ABOUT MINA:

Mina is a precious little girl recently rescued from an orphanage in Eastern Europe who is now finally home with her forever family! She had been without a mother or father to love her & care for her each day. No one to rock her, kiss her gently or tell her she's loved. She is blessed with an extra chromosome known as Down syndrome, which for her that meant a life of being viewed as worthless in the country she was born into & a life without hope. Because of this her parents gave her up at the age of 6 months when they found out the diagnosis & from there her life progressivly went down hill. We are the Gower family residing in OKC who recently adopted this little angel. She was extremely malnourished and unable to do just about anything when we first met her. She will be 2 in January & is the size of a 3-6 month old weighing 14lbs. She continues to amaze us at how quickly she is progressing with love and nutrition. She has learned to sit up, roll over, feed herself finger foods, hold her own bottle and loves to interact with toys and other children. Her life has changed so much in such a short period of time and will forever be changed! Thank you Lord for putting a burden on our hearts to rescue this little blessing and making her apart of our family!

Thursday, June 24, 2010

Still Waiting...

Okay so I  know it's only been 1 week today since our dossier was submitted to the SDA but I keep anxiously checking my email thinking, hoping, praying.... thinking, hoping, praying some more that for some reason I will open it to find our travel date.

Well, no travel date yet but I am hopeful we will find out this next week! We have been picking up a few things here and there trying to get somewhat prepared for when we will be able to leave.

Please continue to pray for God's provision for us financially!  I know God is faithful and we trust in that. We are still planning on having another sale (which we have TONS of stuff left) but unfortunately my daughter and I have both been sick the past couple weeks and unable to. Since next weekend is the 4th of July we figured we would wait and do it after that (depending on our travel date of course!)

Thank you all so much for your prayers, and support.  We are so grateful and couldn't do it without everyone.  Please say a prayer for us and our precious girl anytime we come to mind! Thank you!!

Monday, June 21, 2010

IMAGINE A DIFFERENT LIFE

So I came across this post on another families blog that brought me to tears for these poor children.  It is so sad to think of what happens to them and that had we been born in that situation that could've been us.  I am thankful for the blessing of being born into a wonderful loving family and I praise the Lord and thank Him for that.  At the same time I can't take my blessing and shut the rest of the world out and pretend I don't care.  Imagine if more people stood up to make the difference!!

Click Here to read an amazing story about what can happen for these children when people do live their lifes out loving and showing care for these precious children that once seemed hopeless!



Here is the story below from Garden of Eagan Blog (link below):


Imagine you're a newborn baby. Born in a land far different than where you are now. A place where the value of human life is much different than it is in developed countries. Now imagine that you were born with something like Down Syndrome, or something as minor as a hand deformity.
Your parents will be told to send you away, that there is no care for you, and you're going to die anyway. So your parents follow the advice of doctors and bring you to an orphanage. But remember, this is an orphanage in a 3rd world country. You spend your days, weeks, months and years cold, hungry, and without medical care. If you're lucky, there will be one caregiver who takes a liking to you and tries to give you some extra attention each day.

But there's something looming over you. Something that most children in the world celebrate...your 4th birthday. Only for you, this birthday brings a death sentence, because in many of these countries, if you turn 4 and have not been adopted you'll be moved to a mental institution where you are no longer available for adoption. For all intense purposes, to the rest of the world you are dead.
There you well spend your days like this


















You will be straight jacketed in sheets. Why? Because of the intense boredom and lack of human physical contact you will resort to desperate measures, even if it means gouging your own eyes out. The only contact you will get with people is if you're lucky, someone will notice that your sheets are full of urine and feces and decide to change them. You will never see sunshine. You will never smell fresh air, only the overpowering odor of urine and feces from several hundred children just like you crammed into the same building getting the same lack of care. You will likely die within the first couple of years from some terrible illness, severe dehydration, or hypothermia from lack of heat in the decrepit building.

Or perhaps you would be like this little girl. Bound by her wrists for years already, left alone in a state of severe dehydration. TIED TO HER BED!!!!!

















If you don't die within the first couple of years, your body might continue to grow. But don't think it will get you a bigger bed. Instead you'll be forced to spend more years in the same crib, just like these TEENAGERS have been crammed in.















But it doesn't have to be this way! It doesn't! While governments and organizations like Mental Disability Rights International will have to deal with the indidual countries, there are ways to save these children! Reece's Rainbow is an adoption organization dedicated to rescuing children with Down Syndrome from certain death in these countries. There are many children who are approaching their 4th birthday. While not everyone is in a position to adopt a child, Reece's Rainbow has established a fund for each child to help with the adoption expenses so that nobody can say, "I would do it if I had the money."

Even if you can't adopt a child, can you spare $5, $10 or more so that someone else can? Please...this makes me sick to know these children are dying. Read through the child profiles. You'll find children that have nothing wrong with them other than an eye that needs surery, or a hand that has a mild deformity, yet they have been thrown away. But we can save them!!!!

Posted by Leah   To see the Blog where this posting came from: Click Here!

http://www.reecesrainbow.org/

Thursday, June 17, 2010

DOSSIER SUBMITTED!!!!

Yep you heard it right!! Our dossier was submitted TODAY!!!  I was thinking it was going to be next Thursday but it was this Thursday!!

Praise the Lord!!  We will hopefully know our travel date in the next 2 weeks!

I called my grandma to tell her the exciting news and she was so filled with joy it brought her to tears.  She is so ready to have that little great grandbaby home and said she was praying this morning asking the Lord to get her here even quicker.

We are so excited!!! Time to start getting things lined out, prepared and somewhat ready to go! 

Please continue praying for the finances! I was unable to do the garage sale this weekend because Myla and I have both been sick the past week.  We are trusting in the Lord completely and know He will provide!

We are so ready to get our baby home!

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

SDA Hopeful Submittal Date!

If everything goes as planned our dossier should be submitted to the SDA in Mina's Country this next Thursday- June 24th!!!

Please pray everything goes smoothly and it is submitted asap and that we get a quick travel date!


Please help us fill up Mina's Quilt Squares! We still have lots of quilt squares left needing a loving message, prayer or scripture to finish up her quilt so that we can put the backside on it and take it with us! Please email or post a comment with a message you would like to leave for her so that we can wrap her in everyones love, support, and encouraging words!!

Click here to see a pic and more info on Mina's Quilt!

Thank you all!!

While we....

This is a poem that was written by a wonderful lady that helps so much with Reeces Rainbow providing support, encouragement and help along the way through the adoption process.  I read this on another families blog who has adopted through RR and it really touched my heart so I wanted to share it with you all. Thank you Meredith for helping us all to see the reality for these poor children.

James 1:27 (New International Version)

27Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.


While we were eating…
… they were hungry
While we were playing…
… they were restrained
While we were tucking our kids into bed…
… they were alone
While we turned up the heat…
… they laid in the icy cold
While we wrapped our children in blanket sleepers…
… they laid in their own excrement
While we sang songs and listened to music…
… they listened to the screams and cries of those around them
While we rocked our babies…
… they silently rocked themselves
While we hugged our kids…
… they scratched at their own faces and pulled their own hair for stimulation
While we cried over scraped knees…
… they moaned in their loneliness
While we brushed our daughters’ beautiful hair…
… they had their heads shaven to stave off the lice
While we fought off the flu with love and nourishment…
… they got the flu and went Home.
No longer suffering… but so many more still are.
In memory of those that have never felt the love of a family, but have passed away alone.

By: Meredith Cornish

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Praise the Lord!!

Wow what an amazing Blessing and revelation of God's power when ordinary people step up and try to make a difference. 

We have a friend who actually adopted their little boy that was transferred to this orphanage after turning 4 and they have many horrifying memories of the stench and what they saw and experienced when they went to meet their little boy.  Could you imagine never even knowing the basic sanitation of washing your hands?

Check out this link to Read an article of a Mental Institution Where children with special needs are transferred at the age of 4

How sad for those children and praise the Lord for the few who stepped out and began making the difference.

Here's an amazing update of the transformation in 1 years time!!

What an amazing change just 1 year with Love and care has done for the least of these.  God has called us as Christians and followers of Christ to step out and care for the orphans, the weak, and widows.  It's so sad to think of all the many children in this world with out the love of family and just locked away as outcasts hidden from the world.  Imagine the change that could be done if more people said yes!!  Praise the Lord for the change in this orphanage & we pray for the change to continue for them as well as many other orphans in the world!!  We pray for the walls to be broken down for the disabled girls that MTU will be allowed to go be apart of that orphanage & we pray for change for them as well!

What a blessing it is to serve a God where nothing is impossible!

Friday, June 11, 2010

AUCTION WINNERS!

Thank you so much to all those who have placed your bids & helped us get closer to bringing Mina home!!

The highest bid winners and amounts have been updated on the Auction tab Click here!

I will be contacting the winners listed within the next 48hours to arrange delivery/ payment!  Thank you!!

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Dossier Delivered!!

What a blessing UPS has been! Our package was delivered today at 3:45pm in Mina's Country!  That was extremely fast and boy do I love tracking #s :)   It's so good to know that our dossier is finally there in Mina's Country and we are that much closer to going to meet our precious girl!! We are so anxious and can't wait till we receive the good news of our travel date!

Please continue to pray for us! Pray for Mina as she faces these days in an orphanage till we get to her.  Pray for the Lord to prepare her heart for meeting her forever family.  Pray for Myla as she prepares to meet her sister and for understanding. She is so extremely excited about meeting her sister, but still we could always use prayers in her heart fully being prepared and for her to not feel jealous as I'm sure Mina will need special "mommy/ daddy time" in the beginning. 

Please continue to pray for us financially! We still are about $15,000 short! June 17, 18, and 19th we will be having another sale which we still have tons & tons of great stuff for! Please pray for God's provision in the financial aspect and that many many people would come to the sale!

And a huge prayer request is please please pray for all the orphans in the world!  147million children are out there all throughout this world lonely, no one to rock them to sleep or kiss them goodnight, no one to sing lullabies or hold them and comfort them when they fall down, no one to celebrate special holidays or birthdays, no one to make them feel loved and cherished and like they are a gift and blessing as they are. Pray that the Lord would continue to call people out and put a burning passion and desire on their hearts that they just can't shake it. Pray that God would lead people to become prayer warriors for these children & stand in the gap for them. Please pray that God would send people with the financial means to help provide for those willing to open there home and heart to a child forever- that more children can feel the love & gift of family!!

God's Heart 4 Adoption!

This video brought on the waterworks.  What an inspirational video of how God truly orchestrated adoption from the beginning of time!  Oh how I praise Him for adopting us into the family of the King!

Just how Important is adoption?


Tuesday, June 8, 2010

PLEASE PLACE YOUR BIDS! AUCTION ENDS IN 2 DAYS!

Only 1 more days left until the auction is over!! Please come place your bids!! Lots of great stuff! Williams-sonoma, Pottery-Barn, Certificates, Collectibles, etc.

Auction Items!


Auction Ends:  June 10, 2010   11:59pm


Bids go in increments of $10. If you outbid someone please outbid by $10 or greater.  The highest bid amounts for each item will be posted on the blog every Monday & Thursday if highest bid amounts change.


June 11th, 2010 the highest bidders will be announced at: www.thegowerjourney.blogspot.com

To Place a bid email your name, preferred form of contact info if you’re the winner (phone, email or address) along with item description & your bid amount to sweetraeoflove@gmail.com

Highest bidder will be notified through preferred contact method provided within 48hours after the auction ends.

Winner will have 2 weeks after close of auction to arrange for payment and pick up or shipping of items won. Failure to respond by June 24th will result in item going to the next highest bidder.

If winner prefers shipping for delivery method, winner will pay shipping and packaging costs based upon their preferred shipping and zip code.

100% goes towards bringing Mina home!


Click on images to view any picture larger


WILLIAMS-SONOMA LA MANDOLINE DELUXE

HIGHEST BID AMOUNT:  $50 - Michele
  • Approximate value- $79

  • Brand new in box

  • de Buyer- First french mandoline that dices

  • Cuts-  Dices 2,4, or 10mm/ Losanges/ Slices- Crinkle Cuts/ Julienne cuts 2,4, or 10mm/ or waffle cut.

  • Thickness from ultrafine slices to a 1 centimeter thickness


WILLIAMS-SONOMA SALTER SCALE

STARTING BID: $40

  • Approximate Value:  $60
  • All metal mechanical Kitchen Scale
  • Deluxe brushed finish





WILLIAMS-SONOMA FRIELING FRENCH PRESS

HIGHEST BID AMOUNT:  $35 -   JAN
  • Approximate Value $100
  • Frieling fresh solutions insulated coffee maker french press
  • 35 fl oz.  7-8 cups
  • New in box!



WILLIAMS-SONOMA  GUY BUFFET -LES GARCONS-  COLLECTIBLES

HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $175-  CHARMAINE
6 Dinner Plates, 6 Hard Placemats, 6 Coasters, and 4 Spreaders
      • Extremely rare and hard to find. Collectibles.
      • Individual plates alone are selling on Ebay for $40- $50 per piece.
      • Brand New!! Never Used!! In Perfect Condition
      • The bottom clearly reads "Guy Buffet, Williams-Sonoma, Dishwasher & Microwave Safe, Made in Japan on all plates.
      • Starting Bid:  $175





























     





















    WILLIAMS-SONOMA GRIPPMATTS

    HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $10 - CHARMAINE
    •  Brand new in package.  14in x 14in grippmats
    • Flexible/ slipless cutting Mats

    • 4 different colored mats for beef, vegetables, cheese, and poultry

     



     POTTERY BARN BEAUTIFUL LARGE GLASS VASE

    HIGHEST BID AMOUNT:  $40-  CHARMAINE
    • Pottery Barn glass vase & candle
    • Approximate Value  $70



    9 OU SOONERS 1990 COLLECTORS SERIES GLASS CUPS



    HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $20- MELISSA
    • 9 Glass Cup set Collectibles
    • 1990 Collector Series Kerr-McGee
      • ITALIAN WINE BOTTLE THEMED DECOR
    • 2 Fabric Placemats
    • 4 coasters
    • Metal Wine bottle holder (holds 6)
    • Wine Bottles Pictured not included
          KATHY VAN ZEELAND PURSE
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $25- SHERI
          • Beautiful Name Brand Purse
          • Like New condition!

          WILLIAMS-SONOMA PIEERE THE BIG SPREADERS
          • Set of 2 New in Box! 
          • Retail Value $15.00
          CREATIVE MEMORIES GIFT BASKET:
          • All brand New Creative Memories Products
          • Retail Value Approximately $130.00
          • Include:  Corner Rounder, Mini File Mate, Mini tape runner, scissors, Photo labeling pencil, celestial patterns & gemstone patterns for cutting system, Fast Formulas book, 12X12 album, Legacy shortcuts pack, Jewel Paper Pack, and Large File Mate with Folders
          • STARTING BID:  $70

           
          AVON GIFT BASKET
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $30- DEANNA
          • Approximately $75 Value
          • Beautiful pink gift basket with lots of goodies
          • Large Heart shaped Heaven sent candle, picture frame, keychain, necklace & earing set, Bond Girl 007 Forever perfume, planet spa mediterranean olive oil body wash, Planet spa mediterranean olive oil whipped body cream & conditioning hair mask, Skin so soft spf 30 sunscreen, Sterling silver ring & lots of Avon Samples.
          • Would make an awesome gift!!

             
           
          LANDSCAPING/ LAWNCARE GIFT CERTIFICATE:
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $120-  JAN
          • Squared Away Lawns LLC. a professional, reliable company
          • www.squaredawaylawns.com
          • $140.00 Value (Labor only~ Materials not included for jobs requiring materials.

           
          SALON W MINI FACIAL CERTIFICATE
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $30  SHERRY
          • Alexandra Walker- Esthetician
          • Alexandra is absolutely wonderful!!
          • Salon W  7304 N Western Ave Nichols Hills, OK
          • Expires 5/20/2011


          SALON W SHAMPOO, CUT & STYLE CERTIFICATE
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $20 SUZI
          • Done by Whitni
          • Expires: 5/21/2011
          • Salon W 7304 N Western Ave Nichols Hills, OK
          NUMEROUS RESTAURANT CERTIFICATES:

          • Bidders please read all special instructions & terms on certificates before bidding

          • There is a minimum food purchase on each certificate excluding alcohol

          • Gift Certificates expire 9/10/2010

          • Click on image to view larger picture


          INCREDIBLE PIZZA $25 RESTAURANT CERTIFICATE #1
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT:   $10- MENDY
          INCREDIBLE PIZZA $25 RESTAURANT CERTIFICATE #2
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $10- MENDY
          THAI KITCHEN $25 RESTAURANT CERTIFICATE
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $6- ALISSA
          TAPWERKS ALE HOUSE & CAFE $25 RESTAURANT CERTIFICATE
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $6- ALISSA
          CAFFE PRANZO $25 RESTAURANT CERTIFICATE #1
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $5- MICHAEL
          CAFFE PRANZO $25 RESTAURANT CERTIFICATE #2
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $5- MICHAEL
          BIN 73 $25 RESTAURANT CERTIFICATE
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT: $5- MICHAEL
          FAMOUS AUTOGRAPHED GOLF COURSE FRAMED PICTURE

          • Augusta National 16th Hole Atlanta Georgia

          • Autographed by Bobby Sikes

          • Estimated Value $200

          • STARTING BID: $75
          LOCAL ARTIST & PUBLISHED AUTHOR ORIGINAL INDIAN PAINTING
          HIGHEST BID AMOUNT:  $12-  JOE
          LOCAL ARTIST & PUBLISHED AUTHOR ORIGINAL MILITARY PAINTING
           
          BEAUIFUL SCENIC PAINTING BY LOCAL ARTIST
           
          CHECK BACK~ WILL POST HIGHEST BID AMOUNTS!
          EMAIL BIDS TO:  sweetraeoflove@gmail.com