My favorite new photo!

This little one is my heartbeat.

Happy Thanksgiving

This THANKSGIVING I am extra thankful for God's provision for my friend, Julie. Good Health tops my thankful list every year, but this year I have a new level of gratitude. God is Good!

TURKEY TROT

The girls and I ran in the 5k Turkey Trot this morning. Taking Kailey along made it extra fun. We REALLY miss her when she is away at college.

So Amazing

Another Julie Update:

Praise GOD for HE is good. They just removed the ventilator tube, Julie is using those new lungs on her own at room air. She is in a bit of pain but is sitting up at the side of the bed and is talking a little. Tonight will be a busy night for Julie they want her moving and working those new lungs of hers. Thank you LORD for you are an AWESOME GOD

***Update***

News from Julie's husband-

Praise God Julie is out. Doc says everything went well and Julie should be in ICU in an hour. Next few hours are important, continue to pray for complete healing and no complications. I am very tired and I appreciate everyone's concern and prayers for our family. We are blessed to have such a force of strength behind us and know we will need it still in the days and weeks ahead. It's been a long amazing day and I am thankful God is in control.

Analiese and Bella, Julie's wonderful girls, are staying with us right now. Their sweet spirits are such a blessing to me. Analiese mentioned a few minutes ago that she can't wait to go running with mommy. What a sweet picture! Julie has been given a new lease on life. Praising God for His provision.

PLEASE PRAY!!!!

This is my friend Julie


Julie has been on the lung transplant list for several years....
This is the message she just sent.

***URGENT....I just got THE CALL!!! praise GOD and to HIM ALL the glory!!! Manuel and I are on our way to UCLA we will get there and prep me for surgery...they said GOOD NEWS!! the lungs are in perfect condition and YOUNG!! PLEASE PLEASE pray for the family who just lost a loved one and pray that they know Christ or come to know him through this!! Please pray peace over my girls!! They are learning to trust God in a new way!! I will let you all know if it's 100% a go within the next couple of hours..I LOVE YOU!!

PLAYING TOGETHER?

Friends often ask us if the kids enjoy playing with Tate. The truth is that Tate prefers to play independently. But yes, the kids enjoy playing with him...even if they have to force him to play along!

WILD WILD WEST

Mom: Buddy what do you want to be when you grow up?

Buddy: A horse rider (AKA COWBOY) or a Donut man.

Looks like we may need to get a horse!

ARP CREAM

We give in every time just so that we can hear Baby M say "ARP CREAM". Please don't grow up, Baby!

Proud Parents

Mike and I are so proud of Bailey. She has trained diligently all season and has not only taken FIRST PLACE for our district, but has secured a spot to race at Nationals. We will be packing up and heading to Orlando in December for the final competition. Bailey races with confidence and endurance, but it is her attitude off the course that we are most impressed with.


Bailey and her dedicated FANS!



Tate enjoying the race and a free ride.

Happy Friday the 13th

The following was written today in an email from Andrea(my HERO) the director of Reece's Rainbow.

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Little Timosha's (in Russia) birth family, who I have built a lovely personal relationship with, has decided to take their most loved son home with them(from the orphanage)!


Every child Reece's Rainbow has had the honor of serving, every child saved has been a reason to rejoice! But for a birth family to be so moved, to see new light and have renewed hope and faith in their Savior and His plans for their family through His gift of their child with Down syndrome...that is a true VICTORY! That is when I am the most moved, and I wanted to share this most joyous news with the world ;)

The message from Timosha's mother, who has also committed to serve the other children with down syndrome in his orphanage, and to help us get new photos and find families for them!:

"Andrea, I thank you for your prayers. Yesterday my husband has told that we will take Timosha home!!!!!!! Since Monday we will start to make all papers. Also I hope that Christmas we will meet all together. I yet don't know, what will be our life, but I trust the Lord and I believe that with the Divine help at all of us it will turn out. All not casually also can children from our region find families. I will do the utmost to update photos of other children. This smallest that I can make for them. I thank you, Andrea and if the help which I in forces to render is necessary to you, I will make it with pleasure."

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GOD is GOOD!

Keep the water away from the baby!

The kids love playing outside with the water hose. They love it even more when Daddy plays with them.

But what happens when Baby gets the hose?


He's DANGEROUS.


No matter how hard you try, you just can't get it from his kung-fu grip.


Or maybe you can. And at first he thinks it's fun.


But then he looks like this-


Just give the baby the water, please. I can't take the puppy dog eyes!!!

Sweet Little PAGEBOY

ONE YEAR

The following is a copy of my post from exactly one year ago. It has been amazing to be a part of God's plan for our family. We are so completely HUMBLED and BLESSED!
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Today was a really exciting day for the McKay household. Today our family grew by two feet. Today we gained a son, a brother and a life-long friend. Today is a very special day. A day we will never forget!

The court process was easy and quick. We were ushered into a medium sized office with our translator, social worker and orphanage attorney. A female judge presided over the hearing. She first asked us a few formal questions- name, birth date, address. Then she asked a few questions about adopting and specifically a child with special needs. A short thirty minutes later it was over and we were standing outside. The hardest part of the hearing was listening to the orphanage attorney talk about Tate. She said that he was abandoned by his birth parents and that he was unwanted in Ukraine for adoption. Their loss- OUR GAIN!

Here are the first few minutes of us with our SON! (Nice pink outfit!)





Saying goodbye today was not as hard as I had envisioned it would be. We know that Tate is well loved by the orphanage workers. Mike will return to Ukraine with my dad after the 10 day mandatory waiting period. They will pick him up to bring him home for the very first time!!!

CLARIFICATION

Mike mentioned that I needed to clarify the confusion about the post I wrote concerning my Uncle. The funny thing that I was addressing was the size tag that he left on his new pair of jeans. Take a look at the picture again!