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Cade turned four months old on Tuesday. He shared his birthday with Aunt AJ so we celebrated with dinner with good friends. I can’t believe that he is already four months old. It is flying by, but at the same time I feel like he has been with us forever! Every month we are seeing more and more of his personality which is so fun to watch. He is learning more everyday and is seriously getting so strong. He is still such a sweet boy and his chill personality is sticking with him. He smiles and laughs with us, loves to play, and still is a champion sleeper sleeping from 8:30-7:00 almost every night. At his 4 month checkup he weighed in at 13lbs and 10 oz and was 24 inches long.

At Four Months, Cade Learned how to…

Giggle – Cade gave his first giggle (that wasn’t at himself) the day after he turned three months. While he still hasn’t given us a huge belly laugh, he will crack up at us every once and a while. His favorite place to giggle is in his car seat while we are driving. Aunt AJ was the first to get him to giggle on the way to a Braves game. I of course was yelling from the front seat to stop since I wanted him to giggle at me, not her. Oh well! At least I was in the car to hear it. The picture in the swing was after his first giggle for me and the picture on the mat is from later in the month.

Roll Over – Cade’s first roll over for mom and dad was caught on video here if you missed it. We were so excited that he rolled over, but the first few days after he learned how were rough! All Cade wanted to do was roll over, including during  his nap time. The unfortunate thing is that he kept running out of room to roll back over and he was not a fan of that. Thankfully that only lasted a few days and he is now okay with sleeping on his stomach after he rolls himself over.

Do a mini push up – Cade is working on his mini push up skills and is getting stronger everyday. He loves being on his tummy now and can push up and look all around.

Grab his toys – This is probably Cade’s favorite new skill. He holds onto everything now, including people’s hair. He has a green frog which is his favorite thing to hold and put in his mouth. If a toy isn’t available he is more than happy just to put his hands in his mouth.

Give an amazing pouty lip – This one is pretty funny. It’s amazing how early babies learn things like this. How could anyone resist that face?

Stick out his tongue

Sleep on his stomach – As a result of learning how to roll over, stomach sleeping is Cade’s new preferred way to sleep.

Bat his toys – For the longest time Cade has been kicking things with his feet as opposed to batting with his hands. He finally has started to use his hands, but still seems to prefer kicking. He will sit in his monkey seat and hold on with his hands while he kicks the toys.

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Make funny faces with his lips

At Four Months Cade’s favorite things are…

Playing with his snail – GiGi got Cade a snail that plays music and has a mirror on one side. The kid loves to look at himself, so naturally the toy was a hit. He is learning how to hit it with his hands and loves to play with it.

His daddy – Trey has been a great dad from day one, but in the last month or so, he has really started to have fun with Cade. It’s so cute to watch the two of them, and I’m pretty sure that Cade thinks he is the best thing ever. Trey can get him giggling and smiling better than anyone.

Reading books – My favorite thing to do with Cade is read him books. We lay down on the floor together and while I read, Cade “reads” as well. He makes all kinds of noises. It’s pretty precious.

Sitting in his bumbo – He has gotten so much stronger in the last few weeks and as a result is really enjoying sitting in his bumbo chair. Most of the time this also means dancing with daddy.

Cade’s “First” Activities for the month included...

Cade’s big first activity for the month was going swimming. Afterwards, I decided that taking a baby swimming is purely for the parent’s enjoyment. Cade was not a fan. This might have been attributed to him being sleepy, but swimming with daddy lasted all of five minutes. He was much happier sitting in a bouncy chair watching all of the big kids enjoy the water.

This month Cade also had his first trip to the lake. Cade and I got to spend three days at Lake Burton with Oma and her family. We had a blast relaxing and spending time with great people.

Now for some of my favorite pictures from the month…

We have reached a milestone! This week Cade has been like a different baby. He is all of a sudden holding his head up like a champ, kicking his feet, batting things with his hands, and putting everything in his mouth. He’s been trying to roll over for quite some time now. He has long mastered the art of  rolling from his belly to his back, but couldn’t seem to figure out how to maneuver his shoulders when rolling from his back to his belly.

Yesterday Trey called me at work to tell me that Cade had figured it out. Unfortunately he was in his crib so we didn’t get to see it. This morning, Trey and I were both home playing with the little man and he did it again and we got it on video. Yes, we both have ridiculously overexcited parent voices in the clip.

Little man’s first fourth of July was a success! Lori and Rob, AKA Oma and Grandpa, came over as well as Gigi and King Daddy. Fun with friends, grilling with daddy, and the cutest patriotic overalls ever!

Closing the night out with his Braves pajamas and story time with daddy

Since day one people have said that Cade looks just like Trey. In fact, not one person has said that he looks anything like me. Trey and I just think he looks like Cade; however, on Saturday, Gigi pulled out one of Trey’s baby photos and there’s no denying it. He is 100% his daddy.

Cade says Go Braves!

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I can’t believe that Cade is already three months old! Each day his personality is coming out more and more and he is such a fun little boy. Trey and I can’t believe how lucky we are to have him as a son. His three month birthday was extra special as it was also Trey’s first Father’s Day. We spent the day just enjoying each other and even got to hang out with King Daddy, Gigi, and Aunt Lyndsey.

At three months, Cade learned how to…

Finally get those fingers in his mouth. I love that he choose to suck on those two. Too funny.

During month two, Cade learned how to roll from his belly to his back. Now he is trying so hard to roll from his back to his belly. He’s mastered getting his hips turned, but then he gets stuck. I often find him in his crib like this!

Shaking his rattle! He doesn’t pick things up on his own yet, but if you put something in his hand, he will hold on and move it all around.

And mom’s favorite accomplishment…sleeping through the night! That’s right, little man has been sleeping from 11:00 until 7:00 for several weeks now. He must know that his momma really loves her sleep!

At three months, Cade’s favorite things are …

Flirting with himself in his swing. The dome of his swing is reflective. I wish I knew what was going through his mind when he does this, because it is precious. Sometimes Trey and I will put him in the swing just to watch him do it. It’s awesome.

Smiling at just about anyone who will talk to him.

Sucking on his hand. He gave himself a hickey on his arm last week…

Playing with Daddy and a basest hound.

Reading Snuggle Puppy. The book has a song in it and you make up your own tune so everyone’s version is a little different. So far Collett Harris wins the award on best rendition of Snuggle Puppy.

Laying on the table while mommy and daddy eat dinner. I really love eating as a family around the table, so we are starting him young. Hopefully he will enjoy his high chair as much as he loves this!

Dancing with daddy in his bumbo seat

Riding in his carrier

Cade’s “First” activities for the month included…

First trip to an ice cream van. This will be more fun when he can eat it too!

First attempt learning how to sit in the bumbo seat

First redneck stroller trip. We’ve decided it’s too hot in June to wear pants in the stroller!

First trip to visit Aunt Lyndsey at her house in Canton

First trip to the beach!

First Father’s Day with Daddy and King Daddy

Favorite pictures from the month

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Every year mom and Vance plan a family trip to the beach. It is seriously mom’s favorite place on Earth. From the minute I told her I was pregnant, she started talking about how much fun it would be the next time we went to the beach with a baby. I of course was slightly nervous about taking a 2 month old to the beach, but as always, little man did great. He slept on the beach like a champion. Trey and I joked that he must think the ocean is the World’s best sound machine.

Check out that very serious road trip face. Right before he fell asleep for most of the ride!

When we first got to the house, Cade smiled at mom for like five minutes straight. It was precious.

First family walk down to the beach

Out to dinner our first night at mom’s favorite restaurant. Are those overalls ridiculously cute or what?

First day on the beach. He wasn’t so sure about having his feet in the water or wearing his hat, but other than that he loved it!

World’s cutest and sweetest beach bum

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Little man was happy as can be hanging with daddy under the shade tent

Again…not loving his toes in the water. Hopefully that will change by next year!

Hammock time with mommy

Because little boys in searsucker shorts are awesome

Cade’s morning routine included rocking with grandma underneath the house

Yes, we used his as a centerpiece during breakfast and he loved it!

We had a great trip and can’t wait to go back next year! I’m sure it will be a whole other experience with Cade running all over the place, eating sand, and loving life!

Driving North on SC-93 towards the Bi-Lo my life changed forever. A bit dramatic, but if I were going to look back at the most significant moments in my life this would be in the top three. Jon was driving and I sat in the passenger seat. We were most likely in some deep conversation about brotherhood or the burgers that rend the heavens at Mac’s Diner when we crossed the bridge and my mind shifted inward.

Disclaimer: This might seem freaky for some.

Mid sentence I believe that heaven and earth touched for a brief moment. I had been searching. Many twenty-somethings are searching for something – Job, wife, house, community – but I had all these things. I was looking for something deeper and ontological. Who am I? What is my Purpose with a capital p? You know, the normal thoughts of a 24 year old.

I was in transition at the church I worked at coming to the realization that editing stories was far less interesting than helping others make sense of their own stories. People gave me more life than mega-church glitz and glamour. This disruption jump-started what would turn out to be a three year tumultuous and rewarding journey to discover my perspective of the future was far too small.

I was led to a group of guys who were also searching for a deeper sense of identity. We looked at the heroes of faith, their calling, and struggles. We learned that often the stories of these men and women had a deep connection to their actual name. For example, Moses was given his name meaning, “one who is drawn out”, because he was literally drawn out of the Nile. If only Pharaoh’s daughter knew that he would be also the one who would draw his people from Egypt and the Wilderness, maybe Pharaoh would have renamed him, “stay put”.

We all want to belong, be known, and have a lasting impact. Thus stories are essential to our being. They make or break us. They fill the gaps at dinner parties. They are the tapestries of memories. We embed them into art forms that often have words, but at times silently form legends that give us meaning. The Bible is a rich and immensely illuminated work that speaks to the most ancient textures of life. Scriptural figurative / literal interpretation debates often ignore the power and complexity of stories to be both. Like belief and reason, the literal and figurative were never meant to be separated because they work together to transform us in a way that we can better know ourselves and the purpose we play in co-crafting our stories.

So there I was experiencing my own flaming bush in a passenger seat riding over a bridge in Clemson, South Carolina.

When I tell the story I compare it to the scene in Monty Python’s Search for the Holy Grail when Jesus comes from the clouds and tells Arthur about his quest.

The clouds open up, He appears, purpose revealed, and the clouds come back. But it wasn’t really anything like that. It is more mystical and unknowable. It was a divine moment as fast as lightning and frozen in time all at once. I heard clear as day something awakening with in me: “I call you my encourager.”

Then it was gone.

I was crafted to be an Encourager. I feel like I can say this because I am sure of its origins. If you know me at all you know that this is what I am made for. Inherent to my nature is to encourage others. It was both literally put there and figuratively transforming every part of my life since I was born without me knowing it. Lawrence The Encourager.

Lawrence is a name that etymologically derives its meaning from laurel leaves which symbolizes leadership akin to the Caesars that wore laurel crowns. Ironically enough my wife’s name, Lauren, is the feminine version with the same meaning. I was named in the line of three other Lawrences who were great men and Caesars in my own life, but I certainly wasn’t named with the intention of bestowing a destiny to steward great leadership.

At one time names meant something, but now I feel like that they are more about uniqueness and honoring those in the past. In some way the latter might be an echo of naming, yet the nuances of living a life from our identity are lost and we are left searching. We look for it in our work or our passions. We can attach our being to our sexuality or race. The world feels meaningless because by in large we construct our own meaning from radical individualism. How can we expect to find purpose if we only peer into ourselves?

Ending my long intro I could have simply said, “Lauren and I believe names mean something and so we named our son Cade.” But I don’t think the story of his name would be as meaningful if we weren’t looking at names in the same way.

When Lauren first thought of the name I didn’t like it. We both feared, which has come true on multiple occasions, that people would hear us say Kate instead of Cade. Regardless how we felt we looked up the meaning of Cade. The name is a Welsh name meaning the Spirit of Battle. Military cadences are the rhythmic songs that are used as fighters prepare for battle. The guts, transcendental dissonance, of cadence is the cade or Spirit of Battle that spurs others to fight.

Obviously, this changed my masculine opinion, but Lauren and I both weren’t sold out until one Sunday morning at Grace Midtown. We were singing a song by All Sons and Daughters called Great is the Lord. The chorus goes like this:

Its your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise
We pour out our praise
Its your breath in our lungs
So we pour out our praise
We pour out our praise to you only God.

In my mind I felt and heard that this was the blessing of Cade’s name. I knew that with this name came the prayer and the meaning that Cade’s life would be the Spirit of Battle that finds its origins in the praises of God. As a result Cade’s life would be lived in a way that others may recognize that the breath in their lungs, their very being, would be reason enough to praise God.

That is beginning a life with an invitation into a journey and a challenge to live likewise.

For My Son, The Spirit Of Battle

The Lord is your source of life
In him you will find meaning
Live well in the presence of God
Bring life to others through Christ

There is no mountain too high
Nor is there a sea too deep
Where your Father cannot find you
Or that can separate you from his love

Be bold in the face of battle
Because within you resides
the light of all men
the creator of heaven and earth

May patience and humility be your breastplate
May honor and wisdom be your sword
May grace always open your fists
And may mercy flow from your heart

When we started working on Cade’s nursery, Trey and I both wanted it to have significance as well as be a calm and inviting space. It truly was a joint effort in planning what we wanted and making it happen. Aunt AJ started working on being an awesome aunt long before Cade was born and helped make several things that are in his nursery. When Cade made his arrival fashionably early, there were several unfinished projects that my mom, Vance, and AJ helped finish so that when we came home from the hospital his room was perfect.

Here are a few shots that try to capture the whole room. I found the light fixture at Ikea and the rug at Target.

This is the first thing that we purchased for the nursery. We found this piece at the Yellow Daisy Festival at Stone Mountain before we knew if Cade was a boy or a girl. We thought it was a perfect start to the nursery.

Trey is a man of many hidden talents, one of which is designing graphics. We worked together on the wording and he designed the prints. We found the frames at Ikea.

The words in these prints reflect some of our hopes for Cade. The center frame contains his name with its meaning. More to come on the meaning of his name and why we choose it for him later!

His dresser was my Craigslist find for $50! I love finding a good deal. It was white with plain knobs on it, but it was the perfect size for what I wanted. Aunt AJ helped me sand it down and put a new coat of paint on it. Some new knobs from Hobby Lobby and we had ourselves what looks to be a brand new dresser. With the help of some blog tutorials, I made his changing pad cover and a crate cover to hold diapers, wipes, and all the other little things you need.

My first request of Aunt AJ and her new found love of construction was to make a few bookshelves for Cade. We went through several different designs and finally landed on one.  The design involved using a miter saw, which neither of us knew how to operate. It’s amazing that everyone still has all of their fingers.

Here’s a picture of the finished product. There are two of these in his room on either side of his dresser. Trey and I both love to read and hope to instill that same love in Cade so we wanted him to have lots of books in his room. So far his favorite book is Snuggle Puppy given to him by his girlfriend, Ella.

After such great success with building bookshelves, we decided that Cade needed an end table in his room. I looked for one to purchase, but couldn’t find something that I really loved. Aunt AJ to the rescue again! We found a design and lots of 2x4s and screws later, we had ourselves an awesome end table. The end table was one of the unfinished projects when Cade arrived. Mom and Vance spent and afternoon staining it for me and getting it all set up in his nursery.

Isn’t it awesome?

I wanted a comfy chair for the nursery that rocked and reclined as I knew we would be spending lots of time in it.  I found this chair at Babies R Us and my sweet grandmother bought it for Cade as a surprise. I was thrilled and actually sat in it a ton before Cade was born and have spent many hours in it since.

This was the first of many quilts for Cade made by his Oma. Oma is one of my dearest friends, Lori Lewis.   I’m sure Cade will grow up thinking she is actually one of his grandmothers as she is that special to us. Lori also happens to be an extremely talented quilt maker. I love his quilt and we love to use it in the mornings to snuggle.

Also made by Oma…welll kind of. For a baby shower thrown by Lori, she had some of my old students (we worked together when I taught at South) to make some blocks for Cade. They match his room perfectly and are a great little decoration. The kids signed the back of one of the blocks. I know Cade will love to play with these as he gets older. I can’t wait to tell him about the kids who made them for him.

The toy chest is very special to me as it was mine as a child. It originally belonged to my mother when she was a little girl and she held onto it for my siblings and I. It had gotten really beat up over the years so mom and Vance took it and repainted it and added new handles to it for Cade.

Compliments of Daddy, Cade now has an Adrelton Simmons bobblehead. Trey thought it would be fun to start collecting these for Cade. This is the first of many that he will collect with daddy on their adventures to watch the Braves.