Little Faith

Today was chilly and beautiful, I am so thankful to get a little bit of cold weather before traveling again! I may have gone over board and dressed my family for the tundra and brought a thermos of coffee on our trip to Chic Fil A because...it's plaid and cute and when else am I going to use it? Everyone should have a thermos of coffee on 20 minute long drives.

I have so much that I want to share about how this entire process has happened, I have written this post about a million times because I just didn't know where to begin. My biggest desire for sharing is so that the Lord is glorified for every single detail because he is the one who did all of this. I don't feel that me typing is going to do his miracles justice, but it's a tool I have and a tool I will use!

This time last year I was starting to think of what my new years resolutions would be for 2015. I had the typical things I have pretty much every year. Run more, run marathons, get to this weight, meet this goal in the childrens schooling, go here, do this, adopt. My husband saw this list and laughed, and told me that I can cross off the last thing because it is not happening, the end. (I have asked him if he is ok with me sharing about his hesitations, he is!)

While my list moved on, my heart didn't. Come spring of this year I felt it heavy on my heart and started looking at waiting children, chatting about the changes in the process. My husband was still saying no way, and he was totally serious. As laid back as my husband is...I can't remember another time that he has ever said no to something I wanted or wanted to do, this was maybe one of the only things I have ever seen him so serious on- it was not happening. We had a baby and many more children than hands, we often felt in over our heads more days than not, I understood his no. I moved on.

Come fall. I couldn't shake it, it had been on my heart so strongly! Why?! Why is this so heavy on my heart? I started praying about it for a few weeks, and then decided to just ask him again one night. His reply:

"Yeah, I've actually been thinking about it for a few weeks now"

What?! Only GOD. And so it began. We knew it was going to be fast, we knew we would need a lot of money very quickly and committing to it made me a little ill. You would assume my faith would be huge and I would be confident and unwavering in the Lord's provision from the way he worked financial miracles to get the boys home.  But, turns out I was just as nervous and a wreck about it as I was the first time! I had to constantly look back at each thing he did in our last process to remind me of his goodness and his will in this.

We had our home study in September and in November we were in the airport. We knew it would be fast but had no idea it was going to be this fast! $38,000 was our estimated total adoption expenses, and the Lord provided every single penny through his people and his church from day 1 up until 1 hour before we boarded the plane! That itself is a huge miracle and pouring out of the Lord's love and provision!

A few weeks prior to travel a friend of mine messaged me asking if she could host a Noonday trunk show for our adoption. Yes! She had an ambassador travel to come host it, baked some cookies and friends shopped! Our portion of the proceeds went to our adoption agency and every amount adds up!

Fast forward to the week we had to leave. We were not funded. We had enough to book our flights but we would be walking from the airport because we didn't even have enough to pay a driver to pick us up! I was freaking out a little- a lot. That weekend I paced and I will admit that we began looking into loans and credit cards, because we needed too much right away- no way the Lord is going to pull this off! Come Sunday evening a friend sent me a text asking what we had the most peace about.

Waiting.

I had the absolute most peace about waiting, not applying, just waiting. It didn't make ANY sense at all. Nobody waits until 5 days before they have to board a plane to figure out how they will pay for it. Even some of our friends were freaking out a bit wondering what we were going to do. I feel like there should have been constant dramatic music playing during this time. But his peace passes ALL understanding, right?

Monday morning I woke to an email saying that our first trip was covered. We had enough to travel this first trip! Praise the Lord!! We packed and headed to the airport!! We would still need $8,000 in fees and $6,000 in travel money for the 2nd trip, but we were not worrying about it yet and just focused on getting this first one down.

At the airport I was a nervous wreck. I'm not a huge fan of flying and there was so much unrest in the world at the time. The city we were flying into was on lock down and on level 4 terror alert. The US issued a travel ban and high level travel warnings that weekend specifically warning of airports, train stations etc. I was a mess and a bit scared, but doing it afraid.

We had a few hours before boarding so we had lunch and began watching movies when I heard my name paged to come to the boarding desk. I figured they needed more documents so I grabbed them and went up. A lady then says "I hear you are going on a very special trip for adoption! We'd love to have you enjoy the lounge while you wait for your flight!"

.."how did you know we are adopting?.."

"Oh we have information on all of our passengers."

Ok. So I must have put somewhere that my reason for travel is adoption. No big deal, that or our travel agent called and asked them to do this? We get into the lounge and sit down, the lady takes my phone from me and tells me she needs to connect me to wi-fi.

What?! I know how to connect...wait, why do I need to be on wi-fi? What is going on?! Meanwhile Adam thinks nothing unusual and is already enjoying sushi. I'm definitely the discerning one in this relationship! It was all so weird! The women leave and I begin texting my friends to tell them what just happened and how weird it all is, one replies and says "it's good!! trust me, answer your FaceTime call!"

Seriously people,  what in the world is going on in the stinking airport?! We wait for a FaceTime call and answer- the owner and founder of Noonday collection was there to tell us they are giving us $15,000 from the sales of their world adoption day bracelet for our adoption!! WHAT?! I just can't even. Meanwhile the airport ladies are bringing us champagne- is this even real?? It was, because only God could orchestrate something so perfect, only he would provide for our entire adoption, fees and travel DONE, while we are in the airport waiting to board our plane.  He said wait and provided in the most perfect way, and right on time.  Our friend hosting the Noonday trunk show for us entered us to be eligible for the giveaway, we never dreamed we would win it- only God!

He is a GOOD father, he does GREAT things for those who love him. We are now parents to 8 amazing children and there is no doubt that he didn't place each and every one of them in our family! It only takes a little faith, wait on the Lord. Wait on him. Do you see what huge blessings we would have missed out on had we maxed out cards and taken out loans because we were too afraid and too impatient to wait for him to provide? (Note: i was definitely still afraid and impatient even while waiting. keeping it real.) Wait on the Lord- let him do what only HE does! My favorite verse for this season is Psalm 66:5 "COME! See what the LORD has done! What miracles he performs for his people!"  I pray when people see our girl they see what HE has done!

Come and See what the LORD has done!

"Come and see what our God has done, what awesome miracles he performs for people!" Psalm 66:5

We all knew this was coming...

If I could cry, laugh and shout all at once, I would! Because God is so good. Because tonight I sat at my friends kitchen table mulling over ideas on how to come up with the rest we needed and as I drove home I mulled it over with the Lord. 

This weekend was an emotionally messy one! It was HARD to be one week from traveling and having no idea where money was going to come from! There were so many times I questioned if we made a mistake saying that we would go early when our agency asked. I wondered if we prayed about it enough, did we miss a sign or something? Were we not hearing him correctly? Because he poured out a lot of money in two weeks and we knew it was him confirming our steps. Then things kind of stalled and I kind of freaked out. Why, why do I ever doubt his goodness and provision? 

We are blessed beyond measure by the people who were obedient and generous and helped us do this in three weeks. It is the absolute best thing to be surrounded by a community of believers who love adoption, who were willing to give what they had whether it was time, an item, money or prayer and to be a part of a church that operates the way the Lord designed it to! 

In seven days we board a plane for Uganda and there will be one less orphan! 

Praise the Lord!

Praise the Lord from the heavens!
    Praise him from the skies!
2 Praise him, all his angels!
    Praise him, all the armies of heaven!
3 Praise him, sun and moon!
    Praise him, all you twinkling stars!
4 Praise him, skies above!
    Praise him, vapors high above the clouds!
5 Let every created thing give praise to the Lord,
    for he issued his command, and they came into being.
6 He set them in place forever and ever.
    His decree will never be revoked.

7 Praise the Lord from the earth,
    you creatures of the ocean depths,
8 fire and hail, snow and clouds,[a]
    wind and weather that obey him,
9 mountains and all hills,
    fruit trees and all cedars,
10 wild animals and all livestock,
    small scurrying animals and birds,
11 kings of the earth and all people,
    rulers and judges of the earth,
12 young men and young women,
    old men and children.

13 Let them all praise the name of the Lord.
    For his name is very great;
    his glory towers over the earth and heaven!
14 He has made his people strong,
    honoring his faithful ones—
    the people of Israel who are close to him.

Praise the Lord!

His Great Faithfulness.

Come and see what our God has done, what awesome miracles he performs for people! Psalm 66:5

It has been a whirlwind these past two weeks! Exactly 12 days since we found out that we are traveling soon. 12 days ago we said yes having no idea how we were going to be able to travel in a month. It was easily one of the most nervous yes's I have ever given. Because saying yes meant that we may not be home with our kiddos for Thanksgiving. That our "perfect estimated timeline" we had planned for this adoption would be thrown out of the window. That we would need to pay our agency $14,000 AND have $5,000 to travel with..in four weeks. I questioned if yes is the answer the Lord wanted us to give right now, because we could have said no and waited and continued along our man made timeline of events for this adoption. 

But saying no would mean we were too scared, too nervous, and didn't trust the Lord enough to know that he would make it all work. Afraid that he wouldn't come through, that there wasn't enough time for him to move the mountains that we needed him to move to make this possible. 

But we knew that to not be true, because we've seen God pour out money like water, we've watched him move paperwork and provide approvals in record timing. How could we have such little faith after seeing firsthand the miracles he had already performed in our lives? 

So it was a yes. And when you say yes to the Lord, he is faithful, so faithful.

$13,100 is where we are with our fundraising as of right this second. $13,100! In 12 days, because the Lord is faithful and loving and loves orphans. He provided us with an amazing community who genuinely wants to help and give. He moved hearts to provide items for an auction, stirred hearts to give and this is exactly what it looks like when we let the Lord use his people to accomplish his work. 

So, here we are. Our dossier has already been sent to Uganda and we should know our exact travel dates by the weeks end! We are also waiting on our fingerprint appointment for immigration, that should come any day now. 

We are $900 short of having all of the foreign fees paid. 

We are $5,000 away from having travel money (two adults traveling for 7-10 days)

$5,900 and 20 days ahead of us. Look at what the Lord has already done! We are confident that he is going to complete the work he began, for we know that he leaves nothing undone! 

adopttogether.org/potterfamily 

Standing Still

I love my husband. Normally, he is the brake to my gas pedal. I'm the go go go, let's do this and this and adopt this child and go here and give this and live in wild abandon. He is the...slooowwwwww down one. He is the steady one. He is the constant one. Sometimes its frustrating, but in times like these I am so grateful for his guidance and opinion, because there are times where I get us into situations that are a little too crazy even for me. And I get nervous, and I doubt, and I wonder if we can really do this and if I've gotten in too deep. But I am able to look to him- and as always, he is my steady. He doesn't worry. He doesn't fret. His faith is so much bigger than mine I wonder why our roles are not switched.

Our court affidavits are sitting in my email inbox.

Yep.

Court.

Affidavits.

Once we sign those and send them in, they go to Uganda. And when they get to Uganda, they are filed. And when they are filed we have a court date. In short, we are traveling before Christmas to go to court! So soon. We knew it would be quick. We knew. Our adoption with the boys was 5 months start to finish. By the time we travel (for the first trip) it will be 4 months. By the time we travel to bring her home, it will have been 6 months.

And we have peace that the Lord is telling us to go and not to wait. But I'm still a mom and we still have a lot of money to raise, so while I know we are in the Lord's will- I am also panicking a little bit over the logistics and finances in it all.

I look to my husband. "Are we SURE this is the Lord? Have we prayed about it enough? Do  you feel absolute peace about moving so quickly? Are you worried about the money?! You're not even a little nervous?! " 

His reply..."I have peace, I'm not worried".

So calm, so sure that the Lord is going to do what we are asking of him. So sure that this is what the Lord is asking of us. It leaves me so thankful for his peace and certainty.

We are traveling BEFORE CHRISTMAS, friends. In 4-6 weeks, and we need your help, again. I know that we have already asked so much of you all. I know that so many of you have already given of your time, resources, money and prayers for Olive and us (in which we are so grateful!). We are asking you to come alongside us again and help us move this mountain out of the way. Many hands make light work.

The need: 

We need to have foreign fees paid, $14,400
and travel money for a quick trip to court and back, $5,500.

Total in 4 weeks: $19,900.

How:

If we can use the amazing tool of social media to find 500 people to give $39 in the next four weeks, we can move this mountain in no time. I know that I alone have more than 500 people on my friends list.

HELP: 

SHARE this every single day with your friends and family. Share our adopttogether profile daily with your friends and family. Ask and plead with your community to donate.

GIVE $39. If you've already given, search your heart and ask the Lord if he would want you to give again. If you don't have $39, give what you can.

PRAY Believe with us that the Lord is going to provide. Pray that he stirs people's hearts to give and praise him because we know that he has already made a way for this to happen! He's going to do this.

We are a few weeks away! We believe that all of the money in the world belongs to the Lord and he will stir hearts to give according to his will for this.

Here is how you can donate, safely, fee free, and tax deductible:

https://www.adopttogether.org/potterfamily


Thank you, friends! For coming alongside us and helping us move this mountain!

“Now then, stand still and see this great thing the Lord is about to do before your eyes.”
1 Sam. 12:16

fighting.

Is it possible that I have a few quiet minutes to myself during the day? My husband took the big kids to AWANAS tonight and all three of my littles are asleep...which is glorious for me in this moment, but, it's also 5pm. Which means tonight may not be so glorious. But, I'll take it now!

Where do I begin? So many things and thoughts to process and ramble about. We have been so blessed lately by the generosity of the people who surround us. So many dear people who have given their time, their money, their homes, their resources, their support for us. It means so much. Adoption can be a rollercoaster of emotions and feelings and situations, especially when fundraising because the mountain that is in front of us feels so big. So impossible. It IS impossible for us to move it alone- and there have been weeks where nothing moves. And doubt creeps in. But then we receive a note of encouragement in the mail. We receive a free bed for O. Someone who reads this blog (who I don't know) gets in touch with me and donates to our auction. Little fundraisers are adding up. A few more envelopes are filled and each "small" thing just continues to fan the flame and keeps us moving and believing.

(warning, real human feelings below!)
We were approved for a Both Hands project, we were last time as well but we didn't have time to do it because we traveled so soon. Adam and I are reading it late in the week and it requires more help from our people, our community. And I sigh and feel like we've already asked so much of everyone. Can't the Lord just rain it down on our doorstep without us having to beg people and plead and sell things? But then I am reminded that this is warfare. Absolutely a spiritual war that makes adoption so hard, because the is nothing more that the devil wants then for us to give up. For Olive to remain an orphan and for us to go about our daily happy comfy lives. Because the enemy knows that adoption is the Lord's heart and that he is passionate about it- so he is going to fight us for all we have to get us to stop, and if he can use money(the lack of) he will try. He will try anything.

But we aren't giving up. My fingers may be sore from making signs for our auction, my mind may be partially fried after filling out over 100 pages of grant applications all asking the same thing in different ways and writing 5 different essays. My pride may be shredded to nothing after asking and asking and asking and begging and advertising and hosting trying to raise funds. We won't give up, we know that this battle is the Lords and that he's already won it. 

The Lord doesn't lose. Olive has a family and he knows how this will all come to be!

update & current fundraisers

We have a few different things going on right now, so I thought it would be easier to keep up with if I put it all in one central place :-)

Process wise, we are waiting. Here is a little timeline of how things happen and where we are:

Apply
Homestudy (can take anywhere from 4-12 weeks depending)
DSS Homestudy Approval Letter (Typical wait time is 2 weeks)*this is what we are waiting on*
Apply to Immigration (4-12 weeks from start to finish)
Send Dossier (immediately after receiving immigration approval)
File for Court (2-4 weeks to receive a date)
Travel

While looking at this list it looks like we have a long road ahead of us, but our estimated travel date is still in February and once we get into the immigration stage things start moving!

We have applied to 4 grants, one of them replied already and are no longer receiving applications this year. So we have three currently waiting to be reviewed. We are in the process of applying with three more that are very lengthy/time consuming, but we almost have those completed. Total once we have them all in is 6. We are praying very hard over these as grants made our previous adoption possible. However, we are working hard to not put all of our hope and trust in the grants- but in the Lord! We know that all of this is his money and he designates it where he wants it to go! (With that said, if the Lord is telling you to give to someone or something,  even if you think you don't have it or it doesn't make any sense, (in general, to anything! Not meaning just to us!) - do it! He works and accomplishes things through his people.

Also, here is a list of our current fundraisers. We have a few coming up that we are really excited about! I have also updated our thermometer :)


Saturday October 24th
Noonday Trunk Show

Beautiful handmade jewelry, bags, scarves and more made by real women in different countries. A friend of ours has a Noonday ambassador coming to host a trunk show for us at her home! We get 10% of sales, and we also get entered into a drawing to win $14,000 for our adoption. This will be a fun time! If you can't make it, you can still shop online and we still benefit!

https://www.noondaycollection.com/PWS/RebeccaGeddings/eventstore12899/AMUS/product/Tidepool-Earrings,2513,397.aspx

November 3rd-6th
Adoption Auction

We are gathering items now for our adoption auction! This is an online auction, it will be held on Facebook. We have many great things to bid on thanks to many generous friends and businesses! We are praying that this fundraiser brings in $2,000. If you have anything to donate we are constantly accepting items/services!

November 7th
Fall Craft Day

A sweet friend is hosting a fall craft day in her home. We will be making wood slice chalk boards, chalk board banners and practicing different lettering, breakfast munchies will be served! Cost is $25 and it includes your craft supplies, food and donation! Space is very limited, there are currently just 3 spots open for this day. If you want in, let me know!

Ongoing
Envelope Fundraiser 

We are still trying to fill all of our envelopes! It is getting harder to fill them as the majority of smaller numbers are taken, but we are not discouraged! We know the Lord will provide. If you and your family would like to claim an envelope, you can let me know by email, comment, text, message etc. You are also able to make a tax deductible donation, ask me how! The numbers in black are numbers that still need claimed. 

Slowly but surely the Lord will finish what he has began! In the meantime, please pray with us over all of these things!

Isaiah 58:6-12

“No, this is the kind of fasting I want:
Free those who are wrongly imprisoned;
    lighten the burden of those who work for you.
Let the oppressed go free,
    and remove the chains that bind people.
 Share your food with the hungry,
    and give shelter to the homeless.
Give clothes to those who need them,
    and do not hide from relatives who need your help.

 “Then your salvation will come like the dawn,
    and your wounds will quickly heal.
Your godliness will lead you forward,
    and the glory of the Lord will protect you from behind.

Then when you call, the Lord will answer.    ‘Yes, I am here,’ he will quickly reply.

“Remove the heavy yoke of oppression.
    Stop pointing your finger and spreading vicious rumors!
 Feed the hungry,
    and help those in trouble.
Then your light will shine out from the darkness,
    and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon.
 The Lord will guide you continually,
    giving you water when you are dry
    and restoring your strength.
You will be like a well-watered garden,
    like an ever-flowing spring.

Some of you will rebuild the deserted ruins of your cities.
    Then you will be known as a rebuilder of walls
    and a restorer of homes.

A little bit of this and that.

-When I woke up this morning it was a beautiful 57 degrees outside! I ran around like a crazy lady frantically opening every single window in the house and then made coffee, because chilly weather is best when drinking coffee with it.

-My three big girls are in New York with my parents for two weeks. To any normal parent this would probably be too long- to a mama who has lived in Uganda for triple that amount of time away from her kids, we will all be OK for two weeks. But they should prepare to be smothered when they return!

-So I have my boys. Boys are so different than girls. So entirely crazily wildly different. Did I say wild already? They played outside for hours this morning, came in covered with dirt. Not just dirty hands and knees, nope. Dirty nostrils. Dirty ears. Dirt in between toes even though they had on sneakers. Straight to the bath,  then into super hero costumes where they jump off the coffee table and land on the couch, with sound effects, because that is what super heroes do. To eating a massive amount of food (I know, wait until they are teens!) and then finally the ring leader crashes on the couch with goldfish still in his mouth and the other two call it quits but decide on their beds over the couch or floor. Tomorrow more grand adventures await!

-I started T25 Beta this week and so far it is one of my favorites- I actually enjoyed it and then ruined it all with peanut butter! Of all things- peanut butter is my hardest. I can easily eat a days worth of calories in peanut butter- and is so fattening! I gained a little over 20 pounds the last time we adopted- just during the process and its not happening again. Nope. Just no. Paperwork is just as fun with water as it is with cookies....right?!

-So much is happening with our adoption process! The Lord is providing in big ways through an obedient and generous community of friends, family and strangers. Again, when we said "YES" to adopting, we had no money saved for it. In three weeks we raised enough for our application fee ($350), our home study ($1500), DSS to review the home study ($225), immigration fee and fingerprinting ($890), and $500 put towards our first agency fee (bringing the fee from $5250 to $4750).

That is $3,465 in three weeks! Only God.

I try to keep the thermometer up to date on here- it may be a little confusing because we've had different amounts on there. At first I put the total amount of the entire adoption, then decided to take it one fee at a time. So right now because all of the other stuff is paid for and out of the way, the ONLY thing any donations are going towards is the agency fee. Whereas some of the donations went to the home study, some went to the dss fee, some to the immigration fee (whatever was due at the time)- now its all going to the big chunk we need to give our agency.

Our agency really rocks and they are not harping us or calling us like bill collectors to pay them and they do not set a date that a fee is due on, but there will come a point where they won't be able to move anything forward until we do. I am praying and believing that our first partial payment of $5,250 will be paid for by November 1st. We are already down to owing just $4,750 of that, and we JUST watched the Lord provide $3,500 in three weeks. Will you believe and pray with us that $4,750 will be provided for by the first of November?

I dislike greatly that money is such a huge part of adoption and seems to be the only thing we talk about when we talk about it lately- it is the biggest hurdle to overcome for most families walking this path. But it also gives the Lord a huge platform to show his heart and goodness. I caught myself washing dishes a few weeks ago thinking about this very thing. I thought to myself..."what would this process be like if we were not literally dependent on the Lord to do this?" Would it even be the same if we could just cut the agency a check for the full amount and move on? Just swipe a credit card and not have to worry about it or ask or wait on the Lord to provide? I think we would miss out greatly. (don't get me wrong- if you have the money and don't need to fundraise, that just means the Lord has provided in advance for you, and that is not a bad thing!).

So- for an adoption update outside of money...we are waiting. Our home study is complete, we reviewed it this week for corrections and are now waiting on the final copy. Once we have the final copy we can apply for immigration. Then we wait for a fingerprint date, then we send in our dossier once those clear, and wait for a court date! It's a hurry up and wait game. So right now we are praying that our completed home study will come in quickly.

**update!**

Social worker says next week she is sending it to DSS. So we should have it SOON! 

-We finalize the boys adoption on October 15th! Only 2.5 years later :-) 

-I'm drinking coffee regularly now to keep up with the kids, school, and paperwork, and I am so ready for FALL!

Envelopes for Olive

It has been 5 short days since we let a little group of our friends and family know that we are indeed, in the adoption process again. We have accepted the referral for a 5/6ish year old girl in Uganda, Olive! And we are happy, ecstatic, a little nervous but mostly ready and excited to watch how the Lord will pull this off, for a second time! And also- we're going to have 8 kids! Craziness. 

Five days ago we launched "Envelopes for Olive" and through a handful of wonderful people- we've raised $1,602! Enough for our home study & half of our DSS fee! The Lord never, ever ceases to amaze us. So next week is our home study, and because we have already chosen/have been accepted to our agency and committed to a referral, we already owe the big money. Our first agency payment of $5,250 is due now. Today. Yesterday. Last week when we signed the paper and sent it in saying "YES" to Olive. And because she was a "waiting child", this adoption is going to go just as quickly, if not quicker, than it did with the boys! (5 months total from home study to travel with the boys!)

A huge advantage of doing this a second time- we've seen the Lord's work. We know he's in this- we have seen him provide crazy amounts of money in crazy little time and we know he is going to do it again. Fundraising is humbling. It's not fun asking people for money. It is not fun to say "hey! the lord is calling us to adopt this child, buttttttt....we need your help because we don't have 30k". It stinks, but God uses it. Money makes people uncomfortable. People run when you mention money, and we totally get it. But, we will do what it takes because we believe that all of the money in the world is the Lord's and he will direct it to be used for his purposes. 

Before we begin, we want to say first that we don’t take this lightly. To be asking so many people to contribute and sacrifice again, we feel a great responsibility to honor you in the way we are spending our own money. We are pretty thrifty as it is but are being even more thoughtful about the dollars being spent every day. We know we are asking a lot, but we are stepping out in faith believing that God will provide. Would you consider walking alongside us in this journey?

Last week,  friends came over to help us label 200 envelopes for our first fundraiser:

Here’s How It Works!

We have a basket of 200 numbered envelopes (#1-#100 and a second set, #1-#100) that we’re praying will all be claimed.Here’s what will happen if you say “YES” to an envelope…

1. You will pick a number, any number 1-100. OR, you can ask us to choose one at random for you. 

2. The number you pick is the amount that you will fill the envelope with. So if you choose #37, you will put $37 in the envelope.

3. When you commit to an envelope, you have two options: 1) You can send the money for your envelope via paypal to our adoption fund OR 2) We will send the envelope to you(postage will be paid),  and you can fill it and send it back to us. 

4. Once you have completed your envelope donation, you will receive something sweet in the mail from us as a Thank You for coming along side us! 

 So, how do I get an envelope? 

-Easy! Just let us know you want one, and which number you want (or tell us to draw for you!). There are TWO of each number, so don't worry about picking the same as another person. We will also be keeping track and posting progress! 

You may comment publicly or email us privately (email or Facebook or text, however you want to get ahold of us!)  to claim your envelope. 

Make it fun! Pick your birthday. Your age. A special date. The age of your oldest child. How long you've been married. How long you hope to live. The most we are asking anyone to give is $100, and we know the Lord is faithful! Please don't be shy to pick the small ones! Envelope #1, #2 and #3 are JUST as important to us as #99. 

THE UNBELIEVABLE PART:
If all envelopes are filled,  it's $10,280!!!!! 200 people to give $100 and under will equal HALF of our agency fees!

We watched the Lord provide $15,000 in a day last time. $8,000 in one week, $2,000 in a fundraiser. We have peace and pray that you will consider helping us get our girl home! Here is what our chart looks like right now, the black numbers are the envelopes that are still available! This will be updated daily if new envelopes are claimed so the numbers here are current.

-claim an envelope #1-#100:
email us at emailthepotters@gmail.com
Facebook us
comment on this
or click on the paypal icon on the right hand side of the blog (it's safe!) and it goes right to our adoption fund!

change, summer and other things.

It's late, late July and I am yearning for fall. It's not far off, as summer has already lost it's feel. Read, feel, not heat. Summer's heat is still alive and well. But there is a difference in how it the days feel, the breeze blows, how the evenings end and the mornings begin.  Ever so slowly changing.

A new school year is coming up, just like that. We have a little over two weeks so these days are spent buried with coffee, my planner and stacks of books. I do so love the planning aspect of homeschooling. Crisp new books and pencils, new boxes of chalk and crayons. I have three books to order, and a list of books to put on hold at our library which we will be using often this year.  If you missed it, I blogged about my curriculum choices for this year here.

Nine days until my parents make their big move and well, I'm just planning on keeping myself really busy to distract myself from the reality of it all. It's hard, but I have to remind myself over and over again that it's not about me. And that The Lord will make this work together for good.  He will. He will fill in the gaps and fill up my heart and provide in ways that I can't even imagine right now because he is faithful and he is only good.  Last week they took my big girls and headed to house hunt for a few days in NY, it was a sweet way for my girls to feel included in the big change and for them to get excited about all of the fun they will have when they visit. We will find our new normal and it will be good.

While they went to NY, I took my little girls and headed to Florida to see my best friend for a super short trip. The drive was long but oh so relaxing. My girls slept and I listened to David Platt for hours and spent time with the Lord that I have not been able to spend in...well, ever. We shopped, dipped our feet in the gulf, ate from food trucks, indulged in more chic fil a then I thought possible, and talked and talked and talked. Just what my soul needed. Props to my husband who held down the fort at home with the boys while I stole away- he is irreplaceable.

Tomorrow is Sams Day. Yep, Sams Club, it has its own day here among my crew because what child doesn't love passing aisle by aisle being fed samples? We load up and make a day of it, shakes at Steak 'n Shake are among one of the favorites for Sams Day, and tomorrow my mom will be joining us for the last time and we are all super excited about that!

Here is to the last few weeks left of summer- praying they bring peace, rest and new beginnings! 

Weekend Mashup

My parents are moving to New York in a few weeks, so we are trying to soak up all the time we can with them before they go! This weekend we all trekked to the "big city" for the water park. We are a water park loving family, and we try to go once in the summer every year. We'd probably go more if we lived closer.

This year was a blast! The park was the perfect size for us, small enough that we felt comfortable letting our big kids go to the some of the big water slides alone, but big enough that we didn't get bored with what was there. I will say...I wish the slides were bigger, but the kids had a blast on them as they were!

They had a big play structure for little kids, which was wonderful when you have lots of little ones- but my littles mostly loved the lazy river! There was a portion of it that brings you under a waterfall and through a little rapid water and each of my little ones squeezed in delight! Except Piper- she would lay her head on me as soon as she heard the rushing waterfall sound, smart girl.

Morris and Ava both surprised me by loving the big slides! They are usually my reserved, safe kids. But one time down the big slide and we could barely keep them off. I loved hearing Morris laugh at the top of his lungs as he neared the bottom of the slide, and I'm grateful they had an uncle and papa that took them down the slides over and over, and over and over. My big girls too, took a step and went down the slides in single tubes alone! Having bigger kids is a lot of fun, and as I think about the times that we are having now I pray that we will be able to enjoy these things together with them as they are teens.

It would not be a complete trip without  our sweet Adam shutting down the entire children's area by deciding it was a great place to use the bathroom. Yes, it definitely happened, because well, Adam. Lucky for us, my husband already snatched him up and had him in the bathroom by the time it was discovered and shut down, so it saved us from a lot of embarrassment and supplied us with some great conversation topics for later!

We ate a dinner of ice cream sandwiches and cereal, we almost slept in and were of course, in Potter family fashion, late for church the next morning. My kids are already asking to go back, and I'm already daydreaming of next years trip to a different water park. Also I might add, perk to having a large family: we qualified for the group rate which was a decent savings!

We are heart broken that my parents are leaving- but we are truly thankful for these weeks we get to spend with each other and the adventure of road trips, snow and mountains that are in our future!