One week later, here we are again. This time to celebrate what It would’ve been our little girl’s 19th birthday. I just can’t believe it. it seriously feels like not long ago that I held this little baby in my arms who had this “angry” look on her face...she already knew she needed to fight in her short life and oh boy did she fight!! She is our example of Faith, endurance, love, courage and strength.
Sunday, August 23, 2020
HAPPY BIRTHDAY VITTORIA!!!!!
Sunday, August 16, 2020
August 16th, 2020
No matter how much time has passed or will pass, August is the month that I dread the most with my whole heart. I wish I could just skip it all together . Our little girl Vittoria earned her Angel wings 11 years ago today. Sometimes it feels like yesterday we had her here, and then I think that 11 years has been a long time not to have her with us, to hold her and cuddle with her, to hear her voice. My heart knows where she is at, safe and free from any physical pain and that she was spared from living in a world in so much turmoil. So much has happened since then, one is that her brother is now officially taller than me (he brags about it big time) and he is about to start 6th grade. We have been trying to do our best to be good parents, this summer has been particularly challenging and lonely and we wished she had been here to be a big sister she so much wanted to be. Today is a very hard day. My heart aches. I miss our daughter with every fiber of my being. I know our Family is Eternal and we will see her again...it’s just between now and then that we need to hang on, to our Faith and our Family and do the best we can. Vittoria, we love you and miss you tremendously. Please watch over your little family.
Friday, August 23, 2019
VITTORIA'S 18TH BIRTHDAY
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Ho sempre pensato che i suoi bei occhioni marroni potevano arrivare dritto alla mia anima. Ha incominciato ad indossare gli occhiali a 3 mesi ma non le piacevano per niente (erano fastidiosi) e non le potevo dare torto perche` erano pure brutti! Per fortuna con il passare del tempo, le trovammo degli occhiali viola molto piu` carini.
Overall Vittoria was a good sweet toddler, very tough and so very stubborn. I think this is what helped her through her surgeries and life trials. I remember countless times when she would have her blood drawn and with teary eyes she would thank the nurse. She would bounce back from surgeries like no others and she would request a pizza with mushrooms as soon as she would get out of surgery, while the nurses would try to get her to eat some crackers to settle her stomach! One tough cookie!
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Complessivamente Vittoria e` sempre stata una bimba buona e molto dolce, ma forte di carattere e parecchio testarda. Penso che cio` l'abbia aiutata nell'affrontare le molte operazioni e le difficolta` quotidiane. Ricordo le molte volte che dopo che le prelevavano il sangue, con gli occhi pieni di lacrime, ringraziava l'infermiera. Mi si stringeva il cuore. Si riprendeva dalle operazioni con una velocita` incredibile e pretendeva una pizza con i funghi appena si svegliava dall'anestesia, mentre le infermiere volevano che mangiasse i cracker per aiutare il suo stomaco!
She always felt so safe and loved in her daddy's arms. Sempre amata e al sicuro tra le braccia di papa`... |
And then her little brother came along and Vittoria became the best big sister ever. Unfortunately they just had 9 months to spend together, but every single day, she was there with him, feeding, making him smile or just simply holding him. The only thing she would NOT do was changing his diapers. It grossed her out. She adored him. She had waited for him for many years. She would stare at him for hours with those soft eyes of hers and it would literally moved me to tears.
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(Cousins!!) |
(Happy Birthday Vittoria) ``````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` |
Mi sono chiesta piu` volte se includere queste due ultime foto sarebbe stata una buona idea, ma la realta` di questa vita e` che perdere un figlio non ha solo un impatto sui genitori, ma anche in questo caso, su un fratello. Jacomo aveva solo 9 mesi quando Vittoria e` venuta a mancare, ma ha portato con se` il dolore e la tristezza di non averla vicino per tanto tempo. Ha processato il lutto e ancora lo sta facendo in maniera diversa, ma credo che adesso piu` di prima, il dolore si faccia piu` acuto. Le sue lacrime mi spezzano il cuore. Dopo aver rilasciato i palloncini, si era messo in disparte lontano dal resto della famiglia. L'ho chiamato e mi si e` buttato addosso piangendo. Che momento difficile e triste. Vittoria sarebbe stata orgogliosa di suo fratello. Jacomo ci ha portato tanta gioia e risate. Non ho dubbi che avrebbero litigato come cani e gatti ma sarebbe stata musica per le mie orecchie.
Friday, August 16, 2019
August 16, 2009-August 16,2019 10 YEARS
From that day on, I tried my best to make her proud. The grief was so immense but fortunately I had a toddler to take care of and boy did he keep us on our toes!! For almost a year I tried to keep going, telling myself that I could this on my own, but the truth was that it was way too much for me too bear. Grief would come suddenly and in massive waves that almost took my breath away. Fortunately after some resistance, my James was able to convince me to go see a grief counselor. That was the BEST decision ever. No shame or embarrassment to seek help in fact I wish I would have gone to see my grief counselor John sooner. He gave me hope and the tools to understand the cycles of grief and how to deal with it. After one year, I was in a good spot to take charge of my life and keep going. Time does not heal all wounds but makes it so that you can keep living your life. The pain in my heart is still there, dull and constant but not as sharp and devastating as the first few years. I think of her every single day but with peace in my heart knowing that she is free from pain and that she is with the Lord. Everyone is different, people process grief differently and nobody can tell you how grieve. This was and is my journey on this earth. The Gospel and the Knowledge of Eternal Families is what keeps us going until we meet again.
So here we are 10 years later, remembering our sassy feisty sweet Vittoria and her fearless courage to take on her trials and physical challenges head on.
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Dieci anni dopo, siamo qui a ricordare la nostra dolce e forte Vittoria e il suo coraggio senza paura nell’affrontare le sfide e i problemi fisici che la sua vita le ha dato.
Wednesday, August 23, 2017
Our Jacomo was pretty distraught where he couldn't see Vittoria's car in the sky anymore and still comforted two of his cousins. It literally breaks my heart to see him missing his sister so much and craving to hear stories about her and that's why it's so important for family and friends to share their memories with him.
Thank you to all who came and to those who were not there physically, we FELT your Love, Prayers and Support. We thank you once again for ALWAYS being there for us and for loving and remember out Vittoria!! We love you all!
Il nostro Jacomo era piuttosto sconvolto, soprattutto quando poi non e` piu` riuscito a vedere la "macchina" di Vittoria in cielo. Nonostante tutto, ha poi consolato due sue cuginette che piangevano disperatamente. Mi spezza il cuore vedere quanto gli manca la sorella e quanto desidera tantissimo sentire storie che parlano della sorella e per questo che riteniamo importantissimo che parenti ed amici condividano i loro ricordi con lui.
Grazie a tutti coloro che sono riusciti a venire e a coloro che non erano con noi fisicamente, vi vogliamo far sapere che ABBIAMO SENTITO il vostro Affetto, le vostre Preghiere e il vostro Sostegno. VI ringraziamo di cuore per esserci SEMPRE e del vostro amore per la nostra Vittoria! Vi vogliamo bene!!
16 years ago, we became parents for the first time. Thank you Vittoria for being our daughter and for choosing us as your parents. What an immense honor and privilege it has been to able to raise you for almost 8 years.
I hope you are proud of us and especially of your brother Jacomo! He is very much like you in some ways, and not so like you in others, but no doubt you would have made him always laugh like in this picture!!! Watch over him and your little Family/
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BUON COMPLEANNO VITTORIA!!
16 anni fa siamo diventati genitori per la prima volta. Grazie tesoro nostro di essere nostra figlia e di averci scelto come genitori. E` stato un enorme onore e immenso privilegio averti potuto crescere per quasi 8 anni,
Spero che tu sia orgogliosa di noi e soprattutto di tuo fratello. Ti assomiglia molto in alcuni aspetti, mentre in altri e` cosi` diverso, ma senza dubbio lo avresti fatto ridere a piu` non posso proprio come nella foto! Veglia su di lui e sulla tua Famiglia.