HAPPY 2ND BIRTHDAY CADE!

Today our precious Cade turned 2. How did we get here? It seems like just yesterday I felt silly for going to L&D (and then found out I was actually having contractions 7 minutes apart) for "tightening" in my belly. Two years ago, our lives changed and we are greater for it. We prayed and prayed to be able to have children, and yet the funny thing is...we had no idea just how blessed we would really turn out to be. There are so many lessons Cade has taught us as parents, and we could never ask for a better son. Cade is so loving, caring, and a true fun spirit. He still enjoys anything that will make my heart beat fast (he's a mini rebel!), and is smart beyond his years. His language has certainly picked up and I am surprised at the big words he uses such as: patience, understand, tangled, and so many more. Cade knows most colors, counts with 1:1 correspondence to 11, knows 4-5 basic shapes, and LOVES to read books. He does have a case of the terrible two's at times...but we love him through it all. He goes to bed after one book at night and stays in his bed throughout the night. He sleeps 10-12 solid hours a night with a 1-2hr nap each afternoon. He will eat anything but loves chicken, fruit, cheese, oatmeal, and chocolate milk the best. His interests include sports/balls, ambulance/fire trucks/police cars, any superhero, his Dad's motorcycle, and romping at any place we take him to. He finds comfort in "Mr. Froggy" and always sleeps with him. When "Mr. Froggy" is in one hand, he is sucking his other thumb at all times. He wears 5T diapers and 3T-4T in pull-ups. We were doing amazing on potty training, although we have regressed since sister Caelin came. He still loves Caelin and will help get her pacifier and let us know when we need to take care of her. In the car, he likes to try and reach out to touch her and soothe her if she is crying. His imagination is amazing. My favorite is when he wears his cowboy hat and uses Charles' ties as a lasso. He even tucks the tie under one arm and then swings the other end of the tie like a true cowboy. When we went to his 2 year physical at the Doctor, he weighed in at 36lbs (95%) and exactly 36in tall (90%). There is never a dull momment with Cade Beatty!

To celebrate the day, Gam-ee and I took Cade and Caelin to the Children's Museum in The Woodlands to play (It is a great place btw!). Cade had a blast and we were especially excited to see they had a dress up area with fireman costumes and a pole to slide down. We stayed for about 2.5 hours and Cade was crying to stay when we had to leave. Then we stopped at a nearby McDonald's (in the true spirit of Gangaw...she loved to take us to the "Big M" on our BD) before heading home for a nap. Of course, our little Fireman fell asleep on the way home and I finally had to wake him up from a LONG nap. For dinner, we all met Gramp-ee /Gam-ee at Chick-fil-a (one of Cade's favs) and celebrated with a cupcake Gam-ee had made. He loved to hear us all sing to him and was so funny to watch blow out the candles. Of course we couldn't stop there as we needed to celebrate with ICE CREAM! So we went to Menchie's as well. It was an eventful day and Cade had so much fun. Let's just say he is snoring in the other room!

Happy Birthday Son. We love you so much and treasure every momment you have given us. Thank you for being you. We love you "all the way around the world and back again". -Dad and Mom