Moments With Moriah

 About Justin and Victoria

Victoria and I are high school sweethearts who grew up in Southern California.  We both graduated from the University of Colorado at Boulder (yes, we know we look like we're 12 years old =)  ), and got married going into our senior year of college on May 29, 2005.

On January 23rd, 2008, we received our gift, Moriah Sarjit Nelson.  She is our first child, and continues to be the greatest blessing we have received.  This website is dedicated to her, and the journey she continues to travel (more on this below).

In order to really have an understanding of who we are as a family, we have to share about something that happened to Victoria and I when we were seniors in high school.  The experience continues to shape us into the people we are, and how we look at the world and the present circumstances we are in as a family.  It was the first time we heard the message that changed us forever. 

When we were 18 years old, we heard about Jesus for the first time and why He came on this earth. At this time, we accepted Him into our lives. This is pretty much the same Message we heard that day...

Since then, life truly hasn't been the same.  All we can say is that Jesus is real, and through His power and grace, He has changed us. God isn't looking for perfect people that have all the answers.  He came for the broken, the ones that don't have it all together. We aren't perfect by any means, but we have an awesome God that continues to love us and carry us every day. 

About Moriah

Moriah Sarjit Nelson was born with a Congenital Heart Defect called Tetralogy of Fallot with Pulmonary Atresia and Major Aortopulmonary Collateral Arteries (MAPCAs).

Here are a few websites that explain her heart defect:

Moriah also has CHARGE syndrome. It stands for:

  • C-Coloboma.  She has a slight coloboma in either eye, but the doctors predict only minimal visual impairment.
  • H-Heart Defect.  Tetralogy of Fallot with Pulmonary Atresia and MAPCAs.
  • A-Atresia.  This means narrowing of the airways, but she doesn't have this one.
  • R-Retardation of Growth and/or Development.  Moriah is on the smaller side, but I think her feeding issues contribute to this delay. (**After Moriah's Heart Repair, she had a major growth spurt and has caught up to where she needs to be**) Moriah is as bright as a button, but her physical development is delayed. With the help of all our physical and occupational therapies, hopefully, she will get there one day!
  • G-Genital and/or Renal Anomalies. The only thing that she has in this category is a horseshoe-shaped kidney
  • E-Ear Anomalies and/or Hearing Loss. Her ears are lookin' good, but she needs to take another hearing test because she failed her newborn hearing screen.

 

Overview of Moriah's History

  • Open heart surgery at 5 days old to connect her pulmonary artery to her aorta (Waterston shunt) - they saw later that this was not even a pulmonary artery but a collateral
  • Pyloromyotomy surgery to correct her pyloric stenosis. Also surgery for G-tube placement
  • Gastro Esophageal Reflux Disease (so severe it lead to sleep apnea)
  • GJ tube placement
  • 5 Heart Catheterizations
  • On continuous oxygen as of June 19, 2008
  • Nissen Fundoplication Surgery
  • A FULL REPAIR OF HER HEART on November 14, 2008 -Unifocalization Surgery performed by Dr. Frank Hanley
  • Open heart surgery to fix a compressed lung on December 10, 2008
  • Diagnosed with Abdominal Migraines (cyclical pattern of sudden outbursts of pain and vomiting). Resolved with Neurontin and PRN doses of Ativan
  • Right Diaphragmatic Plication Surgery January 2, 2009
  • Severe Septic Shock February 9, 2009
  • Tracheotomy surgery at 15 months old

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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