Growing With Grace

Today I want to mention a great family and raffle taking place over at Growing with Grace. 

My old friends Amber and Nathan are trying to save a life.  More specifically, the life of their future daughter Anna Gray, who currently resides in an Eastern European orphanage.  

Because of her Down's Syndrome, a future in her country would mean a life in institutions.  

With any luck -- and a lot of blood, sweat, and tears -- she will soon be in the arms of her loving family!

First, some background (stolen from Amber's adoption blog):

Amber decided she was going to adopt at the age of four years old. 

When she and Nathan began dating as teenagers, she told him her plan and said he was either in or out… he was in! They were married eight years ago and blessed less than a year later with a biological daughter, Layla, who is now seven. 

A couple of years later, they started the adoption process, ready to grow their family. About halfway through the process, they were told it was impossible for them to conceive- even though they had a healthy 2-year-old at home! 

This news just confirmed that they were already doing what God has always planned for them to do. Before they could even complete their homestudy, Nathan and Amber were asked to parent girl/boy twins! The babies had already had four homes and three sets of names in their short six weeks of life. Brynn and Cale are now four years old and almost as tall as their favorite person (big sister, Layla)!

 

Just recently, Nathan and Amber began updating their domestic homestudy. They planned on another domestic infant adoption, but God had better plans! Amber was introduced to Reese’s Rainbow by another adoptive mother, slightly by accident. 

After combing through the website once or twice, praying for the precious waiting souls, she saw Gracie. Little Cale had been praying for God to bring him “a baby with a mohawk” and he found one! All three of the children started asking, “When can she come home?” before Nathan or Amber ever mentioned doing just that! They took some time to pray about her, seeking God’s will for their family and felt very clearly that this was His plan for them. 

They are all so excited to hold this little squishy and bring her home. She, and her “mohawk” , will fit right in!

And now for the raffle*:  

The prize is TWO nights in an upgraded room at beautiful and unique Gaylord Opryland Hotel and Resort in Nashville, TN!

ALSO, dinner for two at Ravello, a delicious italian restaurant inside the hotel!

For my fellow Triangle residents, Southwest Airlines runs $59 flights to and from Nashville on a regular basis and the flight is under an hour and a half.  Talk about a great weekend getaway! 

You have until noon NEXT Monday, November 28th to enter the contest.

You can get ONE ticket for $10. Each additional ticket is $5. (i.e. 1/$10, 2/$15, 3/$20, etc.). Your name is entered for each TICKET. 
Check out this post on Growing With Grace for the details!


Whether you buy a raffle ticket or not, please remember the West's in your prayers -- especially as they spend Thanksgiving so far from a child they love so dearly.

*As a side note, I hope I win this raffle!  This is where the hubs and I spent our short honeymoon (I was taking summer classes) and the restaurant we ate at on our subsequent anniversaries.