Fri. 8/1 - update

...for His compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness. (Lamentations 3:22-23)

I have used this verse so many times throughout the past 5 months. This has truly become Caed's life verse.

I have wanted to share this story for several months now, but for some reason the Lord kept telling me to wait. I think now is the time:

On August 5, 2005....the Lord spared Caed's life the first time. He was just days from turning 2, and the kids and I were here visiting family while Todd was at camp. One morning Reagan, Caed, and 3 other cousins had been out playing; just having fun like always. At one point, someone asked where Caed was. I thought he was with the older cousins. We quickly went into panic mode and began searching the house. We split up...I told the kids to go outside and circle the house. My mom was in the kitchen (not fully aware of the seriousness of the situation). All of a sudden she felt "something" pulling her to the backyard. She walked outside....surveyed the yard...no sign of Caed, so she came back in. However...again she felt so strongly to go back out and look again. This time....she went a little further and was horrified at what she saw! Caed's cap and sandals were sticking up out of one of the ponds. He was completely under water. (keep in mind he was not quite 2 years old....and did not know how to swim) She immediately yanked him up out of the water. Just as she was doing so, the rest of us came to the backyard too. Caed began coughing up water. He was ok, but scared. I wrapped him in a warm towel, and he fell off to sleep within minutes. My first reaction was "God's not finished with this little boy yet....He must have big plans for him." We were very thankful to God that Caed was alive and had come to the conclusion that the lilies in the water must have held him up. We came SO close.............

It wasn't until days later that the Lord showed us the real truth. My mom awoke in the middle of the night replaying the horrible scene over and over in her head. All of a sudden she heard a voice saying, "Ann....it wasn't the lilies that held him up.....IT WAS ME!!!!" From that point on, we realized our mistake and could literally picture God's hands underneath the water holding Caed's body up. Why would we have thought flimsy water lilies could have withstood the weight of a 20 lb. toddler? Todd and I have a ceramic figure of "God's hands" cupped together that we received for Christmas months before the incident. We now keep Caed's picture (by the pond) in a frame next to the hands. It is our visual reminder of God's great love and mercy.

Now....fast forward to March 1, 2008. Caed is rushed to the hospital with severe abdominal pains. He spends 4 hours in emergency exploratory surgery from midnight - 4am. Much of his intestine has been removed, and he is sent to ICU on a ventilator. For the next 71 days his new home becomes Covenant Children's Hospital. He experiences many days filled with endless vomiting, pain, fear, anger, 2 more surgeries, 1 more stay in ICU, countless procedures and too many times under anesthesia (we lost count). The drs. are baffled and talk of a possible stomach /sm. bowel transplant looms over our heads. We came SO close...........................

Caed will turn 5 on August 15. To be honest.....there were days the past few months, I PRAYED he would still be here to see his next birthday. God has once again shown his Faithfulness to Caed and our family. May we never forget!!!!

...Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, "What do these stones mean?" tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever. (Joshua 4:4-7)

What is your memorial? How has the Lord shown His Faithfulness in your life? I pray that just like in the story with Joshua, we would be more mindful of the times we see God's mercy and grace in our lives. That we would find tangible, visual reminders that we see everyday and allow it to be used as a testimony to future generations.

GREAT IS YOUR FAITHFULNESS! IF WE DON'T TELL IT.....THE ROCKS WILL CRY OUT!

August 2005 (age 2)
(this picture was taken just
days before he fell in)


April 28, 2008
(Caed's first 4 hr.pass out to
Nana & Grandaddy's house)


August 1, 2008
(happy & healing.........)