Show Hope!

We were sooooooo overjoyed a few weeks ago when we received a letter from the Show Hope Foundation saying we were recipients of a $2000. grant towards our adoption!! We applied over the summer with the realization that this is one of the largest adoption grant donors in the U.S.....which means tons of other VERY DESERVING applicants! Steven Curtis Chapman & his wife Mary Beth are amazing influences in the adoption world & we are truly appreciative of this great blessing! God is moving on our behalf & writing each detail of this beautiful story! Click the photo above to find out more about Show Hope.....

Very Very Thankful!

"Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever."psalm 107:1


Wow! We LOVE this season of Thanksgiving....really it's the attitude we live in because God's goodness just overwhelms us daily. It's the little things really...

-Mommy taking the big girl to school daily & Daddy picking her up
-quiet family movie nights all snuggled up in blankies
-Abbey making a game out of stairs + a rubbermaid tub lid....never gets old
-bonfires with friends & smores (of course)
-a wonderful extended family & church family

We're even thankful in the waiting to bring Zoe home! There's something amazing about the perfect timing & perfect will of God....this is a LIFE, a PERSON who will be our child, our family member for the rest of our lives. There's PEACE in knowing that our lives (ALL of our lives) are in HIS hands! For that we are THANKFUL!

Happy Belated Father's Day! Prepare to LAUGH!

Just found this video & it's a MUST POST (Abbey & I have watched it over & over - HILARIOUS)! This is dedicated to you David, definitely living the "Dad Life" - you go above & beyond to seek God, minister to, & provide for this family......we don't take you for granted & God sees every little sacrifice!! Happy Father's Day - we love you! :)
*Pause playlist on left before watching

Contrast.....

While spending some time on the internet this morning I came across these two items within 5 minutes of each other.....they made me stop and think about the sharp contrast of reality in this world......one man's reality is a $75 million dollar mansion, and one is literally receiving the shirt of another's back....

I read the article out of curiosity about the selling of the mansion with no emotion, but I watched the Rwanda video with tears and a true longing in my heart to love "the least of these"...........

Yahoo Headline: "America's Most Expensive Mansion Sells" (click to read article)

*pause playlist on left to watch

Both Hands Foundation

We are sooooo excited to have found this fairly new fundraising opportunity through the Both Hands Foundation, a partnership of Lifesong For Orphans......scripture tells us in James 1:27 "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keeps oneself from being polluted by the world." So often in the adoption movement we have a strong conviction for the orphans, but unintentionally overlook the widows.

Through Both Hands Foundation, both the orphan & widow are ministered to. In a nutshell, sponsorship letters are sent out by the adoptive couple and some of their close friends/family. Think the traditional "will you sponsor me as I play golf/run a 5K/walk in a walk-a-thon for a specific non-profit...etc?"......the difference here is people are financially sponsored to spend a Saturday working on a widow's home & all funds raised go toward a family's adoption!!

A quote by Billy Graham sums it all up....."God has given us two hands, one to receive with and the other to give with".........

We have just discovered this opportunity & are still researching the possibility, but I highly recommend clicking on the Both Hands banner above for more information. VERY EXCITING - truly a God inspired idea!

Order today......Help bring Zoe home!

We got our OFFICIAL approval letter this week with our agency, Lifeline! All orders from my Initial Outfitters website will help us bring Zoe home! Click the catalog above to view the catalog which has an extensive line of personalized gifts....there's something for EVERYONE on your list! The "Products" tab will take you to a shopping cart. Email me if you have any questions & have fun shopping!! *Remember all of your upcoming wedding, graduation, & Mother's Day gifts!

Tebow....The Rest of the Story....

Choosing life is not always the most popular decision as we've seen from all of the controversy surrounding Tim Tebow's Super Bowl ad.........click the picure to watch the 10 minute follow-up video about the Tebow family's decision not to abort....

Mac Powell of Third Day Adopts....

Several months ago, Mac Powell (lead singer of Third Day) & his wife Aimee completed a domestic adoption. They added a beautiful son, Emmanuel.....click the picture to read the short article about them!