Christmas reflections

When I was a child, one of my favorite Christmas memories was waking up really early and sneaking out to see what Santa had left for us. Usually there were so many toys and gifts under the tree that the ring of patents extended several feet beyond the lowest branches. As I became a parent I fought the urge to do the same for my children, instead trying to place the emphasis on the reason we give more than the material gifts themselves. I think we have a lot more we could do to really get that message ingrained into our kids, but I think we have done ok.

 This year with trying to budget tighter, and save as much as possible for the adoption, it has been even more important. We did not buy much. I made quilts for the twins as I could not bring myself to buy them yet another toy to be left on the floor.  My son got a little money towards something he is saving up for. My eldest daughter got some art supplies that she had asked for. Our middle daughter got a giant dry erase market board that her dad built for her, and some duck tape. I am quite happy to report that they were all very happy with their gifts. Oh how I love my children. Between that and our wonderfully supportive family digging through their homes to find things for us to sell to help with our adoption, I don't think I have had a more wonderful Christmas. I hope yours was equally wonderful. God Bless!

Soooo close!

We are so close to being able to send in all of the commitment forms, but alas the HS agency is closed for the holidays (understandable). So we will have to wait until at least the 2nd of Jan before we can get everything sent in. We are sooooooo close but it feels like so far away! A week. A whole week! Maybe I can funnel all of this energy into getting the sculptures and medallions done.

One of two owl medallions that I am casting for my Etsy shop.

And the winner is...

And the winner of this lovely wall hanging is.. 

Laura Sokol!! Congrats!! 

Thank you everyone.  Now stay tuned to our FB for more auctions to start in Jan. :) LOTS of new (to the auction) items.

Almost Christmas

Today is the last day of school for the kids for the next nearly 2 weeks. They are pretty excited. Most of them just had movies or read in parties today. A last chance to give gifts to their friends and teaching staff. We stayed up baking chocolate chip cookies for the teachers, bus driver, and reading tutor, while watching some classic movies. I still have shopping to do tonight. With everything in a slightly different perspective this year, I have found it a bit difficult to get into the materialistic side of this holiday. My children and family have far more than they could possibly *need*. The kids have toys they hardly ever play with, books that sit on the shelves, clothes that seem to get washed repeatedly despite my not ever seeing them wear them, stuffed animals enough to stock a plush zoo. We have food, warmth, education, treatment for medical issues, freedom to worship Christ. Seriously what more do we need? This week I have slowly come around, but mostly we are just giving little things that will bring a smile to someone's face. Enough that they know we appreciate them. I also mailed out our family Christmas card for the first time in several years. If you get one, please be sure not to mention anything about it publicly online. We are still bound to privacy in that aspect.  As far as the adoption plans go, we are getting close to being able to commit on Reece's Rainbow. It probably won't be by Christmas but very very soon!! There is an extra stocking in the pile next to the Christmas tree this year anyway. What ever Santa leaves will just be delivered a little late. We are still hoping to travel this summer. I wish he was here now. I still pray for him daily. That he is healthy and that someone in the orphanage shows him love. For years I have felt like a piece was missing, and in some ways it is easier knowing where that piece is, but in other ways it is harder. He has no idea that we are coming for him. Has no idea what real living is like. I wish I could reach though my computer and touch his cheeks.

We finally got a bit of snow last night. Just enough to make everything beautiful. I hope it stays for a little while. The drab muddy brown was getting old, though I don't really mind the water troughs and dishes staying thawed outside! I love the snow, but not the ice. Even our coldest days, however, are no match for the -56f that is hitting parts of Russia right now. I cannot even fathom cold like that. At the single digits the insides of your nostrils freeze pretty fast. There, people are dying of exposure. :( How many of them are the homeless street orphans? Are they even counted among them? Will anyone even notice? It breaks my heart.

This along with the juvenile power trip going on with Russian law makers that is threatening to ban adoptions by US citizens. Please be praying for those families in process, as well as the innocent children who will suffer because of this legislation.


Deuteronomy 10:18
He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing.


PS. Don't forget about the give-away! Just a few more days to get entries!

Taggy blankets!

I did some sewing today and got some really cute taggy blankets done. I wish we had stuff this cute when our kids were little! Here are pictures of the ones I did today. If you are interested in purchasing one, they can be seen in this album on our FB page.  I will also take requests for colors/fabrics. I have a large stash of fabric. :) The 12x12 are $15 and the small 5x5 are $5.

Auction totals!

Through the auctions the last 3 weeks, we were able to raise $475 total!! There is still a bit of stuff left. If you missed out and were interested in something, feel free to make an offer on it. I have listed some of it on Craigslist. We do have a few adoption books up for grabs if anyone is interested. These are good for those learning about the process. One is Complete book of International Adoption.

The other is Ultimate insiders guide to adoption. 

Both are paperback in very good condition. If anyone is interested in them for a small donation to our Chip-in, just lmk.

Now that the auction is over, as soon as I get all of this stuff shipped out, I will get back to sewing and  working on artwork. We are almost half way to our goal. How awesome it would be to make it the rest of the way by Christmas?

Plugging along!!

There is only one more day left on our fundraising auction on FB and lots of stuff still with no bids.  I would really love it to all move to more appreciative homes! Can you share our page just one final time? Perhaps there is an album or an item that you think someone on your friends list might be interested in. Could you share it with them? https://www.facebook.com/TheKrollClutterClearOut Remember that you get an entry into the give-away for every person that Likes our page and tells us who sent them! So far *no one* has done it, so everyone has just the one entry. The give-away for the Chicken Raggy Wall Hanging ends on Dec 24th. I have edited the # of entries you get for adding $ to our chip-in as well!!! The winner should get it in the mail just in time to have it take the place of the Christmas decor as it comes down for the year.

I have mentioned a few times how I hoped to raise a large chunk of the money we need through art sales. Some of you may not know what kind of art I do (beyond the crafty sewing stuff), so I thought I would post a link to my FB studio page. I have a piece I am working on right now that I hope will help get us a bit closer to our first goal. Here is a picture of it so far.

There is still a lot of work to do plus she still needs her mane and tail added. Those will be done in natural mohair fibers. The effect is very realistic and beautiful. Often times when I get them photographed outdoors with a good background, it will look like it was a real horse. That is the effect I am after. Here are a few I have done in the past. 

Here are a few more of my favorites. 

The one that I am working on right now is much smaller than any of the others that I have done with mohair. I am sure it will be quite the challenge! I do paint and sculpt them with sculpted manes and tails as well. They are simpler but the effect is just not the same. 

So that's what I am up to! Painting, sewing, drawing, sculpting, and decluttering to bring our little one home! 

Good news!

I spoke with the Homestudy Agency that we are going to be using and they require half when we start and the rest at the home visit. That will let us start just a little bit earlier, and keep raising the rest. So the new *first* goal is $2100. By my calculations we should be over $650 or so when this week's auction ends. Plus I have some artwork income coming soon which I hope will bring us up to around $1300 or more. That would leave us with just $6-700 to raise for this first goal. Oh how I pray that it comes soon.

Can you share our fundraising FB page on your wall for us? Just once? I would be so very thankful!! And if you have already I wish I could hug you! Here is your huge cyber hug!

(((((((((((((((((((((((hug))))))))))))))))))))))) 

Thank you!

Last auction is live!

I finished posting all of the items for the final auction (at least for December) late last night. What a busy day! I also ran out of most packing supplies so there are a couple of boxes that still need to ship out from last week. My husband was looking at the stuff I posted in the auction last night and mentioned he hadn't even seen a lot of it before. LOL This is because we still have stuff in boxes in the basement from moving in over a year ago. Obviously we don't need it if we have not even seen it in a year and our lives went on as usual. Now I did go dig the iron out 2 weeks ago. I had been sewing at my inlaw's house, where my mother-in-law has a sewing studio. I just moved all of my stuff home so that I could work more than just the 1-2 days a week that I was over there. I don't have an ironing board though so ironing consists precariously pressing fabric while trying to not scorch the cotton batting I lay on the table to keep the table from being damaged. It works for now though. Maybe I will score a cheap one from the Salvation Army at some point. I've been busy enough lately that I have not even had a chance to go look. The only trip I have made there was to drop off 8 bags of clothing we had sorted out of the excess. (That's a post for another day!)

I have a few art pieces I need to work on today and try to get finished up within the next few days. One is a sales piece, the other a commission. I think I only have a handful of commissions left to finish. Yay! I don't think I am going to make the Jan 1st cut off but it will be very soon after. This will free up a lot of stress so I can put all of my energy where it needs to be.  Between getting the house in order (finally) and having this mental burden off of me I may be a new person in 2013. I cannot wait! The house might even get painted at long last!

And speaking of being a new person, I hope that will include becoming a mom of 6. I emailed to get the commitment process started. We still have a bit of $ to get raised though. The sooner we get all of this going, the sooner we can travel. This weeks auction is a buzz of activity. What a blessing! I would love to sell everything in it! Our Amazon link has made us $12.36 so far! That's awesome. Every penny counts in this house. When we clean, if we find a random penny(or other change) on the floor, or in a couch cushion, it goes into the coffee can. When it is full, it will be taken to the credit union and deposited in the adoption account.  It's almost half full!

Give-away!!

Ok! Here it is!

This beautiful country chic Floral Chicken wall hanging measures approx 15" x 27". It is completely one of a kind and not made from any kind of kit. It was made from vintage print fabrics as well as some lovely off white linen and deep chocolate quilters cotton. The colors are warm and inviting with rich golden tones, creams, reds, and browns.

 There are a number of techniques in just this little piece including chenille, reverse applique, and quilting. The raggy linen flowers were all hand made. The hang tabs have been attached in such a way that you may hang it from either hooks (as shown) or a rod. It has been washed with detergents made for sensitive people so there are no strong smells. It can be washed if needed but I suggest gentle cycle or hand washing. The flowers will need refluffing afterwards but the fraying only gets better.

(It is even signed and dated in the bottom right corner)

In making this wall hanging I also learned how to make these beautiful linen raggy flowers. Unwashed they are gorgeous and crisp. Washed they soften and fray which gives them a nice loved look. They can be made 2", 4", or 6" wide (or larger if needed I assume!). I think they would look lovely on a decorative pillow, in a wreath, or attached to a headband. I could even see them put in the Christmas tree.

Now how do you win this? First, 'like' our Facebook fundraising page https://www.facebook.com/TheKrollClutterClearOut. If you already 'like' it, then you are already entered! Next share the page with your friends! Each friend that 'likes' the page and tells me who sent them will get an extra entry for you! If you follow this blog you will also get an entry. And here is the last way to get entries... you may add to our chip-in (top right corner of this blog).

$5 you get 5 additional entries
$10 gives you 15 additional entries
$15 gives you 30 additional entries
$20 gives you 45 additional entries
$25 gives you 60 additional entries AND a dozen gorgeous fabric flowers (2"-4" size, white or off white)


The give-away will end on Dec 24th. I cannot wait to see who gets to take this home! Oh, did I mention that shipping is on me? Merry Christmas!

The first Give-Away is coming soon!

I'm getting a little tired of the auction format, so I have decided that the quilted wall hanging that I am working on will be a Give-away. Everyone that likes this page gets an entry. If you share our page and someone else likes it and posts who sent them on this page, you will get a second one (and they get one for liking it too). And additional entries would be available by donating to our chip-in here on our blog. Sounds like fun to me!

This wall hanging quilt is going to finish up *so cute*. I cannot wait to get it finished and show it to you all. I would tell you all about it but I don't want to spoil the surprise. I will say that there is a chicken involved.

Happy Friday!!

The most dangerous place

A family member posted one of those comical pictures on her Facebook a few days ago that read "The most dangerous place in the world is between a mom and her kids".  Wooooweee I could not agree more with that statement. Ask my kids. They have seen mama bear come out in their defense before. That's how I feel about this little one too.  When I think about the sorts of things that have come up as little hiccups in our path, I get my mama hen hackles up, and the 'just you TRY to keep me from my child' attitude. I have to admit, it's a little frightening even for me! It has been really hard with not being officially committed on Reece's Rainbow. I get a little bit riled up in my heart when I see people considering this child as a possibility to adopt. Thinking that this child that is so precious to us may end up with someone else. Not that they shouldn't consider him, nor do I have any right or claim. They have found him just as I had. I should feel ok with that, because really the sooner they are in a loving family the better. Still, the thought of it knocks the wind out of me. I've been trying really hard to not get so attached, just in case, but it is so hard not to. I know my kids and hubby are all hopelessly in love already. Ultimately I do believe that if it is God's will, it will happen. And if he has a different child in mind for our family, it will work out for God's glory. We want to be the best match for what ever child becomes a part of our family. The wait to find that out is a bit rough though. And if this is not the one, it is going to sting.

Right now the only real thing holding us back is the funding. Sales that I had expected to go well, haven't. Some things have surprised me though and went for more. Still we are fighting for every dollar and it's only the beginning. I am digging through more and more stuff to find things worth trying to sell, painting as much as I possibly can (usually around 6-8 hours a day before my eyes cross and I can no longer focus on things more than 8" from my face), and sewing for a few hours in the evening when I get a chance. This along with the normal day to day running of a small farm and a household of 7. Did I mention that the kids put up the Christmas decorations themselves? I did have to dig out the nativity set. For some reason the mantle just did not look right with a giant santa, some pine trees, a space alien, and 2 lego star wars figures complete with fighter ships. It was cute though.

Alright enough rambling for tonight. I'm exhausted! Time for bed. Good luck to everyone who bought a lotto ticket tonight. ;)

First week fundraising totals

I am so excited. In this first week we have 40 likes to our fundraising page, which has raised just over $160! We have also been getting more clicks on our Amazon link so we are up to $4.50 from that. I have an art piece almost finished that will go up for sale shortly. Then as soon as our page gets to 50 likes I will start posting some more items, such as jewelry, silver coins, purses, bags, etc. Next week may include some quilts depending on how much sewing time I get this week. My poor sewing machine has just been trucking along as I work on finishing some Christmas presents for some unsuspecting kiddos.

Our little 10 yr old twin daughters have even been helping. They have been the search crew for loose change around the house and have been making paper ornaments. Bless their little hearts, they did them all by themselves. I need to come up with an easy craft for them to assemble that takes a bit less glue (I think they used half a bottle of white glue).

We have also been getting a lot of exciting potential support from friends, which just warms my heart. Thank you all so much!

Yay, here we go!

We are picking up a little momentum now with our auctions. Everything that has a bid will sell Sunday at midnight! What ever doesn't will be available for bids for the next week since we are still gaining exposure. There are plenty of things with low or no bids yet. They would make great Christmas or baby shower gifts too! Check out our auction at https://www.facebook.com/TheKrollClutterClearOut.

I have heard a bit of negativity surrounding Black Friday shopping. I think that is unfortunate as many of us that pinch pennies are shopping the super sales in order to save money, not just accumulate more 'stuff'. I went to Joann Fabrics yesterday and got $300 worth of quilt fabric and supplies for a mere $80. That was almost 28 yards of fabric!! Lovely soft cozy flannel and fleece to make some super cute kids quilts to sell for our fundraiser. I am so excited about it, I can hardly wait to get going on them. I have some fabrics for girls and some for boys. I also got ribbon so I can make taggy blankets out of the smaller pieces. If anyone has any size or color combos that they are looking for, please let me know. I will try to come up with some. :) I can also do names, letters, shapes, etc on them in the blocks. Either embroidered, quilted, or appliqued.

Here is a quilt I made several years ago along with a matching flannel top sheet/carry along blanket. I have more of this adorable plaid flannel as well. The top of the quilt is all minky.

The Amazon link has gotten a few hits and so far we have made about $1.50 from it. It is not a spectacular amount but I am raising God for every penny! I am so thankful to every single person that has taken the time to shop through our link. I am hoping that those who shop there for Cyber Monday will use our link as well. We went through the house and scraped up every bit of loose change into a coffee can to go in the fund. I have a table in my studio that is for the ever growing pile of stuff to sell/auction.

While most families fundraise at the end, we will have the money to finish up. We just need this start up money to get us going so that we don't have to wait until March to start the process. Let's not make this sweet child wait any longer than they have to! Thank you!!

Decluttering with a Cause!

We have too much *stuff*, and need money to start the adoption process, so in order to solve both of these problems at one time, we have having an ongoing auction on Facebook!  LOTS more stuff to come. I just have a lot of things going on so I don't always have time to add new things. I will add them in batches as I get a chance. So far we have an album of collectibles and an album of really cute little boy/neutral clothing and a scrapbook. The next album going up will probably be jewelry, but it won't happen until we have 50 likes! So share the page with your friends! :) We also have our Amazon associate shopping link there as well.

My kids are so committed to helping get this money going. They know how important this is, and want to be involved. My eldest daughter (15) is going to go through her stuff this week to see if she has anything that could go in the auction. The three youngest were experimenting with my craft paper to see what they could make and sell. I have explained to them all that Christmas is going to be a lot simpler here this year. We are doing largely homemade gifts for our children (aren't those the things they treasure most anyway?), and spending much less. I have already told my friends that we won't be doing much shopping this year, and to not expect much. And if they really want to give a gift to us, to just donate to our adoption fund as that was the only thing I wanted this year.

My wonderful hubby wants to share with everyone about the little one we are hoping to adopt and the sooner we have this money raised the sooner he can do so!

A few inspiring books

I absolutely love to read.  But generally not fiction like most people. I want to be learning something on a constant basis. So that being said I have a bit of an addiction to books. While reading a few other blogs a couple of weeks ago I stumbled upon a few more I wanted to add to my stack of books to read. One of them was 'A Sane Woman's Guide to Raising a Large Family'. What a BLESSING this book is. I cannot get enough of it. I do think it could be named 'A Sane Person's Guide to Raising Any Size Family'. This is really a great book for anyone who finds their self frazzled a midst life with littles.

The other book that I have been completely in love with is 'The Connected Child'. This one is written to address discipline and attachment in adopted children but I think that a lot of it could be tailored towards those who are caregivers, nannies, or even parents of home grown kids. I have a hard time putting it down at night, and I am sure I will be rereading it a few times.

   

The Spiritual Battle

When we finally decided 'let's do this!', I knew it would come. The opposition from the enemy and the spiritual battle that would ensue. I was a little surprised that it started so quickly. Within hours of the decision the overwhelming emotional load started piling up. I got a book in the mail that I had ordered, and while reading it for informational purposes, it filled me with irrational doubt about my abilities (much like the "What to expect when you're expecting" book filled me with doubt that anyone could have a successful pregnancy).  The whole weekend was a blur. The house was a mess, and every time I started working in one area, something would come up. Several friends had crisis' situations with relationships, kids in the hospital, etc. My mom was in the hospital recovering from neck surgery when she was diagnosed with life threatening blood clots in her lungs. I was incredibly busy, and needed about 6 clones in order to get everything done (still do!). The livestock need things, the house is still a disaster, I have work I *need* to do, fund raising I *want* to do, cleaning and decluttering I *must* do. I was exhausted. One thing or another had woken me up early in some shocking manner (phone calls, smoke detectors, etc) for several days straight. It's enough to make someone's head explode.

As I drove my 3 youngest children to the pharmacy to pick up head lice treatment (seriously!? now?) I found myself wondering if I was going to be able to do this. If adding another child, one with special needs no less, was the right thing to do. Almost as soon as that thought came to my head I also realized that *that* is exactly the enemy's purpose of all of this. To make me doubt not only our abilities as loving capable parents but our God's ability to strengthen us through all of the trials that would come. (1 Peter 5:8 "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.") In all of this I never wavered in my commitment to the child that God has placed before us. So I pulled myself up by my boot straps when I got home, and turned on the Praise & Worship music full blast through the house (and cried in the emotion of it all). I consulted my RR friends and found their experiences to be the same as mine. It makes me that much more sure that this is exactly what we need to be doing. God has big plans for all of this! (Phillipians 4:13 "I can do all things through Him (Christ) who gives me strength")

Did I mention our Suburban won't start this morning? I actually laughed and shook my head. I had planned to go to a pancake breakfast fundraiser this morning for a family that lost their house in a fire. Guess we will be staying home!

So on a more inspiring note, here is the new Audio Adrenaline song for the Hands and Feet Project in Haiti. I *LOVE* it. It's called Kings & Queens. Enjoy.

PS. All of the friends that had crisis situations are doing well now (relationship issue, 3 yr old that took some medications, and a 7 month old that had kidney surgery), and my mom is stable and should be moving out of the ICU in the next day or so. Praise God!

Let the fundraising begin!

We are almost ready commit to a little one on Reece's Rainbow! The only hold up is raising the starting $. We need enough for the deposits, homestudy, and donation. We need about $4000 to get things going. I am Putting a Chip-in and a fundraising thermometer on this blog so that people can keep track. Also don't forget about the Amazon associate link! That earns up a percentage of your purchases towards our adoption, and it costs you not one cent more than you would pay otherwise! I love shopping on Amazon for everything from cheese balls to pet medications, books, toys, and games!

Note that I am hoping to raise the majority of our adoption costs through sales of artwork. I am however giving the opportunity for those who would like to help this child come into our family. We will likely have medical expenses from the moment the child comes home, so any money we can keep in savings for that purpose will be helpful. A good portion will likely come from ta returns in the early spring. But for now things are tight, and that is why I have set up the fundraising. 

I can't tell you who we are hoping to commit to until we are set up and funded for this first part. Let that be some incentive though! The faster we get this hurdle out of the way, the sooner you find out who melted our hearts! :) My goal is to have this part funded by Dec 31st. Ready, Set, Go!

Thoughts for Thursday, and It's National Adoption Month!

I keep a picture of one of the Reece's Rainbow kids on my phone as the wallpaper, and pray for him throughout the day. Yesterday someone saw his picture and asked who's child he was. I replied that he was no one's, and a quizzical look came over their face. They asked again, explaining that it had to be someone's child. Again, I said it really was no one's child, and my heart broke. He is God's child, but he has no earthly family to love him. No one to tuck him in at night or sing silly songs to him. No one to explore the great outdoors with, or buy him the goofiest Halloween costume possible. No one to show him the love of the Creator. Oh how my heart aches for him. I wish we could be those someones.

On a more positive note, Reece's Rainbow won $10,000 in the Cultivate Wine's big giveaway today! One thousand dollars will be going into the grant funds of 10 children!! To see the kids that will benefit from the money, click here.  Also the 2012 Angel Tree list is up and the giving has begun! Each child has a Warrior that will rally for them and attempt to raise $1000 over the next 2 months for their AT child's grant fund. It also gives these kids greater exposure to help find them families. To see the Angel Tree kids, go here. Please share the list with others! I am not an official AT warrior but I encourage everyone to check out Emmitt, Wilson, and Elliot. These 3 boys are on my prayer list. I would LOVE for them to find their families by the end of 2012! Emmitt especially as he is nearing the age when he will no longer be able to be adopted into the USA (16 yrs is the cut off). He will be 15 in Jan. 

And one last thing.. it is National Adoption month!! Yay! 

Amazon sales link!

I love shopping on Amazon.com. I get lots of books there, but also do my Christmas shopping, and find all sorts of random things there for really great prices. I just had to track down a new part for our fridge, and Amazon's price was less than HALF of what Sears wanted for it!  I love that I don't have to leave the house and spend all of that time and gas money trying to track things down. I also love their associate program. If you use our link in the sidebar, a percentage of your purchase comes back to us to either put into a Reece's Rainbow fund for a child or family, or someday into our own adoption. We aren't quite at that point yet, but I hope we will be someday soon. To make things easy, please click the link and bookmark it! That way when you want to shop, you already have it handy. :) You can help orphans find their families and not spend a penny more than you would otherwise. How cool is that?

Here is a shortcut for you as well: http://www.tinyurl.com/amazon-adopt-fund 

The need is great!

The issue of orphans and children in need has been one that has been close to me heart for a long time.  About 8.5 years ago I heard a segment on the radio about adoption. Since that point I have wanted to open my home up to these kids. It has been my passion to advocate, support, sponsor, and hopefully one day to adopt. I have seen God work some wonderful miracles in our lives to bring us to this point where we may be able to start that journey at long last! He has blessed us with the resources, friendships, a large enough home, and a great location with much support. I cannot wait!

In the mean time, I have had my heart break for a number of children listed on Reece's Rainbow. These kids NEED homes with families that will love and nurture them so that they can blossom. In their homelands they do not have those opportunities. Their countries do not yet have a culture of acceptance of special needs, so they sit in orphanages, baby homes, and mental institutions. At age 4 most children are moved to adult mental institutions where they receive very little to no stimulation. They receive just enough food and care to stay alive, and sometimes not even that. There just is no support available for them. Special needs range from Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, ADHD, crossed eyes, heart conditions, Spina Bifida, Cleft Lip & Palate, Club feet, deafness, visual impairments, missing limbs, HIV+, etc. Many are well treated here in the USA, but in their home country these therapies and such are not available to them.

Here are the profiles of a few of these special children. They need FAMILIES to step up for them! The ones most desperate are the ones that are getting close to aging out of the system. Adoption is no longer an option for these kids after they turn 16. At that point their fates are sealed.  Please click on their names for more information.

"Emmitt"

Boy, Born Jan. 26th, 1998 (he will be 16 in a little over a year!)

Emmitt has Spina Bifida. He cannot walk, and probably spends most of his time in a crib. A crib! He should be in a loving home, where he can experience life! He already has a grant through Reece's Rainbow to help lower the adoptive family's out of pocket expenses. Someone that met him said this about him, "He is very friendly, funny, and talkative. He desperately seeks out attention.  He was talking to my husband, and holding Zack’s hand, which he then put on top of his head for Zack to rub his hair.  He is extremely intelligent, and just precious!  I brought him paper and crayons, and he drew me a flower. "

***UPDATE!! EMMITT's FAMILY HAS FOUND HIM!!****

"Kristopher"

Boy, Born Sept 2004

Kristopher has Cerebral Palsy and crossed eyes. His fate will be like Emmitt's. Just a precious little guy! Don't you just want to grab him out of that crib and tickle him!? http://reecesrainbow.org/26298/kristopher

"Rania"

Girl, Born March 1999

Rania has Down Syndrome, and will be turning 14 in March. Her time is running out as well. Isn't she beautiful? http://reecesrainbow.org/38660/rania

"Eric"

Boy, Born May 15, 2003

Eric has HIV. He is likely receiving medication for it but I am not sure. HIV is very easy to manage. See http://www.projecthopeful.org/ for more info. He looks like an active normal boy, wrestling that stuff alligator!  What a great brother he would make!  http://reecesrainbow.org/3461/eric2801

"Charlotte"

Girl, born Feb 2007

Charlotte has Osteogenesis Imperfecta (Brittle Bone Disease). She spent her first 4 yrs of life in a crib. She is doing well and loves to cuddle. They are working on getting her bones strong enough so that they can put rods in her legs so she can walk. She would do best in a home without large pets or younger children as she is fragile. What a cutie!! http://reecesrainbow.org/40923/charlotte

***UPDATE  Charlotte's family has found her!!


Please do not let financial barriers hold you back. The United States is the wealthiest nation in all of history. We waste more money than most people in the world dream of making. Budgeting, grants & fund raising opportunities will get you there! Contrary to popular belief, most people that adopt are not wealthy! I will post more about these things later on.