Born to Be Wild

Above is a video of Sam riding his Kawasaki. He loves riding it and we frequently take evening walks while Sam becomes a master with his driving skills!! Sam is loving football and can proudly yell "Roll Tide Roll"! Last weekend his Nai Nai and Pop Pop came to visit. Sam really loves them and the feeling is mutual. I am attaching a picture of them having a picnic. The other picture is of Sam and his Uncle Tony (the police officer). Tony is a dear freind of mine that I work with closely at CrimeStoppers. Sam enjoyed going to the police station and seeing the police cars and officers.

Evening Swim

Friday evening we cooked out and it was a nice time for Sam to finish a busy week with a swim in his pool. He loves to play in the water and slide. We have been giving Sam some cough medicine this week and he really enjoys taking his medicine. Tonight after we gave him his dose, he got the medicine dropper and went around giving all of his stuffed animals (and his Mama and Daddy) pretend medicine. We definitely think it is a sign that he wants to be a doctor!!!

We Used The Potty!!!

September 1st, 2008 was a big day at our house. While most people celebrated Labor Day, we celebrated the fact that Sam used the potty for the very first time. We danced and sang through the house and celebrated by keeping a promise of letting him eat a few M&M's. I don't think he fully understands yet the whole potty concept, but this is the first time and we are so proud of him... and I know he will evenutally get the hang of it. Another first for Sam.. he watched his first Alabama Crimson Tide Football Game. He quickly learned to yell "Roll Tide" and "Go Bama"... and as you know Alabama won! He looked so cute in his Alabama shirt and hat (just like his Daddy)!! Sunday we went over to Sherry's and Pat's and cooked out and did a little swimming. Below is some video of Sam swimming from his Aunt Sherry to his Daddy.

Sam and Noah

The Smith Family (Becky, Jeff, and Noah) came to visit us Saturday. Becky and Jeff were in our original travel group with our adoption agency. The Lord had other plans and blessed us with our boys (Sam in November and Noah in March). This weekend was the first time for all of us to meet since adding our new additions. Noah and Sam had a good time playing with each other. We ate pizza and watched the boys play. It was so good to finally meet Noah after following his blog. We are going to try and get together again soon for another play date. Aren't they cute!!!!

Weekend Fun with Friends

Before I get to our weekend.. I wanted to talk about the first picture. So many people ask how Sam and Barney get along. It was a long road, but they have finally reached a mutual respect and tolerance for each other. Barney is 19 years old and deaf. He was our only child for 18 years. He was not happy with the addition of Sam. Sam wanted to hold Barney and as you can imagine... that did not go over well. Anyway, after 8 months of living together we finally got that illusive photo of them together!! It is a rare event so enjoy!!
We had a great weekend visiting and spending time with friends. Saturday evening we went out and ate Chinese with our dear friends Jo, Ted, Shannon, Wayne, and Alison. After dinner everyone came to our home for dessert and coffee. Some other dear friends, Debra and Mike, joined us and watched our Gotcha Day video which was followed by us cheering on Michael Phelps as he won his first gold medal of these Olympic games. Sam and Alison (who is 14 months) have so much fun playing together. Sam LOVES Alison and he wants to do whatever she is doing. For example.. she crawls.. he crawls. If she squeals... he squeals. If she walks and runs... he walks and runs. He really is a ladies man!!
Sunday after church our dear friends, The McNairs, came to visit us on their way to Gulf Shores. Greg and Nick have been very good friends since we all worked together at WAKA TV (about 22 years ago). Greg is a freelance videographer (he used to work for HGTV). Greg, his wife Sandy, and their children now live in Maryland and we haven't seen them in a long time. Sam instantly took to Duncan (10) and Molly (6).... especially Molly. When they left Sam was crying "Mawy"... he wanted to go with them so bad! We hope to see them again next spring or summer.

08/08/08 The Olympics Begin in China and Cowboy Sam

Did any of you watch the opening ceremonies of the Olympics in Beijing? They were spectacular! We videotaped Sam watching them. He would clap and say YEAH after each performance. We honor Sam's heritage and we want him to always be proud of where he was born. China is changing and the world is noticing. We will take Sam back one day so he can see first hand where he came from and witness all the history and culture that China has to offer.
Sam is doing great. He is speaking more each day... and his personality is really starting to shine. He has a very easy going temperment and he loves to laugh. He makes friends easy and adapts quickly to changes. He obeys most of the time... but then again he is two and he can test our patience on some days. He loves books, puzzles, cars, airplanes, and helicopters. He also loves play dough. The other day he was pretending a broom handle was a horse so we got him a play cowboy hat. Above is a picture of him with the hat. Doesn't he make a cute cowboy??

Ready for Church!

Sam looked so cute this morning that we had to take his picture before leaving for church. He has on his name badge and backpack... and you say "Sam, are you ready for church?" and he quickly says "ready, mon Daddy, mon Mama"(for c'mon).He started talking more in two and three word sentences this week. He had done this randomly for the last few months, but boy this past week he really starting talking in sentences. It is so exciting watching him learn and grow. He also can apoligize if he does something wrong.. he learned quickly that he can get out of trouble if he says "I'm sorry".. and then hugs your neck. He is such a stinker... it takes all we have not to laugh or smile when he looks up with those big brown eyes and says "I sorry"!! The other pictures are from Sam playing Saturday. Notice his shirt says "Prince Charming" (thanks Ashley and Aimee!).