adoption fundraiser: bamashark customs

In case you didn't already know, my super talented hubby has a little hobby/business called BamaShark customs. He customizes sports figures. And the packaging. And they're awesome.

As a fundraiser for our pending adoption, he is offering his talents! For $75, you can have your own sports figure, display base, and customized packaging! AND the proceeds go toward our adoption fundraiser!

For more information, and to check out some of his work, head on over to his website. These make perfect gifts for graduation, birthday, father's day, etc! Or just for fun!

adoption fundraiser: wild olive tees

GREAT news! We have been set up with Wild Olive Tees to do an adoption fundraiser! Wild Olive has some super cute, spiritually-themed t-shirts for women & kids. If you'd like to help fund our adoption through Wild Olive Tees, please visit their website and browse the Adoption Fundraiser Tees. Pick out your shirt(s), and when you go to check out, be sure to enter our family code, GOINS220, in the "coupon code" field. That's how we get the credit for the sale. Be sure to enter our family code! These are such great t-shirts, and I am so excited that we are working with them. Please help us out, and tell your friends!

{ check out all of our adoption fundraisers in the sidebar to the right! }

returning to the papyrus basket

If you read this post, you know that we had "started to start" the adoption process again. :-) Well, I suppose at this point, we've officially started it! We are in the process of updating our home study, which the second time around includes:

1) getting updated medicals for Baron, Natalie, and me;

2) updating our adoption profile to include Natalie [and the bazillion pictures I have of her :-)]; and of course, 3) more paperwork. :-)

We have decided to go through the agency we used to adopt Natalie, Nightlight Christian Adoptions. We loved working with them, and we love the work they do with birthmothers and for orphan care around the world. If we're going to save up a bunch of money & use it for an adoption, these are the folks we want to have our money. And speaking of money...we're officially SAVING and fundraising! Which for me translates as, no more eating out during the week, and way fewer stops at McDonald's for a $1 tea. :-) We have an adoption fund set up at our bank, and hope to soon actually start putting more money in it. The cost of a domestic adoption typically ranges from about $20,000 - $30,000. We expect ours to be about $20,000, including legal fees and travel expenses. Would you like to help us? Guess what? You can!! We have arranged with our church to be able to accept donations through them, so that they can be tax-deductible. If you would like to simply write a check to help, you can make it out to Vaughn Park Church of Christ, and in the memo line, mark it as Family Care - Goins Adoption. You can mail your check directly to Baron & me. [Please email me at lauragoins828@gmail.com for our address, as I don't want that published on the www. :-)]

Stay tuned to my blog for our upcoming adoption fundraisers. We hope to be able to raise the money for this adoption without having to borrow. There are adoption grants to apply for, and there are also loans out there, and we will pursue whatever avenues we feel we need to, in order to bring our next baby home! If you have a fundraiser idea, please leave it in the comments or shoot me an email at lauragoins828@gmail.com. I appreciate your input!

{Curious about the title of this post,

or the name of my blog? Read this!}