Most people when they celebrate the New Year, they are celebrating what is to come. They celebrate the excitement of new beginings, a celebration of moving on to new things and new adventures. In our household things are a little different for New Year, we celebrate the end of the year and we look back and thank God for sustaining us in our trials. Also, for giving us courage throughout the year, for giving us the strength to still enjoy our lives without Gracie, for old and new friends we have been blessed with, for all the support we have received from family and friends, for our growth in our spiritual walk and for every other blessing. Most importantly for our beautiful Children who bring us such great joy and for all our great memories of our princess Gracie.

If the list was not so long I would share with you how amazing God was in 2010. It’s one thing to know God has a perfect plan for each one of us, it’s a whole other thing when you get to experience His hand working in your family's lives. Although there were many trials and many moments of aching for Gracie, there were also so many blessings. God's holy spirit has been felt so many times, showing us just exactly how He is in all the “big and small details.” What a great gift to receive! This is a great reminder to comfort us as we head into a New Year that starts with Gracie's 3rd anniversary that she went to be with Jesus and also the possibility of Luke and Abbey needing surgeries. When we start to fear what is to come, we will remind ourselves of all He has done for us, that His grace is sufficient, He and His plan are perfect!

Now onto the updates...

Little MIss Abbey is such a love bug. Her constant snuggles and kisses melt my heart. Although she is a love bug, she also is a wild child. Adam's new nickname for her is Abs the destroyer. She likes toys, but loves stuffed animals and she absolutely LOVES dogs. Sound familiar? Yep, exactly like her sister Gracie. They are so different yet so much the same. One huge blessing is her eating. Wow, God truly blessed us in this area. She loves to eat. She does not eat everything, but when she likes something watch out. Never ever in my life did I think I would ever have to hold back food from a Chez child, but we do! As I have said a million times before, God sure knew exactly what we needed when He sent Abbey. She was not sent to fill a void, but she is definitely filling our hearts with joy and she is bringing much laughter back into our home.

December 2010

Sadly, during Abbey's last appointment we received some disappointing news. Abbey's valve is starting to narrow and also losing its function, which means it is putting more pressure on the right side of her heart. Unfortunately, there is still so much research in trying to figure out the best way to preserve the valves. As far as the size goes, Abbey's valve could of lasted 4-5 more years, but unfortunately it looks like the valve is starting to deteriate and at some point Abbey will need to have an open heart surgery much sooner than we had anticipated. We know that with God all things are possible and we also know how powerful prayer can be so we are asking for specific prayers in this area:

Please pray for God to sustain Abbey's valve so we can buy some more time before her next surgery. Please pray for her continued health. Also, although Abbey's valve is not working as it should, please pray she continues to grow so she can build up enough strength if surgery is necessary. Thank you for all your prayers!

Other than Abbey's heart she is doing very well and we will continue to enjoy every precious moment with our wild child.

Now onto our little man Luke. How is it that just when you think you love your children and could not love them any more, you do. Luke continues to have such a big heart. He is sweet, loving, funny and witty like his Dad. Just the other day, I had the best date night with Luke, we went to Disneyland. I was so thankful for the time we had, just the two of us and I will always cherish the special night. Luke is definitely a Daddy's boy. I love their special relationship. Not too long ago they were wrestling and Adam tackled Luke and said, "who's the man?" Just when I thought I knew what Luke was going to say he surprised me by saying, "Jesus is the man." Luke has really been growing spiritually such a blessing!

He has been loving his school and new friends. He still loves to ride his bike, play basketball, board games and of course DS. T Ball starts soon and he is interested in Karate, so it looks like life is about to get busy again. Every now and then he will ask questions about Gracie, but as time goes on he does not bring her up as much as he used to. Which of course is hard for us, but we are thankful for what he does remember and we will continue to remind him of their special relationship. As for Abbey and Luke they of course adore eachother, but as most siblings, they definitely have their moments! We love our guy and look forward to see what the New Year has in store for him.

Carly (our neighbor and one of Luke's best buddies)

Luke's buddies from school

James, Noah, Luke and Barrett

As for Luke's heart, it still remains the same. There is leakage and the valve is not working as it should, but he is growing and the Doctors still feel the stent is working well at this time. He will need a catherterzation soon, but not sure exactly when. Will keep you updated. As for the GI issues, sadly I feel they will always be the same. Luke still vomits every couple of weeks for a few days in a row. We continue to give him his medication and always pray for healing in this area. Please continue to pray for Luke's health and heart.

Luke continues to not have many limitations, but since he has been more active in school I can see some slight differences when he starts to wear down. For the most part he is a super active 5 year old who loves to play and at this time his heart is letting him do all he loves! such a blessing!

Thank you for all your love and prayers! Hoping your New Year is filled with many blessings!

"For nothing is impossible with God" Luke 1:37

All our love,

Chez Family