Thank you for the love and don’t forget to listen…
“Hello, how are you?”
We can’t even believe what happened while we were in Las Vegas this weekend, however, there is video evidence that it was not in fact, “only just a dream.”
We chose a stretch of time our dear friends were also there honoring their brother. It was the first one to cruelly arrive without his physical presence and Vegas holds special significance.
To say emotions (and temperature) were running high is an understatement.
We must admit, we flew to Las Vegas to see Ed Sheeran and were devastated to be in our Uber about to be dropped off when police came screeching toward us announcing the show had been cancelled. If you know us, you know lady luck has an extensive history of not being on our side. I spent exactly one dollar gambling while we were there, however, we hit the lottery with the rest of the night.
Rewinding the tape a bit, I knew Adele was in town and I absolutely LOVE her! I had just played and sang her version of “To Make You Feel My Love” on my guitar the weekend before. I know she sang it for her friend Amy Winehouse, but I think of Caleb every time. Those of you who know me also know I come from a giant family and my spending habits sometimes still resemble those from the Great Depression. These same friends had seen Adele the night before and came back beaming. “It was amazing! She’s beautiful! It was worth every last cent.” The wheels were spinning faster than the tires of our Uber racing back to the strip. Maybe, just maybe, we could still go.
We sprinted across the bridge and arrived to Caesars Palace only to quickly realize tickets were going to be impossible. We refreshed our Ticketmaster app non-stop as it was the same one the staff at the counter were using as well. They told us we had a 1% chance but it felt more like zero. All of the guests to Adele’s ball had arrived and were posing excitedly in front of her picture. As the minutes ticked by, I had given up. This was just going to be another punch to the gut in the series of hard knocks. I’ve learned to pivot but my heel has more bruises and it’s getting harder to walk. This was our last night in Las Vegas and I didn’t want to leave like this. I just couldn’t.
Those of you new to the Foundation may not know this but we give away something that captivated many hours of Caleb’s attention while he was still here. He called them “vroom vrooms” (Hot Wheels) and he loved watching the wheels on these miniature metal machines turn as they rolled across the floor, table and even the most tolerant cat who thought he was a German Shepherd like his big sister. We give these to unsuspecting parents everywhere we go and I happened to have one such toy in my bag left. If I could share Caleb in another rotten moment, that’s what I was supposed to do. Before we turned to leave, I handed it to the sweet gentleman (you know who you are) that had given our friend ticket information the day before. I just told him to give it to the next little kid that came to the counter. I was too upset and just needed to go. I couldn’t spend that kind of money on myself even if a ticket came up anyway. Before we left, the kind soul behind the counter told us one ticket had just been released for purchase. I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Adam never hesitated to let me be the one to go. He told me he would go explore “Paris” while I was in the show. Exactly 12 minutes before the queen took her place on the end of the piano bench, my ticket appeared on the screen of my phone. I certainly didn’t look like the rest of the audience with their perfectly styled hair and sparkling eyeshadow ready for the red carpet. However, despite the mascara and hairspray that had wilted down with my hopes, I was going to see Adele!
I couldn’t imagine what would happen during this show because I couldn’t even give myself permission to buy a ticket. Like my favorite comedian, Anjelah Johnson-Reyes’ book says “Who Do I Think I Am?”
Adele was everything. She was beautiful and hilarious just the way I’d seen her on TV. She gave us fair warning asking us “Are you ready to go on an emotional journey with me tonight? Cause I’m going to drag you through your emotional dirt. I’m going to break you. I’m going to make you laugh while you’re doing it.” Damn. I couldn’t have written a more accurate description.
Thank you, Adele for your empathy and compassion. It is something we will remember forever. I’m still in a state of shock and gratitude. After losing your only child, it is difficult to feel like a mother. In addition to giving me a huge hug, thank you from the bottom of my heart for dedicating “Rolling in the Deep” to “Caleb’s mummy.” I had to ask the woman sitting beside me if that’s what Adele really said. Adele, you may never truly know what it means to hear this or to receive that much genuine kindness and motherly outpouring of support. I am not someone who typically shows emotion in public but you were right. The emotional journey was overwhelming in the best kind of way. You also told us “I promise we are going to have a really fun, good, sad time.” Mission accomplished. Thank you.
The song says “but if by chance you’re here alone.” I WAS there by myself but I know I’m never truly ever alone. Caleb is larger than the life we live on this planet. I will continue taking him everywhere I go, both with his picture as well as his little red truck vroom vroom that was in my purse when we lost him. He is a forever piece of me and I of him. As my message to him at his service said he is “my gift, my light, my treasure.” I didn’t win any money this weekend but Adele herself got an introduction to the wisest human I’ve ever met. On the 9th and everything (https://thecalebeffect.org/kindness). Maybe luck has nothing to do with it after all.
“Can I have a moment, before I go?” Yes, yes, you can and you did, and I will never be the same. You gave Caleb a moment and so much more. “When We Were Young” we didn’t know of all the purest love with radiant blue eyes and an infectious smile. We didn’t know how happy he could make us just by jumping on our backs and pretending to fly across the living room. We didn’t know of this thing called SUDC (https://sudc.org) that still hasn’t been researched enough to provide a way to predict or prevent it’s horror. We could never imagine the pain of waking up to a world without our son’s physical presence.
Still, there is one thing that not even “that” day can steal. Caleb left the world more love than we probably deserve. He gave us a master class in connecting with people and loving them exactly as they are intended to be loved. Many have asked what I gave Adele. The card I gave her has his picture and says “Caleb smiled with his whole face & loved unconditionally with his whole heart. He never knew a stranger & gave love freely to everyone he met. Caleb is still making the world a better place. Embrace Caleb’s effect in your own life: Do something kind for someone else today. Say “I love you” & mean it. Forgive. Don’t wait #calebeffect
Borrowed from Heaven 2/9/14
Returned 5/2/16
The Caleb Effect
https://thecalebeffect.org
If you’ve made it to the end, I hope you feel Caleb’s love too.
(Sorry in advance for the camera angle! I was trying to keep a battery pack connected as well as see Adele through my own eyes instead of through my phone.)
We thought you’d enjoy seeing this picture of Caleb dressed up like an elderly man, yet with the sweetest baby face. This is representative of WovenLife’s philosophy or joining both the young and more “classic” members of our community as the weave diverse therapies and programs in a loving, safe place. We hope you will join us in spreading SUDC Awareness and sharing The Caleb Effect with our new friends.
Who: WovenLife
https://youtu.be/ClWobfacCHg (a heartwarming video that tells the story better than we can)
What: WovenLife's mission is EMPOWERING PEOPLE OF ALL AGES AND ABILITIES TO FIND HOPE AND INDEPENDENCE THROUGH COMPASSIONATE CARE, EDUCATION, AND SUPPORT.
When: April 9th (Nice on the 9th)
Where: We are purchasing art supplies from the wish list. You can pick up a few items, order from their Amazon wishlist or send financial donations here: https://www.wovenlifeok.org/iVoML/donate
Why? WovenLife offers a Child Development Program for children ages birth through five-years-old, an Adult Day Health Center for adults and seniors, and onsite Speech, Physical, and Occupational Therapy.
All programs are inclusive to people living with or without a disability.
Join us for a virtual race May 1st-9th!
The Caleb Effect Foundation's 1st annual Fun Run and fundraiser celebrates the 3rd anniversary of becoming an official non-profit organization!
Your purchase of a t-shirt or tank will be your registration for the virtual race anytime you wish between May 1st and May 9th! We will also send you a race bib, info sheet and sticker to help you go whatever distance you choose to run, bike, swim, hike or snooze! Order here: https://www.bonfire.com/the-caleb-effect-foundation-fun-run/
Special prizes will also be awarded for performance, creativity and the ways you show you are Nice on the (1st through) 9th so stay tuned to our social media pages! We have big plans for the future of The Caleb Effect and we are thrilled to have your support!
Thank you for helping us celebrate THREE years of spreading Caleb's contagious love and easy connection while bringing awareness, research and support of those affected by SUDC or (Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood). Caleb loved race day and we know he would be cheering proudly for you.
***NOTE***
Sponsorship opportunities available! Actual sponsors will be added to the back of the shirts. All placeholder designs are notional.
It’s SUDC Awareness Month!
We are shining a light a little bit longer this month in order to spread SUDC awareness to pediatricians, first responders, mental health professionals, nurses, Emergency Room staff, chaplains/ministers, medical examiners, teachers and anyone else who may be one of the first to encounter a family struck by SUDC.
We will be distributing goody bags with the SUDC Foundation fact sheet, info on Caleb and The Caleb Effect and a few fun goodies and handwritten notes!
If you are local, comment below or in the Facebook event and let us know how many goody bags you want and for what professional you will be providing these and we will deliver!
If you aren’t in the OKC a metro area, we still greatly need you to participate!
Making goody bags is easy!
1. Get a baggie
2. Print the SUDC Foundation’s fact sheet https://sudc.org/.../2020/04/SUDC-Fact-Sheet_3.11.20.pdf
3. Add in a few goodies like lotion (they’ve washed their hands a bazillion times in the last hour), snacks and a handwritten note/coloring pages from your kids
4. Let them know it is in memory of Caleb. Include #calebeffect #SUDCAwareness and our website https://thecalebeffect.org
5. Spread some love and awareness!! You never know how it could help a family like ours
To follow all SUDC Awareness Month activities visit https://sudc.org/sudc-awareness-month/
Thank you!
The reason we are Nice on the 9th. Our whole world. Our everything. Our bright-eyed, little love is forever 2 but February 9th he would’ve been turning 7. That is a fact that makes my stomach churn but once again, we hope above all else, Caleb is celebrated and remembered the way he deserves.
February 9th is a day we will never forget and it would mean the world if you don't either. Usually we mark the 9th of every month by going out into the community and sharing Caleb's love publicly. However, we've learned our limits. Days like this are just too gut-wrenchingly painful to try to put on a happy face, and with COVID still hanging around, we need all the help we can get. We will still be celebrating Caleb's beautiful life in our own way, but we would LOVE it if you would too. If you want a fun way to remember Caleb and to spread the love that Caleb gave so freely to everyone, join us to play BINGO, Caleb style! Mark off one square, a row, or play for blackout!! We hope you feel him singing and clapping for you as you spread his love to a world who desperately needs it.
I will never think of Caleb as any older than 2 but since this would've been his 7th birthday, 7 PRIZES will be drawn and sent to those who complete a “CALEB” and comment either here or on his social media pages (bonus points for wearing your shirt and including pictures)!
#calebeffect
#benice
#NiceOnThe9th
#HappyBirthdayCalebLennon
#OneDay
#childloss
#grief
#SUDC
#SUDCAwareness
#Spreadthelove
#BINGO
"The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" as we've shared before is not always so wonderful for many. For those of us grieving, for friends and family fighting illness, loneliness and losses, and for our neighbors like "Old School" who are outside right now literally just trying to survive.
We can and will do better.
If you've been wondering what we are up to this month, it's true. COVID has changed the way we are able to host Nice on the 9th events but it won't be able to stop The Caleb Effect from being felt all the way to your core. While we won't have an event open to the public this month, we hope a little boy's love and life-saving supplies like this Coleman 0° sleeping bag will light a flame and warm your heart.
For more about January's recipient, Project Winter Watch keep reading. With your help, there's an abundance of inspiration still to come.
https://www.facebook.com/ProjectWinterWatch/photos/a.130173328442553/232415601551658/
#calebeffect
#niceonthe9th
Our military brothers and sisters have been good all year but they don't always have the funds to purchase gifts for their kids for the holidays. Let's help them by adopting families stationed at Tinker Air Force Base!
The Caleb Effect has signed up to fulfill NINE families' wish lists. We don't have names or other info but we know they will love whatever you decide to select.
Families are numbered and coordinate with the wish lists at the bottom.
Each will have gifts for their families thanks to YOU!
How can you help?
-Please comment on our Facebook or Instagram pages to let us know which item(s) you want to purchase from any of these wish lists
-Either coordinate a delivery drop off for us to deliver the gifts or send us funds to purchase the items for your chosen family)
-We will update the list as items are claimed/purchased
-Happy shopping!
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Family #25 - 1) MALE (Age 2) - Toy story, Dinosaurs, jacket 2T; 2) FEMALE (Age 1) - Clothes 18-24 mons, jacket, animal dolls
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Family #26 - 1) FEMALE (Age 9) - Legos, Mandalorian-star wars, books, Clothes size 12, Shoes size 3-5
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Family #27 - 1) MALE (Age 2) - Clothes size 3T, scooter, jurassic park, spiderman; 2) MALE (Age 1) - clothes size 2T, shoes size 6, books, flashing toys
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Family #29 - 1) MALE (Age 4) - Scooter, clothes size 4T, nerf guns, marvels superheroes
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Family #31 - 1) MALE (Age 1) - Clothes sz 18M tops/12M bottoms, coloring books, shoes sz 6
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Family #32 - 1) FEMALE (Age 7) - Princess, unicorn, hair bows, coloring books, Disney toys; 2) MALE (Age 3) - Cars/trucks, Dinosaurs, soldiers, paw patrol; 3) MALE (Age 1) - Trucks, balls, animals, building blocks, bath toys
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Family #33 - 1) MALE (Age 7) - Shoes size 13, Clothes size 7; 2) FEMALE (Age 1) - Kids books
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Family #34 - 1) MALE (Age 10) - Games, pokemon, anime, outdoor toys, clothes size 14
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Family #35 - 1) MALE (Age 8) - Legos, Clothing Size 8, Nintendo Games, Board Games; 2) FEMALE (Age 4) - "Ryan's World" toys, Ninja Toys, Clothing size 4-5T, Slime, Kinetic Sand
COVID-19 hasn't been nice for anyone but it's been especially unkind to seniors. We are teaming up with Brookwood Skilled Nursing & Therapy to provide penpals and a few little gifts for their residents.
We will also be writing notes/drawing pictures, chalking the sidewalks and creating care packages OUTSIDE (dress accordingly) Brookwood from 4-6pm on Nov 9th.
Caleb LOVED older adults so let's show The Caleb Effect love by bringing adult coloring books, large print word searches, hairbrushes, scented lotions/powders, cologne and any other item a senior may enjoy.
If you are interested in becoming a penpal, please address your letter to:
Penpal
940 SW. 84th
OKC, OK. 73139
Next, a resident will receive it & write you back! Make sure to have a return address and let them know The Caleb Effect sent you!
See you on the 9th!
"I knew that people donated blood all the time but I didn't think that I would ever be one to receive that blood." -Gage Bullard
Received life-saving blood from our Nice on the 9th recipient,
Oklahoma Blood Institute
We need 25 people to sign up to be Nice on the 9th Friday and give blood! In true Bedlam spirit, once you sign up, comment on the event page to let us know if your points will go to OU or OSU! I hear 2 Sooners signed up today!! Boomer...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xfE-oCdp3k&feature=youtu.be
Are you bored being at home? Have you been wanting to join us but aren't local? Are you local and look forward to each 9th? This is for YOU!! You are invited to join us virtually for Nice on the 9th for Wyatt's Wings on September 9th from 6-7 (or as long as you want to play)!
Wyatt's Wings is an organization providing assistance to parents of children with dwarfism, in need of long term Neonatal Intensive Care and those who are terminally ill. They also provide assistance with funeral services, something for which we wish no parent ever had the need.
Since COVID is still hanging around, we are going to get together virtually for a fun (TOTALLY FREE) game! 1st place wins $299, second $99 and third $49 (plus drawings for prizes such as a $100 Amazon gift card) so tell your friends and family! We will also have a Zoom call so everyone can see and hear each other from the safety of our computers (phones won't work with the game).
This is one of the few Nice on the 9th events that you must be 18 to play but we would still LOVE your handwritten notes or the piles of your kids' artwork that needs a new home (comment here to arrange a drop-off or mail-in delivery)
How do I join the night of free fun?
- If you don't already have it, you'll need to download the free PokerStars software from www.pokerstars.net (this will only work from a PC or Mac, so you won't be able to do this from your phone)
- Open the main poker lobby, then click on the Home Games tab
- Click the 'Join a Poker Club' button
- Enter my Club ID number: 3677094
- Enter my Invitation Code: #wyattswings
Or launch this URL: pokerstars://home-games/invite/3677094/wyattswings
That's it! Once we've approved your membership request, we'll be ready to start playing together!
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Split your screen and join the fun on the Zoom Meeting as well! https://gpsec.zoom.us/j/95545113986?pwd=WVFDVk4xaFlWVWMwU011ekFZVnNoZz09 Meeting ID: 955 4511 3986 Passcode: 658605 One tap mobile +13462487799,,95545113986# US (Houston) +12532158782,,95545113986# US (Tacoma) Dial by your location +1 346 248 7799 US (Houston) +1 253 215 8782 US (Tacoma) +1 669 900 6833 US (San Jose) +1 312 626 6799 US (Chicago) +1 646 558 8656 US (New York) +1 301 715 8592 US (Germantown) Meeting ID: 955 4511 3986 Find your local number: https://gpsec.zoom.us/u/adXo3SSJj3
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Once again, this is a completely free night but if you would like to make any donations, we will graciously split them with our friends at Wyatt's Wings.
Not familiar with Wyatt's Wings? They are an incredible organization. Check them out here: http://www.wyattswings.org/
Next month Caleb would be heading to his first day of first grade. We can't send him with a superhero backpack and fresh mohawk haircut but we CAN make sure his love radiates through the halls of schools near and far.
We have decided to make August 9th an annual school supplies drive! From 2-4pm we will be collecting supplies/monetary donations at the India Shriners (3601 NW 36th St, OKC) for Putnam City and Oklahoma City Public Schools (online and contactless options available).
This year it is even more critical to support our schools as COVID-19 has created devastating shortages while eliminating the option to share supplies.
As we do with every event, we will be including handwritten notes of encouragement. Write a few at home and mail them, drop them off or come make your own creation 6 feet apart.
*OKC Public Schools has a new way of purchasing supplies at wholesale prIces in order to maximize our impact and help as many children as possible. Their special rate allows your donation of $20 to purchase $60 worth of supplies! To help purchase supply kits in bulk donate to OKC Public Schools via this link or donate in person on the 9th! We will close our special link on the 10th and announce the total!
https://bit.ly/2ExOkmb
To support Putnam City Schools please bring Lysol spray (the goal is 2,000 cans which represents one can per teacher), reusable face masks or hand sanitizer. To make a donation directly, visit https://pcf4kids.org/.
We will also be drawing for four $50 gift cards to be gifted to public teachers (one winner for a pre-K-1st grade teacher, one 2nd-5th, one 6th-9th and one 10th-12th) for their classroom (no matter where they live)! To be entered they must like The Caleb Effect Facebook page and comment with the school and grade where they teach (and share for extra credit ;)!
*If you were a winner last year, please sit this one out but share this with your teacher friends.
Much like your throwback MySpace status, the world we live in today can best be described as "it's complicated." As we've said before, actions speak louder than words and we want to do our part to be part of the solution.
This video says it best: https://youtu.be/Guf4TtSWVhE
How you can help:
We will have a tent and table set up at 1220 NE 33rd Street (the NE Recreation Center) on July 9th from 5-7pm to write notes of love to kids in the FACT (Family Awareness and Community Teamwork) Youth Leadership Academy. If you would like to support FACT by donating items items for a community basketball event the following will be graciously accepted:
(Items Needed For the Basketball Event)
-Single-serving chips, Gatorade and bottled water
-Hot dog condiments
-Plastic utensils
-Face masks
-Hand sanitizer
-Snow cone syrup
-Disposable water cups
-Individually wrapped straws
-Large industrial trash bags
-Disposable gloves
-NBA regulation basketballs
-Extension cords
-Water coolers (4)
(Items Needed for Giveaways/Prizes)
-Reusable water bottles
-School backpacks/drawstring bags
-Bicycles
-Mini-fridge (2)
-Nike Elite Socks (20)
*Opportunity for bulk donations for various giveaway items also available. Please contact us for more details.
Some history:
We met the officers and kids of FACT at our Nice on the 9th for Class Matters (Remember the gentlemen who told us how the computers we donated would help them in their pursuits of careers in math and technology?). We knew our conversations were not complete so our original intention was to be a part of their basketball tournament. COVID-19 is forcing an alternate scramble so plans are still rapidly changing. There will also be a community event on July 25th that we will be a part. More details to come.
More about FACT:
The Oklahoma City Police Department’s FACT Unit aims to build relationships with the community it serves by mentoring middle school & high school age children, connecting with their families, humanizing the badge and providing alternatives to truancy, gang violence and self-destructive behavior. Under the leadership of Lt. Wayland Cubit, FACT has served the OKC community since 2008.
Are you ready for some positivity in this world? We are helping the @santafefamilylifecenter this month by providing swimming safety items and pool toys! Please stop by tomorrow, June 9th at 6300 N Santa Fe Ave, OKC between 5 and 7pm and drop off floaties, water wings, various sizes of swim vests/life jackets, goggles, swim caps, pool noodles, or whatever swim safety accessories you want. Caleb loved “wimming” more than any other activity (it may have even rivaled vroom vrooms) and we are excited to get to share his love of the water with others. Feel free to join us and write some notes for the amazing kids and adults this will help - the Santa Fe Family Life Center "focuses on offering and promoting programs designed to empower disadvantaged youth and people with disabilities to achieve improved fitness and well-being." Check them out here at https://www.sfflc.com/about-us, and if you can't be there but want to help, they are about to start a fundraising campaign that will see each donation matched dollar-for-dollar up to $75,000.
Be Nice on the 9th!
The Caleb Effect Foundation is turning 2! We are super bummed we don't get to have a big celebration with you in person but our first priority is keeping everyone safe. With so many having the worst time of their life, we need you more than ever to be Nice on the 9th! May 9th we will be supporting our local friends at Vito's (who graciously let us take over their restaurant a few months ago) and delivering meals to those working in healthcare. No matter where you are, we want to see how you send a meal or send some love "2 go" for our 2nd birthday being an official 501(c)(3) charity. Medical professionals, your sanitation workers, grocery store employees, truck drivers, lonely neighbors, military members, teachers or anyone else who needs some extra TLC will be grateful. Tag us in your pictures and use #CalebEffect with your handwritten (or chalked) notes, or doing another act of kindness on the 9th. Don't forget, we have printable messages of kindness to include as you are being Nice on the 9th! https://www.dropbox.com/s/8401pyv6310quh3/change-the-world%20copy.jpg?dl=1
Thank you for supporting Caleb and us in his mission. We are forever grateful "2" have you on our Caleb Effect crew.
Hi Baby Boy. I still feel exactly like this.
You are my everything. You have my whole heart and soul now and forever. I’m running on empty but somehow still running.
Do you even know how special you will always be? No one made me crack up and ease my stress in an instant the way you did. No one is even a close second. I miss you. God, I miss you. I miss us. I miss every, single thing about you. I hate living without you. A series on repeat just going through the motions. Still the same gut-punches and knots in my stomach. Four years and I still can’t get it through my head. This is too long to have to live without you. Distractions aren’t working and this day makes all of those things that haunt me even more vivid and in my face. I don’t want to think about any of them. I will never understand.
The rest of my thoughts will not be shared but you probably already know them anyway. Our connection is strong despite our physical separation. There are emotions so deep that there aren’t words powerful enough to tell you what I want to anyway.
I love you now and always. I can’t wait to sprint to the finish line and have you in my arms again. Every wish is this “I want Caleb back.”
One day.
Love,
Mommy
XOXOXOXOX
Sorry in advance this has more than a few simple words. You're spending time distancing yourself from all your regular activities now anyway so maybe you won't mind.
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Much like most people in the world right now we made plans that won't be fulfilled. We had so many hopes, dreams and visions of the future as a family when Caleb came along as well. In fact, this photo was taken at Caleb's first and only experience at Sesame Street Live. We had taken time off work, paid for a hotel room in Tulsa and waited to watch Caleb's face light up as he got to see Elmo (one of his favorites)! As you can see, he DID love it but that only lasted literally about 2 minutes.
He came. He saw. He wanted to leave. So despite all our plans, we did what was best and left.
Such is the case right now. Instead of an in-person get together, it is best that we abandon our original plans and focus on what is most important. Social distancing. Flattening the curve. Keeping everyone healthy. Showing love for those who are in desperate need.
This Nice on the 9th we want you to choose at least 9 people/local businesses that are struggling and BE NICE! We also want to put out hope, love, strength, resilience and positivity in Caleb's name. Post on our page and tag us in your efforts. Wait until April 9th or start working on it now!
How can you help?
IDEAS:
-If you are still getting a check (or if you have a few dollars to spare), send a "love offering" (thank you to my dear Uncle John [who left this world shortly before Caleb's arrival] for that phrase) to someone who isn't getting their regular paycheck because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
-Put together a care package for a nursing home and leave it with a staff member (be sure to sanitize anything that could still have your germs on it).
-Call/email/chat online with someone who may be lonely, having an especially difficult time, or who already struggles on normal days with their mental health. Emotions are high. Do your part to bring laughter when possible!
-Shop local business! Many are offering curbside pickup, delivery, shipping, etc!
-Getting overloaded with kids' arts and crafts projects? Pass it on to someone who would LOVE to have a child's creativity sent/delivered to them!
-Ask your healthcare providers how you can help. Sew some extra masks. Order bakery goods from those struggling shops and restaurants that have supported all your fundraising nights and have them deliver to those who are putting in long hours and risking their own health for the public.
-Volunteer for a charity who is making a difference in these uncertain times (if you have volunteer opportunities, please post here as well).
-Give to a shelter (the two or 4-legged variety). Being homeless right now is even more challenging.
-Don't take this time here for granted. We say it often but tomorrow truly is not guaranteed for any of us. We would give anything in the whole, wide world to be "stuck" at home with Caleb. Play with your kids. Really play. Put your phone down and put on your imagination. It's missed you.
-Be a light in the dark. Look at Caleb's face and see the joy his brief time here still shines through you. Caleb was only in our world 2 years, 2 months, and somewhere into his 23rd day but he lit up our whole world, even in the darkest of times. He still is if you let him.
-Be Nice on the 9th.
Come by Fassler Hall (421 NW 10th St, Oklahoma City, OK 73103) on March 9th from 5-8pm and help us be Nice on the 9th in honor of SUDC Awareness Month!
Enjoy a German meal, write a note of thanks and take a goody bag with you to give to your favorite pediatrician or first responder!
Fassler Hall is fun for everyone and is family friendly until 8pm.
In lieu of physical items, we ask you to donate to the SUDC Foundation and note that it is in memory of Caleb Wile. https://interland3.donorperfect.net/weblink/WebLink.aspx?name=E230614&id=122
Kid Friendly
No matter where you live it is SUDC Awareness Month! Share these with a pediatrician, first responder or post them to your social media.
https://sudc.org/Portals/0/SUDC-Awareness-Month-Poster-2020.pdf
https://sudc.org/get-involved/sudc-awareness-month
Adam and I took time to be alone on Caleb's actual birthday but greatly appreciate all who remembered the light of our lives on his special day. It meant a lot to see the ways you are spreading The Caleb Effect.
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Hi Baby Boy. I love you. I miss you so much.
It is incredibly overwhelming to be here on your birthday without you. You brought all the happy I ever needed on your birthday and every day of your much too brief life. There is so much I wish I could say to you and even more I would give anything to hear you share with me too. Yes, I can still talk to you and you to me but the physical conversations have been silenced. I hate that. I hate not being with you so much. I wish I could hold you with every last wish and each candle you don’t get to have on a cake I never got to make. A knife twisted so deep it pierces my soul and leaves the jagged edges sharply fanned out in every direction just under my skin. They say what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger but they lied. I don’t know how losing you hasn’t killed me but one day the tourniquets holding pressure will get to free the rest of me. One day I’ll get to come through to the other side too. One day I will have you in my arms again. One day. One day. One day.
God, I miss you.
You will always be forever two. Six is something I can’t even imagine but I wish to God I could still be living with you.
It is like going through some kind of twilight zone existing in ultra-slow motion and yet stumbling through tricks where your life here was in warp speed. I can’t believe this even happened and I also can’t believe I’m still surviving on this planet. Like we were both snatched from Earth. They took all of you but left the shell of me. My soul went with you and my heart and body are still trying to catch up.
I haven’t had as many words for a long time and with every unfinished project or one left completely undone, there is guilt. My body and brain don’t always cooperate but Baby Bear I’m doing my best.
You have now had twice as many birthdays away from us as we got to thoroughly enjoy with you. I want each of them back. I want you back. I want our old life back. I want answers that don’t exist. We have done everything in our power to distract ourselves and try our hardest to give you the avenues to shine but sometimes it feels like we’re just spinning our wheels. Maybe I should think of this more like your grandpa’s nowhere rides (Has he taken you on one yet?). Maybe we ARE going somewhere but I can’t comprehend the meaning yet as we pass by all the same places. I wish I could see the scene from where you sit in your vroom vroom now. I hope one day I get to be on the same ride and it won’t matter where we go or how many of the same wheels keep spinning. I hope one day even sooner we finally get your vroom vroom memorial here completed.
I miss you. With every cell, laughter and tear, I miss you. You made me me and I’m still searching for all the pieces you left that made you you. It is not a surprise to anyone to know that I am lost but the day I find you again in my final destination I will never let you leave home without me again. I don’t know which way to go so keep helping me, Caleb Lennon. I still need you even if you are doing just fine without me.
I love you. Always have. Always will.
Happy birthday, Baby Boy.
One day I will celebrate all of them with you again.
One day.
Love,
Mommy
XOXOXOXOXOXO