Lots of Miscellaneous Pictures

There isn't a lot that we can convince Eden to taste, but at some point Brad got her to try his brownie mix (before it was cooked of course), and now she absolutely LOVES to make brownies with daddy any chance she gets.




Back in July before Michael and Jesse moved to Texas, we were able to give his BrainPort a try and it was so much harder than I thought! We had to keep our eyes closed, and they taped a big letter on the wall that we had to figure out, and it was incredibly hard (and an incredibly weird sensation on the tongue where the sensor was). I was so tempted way too many times to just open my eyes and peek! Michael, you are amazing!





Eden definitely enjoys getting her toenails painted. I have to make sure I keep my nail polish hidden from view unless I feel ready to perform a pedicure.



Ruby is a huge pain... but she is also really fun. Most days I don't regret that we got her. :)





Every time I do laundry, Eden insists on getting pulled around in the hamper on top of the clothes. Most days, if Ruby is unfortunate enough to cross the path, Eden also insists that she gets a ride too.

The stint is out, but it didn't go without drama!

On Friday morning we checked in to Denver Children's Hospital for the procedure to get the stint removed from Eden's airway. It seemed to be pretty routine, and nothing too complicated, so I wasn't too concerned or nervous going into it.

Around 11 am we left her in the operating room under the impression that the procedure would be about an hour. After sitting in the waiting room for a little over an hour and a half I started to get concerned. I asked Brad, and he didn't have any theories, so my mind began wondering. I thought maybe they found something in her airway, like granulation tissue, or scar tissue or something that he was working to remove. Finally, at over the 2 hour waiting mark, the anesthesiology team of doctors came and told us about the drama that unfolded in the operating room.

Apparently in the middle of the procedure, Eden began having bronchiospasms which caused her heart rate and oxygen rate to plumet drastically and she basically stopped breathing. They ended up having to do lots of suctioning, and then chest compressions to get a pulse and get her stabilized again. Once she was stablized, they did some x-rays in the operating room to look at her lungs, and to make sure she didn't get any rib fractures from the chest compressions. Her ribs were fine, but they said it did look like her lungs were extremely congested. They assured us though that she was in recovery and that she was starting to wake up from the anesthesia and was doing well.

As they were explaining this to us I was trying to keep myself under control. I couldn't believe what I was hearing, and felt so blindsided by hearing that things took such a drastically bad turn. Eden's ENT doctor came into the room at this point, and I don't know if it was before or after he came, but I was definitely crying, but still trying to keep myself from completely losing it. He filled us in a little more on some of the details and helped me to feel a little more calm about everything.

At this point I knew I needed to get myself under control so we could discuss Eden's airway and what he was able to accomplish there before all the drama. The stint is now out and he said that overall her airway looks really good. There is one little trouble spot that still exists which he showed us in a picture. It looks like a tiny little ring where the airway is harder and a little tighter. The goal is to get that spot staying open and growing with everything else.

So the plan now is to go back in two or three weeks for another bronchoscopy to see what the airway is doing, and to most likely stretch that trouble spot. We will continue to monitor it for a while and then just give it a chance to grow.

Overall, I'm grateful and feeling pretty good about the airway news. I'm still absolutely in shock over what happened though. Very similar things used to happen to Eden when she was in the NICU and those were the times that we came dangerously close to losing her. I thought we were over all the scary stuff and that I didn't have to worry about life or death like this anymore, but I guess we aren't out of the woods yet. I hate that now I have this new fear within me everytime she will be going under anesthesia, which will happen again in only 2 or 3 weeks. My faith continues to be tried...

They said they did everything they could to optimize her and her airway going into it so there's really nothing they could have done differently. Unfortunately, these things just happen. I'm just so grateful that we had a very experienced team in the room with her to bring her back and stabilize her.

So obviously, we had no idea any of this was happening until after it was all over, she was moved into post op and was already waking up from anesthesia. To this day I'm still not sure how I feel about that. I'm bothered by the fact that it all happened and nobody let us know anything. What if the worst would have happened and she wouldn't have made it through? I would have been completely in the dark about everything. At the same time though, I can see the wisdom behind waiting until things get stabilized and well before letting us know. Had they called and told us while it was all happening, I would have been completely freaking out for the next hour while they worked to stabilize her and get the x-rays and everything complete. I guess it all happened the right way.

By the time we got in to her she was coming out of the anesthesia and was completely calm and just hanging out. She was happy to see us and did very well in the hospital that night and into Saturday when they discharged us. She was on quite a bit of oxygen coming out of the hospital because her lungs needed to clear out again, but today she is already very close to being back at her baseline.

Seeing her today, you would have no idea that anything ever even happened. Despite the incision healing on her neck, she is totally herself, busy as ever. She is so happy and seems to be completely recovered from it all.

What a miracle baby she is....

Eden and Ruby

Eden and Ruby get along most the time these days. Ruby has learned not to attack Eden out of excitement because Eden has learned a pretty good swing to swat her away! I still have to break up fights occasionally, but for the most part these two are pretty good friends. Ruby is the most patient, gentle puppy when Eden is feeling particularly loving towards her. She also sits nicely in Eden's grocery cart while Eden pushes her all throughout the house. :)

This particular day, Eden and I were playing dolls in the tent and Ruby decided to join us. She very quickly turned into the source of entertainment for Eden, and I think she was all for it!

May family visit

Last weekend, the May family came to visit and stay with us for a few days. Unfortunately, the weather over the weekend was pretty cold, so we didn't do too much outdoors, but it was so great to spend some time with them. Eden is typically pretty hesitant around other kids, but she got along with their two girls so well. It was really cute to watch the three of them play together, and Lilly was so sweet to Eden. Come back soon guys we miss hanging out with you already!!

Family Updates

Life has really been flying by lately! It seems like time just keeps going and I can never quite take it all in! My blogging has been lacking for the past month or so, so I guess it's time for a serious update on what's been happening with the Justices!

Brad continues to work hard as the managing director at Northwestern Mutual. It keeps him busy, and he seems to really be happy there. This semester is his first not teaching early morning seminary in five years, so it's been weird for him knowing it's all going on without him! I'm know though that he is definitely loving the extra sleep in the mornings. He is now a counselor in the Stake Sunday School Presidency which has definitely been a decrease in workload compared to what he was used to. He is anxious for the new learning experiences it will bring though.

I still do the weekly program for Sacrament meeting, and I also just officially got called to be a nursery leader in Eden's nursery. It seems it hasn't been too long since I had a nursery calling, but since I have to be there with my trach dependent daughter anyway, they might as well make it official! Other than that though, my life just consists of Eden and her schedule. Eden has definitely been keeping me super busy these last few weeks and there's no slowing down for a while. Here's our typical week:

Mondays: 8am appointment with either developmental specialist, or occupational therapist (these two rotate weekly, but one is always every Monday) and then we also have a 10am appointment with the physical therapist

Tuesdays: gymnastics

Wednesday: no set appointments, but it always gets filled in with something usually of Eden's

Thursdays: developmental play group/class

Fridays: speech therapy

Every afternoon is nap time for us both, and by the weekend, we are definitely worn out!

So as I mentioned, Eden has recently started two new group classes which have already been so good for her! She has only been to one gymnastics class so far, but she loved it! It was so adorable to watch all the little 2 year olds doing the balance beam, or hanging on the bars, or trying summer saults. It is definitely an entertaining hour for me, and it will be such a good muscle strengthening activity for Eden. Her favorite part though was definitely getting a stamp on her hand after class was over. She is way into stamps these days for some reasons.

The Thursday play group class is basically like a little preschool class where the parent stays with the kid and helps with activities, crafts, songs and other various things. The social time is so important for Eden and she has already been doing much better at being a little more involved with the other kids. Her teacher just loves Eden and gets a kick out of her and what she calls Eden's "adult mannerisms". :) Eden also loves to help her wipe down the tables after craft time which her teacher thinks is really funny.

As far as medical updates go, we leave to Denver this week to get the stint removed from Eden's airway. The procedure should be pretty short and quick, but he will have to reopen part of her neck incision to snip the stitches that are holding the stint in place. Once the stitches are all cut, the stint will be pulled out through her mouth and her incision will once again be sealed shut. We will then have to stay the night in the hospital for observation, and then hopefully we will be heading home the next day.

At this point we have absolutely no idea what to expect. Most likely I would think we won't be getting to much information from this appointment, because the stint will just come out, but my guess is he will want to see her again in a couple weeks and at that point we will know a little more about what her airway is going to do without the stint in place. We are hopeful that this will be a big step forward for us, but are also hesitant to get our hopes up too high.

I don't know why this has been especially true lately, but I have just been marveling at Eden and the miracle that she is. I just love to watch her and am just in awe at her petite little features, and her adorable smiles, and her silly sense of humor. I still just can't believe I was entrusted with such a special spirit. I know most parents probably think this about their first kid, but I honestly can't imagine ever loving another child like I love Eden! She just continues to amaze me every day.

Yesterday we went to the annual Lovelace NICU reunion which is just a huge carnival type party for all the families who have ever had a baby in their NICU. Eden loved all the fun prizes and games, and Brad and I were able to reconnect with some of the nurses and doctors who cared for Eden while she was there. They all still remember her by name and are also amazed at how far she has come and how well she is doing.

One nurse in particular came up to us at the party and reminded us again just how scary our road with Eden was. I recognized her face as someone I had seen in the NICU several times, but she was never actually assigned as Eden's nurse. However, a couple of the reintubations (getting Eden back on the ventilator) were extremely traumatic and whenever something big is happening, all the nurses in the room come to help. She was one of those who ran to help one day when they couldn't get Eden reintubated and she was not breathing for quite a long time. We had a couple of these experiences, but she remembered one day in particular that they all thought for sure Eden wasn't going to make it. She said she still remembers turning and seeing Brad's face and wondering how they would tell him that they couldn't save Eden. She said after 22 years as a nurse, and taking care of many babies, experiences like the one with Eden that day are ones you never forget. She just told us over and over that Eden is a miracle, and they were all so amazed that she lived through those very scary few experiences. They said that to this day, two years later, they still talk about Eden and the miracle of her life, and what she made it through.

I appreciated her telling me this so much because it is just yet one more reminder to me that I have so much to be grateful for with Eden. Yes, some days are hard, and this medical stuff is so sad and frustrating to me, but my gosh... what a blessing she is and there really is no reason I should be complaining at all because things could have been so much worse. It's no wonder that I marvel at all the little things she does. I still just can't believe that I am blessed with such an amazing little girl.

I know I've said this before, but I truly feel like a different person since Eden was born. Sometimes I feel a little sad when I look back at pictures of myself before Eden, it's like there is a light in my eye, or an innocence of life that I no longer have. I guess I never expected anything in life to be anything other than perfect. But since then I've realized there are lots of different kinds of perfect. Eden to me is perfect, and what an amazing example she has been to me. I have grown in ways that I know I never could have grown if we didn't have the experiences that we have had with Eden. In many ways, I really feel like we were both born that day back in Lovelace hospital in June of 2009....

Fun at the Zoo

A couple weeks ago we went to the zoo with our good friends Annie, Lydia, and Grace. This time of year is always such a perfect time to go because the weather has cooled off and the animals are always super active.

A huge gorilla was sitting right next to the glass and Eden was completely freaked out by it. We got to her finally stand by it to take a picture, but before I could get my camera ready, the gorilla moved it's arm and it completely sent Eden into a panic. Poor girl... she doesn't like to be that close. Lydia on the other hand found it very interesting to be so close.







Thanks Pickett family for a fun day at the zoo!

Labor Day Weekend

Labor Day weekend was tons of fun, and a nice (but close) get-away from home. Saturday afternoon we packed up and headed south to my parents house to stay for the remainder of the weekend. Kally and her family live close, and Jesse and her girls were in town, so it was fun family time for several days straight.

On Saturday we made both strawberry and raspberry freezer jam. It was our first time doing this, but it all turned out so delicious! I think this will have to be an annual tradition for sure.

The rest of the time we basically just hung out, relaxed, and enjoyed our time together! It was a blast!

6th Anniversary!

August 13th - our 6th wedding anniversary! I can't believe it's already been six years, but at the same time, it's gone by so fast and we have experienced so much together.

On our actual anniversary, we were at my family reunion in Durango, so a couple weeks later we were able to go out and celebrate (thanks to Chad and Annie who watched Eden for us! Thanks guys!) We went on such a fun date and it was so nice to know Eden was in good hands and not feel like we had to rush home. We went to dinner at the Melting Pot, which is such a fun experience. We were there almost two hours before the meal was through, and we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. The dinner was so delicious, and we were able to set some big goals for ourselves in regards to where we want to be 5 years from now.

After dinner we went to a movie, which is always such a rare treat for us.

Overall it was the perfect night, with the perfect man for me! I'm so glad to be married to Brad. We have accomplished a lot in the last six years... here's to reaching our goals for the next five years, and many more after that!

Happy anniversary Brad - I love you tons!