Moving!

Here we are doing some exercise at home. Even having gone through difficult times in recent months, when we had to stop therapies and the use of orthoses, yet we see some progress of our beloved Vitoria - she has a great desire to move and get crawling!

It is an indescribable joy to help her move!

Sometimes she works so hard, that she ends up tensioning a lot, so we have to stop to rest. We always seek to respect her pace and value each small effort of this brave little warrior.

Stretching on the ball

This is a great way to stretch at home. It is important for Vitoria to stretch her spine to prevent any deformity and the ball is great for this. She loves this exercise in physical therapy, but this day, at home, she was still a little insecure, afraid of falling.

She always gets a little angry and insecure with any new activity, but gradually she ends relaxing and just enjoying it a lot!

Fabio Gabriel

I ask you please to be in prayer for Fabio Gabriel, because there have been some problems after surgery. He was recovering well, quickly left the ICU and was discharged in four days. But the stitches began to be secretive, and on Saturday Fernanda wrote me that all stitches have opened, he had to return to the hospital and remake them. Despite the big scare, Fernanda said he is all the time with a good face. But of course they are all very concerned.

May God give them strength and give the doctors wisdom and discernment to do the best for him.

Around here, our beloved Vitoria is doing well. She spent a few days very angry with her tummy. Things were no longer very well, and after 30 days of antibiotics last month, her stomach and intestine did not react well. Fortunately we went to a good nutritionist who prescribed a diet and a specific treatment to restore the mucosa and the intestinal flora. Vitoria is still not 100% but is improving. Not to mention that the teeth continue to grow - a few - and sometimes I don't know whether she is complaining of teeth, colic, or the dreaded infection. We continue to periodic urine tests, thank God everything is fine.

Peaceful sleeping

Unless the LORD builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat — for he grants sleep to those he loves. Children are a heritage from the LORD, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one's youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court. Psalm 127

Cherry rolling

25 months of faith, hope and love

If I make use of the tongues of men and of angels, and have not love, I am like sounding brass, or a loud-tongued bell. And if I have a prophet's power, and have knowledge of all secret things; and if I have all faith, by which mountains may be moved from their place, but have not love, I am nothing.

And if I give all my goods to the poor, and if I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it is of no profit to me.

Love is never tired of waiting; love is kind; love has no envy; love has no high opinion of itself, love has no pride; Love's ways are ever fair, it takes no thought for itself; it is not quickly made angry, it takes no account of evil; 

Love has the power of undergoing all things, having faith in all things, hoping all things.

Though the prophet's word may come to an end, tongues come to nothing, and knowledge have no more value, love has no end. For now we see things in a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now my knowledge is in part; then it will be complete, even as God's knowledge of me.

But now we still have faith, hope, love, these three; and the greatest of these is love.

1 Corinthians 13 (Basic English version)

 

Yesterday our little princess turned 25 months! Two years and one month of her sweet presence among us. A time when we have learned more deeply about the meaning of actions such as love, hope, caring, trust.
When loving unconditionally is no longer a utopia, and became a daily challenge, and also a gift. Because thanks to this so special little girl, we had the opportunity to look more to Heaven, to depend more on God, emptying ourselves and thinking, in every moment of trial, about how much God loved us by giving his Son for us, in how He suffered on seeing his son suffering, thinking to heal and save us.

The deep and unconditional love we have for our beloved Vitoria leads us to think about how much we are deeply and unconditionally loved by God, how much He wants to see us doing well, close to him, overcoming our weaknesses, reaching the fullness for which He created us .

This sweet girl has transformed our lives in such an amazing and powerful way. Being Vitoria's parents is a joy and pride. It is also a challenge, but a good challenge, which makes us want to know more of God and walk closer to him to have the necessary strength and wisdom that can only come from him, to take care of this precious treasure. May God bless us and lead us, may God bless you and protect you, dear Vitoria. We love you very much, beautiful little princess! We thank God for your life every new day.

Fabio Gabriel is doing well!

Thank God, everything went well during Fabio Gabriel's surgery and he is recovering well. The surgery went this morning and lasted three hours. He is recovering in ICU, has already been extubated and is with oxygen.

Fernanda sent me a very happy and relieved message, thanking God.

Thank you for your prayers!

Prayers for Fabio Gabriel's Surgery

Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.
I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust. He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. Salmos 91:1-2, 4

Dear friends,

I ask you please to be in prayer for our little friend Fabio Gabriel who will make tomorrow the surgical closure of the skull (like surgery that Vitoria did when she was 4 months).

He was diagnosed with anencephaly at birth, but has resisted to medical prediction that he would be incompatible with life. He is now almost 10 months old, bringing so much joy to his parents.

His parents, Fernanda and Fabio, took a long time to decide for this surgery, because they were afraid about how Fabinho would react to this procedure. Now they finally decided to operate him, trying to offer him a better quality of life and protection against recurrent infections. They are very nervous, of course.

We pray in the name of Jesus, that the Holy Spirit give them lot of strength and peace during tomorrow, and that He may be present in the operating room leading doctors and blessing the recovery of Fabio. May his parents take him home again recovered from surgery, and live still many beautiful moments, walking a lot and giving him lots of love, care and joy.

The surgery will be done in Belo Horizonte, state of Minas Gerais, in Brazil.

Birthday Parties

Sing to the LORD a new song, for he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. The LORD has made his salvation known and revealed his righteousness to the nations. He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God. Shout for joy to the LORD, all the earth, burst into jubilant song with music;

make music to the LORD with the harp, with the harp and the sound of singing, with trumpets and the blast of the ram's horn — shout for joy before the LORD, the King. Let the sea resound, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it. Let the rivers clap their hands, let the mountains sing together for joy; let them sing before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity. Psalm 98

 

 


 

To compensate for the first half of January that was so hard in the hospital, the rest of the month was very happy, thanking and celebrating every moment, every gesture, every smile from our daughter.

She left the hospital on January 12th in afternoon, and on thirteenth she completed two years of life. Grandma Alice was with us, my mother helped me SO MUCH during the two weeks in hospital with Victoria, and spent with me all the many bad moments and the tiring routine.

We had a party at home to sing Happy Birthday to Vitoria, only she, Mom, Dad and the two grandmothers, Alice and Cida. It was a very simple mini-party with just a cake and balloons, but beautiful, exciting and memorable.

We also made another party for the rest of the family also celebrate these two years of Vitoria, to congratulate her and rejoice with us through the miracle of her life, on Sunday 22nd, with some close friends who lived with us throughout the pregnancy and have supported us more closely during this beautiful journey with our daughter.

We received lot of help from family to organize everything.

Congratulations, Vitoria, we love you!

It was a very happy afternoon, when we celebrated and remembered these so beautiful and exciting two years with Vitoria's presence. We are very thankful for God to experience the miracle of her life, her overruns, her recovery after have been so bad in hospital in November and now in January - two times when we thought that our Father in Heaven was calling her back... we put her entirely in his hands, but he once again left she stay with us. So, see her well again, quiet and healthy has been a great joy.