Exactly one year ago we could never have imagined the journey before us or the many miracles along the way. Cade’s life and our lives changed with his accident, but God is good. All the time. At that time, we could not have imagined where we would be one year later. Those early days we were just trying to get through to the next day.

Recently I was trying to find a message I knew was in my texts or messenger and I came across the many, many people who reached out in those early hours (and beyond). I know the rest of the family received just as many as me. As I read them, I realized how much shock I was in as I didn’t remember them all until I read them and they came back to me. We are still so humbled and filled with gratitude by the number of people who showed up for us in so many different ways and the faithful prayer warriors who prayed fervent prayers over Cade, us, his medical team and surgeons. It is something we will never forget. Truly, those prayers were heard, God worked miracles, and they helped sustain us each and every day.

One year later, Cade is doing remarkably well! Thank you, Lord. He is still going to physical therapy and working hard to get back to 100%. He has overcome so much and is so incredibly strong. I am not sure he truly sees the strength and resiliency he has had over this past year. But we sure do. It is simply amazing.

5 hospital stays
3 different hospitals
71 days in the hospital (49 for the first stay and for most of it lying flat on his back with his leg elevated)
14 trips to the operating room
23+ surgical procedures
8 surgeons
6+ months in a wheelchair
And more miracles than we can count!!!

It was 8 months before he took his very first few weight-bearing steps on his leg using the parallel bars in physical therapy, but in less than a month he began to walk without assistance or walking boot during physical therapy. He put in the work and still is today. He is walking, driving, working, and even hunting again. Although he is not 100% back to where he was prior to the accident, he is not far from it, and for that we thank God!

We have been through a lot this past year. We have all have experienced trauma because of the accident, which has been different for each of us. But God has carried us through it and still is. It changed our lives for sure, but in a lot of ways it was positive. It certainly changes your perspective on what is important and who is important. God answered every prayer, protected Cade, and continues to heal him.

Most know, one of our HS rodeo friends, Glenn Sims, connected us with a young man who experienced a similar accident. We met Garrett very early on after Cade’s accident and in that first phone call, he said he wanted to walk this journey with us because he knew what we were going through. I remember Garrett shared that he was in the hospital for just three weeks after his accident, and without having any frame of reference, our mind went to Cade only being in the hospital a few weeks. But there were surgeries we didn’t expect and some setbacks in his recovery. There’s no way that we could’ve known that Cade’s journey would be so different. Garrett, true to his word, has stayed with us for the whole ride. As I have had time to reflect, one thing that became clear to me, not only as a relates to this injury but to life also, is you can’t compare your journey to somebody else’s, even when they’re so very similar. Everybody’s journey is different, however, we ALL can experience the same blessings and miracles: a first-hand understanding of God’s incredible love for us and His faithfulness, medical miracles, a new appreciation for the small things in life, the gift and blessing of fabulous doctors and compassionate nurses, incredibly faithful prayer warriors, the blessing of genuine friendships, strength of a loving family, and newfound “family” because of his accident.

Comparing your situation, yourself, or your life to somebody else’s, and what they have, robs you of the ability to be able to see the beautiful gifts within your own life. God is so good and has blessed us more than we could ever deserve!!

Thank you to you all for every prayer, phone call, text, message, gifts, visits, food, helping carry the load for us, medical equipment, and more that I am sure I am forgetting. Even still, anywhere we go, the first thing people ask is “How is Cade?”. It means more than you could possibly know. Truly!!