ApParent Project - Fundraiser Bracelets

I thought I would continue my posts about ApParent Project - Stateside.  Marilyn and her helpers continue to stay busy out in Lacey, Washington.  One of the newest additions to AP is their Fundraiser Bracelets.  When I learned all the details about this - I was so excited!

 It has become incredibly popular - especially among families who are raising money for an adoption.

Basically, it works like this - 

"We (AP) mail you 100-500 (or more) bracelets which you sell for $6-8 each. After sales are final you return all of the unsold bracelets to our U.S. address along with $4 for each bracelet sold. If you sell a bracelet for $8, that means that AP artisans earn money to feed, shelter, and educate their families while your group gets $2-4 per bracelet towards your fundraising goals. If you sold 100 bracelets at $8 each, you would send us $400 and you would earn $400 for your project."

Seriously - how cool is that???  How many fund raisers do you know where the product you are selling is helping to feed, shelter and educate the poor?  

The AP bracelets are so popular!  I sold over 100 of them at Christmas time - along with all the other jewelry.  They are simple, inexpensive and so much fun!  Every time I wear mine, I receive a ton of comments.  They are so colorful that they go with ANY thing and they catch everyone's eye!  And then that opens up a chance for me to talk about AP to someone new.

 These are boxes of Fundraiser Bracelets at Marilyn's house in WA.

"And, now we have the fundraiser bracelet boxes going out like crazy. The "normal" Fundraiser Bracelet box holds about 125 bracelets. The "large" Fundraiser Bracelet box contains 200-225 bracelets. This has become enormously popular with people who are adopting from Haiti. We will need to hire more Haitians (a good problem!) in order to keep up with the demand. We ran out of fundraiser bracelets this month, so I brought back LOTS of bracelets last week. It took us one day to make them disappear! Then the next day... which was yesterday... we emptied those 3 shipping boxes full of bracelets."   ~ Marilyn

Does your church, team, school, youth group, workplace, or club need to raise funds to support a program, an upcoming event, or a short term service project? Do you need to raise money for an adoption?  This helps Haitians AND your cause at the same time!

Please Contact Them if this is something you would like to try!

Until next time...... 

Another Adoption Day for the Bennetts

In order to have all of the back story on this post - read my original post here:

Adoption Day for the Bennetts  (You will be blessed - I promise!)

Now - to bring you up to date......

This is Carter.  Isn't he adorable?  He came to the Emily and Bruce as a Foster child when he was just a few weeks old.

I'll admit - we thought they were crazy.  This made 4 boys in the house.  Their biological son, Zander, was 10, their adopted son, William, was 2 and they had another Foster child, Oliver, who was 18 months at the time.  Now they were adding an infant!  This was a busy house!

Carter was such a good and easy baby.  Russ and I had been fingerprinted so we could help them and would often go over and watch the boys so that Bruce and Emily could go to appointments or just have a night out. 

 
The boys all bonded very quickly.  William especially LOVED his baby brother!   As Carter grew, he fit right into the Bennett clan and kept up with Will and Ollie - no problem!

Ollie was officially adopted and made a Bennett in May of last year and they wanted to add Carter to the "official" list as well.  Last Fall, after a series of many God moments, Bruce was offered a new job in New Hampshire.  They knew that they were supposed to take the position but what about Carter?  They couldn't leave the state with him.  He was still a Foster Child and if they all moved, he would go back into the system.

After much prayer, Bruce accepted the job in New Hampshire and began work November 1.  He went ahead, leaving Emily and the four boys here in Florida.  At this time, things were working in their favor and it looked as if the adoption would be final by the first of the year.  Any of you who are familiar with adoption and the "system" know that that is not always the case.  Lots can happen to slow things down and get everything complicated.  Zander, their oldest, moved to New Hampshire with Bruce in January.  Things had been postponed again and they wanted to allow him to get into the school system during the Christmas Break.  At this point, they still thought the adoption would be late winter, early spring.

This left Emily here in Florida with the 3 babies.  3 boys - 3 and under in age.  Alone.  Need I say more??

This has been one incredibly long emotional roller coaster for them.  Emily and I have spent many hours on the phone talking through and processing all the crazy things that have happened.  Their family has been physically separated and undergone emotional stress and financial sacrifice for 9 long months in order to adopt Carter.

That is what I call unconditional love!  There were so many times when Emily was tired, lonely and just plain done.  There were even times that they wanted to give up because it became so very difficult.  But they knew that giving up meant giving up Carter all together and they simply could not do that.  There were times when it all seemed in vain - things were not going in their favor and he would be taken away anyway.  Was all of this sacrifice in vain?

I am proud to have the Bennett's as my friends.  This past year they have been an example of faith and unconditional love.  They have sacrificed and have thrown up their hands to God.  They have begged and pleaded and prayed and loved and let go.  They have willingly let go of their plans, their ideas, and their will. They have walked this journey and brought honor and glory to God.  They have continually worked to enhance His reputation - to let Him work.

I am so happy to say that yesterday - ALL of their prayers were answered.  ALL of their sacrifice was worth it!  All of their hardship is finally over.  After a few words from a kind judge, Carter is now officially Carter Ashton Bennett.

Russ and I again had the wonderful privilege of standing up with them and being a witness to the adoption yesterday.  What an honor it was.

William 4, Oliver 3 1/2, Carter 2

These 3 adopted boys will now grow up together in a loving, Christian home.  Each one has his own unique story about how he was loved and wanted deeply by Bruce and Emily.    

Adoption is such a beautiful process.  But it is not without pain and much sacrifice.  I look at the photo of these three and think of their stories.  Funny how God works to build our faith.  Will's adoption was private and very uneventful.  There was much prayer that went into it - but compared to the others, it was very easy.  Oliver's was a little harder.  A longer process - somewhat of a roller coaster - but mostly a waiting game.  But it didn't matter as much (looking at it now) because the family was all together.  Then there was Carter.  Much more of a fight - more of a roller coaster - more of a sacrifice because everyone was separated.  I can see each one as stepping stones of faith.  God working in each adoption - little things to prepare Bruce and Emily for the next.  New things each time to trust God with.  New things that were out of their control.  If Will's adoption would have been this difficult, I wonder if there would have been an Ollie and a Carter?

God is so good.  It has been amazing to watch Him work in this - to see Bruce and Emily's faith grow before my very eyes.  To watch them trust Him with things that were out of control and then to see God reward them so magnificently!  I have been able to be a close part of their lives as they went from Emily being a business woman - to her desire to stay home - then their desire to adopt a child - then two - then three.  God has used this to grow them and shape them.  What a wonderful testimony they have.  It has been a long journey.  5 years.  And I have to sit back and say, "What's next God?"  You have built this faith in them for a reason.  Everything has a purpose - everything builds on the next thing you have for us.  They have proven themselves to be faithful and obedient.  I am excited to see what is to come!  It won't be easy - but you have prepared them and you will continue to be with them.  

As an outsider, looking in - it's awesome to see a family who has completely trusted God, allowed Him to do his work - no matter how difficult - and then watched the outcome be so rewarding.  Please don't get me wrong - there have been tears, there has been anger, there has been frustration.  But - if all of us could have this kind of faith - this kind of stamina - this kind of willingness to allow God to do whatever he needs to do to grow and change our lives.  What an impact we could all have on the world.  He loves us - Oh how He loves us!

For now, their next journey is New Hampshire.  I'm not even going to attempt to go there right now.  My heart breaks at the thought. The movers are coming and they will be leaving in 2 weeks.  I am excited for them and the next chapter God has called them to - as a family of 6.

Adoption Day for the Bennetts

I wanted to take few moments and tell you about some of our best friends, Bruce and Emily Bennett.  We met them 5 years ago when they came to our church.  They were a vital part of our Pathway group.  Both gave their lives to Christ and then were baptized by Russell.  We have watched them surrender their lives and truly live out their faith by trusting Him. 

Bruce and Emily have one biological son, Alexander (Zander) and when we met them, they were both very involved and successful in their careers.  Due to a genetic disorder, they are unable to have any more children of their own (Zander himself is a miracle).  After giving their lives to Christ, they felt led to adopt another child.  We prayed with them and for them as they began the long and tedious process of adoption.  Emily stepped out of her successful career to be a stay at home mom.  A concept that was extremely scary for her as she will be the first to admit she hates cooking and just could not understand what she could possibly do all day to fill her time.  Nearly 3 years ago, after a lot of prayer,  William was born and adopted into the Bennett family.  He is a joy.

Will wasn't in their home but a few weeks and Bruce told Emily he felt God calling them to become Foster Parents.  Needless to say, it took Emily a while to get on board.  Will came to them as an infant.  Emily had been in the delivery room with his biological mom.  Being willing to take on other children who have such sad back grounds is a huge and frightening step of faith.  But, the Lord brought them together on the idea and they began the steps involved.  Almost a year later, their first Foster Child was brought into their home.  He was 6 months old at the time and fit right in perfectly. 

 Zander, Bruce, William, Emily and Oliver (Dec. 2008)

It's been amazing to watch this family foster children.  They have another one in their home right now as well.  Carter - he is a year old.  Emily has her hands full and now never wonders what she will do with her day.  Russell and I were fingerprinted so that we could help watch the kids and it has been such a joy to help them in any way possible.  From keeping them all so they can have a night out, to listening to the joys and frustrations of the "system".  We have been thankful to be a part of it all.  Fostering is a calling.  It's hard.  It's giving up your lives for children that are not yours.  They come into your home with lots of needs.  Mainly the need to be loved and cared for properly.  To have someone to finally fight for their best interest.  Bruce and Emily do that every day with such love and patience.  They constantly amaze me as their family continues to grow.

It's been another long and tedious process, full of lots of ups and downs.  William and Oliver are only 6 months apart but they have a strong bond.  After 2 years of waiting, hoping and praying, yesterday Oliver was officially adopted into the Bennett home.  Russ and I were asked to stand with them in the court room.  What an honor and privilege it was.

Emily and Bruce with William, Zander, Oliver and Carter along with Emily's parents in the Courtroom yesterday.

Oliver Reid Bennett

Zander, Ollie and Will making it official by slamming the gavel on the judges desk.

A proud daddy and big brother, Zander!

Before leaving Ollie grabbed the judges real gavel and had to slam it as well!  He's a busy one!

They are praying now that they will be able to adopt Carter and actually want another boy closer to Zander's age and of course a girl!  This will make a total of 6 children.  Children are a reward from the Lord (Psalm 127:3) whether they are adopted or biological.  The Bennett's are truly blessed.  And we are thankful to be a small part of it.

Until next time......