Brenna's Surgery

Brenna had her surgery last Monday at Dell Children's Hospital.  She had her tonsils and adenoids removed and a tube put back in her right ear.  We decided it was time to have the surgery after 7 cases of strep throat plus additional sore throats in the past year.  We were told her surgery would be in the morning, and we would spend one night at the hospital for observation.  I packed our bags on Sunday night loading Brenna's bag with plenty of books, games, and toys to entertain her during our stay.  We arrived bright and early at 6:30 AM on Monday morning.  We filled out our paperwork, and shortly after, they took us to the back to go over her medical history.  I had to think about it for a second when they asked me if she was full-term and if there were any complications with the pregnancy.  After going through the babies' history at so many appointments in the past year, it felt odd and great to say, "Yes, she was full term.  No complications with the pregnancy." 

A child life specialist came in after the doctor's questions were complete.  She talked to Brenna about the surgery and let her choose a flavor to breathe in the mask.  She was awesome and made Brenna feel really comfortable about what was going to happen.  She even pulled out her iPad and asked Brenna if she would like to play a game when she was in the surgery room.  Brenna chose Angry Birds.  It made me feel a lot better when we had to say good-bye to know the child life specialist would be with Brenna.  All Brenna remembers is playing Angry Birds and breathing in watermelon.  Not bad!

After her surgery, Jim and I went back to the recovery room.  She looked pretty sad in recovery; she was sleeping with a permanent frown.  Her lovey, "Jojo," seemed to help comfort her a bit though. 

After a few more hours of sleep and pain medication, she was ready to play with her new Polly Pocket dolls.  This was her best attempt at a smile.  Her lips are so red because she ate four popsicles.  Luckily, she took enough fluids in the observation room that we were allowed to go home around 1 PM.  We were so happy that we were not going to have to stay at the hospital. 

On our way home Brenna said she needed to go to the bathroom.  I stopped at McDonald's and told her we could use the restroom, and I would buy her a shake.  I thought she would be excited, but instead, she told me, "Nah, I think I want a Happy Meal."  I told her she could not have a Happy Meal.  Then she asked me if she could go play on the playground.  I thought that was pretty funny since she was still in her pajamas with hospital bracelets on.  We got the shake and headed home.

Recovery at home for the past week has been a little rough.  When she has her pain medication, she feels fine, but as soon as it starts wearing off, she is in pain again.  We can only give it every 4 hours, so sometimes waiting for the next dose is a little hard.  She has only been eating very soft things for the last week.  Anything with any type of texture at all is not a good thing, so it has been soup, yogurt, smoothies, and pudding all week.  It makes me so sad when she tells me her throat hurts really, really bad, and now she is saying her ears hurt really, really bad too.  I'm praying she'll feel much better soon.