Memorial Day 2013: the basic difference...

I was blessed to have a memorial day weekend that was pretty close to "norman rockwellish".  I may have struggled to portray effectively to my children the real meaning of this day... but they are grasping as much of the concept as their minds can at their young age.  As soldiers for years have fought for our freedoms and safety...

 

Shea can understand that he lives in a land where he is free to leave his home to explore, learn, take risks and live up to his full potential...

 

Simon can grasp the concept that he is loved as strongly as any son can be loved, and that he is treasured and valued for his differences. 

 

 

Emily learned that she can wave her flag high, and squeal w delight at the parade that marched by... all while standing in front of a church that she is completely free to attend without persecution.

 

Danielle realizes that she has a role as a protector to those who come behind her and who look up to her as an example...

   This memorial day weekend, pleasures were enjoyed, but not taken for granted...

 

Joy was experienced repeatedly...

 

and we were thankful to God, country, and the men and

women who sacrificed to allow for all of this...

 

We will continue to appreciate the "basic differences" in our lives... the freedoms, the blessings.

We will continue to pray for the weak and undefended....

 

On Sunday night, I put my Shea to sleep at 8 pm.  I thought he had been long asleep, but an hour later I heard rustles and sniffles on the stairway.  I opened the door to see a sobbing little boy.  Grasping for him, and holding him tight, I comforted him....

after some time he was able to verbalize what his tears were about.

 

Shea was so sad for Beatrices eyes "not working", and so sad that she was in his grouppa and had no mommy and daddy.    Shea knows the "basic difference".  He has lived it, and can feel it...

The differnces are real and harsh.  They break the heart of a 6 year old boy.

Here is sweet Beatrice...

 

Please make a difference for her... build her fund so that a family can bring her out of oppresion, to be treasured, defended, and protected.... our family thanks you...

click here:

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Falexinmyheart.blogspot.com%2Fp%2Fbeatrice-100-gift-card-drawing.html&h=YAQHMS5Vs

 

or here: http://reecesrainbow.org/?s=Beatrice

 

 

 

SEE

Today is Thursday...going on Friday.  For many of us this means "paycheck time".  I am going to donate to Beatrice tonight... could you consider doing this too?

This little girl has hit some major bumps in the road... more bumps than her little heart can even comprehend yet....

please help her over a bump...

If we all gave just a percentage of what we might spend on a dinner out this weekend, or a movie... a lot of littles make a big...

This is Beatrice... please SEE her.  Her eyes are weak and frail... our eyes are strong.  Please God let us SEE her....

"Now then stand still and SEE this great thing the Lord is about to do before your EYES."
1st Samuel 12:16

http://reecesrainbow.org/?s=beatrice  please click on this link, donate, SEE...   goodnight, I pray to wake to a larger number for this treasure...

Exist

This will be short and sweet...

If you have a child... close your eyes and picture them.  Now imagine that you no longer exist, and picture your child being raised by 3 or 4 hired women, who care for a score of children, and who may or may not have any emotional connection to your child.  Imagine your child having a medical condition or illness and not getting the basic health care they might need.  Imagine your child having the same exact routine everyday.  Imagine the meals your child has as being repetative and basic, possibly lacking in nutrician.  Imagine when your child has a fever or pain that there are no devoted arms to comfort them. Imagine that they have intestinal parasites that are not alarming, but just normal life in the place that they live...

Now think about sweet Beatrice....much of this could be very real for her at this moment.  This was the plot for our children Simon, Danielle and Shea before we "existed" to them.  This was their lot before all the amzaing donors and supporters existed for them...

after a nice weekend of grant growth... Beatrice has had no new movement for over 24 hours...

Please exist for Beatrice...  in any way, shape or form.

to donate... even what you may think is a small amount... please go here: 
http://reecesrainbow.org/?s=beatrice

please share this blog, and or her link.  Please pray... please exist for her...

thank you....

... weeping may stay for the night, but rejoicing comes in the morning. When I felt secure, I said, "I will never be shaken." Psalm 30:5b and 6

 

 

Last night I went to bed feeling discouraged...I shared with Dan.  I was very happy and grateful that 4 more donors had stepped forward for Beatrice's sake, and her grant was 200 dollars larger than it had been one day prior...

 

but....

 

I had put my hopes up very high...

I thought I may have 100's of "shares"

I thought I may have seen scores of donors...

I was hoping for something magical...

 

Then there was a lull... and when I went to bed, I was discouraged for Beatrice.  I have no idea why God had now laid this soul so heavily on my heart.  It's consuming, and honestly at times when God does this to me I wish he wouldn't...because it hurts my heart to have thoughts in my mind that never stop about a sweet child I have never seen, smelled, touched...   but it's not for me to understand, and God has told me to get to work for this little girl.

 

Consumed? what do I mean by that?  The very first thought I had in the morning was to "check on Beatrice...so that's what I did.  Before I have even wiped the sleep from my eyes, or moved a limb out of bed, I grabbed my phone and checked her FSP.  Morning can be stressful in our home to say the least, a million potties...beds to change, spills to be wiped, meds to pass, braces to don,... by the time the fourth child is completed, the first child has undone everything and we start all over again.  We've been known to say it takes an act of congress to get our family out of the house in the morning, even if it's just to go to the playground!... but my despair was turned to joy before I even rolled out of bed in the morning.  600 more dollars had been raised, and we were now up to 800 dollars since late thursday night!

 

Consumed? All day I've felt I was being told to write this entry... but who has time while juggling this family on a saturday?  You all know I can be a tad ocd... but yet here I sit... lunch messes still on the floor of the diningroom, some dishes in the sink, danielle has snuck a bag of marshmallows out of the cupboard, and emily is napping...instead of my mad dash to get working on all the things in the home that call to me... I am writing as I feel it is needed for sweet Beatrice. 

 

Every click of a donation brings a child closer to a family.  Adoption of a child, especially a child with special needs from a foreign land can be daunting.  The financial impact of an adoption can be even more daunting.  Taking away one of the major fears...the cost... often gives that family who is nervous on various fronts the courage to trust God, trust that they will be equipped, and say "YES".  (Trust me... been there, done that!)

 

Again last night, in the "wee hours" Emily woke ( Emily who is just months older than Beatrice), called for mamma.  A mamma came and soothed her so that she could drift back to sleep.  During the day Emily had sniffed in deeply the aroma of lilacs, and gotten dandelion fuzz up her nose ( something that Beatrice might one day be able to do if she is given a surgery to reconstruct the cartiledge of her nose ), Emily was able to be hugged tight after scraping a knee, and her tears were wiped away ( does Beatrice even produce tears? we don't know what she anatomy she has where healthy eyes should be, but someday they could be cared for and monitored, and followed by doctors who would do all that they could ). 

 

Emily had the chance to see a picture of Beatrice on the computer, she stopped and looked, and pointed, .... she did not say "baby" or "pretty" or "gentle" as she normally does when she spots another babe... She said "EMILY".  My daughter, saw herself in Beatrice... just as I do.

 

That is why I'm consumed.  Beatrice should have a momma just as emily does... and all the wonderful shakes in life that our kids do...

 

I'm out of steam here... please go to this link and donate

 

http://reecesrainbow.org/41025/beatrice

 

... after you do this, please share it, share it, share it...and then pray... hard...

 

Beatrice needs more advocates than this one consumed mommy who has so much on her plate... I will take your help eagerly!  Thank you...

 

 

 

Liz, Dan, Simon, Danielle, Shea and Emily Kulp....