Kade was born when I was living with Camilee and Jason in Flagstaff for a summer to earn money working. I held him and cuddled him a lot and enjoyed every second of it. He was a sweet little baby and so cute. It was every teenager’s dream.
As he grew, it was obvious that Kade was an exceptionally determined little boy. He learned how to ride a bike without training wheels at a very young age and was very mechanically inclined. He was always a very rough and tumble kid. Nothing could keep that kid down or make that kid stop.
When he was really really little (and I was single) they spent Christmas with us (the Payne side of the family). I had gotten gum in my stocking, and Kade stole it. When his mom asked him about it, he told her that he had bought it at the Conoco (a gas station close to my parent’s house in Duncan). When she asked him where he got the money, he told her that he had money. He was only 3 or so and so it was very funny.
Later, the Nelson family visited Jereld and me at our home in Mesa soon after we got married. While they were at our house, Kade and one of his brothers stole a Costco package of gum from our pantry. We didn’t know until I got a phone call from Camilee after they had left for home (and been gone for about 30 minutes). She told me they had smelled a minty smell and had figured out what had happened. Jason and Camilee turned around (adding an extra hour to their trip) to bring the boys back to apologize to us. I told them it wasn’t necessary, but that’s the kind of parents Camilee and Jason are (always teaching their children good values). The boys were afraid we would be mad and were very embarrassed, but it obviously had an amazing impact on their lives. And I learned that, for some reason, Kade really liked my gum. I wish I could give him a Costco pack of it right now.
I loved visiting his family when they lived in Tucson, and then Bisbee, and then Sierra Vista. In Bisbee, I loved going on Jeep rides with Jason, Madison, and the boys behind their house. Kade was always up for those kind of adventures. My husband, Jereld, and I spent our first married Christmas with the Nelson family and the kids bought us gifts. They gave Jereld a clown nose and silly glasses. They gave us both little raincoats for the puppies we had just gotten before Christmas.
We loved taking vacations to go visit the Nelsons in Sierra Vista (and usually went there so Jereld could hunt). Kade went with Jereld and Jason on hunting excursions many many times. In fact, Jereld remembers Kade getting his first deer and how proud he was and how proud Jason was of him.
One time in Sierra Vista, Kade kept coming inside the house to get a drink, and instead of getting a cup, he would use the kitchen sprayer and put it right in his mouth (even though it was grossing me and his mom out and we told him to stop). As a joke, we had Madison smear some dish soap on the sprayer for the next time he tried it. Not long after, Kade came inside to take another drink and filled his mouth completely full from the sprayer before realizing it tasted funny. He spit it out real quick. We all had a good laugh.
Kade was always so nice to our kids when we were together. Recently, I gave Kade a ride from here in Show Low down to the valley to welcome home his Payne grandparents from their mission. He spent the night at our house the night before we travelled and then we left early in the morning. His broken phone is still funny to my kids (and me and Jereld for that matter). On the trip we talked about his aspirations to be a mechanic and how much he loved fixing and tinkering with things. He had a solid plan for his career and his Uncle Jereld and I gave him advice for his future.
Several times during the drive he teased me (just like his dad would) that I had said something that would allow Jereld to purchase a new gun scope. I rolled my eyes at him and told him he was just like his dad.
While he was with us, I teased him about the mole on his ear looking like an earring. He joked that he was sure it was cancerous and needed to be removed immediately. He really did not like his mole, and it still brings a smile to my face.
-Allison Brewer