When Money is Not Enough

Celine ~ $8222.00

Alexander ~ $11205.50

Bernadette ~ $9100.83

Malcolm ~ $5274.22

Maxim ~ $6615.00

Megan ~ $23820.50

Arnold ~ $16019.44

Evie ~ $7105.70

Laurel ~ $6510.00

Preston ~ $15015.14

These children along with many others are listed on Reece's Rainbow , Moving Mountains page. All the children listed on this page have sizable grants, all over $2500.00.

This leaves me completely stumped. Some of these children are more than half way to  being fully funded. What is stopping them from finding a family? 


How can a child have $15,000 in their account and still be facing  life in a mental institution?


When money is not the issue... what is?




When money is not enough to save these children, what is?



I'll tell you what is.


ACTIONS




ACTIONS speak louder than words, ACTIONS are more powerful than money.

These children all have families. They are out there. But if these children aren't seen, how can they be found!

 How many people do you think know about them?


A few hundred? Thousands?


Maybe. But I doubt it.


Maybe a million people have to see these faces before one family will take a second look.

Well who is going to do that?




Their own families have given them away, their government hardly acknowledges their existence, and their country has turned their backs on them.


  WE. ARE. ALL. THEY. HAVE. 


If we don't keep[ reaching out, speaking out and acting out, these children don't have a snowballs chance in hell of being found.


If we are silent then they will be silenced.


If you have been reading but not speaking, start speaking for these children. You may be the one who finds their family. If you have a blog, write a post. Anything, even just a picture. And if you are protecting your heart, don't. It works better when it is broken.

I Love This Little Bug!!!

I don't know who took this picture, I just found it on my camera. That's my Bug!!

Good Lord we love her so much!!!

A Team Work Tuesday Post : What Do You See??

What do you see when you look in to this face?

If you only see crossed eyes, cropped hair, no smile, no future, sadness...




Then look again. 

This time, see her big beautiful eyes, just like Hershey kisses, gorgeous chestnut hair, a perfect little nose, made  to be kissed. Now listen, and hear her little voice, hear a giggle, picture her smiling and running and playing. Picture her hugging her mama.




See more than a photo of a child half  a world away.

A younger photo of Arina.

See Arina, a lovely little girl who desperately needs a family. A little girl who wants to go home. A little girl who so deserves to be loved. 


Date of Birth: May 31, 2006
Gender: Female
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Dark
Nature: Calm

This beautiful Arina needs a mama to love her and help he be all she can be. She has dark hair and dark eyes. She does not have a heart condition, but her medical records indicate she has some kind of bacterial *difference* in her kidneys. She is allergic to eggs, citrus fruit, and red vegetables. Her kidney dysfunction may be a reaction to eating these items. She will need to be seen by a specialist when she gets home. She is also farsighted and will need corrective glasses. But she is SO beautiful and so deserving of a family to call her own!

SINGLE MOMS WELCOME! FULL MEDICAL INFO AVAILABLE!

$7000.83 is available towards the cost of my adoption!

Other Teamwork Tuesday posts. These children are still waiting for their families.


Heath


Isaiah


Chandler and Wyatt


Robert


Russell


Carina

What's In The bubbles??

When your baby poops in a tub full of bubbles, YOU will be the last to know!


We just thought she was really excited about the bubbles.

Playing Mama

Em is not really impressed with toys.She never liked her dolls.She could care less about them and it bothered me. I wanted her to love her dolls. I mean they are so much fun to play with.


Well, last night after her glass of wine, she gave this doll thing another try. She loved it!!! The missing element all this time? No not alcohol...water!!!

bath time!

washing her baby so gently.

Reading her a book (look how she is holding the dolls hand)

Now, making her dolly read.

Got to have something to snuggle

Drying off.

More snuggle time

And a nice drink.

 

 

 

It's Been a Long Week!

I think a week home with all of us has taken it's toll on Em!

Before Daddy could enjoy his glass of wine, Em beat him to it!"sigh"

This Couldn't Wait Until Tomorrow! She Is CRAZY!

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

New and Improved Ball Pit!!

Thank you Auntie H!!!!


Em could not be happier!  

A new ball pit!!!! A mushroom! It's perfect!

Emmie had breakfast in it this morning!  If our cat could lift his old legs that high he would have joined her.

For anyone who missed the tragedy, the old and beloved ball pit, pictured here,sprung a leak.

Em is one happy chick , again!

For Natasha...One Step Closer

"Time stands still, beauty in all she is" Christina Perri

I've captured one of those many thoughts swirling around in my mind. I've written it here. I hope I have done it the justice it deserves.

Through the birth of Emilia, God has put many people in my path that I would otherwise, never have met.  He has also taken my heart and led it to His meekest and most needy children. I have fallen in love with many, but there are always some that your heart longs for, in a different way. Olga, Nellie, Brigita.

There are the ones that you go to check on every day, you pray for every day, and your heart breaks for everyday, like Carina, Celine, Dimitry, Amanda, Samantha and Kristina. 

Xenia, is one of the darlings that I would check on constantly. Her beauty is just overwhelming and I would get lost in her little face. 

Well , Xenia (now named Natasha), is going home. Her mama, Priscilla, is working tirelessly to bring her home. You see, she has to hurry,  Natasha is not well, her heart is tired and needs surgery immediately. In fact Priscilla has already spoken to the surgeons, everyone is ready, everything is set for Natasha. Except that she is still on the other side of the world waiting.     


She cannot wait much longer!


A generous donor has offered to double all donations up to two thousand dollars for Natasha. Your simple donation of $2.00 instantly becomes $4.00. $10.00 becomes $20.00!  A childs life is at stake here. Natasha should have been operated on as a baby, but of course she never got the medical attention she needed. Now she has the chance to live a life she has had only in her dreams. 


Priscilla said to me in a PM,

" Everyone is so wonderful in the community but they're stretched thin! There are so many of us who need to raise money! I just HAVE to find a way to get to this $2000 mark then I'll leave everyone alone! (for now...lol) I'm roughly $12000 short...so if I can raise $2000 by March 22nd, that will turn into $4000 and literally 1/3 of our need will be erased!! I was told that this community never lets kids who have a family NOT come home due to funding, they rally, and get them home, and from what I've seen that is SO TRUE...I still worry though!"




That is true! We have never let a child not come home because of funding. There have been some close calls but in the end we always rallied together and got the job done. So please, ACT NOW! For Natasha! Something so simple as a small donation, an amount not missed on our ends, but life saving to her. That's the beauty of this community, we are powerful, and there are enough of us to carry the load. It is not a burden , if we all share it.




This song playing captures everything I wanted to say in this post. Words I tried to write from a mothers point of view, a mothers heart. A mother who needs to rescue her child. 

"

"I will be brave, I will not let anything take away whats standing in front of me. Every breath, every hour has come to this... One Step Closer"  Christina Perri

Please, lets get Natasha home to her family and to her life saving heart surgery.   We cannot let her down. She needs all of us.

And since I cannot read and listen to music at the same time, if you have paused my music, please go back and listen to it again, read the words. Although not written with the orphan in mind , it describes a mothers heart perfectly.  

Teamwork Tuesday: Heath

I post about a lot of orphans. I get ridiculously attached and my heart breaks on a daily basis. My skin has not thickened and honestly I hope it never does. 

 One of the hardest kinds of posts for me to write are the ones like this one. 

Meet Heath

 Heath is turning 11 years old in April. ELEVEN! I don't want to think about what he has had to endure all these years by himself. How many times was he sick, or lonely, bored, or just needed to be hugged. Do any of you have eleven year olds at home?? How many times have they needed you?  How many boo boos, have you kissed in eleven years! How does a child survive for eleven years by himself? 


And how much longer can he continue without the love of a family? 

He is at the age of being overlooked, past by and unnoticed.  

He needs to come home. 





Boy, Born April 8, 2001
Heath is a sweet little boy who desperately needs a family.    
Heath is a ten year old boy with Down Syndrome. He is tiny in stature. His feet hardly reach the edge of his shared wheelchair. Because of his age, he has already been transferred from the stimulating environment of his baby house to a dull and underfunded mental institute for boys ages 6-18. He is no longer the youngest boy in his group, but he is certainly among the smallest.
Heath is not a recent transfer. He has lived in the stifling boredom of institution life for a long time. He has lost the vivacity of life at the baby houses. In his three years at the institute, he has been given nothing of his own. He has not seen a book or a toy. He has never been gathered into anyone's loving arms. He is a very lonely little fellow in desperate need of love and comfort.
We have few other details on Heath. He has been seen in a wheelchair, so he may not be able to walk. We don’t know if or how well he talks, or any other details on his medical condition. We do know that he is a cute, chubby-cheeked, dirty and neglected lonely little lost boy who needs a mother more than almost anyone else in the world.
If you would like to learn more about Heath from a family who met him at his present institute, please follow these links:
http://covenantbuilders.blogspot.com/2010/10/recalled-to-life.html
http://covenantbuilders.blogspot.com/2010/10/brady-and-heath.html

$3537.80 is available towards the cost of my adoption!

Please pass this along. Heath needs to be seen. You can share this on your FB  with one  click from my sidebar. God has a plan for every child. There is a family out there who would love to welcome Heath in to their lives. We just have to find them. 


Other Teamwork Tuesday Posts:

Isaiah
Chandler and Wyatt
Robert
Carina
Russell

Houston We Have A Problem

We have sprung a leak.

This could be serious:(  The future of the ball pit is very uncertain at the moment. Miss Em is holding her own and being very brave.

Ice cream is definitely helping her cope.

Monday is Another Day

Sorry I was a little miserable yesterday. It happens. Thanks for the emails and sweetness that you sent my way.  ;)


But today is another day, and I still have millions of things swirling in my mind but I'll catch them all one at a time and get them down in writing and out of my cluttered mind.


Yesterday was so warm here, that we decided to clear all our heads and go to the beach for some fresh air and dough boys, and kite flying. 


The end result, a more relaxed mama, and sugar covered kids.

Just a little tangled up in his kite, but if you stand real cool like this no one will notice.

Sunday...

.. is a day of prayer. My heart is heavy today, for many reasons. I have so many posts swirling around in my head but I can't catch all the thoughts and feelings to get hem together in one place long enough to write them down.


They are random thoughts. Thoughts about all the children waiting. The ones denied a home. The ones who are dying as they wait. The families trying to get to their children before they are transferred. The families trying to get to their children who have already been transferred. 


Thoughts about why some bend over backwards to help and why some criticize those for helping.


My fears and doubts are showing themselves today. Tears fall easily today. 


Sunday is a day of prayer. Please pray today for the children, the orphans . Yes, the ones on the other side of the world. The ones that have no one. The ones most people won't and don't and refuse to connect with because they are a problem for someone else to deal with. 

Who is that someone else???

OOPS!!

In my excitement this morning, I completely forgot to mention that The Balloon Release, will also benefit another family who is bringing home someone we all know , love and remember!!
 Can't believe I forgot this!

 Yup, ARTEM!! 


Artem and Nellie and Katelyn will be buddies! 


Now, go get all the details here, donate your balloon here , support two families and don't forget in every balloon there will be info about an orphan(your choice) from Reece's Rainbow waiting for their forever family!

Dossier Done ~ And A Very Special Balloon Release

I am proud to SCREAM that the Cole family who are adopting Nellie and Katelyn have finished their dossier!!! They are done!!!!! Nothing left to do but get their girls home!!!!

Nellie

Nothing left to do but raise the rest of the ransom to bring their daughters home. 

Katelyn

 Now before you grab your pocketbooks and run from here like you were on fire, hang on a second!!   Yes I'm going to ask you to do something, that's what I do;)  But I know you all or at least most of you have a Dumpling on Reece's rainbow that you love. A special little one you wish would get a forever family. Well, this unique fund raiser may help them home! 


Beth is organizing a balloon release. Now this is no ordinary balloon release. Because inside each balloon will be information on a child waiting for a family from Reece's Rainbow!!!! And what goes up must come down!!!!!




Donate $10.00 and you can add whichever child you want from RR. And when those balloons are released my prayers are that God will guide them. Can you imagine if someone finds a balloon with that information inside!!!!  


Not only is this giveaway,( yes, Giveaway , because there are prizes too) a fabulous idea, but it  also benefit the little one with no families yet. 




My Carina has a balloon! So who do you love??? Who do you want to get a family??  


Check it out here!!! And buy a balloon!




And if you are new here and don't know about Reece's Rainbow, then check them out first. Pick any child without a family and then donate a balloon for them! 

Just A Ball Pit Photo Kind of Day

It's a place to go where you fit just right, and you're mad at your mama.

The view from above.

With Every Beat of Her Heart..

...she is waiting for relief. 

Xenia needs heart surgery, as soon as she gets home.


A generous donor is prepared to match every donation dollar for dollar up to $2000.00!!!!




With every beat of your heart...WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO?? 


What would you be praying if this was your child? 


What would your heart feel like if you were so far away from your little girl, and knew she was getting worse! And the only thing that was preventing you from running to her was money! 

I do not believe that every one reading this cannot find something to give. I do not believe it because I know you, and I know your hearts! They are huge.


Everything donated will be doubled! Your $5 turns in to $10, your $10 in to $20. 


And Xenia will find her relief! 


Please go, let your hearts lead you.

ONE OF OUR OWN NEEDS US AGAIN!!!!

Below is a message from my friend Libby sent to me and others on FB.  we need to do this. Because this is a life or death situation. There's no questions at this point, just actions.

"I need help. My wonderful friends are adopting Xenia from RR...remember her? The precious little blonde cutie pie?? 

 

She will be named Natasha once she comes home, but right now, Xenia needs our help. She is in desperate need of heart surgery. She is passive, lethargic, and NOT WELL...this family is working hard to bring her home and someone has so generously offered to match donations up to $2000 for them. This is HUGE!! Every dollar becomes $2 which this match offer is going on! I've watched this community in action. I've seen what you can do, no, what GOD can do, for these children. Please help raise $2000 for Xenia to get home and get to Vanderbilt, and get her heart surgery, and have a LIFE, and a MOM, and a HOME!! Please, will you rally with me for this precious child? http://love--conquers--all.blogspot.com/ — with Patricia"

Catching Up On Some Reading

There's nothing better than reading a good book before bed.

Em, used to curl up with her favorite stuffed animal before she fell asleep, but recently she as traded him in for a book. 


Every nap time and bedtime she takes her book to bed with her.

Little book worm!

Be Mine... This is not a Valentine's Day Post

Will you be mine? Millions of people will send cards today asking a certain someone to be their special Valentine. As I awoke this morning, I saw that some one had slipped a  little homemade card under my bedroom door. It was Sophia wishing her parents a Happy Valentine's Day. The kids got their cards to share at school. Even Miss Em has her Cars2 cards ready for all the boys(she is still the only girl in the class). 

Peter left a beautiful card for me to find by the coffee pot this morning, with a lovely dark chocolate Godiva candy bar. My favorite!! 


Today I'll make heart shaped cakes for the kids and get them what they really want ... CANDY!


But across the ocean sits a little girl all alone today. Like every other day. And she wants something too.



What does she really want?

Carina, born, April 2008
Nature: Calm

Her picture is so forlorn … I hope we can find her a family to make her smile!  She is almost 4 now and is facing imminent transfer to the institution.  PLEASE do not let this happen to her!!  

Carina is said to have a moderate intellectual delay, as well as a physical / motor function delay.  She has an open oval window of 2 mm (which may yet close on its own), and she has a heart murmur.   She has enlarged tonsils, and dermatitis — so, pretty much your standard little girl with Down syndrome!
SINGLE MOMS WELCOME!

$3754.45 is available towards the cost of my adoption!

caption

It's not candy, or cards or cakes. She could care less about things like that. She doesn't need presents to make her happy. 

All she asks, not only today, but EVERYDAY of her life is : BE MINE... please BE my mother, BE my family, BE someone who won't turn away! Be a presence in my life, BE kind to me, BE patient with me, BE MINE, I want to go home!!!! BE IN LOVE WITH ME

My heart breaks as I write this. Because I do love her, I would love to BE HERS. I would love her to BE MINE.

But God has other plans for both of us. I cannot BE Carina's mama , but I can BE her voice. 

Carina's mama is out there somewhere . Until she finds her, I will love her and speak for her and defend her, as much as I can.  


Today, I ask one simple thing from everyone who reads this, please just say, "Jesus, please find Carina's mama, soon"  No donation, no sharing (unless you really want to) just please pause for one second today, and let that second BElong to Carina. 


And when you're loving on your children today, remember this sweet little one with such sadness in her eyes. And remember it's ok to let your heart break, that's when you can accomplish all the things God is calling you to do.




And to address the title of this post. It is not a Valentine's day post, it is a Teamwork Tuesday post. Every Tuesday,Reece's Rainbow Warriors post about a child waiting for their Forever Family. 
You can view other children waiting to BE someones love here
Isaiah
Chandler and Wyatt
Robert
Russell

Oh My Goodiness!

My daughter Emilia is a  Feinstein Jr.Scholar!! With this honor comes responsibility!!! 
 

To be exact... good deeds!! This could pose a serious problem!


Uh oh!!

She can do it!!! She can be good!

 Day one went well.

Emmie started by being good and  helping pick up her stinky socks.:)

But then she blew it by making confetti with her saltines. 

And then was naughty by unplugging the vacuum , while I was vacuuming! Sigh

But redeemed herself by attempting to wrap up the cord when I was done.

I'm sure this will be quite challenging for my little scholar, and her mother ....


We will have to be very creative with our "good deeds".


Maybe we should just go with "good intentions"

Don't worry Em, you don't have to over do the good deeds. I kind of liked your Saltine Confetti. We'll take this nice and slow! I'm so proud of you!