Adoption Fundraising

This is my first post to my blog about our journey in the adoption process. We are currently in the process of adopting internationally from the Philippines. The overall process from time of application to time of travel to meet our child is approximately 28 months. We started our application process at the beginning of May 2007. We have completed our Homestudy and sent off our Dossier paperwork several weeks ago. We are hoping to hear by the end of December that we are officially on the country list of approved applicants. We are okay with this long time frame (well I say this now, but may change my mind) for several reasons. We have two little girls under the age of 3. By the time we receive a referal and child assignment, our girls will be 5 and 3. Our child will most likely be between the age of 1-2. We wanted to have at least a year between the ages of our children. We also needed the extra time to save money for all of adoption fees. So this brings about the topic of my blog post, Adoption Fundraising. Over the last month, I have been on the internet searching for adoption fundraising ideas, adoption grants and loans. I have researched and found many interesting ideas, but now I need to come up with a plan and get busy implementing some of them.

I found a great Squidoo lens about the adoption financing. http://www.squidoo.com/adoptionfinancing/ The author of this lens has organized several lists and included links to Adoption Financing Websites, Grants & Loans, Families with Fundraising Webpages, and other general fundraising links.

I also came across http://www.chipin.com/overview. ChipIn is a free online site that allows you to easily collect money from others. ChipIn is used for a variety of fundraising themes. Your purpose of the ChipIn account could be to collect money for a certain adoption fee (homestudy, dossier, or country fee). You set a goal amount that you are trying to raise and a date to be accomplished. The ChipIn widget can be placed on your website or blog and then people are able to log in and donate to your cause. You could share the link with people from church, work or relatives.

I have also recently joined an Adoption Fundraising forum group on Cafemoms.com. The owner of the group, Miki aka Adoptionsong is very inviting. She is active in the group and responds quickly to any posts. She has a fantastic fundraiser going for her upcoming adoption. She has a website called http://www.adoptionsong.com/ where they sell downloads of her husband's adoption song called "Waiting" for $1.50. I think this is one of the most creative fundraising ideas that I have seen yet. The song will be a neat keepsake for their child. The group is fairly new so there aren't many members yet, but it would be a great place to join if you would like to talk about raising money for your adoption. Please visit the forum group at http://www.cafemom.com/group/11614

As for me, my biggest fundraising effort is my Ebay store, The Sugar Bean's Closet. I primarily sell both new and gently used baby and children's clothing and toys. I have been working very hard to stock my store full of items ready for purchase. This has helped us to fund some of our early fees such as the homestudy and dossier.

http://stores.ebay.com/The-Sugar-Beans-Closet


Please feel free to comment! I would love to hear from others about their adoption fundraisers. There are so many children in the world who need a loving home and so many parents who long for a child. The expensive adoption fees sometimes stand in the way of making a family dream come true. Hopefully, some of these ideas will help inspire you to your journey of adoption.

PS - The Making Of A Mom blog is having an Adoption Blog Carnival. A carnival is a great way to meet fellow bloggers. The topic is Adoption. If you have an adoption blog post that you would like to share please enter it at this link http://makingofamom.blogspot.com/2007/09/adoption-blog-carnival.html. Please join in on the fun October 1st to find a list of some great adoption blogs.

Here is the compiled list of all participants in the Adoption Carnival. http://makingofamom.blogspot.com
There are some fantastic reads. Don't miss out!

Blog Rush - Drive Traffic to Your Blog

I am so excited to have found BLOG RUSH. Blog Rush is a free online service that sends traffic to your blog. It is a new concept, but I think it will take off and become one of the hottest online traffic driving resources available for the blogging community. I just signed up today. Be sure to check out my Blogsphere Widget box on the left side of my blog. This box contains recent posts from other bloggers with the same overall topic (Work at Home) as my blog. You can also check it out by clicking on this link http://www.blogrush.com/r10287247. I have already been having fun searching through the links and finding blogs I would probably never have seen otherwise.

This is a letter that I just received from the founder of Blog Rush . It was sent out to members today. I think he is extremely dedicated to making his product succeed.
http://www.income.com/blog/2007/09/25/shocking-changes-at-blogrush/

Make Money Selling On Ebay

Wanting to be able to stay at home while my two girls are young, I needed to find a way to help out financially. Ebay has allowed me to follow my dream of being able to achieve this. The At Home Auction Moms website has been an instrumental tool in allowing me to take my selling to the next level and achieve my Ebay selling goals. To find out more about this fantastic website forum group please click on the link below. If you have any questions about it, please let me know as I have been an active member for over a year.

At Home Auction Moms Website Info

Pumpkin Decorating

I was so excited to receive my October edition of Parents magazine in the mail this past week and to have found a whole section on Halloween decor ideas and pictures. I just love the Halloween holiday. I traded in the traditional carving of the pumpkins for an All Dressed Up version. We picked out several different sized pumpkins this past weekend and decided to decorate our front door pumpkins with a variety of craft supplies and dress-up items. My oldest daughter and I spent the evening dressing our pumpkins. We had such a great time. She was so proud of her cute pumpkins and easily posed for a picture beside them.







So tonight, I have been online browsing Halloween topic blogs. I found a Halloween Costume Giveaway contest on http://twomomsinablog.com/. "Twomomsinablog" has teamed up with Halloween Mart for the costume giveaway. Since I absolutely love the Halloween holiday, I just can't pass up this contest. Part of the contest requires me to pick my favorite costume from their site http://www.halloweenmart.com/. At first I thought this would be an easy task. I can't believe the selection of costumes and accessories they carry from infant/child -adult sizes. Now almost an hour later, I think I have finally narrowed it down to my favorite. Both of my daughters love Curious George and when I first saw this costume I immediately thought of them. My favorite is the MONKEY SEE TODDLER costume. Absolutely Adorable! http://www.halloweenmart.com/wecs.php?store=halloweenmar&action=display&target=CH00089


If I were to be the lucky contest winner chosen to win the $100 gift certificate I would use it towards purchasing my husband and I's Halloween costumes for our 2nd annual upcoming Halloween party in October. I am thinking we would make a great pirate couple! Ahoy, Mate!

Cool Contest -Win Free Prizes!

"Twomomsinablog" have teamed up with their Birthday Parties sister site and are hosting a fun contest, with a chance to win some great prizes.


Prizes include:

* A fabulous make your own stuffed animal kit from FunOnTheArk.com valued at $20.00
*3 month gift subscription to Menu Planning Central $60 valueMenu Planing Central is the premier all inclusive Menu Planning Website Online.They also offer an excellent complimentary Menu Planning Basics Report free at http://www.menuplanningcentral.com/order/go.php?r=242
* A gorgeous leatherette photo book that you make from your digital birthday photos compliments of photomemoriesalive.com valued at $50.00
* 10 handmade thank you notes provided by FunEvents4Girls.com valued at $20.00
That’s over $150 worth of prizes! Eeeeek! Spread the word!
But here’s the best part! Everyone who officially enters the contest will receive a $5 coupon code toward a free animal from funontheark.com



Even if you don't enter the contest, it is a great site to visit. Who doesn't love birthday parties??
http://twomomsinablog.com/birthdays



Good luck!!!
Jenny
http://stores.ebay.com/The-Sugar-Beans-Closet

Halloween Costume & Party Ideas

Have your family looking Spooktacular for Halloween this year!

I know it is only mid August, but the fall season including Halloween is already on my mind. I think I am trying to hurry along some cooler temperatures. Halloween was always one of my favorite childhood holidays. I have so many great memories of dressing-up. I can remember the excitement of deciding and planning what I wanted to be. Some of my favorite Halloween activities include carving pumpkins, roasting pumpkin seeds, making some delicious treats and listening to silly Halloween songs. Still wanting to partake fully in the holiday, my husband and I had an adult Halloween costume party at our home last October. I dressed up as a Flapper and my husband as a Gangster. Also attending our party was a Gypsy, 2 green M&M’s (one plain & one peanut), Witch, Redneck, Wet T-shirt Winner and several other interesting characters. Truly a fun evening! We already are already planning our 2nd annual party for this October.

This year, my 2 ½ year old daughter is going to be Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz. I already have her costume accessorized and ready to go. I am still deciding whether my 1 year old daughter should stay with the theme and be a lion or a scarecrow. I want to be the Wicked Witch, but my daughter doesn’t want me to be the ugly witch, but the Good (pretty) Witch. I think I would make a better Wicked Witch. :)

Selling Halloween Costumes on Ebay
Because of my love for the Halloween holiday, I try to fill my Halloween Costume/Dress-Up Category in my Ebay store with many different costumes and accessories. I LOVE selling costumes. I sell both new and used infant, child and adult costumes all year round. Many of the different costumes that I have listed include pirates, princesses wizard, firefighter, dinosaurs, and various animals. I am constantly listing new costumes, so if you need a special outfit for Halloween, a school play or a party, please check out my costumes in my Ebay store. I have a great selection at great prices.

The Sugar Bean’s Closet
http://stores.ebay.com/The-Sugar-Beans-Closet_Dress-Up-Halloween-Costumes_W0QQcolZ4QQdirZ1QQfsubZ7QQftidZ2QQtZkm

Child Halloween Party Ideas
With my daughter being involved in Pre-School and other activities, I have been looking for party ideas. Here are some great websites that I have come across that give ideas for costumes, decorating, games, food treats, and activities.

HALLOWEEN PARTY GAMES FOR KIDS
http://entertaining.about.com/od/halloween/a/hallowkidgames.htm

“GONE BUGGY” PARTY
http://www.kids-party-paradise.com/kid-party-idea.html

HALLOWEEN RECIPES & GAMES
http://www.razzledazzlerecipes.com/halloween/games1.htm

Child Halloween Costume Ideas

Since I am a stay-at-home mom and we primarily live off my husband’s income and what I can bring in through the sales of my Ebay store, I am always looking for ways to make things more affordable. I found these websites to have affordable costume ideas.

CLOWN COSTUME IDEAS
http://www.kids-party-paradise.com/clown-costume.html

FAST, EASY, CHEAP HALLOWEEN COSTUMES
http://homeparents.about.com/cs/halloween/a/homehalloween.htm

MAKE YOUR OWN HALLOWEEN COSTUME
http://familycrafts.about.com/cs/halloweentheme/a/091399.htm

I hope you enjoy the wonder of the fall harvest season with these festive and fun ideas.
HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Encourage Child Development With Dress-Up Play

One of my favorite things to sell on Ebay is children's dress-up clothes and Halloween costumes. I think the teacher in me comes out when I say that dress up clothes are a wonderful part of a child's social and emotional development. I try to fill my store with items that I am interested in and enjoy selling. I love being part of the process that allows children to role play their favorite movie character or super hero or take them off to an imaginative land of make believe fairytales.

To view my current costume listings in my Ebay store, please click on the link below.
Dress-Up/Halloween Costumes

The Power of Imagination with Dress-up Play
As a former teacher and a mother of two young girls, I am always intrigued by the role of dress-up play in child development. Ask a child what they want to be when they grow up and they will not only tell you occupations such as doctors, pirates, princesses, and bus drivers, but they will usually find that special dress, outfit or hat needed to illustrate their chosen identity.

What are children learning by Imaginative Role-Play?
Encouraging imaginative play is the first step that we can take to encourage role-play that prepares for learning and preparation for the rest of their lives. Childhood role-play allows for children to learn about cooperation, taking turns and it encourages confidence and socialization. Research shows that children who engage in imaginative play are more creative thinkers who mature to better problem solvers. It can also improve vocabulary skills.

What can I do to Support my child's dramatic play?
When using the imagination, there is no limit to where we can go or to what we can become.
* Find or buy several big stuffed animals. Pull out your child's baby clothes and let them dress their stuffed animals in their old clothes.
* Put together a dress-up box for both genders. Old dance costumes and dance shoes are the best for girls. Add some feather boas, tutus, animal ears, leotards, crowns, ties and costume jewelry. Find some play cowboy hats, tool belts with plastic tools, or play doctor items.
* Buy new or used Halloween costumes that can be adapted to various dress-up options.
* Go camping! Pitch a tent indoors or make one out of blankets. Share the fun by reading a book, or having a snack in the tent with your child.
* Collect various Mr. Potato Head parts and keep in a tub so that your child can create various faces and characters.
* Connect play to stories from your child's favorite books.

You can encourage your children to play, make suggestions or even join in, but it won't be long before their imaginations run wild, taking them on a life journey of fun learning.

Be sure to check out my Ebay store http://stores.ebay.com/The-Sugar-Beans-Closet for many fun dress-up items and costumes. I have many items for both boys and girls of all ages. Let the power of imagination begin!