As many of you know, we left this past Wednesday to head to Boston for Abigail’s appointment with the plastic surgeon at Boston Children’s Hospital.

The flight from Winchester, VA to Bedford, MA was smooth overall, though there were a few bumpy spots when we hit some clouds. Our pilot, Scott, was very professional and took the time to explain things as we flew. It was neat to learn how pilots communicate and to get a glimpse of what it’s like to fly an airplane.

Once we landed, we took an Uber to the place we’d be staying—a studio apartment provided through an organization that helps families like ours with affordable housing. It was only about ten minutes from the hospital, which was a huge blessing.

On Thursday morning, we cooked breakfast at the apartment before heading to Abigail’s appointment with Dr. Cory Resnick, the plastic surgeon. The appointment went really well. Dr. Resnick took his time evaluating Abigail, explaining his thoughts, and answering all of our questions.

Right now, he doesn’t believe a jaw distraction surgery is necessary. Instead, he feels the priority is the tonsil and adenoid surgery (already scheduled for September 15th) followed by the airway reconstruction surgery in the spring. The ENT scheduler should be calling us soon to set up that reconstruction surgery.

Dr. Resnick explained that he doesn’t think Abigail’s jaw is the main thing keeping her from being able to get her trach removed—it’s more the issues with her airway. He wants to see her again when we’re back in Boston for the LTR (airway reconstruction). If the LTR doesn’t help her enough to remove the trach, then he would consider the jaw distraction. He was very thoughtful in explaining that he doesn’t want to do surgeries “just to do them,” especially since multiple jaw surgeries could increase the risk of her jaw muscles becoming too tight. He also mentioned that he would be speaking with Dr. Rahbar to make sure they’re both on the same page and then follow up with us.

After the appointment, we grabbed lunch at a Caribbean restaurant and then headed back to the apartment to rest. On Friday, we enjoyed walking around Boston and taking in some sights together as a family.

This morning (Saturday), we woke up really early to make breakfast and head to the airport. We had a pilot fly us from Boston to New Jersey, and then another pilot was supposed to take us from NJ back to Winchester. But just as we were about to take off, the tower called to say that one of the tires was flat and smoking. Thankfully, the pilot who had flown us into NJ was still there and kindly volunteered to take us the rest of the way home.

Looking back on this trip, Devin and I both feel like God has confirmed that Boston Children’s is exactly where He wants Abigail to be treated. One of the biggest ways we’ve seen that is through the doctors themselves—they take their time, they listen, and they truly care about their patients. That kind of attention and compassion is rare these days, and we are so grateful.

Thank you all so much for your continued prayers for Abigail and our family.