Wink from Heaven: Our new home

Wednesday, July 14, 2010

Our new home

We are getting settled in our new home!
We built a home that made it easier for
Caleb to be with us in our living space.
We widened the hallways.
We widened the doorways.
We poured a wheel chair ramp in the garage,
and we hope to fill it up with the people we love!

We are so lucky to live in another wonderful neighborhood,
and we're excited to add new friends to our hearts!

13 comments:

The VW's said...: Looks like a beautiful home! Sounds like a great change for Caleb and your family!

Would you mind posting pictures of your garage wheelchair ramp? We are trying to figure out how to do one for Gavin. Thanks!

Welcome Home! Hugs!!!; July 14, 2010 at 8:19 AM
Tara Bennett said...: Yay! Congrats! We want to come see it -- and YOU! :); July 14, 2010 at 9:49 AM
Becky said...: SO FUN! I can't wait to see it. :); July 14, 2010 at 10:24 AM
Junior said...: A beautiful house, congrats; July 14, 2010 at 10:33 AM
Krista said...: I love it! How wonderful that will be to be in an accomodating house for caleb. Wish I could some take care of him there! Good luck with all the unpacking, and hope you're not too stressed.; July 14, 2010 at 2:05 PM
The Kings said...: WOW!!! Looks amazing.; July 14, 2010 at 3:07 PM
Emily said...: So glad you're finally in!

We really are going to come get our trailer sometime this week...promise.; July 14, 2010 at 7:55 PM
Anonymous said...: Looks lovely!; July 14, 2010 at 8:38 PM
The Five Jacksons said...: How exciting! Hopefully you'll meet lots of new angels!; July 14, 2010 at 8:45 PM
Kristen said...: We are so glad to have you in our fun new neighborhood...welcome!!!; July 16, 2010 at 5:29 PM
arianne said...: I can't wait to see it. The brick turned out just lovely.; July 16, 2010 at 6:43 PM
Barb said...: I love your new house. Glad you have more family space so Caleb can be with you. I know the therapist in your district. I will e-mail her and give her a heads up that Caleb lives in her district now.; July 19, 2010 at 8:42 PM
Kel said...: Your new house is gorgeous. Awesome! And even though the landscaping isn't in... awesome again! You can do it however you want! Wish I could say the same for our house. Neat to have wide doors and hallways too. What a nice touch.; July 28, 2010 at 2:28 PM

Prayer for Caleb

(written by Caleb's Grandma in her weekly column -2008-)

In my family we have a secret code to communicate our love for each other when we are out in public. We wink. When one of us is about to perform or speak, we look for a family member’s face in the crowd. Then we wink at each other. Closing one eye and winking is our secret code for saying, “I love you. You can do it. You’re wonderful.”

About three years ago, my grandson Caleb was born into our family. He must have known before birth that he would never be able to speak to us because he was born with one eyelid permanently closed. So, he is always “winking” at us, always communicating, “I love you. You can do it. You’re wonderful.”

Caleb has one eye lid permanently closed because he is missing one of his eyes . . . and he is also missing his brain. All the doctors said he would die soon after birth. They were wrong. Caleb is three years old. He is a medical miracle. The doctors say he can’t see, hear, speak, think or move. Those who know and love Caleb understand he has his own unique way of experiencing the world and communicating his love to those around him.

After Caleb was born the hospice people told us to buy a burial plot and continually warned us of his imminent death. We soon learned you can not live well in a state of fear and sadness. We decided we could spend Caleb’s entire life anxious and scared he might die at any moment, or we could celebrate each day we were blessed to have him with us. In the beginning, my daughter April celebrated Caleb’s birthday every week instead of every year with balloons and cupcakes because we simply did not know how long we would have him with us. We stopped the cupcakes after we gained ten pounds, but the celebrating goes on.

We all prayed for a miracle when we first learned about Caleb’s condition. We got one. Caleb’s birth, life and mission have had a deep and lasting impact on our lives. His spirit, eternal identity and most of all the loving, individual relationship he has with each of us is truly a miracle. Because of Caleb we know that each of us has a divine purpose and that the physical body is a sacred gift we should never take for granted. We better understand the worth of a soul and the resiliency of the human spirit.

Caleb’s five year old brother Matthew said, “Grandma. The doctors said Caleb was going to die, but he didn’t. That’s the first miracle I ever saw!”

Sometimes Caleb’s baby brother Mitchell pulls out his feeding tube while they hold hands riding together in their double stroller. Sometimes the only intervention that can get Caleb’s heart rate up is when his older brothers Josh and Matty crawl in his crib, hug him and sing, “I am a Child of God.” ...If you have a moment please offer a prayer for the little boy who has never been able to utter a single word and yet has taught everyone who knows and loves him – all the secrets of a rich and meaningful life.