Living James 1:27....

Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you. -James 1:27 (NLT)

So, as I've mentioned a few times - Brandon and I have just begun the process of international adoption. We went to a meeting a couple of weeks ago with an agency, and are now at the point of being able to submit our formal application. God has really opened our eyes to the needs of children around the world, specifically in Eastern Europe. Children with special needs are left to merely exist in horrible conditions, and basically given ZERO quality of life. We are pursuing adoption of a child with down syndrome from one of these countries. Yes, we recognize that this will be a challenge - and we don't know exactly what lies ahead for our lives, but we feel very strongly that this is what God is calling us to, and are really excited (and scared and overwhelmed) about this journey!

Anyway....while doing research about this adoption process, I've been led to the blogs of several families who have either already adopted children with down syndrome, are in the process of, or have biological children with down syndrome - and are advocating for families for these sweet kids! I want to introduce you to a few of my new friends! :)

First of all - Reece's Rainbow - this organization is amazing! They work tirelessly to advocate for what Jesus calls the least of these - sweet kiddos who are waiting for a forever home. They host accounts that you can donate too, the funds go into a grant to help with the cost of their adoption - which for most families ends up being about $30,000. At around 5 years old, most children with special needs are sent to an institution, an adult mental institution, and Reece's Rainbow works their tails off to help these kids get home before that happens!! We aren't sure yet if we'll adopt a child listed on Reece's Rainbow or not - the agency we're working with has several children on their waiting child list as well that have down syndrome and need a forever home.

Then there is this beautiful family.....at No Greater Joy Mom. Their lives have been changed by international adoption - and are such an inspiration. They have adopted two beautiful girls from China, and two Ukranian sweetie pies with down syndrome and they have 3 biological sons as well! Yeah - 7 kids! Trust me - once you've checked out Adeye's blog - you won't want to stop reading!!

Another new friend is just up the road about 45 minutes in the Corvallis area! Check out sweet Lily and her mom Patti - at A Perfect Lily. Lily was born with a bonus chromosome (Trisomy 21 - or Down Syndrome) - and is about as cute as they come! :) Patti is an amazing inspiration as well - and a rock star mom of 10 kids!!! She is currently hosting a giveaway on her blog - to help raise funds for a couple of special kids waiting to come home - Artem and Olga. I'm hoping one of these days I'll get to meet Lily & Patti in person! :)

Finally, there is a family who are also hosting a giveaway on their blog, to bring their sweet Nellie home. Nellie is one of the first kids on Reece's Rainbow that caught my eye - and I'm so excited for them to be able to bring her home! They have a lot of money still to raise - and could use some encouragement as well along the way. Please consider visiting their blog, praying for them and donating if you can. She's giving away a lot of cool things - including three of my favorite books!! (Radical by David Platt, The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Sterns and Crazy Love by Francis Chan!) Their blog is: Praying Her Home

I know my blog doesn't get a LOT of traffic - but it won't be long before we're starting our own fundraising efforts. Please visit these families, please pray for them. Please share with your own friends. Please pray for us as we start this journey as well! :)