Support for a Sweetie

Isn't she a doll? She was born in May of 2011. So, she is about 17 months old. She has dark hair and those beautiful almond shaped eyes. She is healthy, no health problems that are known.
For a child with Down Syndrome she is most likely not even sitting up well yet. Sadly, she may not even be given the chance nor encouragement to sit up. See, she lives in a orphanage. Just another baby among many. With only hired hands to care for her, she doesn't know what a snuggle is. She may not even know what it feels like to be held, cradled in the arms of another.
I have taken on the challenge of getting her grant fund up to $1000 before the clock tolls the New Year's arrival. So far, I am doing a fundraiser through Tupperware. Please let me know if that is something you would like to help with. We are going to be trunking it at our church's Truck and Treat (it's really a "Trunk OR Treat", but the treats are in the trunk so really we ain't fooling anyone and I just rather live on the redeemed side of a time of year I wish didn't happen at all, *kicking soapbox and stepping down*). I am going to make cards to put in the treat bags with Morgan's page and Reece's Rainbow information on it. I have a few more things planned, I will let you know about them as they are prepared.
"Morgan" is also waiting for a mommy and daddy to come and get her. Have you seen them? Do you hear a knock at your heart's door? You don't have to be a superhero, there are no special requirements to be a parent you know. Just accept a fearfully and wonderfully made gift from the hand of God. She is on the other side of the planet, but what would you NOT do if your child was in a prison there. Their only crime, to be born different than the expected.
Take a look at her God designed beauty. Give an offering on the James 1:27 table. Share her picture to find her parents. Helping her will not put a dent in the over 163 MILLION orphans in this world, but it will make a world of difference to her.
Join me would you?
$1, $5, maybe even $10 straight to her grant (Angel Tree starts Nov 1). You could also buy some Tupperware from me, all profits go to Morgan.
Thanks.

Bennett

This is Bennett. I have been watching him on Reece's Rainbow for at least a year now.  He doesn't have much information about him, just that he has Down Syndrome.
I have been watching his post and they still don't have any new info about him. Being that he is 6 years old, he has most likely been moved to an institution. Breaks my heart. He would be such a sweet addition to a family, he just needs a mom and dad.
Are you out there? Are you his mom? Are you his dad?
He is most likely recieving the minimum of care. So many institutions are simply jobs to the caregivers. The employees have no desire to interact with the children. Many children never learn to talk or even lose the ability, simply because the are not talked to. Can you imagine a child not being talked to? No one to look in your eyes and say hello.
Some children are raised in baby houses, these are like group homes, and a lot of those caregivers actually care. Those babies are loved on and have a some what normal growth. If they are blessed to be adopted from the baby house their trauma is much less. If not, they are sent from the love and care of the baby house to the cold war era, hospital type institutions.
The more I think about it the more heart broken I am. Just take a look at a sweet little boy that needs a family, needs a mommy to hug and a daddy to protect him. Bennett.

31 for 21

So to start my relaunch of my blog, I decided to participate in Down Syndrome Awareness month, 31 for 21. It about taking 31 days to highlight DS and bring awareness. Since my heart is not just for DS it is also for ORPHANS with DS and bringing them home, I am going to highlight a few DS orphans needing families and a few families that are in the process of bringing these gems home to their forever family.

This button:

This button will send you to a link up of other bloggers with a common heart for DS. Please take a minute to hop to a few. You could learn some things, help some folks, and get more familiar with DS. Enjoy!

From us to you!

 

A new look and Levi

Well, how do you like my new look? It took months to get finished because I am so indecisive! Anyway, here it is and I am praying for God's direction for it. I realize I have missed blogging about the little guy so I have decided to catch you up...

The Life of Levi....

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ain't he the cutest?

And because it hurts me so, I cannot fail to mention... There are children, about 163 million of them, that do not have a mom or dad today. What would you do if your child was alone, unloved? God tells us to care for the ORPHAN and the widows. It is so easy to care for the widow, we see her at the store, the bank, even at church... But what about the orphan? We don't see them every day, we don't see their distressed faces in church, most are in other countries. How easy it is for you to not care.... you just don't have them in your "world" that, my friend, does not exempt you from caring as the Father has told us to do. Don't worry, I will give you opportunities in the future to be James 1:27, to care for the orphan ... in their distress.

Happy Resurrection Day

I woke up with this song on my mind this morning...

So stinkin cute!

I am so blessed!

365: 2.2 seconds

The many emotions of Levi, in 2.2 seconds. Enjoy, I do!
Let the Son shine,
Brandee

365: day "ah-goo"

Let the Son shine,
Brandee

365: homemade pizza

Fun with pizza. Caught E eating the toppings too.
Let the Son shine,
Brandee

365: Jan 12.2

Hot chocolate on a snowy night...
Let the Son shine,
Brandee

365: Jan 12

Ain't that the cutest?
Let the Son shine,
Brandee

365:Jan10

See, I knew I wouldn't be able to do out every day, but I am trying. Here are the arrows of my quiver. I pray they go out from our home as fiery arrows for the Lord. I love them so!
Let the Son shine,
Brandee

365:should be day 7 ~3 months

Oh my sweet boy is 3 months old today. He is ready to go hunting with dad as you can see.

What day is it?

January 7th, but it might as well be any day, and yes that's my living room. Just being real. It takes .0000821 milli seconds to get dirty, because if you have 2 sq ft of living room, well then the people in it become clutter.
Seriously, clutter makes me crazy. Makes me irritated and way less patient. I find myself like that often. Mostly when the kids ask to play with something before they finish their chores.
So what are you going to do about it, you ask? Well it is one of my goals for the year... Organize and de clutter this few feet of home I have and make it a place of peace. I cannot do it alone. I have been trying to make this place less cluttered and peaceful for years. Now I have to ask for help...
Dear Father, you know how I am, how I let things get to me. Please help me go through this stuff and see the value of time with my family above the chaff I keep. It will take me all year, so keep me focused on the task at hand. In Jesus name, Amen.
Let the Son shine,
Brandee

365: day 4

My silly, quirky, youngest girl, oldest middle. She is emotional, that includes loving and kissy. She can be carelessly aloof, yet brutally manipulative. She has a smile and giggle that can warm a room. My precious Banana. Love that girl!
Let the Son shine,
Brandee

Breakfast in Bethlehem

The cutest "baby Jesus" in 2 millenia. (This is an actor portraying Jesus, not Jesus Himself) Memories and "talk abouts"... That is what life is about.

365-day 3

Three of my sunbeams....
Also, the baby doesn't have the pyloric stenosis. Just bad reflux. The worst part was that the dr didn't fax the orders yesterday, so we sat for 45 mins just waiting. Once we had the orders, it only took 10 mins...grrr.
Let the Son shine,
Brandee

365:2

Sorry it's sideways... sent it straight from my phone and something ain't right here!

My firstborn, my helper.
And at 9:15pm. I remembered to photo today.
I did take the baby to the dr, going for an ultrasound tomorrow morning. I think he has bad reflux, but we are ruling out pyloric stenosis.
Elias had a something black in his lower eyelid, looked like a blood pocket...turned out to be a 1/4 by 3/4 in piece of black fuzz. I don't know how he got it there, but it was scary for a minute.
Fun, fun. The days are long but the weeks are short... Savor every minute, even the annoying ones ;)
Let the Son shine,
Brandee

Diaper tab solution

My amazingly generous sister-in-law let me use ALL her cloth diapers for my lil man. Only, there was a slight problem, one I didn't even realize was a real problem.... The hook part of the tabs wasn't working that well. I didn't have any diapers falling off but they wouldn't be good for a crawler.
So the other day while sewing a few little things for Jesus Birthday Celebration, I found a tiny, tiny crochet hook. I am sure it was in there to help with buttons, to provide that bit of room you need to be able to button a button after you sew it on.
Fast forward to today. I was reading about cloth diapers and the chief complaint I saw was velcro that had lost it's hutzpa. So, I read that you could use a needle to pick it out. That's when I remembered that tiny crochet hook, wal-lah, I tried it out and these diapers are working like new, or what I think new would be. Yay!
Let the Son shine,
Brandee