Thanksgiving 2010

Good day all you Caden Marshall fans. Just wanted to post a quick update to let you know how we all are doing. Sitting here I reflect back on the post I put up for last thanksgiving. As it relates to that post we are still grateful and thankful for everything mentioned last year. This year we have even more to be thankful for.

Most of you know that Melissa and I are expecting BS2 (Baby Smith #2) just after Christmas. While Melissa is very uncomfortable right now, and cant imaging going another 4 weeks, we understand how blessed we are to be graced with another child. We are thankful that we have the opportunity to bring another life into this world. We are also very, very thankful that BS2 will be heart healthy as we had all the scans/ultrasounds to confirm this great news.

Melissa and I have so much to be thankful for including our family, friends, doctors, nurses, as well as our current situation where we have the ability to eat and sleep under a warm roof. While we have wants, we currently need for nothing and are very thankful God has planned this life for us. Of all the things we are thankful for we have one that we would prioritize at the top of the list. We are thankful for Caden Marshall and the fact that we get to celebrate another thanksgiving with him.

Caden is an absolute joy and continues to learn and grow. He is so much fun to be around as he is constantly exploring, learning, and getting into mischief. Caden loves testing boundaries and climbing and rough housing. While his saturation levels are lower than we would like to see it does not seem to affect him. He is all boy and a pretty normal kid from all that we see. He is also a loving little boy. He likes to give kisses and hugs and loves to cuddle with mom as she reads him books. I wish you could all see the way Caden kisses Melissa’s belly knowing the baby is inside.. The highlight of my day is when I wake him up at night to give him his medications. I pick up this beautiful sleeping boy to give him his meds, feed him a bottle then I put him on my shoulder and we sit down in the rocker. While I rock him I pray with him and he could not be more content in my arms. I swear that if the chair were more comfortable we could both sleep there all night long. I am so thankful for these moments with him.

Melissa and I are thankful for all your prayers and support and while we can not reply to everyone all the time, please know that your support means the world to us. We are looking forward to the Christmas season and Caden becoming a big brother. He is going to be a great big brother as he is so helpful now and I can see him kicking it up a notch when his baby _____ comes along. We will probably just have to remind him that his dad is the jungle gym and not the baby.

We have a cardiology appointment with Caden on the 10th of December. If we can ask for another prayer that Caden’s saturations don’t get any worse and that they will not have to do any intervention that would be fantastic. Thank you.

“It’s not having what you want, it’s wanting what you have” –Sheryl Crow.

Happy thanksgiving everyone.

David, Melissa, Caden, and BS2