Hope

Tested positive for Opioids at birth. 

Abused, neglected. Over 365 days in foster care. 

Adopted.



Written by their mom:

"Luke and Olivia had a difficult start to life when they were exposed to opiates before birth and tested positive when they were born a few weeks early. Their struggles continued after they went home, and by ten months they were admitted to the hospital for symptoms of shaken baby and signs of other abuse.  

In addition to the trauma, Luke was severely behind in his development. He was such a docile baby that he was left in his infant carrier for excessive periods of time. At the time of hospitalization he still couldn’t hold his head up, let alone crawl.  

It was during that fateful hospitalization that the doctors also discovered Luke inherited a genetic condition that would add complexities to the other lifelong struggles he was born with. He faced the possibility of leg amputation due to a skeletal deformity and doctors were unsure of other issues that could develop. We will never know if his poor vision comes from his exposure to drugs, the trauma to his brain, or if he would have been born with it genetically anyway. 

They were blessed with loving foster parents and nurtured back to health after leaving the hospital, although Luke required many years of intense therapy to catch up. Adoption was eventually the next step which meant finding a loving family ready for toddlers. Even though it sounds like a wonderful resolution to their story, it was still a terrifying transition that was difficult for a two year old to understand. 

Now they are both reading Harry Potter books, riding bikes, playing the piano, and taking ballroom dancing together. Luke likes to play jokes on his sister and loves to laugh and be silly. He adores his sister and will play the king or prince in any scenario Livvy comes up with. Livvy will always be the protector, making sure her brother is happy and safe but today she doesn’t have to worry."

Luke and Livvy were amazing to work with and laughed throughout the session, particularly with the antics of their cats (yes we used their actual real and beloved pet cats- who were not as amused as the twins were!) See the images and behind-the-scenes below!

*Children and their stories are real, names are not.

All images ©Bren Slade and OnceUponAPix 2019 and may not be used or reproduced without permission.

Defiance

Born with Cerebral Palsy, and Hydrocephalus, among other diagnosis.

They said she would never walk or talk or see-

but she continues to surprise everyone with her 'imposible' advancements.

Aspyn defines her own future.

From her mother:

"The first several years of Aspyn's life I took her all over the country, I wanted to get her in front of every specialist and every doctor, every surgeon and every expert that I possibly could. I wanted them to give me a sneak peak into what her future could possibly look like. Everyone I took her to... each one had a new diagnosis and a new gigantic latin word that no one can pronounce. And they can all do that, they can all put as many labels on her as they want to. But something I have discovered over the years is that... those diagnosis are just words, and they don't define Aspyn at all. The only person that can give me a glimpse into Aspyn's future, is her.

They thought that she would be in a vegetative state, they've told me she is blind, that they don't know how she can see, let alone talk, walk, function, she surprised them all. She is brave, she strong, she is courageous, she is creative she is SO smart. She is a miracle."

Aspyn has been diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy, Hydrocephalus, and more. When I asked Aspyn's mother what kind of image she would be interested in, she commented that Aspyn always wants to be a ballerina and maybe this could be her chance. Thanks to a local ballet studio we were able to do more than just an image, but a complete ballet workshop including teacher, class, costume, and mini performance. The moment Aspyn hit the dance floor she completely ditched her walker and shouted as she twirled, "Wahoo! I'm a ballerina!" See more of Aspyn's images (including her adorable siblings!) and behind-the-scenes below:

All images ©Bren Slade and OnceUponAPix 2019 and may not be used or reproduced without permission.

Love

Born with severe vascular malformations

and hearing loss. Experienced

10 surgeries in the past 2 years.

Written by her mother:

"While I was pregnant, they noticed a large mass growing on her right side. From then on, we went to a Perinatologist for all our doctor appointments, praying that she would still be ok and not going into heart failure. She had to be born via Caesarian section and was punctured in her swollen chest during delivery. Because of that, we dealt with infections that caused her swelling to increase enough to a point that doctors recommended intervening. We later confirmed that her swelling was vascular malformations formed in utero that she would more than likely have her entire life. On top of this, we found out that Savannah has a severe hearing loss.

Over the past 2 years, she’s been through 10 different surgeries/procedures for her vascular malformations and hearing. We’ve seen significant improvement and continue to meet with doctors regularly.

... I was originally very protective of her image and was concerned about exposing her upper body in public for fear of staring. Now, we are much more comfortable with it all and really work hard to treat her like any other child we would call ours."

Savannah opened the door giggling (her laugh is like a baby unicorn ate a rainbow) and full of life. This girl is going places. See some behind-the-scenes below!

*Children and their stories are real, names are not.

All images ©Bren Slade and OnceUponAPix 2019 and may not be used or reproduced without permission.

ENERGY

Logan: Born weighing 1lb. 5oz. 

battled brain bleeds,

chronic lung disease, apnea and bradycardia events.

Written by his mother:

Logan was born at 27 weeks and 0 days. He weighed just 1 pound 5 ounces (600 grams) at birth.

He was in the NICU for a total of 123 days. During that time, he battled brain bleeds, chronic

lung disease, apnea and bradycardia events, multiple blood transfusions, as well as needing

several rounds of steroids to wean his lungs off the ventilator to the CPAP machine. Logan

hated the CPAP machine, so he was quickly transferred to a nasal cannula, which is what he was

eventually discharged with. After several weeks of monitoring at home, Logan was able to leave

all of the wires behind and breathe normally during the day and night.

Thanks to modern medicine and his amazing team of doctors, nurses and specialists, Logan is a

carefree, fun-loving child who is loved by everyone, loves to get lost in stories, plays X-Box as

long as his mom lets him, and is thriving in school - he is even learning how to speak Portuguese!

Logan is full to the brim with what I would call 'shy energy.' His smile is as big as anyone's heart. He loves dinosaurs and his dog Moki. He is an avid jr. zoologist. His mother is full of fun and delightful- can she be my new best friend?! Enjoy Logan's other images and behind-the-scenes below:

Faith

Danced ballet since she was 3. Currently an unknown neurological disorder has caused her to pull out of both school and dancing. Though, right now, her life is somewhat 'underwater' she is facing it with bravery and optimism and I know she will no doubt emerge with beauty and light.

Written by her mother:

"Annie has been a ballerina for 10 years now. 9 months ago she began to struggle with an unknown neurological disorder. This has caused her to have heart problems, constant headaches, exercise intolerance, nerve pain, and chronic fatigue. She was forced to stop going to school and dancing. All aspects of her life have stopped and she has had to readjust her entire approach to life. She is currently in the rehab process by doing physical, speech, occupational, and behavioral therapy... It is still unclear how long it will take for her to recover. Each day she struggles to get out of bed and dressed for the day. It has been so hard for her because she was such a strong athletic dancer for the majority of her life."

Progress- one year later.

This weekend Addie successfully danced in the Ballet Arts Performance of 'The Nutcracker.' Though she still has battles to fight and win, her mother called it nothing short of a miracle. #NeverGiveUp

Every Day is a Gift.

DEAN'S OBITUARY

Dean Bennie Cooley, our almost 4 year old little man, lived at home with his father Jacob, mother Whitney, siblings Joseph Summers, and Shane Cooley. Dean was born on May 5th 2016, our little Cinco de Mayo, taco baby. Dean was named after his great grandfathers Bennie Cooley and Ronald Dean Stoneman. He spent the first 7 weeks fighting for his life at EIRMC in Idaho Falls Idaho. On week 8 he was transferred to Primary Children’s to continue his fight. He prevailed! He was sent home off of all equipment and most medications after several weeks. Over the next four weeks he learned to be fed from a bottle but was unable to gain enough weight to meet his needs and the decision was made to tube feed him and place a feeding tube. Love, perseverance, and medicine gave Dean the tools to stay with our family for the next 3.5 years. This hard won time was a miracle and every day was a gift. Our family was privileged to have Dean with us. He helped us find strength we did not know we had.

Deanie left us Thursday morning, March 26th 2020 at 5 AM. He had been having a hard time sleeping for months and Joey volunteered to take the night shift allowing Jacob, and Whitney to sleep. At 1:30 Whitney came out to help calm and care for Dean. Everyone returned to bed until 5 AM when Joey calmly woke Whitney up to check on Dean. Dean would not wake up or respond and passed in the arms of his family. Dean’s great grandparents, grandparents, parents, and siblings were given his last gift that morning, being allowed to hold him and say goodbye. He laid with us, a warm smile, a quiet heart, and a resting spirit that calmed our grief and sorrow.

Dean is survived by his parents, Jacob and Whitney Cooley; siblings, Joseph Summers and Shane Cooley; Grandparents Stephen and Linda Price, Terry and Denise Cooley, Marlene and Steve StClair, Jim and Linda Cooley; his Great Grandparents, Ron and Jeanne Stoneman, and many aunts, uncles, and cousins.

Dean loved being around people and loved noise. The more noise and people, the happier he was. He enjoyed driving to Salt Lake and seeing his Aunt Tansy, going to his many doctor appointments and flirting with the nursing staff. Attending preschool class was the highlight of Dean’s week. Dean loved the sweet Georgian accent of his nurse Laura who was devoted to him and appreciated by his family. Dean looked forward to our family’s boating trips and spent time on the Snake River, Flaming Gorge, Blackfoot Reservoir, and Ririe Reservoir. Dean was not limited by his body, he spent time outside shooting bow with his dad and brothers, walking with his mom and grandma, and backpacking the Menan Buttes, and Webber Creek Mountains on the back of his father, surrounded by mom, Joey, Shane, and the dog, Drake. The overnight, back-country backpack trip, was an accomplishment for our family to show we could all be together and free, not limited by disability and lack of access.

*The children and their stories are real. Their names are not.

All images ©Bren Slade and OnceUponAPix 2019 and may not be used or reproduced without permission.