Surgery Day!

Surgery day finally came. We had to be at Primary Children's at 7 AM so we arranged for Cole to hang out here until 9:00 and then head over to Allreds to play for most of the day. 

Caleb was so clingy when we got him out of the car. It was almost like he knew something was about to happen.

They advised us that check-in was at 7:00 but that surgery probably wouldn't happen until 8:30. I was nervous because Caleb had to be fasting and I didn't think would go over very well. That hour and a half seemed to drag.

After doing a quick physical exam to make sure he was well enough to operate on, a nurse came in and gave him a couple medications. One was oral and the other was nasal. 

Then we waited for Doctor Peterson. I love how Caleb was holding Danny's face.

All smiles...he has no idea what's coming :)

Dr. Peterson came in and we felt confident handing over our son to him. Even though there are nerves and valid fears--I honestly felt like everything was going to be okay. I was feeling pretty peaceful. Danny was really nervous and couldn't even sit down.

Caleb wasn't as enthusiastic about meeting the other Dr. Peterson who was his anesthesiologist. 

After handing him off to the anesthesiologist, we were directed to the waiting room. Danny was so sweet and got emotional as he watched Caleb being carried away. I tried not to look back because from my experience with Cole's surgeries, it just makes things harder. I went down to the cafeteria to get a hard-boiled egg and some fruit and Danny stayed in the waiting room in case they needed to get in touch with either of us. About 45 minutes later, the doctor came in and said that everything went perfectly and that in about 5 minutes, we could go see him. This is where I got a little anxious because it's hard to see your little one so out-of-it and not aware of what's going on. We were led into the first post-op station where they keep a close eye on his vitals and make sure that he adjusts okay from being out of surgery. Primary's is a well-oiled machine.

Once he got the green light to head into the secondary post-op area we were given some watered down apple juice to feed Caleb. He was starving and guzzled it down. 

He woke up a little after that and seemed...shocked.

After that he was in and out. They just had to make sure that he kept the apple juice down and that his oxygen level stayed solid. He was soooo groggy but we were really surprised with how immediate the difference was. We were told he'd have bloody tears for a couple days and that there would be a lot of crying.

I sat in the back seat on the way home from the hospital because he tends to droop his head down to his chest when he falls asleep and I just wanted to watch him. Basically just like the day we brought him home from the hospital for the first time.

 He slept most of the day and we tried to stay on top of his pain meds to help him stay comfortable. This picture was taken just a few hours after being home.

And then more sleepy.

 His recovery has honestly been way smoother than both Danny and I expected. I'm so grateful for the prayers and the fasts that were offered for little Caleb. He has bounced back so quickly and looks so different. In a weird way, we kind of miss cross-eyed Caleb but I'm sure he doesn't miss being cross-eyed! He seems to be interacting really well.

The doc said to lay off the glasses for 5 weeks to give his brain a chance to re-calibrate. Fine with me. They're cute and all--but dang. I was ready for a break from trying to keep them out of his mouth and on his face.

Just a few days after surgery.