I love my family!

   I love my sweet family!  David and Jordan (19) went to visit the KU campus today.  Fun road trip for them.  It was a nice cool fall day to be there.  They talked with people in admissions and in the film department.  Jordan has finished his training for the Kansas Air National Guard and is currently working full time on base.  In the Spring he will attend Wichita State and then off to KU in the Fall.  He's so ready!  One of our pastors is starting a church in Lawrence. Knowing that Jordan will have a church there gives us peace.  God covers all the bases!

   Two of our 4 teens were sick this past week but not today.  They all made it to school today :) Well the 3 that are still in school. I did some returns and grocery shopping for my next fundraiser - a Bake Sale.  My friend and her daughter joined my girls and me for Chick-Fil-A  and then came over to our house.  The girls watched movies and Les and I baked A Lot of cookies.   and ate a few too.  Cranberry/Walnut/Oatmeal, Snickerdoodle, Pumpkin Snickerdoodle and Butterscotch/Chocolate Chip.  Oh my! It was much more fun to bake with Les than to do it all myself.  Amish proverb, "Many hands make light work."  It's so true.  Aaron just hung out with the computer because he was terribly outnumbered by girls!  Sorry Aaron.  He'll go with the guys to visit KU in the Spring since he's a Junior.  

   Tomorrow morning we will take a mini road trip to the El Dorado area - Walter's Pumpkin Patch here we come!  Expect too many pictures on my next post!  

   Thanks for stopping by! 

Crisp, Cool, Beautiful Fall!

   Welcome to my blog.  I love Fall!  It is my favorite season.  The leaves turning that crimson red, vibrant orange, warm yellow and still some bright green.   I like them so much that we've decorated our home in those colors. I can enjoy a rainy day but the cool, sunny days with bright blue skies....Lovely! Pumpkins of all sizes on porches, big, full chrysanthemums, fall wreaths hanging on doors.  I love the sound of crunching crisp leaves under my feet and I'm opening myself up to enjoying a little football - the announcer's voices, the cheers of faithful fans.  The aroma of pumpkin, cranberries and cinnamon, ooooooooo.  And, of course, the flavors that go along with those scents.  I can now pull on jeans and long sleeved shirts.  I love to sit on my back porch swing with a blanket and a good book or The Good Book.  All of it brightens my spirit!  I'm so thankful for this season.

   Our adoption has been on my mind so much lately.  Fundraising  brings out different emotions - feeling awkward to ask for help in raising money but feeling so grateful for all the support and encouragement we've been given. So amazed to see how God is providing.  I know adoption is about more than the family adopting and the children being adopted.  God brings so many people into the process to give, pray, teach, encourage, help and talk to.  He's brought kindred spirits into my life through adoption blogs.  We're adopting children who are 4-7yrs 11mo. old.  In the adoption world they are considered as "older."  I read blogs about families who are raising adopted children who have issues somewhat unique to this age range.  Our experiences in foster parenting have also contributed to the learning process.  I believe that God draws this team together to help prepare us and change us but also to do great things in the hearts of our support team.  He doesn't do anything without having a good purpose, whether we are in the giving or in the receiving.  Each gives us the priviledge of being a part of His plans, His movement, His body, His kingdom!

   Our Ethiopian children are also on my mind, all the time.  We are praying that God will bind our hearts together even now.  We don't have referrals yet so we haven't seen their faces and we don't know the details of their lives.  We ask God to heal their hearts, provide for all their physical needs, and to love them through their caregivers and little friends.  Asking Him to let them know they have a family.  God knows who they are and when they will join us.  He knows their future and He has great plans for them.  All of this gives me hope and such peace.  He may give us children that challenge our parenting skills like never before but hasn't He always given all we need for each challenge He allows us to face.  Hasn't He grown all of us in and through the struggles?  He is faithful, period.  That won't change.  That won't change!

   I'm excited about these children becoming a part of our family.  I'm reminded by young children that come into our home through foster care what joy their perspectives on life can bring.  How they simplify things and make a big deal out of the small, seemingly unimportant stuff of life.  In spite of hard times they laugh so full and so often.  It all makes me back up and take it all in.  They seem to take life at a slower pace and notice details and joys I tend to overlook like bugs, sticks, mud, long time swinging and hopping and touching everything.  You know I'm a kid person, always have been.  God's given me this gift to help me see and experience Him more.  It's about them and it's about what He wants to give me and teach me.  I know our Ethiopian kids are delightful too and I can't wait to meet them!!!  His timing is perfect, His timing is perfect, His timing is perfect... My timing is not.  I'd take them today but we still have so much to learn :)

Thanks for visiting and I hope you'll come back.  God bless, Tobi

We are Winners!

Yay!  We won the $500 grant from Ordinary Hero!!!  We sold over $1600 in merchandise which gave us $653 in commission.  Together that makes $1,153 for our adoption.  OH will send a check to America World and it will be put into an account for us!  I am so thankful for God's provision once again and for Ordinary Hero for their huge gift!
Brenda Fleming is the winner of the Starbuck's Gift Card drawing!!!
A BIG THANKS to all of you who prayed or purchased or shared our posts on Facebook!  You have greatly blessed us!
We will continue to keep the Ordinary Hero fundraising going so go shop again if you'd like :)  We are so please with the quality of our shirts.  It will be fun seeing you and your kids wearing OH t-shirts!  :)

I also want to say thanks to Candace Allenbach and Darlene Seibert who've recently donated children's clothing (very nice clothing too) for foster children and our Ethiopian kids!  THANK YOU!

Whew!  Now I need to focus some time on my house!  Do I have a witness?

Ordinary Hero Grant Giveaway!

Natalie, Mikaela and Tobi - Wright Family Ordinary Hero Models

Hi Friends!  We have just kicked off our Adoption Fundraising with Ordinary Hero T-shirts.  This afternoon I created a fundraising event on my Facebook page.  While I was working on that, Natalie went to pick up our mail.  She came back in the house wearing her new OH t-shirt!  She sneaked into our backyard and slipped it on before coming inside.  I squealed loudly to say the least :)  We ordered one for all 6 of us and I hope to get a picture of the guys in their very cool manly shirts by tomorrow evening.

Ordinary Hero Grant Giveaway!!!  Today I received an email from Ordinary Hero, the organization we chose to become affiliates with for fundraising.  We chose them because of their heart for orphans and because the merchandise is fabulous!  Anyhoo...OH is giving a grant of $1,000 to the family who sells the most merchandise between 9/21 and 9/30.  For every sale, 40% of the total is added to our adoption fund with our agency.  Please consider helping us raise money to cover our adoption expenses by checking out http://ordinaryherostore.org/.  Receiving the 1st place grant of $1,000 would be such a blessing. (2nd place is $500 and 3rd place gets $300). There are many great items to choose from.

IMPORTANT DETAIL:  When you go to checkout please click on Tobi Wright in the drop down list.  Ordinary Hero will send 40% of each sale to an account set up for us with our adoption agency, America World Adoption Associates. By clicking on my name you move us closer to winning the grant!
Let me know that you have placed an order (9/21 - 9/30) by leaving a comment here on our blog.  I will enter your name in a drawing for a Starbuck's Gift Card.  The winner's name will be posted here and on my FB page on October 1st!

We will keep the Ordinary Hero Fundraising opportunity open for 3 months (or more).  Each month I will do another drawing, each month a different prize :)  But this month your order will help us win $1,000 for our adoption!!!

Thank you for keeping us in your prayers.  God is providing for these children to become a part of our family!  The adoption experience has been so good.  We are learning a lot through books, webinars, friends who have adopted and new blog friends who've also adopted.  We will keep you posted!