Surgery Day...

After the wait for surgery you would think we'd be happy to finally have a date, but nothing could prepare us for the actual day.

Mabel couldn't eat after midnight and couldn't nurse after 4:30am so I woke her up at 3:00am for a last nursing to tie her over until her 8:30am surgery. The morning couldn't have gone more perfect. She didn't wake up until about 15 minutes before we had to leave for the hospital. I had everything packed and ready to go the night before.

We got her dressed and packing up, she seems so confused as to what we were doing since she normally would be eating breakfast at that time. The pre-op went along pretty quickly. Our nurse was very nice and everyone loved Mabel, all the nurses came in to say "hi". Mabel was being very smiley and social which surprised us since she is normally more reserved. When it came time to bring Mabel to surgery only one of us could go with her - of course I had to, I'm her mommy. I carried her in and when we got to the surgical suite I my instinct was just to run away with her, but I knew we had to do this. I had to put her on the table and I was shaking so much I could tell she was so concerned with what was going on. They explained to me how they will first gas her until she falls asleep and they kept telling me how she'll go limp and her eyes will roll back, but in my mind I just screamed for them to get it over with as I watched her look around wondering what was happening and why I was bringing her in there. She cried as they put the mask over her face, she just looked so scared looking to me wondering why I was allowing this. I kept talking to her and holding her hand, but it was so hard to see her like that. She fell asleep in about 20 seconds but it felt like forever. Then the nurse escorted me out, I was crying so hard I couldn't open the door. Then I met back up with Zack and we were brought back to the waiting room to wait.



The operation took about an hour. Then they finally brought us to recover to be with her. As we entered the cubicles and turned the corner I saw a nurse standing in front of a crib and I saw Mabel's little foot and knew it was her. When the nurse turned around Mabel was in her cast, it was shocking to see, nothing could prepare me for seeing my baby in the cast, not all the pictures of other babies, not all the stories, nothing. My heart broke as she cried in such a weak voice. The nurse said she was trying to offer her a bottle but Mabel refused it. Of course she would! The only thing she knew of these people was that they knocked her out and put her in a cast, she wouldn't eat anything they offered! The nursed handed her to me and told me I could breastfeed her - I didn't know how to hold her but I didn't care, it felt so good to hold her again and comfort her. She settled down a bit, but off and on cried in pain. They kept giving her medicine in her IV to help calm her down. Finally were were transferred to a room by noon. I held her as they wheeled me in a wheelchair to her room, her cast fits perfectly over my lap and she just snuggled into me.



The hospital stay was fine. Our nurses were great. Mabel did very well and even gave us some smiles. She did cry in frustration and pain off and on. I wondered what she must have been thinking about this whole thing. It wasn't too long when she smiled and giggled again. When they disconnected her IV we dressed her - that made us feel "normal" again. I had found a site online that sold special rompers to fit over the cast - I'm so glad I had them. Poor thing had blisters on her bottom where the spica was rubbing against her skin - the nurse applied a bandage to help protect the area, she also petalled around the opening with moleskin as I had expected from what I had read. I mastered the diaper changed based on all my research and tips from other parents. The nurses were quite impressed. As new nurses came on duty they said they were told they had to meet Mabel in her cute outfit and that we could show them a thing or two about caring for the spica.

I couldn't wait to get home and get started over with our routine and getting situated again. Mabel had slept about 6 hours in the hospital and I was quite impressed with that. She was exhausted and I was able to sleep right next to her crib so that probably helped, but this was the first time she had ever slept away from home and in the best situation I would have been surprised if she had slept at all. We had to wait for the hospital to set us up with a car seat to get her home in, it didn't take as long as I had thought and the hospital doesn't charge for the car seat so that was a relief. We finally were set to leave by 11am on Friday. Mabel was all smiles as they fitted her for her car seat, it was almost as she knew it meant were were finally going home.



Surgery and Hospital Day couldn't have gone better in my mind, no it is time to settle in at home with our new routine.