Wednesday, February 16, 2011

high five

Longest.  Post.  Ever.

But, if you want to know what happened to our little man in the past 24 hours, keep reading!  

February 15, 2011:

7:00 PM -  Jason stays up until 8:00 for a little extra play (and love on) time. 






8:00 PM  - Little Man's bedtime.  Cry a bit when singing him to sleep, and rock him much longer than usual.  Find out out later that Peter was having an emotional moment of his own in the living room.

8:30 PM - Jason wakes up crying for what seemed like no reason.  Maybe he knew?  Maybe he fell asleep in a funny position?  Whatever it was, a little cuddle from Daddy put him right back to sleep.

9:00 PM - Took shower.  Dried hair.  Tried to fall asleep, but it really never happened.  Even though I knew I'd wake up to my alarm, I was too scared I'd miss it.  And I was a bit anxious. Therefore, I saw the clock at least twice an hour between 10:00 and 4:00.  Peter said he slept through the night no problem, but I don't believe him. 

February 16, 2011:

4:45 AM - Alarm rings.  Got up, brush teeth, comb hair, get ready.  Make Little Man 4 different kinds of jello (strawberry banana, orange, lemon, grape).  Do a final check of hospital bag:  sippy cup, diapers, wipes, Glow Worm, extra jammies, t-shirt/pants/socks/shoes, toys, iPad and Kindle.

5:05 AM - Tiptoe in Jason's room.  Whisper "Little Man..." and get eye rubs and a smile.  Quick diaper change, and pack him in the car.

5:21 AM - Leave for Lutheran General.  Jason stays up the entire ride, singing.

6:10 AM - Arrive at hospital.  Get checked in, Jason gets a certificate from the hospital for being brave.  Tear up just a bit.

6:30 AM - Go to the pre-surgery area.  The nurses are wonderful, everyone is so friendly and kind.  Handy Manny and Mickey Mouse keep Jason entertained on the TV.  Then, he gives other patients a good laugh before their surgeries as he toddles around the area and smiles. 





7:00 AM - Dr. Simmons came to talk to us, and let us know a bit more about what actually was going to happen.  Asked us if we wanted the extra thumb because of religious reasons... apparently some religions want to have extra appendages and digits taken home and given a burial.  Jews or Catholics, not so much.  The nurse who would be with Jason for surgery came by, and gave us even more confidence... he said he'd worked with Dr. Simmons before and he's great.  Also, he said the anesthesiologist specialized in pediatrics, and she was great too.  Peter and I both breathed a huge sigh of relief... we weren't too worried about the actual procedure, but more so of the anesthesia.  Met her (forgot her name) and immediately liked her.  She then told the nurse to give Jason a sedative so he'd be really easy to work with.  Little Man was being so so good, but he was STARVING!!!  It was funny... after the sedative kicked in, he looked like he was drunk.  The nurse took him out of his jammies, we did a quick diaper change, and said our love yous and bye byes as he was wheeled away.



8:00 AM - Another nurse took us to the surgery family waiting room, checked in, and got a beeper that looked just like the one at the Olive Garden.  We then went upstairs to grab breakfast, with me joking that I'd like bruschetta, chicken picatta and a lemonade (ode to Paulina... let's see if she reads this).  Grabbed a quick bite to eat, called Mom to check in on Kayla (who was doing awesome staying with her Bubbe), and went back down to wait.  Peter played on the iPad, and I was able to get some reading done. 

9:00 AM - Dr. Simmons finds us in the family waiting room, and told us that the little man was a bit crabby asking for jello, and doing great.  He was able to remove the finger, and had to reconstruct the ligament on the outside of Jason's hand.  Because of the reconstruction, he had to give Jason a soft cast, and made it as 16 month old proof as possible.  He also gave him a shot of Novocaine, and gave us a prescription for Tylenol with codeine.  However, he said that the codeine could make J constipated or throw up... so he suggested that if J could handle it, to rotate Tylenol and Motrin every three hours.  He also asked to see Jason again in 3 weeks. 

9:30 AM - They let us go back in recovery.  Little Man was lying in the crib in a diaper, and sat up as soon as he heard our voices.  He needed to pass the first recovery stage, so they put him in my lap as I sat in a wheelchair.  He was doing just fine, but we could tell he was hungry.   The nurse brought him a small cup of apple juice, and he sucked it up in under a minute.  Then, the howling started.  Little Man was crying from hunger, not from pain.  They couldn't keep the apple juice coming fast enough.  And once again, I was so thankful for Gramma Debbie and Grandma Dee for teaching him to drink from a straw at the mall. 



9:45 AM - We were wheeled into the Phase II recovery room, and the wonderful nurse gave Jason everything he could want:  a personal speaker and Dinosaur Train on TV, Lora Doone Shortbread, graham crackers, and what seemed like a gallon of apple juice.  Happy, happy baby.



10:00 AM - As Rev Run and Elmo were telling a grasshopper to "Hop This Way," (hooray Sesame Street!) the nurses unhooked Jason's IV, did his vitals, told us our instructions, and said we were free to go!  We got Little Man dressed, and went to the car!



11:00 AM - Stopped to drop off J's perscription, got Subway for lunch, and headed home.  As Peter and I called people to give status updates, Jason learned how to pick the cotton out of his cast and eat it.  I love those IKEA bibs that Rachelle found.. they were perfect for hiding J's cast.  And... just a spoon full of strawberry banana Jello helps the medicine go down.






12:00 PM - I leave to run to Old Navy.  Little Man's cast (or club, as Peter calls it) is too big to fit in his long sleeved shirts and jammies, so I went and got him his spring wardrobe a little early.  Stopped at Walgreens on the way home to pick up the prescription.


1:00 PM  - Jason naps.  And naps.  And naps.  Peter and I discuss how anti-climatic the day had been... the only thing that's different is that he realizes he can't use his right hand very well.  He's having trouble pulling himself up, but other than that, it's business as usual.  We were expecting him to be passed out and crabby.  How lucky are we?!  How lucky is he?!?

4:00 PM - Jason wakes up from his nap, terrorizes the house.  He was toddling about, getting into everything he wasn't supposed to.



4:30 PM - family walk time!  It was such a lovely day, we took Basia and Jason out for a nice, long, muddy walk.



5:00 PM - Jason and I cuddle on the couch watching Tom & Jerry cartoons as Peter made dinner. 

6:45 PM - After dinner, we played a bit more, and then got him in his new altered jammies (regular jammies with the sleeve trimmed up a bit)  No bath tonight... we're still trying to figure out the best way to get him clean and keep the cast from getting wet.  Story time, lots of hugs/rocking/lullabies and Tylenol. 





I'm posting this now,  hoping he'll be able to sleep through the night.

I can't believe the strength and pain tolerance my Little Man has... he couldn't of realized what was happening today, but within a half hour of waking up from surgery, he was smiling.  He was a bit crabby, and a bit wobbly as he toddled, but all in all he was so so so good today.

Such heart felt thanks and gratitude to the doctors, nurses, family and friends who got us through today.  Your skill and love made every day for the past 16 months up until today seem easy.  Thank you thank you thank you.

We can't believe it's over.  All the anticipation, the worry, the preparation... done!  In 3 weeks, Little Man will get his cast off.  Now, I'm just waiting for summer!

2 comments:

  1. I'm so glad every thing went so well! Jason and I will have to chat-- I too once when into surgery and randomly woke up with a soft cast on my arm. I also woke up in recovery next to an old lady with a broken hip and dementia who kept insisting she needed to make Stephen his meat balls. (Note: no Stephen was present).

    Give little man a hug for me!!

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  2. The picture of Jason holding the glo worm just about killed me. He looks so big and so little all at the same time. So happy that it went so well, can't wait to come and give him a big hug, and YAY for summer! It's going to be the best summer ever--especially as P will be big with child (lol, let's see if she reads this!).

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