Hannah's day at the park!

Well, as I said in the post of Caleb's pictures in the park, Hannah wanted me to take a few of her! She looks so grown up-makes this mommy very sad to see my baby growing up! Where did my little baby go?
Hope everyone is doing well-we are great, and may have some interesting news on the horizon, just not ready to share, yet!!
Enjoy the pics!
Sabra

Guess who's wearing glasses?

Hannah! She went yesterday to have her eyes checked, and low and behold, she now has glasses. She is farsighted, so she is only required to use them for computer work, homework and reading. Here is a couple of pictures of Miss Hannah with her new glasses, and of her Halloween outfit. Can you guess what she is dressed as?! A Deal or No Deal model!
Love,
Sabra, Bus, Hannah & Caleb

The leaves are peaking, and I had to get a couple of more pics of Caleb in the leaves!

To be fair, I will be taking some pictures of Miss Hannah this weekend! Interestingly enough, we thought she might actually have been happy to have missed out on this "photo session" I had with Caleb, but I think she was a tad jealous! I will squeeze her in this weekend, so if you are looking at this blog before the 28th, check back, and I will share some leafy photos of Miss H!

Caleb has definately mastered walking-when he falls on his bottom, he bounces right back up like he has a spring attatched! He is getting into everything, now that he sees that he can reach on top of things! Still, he is adorable doing his little Frankenstien walk!

Hannah's school is having a dance tomorrow, during school. It is actually a rallying to "Say no to drugs" dance. She is very excited, and has already picked out her outfit! She keeps saying that she is going with her "boyfriend". Of course, we know that she is just going to be there the same time her "boyfriend" is going to be there. Hmmmm.....boyfriend? Anyway-she is looking forward to the dance. I wonder if they will actually dance? I will try to get a picture of her tomorrow!

Maya-We still haven't gotten into PGN, yet. We are hoping to be in this month, cause once we are in, it will be 3 months, and with all of the holidays, it may be longer?! Just keep her in your prayers-we were hoping to go see her, but not sure when and if this will work out for us?! We do receive pictures about once a month-which makes it a little easier.

Hope everybody is doing well!

Love, Bus, Sabra, Hannah, Caleb & Maya

Guess Who's definately starting to walk?!

Caleb! He looks so cute holding his little arms straight out in front of him, charging across the floor! I think his record is about 10 steps! They are fast little steps, but steps none the less! He walks with a big smile on his face, and loves when we clap and cheer for him! He's such a ham! As exciting as this is, I know we are in for a treat-as he is a very fast crawler, and now I am sure he will be a very fast walker! YIKES! I am sure we will be chasing him all over the house now! Ha ha! Just thought you would be happy to hear he was walking!
Love,
Sabra, Bus, Hannah & Caleb

Fun at the Punkin Patch!

Saturday was a wonderful Fall day here in Kentucky! We decided to try out one of the local pumkin patches. We had a wonderful time walking through a field of pumkins, and picking the biggest ones we could find! There were goats to pet, and a hay maze, and face painting- just not as high key as some patches we have been to, but just right for our little family! We ran into some friends from church and enjoyed hanging out with them and took a few pics together! We enjoyed our day out as a family! Here are a few of our pictures from the day!
Love,
Sabra, Bus, Hannah, & Caleb

While away in Chicago, we received Preapproval and new pics

We went to Chicago this past weekend to visit with Bus' Great Aunt and Uncle! We had a wonderful time visiting with them and their family!! It was nice to be see them and enjoy their new beautiful home!






While there, we went into the city, and enjoyed going to the Shedd Aquarium, the Field Museum, the Sears Tower, and the American Girl Store! It was such a busy day as we left for the city around 8:30 am, and didn't return till 10:00pm! It was a long day, but a wonderful day! If you've never been to Chicago, it is a must to go there! We really enjoyed our time there, and hope to go again some day! Definately when the kids are a little bit older! Ha ha!

Also, when we were away, we got news that we had received preapproval! Yipee! This is an important part of our adoption for Maya! It means we now wait to hear we are in PGN!! Once in PGN, we are in the final stretch of our adoption! It is the longest part of our adoption process, and the most important part! It will take about three months after we get into PGN, if all goes well! We are hoping for sooner, but realistically, it will probably be about 3 months! We also received new pics of Maya! Here are a couple! We are anxiously awaiting to hear good news, and can't wait to have her as a part of our family! Please keep us in your prayers as we wait for news!

Love, Sabra, Bus, Hannah, Caleb & Maya

Happy October!

Well, it's already October! Oh, my, goodness! Can you believe it is almost Christmas, and 2007 is just around the corner! Whew! What a year this has been! It's hard to believe that Caleb has been home now for 7 months! He continues to grow, and is getting ready to walk. I wanted to drop in, and post a couple of pictures-Here he is in his little chicken outfit for Halloween! Ha ha! It cracks me up to see him in this! I wish I had had the video camera! He was bouncing up and down on his bottom, flapping his arms-definately looked like a chicken! Hope it brightens your day!
Love, Sabra, Bus, Hannah and Caleb

We received new pics of Maya Mishelle!

Early yesterday morning, Bus was up with Caleb, who is an early bird-by
the way, and was checking the email, when we got a mail from our adoption agency director with some new pics! We are going to follow up with her, by phone, when she gets back from Guatemala to get an update on our case. Once she is back, we will get a video of Maya! We are very excited, and can't wait to see her on our t.v. again.(2nd video!)

In the pictures, she is holding a ziplock bag that we sent down, filled with little goodies for her! I decorated the photo album with pictures of us, as well as labeled it in Spanish!(The best that I could!) Enjoy the pics!
Love, Sabra, Bus, Hannah, Caleb & Maya!

Caleb's birthday bash!

We had Caleb's birthday party this past Saturday! Not everyone was able to make it, but we had a good time anyway! Caleb did very well for his first birthday party! No big tear were shed, only a few minor ones! Ha ha! Hannah was a big help, as she helped Caleb unwrap his gifts! She loved this, and of course, Caleb loved getting the toys after she unwrapped them! Here are a few pictures, and hopefully some video, of the party! I still can't believe our baby is one!
Sabra, Bus, Hannah & Caleb

Here is a video of Caleb's first birthday

6 months home, yesterday, & 1 year old today!

It is hard to believe that 2 years after we started our adoption process, and one horrible trip to Russia with a horrible agency, we would be so blessed with a handsome Guatemalan prince! We always knew we wanted to adopt, but had no idea what God had in store for us, or the path that would lead us to Caleb! We started our adoption process in August of 2004, and planned to go to Russia to adopt two. Well, a year later we were on our way, and once in Russia, it completely fell apart! We stayed for two weeks in Russia looking for what was to be our children, and returned home empty and broken hearted. We returned from Russia on August 23, 2005, and collapsed into our bed. When we awoke on August 24, 2005, we knew we would never return to Russia, but also knew that we still wanted to adopt. We decided that day that we would go to Guatemala. Little did we know that our precious little prince was to be born this very day, August 24, 2005, in Jutiapa, Guatemala! Praise God! Now, today on August 23, 2006, it has been six months since he entered our lives forever, and tomorrow my big guy will be one! I know that he was meant to be our son, and am so blessed by his presence in my life! I know sometimes it doesn’t seem fair that we have to wait, while in this crazy adoption process, but WOW-it is so worth it in the end! I can’t imagine what our lives would be like without Caleb, and am thankful to God that he knew all along who was truly meant to be our son!

Sabra, Bus, Hannah and Caleb!

Well, it has been awhile since we popped in to let you know how things are going. We are good, and Hannah and Caleb are growing like weeds! Hannah went for a checkup at the doctor, and she has grown about 4 inches since her last checkup! She is getting more and more beautiful everyday! School will start for her in about a week and a half, and she is looking forward to going into third grade! Oh, my goodness, where does the time go? Best of all, last weekend, she was baptised! We are so very proud of her!
The picture is of our two pastors, and Hannah right after she rose from her baptism!







Caleb will be turning one on the 24th of this month, and he is getting closer and closer to walking, and he babbles all the time! My, you wouldn't believe what a big smile that little guy has!!(still no teeth) He loves, and I mean LOVES his big sister Hannah, and follows her around like a little puppy! He is really beginning to enjoy his new abilities of mobility, and I can barely keep up with him! By the time I get him back into the living room, he is on my heals to the kitchen! Ha Ha! Oh, how will we keep up with him when he walks?! YIKES?!







We received updated photos of Maya in an email, yesterday. I thought I would post a few. We are just about finished with our paperwork, and plan to send it to Washington D.C., tomorrow. Many people have asked me how long do we think it will take this time. Well, if everything goes well, we think it should be about 6-8 months. We still need your prayers, as international/any adoption can take odd turns. We are just hoping that it will be as smooth as Caleb's adoption, and Maya can come home soon! We will keep you updated! Love,Bus,Sabra,Hannah,Caleb, & Maya

The secret is OUT!!

***You may have to read this post twice, as many will not believe what they read.***

A few days ago, Bus was away on business, and I came across the most beautiful little girl on our adoption agency website! Inside, I knew there was no way we could afford to go through another adoption right now, but I called Bus to tell him about the sweet little face that I had seen. He asked me to email the pictures, and by then, I had already requested more pictures of her from our agency. Bus called me back and said "When do we leave for Guatemala?"

So, yes, we are embarking, completely on faith, another adoption, of a beautiful 22 month old girl from Guatemala. Although we have no idea where the funds are going to come from, we knew in our hearts that this was our little girl. We are praying that all goes well, and that we bring our little girl home to join her big sister, Hannah, and little brother, Caleb in the next 6-8 months! Please keep us in your prayers as we embark on this incredible journey of building our family through adoption. I will keep you udated to our progress, and of course there will be pictures!

Love, Bus, Sabra, Hannah, Caleb
and introducing.... Maya Mishelle Maslin

Caleb is crawling!

O.k., so he has been crawling for a couple of weeks. He started out with what we call the crab crawl-one knee on the ground, on foot on the ground! Ha ha! We thought he would crawl that way until he walked, but now, he uses two knees. I did get it on video, and in pictures(which I will share with you).








He is babbling continuously, and keeps us hopping after him! Just a couple of days ago, in just a few short hours, I retrieved a button, penny, light brite peg, candy wrapper and dead bug from his mouth! ARGHHHH!!!! I completely forgot how much they put in their mouths!! After the bug, I broke out the sweeper and cleaned the sofa out, under the sofa, all around the edges of the rooms! I just couldn't bear my little guy eating another bug!!(Oh, the joy of boys!)






Now, he is starting to clap his hands together, and wave! So funny! The discovery of his hands has been great joy! He is learning to pinch food in his fingers and bring it to his mouth, which is no easy task! I gave him some cherio like toddler puffs, and am quite amuzed at watching him chase them around the high chair tray-having to use his two pointer fingers to get the food to his mouth! It's fun to watch, unless he is eating carrots or green beans, which he loves to smash with sippy cup! YUCK! As you can see from the picture above, no teeth-YET! Maybe soon! He does have a new little slit in the bottom, where I think he will be developing his "new tooth". We shall see!

Hope everyone is doing great! We love you all!
Bus, Sabra, Hannah, and Caleb

Home from vacation!

We have been home for almost a week from vacation! Wow, does time fly! We had a wonderful time, but are all very happy to be home! I just wish we lived closer to the beach!! Oh, well!

When we got home, we finally received Caleb's Certificate of Citizenship (COC). This is a beautiful certificate that states that Caleb is now a United States Citizen! It was beautiful to receive this, as we were impatiently awaiting its arrival. Now, he really does live in the United States of America! :o)

He is getting closer and closer to becoming mobile! He is getting on his hands and knees, but just a little too nervous to take off crawling! I am not in a huge hurry for this, because I know that all will change when I have to chase a little one around! hee hee Although, it sure is adorable watching him learn!

While in Florida, he found a new love for the water! I would have loved to know what he was thinking!(Gee, what a big bath tub!) He thought the ocean was cool, and as long as we held him tight, he loved to be in it! I am guessing the pool was probably his favorite, as it didn't move around with lots of waves and yucky seaweed!











Here are a few more pictures to enjoy from our trip! Hope everybody is doing wonderful!
Love,
Sabra,Bus, Hannah, and Caleb!

Oh, just a little picture of the most beautiful sunset we saw while there! It was unbelievable!! Isn't God the most incredible artist?!!!