A Tribute to My Parents

Lately, I have really been thanking the Lord for my parents, James and Cynthia Caine. They have brought lots of joy to my life as my parents and the GRANDparents of our children. By God's grace they have been together for 38 years and married for 34 years! That's unheard of in these days. What a blessing to be their child. Their entire lives were changed in 1980 when they both accepted Christ as their Lord and Savior together at a Sunday church service. God completely turned their lives right side up and changed the course of their lives and their children.

What has most impacted me lately is the love they have shown by caring for our little Halley. I absolutely love that they feel the need to visit her every other weekend (like they have visitation rights) and they faithfully do so. They leave Atlanta on Saturday morning and drive 2 1/2 hours to get here around lunch time. We spend the day together and then they are back on the road by 6:30 a.m. to make it to their church. Now that's dedication...5 hours driving only to spend less than 24 hours with us.

Halley has been with them since last Wednesday afternoon. My dad met me at the stateline to pick her up and take her home with him. This gave me the chance to get my hair braided (it took 11 hours), get some much needed rest (what a joy to have uninterrupted sleep at night), run errands, and spend quality time with Eddie. They all came to visit Saturday. My mom and I went to the commissary while my dad stayed home with Halley. Then Eddie, Halley, and I went to take some family pics. Thankfully, my mom came with us. Halley was not on her best behavior and I know Eddie and I would not have been able to take any pics together if my mom weren't there to take care of Halley. On Sunday morning they packed up to leave and took Halley back with them! We do love and miss her, but are so appreciative of the chance to get stuff done without a 2 year old.

Guess who watches Halley most of the time while she's in Atlanta. My Dad. My mom is still working and my dad is retired due to a medical disability. Because of that, he takes care of her until my mom gets home. Opa, as Halley calls him, is wonderful. He says it brings him great joy to take care of her and is no problem at all. I have been most shocked by this...I never knew this side of my dad, but I'm very thankful for it!

Opa, Oma, and Halley will be back Thursday night for the birth of the twins on Friday! They are going to stay with us through Christmas and New Year's and a little beyond that to help with the babies. My mom says she will be on duty during the day and my dad will be on night duty to help with the feedings. What a huge blessing they are!

Mom and Dad, we love you very much!