Pajama Project 2012=SUCCESS!!

Grand total-108

WOW!

I am completely overwhelmed by that number. So many of you gave me pajamas! Thank you, thank you, thank you so very much!

It is really special to be in the family of God.

I was given SO many pajamas at church, just because of a blog post and a little announcement in our ladies class.

Packages arrived on my doorstep because sweet girls that I went to college with wanted to help and ordered the cutest PJs and had them sent to my house.

Family sent them back with us at Thanksgiving.

Friends gave me bags of pajamas and told me that more was coming..and more came.

Some people bought them and shipped them to us from Hawaii. Yes..really, Hawaii.

Husbands just turned a blind eye when certain wives would throw pajamas into their cart every time we went to Target.

Elves volunteered their wrapping services until late into the night.

Wrapping paper was just handed to me, without even a request.

Thanks.

Tomorrow we will get to deliver these jammies to the Rescue Mission and hopefully everyone will have a pair that works for them somewhere among the pile. I was given a list of names and sizes, so we decided to wrap those. Then we realized that if there are any additional children that we didn't have on the list, they would probably enjoy a wrapped gift too, so we wrapped the extras and just put the size on the tag. I am praying it all works out and that the pajamas make them feel special and safe.

When you come home after a long day, or your little one finally goes to bed for the night, or when you feel sick..what's the first thing you want to do? If you're like me, the answer is put on your pajamas. Pajamas can save the day.

These pajamas aren't going to change the world or anything. In fact I can guarantee that it has given me more joy than it will any single child. It means so much to me to be ABLE to do something and for everyone to help me just shows how much can happen when people work together. 

Ryan is now reading one of my favorite books: Go+Do by Jay Milbrandt. I love when we read the same books because when we talk about them it reminds me of the great parts of the book. (By the way, my husband is incredible and when I ask him to read a book, he will)

One of my favorite parts of the book is when the author asks, "How many people does it take to start a movement?" I think the optimistic/textbook/Sunday School answer is one, one person can start something, right? 

Well, he goes on to tell a story about a video of an outdoor concert. One lone person steps out into a field and starts dancing. They are just out their looking crazy, dancing all alone. And they would have stayed that way, alone, until the second person joins them. That second person goes out into the field and dances with them...and then...many many follow. 

If you know someone who wants to DO something or start something, volunteer to be their number 2. You never know what might happen. 

My heart has been broken and my mind has been spinning over the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting. I have zero answers for how to even begin to address the tragedy and what to do moving forward. All I know is that there is only ONE who can overcome heartache. 

John 16:33-"These things I have spoken to you, That in me you have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world."

One day Jesus will overcome ALL of the evil and sadness of this world and it will just be gone. What if we  all try to bring Jesus closer to this world by BEING Jesus in ANY way we can? 

If you see someone "dancing in a field all alone"- join them. Thank you for joining me. 

And..I'm back...

No surprise that this blog had posts titled December 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and then radio silence. Good thing I'm  not getting paid to blog every day.

Don't worry-I did NOT abandon my acts of kindness-we have just been crazy busy since, well, always..but its self inflicted and we are blessed beyond measure so I won't complain.

I realized that I am in many ways really bad with structure and deadlines, etc. SO..I had to loosen my expectations on getting each thing done DAILY and will just try to accomplish all of them this month. Sorry to let you down..I'm a work in progress. Kindness IS and HAS been spread!

A few weekends ago Ryan and I dropped Brody off with my parents in Chattanooga and went to Asheville to just enjoy a little getaway and visit the Biltmore. This was a super wonderful treat from my parents for Christmas and for Ryan finishing his MBA!!! It was my first time to spend the night away from Brody and let me tell you....it was really great. I LOVE my child so so so so much but I love spending time with my best friend (Ryan). We really enjoyed just being able to focus on each other and enjoy some down time-I highly recommend a little getaway for any parents who feel a little hesitant to leave their babies. :)

The Biltmore at night. We got to go on Friday night when they had all of the fireplaces and Christmas lights lit. It was really amazing! 

 That's Ryan standing in front of that HUGE tree. He's holding a coffee. Our main plan was to have a really good coffee in our hands at all times.

 We went back on Saturday for the full walk through and we did the audio tour and a special behind the scenes tour where we got to go into a few extra bedrooms and hear some neat stories about the people who visited the Vanderbilts. This made us really want to rewatch Downton Abbey. 

 On the way to Asheville we of course stopped at a Starbucks and were able to check off one of our tasks. I remember one time we went to Starbucks and the girl at the window said that the person in front of us had paid for our drinks and that everyone in line was paying for the person behind them. I was really intrigued by the whole thing and wondered how long it went on. Who knows? Maybe the person behind us kept it going?

I don't have pictures but our other 2 weekend acts of kindess were to let someone in front of you in line-which I think we did a few times-easy! And-give a generous or unexpected tip. We were really excited to give the man at the omelet station a nice tip during breakfast. He was really sweet and his omelets were awesome. 

 If you don't know, The Contributor  is a newspaper written and sold by people who are homeless or formerly homeless. You can usually see them standing all around different areas of Nashville. They cost $1.00. If you have never read one, you should, it's a good paper! I drove around for a few minutes until I found a seller and she was REALLY appreciative. 

 

The Vanderbilt Children's Hospital website has a TON of  things listed that are super easy to round up and donate that could really make a huge difference in a family's hospital experience. Toys and art supplies to occupy the children and make their stay more enjoyable and practical things like underwear for kids and parents. We had to take little newborn Brody to the hospital and if it wasn't for great friends who came to our house and got some things for us, I would have needed some of those "practical things!" :) 

So I gathered a few things off the list and plan to make an appointment to drop it off. Easy One!

https://www.childrenshospital.vanderbilt.org/interior.php?mid=1166

Leave some candy canes on people's cars. I put this one on the car beside me RIGHT when I got out, and before I could get Brody out the owner was getting in her car. Like..we almost touched. I hope she ate it and liked it, or at least felt like she was special.

Another easy one was leaving some diapers and wipes in a restroom with a note! When would someone really appreciate a random act of kindness?? When they get in the bathroom and realize they have no diapers! I know I would.

So, technically I was supposed to make treats for my neighbors..which I still plan on doing..but I made some cookies and then shared them with friends..so I counted that. :)

Send 3 cards-I sent 1 to a relative, 1 to our recycling man, and I have one more a church member ready to mail.

I am missing several days in there. Some I am still working on and others I have forgotten because I didn't document them properly. I will really enjoy doing these things when Brody can help too.

The biggest project of all has been the pajama collection!!!! Which deserves a post of its own..so stay tuned!

In adoption news...we had our biometrics appointment for USCIS this morning. We just had to get fingerprinted and when we get approval...we will be one step closer to our littles!!! We ARE on the waiting list and we are just praying praying praying that we will know more in 2013! Thank you for the prayers! Keep them coming!

December Fourth

It's a yucky day. Yesterday was beautiful but today is a little dreary. However it was a PERFECT morning to spread a little cheer at the library.

This one was strategically placed because we usually either go to story time on Tuesday or Wednesday. I stuck it in a Tuesday JUST in case we didn't make it to story time today, we could at least make the treats for tomorrow. However..the rain encouraged us to go to story time this morning so that we could get out of the house. If you have a toddler-or maybe just any aged child-you know the blessing of getting out of the house for something fun. Especially something FREE and fun! 

I honestly LOVE the library and all of the wonderful people who work there. It is such a special treat for us each week and I wanted to let them know how much we appreciate them! 

I love a parking garage on a rainy day! 

 Puppets, juggling, stories, songs, rainbows..what could be more fun? 

And a craft! Brody's first time painting! He painted 2 mittens, one to take home and one to leave at the library to go on their Christmas tree.

Art school? That's what I'm thinking, look at those brush strokes. 

He loves books!! Unfortunately we had to make an abrupt exit from the play area when someone "forgot" how to share. There was a bucket of puppets and some sort of tug-o-war with a stranger involved, and then a short wrestling match. I won, don't worry. 

I dropped off the bucket of treats with the sweet man at the children's desk before story time. He was SO sweet and grateful and said he would make sure to spread the word. He seems a little surprised but in a good way. I actually heard a maintenance man asking him what it was and the librarian told him, "It says all library staff.." So I hope whoever wanted a cookie got one. :) 

As we were leaving another lady who works in the library was asking Brody if he went to story time, who all was there today, etc (the puppet mishap was forgotten) and she told us she hoped we came back often. I let her know we came almost every week and loved it! She said that she used to bring her children every week when they were little too. I'm glad we had the chance to tell her that we love the library, she seemed happy to hear it. 

Today's kindness act was really rewarding, and probably one of those things I would have thought about doing and never followed through with. So I am glad I wrote it down! And yes-my child is wearing shorts. 

December Third and PJ project update!

How 'bout this amazing weather? I usually don't like unseasonably warm days during the Christmas season but now that I have a little boy I will thank God for ANY opportunity to get out and play. Brody and I had a fabulous time at the park with one of my girlfriends and her little man! I had to keep shaking Brody's foot on the way home to keep him awake so that we wouldn't waste our nap on the last 3 minutes of the trip home. He promptly took a nap and I worked on our Act of Kindness for today!

I was excited about this one! Our mail man is always so sweet and Brody loves to wave at him and get the mail from him. One of Brody's first words beyond mama, dada, and bye bye was "mail man". So of course..we love the mail man!

This cookie dough is ridiculously yummy and its safe to eat because there are no eggs in this recipe. 

I watched the mail man out the window and I think he looked surprised and maybe a little confused. And yes I realize that most of you wouldn't eat something from someone's house that you didn't know..but people used to do things like that all the time...maybe he's old school. 

PAJAMA PROJECT UPDATE!!!!

I have been overwhelmed by the support that I have had with my PJ project and am so excited to take them to the Rescue Mission later this month. I got a list of the children and their sizes today so I can share some areas of need with you if you would like to help!There were almost 50 children on the list and there is a chance there could be more! Remember...just leave a comment/facebook/e-mail me @ abbymhysmith@gmail.com

I really need adult sizes of pajamas for the teenage boys and girls!! XS girls, Small, medium, large, X Large and XXL!! All sizes for boys and girls!! 

Also-size small child for boys and girls

size medium for child-girls

9 month for boy and girl

2T for girls

Multiples in all of the sizes would be great :) THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH FOR THE SUPPORT!!!! I know the children will love their new comfy jammies!!!! 

December Second

Today's Random Act of Kindness was a pretty small, simple one.

Very small gesture and it didn't cost me much- just some quarters! The only problem was that when we went to Target today we forgot about it so after we put Brody to bed I decided to go on a little drive and find a vending machine of some kind. All of the places I drove past did not have drink machines outside or anything so I went to Publix and saw an ice machine. :) It had a change slot so I went for it! I felt like I was playing a prank or something because I was rushing around and almost giggled when I thought someone was looking at me.

I was hoping no one would see me and think I was crazy. I have no idea who will benefit from this small little act but I hope it makes someone smile. It won't change a life or anything but MAYBE it will encourage someone to "pass it on." And if kindness could spread as rapidly as germs during flu season..well, then the world would be a better place!! 

If you have any great ideas for ways to show kindness in a small or big way...please share! I am thinking this month will just kick start a great year of being kinder for our family. :) Can't wait till tomorrow!

December First

This morning I was very excited to let Ryan pull out our very first "act of kindness" from the #1 pocket!

We LOVE to do a fun Saturday morning breakfast treat so this one went right to the heart of the Hysmiths.
So we set out to see if we saw anyone who looked like they might enjoy a treat nearby so that we would have a direction to go once we had the goods in hand....it didn't take long!

Ryan ran into the The Sub House-right near our own house. Yes, we could have gone to Krispy Kreme or Dunkin Donuts but these donuts are really yummy too AND we love supporting local businesses. 

We got some donut holes because I just think there is something pretty fun about them. I happen to like them more than the actual donut or is it really "doughnut". Yes it is..pardon the commercialized spelling. 

We didn't have to go far to find our friend and give him a breakfast treat. He was SUPER sweet and when I told him I hoped he had a good day he said that it would be much better now and was just really appreciative 

So...we brightened someone's day and the bonus is it made us feel really good. Not in the way of "Oh wow we are such great people to do this nice thing..." Because Wow-doughnuts and coffee? We could do so much more.! But it made us thankful to God that we were even in a position to do something for someone else.

 We are so so so so so blessed and sometimes- until you drive up to a person, have a little chat with them and realize that people who are in much more difficult circumstances are really kind and encouraging, do you realize what a gift you have to be able to bless someone else. 

We also happened to have $1 and got this contributor from John. I asked him his name and it is also written here.His message on his paper is reminded us that it is a BRAND NEW DAY-This day has never been used. I love that! 

"The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, His mercies never come to an end. They are new every morning, great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23

 I wrote him a note to tell him Merry Christmas and that we would be praying for him. Another blessing we realized this morning-we are able to bring the people who need Him before the throne of God. Wow. What an honor! If we hadn't met John this morning, we wouldn't have known to bring his name before God. And it means so much to me when I know someone prays for me by name. 

But the really special thing is this...when we sat down at the table to eat our own breakfast (yes, we got donuts too) Brody said "pray?" and we were able to pray for our friend John with Brody. The doughnuts may not change much...but if we do our jobs to teach Brody to love God and show His love to others..then this little guy might just change the world.  

"Train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it."  Proverbs 22:6

Christmas Kindness

In about half an hour it is going to be December. I am really excited about this month for a few reasons. Lots of fun activities coming up, time with friends a family, a little trip for the hubby and myself, good food, etc. etc. What I am most excited about right now is this:

I know, you're probably overwhelmed at the quality of this photo..take a minute to gather yourself and then I will tell you what that is.

It is my Random Act Of Kindness Advent Calendar!

Made by yours truly with a little gluing help from a friend. (Thanks Elizabeth!)

The gist is-each day we will pull out a slip of paper with a "random act of kindness" written on it. Not so random if I am telling the blogosphere? Let me explain my intentions here. First of all, I got the idea from another blog-which then encouraged me to do the same, so I think it's a good thing to share. I have read about where people do 30 Acts of Kindness on their 30th birthday, and things such as that.
I got some of the ideas from other people and made some of them up myself. I am really excited about every single one of them.

I am not a type A person. I am a procrastinator and I have a lot of really good intentions. I miss meetings and get dates wrong for fun get togethers and accidentally skip them. This doesn't really always work for me. I don't always do the things that I really want to and need to do. So lately..I have been scheduling my life out and it kind of helps. Meal planning and exercising are the first two areas that sort of ignited me to be more organized. I can't wait to tell you about our New Year's resolution guidelines and goals. :) ....Anyway..the point is, we all think of little things that would be kind to do and that would make someone feel better but if you're like me, you don't always do it! So...I wrote some things down..stuck them in a little pocket and plan to pull one out each day and do it. It isn't forced or fake because I want to do it. This will just help me to remember and motivate me to actually do it. And..I bet it will be so great that this will just bleed over into many more days of acts of kindness.

We also want to make Christmas about so much more than presents. We want to share with Brody that it means so much more to give to others. So it is really special to us to be able to have the opportunity to do something for someone else, no matter how small, and let Brody be a part of that.

I only have 24 days on my calendar because that is all that fit. I do want to always try and plan one big service project for Christmas each year. This year that is going to be the Pajama Project!! If you missed out on that post you can find that here: http://3hysmiths.blogspot.com/2012/11/project-pajamas-needs-you.html or just go to my post labeled Project Pajama..I still need more PJs. But I have been given about 30 pairs of jammies and I think that is awesome, thanks everyone!

These acts may be really small-but kindness goes a long way. So "FOLLOW" me and join me if you want! And if you want the quick update-follow me on Twitter @AbbyHysmith...if you're into that kind of thing.

"But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, KINDNESS, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control, against such things there is now law." Galatians 5:22-23

Project Pajamas Needs YOU!

Whether your Christmas tree is up and you've been rocking out to Bing Crosby for months, or you are a die hard "no tinsel till after the Turkey" kind of person..you are probably fully aware that the Christmas season is upon us.

Anyone you ask probably has a different Christmas tradition that they love. Some of them may be big extravagant traditions like boot prints on the fireplace and climbing on the roof to jingle some bells in the middle of the night. Or it may be popping in Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas and making some Swiss Miss. I don't know-perhaps this year you are going to implement a new Pinterest craft every single day. Oh that Pinterest...I remember making snowmen out of plastic spoons with our neighbors when I was little and I thought that was awesome. (And no-I am not a hater, my Christmas board is one of my most crowded boards.)

Whatever your Christmas plans/traditions/seasonal goals may be....I have something that NEEDS YOUR HELP!! 

One thing that many people like about Christmas is getting new pajamas to wear on Christmas Eve. Not that big of a thing-but a sweet memory. 

Did you know that there are over 50 kids at the Nashville Rescue Mission? Did you know they range from infancy to 17? Well if you didn't..now you do. 

Ryan and I volunteered with Ordinary Hero at the Franklin Pumpkinfest for their Halloween Outreach with the rescue mission kids. The lady who started Ordinary Hero had the idea one year to do something fun for the kids for Halloween and a tradition started. This outreach opportunity encouraged me to think of something we could do to make Christmas a little more special for them. Thus began...PROJECT PAJAMA! 

I e-mailed someone at the NRM and asked her if this idea was possible/a good idea. She said YES-Great idea...she knows there will probably be around 50+ children staying there at the time. (This changes often) But she thought that the same group that was there around Thanksgiving would still be there around Christmas.  I told her I would try to collect various sizes and some extras so that everyone could have a pair that fits. She is planning to be able to give me more details on number/ages/sizes next week.

But here is my plan for now......Collect as many NEW pairs of pajamas as I possibly can!!! This is where you come in!!!!!!! 

• Please purchase any sizes or styles of pajamas that you want ranging from baby to 17 year old-boy and girl!! They do not have to be Christmas themed, but can be. 
• Spread the word to friends to do the same thing! 
• Bring them to me at any service at Crieve Hall Church of Christ OR
• Contact me via email abbymhysmith@gmail.com- and I will come and get them from you or you can bring them by my house OR
• If you live out of town-you can mail them to me OR
• If you order online you can ship them to my house-just email me @ abbymhysmith@gmail.com 
• Be waiting for an update on the inventory that is coming in and what they need at the Rescue Mission
• Pray for the homeless families all over our country and about ways we can help them! 

They plan to give the children the new PJs on Christmas Eve! What a special thing (though it is small) for kids who don't have much! My prayer is that this small gesture will help the families to know that Jesus loves them so much-because we will be serving these families only in the name of Jesus because we are blessed! 

Let's make Christmas a little cozier for these kiddos!!! And..stay tuned for something I am hoping to do for the women at the Nashville Rescue Mission. We cannot do this without you-please consider being a part of this special project!! 

I want to set a goal but I am not sure what a good number to shoot for is...how many can we collect? If you want to commit please comment and if you want-follow my blog!!!!! 

Thanks!!! 

Orphan Sunday

Today is Orphan Sunday. November is also National Adoption Awareness Month. So I have a few thoughts...

This morning around 4:30 my precious little Brody woke up. His PJ's were wet and his nose is super stuffed up and he has all this congestion in his chest and you can't really explain to a 1 year old how to cough and clear his throat. Needless to say-he was sad. Ryan and I both got up and Ry changed Brody's jammies and we got him some milk and I just rocked him while Ryan changed the sheets. I love my son so much that it makes me melt when he cuddles me and hurts my heart when he feels bad in any way. My mommy heart is often an achy melty mess. Brody is such a special little boy and we are extremely blessed to be his parents.

While I was enjoying the moment of snuggling with Brody and hoping he would feel better soon I couldn't help but think that there are MILLIONS of children all around the world and right around the corner who DON'T have someone to rock them when they are sick. They don't have a clean dry pair of pajamas if they wet theirs. This fact absolutely breaks my heart. All children deserve a mommy and a daddy. Babies deserve full bellies and play time and children need to be able to go to school.

Our hearts ache to know more about our two little ones who will at some point be orphaned. We pray that God can give them peace in their hearts to know that it isn't forever. We also feel so sad knowing that there are so many children out there who will not lose their orphan status. The best thing is to have a mommy and daddy who love you and will care for you always.

I don't know about God's calling for you. But as Christians we are all called to help those less fortunate- particularly orphans.

The good news is-there are a lot of things being done to help orphans. All around the world people are doing  all kinds of bold things and all kinds of small things.

Maybe you are already doing something. Maybe you are already doing A LOT. Thank you for your example and your heart. Sometimes we know we should do something we just don't know what. So here are some ideas...

I ask you to PLEASE pray and ask God what YOU can do to serve an orphan. Here are some ways that you can DIRECTLY help an orphan.

http://www.showhope.org/Donate/BecomeASponsor.aspx Show Hope is an awesome organization that you can support in different ways. 91% of your donation will go to orphan care or to aid families with adoption. Your monthly donation would go to giving life changing care to an orphan who stays in one of Show Hope's care centers.

http://www.worldvision.org/m/sponsor-a-child/?open&campaign=1193519&cmp=KNC-1193519&gclid=CPmU1-rqtrMCFQHonAodqEgA_Q Sponsoring a child through World Vision is a little different. These children may not be orphans but your sponsorship could very well keep them from becoming one. If there school is paid for and they have basic needs met-it really takes the burden off of their parents who so desperately want to provide for them and do not have a way to do so. Many times when parents are unable to feed their child or send them to school they relinquish parental rights or worse-sell them as a slave.

Visit my  link to http://www.147millionorphans.com/?AffId=94 on the side of my blog. There are some great Christmas gifts there and 1. It will help raise awareness to the orphan crisis and you can learn a lot more about the organization and the work they are doing. 2. It will help our adoption efforts 3. Even if you don't want to purchase through our link-just check it out-your purchase will help children in need all around the world!

Our hearts are really aching for children that we know NOTHING about. We are passionate about children in need of families and care and we want to be more involved in whatever little part we can. We want to encourage others to care for orphans and take a new step and leap of faith each day to learn more and do more. God has blessed us so much and I can't imagine not being a child of His. What if someone hadn't cared about me  when I was an "orphan" Boy do we have a LONG way to go to be the people that God wants us to be-and I'm sure we will never actually get there.

Our hearts and minds are open to more than just adoption-if anyone has encouragement or needs something-we are ready to get our hands dirty-literally and figuratively.

PRAY-PRAY-PRAY!!! Speak up for those who don't have a voice!

Books and 27

I absolutely love to read. Its my favorite hobby ever. I think a book can change your life because it can give you access to someone else's life and in a small way, experience that life in addition to your own.

My husband knows me well. This month, on the 21st, I turned 27. Ryan declared it  birthday month for me and on about October 2nd-he started giving me my birthday presents. I got 8 books for my birthday and we also built a book shelf earlier this month. I have a really sweet husband. You might be offended if you got 8 books for your birthday-I am super excited about it. I've read 4 of them.

Oh-most of the books were used which means they were super cheaper than they would be new which means-he splurged on hard back for me. Also-in our family we have started "birthday week punch cards". Right now its a metaphorical punch card but in the future they will be real. Each day for 7 days leading up to your birthday you get 1 punch! I used most of mine on Christie Cookie, Chick Fil A, and entertainment choices-a Sunday hike, a Friday date while the Palmers played with Brody-thanks :)

Here are the books I got for my birthday-so far, all of them are slam dunks.

This book was so good and eye opening. Once you get through the heart stopping grief that launches this story you can't put it down. If you're looking for a light happy story-this isn't it. But if you're into the kind of books that change your heart and help you learn more about the world and people who have experienced tragic loss, along with a lot of triumph-READ IT TODAY.



GO + DO was the perfect encore to Jantsen's Gift for me. This book is written by a man and  I don't read many books authored by males so I liked the difference. There are so many capacities of serving and reaching out to others and this one is written by a lawyer-most lawyers don't get credit for saving the world, so if you know someone who is interested in law and wants to help people-give them this.
 

Unbroken pretty much left me sleep deprived and amazed. I stayed up past midnight several nights in a row because I just couldn't put it down. What a story! This is pretty high on my favorite books ever list. I don't know what else to say about it-just read it.




Anything-this book really spoke to me. It put into words a lot of what I've tried to put into words and instead just made up a bunch of really bad analogies for how I feel. I think Ryan appreciates when I finally read something and can say-this is it-this is what I've been trying to say. Because then we can all sleep.


I sort of think that all of these books were written with the purpose to be life changing for Christ. Now the Bible is obviously THE book for such a thing, but sometimes when we read the stories of people we can meet or look at pictures of-it just helps us see the bible in a whole new way. I'm still letting them all "simmer" but I'm pretty pumped about their affect on me.

Still to be read...






Very excited about all of them! If you have read any of these let me know-I love discussing books! I may even let you borrow one, as long as you return it. :) I like to "encourage" my hubby to read books that I love so that we can come a little closer to having the same brain. (Wouldn't that make some things easier?)

So I am 27. I don't have a lot of wisdom to impart except that I am SUPER blessed. I have an amazing husband, a precious son, and hopefully sometime before I'm 37-2 more precious souls will join our family. We have a home that is cool in the summer and warm in the winter. I actually have to decide what to wear each day which means I have more than one thing to wear. Grocery shopping is something that I can do any time I want. I know how to read and can own any book I want. I can proclaim Jesus on the internet or in a store or anywhere I go (and I still don't do it everywhere I go-even though no one will throw me in jail or behead me.) I stay at home with my kid every day and we have to "find things to do" so we don't go crazy. Eating too much is the problem and running and walking are forms of exercise that I need to do more and not forms of getting around. My house is a wreck right now because the boss-ME- doesn't seem to care. Teaching my toddler to share is my hardest work assignment right now and the worst thing that happens to my son each day is having to come inside from playing.

Right now-at 27 I have some perspective. Maybe its because we are in the process of adopting from Africa. Maybe its because of these books I have been reading. I don't know-maybe God has given it to me because I need it so badly. Yikes I am blessed and I don't want be ungrateful or belittle my blessings. I want to share them and  be grateful for them! I want to want less and give more. I am so not a finished project and I have such a long way to go. I hope I'm doing a little better than I was at 17 and I pray that I have the opportunity to be better at 37. My talents are limited but my heart is open. If you like to shut out all of the bad things that are going on in the world-DON'T, because you just might be the person that God wants to use to do something about it. It might just be me. I'm not sure? But I hope my ears are open too-so I can hear what's next.

God Provides

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding, in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight." Proverbs 3:5-6

When your calling to do something overcomes your fear...that is when you can finally trust God. Some people may find the choices that others make irresponsible or hasty. Sometimes we make irresponsible and very impulsive decisions. Sometimes they don't turn out well. Adoption, isn't one of them.

Some people do not feel like they can adopt simply because it costs a lot of money. Its hard to figure out how to pay for things but there are a lot of families who just jump in and trust that the money will come. We are one of those families.

For those of you who have been wondering how much adoption costs, I'll just tell you. Our agency estimates that in 2012 the Fees and Expenses would come out to about $32,000.

The fees cover things like processing of paper work, the time it takes our social worker to come to our home and interview us and then type out a report to be sent with our dossier, fingerprinting and background checks, translation of our papers, registration of our documents, post adoption reports, travel, and different documents that cost money.

We are hoping to adopt 2 children. The fees will  not be twice as much but we are looking at a total of something like $40,000 or more. We are not trying to raise $40,000. We are doing everything we can to pay for every part of this adoption ourselves. But it is a little overwhelming at times, but then we remember that God is a part of this journey.

Last weekend some friends of ours hosted a support dinner for us. They wanted to (1) Make people aware that we were adopting and (2) help us any way they could with our funds. These friends of ours are precious treasures from the Lord.

I did absolutely NOTHING for this dinner other than show up. They sent the invitations and cleaned up afterwards and EVERYTHING in between.

The dinner was absolutely special and wonderful. The tables were beautiful, the food was delicious, the guests were so kind, the music (which I am listening to right now) was so sweet, the slide show was heartwarming, and the video they showed even worked! There were pictures of us and a really cool cut out of Africa with a bible verse on it. They came and got my 147 Million Orphans stuff and lots of it sold.

There was also a table with a bowl and some envelopes. The girls made an announcement at the dinner that they had raised over $1500 for us!! That is so HUGE! Now, back to that bowl...when we got home and opened up the envelopes we counted $2,760.   Several people gave us donations over the next few days.

Because these girls decided to help us, we are more than $4,500 closer to the goal!!! That's a really big deal!! Plus now that many more people know our story, we have that many more people praying for us! At the dinner they also left note cards on the table for people to write us notes and the kind words that people left us mean so much to us.

God has provided for us in so many ways and we are so grateful! The people in our lives are great instruments of his handiwork! Thank you so much, we are blessed and really don't have the right words to express how thankful we are to the people who worked on the dinner for us, those that came, those that donated, and for the ones praying for us...we love you!

I know there were other wonderful people who helped, thank you so much!!! IF ANYONE HAS FRIENDS WHO ARE ADOPTING AND YOU WANT TO HELP THEM.....Please contact me abbymhysmith@gmail.com, because this was a really great event!

Please pray for us as we await the next step in our process to be completed..it is hard to wait but boy are we growing!!! :)

Connect Courageously

"No matter how busy you are, you must take time to make the other person feel important. "
 Mary Kay Ash

We have been really busy lately. 

It's been great. We have spent a lot of time with family, made memories, eaten great food, and done a lot of laundry. But this morning, when I looked at my calendar (the dry erase one on the refrigerator) and I saw nothing written on it...I felt pure joy. I actually love to have things on my agenda. Play dates, errands, lunches, appointments, these are the musical notes to the sweet melody of my life, but sometimes, the rhythm needs to slow down a little bit. Because I need to remember that my symphony, my opus, my prize winning score, is my family. The little nucleus that lives in this house right now and the two that live in our hearts, those people are the ones I need to make feel important. 

I would love to take some time to report on those wonderful trips and activities that have happened in the past few weeks  months. So be expecting some retro blogging in the future. Those highlights will consist of the beach, Gatlinburg, and our precious precious son. But today, please let me share with you about our weekend. 

This past weekend Ryan and I attended Empowered to Connect. It is a conference geared towards adoptive and foster parents, along with social workers and counselors, but mainly parents. To say that it was "empowering" and that I "connected" would be an understatement. My emotions were in hyper overdrive and my heart was wide open from the minute I parked the car at Brentwood Baptist, which is where the conference was held. Ryan was able to come after lunch on Friday and join me, but I was solo for the morning session. As I was walking in I actually started crying just watching all of the other adoptive parents gather to learn more about how to connect with their children. It felt awesome to be in the presence of so many other people that are on the same journey as us. Some of them are WAY ahead of us, and other in the same boat. It was like God was showing me, see, you aren't alone. These people made it and they are with you. 

Now I don't really know how to explain what the sessions were about, but they were amazing.  There was scientific research, there were video clips, there were personal stories, there were charts, and there was THE  Dr. Karyn Purvis. In the world of adoption this woman is the expert. She has seen some children from VERY hard places and been able to help them and their families. My heart broke hearing her talk about the children who have come to her and the past they are trying to overcome.

 I remembered that God has a design for families. When a baby is born they are supposed to be held close and fed by their mother and rocked and cooed at by daddy. When they cry, someone should take care of their needs and they should always be warm and have a full belly. But this is not the case for every child.  Many things in this world do not go according to God's design...but the amazing thing about God is that He also offers redemption. So, whatever our children are missing, we will do all we can to try and make up for that. I know it won't be easy, but the first step is having the tools to make it happen. I believe that God provides those tools if we seek them out. He has created amazing people who have talents and brains to help us.

One of my favorite quotes from the conference was this: "Don't you love it when science catches up to God?" Some people think that there is either faith or there is science. I think that it's amazing to discover something that God designed and to understand it even further. Now I am no science lover...but when it comes to understanding the development of children and their brains and their inner workings...I like that, I like that a lot. 

We felt so blessed to go the conference. We took notes, cried, got some DVDs, and learned so much. It just sort of reignited our passion. Sometimes with adoption you hit slumps and it feels like the whole process just stopped. So doing something like this was great. It made it real again. It also made me thing that maybe sometimes the journey is long and hard because it strengthens us as parents. And these children are going to need strong parents.

I need to brag on my husband a minute. I don't think I do it enough. Ryan is a sweetheart. Literally, he just has a sweet heart. I feel so blessed to be the one to know him the best. You see, my sweet Ryan just turned 25. Yeah, he's a tiny baby. But he gets it. This man in my life is leading our family on a journey that I would not miss for anything. He is passionate about being a good father and husband and doing for our family whatever it is we need to do. I went on a run the other day and my mind was going crazy, naturally. A song popped into my head. It is by Casting Crowns and it is from the movie Courageous. If you haven't seen the movie, watch it tonight with your husband. If you're single, watch it and then reassess your list of desirable traits in a mate. Here are the lyrics to the song:

we were made to be courageous

we were made to lead the way

we could be the generation that finally breaks the chains

we were made to be courageous

we were made to be courageous

we were warriors on the front lines,

standing unafraid.

but now we're watchers on the side lines,

while our families slip away.

where are you men of courage?

you were made for so much more.

let the pounding of our hearts cry,

we will serve the Lord.

we were made to be courageous,

and were taking back the fight.

we were made to be courageous,

and it starts with us tonight.

the only way we'll ever stand,

is on our knees with lifted hands.

make us courageous,

Lord make us courageous.

this is our resolution, our answer to the call,

we will love our wives and children,

and refuse to let them fall.

we will reignite the passion,

that we buried deep inside.

may the watchers become warriors,

let the men of God arise.

Chorus

Background:

seek justice, love mercy, walk humbly with your God

seek justice, love mercy, walk humbly with your God

Lead singer:

In the war of the mind i will make my stand,

in the battle of the heart, in the battle of the hands.

in the war of the mind i will make my stand,

in the battle of the heart,

As I mentioned, Ryan is young. We are young parents, just starting out. But I think that he can lead his generation. He is on the front line for us. I am so proud of him. The whole theme of the conference was connecting with children from hard places. But we are going to make sure that we first connect with God, connect in our marriage, connect with Brody, connect with family and friends, and then when we finally are able to physically connect with our children in Ethiopia, we will learn to connect with them. 

As Christians, we were made to be courageous...not watcher on the sidelines. So get out there...whatever connections you have, really connect. 

And please listen to this song :)

Lessons

I already know this post is going to be all over the place. It's been quite a while since I typed out any of my thoughts, but oh have I had thoughts. :) If this doesn't make sense to you at all..sorry, please try to decode it as best you can and I will be back with some pictures of our adorable son soon.

Some things I have learned lately...

I love The Olympics-I was completely obsessed with the Olympics and Ryan and I both got twitter accounts so we could follow Olympians. I. LOVE. THE. OLYMPICS. I only cried like twice during each event (maybe just once during the 100 meter race). Oscar Pistorius..cannot contain my emotions about this man and his story. We're considering moving to GB to see if the accents rub off. My brother-in-law was spotted on the Today Show-Olympic version (yep, he was cool enough to actually go to the Olympics and even saw Michael Phelps become an Olympic legend). Sometimes (actually all the time) there are losers. Some people don't even finish their races-these were some of the hardest moments to watch. Working your whole life and then something goes wrong. UHH..it hurts my heart. I am thankful for this verse..."I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." 2 Timothy 4:7 There aren't many things that I could be best at in this world, so I am just going to try and finish this race with my faith.

God provides- I cannot even express how amazing God has been in providing what we need. We feel like He told us that we were supposed to pursue the adoption of TWO children and that He would provide the funds. Well, I can't really even tell you all the ways that God has provided but he has sent some amazing people into our lives. Laura Beth Lamb hosted a 31 party for us and just GAVE us all the money she would have made off of the party. This is part of her family's livelihood and she just GAVE it to to us. So many people placed orders and came to the party and even decided to host a party themselves that benefits US. All I had to do for this party was give her names of people to invite. THAT'S ALL. And we made almost $400 just because someone wanted to do something to support us. Oh and she lives in Indiana.

I had a friend just go buy my child a bunch of fall/winter clothes. She picked out amazing and sweet clothes that she knew I would love and that looked like Brody and when I asked her how much I owed her, she said..absolutely nothing..enjoy. Wow.

People have handed me cards and I was excited about the kind note of encouragement and when I realized they were giving us money, I of course..cried.

We've had friends donate a large amount of money to us when I know they have a lot going on themselves.

Women have given me their children's hand me downs.

We sold our furniture on Craigslist and the couple who bought our bed and large dresser gave us an extra $100 because we told them about our adoption plans.

I got a random phone call from a survey who wanted to ask me a few questions about vaccinating our child and if I did she'd send me $30...I got that check today.

We got a check from Blue Cross that was for something about something,..I don't know..but it was unexpected money.

We have sold t-shirts....which, by the way..are now becoming back in stock and there are NEW shirts available on the website, even more coming in soon. (Click the link on the side of this blog if you are interested)

I'm not trying to brag or reveal a lot of our financial business that some people may find to be private..but I want you to know that God provides! If you have ever dismissed the idea of adoption because of the money..please contact me! We aren't there yet but we KNOW that we can do it. I don't expect all the cash to just be handed to us...trust me. We are working really hard on saving and just not spending. But God is really taking care of us. Why am I shocked over these things?

We have some wonderful people in our lives-Now I'm going to be honest, there were times when we first began this journey that we weren't sure if we were in the right "circle" for adoption. We knew people would be sweet and excited but we weren't sure if we would feel like they "got it" or if we needed friends who had adopted also because we had that in common. OUR FRIENDS ARE AMAZING. They have been so supportive and helpful and loving and caring and wanting to ask about it and praying and doing so much more.... One time I read something that said something like this, your friends may not want to adopt just because you are adopting, and that's okay,  but they will want to help you and do anything they can for you, that is their part. This is going to be a LONG road and just because our sweet friends and family aren't headed this way doesn't mean they won't walk with us along the way. It means the world to us!!!! I'm sorry for my doubts or worries in the beginning...they don't say that adoption will help you grow for no reason. My eyes are opened to what other people are doing to open their hearts, minds, planners, and wallets for our children.  I love the friends I have, thank you for your support.

Patience is something you have to want in order to obtain-For a few weeks we were anxiously awaiting "The Ethiopia book". It is the instructions on how to complete the paperwork process and much more, from our agency. It needed some revising and the world does not revolve around us (so we hear) so, it took longer than we wanted it to for us to be e-mailed this important document.

I went to a pretty dark place for a while. I would check my e-mail 637 times a day and sink lower and lower each time I saw no e-mail. When Ryan would come home it became his fault that adoption takes a long time and I refused to leave my house because of the Olympics so I was in a black hole for a couple weeks.

People..this is not good. I wasn't trying to be patient. I was trying to make the e-mail appear in my inbox by checking it without ceasing. I think I should have been doing something else without ceasing..praying for our children. Praying for our marriage. Praying for Brody. Praying for our case worker and his family and be thankful for the work he does. Praying for those who are seriously hurting and sick.

I've got to get a different strategy because I don't even know WAITING yet. I can't imagine what it will be to wait when I actually have pictures and names to wait on..

From now on, I don't want to be crazy. Sure, I will have some hard times..but not because I choose to wallow in the waiting. I'll do better..and please, occasionally, force me to leave my home.

I always tell Brody that patience is waiting nicely, even when its hard. I will be trying to wait more nicely in the future.

BY THE WAY-We did get the Ethiopia Book! I was standing on the beach and checked my e-mail (gotta love a smart phone) and I jumped on Ryan's foot, he scowled at me and then we hugged!! So we are working on that now!! Hopefully we can have everything finished and our ducks in a row in a couple weeks! I had to order a new passport and some other documents that will take a little bit. But please pray for all of this to go smoothly!

I've got a great husband- He listens to me. He strives to make me happy. Sometimes I am difficult. He leads our family in the way that is right with God as his compass. He has compassion for others and is such a good daddy! I know he will be so good with our other children. Ryan is my best friend.

I've got a problem and it's called the Christie Cookie Chocolate Chip Sandwich Cookie. Worth. Every. Calorie. And then some.

Today's weather made me giddy. I went on a run this morning and I am so so excited for Fall. Ahh...Seasons, a little treat from God. He knew we would get bored with one climate.

I am so thankful for the health of my family. We aren't going to have these young healthy bodies forever. I am going to focus less on what this body of mine looks like and more on if it is healthy and fit to serve God and my family.

Man I love blogging...I will be back soon. My head feels so clear.

Moving Along

Yesterday we had our home study interviews. The word I would use to describe the whole thing would be...fabulous. God is so present in all of the decisions we make and I'm not sure why it continues to surprise us that He leads us to the right choices when we ask for His guidance. Our agency is amazing and our case worker could not have been any better suited for us. Our agency is so proactive in finding homes for children in need and I really admire the hard work they do and the sacrifices they make. God is using them so well! 


I cannot speak for other adoptive families but the home study interviews were nothing to fret about. Ryan and I are pretty much open books so it wasn't too hard for us. They just want to make sure that children are being put into a better situation than what they are coming from. Sadly..some children are put into worse environments and that is what the home study is trying to prevent. It's a really necessary step and we are just excited to be moving along! 


The thing we were most nervous about before hand were the answers we may get to some questions we wanted to ask him.


What is the wait time to receive a referral? About 9 months (like a pregnancy) and he thinks that is getting shorter. There is always a disclaimer that it could be much longer or that something terrible could happen, but we signed up knowing those things but hoping for the best. 


We want to make sure that we do not have the mindset of please go find us a child...but here we are, ready..when a child needs us..we will love them. Families for orphans..not orphans for families. 


When we started this process we decided we would be "open to siblings." Meaning, we would accept a referral for a blood related pair of siblings. Our hearts started to be changed and softened and instead of "open" we were now "hoping for siblings." The problem is that we have a young child and we would like him to remain the oldest child in our family. So unless there were twins needing a home, we would probably  receive a referral for one child. 


So our next question was "Can we adopt TWO non-blood related children at the same time?"  Yes...a lot of families do it, Ethiopia will allow it, you can do that. Sure. 


Will it take a lot longer to get a referral for two children? It will take longer probably, but not crazy long, and things are looking better all the time anyway. 


So, are you saying you are open to two children or you are seeking to adopt two? We want to be a family of 5.


Will you please write down that we WANT to adopt two children? That is what we are requesting. Two children born after May 31, 2011. Boys or girls or one of each. We would like to adopt two. Okay, great.


How many of those fees are doubled? Most of them you just pay half on the second child. And of course you travel only 2 times and not 2 for each child. One home study fee. 


Our social worker leaves.


Did we just tell him we wanted to adopt two children? Yes, and I am so excited about that. 


Why two?
Why not?


Can I physically and emotionally handle being a stay at home mom to what will probably be three toddlers? Not on my own..but with God and my husband and an army of friends, yes I think I can. 


Can we afford it? We are really leaping out in faith and trusting that God will provide and we have already seen evidence of that within 24 hours of our meeting. 


What about Brody, do I feel bad that two more children will take even more attention away from him? These babies that will be ours one day are orphans right now. God gives mommies and daddies the ability to spread out their love to many children. I am praying for Brody's sweet heart to understand and he love his new siblings! 


So there it is..we are in the process of adopting two children. Our prayers are for our children in Ethiopia.