Show Hope Fundraiser

I wanted to make sure I had a post that contains all of the tshirts that we are selling!  We are so grateful for the chance to sell these shirts because we love what Show Hope does and how they want to support adoptive families and care for orphans.  They have made it so easy for us to be able to raise funds for our adoption process.  If you'd like to check out their ministry go here: http://www.showhope.org/

So here are the t-shirts and here is the link to purchase them. 
 http://www.adoptionbug.com/huntadoption/

  
The prices and sizes for the shirts vary but all of them except the light blue and the light pink come in ADULT, WOMEN'S, and YOUTH/CHILDREN sizes.  The light pink only comes in Women and Youth/Children and the light blue is Adult and Youth/Children.  The prices range from $16.99 - $24.99.  So just head over to our store front and you can order from there.  They take care of everything!  Go do some Christmas shopping!

Thank you guys!!

November Number!!!

Yesterday we received our new number for the month of November!  We have moved up one spot!  We're getting closer and closer y'all!!  I can hardly believe it!!  We are #7!

Several people have asked how they can pray for our family.  So, here are some things that we are praying for right now:
1.  We FINALLY received Brian's mom's biometric scan appointment!  They scheduled her appointment for way later in the month.  Many families go earlier and they are allowed to get their prints done then.  So they are going next week and we are praying that they will allow her to do that so they can process them and then send us our updated FDL (Favorable Determination Letter) very quickly.
2.  You can pray for our continued fundraising and grant applications.  We are preparing to apply for a couple different grants.  Show Hope is one that we are going to apply for and they are also allowing us to sell their t-shirts to help with our fundraising.  They offer it at no cost to our family and they operate the store front.  Basically, if you buy a shirt, they donate a large chunk of that directly to our adoption and some goes to support the work of Show Hope!  Pretty amazing and generous of them.  AND the shirts are really cool.  Steven Curtis Chapman and his wife, Mary Beth initially founded Show Hope out of their desire to see more children find their way into forever families.  I have a gray and pink one and it is so soft and comfortable.  Isabel has a Show Hope shirt too.  They come in Men, Women, and Youth/Child Sizes.  Here's me wearing mine! :)  Here is the link to our store front: http://www.adoptionbug.com/huntadoption/

   3.  Over all, we covet your prayers for our daughter that we have yet to meet!  We pray that God would prepare us for each other and that he would bring us together in a way that brings glory and honor to His name.  That we would be faithful in this wait and that she would know that her Heavenly Father loves her and that He would redeem all that has been lost.

This is the verse that I have been seeing all week in multiple places!

"For the Lord is GOOD; His steadfast love endures 

forever, and his faithfulness 

to all generations." -Psalm 100:5

Winners!!

I'm sorry I haven't posted this earlier in the day!  I emailed the winners earlier today once I got the results from Random.org but I haven't had a chance to actually sit down and write a post.  After we got all the entries, we created a spreadsheet and then used Random.org to help come up with the three top winners.  Random.org is crazy to me....it says they don't use just math algorithms but atmospheric noise to create the randomness.  I don't even know what it means but I trust they know what it means! Hah!  Anyway, we want to say that we are SO grateful to everyone that purchased tickets for this raffle to support our adoption.  Every time we do a fundraiser we are blown away by your generosity and support and God's faithfulness! Seriously, thank you all so much.  We made a little over $1500 which is amazing!  I actually looked up a flight to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from Charlotte today and the average cost was $1500!!  Seriously!!  So, that is a huge help!  We are planning more fundraising and applying for grants to help with the rest of the flights because we will need to pay for 2 trips.  So stay tuned! :)

So the winner of the Kindle Fire HD is Beverly B.  The coolest thing ever is that TODAY is actually her birthday!  She was so surprised! :)  Congratulations Beverly!

The winner of the Target gift card is Jessica M. and the winner of the WFU/Vanderbilt football tickets is Megan B.  Megan said her dad and brother LOVE Wake Forest so I hope that her family has fun at the game!

Thank you all again for your support!

Love, 
The Hunts

TWO DAYS LEFT to BUY RAFFLE TICKETS!

 
This Friday is the last day to enter the Kindle Fire HD Raffle!!  Tickets are only $5 each.  Each ticket you purchase is another entry to possibly win this tablet valued at $199!  You can buy tickets in person OR by clicking on the Paypal link to the right over there....





The 2nd Runner up prize is a $20 gift card to Target so even if you don't win the Kindle Fire you might win the gift card!  

I'm adding another LOCAL runner up prize too!  A friend donated 4 tickets to the Vanderbilt vs. Wake Forest football game on Saturday, November 24th here in Winston-Salem!

 So I will draw THREE random names THIS SATURDAY to win the KINDLE FIRE, the TARGET GIFTCARD, and then the FOOTBALL TICKETS!  Don't forget that if you purchase a ticket and then you SHARE this raffle that you get an additional ticket!!  Thank you SO much for helping support our adoption and helping us get closer and closer to being able to bring our little girl home!

New October Number

Our number for this month is still...

Isn't that a pretty number 8??  While we were hoping to move up a few spots we know that God is working out all the details of this crazy wait!  Last October we were #29.  We also know that the courts in Ethiopia are open again and we are hopeful that we will get a referral soon for our sweet little daughter!

Once we get a referral, we will wait to be assigned a court date.  Once we get that date we will make plans to travel to Ethiopia and we will be there for 5 days.  After that we will come home and have to say goodbye to our little sweetie and wait for an Embassy date.  Then, after we get assigned an Embassy date we will be able to head back to Ethiopia and stay for a few days and then bring our daughter forever home!!

So, if you're interested in helping support our adoption, we are doing a Kindle Fire HD Raffle right now to help with the costs of those flights.  The runner up gets a $20 gift card to Target.  Each ticket is $5 and you can purchase them via Paypal over there to the right or in person.  Also, if you share the Raffle after you donate, then you can get an extra entry by leaving a comment that you did it.

We are praying that we (including our sweet daughter that we have yet to meet) would know this verse to be true:

"I know the LORD is always with me.  I will not be shaken, for he is right beside me." 

- Psalm 16:8 

p.s.  Please ignore the typing at the VERY top of my blog.  I was fiddling with the html code and I messed something up and haven't had time to fix it. :)

Kindle Fire Fundraiser Raffle

We have been on the wait list to adopt a little girl from Ethiopia since October of 2010.  We started at #93 on the list and today we are #8!  That means that any day soon we will receive a referral and we will finally see the beautiful face of our daughter!  With that referral comes the cost of flying to Ethiopia twice!

So, we are hosting a Kindle Fire HD 7" tablet Raffle to raise funds for our adoption!  Each ticket costs $5 and you can purchase them through Paypal through the link over there to the right OR you can buy them in person from me or Brian!  The raffle will end on November 9th and I will let random.org choose us a winner and I will announce it on Saturday morning, November 10th.  Then, I will order the Kindle Fire HD and have it shipped directly to the winner.

I didn't mention before but if you donate, then you can get one free entry for sharing this!  Just leave a comment below with a link to show that you have shared it after you make your donation!

 ALSO, there will be a runner up as well!  The runner up will be announced the day after and they will win a $20 gift card to Target!  Who doesn't want to win a reason to go wander around Target??

Thanks you all!!  We can't wait for the day we can share the news of a referral with you all!!  

It's my Birthday Giveaway!!

So today is my birthday!  Yep, today I turned 32 years old.  32 was much easier than 30 and I actually really like my age.  I'm about to head out the door for a date night with my sweet husband but I wanted to go ahead and post about this raffle we are doing to raise funds for our adoption.

As you know we are super super close to getting a referral.  This weekend we are wrapping up our home study update and then we just wait for the papers to be finalized.  After we are "paper ready" again then we will be able to accept a referral for a sweet little girl!  I know that it will be soon because we are officially number 8 and I'm pretty positive that we are number 1 for our age parameters (0-4 years).  So, we need to be able to pay for those expensive plane tickets to go to Ethiopia twice and pay for the referral fee.  We have some saved up but we still need to raise quite a bit.  So....we thought a raffle might be a fun way to do it!

So we are going to give away a 16GB Kindle Fire HD with a 7" display, exclusive Dolby audio, and Dual-Band, Dual-Antenna Wi-Fi.  It's super cool and you can do ALL kinds of fun things with it.  Watch movies, tv shows, read books & magazines, use apps and play games & music, catch up on Pinterest and Facebook, check your email, basically whatever you want to do. :)  Oh, and it would make an awesome Christmas present!!

Here is how you can win it and support our adoption at the same time!!
Buy a ticket for $5 through PayPal over there to the right!  Or buy 2 tickets for $10 or 5 tickets for $25 or however many you would like.  Each ticket is another entry to win the Kindle Fire!  Also, if you are local and would rather just pay for your tickets in person, that is totally fine as well!  We will be sure to include ALL ENTRIES.  The raffle will end on November 9th and I will let random.org choose us a winner and I will announce it on Saturday morning, November 10th.  Then, I will order the Kindle Fire and have it shipped directly to the winner.

We would love for you to share this raffle with people that you know via Twitter and Facebook!
Thank you for supporting our adoption!!!  One day soon we will see our daughter's face!!

September Number

 Our family's September number is:

{Leo Reynolds photo}

We are officially number 8 this month but I am pretty positive that we are number 1 for our age parameters.  The problem is that we cannot accept a referral until our paperwork is all up to date.  We are currently waiting on our social worker to call us back (it has been two weeks) and waiting on Texas to return some criminal background check stuff.  This would have all been updated earlier but Brian had applied for a position at a church back in August and things were going really well with the process and it would have involved us moving.  So, we waited to update the actual home visit and some other paperwork.  Brian was nominated by the Boards at the church for the position but after a week or so we found out some things that we did not feel very comfortable with so we prayed and prayed and ask for some counsel from good friends and the Lord confirmed to us through His Word that Brian should not take this position.  We know this was the right decision for our family but we are disappointed.  We had hoped things would go much differently.  And now we are seeing that it is affecting our adoption process too.  We can't understand God's timing and we may never but we are going to trust Him.  He knows who our daughter will be and He is much more able to orchestrate every detail even when it looks impossible.  It is all somewhat disappointing though so if you would please continue to pray for all of our hearts, for our daughter in Ethiopia, and for all the details to come together.  I do have some good news too though.

God has been so good to give us encouragement from His Word and with His Spirit.  On Friday I readMatthew 19:26 that says "Jesus looked at them intently and said, “Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible.”  We have been especially concerned about our updates because our US_CIS approval was set to expire in a couple weeks.  As you can imagine we were freaking out and trying to get everything complete.  Well, on Friday we received a really surprising phone call from our case manager at US_CIS.  She was so kind and encouraging and said not to worry about anything.  She set our minds at ease and even though this is not how we imagined the timing of everything going....we know that God is with us and He is in charge.

This verse has been our prayer:

"Let me hear of your unfailing love each morning, for I am trusting you.  Show me where to walk, for I give myself to you.  Teach me to do your will, for you are my God.  May your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing." -Psalm 143: 8&10

Thank you for praying for our family. 

♥

August Number!! Single digits y'all!!

So, we are officially in the single digits!!  Can you believe it??  I can't!  It doesn't seem real!  In honor of single digits, I'm posting two number pictures. :)  One that Isabel picked out and one that I picked out!  We have already updated our fingerprints but we need your prayers for a smooth transition as we update our home study.  Things are getting complicated with it...for good reasons but it is nonetheless complicated.  I would love to share more details but I can't right yet.  We would just really appreciate your prayers for favor with those involved in helping us update things with our adoption and that things go smoothly and quickly so that we can be READY to accept a referral when it comes because we are SO SO close!!  Thank you all!! 

 Psalm 9:1&2 

 ^"I will give thanks to you, Lord, with all my heart;
 I will tell of all your wonderful deeds.  I will be glad and rejoice in you; 

 I will sing the praises of your name, O Most High."

New July Number!!

Okay, I could hardly believe this number when I saw it in the email.  Seriously.  This is for real.  We are getting SO SO close!!  Are you ready for our new official number?!? 



We need your prayers right now!  We are in the midst of a home study update (that God has amazingly provided the funds for), dossier updates that we found out about, and waiting for our USCIS stuff to come back!  We trust the Lord's timing but we can't accept a referral until we have this stuff updated so pray that we would get all our documentation returned super super quickly!! 

"For since the world began, no ear has heard and no eye has seen a God like you, who works for those who wait for him!" - Isaiah 64:4

June Number!

We finally got our new June waitlist number this evening!!!  We are officially...

 Yay!  I can't believe how close we are getting!  I thought this hot pink quinceañera balloon would be good for celebrating!  Haha!  Whaddya think??

It's Gonna Be Worth It

God has brought the Rita Springer song, "Worth it All" to my mind this evening.  Whenever I hear the song in my head I actually just hear one of our worship leaders at church singing it.  We don't sing it a lot but when we do, it's so sweet.  It reminds me that there is more than what we see, more than what we can hope or dream for, there is more besides the suffering we deal with here, more than all this waiting....but I know we are gonna say that it was worth all of this waiting, suffering, dreaming, and hoping.  
It's gonna be worth it all. 

The daughter that we have waited for for 2 years is going to be worth it.
The long 3 year wait for a ministry job for my husband is going to be worth it.
The tears I've cried over disappointments are going to be worth it in the end.
The hard relationships that require more than you know how to give are going to be worth it.
The hours and hours that you invest your heart into something that you don't always see the fruit right away are gonna be worth it.
The giving away of your self, your plans, your everything is going to be worth it.

He is going to be worth it all.  
The Lord will forever and always be worth it all because...


"He forgives all my sins and heals all my diseases.  He redeems me from death and crowns me with love and tender mercies.  He fills my life with good things.  My youth is renewed like the eagle's.  He is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.  He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever.  He does not punish us for all our sins; he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.  He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west." -Psalm 103: 2-6, 8-12


I believe He's going to be worth it.

Don't forget about the Scentsy Giveaway!!

I just wanted to remind you all about the Scentsy giveaway that I'm doing!  A wall plug-in and a Scentsy bar of your choice!  It ends on June 29th!  Go ahead and enter and share it!!  Remember to enter using the Rafflecopter app.  

Here is the link to the original post with all the info and the place to enter!

http://hunts4adoption.blogspot.com/2012/06/scentsy-giveaway.html 

And here is where you can purchase Scentsy products to benefit our adoption!

https://jsoriano.scentsy.us/Scentsy/Buy?partyId=91247126

Scentsy Giveaway!!

Since we are fundraising with Scentsy this month to help with our adoption, I thought I would do a little giveaway!  I have a wall plug-in that my mom bought me a few years ago and I love it!  It fills up a room with the scent and it's not overwhelming.  I love that I can just turn it on and off and that I don't have to smell the yucky soot from blowing a candle out.  They are only $20 each and the great thing is that the actual scents (the Scentsy bars) are only $5 each!  Each Scentsy bar lasts a long time too.  Yesterday, I did a little overview of some of the scents and I gave some of my favorites.  You can check it out here.  The key to our fundraiser is making sure to purchase from the right site!  This is the link to our fundraiser: 
https://jsoriano.scentsy.us/Scentsy/Buy?partyId=91247126 

So, I did say something about a giveaway, didn't I??  Here is the deal!  I am going to give away a Scentsy wall plug-in and a Scentsy bar of your choice!!  That's a $25 value!  All I need you to do is help me out by sharing this giveaway and fundraiser!  You can enter the giveaway by following Rafflecopter's directions below!  It's super easy but make sure if you leave a comment you also include yourself through Rafflecopter cuz that's how I'm keeping track!  You can earn entries like this:

1 required entry:  Go to the link, click on Plug-In Warmers on the  left.  Then, leave me a comment telling me which plug-in you like the best!
1 extra entry:  Tweet about the giveaway linking this blog entry.
1 extra entry:  Share the giveaway on facebook linking this blog entry.
2 extra entries:  Make a purchase from the link I provided.

                                                                                                                                                           

This giveaway will end on Friday, June 29th!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

FUNDRAISERS!!

We have two fundraisers going on so I thought I needed to share them on here!  One is local to where we live but the other is open to ANYONE!!

I'll share the one open to anyone first!!  My BFF from growing up (you know the one that knows way too much about you and still loves you anyway?) sells Scentsy products.  Just in case you don't know, Scentsy warmers use a low-watt bulb to melt specially formulated wax slowly, maximizing its fragrance time.  There is no wick, no flame, and no soot!

My friend is practically giving up her commission and donating to our adoption!  Anytime you purchase ANY Scentsy product during the month of June using THIS link, then it benefits our adoption fund!  Sweet, right??  Oh, and I am so lucky because I actually get to carry around her big 'ol bag of scents.  I have been whipping them out and smelling them and sharing them.  I'm gonna share some of my favorites with y'all!  I WISH you could smell them too!  If you live near me, then I can definitely bring them by to you but if not, I hope you will take my advice. :)  There are several different categories, so I'll share a couple favorites from each one!  The actual Scentsy bar is just $5 and the warmers range in price from $20 - $40.  There are also other products available including Layers, their line of Scentsy perfumes, lotions, etc.

SPRING & SUMMER
Two Harbors:  I love this one!  Meyer lemon and lime with sweet vanilla and amber.  It just smells like Summer time.
Jumpin' Jelly Bean:  This one is sweet and smells a little like candy with a hint of apple and pear.
Mums and Marigolds:  Oh, this one smells like my grandma's backyard when I was little.  It's exactly what it says.  Sunny and sweet!

FAVORITES
Camu Camu:  This smells so tropical and fruity but it's not overwhelming with coconut.  It's a good blend!
Luna: I'm not sure how to describe this one but I love it!  It has jasmine and sweet pea and sandalwood too!  This one is available in their new Layers line of shower creams, lotions, body spray, etc.

CORNER CAFE
Mochadoodle:  Oh my.  This one is sooo yummy!  It smells like coffee, cocoa, and caramel all in one.

SPA 
Be Still: This one is calming and makes me want to relax.  It has light mandarin, soft violet, and creamy sandal tree.

SEVEN SEAS  
Havana Cabana:  Pineapples, oranges, bananas....it makes me want to get a daiquiri and lay out in the sun.

ROMANCE
RU N2 Me:  Hah, the name is a little silly but this is a new scent.  It's sweet but woodsy at the same time.  It's described as "warm pink pepper, deep woods, and bright cassis."

SCENTSY MAN
Sharp-dressed Man:  This smells fresh and clean.  It has eucalyptus, basil, and lemon.

Here are a couple warmers that I think are so pretty!  Oh, and the little lamb is scented!  You can choose from little stuffed animals and place a scent in them to sweeten up a room or car!  So here is the link again to our fundraiser!  You have to purchase from this link or it will not go toward our adoption. 

https://jsoriano.scentsy.us/Scentsy/Buy?partyId=91247126

  

April Number & Update

I haven't been very good at updating this blog or updating anyone for that matter.  I guess I've been avoiding this space for some time.  I tend to avoid people and situations when I just don't know what to say or when I don't want to talk about something.  Most of you know that we moved to Texas last summer and then moved back to North Carolina at the end of November.  I've explained the why and everything over at the other blog so I don't feel like I need to get into that but I haven't really explained how adoption plans are progressing.  So that is my goal tonight.  I think I'm finally up to it.

We are still on the wait list to adopt a little girl.  Our newest number for this month is 17.

 {Source: http://www.janbrett.com/numbers/number_17.htm}

We started at 93 in October of 2010.  While we were in Texas we did not update our home study for various reasons but it worked out to be a good thing since we moved back to NC.  Since we have moved back (and our house sold while we lived in TX) we have been living with Brian's mom.  This is one of the best scenarios for us.  Lots of people say bad things about their mother-in-laws but mine is truly wonderful.  She has a spacious house with plenty of room for us.  We are in a great school zone for our 5 year old, Isabel, to attend 1st grade in the fall.  

I have been teaching part-time at a middle school and Brian has applied for more jobs than I really even know.  He has come ridiculously close for many but eventually they choose someone with their Master's degree already or they say that he is over-qualified.  Finally a few months back, he was able to find a job.  We were so thankful.  Even still, we have been so so worried about what all of this does to our adoption process.  Would they even let us continue since our life, finances, home, everything has changed?  Would they think we've lost our minds?

Thankfully, they have been so so kind and helpful.  We do have some work to do.  We have been waiting to hear their opinion on everything.  So, we have to update our home study, we have to be re-fingerprinted (these all expired/will expire soon anyway), we have to add Brian's mom to the mix, we still have to raise money, and we still need to apply for grants (that require an updated home study).  Our agency wants to see how everything is going and they want us to have some stability so they'd like to see the updates fairly soon.

So, basically this is a lot.  Nothing in me really wants to be vulnerable and share all of this.  But, I felt like I should and I really just want to ask for prayer.  Prayer over the whole thing!  Thank you all!!  We still have some fundraising plans going on too that we'll share later. :)

I'll end on a verse I read today from 1 Kings 8:56.

"Praise the LORD who has given rest to his people Israel, just as he promised.  Not one word has failed of all the wonderful promises he gave through his servant Moses." 

March Number

I forgot to update our number for March!  We didn't receive the number until the end of March but somehow I just forgot to post it.  Our current number on the wait list is:

    {Source: Eva the Weaver}

February Waitlist Number......

{Source: duncan}

I heard a sermon today from Haggai and it brought a lot of encouragement to me in this wait where things can get discouraging. Haggai is talking to God's people that have been charged with rebuilding the temple. They obeyed and got started but then felt discouraged and were ready to quit. But God sends a message by way of Haggai.

"Yet now be strong, O Zerubbabel, declares the LORD. Be strong, O Joshua, son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Be strong, all you people of the land, declares the LORD. Work, for I am with you, declares the LORD of hosts, according to the covenant that I made with you when you came out of Egypt. My Spirit remains in your midst. Fear not."
(Haggai 2:4-5 ESV)

His Spirit is STILL in our midst! He is with us and will never leave us!