Just RK

This morning I logged on just minutes ago to see great news… YES!  I saw just that word on a post title in my reader and got all squishy inside. I clicked on the post to see that it WAS as I’d hoped!!! I just starting thanking God and praising him right on the spot, as the tears came so quickly it startled me.  I am SO thankful for this outcome!!!  The judge said YES! You see, Evan’s new mommy and daddy… (photo from the Hooks family blog .) …they were given the answer literally thousands were praying for over the last 36 hours.  Many were fasting and dedicating extra time to prayer yesterday. The judge they were facing is the same judge who just a couple of weeks ago told another family NO. Remember Kirill? (photo from the Davis family blog .) His family went to bring him home. They pleaded their case before this same judge, asking that region to allow the FIRST adoption of a child with Down syndrome.  And in the end, after hours of quest...

To celebrate her own milestone of getting to 10,000 followers on Twitter, actress Patricia Heaton (@PatriciaHeaton, known widely for Everybody Loves Raymond among other things) is sending $1 per Twitter follower of Reece's Rainbow up to $10,000!! How super great is that?!? It's a SUPER way to spread the word about what RR does and to help kids come home to families who are working very hard to add them to a real family! So if you're on Twitter, be sure to follow Reece's Rainbow (@reecesrainbow) and you might even drop a note to Ms. Heaton saying thanks, too!

(If you didn’t see the great video full of precious and adorable faces, including one I’m partial to, click here to go to the earlier post.) In our house… It means you get to wear glasses when your sister doesn’t It means you get to go to school and play with lots of the best teachers and therapists It means you sometimes get frustrated with what your body won’t do that it should It means that when you’re frustrated you get to spend extra time with Mommy or Daddy It means you’re loved absolutely to pieces. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg, of course. In a place far away… It means that even when there’s a mommy and daddy who are there to pick you up, money in hand, paperwork all filed, pleading for your life, a judge can say no. Just plain no. That little handsome fella just haunts me. I can’t imagine what his parents are experiencing. (Click here and then here for that story. They need your prayer support. Desperately. Please.) I still can’t comprehend th...

"Hey, I need $5. Like, I need it bad. Would you help me?" I feel sure that for most of you, if this were me asking you on the sidewalk as we chatted at the park or as we paused to catch up in the aisle at Wal-Mart, you would be happy to share that with me. You would gladly meet that little need I had, and I would appreciate it greatly. But it's not life or death, usually. It's not about whether or not a child will survive or die a very lonely unpleasant death. Too dramatic for ya? Yeah, me too. Usually. But not this time. Don't bail yet...give me 60 seconds and then it's up to you. Little Lera has had families commit to adopt her and then run into unavoidable obstacles that made them unable to continue. I've not known any other child who has been waiting and on the brink of coming home so often only to once again go on the list of kids needing a family. Now her family is ready, all set, paperwork together. Praise God! But the money is the problem. ...

Sometimes we look at people and don’t really look. We glance. We might offer a half smile in an attempt to look polite as we pass.   I’m especially good at that, but I have to often remind myself to look people in the eye. It’s hard. It’s intimidating, and it can make us feel vulnerable, in a sense.  What if they look away?  Ah, insecurity is a bitter companion. The same is true when we see stories or pictures of children who have less-then-ideal situations in their lives. I admit, it’s not my favorite thing to watch the news or hear of stories about children suffering. I tend to avoid it.  But yet I’m instructed to pray for “the least of these,” so I need to be aware of them in order to do that more effectively. I don’t know anyone who looks forward to reading the next “bleeding heart” plea for needy children, no matter what their “need” is.  But can I ask you to take a few minutes to read about three little cuties? Just read. That doesn’t take much ef...

This was a crazy busy week. The good part is that it seems to have flown by. The bad part is that it seems to have flown by!  I wonder why…. ************ My sister and her husband moved into a new house last Sunday. As they both have very busy jobs, and I’m largely more flexible (as long as I can juggle the girls) I have been helping with unpacking and receiving deliveries (though not with 100% success…thanks Home Depot).  I managed to get the kitchen somewhat usable and looking like it should, which is important, I think, because they are doing renovations in much of the rest of the house.  So chaos is king over there.  I thought if the kitchen felt a little more like a home, it might be nice.  Of course, they’re going to be ripping out the whole kitchen and re-doing it next year, but for now, it’s doing it’s job. I’m glad they got to enjoy the Bears win last night in some semblance of comfort, even lit their first fire.  (The living room is ...

If you’re anywhere near St. Charles, Missouri… OR if you’re willing to COME to St. Charles, there’s a great reason to eat at Chevy’s this coming Saturday, October 23.    There will be a fundraiser for Dashlyn’s adoption fund at Chevy’s on Saturday, October 23, ALL DAY!  What do you need to do?  Just come and eat at Chevy’s !  That’s it! They will donate 20% of your bill to Dashlyn’s fund.  YAY! This is valid at the St. Charles location on Veteran’s Memorial Parkway, near Zumbehl and I-70. (And you need a little mini-flyer thing to give them for verification… click here to be able to print one . Don’t forget to take it with you!)  If you have any trouble, drop me an email and I’ll send the document to you.  It can take a few seconds to open the file from the link. Julie and Allan have been given their SDA appointment in Dashlyn’s country, and they’ll be leaving to go meet their girl on 10/30.  So soon!  Woo hoo!!!!  D...

I don’t have one, but I’ve got a friend or two who would NOT be without theirs. Stephanie is offering up an iPod touch in efforts to raise funds for this little beauty to find a home.  Her name is Tori, she is in Eastern Europe, having already been transferred to the dreaded mental institution when she turned four, and she has a diagnosis of cerebral palsy. Stephanie just returned from rescuing her two precious boys from this country, she saw the conditions that so many sweet children live in.  She has a heart to help them find homes, and she’s putting her money where her mouth is and putting up the iPod touch for incentive for others to join the effort. It’s great. I will help her spread the word. Absolutely. But really, it’s a little sad to me that we need to offer fancy prizes for people to donate five or ten bucks.  It’s still sad to me that people can’t just hear that this child will in all probability die in the institution where she lives with others...

No this is not a retro commercial for phone service. It’s a chance to win an iPod Touch and benefit a little boy who is soon to come home to his forever family…all in one little step! Shelley has posted all the details for dear Lisa, who is raising money for a family to adopt the child she has been praying for, Zhora, soon to be called Levi. All donations are tax deductible through Reece's Rainbow. Each $10 donation will enter you one time in the drawing for the iPod Touch. $20 enters you twice and $25 enters you 3 times in the drawing. All donations go directly to Zhora's grant fund. If you are not able to donate or don’t really need an iPod Touch, then please at least post the button for others to see.  Entries can be made until July 24th. Click here for more details!! <a href="http://www.only1mom.com/2010/06/ipod-touchand-another-orphan-coming.html"><img src="http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x198/wish4rk/levi-adv...

Ok, so maybe “borrow” isn’t the right word.  Can I sell it for you?  The only catch is that you don’t get the moolah. Say what? By now, you’ve heard more than once from me about Dashlyn , Julie’s newest daughter, who we hope to get to meet in person this fall (or even late summer…if I’m hoping bravely!).  Julie and Allan are adopting her from Eastern Europe, and this is an expensive venture to undertake.  They have done a good job of tightening the budget and getting creative in order to make it happen.  But we’re putting together a garage sale on June 5 with all of the proceeds going toward the adoption, to help them be sure to have all that’s required for travel and fees.  If you’re anywhere around the St. Louis Metro area, and you’ve got stuff you’d like to clear out of your closet or playroom or garage…let me know! I’ll even come pick it up if you’re not too far away! If you’re not close by geographically, but you’d like to contribute to the ado...

My friend Shelley and her newly adopted son Kullen are stranded in Bulgaria due to the airport closings there and in countries around them and "chaos" in general, as Shelley described it, due to the volcanic activity in Iceland. Another friend Leah is with them as well. They are unable to get out of the country, and they desperately need to get home. Their story is going to be on CNN tonight at 6pm Eastern, and her blog is linked in the button below. If you are able to donate anything, they would very much appreciate it as they try to find a way to get back to the US. Clearly, they didn't plan for this in their adoption finances, and it is understandably worrisome. If you have a blog, please post this and share their story. Kullen has become sick, and with the transitions that have happened so drastically with him leaving his only known home at the institution to now be stranded in a hotel room....you can understand why he would be struggling with all of this. He needs...

Reece’s Rainbow has a great program, Prayer Warriors , which matches a volunteer to a child, so that someone specifically is praying for that child every day until they find a home. I’ve known about this for some time, but I keep forgetting to get with it and ask for a child to be assigned to me. So this week I did, and yesterday in the mail I received news of my new “project.” Meet Toby. One truly adorable little guy. He’s about 5 months old, living in Eastern Europe in an orphanage. His birthday is only 5 days after mine! Is he just precious or what?!? So every day I will be praying for little Toby, that he finds a family, and that he is safe and loved until that time. And I have a picture on my fridge to remind me, besides just showing me how cute he is. I’m also praying for and trying to raise money for Zoe still. Though I can’t physically bring one of these little ones home, I can definitely take a few minutes out of my day to plead with God on their behalf. Do you have a few min...

In honor of World Down Syndrome Day on March 21, Reece’s Rainbow has a special project this month to help sponsor children for adoption.  I have chosen little Zoe as my special girl, to spread the news and put her cute little face out there, hoping that someone might want to scoop her up and bring her home.  Her birthday is just 6 days before Braska’s .   She has just 8 months left in her “baby house” before she will be sent to a mental institution.  Rarely do small children live more than a year in that environment.  I just can’t bear to consider my Braska going to a place where no one would interact with her and she would be left to fend for herself, IF she’s not restrained to her bed. How I wish I could go and get her, along with several other little ones, or at the very least find families to give them homes.  Yet all that is open for me right now is to tell everyone about the need, and pray that people will open their hearts for lit...

Jack’s going to have a little sister!!! Woo hoo!  Julie and Allan have committed to and started the process of adopting little Dasha from Eastern Europe through Reece’s Rainbow !  Her name will be Dashlyn Belle, which I think is SO neat.  This has been on Julie’s heart for some time, and it is now so very neat to see them finally able to move forward! Grab This Button <a href="http://smithadoptionfun.blogspot.com/"><img src="http://i185.photobucket.com/albums/x198/wish4rk/dashlynbutton1-tiny.jpg" /></a><br/><a href="http://smithadoptionfun.blogspot.com/">Grab This Button</a><br/> Be sure to visit their adoption blog here (put it in your reader, Reader users), grab the button above to add to your blog or your Facebook page, and spread the word that another little one has a Mommy and Daddy on their way to get her soon!  Of course, if you’d like to donate to the costs of bringing her hom...

I’ve blogged about Reece’s Rainbow often. (Though not recently, I realize now.  Bad me!)  But there is now a new venture called Connecting the Rainbow that is working with families who choose to keep their little ones with DS in countries that don’t have any support system for them.  The goal, of course, would be a time when there is no need for international adoptions because the parents are keeping their little ones with disabilities and had a good support system in the society to care for them.   Grab This Button Connecting the Rainbow is focusing on Bulgaria right now, and they have a very cool opportunity to help right now.  Beyond Play is a therapeutic toy company that has agreed to give 15% of all items purchased from CTR’s wish list back to CTR.  It’s a great chance to buy a toy for their cause, or for yourself, and contribute to CTR at the same time.  I am so privileged to have come to know via blogs, forums, and email the friends w...

Yesterday in doing the usually time-wasting routine of blog hopping and clicking names of people I don’t know on others’ blogs to check out their blogs, and so on, I found a post that struck me. Are you really prolife, really? It’s not a debate about abortion, it’s addressing those of us who believe killing a child both before and after birth is wrong. It’s challenging us, we who use that “pro-life” term. And I think it even hits on many of those I know who still prefer the “pro-choice” term, though only by a thread are they over that boundary line. Here are some blips from the post… (I highly recommend reading the whole post .) The author quotes C Everett Koop, the former surgeon general of the US, saying she sees being prolife as meaning that you “do things to give a person all the life to which he or she is entitled.” This means not just those who live in our home, but also orphans who live nearby or around the world. She asks this question… “Why are so few Christian families adopti...

(Taken from Bethany’s blog .) She is an orphan living in a baby home in St. Petersburg, Russia. The exact same city from which (Bethany’s daughter) Nika came. Lera needs a family ... like, yesterday. She had a family committed to adopt her, but that fell through and now she needs another family. But time is not on her side. At age four, orphans are typically transferred out of baby homes. Lera is 4 1/2 years old ... and by the grace of God, she is still at the baby home. She has an $8,605 grant in her name through Reece's Rainbow. This is a HUGE start for any adoptive family. She also has another $2,000 that was raised for her by the first family that planned to adopt her -- they want to give that money to her new family. Could you be her family? Lera has Down syndrome. She is reported to be very high functioning and by the looks of her dolly, she is engaged in pretend play. She is reported to have a heart murmur, but no other health concerns. So ... what do you say? Could you b...

I don’t post all of these, though I sometimes feel I should, because it is overwhelming how many children need to be adopted and saved. But Mindy will be transferred on Saturday to an institution where she can no longer be adopted, where most children like her do not survive over a year. She is a HEALTHY little girl in Russia, turning 4, with Down syndrome. She will be sent to a mental institution with very little care or interaction, if any at all. It seems like it’s too late. Today is Thursday.  She has two days left. Please Grab This Button! It seems like I have to give up, yet my God is big enough to do anything.  Maybe He will protect her while she is at the institution. Maybe He will take her home to Heaven where she will be able to enjoy perfect love and no fear.  But MAYBE, just maybe, YOU are meant for her.  Maybe SHE is meant for YOU. Maybe YOU are meant to bring her home and love her like crazy.  Maybe it’s YOU that she’s been waiting for. She...