Happy 8th Birthday McKay!

I can't believe my firstborn is so old, although I feel I've been cheated a little because he is the size of a 10 year old!!  I love birthdays with my boys because we have some traditions we all look forward to each year.  Like donuts with a candle waiting for them when they wake up, a night out to their favorite dinner spot, a celebration with extended family with their favorite meal and cake, and of course a birthday party with their closest friends!  I fixed tacos this year (McKay's favorite) and McKay requested a cookies and cream ice cream cake, which I outsourced to marble slab.  He also had a party with his friends, which I have to say was pretty cool.  We took 5 boys to Adrenalina at Willow Bend Mall, which is a surf store with an indoor wave that you can surf on- VERY FUN!!  On their birthdays Wess and I like to talk about their birth story, and all the things we remember about them when they were a baby.  I like to remind McKay how big he was (8 lbs. 15 oz.) and how I pushed for 3 1/2 hrs to get him out!!  I also like to remind him how he was the best snuggler and would lay in bed for hours with Wess and me without making a peep.  He would sit on the bathroom floor for over an hour while I got ready and organize all the bathroom soaps and shampoos.  He was the most calm and laid back baby EVER.  He was such a pleasure to be around, which is probably why we got pregnant so soon with Owen.  We thought babies were a piece of cake!  To this day McKay is still a pleasure to be around.  He never has a bad thing to say about anybody or anything.  Nothing bothers him.  He is tender, sensitive, kind, loving, clueless, loyal, tough, sweet, athletic, clumsy, compliant, and he still loves to snuggle with his mamma!!  He is a follower of Christ which makes us the most proud.  He is more strong willed than we ever thought he would be, but his true love for everyone and everything is an inspiration to me daily.
I'll end with a story about McKay that sums him up beautifully.  About six months ago I had my dining table painted, which I had planned out for weeks.  As soon as the painters left, they told me to make sure no one touched it for a few hours to make sure it dried properly.  Wouldn't you know as soon as they walked out, Owen walked in and immediately put his hands on the wet paint!  I ran over and showed my frustration, but held myself together pretty well.  Not 2 minutes later, Chapel did the same thing and my patience was definitely being tested.  I yelled a little and told them to get away from the table.  As soon as I got them away from the wet paint, and felt like I had avoided a potential disaster, in walks McKay and as he drags his dirty hands across the table he says "mommy why is the table wet?".  I was beyond mad, and completely lost my temper!!  Typical McKay was out in left field while his younger brothers had done the exact same thing and had already been yelled at for touching the table.  I felt bad for yelling but, I was SO upset I had lost touch with reality.  Thankfully, Wess lovingly brought me back to reality and I realized I needed to apologize to my boys.  I sat each of them down and told them how sorry I was for losing my temper, and no table was that important for me to act like that.  When I sat McKay down and begged for his forgiveness, he looked at me in the eyes, put his arms around me and said, "mommy I'll ALWAYS forgive you!"  I am crying as I write this story because it was one of the sweetest things he has ever said.  It describes him so well and reminds me how blessed I am to be his mom!  I love you McKay!!