Real Hope For Haiti

Sorry I've been MIA the past few days.... Avery was sick (but is much better now), we went to Ohio to visit family over the holiday and now it's Wednesday, and I'm back at work.... my last week at work before I become a "stay at home mommy". I'll fill you in on this later and will also post some pics from our trip, but instead of blogging about myself and "my stuff"this week, I would like to ask you to take a moment to read about The Rescue Center in Haiti.

I've been following Aaron & Jamie Ivey's journey to adopt in Haiti for the past year. Their 2 children, Amos & Story are currently living and being cared for at The Rescue Center. The Rescue Center is a refuge for sick and malnourished children and babies as well as some adults. The center is run by an American family (you can read about them on Aaron's blog) who is pouring out their lives in this impoverished country. The work they do there is difficult, but invaluable to the people of Haiti. The Rescue Center is currently in danger of closing and is in need of immediate financial help! If the center closes, 50-60 malnourished and sick children have the potential to be left without care, shelter, and food. Please read about the center and pray about what you can do.

If you would like to give one time donation or a monthly gift, you can donate through Aaron & Jamie's paypal account that they have set up for RHFH on Aaron's blog.

If you would rather send money through snail mail, you can do so at: Real Hope for Haiti P.O. Box 23 Elwood, IN 46036.

All donations through online paypal and their ministry address are tax deductible. Real Hope For Haiti is a non-profit organization, which allows your gifts to be tax deductible. any contributors will receive a statement at the end of the year detailing gifts given. 100% of the money given goes directly to their paypal account (minus a tiny fee that paypal charges). The donation button deposits directly into Real Hope For Haiti’s ministry account for immediate use.

Thank you for praying for The Rescue Center.

Blogging friends- please spread the word and help bring awareness for The Rescue Center.

We'll catch up next week....

Love & Blessings,

Andi

Please Pray for the Chapman Family

Please pray for the family of Steven Curtis Chapman. The Chapman's 5 year old daughter, Maria, was tragically killed on Wednesday evening.

Read more here:http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080522/TUNEIN03/805220370/-1/TUNEIN

"We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.
In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name.
May your unfailing love rest upon us, O LORD, even as we put our hope in you."
Psalm 33:20-22

Connor's Birthday Party

Our nephew, Connor is turning 4 on May 24th and we celebrated his birthday a little early this weekend. The theme was Batman- Connor's current superhero of choice. It cracks me up how kids' favorites change so quickly. Last year it was Bob the Builder, now he informs me that "Bob the Builder is for babies!". So funny! This was Avery's second birthday party to attend and she had a blast. She loves being with people and especially kids, so she was definitely in her element.

The weekend flew by... can't believe it's already Monday!

Blessings,

Andi

Welcome Home Lily Grace!

Avery loves Lily

Happy Girls!

Our sweet friends Shelby & Brian became parents this week through the miracle of adoption!! Lilian "Lily" Grace was born early Tuesday morning and was welcomed home on Thursday! Avery and I were priviliged to be Lily's first official visitors at home! :)
Shelby & Brian are so special to us. God knit our families together through small group and we became even closer as we walked through infertility and then our adoption journeys. We have cried, prayed and rejoiced together. Shelby & Brian also used our agency, Inheritance Adoptions. We are absolutely thrilled for this sweet family and are in awe of the goodness and faithfulness of our God! Thank you Jesus for the precious gift of Lily Grace.

Happy Weekend!!
Andi

Accessories are a girl's friend!

Such a fun Monday afternoon photo shoot! This girl is soooo silly in front of the camera! :)

7 Months- Week 1 Pics

These are pics from last week. Yes, we LOVE the hat so she wears it often! I also had to post one of bathtime.... black mail material for later :) Hope no one is offended by the topless baby.

There are also a couple of pics from Mother's Day... yes, my first! I still have mixed feelings about that holiday. It is such a hard day for so many... those who have lost their mothers, those who want desperately to be mothers but are struggling with infertility and those who have lost babies. I feel amazingly blessed to be a mother, but I still remember how painful that day was for me as I was waiting. Bittersweet....

2 weekends ago, our sweet friend Stephany Stimson did a photo shoot with us at SMU! The pictures are amazing! She is truly talented and soooo generous to give us such a beautiful gift. I'll post some of those later if it's okay with her.

Enjoy the pics! I'll be posting some from a fun photo shoot we did on Monday a little later.

Big Girl!

Where is my "Little Love"? I can't believe how big she looks in this picture!! So crazy! I'll post more pics of the first 2 weeks of her 7th month tomorrow. We have some fun ones, so stay tuned! :)

Happy Tuesday!
Andi

Power FM Spring Share-A-Thon

I'm sure most of you know, but I work for 89.7 Power FM, the Christian Rock Station. We are a non-commercial, listener supported station, so we have to raise funds to stay on the air. These funds also keep our staff (me) employed. To raise these funds, we do "Share-A-Thon" twice a year and it's a crazy, stressful, fun time. This time around I'm "officially" going to be on the air! Yikes!!! In years past, I've just hopped on here and there, but they scheduled me with a real slot this year. So if you have nothing else to do, then tune in to hear me making a fool of myself over the airwaves. :) I'll be hanging out with Jade and Drue on Thursday 1:00-2:00 and 3:00-4:00. Friday 1:00-2:00 and Saturday 12:00-3:00. You can listen in your car at 89.7 FM or online at www.kvrk.com

Also, if you listen to Power FM and aren't supporting the station, please pray about what you can give. Power FM needs your help!

Happy Share-A-Thon!

Andi

Pals

Pals!

I love this picture! It was taken on the day of Avery's adoption finalization on one of the benches in the courtroom. Not only do I love the picture, but I love the kids in the picture. Landen and Annabelle are Avery's BFF's :) Actually, I guess they are friends by default right now, but my hope is that they will remain friends for a very long time. Their mommies and daddies have been such good friends to us!! We have known Kim & Isaac (Landen's parents) and Amy & Italo (Annabelle's parents) for several years. They walked with us through our struggle with infertility and continued to walk with us as we began our adoption journey. They faithfully prayed for us and were a constant source of support and encouragement. We are so thankful for them!! We pray even now that Avery will have friendships like the ones we've experienced... encouraging, challenging, unconditional, and God centered.

Happy Tuesday!
Andi

Avery is 7 months old!

Dedication Day

8 days old

Oh my goodness! Where has the time gone? I'm sure this is something that every mom deals with, but I can't believe how fast she is growing up! I love watching her change and do new things, but part of me is a little sad that she's growing up. I can't imagine that soon she'll be walking and talking then before we know it she'll be driving, going to dances... (if Daddy lets her out of the house), then leaving for college, and the progression goes on... It seems like we blinked and suddenly our little love is a"big girl" who is sitting up, has 2 teeth on the bottom, will probably be crawling anytime now and is saying da-da-da!

Putting my nostalgic mommy feelings aside, I am fascinated by watching her grow each day into the woman that God has planned for her to be. I know that He knit her together.. each piece... her sweet face, her beautiful blue eyes, her smile that lights up the room, her little hands and feet, her tender heart, her sing-songy voice, her infectious laugh, her fun social butterfly personality, the way she fights her sleep because she doesn't want to miss out on something....Each attribute came from her Father in heaven who loves her and knows her intimately. She is fearfully and wonderfully made! I am in awe of how good our God is and watching Avery day by day is a wonderful reminder of His goodness and faithfulness. Thank you Jesus for the sweet gift you have given us in Avery Grace!

"For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. " Psalm 139:13-16

Laminin!

I heart Louie Giglio! :) He's my hero... not in a weird idolatrous kind of way, but in a mentor kind of way. I was able to see his "How Great Is Our God" talk live last year and it blew me away! This is a clip from that talk, so if you have a few minutes check it out! It's really amazing!

Happy Thursday!
Andi