McKenzie

Remember this post? Not too pretty was it? I am so thankful that God did not leave us there. I am so thankful that even when we throw our fits and we ask why and get angry that he is patient with us. I am so thankful that we fell instantly and madly in love with her. She is beautiful, just the way she is. I love watching my children with her. I am amazed by the the love and understanding my children show to others that the world may not perceive as "normal" because they have had James and now McKenzie in their lives at such young ages. I do not think that if I had been put in the same situations as them at their ages that I would be as loving and as compassionate.

I went back and re-read my post and I was struck by my last paragraph

I also know that after the storm has passed, and the sun is shining, the landscape will have changed, all of us will have changed. We will have loved deeper then ever before, cried harder and prayed longer. Our family will never be the same. No matter what the outcome, we will have changed for the better, but right now it is painful and so very hard!

That is us! We have changed for the better and the landscape is beautiful here. McKenzie is a shining star. She is adored and loved. I can't imagine loving this little girl more than we do. There will be challenges ahead and there will be tough moments but we will all be okay.

I wanted to give you an update on McKenzie. She is doing beautifully. She coos, laughs, smiles, plays, holds her head up and has us totally and completely wrapped around her little finger. Bethany has been to countless doctors with McKenzie and they are all saying that she's right where she needs to be for a 5 month old. She may be slightly delayed, but she was also 6 weeks early and has had a lot to overcome in 5 months.

We do need some prayers as we are heading into her surgeries. On April 30th she will have a feeding tube put in her stomach and she will have an eye surgery which will reconstruct the lower lid of her "good" eye. Then on May 26th (Amanda's 14th birthday) she will have surgery on her lip and for the first time in her life we will get to see her without tape all over her face. We cannot wait for the process to begin for McKenzie.

Thanks for praying!