For the Least of These

My heart was overwhelmed this morning when I opened my email and found a message from Ann in China.  Thanks to several of you, Mycah's friends received their special package this week.  

I cannot say "thank you" enough for being a part! 

We were able to send a package that included 10 warm sweaters, 10 pairs of shoes, 24 pairs of socks, 10 sets of PJs, lots of fruit and a nice cake!  

I am guessing that this celebration took place yesterday…on Christmas Day!  That day may not hold any significance to these sweet little faces, but it does for us!  And it blessed my heart to see these! 

As happy as I am to see these pictures, it also saddens me that these sweet ones…and so many more…still wait.

I was finally able to get some identifying information about the "Sweet 6", so I am hoping to confirm soon exactly what their status is regarding their adoption files.  This is a HUGE answer to prayer since I have been trying since March to get this information.  I would love to find out that they all have families coming for them!

Thank you, again, to those who gave this month.  What a bright spot you created for these precious ones this week!

"And the King will say, 'I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!'"

Matthew 25:40

Christmas is Coming!

And then comes December!  Wow.  I am not sure if it is life with 4 kids, or that I am getting older, but I can hardly keep up with days, weeks and months anymore!  We have had a blast celebrating this week.  Our Thanksgiving was simple and quiet…mostly.  If football is on, it's never truly quiet!  But oh what a year we have to be thankful for!  God, as always, has been truly faithful.  I am so blessed by the 5 people surrounding my table this year!  

Even though I thought my day of cooking would never end, it finally did!  We ended our day with some family football and a little Duck Dynasty…both of which resulted in much laughter!

Friday we began to unpack our Christmas decorations and see what survived the last 2 moves.  It is the first time the kids have been big enough to actually assemble the tree.  We even have quite a few ornaments that reached the upper branches this year!  Mycah had a blast.  Every box I opened he just asked, "Can my touch it?"

How you do that?

Reach me high!

Why Mycah is not the family photographer!

We ended with a family movie night watching Polar Express.  Nathyn made everyone tickets and "reserved" signs for each seat and sleeping bag.  Each one read "Reserved for the best (brother, sister, mom, dad)!"  He even popped popcorn and gathered everyone's pajamas.  Except mine since he was afraid he would see his Christmas presents in my closet!  A fun time was had by all!

Waiting for the movie!

umm…haven't even pushed play yet?  Teenagers!

It has been such a joy to watch my family enter this Christmas season.  Sharing the Christmas story with Mycah from the Beginner's Bible and putting out the Little People nativity was extra special!  It has been almost a picture perfect weekend.

And then during church this morning, I again thought of them.  

Oh, how I wish they were spending Christmas with a family…their own families!  

I have tried to get ahold of the necessary information to advocate for these children, but I still have not received a response from the orphanage.  

Please pray that I get a response soon!  Precious months are slipping by!

But even though they are still a continent or two away, we can still share Christmas with them!  Would you like to be a part?  Our kids will each be donating part of their Christmas money to buy gifts for the orphanage children.  Although that alone will not be enough to provide something for every child, perhaps with your help we can provide more!  We will be using a contact we have in China to purchase the items and deliver them for us.  She helped deliver care packages to Mycah while he was waiting for us and we were always pleased with her selections and service!  We will be including several pairs of shoes since that is one thing I noticed when we were there…several girls had toes hanging over the ends of their sandals.  There are other things that we could provide such as socks, sweatshirts, hats, treats for the nannies and small toys.  These things are important since there is no heat in the orphanage.  Even though they are in the southern part of China, I am sure it still gets pretty cold and drafty in the older buildings.  

I will be putting the PayPal link back on the side of my blog.  Whatever comes in between now and December 15th will be used to purchase gifts for these children.  There were 6 little girls in Mycah's class, but there are between 60-80 children in the whole orphanage.  I would love to bless their socks off (or bless them on?!) and let them know that they are loved and thought about this year.  And I pray that one Christmas in the near future, they are with a family who can share with them the best Gift of all!!

Why Love Orphans?

"We love, because He first loved us."

1 John 4:19

Today has been set aside as Orphan Sunday.  What a tremendous opportunity and responsibility as a church body!  

I would love to hear how your church acknowledged this special day…a happy day for so many sweet sons and daughters that are no longer orphans…and yet a sad day to realize the millions of children who still wait to be chosen as someone's forever child, languishing away in orphanages, living in substandard housing below the poverty line, or even worse, living on the streets finding shelter and sustenance any way they can.  

I have many FaceBook friends and readers who are church attenders, pastors, ministers, and Bible study leaders.  What advice do you have for someone who wants to do something, and yet doesn't know where to start?  


If you want to help but do not know where to begin, check out my last post, or feel free to send me an email.  Also, there are several links on the sidebar that may show you where you can make a difference!  

"Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you."

James 1:27

Thankful - National Adoption Month

Thankful…the first thing on my mind this morning as the new month began.  

Oh, how I welcome this time of year!  The time of year where many of us slow down and look around at the many blessings God has given over the last year.  And always near the top of my "Thankful" list, for many years now, you would find him….

And her…

And him…

And I stand in awe that this year I can add him.

Last year I could not imagine what life would be like with 4 children.  And this year, I do not WANT to imagine what life would be like with ONLY 3 children!  

How appropriate that November, the month of thankfulness, is also designated as National Adoption Month!  Many organizations have pulled together to spread the word about the many children waiting for families!  I have heard so many people say things like, "I always thought about adopting, but…(finances, insurance, job, age, spouse, lack of a spouse, other children)"  But I have great news!  You do not have to adopt to make a difference!  There are SO many ways to fulfill God's command to take care of the fatherless!  

Can you…

Cook a meal for an adoptive or foster family?

Offer babysitting to an adoptive or foster family?

Advocate for waiting children?

Volunteer with a local foster care/adoption organization?

Donate to an adoption fund for someone that is adopting?

Support many of the nonprofit organizations here and abroad that care for these kids daily?

You can check out some of these links:

iCareAboutOrphans.org

www.chinalittleflower.org

halfthesky.org

reecesrainbow.org

www.feet2ourfaith.blogspot.com
give1save1world.blogspot.com

Or maybe you are considering foster care or adoption, but are overwhelmed at the process or don't know where to start!  Here are some great resources for you!

www.wacap.org

lifelinechild.org

defendfoundation.org

twentyless.com

There are SO many opportunities out there to help!  Get your family involved!  Get your Bible study group involved!  Get your office involved!  Just get involved!  Make a difference in the life of a child this year.  

Maybe next Thanksgiving, you'll realize you are the one that can add something (or maybe even someONE) to your "Thankful" list!

October...Already??

As we enter October, I sure would like to know what happened to August and September!  Since you probably do not want to read 2 months worth of Saylor happenings, I will use lots of pictures!

Mycah turned 5 on August 9th!  We took his first trip to the movie theater to see Planes.  He was amazed!

A little last minute summer fun with the little boys...

A couple weeks later we celebrated Zachary's 14th birthday!  I am still not sure how that is possible?  He wanted to go to Mandalay Bay and see the Shark Reef.  It is actually an extension of the Monterey Bay aquarium in California, so it is very well done!

Then there was the first day of school!  It took a couple of weeks, but all 4 of them are finally at the same campus now.  I love K-12 schools.  They are great when you have a 9th (seriously?), 6th, 3rd, and Kindergartner.

I may or may not have been a little teary-eyed at this moment.  High School AND the first time I have ever dropped off my kids at a school and driven away!

This was actually BEFORE we even got to school!

Always ready to pose!

The kids even had a visit from Nina (thank you, Mom!) while I spent a few days in Philly.  My friend's little boy had a successful open heart surgery...2 actually...and I am so glad I got to be there!  What a little miracle he is!

And I got to do a little sight-seeing while I was there, too.

Alyssa's first meet since California.

Last week we had a visit from Opa and Oma, so we went to see the Hoover Dam and then took them to Red Rock Canyon.

And the most exciting thing....we celebrated 6 months as a family of 6!  I cannot begin to tell you how amazing it has been to watch this transformation.  From a blank stare to sparkling eyes.  From shaking his head "yes" or "no" as his main form of communication to a motor-mouth little boy!  From single word baby talk to impressively long sentences!  From orphan to treasured son, brother, grandchild, and nephew.  God is so good!  I am still humbled and amazed that He has allowed me this front row seat to witness his amazing grace through this whole process.

Mycah is now in half-day kindergarten.  He was not what I would have considered "kindergarten ready" academically, but he absolutely LOVES to go to school.  According to him, he has "alotta" friends!  He loves to watch Go, Diego, Go!  He has mastered the DirectTV remote and DVR.  He is getting quite adept at catching football passes from his brothers.  He loves soccer, and is pretty good at it!  But his favorite thing to do these days...gymnastics!  Anything he can climb on, swing on, crawl under, flip over, jump on, roll around on....he is ALL about it!!

God has used many of you to bless us with prayers, gifts, and financial support over the last 18 months.  We could not have done this without you!  You are forever woven into the story of Mycah's life.  Thank you!  

Although not every day is easy, and is often tiring, it has been a joy to watch him learn and grow in so many ways.


"'For I know the plans I have for you,' says the Lord.  'They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope.'"

Jeremiah 29:11