Money Money Money

Some of you may be wondering
 (or maybe you're not, so feel free to click away now)
"What are all these "costs of adoption" they're raising money for? Isn't foster care adoption cheap/free?"

No.

And yes.

And no.

If you compare it to international adoption, it is SIGNIFICANTLY less expensive. Like, by a lot :)

And I guess "cheap" is all in the eye of the beholder. So here is a (sorta) breakdown of (some) of the costs:

Application fee: $100
Homestudy fee: $1200
Mandatory training: $150
Mandatory Background checks: $165
Basic physicals/checkups for whole family: $300
"Safety" supplies for home:
Gate for woodburning stove, firearms cabinet, outlet covers, cabinet locks: ~$200
New furniture: Beds, Mattresses, Desks, Dressers, Sheets, Comforters... ??? We are always scouring Craigslist looking for deals on these things :) Except for mattresses. Who wants a used mattress??? I am estimating it will be about $700 (for two of each!)\

We are also saving for travel costs (we have no idea if we will need them, but if we adopt out of state I anticipate having to travel!). Let's just guess around $1000.

So that's $3815... and I know there will be other incidental costs along the way that will make it more like a nice, round $4000. Its only about 10% of what people adopting internationally will pay, but still, it's a decent chunk of change, right?

We know that God will provide and we are SO thankful to all our wonderful friends who have already shown their support.

If you'd like to help out (every dollar helps) and get a prayer bracelet... click here!

As always, our love!!

Beka, Nik and Midgets!!

For I know the plans I have for you...

... declares the LORD. Plans for PEACE and not for evil, to give you a FUTURE and a HOPE.
--Jeremiah 29:11


This has always been one of my favorite bible verses. It is such a verse of inspiration and hope. For GOD knows the plans HE has for YOU. He is declaring this over your life--- that HIS plans for YOUR life are for PEACE... he has a future and a hope for you!

How amazing is that?

It has struck me time and again, as I (maybe slightly obsessively) look at pictures of all these kids that need a family, that could be *our* children, that they do not have this assurance. They are not growing up in an environment that assures them that yes, despite the bad things, despite problems, despite roadblocks, God has a plan FOR GOOD for you. They do not have a father or mother or family who can stand in as an earthly representation of our Father in Heaven to say "I will love you unconditionally. Nothing can separate you from my love."

I look at these kids and *know* God has an awesome plan for all of them, and I also *know* that His will on this earth cannot be done without us as His followers acting out our faith. If we sit by and do nothing, then the adversary wins.

The bible tells us this:
"Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world."
-James 1:27

I know it is not possible for many people to adopt. It was not possible in our lives for quite a long season. But we are ALL commanded to care for the widows and orphans. It is against my nature to reach out and say "we need help," but we do. And, more than that, God has put it on our hearts to make sure we open up an opportunity for all our brothers and sisters in Christ to help in the ways that they can during this process and, most importantly, sew into the lives of these children, whoever they are :)

ALL that being said, we are excited to announce that we will be selling "Prayer Bands" (a rubber bracelet---made in the USA!) to raise money to go toward the funds of our home study. This is a necessary step in our adoption process without which we cannot apply to be considered as adoptive parents.

Nik picked out the "Batman" theme. Pretty awesome, right? You know you want one...

We are asking for a $5 donation per band. If you are able to give more--- yay! If you are able to give some, every penny counts!

You can give your donation on our Go Fund Me Page.

If you cannot give financially but would like to partner with us in prayer during this process, please let us know and we will be happy to send you a prayer band. We would love for you to wear them as a daily reminder to pray for our family and for the children we will be pursuing. 

If you are part of a church group, youth group, women's group, or any other kind of group (or just have a lot of friends!), or have a storefront or business where you can set up a donation jar with the bands, and would like us to send you more bands to offer to those you know, we would love to do so!

As always, we covet and are thankful for your continued prayers and support. We look forward to the day when we can share pictures of our new family members and tell them about all the prayer and love they have had poured into them before we even knew them :)


XOXO
Beka, Nik, and Kiddos

Big News Around Here!

We have some big (Big BIG) news in the Smith household!

No, we're not having another baby (although adding another wonderful *little* arrow to add to our quiver is always a welcome and real possibility around here!)

However, we are *hopefully* adding some... larger... arrows (*hopefully* soon!!)

Yes, our family has started on the exciting journey of adoption!

We have been praying for quite some time about how God would have us participate in caring for children who need a family (be it financial, prayer, helping another family, etc), and, now that we are settled in our new northern home, we really feel that God is calling us to adopt through the foster system.

Pretty exciting, eh?

Right now we are pursing a direct adoption from foster care--meaning we are going to apply for a specific set of children that are close to or already legally free and ready to be adopted-- and we are wanting to be approved for an older (pre-teen/teen) sibling set. We are going this route instead of going through foster care first because we really feel it will be easier on our children not to have *possible* siblings coming in and out of the home and not knowing who will stay and who will go. We want them to be able to start forming sibling relationships and embrace them as their family right away! It will also be a little easier (God willing) to have children placed with us through direct adoption than foster care because of our family size. It is important to us to continue our conviction of leaving our family size totally in God's hands and this is a more realistic possibility doing direct adoption.

As of right now we really feel God is asking us to open our home to a set of pre-teen or teen siblings. As most of your know, we do have a weakness for teenagers (Call us crazy, we do love 'em!)  We do not know who specifically that will be yet--although I personally have a preference for a set of teen sisters that I have been praying for :)  I have been warned that they will probably be adopted by the time our background checks and homestudy have cleared--- which I will be fine with, but still... I'm a little partial to them :)

Right now we are in the very beginning stages--- we are currently doing a required training course called "Because They Waited" and gathering all the things we will need to complete our homestudy.

I know this is going to be a spiritually trying and challenging journey but I feel such peace and excitement about the whole thing. I cannot wait to see which souls God is going to entrust to our family and bless us with!

As always, we appreciate your prayers!  I, personally, am praying that we will be able to bless everyone we come in contact with during this process and really "shine our lights," and that this process goes smoothly and QUICKLY! I am also praying that any pre-conceived notions and prejudices people might have about larger families with small children will be dispelled once they get to know us, as we have been warned that sometimes workers are hesitant to place children with families that already have "a lot" (4 is a lot??) of kids. I know our God is bigger than "the system" and that with His help things will go exactly as they are meant to!!

I'm sure we will be doing some sort of fundraising as there are extra things we are going to need to bring older children into our home--- beds, furniture, and a larger vehicle, to name a few! Keep an eye on this blog and my FB page for updates on how you can help, if you feel so led!!

In any case, I know God is guiding this process and my overwhelming emotion is excitement to get moving and meet whoever it is that God will bring into our lives!

Thanks for reading :)

Little Smarty Pants

I had a real "Ah-ha!" moment last night.

I have to remember that my sweet little Bean is ONLY *almost* 3.

She is such a smarty pants. I mean, I know all parents say that, but really. The kid is a little genius. She so often behaves like a typical 4 or 5 year old that sometimes (many times) I forget that she ISN'T.

Most of the time, this isn't a problem. I don't have any intention of dumbing things down for her or talking to her like I'm "supposed" to talk to a 2-year-old.

But sometimes that 2-year-old comes out and I forget that, when that happens, I need to treat her like the toddler that she is.

So last night she had a LATE night. She was up until 11pm at our WONDERFUL babysitters house. When we got there to pick her up, she had a M-E-L-T-D-O-W-N. Not a fall to the floor, scream hit and cry meltdown (I think that would have been easier!). She just started making this horrible, high-pitched whine and WOULD NOT STOP.

And, I admit, I had a Mommy of the Year moment and honestly forgot that she's only 2. I got SO irritated at her for whining and not listening and being all around unreasonable. Because, I realized later, I was expecting reasonable behavior for a 4 year old, and not for her sweet little 2 year old self.

Her breakdown was totally normal and totally acceptable and TOTALLY my fault (I mean, really, what kid needs to stay up 3 hours past her bedtime?). Luckily, my wonderful husband had his head screwed on right and didn't overreact. He pulled me back in, and as we were driving home and I was stretched in an awkward car-yoga position to hold her little foot while simultaneously trying to sing (with hand motions) Itsy-Bitsy Spider, I had my "Ah-Ha" moment.

... one I expect will be the first of many...

Our week(s) in photos

I posted last week about some of the general school stuff we've started.

Now I'm going to start a cute apocalypse by sharing some of the pics.

Reading with Daddy... one of their favorite things to do. He usually does afternoon school--- reading and whatever activity we have for the day. The first two weeks it was pirates (although they're reading Fancy Nancy, here)

 

 

I try to do some art time every day. Which never happens. So maybe 3-4 times a week? Little Bug is not content to toddle around while sis is busy with fun stuff like paint and markers, so I tried this "no mess fingerpaint" idea I saw on pintrest. 



 

If she looks less than amused... it's because she was. It just wasn't a big hit with her.

 

 

Most likely because Bean was next to her getting good and messy. She kept signing "all done" and then pointing to Bean and saying "That. THAT!"

 

Bean, meanwhile, wanted to do bag fingerpainting. So next time maybe I'll switch them and see how that goes over...

I've been trying not to lock them up all day, but it's really hard with 100+ degree weather. A few weeks ago we had our BFFs over for some outside playtime, so I decided it was a good day for making sidewalk paint. I can't remember where I found the recipe, but it's all over the Internet. I used 2 tbs cornstarch, 4 tbs water, and food coloring.

It was really watery, so I nuked it for about 10 sec at a time until it was a pretty thick, paint-like consistency. If it gets too thick, just add a few drops of water to thin it down.

 

 

This stuff was SUCH a hit!



The best part was that they could paint each other, their clothes, the ground, my car, my garage--- it just washes off. I didn't have any problem with staining (except for my fingers while I mixed the paint--- but that's my own clumsiness!). Also, my little bug that likes to taste-test everything could eat it to her heart's content. She didn't WANT to (of course, the only time), but she could without me worrying about it!

We did do actual "school" stuff, I swear. I just didn't take too many pictures. Mostly because my camera died and I was too lazy to charge it.

Our "unit" study these past two weeks was pirates--- which Bean LOVED. She's a pirate freak. We read some pirate books:

How I Became a Pirate and Pirates Don't Change Diapers by Melinda Long
Shiver Me Letters by June Sobel
Sheep on a Ship by Nancy E Shaw

Bean REALLY loved the Melinda Long books. We probably read those 15x in 2 weeks!

We did some Pirate activities: Made pirate hats and eye patches, talked like pirates, watched "The Pirates Who Don't Do Anything," and played with our MegaBlocks Pirate Ship.

We also did a Treasure Memory match with the letters she knows and was learning-- S and P (our new letters), A, R, W, O, and J.

Bean really liked this game... we still play it, although we've started eating the booty. I got the gold coins in the bulk section of WinCo and wrote letters on one side with Sharpie.

 

 

I also made a Pirate Treasure Map/Letter Hunt. But, alas (matey), no pictures. I drew pictures of areas in our house (front door, basketball hoop, fireplace, under the table, slide, and "X" and put letters next to each picture, and then taped 1/2 sheets of paper with those letters in those corresponding areas. Under the "X" was some "gold"--- peach sourpatch candy. It was a big hit!!

 

 

 

 

These are two of our "general" activities--- this one is one-to-one counting. This day she was using poker chips and chip clips. Sometimes she uses candy, or little knick-knacks (erases, dinosaurs, etc).



The cards are 1/2 sheets of construction paper that are laminated. The other side has the colors written out so Bug can use them for color sorting. But she's not there yet...

Probably Jo's FAVORITE thing to do--- shaving cream letter hunt. I don't know how I thought of this one... sheer brilliance... I hide some small magnetic letters in the shaving cream; she finds them, washes them off in the bowl of water, and then matches them to the foam letters on the table.

 

 

She will do this for HOURS if I let her... I usually just let her go until the shaving cream runs out or she starts using it to decorate herself or her sister.

"Hey, I found an H for HOLLY!" she says...

 

Meanwhile, in Bug land... I learned my lesson from the ziplock painting and didn't even ATTEMPT to entertain her with something less-than-messy. I gave in and let her fingerpaint. I've done it a few times with paper, but this time I just let her paint the highchair tray. I added some water so it was a little more squishy and entertaining...

 

She actually didn't PURPOSELY paint her face... she just got sleepy. And then signed "Sleep." And had hands covered in blue paint.

The paint is non-toxic, although once this batch of store-bought Crayola runs out I'm going to make some (off pintrest, again). Although, then she will WANT to eat it...


I'll let you know how that goes.

XOXO (because I think I'm Gossip Girl, have I told you?)
--Beka

PS: I forgot! Bible Time--- Both girls doing their Hallelujahs :)

But where are my furry animal friends?

Some days (most days), I feel like Snow White.

Only, I don't have cute little wooden creatures singing me sweet songs.

I always thought Snow White was good ole Walt preparing me for the day when my prince would come, sweep me off my feet, and take me away to my castle.

Now, I see it for what it really was---

Walt preparing me for being a Mommy that is constantly surrounded by little people...

"...Dwarfs," if you will...

...who function in a miniature little environment (a cottage?), complete with miniature beds, miniature chairs, miniature plates, knives, forks, spoons, cups, and toilets. Miniature food. Miniature books. Things you never even IMAGINED came in miniature form.

And anything that ISN'T miniature is surrounded by tools to aid the Dwarfs, in their mini-ness, with day-to-day life. (Please don't mind the step-stool in front of the sink, or the ladder in front of the fridge, or the hundred other safety hazards in my home; my dwarfs are becoming self-aware and want to do everything by themselves today.)

Fear not! Snow Mommy has become very accustomed to this way of life.  In fact, I often think strangers from outside the enchanted forest must look at me funny as I automatically take large, knee-bending, leg-lifting steps everywhere I go to avoid any unseen... (insert any miniature item here). Or when I don't think twice about using a dixie-cup for my lunch beverage, or a small, plastic coated spoon to eat my oatmeal.

The little dwarfs go to "work" every day, make themselves filthy, don't want to wash before dinner, wear Snow Mommy out with their crazy dwarf antics, and then fall peacefully asleep for the night to start again tomorrow.

And the only peaceful place in many a Snow Mommy cottage is to curl up in the tiny little dwarf-sized bed that has been so associated with nap-time that the actual dwarfs won't touch it with a 10 foot pole. Or their miniature 3 ft. pole that they carry around to beat other dwarfs over the head with.

But here is where Sir Disney got it wrong. Because when Prince Charming sweeps in to rescue Snow White (and yes, please sweep away), what we really need for him is to see that we are in a deep, almost deadly sleep, and BACK THE HECK AWAY. Because, if my Prince Charming, bless his sweet heart, comes home to the dwarfs playing peacefully and the house being clean and me resting and his first thought is "I better wake her up," this fairy tale is going to turn into a homicide movie very quickly.

~The End~

My little Bug...

Bean is off with her grandparents on a canoe adventure, so I got to spend the morning all alone with my beautiful second born, little Bug-a-Belle.

I very rarely get to spend alone time with her--- especially since she and Bean started *blissfully* napping at the same time. It was nice to get to spend the morning watching her just be her, although she was a little lost without big sister to torment.

There is no deep meaning to this post except to say she's such a fun, crazy little girl and I adore her to no end. I am so blessed to have such a curious, sometimes rotten, spunky little child. Today she was obsessed with the play phone. She kept picking it up, saying "Hiiiii..." and babbling for a few minutes, then throwing it across the room. Also, she's still pretty scared of the Bigfoot toy, so she was pretty preoccupied with standing far enough back to see it (on the top shelf, 4ft up), and then yelling at it. I love that she remembers its there and then has to go out of her way to make sure it knows she is not pleased with it's existence.

She's the exact opposite of Bean in almost every way, which makes every day with her totally new and exciting. For example, we didn't have baby locks on ANYTHING in the house except for the kitchen sink cabinet. Which Bean never even tried to open, anyway.

Now that Bug is mobile, EVERYTHING is locked. Well, it wasn't until Husband was on baby duty the other night... I was in the computer room, working away on school stuff, when I hear "No! No no no! Don't touch that...  {CRASH. Mysterious glug-glug-glug. Baby giggle.} Oh. My. God."

Bug was sitting on the kitchen floor with the cupboard open and 1/2 a bottle of corn oil spilled all over the floor. Every cabinet was equip with a baby lock literally 30 minutes later.

Ok, so the "deeper" lesson of this post is, I guess:

Nagging Wife: worthless

Baby Spilling Oil that Daddy has to clean up: Valuable currency in our home!



Anyway, I digress. She's adorable and I love her. She's such a joy to have around and I wouldn't trade her for all the well-behaved, self-absorbed babies in the world. (Although that isn't stopping me from praying this new little man slights away from Bug's inquisitiveness and towards Bean's self-absorption just a bit)

(This picture is the perfect example of my girls' personalities.

Bean is only concerned with her moment in the spotlight, and Bug is totally absorbed in EVERYTHING that is happening in the world!)

No rest for the Mommy...

8:00 AM
T-Minus 15 minutes until wake-up time.
Theoretically.

In my attempt to start getting into a "school" schedule slowly, I am making myself wake up at 7:30 (well, making my alarm go off at 7:30...). I need that 15-30 minutes for myself in the morning to really start my day in a good way. I wake up, take time to feel the baby move around, pray, drink some coffee, waste time on the internet.

It has really helped put me in a pleasant, happy mood for the day. Except...

Now both Bean and Bug have decided that their normal 8-8:15 wake-up time is just entirely too late in the day. They have both been waking up right at Mommy's quiet time for the past 4-5 days. I swear, one of Satan's many guises is as an alarm clock for small children.

So my supposedly peaceful morning routine is now being interrupted by screaming and angry protests from BOTH bedrooms. I had every intention of starting to put together some of the Character curriculum I was so excited to get in the mail last night, get breakfast out on the table, maybe make a worship playlist for bible time...

But, no rest for the Mommy.

Maybe tomorrow :)