his family. He also sends pictures that he drew in school and once a year, we get an updated photo of Miguel. Here's a link to their website: Compassion. Compassion is just one of many organizations taking care of children and orphans around the world. There are many others. Do some research and find one that suits your family.

You can, also, become an advocate for a child. Helping to raise funds and find a family for an orphan. Reece's Rainbow has a program set up that allows you to choose one child and be their warrior, not just at Christmas, but all year long. Obviously, Meredith is our family's child. You can join us in our advocacy for Meredith by sharing our blog on your facebook wall or linking us to your blog. The more people who see her sweet face, the more likely we are to find her family. Another way you can help is to donate into her grant at Reece's Rainbow. There's a donation box on the right hand side of this page that allows you to make a tax-deductible donation. If you donate $35 or more Reece's Rainbow is going to send you a beautiful Christmas ornament as a "Thank you" for your donation.

Lastly, you can join the ranks of believers who have "stepped out of the boat" and are walking by FAITH toward the children that God has called us to bring into our homes and to love well. We are adopting. I promise, if you take the first step and get out of the boat, Jesus will meet you there on the water. If you keep your eyes on him and don't waiver, He will guide you through each step of the journey to bring your child home. God honors adoption, because he's all about the orphan. He loved each of us, when we were unlovable, nameless, cast-aside, orphans. Through the blood of his son, Jesus, he adopted us into His family and now, we are called the Children of God. Yep. He's all about the orphan and setting the lonely into families.

What will you do this year for the orphan?

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

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

Just keep giving, just keep giving...

Meredith's grant is growing! She's had $130 in donations, since the beginning of the angel tree, yesterday! Please, share her picture and let's try to find her family. Don't forget you can click the link to the right to chip-in your donation. Any donation earns you an entry into Meredith's Birthday Giveaway, click the link to see the prizes. Any donations over $35 and Reece's Rainbow will also send you a free Christmas ornament with Meredith's picture on it. What a great conversation starter...

Isn't it beautiful? It will have Meredith's picture on the reverse side. If you don't have any money to give and would still like to be a part of Meredith's Miracle, please post this on your facebook wall, blog, twitter, and PRAY!

Excited to be off to a great start! Thanks to each who have given and who are going to give for Meredith!

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...
Mandy

Today is THE Day!

Today is the beginning of the Christmas Warrior program and you all know Meredith is our warrior baby. So, for the next four days you can get double bang for your buck! By donating $35 or more to Meredith's account (using the chipin on the right) you will be entered to win one of the prizes in Meredith's Birthday Giveaway and Reece's Rainbow is going to send you a Christmas ornament with Meredith's picture on it!

Our goal between now and December 31st is to grow Meredith's grant by $1000. Will you help us? $35 is not a lot to buy a beautiful Christmas ornament and be entered to win one of the great prizes from Meredith's Birthday Giveaway. There are lots of Angels on the Reece's Rainbow tree this year and any donation of $35 or more to a child's grant will score you a fabulous Christmas ornament. We're just especially fond of Meredith.

Here's a picture of the how the front of the ornament will look:

Meredith's picture will be on the other side.

Make a difference in a child's life this Christmas season. Click here to see all of the angel tree kids and order a couple of ornaments. Keep checking back, because we're going to have an exciting two months of raising funds for Meredith and trying to find her family! She's worth it!

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

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

Meredith's Birthday Giveaway!

In my last post, I told you all about how much it's going to cost to bring Meredith home. Now, let's see what we can do to make that number move downward. I have some really generous people in my life, so we're going to do a giveaway. Let's see if we can raise $1000 in honor of Meredith's 5th Birthday!

Let's pretend you are my friend and I am inviting you to my child's birthday, she's turning 5 years old. What gift would you choose for her? How much would it cost? Meredith doesn't need any toys for her Birthday, she needs two things...a family and a larger grant. Now, take whatever you would have spent to buy a gift and donate it through the chip-in on the right hand side of the blog.

Your donation will earn you an entry into our giveaway. What are we giving away? I'm glad you asked :)

Prize #1

A beautiful, personalized, crib blanket from Pampered and Posh!

Prize #2

A print of your choosing from VT Designs! She has some beautiful prints to choose from!

Prize #3

A $10 Target Gift Card!

and a $5 Starbucks Gift Card

Prize #4

A Candle of your choice from Celebrating Home! 

I may have more to add, later. For now, here's how you can earn an entry, or two, or three.

1. Make a donation of any size to Meredith's grant and you earn one entry.

2. For every $10 donated you earn three entries!

3. Share this giveaway on facebook, twitter, or your blog and you'll earn a free entry! 

All donations made through the chip-in go directly to Meredith's grant on Reece's Rainbow and they are tax-deductible.

That's all! I want to keep this simple. Help me find Meredith's family.

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

Hidden in Christ,

Mandy

How much will it cost? How long will it take?

I know you all must love Meredith as much as I do. I have been fielding emails and messages about this sweet girl all week. The biggest concern for every family is how much will it cost to bring Meredith home? Closely, followed by, how long will it take? Let's talk about those things, today.

First up, the cost...I know you're hearing horror film music in the background and you're just peeking through your fingers, afraid to look at the screen. It's really not that bad (says the crazy lady who's $15,000 into a $22,000 fundraising goal). Let's do the math together and pray that I do it correctly, because math is not my best subject.

Agency fees: $7,450

Program fees: $9,500

Homestudy fee: ? Let's use $2000, it's a good average homestudy cost.

Travel and document fees: estimated cost...$5,000

My handy-dandy calculator puts us at just shy of $24,000. We're going to use $24,000 because it's a nice even number and math is not my best subject. It's like ripping the band-aid off...$24,000, now let's see if we can make it better. 

Meredith has a grant of $5,200 (my goal is to raise that number to an even $6,000 by the end of the month). There are grants available through her agency for up to $3,000 and other agency's that they will connect you with to help with other grants. Time to pull up my calculator, again.

Now, we're looking at about $15,500. Still a big number, but you should be feeling better. That's totally doable and she's worth every dollar! There are adoption loans that could be considered, but I recommend that be a last resort. You will have about a year to raise this money. That's a little over $1,000 a month. You can do it! 

Okay, take a deep breath, get your head clear, we're going to talk about a time-line. If you committed to Meredith, today, she should be home in 12 to 15 months. That sounds like a long time. However, if you decided, today, to make a baby the good ole fashioned way you could also be looking at a 12 to 15 month wait. Sure, it could go faster, but there's no guarantee that it would. There really are no guarantees in life. 

Meredith is waiting, now, and she's been waiting for a long time. She needs a Mommy and a Daddy. What are you waiting for? 

I'm working on Meredith's first fundraiser. I hope to have it up and running tomorrow. So, come back and let's see how much of that $15,500 we can knock out for Meredith's family. 

Pray, pray, pray...God is stirring hearts towards Meredith and I do believe we're about to witness a miracle. A miracle where the great, big God of the universe finds a family for a little orphan girl on the other side of the ocean. 

Hidden in Christ,

Mandy

Meredith's Birthday Month!

Meredith is turning 5 years old this month. Most of the time when a child turns five, it's super exciting. It's a little sad for Meredith. Turning 5 marks the end of one more year that Meredith spent as an orphan. It also marks the beginning of another year that she will spend as an orphan if her family doesn't find her. We're going to try to raise Meredith's grant this month and one of the ways were going to do that is with a Birthday Party for Meredith!

I know you're intrigued and I'm working on the details. Remember to share Meredith with everyone you know. Maybe before her Birthday Month is over, she'll have a family coming for her. Now, that would be worth Celebrating!

For now, "Happy Birthday, sweet Meredith! We're praying for you and love you bunches, baby girl!"

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

Buddy Walk Tomorrow!

Tomorrow is our local Buddy Walk. I'm setting up a table with information about Reece's Rainbow. I received a box full of fun stuff to hand out at the Walk from Reece's Rainbow. My Mom and a couple of friends are coming to help, along with my six year old, Julie.

Julie and I are going to spend the evening making posters about our adoption and Meredith! A large part of tomorrow will be spent sharing about the kids from Reece's Rainbow and encouraging people to be a part of the Christmas Warrior program.

I'm excited to share about Reece's Rainbow and to show Meredith to lots of families. Will you pray that someone will see her and fall in love? Also, pray that the weather will be nice and that lots of people will be receptive to learning more about Reece's Rainbow! I'll post an update tomorrow on how things went.

Blessings,
Mandy

Christmas in...September?

That's what it felt like today, when I signed up to be Meredith's Christmas Warrior! I'm so excited! What does it mean to be Meredith's Christmas Warrior? It means I am committing to helping find Meredith's family and to raising $1000 toward Meredith's grant!

$1000 is a LOT of money (especially since I'm already driving my friends and family crazing with our own adoption fundraisers) but Meredith is worth every dime and then some! Don't worry, I have ideas...BIG ones! You'll have to wait for them, though.

First, we'll have to celebrate Meredith's birthday, next month! Then, we can shift our focus to Christmas. Now, I don't want you to be jealous. There are other kids who need Christmas Warriors and it's not too early to choose the one you love and help create a Christmas Miracle for that one. Plus, if you start now, you'll have lots of extra time to plan and raise that $1000!

Head on over to Reece's Rainbow and sign up to be a Christmas Warrior. You can choose the child you'd like to help or if you'd rather, you can let Reece's Rainbow assign you one who needs you. If you do sign up, come back and let me know who you chose and maybe we can do some fundraising together!

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...Be a Christmas Warrior!

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

Meredith's Current Circumstances

I inquired further about Meredith's current situation and the news is not all bad for our sweet girl! She was chosen to go to a home for children with special needs. This facility prides itself on giving the children good care and opportunities. Does this mean Meredith needs a family less than the other kids? Absolutely not! Eventually, she will age out of any program she's in and then what will her future be like...bleak.

She is a girl in a country that places a low value on little girls. She also has down syndrome and cerebral palsy in a place that esteems perfection. Where weakness is not tolerated and only the strongest survive. She is blessed to currently live in a place where she knows love and care. This means she should not have a problem attaching well and fitting in nicely with her forever family.

Just like every other child, Meredith deserves a family. God wants Meredith to have a family. He is calling someone to be her Mom and Dad. They will need to trust Him to equip them to walk where He leads. Don't miss your opportunity to be a part of Meredith's Miracle. Search your heart and ask God if she's yours and share her story. Together we can change the life of a little girl. If you want to read more about Meredith, please, read her Reece's Rainbow profile.

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...Be a Part of Meredith's Miracle.

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

How can You adopt Meredith?

I know it's the question on everyone's mind. I'm so glad you finally asked. Meredith needs a family, but there are some requirements you need to meet in order to become her family...

First, you'll need to make sure you meet USCIS income requirements listed here. There's a handy chart that tells how much you need to make based on the size of your family. Once you're sure you qualify, there are a couple of other things to consider. Meredith's country needs you to have no more than 4 children currently living in your home. They'd like you to be married for at least 5 years and 30 years old. The good news is that only one parent has to travel to pick Meredith up and that parent only needs to stay in country for 10 days. That's a super fast trip for an international adoption.

It seems like a lot of requirements, but I'm sure she's worth it. I'm also sure that the family God has chosen for Meredith is going to meet each requirement, because Meredith was meant to be theirs from the very foundation of the earth. God wants to set Meredith in a family. It's His thing...setting the lonely in families.

If you've read this and think we just may be Meredith's family, please, feel free to contact me or you can direct your questions to the appropriate person at Reece's Rainbow. Here's their Contact Information!

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...Be a Part of Meredith's Miracle!

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

Why Meredith?

There are lots of things I could write here. I already shared about why we love Meredith over on our family's adoption blog. I'm going to just share that first post about Meredith here. So, if you read over there, you may have already read this one. Here goes...A Forever Family Friday post from April of this year...


Sweet, sweet girl, today. She stole my heart and Marty's the first time we saw her. We weren't convinced at the time that we were going to adopt a child with special needs/down syndrome and we were even more convinced that we were bringing home a boy, but when we saw her we were smitten. We inquired about her, only to learn she had a family already reviewing her file. We knew they would take her and they did commit. I'm not sure why, except for God, but she has lost her family. She kept that family long enough for us to move forward and commit to Dawson. Sometimes, God uses one child to open the door for another and that was very much the case with Meredith and Dawson. We were so willing to take her regardless of her needs that we had to take a second look and see if there was another child we were supposed to love this way.

Earlier this week, Meredith lost her family and became available for adoption again. We immediately began to inquire about whether we could adopt from 2 countries at the same time. (Yes, we are that crazy.) The answer is yes, but it's hard to do, because the travel time may have overlapped. We knew we had to let her go, again. Our hearts were sad, but she did prompt us to take the time to search through the littles on Reece's Rainbow, again, and who did we find? A little boy named Isaac. A boy who has waited too long for a family. A boy who had a family that desperately wanted to bring him home, much the same way we felt about Meredith, but God closed the door. That's another story that I will share later. So, now God has used sweet Meredith to lead the Rhodes' family to not one son, but two. How could we in turn do anything less than trying to find her forever family.

So, her she is...

Meredith. There just aren't words to tell you how my heart fills up when I see this girl. She needs a Mommy and Daddy, who will treat her like the princess she is. She needs to be covered in kisses and carried high on her Daddy's shoulders. She must long to be snuggled in her Mommy's arms and rocked and loved. Meredith has a grant through Reece's Rainbow and it is a fast process to get to her. She could be home this year, if her family is motivated and moves quickly. I know you're in love. How could you not be?

Please, please share this post. If Meredith's not your girl, please help us by sharing her sweet face and helping us find her family. You can read more about Meredith on her profile here: http://reecesrainbow.org/meredith1

Thanks for letting me share and please join me in praying that Meredith's family finds her quickly.

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy

Why am I starting this blog?

I really don't know. God said so would be the first thing that comes to mind. I feel like I should get a free pass on advocating (since I am bringing home 2 little boys), but that's really not the way God works.

I read a status update on facebook, today. It said, "There is no unemployment in God's Kingdom..." It reminded me of the words of Jesus in Matthew chapter 9 verses 38-39, "Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field." Many times people say to me, "I want to help with the orphan crisis, but I can't adopt and don't know what else to do." My response, "Pick a child and advocate!"

This blog is as much about showing you how to advocate and the results, as it is about finding Meredith a family. I don't want to sound arrogant. Every effort I make may fail...I'm human, but God has asked me to do this and so I will be obedient. He has never disregarded my obedience before, so my expectation is His faithfulness!

The harvest here is plentiful. There are thousands of children who need parents more than they need anything else. If you can't be their parent, you CAN be their voice, their prayer warrior until God sends parents. Who knows, maybe God will change your heart or your circumstances as you find yourself calling out a child's name in prayer. When you begin to give sacrificially for an orphan child on the other side of the world, God may begin to break some things lose in your life and open up doors you never dreamed possible.

I chose Meredith, because our family loves her. We pray for her and long to see her with her forever family. I challenge you to choose one child from Reece's Rainbow and begin to pray about what God wants you to do for that one. We can't save them all, but we can save one at a time. There's a job for each of us in the Kingdom. God wants to use YOU to change the life of a child forever.

Keep watching and find out how you can be a part as God performs Meredith's Miracle.

Pray, Adopt, Advocate, Support...

Hidden in Christ,
Mandy