Well, Hello!!!

8 months ago I felt the need to pull the plug on this blog of mine. It was demanding way too much of my time and distracting me from responsibilities and reality. When we got ready to go to China I joined Facebook and that seemed to be a quicker and easier way to keep up with people these past several months. I have missed journaling the events of our daily lives though.

So...

Just to catch you up on what's been happening around our home...

*We spent Christmas with my brother and his wife in NYC... Quite an adventure.

*Ashlyn had her cleft palate repair (taking a bone graft from her hip), along with 8 tooth fillings & tubes in her ears in late December. I wasn't sure what to expect. It seems that many people's experiences with this cleft surgery has been quite difficult. Our doctors gave us great hope that Ashlyn would do just fine, and in fact, SHE DID AMAZING! I think she only took her pain meds for 2 days. She had to eat mushy food for the next 6 weeks, but even then, it wasn't that hard. It was a huge success. Praise the Lord for incredible doctors!

Just another day in the doctor's chair!

*In January, all 4 homeschooled McKees headed off to the big, bad, public school. They all went for different reasons, but mostly just because we realized we needed reinforcements. They all had some gaps to fill in bc of our time off after China and we knew the only way to accomplish this without me losing my mind was to turn it over to the professionals. Ashlyn has excelled in every subject. Her teachers love her. Her hard work and determination has afforded her their extra efforts. They make provisions for her and find alternatives for her in areas where her reading and comprehension is still on a low level. She immediately became qualified for educational speech therapy. In our first days at the new school, the entire team of teachers, guidance counselors, school therapists/psychologists, and staffing specialists were ON TOP OF IT. It has been the best decision for her. The other kiddos are also doing well. Ansley slid right in and has made good friends. Alex was asked to be a part of the basketball team, but because he had just finished up an exhausting basketball season already, he decided not to participate. His PE coach didn't take no for an answer when track season started. Alex joined the team reluctantly and came in 1st place in the 400 in all 3 of the heats that he competed in. We were so proud! Aidan is having a blast at his new school too. He made friends fast and has something to pour all of that pent up energy into now. It's been so good for all of us to have some time away from each other. As much as we love our time together, things were getting really strained around here. I am enjoying just being mom again. And, can I just say, the public school system has blown us away. We are very pleased. Our kids have even surprised us with their desire to step out and be a light for their peers and teachers. Amamzing stuff... too much to share just yet, but God is SO good!

His very first track meet. I was just praying that he wouldn't come in dead last. He was competing against some very fast boys! He came in first place!

*This spring we finally put a pool in; something we'd been waiting to do since we moved in this home 7 years ago. It has been such a huge blessing. We spent our spring break here at home with friends and family, playing in the pool. Abby LOVES the water. We enrolled her in survival swim lessons and she did great. She really is a natural in the water. She will jump in the deep end now and swim all the way over to the shallow end, floating when she needs to catch her breath. It's been so good for her.

Swim Lessons

*Speaking of Abby, we finally got her IEP! This took a year, but we finally have it and plan to start more intensive speech therapy very soon. She is still not speaking, but she does try. She also tries communicating in other ways from time to time and this gets me very excited. She's such a smart little girl. She's a sweet girl who is very loved by her entire family. She also loves to be a helper and I am starting to look for ways to move on from babying her to treating her more like the 6 year old that she is. She is very capable.

*Baseball season is almost done for our little A-Dog. He's had another really good season. He pitches really well and plays short stop and first base. He's a natural at this sport and his good sportsmanship makes us very proud.

Game Ball!

*I just enrolled Averleigh for VPK in the fall (sniff-sniff). She is turning into such a big girl. I really hate that I'm out of the baby phase forever. I never saw that one coming. We've talked about adding another one, but I think my soon-to-be-highschooler would curl up and die of embarassment. He has expressed on more than one occasion that he is not for adding anymore children to the chaos. It's just about all he can handle, sharing a room with his sloppy 8 year old brother... :) Firstborns!

Averleigh, Addie (the neighbor), and Abby

Alex's first time driving my van... He did a great job!

*Matt and I celebrated our 17th anniversary in April. We got away for a night at a beautiful resort here in Orlando. It was so relaxing... a much needed break away alone:)

Me and My Sweet Guy!

*Summer is upon us and we have alot already scheduled... More surgery for Ashlyn (lip revision and 2 front teeth), camps, basketball conditioning, VBS, Summer reading programs, more swim lessons, and Lord willing, the beach and Canada.

We celebrated Ashlyn's birthday at Chuck-E-Cheese... picked them all up from school and surprised them. It was her very first time. We figured we needed to make up for lost birthday parties past... every kid needs a birthday at CEC!

*And lastly...
We got another dog:) Bentley... He's an American Eskimo. We rescued him from a foster family who found him. He's about 3 years old, we think...

A-Dog & Bentley

*Everything is still going better than we ever dreamed it would. We continue to press on and stay focused on what the Lord has for us. Ashlyn and Abby continue to defy the odds. They love us and they love their life here in America. Do we have setbacks? Yes. Is it always easy? No. But, it's been the best thing that's EVER happened to us and God has eqipped us with everything we need to get through the struggles. We have developed a relationship with a good Christian counselor for Ashlyn. She will continue to go twice a month and learn to unpack her hurts and the things that she keeps buried underneath that sweet smile of hers. She's s fighter and an overcomer. She has a great attitude. Her mental health is great and she thinks very maturely for a girl her age. She's very practical, understanding, forgiving, and realistic. Sometimes she makes us crazy, but that's just because we are selfish human beings. We are all learning how to slow down and be patient with each other. I just pray that when my kids leave this crazy home one day, they will look back with fond memories. That the good will outweigh the bad and that they will have a deep love for one another.

Leaving my nephew's birthday party... I had to snap this pic! It's embedded on my heart forever!

Blessings,
Rebecca