Rustic Christmas Paintings 4 Water

Check out these super cute, rustic Christmas paintings I have discovered!! They are ADORABLE if I do say so myself. I LOVE them so much I have decided to paint more. I will be selling them for $40 each to help raise money for our charity:water campaign. If you have not read about it, click here. 

Each painting is approx. 27" x 22" in., made of wood with acrylic paint. I can do either the Santa or the Snowman. 

If you are interested please let me know via facebook or email (kaceylyn09@gmail.com). 

You may donate directly to my family's charity:water site, or write a check to me and I will donate it in your name.

100% of all donations will go directly to the charity:water campaign. Help bring life-saving water to the people of Rwanda and decorate your house for this wonderful time of year all at the same time :)

Checking In...

Hey everyone! I promise I am still here! I'm not sure why I haven't made it around to blogging lately. Perhaps being super busy + super tired = no time/energy/brain power to write anything!

 I was about to skip over the blog again tonight when I realized we are getting SOO much closer to the end of the year and the end of my charity:water campaign to bring clean water to people in Rwanda. We are currently at $1,560 raised. Our goal is still $5,000 by the end of 2012!!! (THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to all those who have donated so far!! Yall are AMAZING!!)

I meant to post an idea I had the other day thanks to my wonderful mother. You see, a couple of weeks ago, my mom gave me all of my Dad's coins he has in a basket next to his bed. Each night he empties out his pockets and puts all his change in a basket. Who knows how long it had been sitting there? She wanted me to use it to donate towards the water project in Rwanda. I willingly took the coins to a local CoinStar hoping to get maybe $50 or so out of them. As I kept pouring coins, I watched in amazement as the $$ total kept going up and up and up. Let me tell you, two ziplock bags of coins adds up FAST!! I walked out of the store that day with about $277!! I was SO excited. All from coins that would have set next to my parents bed for another year or so I'm sure.

SO...here's my idea. I am in the market for COINS!!! I am sure we all have a similar coin basket/jar/cup just  like my dad (I know Reagan and I do!). If you have some coins laying around that you do not want to take the time to turn in yourself and would like to donate them to a good cause, I am your girl!! I will come pick them up, exchanage them, and donate them onto my charity:water website FOR YOU! You don't have to do ANYTHING (except maybe pour them into a disposable bag/container!), but if you don't even want to take the time to do that, I will even return your container to you when I am done.

So start emptying those pockets, and looking under your couch cushions! Oh yeah, and pass on the word...the more coins the better!!!! Just facebook me or email me @ kaceylyn09@gmail.com and let me know when would be a good time to come by. Thanks so much everyone!!!

P.S. Charity:water is starting a new campaign series this Christmas season. If you would like to start your own fundraiser and help change lives, all new campaigns started this holiday season will go to building wells for people in Ethiopia where more than 2 million people are without clean water. Click here  to find out more!!

7 Months!

Asher is now 7 months old!!! CRAZY!! He is getting more and more personality every day. I love his little laugh and voice. He loves saying "dadadada" and unfortunately he only says "mamamama" when he is tired or mad :) haha. Figures. Here are some pics from our 7 month photo shoot :)

What a big boy! Those solids are really making those cheeks fill out :)

Truth...best gift EVER!

Love this little hand...can't believe it will be big enough to hold onto mine one day.

This is him telling me he is finished taking pictures

What's this momma?

So tired of taking pictures :) This is the face I get right before he starts "mamamama" 

Our Weekend.

So, I have not made it onto the blog the past few nights for my picture posts. We have had a fun-filled and busy weekend.


Friday-Asher's first time in the "big boy" swing at the neighborhood park



It was getting a little close to bedtime...:)

Aunt Kelly and Cousin Addison came over Saturday to play and paint pumpkins!

Trying to get them both to smile at the same time!

Gig'em Ags!!

Hope you had a blessed and fun-filled weekend too! Don't forget to check out the progress and donate to APicADay4Water campaign!!

Why this Mommy is meant for adoption...

I apologize ahead of time if this post is a little bit of rambling and very scatter-brained. It is 10pm on a Friday night, so I am a little sleep deprived, but I just had a thought that I couldn't let slip my mind.

Why I know my heart was made for adoption...

I am an avid blog reader (hence my new desire to be a better blogger myself). Of course, top on my blogs to read are adoption blogs. As I read more and more about families in the adoption process, and more specifically post-adoption I realize my desire only grows more. The blogs I follow are great at being honest. They don't sugar coat things. They tell the truth, both beautiful and ugly. And you know what? None of the ugly scares me away, but only pulls at my heart even more.

I hear about difficulty with attachment, both from the child's and the parent's perspective. Mommies who don't automatically feel an unconditional love for their new child. Babies who don't always want comfort from their new Mommies and Daddies, who after all, are nothing but strangers to them in the beginning. I read about babies grieving their homes thousands of miles away. And you know what? It doesn't scare me away.

It is easy to think "I would be so sad if my baby doesn't let me hold him or comfort him", but what speaks to my heart is how much these babies are hurting. My heart breaks, not for me, but for my baby. That my child will come to me broken hearted. That he/she must be unbelievably brave to cross an ocean with strangers. I know this Momma's heart is meant for adoption because all these "hard" things just makes me want it more. I want to love someone unconditionally, through the good, the bad, and the ugly. It is easy to love those that love you back, but we are called to love even if our circumstances are not filled with butterflies and rainbows.

 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners love those who love them.  And if you do good to those who are good to you, what credit is that to you? Even sinners do that. -Luke 6:32-33

I know it will be hard. I know there will be times I will be so exhausted and so broken hearted for my child that I will wonder if Reagan and I did the right thing in adopting. But when I get to that point, I hope I can remember the truth that has been spoken to us through much prayer. We have been called to adopt, to care for God's children no matter their background, their country, their skin color.

My heart leaps at the thought. It may be years down the road, but nevertheless it is on my heart and mind each and every day. Your family is coming for you baby. You are wanted. You are loved. You have a Mommy and a Daddy and the best Big Brother ever, and we cannot wait to bring you home. Forever.

Dessert Anyone?

And Reagan wonders why I don't ask him to go to the grocery store more often... :)

Weaknesses

2 Corinthians 12:9 "But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore, I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me."

I must say "glad" and "weakness" are two words I never thought would go hand-in-hand. Boasting about our weaknesses completely goes against human-nature. We tend to hide out weaknesses, compensate for them, or flat our deny them...but BOAST about our weaknesses? It's so foreign to this sinful mind of mine it almost sounds humorous.

 

However, this cerse has popped into my head over the past few days (and with it brings a humbling truth). As many of you know, I am trying to raise $5,000 to help bring safe, clean drinking water to people in Rwanda. I started this campaign excited and hopeful. I thought, "Yeah, why not, if others can do it, so can I." And that's where I went wrong.

 

"I"

 

"I" cannot do anything. "I" cannot inspire people to give money to any cause. "I" cannot reach enough people to raise $5,000. "I" cannot open other's eyes to the poverty and suffering God's chilren are enduring all over the world. 

 



BUT

 

God Can! Is blogging the best way to raise money? Probably not. Is sharing a picture a day the best incentive to get people to help? Definitely not. I am not the best marketer. I have no idea how to raise money. I am self-absorbed in thinking that others want to see and know what my family is up to each and every day. I am selfish in asking others to give money knowing that I could probably give more myself. Though I am flawed with these weaknesses (and many more!) I will boast in them because only then can God's power work its magic. I know I cannot make this campaign successful. I am not enough, so I plead for God to intervene.

 

Father, show us how your children are suffering. Show us the solution, what we can do to help. Open our eyes to the truth and open our hearts to give of ourselves freely.

 

I know this water campaign will be completed. I don't know when and I don't know how. I know it will not be because of what I do, but because of what God chooses to do through me. I am excited to see this campaign grow despite my bad ideas and poor marketing skills!

 

Thank you God for allowing me to be a part of your work when I know very well You could do it all without me. And thank you to our first donaters: my sister Kelly, Aunt Marty, and dear friend Patsy. I love you all and thank you from the bottom of my heart for your generosity.

 



Check it out for yourself! http://mycharitywater.org/apicaday4water

YAY! 4 Rwandans will be saved with our donations so far!

The beautiful face of a life changed!

New Things...

This is what my big guy has been up to this week...Sippy Cups! We were given the green light at Asher's 6 month appointment to start trying sippy cups with water! He of course just holds the cup for a little bit and then drops it as of now, but sooner or later he will catch on :)

The timing of this milestone and my charity:water campaign must be God-ordained. I cannot fill up Asher's cup without remembering the nearly 1 billion people around the world without clean water. It is God's little reminder each day to keep fighting for those suffering from lack of clean drinking water. This video says it all.

Don't forget to donate to APicADay4Water campaign!

Pic #3

Hope you enjoy the pic of the day! Asher loved playing in cousin Brooklyn's bassinet!

Don't forget to visit APicADay4Water campaign page & help bring life saving water to the people of Rwanda.

Pic #2...today was a great day shopping with Gigi, Aunt Koko, Brooklyn, and Asher. I think all this shopping wore the babies out! And good thing we had the stroller to hold all our purchases :)

APicADay4Water...if 250 people donate $20, we will provide 15 families with life saving clean water.

APicADay4Water

“Then the King will say to those on the right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home… ‘I assure you, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!’”

An overwhelming burden has been placed on my heart these past few weeks and months for the orphans of this world, and more specifically, the orphans of Africa. Reagan and I are in the prcoess of praying about how God would have us be involved in taking care of his children. The first of hopefully many things we will be doing to help, starts today. APicADay4Water campaign is NOW OPEN!!

What is APicADay4Water? Well, it is a clean water campaign that Reagan and I just created through an amazing organization called charity:water. charity:water is a non-profit organzition that uses 100% of funds raised from water projects like APicADay4Water to provide clean and safe drinking water to those that are dying without it. In many parts of the world, women and children spend hours a day fetching water from dirty rivers and ponds. They return home with water contaminated with parasites and bacteria. They give this water to their family knowing it will probably make them sick, but what other option do they have? Time taken by these women and children to fetch dirty water is also time away from going to school or working at a job that will allow them to provide for their family.

Did you know, that 1 billion people are without clean drinking water? Or that today alone, 4,500 children will die from water related diseases?

Providing clean water is one way to help children stay with their biological families. Our goal is to raise $5,000 by the end of 2012 to fund water projects in the Rulindo District of Rwanda. Up to 70% of people in this district spend hours a day fetching water from contaminated sources. 100% of money raised will go to creating piped systems that help protect natural water sources and deliver water to these communities.

You can make a difference. Together, we can save lives and give children a future with their mommies and daddies. Please consider donating to APicADay4Water TODAY!!

And because everyone loves pictures, I will post APicADay until this campaign is complete in return for your generous donations.

Thank you in advance for your generosity and love for the people and children of this world who are in need of a miracle.

Pic #1...of course no one can kick off this campaign quite like this adorable guy...

Deceived

I Timothy 6:17-19: “Tell those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which will soon be gone. But their trust should be in the living God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment. Tell them to use their money to do good. They should be rich in good works and should give generously to those in need, always being ready to share with others whatever God has given them. By doing this they will be storing up their treasure as a good foundation for the future so that they may take hold of real life.”

I have been decieved. For the past 3 years, and beyond, I did not put myself in this group of "those who are rich" that Timothy is talking about. How could I? First, I was a college student with no job, then I became a teacher and Reagan started Optometry School. We own a house (meaning we pay a mortgage), we have 3 going on 4 years of student loan debt (yikes!), and we have a child...all on my teacher's salary. By America's standard my family is not "rich".

But I do not want to live by America's standard. America's standard is false and decieving. The more I read into orphan advocacy the more my eyes are opened to the poverty of this world. For example, in Ethiopia, almost 82% of the people live on less than $2/day (the indicated poverty line), and more than half live on less than $1/day. We may have debtedness, but we also have a means in the future in which to pay off our loans in a responsible and timely manner. When I take a step back and re-evaluate, my family is DEFINITELY in the "those who are rich" category.

What does this mean? We are not asked, but demanded to GIVE IT AWAY. "Our" money is not ours, but God's. Luke 12:48: “Much is required from those to whom much is given, and much more is required from those to whom much more is given.” God has given us much. He has blessed us by providing for all of our needs, and let's face it, most of our wants. So, now it is time to give up some of these "wants". Reagan and I talked about this last night and we struggle with what we are called to give on a daily basis. What do I give up? What is "God's" and what has he given us for us? I am not sure. But after some praying, I know where I am going to start. So here it is...

1. No more Starbucks (unless it is a giftcard because I can't really turn that into cash! :)) PS-God has already been so amazing to me for this decision because I get to school today to find a belated birthday gift of a $10 Starbucks card! YAY!! Thank you God, and Valencia!!

2. No more Friday lunches out. Some co-workers and I always treat ourselves to lunch out on Fridays. From now on, I will pack my lunch.

What does this do? I plan on looking at the past month of our bank account and calculating what I spent on Starbucks and my Friday lunches. That money will then go to fund a well project that I am in the works of developing. There are nearly one billion people right now without access to clean water. I have found an organization that takes 100% of its proceeds and builds wells for impoverished communities.

It may seem small now, but I am hoping it is only the beginning. Baby steps...

Stay tuned for a post about this well project, and maybe think about what "wants" you could give up to help bring life to people through clean drinking water.

-Kacey

Quote of the Day

"My friends, adoption is redemption. It’s costly, exhausting, expensive, and outrageous. Buying back lives costs so much. When God set out to redeem us, it killed Him. "-Derek Loux

Ran across this quote on one of my favorite "adoption" blogs and LOVED it!...the couple is adopting a little girl from Ethiopia. I love ready about their decision to adopt, their journey, their hearts. They are so close to brining home their little girl! Check it our for yourself....

http://www.pureandlasting.com/

When you're married to a comedian...

Life is interesting when you're married to a comedian. Of course, Reagan is an Optometrist, but pretty sure he thinks he's a comedian. Either that, or he still likes to revert to his "flirting" of the olden days where he thinks picking on me is showing affection :) So this is how my "romantic" date night with my hubby ended (please ignore that I am writing this @ 8pm. Yes, date nights just aren't quite the same when you know a crying baby will wake you up @ 6am.)

Reagan and I are in the car on our way home from dinner when I decide to roll down my window to enjoy this beautiful weather. A few seconds later, Reagan starts cracking up. I am curious, but know that it must mean Reagan is up to know good so I try to ignore it :) We slowly pull up to a red light at which point Reagan proceeds to blare the rap portion of "Where'd You Go" by Fort Minor with his unbelievably embarassing bass rattling in the background. I proceed to look around to make sure no one is paying attention to us when I notice the car right beside us has their window down TOO! I panic, reaching for the window button to roll it up, and to my dismay it won't roll up!! What do you think I see next? Reagan, absolutely CRACKING up with his finger on the "child lock" button. I was MORTIFIED!!

He had seen the car pass us earlier on the road and had been planning it ever since the song started.

Yes, that is what happens when you are married to a comedian...Happy Birthday to me!

Trusting...

   " The earth belongs to the Lord, and everything in it -- the world and all its people." Psalm 24:1

This Truth has been my lifeline the past 4 weeks. Anyone who has asked me how being back at work has been knows that it is a bittersweet time for me. I LOVE teaching...I really do. Each morning starts off with a moment of silence during announcements and my prayer each morning is that every kid walking through the doors of Silverlake will learn and know love that day. I love that there are 400+ kids I have a chance of impacting each day. The "ah ha" moments I see on my students faces when they finally get a concept is priceless. I love my co-workers, and I enjoy adult conversation throughout the day (which is something I thoroughly missed as a stay-at-home mom).

BUT (and this is a BIG BUT!), I absolutely, 100% miss my little boy like CRAZY!!! His picture is posted all over my room and my heart half smiles and half breaks each time his adorable face pops up on my computer screen. There are some days I do really well and everything feels like routine. Then, there are other days, like today, where I just hold my little man as I rock him to sleep and cry because I feel like I am missing everything. I'm sure it's a little bit of hormones mixed with a little bit of sleep deprivation, but nevertheless it's hard to handle sometimes.

So where does Psalm 24:1 come in? When the urge arises (as it does each day at work) to play hooky for the rest of the day and go get Asher from daycare, I recall this Truth. That though I may be Asher's mommy, he doesn't really belong to me at all. Reagan and I have been blessed with the privilege and responsibility of raising this little boy. He is God's son more than he is ours. When I think "they don't know him like I do, they can't possibly be doing as good of a job as I would do", I remember that God knows him most of all. He knit him together in my womb and knows each piece of precious red hair that little boy has on his head. That's when I pray. I pray that God is imparting his wisdom onto Asher's daycare teachers, that He is watching over him and making sure he is taken care of and loved every second that I am away. And that gets me through day...to 3:45, at which time I run out as fast as I can :)

I think of my love for Asher and I can't even fathom that it is only a tiny fraction of the love God has for him. So, if God can entrust me to take care of His precious child for what I pray is an abundance of years on this earth, can't I have enough trust in Asher's daycare to take care of him for a couple hours each day? I think so. And though I love Asher's daycare and think they do a fantastic job, my trust is not in them, but in God alone. That He is with Asher every second of every day. That He uses others to meet Asher's needs and show him love just as He uses me.

With that said, here is to 164 more days until I am once again a stay-at-home mommy to this cool rat...

Happy 1/2 Birthday "My Sunshine"

WHOA!! 1/2 a year already since I first set eyes on this handsome little fella. Who would have known I would get my little boy and my red-head on the first try :) Absolutely, LOVE IT!! While I am so proud of my Asher-man (he is the BEST baby in case you didn't know!), I can't help but beg him to please SLOW DOWN!! Each stage has been more amazing than the last, but are we seriously half-way to his 1st birthday!?! I think the 6th month has been the magical one so far. It makes me so sad that I don't get to spend all-day everyday with him, but I keep reminding myself that it will just keep getting better and better (so imagine how much fun he will be when I am once again a stay-at-home mommy :))

I am so thrilled to continue to watch this little man grow, and excited to see how his personality will continue to evolve into what I hope to be my sweet little boy :) (so far so good!)

Happy 1/2 Birthday Asher! Mommy is so proud of you and so amazingly lucky to be your mommy! I LOVE YOU to the moom and back!

March 15th

 

September 15th

*Thank you to Kaycee Nicotre Smith for the above picture...can't wait to see the rest!*

HELLO!

Hello all. Welcome to the new blog...I'm thinking 3rd time's a charm! Why have I decided to start blogging again? Well, as a new mom I have found I have a lot more on my mind, and a lot more to say (but unfortunately less time)! I am hoping this blog will help share a little of our life with you as well as a lot of my heart.

So what to start with? One of the most valuable things I have learned as a new mom: my heart is capable of A LOT of love. More in fact than I ever thought possible. It seems to spill out every time I look at my precious little boy. So much so, that I find myself wanting to pour it out on every little kid I see. Lately, that means researching A LOT about orphans and orphan care. When I see the smile on my little boy's face and the contentment he has in his momma's arms, my heart breaks for all those little ones around the world with no one to call "mommy" or "daddy", no one kissing them goodnight, no one singing to them or holding them tight when they are scared. So what does this mean for me and my family? Well, hopefully adoption one day. But God didn't place this overwhelming love for orphans in my heart to be used "some day", no, I believe he placed it in my heart right here, right now, to be used NOW. I am currently praying (which is something else I have discovered as a new mom, I pray A LOT!!). I am praying for God to show me what he wants me to do, where I can be used most effectively, where I need to be to make the most impact for orphans, and for His will for our family to be revealed in his own perfect timing. As I pray these things, I ask that you join me. Pray for me, pray for how you may get involved too, but most importantly, pray for those that are going to bed tonight motherless and fatherless.

A few of my thoughts on the amazingness of adoption:
-It doesn't have to be a "Plan B", in fact it SHOULDN'T BE! Why can't it be a part of Plan A?
-If every Christian couple adopted 1 child, that is approx. *210 million orphans now with an earthly mother and father, as well as a glipmse of the Gospel. (*statistic given by UNICEF)...and by the way, that would mean NO MORE ORPHANS!
-Adoption is a beautiful picture of the Gospel...through Jesus' sacrifice, God has "adopted" us into his family. We were once lost, but now we are FOUND!

A few of God's thoughts on the amazingness of adoption:
-"Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bring your children from the east, and gather you from the west...bring my sons from afar and my daughters from the ends of the earth." -Isaiah 43:5-6
-"pure and lasting religion in the sight of God the Father means that we must care for orphans and widows in their troubles, and refuse to let the world corrupt us." -James 1:27
-"Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the Kingdom of God belongs to such as these." Luke 18:16