The McDaid Family 2013

The McDaid Family 2013

We come to the end of 2013 with full and thankful hearts. We are so grateful for our family, friends and community. But we are most thankful for God our Father and Jesus our Savior and for the testimony that is being written for our family.

I am going to back up a little, because I did not do a family update last year, and a lot has changed in our lives since December of 2011.

We completed our training and licensing for foster care in December 2011 and got our first placement, an 8 year old boy and his 3 year old sister on December 27, 2011. They were with us for only 3 short weeks; after which they were placed with their grandma. It was a whirlwind experience, which overall was good, and we felt affirmed to continue. But those 3 weeks made it clear to us that the house we were living in, while adequate, would not house 5 growing children long term. So we began to look at other options. We determined to be wise; we made a list of really high expectations for this forever home and put a really strict number on it. We prayed about it, asking God to make this direction clear for us. On the first day of house hunting, we found it. We found the house that fit all the parameters that really seemed impossible to find. Long story short, we moved in June 2012 and love our home, our neighbors and our community.

During that time, we went inactive for foster care, since our lives were so fluid with selling, buying and moving. In September 2012, we went active again and took our second placement: sisters, ages 2 and 1. We got them from another foster home, and their parents were already well on track to getting them back. We had them 3 months, and they were reunited with their parents on November 30. We again went inactive (3 toddlers took its toll!) for awhile, but still felt pulled to foster. On March 12, 2013, we took in our 3^rd placement: a 7 year old boy named Del. (I tear up just typing this! He is such a special boy.) We got him also from another foster home that he had been in for 7 months, and he was with us for 7 months until October 15, 2013, when he was reunited with his father. On November 14^th, we took our 4^th placement: a 6 year old boy named Mark.

I won’t go into great detail about foster care here, but I will at another time. It’s been an amazing journey, and we’ve learned a lot. I believe God is asking me to blog about our experiences, so I will be working on that in the new year.

Here are the current family stats:

Dad, Mark

Mark is still working at Austin Regional Clinic, doing computer programming. He’s been very busy this year being on call every other week and helping roll out their new electronic medical records system in the clinics. He is the leader of the boys group, Royal Ambassadors at church and is a handbook leader for our AWANA club. He is also a great handyman at home, dutifully completing all the projects I find on Pinterest to make the house more organized.

His NASCAR driver, Jimmie Johnson, won the championship this year, and we got to see them race at Texas Motor Speedway in April. He is also a loyal Texas Rangers fan, and he enjoyed getting to see them play also in April.

Mom, Shelley

I am still a stay at home mom, but I am definitely busy. I still get to be a part of MOPS, since Kendall is still a preschooler. MOPS has blessed me in so many ways over the years. The last 2 years I’ve directed our church’s Heroes Camp, which is quite a task, but I love it so much. It is what our church does for VBS; it is a full day, camp type experience, with field trips and swimming and Bible lessons, oh my! I also am the one that keeps up with all the foster kids’ appointments, paperwork and training. In my free time, I love to craft, read and sew. I cherish the time with my girlfriends and am so thankful for them.

I too, enjoyed watching the Rangers this season, especially to watch my childhood friend play for the team last season. I even got to see him hit a home run while he was rehabbing in Round Rock this summer (on a rare date with my youngest brother, Brian).

Riley

Riley is 11 and in the 6^th grade this year. It is hard to believe that he is in middle school! But he is doing well. The structure of middle school seems to suit him. He is following in Mark’s footsteps and playing the trombone in band. He is in the Rite of Passage class at church, which all 6^th graders go through to transition from childhood to the teenage years.

Riley still enjoys LEGOs and building things. He also has discovered technology and creates his own stop motion videos. He is a great big brother. We can count on him to help and be a good role model to the younger kids.

Tyler

Tyler is 8 and in the 3^rd grade. He is always either starving or eating, which is quite a change from the super picky eater he used to be! He is also growing like crazy. He likes to read and has really enjoyed reading chapter books like Magic Tree House and Flat Stanley.

He also likes building LEGOs. He really enjoys Hero Factory right now. He also loves playing Angry Birds and enjoys acting the game out with the action figures. Tyler is always funny and playful. He is a good friend and a good leader in class.

Kendall

Kendall is 3 (almost 4) and is in preschool 2 days a week this year. She is a girly girl, always worrying about how she looks or what she’s wearing. She is the only extrovert in our family and has friends everywhere she goes. She loves princesses, ponies, Ariel and playing pretend. She comes home and plays school on preschool days. It is so funny to listen to! She is a joy to have in our family, and we are so thankful for her. She really bonded with her brother Del and misses him very much. She draws pictures of him and prays for him regularly.

We are looking forward to seeing how God will add to our story in 2014! Stay tuned!