Happy Birthday dear Brandi!

Today, sitting somewhere in Eastern Europe in a orphanage is a little girl. This little girl turns 5 years old today. Likely, no one will give her cake or presents. Brandi, deserves no more Birthdays sitting in a orphanage all alone. Happy 5th Birthday, Beautiful Brandi! God lead me to you for a reason & I hope your forever family finds you before your next Birthday! Will you please donate $5 in honor of Brandi's 5th Birthday? Skip starbucks today & donate the money to her instead! If you can't donate please pray her family will find her soon!

My Beautiful Butterfly, Brandi

 Yay! Finally back to teamwork Tuesday & it's one of my Beautiful Butterfly's turn! I have mentioned Brandi before but I did not realize til today it's her Birthday on Friday. My beautiful butterfly, will be 5 years old. She should be celebrating with presents, cake, & ice cream playing with her little friends from Kindergarten not facing a Mental institution. Is it a mere circumstance that I have 5 lovely pictures of her? My favorite is first. She looks like such a happy girl! Yes Mommy I know I have cerebal palsy & mild hearing loss but don't let that scare you! My advocate & Guardian Angel warrior, knows some awesome adult friends both with cerebal palsy & they let nothing stop them! They are married & have 2 sons, not to mention a church for the disabled.

April 12, 2012 I wrote the following:

I was planning to write about something I was born with but will save that for later. Last year, a little girl Brandi who had been listed at least since I first found out about Reeces Rainbow became unavailable due to a new law & sadly her special needs did not make the list. I had fallen for her & "Genesis" now going to be named Sarah by her new family but felt I needed to focus on Celine & Cora Lynne since thats why I had started this blog originally. So I was sad for her & another girl who did not make the cut on that list. I had not really thought much about her since she got taken off Reeces Rainbow til my Birthday Feb 4th when with a friend that day we were discussing Zinnia the other girl who my friend had fallen in love with & I mentioned Brandi out of the blue that she also had been not available for adoption. Strangely enough I felt lead to pray for her that night, & to my shocked surprise I found her relisted the next day! She was about to the age where she could qualify for adoption even though her needs were still not on the list. (which I think now are anyway)I can only ask that God was stirring something in my heart to help this precious girl with cerebal palsy. So naturally, I asked to be her Guardian Angel warrior for that reason & the fact that I felt like I needed to focus & advocate for a child without Down Syndrome since not too many notice the "Other Angels" that have various other special needs. God called me to be her warrior for that reason & I followed what he lead me to do! If he is calling you to adopt DO IT, if he is calling you to pray for a child in need of a family DO IT, if he calls you to advocate for a child DO IT. Let God lead the way for whatever he leads you to do! PRAY, ADVOCATE, ADOPT!!! I am praying Brandis family will find her soon, in the meantime I am trying to fundraise for this precious girl that God told me to pray for!

Don't I have that curious expression?

A toy, can bring a simple pleasure. Sadly I won't get any toys of my own for my Birthday.

Maybe I would love to learn to play the Piano just like any other child

                                 
              This picture I think is most recent. She looks so sad.
                 Maybe she was having a bad day? who knows?

No little girl deserves to go without parents for her 5th Birthday. will you make sure its her last? Go donate $5 in honor of her 5th Birthday. Skip that starbucks or whatever & go donate it to her grant. I will be thinking of her September 15th, 10 days after her Birthday fundraising at my yard sale for her. Would it not rock if I could raise $500 for her as a belated Birthday gift? She has a grant of only $106.20 now which is better than what it was but still. Please pray for it to go well! Think your her family? Contact Andrea at Reeces Rainbow or go see my highlighted name for more information about me!
We are all blogging today on Teamwork Tuesday go see my friends posts they wrote about me!
Saving Emmitt and Victoria
God's will be done
Tripping Differently
Love Leaving Legacy
You will go out with Joy 

Trip of a lifetime

Last month I wrote a blogpost announcing I am going to Russia! Little did I know when I said Yes that God would provide almost all of the funds needed for a passport & visa in a month! This is a trip of a lifetime & I am praying he will provide the rest needed to go! Can you please pray for the yard sale I will be having September 15th which will benefit me going & benefiting Brandi who still is waiting for her forever family? I'm having Faith in Gods timing, as he has shown me so much this past week. Its not easy asking for help I know adoptive families go through the same thing but this is a trip of a life time to experience a new culture, new sights, & another country. Not to mention helping an awesome friend with her newly adopted daughter! I do have a "insert gulp" chipin to the right if you would like to donate but please don't think you need to.
If I get all $139 before the yard sale then I will donate part of yard sale proceeds to my original intention of helping the family I am going with. They still need funds & I intend to help them in anyway possible!

Worth all the hardwork & time spent!

Though I have done JBF consignment sales many times I want to say it over & over YES IT IS WORTH IT FOR MY BEAUTIFUL STARFISH!

Cora Lynne is 6 years old & has been listed on Reeces Rainbow for almost 2 years now. Its about time she finds a family!

Celine turns 7 years old in October, my "darling daughter" of my heart deserves a loving family.

It's been such a successful fundraiser in past years even if it is a ton of work, because to me it matters to this one! In 1 week & 5 days I will be taking all my stuff to sell there. I am aiming for at least $100 for each girl though I would love it if I could send $150-200 each for them. 89 items most of which is in this stack all ready to be loved by another child or several. What these children & parents might never know is by their purchase it brings 2 girls one step closer to their forever families.

 

Please pray for it to go well! I dropoff stuff on September 5th, Presale on September 6th which usually is one of my best days at selling, & the open to the public sale September 7th-9th. Typically I volunteer to pickup my leftover items but this time I have no option to so I will be donating everything. I get 65% of the profit since I volunteer which is good. I use to get more but they changed things around so sadly I lost that percentage. Still way better than what I could get at Once Upon a Child! I will never take my leftovers there again. I love you so much Celine & Cora Lynne that I do this for you! Your lives are worth it OVER & OVER AGAIN!!
As I said on my facebook about Celine & its for Cora Lynne too: 

1. This girl is the reason I GET POKED BY SAFETY PINS, WHY I GO CRAZY CLEANING STUFF WHICH SOMETIMES IS REALLY GROSS, & DEALING WITH ORGANIZING PILES OF CLOTHES BY SIZE & GENDER! THIS LITTLE STARFISH IS WORTH ALL THE HASSLE & TROUBLE IF IT MEANS ONE STEP CLOSER TO HER FINDING A FAMILY! THIS ONE MATTERS TO ME!!

Exhausted

I'm tired, of figuring out what to write, how to write whats on my mind. Thinking about taking a blog break for awhile because I am just crazy busy getting ready for a consignment sale & yard sale in a few weeks to fundraise for these kids. I have written some good posts lately that I would love for the message to be kept on spreading.
If you want to read some good blogposts from the past several days please read & share these posts!
It Matters to this One
Alternatives Pregnancy Center & Volunteering

Overwhelmed with Graditude

I am so thankful for my friends! Thanks to the contributions, Amazon associates link, & what I have managed to save I will likely only need about $139 for my Russia trip & I hope to have that raised at the yard sale! Their is just not more to say but THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!! EVERY LITTLE BIT HELPS! Its hard to receive instead of give always for me but I do appreciate it every bit! It matters to this one! My friend I am traveling with REALLY WANTS ME TO GO & I so want to so keep praying! Pray for them cause they still need funds to! Stay tune cause if I can figure out how to do this crafting thing & have enough time I will be selling stuff to fundraise. Maybe a craft auction cause I need to get rid of the TONS of supplies I have. It depends on when I will be going. Oh if your on Facebook & need some bows or zipper pulls look up Shooting Stars Crafty Corner & like it! I have very few items on that page but the proceeds go to my trip. I have mentioned this several times but it takes some humble pie to ask for help instead of giving it. I do have a way to fundraise if you love to digital scrapbook?  Want to do something like this?

1. Go order My Memories 3 software

2. Type in STMMMS49256 at checkout

3. You get $10 off the software & I get $20 for everyone 

purchased! 

Note you still might get the $20 of free digital scrapbooking kits. 

Regardless their is plenty of freebies on their website!

Stay tune later cause I am going to be pied for a precious boy on Reeces Rainbow!

Alternatives Pregnancy Center & volunteering

Volunteering has certainly changed my life for the better learning how to serve others from helping in the toddlers class at my church to helping others to fundraise for their adoption, by volunteering to help at special events like the Step Up for Down Syndrome walk to help bring more awareness of Reece's Rainbow, to being brave by volunteering 1 week every summer to lead a group of 5 preschoolers at VBS, to serving a weekend at Camp Barnabas in Oct. 2010 to a camper with Down Syndrome who had a love/hate relationship with me or volunteering 1 week at that same place to sibling campers to volunteering at Alternatives Pregnancy Center which helps 1st time moms facing an unplanned pregnancy.
I have certainly done a lot, no I am not bragging but I do have to say I Love what I have done & what I have currently done for the past 5 years serving at the Pregnancy Center. Its been a challenge for sure at times going through stacks of baby clothes to hang together & make sure its nicely kept but it certainly is worth it to see Babies getting all these cute & adorable things that their moms get to earn for them by attending Parenting Classes & using their mommy bucks. Sometimes they even can get some personal items for themselves!            
The Nursery Nook store where the moms shop. I will certainly miss the old location but looking forward to what we can do with the new location!

It's been nice to have my Mom along for the Journey & this special time we spend together.

 Can't you tell by my expression on my face how I am excited for the New location? 

Every year, I participate in their walk for life to fundraise & thanks to all my friends for their love & support I raised $200!

They also host a banquet every year in the fall & I am always so happy for my annual time with Dad. I can't wait til the Banquet in a few weeks!

Serving others truly is a gift & I am so glad my parents have taught me that. I have mentioned before I am no super hero or anything of the sorts I just love to help & God wants me to!

He certainly taught me lots when I served my camper, Gracie at Barn-a-break back in Oct 2010. Barn-a-break is/was a mini camp experience over a weekend either in the fall or the spring. Everyone I met their mouths dropped when they asked me where I was from & that I would just come for the weekend but then when I explained my grandma lives close & we came for a visit they all were like ahh I see now. From the beginning I was excited because they had put me in a girls cabin with the most adorable girls all with that extra chromosome. I knew I was experienced in what it was because of Sarah but little did I know the difference in each camper.

From what I knew the camper I got was 6 years old & probably the youngest at camp age wise. The moment I saw her in the arms of the staffer I was not sure what she thought of me. She was upset & wanted her staffer from that summer who was not going to be in her cabin for the weekend. The whole weekend we had moments where she was fine with me & loved me but most of the time she was bonding more with the staffers then I. At the end of the weekend she just started to warm up to me & I am sure if it had been a week at camp it might be different. 

Being in a cabin of girls with Down Syndrome, taught me that they are not all alike & to have patience that's for sure! I had the best time that weekend!

Serving is a great reward in it self & teaches you so much. If you have the time to change someones life why don't you get involved by volunteering?