details on how to help anton

Oh man, I am being worked on here. I was just talking to Matt the other night about God calling me to something, but I just couldn't figure out what. I said something like, "I feel like he's given me the blog for a higher purpose than just, 'Jonah is doing well. We didn't do anything today. The End.'" And I know it's more than that, so I'm not trying to dismiss how many prayer warriors we've gained or the effect Jonah has had on peoples' lives or how God has worked through our struggles. But now, as things are becoming more and more stable, I just want to use the blog and the readership for more than just our day-to-day happenings... although I want to keep including that stuff too. Because it's still important. 


En-ee-ways...


I am committed to help advocate for Anton until we find him his Forever Family (or rather, until God leads them to each other), and I'm also committed to fundraising until he can come home. I feel a great Spirit led (I hope, anyway) urgency to pursue funds for Anton and help bring him home, wherever that may be. 


So a couple things:


1) I know everyone wants to help one way or the other, and I'm so thankful. I hope you can find a way, through the fundraisers we come up with or with an idea of your own to donate to Anton's adoption fund if you feel so led. His PayPal button is HERE or you can mail a check to Reece's Rainbow at PO Box 4024 Gaithersburg, MD 20885 (this is better for large donations, as they don't get hit with large PayPal fees). Make sure to include "Anton(15AAC)" in your "FOR" line.


2) I know not everyone is qualified to adopt Anton, so don't feel guilty if you are not in that place. Not everyone has space in their home or a hospital close by or can take on the time it requires to properly care for an EB child. Let's face it, as much as I would love to adopt him myself, I honestly don't know how we would/could care for both boys' needs. I already have help come in every day to help with Jonah's dressing change. I can't imagine having to ask for help for an additional two hours every day. (And dressing change is really the least of my concerns.) Plus, Anton will face many challenges due to RDEB that Jonah won't and he will face additional emotional and physical delays due to his circumstances. I'm not trying to talk you out of it, but please if you are considering, pray about it, contact DebRA or other EB Folks who can share their "reality" with you, and truly prepare yourselves for what his care, both physical and emotional, will entail. Believe me, whatever it is, it is TOTALLY WORTH IT.


3) If you are feeling like God might be calling you to this, please see these eligibility requirements and you can contact Larisa Ulinova at 215-264-3704 or larisa_ulanova (at) hotmail (dot) com with inquiries. Also, you can contact the folks at Reece's Rainbow or http://aboutachild.org, an adoption agency that partners with Reece's Rainbow.


4) I'm setting up a new blog, called Hope for Anton, where I will be adding fundraising opportunities through Thirty-One and Pampered Chef among others. Let me know if you have any fundraising ideas or suggestions or anything you'd like to "sell" with all proceeds going to Anton's fund. You can email me at momtobabyjonut (at) gmail (dot) com with any questions. I'm also going to be holding a "yard sale" online there at some point, selling some of my books and our nice, lightly worn, name brand clothing in hopes to raise some funds. I know that's kind of lame-o but here's the deal: I am not creative. I don't bake. I don't sew. I don't paint or build or make. But I like to read and I wear clothes. So there you have it. We all do what we can. 


I love you guys. You just don't know. I KNOW we can do this. Will you help spread the word? And go on over to the new blog, which currently has no posts, and become a follower or a Google Readerer or whatever you call it so you can get updates when new items/opportunities arise. 


Some may call this impulsive. I just call it RADICAL. :) 


"This is where we come face to face with a dangerous reality. We do have to give up everything we have to follow Jesus...The gospel does not prompt you to mere reflection; the gospel requires a response. In the process of hearing Jesus, you are compelled to take an honest look at your life, your family, and your church and not just ask, 'What is he saying?' but also ask, 'What shall I do?'"
- David Platt, Radical