Some days are so busy with my kids, their activities and sports, carpool, school volunteer projects and committees, typical mommy-kind-of errands, kids' homework and projects...and the list goes on, that I cannot imagine fitting anything else in my life. Then there are other days that I feel like I really need to do more. I am finally at a point in my life where I am having more of the latter kind of days. I'm not talking about more errands, more sports for my kids or even taking on the coaching role on my son's lacrosse team. We all know where that may lead! I want to truly give some of my time for the well-being of others. Love lead me to China, and now so much more!
Throughout our journey of adoption, I have met some wonderful and most inspiring people. One of those people is Maureen Osbourne. Maureen's blog is very beautifully written and expresses so much of what many people feel, that we follow her. Through this blog, she introduced an amazing foundation to me called, Love Without Boundaries. I have read and re-read many of her posts and gazed at the pictures, some beautiful and some heartbreaking, that she has shared. It drew me in and made me think, "how can I help these children." One day, I sent Maureen an email asking her how can I get involved with Love Without Boundaries. She responded with an offer I could not refuse.
Love Without Boundaries is an extraordinary foundation giving hope to thousands of orphans and impoverished children in China, aiding them with nutritional, medical and specialized care, foster care and education. This list does not touch what really goes on behind the scenes. In reality, I am continuously amazed to read the leaps and bounds the LWB volunteers make to help so many children live in dignity and to help them reach their greatest potential. My part of this foundation is very small, but I could not be more proud to be apart of such an incredibly loving and devoted group of people.
So, where do I fit in? Education is a very important part to all children's lives. In China, many orphans do not have the opportunity of education because they are not permitted into public schools. This is especially true for children with special needs. LWB has created Believe In Me schools to be housed within orphanages so children can attend school. Imagine the excitement of a child whose typical day once consisted of sitting in a bed or orphanage room, can now explore the bright colors of a classroom, read new books, draw and color beautiful art and experience the joy of learning. Because LWB has brought Believe In Me schools to China, these children are looking at brighter futures and lives that are forever changed. I have been asked to be an Assistant Coordinator for the Believe In Me school in Lanzhou, and I could not be more honored to do more for the 34 beautiful children in our school.
Every day I open my email in hopes to see pictures of the children in Lanzhou. Oh, they are so so precious. The updates are priceless! Each picture is better than the last. LWB could not open, nor could the children participate in Believe In Me schools without donations and sponsorships. If you have any interest in sponsoring one of our 34 children, I will attach the website below to lead you to this gift. With sponsorship, you will receive quarterly updates along with photos of your sponsored child. A one time donation is also very appreciated, and as a donor, you will receive updates and photos.
Love truly has no boundaries, and I am forever grateful to where our journey for Evie has lead us. When I look at our four children, I see so much potential in their faces and the desire to explore, experience and learn. All children are so deserving to explore, experience and learn, and if this means my fraction of existence in these 34 children's lives may help them do this, then doing a little more in my own life is so worth it!
Link to Love Without Boundaries - Learning in Lanzhou
http://www.lwbcommunity.org/learning-in-lanzhou
Tuesday, March 18, 2014
Monday, March 3, 2014
Celebrating Our Gift!
The first time I saw you was like a dream come true.
No I didn't give you the gift of life.
Life gave me the gift of you.--Unknown
As we approach March 11, 2014, we reminisce about "this time last year." What we were packing? How we were feeling? When our visas were coming? Where we needed to run last minute errands? Who we were going to meet? This time last year, I had so many thoughts going through my head, yet I just wasn't sure what to think. I truly had no idea how life was going to be in the next weeks, months or even years. Through all of those questions and anxious feelings, I focused on the one little gift that we were given. Our gift weighed about 22 lbs. and measured about 35 inches tall at the ripe age of three years old. Our gift is named Evie, and she has truly changed our life.
Oh what a year it has been! I would be lying if I said it was easy, but it has been so worth it. Evie is filled with smiles and energy. She loves clothes, shoes and lip gloss, but she can hang with her brothers on a basketball court. Of course, she is riding her bike through the basketball game (in our backyard) as they patiently play around her. School makes her excited where she has many sweet friends, loves painting and building, runs and swings on the playground and plays instruments in music class. Her brothers are her best friends. She has declared Bennett as her prince, but Brycen is not giving up on his attempt to take the honor. I recently heard him say, "I will do anything to make her happy." LOVE! Finn is her quiet protector. His sweet little sensitive personality will pounce on anyone or anything who may threaten his sister.
You see? It's growth! We have all grown because of Evie. Our eyes have opened wider and our hearts are bigger than ever. Evie has given our family, in the short time that she has been with us, more than we could ever give her. She is a gift!
On March 11th, we will celebrate "Gotcha Day!" From the moment that sweet little girl in pigtails and four layers of clothes walked through the door in Taiyuan, Shanxi, she had our hearts. We will remember the day that she left all that she ever knew, her security, her China mama and baba (father in Mandarin), to join a group of "strangers" who longed for her to be their daughter, sister and granddaughter. We will remember her loving and selfless foster mother who cared for her every day since she was three months old. The lady who fed our daughter every day and night, woke up during the nightmares, held her when she was scared, cherished her first smile, cheered her first crawl and steps, cleaned her surgical wounds and calmed her when she was in pain. I will never forget her foster mother's ultimate sacrifice to care for and love our beautiful girl, while knowing that one day their life together would end. That, my friends, is love. Lastly, we will remember the woman who gave her the gift of life. She did what she felt she must do, and for this we must not judge, but pray that she "knows" her baby girl is loved and celebrated every day.
Most importantly, on this "Gotcha Day!", we want Evie to know how much we wished for her! We want her to know that she is loved in our family forever! We also want our boys to know that they are loved beyond measure and their growth, acceptance and love make our hearts swell.
Happy Gotcha Day, Evie Springer! You are a beautiful gift!
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