I still have a couple awesome tshirts and magazine bead necklaces!

Two Man-Up tshirts left.  One Adult Large, one Adult XLarge

Slim fit, and the softest shirt I have ever owned - high quality Tee!!

$20 plus $3 shipping!!

ALSO!  I have four magazine bead necklaces left.  Only $10 plus $2 shipping.   Just click on the pay now button on the right and let me know which one you would like.

Yellow and Turquoise
Yellow
Light Green
Dark Green

Thanks, Friends!!

Too Much to Process

Megin and I finally made it home last night (my luggage did not - hoping to get a call about that soon).

One thing about Ethiopia:  It steals your heart.  Every. Time.

I want to blog, but I feel that my words will not suffice.  The moments are too precious to use simple words.  It seems almost profane to try to paint the picture with mere letters.

I came home last night to my carpeted house, with a room for every child.  Food in the kitchen.  Gas in my FOUR cars.

And remember the widow with no medicine for her eyes. And her dirt floor and tin roof.

I remember the child with the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen and wonder if her uncle will hurt her tonight.

I remember the boys, who waited patiently for us every day, sitting on the grass across from our guest house, just hoping for a hug, a smile, perhaps a sucker from us.  Then would wait the entire next day again.

I remember the beautiful girl with hydrocephalus, who could have been saved with a simple medical procedure.

I remember the women with their hands in tubs of dye making beautiful scarves.  Women who were once trapped in prostitution, now with a job and the ability to support her children without shame.

(Anne, Megin and Macall jumping in to help dye the wool)

I remember the smiles and laughter on the lips of HIV+ women, given a chance to make jewelry and feed their families, after being rejected for years.

I can still smell the coffee beans roasting at KorahBeth Coffee.  Where the lives of two men, one raised in the dump in Addis Ababa, the other an American who lost his young wife to a brain disease met and created new life and new jobs for women in Korah.

So much heartache...yet so much hope.  Seeing the need, then seeing the result of people being the hands and feet of Jesus, changing the world for so many!

More to come...

WOW! Thank you!

Thanks for your support!  I only have 2 yellow simply love bags left, the rest are SOLD OUT!!

I still have several necklaces for sale.

You guys rock!

Last Minute Fund-raising!!

UPDATE:  Sold out of all blue Simply Love bags.  I still have necklaces and yellow Simply Love bags :)

Megin and I leave in just a couple weeks for Ethiopia.  We are doing some last minute fund-raising and we need your help!

All Rwandan magazine beads and Simply Love bags are half price!  I have several colors of necklaces (I love wrapping mine around my writst as a bracelet).  The yellow bag is one of my favorites - the color is much prettier than the photos show.  These are great for trips to the pool, beach or even on a mission trip!  Holds a lot of stuff (my Macbook fits nicely in mine) and they are machine washable.  Great bags.

Help me clear out my inventory before we go :)

Of course, we are still accepting tax-deductible donations on my Ordinary Hero page.  Just click and donate.  So easy!!

Thank you!

Things I wish you knew. Thoughts from the flip side.

I have written this blog a thousand times in my mind. It is brilliant each time. Now, as I am putting the words to paper (or computer screen), it is terrifying. 

 Let me explain. No, there is too much. Let me sum up. 

I am wife to the best husband in the world and the mother of five amazing children. Two of those kiddos I grew in my womb - all by myself (OK, my husband helped, but I did all the work). The other three were born on the other side of the world. Thanks to God, my family, my friends, and a couple of great agencies, we were able to bring them home. 

 They were 4, 6 and 11 years old when they joined our family. 

 Yes. I am one of those weirdos who adopted. Not only internationally, but also adopted older kids. 

I know, Crazy. 

I am also the Ethiopia Program Director of an agency. Yup. I am one of those people that are criticized, glared at and judged quite severely from the adoption world...and often those outside the adoption world as well.

I help unite children and their forever families. Best. Job. Ever. 

 Most days. 

So. Here is a list of things we adoption professionals would want our adoptive families, their friends, and those who give us the stink eye, to know. 

 We hate corruption and child trafficking. Hate it. We hate it even more than you do. We want nothing to do with it. It makes us sick. We wish neither of these things existed. 

 We care for the birth families of our children. The greatest day will be the day I am out of a job because there are no more orphans. I pray for that day. 

 We are not in this for the money. Do you want to see my tax return from last year? Trust me, it won't blow your mind. 

 We do this because we LOVE it. But, it isn't easy. 

 You know those days when we call or email you with bad news? Yeah. We hate that. Almost as much as you do. You know THE CALL?? The one you have been waiting for? Yeah. LOVE those days. It may be your best day ever - but I am floating on clouds right along with you. 

 You know that phone call, where you are angry and frustrated because of delays? When things are just not going the way you think they should. That call where you yell at us, and accuse us of not doing our jobs, and vent your frustration until you have no more words? Yeah. It's OK. We understand. This job is more than a job. We are working with your heart. Sometimes it gets broken. And it hurts. It's OK. We forgive you. And we will keep on working until you have your child in your arms. (We may still break into cold sweats the next couple times your number shows up on our caller ID. Just being real, here.) 

 If you want to know the truth. I was afraid (terrified) to write this post. I was afraid I might say something wrong. It seems like even Christians (sometimes ESPECIALLY we Christians) can get mean and ugly where adoption is concerned. There is an "Us verses Them" mentality. Well, I am both us and them. I am an adoptive mom. I work for an adoption agency. 

 How do we resolve this conflict? We need to see each other as friends. As teammates. As family. We are working toward the same goal. 

 Do we fight corruption and trafficking? Absolutely. Bring on the battle. 

 Do we let fear stop us from adopting? Never. These kids deserve a family. 

 Do we work together with love and compassion? Yes, please. 

 I know there are some agencies out there who do this for the wrong reasons. But, those are rare. Most of us are doing this for the kids. And the families. 

 We believe and live James 1:27.
 We believe God puts the fatherless into families. 
 That he will not leave them as orphans. 

 We are passionate about this job and will pour our heart and souls into it. We will work odd hours to keep in touch with overseas staff. We will take emergency phone calls from our families with flight delays at 3am. We will work diligently to bring your child home. We love you. Because we are you.

 Now, lets start down the road that makes my job obsolete. Are you in???

Back by Popular Demand - Super Man-Up Shirts

I have had several people ask me about the Super Man-up tshirts, so I will be selling them again to help raise money for our Ordinary Hero trip this June! I will only be taking orders until May 20, I want to be sure they will be out by Fathers day. These shirts are high quality and super-soft and are unisex slim cut. They have the Man-up logo on the front and say "Protect and Love the Fatherless" on the back. Great for Dads, but also great for anyone else who cares about the fatherless!! Thanks for your continued support! We can't do this trip without you!

Buy your Mom a gift, help a Mom and Daughter get to Ethiopia!!

Hello friends! If you only follow my blog and not my FB page, you probably wondered if the Shetley fam dropped off the face of the earth. Nope, we are still alive and running from sporting event to drama performance to musical concert. Staying busy. As many of you know, Megin and I have been trying to plan a trip back to Ethiopia. We will be traveling with a group called Ordinary Hero and we will be doing lots of great projects for orphans, widows and those in poverty in Ethiopia. It will be Megin's first trip back to her birth country and we are so excited! We tried this last summer, but because of passport complications, had to reschedule. Now, we are moving back "home" to Branson less than a month before our trip and OH MY GOODNESS it has snuck up on us and we have some MAJOR fundraising to do before we go. We have about $3000 to raise in 2 months!! This week we will be selling some AMAZING Mother's Day gifts. We have Simply Love shoulder bags in three colors (I have used one of these as a purse for the past 3 years - I LOVE it!!). We have blue, yellow and green (UPDATE: SOLD OUT OF GREEN). These are $25 (plus $5.00 shipping). I also have a very limited supply of paper bead necklaces from Rwanda. These are beautiful, colorful and uber-stylish. I wear mine all the time and always get great compliments. These are being sold for $20 (plus $2.00 shipping). If you buy more than one item, I will combine shipping and you will only pay one shipping fee. If you have a mom and if she would appreciate a gift that also helps us serve orphans and widows...here is your chance! Click on the link on the right of my page to purchase. I have a limited supply, so order soon! I will do my best to get your gift to you (or your mommy) before Mother's Day. Of course, we are also taking general donations as well. Click here:Randi's Ordinary Hero Trip to make a tax deductible donation directly to Ordinary Hero for my trip. Thank you for your continuous support! We can't do this without you! Randi and Megin

Ta-Mo-Ca Ethiopian Coffee for sale!!

Megin and I are selling Ta-Mo-Ca coffee as a fundraiser for our June Mission trip with Ordinary Hero. Just click on my paypal link to purchase. $12 per bag + $3 shipping = $15. Please select whole bean or ground. UPDATE: WOW!! I AM ALREADY SOLD OUT OF WHOLE BEAN!! GET YOUR GROUND COFFEE BEFORE IT IS GONE TOO!!! Thank you!!