Update on Eli: Dr Visit - Plastic Surgeon

Eli is almost 3 months old!  He is healthy and growing and just as cute as can be!  We love every second with him.  I know I have lots to update about him in his almost 3 months of life, but I wanted to share the most recent news.

Our pediatric doctor referred us to a pediatric plastic surgeon in town to get Eli's head evaluated -- it has been a little misshaped since birth.  We thought nothing of it, maybe he would need a helmet, that would be fine.  But it turns out he has something called Unicoronal Craniosynostosis, which can only be fixed by surgery.

The doctor believes one of the sutures, the top right one, in Eli's skull has prematurely fused together, resulting in the misshape of his head and brow.  Untreated it could cause major deformities in his head over time, including all the way down to the jaw.  This condition cannot be fixed with a helmet.  Surgery is the only option.  Thankfully the doctor said the condition and surgery are not life-threatening.

First things first, Eli will be getting a CT scan in the coming weeks to confirm the fusion.  Next he'll see an opthamologist by recommendation from the plastic surgeon to make sure there is no abnormal pressure on his brain and eyes.  Then we'll meet the neurosurgeon at the hospital who will be assisting the plastic surgeon (craniofacial surgeon).  Then bloodwork and cranial surgery this summer, when Eli is 5 or 6 months old.  The surgery itself will last about 3-4 hours and Eli will stay in the hospital for recovery for 5 days.  He will be monitored by the doctor until his teenage years, but the surgery should take care of the condition without need for further correction.

The condition is not super common, but not super rare either.  Apparently it is something he just has.  We didn't do anything to cause it.

Eli is doing well and does not seem to be in any pain.  Except for the shape of his head and brow he seems to be completely normal.  Counting my blessings!

Adam and I are doing fine after the initial shock of hearing the news.  Of course we are worried and nervous partly because any outcome has some uncertainty, but we are also at peace because we know our Father in Heaven loves us and Eli and will take care of him, and that he will be in the hands of very capable doctors.  How grateful I am for modern medicine and medical knowledge and the doctors who train to serve in our communities!  My faith in Jesus Christ is strengthened through this, shall we call it, trial. He makes it easier for us to witness our son go through this.

Everything should turn out fine.  This just isn't something you want to watch your child go through.  We're holding him extra close today!

We love Eli so much!  I'm glad we don't have to go through this alone.  Thanks for your thoughts, prayers and support.

Losing Someone (Come unto Him)

There’s lots of room for regret in life, isn’t there. It seems that no matter what we do it will never be enough. And the truth is that it isn’t. But that is why the Atonement of Jesus Christ is so beautiful. But I feel guilty that I need it. I feel like I should be better. I know I can be better, there are plenty of things I can improve -- but I know although I may be my best self I will still fall short. And that is when Christ buoys us up, if we let Him.

It’s important to realize the important things in life, the way to spend our time -- with people and not with things. It wouldn’t be possible to spend all our time visiting the people we love, although we would jump at the opportunity to do so. But we have other responsibilities in life too. We can spend as many short amounts of time with the people we love and we will still look back and wish we could have done more. And still we look back and think, “Was it enough? Could I have done more? Should I have done more? Did they wish I would have done more?” We learn our lessons the hard way in life, and it’s tough, some times are tougher than others. But even though this is the case, I find there is a ray of sunshine through all the gloom. We cannot forget Christ, even in our darkest moments. It is because of Him that we truly can and will live again, and will be able to live with those we love forever. This life is only a test, a time for us to learn lessons the hard way, the way we wanted and needed it to be, so we could truly learn so we could become like God and receive everything He has. I guess part of this lesson learning is learning about hope, which comes because of Christ, that we can prevail through anything together with Him, and also learning that we really need Him. We can’t progress without Him, in this life or the next. His Atonement allows us to repent, to break the chains of sin and guilt and any affliction, and also the chains and sting of death. Because death does sting, it hurts when someone you love passes away from this life, but because of Christ’s Atonement, which includes His death and Resurrection, this life that we know on earth is not the end. It is a beautiful thing to think about the next life. We don’t know much about it, but we do know some things -- especially we know that it exists, that we will continue to exist, but in a different way. And eventually we will all be resurrected and we will live in the way we were meant to live. On Earth, our mortal bodies, our earthly homes for our spirits, become frail. But our spirits remain active and alive, wishing to do all that we want to do, but can’t because our mortal bodies limit us. Death seems to be a free-ing of self -- no more restrictions, no more pain, no more sorrow. It is a good thing, it is a happy thing. Yet we mourn because we are stuck in this life, on earth, without those we love who have passed on. But I believe they don’t mourn, but are awaiting us to join them once again.

How do you deal with death? I think that’s a question everyone asks themselves. I’m sure everyone has their own way. I guess this is part of mine.

How do I let the Atonement work in my life in dealing with this regret and guilt? I don’t know how it works, but I do know that it does work. The trick I guess is figuring out how to use it, how to give it all to Him. Christ has suffered all things for us already, so we won’t be tied down in all our pain and suffering and shortcomings, but that we can be free. Not so everything negative is taken away from us, but so we can know that everything will be okay, that this isn’t the end and we should and can keep trying to do better. Christ’s Atonement allows us to move forward, even though things in life sometimes get us down, and sometimes hold us back. It doesn’t take all the pain away, and it doesn’t remove our memories, but it is the door we can pass through to the next chapter or phase in our lives -- We can look back and remember and learn from our past without having to be held captive by it, and also we are able to look forward with a ‘brightness of hope.’ It is because of this we are able to feel real joy in our lives. I think this is at least part of the reason why people often comment about how people who belong to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (or the nickname for our religion - Mormons) are “always happy,” or something to that effect. It’s because of the knowledge of the Atonement. Anyone can have the same hope and joy. It’s in one’s belief and use of Christ’s Atonement that it is made possible.

It's OK to cry. It's OK to feel sad. We just shouldn't let it hold us back.

The Atonement of Christ and faith in Christ are directly and inseparably related. When we have faith in Him, we are having faith and believing in everything He did for us -- in His Atonement. Let Christ work in your life. Let Him in. He stands at the door and knocks, His arms are stretched out, He is waiting for you. Come unto Him.

2012 Family Recap & Christmas Card

This is a little late (we may have been a little busy... Baby post to come, I promise) but Merry Christmas and Happy New Year from us to you!

2012 Ferguson Family Recap

Hello friends and family!

We’ve had an exciting year!

We were blessed to be able to visit lots of family throughout the year in Alabama, Idaho, and Utah.

In May we found out we were expecting a new addition to our little family.  In August we found out it was a boy, and he will be arriving this month of December!  We are very excited!

We bought a small, brand new house in a nice, growing neighborhood just outside of Tucson which closed in September, and we are loving it!  Part of our celebration included hosting Thanksgiving dinner with both sides of our family who live in town.  It was a success!

Our new church ward is a little small in number but large in heart.  We’ve met lots of really nice people so far and we look forward to getting to know the rest of our new ward family.  Adam was called to be the Assistant Elders Quorum Secretary, and Kami was called to be the Relief Society Chorister.  Additionally, we were both called to teach Sunday School together for the 14-15 year old class.

We both welcomed our younger brothers home from their respective missions this year – Kami’s brother in March from the Philippines, and Adam’s brother in July from Oregon.  We are proud of them for their service to the Lord, and we’re glad to have them home!

Kami had fun this spring dancing her second semester of ballet at a local dance studio where she danced en pointe in the ballet recital, Sleeping Beauty.  She also got some friends together to sing the National Anthem as an octet at a Diamondbacks baseball game in July.  You can find a recording of it on YouTube.  Kami is still working for her mom in the mortgage business and has been able to work from home most days since moving to our new house, which will be nice when the baby comes!

Adam completed his 2^nd year of Architecture school at the University of Arizona in May, and is now halfway through his 3^rd year.  He will only have 2 more to go after this next spring semester!  He is working hard and learning a lot and really enjoying it.

We love you all and hope you and your families are doing well!

Adam & Kami (& baby) Ferguson

Brothers & Missionaries

So I realized I never said anything about our brothers coming home from their missions this year.  Whoops!

Both my and Adam's younger brothers came home from their respective missions this year!  It's been a fun year!

My brother came home in March from the Philippines.

Family together again. "Mabuhay" means "Welcome" in Tagalog.
I totally PhotoShopped a guy (partly) out of the picture. Just don't look too closely.

Any excuse to have cookie cake from Mrs. Fields!!!!!!!!
He hadn't had it for 2 years so it was a pretty good excuse.
I love cookie cake (from Mrs. Fields).

Adam's brother came home in July from the Oregon Portland mission.

Together again!

Man, the lighting in the airport is awful!!

But anyway...

We're super proud of both of them for their dedication and service to the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the two years they spent every day helping others come closer to Him by serving them and sharing His Gospel with them.  Love them both!!!

Only 6 More Weeks to Go...

That's right.  I am 34 weeks this week!  Time flies...  It's really weird how it feels like it's going so slow but so fast at the same time!

I'm starting to feel the effects on my body from being pregnant.  Sleeping isn't so easy or comfortable anymore!  There could be worse things going on, but I need to get sleep while I still can!  :)

I feel so unprepared for everything that's about to happen!  It's becoming a little overwhelming.  We have things, but I know I am missing so much stuff.  Diapers?  Nursing bra?  Bath stuff?  Hmm, okay well if that's all then I guess that isn't all that much.  This is just really crazy!  Pretty much in about a month I will be a mom!  And have a little, helpless, delicate baby to take care of...  Going out in public with a baby?  Grocery shopping will be different.  Running any kind of errand or doing anything will be different...  I have so much to learn!  I don't want to get caught up in the things that can (and are!) stress(ing) me out, but I need to get ready at the same time.  How do I do that??  Neither of us know what we're doing!  We're still kids ourselves!  I do know though that even amid all this chaos and confusion and time flying I really want to enjoy every moment.  I hope I can learn to do that too.  Even now, before baby comes.

I'm feeling more and more love for this little guy.  I love feeling him moving around!  I'm getting a little sad that soon I won't be able to, and that I can't just have him with me all the time anymore.  But I know it will bring me so much joy to hold him and to cuddle with him and to see him learn and grow and to show him I love him.  I can't wait to meet him!

33 weeks

34 weeks

6 weeks and counting!  :)