Successful Fundraiser Night...Next?

Last night, we had at least 55 people (that we know of from 5-8pm) come out to support our first Fundraiser Night at Otter's Chicken!  We had so much fun seeing everyone!  Such sweet friends to come out for us...we were really touched.  Not only did they come out and order dinner, but a few bought T-shirts too.  We enjoyed sporting our new Fundraiser T-shirts last night!  Also, totally unexpectedly, we received two large donations!  Oh my gosh, we couldn't believe it.  This experience has really shown us the kindness and generosity of so many.  Cuban Daddy & I just shake our heads in disbelief.  We are so undeserving.  But, we remind ourselves that our babies are deserving.  And this is all for them.  We know that you all are helping us, but mostly that you are helping them.  And we are so, so thankful for that.  


So, based on Otter's food purchases last night, we raised $125!  However, since we have someone DOUBLING all of our April earnings, last night was worth $250!!!  Not bad considering the only thing we really had to do was bug you to death about it...and show up to hang out w/ friends & eat yummy food.  Really though, thank you so much for spreading the word & for showing up!

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Next up, we still have lots of T-shirts for sale!  They are $20 each for adults, $15 for child sizes.  We love the fact that they are designed with meaning. If you remember my Words With Friends game a while back: We had been thinking about & praying about the adoption for a while, we had already made the decision to adopt & recently announced it, and there was just a small thought in the back of my mind like, "Okay, God, are you SURE you want us to do this??"  That night, I opened my Words With Friends game & a new game popped up, letters in 'random' order:

I love how God knows just how to talk to us.  That was it.  From that point forward, there has been no doubt, only peace & confidence in Him and what we are destined to do.  Some may think that sounds silly, but if you have a relationship with the Lord, you know what I'm talking about.  Sometimes you just know.  And that night, the T-shirt idea was born as well.  Only yesterday did they come to be.  So, we love that about them.  The scripture on the back has a lot of meaning to us as well: "I will not leave you as orphans.  I will come to you." ~ John 14:18.  I feel like it's a personal promise to our babies.  Finally, what we tried to do with these shirts is just to spread awareness about adoption & about the orphan crisis we have all around this world.  We wanted them to be able to be worn by anyone that supports or has a heart for adoption.  Hope you like them!  

Here are the sizes & colors we have available (wording is yellow on both):

Purple-  XXL, XL, L, Child L(14-16), Child M(10-12), Child S(6-8), Child XS(2-4)

Green- XXL, XL, L, M, S, Child L(14-16), Child M(10-12), Child S(6-8), Child XS(2-4)

* Some of the sizes only have 1-2 shirts left.  They are first come, first serve.  So, let me know as soon as possible if you want one to reserve your size and color.  

* You can pick up/meet if local, or I can mail them.  I will mail (in the US) the first one for free.  If you order more than one & want it shipped, please include $5 to help with shipping costs.  

* You can pay with cash or check if you're local.  Anyone can pay using the PayPal link on our blog.  

* If you pre-ordered, I will be contacting you for final details about getting the shirt(s) to you!  

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Finally, we are still trying to collect items for our yard sale.  We have stuff we've been collecting from our own house for a while now.  We've already had a couple of things dropped off & I'm meeting a couple of others this next week.  So, if you or anyone you know is looking to get rid of some things (furniture, TVs, exercise equipment, outside toys, clothes of all sizes, baby stuff, books & DVDs, toys, anything!), we will take it!  We have made room in our garage & can store things here until the sale.  Second need is if anyone wants to help organize & price stuff in the couple days before the sale...I'm sure we'll need help! :)  

It will be in Echo Mill neighborhood in Powder Springs (my aunt & uncle have kindly donated their 'yard' for us to use during their huge neighborhood yard sale!). 

 It will be Friday & Saturday, April 27-28th.  

Mark your calendar!!

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Remember that any funds we raise in the month of April will be DOUBLED by an anonymous donor!  
We want to take full advantage of this opportunity!  If you were thinking of helping in any way (donations, T-shirts, yard sale, Sippys 4 Siblings spare change, anything!), this would be a great month to do it!

Every single bit helps.  And we are thankful for every effort, we really are.  We've really been encouraged lately by kind words, Scripture, promises of prayers, support, & donations.  This can be an overwhelming process (trust me, I've had my moments already!), but to have you all there for us means so much.  

Deciding what to work on first, 

~ 6 in Love ~

Got Chicken?

Hope you all had a fantastic, relaxing, family/friend-filled, Christ-centered, egg-huntin',

 tummy-stuffing Easter!  I know we did!

  

Tomorrow is a big day for us!  It is our first ever "Adoption Fundraiser Night"!  Reminder that it will be Monday, April 9th, from 4-10pm at Otter's Chicken in the W. Cobb Avenues.  If you mention that you are with us ("4xFaithful" or "4xFaithful Adoption"), then we will receive 15% of sales.  (* And because it's "Double month" for us, it is really 30%!!!)  

Cuban Daddy & I are going to be there at least 6-8pm, but likely earlier!  We'd love to see you!

He recommends the wings...I like the tenders basket!

Unfortunately, there was a printing problem, and our custom designed Adoption T-shirts didn't come Friday like expected.  However, they ARE supposed to be in by tomorrow's fundraiser!  So, if you want one & you're there tomorrow, just let us know!  

Obviously, the more people we get to Otter's, the more successful the night. 

If you are local, if you'd help spread the word, 

that would be wonderful!

*** Also, we have been blessed to have a few donations -stroller, TVs, clothes- for our yard sale (to be held April 27-28)...thank you, sweet friends!  We will add it to the things we have personally collected over the past few months.  However, we would really love to have more to make it a 'big' fundraising event.  So, if you have anything you would like to donate, we would love to take it!  I can make arrangements to pick it up/meet you anytime! 

* We've received a few Sippys 4 Siblings back this week.  Awesome!  Excited to cash it in & DOUBLE it!  Thank you! (many have been turned in anonymously!) 

Thanks for all of your support!  Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow!

~ 6 in Love ~

Fun Finds Friday- April 6

So, as you have probably read, we're going all out this month of April to raise funds for our Adoption.  Another small way I was hoping to fundraise was to list a few of my 'art' pieces on this blog every Friday this month!  


There is only one of each piece, as they are all uniquely hand painted & crafted.  Today, I've decided to list seven different 11x14 Canvas Panels for sale.  The great part about these is that you can customize!  They are finished, except for there is room for a name or names, or a small quote, scripture, etc.  I will add this for no additional cost!  


So, here they are!  This isn't an auction, like before. But, I have dropped the prices way down from what I was selling them for as "The Painted Peach."  


They are only $15 (and that includes the personalization.)!  Just asking that you add $5 for shipping if you aren't local to pick up/meet.  

Just make a comment below for which one you want ...first come, first serve!

***Final reminder that ALL proceeds go to our Adoption fees & expenses!  And... ALL donations in April are doubled by an anonymous person!  

So, your $15 becomes $30 to us!

Thanks!! 

~ 6 in Love ~

"Airplane"

Light blue painted canvas.  Wooden airplane painted royal blue, red, yellow.

"Butterfly" 

Hot pink painted canvas.  Wooden butterfly painted green, hot pink, light pink.

"Car"

True yellow painted canvas.  Wooden car painted red, royal blue, kelly green.

"Owl" 

Goldish painted canvas. Wooden owl & tree not hand-painted by me, but are brown, cream, gold, green, & brown.

"Train" 

Tan painted canvas.  Wooden train painted dark red, denim blue, brown.

"Turtle" 

Light green painted canvas.  Wooden turtle painted light green, brown, medium green.

"LadyBug" 

Light pink painted canvas.  Wooden ladybug painted light pink, red, & black.

T-Shirts!!!

The T-shirts are HERE!!!!!!!  

Well, technically, they should be in our hands this Friday!  

They are $20 each. 

(All profits go to our Adoption expenses)

*** For now, let's make the Child Sizes only $15!***

We have the following sizes in both colors:

 Adult XXL, Adult XL, Adult L, Adult M, Adult S, Child L, Child M, Child S, and Child XS.  

But, the # is limited, so first come, first serve when it comes to your size and color choice!  

You can post a comment here for size and color, or you can email or FB me if we are friends.

You can pay on the PayPal link on the top right of this blog page.  

Or, if we know each other, a check or cash is just as good!

I can meet you if you are local, or I can ship it to you.  Just let me know!

(*If you order one shirt, shipping is on me!  If you order more than that, please just add $3 to help with costs.  Thank you!)

Thanks to Vineyard Imaging for creating these for us!

http://www.vineyardimaging.com/

Thanks for your support, sweet friends! 

 Can't wait to see you sportin' one of these:

***Update: The Purple Adult Small & Medium are sold out!  Remember to put your order in quick to get what you want!  Just a note that the shirts are gender neutral (the purple and green are made the same way).  

GREEN

PURPLE: 

Remember this inspiration/message from God 

I posted a while back?:

Remember how I said it gave me an idea?  

Don't you love how God sees His ideas through?!

Can't wait for Friday!

~ 6 in Love ~

Home Study Visit Complete!

Well, we are super relieved to check that one off our list!  Tonight, we met our social worker for the home study, Ms. J.  She came to our house, getting lost on the way, just as we knew she would.  Everyone who visits us for the first time does! ;)  (We happen to like that 'I'm in the middle of nowhere feel' Ha). 


 She was very kind, friendly, easy to talk to, and didn't even seem to mind that my hair was still wet from the shower.  She's from the north, but I won't hold that against her.  Joking, people!  She and Cuban Daddy totally hit it off, bonding over 'real' New York pizza. ;)  I think after that, we were in!  It was a very easy, much more relaxed visit than I had expected.  It lasted about 1 hr 15 mins.  Included a casual chat (even though she did have a list of topics/questions to go over, and she took notes).  Hard to take things too seriously when you have a 3 year old staring at you (her) across the room with a thing in each hand she wants to show you.  Sweet baby lasted about 20 mins that way & then the social sweetly stopped our convo, called G over and looked at G's baby photo book and Easter craft she made at school, complete with real ooh's and aah's. :)  Meanwhile, K must have driven every truck/car he owns through that living room...yes, his were complete with noises too!  When he saw G show her those things, he raced over to show her his trucks. ;)  We waded through some 'official' adoption talk (Mostly, why we want to adopt, why siblings, why Honduras, and some challenges we may face with institutionalized children, the unknown, and what the rest of this Home Study process will look like), a tiny bit of paperwork, and then the grand tour of the house.  Wow, where was the white glove I was prepared for?  (kidding...kind of).  But she just walked around with us, looked at a couple of safety things, like smoke detectors, fire extinguishers, and more I'm sure.  She took notes about rooms, layout, and whatever else.  She didn't even look that I scrubbed behind the toilet, vacuumed the baseboards w/ the little attachment that nearly killed me (There's a reason I let CD do the vacuuming!),  organized the kids' Little People, dusted the window sills, got all the spots off the kitchen floor courtesy of some good ole fashion elbow grease...She didn't open a single closet or cabinet.  And that was okay by me!  It feels SO good to have the house looking great.  I'm going to keep it this way, I'm going to keep it this way, I'm going to keep it this way...


Next step is individual meetings/interviews for Cuban Daddy and me.  They won't be at our house...praise. the. Lord.  Then we have one more meeting together.  They must be spread apart over a few weeks.  I'm thinking one a week would be great.  The faster, the better I think!  BUT...there's some paperwork we have to fill out (shocker, right?)  & some things we have to send off (which means we're waiting on them to get results to us).  So, we can only go so fast.

She ended the night telling us our family was beautiful & the that the kids were smart. (What mom doesn't love to hear that, right?) ;)  (*this was after K shouted to her as she was heading down the stairs & out the door, "Going on adventure?!" ...I'm thinking she's just been on one, buddy!)  


Thank you, everyone for all of your prayers and genuine sweet thoughts today.  Your words of encouragement were just what I needed to make it through today (I've been SCRUBBING floor to ceiling all day, going over what I might need to say, making sure everyone is home and clean and fed on time before she came...).  It really did mean a lot to me to hear from you all.  Thank you! =)  And those prayers definitely, definitely worked!


And it's very possible that I just treated myself to some of the kids' cookies as some sort of reward.  
And this booty?  It's not getting off the sofa tonight!

*** Exciting news!!!  I have pics of the Adoption T-shirts! I'll blog quickly about that and share them in just a few minutes... ***

Going to sleep so well tonight, 

~ 6 in Love ~


What's not to love about these 3?!

The kids' organized playroom (well, part of it...) 

DOUBLE Time!!

2 of us.

2 of them.

2 more of them.

Over $2000 fundraised so far.

Seems only right that all funds raised should be x2 this month!

That's right! If you've been following, you've seen that this month of April, ANY and all donations received will be doubled by an anonymous couple!  All towards our enormous adoption fees!

There's a lot going on right now:

(1) We are finishing organizing & cleaning the house...getting ready for tomorrow night's 1st Home Study/house tour/interview!  It's at 5:00pm...would love some prayers! :)  We are in total crunch time right now.  We just want to be well prepared.

(2) Exactly one WEEK from tonight is our first fundraising night out!  Remember that if you (or any of your friends/family/neighbors) order from Otter's Chicken (Dallas Hwy, W.Cobb Aves.) between 4pm-10pm on Monday, April 9th, 15% of your $/order will go to us! (*And remember, it's really 30% b/c it's doubled!).  We will be there for much of the night, hanging out with you guys & eating.  We'll be there at least from 5-8 pm, possibly longer.  Last reminder about this night: You must say you are with "4xFaithful" or "4xFaithful Adoption"!  Thanks for helping to spread the word so this can be a big night!

(3) On the night of the Otter's Fundraiser, we are planning to wear our new, custom designed Adoption fundraising T-shirts!  They should be in the Friday before.  We'll bring some with us if you show up and decide you want one (Absolutely no pressure to buy though!).  They'll be $20 each.  All proceeds, of course, go to Adoption fees.  I should be getting a photo soon of what they'll look like, and I'll share it when I do.  And, again, reminder that your $20 donation for a shirt will actually be $40 if you get one this month (thanks to the doubling!).

(4) Photo Time!

At first glance, you may think this is a delicious (seriously!) chicken taco.  In fact, it is *love* from a friend.  A quick, yummy meal provided for us on our crunch night before the Home Study!!  Yes, we are spoiled.  And yes, it was delicious.  

K giving a 'thumbs up' and licking any excess off...he cleaned his plate! 

Seriously, these two are SO sweet together.  This was totally their idea, with no input or posing from me.  K climbed up in Sissy's chair & she shared her breakfast with him. 

I mean, do they even really need a Mommy?  

Looks like G has the ice cream taken care of as well! 

...and he wanted to sit in her lap...of course. 

Under a bell...haha... 

We had a super fun day out with my first college roomie & her beautiful, sweet family!  They were in town from NY & we were so excited to spend time with them!

Garden adventures

Not exactly sure what's going on here. 

 I'm thinking a playground all to yourself proves to be BORING. 

Mr. Cool loves his shades now. 

The LOVE bedtime stories with Cuban Daddy! 

Cuban Daddy getting the yard ready for the first Home Study visit. Let me mention that Sat. we had 2 friends come help Cuban Daddy w/ some major garage work, even getting their shiny trucks all dirty. ;)  And on Sun., one of them came back to help with yard work.  On top of that, we got home from meeting my roommate to find 2 people who surprised us by working in our yard all morning. 

 ***And you guys thought I was exaggerating when I said we had amazing friends.  

Clearly, I'm not!!!***

G & K like to look out the window at the neighborhood while they have their snack sometimes. 

I'm thinking this is going to be Cuban Daddy & I about 4:55 pm tomorrow..... :/

Only we won't be snackin'. 

Thank you for the continued prayers, support, thoughtful texts, & helpful surprises!  We'll let you know how tomorrow night goes.

~ 6 in Love ~