Oh, wow!!

I was just checking in on Lilianna after lunch and her Angel Tree goal has more than DOUBLED!!!  Over $2,000 in her grant!! Woohooo!!!  I can't thank everyone enough for their donations!!  I have no idea who contributed, so don't know who to thank, but THANK YOU to those who  have, and those who have prayed on her behalf, and advocated for her, too.  Now if we can just find her a family.  :-)

Piano Concerto ala Darya

I know I've mentioned it before, but Darya LOVES the piano.  She loves listening to and "helping" her brothers when they practice.  Hopefully when she's a bit older she'll take lessons, too.   Without further ado, here's my little budding piano prodigy in action for you all to enjoy! :-)

Edited to add the boys playing the piano (they had just come inside after playing football with Joel, so they're a bit red in the face):

Nate playing "Chimes":

Ben playing "Salsa Blues":

Sam playing "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" (check out Darya dancing in the background):

A girl and her balloon

New picture of Lilianna

I just noticed a new picture of Lilianna on Reece's Rainbow:



Isn't she just precious?? She has such beautiful eyes and I love that fuzzy hair (though it would look much better longer and with a bow in it).  I am so thankful that her grant is continuing to grow - now we just need to find her a family!

I've been MIA for a while on this blog. I guess it's just that busy season of the year, though honestly I just started my Christmas shopping yesterday (online, of course).  But, we are wrapping up our homeschooling lessons and preparing to take a two week break that coincides with Darya's school break.  There are so many random things I want to post about (family stuff, Down syndrome, adoption, etc.), so hopefully I'll get to it soon.

Angel Tree Goal is Reached!!

I just checked Lilianna's page on Reece's Rainbow and her Angel Tree grant is now up to $1,317.38!!  Thank you to whomever donated to bring it past her goal!!  I am just speechless and so excited!!  Wow!! And many thanks again to all of you who have donated and shared!  Lilianna has no idea how many people across the world are praying for her and helping to bridge that gap between her and a family.

Here's another picture to share with you of sweet Lilianna:

Though her Angel Tree goal has been met and exceeded (praise God!), I don't want to stop advocating for her.  She desperately needs a family NOW because of her heart condition and I don't want her to end up on this page before it's too late.  Her grant certainly does help bridge that gap between her and a family ( it's about $25k when all is said and done for an adoption from her country).  Her current grant would cover her airfare home, her passport, her US Embassy and medical appointments which is a huge help! I know there are families who would adopt her in a heartbeat.  What's that old saying? It is something like "many hands make light work".  I think that could apply here, too.  All the donations do add up thanks to the many who have contributed.   Please, please, continue to share Lilianna's profile and if you are able, make a small contribution.  

Thank you!!!

Beans!

Darya loves beans.  Black beans.  Refried beans. Baked beans. Chili beans.  If you give them to her she will eat 'em up. She will probably ask for seconds. And thirds.  Her affinity to legumes has earned her the nickname "Beans" by our family.  It just so happens that shortly after Darya earned her new nickname, a mom across the pond in the UK (Jane over at Flight Platform Living) has offered to help fundraise for Lilianna by offering to have a bucket of Darya's favorite delicacy dumped on her head.  She is just asking for 100 people to commit to saving spare change before she gives her daughters the pleasure of doing this task! It doesn't matter if you are able to save 25 cents or 25 dollars to donate.....I would just love to get a picture of that!  Here's a link to her blog post.  If you are willing to commit to saving your spare change, leave a comment here or on her blog.  I'm almost tempted to commit to a bucket of beans on my head....almost....maybe....yes???  (I think my three boys, and husband, would love to do that to me, too!)

Here is what Jane says:


"If I get 100 people committing to collecting a jar of change for Lilianna over the festive period and then donating it into her Christmas Angel Tree adoption fund i will personally take a bucket of beans over the head!  You heard right...beans! Sticky, disgusting, cold beans! Will you?  Part of me fears you actually will!
If you are going to collect change then again leave a comment on this post!

Beans, pie and varied yuk for 2 sweet girls, my kids would love you forever if you gave them this pleasure!"

How do you think this color would look on Jane or me?