Ornaments for Adoption: Hosting Orphans

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It's week 6 of Ornaments for Adoption which means we're in the second half of this fundraiser. Things have really picked up. Thank you all for your orders and helping spread the word. 

On a side note, please keep last year's OFA family in your thoughts and prayers. They are going through a rough time.  

A few weeks ago, I was browsing on Pinterest and came across a family's adoption blog. As I was reading some of the posts on this blog, I read the story of some friends of theirs who had hosted an orphan from Ukraine. I had never heard of hosting orphans before, so I messaged Ally about writing a guest post for OFA. I hope you are as touched by their story as I was.

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This past summer we were provided with an unexpected and last minute (3 weeks before he arrived) opportunity from God to host a 15 year old orphan from the Ukraine for 5 weeks over the summer.  This program allows orphans to come and spend time with a family in America and provide them with hope and inspiration to what they can have one day as well.  In the Ukraine children age out of the orphanage usually by the time they are 16 and are sent out on their own, with the majority of them turning to drugs, gangs, and prostitution.  The children that participate in programs such as these are much more likely to go on to attend school, find a job, and have a family one day of their own.   

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Our family was in the middle of the adoption process for the DRC and we did not think we would be able to participate in this amazing program because cost and our growing costs for our current adoption, however the child we wanted to host obtained a sponsor from here in San Diego that helped a great deal with the funding, making us able to provide him with a family to stay with. 

 

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I have to admit I was a bit overwhelmed by the mental preparation of having a 15 year old orphan from the Ukraine coming.   I was nervous, apprehensive, and questioning what I had signed up for agreeing to host a 15-year-old orphan form Ukraine.  But when we truly trust in God and do what he asks of us (against our better/selfish own opinions) the amazing blessings and life altering events that take place. 

 

 
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To say that we are blessed to have been able to host Vlad is an understatement.  He has become a part of our family in every way possible.  Both of our children adore him to pieces and he is amazing with them, playing with them, helping to carry them, exhibiting patience with them when I am at my wits end, and above all loving them back. We did not expect to bond and form the connection that we did with Vlad.  We fell in love with a 15 year old boy who had not been loved for most of his life.  He is a remarkable young man that was put into a life situation that he never asked for nor did he deserve to be in. He is incredibly smart, funny, athletic, kind hearted, and is a normal smart mouthed witty boy when he feels challenged. We love that being in an orphanage has not broken his will and belief to stand up for what he thinks is right. Not only has he embraced our children but us as well.  We became a family.  

 

 
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Our daughter Lainy has truly grown from this entire experience, though it has been very difficult with him gone.  I feel like she has matured beyond the maturity she already had (if you know her then you know she was already 4 going on 14).  She has taken on more responsibility at home, shares her emotions openly about missing Vlad and things she does (like sleeping with his picture) so that she won’t miss him as much.

When he returned home to Ukraine we were all devastated and heartbroken.  We felt that God had put this child in our life for a reason (as we were not planning on adopting from Ukraine let alone a teenage boy), and that we needed to do everything that we could to give him the family he deserves.  Which led us to file a petition in Ukraine to find out his adoption eligibility and begin the longest 6 weeks of waiting ever.  But God has continued to guide us and prove that this is the path and plan he has for our family, and Vlad is eligible and we are in the process of doing what needs to be done to adopt him and give him a forever family.  

 

 
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Thank God for the Internet, which I now believe is the most amazing invention ever!  It allows us as a family to continue to show our love, support, and guidance to a child that would not receive it otherwise.  We are able to hear about Vlad’s day at school, playing soccer with friends and the number of goals he scored, and still strengthen the bond that was formed in the short amount of time we had him.  We send pictures almost daily of things we have been up to, he especially loves seeing pictures of Lainy and Gavin.  We are able to share our adventures with him, even though he is not here.

 

Before this will be finalized we will host him again this Christmas (thanks to some awesome fundraisers), and be able to hold him in our arms and just love him and show him God’s love.  I encourage everyone that has the means and even those who would need to fundraise to participate in a host program at some point.  Even those who do not want to adopt, it is a life changing experience that you will only be blessed by.  To truly witness and see God’s grace and love for the fatherless is the most humbling experience you will ever have.

 

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TO FOLLOW OUR JOURNEY VISIT WWW.TINYLITTLEFOOTPRINTS.COM

October Book Reviews

After reading pretty much nonstop for 9 months, I lost my motivation to read this month. So, my list of books I read is much shorter than last month. 

Defending Jacob by William Landay

Book Description:
Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney in his suburban Massachusetts county for more than twenty years. He is respected in his community, tenacious in the courtroom, and happy at home with his wife, Laurie, and son, Jacob. But when a shocking crime shatters their New England town, Andy is blindsided by what happens next: His fourteen-year-old son is charged with the murder of a fellow student. Every parental instinct Andy has rallies to protect his boy. Jacob insists that he is innocent, and Andy believes him. Andy must. He’s his father. But as damning facts and shocking revelations surface, as a marriage threatens to crumble and the trial intensifies, as the crisis reveals how little a father knows about his son, Andy will face a trial of his own—between loyalty and justice, between truth and allegation, between a past he’s tried to bury and a future he cannot conceive.
                     book description and image via Goodreads


My Review:
I liked the premise of this book. How far will parents go to protect their children? Do parents always assume the best of their children? At times this book was difficult to get through. It wasn't that it was boring, there just wasn't a lot of action. It was a lot of talking and explaining. It reminded me of reading a John Grisham book. You learn a lot of interesting facts and some of the inner workings of the legal system, but it's a lot of information to take in. The ending was very unexpected and I'm not sure how I feel about it.

I give it 3 out of 5 stars.

Looking for Alaska by John Green

Book Description:
Before. Miles "Pudge" Halter's whole existence has been one big nonevent, and his obsession with famous last words has only made him crave the "Great Perhaps" (François Rabelais, poet) even more. Then he heads off to the sometimes crazy, possibly unstable, and anything-but-boring world of Culver Creek Boarding School, and his life becomes the opposite of safe. Because down the hall is Alaska Young. The gorgeous, clever, funny, sexy, self-destructive, screwed-up, and utterly fascinating Alaska Young, who is an event unto herself. She pulls Pudge into her world, launches him into the Great Perhaps, and steals his heart. After. Nothing is ever the same.
              book description and image via Goodreads

My Review:
This book didn't take me long to read. Plus, it wasn't broken into chapters which usually means I have a harder time putting it down. However, I wasn't a big fan of the book. I thought I was going to like it in the beginning, but when I got to the "after" section it all seemed pointless. I don't understand the obsession some have with John Greene. This is his second book I've read. Overall, I thought The Fault in Our Stars was a good book, but I wasn't in love with it. Nor am I in love with this one.

I give it 3 out of 5 stars.

Allegiant by Veronica Roth

Book Description:
One choice will define you. 
What if your whole world was a lie?
What if a single revelation—like a single choice—changed everything?
What if love and loyalty made you do things you never expected? 
The faction-based society that Tris Prior once believed in is shattered—fractured by violence and power struggles and scarred by loss and betrayal. So when offered a chance to explore the world past the limits she’s known, Tris is ready. Perhaps beyond the fence, she and Tobias will find a simple new life together, free from complicated lies, tangled loyalties, and painful memories. But Tris’s new reality is even more alarming than the one she left behind. Old discoveries are quickly rendered meaningless. Explosive new truths change the hearts of those she loves. And once again, Tris must battle to comprehend the complexities of human nature—and of herself—while facing impossible choices about courage, allegiance, sacrifice, and love. Told from a riveting dual perspective, Allegiant, by #1 New York Times best-selling author Veronica Roth, brings the Divergent series to a powerful conclusion while revealing the secrets of the dystopian world that has captivated millions of readers in Divergent and Insurgent.

book description and image via Goodreads

My Review:
The more series I read the more I feel like it's hard to truly write a great series from start to finish. The only series I've ever read that I've loved every bit of it has been the Harry Potter series. Most series start off really strong, but fizzle somewhere along the way. I don't know if the authors don't fully think their story through before they write it or if I'm just being too critical. Before writing this review, I went back and reread my Divergent and Insurgent review and I loved those books. So, it makes me a little sad that I didn't love Allegiant as much. First of all, Allegiant is told from both Tobias' and Tris' point of view. This also happened in the Matched series and I didn't like it then either. The authors don't do enough to distinguish the different voices. I often forget whose point of view I'm reading. That shouldn't be the case. I understand that they want us to see more than what one character can tell us, but if that's the case the characters need to shine through so I don't forget whose telling the story. Either that or don't choose to write in first person! It took me a while to get into this book. The plot seemed a little silly to me. I actually laughed at the end which you'll understand how terrible this is if you read the book for yourself. Tobias seemed like a different person in this book, not at all like the character he was in the first two books. I wasn't rooting for their relationship to work out. What bothered me the most about this book was that I feel like something huge was built up in the first two books and the third one didn't live up to the hype. The only reason I rated it as high as I did is because I enjoyed the first two so much.

I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu

Book Description:
Once upon a time, Hazel and Jack were best friends. They had been best friends since they were six, spending hot Minneapolis summers and cold Minneapolis winters together, dreaming of Hogwarts and Oz, superheroes and baseball. Now that they were eleven, it was weird for a boy and a girl to be best friends. But they couldn't help it - Hazel and Jack fit, in that way you only read about in books. And they didn't fit anywhere else. And then, one day, it was over. Jack just stopped talking to Hazel. And while her mom tried to tell her that this sometimes happens to boys and girls at this age, Hazel had read enough stories to know that it's never that simple. And it turns out, she was right. Jack's heart had been frozen, and he was taken into the woods by a woman dressed in white to live in a palace made of ice. Now, it's up to Hazel to venture into the woods after him. Hazel finds, however, that these woods are nothing like what she's read about, and the Jack that Hazel went in to save isn't the same Jack that will emerge. Or even the same Hazel. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen," Breadcrumbs is a story of the struggle to hold on, and the things we leave behind.

Book description and image via Goodreads

My review:
This book is about 5th grade children, so I assume the intended audience is children around that age. Maybe I'm underestimating them, but I don't think most children that age would understand this story that well. Sure they'd get the general plot, but I don't think they'd understand the themes, allusions, as well as many of the big words used in Ursu's descriptions. With that disclaimer out of the way, I have to say I enjoyed the book. I liked that the main character, Hazel, was adopted. I like how she was wrestling with growing up and fitting in because who hasn't experienced that for themselves-even as adults. I like how it alluded to how things change as you get older and they'll never be the same again and that's okay. That is something that's really hard to come to terms with as you grow up (at least it is for me). I admit that the quick switch from reality to fantasy was a little strange, but overall I can't find too much to complain about.

I give it 4 out of 5 stars. 

Have you read any of these? What have you been reading lately?

Ornaments for Adoption: Adoption is LOVE

We are close to reaching $100 raised for the Thigpen family. Keep those orders coming! Did you know that November is Adoption Awareness month. So, why don't you help me in my goal of educating others about adoption and orphan care by sharing this and other OFA posts. It is very much appreciated!

If you've been keeping up with Ornaments for Adoption, you know that there's a new prize introduced each week. This week's prize is courtesy of Kera from Nugget on a Budget. She is donating hair bows (See them below-they're adorable!). She's also recently started selling these and other items on her Instagram. Be sure to head over to one of those places and thank her for her support of OFA. 

 

Today, I'm excited to have a guest post from Kristen who blogs at Adoption Love. Kristen and her husband, Josh, are in the waiting stage of their domestic infant adoption. I'll let her share more about her family and their adoption story.

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We are Josh and Kristen and we want to adopt a baby. 

Such a simple sentence with so much emotion behind it. We decided to start our family five years ago. Decided...as if we had any control. We tried for quite a while on our own and then sought medical help. We did two years of IUIs and assorted cocktails of fertility medications and tests. Then at the end of 2010 we tried for the big one. IVF. As it turned out though my eggs weren't up to snuff and after our IVF failed, I was diagnosed with diminished ovarian reserve. In other words, I produce eggs like a woman close to menopause (I was 26 at the time). I got off the phone with the doctor and collected everything in the house related to our fertility treatments. I piled it all on the kitchen island, took a picture, and threw it away. That was a hard day, I cried and prayed a lot. It was clear to us that God had closed the door on pregnancy. He had closed it, locked it, and wedged a chair under the knob. Adoption it was, and as we proceeded, we became more and more at peace knowing that this was the path God wanted us on.

I am far from being an authority on adoption. Even though my husband and I have been in the process for over a year and a half now, I still feel like we're very much at the beginning. The majority of this time has been consumed by waiting. I could describe our experience so far, all the paperwork, inspections, fingerprinting, and more paperwork, but that really has nothing to do with adoption. Adoption is so much more than all those things. Even so, it's easy to get sucked in to the business of adoption. To scrutinize your profile, to worry about the cost, to scrub your house from top to bottom before the social worker comes to inspect (only to have her barely stick her head into each room). It was easy to get short sighted in the beginning. Don't get me wrong, these are all part of the process. They are all necessary to move forward (except the worrying and scrubbing). But none of this is adoption.

Like I said, we've been waiting a long time. Sometimes it feels like we will never be picked by an expectant mom. This isn't the point though. It doesn't matter how long we wait, how much we squirm with impatience, how much the butterflies in our stomachs flutter with anticipation. What matters is that God loves us. He has called us and prepared our hearts for adoption. We want His will to be done in our family. We will wait as long as He wants us to. He has a child and a birth family picked specifically for us, and when we meet them, we will praise Him. Adoption isn't what it used to be. Open adoption gives mothers peace of mind and hope that their child (who will never stop being their child) will know they were placed for adoption with love. Because of this call, this drive God has given us to be parents through adoption, we open our hearts to not just a child, but a mother as well, and possibly a whole family. We want our child to know their beginning. We want our child to be proud to be adopted! After all, as Christians, we are proud to be adopted children of God! We are all adopted in love! That's what adoption is. Love.

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The Thigpens' adoption and Josh and Kristen's adoption isn't possible without the help of others like you. Would you consider buying an ornament to help the Thigpens? Would you consider heading over to Josh and Kristen's blog to see how you can help them? If nothing else, would you share this post? I would love to see my "recent favorites" section over on the left sidebar to be showing only Ornaments for Adoption posts because they are my most read posts this year. Not for my benefit, but for the benefit of families adopting and the children waiting to be adopted.