Down syndrome makes life better ...

If you aren't part of the Down syndrome community, you may have missed the recent news reports regarding Iceland "eradicating Down syndrome".

How is this possible?  It isn't.

Let me just lay it out on the table, why beat around the bush?  Diseases can be eradicated, Down syndrome is not a disease.  It is not that Down syndrome is being eradicated, it is that human beings who have three copies of the 21st chromosome (trisomy 21/Down syndrome) are.  In Iceland the rate of abortion following a diagnosis of Down syndrome is nearly 100%.  Many country's rates are just a little lower, even in the U.S. it is approximately 67%.  Staggering and shocking statistics, but nothing I didn't already know.  The reasons vary, but in large part parents are given a very bleak outlook on what life will be for a child with Down syndrome.  Worst case scenarios are often provided as fact.

Meanwhile, my heart and soul have been poured into piles of paperwork.  Checks have been written, fundraisers held.  Countless prayers have been lifted.  I check my email repeatedly each day to see if I've finally received an update on the child who will join our family - and to see if there's news of progress in this long, heart wrenching process.  For over nine months now we have clung to hope and held onto faith as we walk through the journey of adoption.  At the center of all of this is a little girl with beautiful brown eyes, the most perfect rosebud lips, and an extra 21st chromosome.

She is wanted, chosen, treasured, adored ... she is worthy.  Worthy of everything it takes to bring her home.  Worthy of having a family she can call her own.  Worthy of LIFE!  

When we talked about adopting some day, we had no idea what it would look like for our family.  Foster to adopt or private adoption?  Domestic or international adoption?  Boy or girl?  But we were sure of one thing, we wanted a child with Down syndrome.  We have seven years of experience parenting a child with Down syndrome (our biological daughter).  We know what a beautiful journey it is to know and love someone "rockin that extra chromosome"!  

... and now you know too.  

LIFE is BETTER with Down syndrome.

There's a movement happening to share that life with Down syndrome is beautiful and amazing and so totally worth it - "30 days of sowing joy"!!!  It started when Annie Reid posted this video - a call to action for parents of children with Down syndrome to share photos with the hashtag, #lifeisbetterwithyou!  By the following day it was taking off and I had an idea, let's make a video!

Annie said it and I will reiterate, this is not just about those of us who are parenting a child with Down syndrome.  There's an entire army of us shouting the worth of our children on a daily basis, but in large part our shouts don't reach beyond our own circles.  Please, consider sharing our video.  Search that hashtag and see the brightness shining into this dark world.  Share with your friends, family, and on your social media platforms!  We need you to help us shout this to the all corners of the earth!  Down syndrome is not something to rid the world of, it is a gift to be treasured!

mini update ...

No new photo to share, just this same one - my most favorite - from the update we received in March.

Yesterday I emailed the agency to see if there was any word on the update I asked for (in early June) ... we were so spoiled last time, because we got an update in about a week.  I guess it's not usually so fast, as the agency's contact person is too far and so she actually has to contact the orphanage to have someone go out to the foster home to get updates.

The email I got back was not what I was expecting.  I was told that part of the delay in getting an update is that pink eye is "wide spread" in our girl's town ... and that she got it and is in the hospital being treated for it.

It's hard to put into words how this feels.  I just want to be there and see her for myself and know that she's ok.  The 6,543 miles that separate us feel even further right now.

Please join us in praying for Ruby's health.  That she will heal quickly and be back to her healthy self.

DTC & LID ...

We had some big news come on May 30 - DTC!!!

what's DTC?

DTC is an acronym for "dossier to China"!

ok, so what does this mean?

this means that on May 30, 2017 our dossier began it's journey to China!

the dossier is all the documents, all the forms, the home study - everything we've put our heart and soul into these past few months ... it was all for this point when we could send it off to it's destination.  Once there it gets logged into the system, then it gets translated, then it gets reviewed ... and then, THEN we get officially approval to adopt this sweet girl we now call Ruby!

usually people get LID within a few days, but for some reason ours took two entire weeks - 14 agonizing days.  We finally got work on June 13 that we were LID, an acronym for "log in date"!

I tried to be patient, but after a week and a half of not hearing of any progress (many people get updates for the stages of "in translation" and "out of translation, and our agency had said they would keep us up to date on where our dossier was at) I decided to email yesterday.  I was thrilled to read the reply email that said we are now in process of review!!!!

This is the longest stage for the dossier, as all that information has to be read and thoroughly examined!  Never the less, I was pleasantly surprised that translation went faster than I thought and progress always makes me happy.

Every step, no matter how big or how small, is one step closer to her.

One step closer to having her in our arms.

One step closer to bring her home.

One step closer to our forever.

The bottom line ...

So, I've tried to keep up with the financial part of this adoption.  I have tracked each fundraiser, each donation, I have made charts, I have spent hours figuring out the math of it all - which is actually quite confusing when you're trying to keep track of every little thing!

Along the way I think there's been a few math mistakes (it's super confusing when people want me to track money that is "on the way" and maybe those amounts got double counted?  I can't seem to pin point the mess up, I just know that we're not as far along as I thought we were)  And I can't deny the fact that originally we were under the impression that $25,000 was the total we would need - but I've come to the conclusion that perhaps that original estimate was to cover just the agency portion.

I've been getting some questions, I get it.

You want to know where we're at with the total, how close are we to that fully funded finish line?!

Some people want to know why it costs so much?  Some people want to know why people are adopting if they can't afford it?  Some people want to know where all this money goes?

That's what this post is for!  I hope I can answer all these questions. (and if you have more, please leave a comment!)

THE BREAKDOWN

So far we have paid two invoices to our agency, totaling $12,210.00

*this has covered 2/3 of the program fee, the home study, the dossier finalization fee, the humanitarian aid fee, the dossier submission fee, admin fee, in country coord (coordinator?) fee, dossier authentication, and dossier state certification.

In upcoming invoices, we will owe our agency $9,725.00

*this covers 1/3 of the program fee, in-state post adoption fees, visa processing fee, and the estimated in country travel package.

We also have in-country fees and travel expenses, totaling $13,665.00

*this covers the orphanage donation, notary fee, registration fee, application fee, passport application fee, incidental fees, medical exam fee, airfare, visa application fee, miscellany (taxis, tips. laundry, etc.)

So that's all the expenses broken down, "where the money goes"!  (& I'll mention this doesn't include the incidentals on this side of it, like mailing paperwork to the agency, fingerprints, etc.)


WHERE WE'RE AT

So if you're following, we've paid in $12,210.00 and have upcoming $23,390.00 (and yes, that means the grand total is $35,600.00 to fully fund this adoption - not including some incidentals!)

We currently have $8,773.50 credit at our agency (from paying ahead), we have $4027.14 in our Reece's Rainbow FSP, and $2,398.82 saved.  This means that of that $23,390.00 left to pay, we have $15,199.46 towards it.  That leaves $8,190.54 to come up with.

I am confident we CAN DO THIS!  We've come so far already!

$8,190.54 to go ... let's do this!!!


WORTH IT

Why?  My quick answer to all the "why" questions is, because she's worth it.

"why does it cost so much" ... I don't know, but I know she's worth it.  (and to be clear, we are not buying our daughter - we are simply paying all the legal & otherwise necessary fees and expenses to make her a member of our family.)

"why are you adopting if you can't afford it" ... because she's worth it.  She's worth working hard to fundraise, she's worth humbling ourselves to say we can't do this alone, she's worth limiting our spending to necessities (in January & February I literally bought nothing but gas, food, and personal needs - I've since eased up, but I'm still budgeting!  And no, all this money I've talked about was not all fundraised/donated - it came from us too!)  We can absolutely afford to take care of another child, that's what really matters here.  Having over $35K on hand is quite another story.

"why China?" ... because that's where our daughter is, and regardless of location all children deserve a family where they can know love and realize their worth!


So that's where we're at friends.  Our dossier was sent May 30 and we're anxiously awaiting to hear that it's been logged in to the system.  We long for the day Ruby is here, home with us.  We talk about her all the time, we wonder out loud what she'll think of us and life in America ... and to settle my heart just a tad, each day I watch her videos.  Meanwhile, we just focus on crossing that financial finish line - reaching the top of that mountain!

Where we're at, take two ...

today's BIG news:

we got our I800A approval!!!

(just as a little reminder what this is about, I found this info:  "The I-800A allows the USCIS to make a preliminary determination of the prospective parents' fitness to bring an orphan into the United States. The USCIS looks at the application, the attached homestudy report, and the other requested documents in making the determination.")  So, in simple terms, this is the US government saying we meet the criteria and have approval to adopt a child from a Hague country!

and ...

how about some fundraiser updates!

TEE SHIRT CAMPAIGN

we launched our first tee shirt campaign in the wee hours of the morning!

a little about that ...

Hope is defined as a feeling of expectation and desire for a certain thing to happen, a feeling of trust.  Having hope has bee a huge part of this journey for me.  My hope began the moment I saw her precious face!

Saying yes to this girl was easy, knowing we are meant to be hers ... but also scary, not knowing where the needed finances would come from.  It was without a doubt the biggest leap of faith we've ever taken!

There are so many things in life that require that stepping out, taking that leap - holding on to the hope that it will all work out!  This is what inspired our tee design!

Please click here to check it out!

We must meet a minimum for these to print, plus the more we sell the more we make - so please also feel free to share!

Our Puzzle Fundraiser

last week we lowered the price to sponsor a puzzle piece,

this week was our second largest yet - with sixteen new pieces sponsored!

We now have 95 puzzle pieces sponsored - and 157 left!!!

I am so enjoying seeing the puzzle come together!

I can't wait for it to be complete so I can frame it and hang it on our wall!

would you like to sponsor a piece of our puzzle?

it's $10 a piece, simple click here to donate and we will add your name to a piece!

this puzzle is going to be such a treasure for us to have and for Ruby to see so 

many names of amazing people who helped to bring her home!

Nana's Yardsale

can we talk about the many amazing people who have come along side us on this journey, so eager to help in whatever ways they possibly can.

the outpouring of love & support is stunning, it takes my breath away.

when we said yes, we did so knowing we needed an army behind us ... 

but also knowing that having any expectations could be crushing.

again, a leap of faith!

we have been surprised to see so much support coming from strangers and people we only know through social media, such a testament to the power of community ... but we also have some friends and family that have gone above and beyond anything we could have dreamed!

this weekend my mom, aka: Nana, had a big yardsale fundraiser.

to the many people who pitched in - donating items, helping set up, helping during the sale, helping clean up, praying for success ... thank you!

our fundraising efforts will continue until we hit our fully funded goal.

I excitedly anticipate that day, not just because of the huge impact for us - to be at the top of this gigantic financial mountain ... but also because once we've met our goal and no longer need to put every extra penny towards our own adoption, we can pay it forward - I can't wait!!!

and ...

we've been offered another matching grant!!!

what's a matching grant?
it's when someone offers to match a certain dollar amount of donations!
for instance, if someone offers a $100 dollar matching grant:
that means that you now need to hustle to get $100 in new donations (often there's a time limit in which to meet this), and then they will match that - adding another $100 donation!
sometimes the numbers are confusing, it's just because we calculate the fees (so, for instance, $100 in donations would be a raise of $97 in our FSP)

our Reece's Rainbow FSP currently reads $2,828.74 ...

we were offered a $500 matching grant!!!

our FSP needs to read $3,313.74 by May 13

*EVERY DOLLAR COUNTS & MAKE A DIFFERENCE*

if you feel led to help us meet this matching grant, please click here:

Angel for the Job Family

prayers & shares are always welcome!!!

AND ...

how about we end this post with an updated fund-o-meter!!!

I couldn't believe it when I worked all the figures and saw we were at a little over $26,000 ...
so I'm sending in $1000 to bump it to over $27,000!!!

not quite $8,000 to go and we are there - at the top of the mountain, fully funded!

 keep up the prayers & shares, friends!
we can feel your love & support!
THANK YOU!!!

we are yours ...

oh sweet girl, we still have a ways to go until it is official ...

but you know I knew from that moment I saw you, that I was yours.

I hope I never forget how I felt that night ...

it was like nothing I've ever experienced before.  to see your little face and suddenly feel a

 connection that can only be expressed as knowing I was your mama.  suddenly I felt so sad 

and so scared, that I had a piece of my heart so far away ... that is when the hope began.

we have come SO far in just three and a half months.  I pray I never let myself forget how amazing it is to see God's mighty hand in this journey, and how touching it is to see the true beauty of so many good people reaching out to help us.  God is so, so good!

and now sweet girl, we have a name for you ...

it felt important to me not to take anything away from you, but equally as 

important that we give you a name just as we have the four children before you.

you are so precious to us,

Ruby ********* Sonya

We all agree, she is Ruby!  We are keeping her Chinese name as her first middle name and are giving her my mom's, her new Nana's, name as her second middle name!!!

... we are coming for you precious Ruby, just as fast as we possibly can!

so many things ...

a long over due update.
clearly regular blogging escapes me these days.

so let's see, where did I leave off ...

my last post was a lot about the aspects of financing an adoption, a huge undertaking for sure.  we continue to climb that financial mountain and we're a little over half way now.  so amazing!

where we're at right now ...

our home study is complete, woohoo!!!  our I800A has been sent in (this is the application for determination of suitability to adopt a child from a convention country) and we just got our official letter that it was received on March 22!  now we wait for our letter with fingerprint appointment.  once that's all done and we have our I800A approval, we can send our dossier to China - a big, huge piece of this journey!!!

and little sister ...

well, we were able to get an update (this came on the perfect day, 3/21 - world down syndrome day) through our agency.  this included a few photos, a new video, and answers to some questions we had.  we found out her favorite snacks are: milk, cookies, french fries, and candy.  the more we find out about her, the more we see that she's bound to fit right in around here!

then a few nights ago I received an email from the lady of the courier we used to send little sister's care package (we weren't allowed to send ourselves, we had to use a third party courier).  it was answers to the questions we asked as part of our letter to little sister and her caregivers.  so now I have two sets of answers to our questions, and though they are fairly short & sweet answers - I still adore a little insight.  so I was able to confirm that she did indeed get her care package.  my heart was so happy to know this!

and some super fun news - we've finally settled on a name for "little sister"!  we aren't ready to reveal it quite yet, but stay tuned because we're going to make the reveal extra fun.

please continue to keep us in your prayers.  specifically, please continue to pray for the funding.  also of utmost importance is to pray for the adjustment when she is finally home!  please pray for our sweet little one.  she needs to be with her forever family, but for her this will be so confusing and scary.  please pray peace and comfort for her when the transition arrives!

thank you all, many blessings