Honoring Caden

Let me be clear with my feelings, I adore all of my girls. My baby girl and my two nieces are the sun around which my affection orbits.  

But the boy... the boy with the heart of gold and the humble spirit... he has a slice of my heart that will never belong to another. 

Caden had his first track meet this weekend and it worked out perfectly that Mom and Dad were already planning to be here with us! We all woke up early Saturday morning and headed to a small college track to cheer him on. (I'm not sure who to credit for some of these pics as the girls took turns snapping pictures while we were waiting on the meet to start.)

Charley was visiting friends in Auburn, but the rest of us camped out in the 10,001 degree weather to cheer on the dude. It was SO HOT. So hot it wasn't even worth talking about. We all just sat and sweated. Welcome to Alabama. Where you just sit and sweat. :)

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Unfortunately the meet was delayed a few hours. My back is doing well, but reaching my toes is still a bit of a task! Luckily mommas always come through and help do all the difficult things! 

(Seriously, this woman hadn't been at my house for 15 minutes and all the chores that I could not FOR THE LIFE OF ME get around to doing were all totally done and properly finished. She's a chore sorcerer. That's the only possible answer.)

A high school girl who was running the relay went tumbling to the ground during her race and ended up with a broken femur. Bless her heart, she was howling in pain, but luckily dad was there to help care for her until the ambulance could get there. The caregivers were thankful for his help. You could feel their gratitude as he was walking away and they would stop him to shake his hand and say thank you. The Lord gives some the gift of healing and I wanted to have evidence of the "field work" my Dad was called into. My dad the healer, walking in his purpose, and coming to a little girls rescue. I got in trouble for taking pictures, but I just wanted to remember how it felt to watch my dad be a real life hero. I was so moved and proud of him. 

It was finally time for Caden to run. His first race was the 400 meters. He went out of the gate a little too fast but it was great effort for his first race. The second race was the mile and he did AWESOME! I was honestly worried about him because it was so hot, and we had been there for hours, which will drain you fast. But he got into a good pace and he just kept plugging along!

     This new season of 'Dad' is amazing. Retired Chuckles is my JAM. He's still rough around the edges when he wants to be :) but he's just so funny! The stories he tells his grandkids are so crazy and imaginative! And sometimes he will pop off with something so funny, I'll sit and laugh about it for days afterwards! We'll just say Dad had strong opinions about people choosing to run in the heat and it was hysterical! 

Cheerleaders at the starting line. Everything about this picture feels right to me. Caden has been the one in the audience for years, cheering on these two little girls. You have to sit close to Caden and hear his murmured talk to realize how kind hearted he is. The girls will dance or perform and Caden will cheer and clap with the rest of us. Then he sits back and a few minutes later you'll hear him quietly say, 'Lizzy did really good on that song. That was her favorite.' Or 'London looked cute up there and she sang really well.'

He never looks up or makes an intentional connection, it's just his quiet heart talk. I've overheard it enough through the years to realize that his mind stays and circles around peoples good qualities. If you're within proximity, you'll hear him mindlessly chatter about all the good things he sees in people and how grateful he is for them. There have been so many times when he's been in the back seat, looking out the window, and he'll say 'thanks for taking me to __________, Tay Tay. I'm really glad we did that together.' You'll turn to look and he's never stopped looking out the window, it's just his spirit of gratitude speaking out. It's the sweetest thing to recognize about him.

He's spent so many years encouraging our family, so to turn around at the meet and see everyone of us, lined all the way down the field, going absolutely bananas over him felt right, important, deserved, and long overdue. It was a full blown JOY to be there yelling encouragement over him. Yes, boy. This day was YOUR DAY.

Barry let me run across the field and scoop him up at the end of his mile! I was SO PROUD of him! It was a hard event and he just smoked it!! Well done, young man! 

He is the kindest boy I've ever known. He may fly a little under the radar at times because he's not the one looking for attention, but the Lord is raising him up and it's so fun to see! His words are life giving. He magnifies good and his friendship is esteem building. 

His heart is fertile soil for an Oak of Righteousness to grow. 

We're all going to be right here, watering away. 

Therefore I urge you to walk in a manner worth of the calling to which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Ephesians 4:1-3