Update...finally :)

Where oh where have we been??

In the hospital...

5 times...

totaling almost 5 weeks...

over a 13 week period...

all for this incredible, glorious, miraculous gift...our sweet son!

You see....during the first quiet moments we had alone with him, we knew something wasn't quite right.  His breathing didn't seem to be normal.  In fact, when he was sleeping or sitting in certain positions, he would literally stop breathing.

After many tests...

several hospital stays...

It was confirmed that our precious boy was indeed having many episodes where he was not breathing. We are talking like 100+ times an hour when he was sleeping, he would stop breathing.  When giving oxygen while sleeping the # improved but it was still extremely dangerous...20+ times an hour.  Thankfully the Lord had us at the right hospital under the best care.

We were faced with a difficult decision...well...it was difficult at the time but now that we are on the other side, we know it was absolutely necessary to protect his life.

On Feb. 16, little man had surgery...

Yep...he had tracheostomy surgery. His official diagnosis...severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea.  He has very tiny airways and add some of the complications that come with Down Syndrome....hypotonia, low skull, big tongue...well...they add up to a completely blocked airway. He is doing great...breathing beautifully...breathing safely!

I think the most difficult part for us initially was the lose of his voice.  Because of the trach, we can no longer hear his beautiful cries...his precious coo's...he recently started giggling but there is no sound.  Seems silly to have to grieve that but we did.  BUT my baby boy is ALIVE!!!!  God has protected his little life!!!

I tell you...God has incredible plans in store for little mister.  His precious 4 month old life has touched thousands of people worldwide....has brought nurses to tears...has caused other families to consider adopting a child with down syndrome...has led people to the Lord, including his Chinese mama...YES...YOU READ THAT RIGHT.  Because of Simeon...because of who he is...because of how the Lord moved miraculously....his beautiful, brave, amazing birthmama accepted Christ as her personal Savior.  The entire story of her salvation is precious...miraculous...I'm talking treading-on-holy ground. Some day, with her permission, I will share it but know this......because of her choice to give her son life....because of her & her family's choice to place him for adoption....she found Jesus!!!!!!

Not only have we been given the gift of a beautiful son....we have been given the gift of family....we have also been given the gift of a big "sister" :) You see...Simeon's older bio-sister is living near us while she attends college here.  We all absolutely adore her and LOVE that she is a part of our lives!

It is virtually impossible to put into words how much we love our sweet baby.  He has brought us JOY....glorious JOY....ohhhh....there are no words...he is absolutely AMAZING!!!!! We simply can't imagine our lives without him!

Update....soon...

My precious friends...I am LONG overdue in updating our blog.

Our house is quite busy...I promise to update soon. Simeon is doing great...we have been very busy with his medical care including several hospital visits that have totaled over 4 weeks :)  I promise to update in the next couple of days. Love each of you!!

For now I will leave you with this ;)

He's Home!!!!!

I know I've been a slacker on updating my blog BUT I've been a little busy loving on our sweet boy!!!

Our precious Simeon Mason came home to us on Friday. Words can not even begin to describe how much we love this little guy! What a glorious, miraculous gift.

So much to share...at a later time...just know that God is moving in mighty, mighty ways!!!

Introducing our sweet Simeon Mason Richards!

Please continue to pray for Simeon's precious birthfamily. Their hearts are grieving. They made the decision to place Simeon out of the deepest love for him.  We are honored that they chose us to be his parents...we have the greatest respect for them!  We love them deeply!!!

Funded!!!

I struggle with the adequate words to describe all that has transpired over the last 46 hours.

With every update, it became very clear that we have been treading on holy ground...

The presence of God has been a blanket...clearly telling us 'I've got this!!!'

The Lord has moved mightily...boldly...clearly...publicly...

He rallied the troops all for the cause on ONE beautiful baby boy...our precious son...

He united thousands and thousands...

He showed His faithfulness so all could see...

He showed His perfect provision...

His perfect love...

ALL...
EVERY SINGLE OUNCE OF PRAISE AND GLORY BELONGS TO HIM!

FUNDED...

FULLY FUNDED in less than 48 hours...

Oh, our sweet Simeon...just look at how the Lord used the body of Christ to bring you home...you are loved deep sweet one...very deeply!

To our precious friends...oh how I wish I could squeeze each of your necks and say 'thank you'!  We have read every comment, every share, every email...many tears of thankfulness have been shed these last 2 days. Without you, this incredible feat would have never been accomplished. Your love for our boy and our family is beautiful...we are honored and deeply humbled!  

Thank you doesn't even seem appropriate...thank you for being Jesus to our family...we stand in complete awe!

our little love...we love you so much...

*please continue to pray for the birthfamily...they love him soooo much!

Redemption!

I sit here at my computer in awe...in tears...

I'm not sure where to begin...
This has all happened so fast yet it was God's perfect timing...

We are honored...
proud...
humbled...
excited to announce....

the Lord has blessed us with a beautiful baby boy....
a precious little guy who was born on November 17...
an amazing little miracle that many of you prayed for but what you didn't know is that you were praying for OUR SON :)

his little face was plastered all over facebook...
all over blogs...
all over websites...
thousands upon thousands of people viewing his story...sharing his story...

many of you praying for him...
praying for his precious birthfamily...
advocating for him...

a gorgeous baby boy that we had the privilege of meeting yesterday...
the gift of loving on him and his birthfamily...

ohhh, the beauty of his story...
the beauty of how the Lord brought this to be...
the JOY ... the restoration ... the redemption as we still grieve our Zemirah...

Today, we received the most glorious news...
We have been chosen to be this little mans forever family...

INTRODUCING...

SIMEON MASON RICHARDS

We are confident God has called this one to be ours. His fingerprints are all over our Simeon's story (a post for another day ;).  Many of you have read bits and pieces of his story but there is so much more!!  Some parts we will keep private...some parts we will share.  But for now....

We have an URGENT need....

our sweet boy came to us as a surprise...

a surprise to us...

NOT a surprise to God!

We have an URGENT NEED to raise the funds to adopt him...

for him to be able to be placed with us...

The fees are $15,000....

the fees are due NOW!....deep breath...

God called him to us...we are trusting He will provide.  Our greatest need is your prayers for our entire family...for the birthfamily. If you feel led to donate, that would be a huge blessing.

We are honored that Project Hopeful has come alongside our family and has committed to helping us raise the funds. All donations can be made directly through the link HERE or on the DONATE button on the right bar of our blog.  All donations are tax-deductible and all funds go directly to adoption fees. Many hugs my sweet friends!

~~~~~

And there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon; and this man was righteous and devout, looking for the consolation of Israel; and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. (Luke 2:25-26)

Due today....

Today my little love...today you were due to be born...but the Lord had another plan for you...you were born 9 weeks ago straight into the Lords arms.

9 weeks later...I still miss you so much it hurts deeply...
9 weeks later...my grief for you still looms over my heart continually...it's something that doesn't ever go away...

9 weeks later...I still dream of you...wonder what you look like...
...I still long to kiss your face...to hold you in my arms...to smell your sweetness...to caress your little face...to hear your little coo's...to know your cry...to gaze into your eyes and tell you how much your mama loves you...to hold you close to me...

9 weeks later...for a split second I still catch myself planning for your arrival...thinking you'll be home for Christmas...

9 weeks later...it still blows me away that my hands and heart could be so full yet my arms still feel so painfully empty...my heart has a missing part and it's you...

9 weeks later...oh my baby girl, I hurt so much to have you here with us...

Our glorious, precious, joyous melody...our Zemirah Joylena...your family loves you so much...we talk about you every day...you have forever changed our lives...you have shown us the ability to find joy in the deepest part of our grief.

(we would love your continued prayers ... 9 weeks later, our sweet girl has still not been buried or released to us.)

You are God ALONE!!!

I sit here with such a heavy heart...but a joyous, hopeful heart!!!!!!!!

1 month ago today, our beautiful Zemirah went home to be with the Lord.  We were mere weeks away from her birth...how can it be a month already...there are many split-seconds that I still find myself anticipating her arrival but then the sting of reality quickly reminds me...

So many other things are on my heart, too...real life, every day things....

I do have hope...I do have joy...not so many words today...this song speaks to the deepest parts of my heart...to the deepest truths I stand on....

You are not a god 
Created by human hands 
You are not a god Dependant on any mortal man 
You are not a god 
In need of anything we can give 
By Your plan, that's just the way it is 
You are God alone
From before time began
You were on Your throne
Your are God alone
And right now 
In the good times and bad 
You are on Your throne 
You are God alone 
You're the only God 
Whose power none can contend 
You're the only God 
Whose name and praise will never end 
You're the only God 
Who's worthy of everything we can give 
You are God 
And that's just the way it is 
Unchangeable 
Unshakable 
Unstoppable 
That's what You are 

TODAY!!!

TODAY IS ORPHAN SUNDAY!!! 

TODAY...churches across the GLOBE are raising awareness about the orphan crisis...YES...IT IS A CRISIS!!!! Families are sharing their stories...eyes are being opened...hearts are being stirred! 

TODAY...THE ORPHAN IS BEING GIVEN A VOICE!!! 

Today...many will be challenged to answer God's CLEAR COMMANDMENT to care for the orphan...

Today...many will choose to hear and not act. 

Join us in praying for the orphan today...

Join us in praying that the Lord moves mightily within the church...

Join us in praying that EVERYDAY is Orphan Sunday so that children will NO LONGER have to live without a FOREVER FAMILY!!! 

Join us in praying that the church will step up and CARE FOR THE ORPHAN!!! 

It's not a complicated task...God has already laid it out in scripture...we need to act on it. 

God created children to be in families...NOT institutions!  There were no orphanages or group homes in biblical times...the CHURCH CARED FOR THE ORPHAN...God CALLED the church to care for the orphan. 

HANG ON SWEET ONES...THERE IS HOPE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hope is Fading – Orphan Sunday from Allan Rosenow on Vimeo.

Christmas Frenzy

UPDATE:  Bumping this to the top...need some extra joy today so what better way than to see all of the beautiful babes waiting for their forever families to come and bring them home!!

Christmas Frenzy is for EVERYONE!!!

You will fit in one of two categories....

1. Fundraising family

OR

2. Supporting family :)

Okay...here's how it works. All of us LOVE to give Christmas gifts EVEN when times are financially tough. This will be our third year posting our Christmas Frenzy and I want to start this thing early this year!!! Because we are ALL gonna get this shopping thing done early for once, right??? A girl can dream, right :)

Seriously, though....I have become very passionate about giving with a purpose. It's such a win-win situation...you help support an adoptive family...they become one step closer to their treasure...you give an awesome gift with a story...SERIOUSLY COOL!!!

FUNDRAISING FAMILIES:

~You must be in the process of adopting or recently home. You must be using the funds from your items to directly fund your adoption costs.!
~You are selling an item to help raise funds to bring your child home. (no raffles, please...it's okay if you are currently running a raffle BUT you MUST be selling fundraising items too, like shirts, etc...that is what you need to be linking to)

~If someone is giving your family part of the proceeds for items, like Scentsy, jewelry, THAT WORKS, TOO :)

~You need to post on your blog and/or facebook about our Christmas Frenzy and link back to my blog. This is CRUCIAL...the more awareness we raise the more supporting families we will have.

~Please make sure you create a NEW blog post regarding the Christmas Frenzy...don't link to an old post. BUT don't forget to highlight what YOU are SELLING in that post :)
~I would love for you to become a follower of my blog...just cause I wanna know who my friends are :)
~Add your blog LINK to the BELOW Linky tool (at the bottom of this post)
~Fun idea for fundraising families...you guys can swap items and then have some fabulous items to do a raffle.

SUPPORTING FAMILIES:

~Make your Christmas list and try to support as many families as you can by purchasing their fundraising items as gift. (click on the below links to see the families)
~Please help spread the word for these families!!! Blog, facebook, tweet, and link back to my blog!!!

Fundraising families and supporting families unite to bring orphans home!


Link up below!!!

Prayer request...burying our girl...

In most situations, when a loved one passes away there typically aren't many concerns with burying them because the mortuary handles a lot of the 'behind the scenes' stuff. You are able to notify the family...plan the date....the ceremony... and begin to find closure even though you are left with a gaping hole in your heart. You at least walk away from the funeral having peace that their precious body has been buried with respect and love.

One of the hardest things for us to find closure in Zemirah's death is that her beautiful, little precious body is in a mortuary in Nevada and we have no legal rights to bring her home and bury her properly.  This has been extremely difficult for us.

We were coming to a place of acceptance when we received a phone call stating the mortuary had already buried her.  For a second, there was relief....then the reality of that started to sink in...when was she buried? who buried her? where is she buried? was she given a name? will we ever know where our daughter was buried?  A new depth of grieving has begun for us...none of this seems right...our baby girl was buried and we had no say in it...we have no idea where she is...this is almost too much to bare.

So, I sent our questions to our precious social worker. She had been in constant contact with the mortuary and we were all under the impression that they would keep her sweet body for 30 days while we tried to find the bmama so she could release her to us.  It has not be 30 days, so needless to say, we were shocked by that phone call on Friday telling us she was already buried.  Our sw has been making several phone calls.......and we just found out.....

Our little love has NOT been buried...she has NOT been given a legal name...she is now tied up in social services...YES...social services! We have bmama's consent and support in them releasing her to us BUT we need prayers that social services will release her to us so we can bring her home and bury her properly.

We've been told social services can take up to 90 days to determine her 'abandoned' and then we aren't sure what happens...I still can wrap my head around that...90 days?!?!?!?!   SHE'S NOT ABANDONED...WE WANT HER...WE LOVE HER...SHE IS OUR PRECIOUS BABY!!

Please my sweet friends...pray for the Lord's will and if it's His will that we get the honor of burying her, pray that social services will work quickly to allow us to bury our beautiful baby!!

In the midst of all of this we do have a bmama update:
She called a couple of days ago...what a relief to hear her voice. She is doing amazing!  She did receive the 'package' of love we sent her and was so incredibly blessed by it and all of you!

Still clinging to the joy of the Lord...still hurting...still missing our girl...still feeling like we won't ever be completely whole...BUT still trusting and loving our Lord...still hanging onto the hope that only He can give us...still resting in the peace that HE IS IN THIS!!!