Encouraging Update With Cute Photos and Video

Hi Loved Ones! It's been a hectic time around here, but thankfully we have good news!

Maria Helena's surgery went very well last Wednesday and the news we received so far has been encouraging. The tumor that they removed from her stomach was smaller than they expected and did not appear to have spread. We will know more details later this week after more tests... In the meantime, she may be leaving the hospital either today or tomorrow and so far, she has been doing quite well. It will take some time for her to adjust to her new eating habits since they removed 2/3rds of her stomach, but she has not been experiencing much nausea or other expected complications so we are very thankful. She has also been experiencing less pain as this is now being managed well. She is expected to be back to work in 6-8 weeks so that was positive news too. Thank you for your prayers! Please continue to pray for her, in particular her healing and adjustments back at home, especially since she lives alone - though thankfully, she has so many loved ones that she is rarely alone!

We are getting excited because the end of year "holiday season" begins this week here, first with Thanksgiving this coming Thursday and then with the anticipation and preparations for Christmas. I hope to blog about all the different things we will be doing and we are particularly excited that my mother and step-father will be arriving in less than a month, followed by my sister and brother-in-law! We just can't wait for them to enjoy Daniel too!

For now, please enjoy the recent photos of Daniel enjoying the fall leaves:

And here is a cute video of Daniel running around outside after Church yesterday...