Our Warrior

"I want a hippopotamus for Christmas"

2011-12-04T20:31:00.003-06:00

We are ready for Christmas at the Brian household!! Cade loves this time of year. He absolutely loves everything about Christmas..the lights, music, trees, inflatables, etc. He heard the "I want a hippopotamus for Christmas" song on the radio on the way to school this past week, and he laughed through the entire song. We also have the Griswold house right across the street from us which is Cade's favorite. They have everything up except inflatables..ha! (so many lights!)

I wanted to give some updates on him and let you all know about his upcoming surgery on the 15th.

Cade has been studying the planets at school this past week and informed Chris and I all about Pluto. He absolutely LOVES school! He also has been working with a speech therapist at school and is doing great. She has told me that Cade is such a hard worker and is making great strides.
He is also just now getting into watching sports on TV with Chris and I. He is already very competitive. He wants to know who is winning and gets VERY upset when his team is losing. He gets it honest.
He loves playing video games on my computer and is very tech savy for a 5 year old..Crazy how young they start!

As far as his eye is concerned, his vision has not improved, so we are back at step one with the patching. We patch we he gets home from school until bed time. He has done great with it. He is schedule for another surgery on December 15 at Vanderbilt Children's here in Nashville. Again, I cannot tell you how thankful we are for that place! Dr. Mawn and Dr. Singer will be working on his bottom eyelid. The procedure will be very similar to last year's procedure on the top eyelid.
We are praying now for no complications and no pain for Cade and for his heart. We know this will be a scary thing for him once again as he fears the hospital.

I will say that each time Cade has had to endure another procedure the Lord has given me such a peace. I am praying for that once again and that we would release our fear and worries knowing He is holding Cade in the palm of HIS hands.
Please continue to lift Cade up and the doctors on December 15th. Will post again after the procedure!

Love you all!!

Where Have We Been???

2011-09-19T18:49:00.002-05:00

Okay, so I just noticed that I have not updated my blog since July.. Wow!! There has been much going on here, so I guess I will just give a few updates on what we have been up to in the past 2 months..

We all started back to school in August. Cade started PreK-5 this year and he absolutely loves it--not to mention his teacher is a former student of mine-HA! He has learned so much and he even gets to eat lunch with the big kids. He loves that!
Chris and I have been busy coaching and teaching. I am still coaching middle school volleyball and he is coaching football, needless to say, we are very busy right now. Cade spends the afternoons with me in the gym. As he has gotten older, he has enjoyed being in the gym and hanging out. The girls love him and he usually plays with his Legos or his Leapster while I practice. We had five games this past week, so we were both spent by the end of the week.
Chris' team is struggling some this year and it has been hard to see him come home frustrated. They lost a few key players and it has made a big difference. This week should be interesting though, they play us! Yep, Davidson v. CPA If you ask Cade who he is rooting for, he always says daddy's team. It should be an interesting matchup!!

To update you on Cade's eye we have been to Ohio a few times to check on the scarring on his cornea. It is thinning out, which is a good thing, but will go back in November to see if the small piece will need to be removed.
He is scheduled for another procedure with Dr. Mawn and Dr. Singer(his neurologist) here in Nashville, in December. They will be working the bottom lid this time. We are hopeful that they will be able to get what is left of the VM on that bottom lid.

So that is a quick update on the Brians. Yes, we are still alive, but super busy!! Love to you all!!

Not worthy, but HIS

Our favorite place to be..

2011-07-12T18:27:00.002-05:00

We just returned from a fabulous trip to Seagrove Beach. My family and I have been making this annual beach trip since I was in high school. It is something that we look forward to every summer. My parents, our family, and my brother's family all stay in a house on the beach--no better place to be than ON the beach!

Cade took his first steps at the beach and has always been pretty cautious about getting in the water. It seems that each year he gets a little braver about getting in. This year he really took to the water. He surfed the waves for the first time and loved it!! He and Brody played so well together! They had so much fun, whether they were chasing each other with their water guns, or throwing sand on each other-they had a blast!

Some of our favorite things to do while there is looking for seashells, looking for crabs at night, visiting Pier Park, eating shrimp, looking for dolphins, walks on the beach, ice cream, etc.

We love our time at the beach!! So thankful that we have these times with family to share and we can't wait until next summer!!

Summer has officially begun..

2011-06-15T18:51:00.004-05:00

We love our summers!! This year we started our summer with a trip to San Antonio, Texas. We haven't been back in a few years so we were very excited to get to see everyone. Chris' entire family live there, so it was a very busy but fun trip. We ended up staying with Chris' dad and stepmom in their beautiful home. Cade loved it! They have a trampoline and a hot tub. Being that it is so hot there we limited Cade's time outdoors. He would wake up and want to go on the tramp. and end the day on the trampoline.

We spent most of our days visiting family. Chris' mom's side of the family and Chris' dad's side of the family. We were very busy each day. We did spend a day at SeaWorld. Cade's favorite place. We went with Grandma and Navaeh-Chris' brother's little girl. It was VERY hot to say the least, but it was a fun day! His favorite thing this time were the sharks!! :)

Greg and Donna (Chris' dad and stepmom) have two dogs. Cade is allergic to pet dander, but he didn't have a problem being around them, in fact, he LOVED them!! He wants a dog soooo bad! He chased them around and he loved for them to chase him back. It was so cute to watch!

Because of the location of where we were staying, there were many deer around the neighborhoods. When I say everywhere, they were practically just chillin' in the yards. It was so neat to see. So close, you could pet them..Again, this was something Cade was not used to and he loved to look for each day!

It was a great trip..in fact, neither one of us were ready to leave. We hope to see them all again very soon!!

pics to follow!

Heaven...

2011-05-23T11:02:00.003-05:00

Well, this past week has been very interesting and hard all at the same time.. It is nearing the end of the school year, in fact, this is our last week of school. We have been busy reviewing with kids, making exams,etc. Chris and I both are anticipating the summer, and not to mention Cade has been counting down how many days left of school.

Everything though came to a halt for me last week, and LIFE took over. We had a student who was involved in a tragic skateboarding accident and passed away due to severe brain trauma. So yeah, everything kind of took a backseat for me, as I pondered how fragile our lives here on earth are. I also mourned for this precious mom who no longer would be able to hug on her son as he came home from school, or watch him play football and soccer again.

My students have been walking around dazed as they continue to grieve the loss of a classmate, and as I sit here and write, I will be heading to his funeral in a few short minutes.

Of course, death gets us thinking about Heaven and about all those we will soon see once again. I can't wait to see my Nana and Papa in heaven. I loved them so much and the Lord called them both home when I was in the 8th grade. Both of them met Jesus within about 3 months of each other. What a great reunion that must have been.

I have had the book "Heaven is For Real" for quite sometime now and never really picked it up to read. My books to read for the summer are piling up, but I thought it would be fitting because of the course of events this past week to start this one. So yesterday I sat and read the entire book. Very interesting perspective of Heaven from a 4 year old and so "matter of factly." As I read, my anticipation grew even more for Heaven. Reading this little one's experience with Heaven made me ponder "if only I had the faith of a child."

It is a great book and I highly recommend it. In fact, our pastor will be going to Nebraska next week to interview Colton and his dad. He will be beginning a new series on Heaven and Hell in the weeks to come. Excited about that..

So this is where my head has been in the last few days.. Cade and I have also had some discussions on this as well, and it is amazing to hear a five year old's perspective on Heaven.. So cute!!

I will leave you with one part of the book that I just loved. Colton was explaining to his dad where everyone was sitting in Heaven.. He was explaining the throne room of God. Colton's dad asked him where he was sitting and Colton said, "I was sitting on Jesus' lap, next to the Holy Spirit.." This just reminded me of how we should view our Heavenly Father, similar to our earthly Father...sitting in his lap comforting us when we become frightened, scared, worried, stressed, whatever it might be. LOVE THIS PICTURE!!!!

April Showers..Bring May Flowers

2011-05-05T20:22:00.003-05:00

Where did April go?? Wow..It flew by so fast!! We are getting near the end of the school year and we are all ready for the summer. Cade has been doing great, but he is ready for school to be over. He even told me on the way to school this week he didn't want to go to school. I told him we didn't really want to either.:)

In April, we spent Easter with my parents and my brother's family.Mom and Dad's church had a car show and easter egg hunt, so of course Cade was in heaven! Cade loves to visit Nana and Papa. He also loves his cousin Brody! They have the biggest time together and Cade is so excited about getting to see them once again at the beach.

We have had some pretty bad weather in the last few weeks. Alot of wind and rain, but nothing in comparison to the damage we have all seen in Alabama. My mom and dad were spared also of the bad weather. The tornadoes that touchdown in Ringgold (where Chris and I were married) missed their area by an exit. We were so thankful!!

We have had some pretty days as well and have spent those being outside. We did some landscaping last weekend around the front of the house. Can I just say, I love doing yard work. If you ask Chris he will tell you that I LOVE mowing the grass, and actually a little OCD about it.

May will be busy for us as we finish up the semester, but we are looking forward to June and going to Texas to visit. Cade is so excited to get to fly again and to see everyone.

Cade has his five year old checkup tomorrow, and I am not looking forward to it. He gets 4 shots I think.. It won't be pretty. As far as his eye, we went back to Ohio a few weeks ago and everything looked great. We have to continue using the steroid drop 4x a day for 6 months. This has been somewhat hard, but Cade has done great. He has a chart on his door and he gets a sticker for every drop. At the end of the week he gets a surprise. It has worked so far, so hoping it continues. We might be broke in 6 months as well..:)

Waiting for the summer!

carlee

A Milestone...FIVE

2011-03-31T18:56:00.003-05:00

I can't believe that we have a five year old.. Cade has grown so fast..He has grown into a little man from the small 5 lb. 12 oz. baby five years ago. He is our joy and our life. He has been through more than any five year old should have to go through, but he has conquered every difficulty thrown at him. He has taught Chris and I so much about perseverance, about faith, about courage, about fear, etc.

We are so proud of what he has become and we can't wait to see what the Lord will do in the next five years.

Cade, mommy and daddy love you and we are so proud of how you have walked through difficulty the last five years with resiliency and a quiet strength. You truly are OUR WARRIOR and as your papa would say our "HERO."

Happy Birthday Bubba!!

Spring Break

2011-03-30T18:42:00.002-05:00

We enjoyed a great spring break a few weeks back together. Chris and I both had spring break off at the same time which seldom occurs. We spent alot of time outdoors with Cade. One of the best times we had together was visiting Edwin Warner Park.
It is very close to where we live, but we never had visited the park before. We had some great weather so we decided to take Cade. They have a dirt park for the kiddos, but Cade wanted nothing to do with getting dirty.. He could care less about the huge mound of dirt and shovels, so we quickly made our way to the creek behind the park. We spent at least 2 hours just walking down the creek and throwing rocks. Cade LOVED it!! We also spent some time to walk the trails of the park, of course Cade leading us up the trails. We reached a point on the trail where a low tree branch was bent over. I picked Cade up to let him hang on it like the monkey bars and he didn't trust me I guess, and his hands slipped. Those would be the before and after pictures below.

We had so much fun at the park that we went back the following day! It was a great week to just spend some time outdoors. We also took him to play putt-putt. His first time to play and he had so much fun!! What a fun week!!!

Here are a few pics from our week!!

Back to Ohio

2011-03-09T18:19:00.002-06:00

We left on Sunday back to Ohio for Cade's post-op appointment. The drive is beginning to get old, but thankful we don't have to travel to far and for the great doctors there.
We met with Dr. Holland and Nerad. They had to take the stitches out of Cade's eye. Our only option was to do it in the office, which was down right awful. Cade was a trooper and he did great! We then had to remove the plastic ring out of his eye-also in the office. Again, very traumatic for Cade, but again he overcame another obstacle. It was harder on mom and dad than on him.
No parent should ever have to go through that-holding their child down as doctors work on them.. This is the worst part about Cade's condition for me. I hate how scared he gets and there is nothing I can do about it!! HATE IT!!

I do know that we continually try to calm him down, by telling him that Jesus is with him when he is scared. We tell him to pray when he gets scared. I am not quite sure he gets all of that, but HIS strength through all of these procedures is God-given!

He amazes me daily, and it's not all about his eye. He is inquisitive about everything. He prays for our compassion child-Christian EVERY night and reminds me when I forget. He has a sensitive heart and talks about giving his toys away to children who might not have as much. He goes to bed praying and wakes up praying. Yesterday he woke up and asked if he could pray for his eye. AMAZING! He is not shy about what his eye looks like and tells his friends and teachers all about it. He is one brave 4 year old--almost 5--cannot believe that!! He tells me he loves me to Heaven and back and then explains that Heaven and God are far, far away and that it is alot!!
I am not sure of the plans the Lord has for Cade, but He is going to do great things!

You know through all of this somehow I always go to back to Mary, mother of Jesus. I think probably because in the waiting room in the hospital there is a cross mounted on the wall. After they take Cade back I always come out to the waiting room and see that cross. My eyes stay fixed on it for a while as I think about Mary and what her "wait" looked like. What thoughts were racing through her head as she sat and watched her little boy suffer? Not knowing if she would see Him again. Was she saying to herself, "Let me take the pain, not my one and only..". Knowing He would suffer, but also watching Him suffer. Can you imagine? Watching your little boy suffer and take on the pain of the world? But God had bigger plans right? Yes, He did and Sunday was a'comin'!!! I can relate to her in a very small way with Cade..

Cade does suffer and sometimes we have to watch, and we do question God at times, but the end result as we all know is that we have all been placed on this earth to bring glory to Him. So through all the doctor appointments, surgeries, imaging, etc as hard as it might be we will continue to be faithful and know that HE is the ONE who can heal, and know that HE can do exceedingly more than what we could ever ask!!!!

Sorry, for rambling.. Not even sure this post makes sense, but wanted to share some thoughts from the week!! We have spring break next week and can't wait for some time off!!
Love you all!!

Cade's Latest Procedure

2011-02-22T11:07:00.003-06:00

I wanted to update everyone through the blog, just because of the complexity of the procedure today.
Cade is doing great right now and watching cartoons. Our intentions were to go home today, but they want to see him tomorrow to check on the eye.

Dr. Holland and Dr. Nerad both did the procedure today of removing the scarring off Cade' cornea. They also put down a mucous membrane graft over the area where the scar was removed. Cade also has a doughnut ring in his eye, which they stitched in place, to keep the skin from re-attaching again to the cornea. He will have to wear this for a week they are hoping. He also has a contact on the eye underneath the ring. I know this sounds so confusing reading this, and it is. The doctor had to actually draw it out for us on paper.

So the plan is to see Dr. Holland again tomorrow. From there we will be given a time frame of removing this ring, which will be another complete ordeal for Cade since it is stitched and they will have to remove it in the office.(we don't want him to have to be put under again for this, but not even going to think about that right now)

We are very thankful that Cade is not in any pain. He did amazing and the nurses couldn't stop talking about how good he was before and after surgery. THAT'S MY BOY-MY WARRIOR!! One nurse even commented on how "tough" he was. Yes, he is and he gets his strength from the One and only who is strong when we are weak!!!

To God Alone Be the Glory!!!

Winter Storm #7????

2011-02-10T09:48:00.003-06:00

Yes, it is true.. Chris and I are home once again due to snow..This makes Nashville's 7th snow storm this winter. Never thought I would be complaining about being at home, but this is getting old!!
Even if you wanted to get out and go somewhere, people who forget how to drive when it snows, threaten your life!!

So it looks as if we are stuck for the time being.. We will welcome spring with open arms, in fact, we are supposed to have 60 degree weather by the weekend!! Yippee!!

Cade has been doing great. I finished up my bball season this past Tuesday and he was sad about it. I thought he would be thrilled, but he loved being with the girls. They were like his big sisters and they treated him like their little brother.

Chris' team is still playing so we will go watch some of his last games as well as a few of CPA's games. Cade enjoys going to the gym. Thank goodness, he really doesn't have a choice between Chris and I..

Continue to keep Cade in your prayers. We leave for Ohio on February 21st for another procedure. I know he will be upset and scared. So please pray for a calming spirit to surround him.

Staying warm!!

carlee

Been a While...

2011-01-27T18:26:00.002-06:00

Sorry, it has been forever since I have updated this blog.. Christmas has come and gone and now we are left with a very cold winter. We have already had 4 snow days this winter and are expecting more in the weeks to come. We are sooooo ready for Spring--can't you tell? The snow has been beautiful, but it has overstayed its' welcome.
So since December, Chris and I have been very busy coaching our basketball teams. I have been coaching our 5th and 6th grade team, and it has been a blast!! I love them! I call them my "itty-bittys" They are so litte, but they are sooo scrappy!! Love it!!
Cade has been hanging with me during practice. The girls love him and of course he loves all the attention! Chris is coaching middle school and the assistant varsity coach. Needless to say, we are BUSY!!

In other news, my brother had another little boy last week named Bryce Tyler Marcum. He is so tiny and can't wait to see him! Mom and baby are doing great!

Cade also had another appointment with his cornea surgeon right before Christmas. He has more scarring on his cornea that will need to be removed, so we will head to Ohio in February to take care of that.
We are also hoping to finish the removal of his VM in his lower lid this year, but will wait and see what his recovery looks like from his cornea surgery.

We were all able to go to the circus last weekend. Cade had a great time and his favorite part was when they brought out the baby elephant. We had great seats-about 5 rows up from the floor. It was a great show until a little one sitting behind me puked all over my seat..Good thing I was already leaning forward with Cade..YUCK!!

Well, that has been our life in the past month or so. Will try to get back into more of routine with this blogging thing!

Blessings! Love ya'll!!

Our Best Christmas Gift...

2010-12-28T17:24:00.002-06:00

I explained in my last post that we received an interesting, but gracious gift this year. My mom contacted me in early December about a friend of hers that wanted to help Chris and I out financially. Mom called to ask me about how much we owed in medical bills. In my mind, I don't even think I have ever stopped to consider that. We just make payments each month as the bills come in. We just consolidate and then make payments.

This friend and my mom became friends in the second grade, and they had stayed in contact all these years. The couple knew of Cade's medical condition and mom had kept them updated through the last few years.

Mom called me back later in the day and told me that they wanted to help us. (Keep in mind we did not know this couple at all.) There was quite an amount that we owed from when Cade was first born and our insurance didn't cover his surgery at 7 months of age. We had been making payments on that since his birth. My mom made contact with several people to ask for a settlement on the account.(the settlement was about $3000 less than what we owed on the account.) Many of the individuals she talked with that day told her that there was NO WAY they would settle for that amount and had never done that. Guess they don't know my mom. She was pretty persistent and kept calling and the Lord kept working.

When I got home from work that day, mom called to tell me the news. They ACCEPTED the settlement. Not only that, but this gracious couple offered to pay the remainder of the bill. At this point, I was completely speechless. I had no words, and it took me about three weeks to pen a thank you letter. How do you put into words how thankful and appreciative you are to someone you have never met before? This was such a God thing!! He completely orchestrated the entire situation.

Chris and I are so thankful for the Askins. As much as we worry about bills and how we are going to pay them, our Lord is continually asking us to just TRUST...Let it Be!!! Again, as author Sarah Young states, "He is wanting us to exercise our 'trust muscles'.." This was just another time in our lives that He clearly provided for us in a way that we would never have imagined..through complete strangers.
My prayer is that when my worries and stress increase and begin to take a stronghold on my life, I will be reminded of all the ways He has provided for us.
Thank you again to the Askins Family for their gracious and generous gift this Christmas!
To God Alone Be the Glory!!

First Snow of the Year and it was a big One

2010-12-13T18:03:00.004-06:00

Sorry for the lack of posting in the last few weeks, we have been extremely busy! We have had a pretty eventful few days. Forecasters were predicting snow for Sunday...only about 1 1/2 ". On our side of town which is West Nashville, we ended up getting about 6 inches. It has been crazy. On top of that, we have had freezing temps as well. Currently it is 19 degrees and it feels like 6..Needless to say we spent about 30 minutes outside today and yesterday.

The weather this year for Nashville has been crazy!! Flood in May, blistering hot weather this summer, and record temps in December! We haven't had snow in December for about 3 years.
So today Chris and I both had our first snow day. Timing was not great due to this being Exam week.

Cade still got some time out in the snow. He shoveled the snow and wanted so bad to build a snowman, but the snow was too powdery..(sp?)

We are gearing up for Christmas. Cade has been so excited this year about Christmas. It was the first year he decorated his tree by himself. He loves all the lights and wants to look at lights on our way home from school each day.
He has learned the carol "Away in a Manger..." too cute!

We hope you all have a Merry Christmas! The Lord gave us a special gift this Christmas and I will share that in another post later!!
Love you all!!
(the first pic of cade was taken by our new neighbors..they live across the street from us and happen to be out walking..she is a great photographer!)

"TO BLESSED TO BE STRESSED"

2010-11-19T10:21:00.003-06:00

So these past few weeks have been crazy and exhausting for everyone in the Brian household. I took a 5th and 6th grade basketball job, Chris' football team made it to the playoffs, and he is beginning coaching for basketball, and of course Cade and his crazy schedule with doctor appointments. Amidst all the stress we have right now in our lives, I was reminded today, by a quote that says it all.."Too Blessed To Be Stressed." How true is this statement. Of course this time of the year always reminds us of how truly thankful we are and should be.
I am so grateful to the Lord for how he has brought comfort, health, joy, and many other numerous provisions during the course of this year. We are so very blessed!

I am also grateful for family. My sister just recently sent me some pics that she took of her kids. We don't get to see them that often..only when we travel to Ohio for Cade's eye appointments. These pictures are amazing! She is an awesome photographer and not to mention Holland and Addi Kae are too precious!! I am very thankful for her and so proud of how she has continued to seek the Lord in everything that she does. She is an awesome wife, a loving mom, and a wonderful sis! Love you Hill!

Happy Halloween and a few random pics.....

2010-11-01T17:49:00.005-05:00

So Cade was a Race car driver for Halloween. It was actually a Pit Crew costume, but we told him it was a race car driver--Lightning McQueen. He had a great time and actually went up to a couple of houses by himself--that was huge!! He was so excited all week for Halloween. We asked him what he was going to say when he went up to the door and he said, "trick or treat, smell my feet.." We eliminated the last phrase to be polite..haha!
The other pics are from school. He had school pictures last week and they didn't take his the day I had him dressed. As you will notice he was NOT cooperative with the photographer, but glad he expressed his true self. This pic has the real CADE written all over it.
We actually found another race car costume today on sale and he had to have it. He looks somewhat like Ricky Bobby from Talladega Nights..haha!! Too funny!!!

Enjoy!!

Football and Pumpkin Carving.....

2010-10-30T10:47:00.002-05:00

Chris and I took Cade to his first SEC college football game last weekend. It was Vanderbilt v. South Carolina. Yes, the same Carolina team that beat my Alabama team earlier..ugh!!! We had great seats--right behind the Carolina bench. Cade just sat there and took in all the pre-game festivities. He had a pretzel and a pizza before the game even started..haha! He enjoyed it and he loved watching the band at halftime. Not sure if that is good or bad thing..:) We ended up leaving around the 3rd quarter, because Cade at that point was everywhere. He could not sit still. Vandy lost 21-7, but it was a great game!

We carved pumpkins the following day and it was Chris' first time to carve a pumpkin. Neither one of us carved pumpkins growing up, so we do not have any carving skills whatsoever! Thanks to the carving book I picked up, along with some handy-dandy tools we carved 2 pumpkins. Cade loved it, but did not like all the goo in the pumpkins..go figure..he hates to be dirty. He asks every night to light up the pumpkins and he is sooooooo excited about Halloween. He has been counting down the days since last weekend. This year he is a Lightening McQueen racecar driver..it's really a pit crew costume, but we didn't tell him that. It looks adorable on him. He also dressed up his buddy "NASCAR." NASCAR is his puppy he got from Build-A-Bear, and yes he named him NASCAR..haha! They both match! It is the cutest thing ever. Will post pics of that soon!

Happy Fall Ya'll!!!

My Celebrity Crush Part II

2010-10-15T13:29:00.004-05:00

So most of you know that I am a HUGE fan of Carrie Underwood, so much that I will be traveling to Memphis to see her perform AGAIN!! Yes, this will be the second time, but it was just the best concert ever. This past Wednesday I went to see her here in Nashville with my bestie Tosha. WE had the best time and when we are together the laughter never stops!
This summer my cell phone rang and it was my sister. She wanted to know if I still wanted to see Carrie in concert. Of course my answer was an ECSTATIC YES!!! You see I had been trying for months to get tickets and knew I couldn't afford them at the time, so it was such a blessing for her to call!! And on top of that our tickets were soooo close. You will see in the pics.
It was AMAZING!!!! My favorite part of all was when she sang "Jesus Take the Wheel" and incorporated "How Great Thou Art" into the song! It felt like we were all standing for several minutes in applause.
I think what amazes me about her is how grounded she is. She is in the top of her league with many accolades to her name, but so grounded in the Lord. Love that about her.
Anyway, enough of my rambles. Here are some pics from this week!

Owen Farm

2010-10-10T19:43:00.003-05:00

So today, Cade and I went to Owen Farm. Our church has their Fall Festival there each year. We had alot of fun. We visited with the animals, went for a hay ride, went down the big slide, played on the tires, and picked out a pumpkin. Here are a few pics of our fun day!!!

Never a Dull Moment

2010-09-28T19:45:00.002-05:00

Well we had some things unexpectedly occur this past week in regards to Cade. Cade's doctor has been wanting to have an MRI done to see what has been the cause of the irritation in his eye. So Wednesday I received a voicemail that they were trying to schedule the MRI and surgery in the same day for Thursday. THURSDAY---which was the very next day!!! So all day on Wed. the surgery coordinator worked on getting this done in one setting. I was shocked, but very thankful this would be one procedure and not two separate. By 4:00 I received the call that it was good to go. Cade would be having an MRI done and then they would be transporting him directly to the OR for surgery.

To make a long story short, Cade was very scared and nervous. Poor thing thought he had to go potty about 5 times before surgery. Sedation went great thanks to our best friend "versed"- his loopy drug that makes him forgetful. Surgery only took an hour. She removed the glue that was causing the irritation that was left from the previous surgery in the summer. He was stitched up and sent home.

We are so thankful for VCH. I know I have said this many times in many posts, but it is the truth. The way they handle these children is amazing!!!

We were home by 3:00 with minor swelling. My dad was able to come down and help and Cade was so thrilled about that! He loves his Papa!! They spent the next day together and had so much fun!

Again, I can't put into words how appreciative Chris and I are of those of you who have walked alongside us since Cade's birth and have prayed for him through numerous procedures!! It amazes me still today that many people that Chris and I have never met lift us up daily in prayer!! Do you know how encouraging that is? To see the body of Christ wrap it's arms around strangers who are struggling? That truly exemplifies Christ's love for us!!!

While we were waiting for Cade to get out of the OR on Thursday, I have been reading our pastor's book Plan B. In one part he talks about all the questions we try to answer in regards to life.. the when, how, where, who...when the only question we should be living out right now is the "why"? This question we already know the answer to and this is the one we should be focused on. The answer to the "why" is to reflect His glory, to bring Him glory. This is where I TRY to keep my head in the midst of all this craziness we call life! We are called to this earth to reflect HIM and to bring HIM glory!! That is it!!!

Cade has done great through all of this!! Most of you know that he bounces back so fast. He went back to school yesterday and has been sharing his experience from last week with all of his teachers. Last night before he went to bed he prayed and thanked Jesus for all of his friends that prayed for him when he was in the hospital. He is getting so big and I can't wait to see how the Lord is going to use him!

K...I think I wrote way too much.. Sorry for all the rants. Thank you all for your continued prayers! We love you!!

The Boys of Fall....

2010-09-12T18:03:00.002-05:00

Well, it is football time in the Brian household which means Friday nights are spent at the stadium and Saturdays are spent watching college football! Cade has become very interested and has really enjoyed watching the games with us.. So fun!! We root for Alabama, Texas, the Tennessee Titans and the Dallas Cowboys. Today we had our own football game in the front yard. Me, daddy, and Cade. We had a blast. Here are a few pics! We love this time of year!!!!! "Are you ready for some football????"

The Road that is traveled...

2010-09-07T19:00:00.003-05:00

So I have been slacking in "blogger world." I guess when school starts and volleyball begins, my time gets filled pretty quickly. I did want to spend some time updating everyone on how Cade is doing.
This past weekend my parents took Cade to Ohio to visit my sister and her family. It was the first time Chris and I had been without Cade for more than one night. He did great and had a blast!!! He loved playing with his cousin Holland and being with Nana and Papa. It was hard for us however the first night, but both us got much needed rest. When he got home he told us he missed us and kept hugging us all night. Loved that!!
Yesterday, I took Cade fishing. We took hotdogs as our bait and didn't catch a thing. We did get a couple of bites, but nothing! He got more bites on his "Lightening McQueen" fishing pole than I did on mine...ha!

Today he had a checkup on his eye at Vandy. Appointment was scheduled for 10:30 and we ended up leaving around 1. Took forever!!!! Cade has had some mucous collecting in the corner of his eye since surgery so I was curious to find out what could be the cause. Dr. Mawn thinks it could be the glue that was used during surgery to harden the blood vessels that is causing the irritation. To get a better feel of what it could be she wants Cade to have another MRI, which means sedation, which means an IV, which means a a scared little boy. This saddens my heart, but I know this is the road that we are currently on. I wish I could just take this all away for him. He has been so thrilled that his eye "is getting better." It just gets hard when we have to explain to him why we have to keep going back for more procedures. He makes sure every time we visit the doctor that we aren't going to the hospital since they are located next to each other.
I am not sure when this will end or when we will visit the doctor/hospital for the last time. I am not sure if his eye will ever look like the other. I am not sure if it will grow back. I am not sure where this road will take us. One thing that I am sure of is that HE has already laced HIS shoes and traveled this road. HE has walked through deep crevices and over bumpy paths. HIS footprints are clearly marked along the way and I must remember that HE is there walking beside us as we travel down this path called LIFE.

Soli Deo Gloria!!!

The Little Things..

2010-08-27T09:03:00.004-05:00

It still amazes me daily how fast time flies. Cade is growing up so fast before our eyes and I can't stand it.. His conversations sound so grown and SOMETIMES I wish I could pause time for a bit. The words he uses now and the way he communicates with his friends and teachers crack me up. He is so big! Here are a few examples:
-Cade was watching cartoon the other day and he said "this cartoon is boring."
-He told his teacher he could not sleep until his lion went to sleep.. (right!)
-He told me last night he was the "goodest" kid because of God.
-He reminds me to feed the fish everyday, or he asks me if I have fed them. (they would probably be dead if I didn't have his reminders.:)
-He is using the potty now without a stool now-which he thinks is great!
-He told me on the way home that I was not the boss! (this one got him in trouble!)
-When talking to him about not talking sassy to us or his teachers, he responded, "well, I don't want to talk about that anymore."

We are in the process, as you can tell, of trying to communicate to Cade that talking back to us or his teachers is not acceptable. Have no clue where he gets that from-:)

I am learning to treasure each moment. I know there will be days down the road for more memories and more "big boy" moments, but for now I will treasure the "right now" moments!

Sweet Conversations...

2010-08-19T10:41:00.004-05:00

It has been a while since my last post.. School has started for us and so we stay busy. Cade's pre-school doesn't begin until September, but he has been going with me every morning. He is with his buddies and has loved every minute with them. He has missed them so much!
Yesterday one of his teachers had a sweet conversation with him in regards to his birthmark. Here is how it went:
Cade: "I can't go to sleep right now cause my eye has a birthmark.." (LOL!!)
Teacher: "Well, not sure about that, but how did you get that birthmark?" (of course they know, but wanted to hear what he would say)
Cade: " God gave it to me, cause he loves me."
Teacher: "How did you get it?"
At this point he gets confused about that process, how God came into his house and put that birthmark on his eye, so here was his conclusion:
Cade: " I think we were playing frisbee outside and the frisbee hit my eye and that is how I got it." hahahahahah!!!

First of all, gotta love his creativity for trying to get out of nap time! haha! I love these sweet moments and love that his teachers shared that with me yesterday, and that He does truly know that He is special!! Just made my day!!! Hope it makes yours as well!!

Making Progress

2010-08-02T17:31:00.002-05:00

Since my last post things have been going okay.. We did have to take Cade back to the doctor once again to have the patch removed again. This time the patch was saturated with drainage and not blood, so it had to be removed. Yes, it was very hard for Cade, but once it was off he was good to go. Dr. Mawn did not want to re-patch it and I was HIGHLY advising her not to. So as of today it is not patched and he is on the road to recovery.
Cade's eye is opening more each day and the swelling is going down. We are so grateful for the Lord answering our prayers each day! He is able and willing as Chris and I were reminded at church this weekend!
Cade is back to his normal self and back at it! He has been going non stop and he cannot wait for school to start back!
I wanted to thank each of you for praying for us during another difficult bump in the road! Cade just rolls with the punches, but it does wear on the Chris and I. We are continuing to rest in His presence and are being reminded each day that He is holding our hands through it all! Again, words cannot express how much your prayers have meant to us! We are thankful for each one of you! I will try to post pictures of Cade's progression soon! Thank ya'll again!! WE LOVE YOU!

Recovery Period

2010-07-26T16:28:00.002-05:00

Well, we have been home since Friday. We were so glad that we were able to go home! The discharging from the hospital was not so great. Cade had several things that needed to be removed before we left and they were all taped/glued to his skin. So that part was not fun. Other than that we have been home recovering. Chris' mom is in town and she has been so helpful!

We have run into a few setbacks while at home. Cade's eye has been bleeding since surgery, not profusely, but just bleeding. The patch over his eye became quite full yesterday so we had to visit the doctor today. The bleeding was running some, so we needed to get the patch changed. It was not a very pleasant visit to say the least. At this point, Cade is DONE! He is sooooo DONE WITH EVERYTHING...DOCTORS, HOSPITALS, TAPE, IV'S, ETC. So it was very traumatic for him to be held down today as they removed the patch and worked on him in the office.

I say all this for you to lift him up in your prayers. If the bleeding does not stop by Thursday of this week, they will have to go back in via surgery to stop the bleeding. This momma cannot take another surgery right now. So we are consistently praying that the Lord will intervene and stop the bleeding.

You know I have heard growing up in church "the Lord will never give you more than you can handle.." You know what, I don't believe that one bit. I believe He does give us more than we can handle because it is at that point that we need HIM the most and at that point we draw closer to HIM! It is during that time that we can find strength in HIM and find rest in HIM. I heard a song on the radio this week that pretty much sums up my feelings in the last few days, "when my strength is gone, You are mighty and strong, You keep holding, keep holding on!" It is in HIS presence that I find rest and strength! I will continue to cling to that fact and trust that HE is the GREAT PHYSICIAN!!

Update on Cade

2010-07-22T23:38:00.002-05:00

It is 11:40 and our "warrior" is sleeping very peacefully in the intensive care unit. The surgery was very successful and we are VERY thankful for all of your prayers. Cade was scheduled to have surgery today at 1:45, but because of a backup in the O.R. he did not go into surgery until 4. Keep in mind he was not allowed to eat all day. Our little man did not mention food or drink all day! That is unbelievable to me, but so God!!
He took it like a strong little boy and we are amazed at the strength the Lord gave him!!
They were able to remove a good portion of the malformation from his eyelids. According to the doctors Cade now has what they call an AVM-arterial venous malformation. There is not much difference in how it has to be treated, but it just means that there are artery components as well as veins. The MRI showed that the flow of this AVM has changed and now leads into the lid area which is why it has been so bulky in the last few months. The good news is that it is flowing toward the eyelids and not the brain!! Praises!!!
There are many other technical pieces to the operation which I won't divulge, just because I am not sure what all the terminology actually means right now, and it's 12:00 and I am just pooped!
Thank ya'll for all of your prayers!! We are very thankful for each and everyone one of you!!!
Soli Deo Gloria!!!

Prayers Needed Again...

2010-07-20T17:26:00.003-05:00

We are off to Vanderbilt Children's on Thursday the 22nd. Cade is scheduled is for another big procedure. It is similar to the one he had about a year ago. It is a very complex procedure with 2 doctors involved... Dr. Mericle and Dr. Mawn. We are not sure the length of the surgery, but the last took 7 hours. We are praying that the Lord will calm Cade as he enters the hospital on Thursday and that he will heal him quickly.
In this particular surgery they will remove more of the VM from his eyelids. Dr. Mericle will inject a glue-like substance into the eyelids which will harden the blood vessels. Dr. Mawn will then go in and remove what she can of the VM. Like I have stated in previous posts this is something that seems to be very complex and something Chris and I have come to believe will be a ongoing thing for Cade. I am not however completely sold on that fact, just because of how big of a God we serve and the power He has to completely heal Cade. I do believe that whole-heartedly!!!
If you will please lift up these two doctors on Thursday...pray for a calmness for Cade and that he does not get upset not having eaten all day(surgery is scheduled for 1:45-no food all day!), pray for a full recovery, and for this momma's heart!
I will update through facebook on Thursday and maybe some through the blog. Thank you again for all your prayers!!
Soli Deo Gloria-To God be the Glory!

love you all!!

SeaWorld

2010-07-12T14:19:00.004-05:00

The second part of our vacation was spent in Orlando. We took Cade to SeaWorld. He had a blast. We got there pretty early and just in time for the dolphin and bird show. Cade was mesmerized. Birds flew through the crowd and were so low that we thought they would hit our heads. So neat! Between shows we went to see all of the animal encounters...sea turtles, sharks, flamingos, sea lions, manatees, etc. We went to the sea lion and otter show too. It was funny and Cade enjoyed it. They had a stingray encounter where you could touch all of the stingrays. Cade would not go near the water. He was not that impressed and I couldn't make myself touch them either. He loved the dolphin encounter! We viewed them from underneath the tank as well. Of all the animals there, he hasn't stopped talking about the dolphins. He loved them!!!!
The last show we went to was the Shamu "Believe" show. I have always loved this show and amazed at the enormity of these animals. Incredible! It was an amazing show, but no trainer ever entered the water with the animals. I was guessing it was because of the death of one of the trainers last year at this park. Cade liked the show, but I think he could have watched the dolphin one all day.
By the end of the day we were all pooped!! We went back to the hotel and went for a swim.

We also happened to be about 20 minutes from Gwen who was in the Orlando area for Jeremiah's national championship game. They played teams from all over the nation and the championship game was Saturday. We drove over to watch Team 147 play and they won! On top of that Jeremiah won MVP. You have to remember, Jeremiah was like our own son when he was a baby. We practically help raise him and always took him places, so it was neat to get to watch him play. He is now 11. Crazy!! Another "extra" about going to watch him play was that Shaq was there. He was walking in the door as we were walking out. Jeremiah played his son's team earlier in the week and beat them. So of course I got a pic of him..Man, he is HUGE!

We headed to Madeira Beach that afternoon for the week with my parents. More on that later..

Satellite Beach..

2010-07-01T13:52:00.002-05:00

We have spent the last few days in Satellite Beach, Florida visiting Chris' Aunt Cathy. It is gorgeous down here and they live practically 3 minutes from the beach. We went to the beach yesterday and it is quite different from the gulf. The water is FREEZING and the waves are huge, which would explain why Cade wouldn't go near the water..Anyhoo, we have had a relaxing few days. Today we visited the marina so Cade could see the boats and huge manatees. It was a treat for all of us to see the manatees. So neat! Tomorrow we are headed to SeaWorld. Hoping the rain holds off for us and that Cade has the time of his life! To say it is HOT down here is an understatement..We have stayed cool thanks to Aunt Cathy's pool!!

VACATION!!!!

2010-06-27T15:49:00.003-05:00

So we are about to head out for a few days. Cade is so excited and has actually counted down how many more "sleeps" we have until we leave. We were planning to head to Orange Beach for a week, but the oil has changed our plans somewhat. So we decided to go visit Chris' aunt in Satellite Beach, Florida, on the Atlantic side. We will stay with them for a few days and decided since we are so close to Orlando we will make a stop to SeaWorld. Cade has not stopped talking about SeaWorld. He is not a big animal person, but has always loved ocean animals so this will be a special treat for him.
We are also going to be in Tampa for a week with my parents and my brother's family. Our vacation with them to Seagrove Beach was moved further down the coast also due to the oil. We are very ready for some family time and to spend more time with Chris before his crazy football schedule starts in July. We feel very blessed to be able to get away for a few weeks!

On a side note, we did hear from Cade's doctor this week regarding his recent MRI. It was not news that I wanted to hear. She told us that the VM has increased in size and is "different" in some areas. I am not sure what all this means, but I am not going to jump to conclusions either. Again, my prayer for Cade is really a miracle.. that our BIG God will just heal this VM and remove it or keep it from growing or re-appearing in other areas. That is my prayer. I was reminded again this morning during our worship service that "nothing is impossible for Him..nothing is impossible, because He holds the world in His hands!!!"

Will post more of our trip in a few days!!! Love you all!!!

My Celebrity Crush

2010-06-23T08:14:00.005-05:00

(disclaimer: i apologize for the randomness of this post-ha!..)

Okay, so everyone has one but not everyone would admit to having one. I must admit that my celebrity crush changes from time to time, but right now it is Carrie Underwood. Yes, I have a little obsession for her right now. Her new CD has been out for a while and Cade and I love to listen to it in the car. She is getting married in July and coming to Nashville on tour in October. I do not have tickets YET, but hope to get them!!! A few of my students went to a benefit concert last night for flood relief here in Nashville and guess who showed up??? She did!! They sent me a couple of pics of her performing. So great!!!

Off to the Races!!!

2010-06-18T09:30:00.007-05:00

Felt like it has been forever since I last posted. We are thoroughly enjoying our summer! We have had some fun times and it has been very relaxing.. very thankful that I have summers off.
We visited my parents a few weeks ago just to get out of town for a few days. As most of you know, Cade loves cars! He has so many hot wheels that we have given boxes away at times to other kids. It is all he plays with at home. He races with them, lines them up in many different ways, tows them to the garage to get fixed, etc.. It is what he loves to do.

My parents live about 5 minutes from the drag park. They have lived there for some time and you can always hear the races from their house at night.
We decided to take Cade to the races. Number one, I felt like the biggest redneck paying for a ticket to the drag race. Number two, was not dressed properly-I guess proper attire was cut off blue jean shorts, tank top and at least 3 tattoos on each arm. Number three a bad sunburn from being there all day!

My mom and I took Cade and we waited and watched several different kinds of cars each line up to race. It was very loud and I thought Cade would want to leave, but he just covered his ears and watched! He loved every minute of it and it was all he talked about for the next few days. Even now when he plays, he says, "red, yellow, green.."
It was fun to watch him enjoy something that he loves!

Back to VCH..

2010-06-04T08:39:00.002-05:00

We headed back to Vanderbilt Children's yesterday for Cade's MRI. He is having surgery in July so the doctors wanted to get a grasp on what they would be working with and how much of the VM is left in the orbit area. This is a routine procedure, but Cade's fear of the hospital never makes things so routine.
They gave him what we call "happy juice" to calm his nerves before they gave him his IV and it worked great. I would love to have some of that in a bottle here at the house at times! It always seems to make things a little bit more pleasant for him and his parents of course.
When he woke up in recovery he was ready to eat. They gave him teddy grahams and juice. He kept asking "can we go home now?" Because he wet himself earlier, they also gave him some Spiderman boxers that he has worn since we left the hospital..ha!
On the way home he kept saying,"they almost gave me a poke mommy.." So glad he didn't remember any of that!
He is doing great and was back to his old self by the time we got home yesterday. He is very excited, because today we are headed to Chattanooga to see Nana and Papa! That is all he has talked about since yesterday, so much so, he would not go to sleep last night! He loves to visit his Nana and Papa!!!

"Sweet Summertime"

2010-05-29T08:15:00.002-05:00

It is official, we are on summer break! Woo-Hoo!!! Sorry, haven't posted in a while, it has been quite busy the last few weeks of school as we were finishing up-reviewing for exams, making exams, and grading exams. Shuuuu..glad that is finally over!

This past week was Cade's last week of KidConnection. You all know how much I talk about Cade's best buddy Christopher and they truly are best friends. On Wednesday-which was the last day-Christopher's dad came to pick him up. I happened to be over there as well to pick up Cade. I watched the saddest thing..Cade had a complete meltdown when Christopher left. He cried, and cried, and cried. I had to reassure him that we would see Christopher some this summer! It was so sweet to watch, but also so sad.

Cade is really excited about the summer. He has always had to have some sort of schedule and plan for the day. He wants to know what we are doing every hour. So looks like I will have to make lesson plans for Cade for the week-HA! So after the meltdown at school we talked about the summer. His words to me on the way home: "mommy, it's summer now, and we can plant flowers and watch them grow, and go to the beach house, and play in the elephant sprinkler.." Of course in his own lingo. So cute! He can't wait to go to the beach house and we can't either. Let's just hope we aren't swimming in oil!!!

Usually in the summer we try to have some things done to his eye. It is the best time since Chris and I are not working and can stay home with him as he recovers. This summer is no exception. So we are asking once again for your prayers this summer for Cade. Here is his schedule for the next few months: June 3rd- MRI of brain and orbit, July 14th-Ohio to check his eye pressure, and July 22nd-Removal of more of the VM off the eyelids. In all of these procedures he will be put to sleep and this has usually been the hardest part for Cade-the IV's beforehand. The July 22nd procedure will be a big procedure to remove the remainder of the VM from top and bottom eyelids. Dr. Mawn and Dr. Mericle will both be involved in this procedure. The last surgery he had with them lasted for 7 hours. We are very thankful that they are both here in Nashville.

As with all of these surgeries, we are praying for both Cade and his doctors. As I was reminded this week in my book "Power of A Praying Parent" we are reading in my community group, the Bible is filled with healing promises. He heals but He also heals through doctors! That is where my prayers have been for Cade since we learned that this was more complex than what we thought. That He would just heal Cade and take away whatever is left of this VM! We are asking that He would touch him with His healing power and to restore him to total health! We are also so grateful as Isaiah 53:5 says that "through His stripes we are healed!" Another verse that I found this week that I love is also from the book of Isaiah. It says "Your light shall break forth like the morning, your healing shall spring forth speedily, and your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard." (Is. 58:8)
I am so thankful for the many healing promises found in scripture!
Will try to keep you all updated on all our fun this summer! Happy Summer everyone!

Fun with Mommy....

2010-05-19T18:15:00.003-05:00

We finally were able to take Cade to the zoo this past weekend afer about 3 weeks of rain. It was a reward for the great job he did while we had to put 6 drops in his eye each day for about 2 weeks. My parents were in town and they were very excited about getting to go with us as well. Cade has always liked animals from a far off, which is why he likes the zoo so much. We do not have any pets at home and don't think he would even entertain the fact if we even thought about it. He likes them to have their distance from him, so zoos are perfect. We actually saw many animals this time and they weren't hidden or asleep. We fed the koi fish cheezits, which I am probably sure was forbidden, but it brought them all to where we were and they fought over the food. Cade loved that!

He loved seeing the tigers and alligators, but didn't want to get too close to the glass. He kept asking to see the elephants and giraffes, so we made our way over there and of course the elephants were behind the massive rocks. I got some great pics of the zebras and giraffes. In fact, one giraffe posed for me-ha!

These special times never get old for me! I love to see and hear his excitement. I love to hear him laugh and try to explain how excited he is! Even better is the next day when we go to school and he tells every teacher about his fun day at the zoo. Love that!

I am looking forward to spending more time with him this summer and just having fun everyday! These are reasons why being a teacher is the greatest.. we have the summers off!!!!

WE ARE NASHVILLE!

2010-05-07T10:03:00.003-05:00

If you remember the movie WE ARE MARSHALL, the storyline was about coming together during the midst of a tragedy and pressing forward despite the odds. Never has this been more clear than in the past week here in Nashville. Our community has come together like no other to help those who have nothing. It is a picture that I drive through each day, houses gutted, yards filled with dry wall, appliances, toys, insulation, carpet, etc. We have church groups, businesses, restaurants who have come out to help each and everyday. It has been amazing to see people take days off work to come and help. Stay at home moms finding sitters so that they can go help. Pizza places walking the neighborhood delivery pizzas to volunteers and homeowners. I am so thankful to live in place where the community has truly become one in the hopes to rebuild neighborhoods and the city of Nashville. It will take some time, but we will get there.

Chris and I have not had cable/internet since last Saturday which is the least of the problems in Boone Trace, so have not had access to the news. I did hear that Anderson Cooper from CNN was in the Bellevue area yesterday. I am so thankful that someone is addressing this situation at the national level! If you would like to donate items there are many drop off locations around the Nashville area. Our church has a location at the HWY 70 old Circuit City building next to Home Depot. Any type of donation would be great! I know many of the homeowners in our area requested gift cards.
Please continue to pray for our city and the families that have nothing! We are strong, we will survive, WE ARE NASHVILLE!

We are Here and SAFE!!!

2010-05-05T13:43:00.003-05:00

We are safe and sound in Nashville. It has been a crazy few days. I will have to blog later about what we have experienced here, but it has been heart breaking! I have put a couple of pics up of some of our neighborhood. Boone Trace looks like a war zone right now. It has been very hard to drive down our street in the last few days and see homes and lives that have been destroyed. I am very thankful our house was spared, but I have felt guilty about being one of the three homes that were spared. Chris and I are still trying to process everything. We won't have neighbors for some time and I think that is what is so hard for us. Please pray for the Boone Trace community and the remainder of the flood victims around Nashville! Will post more later! Thank you to everyone for your prayers!!
(the pics are from the front of our house and our street Boone Trace)

The Next Step....

2010-04-26T18:14:00.002-05:00

Cade had a checkup today with his doctor here in Nashville, Dr. Mawn. It is crazy now, that I have to specify which doctor he is seeing-Waner, Fay, Nerad, Holland, Mericle, Mawn, Heil. Anyway, she told us that it looks as if the VM is becoming more apparent in both eyelids. The next step is to wait for another scan, which could be a CT, CTA, MRI, or MRA from Dr. Mericle who helped with the previous surgery in February. After assessing the imaging they will go back in and remove what they can. The process of removing this VM completely looks like it will be a long term thing.

I think the hardest part of the visit today was finally realizing that this is something we could be dealing with for a long time. Vascular malformations/venous malformations grow as the child grows, which explains the growth in both eyelids. The great part about all of it, is that what has been removed in the past has not returned! So we will take one day at a time, one procedure at a time, one doctor visit at a time.

The most important part about all of this is that we continue to work on the amblyopia. Cade's vision in his bad eye is 20/50. So we will continue to use the Atropine drops in the good eye so that he will use the bad eye. Yes, that is how we refer to his eyes, "good" and "bad."
So with the strength from the Lord we will continue on this journey and we will "wait." We know He is the great healer and He has taught us so much!

On another note, Cade has been awesome through all of this and his conversations with us have been so cute. In our last visit to Ohio they upped the dosage of his drops to 6 times per day. We made a sticker chart for him and he gets a sticker for every drop. At the end of the week he gets a big surprise. This past week we took him to the "pizza place." This weekend we are taking him to the zoo. He has done great and he is looking forward to seeing all the animals.
I do have to share one more moment from Cade this week. Every morning he goes to early care and he is in there for about an hour with kids his age and some older kids. Before the kids leave for their classrooms for the day, Ms. Anna takes prayer requests from the kids and prays. Today Cade's teacher told me that he raised his hand and asked to "pray for his eye." So he and his buddy Christopher held hands and they prayed together for his eye. This made my day and brought tears to my eyes.
Yes Cade, Jesus will take care of you and your eye. You are getting so big and you are one tough kid!! I know the Lord has huge plans for your life and I can't wait to see what He has in store for you! I love you so much and so sad that you have to deal with all of this at a young age, but we know the Lord is going to use you in mighty ways!!

My glass is FULL!

2010-04-15T19:18:00.004-05:00

We just returned from a follow up visit for Cade in Ohio. We saw Dr. Holland again today and he wanted to make sure the eye was healing properly. It seems as if Cade's tissue is reacting to the graft that was placed in the eye a month ago and is inflammed. This can cause the tissue to melt the graft and the scarring to re-appear on the cornea. So our instructions are to continue with the steroid drops not 4 times a day, but 6! Wow..it was hard just getting 4 in a day, now 6? On top of that we have an ointment we have to use each night. We will return the first week in May and Dr. Holland will assess Cade in the O.R. He will check the eye pressure and if the tissue is still inflammed, he will give Cade a steroid shot to decrease the inflammation immediately.

So where am I in all of this??? Let's just say that I have had so much strength for four years as I dealt with stares, doctor visits, surgeries, procedures, paying doctor bills,etc. but it seems as though Satan is attacking me and my strength is becoming weak. I feel weak and I feel that I cannot go another four years of this. My glass is FULL! Yes, I realize there are many children who go through so much worse and visit the doctor everyday and I am thankful that our son is a healthy 4 year old, but this momma is tired!!! I am tired of watching Cade tremble every time we visit the hospital. I am tired of doctor visits. I am tired of the process we go through each time we have to hold him down to put drops in his eyes. I am tired of explaining to strangers why his eye is blue. I am tired of all the stares. I am tired of not knowing what surgery will come next and what state we will have to travel to next. I am tired of receiving medical bills in the mail every day! When will it be over???? Is this our life now??? My glass is almost spilling over.. (okay,a momma has to vent ever so often)

I know this is all Satan!! The Lord has provided me the strength that I needed every time. He has walked through each door before we even knew what door we were going to walk through. He has been my rock. He has brought me comfort on many occasions. He has carried Cade through every procedure successfully. Today I just feel tired, not physically, but emotionally I am spent. Days like these don't come often, but these are the days where I must completely surrender all!! "Come to me all who are weary and heavy burdened and I will give you rest." Matt. 11:28 It is a promise. A promise kept by the ONE who tells us to leave our burdens at the foot of the cross and find rest in HIM! In the days ahead I will cling to that promise knowing that is where true rest is found..IN HIM!!! Thank you JESUS for a glass that is FULL! (did I just actually write that??)

Cade and Christopher

2010-04-09T09:53:00.002-05:00

Most of you who follow my blog know that I have talked about Cade's buddy Christopher. They both attend school together and they absolutely love each other. Cade prays for Christopher every night. He asks about him each morning when he wakes up-he wants to know what class he is in for the day because Christopher only comes three days a week. He treasures this friendship so much and we are so thankful that he has this close friend.

Part of Cade's healing for his eye requires us to put drops in his eyes 4 times a day. So this means I go over during my lunch period to put the drop in his eye. Each day I get Cade off the playground and bring him in to put the drop in. Christopher always comes in with us and helps me. He holds the top for the drops and watches me put the drops in Cade's eye. It is so cute. Cade loves it and the teacher gives them both a treat. I think they both like that the best--HA!

Cade's birthday this year fell on a Wednesday. So I thought it would be great for Christopher to come home with us for a little while. Wow!! They had the best time. They both laughed at each other the entire time. We went to the playground, threw rocks in the creek, and had dinner at McDonalds. They were both so hungry. They each had a hamburger and chicken nuggets. It was so cute to watch them interact with each other!

Chris and I are so thankful for all the friends the Lord has blessed Cade with. He loves going to school and loves his buddy Christopher!!!

The river, Cade's birthday, and Easter

2010-04-05T08:52:00.003-05:00

I have been such a slacker that last few weeks in blog world. We have been extremely busy since returning from Ohio. Cade has healed quite well and we are so thankful!
One of his favorite things to do is visit the river. Since we live quite close to the Harpeth, it is just a hop, skip, and a jump away. We decided to take him fishing also. I thoroughly enjoy to fish. My dad used to take us all the time growing up and I fell in love with it. Chris, on the other hand could care less about it.
We followed the trail down to the river and began to fish. Cade did it for about 5 minutes and then he wanted to throw rocks. I thought I had caught something there for a few minutes and then realized it was a rock! HA! Cade was not that interested..he has always loved just throwing rocks, so we did that for about 30 minutes.

The next Saturday we celebrated Cade's 4th birthday! He wanted a wrestling party (W.W.E. style). This year we only did the family thing. We had a great time. Some of his favorite gifts were the wrestling belt, his own fishing pole and tackle box, soccer goals, and a bike. We had a great time and the weather was awesome!!! I can't believe I have a 4 yr. old. He is growing up too fast!!!

This past weekend we celebrated Easter with my parents in Chattanooga. Cade had a special time with Nana and Papa as Chris and I went on an date. They took him to Chuck E Cheese and to get ice cream! He had a blast!! Cade had two easter egg hunts-one on Saturday and Sunday. Being the only child there is obviously no one to compete with finding the eggs. We had gorgeous weather all weekend and so thankful that Spring has sprung!!!

?????????????

2010-03-16T15:07:00.005-05:00

Cade got through another successful surgery this morning. He was the first case this morning so we were in and out of surgery by 10. Chris and I spoke with both Dr. Holland and Nerad. They were not able to do everything as planned due to what is left of Cade's VM in his orbit area. We were somewhat surprised that there was enough left to hinder Dr.Nerad's part of the procedure, but we knew it was possible for it to return or it was left from the last surgery.
Dr. Holland successfully removed the scarring off the cornea and also separated some of the tissue from his eyelids. They did not have to take skin from his mouth and they did not have to put in a doughnut ring in his eye, which we were so thankful for! They were not able to put in the tear duct stint or mobilize the eye more than what it is now due to the VM. Both doctors were impressed by the complexity of Cade's VM and we talked for some time about a "long term plan." The good news is this VM will NOT affect his vision. It might be something he has for a while, but will not limit his visual access.
So what does this look like for Cade? Will he have more surgeries? When will we be through? Will this eventually be gone? The answers are not all quite clear to me now and I hope that we will have clarity in the months to come. I do know this: I know we will establish a long term plan once we return to Nashville. I know the Lord has led us to GREAT doctors. I know Cade is strong-we have thrown everything at him in 4 years and he has rolled with the punches! I know we serve a big God who is way bigger than all of this! I know He will continue to give us strength through it all!

Thank you to all of our family and friends for your continued prayers! We are thankful for the prayers of His people. My mom called me last night and told me we had friends in Japan, Mexico, and Peru praying for Cade! How cool is that?? We truly felt all of them! Thank you again!!

Right now, Cade is resting with his blanket, lion, bear, puppy, and some animal the hospital gave him--we are not sure what it is-HA! Safe to say, he is in good hands..

Love you All!!!

Bitter Sweet..

2010-03-09T18:20:00.003-06:00

This time next week we will be in Ohio taking care of Cade after surgery. This happens to be our spring break, so that is why this spring break will be bitter sweet. His surgery is scheduled for next Tuesday, the 16th. We are praying for many things in regards to this procedure. Since we are dealing with new doctors and facilities, my worries have increased, not because of efficiency, but with how Cade will do in a new place.
I have spent the last two nights just praying for many things, Cade's fears, the procedures themselves, no profuse bleeding, doctors involved, Cade's pain afterwards, etc. My tendencies are to worry, it is how I sometimes prepare myself for what's to come. I know it is not healthy, and the Lord is teaching me everyday to leave these cares at the foot of the cross. As a mom, it is hard. I want to make things better. I want Cade not to be afraid. I want to make sure he is not in pain. I want to heal his eye. This is ALL out of my control and that can be hard at times. Again, it is during these times, the Lord chooses to exercise my "trust muscles." He has brought Cade through many surgeries, why should I doubt Him now?

Who knew that four years after Cade was diagnosed with a VM we would still be on this journey. It has been a long journey, but Chris and I would have it no other way. We have been blessed by Cade and his strength through it all and it has brought us closer to Christ in the midst of these difficult times. He has been that calm presence that surrounded us in the hospital room,the waiting room,the operating room, and in the doctor offices. I cannot tell you how many times I have been at peace as Cade would leave my arms and head toward the OR. I was scared for him, but I was at peace knowing that the Lord was holding him in the palms of his hands. So next Tuesday will not be any different. This surgery will follow the same format. We will be in constant prayer for Cade and his doctors-Dr. Holland and Dr. Nerad. We will pray for success and for a full recovery, and that his pain will be limited. I will try to post again sometime Tuesday after surgery.
We would so appreciate your prayers for Cade, Dr. Holland,Dr. Nerad, and the many surrounding nurses and staff working on Cade.
He is "our warrior" and one tough boy!!! He will do great!
Soi Deo Gloria!

A Tired Little Boy....

2010-03-02T16:25:00.002-06:00

This is what happens when you have to get up at 6:00 a.m. and go to work with mommy early because she has a meeting at school, plus no nap today. I got off the phone with my mom this afternoon on my way home from school and knew Cade was awful quiet. I turned around and he was plopped over in his booster sound asleep. "He was worn slap out," as my mom would say. So cute!

"The Power of A Praying Parent"

2010-02-26T09:50:00.002-06:00

For a few years, ever since Chris and I began attending Crosspoint I really felt the need to get involved in a small group. Each time the chance would come, there was always something that interfered with the group I was interested in attending, work, Cade, Chris' job.. always something. This year when community group sign ups began, I made a point to seek a group that would be feasible and that I would make work, no matter what. So I received an email that a group of women met on Monday nights at the church. I was very excited that finally I would be able to meet other women while learning more about my Savior, all at the same time. The hindrance now was the time. The group met very late and I wouldn't be getting home until 10, but something(Holy Spirit) kept saying "so what?" I went back and forth about "should I go or not?" I finally decided to email the sweet lady who invited me and tell her I would not be attending. I felt awful, but again I felt a nudging of don't quit, try to find one that works. The next day, I received an email from one of the directors of Crosspoint's small groups and she sent me some information regarding another group that met just up the street from me. I was overjoyed. The time was great and she lived just 2 minutes from me. I could actually walk there..which I will be doing when spring decides to arrive.
Anyway, this group is a working moms' group that meets on Thursday nights. They had already met twice, so I had some catching up to do. We are working through Stormie Omartian's book The Power of a Praying Parent.
I felt so welcomed and it was so neat to hear everyone share about their own children as we discussed issues such as control, worry, fear, ect. This group is very unique. There are single moms, divorced moms, those with one, two, or three children,and those who are expecting their first child. I am very excited about what the Lord is going to do in my life over the next several weeks. One thing I know already, is that I must DAILY give Cade to the Lord. Its not a one time thing such as a baby dedication, but everyday I must say "Lord, He is yours and He is in good hands, and I believe that you are good and you want what is best for Cade!" Soli Deo Gloria..

Growing up...

2010-02-17T18:22:00.003-06:00

We have entered a new phase with Cade in the last few days. He has just begun calling Chris and I "mom and dad." You see, this wouldn't be such a big deal if he was 12 or 13, but at 4? We are used to hearing "mommy and daddy." I am just not prepared for him to sound so grown up I guess. He says "he is getting big now," when we ask him why he calls us mom and dad. I can't believe how much he has grown from 3 to 4.(his birthday is next month) He has already told us that he wants a wrestling party for his birthday..not sure what that is going to look like.

Chris and I are so proud that Cade has also memorized his first Bible verse, "With God all things are possible." Matt. 19:26 We thought it was quite sad that he knew words to some songs--that I won't mention--yet he didn't know a Bible verse. We are so proud of Cade and I hope that one day this verse will speak into his life as it has ours!

"I Gotta Feeling....."

2010-02-15T16:23:00.002-06:00

So this past Friday, I was able to go to the Black Eyed Peas concert with some of my students. It was an amazing concert despite the other bands that performed before the B.E.P. We had alot of fun and I enjoyed the entire performance. Fergie sang some of her hits like "Big Girls, Don't Cry" and "Glamorous." She was amazing! So glad I had the opportunity to see them! Big shout out to Erin and Shelby!! Thanks for all the fun!

Being the Hands and Feet of Jesus..

2010-02-10T09:41:00.005-06:00

So this is an unusual post, but felt that I needed to share. This is a post that was shared about the many steps of faith that we all take within a lifetime that change us for the good. They are difficult roads that we all have been on that carry pain, tiredness, discouragement, etc, but the rewards are truly great and they are HIS most treasured gifts because they bring us one step closer to HIM! May you be blessed by Gwen's words! Love ya sista and thankful for your friendship!

(could not figure out how to add the link, so you might have to type in the address..sorry)

http://nohandscurrentinfo.blogspot.com/2010/02/how-can-i-adopt-precious-maggie-josie.html

Winter Fun-2010

2010-02-02T08:51:00.002-06:00

Nashville got an unusual amount of snow this past week and we took full advantage of it. Cade was very excited about all the snow. We all got 2 snow days which was great! We went sledding down our hill with friends, built a snowman, threw snowballs, shoveled the driveway, and had the best time! Although Cade didn't enjoy the sledding as much, he loved pushing everyone down the hill. So much fun!

"Zing, Zang, Zoom"

2010-01-26T09:57:00.002-06:00

We had a sweet family treat us to circus tickets this year and it was a blast. We went last year with Nana and Papa, but this year we took one of Cade's buddies, Ace. We had great seats. We first got the boys a cirus toy that lights up. They loved it! In fact when you ask Ace what his favorite part of the circus was he says, "a toy." Cade really loved the animals. He was more "in to" the circus this year than the last. He could care less about all of the different acts that are performed. He kept asking where the animals were. He really loved the elephants! He could have watched them the entire show. He also enjoyed the zebra, puppies, and tigers. He kept saying, "they didn't have yions mommy, just tigers." If you ask him his favorite part of the circus he says the fire. In one act a man jumps through a fire ring. He LOVED that!! We had a great time and a great weekend. Chris had a tournament and was not in town, so it was a weekend date with mommy. I would not trade anything in the world for that time with him!

"I wuv you mommy.."

2010-01-14T18:51:00.003-06:00

Can I tell you that those are the sweetest words that I have ever heard. In the past few months these are words that I have begun to hear often. At any time under any circumstances, Cade will say, "I wuv you mommy." No matter what is going on at the time, it always stops me in my tracks and melts my heart! It is so funny, because it is always out of the blue, unless I tell him I love him first. It always takes me by surprise, but the words mentioned mean so much.
As I write this I am reminded how our Father whispers these words to us much in the same way. Whatever the circumstances may be- good or bad, He is constantly whispering "I love you." So comforting, if only we would take it as said like a child. He really does love us...if you can't understand that or if you don't realize how much he loves us, just take one glimpse at the cross and see the one Son he gave for us!
I love when Cade speaks these words, and sometimes they follow a request for something like candy, or wanting me to play with him, but usually he just tells me this just because. I treasure this daily, knowing one day these words might not be heard as often as I would like. I am thankful for his precious heart and for his words that are expressed daily!
I love you more Cade!!!!

Snow Day 2010

2010-01-08T13:56:00.004-06:00

We got our first snow of the new year this week and it started out a little weak on Thursday but by today we have about 2 inches.. It's not much, but enough for us to get out in it for a little while. Cade was so excited about the possibility of snow Wednesday night. We spent some time playing in the snow yesterday and went out today for only about 10 minutes...it is 10 degrees! Chris and I have been out of school for the past two days. It has been great for us, but Cade is getting stir crazy!! He has had strep so he was only at school one day this week.
We made the most of our "little" snow. Cade rode his truck and acted as a snow plow for the roads. He also enjoyed making snow balls and a very "mini" snowman. This has to be the smallest snowman ever!(you have to look very closely to find him..he is in the first pic on the bottom left- HAAHAAH!!!) Thankful for the snow days, but ready for summer already!!
By the way, if any of you weren't watching ABC last night Alabama beat Texas in the national championship game!! Whoop! Whoop!! Roll Tide!!!

The Brian Bowl.. BCS Championship

2010-01-05T08:58:00.002-06:00

This week will be one to remember as we anticipate the BCS Championship in the Brian household. I am from Alabama so will be rooting for the Tide, while Chris will be pulling for his Longhorns since he is from Texas. I always root for Texas during the season since they are in the Big12 and Alabama in the SEC...they never play each other, but we are very excited about this game. I do like Colt McCoy from Texas and that he is outspoken about his faith, and I am so thrilled that Mark Ingram won the Heisman from Alabama. Cade will be rooting for Bama....although he goes around the house holding up his hands in the "hook em' horn" sign. When we watch any football game no matter who is playing, he always asks if Alabama is gonna win or is winning..so cute! Last night he was at the fridge saying, "aldabama gonna win, aldabama gonna win."
We will see what happens..# 1 v. #2, but I think the picture speaks for itself!
Roll Tide!!!

Christmas pics..

2009-12-26T21:08:00.005-06:00

Just a few pictures of what Christmas was like at the Brians'. We had a wonderful time with my parents. Cade got way too much of course, but he got everything he asked for. He actually woke up late Christmas morning, but was ready to open his gifts. The night before I read him the Christmas story. He knew the story of Christmas from school, but we read it together as a family. I love the book because it illustrates the best gift that was given and the best gift that we can give Jesus..."ourselves." The last page of the book is a mirror to illustrate the gift. Love that!!

A few favorite things Cade got for Christmas: Tonka remote control car, ambulance and police car, garbage truck, WWE figurines-Triple H and Randy Orton, and his hungry hippos game.

We are very thankful for all of our family in Tennessee, Ohio, and Texas and wish we could all be together for Christmas one day! Thank you for making this day so special for us! We love you all!!

Cousins...

2009-12-22T11:22:00.004-06:00

So one of the great things about our trip to Ohio last week was that I was able to see my sister. We don't get to see each other that much so it is always a joy when we are together. Cade and Holland are four months apart and obviously they haven't seen each other in quite some time. It didn't matter, the two hit it off immediately. As we sat in the waiting room for our second appointment, the two played football-all out I might add. In fact, they were playing so hard they hit another patient with the football who was waiting as well. That did not go over so well-the patient actually took the football with them back to their room as the boys cried. I thought surely he was just kidding with the boys, but no, he was furious and told us we needed to control our kids...Chris' response was so funny: "They are three, get over it!"
Anyway, I did happen to get a few pics of the boys at Hill's house and of course my new niece Addison. They played so well together and wish we all lived closer. Love you all! Mom, I hope you enjoy these!

A Temporary Distress....

2009-12-18T15:45:00.004-06:00

"..your difficulty can be seen as a slight, temporary distress that is producing for you a transcendent Glory never to cease!" (Sarah Young)

We arrived at Dr. Holland's office at 9:30, appointment was at 10:00. We were not sure how long it would take so we came well prepared to keep Cade entertained. He had a backpack full of books and toys and I brought my laptop. Thank goodness...we were there for 4 hours. Cade did great! He was such a trooper. We met with Dr. Holland and he layed out a plan for Cade.
Our next appointment was with the plastics specialist at 2:00, so we hurried out and arrived just in time. We met up with my sister, her son, and her new baby. She is so cute and little. Holland and Cade played with each other the whole time. We then met with Dr. Nerad and he also layed out a plan along with Dr. Holland. At this point, we were somewhat overwhelmed with what had to be done to remove the scarring from the cornea. I will try to describe it the best I can:

Dr. Holland will be using donor cornea to replace the scar tissue on the eye that has developed on the cornea. This scar tissue is also attached to the inside of Cade's eyelid. Dr. Nerad will resect the eyelid away from the tissue using mucous membrane to keep the lid from re-attaching to the donor cornea. The mucous membrane will come from the inside of Cade's mouth-either the inside of his bottom lip or the inside of his jaw. Dr. Nerad will then put a ring/doughnut shape device in Cade's eye that will keep the eyelid and cornea from re-attaching while they both heal. There is also a possibility that they will stitch the eyelids shut for a week so that nothing interferes with the device or Cade rubs it or whatever. They also might put a stint in his tear duct to help the watering of his eye. We will have to return a week after surgery and then 3 weeks out and then 6 weeks out.

So you can see that we were overwhelmed, but we were very confident at the same time. Both of these doctors are the best at what they do and they both spoke very highly of Cade's doctor here in Nashville. In fact, they all know each other's work and have the ultimate respect for what they do.

We haven't set a date yet and will wait to hear from them in the next two weeks. Looks like we will be making a few trips back to Ohio and that I will be seeing alot of my sister in the months to come which I am grateful for!

So here is what Jesus said to me the morning of our doctor appointments via "Jesus Calling:"
"When you are plagued by a persistent problem-one that goes on and on-view it as a rich opportunity. An ongoing problem is like a tutor who is always by your side. The learning possibilities are limited only by your willingness to be teachable. In faith, thank Me for your problem. Ask Me to open your eyes and your heart to all that I am accomplishing through this difficulty. Once you have become grateful for a problem, it loses its power to drag you down. On the contrary, your thankful attitude will lift you up into heavenly places with Me. From this perspective, your difficulty can be seen as a "slight, temporary distress that is producing for you a transcendent Glory never to cease!"

Love that Jesus was speaking to me before I even had a clue about the day at hand and how even in overwhelming moments He is there to reassure us and remind us that this is just a temporary distress. We should open our eyes and hearts to what He is accomplishing through this difficulty.

To God alone be the glory!

carlee

Another step in our Journey...

2009-12-14T20:31:00.002-06:00

When we visited NYC in January of '08, Dr. Fay removed a portion of the VM from white part of his eyeball and eyelid. It was a very successful surgery, but a very difficult recovery for Cade. When the VM was removed Dr. Fay used an amniotic membrane graft that would work like a bandaid on the white part of Cade's eyeball. About three hours post-op, Cade begin to get very agitated and upset. We think he might have been in some pain, not sure, but his eye began to bleed profusely. It is something Chris and I will never forget as we watched the blood go through his bandage and down his face...practically everywhere. Once things were under control the doctor came in to tell us that the graft probably did not hold and we would have to make a trip back to NYC to repair it.

Our prayers were answered when they examined him the next morning and the graft was still there. Over the course of the year, this graft has led to some scarring on his cornea that needs to be removed.

So this is where we are in our journey. Our surgeon here suggested that we see a cornea specialist in Ohio. We will be heading up to the Cincinnati Eye Institute this week to meet with the best-Dr. Holland-a cornea specialist and we will also see a plastics specialist.

We are praying that the Lord will give the doctors wisdom and discernment in what needs to take place regarding Cade's cornea. From this point, I am not quite sure what the next step will be, but I know that the Lord has been walking with us through this journey all along. He has been our provider, healer, protector, encourager, etc.
through it all.

"In everything, in everything, we will shout for your glory....In everything, in everything, we will shout for your praise!" This was one of our worship songs this past Sunday.. I love it!! It is a reminder to give Him praise and glory through our highs and lows and it points us to the One who gave His everything for us..what a great reminder this Christmas!!!

Addison Kaye Young

2009-12-04T12:26:00.002-06:00

Today, at 10:16 I became another proud Aunt of a new niece...Addison Kaye Young. My sister delivered a healthy baby girl, 8 lbs. 9 oz and 20 1/2 inches long. She is the cutest...and the biggest little girl I have seen. No wonder Hillary was having so much trouble toward the end of her pregnancy. She is absolutely adorable with so much hair.. I love it!! I cannot wait to meet her and hold her! Both Hillary and Addison are doing great and Holland is going to be the best big brother. Congrats to all of them and we are praying for you all!! We love you baby Addison!

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year.....

2009-12-01T10:02:00.002-06:00

Well, we survived Thanksgiving with the family, but didn't go without some type of event in regards to Cade. Evidently, he is allergic to dogs. My dad's dog licked him in the eye and it immediately began to swell... not good. It was irritating him so much because of the itchiness. We gave him some Benadryl and it helped quite a bit, but it took all day for the swelling to go down. Anyways, it never fails... We had a great time with my brother and his family. My sister could not come due to the fact that is about to deliver her 2nd child..Addison..at any time. (can't wait to meet her)
I actually went shopping on Black Friday this year, but didn't go until about 10. I went to Walmart to try to find some of Cade's things he had asked for Christmas, and all of them were on sale! It was awesome! I thought for sure everything would be gone. Got some great deals!
Cannot believe it is December already! This morning it was 29 degrees...yep it's December alright!! Chris and I have already put up our tree and my friend Jennifer came over and helped me decorate my home for Christmas.. it looks awesome! She is so good and I am awful...so awful!
Last year after Christmas we bought some decorations that were half off, including 2 houses that light up. I put one in Cade's room. You should have seen his face when he saw it. He loves it! He just stares at it and watches the little people skate around the tree. I am so excited to watch him interact with us during Christmas. He loves everything about this time of the year... he gets that from his dad!! He still calls Santa Clause, Christmas.. so cute.
We are heading to Ohio on the 16th of this month to meet with two doctors in regards to the scarring on Cade's cornea, Dr. Holland, the cornea specialist and Dr. Nerad, the plastics specialist. Please pray for wisdom for us as we determine the next step for Cade. Although this is just the next step, I am very thankful that we are nearing the end of this process. We also received a very positive report on his vision last month..Praise the Lord!! Cade kept saying very excitedly," My eye gettin' better!"
Praise Him from whom all blessings flow!

carlee

Thankful!

2009-11-19T09:24:00.002-06:00

Every year we have so much to be thankful for and this year is no exception. There have been many times that I have been in awe of what God had done in our lives, as well as, our family and friends' lives! 2009 brought with it times where we were thankful in the good and the bad. We learned so much through our struggles and were thankful for them. All we saw were messes that were made not knowing that God was weaving a beautiful work within us. He was turning our messes into a message! Love that! Here are just a few things we are thankful for:
-Cade's progress with his eye-successful surgeries!
-A job-one that I love!
-healthy family-mom and dad
-My sister's pregnancy and little Addison
-My brother's new job in Memphis and his family
-Children who have been adopted and have a forever family
-new friends that the Lord has given me-Jennifer and Tosha-love you both!!
-vacations spent with family at the beach
-being able to visit Chris' family each summer in Texas
-financial provisions that came only from the Lord!
-a new home
-Cade's friends-Joshua, Timmy, Christopher, Caleb and Ace
-Cade's teachers-they love him like their own
-the Lord's wisdom in making decision regarding Cade's eye
-my salvation!
-too many to post!

We are so blessed and thankful beyond words! The Lord has given us so much and my prayer is that I begin to look for more ways to bless others who have nothing.

I just finished reading Crazy Love and at the end of the book Francis Chan gives us several stories of ordinary people doing extraordinary things. Those whom the Lord gave much to they gave back ten-fold. The story that I loved was about a doctor named Nathan Barlow. The Lord called him to Ethiopia to minister to people who had a disease called "mossy foot." What this disease did to the people there was similar to those who where lepers in OT times. They were considered outcasts. Dr. Barlow became sick and had to take some medical leave out of the country for a while to receive treatment for a tooth. He hated being out of Ethiopia and was so distressed about being gone from his mission, he ordered the doctor to remove ALL his teeth and give him dentures so that he wouldn't have this problem again and he would not have to leave the Ethiopian people. He loved this country so much, when he passed away he was returned to Ethiopia and buried there.

This doctor had so much, but he gave so much! This was just one of many who sought after God's kingdom instead of their own, because they knew their treasure was being stored in Heaven!

My prayer is the same, not to look at earthly pleasures, but to seek His kingdom first and to look for opportunities to help those in need..

Be thankful!

Blessings,
cb

I was country when country wasn't cool...

2009-11-12T16:26:00.001-06:00

So the CMA's were AMAZING! I was so excited that by the time I got in the car to go I had already used the bathroom 4 times. When we arrived, I began looking for everyone. Our seats were incredible. We sat to the right of the stage. It was a big night for Taylor Swift-becoming the youngest to ever win Entertainer of the Year. Her performances were fun to watch. Some of the highlights of the night for me were:
1. Seeing all the gorgeous dresses Carrie Underwood wore as host.
2. The Zac Brown Band performing "Devil went down to Georgia"-what an amazing fiddle player
3. Sugarland's performance.
4. Watching Tim and Faith present Entertainer of the Year.
5. Daughtry performance with Vince Gill.
6. Lady Antebellum...
7. Watching Brooks and Dunn's last performance together on the CMA's.
8. The puns regarding Kanye West's interruption of Taylor Swift at the MTV awards.
9. Carrie Underwood's performance of "Cowboy Cassanova"
10. Martina McBride and George Strait's rendition of Barbara Mandrell's "I was country when country wasn't cool." (she was inducted into the country music hall of fame)

An unbelievable night for me and one that I will never forget. Thank you to the Adcocks for taking me! I took some pics, but they were not great! My camera could not get anywhere close to the stage..hate that, but here are a few!

2009-11-10T12:41:00.001-06:00

Country Music Awards!

2009-11-10T12:09:00.004-06:00

So everybody already knows by now, but I got tickets to the 43rd CMA's this year! I cannot tell you how excited I am.. I have been wanting to attend this forever! I did attend a small awards show about 6 years ago, but nothing like the CMA's..(Country Music Awards) Every top musician will be there and the performers range from George Strait, Taylor Swift, Sugarland, Chris Daughtry, Brad Paisley, Jamey Johnson, and many others!
I have a student in class whose family owns box seats. We are going with her family. So not only do I have tickets, but box seats at that! So blessed beyond words! I am also going with one of my favorite people in the world, my forever friend Tosha! We have so much fun together and I know it will be a blast. I will take pics so that I can do a follow up post!
The last time I was this excited about an event was when I was in highschool and my parents got us tickets to go watch Michael Jordan play in Atlanta! So amazing! I will never forget that!
This will be one to remember! Check back for pics! (can I say Chris is very bitter about me going...he loves George Strait!)

Cade's post

2009-11-04T17:34:00.003-06:00

I wanted to share a little bit of what Cade has been saying or doing lately just to have a record of it. He is getting so big and his vocabulary has been cracking Chris and I up so much at home. We realllllly have to be careful now with what we say.. which means daddy can't be using his bowling words in the house! (JK) So here are some things Cade is doing and saying right now:
1. He is not a morning person and has either a breakfast bar, honey bun, donuts, or cereal before we head out the door in the morning.
2. He loves his MWF teacher Ms. Della and his best friend is Christopher-you should see them play together.. they have a love/hate relationship.
3. When he is hungry, he says "i hungy mommy."
4. He prays for Nana and Papa's beach house every night. (they don't have one but we spent this summer at the beach with them, so he assumes it is theirs.)
5. He is learning his letters and he can count to 30!
6. He can spell his name..not on paper yet, but he can say it.
7. He is the most popular 3 yr. old at CPA where I teach.
8. He loves to wrestle and watch wrestling. His favorite is John Cena and Triple H.
9. He still plays with his cars and trucks.
10. He loves when he sees a police car, fire truck, or ambulance on the road.
11. He eats at McDonalds at least once a week..(i know, it is awful!!)
12. He eats the whole time I go grocery shopping. I guess just being there around all that food makes him eat...who can blame him?
13. He does not like the slow worship songs I play in the car only the fast ones, and asks me to put on a fast song.
14. He knows that Jesus loves him and that he lives in Heaven and in our hearts! Love that!
15. His favorite movies are still Cars and Finding Nemo, and he loves the Amazing Race.
16. He is becoming more independent every day and has started going the potty by himself.
17. He thinks our jeep is the slow "beep-beep" and the altima is the fast "beep-beep."
18. When you ask him what his favorite football team is he says "daddy's team."
19. He can point out a doctor a mile away..
20. He is the strongest and bravest 3 1/2 year old I know!

Love you Cade!

mommy

Fall 2009

2009-10-27T16:50:00.003-05:00

I finally downloaded some pics of Cade from this month. We were able to go to Owen Farm this year. Our church had a Fall Carnival out there this year and Cade and I and our friends Jamie, Jennifer, and the boys all went. Chris had a football meeting of course, so he couldn't go. We had a fun time. Cade climbed the haystacks, rode the barrel train, and the hayride. He watched the chickens, donkeys, and goats play but would not pet them. I think he gets that from me...not really into animals. We spent alot of time on the playground. They had an airplane that was a see-saw and Cade sat in the pilot's seat the entire time...so much that he wouldn't get off for fear someone would take it.
Before we left we headed to the pumpkin patch to pick our yearly pumpkin. Cade loved this part. He found one just his size.
This year Cade wanted to be a dinosaur for Halloween, but when we went to pick out his costume he pointed to the football player. So we will pull out his Alabama (who is currently #2 and 8-0) jersey and his football pants Nana bought him and hit the streets. Happy Fall Ya'll!!!

carlee

"Nursemaids Elbow"

2009-10-16T09:57:00.002-05:00

So Chris and I made another trip to our second home last night..Vanderbilt Children's ER..I think they might know us by name. Anyway, after a furious W.W.E. brawl last night with daddy, we ended up taking Cade to the ER. He landed on his arm and we had no clue what he did. Was it broke, fractured, etc. we weren't sure. He would not use it and cried for 2 hours. We tried to ice it and look for swelling, but couldn't see what was hurting him.
Of course when we got there Cade was scared to death. Everyone was wearing masks of course due to the H1N1 and he did not like that. Every time he saw a bed he lost it. I can't imagine what was running through his head.. probably everything from getting pokes, to having to be put to sleep, to not being with mommy and daddy. We kept assuring him we were there and we would not leave him and that he was not getting any pokes.
They X-rayed his forearm and nothing was broke, but they needed to get an X-ray of his elbow. We went back to get another picture. When the tech positioned Cade's arm for the picture he began to cry very hard. The tech heard a pop and evidently popped Cade's elbow back into place. It is what they call "nursemaids elbow." Never heard of it or even understand how that name describes the injury, but evidently very common in toddlers. Cade was completely fine after that. He began to use the arm again and acted like nothing was wrong.
We were so thankful that it happened that way and that the doctor did not have to come in and reset it with us knowing. Thank you Jesus for the small things!

I think it is amazing to think about how our God comforts us when we are scared, discouraged, unsure about life, etc. It is the same way we comfort our own children. We speak softly, reassuring them that we are there and we are with them, and we will never leave them. Just as the Lord tells us "He will never leave us or forsake us." He assures us through his Word and his silent whispers. Thank you Jesus for being ever-present in our lives and for your still small voice that comforts us in the midst of difficult circumstances!

Heaven and Such

2009-10-08T18:53:00.002-05:00

So since my middle school volleyball season ended, Cade and I have had some great time together and many conversations. He has asked me everyday if I have "bolleyball today" and when I tell him no, he says "yeah!" He loves coming straight home everyday and not having to stay longer at school. He just wants to play at his house with his friends. Can't say that I blame him.
So this week while we were playing in his room, for some reason we started talking about Heaven. I asked Cade where he lived, trying to get him to remember his address, but he insisted that he lived in Heaven with Jesus. I then asked him how do we get to Heaven. His reply confused me until I later realized what he was trying to tell me....and it was Priceless! So this is what he told me. He said he was going to Heaven with mommy, daddy, his teachers, his friends, and a rope. A rope? My first thought was, what were his teachers telling him at school and at church? Surely they haven't been telling him you climb a rope to get to Heaven....if that was the case I would NEVER make it. So then I began to put two and two together.
At school, when the class leaves the building to go to the gym, or outside, the teachers have a colored rope that each of the kids hold on to on each side, so they don't stray. It is a tool used to keep up with the kids and keep them in a line. So Cade thought that is how he would get to Heaven...holding his rope in a line with his friends, teachers, and of course mommy and daddy. HILARIOUS!!!!! I love having conversations with him and love to see how much his imagination is growing each day. I am amazed at Cade each day. He has an unbelievable memory! I am so proud of the little man he is becoming each day. Love you bubba!

The "Three's"

2009-09-22T12:39:00.004-05:00

can't you just see the 'tude' in this pic??

Okay,
Whoever told me that the terrible two's were awful were sooo WRONG!!!!! We hit the three's in March and we entered a state of major attitude, dependency, tantrum throwing, etc. You name it, we have hit it. Looking back it should be the "terrific two's" compared to the three's. Chris and I both are learning as we go with Cade. We are trying to stay consistent, but loving.
Might be time to hit the old James Dobson's book on boys. Anybody remember those?

Cade is growing up so fast and he is learning new things everyday.He has 4 teachers this year and he loves each one of them. Because he does not like change, it has taken him a few weeks to get adjusted to his new school schedule. He loves school and church.
He even sometimes asks to go to church in the mornings instead of school. Too cute!

I swear he is the most popular 3 year old at CPA. He walks the halls and all the girls love on him. He knows it too and soaks it all up.

He tries our patience, but we love him so much. I just have to remember it is just a phase of life and he won't be 3 forever!!!!!

carlee

147 Million....

2009-09-16T12:44:00.003-05:00

This post doesn't really sound like something I would ever be posting about, but the Lord has been calling me this week to hit my knees and pray for the helpless, the needy, the orphans of the world. My church is heavily involved in this ministry and I am surrounded by friends and family who are walking through difficult times right now regarding adoptions.
My first experience with this was in China. I was fortunate to go with a friend of mine to get her adopted little girl from China. It was an experience that I will never forget that stole a little part of my heart. As I watched each child's name being called and handed over to their forever families, it was a resemblance to how our Heavenly Father opens His arms an embraces us despite our sins, abnormalties, imperfections, etc. Even having walked through this process with Gwen and experiencing the adoption process first hand, I came back with not a thought about other orphans suffering in various parts of the world, I was just ready to be home. I was happy and ecstatic for her family and loving the fact that Emily would have a home and that she would have a forever mommy and daddy. Home-something that most of us have and many are without. Many.....147 million to be exact!

There are so many thoughts that have been going through my mind in the past months. I won't go into detail, but I feel right now that my job is to just pray. I have been seeking the Lord's face about my part in regards to adoption.
What is my part? I am fervently praying for those in the process of adopting, those waiting to adopt, and those whom the Lord has called to care for the orphans, but is that it?
Is the Lord calling me to a different place in my life, is He preparing me for something greater? I have no clue, but I am completely surrendered to His call for my life.
Please join me in prayer for the orphans of the world and may He call the nations-the Christians to rise up and do something about it!!
If you are interested you can check out this website to help... www.147millionorphans.com

So Not worthy, but HIS
carlee

CRAZY?

2009-09-03T10:12:00.003-05:00

This has been one of those weeks that has been crazy and busy all in one. We started school 2 weeks ago and have already been in a locked down, and flu season has already begun. In fact, some of our kids actually have the H1N1 type. On top of that, most of the kids that were or are sick, were girls off my volleyball team. I have been praying that Cade and I both do not get this.
Another part of my crazy week would involve insurance for Cade. Cade had several things done in NYC for 2 years and we had not seen a bill yet for the service rendered. Our first EOB (explanation of benefits) came in the mail this week and thought my heart stopped beating for a few minutes. Cade was able to have surgery in NY through Dr. Waner and Fay who were both approved as in-network, but there seems to have been some problems with the insurance company and the doctors office, so our EOB was for the complete cost for the surgery that took place in January of '08. Wow!!
I am praying that things will get worked out and I know that we serve a faithful God and He will provide, but it made me go to a place of doubt for a few days. Why do we question God's faithfulness when He has been faithful before and will continue to be faithful to the end? We are human...and we are sinful creatures. I know that He again, is exercising my "trust muscles." I must allow Him to work and not carry this heavy load alone!
On better note, for two weeks I have wanted to get the book "Crazy Love" by Francis Chan. A dear friend of mine brought me the book yesterday! I have only read the foreword and Preface and I know it will bring challenges and changes to my life! I am ready to encounter the "love of a relentless God."

Not worthy, but HIS

carlee

School has Started!

2009-08-20T12:43:00.002-05:00

We are officially in school mode. I have to be at school by 7:20, so Cade and I have been working on getting our sleep each night. I put him to bed between 8-8:30 and wake him every morning around 6:20. It has been quite the adjustment for the both of us. I am coaching middle school volleyball this year,so we are at school everyday until 5.. it makes for a long day for him, but he has done great!
He loves coming to school with me and actually knows his way around pretty well. In fact, he seems to think sometimes he owns the place. I am so thankful that he enjoys being at CPA. He loves all the attention he gets of course!!

Something happened last week that I think is too cute not to share. The other night, after Chris got Cade out of the bathtub, he and Chris were conversing about something. I overheard their conversation and it melted my heart. I am not sure what they were talking about, but I heard Cade say, "daddy, i have one eye." Chris and I both have heard him say this before and we always tell him, "no, you have two eyes.." He looks in the mirror quite often when getting out of his bath. I then heard Cade say, "God take care of my eye." Love it! At three I so hope he understands that statement and if not he will!! So true, that He has already taken care of Cade and continues to! I am so proud of him, but he is growing up toooo fast!!!

What's up with the Brians?

2009-07-27T08:57:00.002-05:00

Summer is almost over for us and we are beginning to wind things down as Chris and I both start school in two weeks. Cade's pre-school doesn't begin until September, but he will be going with me and will be kept by Ms. Pam whom he loves.
Chris has started two-a-days for football, so it has been mommy and Cade the last few days. We haven't done alot in the past few weeks, but I will highlight some end of the summer fun. Of course, everday consist of playing with Caleb and Ace during the day, which could be riding their battery-operated vehicles, playing baseball, finding big rocks in the yard, mowing the grass, playing with sidewalk chalk, playing with play-doh, taking walks, and maybe a few tantrums scattered within. They do love each other though.

My friend Jennifer and I took the boys to Chuck E Cheese and they had a blast. We also tried to take them to the splashpad at Burns Park one day, but none of the boys wanted anything to do with the water. They wanted to play on the playground instead... keep in mind part of the reason we went was that it was so hot, and we both thought the water would cool them down...nope, they could care less it was 95 degrees that day!

Cade and I took daddy down to the river one day. He had never been and Cade wanted to show daddy how far he could throw the rocks. Even at 3 boys try to out-do themselves--Cade kept insisting to pick up the rocks that were way to big for him to throw...so cute.

On Thursday, Cade and I drove to Chattanooga to see Nana and Papa and to celebrate Brody's birthday. (my brother's little boy) Nana took Friday off and we did some school shopping for Cade and he rode the train in the mall. Later that day Nana and Papa took him to the zoo. He had a great time and loved seeing the big turtles and watching Nana hit her head on the turtle tank. (LOL) It was so much fun!

This week will be hard for Cade. We found out 2 weeks ago that he will need another set of tubes in his ears and they want to remove his adnoids. That will be done on Tuesday. I tried to figure out a way for him not to have another surgery for a while, but this fluid has been in his ears for about 3 months and is affecting his hearing. The thought of him getting upset at the hospital just breaks my heart and makes me hurt for him. The surgery is only about 30 minutes, but it is all the pre-op stuff that he freaks out about and I can say I can't blame him.

Also, today he has an eye appt. with his vision doctor and surgical doctor. I am praying for positive words and that his vision has improved. This visit doesn't scare Cade, but just the thought of going to the doctor makes him upset. On a side note, we will be scheduling an appt. with the cornea specialist in Ohio in weeks to come to remove the scarring on the cornea.. Praises that he is already in our insurance network!! THANK YOU JESUS!!

Cade, I promise you there will be a day when you will not have to visit the hospital as much. I know the Lord has big plans for your life! You are a very strong little boy whose strength comes from the Lord. I pray that you will be a young man who others look up to for enduring strength and confidence that God is good, all the time!! We love you and you are "OUR WARRIOR."

Josh. 1:9 "Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous..for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go."

Down by the river...

2009-07-15T08:34:00.002-05:00

So I try to find some different things for Cade and I to do together once Chris starts football in July. We live very close the Harpeth River and live about 5 minutes from a park that leads you to the river. We have passed this park many times and often wondered what it was all about.. it certainly didn't look like a park.
Well, I got a little adventurous one day and decided to take Cade to see what this park was all about. We walked a little while and it led us to a shallow place on the Harpeth with lots of rocks.
We ended up spending about 40 minutes down there. Cade threw small and big rocks, but he kept wanting to pick up the bigger rocks of course. We walked down the river some as well and continued our fun. I tried to perfect my "skipping rocks" skills, but could only get two skips.
I decided the next time we would visit the river we would ask Cade's buddies next door-Caleb and Ace. He absolutely adores the two of them and loves being with them. Jennifer was the wise one and brought along her camera to take some of these pics.
Love them! They definitely had fun at the Harpeth!
Sometimes I wonder if God made rivers, creeks, and other types of water, not just for our pleasure as adults to gaze at His beauty, but for little boys who just want to have fun throwing rocks. Thank you Lord for these small wonders that bring so much pleasure to children!

Making our house a Home

2009-07-10T20:42:00.002-05:00

During the summer Chris really only has about 2 weeks off. He has football workouts every morning and then it all begins the second week of July, so we spend one of those weeks at the beach as you saw in my previous post. The second week we both decided we wanted to do some things to the house. We have been in our house a year and still had not decorated our walls. There were just a few extra things we wanted to do. The first thing we did was paint our bathroom. I love the color! We replaced the old brass light fixtures in our bedroom and bathroom. That made a huge difference. Chris was trying to be such a handy man-I do have to give him props-he tried to install our vanity light for about 4 hours and finally had to ask someone to come do it. He really tried and was so mad he couldn't get it to work. He kept saying, "nothing can be easy, can it?" I tried to hold my tongue and encourage, but he kept pressing hard to get it done. (btw, it took our friend 10 minutes to install the light..hee-hee)

Anyway, the next day my friend and I took an excursion to Old Time Pottery! Wow, love that store. We found many things for our walls, many prints, and many canvas prints. I absolutely loved everything she picked out!! She not only picked out some beautiful pieces, but she helped me place them in our living room and bathroom once we got home! So thankful that a decorator lives next door and a great friend as well!!

I am so blessed to have this wonderful home the Lord gave to us and thankful that it now feels like a home as well!!

Seagrove Beach

2009-07-02T08:47:00.002-05:00

Something we look forward to every year is our time at the beach with our family. This year we traveled back to Seagrove Beach, Florida. We have been making these annual trips since I was in highschool, and it Never gets old! We love it!!
Cade had a great time this year, but hated getting "messy" as he would call it.. meaning sand on his hands and feet. He had to wipe them off each time he got sand on them..ugh!
Each day we would head down to the beach in the morning and spend a few hours and return for lunch. The week we were there happened to be the hottest week in Florida so far.. one day, the heat index was 111. So hot! We kept the kids under the tent most of the time and in the kiddie pool.
Cade was not so sure about the ocean. He loved watching everyone get in, but wasn't so sure about the big body of water in front of him. The last day of our vacation, he finally decided to get in the raft with Chris and I and he didn't want to come in all day! He had so much fun in the water. He kept saying the "water going up and down, that's funny."
At night Chris and "Papa" would take the kids to catch crabs. This was a highlight of the trip for Cade. Nana bought him a net and all he would talk about during the day was catching crabs. It was a blast!
We are so thankful to be able to spend time with our extended family every summer. Thank you Nana and Papa for our trip to the beach! Can't wait until next year!

Growing up....

2009-06-19T09:18:00.010-05:00

paci is gone!

beating mommy at chuck e cheese

shooting hoops with daddy..he's a lefty!

So this was a very big week in the Brian household. We knew coming back from Texas that we had some work to do with Cade-potty training and getting rid of the paci. I was not looking forward to either one, but was very surprised by our big boy! Last week we began potty training and Cade did great. He has always been one who hates a mess, so everytime he had an accident, he hated it because he hated being wet! Awesome! So from then on, he used the potty every time he felt his "pee-pee coming." That is what he tells us now. So cute and he has done great! Chris decided that he was going to take Cade to Chuck E Cheeses if he pooped in the potty. We both knew that it might take a while for him to do that, but Cade had other plans. It took him one day to poop in the potty and he is on the road to being completely potty trained. NO, we are not taking him to Chuck E Cheeses every time he poops, but I did assemble a surprise box filled with little things from the Dollar store and that has worked pretty well. (thanks Jennifer for the idea)

The other agenda for the summer was Operation Paci...getting rid of our lifesaver. Man, I think this one was more hard for Chris and I than for Cade. It took one day of sleeping without it and paci was gone forever. I thought it would be alot harder, but once again Cade amazed us. He has not even asked for it and is so proud that he tells everyone he doesn't have his paci anymore.

All of this is wonderful, but I was somewhat sad that this all ocurred so quickly. My little boy is no longer a little boy and he is growing up so fast. Tears come to my eyes when I think that I no longer will be changing his diapers or seeing him sleep with his paci. Don't get me wrong, so thankful for not having to buy pullups anymore, but a little sad..

I know this is all part of life and I am so thankful the Lord gave us a healthy little boy who loves playing cars, riding his truck, throwing the frisbee, playing golf, wrestling-W.W.E. style, and many other things. We are so proud of you Cade and all that you have accomplished this week! You are so grown!! We love you!!

Texas-Part IV

2009-06-16T08:50:00.005-05:00

Whenever we travel to Texas we get to stay with Chris' grandmother-his Nana. It is always a special time for us as we visit with her and listen to her love for the Lord. I thoroughly enjoy it! She has so much wisdom and she is definitely one after God's own heart. She lives alone since the passing of her husband several years ago, which happened to be the same date of Cade's birth. She is an intercessory prayer warrior and I know that she fervently seeks the Lord's face and listens to His still small voice. Chris and I both envelop her wisdom each time we visit her. The Lord's face does shine upon her daily and she exemplifies consistency in her walk with Christ.

One challenge we do face is what Cade call's her. He has a Nana, Grandma, Mamaw, and for some reason he thinks he has a MeME, so we decided that he would call her "GiGi" for great grandma. He called her everything but GiGi most of the time, but he loves his "GiGi."
Every morning when Cade would wake up she would take him to get the mail, and then they would eat their breakfast on the deck while they watched the birds. He loved this!! Every morning, if she wasn't there when he woke, he would ask where GiGi was. He loved spending his mornings with her and he loved watching the birds, especially the hummingbirds! Thank you GiGi for allowing us to spend the week with you!

Cade also enjoyed playing with Grandpa-Chris' dad. Everytime he saw him he wanted him to play cars or wrestle..of course. He loved playing at Grandpa's house and jumping on the trampoline, playing with Darby and Emily, and hitting the golf balls at the driving range. He must get his love of golf from Grandpa!
We loved our trip to Texas this year and we can't wait to go back next summer! It was a blast!

Texas-Part III

2009-06-11T07:58:00.003-05:00

One of the neatest places at the zoo was an area called "Tiny Tot Adventure." This was a neat area that had a small creek that was ankle deep and beach sand surrounding it for kids to play in. Cade and his cousin Neveah loved this area and we spent alot of time there.. it was so neat to see the both of them play.
Cade has always been fascinated with trains..I know that it is probably a stage he is going through, but he absolutely loves them. We have taken him to see and ride on Thomas the Train, so when I found out that there was a train that travels outside of the zoo, I knew he was going to be so excited! We happened to see the train before entering the zoo, which made our viewing the animals go rather quickly. He kept saying "want to ride the choo-choo" the whole time we were in the zoo.
Grandma bought our tickets and we waited for the train to arrive. Cade could not wait. He sat in the train station, eyes glued waiting for the train to arrive. When it was time to board we took a quick pic with the conductor and Cade's smile was priceless! He rode with Grandma and cousin Neveah and I am so happy Leah got it on camera. We went over a bridge and through a tunnel, and through the forest. It was all he could talk about for hours! So thankful that we are able to share these precious moments with family!

Not worthy, but HIS

Texas-Part II

2009-06-10T08:50:00.003-05:00

One of the best times had by Cade was our visit to the San Antonio Zoo. It is ranked in the top 10 in PARENTS magazine and well worth the ranking. We were so thankful to SEE all the animals, unlike our zoo here in Nashville where they just hang out in the back or they are asleep. Cade's grandma treated all of us. We went with Chris' brother's family, and Chris' best friend from high school and his family. It was so much fun.
We were so amazed at how close the animals were to us. Cade wanted to see the elephants and the fishes. He was really into the movie "Nemo" on this trip, so we visited them while at the zoo.. Dori too! He loved that part.
One of the new exhibits at the zoo was the African exhibit, as we entered there were two- what I thought- big rocks, but happened to be massive Nile hippos. I included the pic, but only got the picture of their backsides...go figure... not great at picture taking.
We also enjoyed feeding the fish.. although the ducks in the pond were quicker to the food..which was making me mad. Fish have to eat too! Cade was so funny, remember he had been watching Nemo this entire trip in the car, so he said "fish are our friends, not food"-the exact quote from the movie! He cracks me up!
Cade enjoyed his time at the zoo, but could not wait to ride the train outside the park with mommy, daddy, grandma, and cousin Nevaeh. More to come on that!

Not worthy, but HIS

Texas-Part I

2009-06-09T09:09:00.004-05:00

The first part of our trip to Texas included getting together with Chris's dads side of the family. We usually try to do this every summer while we are there. It is great time visiting with family we haven't seen in about a year. This time we went to Uncle Russ and Aunt Millie's new home(which was gorgeous). They sold their lake house about a year ago to move closer to their new grandbaby..who by the way just turned 2 and is adorable. The kids swam and I happened to get a few pics of Cade posing in the pool..so funny. It was a fun time to catch up and see everyone...
We also spent some time at Grandpa and Grandma Donna's pool. It took him a while to warm up to the pool, but he eventually got in and loved it as you can tell by the picture. (posing again in the pool.. watch out David Beckham!)

Not worthy, but HIS

New Places and New Faces

2009-05-30T14:00:00.003-05:00

Why is that kids take so long to adjust to new faces and new places? Cade has always been one that needs about 10 minutes to adjust to a new place and new people. When we arrived in S.A. this past week, it was the first time he had seen Chris' side of the family in about a year.. so it took him a while to get the shyness out of him before he began to open up to them. It is amazing to me that your children take on your personalities.. Chris and I both were very shy growing up and it seems that Cade is going to be the same way.
As of today, he is very comfortable with all of the family and is even asking to go to their houses. As far as sleeping in a new place, that is not going so well. We have to lay beside him every night until he falls asleep and then he wakes up fairly early every morning.. So we are also adjusting to sleeping patterns as well..
We have enjoyed seeing everyone and Cade has loved playing with all of his cousins. We are hoping to take him to the S.A. zoo sometime next week and hoping that he gets more sleep!
Staying warm in S.A.,
carlee

Headed to the Lonestar State

2009-05-26T14:07:00.002-05:00

We begin our summer this week by taking our annual summer trip to San Antonio to visit Chris' family. It is always a fun time to see everyone and for them to see how much Cade has grown in a year. It takes us a few days to get used to the weather, since it is about 10 degrees warmer there than it is here in Nashville. Cade has been talking about riding on a airplane all week..he is so excited! Chris will take his Dramamine and I will try to entertain a three year old for a couple of hours. I have plenty of coloring books and stickers that hopefully he will enjoy.
We are looking forward to some time away before Chris' spring football workouts begin. I will begin my strict 3 day potty training when we return and attempt to rid Cade of his paci.
I do enjoy this trip and hope to have alot of fun. I know Chris is looking forward to one thing---"Bill Miller's" I am going to count how many times he eats there in the 10 days that we are there.
Hope everyone enjoys the summer!

Not worthy, but HIS

Last day of School

2009-05-21T19:57:00.003-05:00

this is one of his pics from school, most recent...he is either very excited about playing with those legos, or not wanting to share.

Cade had his last day of pre-school today as a 2 year old. We are very thankful for the teachers he had this year as they loved and prayed for him throughout his surgeries. They have been wonderful examples for Cade and they will be missed. He learned so much this year... his letters, his colors, his shapes, and his numbers. I know he is going to miss his teachers and his buddies, especially Christopher.
Today he brought home a neat little book that his teachers put together. It had pictures of him and his friends throughout the course of the year. I love it, and what a neat keepsake!
This week for me has been very busy. In the midst of copying exams, grading exams, and entering exams on the computer,I am coaching middle school volleyball next year. We had tryouts this week and it went great! I am excited about all the girls I will have next year, and looking forward to getting back into coaching.
So tomorrow is the last day before my summer starts. So excited to be almost through! I can't wait to spend some time with my family. I have two goals for the summer..to get Cade potty-trained, and to get rid of his paci!! Might be a rough summer, but it will happen!
Schooooooools Out For Summer!!!

Conversations, Tantrums, and Grace

2009-05-13T19:18:00.002-05:00

My daily routine includes taking and picking up Cade from school everyday. On most days he has just awakened from his nap, so he is somewhat cranky. We walk back to my classroom and I proceed to fulfill his needs with a snack of his choice. Sometimes what I have brought from home does not seem to meet his need and it develops into a 3 year old tantrum. So I have to make an intelligent choice every morning before we leave for school and predict a snack that he is going to want. If I fail, it can make the rest of that afternoon miserable. Yes, this is terrible, due to the fact that there are millions of children everywhere all over the world that would be completely satisfied with just a piece of bread, but he is 3 and he doesn't grasp that concept yet.
So here is my story from yesterday. We get back to my classroom and I have a feeling it is going to be one of those days because Cade is clingy for some reason. I have to hold him in my chair as I proceed to work and finish out the day. As I begin to pack up and head home he demands that I carry him to the car. I have three bags that I have to carry, so I deny his request and proceed to the car. He throws the biggest tantrum all the way to the car..did I mention that the lower school was getting out and parents were in the pick up line in the parking lot as I dragged Cade to the car screaming! By this time he is literally hanging off my leg. I get him in the car and decided to discipline him. He then threw his paci and his bear which are "must have's" while in the car. So I decided that since he threw them he would not get them back. So Cade cried for about 20 more minutes and I finally gave him his paci and bear back.
I tell you this story for this reason. A few minutes after he had his essentials back, he asks, "mommy, you wuv me?" "mommy you wuv me still?" My heart just melted. Those words made everything that occurred in the last 25 minutes forgettable.
Grace- what is given when it is not deserved. I feel that is what I offered him at that moment, but I know as a 3 year old there will be many times where I won't be able to offer much grace.
I sit in awe of the amount of grace that has been given to me over the years by my heavenly Father. There have been days that He has listened to my "tantrums" and still offered his amazing grace, and the best part about it is, that He does "wuv" us still!!
I still need these small reminders!

Mom...A Blessing

2009-05-09T20:44:00.002-05:00

There is not much that can be put into words to explain how much I love and appreciate all that my mom has done for me since bringing me into this world..I know there have been many sacrifices that she made for all 3 of us as she took each of us to our different practices daily. I still can't imagine how she did all that, and had dinner ready when we returned home. She was always our biggest fan and the opposing fans were sure to find out quickly who was that crazy lady in the stands..you don't mess with her babies.
Growing up, she always made sure that we spent time with the Lord..in fact she would ask us everyday to keep us accountable..so thankful for that! My mom is also very, very talented or should I say determined. I don't many moms that have put on 2 weddings 3 weeks apart.. She did and they were beautiful.. but I know it took her a long time to recoup..She juggles working full time,teaching Sunday school, and traveling to see her grandbabies. She was there for the birth of Cade.. in the room..and I was so glad that she was able to stay and help me out a few days as I entered motherhood.
She has been right there with Chris and I as we walked through some difficult times during all of Cade's procedures. She has given me constant reminders of God's faithfulness and promises which have helped me overcome all fears!
She is very funny person as well, and I love to see her laugh! She gets so tickled and she can't stop.. love that!
I am very thankful for my mom.. I now consider her one of my best friends and she is always the first one I call for advice. My prayer is that I can follow in my mom's footsteps in raising my own son and that I will also be woman,daughter,wife, and mother after God's own heart. I love you Mom. Happy Mother's Day!

A Day Out with Thomas

2009-05-03T19:02:00.003-05:00

one of the few pics with Thomas

my favorite.. as he peers out the window of the train

daddy and cade waiting looking at the big train

Thank you Nana!

our trip on Thomas

We traveled to Chattanooga this weekend so that Cade could experience a day out with his favorite thing in the world... Thomas the Train. We were a little hesitant on the way up looking at how much it had rained and didn't know what to expect. By the time we got there, it stopped raining and it was perfect. They had several things you could do while waiting for your ride on the train. They had a petting zoo, a booth to meet Sir Topham Hat, a tent where kids could play with trains, etc. Cade was not into any of it. He has never been a fan of big crowds, so we had to hold him until our train ride. He did get down a couple of times so that I could take some pictures, but he was ready to ride Thomas!
Me, Nana, Cade, Uncle Caleb, "Ra-Ra, and Brody all boarded the train and we left the station in style. Papa and Chris waited at the station for us.. they were supposed to play golf on this day, so they didn't have tickets.
The train ride, I have to say, was way overrated, but Cade loved it! He looked out the window the entire time. He was so excited to be riding on Thomas. He kept saying "Thomas in front.." Once we got back to the station, the conductor gave Cade a Jr. Engineer certificate.
It was a short trip, but well worth the drive to see Nana and Papa, and of course Thomas.
Thank you Nana and Papa for taking me! I love you! -Cade

Just Cade and Mommy...

2009-04-29T13:47:00.003-05:00

Today Chris left for Washington, D.C. with his eighth graders. Wish we could have gone.. I love D.C... especially since I teach Government. He just called and was able to go to the Naval Academy.. so cool..
So Cade and I are going to enjoy some time together in the next three days. We are working on using the potty and not having to sit in time out everyday. We did go a whole week with no timeouts..YAY!! The potty thing is slow moving... Cade is just taking his time with that whole thing.
On Friday, Cade has his tonsil appt. Please pray that removing his tonsils will not be the option. Can't imagine him going through another procedure right now.
We are heading to Chattanooga this weekend to visit Thomas the Train and of course, Nana and Papa. My mom got Cade tickets and I know he is going to love it!!
I have about 3 more weeks of school left.. it has really flown by so fast! Cannot wait for the summer! We are going to Texas at the end of May and Seagrove Beach in June! Can't wait!!

Not worthy, but His

"Photo Booth" starring Cade Brian

2009-04-20T13:24:00.003-05:00

We have entered a new phase/discovery in our home with Cade. He is all about looking at himself in the mirror..not just looking, but eating, playing, singing,etc.. whatever he does, he wants to watch himself. It is the funniest thing! He loves to brush his teeth now in the mornings, so that he can make faces at himself and laugh. He takes his breakfast into our bathroom and watches himself eat. It is a little out of control.

So this post explains how "vain" our son is becoming:) (jk) I introduced him to photo booth on my computer the other day and now all he wants to do is "look at pictures mommy." So here are some pics we took the other day. There are about 40 pics of him on photo booth, but will only share a few.

Easter in Nashville

2009-04-13T19:45:00.006-05:00

This was the first time that we have spent Easter here in Nashville since Cade was born. We usually head up to Chattanooga to my parents and spend Easter with them, but being that we were in a house this Easter we wanted to stay here and have our own egg hunt with Cade and we didn't want to miss our awesome church's Easter service...

Our service was amazing and I know many people came to know the Lord. We are so thankful that we have found a church that we both love. After church we came home and hunted eggs with Caleb and Ace. It was so fun to see the boys look and also help each other find the eggs. They all love each other. I love to watch the boys play.. they crack me up.. I think we will be mowing jellybeans and skittles out of our yard for a while, but it was well worth it!

This time of the year always makes me so appreciative of all the Lord has done for us..for sending His only Son to die on a cross for a worthless, undeserving, sinner like me. "Praise the One who paid my debt and raised this life up from the dead." I am so thankful that He still moves stones and that He is risen just like He said!

Patience is a virtue, but man is it hard!

2009-04-07T16:27:00.002-05:00

Have not posted in quite some time and felt the need to write today.. The last few weeks have been very busy and we have tried to get Cade adjusted back to his school schedule. Let's just say we are still working on that, and not to mention that he did turn 3, so there are attitude adjustments in the work as well.
We never went through the 2's with Cade, so I think we are combining the 2's and 3's.. It has been very challenging already for me and I am asking the Lord everyday to supply me with the patience I need for Cade. Don't get me wrong he is not a terror at least most of the time.. just kidding, but he is going through the "independent, defiance" stage which is awful!!
I don't want to sound like I am harping on all the terrible things he does so let me tell you about the precious things he is doing at 3. He loves to carry on conversations with Chris and I and he gets so animated when talking.. love that. When sitting on the couch today, he came up to me and put his head on my shoulder and said "wuv you."..this is the first time he has done that..love that! When getting dressed in the morning, he asks for "5 more minutes" before getting ready for school... love that! When saying his prayers at night he prays for each of his friends individually...love that! He is so competitive already at 3 and hates to miss a shot when playing basketball.. can I just say that I LOVE THAT!!!!!
Patience is such a hard thing for me.. everybody knows that about me.. one example, of my lack of patience occurred on Saturday. Our friends Jamie and Jennifer were going to let us borrow her mom's pressure washer. She lives right around the corner from us. I drove over there to get the thing and it was way to heavy, so I sent Chris and it was too heavy for him. I wanted to get the job done then(lack of patience) and didn't want to wait for help to load it in the car, so I walked down there and pushed the pressure washer back down to our house.. Man, I wonder what the neighbors were thinking..heck, what was I thinking? I am still reaping the consequences of that..I pulled something in my neck.. yep, lack of patience.
I have to make it an effort to allow the Lord to help me with this matter, but it seems the more I pray for patience, more things arise where I have to practice it. The Lord sure does have a sense of humor! :)

One more note, when we took Cade to his 3 year checkup, his doctor was very concerned about his tonsils. In fact, he said they were rather large for his age. We have another appointment in a few weeks and if you will please pray that they will not want to have them removed. Can't think of the thought of him going through another surgery! Thanks for your prayers!

My little boy is 3 today-March 31st

2009-03-30T20:41:00.005-05:00

(a birthday gift from grandma!)

Words cannot express how thankful I am for Cade and the strength the Lord has given him at the age of 3. He has been through alot in 3 years, but he is healthy and we cannot give thanks enough for that.. He has taught Chris and I so much and we have learned to rely on the Lord more in the past 3 years than we ever had. We found the meaning of Cade's name early on when he was just a baby and little did we know that in just 2 years he would define the meaning "warrior" at the age of 3. He has brought so much joy to our lives, but he has also contributed to our growth in our relationship with Christ.
Cade, when daddy and I dedicated you to the Lord, we knew He had big plans for your life..right now, we are only getting glimpses of what you are to become, but we both know that you will glorify Him in all that you do!!
You are growing up so fast and mommy knows that in a few years you won't want to sit with her and cuddle watching cartoons, or want to be held, or want her to play with you. I am cherishing those moments everyday! I love you "bubba." Happy Birthday!!

(p.s.) I am so thankful for the many friendships that Cade has and that he loves them all! Thank you to all of you who came on Saturday to celebrate his birthday. He has been asking everyday, "when is everybody coming to my house again?" He had a great time!

Post-Spring Break

2009-03-24T10:43:00.005-05:00

(this is my favorite picture ever! great profile pic!)
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(cade and ace..inseparable..he loves his Ace!)

Cade has had a fun two weeks.. Last week I had a blast spending time with him.. The week didn't start out too fun due to the MRI he had, but the remainder of the week was great. We drove to Murfreesboro twice to watch my brother's team compete in the state basketball tournament..long drive, but Cade loved it..

I took him to Chuck E Cheeses' on Thursday.. We had a great time! He won alot of tickets and was able to pick out some prizes before we left. By Friday he was asking to go to school... to be honest didn't know how I felt about that..glad he misses his friends, but sad he didn't want to stay with "mommy."
Saturday we picked up Chris' mom from the airport and he has non-stopped played with her since she has been here.. She will be exhausted by the time she has to leave..

It was very difficult to wake up for school on Monday, partly because of spring break, but also because of some difficult circumstances surrounding our school... It has been a hard week, but the Lord is working in the lives of our students! God is good.. All the time!!

My friend Jennifer took all of these pics.. Love them! Thanks Jennifer!

Random Thoughts....

2009-03-15T15:25:00.003-05:00

(Cade showing us his muscles!)

(I don't think I want to know what that other hand is doing..:)

(his picture smile..head tilt and everything!)

Some of you have asked about how Cade is doing and how the eye is progressing since his surgery.. I posted a few pics of him just taken yesterday. He is doing great! The swelling seems to be gone and now we are just waiting to see how well his muscles are working to keep the eye in alignment. Many of you have asked if this was the last procedure... I would say definitely the last major one.. We still have some minor things that will need to be taken care of, but I think we are done with all the 2-6 hour surgeries..Thank the Lord!

other things: I am amazed everyday at what new things Cade says and does. He cracks me up sometimes!He asks me all the time, "you happy or sad?" not because of all my crazy mood swings, but because they sing a song at school everyday that asks them that question. He is beginning to start to sing and it is so cute.. He loves "if your happy and you know it," "the B-I-B-L-E," and some song that we have been listening in the car for the past few days by VEGGIETALES..i have to say that veggietales was a cute idea, but man, their sound is soooooo annoying, and of course Cade wants to listen to them everytime we get in the car. He is definitely growing up way too fast and I know that soon I will miss those songs of his..

other thoughts: Today is Selection Sunday and I am so excited to get my bracket and fill it out.. This is my favorite time of year!! Love to watch all the games with Chris and root for my pick which usually is not his..We are very competitive and keep track of whose teams win or lose throughout the tournament..Bring on March Madness-only in a basketball sense please!

Spring Break!!!

2009-03-13T12:36:00.003-05:00

(really wish i was going to be here!!)

Yeah! I am officially on spring break.. It started yesterday around 3:00. I am so excited to have some time off at home with Cade. I don't know what we are going to do yet, but I want him to have a fun spring break.. No, we aren't going to Cabo, Seaside, snowboarding in Colorado, or to Turks and Caicos.. much like most of my students.. We will be staying in good ole' Nashvegas and hoping the weather gets warmer!
It so happens that every year Chris' spring break and mine never fall on the same week, which stinks. I listen to him leave in the morning as I try to sleep a little longer and then it is reversed when his spring break starts..so hard for the both of us!
I am hoping this week to get some things done for Cade's party on the 28th and maybe take him to Chuck E. Cheese and Monkey's Treehouse.. Chris' mom is coming in at the end of next week and we are so excited for that...especially Chris, because his mom usually cooks all his favorite things!!! He is so spoiled!! Love you Honey!!

Cade is schedule for another MRI on Tuesday at VCH..not looking forward to that, but it is going to let us know if there is anything hindering his eye from moving properly.
Alot of you have been asking how he is doing and if the swelling is down. I am hoping to post again with recent pictures of his eye.. He is doing great though! Thanks for all your prayers..
Will post the pics later..
Not worthy, but HIS

A Friend Loveth at All Times

2009-03-05T19:43:00.003-06:00

(this has to be the cutest picture ever.. how sweet of Christopher to be helping Cade put his shoe on.. they love each other so much!)

As you have seen before, Cade is always in a picture with his buddy Christopher at school. I am beginning to think that they are attached at the hip. One of the things that I love about Cade being at school with me during the day is that I get to witness moments like these quite often. Cade's teachers will send me picks via facebook every so often and it just makes my week.. I love the fact that as he gets older he begins making new friends that he loves.. Cade's pre-school is run much a like a mother's day out, but Cade goes 5 days and week and so does his buddy Christopher. (who is in the picture, his mom works with me at CPA also) He loves Christopher, and on a daily basis they are either best buddies who play so well together or they are at each other's throats. They are always in trouble together.. I am so thankful that he has a best buddy at school. Cade loves Christopher or "titopher" as he calls him. He always lets me know if he is not at school.
Christopher is adopted from Guatemala and in fact, there is another little boy in his class adopted from Russia. The Brian family is surrounded by friends and family who have adopted and thank the Lord for the calling He has placed on those families.
Thanks Sarah for snapping the picture! It made my day!

March Madness!

2009-03-03T18:24:00.003-06:00

Okay, so this is my favorite time of the year. Not only do we celebrate Cade's third birthday this month, (which i cannot believe!) it is basketball time.. This is the time of year where Chris and I become heavily competitive as we fill out our brackets for the NCAA tourney. I usually fill out a girls and a boys bracket, but Chris refuses to do a girls bracket. I usually pick several underdogs and "Cinderella" teams just for the fun of it. It is also neat to watch some of those unexpected teams picked to lose in the first round, go pretty far in the tournament. There is always one or two teams that make it pretty far..
This month also brings back memories before I had Cade. I was on bed rest for 5 weeks, which was awful. Chris' mom was here for quite a while to help out which was so great! I clearly remember the night my water broke. We were watching the NCAA slam dunk competition-yes basketball of course. Chris and I loaded up the car and headed to Centennial. I don't think we spoke a word to each other we were so nervous..
So yes, March is an important month for all of us. I can't believe Cade will be turning 3 at the end of this month, and we are very much looking forward to the NCAA tournament to begin.. Stay tuned for my final four picks!

Sisters Make Me Laugh

2009-02-24T13:13:00.004-06:00

(the pic is from one of our trips to the beach..before we had kids..can't you tell?)

I know I don't post much about my extended family, but thought I might share how much I love my mom and sister. My mom is the funniest person I know.. She makes me laugh so much even when I don't want to. She is a great writer and very talented. Her church has asked her on numerous occasions to write skits for them.. Of course it is always a comedy, and very funny! She loves it, and she does a great job!
She has always given me advice when I needed it or didn't ask for it. -hee-hee She is always there for me and I am so thankful for all that she has done for me. I know I tease her all the time about the way she and dad raised me and the things they made me do or ways they threatened me, but I am thankful for all of it. (playing bball in sweatpants,taking the radio out of my car, etc.) It has shaped my life and I will never forget any of it. The times at the beach are some of my fondest memories. We have a blast and we often get mom laughing on numerous occasions.. When this happens, it is over. Her shoulders get to bouncing and you know it is over.. she is tickled and she might have to make a run for the bathroom.. So funny! We love to watch her laugh..it even makes us laugh even harder! Love you mom.. You are my best friend and I am so thankful for you!
My sister is funny as well, but very driven. She is a multi-tasker at best, which makes me jealous sometimes. She has alot going on in her life, but you would never know it. I don't get to see her that often, but I do miss spending time with her. We laugh so much when we are together and it is usually about something mom said. Hillary is a gently spirit with a servant's heart and would do anything in the world for you. There were many times growing up that she took the brunt of many things without saying a word. That was Hillary. I am so thankful for her and for what she teaches me about quiet strength. She has been through quite a bit, but one thing that has never changed is her love for her Jesus and her family. I love you Hill and thankful you are my sister forever!

No Patch!! Yay!!

2009-02-17T16:19:00.003-06:00

I was finally able to get some photos taken of Cade without his patch on this week. I was not able to go to the doctor with Chris on Monday to talk with Dr. Mawn, but we did get a good report. She did tell us that Cade's eye looked alot better and told us she did want Cade to have another MRI to make sure that nothing else was hindering the eye from moving, other than the soreness from the surgery. He is having some trouble moving the eye up and in, but for obvious reasons..he has never been able to, due to the lesion and the muscles are probably still sore from the procedure.. We are going to have to monitor that for the next few weeks. Other than that, the swelling has gone down quite a bit, but the eye is not fully open yet, as you will be able to see in the pictures.

Cade has been great through all of this. He never acted like anything was even on his face for the last 6 days. He has been such a trooper and warrior. When I got home from school on Monday, the first thing he said to me was," mommy, two eyes mommy." He had just returned from the doctor. So cute! I will never forget that. He kept repeating it all day.. He was so happy to have that patch off, but never complained once about it. Like I have said before the Lord has given him so much strength and I amazed everday!

I do want to share this story real quick: When we took Cade to the doctor last Wednesday and she put the pressure patch on him, Dr.Mawn got right up in Cade's face and said, "Cade you are amazing, you are amazing, you know that? You are a warrior." My eyes began to tear up and I stopped for a short minute to think about that. We have always known that, but to hear his own doctor say those words and make reference to Cade being a warrior was more confirmation that Lord is going to do great things in his life. As parents, we have seen these characteristics of a warrior in Cade, but for others to also notice is amazing!

Our prayer is that we don't forget that this is not about us, not about Cade, but about bringing glory to the ONE who has given us everything! Soli Deo Gloria

What a Week!!!

2009-02-12T14:57:00.003-06:00

Well, after I wrote my last post about Cade's eye not bleeding on Tuesday, we had crazy night. Chris was on his way home and Cade and I were at home. Cade'e eye began to bleed very badly, and it was not stopping! I didn't know what to do, so I called Chris and he told me to call 911, but at the time didn't think it was that urgent. So, I called my neighbor Jennifer and she quickly came over to help with the bleeding. After a few minutes we called our other neighbor who is a paramedic. By the time he got here, Cade's eye had stopped bleeding and he was playing in our neighbor's paramedic bag. From a mom standpoint, anytime you see your child bleed profusely it is going to be very traumatic..we are talking a few towels.Cade was crying, but only because the blood was making a mess and all over his shirt.(he does not like to be messy at all!) I then phoned Dr. Mawn's cell and told her we are taking Cade to the ER, she advised we do same thing so that they could check his blood count and levels.
After about 4 hours in the ER they told us his blood count was great, even better than last week, and did not know why the eye was bleeding. The doctor told us maybe he scratched it or bumped it, but he didn't. We were right there with him every time it bled. (by the way this last bleed made it 3 times now) Chris and I left very frustrated and I wanted to call Dr. Mawn, but instead sent her an email the following day expressing my concern, could this happen during the night, what is causing it to bleed, was something not closed during surgery?

We got a phone call yesterday from Dr. Mawn wanting us to see her around 1:30.. So we took Cade back to VCH (3rd trip in 3 days) Dr. Mawn put a pressure patch on his eye that is to make the blod stop or clot and if it bleeds again we are to take him back to the ER. The patch is glued to his face, so no way is it coming off until Monday.
We felt so much better after talking with Dr. Mawn yesterday and hope that the bleeding has stopped. She did give us some ideas of what could be the cause of the bleeding, but not real sure.

My emotions have been so up and down.. hopeless, frustrated, hopeful and encouraged-all in one day. When we got home Tuesday night, I read my book Jesus Calling by Sarah Young for Tuesday-such an awesome devo! The first line of the paragraph said,"My peace is like a shaft of golden light shining on you continuously." Peace, didn't know what that was in the past 24 hours, but the Lord always seems to remind me when I needed it most. The last sentence of the devotion read, "Do not grow weary, or lose heart."
Just as my spirit began to be rattled, just as my focus turned to negativity, just as the events of the day made me angry-I heard God speak to me "do not grow weary, or lose heart, I am training you to practice peace that overpowers darkness." Thank you Jesus for reminders and thank you that when I am weak YOU are strong. Help me to "delight myself in You so that You will give me the desires of my heart." (psalm 37:4)
(p.s. i took this picture right after he woke up from his nap..can you tell he is so annoyed with the patch already? can you blame him? that thing is huge!)