Surgery

I've been blessed again.  Not only did the surgery go off without a hitch, but they blessed me by having it be in the afternoon.  Meaning I didn't even have to get up early.  I really didn't even need to set my alarm (although I did for "just in case", otherwise I wouldn't have been able to sleep...paranoid sleep doesn't do much for me).

So we get there and I had intended to take the Canon camera to get some pictures along the way for Tony (and anyone that might be reading this).  I even got out of the car with it.  However, I turned around and put it back in the car because it was just too much to carry with Hope and all her junk.  I settled for the point and shoot.....which on days like today I'd love to take something else to it and point and shoot IT.  That thing is HORRIBLE for indoor shots.  Even Mary had a hard time with it the other night so it isn't just me.  Any who.  Gabe was wonderful helping me all the way.  He was hungry before we left home but "no food or drink after midnight" they said....for a 1:30 PM surgery.... so since it was his special day I told him we could run to Target and find him some new cards.  I told him that for us to have time to do that, that he would have to be very good.  He'd have to listen, to watch where he was going, be fast, etc....  He held my arm from the moment we left the car until we get back to the car just about.  We were in and out in about 5 minutes.  So we get to the hospital, park (don't get me started on Rutledge Tower parking), get to check in, and wait.  They have a posted sign that reads "If you have been waiting more than 15 minutes, please notify the desk."  or something to that effect.  After 25-30 minutes of NOTHING else happening in the waiting room, I go to the desk and ask.  The lady sitting there thought the other lady that had since left had checked us in.  So good thing I asked.  By this point Hope, the walking bottomless pit and never ending fountain has gone through two of the four diapers I brought (and she is wearing the last clean cover I had brought).  Yikes!  So now I get to limit miss cranky pants on her liquids...she seems to think that life just can't go on if she doesn't have her sippy cup in her hands and take a sip every minute or so.  She is a HEAVY drinker.  Which has the consequence of lots of wet diapers.  Back to Gabe.  They call us back almost immediately after we check in (finally).  We get Bay 1 right by the nurses station where everyone gets to hear our little miracle story.

I mean you can't go through the pre-op stuff without all that stuff coming up.  "Has he ever had surgery before?" "Ever had breathing problems?" etc....  We had a crowd by the time we had gotten through the questionnaire.  They give him a deck of Uno cards (so I can stow away his new cards), a little "happy juice," and a hospital shirt.  The forms are signed and off he goes.  It is about 1:15,  Hope and I go to the waiting area....and wait.

One more diaper down....  And she is getting cranky.  Really she was very good but the withholding of her sippy when it is right there in the bag kinda made her angry.  Can't say that I blame her.  So we go find us a snack bar where I get a drink for each of us (her's for future use).  We see one of the nurses that took Gabe to the OR.  She lets me know that everything went just fine and he wasn't at all upset about anything.  Good!  Back to the waiting area.  We are fast approaching nap time (between 1:30-3:30) so the cranky steps up a notch.  Needless to say the camera didn't see daylight again until we got home.  I finally put Hope in her mei tai in the front carry and try to get her to sleep.  All in vain.  She spent the next 20 minutes in the waiting area with her arching backwards for me to tickle her neck.  Can we say pain in the backside for mom.  Oh well, she isn't whining (which we ALL know I can't handle).  Just as I'm thinking she'll be out soon, the doc comes out.  Everything went perfect and we can go sit with him in about 10 minutes.  Awesome.  Really.  I'll trade a good report for a short nap anytime.  When they call us back, Gabe is curled up in a ball...where he stays for about 15 more minutes when I decide to try to start waking him up.  He really woke up very well, we just let him do it at his own pace and not too fast.  He would sit straight up when we woke him but he would look like he was going to fall over so we had to keep telling him to lay back down where he would be instantly asleep again.  We got all the paperwork done for discharge, got him to drink a little, take some medicine, and change his shirt all while the nurse and I discovered that her second grade son and Gabe both go to the same school.  We got to talk about the school staff and teachers and whatnot.  Finally they kick us out and guess who is also out....Hope.  Just in time for me to wake her up to put in the car.  Oh well.  They send me for the car and they wheel Gabe out to us.  It is now 3:30.  All around, not a bad day.  Except that we didn't get home until 5:15 because of traffic.  I find it annoying that it took longer to drive home then for the surgery.  TWICE as long.  Stupid Charleston traffic!!  We won't talk about how WET her diaper, skirt, and car seat cover were when we got home...   I spent the rest of the evening catering to two tired, cranky children.  One of whom keeps throwing up (although he did keep dinner down) because of the drugs.  Now I'm going to go to bed early...well early for me....

He is focused on Kung Fu Panda in these pics.  Accept the last one where he is playing with Hope in the climber.