Little Lollie (and an introduction to advocating)

Laura Adoption, Angel Tree 2014, Cianciolo family, Family Warrior Program, Friends to Follow, General Writing, Searching for You, Vantrease family December 26, 2014 0 Comment

Advocates write, repost and share children for personal reasons. In the image that I’m beginning this post with is Greta who waited for many years, but has now been found by a wonderful family who is bringing home two other children from the same country and will travel soon for them. Advocates play a part in keeping the stories of children alive as they wait for family to find them. This is why hearts ready to pray are so needed, mouths ready to speak and just a team of individuals keeping chances alive while hope is still present for children all over the world who have stories have become to seem hopeless. The levels of medical need vary, the need for love is there and always someone whose heart reaches for that story wherever and whatever it may be. What story touches you? There are so many that it can become an overwhelming fog. Behind the sadness of children living without parents and some in quite poor health, there is the glimmering hope that they see redemption through adoption. Greta’s been seen, as have her future brother, Felix and baby Romeo who will be coming home soon too to this Texas family. If you want to learn more about the Barnett’s, please visit their family blog Obedient 2 His Command.

It’s that way across the boards of all interests. If you like fashions, it’s because someone in your life had a passion for fashion, if it’s business someone in your life also loved organization and had an entrepreneur spirit. Or perhaps they had the opposite and you’re determined to pursue what you believed was missing.

Families who adopt bring home special needs with a pretty amazing story of why that has become part of their personal journey. If you can find the right way to ask, please do, you’ll be the richer for it. I have loved getting to know the amazing stories and incredible testimonies of individuals and large family units too that go across the ocean as well as make a difference in their own communities helping children that society has deemed unworthy. While all of this goes on, there are some that do somehow go without much notice, last to be claimed despite lacking overwhelming extra needs. One of those children is Lollie from Latin America. I’ve picked her to be my Guardian Angel child.

First I want to explain the Guardian Angel project with Reece’s Rainbow, then detail a bit on why for me Lollie a child that stands out.

The Guardian Angel project. It’s quite simple. I’ve lost count how many children are listed on Reece’s Rainbow, to help bring attention to each individually we have two programs for waiting children. One is the Guardian Angel project, and the other is other is the Prayer Warriors program. When you go to Waiting Children they are divided into the categories of Other Angels, HIV+ and Down Syndrome. From there the categories are broken down by gender and age. The Other Angels and children who are HIV + are advocated for under the Guardian Angel project, while the children with Down Syndrome are under the Prayer Warrior program. Both have the same goal: Bring attention to the individual. Advocates are welcome to contact the agencies that the children are with, often learn about the countries that the children live in and if so inclined, organize fundraisers to grow the child’s potential financially of being adopted.

I’ve been Guardian Angel for Yana from Ch!na for two years, and she’s finally been claimed which brings me to move on to reaching out to another child. Today, pleased to announce that child will be Lollie, a child who has listed needs that sound like my own and has a donation total below $100, a far cry from her fully funded which will be around $25,000. She needs some attention!

After an adoption commitment is reached, a new advocating program is available, that one is called the Family Warrior program, for which I advocate for the Johnson family and the Vantrease family. I formerly was listed as Family Warrior with Cianciolo family, who brought home twin boys from Ukra!ne.

With the Prayer Warriors, I have baby Boyd who I blogged about here when my prayer warrior child was closed into her country by the ban against Russian to US adoption I asked for a random assignment for PW, and got Boyd. He’s a beautiful baby, so short of funds and full of potential when placed with the right family.

I’ve made these banners clickable, if you’re interested in any of the opportunities to speak out, or really just to make an extra moment in your day to think of an individual child learn more by reading further and sign up. It’s been worth my while and I bet you’d appreciate participating too.

I began this post saying that advocates have stories, just like adoptive families. Here’s mine for Lollie. Here blurb reads:

Lollie is learning how to sit; when you put her in a sitting position, she can now sit for several seconds. She has an epileptic syndrome and is on medication for seizures, but has not had any seizures since being admitted to our care. She has a vision impairment, but with glasses is able to see much more of her world. Lollie is nonverbal, but she will make contented noises to express herself.

Lollie was born May 2011, that’s my oldest daughter’s birth month, the year before my youngest daughter’s birth year. Lollie’s epilepsy sounds a bit like my sons. He struggles sometimes to connect with people, he’s verbal and doesn’t have vision problems, although he was shortly suspected of such but it was determined that blurred vision was a temporary side effect to medication that controls small seizures which effect his learning process. It’s these small life similarities that make one child stand out in the over 1000. Life doesn’t stand still, and that’s why advocates are needed. I want every child to have an advocate. You don’t have to be an extravert to be an advocate, you don’t have to have your own blog, or be on a huge social media outlet. You do have to believe that there’s hope and opportunity to grow, opportunity to be more than what you are now and have a place in your heart to remember and pray for a child You don’t have to adopt to make a difference.

2015 is right around the corner. Visit Reece’s Rainbow and find out how you can reach beyond yourself just a little to speak out in your way for a child available for international adoption. Visit Reecesrainbow.org and click the drop down bar, “How to Help”

We are winding down Angel Tree season, which is a not to be missed opportunity to help in the growing opportunity to bring a child closer to home. This has gotten so big over the past seven years. I also encourage you to visit, “Already Home”

Lollie doesn’t have a photo listed, but I’m going to find out if I can get it. And even if not, I wont let that deter me from fundraising and speaking for her even with what little information I have. She’s real as are her chances to go home.

Yana’s going to a family in Washington, the state where I live, which means I may have the opportunity to meet her, obviously depending on the wishes of her family who I have yet to be contacted by. She’s being brought home with a little boy from the same country.

http://reecesrainbow.org/72331/lollie

In this blog post I’ve brought attention to all the advocating programs that we have through Reece’s Rainbow. I want you to notice that I messed with the spelling of the children’s countries. It was probably pretty obvious what countries I was talking about still, and I suppose I meant it that way. The reason I have to do this is that part of advocating is respecting privacy and the agencies want that to include keeping private the children’s specific location.

For example, for my Angel Tree child’s introduction I would say that he’s from Eastern Europe rather than specifying what country in Eastern Europe. Those details can be given out by the agency when a seriously interested family places a formal inquire notice. Direct families interested in any of the children listed on Reece’s Rainbow to Debbie Hannon, RR’s New Family Liaison.

Why bother? We’ve got hungry kids who need homes here in America? Even if you’re convinced kids abroad are worth remembering and praying for and not just someone else problem, you’re going to meet that harsh throw back and it’s rough. If you care about anything, there’s someone there to say it’s not worth it. And another to help you along. Be part of a community of helpers, commit yourself to building someone’s opportunity to have a better life where they cannot help themselves.

Tupperware and Tantrums

Laura Cianciolo family, Jenks, Keegan/Ian, My Family, Searching for You, Vantrease family April 8, 2014 0 Comment

Thanks for asking me if I was going to have time to blog this afternoon, you know who you are! You have my my tremendous thanks because there’s a lot that I’ve wanted to say and I’ve needed reassurance that I’m worth hearing.

This is a special day in the world beyond my world with the homestudy for Ian’s family beginning who I haven’t taken the time to write about in a long while. My heart and prayers are with them every day all day as Anita, Keegan (Ian when he is home)’s mama does a wonderful job posting little updates on her Facebook page as well as keeping up their blog beautifully. A homestudy is the piece of an adoption that is vital to whether or not you get to bring home a child at all. This piece involves a social worker coming into the home, meeting the family and seeing the house and makes that decision of whether or not this is a place that is safe and in the child’s best interest to be. Although this post is not full of details on Keegan (Ian) I have to stick in a recent photo that his family is so overjoyed to have just received. Their son outdoors with a smile on his face looking so handsome. What a delightful future he has ahead which he is now completely oblivious to. Doesn’t that just bring to mind how little we know of our own futures in the long term.

Writing is one of my very favorite things to do so it’s very special to me that my being here is noticed. Recently a conversation motivated me to step beyond my words and become active in bringing kids home more than I have before. I’ll get to that in a couple paragraphs here.

For a long while I have been wanting to write a post called Side Effected about how a recent med has changed me but have such a fear over how that might be received with my already judged outlook and priorities. In short, I was expecting to be keener in my responses and quicker in, less tired and freer to act in situations. That sounds like a lot to ask of a medication for seizures. But the side effects that I deal with on the meds that I’ve been on for years I imaged to combat with another medication and that hasn’t happened as I thought it would so I am praying about going back to where I was.

Nothing like remembering to be content with blessings! There’s so much good that I have in life, so many talented people young and old that God has gifted into my life that to ask more or for something different ends up on the end of ridiculous. There’s a reason that there are negative connotations to the term “miracle drug” because everyone knows that there isn’t one. Always in life, there’s something to want more of, something to want to vanish and chains that look heavier than they are.

From someone that matters very much to me I got the comment that if there weren’t the internet I wouldn’t have the overwhelming press of the orphans crisis on my heart. When we were kids I remember my mom breaking down in audible tears when there would be news on the radio or articles in National Geographic about children suffering in the world–she was an incredible hard working dedicated mother with an unquenchable love for children the world around. Her ethic as a housewife and mother is a wonderful model for anyone who would desire to take on the role of stay-at-home parent.

The Internet was not around. This person who is very important in my life does have a point though. I would be spending this hour doing something else, probably napping or folding that 4th load of laundry. Instead I pressed as much work as possible into the morning so that I could have some quiet time to write since I do have and faces or names for a very few orphaned children across Eastern Europe and into Asia and beyond those borders that, yes, if it were not for the Internet I would have no awareness over.

What’s up with the horse tied to a plastic chair? It’s my mental obstacles, of course and yours if you’re human. Don’t laugh too often, but now is OK so long as you get back to working with what you have got which I try to remind myself of now and again.

Work comes before play? Finish up your house work then write or whatever you feel drawn to. Do your homework before you go out shopping with your friends. Don’t have money? Get a job first, then go out shopping with your friends after your paycheck comes. Tired of washing cloth diapers? Potty train your child before you sell all the diapers! YES. We are working on potty training at the Harr house.

I tell my kids that all the time that we need to work before play. They protest more than I remember ever doing, but in the end I know they appreciate and have pride in their cleaned up space.

The child I want to feature today is Aura Lee, and I’m just mentioning her briefly because I have to get on to telling you about my TUPPERWARE PARTY. I have no idea how her name was selected, because that name is in no name book that I know of. But here’s a darling girl who is someone’s daughter potentially, that only through the gift of adoption. Her natural parents are either dead or have given her over legally to her country’s custody and signed that she may be adopted internationally.

Speaking of biological parents I want to revere of their courage to believe that they are choosing a better life for their child rather than tagging on words like abandonment or unwanted where there isn’t proof of that. Reportedly, parents are sometimes given misleading empty promises of a better life “than ever you could ever give at home.” information by who they believe to be trust worthy doctors or other authority. When the reality very well could be that, were they educated about their child’s condition, family would be able to supply the child’s needs and give them that immeasurable essential piece of survival called love. If this situation fits, it’s far from abandonment, the parents are actually making what they believe to be the best most loving choice. Unfortunately, so many more kids are given up than are kept as parents. Some parents visit their child in orphanage, but too, this is not common in many areas in Aura Lee’s country as parents struggle to meet their own basic needs if they are of poverty level or if among the high class they may be ashamed to have a child who is by worldly standards imperfect.

When I’m asked, “So how are the orphans doing?” Which I often take as sarcasm, I’ve taken to responding with, “Hungry, sick and dying.” Some of the stories are incredibly sad and can put the coldest heart to tears, just look at the In Loving Memory page to feel a bit of the loss of children who have gone on before a family reached them. This little girl however does sound to be more of the exception.

Three months older than my second son, Aura Lee is doing quite nicely and other than being a bit of a baby it’s easy to wonder why she was left behind.

Oh, isn’t she lovely?

Aura Lee is doing very well. She knows her nannies, smiles at familiar adults. She can sit down and stand up with help. She does not have mental delays.

Aura has developing speech — she can make separate sounds, and will repeat after an adult.

That is all that is said about her. Other than the diagnosis that her country has given her, “Microcephaly, spastic tetraparesis” She will not have a full physical exam until you are in country to meet her a few months after you have begun the adoption to bring her home which is hard because it is at that point that sometimes families decide that a child is indeed too much for them to manage in their life here in which case they come home and leave the orphan an orphan. It’s important for me to say here that this is a situation not always the case with all countries. Quite often a full medical report is available before commitment. All countries are different, all children are unique and there are no guarantees.

My tantrum is that you say you’re not ready to adopt? Never was there a child who said they were ready to be an orphan. I damper that tantrum by saying that not all are called to see and act on the need to bring home orphans, even be they children who sound to have minimal needs compared with others.

On to TUPPERWARE. I went to a Tupperware party last Saturday and ended up scheduling one for the Cianciolo family at my house which I 100% did not intend to do when I left my house only an hour earlier.

This is good though. By next Thursday I hopefully will have women in my house ordering Tupperware to honor the adoption of beautiful twin boys to a family in Vermont.

This is an awesome family who I wish all the best to as they start out their first adoption journey. They are already familiar with the world of developmental uncertainty as they have a camp for individuals with such challenges and do feel strong guidance from the Lord to step out on this journey to grow their family through international adoption.

Scott and Theresa gave me a list of thirty families who they knew that would be interested in ordering Tupperware in honor of bringing the beautiful twin boys home from Eastern Europe. Those families will receive catologs and 40% proceeds off all items pamphlets right to their homes for ordering convenience with reduced shipping costs as thanks for participating in this special event. It’s been two years since I had an event that involved having a consultant come and speak with about their product.

The reason it has been so long is that no one came to the event that I put weeks entirely devoted to. It was heartbreaking, embarrassing and so discouraging to have no profit whatsoever and people to know about it. The statement that I wrote about above someone giving me that if I had no internet my passion over the orphan crisis would die has motivated for me to try again. We have our own home, what reason is there to not open it in hospitality and good will to others? This is good. I’m excited for the Cianciolo family, for the Vantrease family and of course for this little Aura Lee who by some weird coincidence has the same name as my root blog’s pronunciation, oraeley.com

Little Aura Lee has $0.00 as many kids do who were listed just yesterday. Hopefully it’ll fill up quickly, with a fully funded figure being $22,000 for her country. The thing about kids like Aura Lee is they are the exception to sick and dying. We all die someday, I realize but what I am saying is that children who have comparatively minimal health challenges are more likely to be adopted domestically than children who have Down Syndrome like the Cianciolo’s twin boys who are in the same country. In that country anyone can adopt the child that you are pursuing while you are in the process–they are not yours until you have passed court in that Eastern European country before a judge there, by their standards proving yourselves worthy. This is a unique to that particular country situation but what a heart break for families who live this disappointment.

they had not met their child yet but had purchased toys and clothing and fully prepared believing in their hearts that this was a future that God had for them with this one particularly. For my story, excitement, anticipation so quickly turned into unstoppable loss.

There are millions of children needing home and if adoption is on your heart, there is a child for you and God does know who that one is to be revealed in His time. As with all of God’s business, the thrill is to work in the path that he has shown moving forward in faith with openness to see his workings. That’s a whole lot harder than it sounds! All things through Christ, which is awesome.

Tupperware party. It’s a beginning. I’m shy about having people over, I’ll let you know that right now. I want you here more than I have anxiety about you being over so please come.

If you get a Facebook invite from me to join the Cianciolo Tupperware party that’s the one happening at my house next Thursday. Please come as you are, the consultant is awesome! She’s someone from back in the homeschool days. Yes, I’ve told my husband that people are potentially coming over!

Please visit the Vantrease family blog: Adopt, Miles of the Heart, One Less to grab the last bits of their bracelets and art work sale. There are seven bracelets and some art pieces left which I would love to see sold by tomorrow night! There are some expenses coming up in Ian’s adoption so it’d be wonderful to have a one of a kind bracelet made by his family on your arm and maybe a piece of their artwork on your wall as soon as possible. Thank you so much.

Peace! And thanks for wanting to see writing from me. My writing is divided between two countries here, I know, I know. There are more kids, and more stories. More writings everywhere, fundraisers and talented people doing everything they can to get children home. Remind me and remind me again to stay on task with what I have to do here in my own house.

The Jenks family who I’ve written about? They’re on day two with their two daughters abroad staying in an apartment together–language barrier perhaps, but family to be all the same. Teenage girls meeting their forever parents for the first time. Imagine that! The blog is set to invite only currently for privacy even that with the girls faces not shown as are the rules for that countries privacy until post adoption.

Time to move along in my day. Please click on the image below for a direct link to my Tupperware party online which is open now thru next Thursday.

The Green Mountains Await You!

Laura Cianciolo family, Found You!, Fundraisers, General Writing March 23, 2014 2 Comments

Hey, I got to take on a second warrior family. I know the rule book says just one, but I had to beg Laurie to bend the rules for me. How could I not for this one? A family who lives in Vermont who is adopting twins? YES! I’m a twin and started my family in Vermont. I must claim them before someone else does and soak up all the awesomeness of their journey.

I want to introduce to you first Simon and Samuel. They are twin baby boys in Eastern Europe–identical both with Down Syndrome. Like all kids in their country little information at all is given, the richest pieces are from families who have met the young people. For leap of faith individuals, sketchy details are enough. The details on these babies are as follows:

Boys, born Dec 2013
Down syndrome

We added, “These precious, beautiful, twin baby boys both have Down syndrome. What a gift to have them listed so young — they can be home easily by their first birthday!” And indeed they could be home by their first birthday.

This country has a very quick adoption process. Some families just remain in country rather than taking two trips as is done commonly in other Eastern European countries. There is currently over $100 in the little boys adoption fund, money that was dumped in by us members of the adoption community in the first matter of moments that the boys were listed as we wooed and awweed over the preciousness of these sweet faces. I’m sure I was not the only who found myself closing my eyes and saying, “Sweet Jesus, lead a family to these babies. In your name, amen.” Was it even a whole month before the twins were on My Family Found Me? It was so fast! The Lord sees these kids. I could type that so many times, and I plan to, in every opportunity that I have to speak of orphans I want to shout forth praises and thankfulness that although I cannot see these children, Jesus does. These photos of Simon and Samuel were taken March 2014. I wonder if by thanksgiving when they may be home, they’ll be sitting perhaps toddling around and have grown in some hair.

The family that I am thrilled for and thankful to be getting to know are Theresa Cianciolo and her husband. The little boys will be children 5 and 6 for them. OK. I’m busting to tell you that my Angel Tree child Mikey has been committed to and am excited to learn who is bringing him home–but to stay focused here!!

There has been an unfair ratio of girls adopted over baby boys going home, or so it appeared til recently! We’ve had so many commitments to young guys and older also. It’s thrilling to see this gap coming even. There’s also families who are picking up a second child into adoptions, that’s wonderful to see happening.

No knowledge of the state of the boys hearts or any other potential points of keen awareness that ought to be had for being prepared for welcoming home a child who has Down Syndrome. The future family of these babies sees just what you do: two sleeping children in gender neutral sleepers peacefully oblivious in their moment of restfulness. They appear healthy and are available for international adoption and as of this week (!!!) committed to for coming home.

What’s taking me so long to admit that I’m giddy to see someone from Vermont adopting? No wait, I went back and edited that into the first line or so. I am psyched.
I’ll have even that much more reason to go back and visit, if saying hello to good times again isn’t going to be enough one day. In my time in Vermont I made some wonderful friends and got the best medical care that I have had.

My life has been a struggle with epilepsy, and through the depression and failure, through the side effects of meds and insomnia and head aches through the embarrassment and exasperation I have always had my identical twin who has the same problem by my side to prop my body against. We have been each others strong hold and scratching post through the years and I think she too would have to confess that she wouldn’t know what to do without me. We would have had so much of a harder go at life without each other, and I imagine that as life goes on we will continue to need each other.

Children with Down Syndrome are often transferred at age 4 to mental institutions to live out the rest of their lives. If the boys aged to that point in their country there is far from guarantee that they would stay together. Twins have a way of knowing that there is another one of them, there have been so many studies done. Praise be! They’re going home for mama snuggles, and for Daddy to wrestle with them in the living room and take them on fun outdoor ventures. These kids will know the freedoms of creativity, nurturing and holistic living.
There are so many hopes and dreams that I have for these little guys. My children’s lives started out in Vermont where these boys lives beyond bars will begin also. It’s a wonderful place to be. Fresh air, green trees and rolling mountains. The autumn, or foliage season as we call it, is the most gorgeous collection of colors that you could ever ask for in nature. There are all sorts of fun activities and places to be for families and room to run, horses to ride and adventures to be had.

Your new world can hardly wait to meet you, Simon and Samuel. May God keep and protect you where you were born and took your first breaths until your mama and papa come for you.

Where will the fund raising begin? I want to have fun with this!
My family bringing home preschooler Keegan has an upcoming art work sale and a Scentsy candle event. They are in their first stages of adoption also and have two adoptions already. I love the adoption community and treasure everyone’s journey to their precious children.

Theresa, the twin’s future mama, has shared with me that their family Bible verse is James 1:27

Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

I love this family already! Be it serving those who are bringing home children, or helping in the community to ease the suffering of women and children I believe that not only is there opportunity to help, but command to do it.
Roll up your sleeves, put on your thinking cap and make some time to helping. My husband say to focus on the word “help” in this verse and to always come back to my family!

Join the Family Warrior program and lend a little help to someone in need of a prayer buddy along their adoption journey and get as excited as I am to live vicariously through someone else.

1000 little monkies jumping on the bed

where nothing sits still

Cianciolo family

Little Lollie (and an introduction to advocating)

Tupperware and Tantrums

The Green Mountains Await You!