Caden is crazy. Tonight as I was looking through some pics from the last several months, I came across the one above: Caden running down the hall at the Miller's house (when we lived there), holding on to one end of a measuring tape and running with a look of pure joy and excitement on his face. The best thing about this pic, for me at least, is that I'm in it. I'm on the other end of that measuring tape, playing with my crazy son whose passion for life inspires me daily.
And now, you gotta be kiddin' me, another boy?!?!?! April is gonna have her hands full with these 3 boys runnin' around the house! What an amazing blessing baby Corban will be. Yes, I want to have a little girl one day, a precious little princess to love and protect, but for now God has given me boys. Between my brother and I we have 5 boys, a good start to a baseball team, and more are sure to come. Add to the mix my sister's son and there are 6...3 more and we can turn in a starting lineup card!
Psalm 127 says, "Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are sons born in one's youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them." Seeing my son everyday, I know that I am blessed. Watching him run, jump, climb, fall, get up, scream, laugh, cry, get over it, eat, drink and be merry in a way that few adults will ever know, I thank God that I am the father of a boy. My son(s) will continue to help me, as I help them, draw closer to understanding the heart of God, who gave his one and only Son that I might have life, and have it to the full...
And as we all know, babies do not always arrive exactly on their due date...but knowing that tomorrow we will be counting down in the double digits is exciting! Also, for those of you wondering what that is in months...I'm almost 6 months and I'll be in my 3rd trimester this next week. I'm still feeling good, in general, but have experienced more Braxton Hicks Contractions, kicking from the baby, and general soreness earlier than I did with Caden. So what does this mean? Who knows, makes me wonder if this little guy is bigger and stronger than Caden, our easy going small baby, was. It just reminds me to be praying for his development in the womb as well as his health and temperament once he arrives. I would love the additional prayers!
May it never end, my son...
He is beyond happy at this point...quite proud of what he has discovered.
And here's the routine profile shot. I didn't think I had changed that much until I went back and looked at the last two pics.
That's right, my child has learned how to put peanuts into the small spaces of "mega blocks".
It does't matter which side you prefer, he can put them in both. And yes, he thought of this all on his own.
FYI: This is post #250. Hope this makes you feel 250 times closer to us. ;)
Don't feel too bad for Brett, this was already party #2 for him. His mom threw him a surprise party while we were visiting Nashville back in April and invited family and friends. Friendship, cake, and presents were all shared. A side note for those of you who have not looked at the calendar yet....Brett's birthday is 7-7-77.....this year it's on 07-07-07 and his is turning 30. Brett says he doesn't feel old yet, but when he can't do what he wants on the basketball court then he will acknowledge that he is getting old.
Our Little Family
We returned yesterday from our trip south to the Baptist Hospital in Tsiko (cheek-o) for our prenatal exam, ultrasound, and tour of their facilities. We will be posting more about that experience on our Africa Blog next week. We were blessed to see our new little one on a portable ultrasound machine. We very clearly saw a head, eye sockets, arms, legs, spine, and a healthy beating heart.
However, the visiting gynecologist that did the ultrasound for us has not done prenatal ultrasounds for awhile and he was not trained to do measurements on the machine. He did say that if he was betting man.....he would bet that
Brett feels like he saw boy "parts" very clearly before the computer's battery died on us...I'd say I'm 90% sure it's a boy. We'll be requesting another ultrasound at our next visit and hope to get a better picture (and technician). But till then, we're only looking at boy names.... 
I wish you all could see Caden walk in these rain boots. It's hilarious! He resembles someone walking on stilts. Obviously, the boots are too big for him but he doesn't seem to think so. He's ready to help Eric, our day guardian, in the yard as well as whatever the rainy season brings us.
Who needs Chuckie Cheese when you can have your own personal basketball toss game where the ball actually rolls back to you?!
Like my new scrape? I got it from falling on some steps at the local hotel pool. I was so excited to see the parrot they have that I wasn't watching where I was going and completely fell down these two steps. I cried, but I'm o.k. now. This isn't the first time I've fallen this week. Earlier, I fell down some steps at our house. I really was trying to be careful that time and just lost my balance. Oh well, I guess these little bumps and bruises are what becoming a little boy is all about. It definitely won't slow me down any! 
You can call us in Africa for whatever it would cost you to call Montgomery, Alabama. We haven't tried out the video feature of Skpe yet, but we'll let you know how it goes.
Caden is special in everyway. He is smart, outgoing, playful, sweet, and loving. You can see his little heart just broken in two whe he has to be disciplined, but he takes it well and always gives us a hug afterwards. He currently loves dogs, puzzles, books, swimming, being outside, watching movies and spending lots of time with his mommy and daddy. 
We praise Caden's Maker for the precious gift that he is to us, and we thank Him that He has given us everything we need to bring him up healthy, happy, and full of His Spirit. We love you Caden Darrel Emerson!
