Let me first say that I have been terrible about keeping you updated. With that said, there's no way that I can fully update you on everything that has happened in the last 5 MONTHS! But I'm going to try and give you a good view of what's happening now....BRASE YOURSELF....this could get long!

Jude is growing like a weed and will turn 5 months next week. He's making all kinds of noise and love being on his back with his fists in his mouth! Yes, both fists. He is beginning to find his strength as we do little exercises on rolling over and sitting up. He loves being talked to and laughs all the time. See pictures at the bottom....

Jayme is LOVING being able to be home with Jude and is an amazing mom! We are learning how to make the one-car-family thing work, so I think sometimes she has to spend a little too much time at home, she also enjoys taking Jude and Ruby on walks. She is also finding her inner chef!! Until Jude was born, we really spent most of our evenings out to eat. Now that she is home in the afternoons, she has been experimenting with different recipes and is becoming quite the expert! We have our standards like pizza, camper's stew, and pasta...but she also made a great Chicken parmesan a couple nights ago and will fix cabobs as well!! I'm loving this!!! I guess I feel like my pop-belly actually has an excuss now....HA!

I'm working working working. Mon-Fri I work at WMA from 9:30am-6pm and Tues-Fri I also work at FedEx from 4:45am-8am (I call this my 3-hour work out!). I am still leading Floor 27 college ministry on Thurs evenings and praise team on Sunday mornings. We are also adding a new Sunday morning meeting for Floor 27 called The Hallway. So, I relish the few hours in the evening that I have to just sit and relax with Jayme and Jude! 6:30-8pm becomes Daddy time with Jude.

The newest and most exciting news around here is that we are looking for ministry opportunities possibly outside Nashville. Some of you may have heard, but Jayme and I for the last couple of months have been seeking Worship and/or Campus/College ministry opportunities. We are feeling more and more that God is calling us to full-time ministry. Although we would love to stay around our friends in Nashville, we are trying not to set any limits only wanting to follow God where ever he leads. We were able to spend a weekend in Boston with Tim and Stephanie Hawkins and the Sojourn Campus Ministry. This is an opportunity that we are praying about. We would be working closely with the Berkley College of Music students and would be helping the music ministry at Reunion Christian Church plant. We both loved Boston but definitely have tons of questions about how God would put this together. We are also praying about a possible Worship Ministry in Jeffersonville, IN. Southeast Christian Church in Louisville is starting a satelite campus in Jeffersonville and are needing a worship minister. I have sent in my resume and application and am working on a dvd to send in as well. I'm actually leading the music at Lakeshore this weekend and will be taping this to send. The church is waiting on my resume and app until they receive this dvd. Please pray for complete Godly guidance in this search.

I'm going to make an attempt to keep updating the blog as these possibilities unfold! In the mean time, please enjoy acouple recent family shots! Hope and peace...



Rascal Flatts/Taylor Swift concert






Jude enjoying his fist!






Jayme and Jude in the Boston Commons






Butlers in Boston






My future Harvard grad!!

goose eggs all around

Today we sucked Nashville dry....NO GAS ANYWHERE!! Since the day Ike rolled through the Houston area, our pipeline for gas has been cut off. Thus, an outage. There were even reports of fights breaking out at gas stations today because of the shortage. As we drove home tonight, the only 2 gas stations with any gas were packed to the brim with cars lined up down the street. Y2K was nothing...who would have thought that a city like Nashville would ever shut down because of gas. I guess we'll be staying home this weekend...hope and peace...

Rom. 15:13

He's a poser...

In the past two months or so, we have amassed a load of pictures of our studly little guy!! To view them, check out www.dropshots.com/butlerfam. Jayme and Jude are back in MO visiting family this weekend and next week, so I'll try and post some more updates with all my free...time....hope and peace...

Let's start from the very beginning...somebody once said that was a very good place to start!

Last Tuesday, May 27th, my wife and I went in for her doctor's appointment. They had us scheduled to do an ultra sound so that the doctor could get a better grip on the baby's size and living conditions. Upon viewing the ultra sound results, the doctors said that the amniotic fluid levels were low. Basically, this meant that the padding around Jude was getting smaller and smaller making every movement or strain even more stressful on him. The doctor said it would be normal in this case to schedule a C-section and get the kid out knowing that labor would probably be even more stressful on him now that the fluid levels were low. But, not wanting to do a surgery in vain, he scheduled Jayme to be induced two days later to see if she would be able to have him naturally......skip two days forward....


Jayme and I arrived at the hospital at 6am for our scheduled inducement. Very shortly after arriving we were taken to our birthing room and Jayme was plugged into an ivy, baby heart monitor, and a contraction monitor. They began inducing and right away the contractions began to occur...although still very light. The doctors continued to increase the level of inducing and continued to monitor her progress and the baby's heart beat. I think it was around noon when Jayme had her epidural because the contractions were beginning to heighten, but she wasn't dialating. Mid afternoon came and the doctors were seeing that Jayme was having big contractions almost once per minute and yet she was still not dialated. Not wanting to cause any more stress on Jayme and Jude, our doctor recommended we have a C-section because it was obvious that her body wasn't paving the way for Jude to come out naturally. Through some tears we decided that we agreed and Jayme would have the C....skip forward about 45 minutes....



They wheel Jayme into the OR and leave me in the hallway while they get her prepped. Every thought in the world was raising through my head at this time, and none of them were slowing down long enough for me to even catch my breath. Finally after what seemed like 30 minutes, they told me that they were ready for me to come join. I walk into this white, frozen OR where I see my wife strapped down with her arms both laying straight out strapped down. She's awake and is doing great, so I wheel up next to her head and quickly grab her hand. Very quickly the doctor looked over this make-shift curtain that is keeping Jayme from seeing any farther down her body then just past her noise and tells her that he just pinched her with his tweezers and asks if she felt it. She didn't, so they began with the incision. Jayme and I continued talking just to past the time and also to keep her mind off what is happening! We couldn't believe that in a matter of about 20 minutes, we were going to be holding our first child!!!!.... skip forward about 10 minutes...

The doctors are nearing the end and we hear Jude's first cry!!! The doctor standing behind me taps me on the shoulder and tells me that I can stand up and watch the rest if I would like to. Not hesitating a second I stand up fully expecting to see the doctor holding my son....what I saw was Jude's tiny head sticking out of Jayme's lower stomach!!!!! Within the next 20 seconds I watch the doctors wiggle little Jude's body out and quickly take him to the side under a heat lamp. WE HAVE A BOY!!! I look back at my wife and smile. She smiles back and is anxious to see and hold him. The doctors tell me that I can go over and see him, and so I do. Below is what I saw.



The nurse cleans him off just a bit and wraps him very tightly with at least two blankets and then hands him over to me! I take him to Jayme and we were able to be together as a family for the first time. This only lasted about 2 minutes, but it was an amazing two minutes.



The nurse then escorts me out of the OR and down this back hallway where our family is waiting to see him. We take some quick pictures and then we all ride the elevator to the 7th floor where the nursery is located. Our family stays outside the nursery where they continue to snap photos and capture video moments. I'm going crazy on the inside of the nursery listening to my sons first song....a song of brand new life!! I put my finger down by his hand and he grasped it like he was looking for reassurance that everything was going to be alright! The nurses continue to clean him and warm him while the doctors in the OR are putting Jayme back together. She said that she was so out of it because of the medicine that she actually fell asleep as they sewed her up. Shortly, I was able to go back to our room and meet up with Jayme, and about 5 minutes later, the nurses wheeled Jude down to see us!!!



Hopefully I will have the time like today to continue telling stories about Jude and his life. Hope you enjoyed the first one!! Hope and peace....

Caleb "Jude" Butler was born, Thursday. I'll start blogging about him, but for now I'm swamped in dirty diapers and love. hope and peace...

The Stork Cometh!

Caleb Jude will make his appearance one way or another on/before Thursday, May 29th!!! Our doctor scheduled us today for an inducement at 6:15am on Thursday. Everything is going fine with the baby, but the fluids inside were a little low, so they don't want to wait any longer for him to come naturally! Please pray that when they induce, Jayme's body will respond and Jude will be able to come naturally!! Also pray that Jayme, my honey, will be healthy!! Hope and peace....

Do things that matter last, or do things that last matter?

I have had the ultimate privilege the last two weekends to be apart of two great traditions. Last weekend was my wife's birthday (also another great tradition!!). To celebrate, I took her to the Grand Ole Opry to see Carrie Underwood perform. This was my first trip to the Opry, so I really had no clue what to expect. I WAS BLOWN AWAY! I don't know that I had ever been a part of something that was so rich with history and pride. The Opry started as a radio show with an audience. Each Tuesday, Friday and Saturday the greatest names in Country music gathered together to corporately celebrate their love for their music. Each member uses these times as almost like a family reunion. Even if they weren't performing, stars from all decades would come together just to converse and swap stories. The show was split into 4, half hour shows with a different host and performers. In between each performance were "commercials". At stage right there is an old pulpit where an announcer stands and during the break he reads the announcements or "commercials". The whole show was so old school. Prior to TV, I can imagine families that would rush home on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays to sit around the radio and listen for the best in Country music.

Today, I had the privilege to travel with some friends to Churchill Downs. It wasn't the Kentucky Derby, but it was a day full of horse racing. Everyone dressed in their "Sunday best" loaded down with cash for betting. I was there with my former roomates Timothy and Jonathan and other friends/family of Timothy. It was a bachelor's party/celebration of Timothy. I hate NASCAR, but hanging together cheering on horses as they charge around the track was the most fun that I've had in a long time. Horse trainers and owners work their lives to have that one horse that will lead them to a Derby win. We were also able to view the running of the Preakness, the second leg of the Triple Crown. Big Brown was able to win to move one race closer to this, the most ilussive crown in all of sports. No horse in 30 years has won this crown.

Two events, both with such rich history and tradition. Coming from a society that tends to look down on traditions and customs in order to find the new, best thing. That begs my first question....do things that matter last - or do things that last matter? I hope that my children will be able to look back and enjoy the times that we gathered around the radio and listened to the Opry, no matter what new Disney show is running. And no matter what new theme park appears, I hope that our family will long for the days that we spend on the farm or at the race track!! Hope and peace.....

Today