It's Been A While

Actually, it's been a LONG while.  We've been a little busy and updating the blog just hasn't been a priority.  I've felt a little guilty because I gave Jeff and Savannah just a hard time about not posting while they were in China, but I didn't do any better.  So here is a short (somewhat) summary of what has been happening with our family in the last few months.


Harper came home as a quiet, way too quiet, little girl. She barely moved around and was considerably behind developmentally.  In just five months time she has made a complete turn around!  Right now she is walking around begging Savannah for more M&M's that she knows Savannah has hidden in her purse.  She is no long anywhere near quiet and makes sure everyone knows when she's around.  She is a charmer and can make ANYONE smile.  We were making trips back and forth to Birmingham for several weeks while she was wearing a cranial helmet to try and reshape her head a bit.  We weren't seeing any results, so we have stopped that.  It really makes no difference, as she is absolutely beautiful. She is saying lots of words and knows exactly what she wants.

Max is doing great, also.  He was back in casts for several weeks, so while Harper and I were making our trips to Birmingham, Jeff and Max were making weekly trips to Philadelphia.  He will still need surgery later on to move his heels over and further adjust some tendons, but for right now he is running, climbing, and playing like a five year old little guy should.  It's unreal to me that we just finished signing him up for kindergarten next year.  I think he will love school, he's such a smarty already.  He asks questions about everything and loves to learn.  He has a kiss for me every afternoon when I pick him up.  He's still our comedian.

Ella is growing up very quickly.  Like most all girls her age, she loves Justin Bieber and even talked Jeffrey into taking her to see his movie.  She says that when she has kids, she is going to dress them lots cuter than I dress her.  I just can't seem to provide her with as much glitter and sparkle as she would like. :)  She still loves to draw and we all enjoy seeing what she comes up with.  She has had a really good year in school, but is ready for summer vacation.

Sam has been the busiest of the kids over the last few months.  He's played basketball and soccer for school, and has been active in Beta Club, Knowledge Bowl, and our youth group at Church. He starts high school next year.  He was my baby for a long time and it just doesn't seem possible that it's already time for him to be moving on to the next stage in his life.

Savannah is graduating and is soooo ready to be finished with high school and moving on to college.  She plans to be an ultrasound tech, so she only has about 3 years of school left.  Savannah shared some news with Jeff and I in January that we weren't really prepared for.  She is going to be a mom...her little one is due at the first of September. We had some (actually a lot) of praying and adjusting to do, but are excited over our first grandchild.  We love our Savannah so much and know that she will be a wonderful mom.

Jeffrey is doing great too.  He is almost halfway through with his school and apprenticeship.  He is not dating anyone seriously right now, but definitely has a new love. :)  She is a beautiful, little, white boxer puppy.  I don't think she will be too little for very long,  She travels everywhere possible with Jeffrey.  We went to watch him play co-ed softball a few nights ago, and noticed that everyone was taking turns holding the puppy in the dugout.  I don't have a picture of them together yet, but will post one when I get it.

I love our family and wouldn't change a thing about it...the wonderful moments, good, bad, and everything in between.  God blessed us with three of our children HERE,  three we had to travel THERE to find, but thankfully we are all now HOME!  My purpose for this blog is to keep a record of our family to be able to look back at in the years to come.  I hope that it also will be enjoyable to others who happen to come our way.