Today

August 18th, 2012, at 8:30 in the morning, Lydia went in for surgery.

It was a last ditch effort to save her struggling life, to grab at the window of opportunity and give her one last chance to live.

Since we began fighting for Lydia, she has been through so much. If you haven't yet, read her Amazing Story. This little one has fought more than any baby girl should ever have to fight.

But today, TODAY, Lydia lays on a bed in ICU recovering. Recovering. Finally, for the first time in her life, Lydia is in ICU not fighting, but recovering.

Her fingers will no longer be blue. Her body will no longer deteriorate. Her life will no longer be a fight.

Today, Lydia has had her heart surgery.

Let's celebrate!

Something's Happening

Lydia has been in the hospital for nearly a month. She's been in PICU for nearly two weeks. Now, it looks like she may be released back to a regular ward. Heal, baby, heal!

And other things are happening too. Just check out that chipin! 77% is quite marvelous and I'm amazed. Can we do 33% in three days? Honestly, it's okay if we can't... I don't want to pressure anybody! But, if your spare change is adding up into something rather substantial, you're trying to avoid caffeine this summer and suddenly your coffee budget has a surplus, or maybe you are stocked in summer clothes already and don't need to go shopping...consider putting that extra cash to help save the life of a baby girl who has no mommy or daddy.

A little girl who is fighting for her life.

A little girl who needs us - you.

Something is happening, and you can be apart of it.

Why not?

Five More Days

Five more days until the chipin ends and our fundraiser is over.

Five more days, and this little "honoring" of Liu Yi and Paige will be over.

Here, though not in our hearts.

Lindsay and I are so grateful to those who have come along side of us and helped raise the amazing $10,400 that has come in so far. Thank you. We have raised enough for Lydia's heart surgery, and quite a bit to go towards her other acute medical costs... like this current hospital stay due to pneumonia.

If the fundraiser ended today, we'd be happy. Satisfied. Our darling angel's lives have been honored and honestly, that's all that we set out to do.

So, five more days. Who knows, maybe more money will come in? Maybe it won't... but either way we're excited at what has happened through this fundraiser. Lives are already changing...

Fundraiser Update

According to the ChipIn we have raised $4,507. This is a lot of money.

But guess what? We just received a check, which means that instead of our total so far being $4,507, it's...

$9,507

Yup. You read that right. So what does this mean? It means that we have only have $4,493 to raise in the next 18 days. To meet our goal, we need to raise $250 per day starting tomorrow.

Any suggestions on how to do this?

We could tell you that your car will last another month without that tweaking and polishing, but that Lydia is still in the hospital fighting an infection and until she gets better, surgery for her sick little heart is still far off.

We could tell you that your coffee will only last a few hours before it's either cold or forgotten. Lydia does not deserve to be forgotten.

We could remind you gently that caring for orphans is a command for believers, and that in order to cultivate a just society those who have nothing and are totally incapable of getting anything for themselves should be given too.

We could get down on our knees and tearfully beg you to remember and honor the memories of Paige and Liu Yi, and give Lydia a chance.

Or we could just leave you with this picture. Lydia being LOVED by her nanny.

So how about it? Will you think and pray about what you might do to change the life of this little girl?

And more importantly, will you SHARE this blog, this message and this mission, with those around you? Excite them. Involve them.

Change her life.

 

Wordless Wednesday: So Real

p.s. don't forget about the raffle going on! It's SO easy to get involved. Don't be shy, we know that you're out there and want to help!

Rough but Real

I almost don't want you to watch this video, after seeing Linday's. I know, I know... how selfish is that? Just because the video below is every definition of the words "rough" and "raw", doesn't mean that it isn't real. 

The sound may be muffled... the video blurred... the audio patchy at best, but that doesn't mean that what you're going to watch didn't come from my heart. It just means that I'm not a professional videographer and we couldn't find a quiet place to film and... yeah, I'll spare you the excuses.

But, and I'm biting my lip as I type this, please watch and share.

Loving Paige was hard. But I'd do it again.

Loving dangerously is painful, but it's so incredibly worth it.

This is a celebration. I'm celebrating Paige's life by fighting for Lydia's.

Will you celebrate with me?

15%

One week, $2,100

Lindsay and I are kind of amazed.

You see, we each had a burden to do something in honor of "our girls." I think that we each had the idea of providing another child's surgery in honor of the one that had changed our heart. But raising that kind of money is hard, if you're only one person.

So it was amazing that we each had the same idea, and now how that idea is coming to fruition. 

Initially we weren't going to try to raise the full amount. It just seem to large. Raising this kind of money is hard for even the two of us. Thankfully, and I think that I speak for both of us here, but I've learned that when God gives someone a task, no matter how impossible it is, He will complete it.

And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ. Philippians 1:6

I've heard so many times that God does not call the equipped, He equips the called.

So, another week, another $2,000? I think yes!

Let's do it for Lydia, and the hope of a healthily beating heart. Daily I see her weak body struggle to thrive. She doesn't even have the strength to smile, it seems.

And let's do it for Tabitha, who's life is already a miracle as you will find out next week.

Thank you, so much.

Wordless Wednesday: Their Faces Today