Hello again....

Well, it has been awhile since I updated the blog and many people, mainly family members, have been asking me to get this thing updated. So, here is what's been going on over the last few months.

Saige is one step closer to coming home. We were logged into the CCAA on January 28th. So we should be getting our LOA here in the near future. We have been looking at furniture and playing with ideas for the girls' room. We haven't settled on anything, yet but we know at least there will be two beds. Figure that, two beds for two girls. Who would of thought? We hope to be traveling to bring Saige home in June or July. Depending on how it plays out, we could be in Kunming four years to the day we adopted Sawyer. Now that would be exciting.

Sawyer's vocalizations have been exploding over the last few months. He has gone from saying nothing, to saying close to 100 words. He has been uttering 3 to 5 word phrases on a regular basis. Even though most of them are hard to understand, we are ecstatic that he is finally talking and attempting to communicate with us. Enjoy this video.

During the kindergarten readiness testing at his daycare, he was one of the only kids who could identify all of his letters and count to thirty. We couldn't be prouder of him.

Saxton is also doing very well in his preschool class. Because of his cleft lip and palate, his speech has been delayed and unclear. But because of intense speech program he has been in, his speech has been becoming clearer and clearer by the day. That is Awesome. Both he and Sawyer have also been growing like weeds. We just bought them 4T clothes in December and the pants already look like high waters. Guess what we are doing over the Easter weekend.

Saffi continues to make bigger and bigger strides in school. She has been doing very well in Math and her English is coming along very nicely. A lot of people find it hard to believe that she just came home just over a year ago. It has truly been an amazing ride. Saffi also has been involved in Daisies. Thank goodness for her involvement in Daisies, otherwise I don't know how I would have got my Girl Scout Cookie fix this year if she wasn't. Just a couple of weeks ago, we had a Father/Daughter dance. I had a lot of fun trying to teach her the Hooky Poky and the Chicken Dance.

As for us parents, Shelby has been trying to get her yearly traveling done before we head off to China to bring Saige home.  I have been working for the phone campany again as a contract engineer.  The best thing about my job is my commute.  From the bedroom, down the stairs and to m our den.  It's awesome to be able to work from home. 

Between the snow and the rain storms, we have been trying to build a garden in our back yard.  We are pretty excited at trying to grow our own herbs, vegetables and fruits this year.  Should be exciting.

Anyway, here is what you people really come here for, pictures.  Enjoy.
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Happy Holidays......

First of all, we have got to be the absolute worst people at making, writing and sending out Christmas Cards. I would like to take this opportunity to say, sorry about that. Anyway, this one way to make sure everyone knows what has been going on over the last year in our super busy, sometimes crazy, household.

First up, what can we say about Sawyer, Saxton and Saffi beside how good these kids look in pictures? They are just as good, most of the time, in person too. It has been a very busy year for all three of them.

This past year, we have seen a tremendous amount of improvement in Sawyer's behavior growth. For instance, last year at this time, he was not saying a word. Due to the fact that he has been in intensive speech therapy four times a week, he now can say over 40 words, consistently. This is huge for us. He can now call us Mommy and Daddy and tell us what he wants, verbally. He still will use his speaking device, but only if he is not getting his point across with his words. We are loving hearing his sweet little voice on a daily basis. It is sweet music to our ears.

Saxton has also been doing really well in school. His teachers have been really impressed with his imagination and drawing skills. Almost everyday he comes home from school with a new picture of his family. Of course he will tell us who is who in the pictures because sometimes it is hard to tell the difference between the dogs and us. One of his favorite things to do is follow Saffi around. He will follow her from room to room and try to do everything she does. It can be really cute, sometimes. Health wise, he will have tubes put in his ears , for the forth time, on January 5th. Wish him luck!!
We have seen an unbelievable amount of progress with Saffi since coming home Thanksgiving of 2008. Everyone who has just met her always asks when did we bring her home. When we say, "just over a year ago," they take a step back in amazement. She is speaking fluent and correct English with very little problems. We do have to give credit to her amazing teachers she has had at her school. It was really rough in the beginning when Saffi did not want to do anything they were asking. But since February, she has been making enormous amounts of improvement. She is now helping other students in her class with math and, believe it or not, language and letters. We could not see a day without her -- she is our little Angle, who some time breaks out the pitch fork and horns just to ornery.

After going through the pictures from this past year, I have found some that I did not include on the blog. I have n o idea why..., oh wait..., that's right, I barely blogged this year. Hopefully next year will be different. Anyway, here are some of those pictures:

Sawyer's 5th Birthday picture from his daycare.

We celebrated Saffi's 8th Birthday on Christmas Eve with some friends. This was the forth time she blew out the candle since missed the first three time trying to find the camera.

At the end of the school year in June, Sawyer's and Saxton's daycare have a graduation ceremony for those children who are moving into kindergarten or first grade. At the end of the ceremony, Sawyer could not resist but to go up to the graduating bear and give him a big hug. Too Cute!!! Hey Mr./Ms. Bear, watch that hand!!!

Saxton and Saffi enjoying their first cup of hot chocolate on the train ride for Sawyer's birthday.

Finally, here are a couple pictures of someone most of you have not seen. Most of you know we are in the process of adopting our forth child. Introducing Saige Xue Lian.

Saige was born with tibial hemimelia and a missing digit on her right hand. Otherwise she is in perfect health. When she gets home, we will take her to Baltimore to see one of the leading doctors who specializes in limb differences, specifically, differences in the legs. We have already received her X-Rays and have sent them to this doctor who seems to be pretty optimistic about her treatment. This treatment could range from leg lengthening procedures to double amputation and prosthetics. But, of course, he will not know for sure until he sees her in person.

What makes this adoption even more special, she is from the same area as where Sawyer is from. She is currently in a foster village outside of Kunming, Yunnan, China. We can not wait to bring this little bundle of joy home in 2010.

We hope you all have had a wonderful Holiday Season and have a safe and Happy New Year.

Scott, Shelby, Sawyer, Saxton, Saffi and soon Saige.

Happy Belated Birthday Sawyer...

A couple of weeks ago, we celebrated Sawyer's 5th Birthday. It is very hard to believe he is already five. It seems as if it was just yesterday that we saw him for the first time in the Civil Affairs Office in Kunming. How time does fly.

For his birthday, we took Sawyer to Strasburg, PA to ride on the Strasburg Railroad and to see Santa on the train.

As usual, he loved the train ride, but did not know what to think of Santa. (Santa not pictured).

We also went to the Thomas Store and let Sawyer pick out new pieces for his Thomas set. Of curse, he had to pick out the pieces that made the most noise. We wouldn't have it any other way.

Happy Birthday Sawyer. We hope you had a lot of fun.

Too Busy to Blog...


I know you all are sick of hearing we have been too busy to blog, but we really have. Between me trying to work 40 hours plus a week, running the kids to school, speech or OT, I just can not find the time to keep up with the blog. Lately, I have found that many blogs we have followed have also fallen to the "too busy to blog" syndrome. Trust me, I understand why people stop blogging for months on end or all together. It's been getting crazier and crazier around her with Saffi joining the Daisies (Girl Scouts) and having Chinese School on Sundays. Sawyer has speech four days a week for an hour a day. Then he has OT for one day a week, soon to be two. Saxton stays home with me two days a week and has speech on both of those days. I need one of those machines Michael Keaton had in Multiplicity to duplicate myself so I can be in ten places at once. That would be great because it is about to get crazier around here.


Just over two weeks ago, we officially received word that we have our Pre-Approval for our little girl from Kunming, Saige. Now, we just need to finalize our Dossier and get it off to China. We are expecting to be able to bring Saige home in March or April. We can not wait for this very special addition to our clan. To make room for her to get around, we found a very nice, used Suburban with very low miles and at a very low cost. We are loving this vehicle.


Since our last post, Saffi got her cast off a week before school start and she is now in a brace for the next five months. Her foot is looking a lot better than when she came home. She is loving being able to run and jump again.


Shelby went over to Beijing, China on a business trip and got to do some site seeing. She saw the Great Wall, the Forbidden City and the Summer palace.
My parents were out here last week to visit with us and to see the fall colors of the East Coast. Unfortunately, the colors were not out like we hope and to further add to the disappointment, my dad ended up in the hospital for one night because he couldn't breath. So they had to stay for a couple extra days. When we weren't looking for colors or going the hospital, my dad, Shelby and I played many games of cribbage. I won my third game in five years of playing cribbage with these two. If there was a score board, it would read DAD 127; Shelby 75; Scott 3. Yea, you can say it, I stink at cribbage, but it is still a lot of fun to play.


Here are some pictures from last week.

Summer Vacation in New England

Last weekend, we went to Massachusetts to visit with family and friends. We were hoping to spend a lot of time on the beach, but Hurricane Bill had better ideas. So we walked the beach as much as possible and then watch the surf almost wash the beach out to sea. It was pretty crazy. Anyway, here are some pictures from last weekend.

Waves generated by Hurricane Bill.A nice Hurricane Bill Sunset.

Happy Birthday Saxton

Saxton Birthday was last Saturday. For his birthday, he got a guitar among other things. And being the smart kid he is, he decided to form his own rock band. Enjoy:




BTW-Saffi is doing great after her surgery. She should have her cast off within the next four to five weeks. Sawyer is making progress every day by talking more and more.

Update on number four. Last week we received x-rays of her legs and hand. Yesterday, we sent them to a doctor in Baltimore who specializes in tibial hemimelia. We should hear something soon on her diagnosis. Furthermore, we are one step away from getting our dossier ready to go to the agency. Cross your fingers, we are almost there.

Saffi Had Surgery...

Saffi had surgery today on her left foot. She is resting comfortably in the hospital and is in fairly good spirits (translation: she is sleeping a lot with the help of the pain medication). She is expected to be released tomorrow afternoon to come home and start her recovery. The poor little girl will need to stay off her feet and for eight weeks. Luckily, the doctor ordered a wheelchair to be delivered to our house.

So, since mommy is staying the night with Saffi, the boys and I are going to tear up the....house. It's a bachelors pad for the night, which means pizza and...juice boxes for our lucky boys. Yummy, Yummy!!!

So you know that Sawyer can Talk?


This is a description from his behavioral specialist:
At the present time, Sawyer is able to navigate the front page of the Dynavox-V and select the subject and verb. He is also able to go to the category icon, select the category and the item. He is very proficient at navigating these five steps. This enables him to make simple three word phrases which include a subject, verb, and object. We are working on introducing him to adding adjectives to his phrases and also to make comments using helping and action verbs. Sawyer is most proficient with “I want ____” and “I have _____” statements. We are presently working on expanding his statements to use a variety of verbs and adjectives and also with using correct syntax order.

We are very excited that Sawyer now has a way to communicate his needs and want to us without getting frustrated. He has been using the Dynavox talking system at school and at home. It is amazing to watch him navigate through the pages of information on this system. We are very proud of our little man. You go Sawyer.

So, What's the BIG News?

Well, actually we have a few things. First, Saffi will be having surgery to repair her left foot on June 24th. She is actually kind of excited to have this done, which is a big surprise to me. Unfortunately, this also means she will be in a cast all summer long. If anyone has spent a summer in the Mid-Atlantic states, you will know that that will not be very fun with the high humidity and heat. Thank God for air conditioning.

Next, Saxton will also be home all summer. We will be pulling him from daycare effective July 1st to spend time bonding with Saffi and Daddy.

Sawyer is POTTY TRAINED!!!! It has been a very long and difficult road to get Sawyer potty trained, but over the last week, he has had very few accidents while in his big boy pants. He will be in summer camp and have his program continued through the summer.

Finally, some have guessed, some have wished and some think we should be committed to a mental institution, but we are in the process for our forth and final child. She is a little girl from Kunming, Yunnan, China. For many of you who have watched this blog from the beginning, you may remember that this is the same orphanage as where Sawyer is from. Per CCAA guidelines, we can not give too many details until after we have received Pre-Approval (PA), but here is what I can tell you. She is a beautiful little girl with a bright smile and an adorable face. She looks a lot like Sawyer. She is currently in foster care and well taken care of. We are in the very early stages of the process and should be submitting our Letter of Intent (LOI) within the next couple of weeks. We will post pictures after we have received (PA).

Have a great week.

Be very,very quiet....

Something is in the works. Stay tuned!!!

It's coming up on six months....

On May 19th, Saffi will be home with us for six months. That seems crazy to me, it seems like she has been here a lot longer than that. She has adjusted very well, over all. We have not had a tantrum in well over a month.

She also has taken charge. She loves to wipe the table down before we eat, she help Sawyer and Saxton get into their car seats before we go anywhere and she loves to help daddy fold laundry. Last Thursday , was her first day of Art class after school. I was a little apprehensive about this at first, not knowing how she would adjust to the change in her schedule, but she loved every minute of it. Her English is also doing remarkably well. She has started to tell jokes and make fun of Mommy and Daddy. We are truly blessed and lucky to have such a special girl in our lives.

On a more somber note, Saffi will be having surgery on June 24th to correct her foot. We are excited for this surgery, but also very depressed. While she will be getting her foot straightened, she will have to be in a cast for up to twelve weeks during the long and humid Mid-Atlantic summer. This also means that we will not be getting our pool membership this year because it would not be fair for her. It would be like torture to watch the boys go frolic and play in the nice cold water of the pool, while she just sits out in the sun, getting tan and people watching...wait a minute, isn't that what girls do anyways? Needless to say, I think we will get one of those small inflatable swimming pools and let her sit in that to cool off during the summer. Anyways, I sure we will find a way to keep her entertained while she is on crutches and in her cast, which will be up to her thigh, for the summer. At least she will not have to worry about it when she goes back to school.

As for the rest of the family, Sawyer is still amazing us every day. This past week, out of the blue, he started forming three word sentences. Some of the words are clear as day, while some of the other ones we are still working on.

Saxton is also saying more and more every day. I was talking to him yesterday and he was telling me a story that he just made up. While his speech is still not completely clear as day, he has been forming complete, multi-word sentences like he was an old pro at it.

Lately, we have been taking some hike through this little area of woods near our house. Sometimes the hike is only an hour. The day I took the following pictures, We made a wrong turn (Daddy not reading the map) and it took almost three hours. We were very surprised that the kids hardly even complained. They loved the ponds, the trees and the birds they saw. It was a great family experience. Enjoy the pictures and the little story.

One day, our hardy explorers wanted to go for a hike:
The family drove to the woods near by and said, "this would be a great place for a hike." But the kids were unsure of what they were getting into.
A one hour hike, turned into a two hour hike, then a three hour hike all because Daddy forgot how to read a map. Saffi was scared and leaned to Sawyer for support:
The kids got scared and started to run back in the direction of the car as fast as they could.But, Saxton said, "I am not scared, I will go forward and find our way out of this place."Then realizing that they didn't know where the cars was, Sawyer climbed to the tallest tree to see over the forest to find our way home.
Saxton was happy that Sawyer found a way out of the forest and gave us a big smile.
Saffi was also delighted because she saw they way out with her binoculars. Then she joked with her brother that this is way women always ask for directions.At the end of the day, our little heroes gave us one of the best presents ever, a nice group picture of the three of them in their new wonderland.

SAWYER CAN READ!!!!


That's right, even though our son is non-verbal autistic, he can read!! Last Friday, during his speech class, the teacher accidentally dropped a flashcard on the floor. The flashcard landed on the floor with the word side up. Sawyer looked down at the card, which said ARM, and pointed to his arm while making a vocal approximation of the word arm. This is very exciting news to know that our 4 year old can sight read some words.

Saxton is doing really good after his tonsillectomy. I think the pain killers were a hit with him since he hardly ever complained about his throat hurting. He was out of school for almost two weeks and finally went back yesterday. All of his friends and teachers were very happy to see him return to class and he loved being there too.

We have been hearing nothing but good things from Saffi's school. Last week, a teacher said that she was helping other students in the class with their math homework and she was raising her hand to answer questions. Her English language is improving remarkably well, too. She has been speaking more and more clearer as the days go by. It is amazing to watch her speech develop at such a fast pace. You go girl!! It's been two months since her last breakdown at school, let cross our fingers that that was the last one.


Saffi has also been doing a lot of wonderful things while at home. When she gets home from school, she immediately does her homework and helps get the table ready for dinner. Both her and Saxton try to fight over who gets to wipe down the table. So I usually end up being the moderator and asking one to wipe the table and one to wipe the chairs. That makes them both very happy to see their accomplishment and I can not lie, me too.
Have a great week.

Saxton's Surgery

Saxton and mom are on their way down to the Children's Hospital in Philadelphia to have Saxton's tonsils removed. To give you an idea, his tonsils are the size of a shooter's marble. They are huge!! We will keep you informed on his progress.

As for the rest of the family, everyone is doing great. Saffi is settling in very nicely. We where having one to two meltdowns a day fro a while there, but over the last two months, we have had only three. It is really nice to see her smiling everyday when she wakes up and comes down the stairs, now. She is a very beautiful little girl. Also, over the last month, she has had two fillings, one tooth removal and one cap. But, she is not done. We go next week for her last two fillings, then we are all done (hopefully) for the next six months.

Sawyer is continuing to progress with program at school. He is now making approximations of several words and letters. He is also writing the letters F, S and O. This is a tremendous progress from even six months ago when he wasn't saying anything.

Well, we have been really busy (our common excuse), but I have been taking pictures. I need to find out why those videos of Saxton and Saffi are not working. It's annoying. Any suggestions?

Congratulations to our friends Chip and Holly who have been waiting three very long years to meet their daughter. Today, they got to hold her for the first time. Here's to you Chip and Holly!! (I am holding my coffee mug up because it's too early to drink a beer).

Pictures of Saffi, Sawyer and Saxton:

A Cute Saxton Moment....

Enjoy:

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Saffi Sings....

The other night, out of the blue, Saffi began to sing a nursery song. Here is is for your enjoyment (you might want to turn up the valume, she is very quiet):

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Kids Update...

Over the past few weeks, we have seen a dramatic improvement in Saffi's behavior. She really doesn't have temper tantrums anymore and she has been doing GREAT in school. For instance, in science class today, they made paper airplane to show the children how airplanes fly. Well, almost all the kids in Saffi's class did not know how to make a paper airplane and she had hers done first (we have made many paper airplanes at home). According to her teacher, she had about twenty kids lined up at her desk so she could show them how to make their paper airplanes. Her teacher also told me that she is number one in her math skills. We are very proud of her and her accomplishments over the last month. Keep up the good work Saffi.

Sawyer has also made some tremendous improvements. He is now making voice approximations for almost ten different words and learning new ones everyday. It is so cool to hear him say as clear as day, "on, up, no, in, and move." These are usually used when daddy is sitting in his seat. The Meany I am, I make him say most of these to get me out of his way. He has to practice some how.

Saxton is talking more than ever. He has also started talking back to daddy and repeating everything daddy says. Sometimes, he even tells daddy what to do. Which I remind him that he has to say "please" in order for me to do what he asks. His new favorite answer to yes or no questions is maybe. Hopefully that will end soon. He is the character of the family. If you need a picture of a class clown, Saxton is it. In his daycare class, he is the first one to volunteer to do anything new and the official greeter for the new kids, especially the girls. He loves his girls. I don't know what I am going to do with him later.

Anyway, here is a couple of pictures. I need post some more later, but the kids are getting ready for bed.

Saturday Night Fun...

We have no idea what got into the kids tonight, but it was way too funny. Sawyer was playing with one of the bouncy balls, when Saxton tried to take it away from him, which lead to this...(You might want to turn down your speakers a little, their screams are ear piercing)...

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

This went on for about 10 minutes and it was the high light of the day and too funny. It ended when Saffi got the ball away from Saxton and gave it to back to Sawyer. What a great older sister.

DISCLAIMER: No children or rubber bouncy balls were hurt in the making of this video. We do, however, strongly suggest that you try this at home with your children, it can be really fun...or dangerous. But, one will never know until it happens.