If you're coming here from reader, I have some widgets added to the sidebars.
On the left side is a list showing where we're at in the actual adoption process, another list showing what's been paid so far, and a thermometer showing where we're at with the financial side of the adoption. On the right sidebar is a chip-in button. (THANK YOU to those who have been so generous so far!)
A friend of mine, a fellow adoptive mom, recently posted something about adoption fundraising that I really liked. A lot of people did, really.
When a family seeks help in raising funds for an adoption, it's not like asking people to pitch in toward a new boat, or help pay for a vacation. What they are doing is committing to heal, with God's help, a child who has suffered the profound damage of being unwanted and unloved. They are obediently living out the command given in James 1:27 to care for the orphan, clothing the gospel of Christ's redemption in flesh and blood and now. When they ask for the body of Christ to come alongside them financially and prayerfully, they are giving us the opportunity to be a part of the miracles God works through obedience. ~ Ashley Paradis Moreno
I don't think people who aren't involved with the adoption community realize what it takes to adopt. A family may be fully financially capable of supporting another family member in the house, (We certainly can!) and they have to pass the US income requirements to adopt, but coming up with a huge chunk of change to pay for the expenses of an adoption is a very different thing. Like Ashley stated above, we're not going out and buying a boat to play with. We're not taking a fancy vacation or buying a big screen T.V. Once we were matched with our son in December, all the luxuries came to a screeching halt.
Many of the families I know have had to raise tens of thousands of dollars. I can't even imagine having to do that when we're swallowing hard at an adoption under $13,000!
Which brings us to where we are today. We have to raise approximately $4,000 before we can travel to bring B home. Although we don't have an exact date yet, ( we won't set a date until we get our final approvals) we do know we have approximately 8 weeks to raise the last of our funds. I have a very unique fundraiser coming up very soon!
If you know anyone who uses ASL (American Sign Language) in their home - families who are deaf, or with kids who are deaf, or kids with other disabilities who are lacking in verbal language so they're signing instead, anyone using ASL - they will love this fundraiser!
I'm hoping to have it up in the next week. I'll need help spreading the word when I finally post it! I'm not one of those BNB's (Big Name Bloggers) with a huge following who can raise thousands of dollars with a single post. We're not a popular name in the adoption community and most don't have a clue who we are. We don't have some big crisis surrounding our adoption which gets everyone screaming from the mountaintops. We're just a family trying to get our son home. But we do know that God has this. He knows every penny we need and he'll make sure we have it. He did for both Axel and Asher's adoptions.
Now, just because I can hardly stand it, here's a bit of a teaser for you. This is the picture we received on Christmas Eve. I wish I could show you his face. He's incredible!
