YARD SALE

We are having a HUGE benefit yard sale for my brother and his family who recently lost their precious daughter, Vittoria. All proceeds go towards the medical expenses she incurred during her month long battle in the ICU at Primary Childrens Medical Center.

Saturday, Sept 12th. 8am-3pm
Bryner Photography parking lot (3rd east and Main Street)

Tons and tons of stuff---- plus a bake sale, lemonade stand, and lunch package.
COME CHECK IT OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If you have any yard sale or bake sale items you wish to donate, contact me at
435-820-8707

In Need of a Happy Post

For your viewing pleasure, I want to post some more positive things than all the sad business we've had going on lately. I have been in a pity kind of mood today so I want to get out of it by posting stuff about my sweet little girlies.

First off-- I FINALLY have Adelia's newborn pictures to show off. I kept forgetting to bring back the CD from my sister's house to be able to post them. It's been so long and she's growing up so fast I figure I better do this before she starts crawling --- which I don't think will be long for her! She's just waaaaaaay to strong for her little body!

Speaking of little body- I took her to her 2 month... more like 2 1/2 month check up and she's
9.6 lbs (10th percentile) 22 1/2 in. (40th %) and head size... i don't recall but it was about the 25%. So basically, she's just a wittle one! But we still love her! :D

She LOOOOOVES:
being held
sucking on her fists (thankfully hasn't gotten the thumb there yet)
being held
smiling and cooing
sleeping on her side or stomach
being held
being propped up so she can see EVERYTHING
diaper changes
being in the Snuggly (like a baby bjorn) or her sling
and did I mention, being held?

She HAAAAAAAAAATES:
her carseat
being put down
getting her nose sucked out (who could blame her)
being put down
often hates her swing, bouncy seat, bumbo.....
and well anything that requires her being left alone for any amount of time.

Tianna is such a great big sister. She likes to smother Adelia in love... but I'd much rather that than the alternative.
She's learning so much! She knows all her colors, shapes, every animal possible, and can count to 11 really well. She talks constantly, loves watching movies and TV, especially Dora and Princess stuff and get's so exciting about life. Tianna is up for anything with anyone-- She's a very happy, energetic, and EXTREMELY strong willed little thing! She loves to argue and HAS TO, and I mean HAS TO (even if she whispers it) have the last word. She'll make a great lawyer or something some day.
She turns 3 on the 16th of September and we just enrolled her in gymnastics. She starts tomorrow!!! She is growing up so quickly and is just one fun girl to have around. *most of the time*

Tianna's favorites:
milk
orange blanket (poor shabby thing)
her Ariel jammies
wearing dresses or skirts
mommy
chicken nuggets, rice, burritos, frosted mini-eats (wheats), Life cereal, bananas, plain chocolate, and all salty snacks.
and a new fav-- FROSTY'S
water
dress u
LOVES LOVES going to grandma and grandpa's houses
and playing with her cousins and friends

She's silly and we just love her to pieces!

Coming soon- camping pictures from the Lake Reunion

A Princess, Honored

This weekend we were blessed to celebrate sweet Vittoria's life.
The girls and I went down Thursday evening to Salt Lake and Luke came down Friday night after work.
Friday we helped with preparations for the viewing and funeral. That afternoon I had a special privilege of going with the women and James to the mortuary to help dress Vittoria and fix her hair. What an wonderful experience! One that I am so grateful to have been a part of. She was dressed in a beautiful, white, princess-like baptism dress. We curled her hair into soft ringlets, just like her hair naturally did. She looked so pretty and was just like a princess... well, actually, just like an angel.

That night was her viewing. That ended up being a lot harder than I expected. I felt like I had dried up my tear source, but boy was I wrong! This whole experience hasn't felt real... almost like a bad dream we could would eventually wake up from. Walking into the viewing that night, with her pictures and drawings, and favorite possessions displayed, and the photo-slideshow playing in the background brought it all into reality. The video was so hard to watch, but I just couldn't stop looking at it either. She was so bright and joyful in every picture. My mind was flooded with memories.... my heart ached for the memories that will be made without her.

Saturday was the funeral. It was perfect in every way. Every word brought peace and comfort to the pain, the questions, and the sadness we have all been feeling. I now feel at peace with her passing. The testimonies born by those who spoke and sang were incredible. I am now much more determined to live my life worthy of returning to the place where she now is.

Her dad-- Luke's official new hero-- wrote her a letter along with her mom, and read it himself. (I was originally suppose to read it, along with letters from her cousins, but thankfully James was wise enough to know I couldn't have done it.. i barely made it through the cousin letters) but amazingly he was able to read it himself. It was so perfect and beautiful.
Another really special thing was a song that their friend had written the night of Vittoria's passing. He wrote the lyrics and composed the music for it in one night. He performed it during the funeral and it was simply amazing. As soon as I get a copy I will post it.
Every speaker, every prayer, every song... everything was just perfect! It truly was a service fit for such a special young lady!

Following the service we had a delicious meal. On the tables were little framed pictures of Vittoria with the caption "Our little princess returns home to a heavenly kingdom." How true!
After the meal we traveled to Price where she was laid to rest next to my dad's brother and parents. She had a beautiful graveside ceremony. We then went to another meal at the church in Price then went back to cemetery.

Sunday-- Vittoria's 8th birthday, was a special day for her family. (More food) We had a delicious brunch in my parent's backyard. We spent the day visiting and relaxing before we went to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple dedication. Vittoria had drawn a picture of that temple after going to the open house. It was such a good likeness of it! Above the picture was the heading, "The temple, first and always." She was so wise beyond her years.

By the time the dedication was over it was nearing time to return back to the cemetery. She was born at 5:46 pm and passed away at the same minute the week before her birthday. We went to the cemetery and released 30 balloons at 5:46 pm to send them to the heavens. We watched solemnly as the balloons floated through the sky and it was amazing how long they stayed in view and how they stayed together in a clump instead of spreading all across the sky. It was a moment I will never forget. I just barely discovered something extra special about this event-- Apparently Vittoria had begged her parents to let her have a water birthday party where the kids could run in the sprinklers and sit in her wading pool. Well, she got her wish! Just as her balloons were disappearing completely, the sprinklers came on and got us all wet. What a neat thing for her parents!

Her brother and cousins on her birthday

There is no doubt that this little girl was loved by everyone she came in contact with. She was a very special girl and we are honored to be her aunt and uncle. We will sorely miss you, Vittoria, but we know that you had proven yourself in this life and are now at peace and rest in Heavenly Father's arms.

2001-2009

SOUTH JORDAN - Vittoria Giulia Frandsen, born Aug. 23, 2001 at 5:46 p.m., peacefully returned into our Heavenly Father's arms Aug. 16, 2009 at 5:46 p.m. just one week shy of her 8th birthday.

Vittoria was born with neonatal marfan syndrome. She courageously faced every trial placed in her path.

On July 21, Vittoria went in for scheduled heart surgery. After fighting long and hard for almost four weeks, she succumbed to complications.

Vittoria was born in Price to James Lee and Valeria Balbo Frandsen. She attended the Montessori at Riverton school.

Vittoria enjoyed all subjects in school. She loved her friends and teachers there.

Vittoria was a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She was preparing to be baptized. Vittoria loved going to Primary and singing the primary songs and hymns.

Vittoria adored her little brother, Jacomo, and loved to play and take care of him. She loved to be surrounded by family and friends. She enjoyed playing with cousins at the family cabin.

Vittoria always had a hug and loving words for everyone.

Vittoria was a very talented and imaginative artist. She loved to read and watch movies with her dad. She was very sensitive and aware of the feelings of others.

Vittoria loved swimming, riding horses, snowmobiles and four-wheelers. She loved to fish with her dad at Scofield Reservoir. She loved to dance and listen to music. Her favorite pastime was to crawl up on the couch and cuddle with her mom, dad and brother.

She was always happy; even through her many trials and surgeries.

Vittoria is survived by her parents, James and Valeria; brother, Jacomo; grandparents, Neil and Bonnie Frandsen of Price; and Giulio and Anna Maria Balbo and great-grandma Idelma Balbo of Rome, Italy. She is also survived by many cousins, aunts and uncles and special friends. Preceded in death by great-grandparents, Garth and Theressa Frandsen, James and Della Potter, Andrea Balbo and Gino and Vera Cera.

In recent weeks, this beautiful young lady has touched the lives of so many people throughout the world. We will miss her more that words can say.

Funeral services will be Saturday, Aug. 22, 11 a.m., at the South Jordan Utah Parkway LDS Stake Center, 9894 South 2700 West. A viewing will be Friday, Aug. 21, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Jenkins-Soffe Funeral Home, 1007 West South Jordan Parkway, and one hour prior to the funeral at the stake center. Dedication of the grave will be at Price City Cemetery at 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Online condolences at www.jenkins-soffe.com.

Hardest Weekend Ever!

How to even begin?! We went to the Lake Family Reunion on Thursday. On our way down we stopped off at Primary Children's for a visit. Vittoria was doing so well. We got to go in an see her for the first time in two weeks. We were all just anxiously praying and hoping for a heart.

With a bunch of phone numbers given to my mom on how to contacts us on the mountain, we headed out. We got settle and set up camp then went to bed. Friday was a pretty slow day but we did have a fun fishing outing. Early Saturday morning we got shocking news.

Luke's dad has been in an accident in the coal mine. We didn't have any details other than that he had been hurt and was about to have hip surgery. Luke and his mom and sisters dashed off to Price, leaving me up there with the kids. It was so difficult to sit around without cell phone reception and just wait to find out what had happened.

Meanwhile they went down to Price. His leg was pretty messed up as well as his shoulder. It took hours and hours before he could actually go into surgery so he had to wait in excruciating pain. Thankfully surgery went well though and the doctor says he'll recover 100%. It will just be a long road to recovery but it's still lucky compared to what the outcome could have been.

So very late Saturday night Luke came back to the camp and Sunday we headed off the mountain. We stopped in to see Bert before going to unload. We got the camp trailer almost unloaded when we had a terrible phone call.

Vittoria's lung had filled with blood and she was fading quickly. They had decided to turn off the life sustaining machines. We had to hurry.
Sadly, we weren't fast enough. She passed away while we were still in Spanish Fork Canyon.

It is bitter sweet. With the knowledge of our Savior's gospel plan we are so happy for Vittoria to be returned to her loving Father in Heaven's open arms but our hearts ache for her poor parents. We all will miss her terribly in this life. We teeter between so much sadness and so much gratitude. She is no longer suffering. She's guaranteed a place in the Celestial Kingdom (her 8th birthday was one week to the MINUTE from her passing) and we know that her family is sealed together and can be a family for eternity. Val can raise her baby girl in the next life and is exceptionally lucky to have had her for almost 8 years in this life....
But it is so difficult to watch their pain now. We are all sad but the hardest thing is to watch her mom and dad.

We'll get through this.... we will. It's just a very difficult time. Please keep us in your prayers, especially James and Val.

If you are interested, Vittoria's funeral service will be Saturday in South Jordan (not sure of an address) at 11:00 am and a viewing is Friday night. They will bury her in Price.... right by my Grandma who passed away 2 years ago. I'm so glad Vittoria is surrounded by loved ones...even her body will be!

Bears, Caves, and Hearts

So.... I should be getting ready to go camping, but... here I am instead! :D I just have no motivation to pack yet again. I barely get everything put away when it's time to repack the bags. That is how our whole summer has been!
This weekend we have the annual Lake Family Reunion (Luke's Mom's Fam) and it is always so much fun... once we get there of course!

In fact, I probably should have spent yesterday getting ready as well but instead of opted to take a little day trip with the girlies! We went to Minnetonka Cave and Bear Lake in Idaho with our friends, Richard and Shannon Anderson. They came to our house Sunday on their way to their family trip to Bear Lake and they invited us up for the day. (Thanks Rich and Shan-it was SO SO MUCH FUN!)

Luke couldn't come-sad.... so I got the girls ready and we left bright and early. We were ready and waiting to hear the latest word on Vittoria before we dared leave town. She had another scary few days with more bleeding, another surgery, another "no more we can possibly do for her" status from the doctors, and another miracle. She is still with us. The surgeon couldn't get the bleeding to stop with surgical attempts so they were told to wait it out Monday night and see if her bleeding will stop on it's own because there wasn't any more they could do. If her bleeding could stop and her other levels could improve she could still be eligible for a heart transplant, but if not... that was it. Well......... 2 days later she's doing quite well and her bleeding is way way down and her other levels look pretty good! Now, she just needs a heart that matches and we are good to go for the transplant!!!! It is sooo incredibly amazing! But she needs our prayers now more than ever because there is only a small window of time left for her to get one so please, PRAY PRAY PRAY with us that one will be a match! We understand and are humbled by the reality of what her getting a heart will mean for some other family. We just pray that someone will want to turn their tragedy into a miracle for someone else. In fact, for our little angel!!

Three Cheers for our Vittoria!! She's such a fighter!


Well here's a few pictures of our fun adventures yesterday!







This wasn't from yesterday, but she's so cute it in I just had to share!
And if you haven't yet, check out the last post about Adelia's blessing day. I feel like no one even looks at my blog anymore... maybe they do and just don't comment.

Family- that's where it's at!

What a crazy time for our family! Summer's are always busy and you expect them to be-- but throw in a family tragedy and WOW it gets a lot busier than you can imagine. So much has happened that it's overwhelming to even think about blogging about any of it! We have spent a lot of time at Primary Children Medical Center the past few weeks. Our poor little niece is still fighting for her life. She was put on the list to receive a heart transplant and so the waiting game has began.
We have been blessed to witness first hand two amazing miracles in her behalf though. (blessed, meaning that we could be there.... sad that there was need for such a miracle)
On Friday the 31st we went to visit them all at the hospital. She was having a procedure done that day to transport her from the ECMO (heart/lung) machine to two smaller pumps. The transfer had gone well and she was about due out of surgery. Since we were headed down to Price we all started to leave. Just as we were about to walk out the door we got word that she was bleeding so badly in the surgery that the surgeon came to tell her parents there was nothing more he could do. He would finish up and bring her out and they could have a few hours with her to say their good byes. What a shocker and a heart wrencher! The whole family was devastated and the absolute worst thing was to watch her poor parents face the reality of the situation.
We gathered together in a conference room and began the mourning process. My oldest brother, Garth, was the only one not currently at hospital so he left his house immediately to come. We knelt as a family and prayed in behalf of Vittoria. Then it was time for James and Val to go in and see her. Strangely the nurse who came for them had a smile on her face.
Her parents left and the rest of us sat in silence. A few minutes later, James returned and he too had a smile across his face. The surgeon had had an idea come to him of what he could do to slow her bleeding. It had worked! Talk about some divine inspiration! And as she warmed up, her bleeding slowed significantly! She had received a miracle and was given more time on this Earth.

We were all shocked and confused for a few minutes because just moments before we were mourning her iminent passing. The room began to fill with chatter and the whole mood shifted. She wasn't out of the woods yet, but she had received the gift of more time to wait for her heart transplant.

Saturday was pretty quiet and she was doing fairly well, so that evening we left and went down to Price. That night we stayed at my sisters house. The next morning was fast Sunday and we went to church with them.
(A sidenote from the story to share a cute story about Tianna's first experience baring her testimony)
She was watching kids get up there and bare their testimonies and told me "Mom, I wanna go do that!" Since I was headed up there anyway, it was a good time. Well she didn't even give me a chance to prompt her before she started mumbling stuff into the mic and then said "name, Jesus Christ, Amen, thank you." Well I wanted her to actually bare some testimony so I whispered for her to say "I know Heavenly Father loves me." She mumbled some more stuff and you could tell she said Heavenly Father, then concluded with "Name, Jesus Christ, Amen. Thank you." I wasn't done. I told her to say something like, "I know the church is true..." and she did the same thing. Finally I decided she could be done and I put her down after she said "Church.. mumble mumbled, Thank you." As soon as her feet hit the ground she freaked out "MOM! I didn't say Amen!" (she had actually said it about 3 or 4 times now, but I knew if I told her that she'd really freak out. So I lifted her back up and in her boldest and loudest voice she said, "Name, Jesus Christ, AMEN! (even louder now) THANK YOU!!!!" It had the congregation rolling!

Back to story-- I bore my testimony about the power of God and how I know that our lives our in His Hands. I also know more than ever the power of family and why it's the basis of society. I have so much love for my family and for Luke's and I know that through uniting together with your family, anything is possible. We are also sealed together through temple ordinances and therefore we can be together for eternity. No matter if any of our mortal lives are shortened. We are so incredibly lucky.

As soon as the meeting was over we received word that we needed to go back to the hospital ASAP. Vittoria's system was shutting down. I was encouraged by my former bishop that I need to hold fast to everything I had just born my testimony of. I told him that I am, but it doesn't make us any less sad. And it's true. Through the gospel and our faith we can get through this- no matter the outcome. But..... we still love our little neice and cousin so much. It breaks our hearts to see her suffering and to imagine this mortal life without her. She is such a light and a joy and lifts everyone's spirits.

We drove back up to Salt Lake as soon as we had arrangements made for our children. When we arrived at the hospital the priesthood holders of the family immediately went in to administer to Vittoria. Her kidneys and lungs were failing and her liver was beginning to. She was bleeding so badly that nurses could hardly keep it in her as it ran out of her tubes. It was time to release her little suffering body and stop all the life sustaining things they were doing. Her parents were a little more at peace this time than two days prior. I guess time to adjust to the idea helped to soften the blow. Again we gathered in the conference room to mourn and comfort each other. I was able to go back and see her with my sister in law, Joy. It was very difficult to see her for what I thought was the last time. As it was the time before, the hardest thing was to watch her poor parents. Val was in with her when we went in and had been reading her stories and whispering things to her. It shattered my heart to imagine what I'd say to my daughters if I could only say a few last things. It also broke to watch Vittoria in that state. She's been fighting so hard and just looked tired.

Well, as the afternoon turned to evening and we were all there praying and preparing, another miracle happened. The surgeon had spent the day at his home and just couldn't get Vittoria's situation out of his mind. Finally he had come up with an idea-- one that wasn't necessarily supported by some other staff members who felt like they had already done all that they could do. He wanted to go in again and basically disconnect the use of one of the coronary arteries (the one causing all of the problems) and see if the other artery could take over long enough to buy the time they needed for a transplant. It was risky and has never been done before. Basically it was up to James and Val whether they wanted to try it or just let her go.
Again, we were all brought to our knees as a family and consulted with each other and the Lord and the decision was made. They would give it a try.

Miraculously, after several hours of prepping and operating, the surgeon came with the news that the artery wasn't even bleeding. It actually looked fairly good and it was the chest wall that was bleeding. He cauterized it and pretty much stopped the bleeding. What a profound feeling of gratitude we had for Heavenly Father sparing her life one more time!

Monday we donated blood at the ARUP since they are in desparate need of more blood. Especially with as much as Vittoria has been using, we felt like it was something we could do to help. (Any of you interested in what you can do for the family, that is it.) DONATE! Any type of blood! In fact, there is a blood drive at Primary on Aug. 11th. Check out James' blog for more information- www. vittoriascorner.blogspot.com there you can also find daily updates on Vittoria from them.

After donating and visiting for awhile we went down to Castle Dale to spend some time there. Luke had his vacation from work. It was intended for a trip to the Uintah mountains with my dad and some of my brothers, but that has been postponed until next summer. He still had the tie off though, so we had a week to hang out. We spent a few days in Castle Dale and then the remaining few in Price with my sister and brother's families. Family is fun! Even when you aren't really doing anything exciting, it's just fun to be together.

Friday we came home and stopped off again at the hospital. Things are doing a little better with Vittoria. Her organs are improving but each day there seems to be some sort of set-back. Friday it was her lungs. Tuesday and Wednesday it was her kidneys. Now they both seem to be doing a bit better but the bleeding has picked up again. One step forward, two steps back.

So the waiting continues and so does the roller-coaster ride. Until she can get a heart they have to remain at the hospital. Her parents are amazing and have been so strong through it all. They have their moments of course, but their faith and the love and support of everyone around them has sustained them. She's already received two major miracles and many others along the way but the path isn't easy and it will continue to be hard- even if she does receive a transplant.
As James puts it, she's on borrowed time. All we can do now is pray for her and turn her over to the Lord.

We weren't sure if it was going to happen due to the current situation with the family, but today we were able to bless Adelia. We had almost all our family come in to Logan for the event. We missed those that coulnd't make it. We are so grateful for everyone that could for making the long trip up here. We know it was inconvenient but we appreciated being able to have our ward family apart of her blessing as well.
It was a beautiful blessing given by her father. He blessed her with some very special things.

Many of you don't know where the name Adelia [uh-dee-lee-uh] came from. It was my maternal grandmother's middle name. She passed away from breast cancer when my mom was only 13. It was also a great (6 times back) grandmother's first name. In the blessing Luke blessed her with the spirit of Elijah to due temple work and geneological work for her ancestors and to have a close spiritual connection with her ancestors. It was pretty amazing! I could feel the presence of my grandmother's spirit in the room.

It has never occurred to me to use that particular name for one of my children but when I was pregnant with her it just came to me and I couldn't get it out of my head. When she was born I just felt so strongly that she should be named Adelia. I didn't expect it to be mentioned in her blessing the way it was, and I thought it pretty neat. She's a really special little girl and love her so much. I also want to thank Luke for being worthy and willing to give our sweet daughter a name and a blessing by his priesthood power.

Okay, now that I've written a novel I'll post some pictures. Please keep Vittoria in your prayers. Sh's holding on for something, we just need to be patient until we figure out what it is for!

101

I need to elaborate a bit on one thing I had written on my post today. I mentioned that we had the whole family together, minus Joy and some of the grandkids, for a family prayer in Vittoria's behalf. The reason that she was not able to be there is because she had been in Denver and her flight didn't get in until later than night. I know she wanted to be there with all of her heart and it's been a very trying time for her not be able to go to the hospital until last night.... or even cry on Jason's shoulder because I know I've used Luke's plenty of times lately!

That is my biggest complaint of the blogging/texting/instant messaging world we live in. Because things are written, sometimes they come across the wrong way because you can't hear the tone of a person's voice, or even typos can change the whole message. I know that probably sounded like she may just not want to be at the hospital and that certainly was not the case.