Holden - Surgery

Dear Holden,

Today marks two weeks post-surgery, and I am thrilled to say that you sailed through the whole experience with no issues whatsoever. We were nervous that the surgery itself might not go ahead as planned, since you were fighting a cold for a few days prior to your scheduled operation date. But we were told as long as you didn’t have a high fever and you were in good spirits, not overly congested, etc. that the surgery should be a go ahead. So we finalized our plans, booking time off work, withdrawing you temporarily from daycare, arranging for care of your sisters, packing our bags, planning for an overnight hospital stay… and then the morning of, you woke up with a fever. We could tell that you were sicker than you were even just the day before and your father and I were terrified that they wouldn’t go through with it. Of course, we’d never put you in danger, and obviously the medial team would never operate if they felt it unsafe. But we knew how desperately you needed the surgery to stop getting sick so often, and of course, it would have been a huge inconvenience to have to reschedule everything.

Thankfully, the anesthetist made a last-minute call to go ahead as planned. He said you weren’t too congested and your chest sounded clear, plus he knew you were scheduled to stay overnight, which meant that the nurses would be able to keep a close eye on your recovery and make sure you were okay.

So off you went, after charming every single doctor, nurse, and patient you came across. Everyone commented on how handsome and well-behaved you were; both true! Of course, you cried when I handed you over to the doctor and he took you down the hall into the operating room, but you had your Eddy with you at least (complete with his own hospital bracelet to match yours, which you weren’t a big fan of), and I know you were put under fairly quickly.

Your father and I breathed a sigh of relief that we had made it through the morning with only one minor meltdown about Bear Paws (you were fasting of course), and that the surgery was going ahead as planned. And then we waited a bit anxiously for news once the procedure was finished, which came fairly quickly, thankfully. Your surgeon said you did amazing, and everything went exactly as planned. She said your tonsils and adenoids were HUGE and they could all hear an immediate difference in your breathing when you were taken to recovery. You were supposed to only be in recovery for about half an hour, and then moved to the Pediatrics floor where you (and I) were to spend the night. However, they kept you for over two and a half hours – apparently you were VERY sleepy and had some trouble coming out of the anesthesia (not uncommon). Your oxygen levels were low, so they wanted to keep a close eye on you and provide you added oxygen via mask to be sure you were okay before moving you upstairs. But, within a few hours of the surgery, we were reunited. You were so sad and sleepy, but that changed to angry within a couple of hours. You had no problems drinking or taking your medicine, thankfully, and you ate a bunch of jello in the middle of the night, but you did want to be held constantly, and were pretty upset about the IV in your foot and having to wear a sensor to monitor your vital signs.

But, with some tears (from us both) and some EXTREMELY uncomfortable sleeping in a chair, we made it through the night and were discharged mid-morning on Thursday. And thus began a week and a half of ‘recovery’ at home. No daycare, no scratchy food, no super strenuous activity. There were some challenges, particularly around taking your pain meds (which you often took like a champ. However, when you decided you did NOT want to take your medicine, there was no convincing you) and arguing about snacks. You quickly tired of pudding and jello and were quite upset to not be allowed to eat exactly what you wanted. We made do with a lifetime’s supply of yogurt, super-soft bread (croissants, fresh buns, super-nutritious white bread, etc.), and overcooked pasta to keep you happy. Finally, on the weekend, we worked our way up to some harder food and here you are! Two weeks post-surgery, no sign of any bleeding whatsoever, and over a week without any pain meds.

You are sleeping better. You are breathing SO much better. You don’t snore anymore. Your cold cleared up after surgery almost instantly. You are even in great spirits! I don’t know if it’s because you can breathe better and are sleeping better, or if it’s because you cut two molars during the last couple of weeks, or if it’s because you just finished a growth spurt… but in any case, I see so much more of my happy, easy-going, funny, charming baby boy these days. You are still two, in all your toddler glory, but you whine and cry and cling and complain and tantrum SO much less and it delights me. Because truthfully, you have been quite a handful these past six months (not at daycare, not with anyone else, but for Mommy and Daddy – especially Mommy – yes). And now I am falling in love with you and your cheeky grin and that tiny dimple and your increasingly-crazy-Lexi-like hair all over again.

I am so relieved that this is behind us, and so hopeful that it means a much easier Winter for you this year. And the bonus? Your voice has completely changed (even more adorable) and now I can’t tell you and Lexi apart at all.

Love,

Mama