Remembering Gracie

Dear Gracie,

I cannot believe it has been two years since mommy had to say goodbye. The night you went to be with Jesus I spent laying by your bed with a broken heart. My prayer was always that God would "heal your heart" HE answered that prayer, as I know you are know perfect in Christ, mommy just had no idea it would not be here with me. I miss your beautiful smiley face, the smell of your hair and skin, holding your hand while you fell asleep, reading you books, your cute little walk, your spunky personality, my favorite (dancing as I held you to "it's a wonderful world") and mostly how you made my heart stretch with Love for you. You are my little princess and not one single day goes by without mommy missing you so very much.

Your daddy misses you more than words can ever say. His heart was forever changed since the day you went to be with Jesus. You were his life, his everything....daddy finally had his "daddy's girl" His love for you ran so deep. He loved to hold you tight, here your little footsteps as you ran to jump up on the bed to give him a morning hug (first), when you sat with him and watched all his favorite shows, he will not admit it, but he loved that you were fiesty like mommy and mostly how you looked into his eyes. Sometimes, I catch a tear run down his cheek and I know it's you he is thinking about. You stole his heart and he thinks of you every day.

Mommy and Daddy miss holding you so tight

but are so thankful Jesus has you wrapped up in his

until we see you again

Ohh and your brother...where do I start? It's amazing the love he has for you. His prayer every night consists of, "please give Gracie a kiss for me." He occasionally will ask mommy if he can go to Heaven now and why you cannot come back home with your family. Mommy bought him a book called "Someday Heaven" that helps answers some of his questions....he loves it! He loves to look at pictures of you and his favorite is when mommy and daddy share stories about time you were together. He too thinks of you so often.

Mommy tries not to let her mind go to the "how things could of been" but unfortunately there are times I try to imagine what kind of sisterly bond you and Abbigal would of had. Now I just hold on to you will meet someday and until then I will always tell her about you. You would just love her...she is a part of you and on occasions I get a glimpse of you through her.

Of course all your grandparents miss you too. When you are mentioned everyone gets a little tiery eyed as they too long to hold you and play with you.

You were grandma Marsha's special girl

you shared a common bond for the love

of horses and all animals...grandma misses you so much!

Papa Dave...thinks of you often

Big Al loved to read you books and watch his sport games with you

Grandpa Jim adored you....he loved playing and making you laugh

Kendra loved to spend time with you and misses you too!

Mimi loved all your special moments she had with you

Grandpy loved you too!

It's hard for mommy to talk to Grandma Laura about you because of the special bond you to had. I'm always praying that Grandma has peace in her heart about you being in Heaven and that HE gives her comfort when she misses you so much. She has a great big picture of you right on her dresser that helps her start her day. Grandma Laura was one of you biggest fans and she misses you so very much!

There are so many others that miss you dearly. As mommy always shares...you touched more lives than most do in a lifetime.

Who could of not been touched with a face like this.......

Love you Girly!!

Although those she left behind feel the pain of sorrow and loss and shed

many tears we are comforted with God's infinite grace, mercy,

compassion and peace. Most importantly we can be comforted with knowing...

Gracie did not loose her life, but rather she has gained eternal life.

Baby Steps

We are starting to move very slowly. For the next 24 hours they will be changing up some meds, starting her on diuretics, and possibly removing her trans lines. Sadly her right lung is partially collapsing, however they have strongly expressed this was to be expected with being on bypass for a longer period of time. With help of the ventilator and the diuretics removing fluid it may start to balloon back up.

She opened her eyes really big today for a quick moment and started to squirm. I'm not feeling prepared for when she starts to wake up, because that is when mommy mode comes in and I want to pick her up and comfort her. It's still going to be a few days so I need to focus on here and now. Which we are trying our best to do.

It's so important to remain in Gods word at a time like this. I know we always should, but especially during a time like this. It keeps you from trying to handle it all on your own.

The Chaplin came in today and shared something a heart transplant mom wrote:

When Jesus is Lord,

In every heartache, healing

In every care, comfort

In every trouble, triumph

In every problem, peace

In every obstacle, opportunity

Loved those words! Then while I was reading a book by John MacArthur he shared at least eight purposes behind the Lord's allowing trials and tragedies to come our way:

1. To test the strength of our faith...Check

2. To remind us not to let our trust in the Lord turn into presumption or spiritual self-satisfaction...Check

3. To wean us from our dependence on worldly things....Check

4. To call us to heavenly hope...BIG Check

5. To reveal what we really love...Check

6. To teach us to value God's blessings...Check

7. To enable us to better endure future trials and difficulties....Still working on...

8. To help us develop "enduring strength" so we might be of even greater use in God's Kingdom...praying to have the opportunity

Had I not been through these trials I highly doubt (for me) that I would of been able to check them off. What a blessing I can.

Today we are still feeling emotionally an physically exhausted, but at least we have been fed by God's word and strength and for that we are thankful.

A mother's Love

[love] bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

1 Corinthians 13:7

Things have been pretty quite today. After two surgeries in a 12 hour period, her body needs to be in a "quite recovery stage." Therefore, she is heavily sedated. The good news is her heart function is doing very well. The not so good news is her lungs are at a very delicate stage and need extra attention to recover. They are trying different settings on the ventilator in hopes to help her along this process.

Currently she has:

-3 Chest Tubes

-Pacer wires

-Main Central line

-Arterial line

-2 trans lines

-2 iv lines

-breathing tube

-catheter

They are not going to try and make any changes for the next 24 hours. She is no longer in a paralyzed state, but again she is heavily sedated. I'm trying not to shed so much tears, but they keep coming. I've been holding her hand for the last 6 hours and every now and then she will give me a little squeeze. I like to imagine that Jesus is giving her sweet dreams. It was so sweet how some of you wrote about Gracie being present looking down on her sister. It's made me think about how Gracie could be right next to Jesus saying please take care of my sissy...and us for us...we are just trying to "breathe"

I wish there was a deeper word for "thank you" so I could express how much all your sweet words and prayers mean to us....until I can think of another word...thank you. We are feeling very loved and it has helped carry us through.

I want to end on a beautiful prayer our sweet friends Justin and Victoria sent to us.....

Jesus,

The Chez family needs you right now. They are so tired. I ask that the recovery would be quick. That there would be no more bleeding. Be so present and real to Adam and Terra so that they can be restored today. I ask that Abigail would see your face. That Your peace would consume her. More than anything, I ask that You would be seen through this situation. That people would see You and desire You through the Chez family. Amen

Out of surgery again at 1:30 am

Prior to her sugery Abbey developed extra blood vessels. Her heart was working over time trying to create oxygenated blood. They were bleeding but once Dr. Hanley took care of them and closed her up they stopped. Adam is with her as I get some rest with Luke. Will update later today.

12:15am Back to OR :(

Abbey has lost too much blood since she came out of surgery, so she will be going back into the OR. Dr. Hanley should be here shortly. He will open her up to see where the problem is. Their hope is that she does not have to go back on bypass.

We will continue to update.

Out of surgery

Just met with Dr. Hanley, and many prayers were answered. (love the power of God and prayer)

-He was able to perform the complete repair (thank Jesus)

-She was on bypass total of 5 hours

-The PA's were a little more complex then he anticipated, but he was successful in the repair

-The VSD was closed and we already have the conduction (heart is beating on it's own)

-He was able to put in a 16mm conduit (great news!) if the valve does not deteriate and we do not face other issues with it, then it could be 3 years until it needs to be replaced (positive thinking)

-There was a new finding of an ASD, but he was able to close that up as well

-He was barely able to close up her chest....he felt comfortable to do so, but did let us know there could be a small possibility they may need to reopen. Praying hard this will not need to be done

-Due to long time on bypass she will need extra support and recovery will be a longer process

I'm wishing we were feeling as positive as we were this morning, but the day has taken all our reserve out of us and we are feeling extremely emotionally and physically exhausted. AND the hardest part is yet to come....seeing our baby girl. Tears are rolling down my face as I write this, because I know what we will be walking into.

We are rejoicing for the successful repair, but we know how quickly things can change AND recovery is a whole different process.

From the bottom of our hearts we thank you for all your sweet words and prayers....please continue to help us pray for a smooth recovery.

4:15 Still in Surgery

And still on bypass :(

Surgery Started at 10:00am

At 9:45 Dr. Hanley was in to meet with Adam and I, then was off to the operating room. Still no news, your words of encouragement and prayers have kept us going.

Thank you!

Surgery Tomorrow

On one of my favorite sweet young love movies, "A walk to remember," Mandy Moore's boyfriend asked her how does she know God and her faith is real? She replies back to him..."It's like the wind...You can't see it, but you can feel it." I love that description.

I may not be able to always explain my faith perfectly to others, but I am so thankful for the blessing to feel it in my soul, which of course is the holy spirit.

Although, we have our faith it does not make us exempt from trials and from failing is so many areas. Being a Christian is not easy, God never promised it would be. To be a Christian we are to act "Christ Like" and considering Christ was perfect it's a pretty tough act to follow.
One thing we are so thankful for is, never doubting the hands of God and his plan. Even though we have walked down this very difficult (at times) path with so much hurt and pain, I still trust in him with my whole heart. God is soveriegn and I trust that this is all for his glory. I'm thankful for all he has given us despite our circumstances.

Again, we are not exempt from hurting and feeling frustrated at this path we have to travel. Tomorrow will be very difficult for us and our hearts will be so heavy as Abbey is taken into surgery, but I know God will help us to breathe our way through. We trust in him and know that although we will not be by her side during surgery, HE will. AND we will keep reminding ourselves that throughout the day. He will also be holding us up as we walk in to see Abbey when her surgery is complete.

For those of you that are in to specifics, here are the details of the surgery:
-Approx 5 hours up to 13
-She will be on bypass

-She will be receiving up to 6 pints of blood (thank you to our donors)

-Dr. Hanley will first open and repair her pulmonary arteries (this will take the most time)

-Then if he has time (this one of our big prayers-for him to have the time) he will close up the Ventrical Septic Defect

-Then move on to putting in her pulmonary valve

-The biggest concern for time, is we do not want to keep her on bypass for too long

-Then if there is not too much swelling he will close up her chest, if there is too much swelling she will come back with her chest still open and surgical tape over it. Which happened to Gracie (very difficult to witness, no parent should have to)

Depending on how much he is able to complete, will determine our length of stay. It could be two to four weeks.

Our Specific prayer requests are:

-That he is able to do a complete repair

-That her voice box is safe

-That God comforts and protects Abigail

-That God gives us strength and comfort

Sorry...I know...long request.

I cannot tell you how blessed we feel that Dr. Hanley will be performing this surgery. Not only is he the most brilliant surgeon you can tell he cares for every child. You can't help to look into his eyes and know your child is in amazing hands.

During surgery I know so many of you are praying for us and this too is hard to explain, but we can feel it. I know it sounds weird, but if you have ever been in a situation where much prayer has gone out to you, then you know exactly what I mean. We cannot thank our family, friends and blogger family enough for all your continued love and support during this time.

Also, big thank you to our moms who once again are here to support us. We could not do it without them. Not only are they with us, my mom drove us up in the motorhome! Like mom has always said, "there is nothing a man can do that I can't do better. :) It was a great memorable road trip! Thank you Mom and Marsha! Luke is so excited to have them here and cannot wait until Grandpa Jim and Papa Dave arrive tonight.

Surgery is scheduled for tomorrow, Wednesday, June 6th at 8am. We will do our best to update as soon as we hear any news.

Here are some pictures of our trip:

Our driver....sorry buddy you still have many years until you get behind

the wheel of that bus

Daddy helping us get settled before he headed out

for his quiet drive without the kiddos

Getting ready to go

Love my kiddos!

Abbey and Grandma Laura

Luke wanting to drive with Grandma

Grandma Marsha and Abbey

Grandma Marsha and Luke

Hey brother can I play with that?

We wanted to take Luke out and spend some time together

before hospital life

All our Love, The Chez's

Sweet Baby Abbey our prayers will be with you

and we know that God will protect you tomorrow

when Daddy and mommy cannot....

Love you princess!!!

Meaning of Abigail: Father in Rejoicing

Happy 2010

Originally I was having a very difficult time with all the hype of the New Year approaching. I mentioned to Adam...how are we suppose to celebrate the New Year with knowing the first week Abbey would be having open heart surgery, nine days into it would be the second anniversary of Gracie no longer here with us and lastly 30 days into it we would be finding out if Luke is possibly going to be needing surgery soon.

Then after spending enough time being a little sad about what was to come, we decided that we need to focus on all the wonderful blessings we had last year.

Some of those blessings were:

~Our new baby girl, Abigail

~Luke was able to receive a stent and hold off on surgery

~Luke is eating “big boy food”

~God provided us with new strength every morning to get through the days without Gracie

~We continued to realize how incredibly blessed we are with amazing friends and family

The list is long and I could go on forever.

So while it is going to be a hard month to start, we will try to focus on the fact that the Lord will be working on our lives through this and we will still be able to witness our sweet blessings through our good and bad times in 2010.

Hoping the New Year brings you much love, happiness and that you are filled with many blessings!

Promised that I would post some photos of Christmas....

Went out to see Christmas lights with our neighbors

Our new neighbor Carly and Luke

She is such a cutie and so sweet...Luke adores her

So OC uses a little bit of fake snow....kids loved it!

Luke and I went out with the Higgs and other family friends

to Irvine Park to see Santa.

Riley, Luke and Kennedy

Tanner and Luke

Kennedy, Luke and Tanner

Group shot with Santa

Luke, Blake and Jacob on Christmas Eve at Ray and Lori's

Our neighbor, friend and now family :) Ray

Luke loves Ray and Lori so very much!!

Lori and Luke...Sweet photo

Abbey enjoying Christmas day :)

about the only time she sleeps...in mommy or daddies arms...

hmm....spoiled??

Luke showing Kaelin his new ride

Garrett and Luke

The girls hanging out while the boys played football

Kendra, Abbey and I

Now in the backyard for some basketball

Grandpa Jim, Kendra and the kiddos..Abbey was really smiling for mommy

Grandma Laura and her girl

Papa Dave and Grandma Laura

Unfortunately, Grandma Marsha was not feeling well this Christmas

so they were not able to make it. They were very missed.

My hubby and I

Thanks for checking in...all our love,

Chez Family

Merry Christmas

As I posted the above picture of Gracie I felt the familiar sting in my heart. It's almost impossible for me to stare into her eyes for more than five seconds. I hope someday it is a little easier to look at her beautiful eyes, that I miss so very much. I've already shed a few tears the last couple of days and also throughout today (Christmas Eve) But I am so thankful to our loving God who reminds us that:

For unto us a child is born, he will be called Wonderful, counselor, Mighty God, Everylasting Father, Prince of Peace. Isaiah 9:6

Although Christmas is difficult without our sweet Gracie, we feel so blessed for the reminder of Christ who came to walk this earth for us and through his Grace we are given the chance of eternal life with him and our loved ones. Our hearts are so happy that through our sadness we are still able to smile and have our hearts filled with joy for our other sweet little blessings Luke and Abbey. We are so thankful for our family and friends and we want to.....

Wish everyone a very Merry Christmas!

Love, The Chez Family

Back Home

Love the chance to title our update, "Back Home." Just love those words! Although it is only for two short weeks, we get to be home for the holidays. We arrived home late last night and I just smiled as I stared at our Christmas tree and thanked the Lord for letting us be home at this time. My heart goes out to all the families that have to be in the hospital during the holidays and Adam and I have already come up with a few ideas as to how Hopeful Hearts is going to be helping those families. Our foundation has received many very generous donations this past year and we are excited to be able to support families with children living with Congenital Heart Disease. Especially ones that are in the hospital during the holiday season.

Prior to us being released they wanted to get an X-ray on Abbey. The X-ray showed that she had too much fluid around her heart. They decided to order her Lasix and requested us to give it to her for three days and then be followed up with our cardiologist. We are praying that when we go to LA on Tuesday that there will be no more fluid. She is still a little fussy and is not eating very well, but for the most part she is doing good.

Luke is so happy to be home and is looking very forward to Christmas!

As I was trying to fall asleep last night I was reflecting on how amazing God really is. We are so blessed to witness some of the small things he is orchestrating in our lives. Mainly with all the people we continue to meet along this journey. I used to think, wow what a small world or what a coincidence, now it's like, wow our God is pretty amazing how he works. As Adam and I were in the waiting room during Abbey's procedure, with about 15 other families I looked up and noticed the one that was off to our left. They were being called in by a nurse, which I imagined it was to get an update on their child. Instantly I hoped that everything was OK and wished there was some way that I could make sure they were. Within minutes we were called as well so I never got the chance to talk to them.
Well....about 3 hours later after we were settled with Abbey in her room I decided to head down to the cafeteria. There were quite a few people in the cafeteria so I was pretty surprised when I realized the guy in front of me was the same one that was with his wife in the waiting room. I was nervous to say anything (I know shocker for me) so I didn't. But, he turned around and asked how our day had gone. I shared and then asked him about his. He had a smile on his face and said this was his 2 1/2 year old son's 4th surgery and they were able to make another successful step today. He shared his son's name (Burke) and I shared a little about our foundation and said if you need anything or would like to stay in touch please contact us. Then I was anxious to get back to Abbey.
Later that night I was a little disappointed with myself that I did not get any of his information. They were going to be in the hospital for a long stretch...through the holiday.
Well....I went on to my computer and noticed I had received and email from a sweet family that I follow on their blog and she mentioned that there was a family at the hospital that were far from home and their little guys name was "Burke." Ok...there you have it....GOD is always in the small details. It's not a coincidence or a small world. It's him orchestrating our lives. I'm looking forward to getting more information on this family and helping them in anyway we can while they are away from home during the holiday's. Praying for their little guy's recovery and thanking God once again for showing a little glimpse of Himself.

OK....I must get to my family as they are not too happy when mommy is on the computer...BUT come on guys it is 11:00...the house should be asleep. :)

Recovering

The procedure went well today and although Abbey was very uncomfortable in the beginning, she is now as happy as can be and recovering nicely.

The results of today's procedure were not as great as we hoped them to be but, they were still good. Abbey's pulmonary arteries have grown however, there still is quite a bit of narrowing in a few areas. With that being said Dr. Hanley will need to open up and patch the pa's in hopes to achieve adequate pressures to her lungs. Surgery is still scheduled for January 6th and at this time we are praying that Dr. Hanley will be able to do a complete repair.

Which will consist of: (for all those that like more details :)

Addressing the pulmonary arteries

placing the conduit

figuring out what he wants to do with the remaining collaterals

closing up the VSD

Sometimes the complete repair is not able to be done due to time constraints on the bypass machine, but we are very hopeful that it will be done. It will be our prayer anyways.

Today after I handed Abbey off to the nurses I felt the usual sadness that overwhelms me at times.

I was sad because we are at the hospital instead of:

Being at home for Luke's Christmas program at school that he is going to miss again this year. Also, for the fun day they are going to have on Friday at school. Sad that Abbey is having to go through this when she should be at home laughing, cooing, sleeping and playing.

Also, feeling sad because this is the time of year that is so fresh in my mind of Gracie. On January 9 it will be 2 years that she is no longer with us. I can remember everyday that led up to the 9th.

The hospital has this way of consuming my thoughts and making me feel so sad about what our children have had to go through and continue to go through. Thankfully after a few hours of being here I pretty much had to say OK Terra that is enough! Well to be honest it was God of course weighing in saying, "hello" are you forgetting about me? Is my Grace not sufficient enough for you.

I cannot forget to be joyful in hope, patient in affliction and faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12

So....after reading a couple bible verses I'm feeling much better. God is good ALL the TIME :)

We hope to be released tomorrow, but we are still unsure. Will keep you posted.

Thank you for all your love and prayers.

Chez Family

Catheterzation tomorrow

We are currently headed up north for Abbey's Cardiac Cath tomorrow (Thursday). This procedure will give Dr. Hanley (surgeon) the information needed to determine if her pulmonary arteries have grown enough in order for him to perform her surgery, which has been scheduled for January 6th. As with any procedure there are risks, so we are asking for your thoughts and prayers for our sweet little princess.

Specific prayer requests:
-That as they put the breathing tube in, there will be no further damage to her vocal cords and airways
-That Dr. Perry is able to gather the information quickly without any complications
-Lastly, that Abbey has a smooth recovery

-We always have a very difficult time walking to the "double doors" right before any procedures or surgeries and having to hand off our sweet babies. I always pray at this time for God to help us to breathe and too put his healings hands on our sweet baby.

Thank you so much for all your thoughts and prayers.

Thought I would end on this quick cute note:

Yesterday Luke and I were out shopping for a stroller. Here is the conversation he had with the sweet sales lady Megan.

Luke...you really don't need to show mommy how to do that I can help her
Megan...wow, you must be really smart
Luke...Yep, I sure am
Megan...you just might be the president someday
Luke...nah, I want to be a Doctor
Megan...wow a Doctor! For your mommy and daddy?
Luke...no, for kids and babies like me and my sisters

Ok, so the emotional me got all teary eyed. I thought it was so sweet! Sorry, just had to share. He is really excited to be heading up with us because like he said....Abbey will need me after her procedure :). Just love my little guy and his sweet heart!! He will be staying with Grandma Laura and Grandma Marsha at the hotel and is so excited to be hanging out with them. Thank you moms once again for all of your support. We do not know where we would be without you.

We will update as soon as we receive any news.

All our love

A Special Bond

On Thursday evening I was reminded once again that although we have been faced with many trials, God is right there by our side, showing his love. Sometimes it feels like he has left us, I know this is not true however, it is such a blessing when he gives us a glimpse of his nearness.

Last Thursday evening was spent with some of my absolutely amazing "heart Mom" friends. I've been so very blessed to have met so many beautiful, strong, and simply amazing women along this journey. We all share the familiarity of what it feels like to live with our sweet little blessings who have CHD. From the first time watching your child be rolled in after surgery (nothing can prepare you for this) to sitting along side their beds as the fight for their lives and some of us have had to face the most difficult of all, saying goodbye for now to our precious babies. We all live with the concern of what tomorrow will bring and even though we love to enjoy each precious moment we all feel the anxiety of the "next appointment."

One of my new special friends, Dana shared a perfect comment, she said, "there is a spoken and unspoken bond that all heart moms share." She was so right on! Had I not gone through this journey I would of never met these beautiful women. It hurts to have travled this path, but I cannot begin to tell you how lucky I feel to have God placing these women perfectly in my life.

Not everyone was able to make the Orange County get together, but we plan to continue this "heart mom night out" tradition. My hope is to have moms, in all areas get together a couple times a year to celebrate what God has given all of us, "a special bond."

Some of my heart mom friends:

Jennifer, Debbi, Gretchen, Kathie, myself and Dana

Thank you for a great, fun and as Jennifer said, "uplifting" time.

Love you all!

Quick little update

We feel so blessed to share Luke has been doing really well with his big boy food. YAY!! We have been praying for this so very long and we feel so thankful we are at this point. The menu is still extremely limited. He has lost some weight from the transition and it takes 30-60 minutes to finish his meals, but we are taking what we can get. The very best part is he has not vomited in 3 weeks. Such a huge blessing! Thank you God for finally answering this prayer.

Unfortunately, Luke is sick again. We are doing our best to keep him at a distance from Abbey and are praying from him to recover quickly. Other than that he is doing great and loving school. He will always be my loving little guy.

As for Aba Daba Doo (Luke's nickname for Abbey :) she is doing so good. She is the happiest baby. I just love how happy she is. Everyday she is laughing and smiling. She is getting so strong. We have been working on lot's of tummy time to help build her strength, because after surgery it will be weeks before she will be able to be on her tummy. Her weight is slowing down however, she is still at 14lbs. Luke and Gracie were 16lbs at a year, so it has been fun to have a little one with a little chunk.

Plans have changed with her catheterzation. It is now scheduled for December 17. We will stay at the hospital for a day or two and then return home unless they see something that needs immediate attention. Her surgery is scheduled for January 6. We pray that all goes well these next few weeks so we can be with family during the holidays.

Adam and I are doing great! We finally are relieved from much stress with Luke's feeding issues and all the worries of what is to come. Adam and Grandma Marsha watched the kids so I could go to Vegas for my sister Bridget's 30th birthday. I had the best time with my family, but was so excited to get home to my hubby and kiddos.

We will let you know how the cath goes on the 17th. Thank you for checking in.

Love, Terra

My sister Amy, Bridget, mom(Laura) and myself in Vegas

Happy Birthday sister I love you and was so happy to be able

to celebrate your birthday with you!

Mom-thank you for a great weekend!!

My sisters, cousins and auntie's. We had the best time ever!!

Ok...so this is not Adam's favorite picture...he says she is too little

for such an outfit. :) However, I LOVE it and besides she only wore it

for the picture. :) It was her outfit for aunties trip to Vegas.

Told her she has about 25 more years. ha ha

Philippians 4:6-7

Although I absolutely love Northern California, I was so happy that Abigail's test looked good and that we were able to come back home for now. Of course Adam and I have a hard time of letting go of the anxiety about her upcoming surgery, but I have place this paragraph next to a place that we pass every day. It's a reminder for us to not feel anxious.

Life is full of many concerns stemming from the absence of certainty and control over our future. While we can never be completely free from worry, the Bible shows us how to minimize worry and anxiety in our lives. Philippians 4:6-7 says do not worry about anything, but with prayer and supplication with thanksgiving make your requests known to God and then the peace of God will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

Abigails Catheterzation is scheduled for December 15th and they will tentatively be putting us on the schedule for surgery on December 17th. There could be a slight possibility that the surgeon sends us home for the holidays and performs surgery the first week of January however, we made it very clear as much as the holidays are important to us Abigails surgery is most important. Many families have to celebrate holidays in the hospital, and if we are there than that is where we are meant to be. Only God holds the timing of her next surgery, so we just hand it over to him.

We left Luke back at home because we knew the 6 1/2 hour drive there plus the hospital would of been a little too much for him right now. Which worked out perfect because as usual he had the best time with Grandma Laura and Grandma Marsha. Thank you mom's for everything!! We love you!

Also, thank you to our constant support system. We love you all as well!

Hoping everyone has a safe and Happy Thanksgiving.

All our love,

Chez Family