Update on us...

I know it has been a reeeeaaaalllly long time since I've given any real update on our family. Things are busy, but we are doing well! We are about to embark upon a fun new journey. I'll save that for my next entry, as I should update on the goings-on in the McDaris house first!

Karissa is 11 years old and in 5th grade. She has grown to be very tall. I think I will be looking at her eye to eye in the very near future. She is doing very well in school and is an avid reader. Currently she is reading at the mid-8th grade level. It is difficult to keep her in books that are BOTH age-appropriate and level-appropriate. There aren't many books in existence that bridge that gap! Our church places 6th graders in the middle school group, unlike the school system, where she will still be in elementary school. I love that she will be in middle school in church first!

Abby is 8 years old and in 2nd grade. She has also grown a bunch. She has certainly followed in her sister's footsteps in school, and is reading a good three years above grade level. She has also begun to show interest in drawing. I'm amazed at some of the drawings she has done. Abby definitely did NOT get that gene from ME! :) Her use of color and perspective is (I think) very good for her age! She and my niece, Emily have been pen pals for the last year, and she definitely looks forward to mail coming her way! :)

Zachary is 5 years old and looks forward to entering Kindergarten next year. He loves spending time with his Daddy. In fact as I type this, he has just returned home from a long bike ride with Brian. They rode to the post office and back... a 4-mile round trip! Zachary is a beginning reader and has recently become very interested in Star Wars. I'm learning every day what it means to be the mother of a 5-year-old boy. He has a very intense personality which has both it's pluses and minuses. I pray that he will someday use his passions for good and not evil. :)

Cadenne is doing marvelously! She is nearly 3.5, and has gone almost a year and a half without any surgeries or meds! She still sees the nephrologist every 6 months to monitor her smaller kidney, which isn't really growing much. It doesn't cause her any issues, though. I'm at an interesting point with her. It seemed like in the first couple of years, I couldn't look at her without remembering everything she'd been through. Now, I'm catching myself going almost a whole day without thinking about it even once. She's doing that well. It's not that I forget what a miracle she is... it's that if I don't see the scars, I forget that she actually had a rougher start than any of the other kids. Speaking of her scars, she refers to them as her "pwetty, pwetty scaws." I, too, think they're beautiful, and I hope that she always thinks so, too. They tell a beautiful story! She is finally on the charts in weight, too! We're excited about that, after having struggled to get weight on her.

My cousin, Susan, moved in with us in July, and it has been so fun to have her here. I think we all have forgotten what life was like "before Susan." :) The kids enjoy having "Susan dates" to places such as the library, PetSmart (to visit the kitties) and Disneyland. (annual passes) Susan and I have begun a little Ebay business together, and we are having fun learning that as well as making a little extra money. (It has served as a little fund raiser to help us raise some money for our church's new youth room, too!)

Brian is still enjoying his job with the city of Orange. He is once again on light duty, due to having one of the plates in his arm removed. (From his motorcycle accident in November 2009.) We all enjoy his schedule with this job, as he's home every day by 4:00 and has most Fridays off! He is traveling to Sacramento for work in a couple of weeks, and I am excited to be able to go with him! Susan is graciously taking the kids for the week! (Pray for her! hehehe)

Check back tomorrow for more news on our next adventure!

It's good to be back! :)