Grateful.

In a recent blog post I described how reluctant Phillip and I were to send a "snail mail" letter asking for financial support of our adoption. It just felt....well....uncomfortable.

Our adoption fundraising coach through AdoptTogether, Andrea, successfully convinced us to do it. She convinced us to be "uncomfortably personal". She convinced us that people wouldn't think we were lazy, pious, or annoying.

And boy, am I grateful for her words. 

As of today, that snail mail letter has helped us raise OVER $4,000. It's not all reflected on the AdoptTogether site, because some of the checks were made out directly to us. We are closer to our goal than we ever thought we'd be. WAY closer. We have had several very generous donations-$2,000, $1,000, and $975. We're letting these special people stay anonymous.

But we've also had some amazing smaller donations that touched our hearts as well. One in particular came from a sweet little girl who donated her birthday money-about $9. I cried when I read that. I mean, my goodness, if that little girl feels that much compassion for us, clearly, clearly, clearly, we are on God's path to building a family. She inspires me to find new ways to save and fundraise. Perhaps she will inspire you to donate....especially if you thought that what you could give was too small. There have been many times that we've only been able to put $5.00 in the collection plate at church.

We still need about $6,000. We're not sure how it will be provided, but we believe it will be, whether it's from donations, opportunities for each of us to earn more money, or divine intervention. I can honestly say, prior to this last round of amazing donations, I couldn't see how we would get there. It felt impossible. Some days, it still does.

And if you're asking, WHY does it cost so much? You're spinning your wheels. We can't explain it to you. We just know that it's a price we are willing to pay to become mom and dad. We also know, we are beyond grateful to those of you who have helped us make our dream come true. Without you, we wouldn't have a chance.

So....if you haven't donated, consider the sweet girl who donated $9.00. There is literally no amount too small to help bring this baby home.