Bolton Adoption Auction

This weekend was our adoption auction and it was a HUGE success! My best friend Maggie came to me at the beginning of August, maybe even July, to see if we would be interested in doing an auction as a fundraiser. Our church had auctions in the past to help raise money for the youth and they were always successful. I immediately told her I would love to do it if she would coordinate it...because anyone that knows Maggie knows you WANT her to plan your events (she was my wedding planner also). We were at the beginning of our puzzle fundraiser so I asked her if we could wait a couple months. We checked the church calendar and set the date for October 21st.

Maggie, Kat, and Rebekah immediately went in to planning mode. We met at Starbucks one night in August and by the time we left the meeting, we already had an auctioneer, 4 tickets to an ECU game, and Kat calling everybody she knew to see if they would donate a good or service. We also had our game plan for auction night and Maggie's vision really started coming to life.

September was busy with us announcing the auction and seeking out people that would be willing to donate good or services. Our goal was to get 40 things that we could auction. It was a little slow at first but we were off to a great start. October came and we were in full on planning mode. Craw and I wanted to serve hotdogs beforehand as a way to get more people engaged and also say thank you to everyone that came out. My parents also helped us out greatly by generously offering to buy all of the food items for the hotdog supper (Thanks mom and dad)!

We set up the church on Friday night and it was awesome to see all of the items that were donated.  We ended up receiving 70 items to auction...way more than our initial goal of 40. So many people helped to make the auction a success. From the people that donated, to the men that cooked hotdogs, and women that served the food, to the ladies in our church that cooked cakes/baked goods/pies/etc. And of course my dream team: Kat, Rebekah, and Maggie. The auction would not have been successful without everybody that gave of their time, goods, services, and of course...MONEY!

We ended up raising $6,600 from the auction and donations are STILL coming in!
GOD IS GOOD!


Yall, I can't even explain how much this has blown my mind. I tried not to set expectations on the night but in the back of my mind, I was hoping for $2,500. All I could do was cry when they read me the total. Craw and I were so emotional Saturday night because this is the loudest we have EVER heard God speak to us and he is speaking LOUD AND CLEAR! Adoption is not just something that we want to do...God is commanding us to do this! And He is making sure that NOTHING stops us. Money is the number one reason why people don't pursue adoption and He is making sure that's not a problem for us.

We can't thank everyone enough. We keep saying thank you and that just seems so inadequate. I wish we could personally write thank you notes to everyone that has impacted us but I simply can't keep up with it all. So please please please, from the bottom of our hearts, know that we are THANKFUL for YOU and we love you! Craw says all the time that we can't wait for the day when we are on the other side of this, have our baby in our arms, and are able to help another couple pursue adoption.

As far as pictures go...I barely took any and I feel like a failure! LOL!! I'm hoping other people got some so I am waiting for them to send them to me but for now, here are the two that I took.

This boy is a GEM to me! I love him and his sister dearly and they were so excited to help raise money for Baby Bolton. They took it upon themselves to set up a picture drawing station where people could purchase pictures for .50 cent and they would get a picture of Craw, Hank, Baby Bolton, and myself to put on their fridge. They ended up raising $25! These kids are going to be WORLD CHANGERS with their hearts already yearning to help others!

PUZZLE PIECE FUNDRAISER RECAP



On the first day of August, I announced that we were kicking off an August fundraising challenge. The plan was to see how many puzzle pieces we could get sponsored in 31 days with each piece being $25. Craw and I designed our own 250 piece puzzle and the ultimate goal was to have all 250 pieces sponsored in August.

To say I was nervous to begin this fundraiser would be the understatement of the century. You can ask all of my friends. Would we be able to get all 250 pieces sponsored? Was I setting the bar too high? Was $25 a piece too much? Was I annoying people by my social media posts? And the list goes on...

The first week was a huge success and it definitely started to calm my fears a little bit. While the goal of 250 pieces was still a long ways off, we were at least getting closer with 94 pieces sponsored the first week.

Week two was when the doubt and fear started to creep in. Six days in to the second week and we had only sold 4 pieces. I started to really question if the goal of 250 was feasible and if the success of the first week was just a fluke. And just when I started to question everything, God showed off and in ONE day, we sold 36 pieces ending week two at 134 pieces.

The third week was a little slower paced but I also took a step back from social media to enjoy a mini vacay with Craw. I also wanted to make sure I wasn't annoying everybody with my posting. We ended week three at 150 pieces which was a blessing. However, that meant that the last week and a half of August, we needed to get 100 pieces sponsored if we were going to meet or August goal.

Craw and I knew that there were many people that were waiting until the end to give. We also noticed that social media played a BIG roll in encouraging people to give. We did a live video during week four updating friends and family on where we were in the process and also updating them on our August fundraiser and all of a sudden, more people started giving.

And this is the part I know you have all been waiting for...

.......drumroll please.......

All 250 pieces have been sponsored!!!

How incredible is that? I am in awe of God and how much he loves us and how much all of the people around us love us. Craw and I both received donations from people we have never met, friends from high school that we haven't talked to SINCE high school, friends of friends of friends, and the list goes on. It's truly beautiful how much love we have received.

So...from the very bottom of our hearts, we say THANK YOU. In fact, thank you is not enough but I don't know what else to say. You have ALL helped us get one step closer to bringing home Baby Bolton and we cannot thank you enough.



Week Three Fundraising Update

Week three FLEW by and I can't believe we only have 10 days left! We are getting closer and closer to meeting our August goal of having all 250 pieces sponsored. Let's dive right in to week three's stats:

We ended week three at 60% of the goal.
We have 150 puzzle pieces sponsored and have raised $3,790.

WE ARE SO CLOSE!!


 So we have 100 pieces left to go with 10 days left.  That is TOTALLY doable and I am so excited to see what God has in store for us this last week. Please join me in praying for big things to happen these last 10 days. As I have said 1000 times already, Craw and I cannot thank you enough for all of the love and support you are showing.

Week Two Fundraising Update

Photo: Taylor Dail Photography

Is it just me or is August flying? We are now at the end of week two and beginning week three and God is SO good. At the start of yesterday, we were at 98 puzzle pieces. I knew week two would be a little slower than week one but I would be lying if I said doubt didn't start to creep in to my head. I'm embarrassed to even say that because I should never doubt God and all that He has planned for us in this process. I tried to be a little quieter on social media this week because I did not want people to feel overwhelmed by my posting but the coolest thing happened. One person felt led to share, and then another, and another and we ended week two on a BIG high. 

We ended week two at 54% of the goal.
We have 134 puzzle pieces sponsored and have raised $3,393.

WOW! AGAIN, GOD IS GOOD! 

Craw and I plan to do another Facebook Live video later in the week and will provide a public update then but I definitely wanted to do a quick post updating the blog. We are meeting with an adoption agency tonight and I am so excited to get this ball rolling. We have two potential agencies right now so tonight will give us a really good idea about which one will be the better fit. Please be in prayer for us that we will settle on the right agency. I can't wait to start having actual adoption updates but right now, we are very much in the research stage. Thanks again for all of the love and support you are showing us as we absolutely could not do this alone.

Week One Fundraising Update

Photo: Taylor Dail Photography

We officially have week one behind us and WOW- WHAT A WEEK!!! I did not want to set any expectations in my mind because I didn't want to be bummed if we didn't meet them and I also wanted to let God do his thing. Well let me tell you, God showed off in a BIG way. 

We are ending week one at 38% of the goal. We have 94 puzzle pieces sponsored and are at $2,393.

WOW! GOD IS GOOD!

I am still in disbelief.

Craw and I cannot thank you enough for donating to our adoption. It brings me to tears just thinking about all of the ways we are seeing God's grace through this process. This money is going to allow us to pay for adoption expenses as we go which is going to alleviate so much stress. I would never want to turn down a baby because we didn't have the money. I wish I could personally hug every single one of you because simply saying thank you doesn't cover all the love I have for you.

August Fundraiser: Help Us Bring Home Our Missing Piece

How It Works

You can sponsor a puzzle piece by making a $25 donation and you can sponsor as many pieces as you would like- the more, the merrier! We will write your name on a puzzle piece and slowly start putting the puzzle together. Once all 250 pieces have been sponsored, the puzzle will be framed and hung in Baby Bolton's nursery. This is such an awesome way to visually see all the people that helped bring our baby home.

Payment Options

We will accept cash, checks, or online donations through our YouCaring site. We will continuously update the YouCaring site with donations we receive via cash/check so that people following us can keep track of the funds raised.  YouCaring is a secured online crowd funding website that is a great way to gain exposure. If you have any questions, please reach out to me at blissfullybolton@gmail.com and I will be happy to answer any questions you may have. Visit youcaring.com/adoptingbabybolton to donate online or click the link in the right hand column.

Our Goal

Our ultimate goal is to be able to adopt debt free. With that being said, we know that $27,000 is a lot of money and we are trusting the Lord is going to get us there. We cannot do this alone. We will need your help every step of the way. For the month of August, we are starting small. Our main goal for August is to get all 250 puzzle pieces sponsored. That will equal $6,250 that we can apply towards the adoption costs. PLEASE help us get there! Email me if you would like a copy of the flyer and I can email it to you. Social media is going to be the best way to spread the word. Craw and I did a Facebook Live last night explaining the fundraiser and ways you can help us spread the word. Help us reach our goal of having all 250 pieces sponsored by August 31st!